“More difficult to be afraid when your hands are busy,” Seiji agrees. He follows quietly in her wake, considering the room with new eyes, imagining cobwebs across the roof, dust on the floor. It must have been so dreary when she took it over, but now it bustles with life, a beating heart below the temple’s quiet floor.
“There are many like myself,” he says, thoughtful. “Outlanders. I understand there were not always so many?” After her comment about finding the Rathskeller, he suspects she must be an Outlander, as well, but does not wish to assume. It does seem strange to him, the more he considers it — the more of them he meets. As if this place is a spider’s web, drawing them in.
That line of thinking spooks him, so he sets it aside to search behind the bar instead, his nimble fingers reaching delicately for the edges of a box. Locating it, he pulls it out and sets it on the counter. The contents are indeed rather jumbled inside: bandages, several small containers, a bundle of something that looked like tree bark. Even if he had been a nurse in his past life, Seiji suspects he would not recognise many of the items used in Caido to treat common ailments. He nonetheless begins grouping things together by size, better to fit them back inside and keep them from shifting around too much.
He fails to notice the cat until it butts its fluffy head into his workspace, warm fur brushing across the knuckles of one hand. With a start, not quite fearful but surprised, Seiji glances up at it. Immediately, his face breaks into a wide, delighted smile. “You have a cat!”
He stills his nearest hand for the cat to inspect before he lets his knuckles knead into the fur of its cheek. “I think I used to have a cat,” he says cheerfully, his worry momentarily forgotten. Satisfied it will not be angry with him, he runs a hand down its back, smiling as a rumbling purr emanates up from its chest.
“There are many like myself,” he says, thoughtful. “Outlanders. I understand there were not always so many?” After her comment about finding the Rathskeller, he suspects she must be an Outlander, as well, but does not wish to assume. It does seem strange to him, the more he considers it — the more of them he meets. As if this place is a spider’s web, drawing them in.
That line of thinking spooks him, so he sets it aside to search behind the bar instead, his nimble fingers reaching delicately for the edges of a box. Locating it, he pulls it out and sets it on the counter. The contents are indeed rather jumbled inside: bandages, several small containers, a bundle of something that looked like tree bark. Even if he had been a nurse in his past life, Seiji suspects he would not recognise many of the items used in Caido to treat common ailments. He nonetheless begins grouping things together by size, better to fit them back inside and keep them from shifting around too much.
He fails to notice the cat until it butts its fluffy head into his workspace, warm fur brushing across the knuckles of one hand. With a start, not quite fearful but surprised, Seiji glances up at it. Immediately, his face breaks into a wide, delighted smile. “You have a cat!”
He stills his nearest hand for the cat to inspect before he lets his knuckles knead into the fur of its cheek. “I think I used to have a cat,” he says cheerfully, his worry momentarily forgotten. Satisfied it will not be angry with him, he runs a hand down its back, smiling as a rumbling purr emanates up from its chest.
