05-16-2022, 10:36 PM
Had he been raised by Gale and not something wearing Gale’s body, Malik would have found nothing unfamiliar about Iliana’s long and unblinking stare. But he had not, and the stasis in her expression does not aid the anxiety that has him babbling so.
When he is finally able to staunch the flow of words, there is a pause that feels infinite. She is rethinking her lack of hostility, he suspects; he has managed to do something to upset her. But then her still faces blossoms instead into a brilliant smile, and Malik feels for the second time in their short acquaintance the joyous rush of relief.
He’s smiling now too, a small shy thing while he shakes his head and wishes away the bashful embarrassment that glows on his dark cheeks as she teases him. He black stallion shrugs his feathered shoulders in acknowledgement of her assessment (that had been a lot), but he doesn’t look up just yet.
But when Iliana confirms that yes, she is from Hyaline, Malik’s bicolored eyes finally rise to meet hers at this, bright and delighted by this information as well as his own correct supposition. She’s kept to herself, she says, and Malik who has done much the same, nods in accord.
“You were sent on a quest to find deer parts?”
It sounds ridiculous when she says it like that, and Malik is laughing as he answers: “No, no. I have to find things I can’t shift into. Like a silver deer.” That there are other things he can shift into is unspoken, and he is so accustomed to others doing the same that he finds nothing amiss with Iliana’s mention of tracking. Instead, he can feel his heart quicken at this rapid acceleration of his hunt for a deer (antler), and without thinking he leans nearer in anticipation.
The ‘but’ is like a sudden cold swell in the ocean, unexpected and disconcerting, and Malik frowns immediately. Had he been too quick, too eager? Had he somehow upset her or was this sort of exchange typical? His prior quest-driven hunts had been with those as eager as he was, packmates for whom the thrill of the chase was all the recompense necessary.
Uncertain again, Malik is equally unwilling to allow too much silence to build between them even if he’s no idea what to suggest. “My…undying gratitude?” He says with slow caution, and then more hopefully when his eyes light upon his companion now languidly grooming his wings: “Or a griffn?”
@Iliana
When he is finally able to staunch the flow of words, there is a pause that feels infinite. She is rethinking her lack of hostility, he suspects; he has managed to do something to upset her. But then her still faces blossoms instead into a brilliant smile, and Malik feels for the second time in their short acquaintance the joyous rush of relief.
He’s smiling now too, a small shy thing while he shakes his head and wishes away the bashful embarrassment that glows on his dark cheeks as she teases him. He black stallion shrugs his feathered shoulders in acknowledgement of her assessment (that had been a lot), but he doesn’t look up just yet.
But when Iliana confirms that yes, she is from Hyaline, Malik’s bicolored eyes finally rise to meet hers at this, bright and delighted by this information as well as his own correct supposition. She’s kept to herself, she says, and Malik who has done much the same, nods in accord.
“You were sent on a quest to find deer parts?”
It sounds ridiculous when she says it like that, and Malik is laughing as he answers: “No, no. I have to find things I can’t shift into. Like a silver deer.” That there are other things he can shift into is unspoken, and he is so accustomed to others doing the same that he finds nothing amiss with Iliana’s mention of tracking. Instead, he can feel his heart quicken at this rapid acceleration of his hunt for a deer (antler), and without thinking he leans nearer in anticipation.
The ‘but’ is like a sudden cold swell in the ocean, unexpected and disconcerting, and Malik frowns immediately. Had he been too quick, too eager? Had he somehow upset her or was this sort of exchange typical? His prior quest-driven hunts had been with those as eager as he was, packmates for whom the thrill of the chase was all the recompense necessary.
Uncertain again, Malik is equally unwilling to allow too much silence to build between them even if he’s no idea what to suggest. “My…undying gratitude?” He says with slow caution, and then more hopefully when his eyes light upon his companion now languidly grooming his wings: “Or a griffn?”
@Iliana