Tartarrean's Links
In time Cal is likely to become a father figure that the poor lad never had, but even as the boy's guardian, Malakai will save him just as well. Given a purpose and sought out both for comfort and guidance, Kai gives him the sense of belonging that Cal once thought was long lost. He gives him a reason to smile and do better day by day. He admires Kai's wit and resilience, always being a fast and eager learner for all Cal has to share with him. He's proud of how strong he is, and how he is more mature than Cal was at his age, as unfair as it might be for all the pup has gone through. For that, Cal wants to be there, not as a shield to shelter him from an unfair world but as a pillar to support him, to offer more years of wisdom to help him choose the right path, and to be his emotional support blanket when he doesn't want to be so strong - he doesn't have to be, after all, not when he has the family he should have had from the start, however small it may be. He won't be perfect as a father, but this time, Cal swears, he won't leave anyone behind again.