Something tentative and fragile had shifted in the courier's attitude towards Evie, and he hadn't protested or shied away from her help even after the battle was over. It was too soon to try and put it into words, and there was neither time nor energy for feuding in any event. Nothing drew people together like a tragedy, and this was the greatest to strike the region in living memory.
There were nods to those he knew as they gathered, and a lump in his throat that he almost couldn't swallow past when he saw Deimos nearby, alive and home once more.
He, too, could only shake his head mutely at Sah's question, not recognizing the icy statue of one of the battle's greatest heroes. There was tragedy of a different tenor there; her name wasn't known, but there would be many lanterns lit for her at the end of the season. It was all that Halo could do for her now.
And then there was Hotaru. She stood away and apart, her grief a cloak and shield around her that brooked no familiarity today.
Tal took a breath and, as it looked like the last of those who were coming were trickling in, he turned and slipped away. Not far; only to the Shrine and the fire that burned there, well-tended, and never allowed to go out. He lit a torch from it and carried it back, the crowd shifting silently as he paced with his burden towards the Wardens and offered it to Deimos and Evie.
There were nods to those he knew as they gathered, and a lump in his throat that he almost couldn't swallow past when he saw Deimos nearby, alive and home once more.
He, too, could only shake his head mutely at Sah's question, not recognizing the icy statue of one of the battle's greatest heroes. There was tragedy of a different tenor there; her name wasn't known, but there would be many lanterns lit for her at the end of the season. It was all that Halo could do for her now.
And then there was Hotaru. She stood away and apart, her grief a cloak and shield around her that brooked no familiarity today.
Tal took a breath and, as it looked like the last of those who were coming were trickling in, he turned and slipped away. Not far; only to the Shrine and the fire that burned there, well-tended, and never allowed to go out. He lit a torch from it and carried it back, the crowd shifting silently as he paced with his burden towards the Wardens and offered it to Deimos and Evie.
