Solace
He aptly anticipates her concern, dissipating the apprehension she has before it has time to truly take shape - she knew all too well that Svedka would be just fine traveling on his own... or with a companion he picked up along the way. Smoak seems to know this too judging by the grin he gives her, and there is a slight satisfaction in thinking that he had been the third wheel. His short adventure has somehow aged him, but she finds the minor change in his mannerism intriguing.
She wonders if she had unintentionally given him a test.
As a child, Tangerine's interest in far away had left Solace motherless, and Svedkas unquenchable desire for adventure was a constant source of worry for her. She had fought and lost to adventure her entire life. Even in her kingdom, there would be those who looked down upon Hyaline for the very characteristics she painstakingly fostered.
If she was ever to give away her heart it would be so much easier if she didn't have to fight something new anymore. If she could be enough for someone - completely enough.
If it was a test, Smoak aced it.
"I guess wanderlust just isn’t a part of me.” He shrugs nonchalantly as if the words he is speaking aren't re-arranging all her priorities. “It really only made me think of home …”
He says exactly what she wants to hear, not that she knew she needed it until he said it. But that was who Smoak was to her, he filled in the gaps before she even had to ask, and her heart is glowing as she stumbles into her own fairy tale.
But somewhere in the back of her mind, an alarm is ringing.
She decided to push it away.
She was tired of pulling herself in, bristling every emotion - if there was anyone in the world she could be herself with it was Smoak, she was tired off the bell which has been censoring every action her entire life.
She just wanted to say and do what she felt like doing, and with that thought the tension between them seems more like magnetic electricity - something to savor, not diffuse.
But he is moving on, she doesn't stop him. It was always easy for her to talk about Hyaline.
"A few new faces, mostly." She thinks back to the handful of horses who had found the lake kingdom seeking sanctuary over the winter and her mind begins to wander to kingdom duties. "Now that your back, I want you to think about taking on more of a roll in the guard. I know everything has been quiet around here," Her gaze drifts to the south where her unknown neighbors live "but I don't want us to be caught with fifteen diplomats and one fighting man if something should happen."
But her thoughtful gaze quickly returns to her companion. "Sorry," she laughs, bumping her pale shoulder against his, "Enough about management, you don't have to decide now."
caretaker of hyaline
I'm saying this is right before she gets her wings in the timeline
