He watched her curl into a chair, and he shifted to lean a hip against Ronin's desk, unwilling to take his fellow guildmaster's seat but uncertain how Amalia would react if he returned to the floor. His hands held more tightly to the wood than was strictly necessary, an outward sign of the agitation that he did his best to bury deep within where it would no longer trouble the baker who he had troubled far too much already.
She tested that control though, with accusing questions that he recognized as Deimos's mark upon her, the General's habits already seeping into her mannerisms. So quick to assume the worst, to assign blame to him and no other. He swallowed back the bitterness and hurt, closing it away deep within with the reminder that she was only lashing out because she was wounded, and forcing himself to watch her steadily. He could turn her questions back on her, point out that had she ever come to visit them - to visit Rory - at the farmhouse she would have known what the farmer planned. But she hadn't. And she'd retreat into herself, hurt and even angrier, if he brought it up. He took a slow breath, letting it out carefully before he focused his gaze on her again as she leaped once more to conclusions, and he remembered words so recently said: that she didn't care what his reasons were.
"He is no more a child than you are. He makes his own decisions... and even if I disagree with them, I still respect his right to make them." His voice was quiet, carefully calm in the face of her disappointment and disapproval. "We talked it over and this was a decision we came to together." Amalia had not had a place in that conversation... not least because in all their recent interactions it had been Jigano seeking her out - to offer apology and beg forgiveness more often than not - and never the other way around. They both loved her dearly, but they were no longer the trio they had once been, not as Amalia grew beloved by the gods and the townsfolk alike, becoming the center and beating heart of the Hollowed Grounds while Rory and Jigano faded towards the edges of things. It suited them both for now as they tried to heal and recover from the damage the blight had done to them. Maybe when the spring came again things would change once more, but for now...
For now, Rory had chosen to stay in their home, and would not let Jigano break his word to Kiada even in the name of love.
He tilted his head slowly, a faint frown on his own features as he considered the baker, going over their recent conversations swiftly in his mind... but no, he had never told her where the lantern had come from or what its purpose was. She had never asked, and the blight had distracted them both from sharing their adventures in the way they had once done so easily. "What did Kiada tell you of our task?" he asked instead, slowly, trying to find out where Amalia's misunderstanding had come from.
She tested that control though, with accusing questions that he recognized as Deimos's mark upon her, the General's habits already seeping into her mannerisms. So quick to assume the worst, to assign blame to him and no other. He swallowed back the bitterness and hurt, closing it away deep within with the reminder that she was only lashing out because she was wounded, and forcing himself to watch her steadily. He could turn her questions back on her, point out that had she ever come to visit them - to visit Rory - at the farmhouse she would have known what the farmer planned. But she hadn't. And she'd retreat into herself, hurt and even angrier, if he brought it up. He took a slow breath, letting it out carefully before he focused his gaze on her again as she leaped once more to conclusions, and he remembered words so recently said: that she didn't care what his reasons were.
"He is no more a child than you are. He makes his own decisions... and even if I disagree with them, I still respect his right to make them." His voice was quiet, carefully calm in the face of her disappointment and disapproval. "We talked it over and this was a decision we came to together." Amalia had not had a place in that conversation... not least because in all their recent interactions it had been Jigano seeking her out - to offer apology and beg forgiveness more often than not - and never the other way around. They both loved her dearly, but they were no longer the trio they had once been, not as Amalia grew beloved by the gods and the townsfolk alike, becoming the center and beating heart of the Hollowed Grounds while Rory and Jigano faded towards the edges of things. It suited them both for now as they tried to heal and recover from the damage the blight had done to them. Maybe when the spring came again things would change once more, but for now...
For now, Rory had chosen to stay in their home, and would not let Jigano break his word to Kiada even in the name of love.
He tilted his head slowly, a faint frown on his own features as he considered the baker, going over their recent conversations swiftly in his mind... but no, he had never told her where the lantern had come from or what its purpose was. She had never asked, and the blight had distracted them both from sharing their adventures in the way they had once done so easily. "What did Kiada tell you of our task?" he asked instead, slowly, trying to find out where Amalia's misunderstanding had come from.
