Oh well, he'd had to try asking the question, even if he'd half-expected the answer. Alys had always been honest with him about the limitations of the cards, and he figured he had a better grasp than he used to on what they could and couldn't do.
He met her rueful smile with a lopsided one of his own and gave a little shrug that seemed to say: what can you do? at the confirmation that the timing was, well, fuzzy at best.
As Tal took another swallow of wine, Boreal stretched lazily and draped a wing over Sascha, the translucent leather of it enough to dim the light over the little cub without dropping her into darkness. The courier glanced over at the tableaux with a smile that softened with a moment of open fondness before Alys's question drew his attention back to her with a startled blink.
"Me? I mean..." He bit his lip, nose scrunching up in conflicted thought. "'Strongly' covers a lot o' ground. There's lots o' people I feel strongly about, y'know? But doesn't mean I wanna kiss 'em. Or... I mean..." He shrugged a little helplessly, ill-equipped with words for this conversation, even as the warmth spread down the back of his neck and threatened to engulf his ears completely. "Fall in l-love with 'em. Not when doin' so ends up hurtin' so much." He gulped hurriedly at his glass, draining it in one convulsive swallow before he reached for the bottle to pour more, not meeting Alys's eyes. "What about you? Ever fallin' for anyone before?"
He met her rueful smile with a lopsided one of his own and gave a little shrug that seemed to say: what can you do? at the confirmation that the timing was, well, fuzzy at best.
As Tal took another swallow of wine, Boreal stretched lazily and draped a wing over Sascha, the translucent leather of it enough to dim the light over the little cub without dropping her into darkness. The courier glanced over at the tableaux with a smile that softened with a moment of open fondness before Alys's question drew his attention back to her with a startled blink.
"Me? I mean..." He bit his lip, nose scrunching up in conflicted thought. "'Strongly' covers a lot o' ground. There's lots o' people I feel strongly about, y'know? But doesn't mean I wanna kiss 'em. Or... I mean..." He shrugged a little helplessly, ill-equipped with words for this conversation, even as the warmth spread down the back of his neck and threatened to engulf his ears completely. "Fall in l-love with 'em. Not when doin' so ends up hurtin' so much." He gulped hurriedly at his glass, draining it in one convulsive swallow before he reached for the bottle to pour more, not meeting Alys's eyes. "What about you? Ever fallin' for anyone before?"
