[Slowly, he pulls away after one last feline headbutt, only doing so when she does as well. She might not meet his gaze, but that doesn't mean he'll look away himself.] Amanda, I spent the entire reading of Atem's Will and Testament on the verge of tears and locked myself in my office for the next week.

I think all of us have a point of breakdown, where it matters, [he sighs, and as if to herald a need for a chance of scenery, the kettle clicks. Time to make that tea, he thinks, as he gets to it.]

I suspect I know what Javert already filled you in on...but there's unfortunately more that you wouldn't have encountered, or heard about- specifically what I'm trying to work toward resolving myself. Naturally the balance here is vital, but access to the world beyond Ryslig was made, and with it...we learned about something that She herself fears.