Alric waited quietly--he owed that much, at least--pondering his next steps. Whatever failings he had, he was determined at least to do better, even if it wasn't good enough, and one critical feature of good leadership was to know one's limits. He would definitely need to get help from someone more capable than himself--advice, at the very least, although it was probably best, the way things were going, if he removed himself from the picture entirely.

He glanced over once again, when Tiamaris peeked out of the closet, his expression pensive, but relatively calm. Not angry, at any rate. It took him a couple seconds to even process that question without responding incredulously, although he did look a little puzzled, and then exasperated, at it. He raised a hand, but merely rubbed his forehead.

"...I-... ...no, of course not. I have no intention to hit you or otherwise harm you at all. Quite the contrary, actually, I would like to help, if I can... although I fear I've consistently done more harm than good."