Shady

"I'm not good," she said quietly, shaking her head. "And even if I was, they don't like my father, for no reason. They're jerks... and my Papa used to say ...

Aeron peered over at the drawing nosily. "Um... I guess it depends. Have you had any of the tartberries? They grow down by the crick too. Good for pies."

"Yeah." Ky nodded. "It's hard to be friends with people who lie to you... plus most of them don't like me." She shrugged. "Which is fine; I don't need them ...

Aeron began pointing to the left, then hesitated and pointed to the right instead as he mentally oriented himself properly. "Two hills over that way, around the bend. Maybe a ...

"Well... like... I mean... I don't know." She shrugged. "I'm... wary... of them all. I don't feel like they tell me the truth." But, then, most people didn't.

"Um... I mean, I don't know toad names," Aeron said thoughtfully, taking a drink of his ale. "But I've seen brown and orange ones all over the place down in ...

"Something like that," Aeron agreed, deciding to give them a chance and sitting down on a nearby stool. "Been living around here for a while at least. Enough to make ...

Ky glanced around to see if any were out where they could hear her -- Narfi was already developing a bad habit of showing up at bad times. "Um... I ...

"Ah, Margie just loaded me up." Aeron shook his head with a smile. "Thanks, though." His gaze flicked across Beck, assessing them and quickly pegging them as one of the ...

Ky returned the smile and dipped her head, glancing away. It was good to have him back. Even if it made her worry. About him. And Zander. And made her ...

"Progress," she insisted with a nod. "You can't change the past; just the future. You're doing well."

(ooh nice!) "Not at all." Aeron waved his hand dismissively, then transferred his mug over to his left hand to free up his right. "Just realized I don't know your ...

"Mm," she hummed, considering it. "You didn't promise anyone else that you wouldn't before, though, right? But now you're keeping your promise now that you made it; that's good."

(haha I noticed that as well, ahhh autocorrect) Aeron gave a charming, boyish grin and coaxed her into taking the soap from his hands. Then he ran a hand through ...

"I'm sure." Ky agreed with a nod. "Habits are hard to break. But you're doing better. And that's good. Progress is good. You're good."