An Unkindness

Absinth couldn't help but enjoy the playful banter with Aresenn, her eyes casting a mischievous glint towards him after he spoke of her silliness. It wasn’t a very deep conversation currently, but it was one that made her feel a sense of great belonging. In spite of the fact that attachment had always been a forbidden thing for her. And as much as he felt she could see right through him, so too did Absinth feel she was opening herself up to all his scrutiny – it was.. an unpredictable, terrifying thing, but she would not step away out of fear. They had agreed to see this to the end, hadn’t they? She refocused on his amused demeanor, which was a welcomed thing, especially as it teased her. Absinth's chest flooded with a warmth, a sense of comfort and.. well, she didn’t know what. Familiarity? You didn’t grow up as poorly as she had, to just know what each and every emotion was. So as Absinth pressed her maw into his neck for a moment or two, a compulsive display of casual affection – she smirked to herself, pulling away nonchalantly. Returning to his gaze with a faint smile, mirroring his own.

If being a guide for others was his calling, she would not criticize him. In fact, she related to it, although much less passionately. Her charcoal skull nodded as he explained then expanded on his admission. She caught the need for understanding and reassurance he sought as his amber gaze searched for her own. She wanted to give those things to him. With a thoughtful hum she responded, “Ah. Sharing your knowledge to those in need of it. Quite the noble notion.” Absinth teased with a smile, though her eyes reflected the connection she felt at his words. The empathetic knowing of just how directionless, how ‘every-man-for-themselves’ their childhoods had been. Absinth considered the depth of what Aresenn had said. It had revealed a passion and a more  vulnerable side to him she hadn’t expected. His tone, his thoughtful gaze – his desire to be understood overall. Absinth took it quite seriously, giving him her full attention, and her empathy so long as she could manage it. As he spoke about guiding and teaching, she sensed a shared yearning for purpose — the very reason she was here before him trying to make something of herself with this Band of heathens. Her reason for being, as she had once told him. “I’ve felt the same at times. But… usually I end up offending people instead of giving them any solid advice. I lack the compassion to approach it the right way… I’m impatient.” She sighed, piecing together a breakdown of her own experience trying to impart knowledge onto others, but unfortunately the fact that she did not have the same mentoring gift as he did. The monochromatic woman simply didn’t have the same conviction to teach, but perhaps it was something she could work on. All those wise old wolves she had heard of couldn’t have been born ready to teach, after all.

“I’m excited to see what else Mentor Aresenn can teach~ You know, it’s quite a thrill, watching you command attention.” Absinth’s gaze peered softly at Aresenn, something more intimate lingering there between tease and compliment.

wormwood