Redemption Lies Plainly in Truth

As he carried himself in and out of the trees, he made no effort to ensure that his location was concealed. There was nothing to be afraid of- no reason to be cautious. Taking confidence from the occasional rumbling in the back of his mind- the growl that was not his own- he felt that it didn’t get much scarier than himself. It was the audacity of a fool, but one that took himself seriously. In the end, he hadn’t exactly expected Absinth to come searching for him. Though, she seemed to be one that was going to be full of surprises- she loved them after all. As her voice reverberated off the dormant trees and bristly evergreens, he cast a casual glance over his shoulder. Upon acknowledging her, he opened up his stance as well, swiveling around to face her as if she had been the one pursuing him. “You could say that.” He answered with some amount of monotoned detachment

When she apologized for the bite to his shoulder, his half-sided grin cracked his expression. He hadn’t expected one from her, nor was he interested in it now. “It was necessary.” Aresenn echoed. “Had either of us held back, he wouldn’t have been satisfied.” But she already knew that. To use her words as she had said them: it was life or death. Casting a sideways glance as he collected his thoughts, he cleared his throat before speaking. “If you haven’t already figured it out, Sephiran is pretty intense.” Obviously. It felt ridiculous to say, but it was something that he also felt shouldn’t go without saying. The same went for her aptitude for survival. Returning his attention to her, he continued. “Though you’ve made it sound like that’s not something that’s completely foreign to you- you did a fine job acting like you knew what you were doing, even if you didn’t.” It was meant as a compliment, but he was terrible at giving them.

Ideally, this would have been a conversation they would have had before meeting Sephiran. But it wasn’t too late. If she wanted to disappear or throw herself off a cliff. Now would be the opportune time to do so. Better now, before his friend had the chance to get attached. “If you plan on sticking around for the main event, you need to be on your toes.” He finished casually, but there was a certain implication behind his amber stare. Not a threat, but a suggestion. As to their perceived destination, if she needed more of an explanation, he’d be happy to answer what he knew.

"Aresenn Praetor"