Phoenix Maplewood smile without a reason why

her words drew his brows together in confusion, and he stared at her, speechless even after she had finished speaking. "that's not how it works here," aditya finally said, struggling to make his point without coming across as dismissive. "they're loyal to me because i've been loyal to them. and i don't care if they're loyal to me, anyway," he added, a rueful smile painting his face. "that's not why i stepped up. i became leader because i care about them."

were they, in fact, loyal? it had never been a question in aditya's mind, but then, he'd never thought much of it. loyalty, in his view, was for lovers; they were a band of wolves who needed each other to survive and thrive. so what if one of them left for another pack? sure, he would be hurt by it--but he certainly wouldn't chase them down, or demand fealty in advance so as to prevent that betrayal.

"i've spent most of my life without a family, chaiyya," adi explained. "the morningsiders are the first real family i've had in years. all i care about is keeping them safe and happy."

doing a bang up job of it, too. he supposed that the fire couldn't have been prevented--

but it should be him, lost or dead. not shale, or sebastian. river. kitten. he hadn't done enough, and he had lost loved ones because of it.