"There's a comfort in being able to walk around without feeling like a great white target splashed among the leaves," he agreed, raising a brow as Ianto sniffed busily away. "Finding anything promising in the scent trails?" He paused, leaning on his walking stick to give the red fox a chance to get a better snoot-full of whatever his keener senses had found and letting himself rest, feeling the weary chill settling into his bones in spite of the sunshine.
Jigano raised a brow as the hedges rustled with more than squirrel activity, glancing around, though without too much concern. "The last time I was here it waited to reorganize itself until we were out of sight and in another section, at least. I tried to be clever and lay down a string to mark our path..." He chuckled at his foolish optimism, amusement turning to a brief, dry cough. "Ah, sorry. It might be eager to have us stay awhile." He glanced down at Ianto's obvious discomfort and stayed still. Besides, he was curious at seeing the hedges move and reshape the path with his own eyes. "Given your familiarity with the Wildwood, I would think this would be practically commonplace." It was practically light-hearted teasing, in spite of the danger of their surroundings.
The questions that followed stole some of that light, his face tightening into wearier lines. "Ah... not exactly," he admitted, looking down to meet Ianto's foxy gaze with a sad smile. "But my mate hasn't come down with it yet, nor any of the others who live with the.... afflicted. So however it's passed, just being near me shouldn't be a danger. Not for the blight, at least." If he failed to hold back one of the angry spikes in temper? That was a different problem, but so far he'd managed to keep his outbursts focused on inanimate objects.
It did mean he was replacing Rory's crockery and ceramics with wooden tableware these days.
Shall we continue?" He asked, false lightness in his voice as he shifted his weight off his staff and started walking again towards the new lane that had opened up in front of them.
Jigano raised a brow as the hedges rustled with more than squirrel activity, glancing around, though without too much concern. "The last time I was here it waited to reorganize itself until we were out of sight and in another section, at least. I tried to be clever and lay down a string to mark our path..." He chuckled at his foolish optimism, amusement turning to a brief, dry cough. "Ah, sorry. It might be eager to have us stay awhile." He glanced down at Ianto's obvious discomfort and stayed still. Besides, he was curious at seeing the hedges move and reshape the path with his own eyes. "Given your familiarity with the Wildwood, I would think this would be practically commonplace." It was practically light-hearted teasing, in spite of the danger of their surroundings.
The questions that followed stole some of that light, his face tightening into wearier lines. "Ah... not exactly," he admitted, looking down to meet Ianto's foxy gaze with a sad smile. "But my mate hasn't come down with it yet, nor any of the others who live with the.... afflicted. So however it's passed, just being near me shouldn't be a danger. Not for the blight, at least." If he failed to hold back one of the angry spikes in temper? That was a different problem, but so far he'd managed to keep his outbursts focused on inanimate objects.
It did mean he was replacing Rory's crockery and ceramics with wooden tableware these days.
Shall we continue?" He asked, false lightness in his voice as he shifted his weight off his staff and started walking again towards the new lane that had opened up in front of them.
