He stiffens slightly at the weight against his side, before relaxing and gently wrapping an arm around the boy. He doesn't have much in the way of body heat, but he is a solid presence. The heart floating above his hand turns slowly, the light and shadows within it flickering and seeming to dance inside the crystalline structure.

"You're not the first child I've known who thought he had nothing. My dear Ienzo...the poor boy lost his parents at a very young age. He had no relatives both willing and able to care for him, but my Lord Ansem chose to take him in. Of course..."

He huffs a light chuckle and shakes his head.

"As a ruler, his Lordship scarcely had the time to be a true parent, even if the fool of a wise man wasn't inclined to spoil a child. Care of him fell to me, and I came to regard him as though he were my own son.

"The point is, family needn't be merely those to whom you are related by blood. It's a bond of the heart, rather than the body, and even when you have nothing, there exists a chance to fill that void with something new."