"Huh. Never been in the Valam... uh... flode? b'efore," Tal admitted, wracking his brain to try and place it. "Kraai's pretty decent, though. I'll have t'come by an' have a drink here, then. See if it lives up to the rep." He flashed Thorn the briefest flicker of a grin, careful to keep his eyes on the other man's face with a self-conscious courtesy that he hadn't quite realized was probably unnecessary.
The cheerfully coarse language didn't seem to faze the courier, who might have fallen into the same category as some of those sailors who had been Thorn's bread and butter. Whether a ship sailed on the sea or the clouds, her crew and captain were still 'sailors.' But in spite of the heat that was setting up permanent camp in his ears, Tal couldn't help his fascination with Thorn's exotic vocation. "But isn't it mostly sailors here, too?" He was thinking of the Boondocks and Castaway Exchange, but maybe that's because where he spent most of his time in King's End. "I'd've guessed Halo would've had th'fewest. More trappers'n hunters there." And a warm, willing bedpartner went a long way towards making those long, cold Halo nights more tolerable!
He blinked at the wink, managing something that was like a smile as he struggled with the idea of not wanting to keep in touch with anyone back where, he wrongly assumed, was 'home.' He followed Thorn out of the shade however, and after moment's hesitation he shuffled back to his sails to continue his inspection while they talked.
The cheerfully coarse language didn't seem to faze the courier, who might have fallen into the same category as some of those sailors who had been Thorn's bread and butter. Whether a ship sailed on the sea or the clouds, her crew and captain were still 'sailors.' But in spite of the heat that was setting up permanent camp in his ears, Tal couldn't help his fascination with Thorn's exotic vocation. "But isn't it mostly sailors here, too?" He was thinking of the Boondocks and Castaway Exchange, but maybe that's because where he spent most of his time in King's End. "I'd've guessed Halo would've had th'fewest. More trappers'n hunters there." And a warm, willing bedpartner went a long way towards making those long, cold Halo nights more tolerable!
He blinked at the wink, managing something that was like a smile as he struggled with the idea of not wanting to keep in touch with anyone back where, he wrongly assumed, was 'home.' He followed Thorn out of the shade however, and after moment's hesitation he shuffled back to his sails to continue his inspection while they talked.
