"Thank you," he murmured back, just as automatically. He had mourned enough that the pain was no longer bright and jagged but a quiet ache, softened by time and coming to terms with his loss. Isla had taught him of medicine without magic, expanding his own knowledge and proving herself a good teacher, an excellent guildmember, and a dear friend.
"They are, but they're also mostly Outlanders from what I've seen," he admitted with a wry, deprecating smile. "Like me. I recognize some plants from my own world here, and I've done my best to study the herbals and books on local flora in the Atheneum, but they can't replace someone who lives here and knows these plants and their uses. Your knowledge would be a great gift." He hesitated, unsure if he should press further in the moment, but they were still building the framework for what he hoped would be a stronger friendship as time went on. And they would have time, of that he was determined. "And if there's anything the Loreseekers can help you with, you have only to ask me and I'll handle it discretly." He added the last with a quirked smile, knowing Sam and Evie's fraught relationship.
It was a glimpse of the conversation's shift as Evie grew worried of Sam's discovering her secret, but if he did it wouldn't be from Jigano. The provost held the secrets given into his care close and shared them with none, not without permission. It was why he had been so afraid of the Attuned telepathic bond at first, rejecting it with every ounce of his will out of fear that others might be able to lift those secrets from his thoughts. Time and training had taught him to shield everything but that he wished to consciously share, however, and now only the gods could see what he would never say aloud.
He watched with concern as Evie curled inwards and he stretched a hand towards her in concern, but hesitated before touching her. He no longer shied away from such contact as he once had, but it was still strange and uncomfortable to try and initiate it himself. "It will be waiting, whenever you want it. Or even if you never do," he assured gently. He let his hand fall slowly, his lopsided smile returning at her own offer. "I draw far too much attention to myself to hide such a thing for long," he admitted wryly. "And it was so common on my world that I never needed to learn to hide it. Even if I tried I don't think I would manage it beyond a few weeks at most. Perhaps don't offer the information freely, but if someone asks or already seems to know about it, you don't need to lie or make excuses for me."
"They are, but they're also mostly Outlanders from what I've seen," he admitted with a wry, deprecating smile. "Like me. I recognize some plants from my own world here, and I've done my best to study the herbals and books on local flora in the Atheneum, but they can't replace someone who lives here and knows these plants and their uses. Your knowledge would be a great gift." He hesitated, unsure if he should press further in the moment, but they were still building the framework for what he hoped would be a stronger friendship as time went on. And they would have time, of that he was determined. "And if there's anything the Loreseekers can help you with, you have only to ask me and I'll handle it discretly." He added the last with a quirked smile, knowing Sam and Evie's fraught relationship.
It was a glimpse of the conversation's shift as Evie grew worried of Sam's discovering her secret, but if he did it wouldn't be from Jigano. The provost held the secrets given into his care close and shared them with none, not without permission. It was why he had been so afraid of the Attuned telepathic bond at first, rejecting it with every ounce of his will out of fear that others might be able to lift those secrets from his thoughts. Time and training had taught him to shield everything but that he wished to consciously share, however, and now only the gods could see what he would never say aloud.
He watched with concern as Evie curled inwards and he stretched a hand towards her in concern, but hesitated before touching her. He no longer shied away from such contact as he once had, but it was still strange and uncomfortable to try and initiate it himself. "It will be waiting, whenever you want it. Or even if you never do," he assured gently. He let his hand fall slowly, his lopsided smile returning at her own offer. "I draw far too much attention to myself to hide such a thing for long," he admitted wryly. "And it was so common on my world that I never needed to learn to hide it. Even if I tried I don't think I would manage it beyond a few weeks at most. Perhaps don't offer the information freely, but if someone asks or already seems to know about it, you don't need to lie or make excuses for me."
