This time, as he moved forward, the king did not hear his subject's obedient footfalls behind him. Once more drawing to a stop, the man looked over his shoulder at his company, mildly perplexed. This confusion grew as he witnessed the cringe that had overtaken Zilas' face, his eyes shut tight against something within his mind as he forced out his first tentative sentence. Something was wrong. Perhaps not truly so, but certainly within the stray's own thoughts. The king was patient still with him, waiting for each word further on the matter, but none made the situation any clearer for him.




Zilas was meeting his gaze now, pitiful eyes locked upon those unreadable glaciers. The boy was far from being obstreperous, yet the Lieris monarch felt that something was being purposefully withheld from him. In another situation, perhaps, with another cloaked skeleton before him, the king might have become distrusting of he who was biting back information. With Zilas, however, Gent was willing to extend the benefit of the doubt, understanding that perhaps it was Zilas' trust that needed to be earned, by both himself and the pack. After all, despite his kindness thus far, what could a soul raised under such wretched abuses know of true confidence in another?



"Zilas," he began, making his benevolent intentions clear within his solid voice, "I need you to understand some things before you meet the others." Those pale eyes watched to ensure that all he had to say was being received and truly comprehended.



"I am not your father, this pack is not the family you knew, and this life is not the one you've been living. This isn't just a fresh start, this is a complete start. The misery, the abuse, the pain, the disrespect, everything you've suffered stops here; I personally promise that to you. You are going to become the wolf you always wanted to be, and I will be there beside you every step of the way. Trust this."



Even as the words faded he continued to study the boy, attempting to measure just how deeply his words had sunk into Zilas' mind. After a few beats of silence, he concluded, "You'll see this all for yourself, in time," acknowledging that his words could never be enough to make this reality tangible for his companion. It would take proof, experience, and that could only be gained through time spent within the sanctuary that Round Stone Crest had become. To think, that Gent Lieris would be at the helm of such a thing. But there was strength within it. They were tattered now, viciously shredded by the claws of Minka's death, but they would be rebuilt, and they would continue to grow and to thrive. The king would not see this fail now, not after everything he and the late queen had poured into the foundation of it, and Zilas would be just as important of a part to it as any other wolf within the realm.

His words were verified as even in the wake of them Zilas seemed unable to come forth with whatever words he held locked away within himself. The only concern this brought to the monarch was empathy for the boy's continually pitiful state, as he felt that within time he would hear all that the silver lad had to say. The occasion did nothing to spoil the carefully measured trust he extended to the other creature.

It wasn't until Zilas attempted to up the tempo of their interaction that Gent at last pulled his stoic gaze from the other's pale features. He moved forward, waiting for the other to meet his stride before swerving to gently clip Zilas' shoulder with his own, a crooked smile thrown to show that it was all in play. If the boy wanted to move on from the subject, then that was what they would do.

"Minka chose it," he answered him, the note of sadness within his voice evidence that he was speaking of the fallen queen. "This was her sanctuary. I quite like the choice, though; I've always had a fondness for mountains."

Ever since joining @Naira and her Nomad's Pass band, that was. The king took a deep breath of everything that was his, and found that his smile had not yet fled. The grief was ebbing.

"Brace yourself for a long walk, I'll give you the grand tour."

/fade