Chernobyl’s response startles him, and he gives an imperceptible jerk of his head in response, eyes widening a fraction. Her suggestion was followed by a facetious smile, but Roland wasn’t sure if it was meant to soften the insult or worsen it. He wasn’t offended often, though it had been a while since he’d lived in a social situation, but he liked to believe his rustiness with communication was a result of those months spent in solitude. He hadn’t meant to overstep boundaries by simply observing, but it seemed, perhaps, that all the ice and snow had put a frost on his charm, and he wasn’t quite so endearing when surrounded by Unicorns he hadn’t yet decided to trust. He tried to feel at ease amongst their ranks, but the incident upon the mountainside with Leyra, Zar’roc and Elizabeth still nagged at the back of his mind. He had never found out what the true cause of the incident was, but the fact that the herd was predominantly racist had left a slightly sour taste in his mouth. He tried to overlook it as best he could, for there were more important matters at hand.

“Forgive me,” was all he said, placatingly, hoping it was enough but doubting that it was. He blinked, looking at her with a well disguised expression of curiousity and apprehension, though he wasn’t going to be quick to judge and pin her as a figure to avoid- it did seem to be his fault after all. Chernobyl seemed to dislike him, as if in some way the fact that they were trapped in here while a storm raged outside their icy haven had been his doing, but he couldn’t be sure what exactly provoked her. Perhaps it was her personality, or she was just having a bad day. He wasn’t exactly enjoying the forecast either, but it was difficult to decipher her expressions; some he knew by heart, though he had difficulty unraveling the portent seething beneath their verbiage.

“I am a Phantom. I’ve spent a good portion of my life lying and swindling… a bad habit I picked up in my homeland, I suppose, though it has done me some good,” he responded, deciding he might as well be open with her, though his mind still troubled over the fact that she found his name odd. He quite liked it, but then again he liked himself a great deal. She had asked what made tick, and so he had given her the truthful answer for better or for worse. There wasn’t much she could do to use the information again him, for his occupation clearly stated that duplicity was his tool of the trade, but he supposed it might not be the best information to share when she already seemed to think ill of him.

Roland did feel slightly uncomfortable, but it was more that he was flustered and surprised at her reaction than made nervous by her. He attempted to appear confident in most situations, but there was no lion’s heart in his chest; beneath his ego and the occasional false bravado, he was a coward. Perhaps Chernobyl responded to him so unkindly because he had been too foreword, for he could see that one might not respond kindly when a stranger appears out of a dark flurry of snow and begins talking about feelings and the like, before he had even learned her name; but she had caught him off guard with her reaction. It had never been his intention to put her at unease.

He felt almost like a child as she spoke to him, but he was determined to not respond in a manner that might be received as petulant. He looked out at the gray sky and whirlwind of snowflakes with disdain, wondering how he might word his response in a way that would not stoke her ire. “I didn’t pay much mind to the weather until I came to the Basin, honestly. Snow has never been a favourite thing of mine, so it is taking some time to adjust,” he admitted, voice level despite the fact that he felt his fur had been rubbed the wrong way.

Chernobyl continued, and the Phantom turned away from the mouth of the cave to give her a calculating look, wondering at exactly what game she was trying to play. If she was attempting to get a rise out of him, she would find he wasn’t easily provoked even though her harsh words did irk him. Still, he did not feel compelled to respond rudely since she had done nothing to harm him, despite the fact that he now sported a slightly wounded ego, for he held himself in high regard.

“This is no inconvenience to me. Would you rather I didn’t enjoy it? ” He questioned, a playful glint in his eyes. If she was going to take such a negative tone with him, he could only try and make light of the situation. He had no intentions of braving the storm that raged outside, so they would have to learn to put up with each other until it passed; and he was not entirely opposed to the idea. For all her thorniness, there was an air of intrigue about her, despite the fact that she cast off his attempts at being kind like water upon her back.

walk walk walk
"talk talk talk"