Achaius is a morning person – had been up well before the weak cloud-shrouded sun this morning crossing the treed paths of the Threshold. Picking his way through the fresh snow in the poor light and watching as the iridescent, ice-wrapped deciduous trunks and evergreen boughs were gradually revealed; stretching out in gentle rolling waves was a more than adequate pick-me-up. So at this point in the morning he was in full possession of his faculties and, rather invigorated by the cool air and the new prospects ahead of him, was in an exceptionally good mood.
Elsa played along with his line of conversation and he enjoyed observing the effects of her compliment on Ilios, and was impressed by Ilios’ apparent comfort with himself. The kid was very likeable. His ears flicked backward for a second when Elsa laughed. She was projecting a light and pleasant air but the laugh didn’t fit, somehow. It sounded… clumsy, like she hadn’t really practiced it in a while. Achaius schooled his face a little better as he listened to Elsa’s introduction to The World’s Edge, paying her his full attention for the first time since she had dropped out of the sky into their meeting. She was about the same size as he was, not counting the vast wingspan. Her scar was somehow prominent and unobtrusive at the same time. It altered her expressions in a rather interesting way; the tighter skin did not quite allow her smile to lift her cheeks properly on that side and, unless you could see the rest of her face, made her smile seem quite cold. But then, the cold smile suited the rest of her motif well and so had its own sincerity. The more she spoke the more he sensed she was speaking from herself, as opposed to a desire to make the right impression – as everyone does, when meeting strangers, as he was doing now.
The night hadn’t been the coldest on his journey, and the season was definitely nearing the end, for which he was thankful. He didn’t mind being cold, per se, but standing ankle-deep in the wet snow at the moment was starting to make him wonder if he would actually be able to move his feet again when he needed to. He looked with overwrought appraisal at Ilios again, as though he were calculating something and mused out loud:
“That’s a very good move, Ilios, remember that one - complementing the competition always puts you in a favourable light.”
Then he said, dipping his head again to Elsa “It was rather uncouth of me not to introduce myself. The conversation just got away from me.” He smiled smoothly, in a way that conveyed apology, and went on
“My name is Achaius. But I’m sure ‘That guy’ is just as descriptive, so please feel free.” He was being sincere. He was genuinely happy for conversation – he hadn’t realized how long it had been since he had had someone to talk to. Or had there been someone to talk to? Something was scratching at his memory but it didn’t reveal itself, it just an intuition and a shadow at the back of his mind. Probably it was inconsequential.
“You both give quite equally compelling descriptions.” Literally, actually. He now knew exactly as much about Dragon’s Throat as he did about World’s Edge. He had had no foreknowledge of Helovia, and still knew almost nothing about its customs or politics, though he was getting a pretty interesting lesson in its people at the moment. He wasn’t exactly sure how he would make a decision about where to live.
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