After that walk to the beach and the kiss they shared Sitri knew without a doubt that coming to The Hallows had been the right choice for him. He was still figuring out where he fit best in this pack that was larger and more lively than Ashen had been, but this connection he had with Dusk and this affection he had for her cemented the fact that this was where he would stay. As much as he wanted to continue growing this relationship with her into something stronger, he got the sense that their family was even more tight knit than his had been and Artorias was obviously very protective over his children. If he was going to actually consider settling down with Dusk for good he wanted to make sure he did it right.

He went looking for Artorias one afternoon, trying to time it for when Artorias might have some free time between patrols and other tasks, and he approached the Lord of Cinder with a respectful dip of his head. "Artorias, sir, do you have a minute to talk?" he asked with a smile. Part of him was more nervous than he had ever been, but he was confident in what he wanted and that he was sure that he didn't want anything or anyone else so there was no hesitation as he approached Dusk's father. Hopefully Artorias wasn't so protective that the mention of a relationship with his daughter wouldn't be his death sentence...

"Sitri Klein-Destruction"

Sitri found Artorias in perhaps a rather unusual place for him to be. For all that the world knew him as—the Lord of Cinder, alpha of the Hallows, patriarch of the Carpathius family, a prolific swordsman and blacksmith—there was another side to the burly dire brute. Which is how the Klein lad found him today—as the Lord of Cinder was carefully pruning and trimming up the wisteria trees in the gardens. Artorias loved the castle gardens and spent a lot of time out amongst the violet-budded trees and flowerbeds whenever he needed a moment to meditate and clear his mind. Tending to the plants was a soothing and relaxing activity, despite the fact that he was trimming the overgrown branches with a dagger. Hey, he was still the manly sword-loving wolf, after all. Proper gardening was more his sister's speed.

As he was cutting off some overly long wisteria fronds, Artorias heard paws coming across the grass towards him. Sitri's voice followed, respecting and polite. Artorias turned to the young brute, dagger still clutched in his jaws while he dropped a severed frond to the ground on top of the small pile of trimmings he'd collected. "Sitri, hello!" he greeted him, turning back to his work amongst the wisterias. "Of course, my boy! I always have time for my wolves. Have a seat and chat with me while I work." Art continued to slice away at the excess branches, shaping up the wisteria tree neatly with clean cuts of his Carpathian steel dagger. "What's on your mind?"

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian"

Luckily it seemed like Art's task of pruning the wisteria trees wasn't too intensive or at the very least wasn't something that the Lord of Cinder seemed to mind being distracted from. He certainly hadn't expected Artorias to be the kind of guy that wanted to do his own garden work, but the castle did have a sprawling garden and he supposed that it wouldn't be this lush or nice without many wolves working on it. At the very least it seemed like he had caught Art in a good mood so hopefully that would go in his favor. At the invitation to sit and talk while he worked, Sitri moved around to be better in Art's line of sight, sitting next to the wisteria tree while staying out of the way of his pruning.

A little, slightly shy smirk tugged at his expression when Art asked what was on his mind. There was only one real answer to that question since there had only been one thing on his mind for a while now. He had debated how he wanted to bring this up before he approached Artorias, but in the end he had decided the most direct option was probably the best way. "Well... I was hoping I could get your blessing to pursue a relationship with Dusk." He kept an eye on Artorias, curious and of course a bit nervous to see what his reaction would be to him trying to date his daughter. He felt like it had been fairly obvious that he had stayed in The Hallows because of Dusk after all the time he had spent with her during her recovery so hopefully it wasn't too much of a surprise, but he knew fathers could be protective of their daughters regardless. "I care about her a lot and I would really like to work toward a real relationship with her, but I know how important you and your family is to her so I wanted to make sure this was something that was okay with you first."

"Sitri Klein-Destruction"

Artorias quite liked Sitri. The Klein lad had a good temperament about him, a level head on his shoulders, and had shown the strength of his character when he had saved Dusk’s life without asking for reward. Now as a member of his pack, Sitri had become an invaluable friend to Dusk, something he thought his eldest daughter sorely needed. She had so much of her sire in her that it worried Artorias sometimes. He didn't want her stressing over the worries of the world that she couldn't control like he had done in his youth. Trimming the wisteria tree while he waited for Sitri to explain his reasons for tracking him down, Art caught a glimpse of the shy smile on the young wolf at his side, earning him a curious brow raise from the alpha.

The question that followed next was both surprising and at the same time half expected. Sitri wanted his permission to pursue a relationship with Dusk. Artorias said nothing, keeping quiet while he worked whilst Sitri began to ramble a bit about his reasons for asking for the Carpathian patriarch's blessing, clearly a bit nervous at having to state his case. The funny thing was that it was wholly unnecessary. Art let Sitri speak though, listening while the Klein brute spoke, and when he finished, the Lord of Cinder just chuckled. "Sitri, you don't need my permission to date Dusk," he remarked amidst his baritone chuckles and a toothy smile. "My daughters are not property. They are their own selves, able to make their own choices and decisions. I'm merely here to help them make good ones and guide them in their lives." The thought of Artorias telling Dusk who she could and couldn't date was almost laughable to the elder wolf. Sure, Dusk would probably have done so, given how duty bound she was, but he couldn't imagine making those kinds of lifelong choices for his children.

Cutting down a particularly long limb, Artorias stabbed the knife into the ground and turned to face Sitri so he could give the young brute the respect of his full attention. "Look, Sitri, if you like Dusk, then tell her. I have a feeling she cares about you a lot too. She's sometimes not the best at showing her emotions, but she doesn't let wolves get close to her easily. The fact that you're here at all speaks volumes." Artorias clapped some dirt and sap from his paws before approaching the crimson lad and patting him on the shoulder with one giant blue paw, an encouraging smile on his muzzle. "Dusk is... well, all of my daughters are special and unique, but Dusk especially so. She needs care and consideration. She needs someone who is patient and kind, someone to show her that the world isn't trying to kill us all." Art's expression turned serious for a moment while he spoke. He needed Sitri to understand what he was getting into. He couldn't imagine how Dusk would handle it if her relationship went sour. "I just need you to understand that this will not be easy. Dusk is very strong-willed and stubborn, just like her sire. Do you think you have the fortitude to keep up with her?"

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian"

Sitri didn't really know what kind of response to expect from The Hallows alpha. He didn't think Artorias would be mad about him trying to date his daughter, but anywhere on the spectrum of dismissive to overjoyed was certainly fair game. He had come to learn that Art was a pretty reasonable guy so he had high hopes that this would only go well. Luckily it seemed like his hopes were mostly correct when Artorias insisted that he didn't need his permission to date Dusk, that his daughters were their own selves and that he was only there to guide them. He couldn't help but chuckle a bit at that. If the rest of his daughters were as strong willed as Dusk then there was no doubt about that.

Still, he knew Dusk would care about her father's opinion and because of that he still wanted Art's agreement if not permission. Sitri watched a long limb fall and then looked up to meet Artorias' gaze as the Lord of Cinder turned to face him. He listened as Art told him to tell Dusk that he liked her if that was the case and about how she wouldn't normally let others close so his presence here spoke for itself. He smiled a bit at that because he knew it was true. It had taken a good bit of work to get Dusk to relax enough for him to even sneak in one kiss and even then Dusk had danced around ways to say how she felt. He felt Art's paw on his shoulder as he continued on, telling him about how unique Dusk was, about how she needed patience and care. For a moment he felt like he was speaking with his own father rather than the father of the girl he was hoping to pursue and it made him smile. He missed his parents and his family as a whole so little moments like this were welcome.

He had never doubted that Artorias' words were sincere, but he showed how seriously he meant this in the solemnness of his expression as he went on to question his fortitude and willingness to keep up with the demand of being Dusk's reassurance and standing up to her stubbornness. He of course wanted to immediately assure Art that he wanted this and he would do anything for her, but he paused, really considering what Art was telling him and asking of him. No matter how he turned the thought over in his mind, he still came to the same conclusion. He had never felt this way about anyone else and he knew that Dusk was special to him. "I do," he responded after a moment, giving Art a small nod. "I know it probably won't be easy, but I don't want easy. I'm in this for the long haul, no matter what it takes. As long as Dusk feels the same for me then I will be here for her."

"Sitri Klein-Destruction"

As he spoke, Sitri listened. Artorias was glad to see the Klein lad was taking his words to heart, truly mulling over and considering what he was being told. It showed Artorias that Sitri took this matter seriously, and that this wasn’t some flight of fancy for him. Dusk was a commitment, and a serious one at that. Art kept the smile from his face, but inside his heart was gladdened by the show of forethought before making a commitment. After some self deliberation, Sitri gave a resolute nod of his head and gave his answer. Artorias knew the young wolf was speaking true and he finally allowed himself to smile at Sitri.

"Then it sounds like you’ve got some things to tell her, Sitri," replied the alpha, picking up his knife to go back to trimming the wisteria tree. "I’d wish you good luck, but I don’t think you’ll have any trouble with Dusk. She’s very smitten with you." Artorias had seen the way his usually high strung and awkward daughter behaved around him. If Dusk denied Sitri’s advances, he would’ve been gobsmacked! He was just happy his children were finding such caring and considerate romantic partners. It did the sire wolf’s heart good.

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian"