It was just past dawn by the time he drug himself back to Abaven, but he didn't go into the territory right away. He went to the cliffs near by and sat there for a while, letting himself simmer, letting his anger dwindle. His children didn't deserve to see him like that. He let out a slow sigh as he thought about them, letting his eyes close for a long moment. He had tried his very best to only paint Aranea in a positive light for pretty much their entire lives, only speaking favorably of her and reassuring each of them, blaming her absence on anything but herself. Now he was going to have to reveal how that had been a lie not only to himself but to them. They were still so young in the grand scheme of the world and it hurt him so much to think act he was going to have to deliver this news. He sat there for a long while, going over what he wanted to tell them over and over in his head.

Eventually he knew that he couldn't put it off any longer. He got up and walked down to the Serpent Plains, finding his way to the den he shared with his children, lingering outside the entrance for a long moment. It was still very early so he was certain that they were all still asleep or perhaps they were just starting to wake up. He slipped inside and started gently nudging each of them awake, saying, "Kids, it's time to wake up, I have something I need to talk to you about." He even lifted away the covering that hung over the small room that Azzurra had been sequestered to for much of her life, beaconing her out as well. "You too, Azzie. Family meeting."

Walk | "Talk" | think

When I Sleep All My Dreams Turn Out The Same ___________________________________________________________ Balthier had stayed with Azzurra in her part of the den that night while they waited for him to return. He felt deeply for all three of his siblings, maybe Azzurra a little more with how sick and weak she had always been. Balthier had never been too prominent with how he felt about his family until his father wasn't around. He felt like he had to step up and take Allegro's place when he was gone. He almost felt like his father was the glue holding them all together, them and their mother. He had grown a hidden resent towards his mother, one he was never open about. Not to his siblings, not to his father, not to Poem or any of them. He didn't want to disappoint his father while he talked so highly of her. Still when they went to The Hallows, he avoided any one on one time with her, not sure if they could relate or share any interests. He liked visiting a new place, but he wished she wasn't there. He respected her to some extent, but he certainly didn't know how to call her "mother". Balthier came out as Allegro called them, opening the hide from Azzurra's part of the den. When he announced he needed to talk to them about something, a pit fell into his stomach. He was expecting him to come back with their mother. Allegro had spent so much time preparing for her to join them, and with him gone last night he assumed he was going to meet her. But she wasn't here. Unless there was some lame joke with her outside, a surprise for all four of them. He doubted. And his face already showed it all before Allegro could even give them the news. Walk "Talk" ___________________________________________________________ When I Bleed I Relieve You Of Your Pain

Azzurra remained tucked and curled into Balthier for the entirety of the night even though she didn't sleep all that well. She drifted in and out of sleep, too anxious to know if her fears were true or unfounded. She wanted to be woken up and find their mother there ready to greet them and love them, but very little of her believed that it could be true. She was pulled from sleep by their father's voice, making her blink her eyes open and lift her head from Balthier's chest, looking out through the opening that Allegro held open. That certainly wasn't the happy, warm greeting she had been hoping for at the very least. She glanced up at Balthier with a frown before untangling herself from him, climbing to her paws and giving herself a quick shake before she walked out into the main portion of the den, following closely behind Balthier.

Sure enough, no one was there besides her other siblings and their father. Before he even began to speak she knew that their mother wasn't here. She could see it on his face that this wasn't some kind of trick or prank. Her ears fell back and she sighed softly as she settled onto her haunches beside Balthier, leaning into his side. She'd sit and listen to what their father had to say anyway, but she knew and it hurt. Would she ever get to see Aranea again? She had no idea and that made her really sad. The faint memory of what she looked like felt farther away than ever.

"Azzurra"

He waited till they were all gathered around, though he had a hard time meeting the gazes of his children. Even though he knew Aranea was at fault for all of this, he couldn't keep himself from feeling as if he had failed them. He had promised to keep them happy and healthy, to care for them as well as he possibly could, and give them the family he sometimes felt he lacked. He hadn't been able to give them the family he desired for them, they very clearly didn't have the happiness he craved for them, and in the case of Azzurra he hadn't been able to keep her healthy. He sighed and looked at the ground, struggling to put together the words that he had spent so long trying to piece together on his way here. There was no easy way to tell them this truth, though part of him believed that they already knew. He had tried and partially failed to keep hope in Aranea alive in them and now it would all be for naught.

"Aranea isn't coming," he finally told them after a long moment, his voice quiet and pained. "She... She did something that she shouldn't have and put someone else above us. I told her that she's no longer welcome here." How could he possibly explain the level of infidelity and disregard Aranea had committed to these children? They were less than a season from being a year old, but... Even still, they were still incredibly young and this was all far more than he expected them to understand. He sighed again, his ears flicking back against his head. "I... I can't keep any of you from trying to see her again if you want to see her, but she is not welcome in Abaven lands. I'm sorry that I can't fix this for you... I held out hope that she would come around for so long, but... She went too far and I can't allow her to be a part of our family any more. I'm so sorry..."

He glanced up at his children, looking for their reactions, awaiting the backlash that he felt was inevitable. He didn't want to hurt them. He didn't want to cause them any more heartache, but he also had to explain their mother's absence no matter how much it hurt. He glanced up at the den that he had been working on expanding and at the separate rooms that were partially finished. He had focused mainly on finishing the one that Aranea could stay in since he had already finished one for himself and the one that Azzurra had been using through her sickness. "We'll... We'll continue expanding the den anyway. Give each of you your own spaces. Unless you'd rather move out into your own dens next season..." It was easier to think of construction projects than it was his own life.

Walk | "Talk" | think

When I Sleep All My Dreams Turn Out The Same ___________________________________________________________ When Azzurra would settle herself by him, leaning into him, he would move his paw to touch hers but wouldn't look back to her. Instead, his gaze remained on Allegro, waiting for the bad news he was expecting. His gaze to his father wasn't hard, or aggravated, or anything harmful towards the man. But had his father looked truly at his expression, he would know that Balthier was expecting what was to come true. Mostly all Balthier heard was that Aranea wasn't coming. Everything else was just noise after that. He took a deep breath, his eyes moving to the floor of the den as his mind raced through thoughts he couldn't even put together. He had expected that Aranea would bail on them again, up until Allegro confessing. And now that it was true, he didn't know how to feel. Allegro had always been their one true provider, but it was always important to Balthier that he helped his father in any way he was able. He was young and small, still not to his full height but he still wanted to give him the moral support and love that he felt he deserved. He had seen Poem and Sparhawk with their children, and he knew that what was going on in his own home wasn't right. As much as Allegro made it feel right. His brain finally settled, realizing that Allegro wasn't speaking anymore, certainly shortly after he was talking of extending more dens from the main one. Balthier moved forward quickly, his body gently rubbing against his sister before it left her, and he aimed to push his head strongly into Allegro's chest, maybe with some kind of apology or maybe even a thank you. There wasn't a true emotion to describe it. He wouldn't cry but he felt a lot of heavy emotions in this moment. And he wanted has father to know that he was here for him, as he had always been. Walk "Talk" ___________________________________________________________ When I Bleed I Relieve You Of Your Pain