LOREN
As Rexanna admitted that she, too, struggled with maintaining growth and progress, Loren gave her a startled look. ”No way.” She seemed way too self-possessed and sure of herself to have such doubts about who she was and what her place in the world should be. The Launceleyn, on the other hand, sometimes felt as if he was nothing but doubts. However, he didn’t really know her that well really, and as her smile faltered at the mention of his scars, he remembered that she definitely didn’t know him. Not the real him, anyway, the monster that wore his skin and kept hurting the people he cared about even though he tried did everything within his power to prevent it.That thought made it hard for him to muster up his own smile when she commented that all she wanted was his presence at her wedding. Still, he somehow managed. ”I and my much more important phoenix will be there. You’ll have to tell me when to call it though, so that I don’t ruin what will be an otherwise beautiful ceremony.” Having met Bastien, the summoner knew that it was going to be a wonderful experience: it had to be, with two such incredibly lovely people coming together. The thought made him happy, of course, but there was also a small, but growing seed of sadness within him. After all, he was fully convinced he didn't deserve to be loved, not in that way.
Instead of responding to her about the bite, the Launceleyn simply sat down cross-legged in the snow and the cold, heedless of the damp. He’d experienced far worse in his life and the discomfort at least distracted him from the fear he felt building in his gut. Unfortunately, he couldn’t quite bring himself to look at her. ”I’ve been told I might not be much use for a while after. So...summoning. I don’t know what it will feel like for you. But when I do it, I start by calling up my power, my magic, and then I picture what I want to summon in as much detail as possible and where I want it. It should appear then. It’s not real, in any way, so it should respond to your mental commands. However, you have to concentrate, because the only thing keeping it her is your magic and your focus.” He realized he’d never actually explained the mechanics of summoning to someone else who was about to use it, and that thought made him feel strange, especially considering his foolish dream of opening a school for the Abandoned. Hopefully, as a partial Abandoned herself, Rexanna knew enough about magic that his inadequate instructions would suffice.
Finally, he glanced over at her. ”You can touch me. What should I do?” He found him fingers clenching and unclenching, and he forced them still and laid his palms flat on his knees. Yes, this would suck, and not just because she was literally going to suck his blood. But it had to be done.
A beggar's book
outworths
a noble's blood
