"Um... a few, I guess," she murmured, glancing away. "I... have been trying not to... engage too much, you know?"
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"Ah." He nodded in understanding and grinned. "Unsavory types live around here, or so I've heard. Best to let dead men lie, eh?"
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
Ky blushed a little, glancing back at him. "Well... you seem nice." She offered a little smile. Her morbid curiosity wanted to test on him whether he could touch her or not -- to offer a handshake. But, well, she didn't know this man at all to know whether he'd run straight back to Michael with that knowledge or not. Or, well... she supposed Michael could easily just test it for himself even if no one told him. But... gah. "I'm, uh... Ky." She offered an awkward wave instead.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"Great to meet you, Ky. I've heard of you around." He offered his hand. "Glad you think I'm nice; some people are a little touch and go on that opinion."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
"...Oh?" She looked at him warily, glancing at his hand then back to his face. It was stupid to let him get ahold of her hand if he wasn't nice. Stupid to let him know he could touch her.
And yet, if he wasn't nice, then it was also stupid to make him angry with her over snubbing a handshake.
...Fuck.
She didn't know what to do. Where was Aleth when you needed him? He'd know what to do. What she should do.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
He looked down at his hand and his face fell. He lowered his hand and shrugged, and the smile swiftly returned. "Right. Well, it's good to meet you anyhow. You were very, very good with that sword just now; did you really just start?"
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
She had a prick of guilt at the look of his disappointment and she nearly offered her hand. But then her brain stopped at what he said. He was a liar, then. She furrowed her brow at him. "I'm terrible... but thank you. I've been at it a few months now... but this was my first time with Captain Bay."
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"Really?" His eyebrows shot up. "I genuinely thought you were going easy on him so he'd think he was actually teaching you. That was some proper acting and some excellent parrying."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
Ky blinked at him. Was he toying with her? It felt like he was toying with her. "... it was?"
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"Absolutely." He drew his own sword, mimicking her movements with quite a bit more grace. "Maybe a little rough around the edges, but it looked like you knew what you were doing."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
She tensed, watching him warily. Then she took a deep breath, forcing herself to relax ever so slightly when she realized he wasn't turning it on her... yet. It took a moment for the compliment to fully sink in, then she smiled a little. "...I appreciate that. I very much feel like I don't." She gestured vaguely at her bloodied knuckles. "...and you were laughing at me a lot..."
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
He grinned at her. "Sorry. You did make a couple mistakes, true."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
Ky smiled a little, dipping her head. His easygoing nature was disarming. She didn't like it. She willed herself to be more wary of him. "True enough... I don't think I caught your name?"
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"Oh, my name?" He sheathed his sword and dipped into a very deep bow. "Narfi Ash at your service."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
"Nice to meet you," she offered a little smile and short bow of her own. "Are you...? How are we related, do you know? I'm Tomhas's daughter -- Gaius's niece."
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
