King and the Spirits

“It seems you are in luck. I happen to know my way around these caverns.” He turned and paced toward the mouth of a cavern then looked over his shoulder at the boy. “Follow me.” He instructed and paced calmly into the darkness, glancing more than once to make sure the boy was following him.

They walked in silence at first. He noted with some unease that the boy seemed less confident, moving in the pitch darkness and stopped considering how to remedy the situation. “What’s your name by the way?” He asked, loudly enough for the boy to detect where he was standing. If it had been Astraios he would have simply let the pup hold onto his tail, just as they had done for the summer festival his father had held, but the young male was a stranger and there was no telling what he would or wouldn’t be comfortable with.

Speech, Thought, You