He gave her his best scowl, grumbling playfully as her teasing struck home and it felt good to banter again, even if he was getting the short end of it as usual. One of these days he was going to have a real zinger of a comeback ready for her! ...But today was not that day, and he conceded the point with comically ill grace followed by a rueful grin as they all moved inside and away from the mud that seemed everywhere this season.
Taking a moment to look her over tugged at something in his chest he had trouble naming. The last time he'd seen her looking so good had been--
Well. Before the War, and all that had been lost with it. But her smile held a twist that went straight to his gut, and as he bent to undo the lacings on his boots he kept slanting questioning glances up at her. "Yeah... well. Not gonna lie, I've been kinda worried but... I guess if steppin' out with him is makin' you happy..." The courier was dubious, but there wasn't a man or woman alive who deserved Ru. Which was a damn lonely way to go through life, even he could admit, so as long as the Flood was making her smile and not cry, Tal did his best to swallow his jealousy.
Some lessons even he could learn, after enough time had passed.
He straightened and moved further into the house in his stocking feet as Boreal continued her meander of the rooms, checking for dropped food and new smells. The question brought the rueful quirk back to the courier's lips as he reached up to rub the back of his neck. "Better'n I was," he admitted honestly. He'd had a rough Longheat, but Deepfrost had seen the fixing up of the Snowcloak courier station and a home of his own, and the deepening of some of his other friendships. Plural. Something he still had trouble wrapping his head around sometimes. "I've got plans t'set up a station in th'Hollowed Grounds this season. Dependin' on how that goes, I'll get one up in Stormbreak, too. I've got a quest goin' for Ludo t'help me improve my Dagger, an' Alys wants t'do a tour o' Caido on th'Peregrine soon. Honestly, it's... kinda overwhelmin'? But in a good way," he hurried to assure her, grin finally widening, if going a bit lopsided. "What about you? Got any plans for th' Academy this Flowerbirth?"
Taking a moment to look her over tugged at something in his chest he had trouble naming. The last time he'd seen her looking so good had been--
Well. Before the War, and all that had been lost with it. But her smile held a twist that went straight to his gut, and as he bent to undo the lacings on his boots he kept slanting questioning glances up at her. "Yeah... well. Not gonna lie, I've been kinda worried but... I guess if steppin' out with him is makin' you happy..." The courier was dubious, but there wasn't a man or woman alive who deserved Ru. Which was a damn lonely way to go through life, even he could admit, so as long as the Flood was making her smile and not cry, Tal did his best to swallow his jealousy.
Some lessons even he could learn, after enough time had passed.
He straightened and moved further into the house in his stocking feet as Boreal continued her meander of the rooms, checking for dropped food and new smells. The question brought the rueful quirk back to the courier's lips as he reached up to rub the back of his neck. "Better'n I was," he admitted honestly. He'd had a rough Longheat, but Deepfrost had seen the fixing up of the Snowcloak courier station and a home of his own, and the deepening of some of his other friendships. Plural. Something he still had trouble wrapping his head around sometimes. "I've got plans t'set up a station in th'Hollowed Grounds this season. Dependin' on how that goes, I'll get one up in Stormbreak, too. I've got a quest goin' for Ludo t'help me improve my Dagger, an' Alys wants t'do a tour o' Caido on th'Peregrine soon. Honestly, it's... kinda overwhelmin'? But in a good way," he hurried to assure her, grin finally widening, if going a bit lopsided. "What about you? Got any plans for th' Academy this Flowerbirth?"
