Having fought swarms before, Jigano knew better than to think a cloud of flesh-devouring beetles were 'mild'. One or two, perhaps, but a flight of a hundred? It was enough to send a delicate shudder through him as he sipped his tea to ward off the chill.
A chill that lingered at the reminder of the loss of Adam and Coffee - Peter, too, though he'd barely known the man. It had left fresh scars on Deimos and Amalia as well, two people who didn't need any more pain, and Jigano gave a grateful nod at Sam's show of sympathy and support, taking a moment to appreciate that his oldest friend on Caido was still alive(?) and well, when so many others were not.
He drew a breath, inhaling the scent of the tea to steady his voice before he smiled wanly at the bookmaker. "They are. Ludo wouldn't let them be lost, and at least they're together and with their companions in Mort's realm. Adam was..." he trailed off, trying to find the words to describe Adam and laughing ruefully as he shook his head. "Gods. A flashy, cocky, wonderful disaster of a magpie man? He loved to show off and be fashionable - in his own particular and rather unique way - but he was a good listener and when Caiside died, he was the one who... well. He could have left me alone in my mourning of the dead, but he helped me clean the blood off and talk and... and he pulled me out of a very dark place." At a time when everyone had their own worries and fears and demons to confront - some more literal than others. "We shared an opinion of Zariah and a love of music, though he couldn't carry a tune if I gave him a bucket for it," he added with a wry chuckle. "And Coffee and Isuma were about the same size and loved to romp together. She still misses her friend, too." So many of her playmates seemed to come and go with the seasons.
A chill that lingered at the reminder of the loss of Adam and Coffee - Peter, too, though he'd barely known the man. It had left fresh scars on Deimos and Amalia as well, two people who didn't need any more pain, and Jigano gave a grateful nod at Sam's show of sympathy and support, taking a moment to appreciate that his oldest friend on Caido was still alive(?) and well, when so many others were not.
He drew a breath, inhaling the scent of the tea to steady his voice before he smiled wanly at the bookmaker. "They are. Ludo wouldn't let them be lost, and at least they're together and with their companions in Mort's realm. Adam was..." he trailed off, trying to find the words to describe Adam and laughing ruefully as he shook his head. "Gods. A flashy, cocky, wonderful disaster of a magpie man? He loved to show off and be fashionable - in his own particular and rather unique way - but he was a good listener and when Caiside died, he was the one who... well. He could have left me alone in my mourning of the dead, but he helped me clean the blood off and talk and... and he pulled me out of a very dark place." At a time when everyone had their own worries and fears and demons to confront - some more literal than others. "We shared an opinion of Zariah and a love of music, though he couldn't carry a tune if I gave him a bucket for it," he added with a wry chuckle. "And Coffee and Isuma were about the same size and loved to romp together. She still misses her friend, too." So many of her playmates seemed to come and go with the seasons.
