Real. Sometimes you gotta be willing to be uncomfortable to build a greater, more compelling story.
Case in point: my DM gave my character a puppy a while back in that campaign. I regularly RP’d interactions with the pooch, most of the party came to love the little guy.
Then, in the most recent session, we were attacked by assassins in the night and the dog was killed, its soul stolen away. That was kinda rough, but it provided an incredible dramatic beat in the story and chance to develop my character in response to it.
In the end, I trust my DM to do what’s best in the long run for the story, which’ll always make the game more fun overall.
Be willing to be offended, saddened, angered. That’s how you know you’re really invested. 👍🏾