Firestone Hot Springs With this knowledge he will fall

Sorry for the delay (again). You gave me so much dialogue to reply to, I really had to think about my response to get everything just right. * . * I also forgot about it a few times because my memory is terrible, ahhh

Whether or not his words had been believed, he didn't know, nor could he tell. When he spoke of the woods, he'd only shared that which he'd believed to be true. Whether or not it would be seen in the same light as he did was another story, but as far as the boy was concerned, he'd not lied. There'd been no reason to do so, for he truly believed that Blackfeather wasn't nearly as bad as everyone seemed to make it out to be. There was darkness, yes, but where was there not? He'd yet to learn of any land in which their existed only light and nothing else, thus making his home just the same as any other. The only difference being that, whilst many outsiders tended to flee from the shadows, the wolves of the woods embraced them. That, however, was the only difference that he could see.

There came a sigh, and then words, towards which he'd frowned. It all tied back to the thoughts he'd possessed whilst speaking, of how his home wasn't all that bad. "I wouldn't lie to you," he'd muttered back, knowing not how great of an effect it might have. He wished that there existed a way in which he could make her see things the same way as he did, or at least understand that he wasn't there to lie to or hurt her. That even though they'd had numerous differences in the past, he'd not harm her, nor would he lead her to believe something that he himself did not. During their time spend separated, he'd learned a lot regarding family, particularly of how important it was. With his own two eyes he had witnessed the distress that came when one was torn down, and so he hoped for it to end. For Desna to accept both their father and himself, and for their family to be restored. He wanted all that, deep down, he knew he'd never be allowed to have.

The next span of words had been started off with a shrug, and all that'd followed had left the boy speechless. He, too, had noticed the way in which Kove had reacted to their mother's death, but he'd not seen it as an issue. For the boy, it was just another time that she'd abandoned him, even if her final moments hadn't been something that she could have helped. "She abandoned us," he'd voiced, clinging so desperately to his wish for a family reunion. "She left us in the valley and never looked back. She... she hurt dad, she really did. I saw it Desna—for so long I saw how it'd hurt him after she left. I don't think his reaction to her death was... wrong." No matter the scenario, he'd always side with his father. Kove had been there for him when no one else was, he'd given him a new home and taught him so much—he was the selfless parent, in Alexander's eyes. A brave front had always been put up, a mask to shield the world from seeing that which he'd truly been feeling. So many things he had done, and the boy admired him for each and every one of them. It'd been so long since he'd last seen Scarlett that he couldn't understand for why his sister didn't think the same as he did. The Inuit could not understand it, nor might he ever be able to.

"I want our family back together," Xan stated, ears back against his head. "No other wolf could ever be your father, because dad's your father. You can't just–" He shook his head, trying to clear his mind and speak better. "You can't just abandon him. He cares about us—about all of us. Why don't you see that?" Somewhere within the back of his mind, perhaps he knew that he'd make no difference, no matter what words might leave his mouth. There was nothing to be said that could change the past, and nothing to be shared that could alter her views. They'd been brought up differently, they'd learned to cherish opposite parents. That was the way in which their lives had come to be, and neither could do anything to change the other. This he knew, but wished not to recognize. Not currently nor ever, for he felt that doing so would mean that he'd given up. That it would somehow translate to him having lost interest in his family as a whole, to the boy having accepted that he was useless.

While there existed no hope, it seemed, for his dad and his sister, there was a chance for him to try and fix things with their sibling bond. An offer was made, which he'd jumped upon, wondering if it might better help their family in the long run. If he could learn more about her, then perhaps he might be able to someday drag everyone back together. It was a thought, another hope, and so he'd voiced, "I do want that."