[Knives... he's reminded at once of Ardbert's comment. It was true then, and truer still now. Stabbing and twisting, right where it'll hurt most- one wound for every person he allowed himself to care about and lost due to some failing of his own. He's not the cause of Era's traumas, but this- this specific seed, he planted himself, and maybe he'd neglected to disown his words emphatically enough. Maybe there was no helping it. How could he know, now?]

Still there, but... it feels kind of like a different sky.

[An ironic metaphor, considering the subject. Era, seeking to excise herself from the Caelum family. Like a star drifting out of the sky. It's a stupid thought, of course. It's... not like they can't ever be friends again, probably. Her not being family doesn't mean they're forbidden from crossing paths. It's just- different. A new constellation, and he doesn't know the parts of it yet. Whatever lines she draws for herself, he... can deal with it.]

Sorry... I know what you're trying to say, and I get it. Just... I started this, I think. I didn't mean to, but it happened, and... you know me.

[He holds on to guilt a lot. It's hard not to.]