Hmmm. I've seen you helping whenever help is needed, Jigano said slowly, considering his words. You have worked steadily and without expectation for recompense. That is worth a great deal. But learning to let people go is... wise. Hard, but wise. A flicker of wry empathy tickled along the bond as the dragon forged ahead, squinting into the wind. And if it is any consolation... Safrin punished me for my own overly inflated ego, too. It is hard, trying to find the balance between making a difference in a good way, and being overbearing about it. Especially when someone had as much mastery over magic as Loren did. Or maybe it was just the bard who suffered from that particular moral failing.
It can be arranged, I'm sure. He hesitated a moment before adding more softly. I see much of Edrei in her. The youthful irreverence, brashness, and confidence, at least. Physically they couldn't be more different, but where it counted? Oh, they would have gotten along like a... well, like a house on fire. Edy might not have been one of his guildmates, but she had been his friend. Her loss, along with those of his colleagues, weighed his scaled head down for a moment, but Loren's empathy was a welcome reminder that even in this snowy wasteland he wasn't alone anymore. Jigano raised his head, sending a pulse of gratitude back... and a question as well.
Loren's surprise might have been funnier if they hadn't been through so much darkness in recent seasons. Being stubborn is as good a reason to cling to life as any other, the dragon chuckled. And though I would welcome you as a delver into the bookmines, we do much more than that. The experiments with the blight, for instance. Or exploring regions new to our records, like Halo, as we're doing now. Any time we can add new knowledge to the collection... and share it with the people of the Hollowed Grounds. Or anyone else, he added, remembering Ingrid. Besides, I hear you're opening a school. That's something I'd like to be able to contribute to, whatever you need. Jigano's sinuous neck arched in pleasure at Loren's acceptance, a reassuring warmth in his chest pushing back against the cold at finding another kindred spirit.
Talk of Neron was unfortunately more serious, and the dragon rumbled discontent at the casual way Zariah and now Halo's head honcho seemed to treat Loren. True, the man had his bad days, but overall he'd done a great deal to help the Hollowed Grounds since his return. May I ask what makes you certain of your lead? he asked tentatively. I found the name of a local... spirit? Not quite a deity, but close to it, I think, in an old book I'd sent to the Infirmary. In an old journal tucked into a book on sutures - the last place anyone would look for such a thing, he admitted, initially amused though the humor faded at the memory of his meeting with Amun. Well. It had led to him having a little bit of springtime fun with Aonghas and a mudslide later, so it wasn't all bad. Did you find something similar?
It can be arranged, I'm sure. He hesitated a moment before adding more softly. I see much of Edrei in her. The youthful irreverence, brashness, and confidence, at least. Physically they couldn't be more different, but where it counted? Oh, they would have gotten along like a... well, like a house on fire. Edy might not have been one of his guildmates, but she had been his friend. Her loss, along with those of his colleagues, weighed his scaled head down for a moment, but Loren's empathy was a welcome reminder that even in this snowy wasteland he wasn't alone anymore. Jigano raised his head, sending a pulse of gratitude back... and a question as well.
Loren's surprise might have been funnier if they hadn't been through so much darkness in recent seasons. Being stubborn is as good a reason to cling to life as any other, the dragon chuckled. And though I would welcome you as a delver into the bookmines, we do much more than that. The experiments with the blight, for instance. Or exploring regions new to our records, like Halo, as we're doing now. Any time we can add new knowledge to the collection... and share it with the people of the Hollowed Grounds. Or anyone else, he added, remembering Ingrid. Besides, I hear you're opening a school. That's something I'd like to be able to contribute to, whatever you need. Jigano's sinuous neck arched in pleasure at Loren's acceptance, a reassuring warmth in his chest pushing back against the cold at finding another kindred spirit.
Talk of Neron was unfortunately more serious, and the dragon rumbled discontent at the casual way Zariah and now Halo's head honcho seemed to treat Loren. True, the man had his bad days, but overall he'd done a great deal to help the Hollowed Grounds since his return. May I ask what makes you certain of your lead? he asked tentatively. I found the name of a local... spirit? Not quite a deity, but close to it, I think, in an old book I'd sent to the Infirmary. In an old journal tucked into a book on sutures - the last place anyone would look for such a thing, he admitted, initially amused though the humor faded at the memory of his meeting with Amun. Well. It had led to him having a little bit of springtime fun with Aonghas and a mudslide later, so it wasn't all bad. Did you find something similar?
