( it is a relief to simply close the door of their quarters and hold onto his sleeve when he releases her hands; as if that will keep the wolves from the door. the longer this war draws out, the more dangerous the compromises they have survived with so far.
she turns her face against his shoulder. )
Marcus acted promptly. The Commander acted promptly. It is...it is as it is. A bizarre day. Commander Flint has made much of his interest in the affairs and future of mages, it seemed. Prudent. To see which way he would jump.
( her pride still stings a little that he called her on it, but there were hardly preferable alternatives. )
That a member of Riftwatch so loathes any mage he will confidently threaten violence to whichever is in front of him is not, I think, itself a problem of only mine.
( not that she doesn't take his point. )
He struck me as cowardly, but perhaps the dangerous sort that will strike the thing he fears.
but contained in that we haven't a head of Forces who finds it acceptable, by your estimate. That could be a quick way for Riftwatch to lose its mages, which I'm not certain the organization could survive. And in the more immediate, we'd have to find you at least a few more rifters to come along if we were going to leave.
[It's all reasonably said; logistical problems to work through, not insurmountable, but certainly not ideal.]
That is, assuming someone doesn't just lose his temper and preemptively kill Deimos, which would create a different sort of chain reaction.
So long as Deimos has the good sense to avoid you going forward, I don't see any need for my path and his to cross.
[He's hesitant to promise he will remain so serene if Deimos actually strikes the thing he fears - in a small, fragile form unlikely to effectively strike back. After a moment, he adds:]
If anything happens to you or your hands, I'll help Rowantree plan it to look like an accident unconnected to either of us.
( that she does lift her head to fix him with her severest look suggests she can perfectly well hear the difference between a joke and something merely wearing the clothes of one. )
You could not use magic, you would be the very first suspect.
( what kind of man gets caught for murders. honestly. )
Obviously. He and I would both, in fact, need excellent alibis, as I have a motive and he "acted promptly" this time, which I presume was noticed. Ideally, we should both be out of Kirkwall, not together, on work assignments with other witnesses to vouch for our whereabouts.
Regardless, you needn't fear my temper. I've a leash on it, for all I can't relish you being threatened under any circumstances. But I trust your evaluation of the situation, too, you know. If you say leave it be, I will.
[Not because he doesn't care; because he cares so much.]
We know. The Commander knows. And he knows that I have the full—
( she stops, momentarily derailed. )
In fact, ( after a moment, ) he may have inadvertently done me something of a service. I was...surprised by the Commander's determination to aid me in locating an alternate source of Qunlat. He was not, I think, entirely persuaded by my theories of language, and though he was more than willing to assist me with Tevene and I am certain if I had made further requests of him he would have been willing to listen and perhaps agree—I was surprised by his...treating it as a matter of course.
( if he still thinks some aspects of her project are a little frou-frou, that's fine; that he ranged himself behind it in support is what matters. that he chose to, when her work (and her hands) were threatened. )
Useful to know. It's a valuable colleague who will support your work even beyond personally seeing the value in it. Do you think he'll find you an alternate source of Qunlat? That's not an easy pull, even in Kirkwall.
[Perhaps especially in Kirkwall, under the circumstances. He realizes it's not entirely the point, and is happy to get back to the point momentarily, but he is interested in Petrana's project for its own sake, not only because of its point of origin.]
( she tilts her hand—so-so odds—as she heaves a sigh worthy of the dog presently sleeping nearby and shifts in his arms until she can rest her back against his chest, drawing one of his hands to her waist and clasping it with both of her own. )
I think he is well-placed to do so, of those who might make the attempt. It's less pressing, I grant you, than Tevene or Nevarran, but it would be immensely valuable even so.
( her fingertips drum against the back of his knuckles. )
[She can feel his thoughtful hum, resting against his chest.]
You've likely already outstripped me. I read a bit of Tevene because of old academics, but never had a chance to pick up the modern, conversational version. I suppose for obvious reasons.
[He rests his head against hers for a moment.]
I'm glad Flint's been helpful. It's not always the impression he gives. [A man inclined to be helpful.]
Well. I would never underestimate your charm, and your ability to use it to make headway through difficult social terrain. I should have mentioned you when I went to meet with him, I now suspect.
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You shouldn't have had to endure threats from anyone in Riftwatch in the first place, even if you handled it in a mature and reasonable way.
[He's not telling her anything she doesn't know, of course, but even so. Some days he feels the precariousness of their position more than others.]
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she turns her face against his shoulder. )
Marcus acted promptly. The Commander acted promptly. It is...it is as it is. A bizarre day. Commander Flint has made much of his interest in the affairs and future of mages, it seemed. Prudent. To see which way he would jump.
( her pride still stings a little that he called her on it, but there were hardly preferable alternatives. )
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[He strokes her hair, slowly.]
It's still a problem, I would argue, but a contained one.
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( not that she doesn't take his point. )
He struck me as cowardly, but perhaps the dangerous sort that will strike the thing he fears.
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[he clarifies]
but contained in that we haven't a head of Forces who finds it acceptable, by your estimate. That could be a quick way for Riftwatch to lose its mages, which I'm not certain the organization could survive. And in the more immediate, we'd have to find you at least a few more rifters to come along if we were going to leave.
[It's all reasonably said; logistical problems to work through, not insurmountable, but certainly not ideal.]
That is, assuming someone doesn't just lose his temper and preemptively kill Deimos, which would create a different sort of chain reaction.
["Someone."]
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I have asked him not to do that. I would ask you keep your temper as well.
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[He's hesitant to promise he will remain so serene if Deimos actually strikes the thing he fears - in a small, fragile form unlikely to effectively strike back. After a moment, he adds:]
If anything happens to you or your hands, I'll help Rowantree plan it to look like an accident unconnected to either of us.
[It's delivered like a joke, but it isn't one.]
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You could not use magic, you would be the very first suspect.
( what kind of man gets caught for murders. honestly. )
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Obviously. He and I would both, in fact, need excellent alibis, as I have a motive and he "acted promptly" this time, which I presume was noticed. Ideally, we should both be out of Kirkwall, not together, on work assignments with other witnesses to vouch for our whereabouts.
...theoretically, of course.
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I hope it may not come to that.
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Regardless, you needn't fear my temper. I've a leash on it, for all I can't relish you being threatened under any circumstances. But I trust your evaluation of the situation, too, you know. If you say leave it be, I will.
[Not because he doesn't care; because he cares so much.]
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We know. The Commander knows. And he knows that I have the full—
( she stops, momentarily derailed. )
In fact, ( after a moment, ) he may have inadvertently done me something of a service. I was...surprised by the Commander's determination to aid me in locating an alternate source of Qunlat. He was not, I think, entirely persuaded by my theories of language, and though he was more than willing to assist me with Tevene and I am certain if I had made further requests of him he would have been willing to listen and perhaps agree—I was surprised by his...treating it as a matter of course.
( if he still thinks some aspects of her project are a little frou-frou, that's fine; that he ranged himself behind it in support is what matters. that he chose to, when her work (and her hands) were threatened. )
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Useful to know. It's a valuable colleague who will support your work even beyond personally seeing the value in it. Do you think he'll find you an alternate source of Qunlat? That's not an easy pull, even in Kirkwall.
[Perhaps especially in Kirkwall, under the circumstances. He realizes it's not entirely the point, and is happy to get back to the point momentarily, but he is interested in Petrana's project for its own sake, not only because of its point of origin.]
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I think he is well-placed to do so, of those who might make the attempt. It's less pressing, I grant you, than Tevene or Nevarran, but it would be immensely valuable even so.
( her fingertips drum against the back of his knuckles. )
He is personally assisting me with Tevene.
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You've likely already outstripped me. I read a bit of Tevene because of old academics, but never had a chance to pick up the modern, conversational version. I suppose for obvious reasons.
[He rests his head against hers for a moment.]
I'm glad Flint's been helpful. It's not always the impression he gives. [A man inclined to be helpful.]
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