Rubbish collection

With nothing else to do and no one else to see, Malik didn't hesitate to get up and follow Kite when she bid him to come with her. He didn't know his way around the territory well enough just yet to be able to guess where she was taking him, but once the stream came into view he realized the very obvious answer of her coming here to clean off the bracelet. He was kind of surprised that she had wanted him to come along considering how bristly she had been when he first approached her, but the difference in her demeanor now that she had her bracelet back was noticeable so maybe he shouldn't have been that surprised.

He shifted his gaze over to her as she dismissed his condolences as if it didn't matter even though it did clearly matter quite a bit. He didn't want to upset her though so he didn't press the matter, instead opting to just be company for her while she went about restoring this important memento from her mother. They made it to the calmly running stream that wound through the trees and he settled on his haunches at the bank beside her. While she went about the process of cleaning her bracelet, he tipped his head up to look up at the moon once more, the bright circle of cool light even more visible here in the break in the trees. "The moon really is beautiful up here," he mentioned conversationally. "I know it's the same moon regardless of where you are, but there's just something about the cold air of the north that makes it seem more... close somehow."

"Malik of the Sea"