He misses the flash in her eyes, distracted by the sensation of her touch on his skin. Some things never change. In truth, it would not have been difficult for her to lay an enchanted trap for him at their first meeting, for he was already the type of man that could be seduced with a wink of the eye, or a swish of a hip. Today, she could still forcibly draw him in if she chose to, but she might not find it so easy to bend him to her will. But since that is not in her heart, it is entirely possible that they may never have to know what would happen in that situation.
The tickle of her nose in his feathers feels just as nice and without thinking about it, he captures strands of her multi-colored mane between his teeth and tugs lightly, coltishly at them. These small, simple gestures that they share are far from the panacea that he subconsciously yearns for, but they still alleviate some of the internal strain that had been building over these last few months.
His shoulders automatically tense when she mentions the added weight of his wings, reviving memories of the stubborn soreness experienced in the first week or so when they were freshly sprouted. ”They are, but I don’t mind it nearly as much as I did.”
The ease he had found in their moment of closeness slips away as quickly as it arrived. The edge in her voice cleaves through the air and causes him to sidestep away from her as though she’d taken a blade to his hide. Before he can respond, her tone changes and the apology in her expression only dazes him further. Though he wishes to question her about it, he chooses to move along with her train of thought.
”The water is definitely better when it is confined to smaller boundaries.” He smiles slightly as the image of their first meeting flickers to life in his head. A bastardized Birth of Venus, one might say.
He considers her suggestion that he is pleased by the revivification of the old lands. It is easy to see why she would assume, for their generations are so far apart that they do not know much of either era. A frown of disagreement contorts his features. ”No, I can’t say that I am. I never paid much attention to the governing lands in my day, I just did not find them that important.”
Now is the opportunity that he has been looking for, so he casually circles back to her pronounced displeasure with Beqanna’s latest remodeling. ”I don’t know if these are even the same kingdoms that I once knew, but the names are vaguely familiar. I’m curious to find out.. what would you say to visiting them with me? If you would like, you can even decide where we go first.”
Something unnamed swells within him as he envisions the possibilities if she chooses to accompany him. Whatever it is, it tells him that this is the first step in abandoning his feckless past, in determining what kind of man he wants to be going forward in this new life that has been given to him.
@Adriana