They say blood makes you related but
loyalty makes you family
Astra remained by Evie, the luxere looking expectantly at the healer for scratches. Loren didn’t mind in the slightest: he knew Astra would eventually come home to him, and that was all that really mattered. Besides, his companion deserved all the attention she could get. At the red-headed woman’s compliment, the summoner blushed slightly. ”I think you might be the only person in the Hollowed Grounds who thinks that.” Though his tone was completely serious, the slight smile lurking at the corner of his lips belied his amusement. Granted, she actually was probably the only person who thought that.
Well, this was not at all how he’d been hoping this conversation would go; Loren wished there was some way to make Evie feel better about Abasi’s words and the way in which the Launceleyn had relayed them. ”Hey, no, none of that. You don’t have anything to apologize for.” If anything, the other man owed the healer an apology: even in this short interaction the summoner could tell she wouldn’t give anything less than her best. Her incredible shop and her reaction to criticism reminded him a little bit of his own perfectionist drive and his own reactions once upon a time, where every unkind word would make him shrink in on himself. He still got like that sometimes, though nowadays he had at least one person who would always pull him out of his funk.
Listening raptly as the red-headed woman explained the early onset of the blight and how it progressed, Loren found himself going over how well that matched with his own understanding of the cursed disease. When she paused, however, he shook his head. ”No apologies, remember? And that’s all really good to know. I never saw the early stages of it, just the later symptoms. Is there anything else I should look out for?” Most of the blighted were far past a slight fever and some exhaustion, but none of them knew how the illness worked, not really. It was entirely possible that new cases would crop up, even now.
As Evie prepared the medication, the Launceleyn paid close attention to both the ingredients and the way they were combined. While he didn’t know if he could make it on his own, every little bit of information helped. He took the jar from her with a nod, and tucked it under one arm. ”Thank you. This is really a huge help.” Seeing as folks mostly bartered around here—or just helped one another as needed—Loren wanted to repay her somehow. So he concentrated briefly, brow furrowed, as he called upon his magic. Two jars, identical to the one she’d stored Abasi’s salve in except that they were empty, appeared in the summoner’s hands, and he held them out to her. ”So you’re not out a jar because of me. And since I can’t replace the ingredients, I figured an extra jar might always be useful to have around.” Actually, it was more than a fair trade; Loren knew how difficult it was to find glass. However, given how little this had cost him and how much effort Evie had put into this, it was really the least he could do.
When the red-headed woman asked about the college, the summoner frowned. ”I’m not sure, actually. I enrolled towards the end of Leafchange and, well, Phoebe…” Loren trailed off, not sure how much he should say about the blonde woman. The Dean of the College of Medicine had been blighted, and if she was anything like the others the Launceleyn had encountered, he figured there wouldn’t be any classes for quite a while.
Well, this was not at all how he’d been hoping this conversation would go; Loren wished there was some way to make Evie feel better about Abasi’s words and the way in which the Launceleyn had relayed them. ”Hey, no, none of that. You don’t have anything to apologize for.” If anything, the other man owed the healer an apology: even in this short interaction the summoner could tell she wouldn’t give anything less than her best. Her incredible shop and her reaction to criticism reminded him a little bit of his own perfectionist drive and his own reactions once upon a time, where every unkind word would make him shrink in on himself. He still got like that sometimes, though nowadays he had at least one person who would always pull him out of his funk.
Listening raptly as the red-headed woman explained the early onset of the blight and how it progressed, Loren found himself going over how well that matched with his own understanding of the cursed disease. When she paused, however, he shook his head. ”No apologies, remember? And that’s all really good to know. I never saw the early stages of it, just the later symptoms. Is there anything else I should look out for?” Most of the blighted were far past a slight fever and some exhaustion, but none of them knew how the illness worked, not really. It was entirely possible that new cases would crop up, even now.
As Evie prepared the medication, the Launceleyn paid close attention to both the ingredients and the way they were combined. While he didn’t know if he could make it on his own, every little bit of information helped. He took the jar from her with a nod, and tucked it under one arm. ”Thank you. This is really a huge help.” Seeing as folks mostly bartered around here—or just helped one another as needed—Loren wanted to repay her somehow. So he concentrated briefly, brow furrowed, as he called upon his magic. Two jars, identical to the one she’d stored Abasi’s salve in except that they were empty, appeared in the summoner’s hands, and he held them out to her. ”So you’re not out a jar because of me. And since I can’t replace the ingredients, I figured an extra jar might always be useful to have around.” Actually, it was more than a fair trade; Loren knew how difficult it was to find glass. However, given how little this had cost him and how much effort Evie had put into this, it was really the least he could do.
When the red-headed woman asked about the college, the summoner frowned. ”I’m not sure, actually. I enrolled towards the end of Leafchange and, well, Phoebe…” Loren trailed off, not sure how much he should say about the blonde woman. The Dean of the College of Medicine had been blighted, and if she was anything like the others the Launceleyn had encountered, he figured there wouldn’t be any classes for quite a while.
LOREN
