SHAPING A ROOM;; private - Leroy

The wolfhound maintained a rough-hewn expression whilst his son spoke, though it developed into a neutral one midway through his dialogue. Ryder likely felt as awkward as him, and Leroy began to understand that as he analyzed what the younger male was saying. Truth be told, Leroy'd pushed the memory of Ophelia up and ditching in that manner out of his mind, as it had left a hole where his heart should've been. He didn't put any thought into how the German Shepherd might have been pregnant when she made her undisclosed exist, so the possibility of him being a father was never one that came to mind. But, now realizing the grand scheme of things, the general saw that Ryder hadn't known his true father for his entire life up until very recently. Thus, being cold and inelegant wouldn't yield any satisfactory results - if he wanted to have a true connection with his child, he'd have to act responsible and mature.

As the Wolfhound-Shepherd mix concluded what he was saying, the male- nay, the father promptly prepared a reply which he deemed sufficient. "Unfortunately," he says, tone much more certain and confident than before, "it ain't no falsehood. She didn't say anythin' before she left, but I don't hold that against her. Lotta people can't stand to stay in the swamp, and it seems that your mother was one of 'em." He wishes that she had left a note at the very least - even if he was illiterate, it would've been the thought of it that counted. "I'd invite ya inside, but I got someone sleepin' in there. I wanna talk to ya, though, so why don't we go on a walk together?"