With Ulric’s herbs it hadn’t taken very long for Lillith to recover from the hangover and after effects of the night spent next to the falls. She was young and bounced back quick, physically at least. She couldn’t get the fact that her father caught her sneaking home out of her head. Roman tried to help, and he succeeded for the most part. He distracted her rather thoroughly, but she knew she needed to talk to her dad. She never kept anything from him before and knew the truth would come to light sooner rather than later but… This hadn’t been her preferred timeline. She couldn’t change anything now, so to try and put her mind at ease Lil sought out Ulric.

Quietly she left Rom sleeping peacefully and made her way down the hall to knock on her father’s door. ”Hey, Dad, it’s Lil. Will you um.. Patrol with me this morning?” She asked through the door. ”I’ll meet you in the courtyard.” She finished before her heart would beat out of her chest. Lil quickly left the castle then and headed towards the twilight of morning. There were birds singing lazily as the sun began to rise. It was a beautiful new day, and a beautiful dawn.

It was all so perfect Lil wondered why there was a pit in her stomach while she waited for Ulric.


Lillith Adravendi

It was early in the morning as he started slowly pulling himself out of sleep as the memories of the day before started coming back. With how close Lillith and Romulus had gotten since the day that he brought her back after being attacked by one of those saber cats he had gotten the feeling that their relationship was bound to progress further sooner or later, but a little part of him had hoped it would be later. Of all of his children Lillith certainly had a very special place in his heart and it was hard seeing her be anything but his little girl. He sighed softly and shifted to hold Eska a little tighter, hurrying his face in the pillows. He felt like he had handled that moment as best as he could and knew that he would have rather been supportive than scolding, but it was still hard to keep his over protective nature in check. Romulus was simply lucky that Eska was in his life now and had helped put much more reason and logic into his life to smooth his temper.

The knock on the door surprised him and he sleepily lifted his head. Before he could answer or get up to see who it was, he heard Lillith's soft voice from the other side, asking if she could patrol with him and saying how she would be in the courtyard waiting for him. He glanced down at Eska who was still sleeping and carefully pulled himself away from her to get to his feet, giving himself a shake before he went to the door. When he opened it she was gone and he sighed again. He knew it would be slightly awkward for the both of them, but he would rather get the strangeness of it out of the way sooner rather than later. He left the room and gently closed the door behind him so Eska could continue resting and then made his way down out of the castle to find his daughter. He walked over to the silver, spotted girl and offered her a smile. "How're you feeling?" he asked, hoping that he had at least prevented the worst of her hangover.

"Speech"

She paced away from her father’s door and down into the courtyard, she was still sore but her gait wouldn’t betray her. The nervous butterflies and deep pit in her stomach might though as she felt like she wanted to puke before Ulric met her down here. She kept her composure though, probably because she hadn’t eaten yet. Deep breaths were pulled in and pushed out as she counted down holding and taking in her breaths. There was no changing the facts, and Lil tried not to dwell on them. The past couldn’t be changed so she wanted to move forward on the right foot. She wanted to assure her dad about how sure she was about Roman and her decisions.

He didn’t leave her waiting long. Slate tipped ears swiveled as she heard his steps approaching, but she didn’t bring herself to face him until he spoke. His first words of concern for her. She smiled, but there was an obvious flush on her cheeks. ”I feel good,” Lil answered before realizing the full scope of what she had just said. ”I mean, my headache is long gone, and I don't feel like I was caught under a stampede.” She forced a chuckle lightly, still caught up in what he’d caught her doing exactly.

Now that they were here all of her previously excited words were gone and she didn’t know how to move forward. She didn’t like the sudden barrier she felt between them though. That wasn’t a prerequisite for growing up was it? ”I’m sorry,” She decided to go with broadly. ”I’m sorry for sneaking out and worrying you, and…” She swallowed hard as she trailed off, uncertain if she had the capability to finish her sentence.

Lillith Adravendi

Ulric smiled softly and nodded with a bit of relief when Lillith responded that she was feeling well, not really catching the implications of what she could have meant until she quickly elaborated that her headache was gone and she no longer felt trampled. He chuckled a little and cleared his throat with a bit of embarrassment, nodding again as he glanced away awkwardly. "Good! Good, I'm... I'm glad you're feeling better," he insisted. No matter how strange and awkward it might be he did genuinely want to know that she was feeling better after the wild night and drinking she had done. No matter her ailments he was always most concerned about her well being and how she was feeling—even if that ailment was a hang over.

He didn't really know what else to say and was about to start leading them out for the patrol when Lillith stopped him with an apology, making him look back to her with a bit of surprise. He didn't think there was anything to apologize for, but he could see the remorse on her expression as she expressed how sorry she was for sneaking out, worrying him, and everything else that was left unsaid. His ears flicked with a slight smile. He knew this was just as strange for her as it was for him, but he didn't want her to think he was mad about any of it. He wasn't even disappointed. It was just the hard reality of his little girl growing up that he was suddenly having to accept that hit him the hardest.

Ulric stepped closer and gently pressed his nose reassuringly to her cheek. "You don't need to apologize, Lil. It's fine," he insisted, his silver gaze finding hers again as he pulled back a bit. "You're an adult now. You can make your own choices, you can have fun in whatever way you see fit. I want you to live and enjoy your life and have the free spirited fun I never got to have." He gave her a sad but loving smile as he told her, "I've just got to get used to you being an adult, that's all. I know you're smart, I know you wouldn't do something you didn't want to do."

"Speech"

There was still a bit of lingering embarrassment as Lillith told her father that she had indeed recovered from her self inflicted misery. Despite how bad she felt on the way back home Lil wouldn’t have done anything differently that night. Maybe she would have drank a little more water if she thought about it, and maybe they could have snuck back into the castle better. Still, that night had changed her life, it was a milestone essential for her relationship with Roman as well as her entrance into adulthood.

Ulric was still glad she was feeling better despite it being her own actions that caused her to feel that way. He was about to get their patrol underway when Lil stopped him once more, a soft apology for her actions. She didn’t regret them, but she was remorse for causing her father any anxiety. Ulric paused and returned to her side, placing a soft nuzzle on her cheek. She leaned into his touch, much more receptive to affection and touch than she was even a season ago, the exchange was drastic compared to a year before.

He told her there was no reason to apologize, that all of his worries, anxiety, and emotion stemmed from that had purely to do with her growing up and his abilities to cope with that fact. She was an adult, she was strong of mind and will, he trusted her to live her life as she saw fit. That didn’t mean he wouldn’t be there for her when she made mistakes, like maybe drinking too much.

Lillith leaned more heavily into him, giving him a half embrace as he assured her softly. ”I’ll always be your little girl.” She assured him, burying her features into the thick fur of his neck. Maybe she was growing up and becoming an adult but that would never diminish Ulric’s place in her life.

Lillith Adravendi

Ulric would never really get over how much more willing Lillith had become to share little affections and be close to others—at the very least close to those she loved. He fully recognized that he had Romulus to thank for that and that the young man had a big role to play in how much Lillith had come out of her shell over the last several seasons. He doubted that he could ever actually admit that to the boy, but it was one of the reasons why he had so easily accepted Romulus' spot in her heart and her life.

As long as he continued to make her happy and help her grow then he would be welcome in their family as far as Ulric was concerned. He smiled again and leaned down to kiss the top of her head as she leaned into him and pressed her face into his neck. "You won't be, but that's okay," he told her when she insisted that she'd always be his little girl. "You'll always be my daughter and I'll always love you for the rest of my days, but you're not a little girl any more. You're a beautiful young woman and I'm so proud of what you've become," he added softly, slipping his foreleg around her shoulders and pulling her into a gentle embrace.

He released her after a few moments, looking down at her with a loving smile. "Are you sure you feel up to a patrol? If you want to go get some more rest I wouldn't blame you. Hangovers are nasty things," he told her with a chuckle. "Unless there's anything else you want to talk about, of course. You always have my attention whenever you want it." He started to get to his paws, waiting to see what she felt like doing. He would certainly welcome any time they got to spend together, but he didn't want to make her go on a whole patrol if she was still under the weather at all.

"Speech"

Ulric leaned down to kiss her head and corrected her on her words and Lillith had to swallow some very uncomfortable emotions. She blinked back a few more tears as her father wrapped his arm around her and embraced her strongly. He would always be a foundation for her, but even if she hadn’t realized it, her reliance on him waned from the day that Roman carried her home. Even if she was growing up and becoming the adult she was always meant to be, and he was very proud of her. She squeezed against his embrace before he eventually released her.

Ulric gave her an out, asking if she really wanted to go patrol along with him, speaking of his knowledge of how awful a hangover was. However much her warm bed and Roman’s arms tempted her to take the offer she wanted to go on this patrol with her. ”No, I want to go with you.” She told him without hesitation. There was one other Big thing she wanted to say. ”I want to tell you something else.”

Lillith hesitated slightly as she walked along beside her father as they started the patrol in honest. Her rhythmic paws gave her confidence. ”I want to marry him someday.” She told him finally as she paced along the border, keeping her ruby gaze on the horizon but her subtle smile truly revealed her feelings.

Lillith Adravendi

Ulric smiled when Lillith insisted that she did in fact want to go on the patrol with him and then gave her a curious look when she said there was something else that she wanted to tell him. "Oh really? Well, you can tell me all about it while we walk then." He lead the way out of the castle gates and past the walls, beginning the loop around the lands that surrounded the castle, falling into an easy pace with his daughter beside him. She might have agreed to go on the patrol with him, but that didn't mean he wouldn't take it easy on her all the same. He already planned quietly to only patrol the castle to give her a chance to speak before sending her back to bed. There was no reason to drag her all the way out across the plans as well.

They were quiet for a moment while Lillith seemed to gather her courage and when she did finally speak Ulric turned his curious silver gaze toward her. She admitted that she'd like to marry Romulus one day and when he saw the smile lingering on her lips he knew she meant it. He chuckled softly and replied, "Of course you do, my darling. I'm not surprised at all." It had honestly become a question of when instead of if at this point in his mind, but he appreciated that she still told him anyway. Sobering a little bit he added, "Marriages are a serious commitment and I hope that both of you take that decision seriously, but as long as you do and you truly love him enough to spend the rest of your life with him then I support you." He gave her another smile as they walked, leaning his head down to gently kiss her cheek. "And he better be a good husband to you or he'll be answering to me about it."

"Speech"