"Not at all," he assured her with a smile. There was plenty of space within the small clearing for two humans to sit beneath the crying sky, and after a moment's consideration he reached for his magic, combining creation, earth, and fire again to draw another fancy bird bath from the damp loam, this one adorned with bas relief lilies. A second tree stump chair - organic enough to fit into the Wildwood but comfortable to sit in for a little while - rose higher than his own to compensate for Maea's shorter height.
As the second scrying pool began to collect the rain he closed his eyes against the memories of quiet Peter helping him protect the Atheneum from the memory mud of early Flowerbirth, and nights spent drinking in the Guildhall with Adam, laughing and toasting and trading tales of their pasts. "I didn't know Peter well. I thought he might join the Loreseekers, but Zariah..." he shrugged, looking down at the ripples the raindrops made in his own small pool with a sigh. "Well. She got to him first. But Adam was... we were an unlikely pair, but he made me laugh and he listened. Had a knack for knowing when I needed comfort and when I needed cheering up. And Coffee and Isuma were good friends, too." Adam hadn't seemed that close to Sunjata from their talks, but perhaps Sunjata had felt more strongly about it.
And then he'd led both Adam and his boyfriend to their deaths.
It was the season to remember such things, though. He nodded at Lusea's name. "Yes, he told me," he murmured quietly in confirmation, though he didn't try to interrupt beyond that. He watched his young friend thoughtfully as she continued, and he tilted his head in acknowledgment at the mess it had all become. "He does seem to be... using people, right now," he agreed judiciously, reaching up to rub the back of his neck with a faint grimace. "Phoebe. Whoever he cheated on her with while they were married. And most recently..." He shrugged, looking across at the pale-haired woman soberly. "I don't think he means any harm in it. He doesn't seem malicious, not consciously. But... it's a pattern that he's making."
He blew out a heavy sigh, wincing. "Sorry. I know that's not the most generous observation. He's... pissed off a lot of people recently. But I've been in similar situations, so I'm trying to give him more benefit of the doubt. That he can love two people at once is the sign of a good heart. But it does sound like he needs to get his own head sorted out so that he can give you the focus you deserve, instead of using you to avoid working through his mourning for Lusea." He smiled a little wryly at Maea, though there was more sadness than humor in it. "More importantly, though... what do you want? How long are you willing to wait for him? And how much distance can you handle before it hurts you?"
As the second scrying pool began to collect the rain he closed his eyes against the memories of quiet Peter helping him protect the Atheneum from the memory mud of early Flowerbirth, and nights spent drinking in the Guildhall with Adam, laughing and toasting and trading tales of their pasts. "I didn't know Peter well. I thought he might join the Loreseekers, but Zariah..." he shrugged, looking down at the ripples the raindrops made in his own small pool with a sigh. "Well. She got to him first. But Adam was... we were an unlikely pair, but he made me laugh and he listened. Had a knack for knowing when I needed comfort and when I needed cheering up. And Coffee and Isuma were good friends, too." Adam hadn't seemed that close to Sunjata from their talks, but perhaps Sunjata had felt more strongly about it.
And then he'd led both Adam and his boyfriend to their deaths.
It was the season to remember such things, though. He nodded at Lusea's name. "Yes, he told me," he murmured quietly in confirmation, though he didn't try to interrupt beyond that. He watched his young friend thoughtfully as she continued, and he tilted his head in acknowledgment at the mess it had all become. "He does seem to be... using people, right now," he agreed judiciously, reaching up to rub the back of his neck with a faint grimace. "Phoebe. Whoever he cheated on her with while they were married. And most recently..." He shrugged, looking across at the pale-haired woman soberly. "I don't think he means any harm in it. He doesn't seem malicious, not consciously. But... it's a pattern that he's making."
He blew out a heavy sigh, wincing. "Sorry. I know that's not the most generous observation. He's... pissed off a lot of people recently. But I've been in similar situations, so I'm trying to give him more benefit of the doubt. That he can love two people at once is the sign of a good heart. But it does sound like he needs to get his own head sorted out so that he can give you the focus you deserve, instead of using you to avoid working through his mourning for Lusea." He smiled a little wryly at Maea, though there was more sadness than humor in it. "More importantly, though... what do you want? How long are you willing to wait for him? And how much distance can you handle before it hurts you?"
