His trip to Ethne had been... surprisingly eventful. More eventful than perhaps he would have liked. To be tasked with dropping off a package, running an errand, and to have it turn into that? Well, it was far more than Dread was expecting. It was more than he knew how to really process, in these moments. The walk back was a long one, and while he'd planned on dropping by to see Deluge, this was more pressing. At least he had his priorities straight, right? It was midday when they finally returned to the Col, and Dread moved to seek his father out with the news.

"Dad?" Dread figured he'd check home, first. Though he was tired from the long walk, he wanted to let Warlord know he was back, and what he'd learned while he was down there. News of a murderer on the loose felt like something that shouldn't wait, even if that murderer was in Auster and not (yet) this far north. What did he even do with that news? Had he made a complete fool of himself with the way he'd handled things? Had he screwed up their entire relationship with Ethne? Had he fucked it? Only time would tell.

"Dread Fatalis"

The Warlord wasn’t home, but a companion happened to be dozing nearby, and fetched the Warlord at Dread’s approach. Knowing that the return of the newly minted Diplomat would be something Seer would wish to hear. Dread wasn’t left waiting for long before the Warlord trotted to his den. It was quieter now that some of the pups had moved out, but some had stayed with him still. To his secret relief.

“Hello, Dread” He said, reaching over and grabbing the boy by his shoulder and kissing his brow. Then he took a step back, and adopted a more formal expression. “Report, Diplomat” He said, which was also his way of telling Dread that he had officially received the title upon returning home from his mission.


"Speech"

He didn't have to wait long, and for that, Dread was glad. As a pup, he'd been pretty anxious. As he grew up, he'd mostly grown out of it, but sometimes... yeah, sometimes it still reared its ugly head. This was one of those times. Going back over the interactions he'd had with both Bellamy and Haydee, Dread was so entirely concerned that he'd put his paw in his mouth. The Warlord's warmth was something that he wouldn't push back against, taking the kiss on the brow with a fond smile. Despite his age, he wasn't going to be upset about a display of affection from his father. Not in the slightest.

"Yes sir." He straightened up, taking a more formal stance to mirror the Warlord's. "Bellamy said it was lovely but uh, the rest of the visit wasn't super productive. Her husband was murdered recently." Dread delivered the news, watching his father's expression carefully. "Her heir, Haydée, took over talking for her, Bellamy seems like she's in rough shape." The boy continued to speak, trying to figure out how best to explain what happened. "I offered my condolences but I didn't know what else to say. It's like... even to Haydée, I didn't know. All I could think about was how, after we lost mom, there was nothing that anyone could say that would have made me feel any better. I was polite, but everything feels so hollow." Dread realizes now, how much he's spoken. It's the first time he's brought up Zee to Sirius in... ever? Maybe ever.

His posture drooped some, no longer quite as confident as it was before he'd started speaking. "It was so awkward... like, before she told me that, it was awkward in the way that I'd never done it before and I didn't want to screw it up." He takes a breath. "But after she told me that... I didn't know what to say. I didn't want to be insensitive and ask if they'd caught whoever did it, but it feels like now we have that to be worried about, too. I'm sorry that I don't have more details." The visit to Ethne had been a lot, which reflected in the report.

"Dread Fatalis"

Whatever he expected Dread to say, it wasn’t that. A hallowed expression came over the Warlords eyes as Dread likened their loss to Zee. with great difficulty, he pulled his mind from the past, and concentrated on the bones of what Dread was telling him. Bellamy’s husband had been murdered, and that was the wolf who Dread had delivered the knife for. “Not an easy situation to walk in on, Dread, but it sounded like you handled it with grace.” He said softly, a little stiffly.

The comparison to Zee came out of left field and sucker punched him. Thoughts of her hadn’t hit him that hard in a long time. Perhaps it was hearing their own child speak of her death. He had shied away from the subject, even with them. He didn’t realise until that moment just how much so. “A more difficult situation than I expected you to step into on your first diplomacy mission. Now that you’ve seen some complicated ways it can go wrong, are you still interested in the job?” He asked, reaching for something, anything, to distract him before Dread could see just how badly it had affected him.


"Speech"

Seer's reaction was stiff, but Dread doesn't know how to react to that either. Being a diplomat required him to be sociable, and while he'd been polite... shit it was hard to be social. Maybe he shouldn't have brought mom up, but he didn't know what to do. While he had unique insight on how the other girl felt, he didn't know how to fix it. He didn't know what to do to make shit better. It was why he'd turned away from being a healer. He wanted to fix everyone, all of the time. When he couldn't, things got... hard. This was one of those times.

The Warlord changed the subject rather quickly. Dread wasn't going to push, but he also recognized that he maybe... wasn't the right one to talk to about stuff like this. Maybe Mortis would be better equipped for it emotionally, spending as much time as he did with Halo and all. "Yes sir. It's still what I'd like to do." His words turned to dust in his mouth, and could only hope for the impending end of the meeting. There needed to be a better way to deal with feeling like this... there had to be. Dread doesn't know how to put it into words, he doesn't know the right questions to ask. "Dad... do you think that we're in danger? With the killer still out there and all... Bellamy said that her husband wouldn't hurt anyone." Right, turning away the thoughts about his mother was for the best. He swallowed hard, thinking about the grim prospect on the horizon. Dread regretted not asking more questions of Bellamy, but it seemed insensitive at the time.

"Dread Fatalis"

The Warlord nodded his head. Dread had performed admirably under the circumstances. He wouldn’t take the position away from his son if that was what he wanted. Dread also raised a valid point with the mention of the murderer. “I’m not sure. We should keep our guard up, and ensure the patrols know about it.” He said, some of the shock beginning to fade. Talking about Zee hurt, there was no if or buts about that. But he also couldn’t ignore how Dread had also spoken of his pain. He had lost Zee, but so had they. “If you ever want to… talk about it. I know I’m not the best at it, but I’m here if you need me, Dread” He said. His words soft and stilted. Nothing mattered more to him then they did.


"Speech"