Numair hesitated. < Well, I...I'll just have to tell him the truth, won't I? >

Vlad covered for the pause by picking up Janis. She immediately stopped yelling, and lay purring in Vlad's arms. "I'll let him explain that," he told Hawk, and then, seeing the expression on Hawk's face, asked, "You all right, hon? You look worried."

"Oh...sorry." Hawk put his back against the doorway, between his wings, letting them unfurl to either side. He sank down some, leaning against the doorway, brow knit. "But it don't feel real yet, y'know? Everythin' I thought was real has turned on its head so many times, I can't help but wait for the other shoe to drop."

Vlad regarded him with sympathy, and put a hand on his arm. "This is real, I promise," he said gently. Hawk returned his smile doubtfully.

"Thanks," he said.

"You'll see," Vlad assured him, carrying Janis down the hallway. "Tomorrow, we'll fix this, okay? You just make sure you meet Yoshi and I after her appointment in town, Mari will handle your paperwork, and Liya's sponsor will make sure she shows up at the hub when we get there."

He turned to head into the next room, but paused when Hawk peered around the doorway at him and said, "Vlad?"

"Hm?"

"Thanks." Hawk smiled again, and it came a little easier this time. "You know, for everything."