Tal grinned, pleased at how easily Alys had fit in to his home - now her home too! - and gave an emphatic nod of agreement before going off on his own list of places that were definitely not very home-like. Especially in Longheat!
"Haven't spent a lot o' time there," the courier admitted about King's End. "But it's not so bad. There's this freaky maze made out o' roses--" He cut himself off as the smith gestured to him with her tongs and he dutifully began working the bellows as she turned the slender iron rod until it glowed a cherry red. Then she motioned him to stop while she shifted the metal to the anvil and began to work it with a small hammer. Alys was spared further coal-shoveling for the moment, though her silver ingot in the crucible at the edge of the forge was beginning to show signs of softening.
Tal's mind skipped to the party and he listened as his friend mused on her own ideas for the gathering. There was open relief on his face as she mentioned dressing less fancy and then gave her a sheepish grin of solidarity. "I used t'avoid the things like th'plague," he admitted conspiratorially. "That Ball was th'fanciest shindig I've ever been to. But the one Ancient I met seemed pretty down t'earth, so hopefully this won't be as stuffy."
"Haven't spent a lot o' time there," the courier admitted about King's End. "But it's not so bad. There's this freaky maze made out o' roses--" He cut himself off as the smith gestured to him with her tongs and he dutifully began working the bellows as she turned the slender iron rod until it glowed a cherry red. Then she motioned him to stop while she shifted the metal to the anvil and began to work it with a small hammer. Alys was spared further coal-shoveling for the moment, though her silver ingot in the crucible at the edge of the forge was beginning to show signs of softening.
Tal's mind skipped to the party and he listened as his friend mused on her own ideas for the gathering. There was open relief on his face as she mentioned dressing less fancy and then gave her a sheepish grin of solidarity. "I used t'avoid the things like th'plague," he admitted conspiratorially. "That Ball was th'fanciest shindig I've ever been to. But the one Ancient I met seemed pretty down t'earth, so hopefully this won't be as stuffy."
