Spirits of the Earth

It had been... A Trip. The dewy morning with dawn lighting a familiar sight had a sigh of relief push through his lips.

Herostratus felt about fifty years older, even though it had only been a few weeks since he'd left, maybe longer - he wasn't fully sure yet. He hadn't been well enough to travel, after the gash he'd gotten from his latest hunt, was bed bound because every movement reopened the wound. That and he had to be drugged up barely coherent so even if he'd wanted to move, he could mostly only moan and sigh and imagine it.

An event he wasn't keen on repeating. No doubt the healing would have taken months if the village hadn't found a healer to knit his skin and muscles back together. Maybe even died. Or lost his whole arm.

Hero shivered at the idea of just existing while missing a chunk. Would he have been able to move his arm again if it had healed without help? The thoughts swam through his head once he was closer to home, in the stables removing his horses tack and brushing her down, though his movements were slower and careful when he moved his left arm. His breath hitched every now and then and he moved through the pain, knowing that despite it he would be fine.

At least as far as he knew nothing was permanently damaged.

The horse got comfy back in a familiar place after the brushing and Hero rolled his shoulder gently before returning to the barracks to remove his armor and throw his personal things in their designated place for the servants and the help to collect and remove. To clean. Hero sat on his bed and looked down at his hands, thumbs brushing over his finger tips.

How was Rhosiris?

One of the last times he was in his room was when he just flat out embarrassed himself with the elf. Hero flushed, thinking about it, squeezing his eyes shut and  turning his head like he was trying to shake the memory out. Were they all still here? Hero wasn't a guard, so he wasn't briefed on guests. He'd have to go seek them out himself.

It was a few hours, noon had long past and it was nearing supper time, when Hero finally felt like he was presentable. Hair washed and tucked back in a nice braid, face clean, though a little tired and bruised looking under his eyes and his cheeks. Hero closed his golden eyes and squared his shoulders, making sure his shirt was tucked into his pants and his boots were tied up. Probably looked far nicer than he had in a very, very long time. Why was he so nervous? Hero felt his insides tighten and his breath felt like it was a little lost.

He'd given the request to a servant. To find the tall golden elf Rhosiris - one of the Regents guests! - with a request to meet at the entrance of the hall. Of course, the instructions were to tell the elf who put in the request. Was that why Hero was so nervous? Because he could be turned down? They weren't a thing, but things had escalated so quickly there couldn't be nothing there. Maybe the elves didn't work like that and they'd never see one another again. At the very least Hero had been hoping for a friend perhaps.

Hero leaned against one of the pillars, rubbing his bicep and moving to squeeze his shoulder with a wince. The wound was gone, a soft ugly scar now, but it still hurt. In an effort to settle the speed his heart was beating at, he kept his head down and played with his hands, his fingers seemingly the most interesting things he'd seen in a long time, judging by the way he was examining them.

   Rhosiris was sick and tired of being sick and tired. If he ever in this lifetime ate anything with honey in it ever again, he was fairly sure he would go absolutely berserk and just start flipping tables. But the hard candy drops, packed with herbs and honeyed to help the taste, were the only damn thing that made it so he could eat anything else with regularity-- even if anything else tasted mildly sweet as a result.

   Honestly the worst of everything was the sheer fatigue. He'd never been so tired in all his life, and no amount of sleep or sitting down or doing nothing seemed to fix it. And after a while of feeling like he spent more time napping than actually being awake, he too resented the mere existence of things like beds and lounging chairs.

   If it weren't for the fact that these pieces of furniture were not his, he very well might have taken an axe to them in sheer frustration. Not that that would have helped anything in the slightest -- he would still be sick, and tired, and suddenly without a place to rest his uncomfortable feet to boot.

   And so it was with no small amount of high growling that Rhosiris moved to answer the messenger at the door, swallowing back every bit of nausea and annoyance and exhaustion in order to prevent himself from creating an entire incident within another monarch's halls. It took him a few moments to understand just what the servant was saying, with little bits of song proving to be extra chatty today and difficult to ignore when they had a direct line through his own torso. The servent's second attempt just left him flabbergasted and sure he hadn't heard right at all.

   Herostratus was requesting to meet him at the entrance hall?

   Herostratus was requesting to meet him at all?

   Rhosiris felt every inch of his soul cringe whenever he thought of the man, and how much Rhosiris had acted like a fool and an asshole to him. Truly, it had been a perfect display of idiocy and lack of any kind of decency, and Rhosiris had not even once questioned why he hadn't heard a word from the man in the time since their last meeting.

   Given, Rhosiris had been doing his best to hide, or was off hunting down younglings, or was napping himself into oblivion all that time as well. It wasn't like he had made any attempts to reach out, though he was sure an apology was WELL in order.

   It seemed like fate had decided that it would make sure he gave one.

   After agreeing to the request, and a rather embarrassing amount of time to get dressed -- an extra long set of tunics and no goddamn boots to bother his aching feet-- Rhosiris stepped out of the quarters he shared with his kindred and made his way down to the hall. Herostratus was easy enough to spot. There was no mistaking all that long, dark hair. Embarrassingly, Rhosiris still wanted to braid it. An impulse he decided to firmly blame on his present state because he certainly had no right to desire such an intimate thing of someone he had treated so badly.

   "Herostratus," he said upon his approach, stopping at the pillar and thinking that leaning against it did sound like an amazing idea. He blinked, head tilting some at the faint odor of herbs. Rather than immediately blurting things out like a fool again, Rhosiris worked to put his thoughts into what Ana had called polite conversation. "How are you?"

It had taken a while.

Every second dragged on for an eternity and Hero stuck his thumb in his mouth after he'd picked just the littlest bit too much and caused some blood. Hero's nervousness  was slowly being replaced by disappointment, but he didn't move from his spot determined to stay here until it was very, very clearly obvious that Rhosiris wasn't going to come.

The voice had him still and Hero sucked in a breath, moved his hands to his sides and did his very best to look at casual as possible.

Instead he looked a little awkward before he turned towards the voice, re-leaned on the pillow and then hissed and moved off of it because it pressed on his freshly healed wound. How are you? A simple question, but he didn't really know how to answer it. Hero swallowed and took a breath, giving a sigh at the comforting scent of someone familiar - and while he wasn't actually familiar it was... Something. A scent like how a hug felt.

"I..." Hero started and moved to stand away from where he was leaning to take a step closer to Rhosiris, "I've been better, rough couple of weeks," He said truthfully, "I - uh " Hero rubbed his shoulder again, like touching it would make the pain go away. "I wanted to come see how you were doing," he said lamely, moving his hand to indicate Rhosiris - because who knows, maybe Hero meant someone else.

"Have you and yours settled in okay? I've been away - which is why I didn't... Come back and invite you to the field or to show you around Ketra or anything," Hero wished he could stop talking, but the words kept coming out and he felt like a flustered teen who'd never spoken to anyone of interest before. "That's not why I'm here, I just..." Hero took a deep breath, "Did you want to sit and have tea or food or something? Or just sit?" He put his hands on his hips and paused.

"I haven't actually had a conversation with anyone but my horse in... a long time," Hero sucked in a breath and ducked his head down, "I'm sorry, Rhosiris. I just got back and you were the only person I wanted to check in on, but," He finally gave a good look at the elf and he looked him up and down, took note of the outfit and the no boots, "I don't want to pull you away from your day."

Rhosiris couldn't help but notice the way Hero touched at his shoulder, that motion plus the scent of something lingering and medicinal in the air causing his stomach to twist quick and cold. Hero was rambling-- then again, he'd rambled before, but this was less endearingly flustering and more of a concern. Then again, again, Rhosiris had been a colossal jerk when they last parted. Of course he was nervous.

The thought didn't make Rho feel much better. But sitting, sitting definitely sounded good.

"You don't need to apologize to me, if anything, I... very much owe you an apology. If you don't mind, though, tea... sounds amazing right now."

An apology?

Hero looked confused, eyebrows drawn together while he tried to remember if they'd parted on bad terms. Just a little bit awkward, right? Like a day-time one nightstand with two visible walks of shame at the end of it. Hero considered it a bonding moment, now. But nothing to apologize for, if that's what it was.

His mouth turned up on one side when his invitation to tea was accepted and he chewed on his lower lip. Hero wanted to offer Rhosiris an arm, but didn't know if that would be unwanted or too personal. "I hope the garden is okay? I dont think the roses are blooming, but it's nice afternoon." Instead he moved his hands from his hips down to his pockets and and started to move out the entrance towards the garden, letting a servant know to put down some snacks and tea. The very green garden, with so few flowers it was hardly a romantic hot spot.

Hero walked at a leisurely pace, head ducked down a little at a bit to watch for rocks or other pokey things Rhosiris might step on, so he could kick them aside. "I got hurt, which is why I was gone so long" Hero said when he finally saw the table, pulling a chair out for Rho and then seating himself and pouring them tea "What do you think you need to apologize for?"

"Thank the stars, I'm still not used to the flowers down here." Rhosiris said, and genuinely he was a bit relieved for how plain the gardens were. The rest of his kindred had learned very quickly how miserable the flowers that grew in the southlands could be, pretty as they were, and to his absolute chagrin the only cure seemed to be even more honey.

He appreciated the slower pace though -- while not as massive as he was going to get by a year's time, the fatigue kept him from moving at the brisk pace he was accustomed to. Nodding in thanks for the chair, Rho settled down easily enough with a soft breath of relief. Physical suffering somewhat abated, he was able to focus more on Hero's words, his brows knitting some.

"Your clop-clop thing didn't throw you again, did she?" Rhosiris still didn't trust the skittish creatures very much. Giant prey animals were rarely something to mess with. At Hero's question, Rho grimaced a bit, flushing in shame at the memory. "...I wasn't exactly very nice, was I, when I left your room. I'm sorry for how I acted."

Well that was a surprise.

"You weren't nice?" Hero leaned back and brought the cup to his lips, trying his best not to grimace because he genuinely hated tea, he just wanted to look semi-refined and asking for an ale or something seemed... Impolite? For an afternoon chat. "Honestly I don't remember you being not nice. I just remember how very nice you were," and Hero couldn't help it when his eyes moved to Rhosiris and dragged up his seated image like a dog taking a long licking a sample of someones hand.

Right. Being polite. Hero cleared his throat and waved his right hand dismissively, "it wasn't my clop-clop" Hero said dismissing the topic, finding it uninteresting and unimportant "and nothing to apologize for, Rho. Oh. Unless you were apologizing for the hot sex, which, if you are then I'll apologize too. I think going off and having disappointing sex with an Adelan is hopefully not a common greeting and I'm sorry that it ended that way. The disappointing part." Hero winced slightly, unable to stop speaking. The words poured out of him and he told himself to stop but he looked off to the side and gave Rho a look, golden eyes narrowed.

"At least that means there's no where to go but up," Hero smiled slightly before sipping tea and frowning again. "I'm sorry, I'm trying really hard to be polite and you're looking kind of uncomfortable but it just... comes out of me."

This was all ridiculous. Everything about everything was absolutely ridiculous. Rhosiris couldn't help himself, letting out a sighing sort of laugh and shaking his head even as he took miniscule sips of tea.

"You're not the one making me uncomfortable, existing is making me uncomfortable." He shook his head a bit, humming in thought as he tried to find the words he wanted to say. "My people don't tend to run off and have sex, disappointing or otherwise, with people they barely know. I am apparently the outlier."

He attempted to try and nibble at some of the biscuits that had been offered with the tea, but that quickly became a mess of crumbs as he tried to get his teeth to work something that was decidedly not meat. Which just seemed par for the course in how messy and ridiculous everything was. Still... the fact that he wasn't the only one bumbling around trying to do Polite and Correct was comforting. Sighing and giving up on the biscuit, he gave a wry sort of smile to Hero.

"I suppose we're both very out of practice with how to be polite. Should we stop trying? Live in the mess?"

It was a sigh of relief at the offer to not be controlled and polite. He didn't turn into someone else, but his posture relaxed and he pushed the drink aside before taking one of those biscuits and eating it to get the taste of tea out of his mouth. Hero gave a wry smile and tilted his head, pushing his bangs from his eyes.

Then, with the guise of polite gone, Hero reached out on the table with his right hand, laying it flat closer to Rhosiris. "Why is existing uncomfortable?" There was concern in his eyes, and he shifted carefully so his left wasn't leaning on anything. "They're treating you fine, right?"

Assuming it was uncomfortable because of exterior forces, Hero looked over towards the building full of knights and servants and people. "I'm as much a social outcast as you can get here, but I still have some weight to throw around, if you need me to."

As tension left Hero's posture, so too did it feel like Rhosiris had had some undue pressure lifted. He relaxed back in his own seat, turning his head this way and that until he felt his neck pop, breathing out after. Motion caught his gaze though, and he looked down at Hero's hand. It was a small gesture, and certainly not the most intense bit of contact that they had shared, but for a moment something in his chest swelled and he had the wild notion that taking Hero's hand would be the best thing in the world.

But then, he also very much almost wept at seeing a particularly pretty bit of tapestry the previous day. So who even knew what that had meant?

Still, he reached back and laid his fingers over Hero's, tapping lightly with his forefinger as he did.

"I haven't been mistreated, no need." He chewed on the inside of his cheek, debating with himself for a moment before remembering they weren't being polite. Besides, what did it matter? "You, uh, just happen to be particularly potent. Or I'm potent. Or fate had it so we both were."

Rhosiris took another sip of tea and tried to crack his neck again. "What happened to your shoulder?"

It was a simple movement, when he felt Rhosiris tap his fingers on the back of his hand. Hero turned his hand over so their finger tips touched and he felt comforted by the content. Soothing like dipping a foot into a cold river on a hot day. Hero closed his eyes briefly to take it in, listening while Rho spoke and let the words wash over him.

He was pleased to hear that Rho hadn't been mistreated, but the potency comment was quick and subtle and the topic change made him twinge his shoulder. Hero rolled it slightly and he thought about it, the blood, how deep the gash was. How close to infection he knew he'd been. How tired and drained and sick he'd gotten.

Then, like two magnets hovering close to one another, the connection was made and Hero froze. "A Dragon bit me," he said quickly which wasn't actually what happened but it got the point across, looking at Rho now, eyes wide and a little worried. "What... what do you mean by potent?" His voice was a little higher and he sounded worried, "like... You... hurt your hip? From... potent movement?"

Because surely that wasn't what he was thinking it could be. Cultural differences. Hero looked a cross between worried and scared and a little full of panic, his heart was thumping wildly in his chest and he curled his fingers a little bit more to have a better grip on Rhos. "I... Rho... I wasn't even that good and now..." Hero took a deep breath at a loss for words. "So... what... Is your peoples culture about... this?"

   Rhosiris had desperately hoped that the topic would be brushed aside in the same way he had tried to introduce it, but that had been wishful thinking beyond any kind of measurement. He was only temporarily distracted by the dragon comment -- he had been ON one of those things, what did Hero mean he'd been BITTEN, what was with this kingdom and riding on volatile animals?!-- before Hero's grip on his hand brought him back to what was clearly the more important matter to an Adelan human.

   He took a deep breath and sighed it out, setting his teacup down and using his free hand to rub at his face before leaning on the table some, cheek resting in his palm. He was tired, he was so tired, and the flurry of panic around him was just adding to that level of tired.

   "I'm sorry, I don't know how these things are usually discussed here. With where I'm from, we just know, we can hear it, and so I don't..." He sighed again, twice as deep, and looked up at Hero properly. Even if he couldn't hear how hard Hero's heart was beating, he certainly could feel it in how much the man was clinging to his hand.

   Suddenly nauseated once more, Rho took another few breaths through his nose to power through the sensation. He just couldn't stop making mistakes, could he?

   "I'm not trying to be an asshole. I'm not telling you because I expect something from you, whatever it is that your people do when this happens. I don't even know what I'm doing half the time and everything is so... different here. But I mean, fuck, I haven't understood half of what I've seen since leaving the mountains, what's one more thing?"

Hero's heart hurt to see Rho so tired and lost. That the hand wasn't pulled away felt like a good sign and Hero leaned in, looking at the sunshine elf through his dark hair. It was comforting to know that Rhosiris was just as at a loss as he was.

"I think traditionally, at least here in Ketra-ish in some families, marriage is a common thing when..." It was hard to say the word 'babies'. Baby made it... official. A thing to anticipate and maybe even be excited about. A thing he's never considered could happen to him and least of all with... Hero  moved then, standing up and walked to stand beside the seated Rhosiris. 

"I'm sorry. For what it's worth," Hero chewed on his lower lip, he'd taken Rhos hand with him on his journey of moving and standing, now having laced their fingers together. "I wasn't thinking of any of that, and I didn't even check in on you before I left, which looking back now, being a possibility makes sense considering everything." Hero got down on his knees, taking Rhosiris's hand between both of his and ducked his head to press his forehead to the elfs knuckles.

He had so much to say. So much to ask. He couldn't voice the thing that was plaguing him though, the thing that suddenly became a very serious issue. "You said you weren't expecting anything from me but I kind of expect things from myself," he lifted his head back up and tried to smile, "I wanted to invite you to a picnic today. To see if there was... I don't know. A spark of interest besides the thing that happened. Um..." Hero licked his lips, his mouth dry and feeling a little dizzy. A change of topic.

"What do you mean you can hear it?" His voice was soft and he remained kneeled, turning his head slightly to maybe catch the sound of something small, too.

"It isn't your fault." Rho said, exhausted but absolutely honest. None of this mess was Hero's fault, he just happened to be the one human who flirted with him at the precise moment he was most capable of making bad decisions. Still, Rho couldn't help but watch him move, feel his hand still closed around Rho's, see him so close it almost felt tender.

Rhosiris took it all in, this man who said a million different things all at once and could never seem to tame his hair and had only ever been sweet. Rhosiris had no idea what marriage was, but even that had a nice sound to it when Herostratus said it.

Feeling incredibly silly, Rho took a breath and turned in his seat to place his other hand over Hero's own.

"What's a picnic?" he asked, giving their joined hands a squeeze. "It sounds nice."

Hero perked up, attention sufficiently diverted and he smiled up at Rho before he stood up, hands still clasped together. He still felt panic-y and fluttery, his guts were twisting with the news of significant importance and he wasn't sure what his life was going to look like now.

Currently though, Hero stood up and gave their hands another squeeze. "You've never has a picnic? It's what fancy city people do for fun." Hero tossed his braid over his shoulder and then glanced at the table of biscuits and tea that had gone cold. Nasty stuff.

"First, we go find a really nice place close to the treeline to sit or lay down. So you can gaze at clouds and find some that look like bunnies," he looked up at the sky, giving a sigh to shoo away his butterflies and then looked at Rhosiris again, "then you unpack the food you brought so you can snack or have lunch while cloud gazing."

"I know you're not wearing shoes, but are you up for a little bit of a walk? We can turn around as soon as you're not feeling well," he glanced out past the garden, the field was fairly big, but not far past the barracks was the tree line and while it wasn't completely private, there were less people than near the garden.

"Bunnies." Rhosiris repeated, standing after a moment with more energy than he'd felt he'd had in weeks. "Roast rabbit does sound good."

Honestly, laying in the grass away from all the noise of the city, where he could just exist without worrying about this or that or being worried over... that had some serious appeal. He had no idea what he was going to do, what any of this would lead to, but for a single moment he had a chance to put it aside and hold still. Rho squeezed Hero's hand again, head tilted as he regarded the man.

"I'll be fine. Show me these clouds."

With a strange unfamiliar excitement, Hero took Rhos hands and led him along the more traveled path. Not an official footpath but one favored so much by people it became it's own, cut through manicured grass and tamped down dirt. Hero still kicked aside sharper looking rocks when he spotted them.

It wasnt a terribly long walk, but the distance from everything and the trees sounding like the ocean when the breeze rustled their branches made it seem so much farther away. Hero didn't say much on the trip, giving the silence a time for them to both digest. Between the two of them, currently he felt more in shock.

Hero didn't want to put pressure on Rhosiris, but the Adelan was almost positive that the plan for the elf hadn't been 'get to new country, get knocked up.' What was the future going to look like now? There was a brief moment an image of the three of them - a tiny baby that looked like rho, of course - but Hero quickly stamped it down. It would be foolish to daydream about that when they barely knew one another.

"Here it is," Hero said, arms wide, they were close to the trees for optimal tree-ocean sound and the sky was clear, though the sun was on it's way down and not at peak brightness. Made it easier to cloud gaze. And then maybe stargaze?

"The nicest patch of grass this side of the field," Hero let go of Rho's hand to sit down, tossing his braid over his shoulder before he unbraided it carefully to let the wind have at it. "Stargazing is my preferred thing to do here when I can't sleep," Hero confessed, patting the grass beside him, "but cloud gaze is fun too." Hero turned to finger combing his hair slowly, his range of motion limited but functional.

Despite his earlier insistence that he would be fine, Rhosiris was certainly pleased to arrive at the picnic spot Hero had described. He slowly eased himself to the ground, sighing softly as he stretched out his long legs before him. The breeze was pleasant in comparison to the stillness that came with city walls, and the distance between them and the main thoroughfares meant infinitely less noise.

"You have trouble sleeping, much?" He asked, turning to look over at Hero and watch him deal with his hair. Rhosiris hesitated for a moment, fingers itching before he again remembered that they were doing away with politeness. It couldn't hurt to ask, now could it?

"May I... Can I braid that?"

"You want to braid my hair?" Hero voiced softly, confused and pleased and he turned slightly to present his back and long hair to Rhosiris. The pleasure turned into entertainment because while Hero had been braiding his hair forever, he could never quite get the hang of it and it always ended up wispy and a little too fluffy for his liking. Did it irritate Rho? Was that why he wanted to do it himself?

With optimal braiding angle achieved, Hero smiled and played with the grass while he pondered on his sleeping problems. "Not all the time, but sometimes. The little voices that crawl out of dark spaces get to be too much inside, so I lay out here until dawn, usually. Watch the stars." Hero plucked a blade of grass and rolled it between his finger tips, "I tend to choose to suffer during winter. Too cold to lay out here and watch stars." Hero cleared his throat and tossed the blade of grass up and into the breeze. "How's your sleeping? Don't take this the wrong way, but you look... Tired."

Satisfied that he had not caused some great insult, Rhosiris moved his legs so he could scoot a little closer, immediately reaching to finger-comb the full weight of Hero's hair. It was fascinating how much light would catch in such a dark color, and for a moment Rhosiris was just lost in moving his hands over and under the length to get it to play in the sunlight that made its way through the trees. Eventually he began to braid, gently pushing Hero's head to the side to work from his temples back in small, quick movements, catching the whisps and taming them in the braid as he went.

"I miss the winter. It gets so hot here, and I am much more accustomed to snow." He found himself relaxing the longer they sat in the peace of the wind in the trees and the warmth of the sun that felt just that much less oppressive in this little patch of grass. At Hero's question, he even felt at ease enough to laugh.

"I am always tired, these days. Our healer, she says this is normal. I feel like I've slept most of these weeks, and it's starting to get very, very old." Rhosiris coiled the end of the little braid to prevent it from immediately coming undone, before shifting to attend to the other temple and repeat the same motions. "Anything softer than brick, it seems, and I am destined to fall asleep in it."

If Hero could purr he would have. Having his hair braided felt oddly intimate. He could count on one hand how many people have braided his hair and it would just be his own hand because it was just him. Hero closed his eyes and while Rhosiris was examining how the light caught in the black hair he was just enjoying the sensation, turning his head whenever the slightest nudge happened.

Missing the winter was a concept he hadn't considered could even be a thing. Hero pondered on it while his hair was being braided on the sides and he thought of seasons and... Well, he supposed his favourite was fall, which was almost winter, he supposed. The silence wasn't terrible. There was a comfort in it he hadn't been expecting and with his eyes closed and the sound of the afternoon, Hero relaxed more than he had in a long time. The tension seeped out of him and his shoulders slumped and he sighed heavily.

He felt guilty when Rhosiris mentioned always being tired, moving his hand over his thigh, fingers catching in the fabric of his pants. Hero turned his head towards Rho when he started on the other side, smiling gently because he had been expected his own type of braids, plain and down his back. He was going to look handsome.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Hero said, trying to glance over his shoulder, "Doesn't seem like it would be fun, being so tired for so long. I haven't really been around, but I'm on leave for now while I finish healing so I don't actually destroy myself. So... I can help with... Whatever you need." His voice trailed off, hesitant and a little nervous that maybe he would be declined, but he was prepared for it. Realistic man that he tried to be.

   The motion of braiding was soothing. Rhosiris had never had any talent for things like weaving, but braiding, that he could do for hours. Carefully, Rho worked Hero's head back so he could take the remaining center and slowly wrap the strands around each other, leaving them slightly puffed for more volume as he worked it down the back of Hero's head and began looping the side braids into the whole mass.

   It was nice, being able to be close and quiet, and the slow calm of the breeze and the faint song in every one of Hero's sighs, it was enough to relax anyone. Honestly, Rho would handily take more of these kinds of days.

   "I'm pretty sure I'm just stuck with the sensation. Kirsikka says it will get easier when I get used to it more, but we'll see about that." As for what Hero could do, Rhosiris shrugged slightly, humming a bit to himself. "...I wouldn't say no to more picnics, when you have the time. It's very nice out here. Unless you need to be bitten by more clop-clops and dragons."

Hero's eyes were closed and he smiled when Rho mentioned more picnics. Smiled when he mentioned being bitten by clop-clops and dragons. As if reminded, Hero moved a hand to his left arm to rub at the freshly healed wound and gave a confirming hum before he spoke.

"I'd be happy to - I'm sure Sunshine would also be happy to. She'd probably love to just hang around, too, away from the stables." Hero sighed again, content and comfortable with the sky cloudy before he rolled his shoulder and relaxed his shoulders, " Definitely don't want to be bitten by a dragon again, and, well it wasn't exactly a bite." He started, "it was more like... Claws? My armor was ruined, so that needs to be repaired. Luckily Sunshine was just spooked but I'm sure me colliding with the ground after getting clawed did nothing for me."

Hero moved his shirt over his shoulder, showing the pink skin of the scar that made his dusky shoulder look like freshly stitched together shred. Before, Hero had prided himself on being mostly scar-free. Not because he felt like he was better than anyone else but because it meant he was mistake free. Able to dodge. Able to deflect. This though, was more a testament to the healer that saw to him or he would have surely died. He pulled the shirt back and went quiet, "I thought I was dead until the village managed to get a healer. I still have to tend to it, since this is..." Hero wiggled his fingers at it, "Magically stitched together. Still very fragile, or so I'm told."

"Can you do that?" he motioned to his shoulder, "Not this exactly, but magic? Or something like it?"

   Rhosiris sucked in a breath at the sight of the scarring. Scars were nothing to be ashamed of, of course. Even someone who had lost an arm was still capable, still worthy of pride. But the size and viciousness of it spoke volumes of the pain and suffering that had preceded the scar, and he couldn't help but shiver at the thought of this man left in his own mud.

   "I'm glad you were able to walk away at all. You're strong."

   He continued working down through Hero's hair, the braid tightening the smaller it became towards the end. He was almost sorry for it, sorry that his time with Hero's lovely hair was at an end. But perhaps, if there were indeed more picnics, he could convince him to sit for another session. And if that were possible, then perhaps Rhosiris could remember a comb.

   "I don't do magic, no. Anastolyr is the wordsmith, and he will use every one of his words to worry at you. Valys can make fire, though be careful if you ask him about it because he may try to show off. I am all that I am."

   Pushing through a worrying thought, Rho tugged at Hero's finished braid. "Do you do magic?"

The compliment shouldn't have been a surprise, but it still floated through him like something unfamiliar and unusual. It was a simple compliment - being called strong - more like a stated fact than a compliment really but... Hero smiled faintly at it and plucked some grass idly, cheeks a little bit flushed. It felt different from Rho. He'd been called strong before, from previous lovers or from people who'd just comment on it if he walked by.

Slowly he moved his hand to feel the braids at the side of his head, hands gentle and careful not to ruin it. No doubt he looked fancier than he ever had before, though already some of the hair from around his face slipped, refusing to be tamed by braids and ties. Hero moved off to the side of Rho while he spoke after the braid was complete, to which he sat beside the golden elf and 'accidentally' had his knee rest against Rho's leg. A tiny point of contact.

Then he moved the braid over his shoulder and laid down, looking up at the sky, resting his hands on his stomach. He kept the word 'wordsmith' in the back of mind to ask about later, because he had to ponder on the question. "Do I do magic?" Hero frowned at the clouds for a moment, "No. Unfortunately I was spared any gifts," He reached his right hand up, like he was trying to slowly catch a cloud, "I ended up where I am because I have no gifts." Hero let his hand fall and he took a deep breath, "But now that I'm here I'm grateful for it."

Hero pursed his lips, "what's a wordsmith and what's worrying at you, mean?"

Rhosiris considered Hero for a moment, internally debating on laying down as well. On the one hand, it looked very comfortable, all those soft grasses. On the other hand, it was definitely softer than brick and he risked another nap.

Still, the way Hero's knee touched his leg, that bit of contact and all this softness, it made Rho think that there were worse things than falling asleep in a field on a picnic.

Slowly, he eased himself back as well, shifting a bit to settle his spine in a more comfortable fashion. He watched the sky, catching the movements of some bird of prey circling high above and just riding the thermals.

"A wordsmith, they use... words to do their magic. They speak and in speaking they move fate. It can be small things. Some more luck when you need it most, or big things like when we gather for trials." He turned his head some, looking over at Hero with a wry smile. "And Ana uses his words to fret like a hen."

"That sounds much fancier than wiggling your fingers to make light happen," Hero commented, trying to imagine just what word-magic looked like. He'd heard incantations before. Had seen magic happen on a number of occasions, watched it happen and sometimes tired to see if anything extra occurred in the environment. Maybe an extra sparkle in the air or something, but there never was. Or at least nothing he could detect.


"Do you get worried at now?" He asked softly before he glanced over at his companion and Hero watched for a moment before moving closer and reaching an arm out. Maybe it was too bold. Hero chewed on his lip for a moment before he shuffled closer and maneuvered his good shoulder under Rhosiris's head. It wasn't necessarily soft but it was softer than dirt and ground and at least this way he got to semi-cuddle.

"You're kinda tall and I remember you being good with pole arms- surely there isn't much to be concerned with for you, hmm?"

Oh, he was definitely not getting out of this without falling asleep, now. Still, Rho couldn't bring himself to mind all that much. He even moved just that much closer to have a better angle to use Herostratus as a pillow, sighing soft and content after a moment.

"I'm certainly not fragile, no. But a lot has changed since we left the homelands not too long ago. We lost many on the way and... it's never an easy thing, now is it? So I tease him, but it's not a genuine anger at how he is, you understand."

The arm was going to go so numb so fast, Hero knew it, but he didn't mind, because the breeze was nice, the clouds that drifted by were white and puffy and the sky was doing that pretty thing it did when the sun was going down but it was just late afternoon instead of night time.

"I take it the trip was difficult," he stated, closing his eyes, "I'd never really left Ketra. Just went out on the jobs I was assigned but I always came back." Hero turned his head slightly, resting his head against Rhos. Reflecting on the fact that they'd just met the once before. That it had been weeks and Hero was so nervous this morning about asking Rho to join him outside for a chat.

"Was the destination Adela?" He asked softly, curious, "Is there still farther to go?"

"The trip was hard. There was much we'd never seen before, places we've never been to before. Languages upon languages... I do like Adelan the best of them. It sounds right."

Rho sighed again, eyes closing despite himself, knowing full well that this was how it started but internally insisting that it'd be fine, he was just resting his eyes for a moment.

"Some went further, took the boats along the coast or headed for the mountains. Some settled further north. Ana, Valys and I, and a few others, we'll stay. Try to make a home, if we can."

Hero gave a contemplative hum, eyes on the sky pondering why they'd travel so far and risk losing their lives.

"Was your home that bad?" Because surely the only reason to leave your home would be to go somewhere better, right? Hero tried to think of a reason to leave Ketra, leave Adela and he couldn't think of one. There was nothing out there that he couldn't have here, so... Leaving or choosing to leave was an entirely foreign concept. "To leave it and go through something so dangerous?"

   "No, home is...." Rho opened his eyes some, watched the sway of the grasses and the rustling of the leaves in the trees beyond the steady rise and fall of Hero's chest. The sound of the insects that he couldn't possibly hope to identify, so bizarre was everything this far beyond the snows of home. "Home is beautiful. Much colder, I'm sure you would hate it. But the sky lights up in the night, dances along with the stars, and the trees are made of glass and crystal and so they reflect everything."

   Rhosiris sighed a bit, missing the feel of snow under his feet terribly. "Truthfully, I wouldn't have left if I didn't need to. But us all, we... needed to. And now we are here, and things are strange, but so is everything that is new."

   "Like nipples." Rho quipped, reaching over to poke teasingly at Hero's torso in the general idea of where he thought he remembered them being. He chuckled softly. "Very strange. But not regrettable."

Trees made of glass and crystal made Hero struggling to imagine it. Wood and green, sure, easy. Glass and Crystal? He supposed it was as unusual as the elves were. Hero tucked away that 'needed to leave' bit of information for another time, curious about it. Criminals maybe? Sent off to gather information and... Return it home somehow?

Hero caught the hand that poked his chest with his free arm, lacing their fingers together and holding Rho's hand loosely. "Well, I'm glad you think my nipples aren't regrettable," Hero teased, a smile on his voice. "You'll should to tell me why you needed to leave your home sometime, if you wanted to," Hero didn't move, instead just lightly drew his thumb over wherever he could on Rho's hand, "maybe next time we watch some clouds."

"I am a terrible person to ask. It may take many more picnics." The afternoon didn't seem quite so warm for a moment, and for all his earlier bravado around 'what did it matter', Rhosiris was suddenly struck with the realization that he might actually very much care about what Hero thought. Forget babies, how did he go about explaining that he'd walked this whole damn way to meet one person and had ended up like this with a stranger instead?

But it was so nice, being like this. It was quiet and comfortable and there wasn't any reason to stand on ceremony or glass eggs or whatever the expression was.

"I'm not trying to be difficult, or trick you. I just don't know all the words. Like the clop-clops or nipples or picnics or mirages."

Hero smiled and chuckled, closing his eyes and sighing again.

"That's what I'm hoping for," he said truthfully, "if you can't explain it well you can just explain it slowly for a long time," Hero gave his finger a tap on Rho's hand before he tried to think of who talked about mirages.

"Oh, marriage." Hero said out loud, "It's when two people make a promise to be together forever, you do a ceremony and then you're married to your loved one. Or your whoopsie-baby partner." He cleared his throat, " Clop-clops are horses. Or just a horse. The brown things with hooves. Sometimes brown. There are a few colours. Big fast animals." Hero smiled up at the clouds and when he tried to open his eyes, he decided it was much more comfortable to keep them closed, his breathing evened out a little, though it turned deep and sleep. Very much falling asleep.

"Marriage, yes." Rho was quiet for a moment, considering the concept for a long while. He moved his thumb over Hero's fingers threaded in his own. The contact was small, but each small bit of contact did so much to push away the chill that threatened to sweep in the moment he let his guard down. It was nice, and Rho hadn't felt so nice in a long time, and was it really so selfish to want more?

A whole lifetime, though... they'd barely known each other, and yet here Herostratus was suggesting something so permanent. Surely there were more suitable people the man would have preferred.

The thought brought with it a shiver and a sour note to his stomach, and so he tried to think of anything else but that. He looked up at the clouds, watching the shapes shift as they were carried across the sky.

"That one looks like a horse." He glanced to the side, and saw Hero's eyes were closed. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Rho considered the lines of his face and all the wisps of hair that had escaped his best attempts at braiding. He definitely would need to try a comb, next time.

He shifted more to his side, pressing in just a bit closer for the sake of warmth, and closed his eyes again. He hated how much time he spent napping, but hey, what harm was one more?

Herostratus was hot.

His skin was burning and he gave a fitful twitch of his hand, his breath picked up and bright golden eyes snapped open. It was freshly dusk, the sun not quite gone over the horizon but the moon, bright and round hung in the sky.

Oh.

Hero gasped and moved away from Rho as gently as he could, his body giving a convulsion while on his hands in knees in the grass. Fingers dug into the dirt and he clamped his mouth closed, going so far as to clamp a hand over it to keep any gasps or cries muffled. Transforming always hurt. Usually he knew to drink the tea that knocked him the fuck out before he tied himself up like a dog - at the very least he never really remembered it beyond a mild ache and sleeping on paws. He would also transform, but he's just sleep through it instead of run wild.

A pained cry had Hero press his face into the grass, doing his best to move his arms to pull his clothing off so he didn't rip anything while kneeling. Every moment of non-pain was spent trying to get away from his companion, trying to be quiet. Hoping that Rhosiris was the deepest sleeper to exist. Everything sounded different, the colour was leeching away. He knew he was in that weird between place, his ears were probably wolfy and his eyes were probably really fucking weird looking.

The pained cries turned into inhuman growls with every gasp of breath and his hands fisted the grass while things changed and morphed. "Fucking... Moon!" Hero growled, teeth sharp and his voice his own but... Different. More. An animalistic tinge.

   It was the cry that woke him. The journey south had been difficult and full of its own dangers, and at times even the presence of trained warriors wasn't enough when it was just them huddled in a circle against the dark. Rho certainly didn't sleep well some nights, even in the pampered rooms in the castle.

   His eyes snapped open, and for a moment he was confused as to why he was in the dirt in the first place. But then he saw Hero curled up and in clear pain, and it was if lightning had struck him right in the pit of his stomach. Rho didn't understand what was happening, or why Hero was pulling off his clothes or why his spine was moving like that.

   His eyes only grew wider and wider when the sounds of pain turned to growls, and when Hero cursed the moon Rho glanced up but couldn't see what was so different about the moon or what it was doing. Rho moved across the grass, bent low and hands outstretched, worried that all this motion and all this whatever was happening would open Hero's shoulder and then they'd be in real trouble.

   "Herostratus? What's happening?"

There was a tail now.

Hero never really liked the tail part of the transformation, wholly foreign to just have a weird fluffy arm above his ass. He hated how it just moved on it's on in the few moments he was conscious while turned - usually. His name caught his attention and he gave out a pleading moan, not sure if he was horrified, embarrassed or both to be seen like this.

"Rho," He panted out, more noises being forced out of him while his torso turned. More fur coated his body and it climbed up his neck, he had to get the words out before he couldn't make words anymore, "I'm fine, it's okay," his voice was growly and weird, "I'm sorr--" and the words were just a sad little howl-y whimper at the end. No doubt the transformation between man and beast was very weird looking - Hero had never witnessed it but he could feel it.

It took maybe two minutes for the whole transformation to occur, but it felt like forever.

 Hero stood there on all fours, a large black wolf with bright golden eyes. His brain was a little fluffy now. There were too many smells. He sniffed at Rho carefully before he collected his clothes in his mouth and started to shuffle away. Not really sure what to do. Running seemed like a good idea, right? If he just disappeared into the night maybe he could pretend he hadn't just wolf'd in front of someone he was trying to get to know better.

A shapechanger.

Hero was a shapechanger.

Rhosiris was dumbfounded for a long while - he had heard stories of those who could do such a thing, wild claims of taking wing and flying from island to island, but stories like that were just stories. Entertaining and terrifying and untrue, and yet there he was standing at the treeline facing down what had previously been a man.

Rhosiris followed behind him as he gathered up his clothes. It was foolish, and he was sure later Anastolyr would absolutely have a fit to hear what he'd done, but-- well, what else was Rhosiris to do? The wolf didn't seem to have kept all of the mind it had started with, and they were very close still to so many people. Rho glanced over his shoulder back to the city proper, and remembered their first meeting in the training yard. Did they know about Herostratus? Would they recognize him? Or would all those swords and spears make short work of him?

Mouth tightened into a grimace, Rhosiris turned back and began after Hero, moving over the roots and ducking under branches as he went.

"You owe me so many picnics. If I don't get eaten first."

Hero could sense the presence behind him and the scent and he knew Rhosiris was following him. It made him tense and anxious and he was angry he couldn't articulate himself except for puppy charades. Which is what was going to happen because apparently Rho wasn't just going to let him walk away and spend his night wandering the trees.

The black wolf stopped in his tracks and turned around, clothing still held in his mouth and he paused to give a level golden look to his pursuer. A 'wuff' came out, muffled by clothing before he opened his mouth, licked his weird wolfy lips and gave another grumpy 'wuff'. How could you articulate 'go home' when you couldn't speak?

When Rho caught up, Hero wandered over to him slowly, head down and calmly sat on the elfs feet, resting his head on his legs. Maybe if Hero let Rho pet him and calm down, he'd let him take his hand so he could lead his tall sunshine elf back home.

   It was difficult to see, but Rhosiris could hear fairly well. He could hear the wind in the trees, the scuttling of small creatures under the brush, the steady padding of large wolf paws on soft earth and fallen leaves.

   And he could certainly hear 'wuff'. He froze in his tracks at the noise, it being a bit closer than he had anticipated, and he waited as Herostratus -- he was sure that was still Herostratus, he was so sure -- approached him. He was so large like this, even with Rho's considerable stature, he was intimidating. Then again, if you were to ask Rho, he'd probably agree that any large predator can be intimidating when you are unarmed, unarmored, and expecting.

   Where were the lights in the sky when you needed them? Why hadn't he brought a knife, at the very least?

   Rho waited as Hero sat on his feet and leaned into him, the added weight being slightly unbalancing. Rho touched lightly at Hero's head and neck, sighing softly in relief when he wasn't immediately growled and snapped at. He pet him for a bit, and moved carefully to try and look in the gloom and see if Hero had, in fact, torn his shoulder again.

   "Can you understand me, still? Or is this entirely witchcraft?"

The pets were lovely. Hero leaned into them and felt the brainfuzzy's go away as he got used to his strange body. Hardly one to enjoy his time as a wolf, Hero normally spent the nights of the fullmoon sleeping. He hated how different he felt and the whole walking thing was alarming.

Hero tilted his head up towards Rho when he spoke, tilting his head and letting his tongue loll out of his mouth. Carefully, slowly, Hero turned his head and gently took the bottom of Rho's clothing into his mouth before he started to try to lead him like a lost puppy.

A few wuffs and noises and Hero tried to move. A muffled sounded bark and a few frustrated tugs while wagging his tail. Very much a 'move this way' motion from the Wolfy-Herostratus.

Hero gave no sign that he understood what Rho was saying, which Rho took as a sign that this was, indeed, some form of witchcraft than anything by Hero's own power or design. He supposed he was grateful at least that Hero hadn't turned completely feral. The man had seemed to keep some sense of enemy and friend in his incredibly fuzzy state.

It didn't stop Rho from being somewhat startled with every bark, gentle though those were. The noises did have the added effect of keeping the elf very compliant, however, and so Rho allowed himself to be led along. Again, Hero still seemed to possess enough of a mind to not just tear Rhosiris's shirt apart in his efforts. A small thanks for a small kindness.

Even though he had gotten no answers before (and certainly expected none now with his shirt in Hero's canine mouth), Rhosiris couldn't help but try to talk with him anyway. Perhaps it was to alleviate his own nerves, or try to elicit some response, or just so there was some sound besides their feet on the ground and the occasional bark.

"You know, when I asked if you could do magic, this should have counted towards that, you sneaky man." He paused, and grimaced some. "Am I going to have a hound, by next year?"

Hero couldn't tell if Rho was accusing him of magic but he still glanced over his shoulder with his golden eyes and gave out a 'wuff' of acknowledgement. Still, he meandered along back towards the castle, fulling intending to lead him into the building and follow the scent back to Rho's rooms.

They were a ways off soon.

Hero dropped the fabric of Rho's clothing and gave as an exasperated noise a wolf could give. He gave his head a firm 'no' motion back and forth at the question - not that Hero really knew but he certainly remembered not being a wolf until he was well past puberty. Maybe.

Still, now that he knew Rhosiris would follow him... Hero picked up the pace. The sooner they got inside, the sooner he could make sure his tall golden elf friend was safe and then Hero could... Find somewhere to curl up. When he got too far ahead he'd stop, turn around and bark and give his tail tic-tocs before prancing along again.

   "Don't give me that look, I've never had this happen before." Rhosiris said defensively, completely ignoring how ridiculous it was that he was having a one-sided argument with a wolf in the woods. He even huffed and folded his arms in an exasperated display right back. "I've never even met a shapechanger before, let alone had their child."

   Rho paused for a moment, the reality of the situation settling in more now that he actually said the words out loud. This was all very new, and very much happening. Regardless of what followed, mirages or no, this all had happened. The thought was sobering, and so he followed behind Hero quietly for a time, arms still folded and stepping carefully over one particularly large root.

   It was only once he could spot the distant firelights of the castle walls that Rhosiris stopped in his tracks, expression alert and apprehensive.

   "Are you safe in there, like this?"

It was easy to be furry-conteplative when he couldn't speak. Hero's main focus was getting Rhosiris inside and safe. Would he get a spear thrown at him? Maybe. It only mattered a little though because if his companion was safe that was good enough.

At the pause and the question, Hero circled Rho, brushed his face along the elf's long legs and kept himself as glued to the side of his companion as possible. Hero gave a bark, a few front pawed hops and then looked towards the front and then back to Rho and then back again.

In an attempt to communicate he was pointing at the front with his face. A few more excited barks and some nudges. Hero wasn't about to run into the castle but they were so close!

Another circle around Rhos legs and he started to move towards the front, but keeping close enough to have some part of his fluffy side close. Another impatient bark and wiggle and a few more hops. Rho needed to be inside!

Rhosiris watched as Hero bounced forward and back and tried desperately to entice him closer to the walls, walls that Rhosiris' sharp eyes were fixed on as if scanning for any flying arrows on their way to them both. Finally, he stepped forward with Hero, moving close enough to sink one hand in Hero's furry scruff and hold tight to him. It wasn't much, and certainly wouldn't be enough to hold Hero back if he decided to bolt, but by all the stars Rhosiris was going to keep him close as much as possible.

Perhaps he could explain this away as being his personal hound. Nevermind that they had not entered Ketra with any such beast, and Rhosiris had not had the animal with him when he left for their walk. Still, he could be perfectly commanding when appropriate.

Rhosiris straightened his back, set his shoulders, and walked towards the castle as if he had every single right to do so with whatever escort he so chose, exhuding all of the authority he had left behind in Veila Kaur.

"We're going to our quarters. Ana is going to shit a gold brick, but maybe he'll know what to do."

Yes. Perfect.

Hero gave a happy yip when he felt Rhos hand on his scruff and they started towards the castle. Getting Rho inside somewhere safe was priority number 1. Priority number The Only Priority.

Otherwise it was mostly try to resist chewing on everything. He turned his head to look at Rho and trotted along, doing his best to take polite steps and wipe his feet off on the grass before they made their way inside. The scents were a little overwhelming, but he could smell his own from earlier and Rho's was strong for obvious reasons.

Hero kept walking, occasionally sniffing to follow the trail back to Rho's quarters. A pleased bark, a tictock of his tail and he started to walk a little faster. They were so close! Rho was almost safe!

Rhosiris was fairly certain his hearts were going to thud right out of his chest, just slip right out of him in a puddle of gold for how hard they were beating. Hell, they very well might just beat their way all the way back home, even after violently escaping him.

The thought was... less than settling, and Rhosiris' mouth pulled into a tight grimace at the wave of nausea that followed, that only compounding as he somehow, brilliantly, became incapable of thinking of anything but how disgusting that all would look.

"Wait, wait," he gasped softly, moving to one side of the hall to lean against the cool stone wall and gather himself a bit. Groaning softly, he squatted down, as if being somehow lower to the ground would work in his favor. Abandoning Hero's fur lest he rip it right out, Rho instead held onto his knees and took slow, steadying breaths.

Grasses. Clear waters. The scent of frost on the morning wind. Fresh stew -- oh, oh no, no food thoughts, moving right along -- some of the purple flowers they'd seen further north, those had smelled quite nice.

Rho took another breath, and rose to his proper height again. His stomach was still surly, but the feeling was ebbing just as quickly as it had come about in the first place. He sank his hand in Hero's fur once more, giving an apologetic sort of pet to him as they continued their way to the quarters afforded him and his kin.

"H-hey, hey you, wh-- you can't have a wolf in here!"

Nausea quickly gave way to annoyance, the heat of the emotion superseding all else. All Rho wanted was to get inside and have things put to rights and not have his life in chaos for a single, solitary moment. Naturally, being approached by one of the passing palace guards was not going to grant him such a mercy.

"Listen, you need to get that thing out of here, right now, elf, do you hear me?"

Straightening his back and raising his chin once more, Rhosiris fell back on the old staple that had proven fairly useful when dealing with the local population:

He played dumb as hell.

The Ztara Vratazi mother tongue, thankfully, was incredibly syllabic, such that many words in the common, human dialect were damn near paragraphs when it came to a translation. Which helped, when Rho's entire goal was to overwhelm and confuse this poor guard into leaving him the hell alone.

"I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about, I can't understand a single word you are saying, and if I did, I would perhaps be of the mind to hold you up near the ceiling until you decided that you could FUCK. OFF."

Being suddenly bombasted with a language that no one south of the isles had a single hope of understanding seemed to have an immediate effect, as the guard stopped short fairly quickly and raised both his hands.

"S-- listen, I can't-- I thought you all spoke trade-- wait-- slowdown--"


Rho did not, in fact, slow down. If anything he just got louder.

Which, while that might have helped his situation elsewhere, it did have the unfortunate result of summoning his own kin, as the door to the quarters opened and none other than their wordsmith Ana stepped out to see what the commotion was.

And he certainly wasn't expecting the commotion he found. Similarly raising his hands in a placating manner, Ana stepped around Rho and Hero, eyeing the wolf in very deep concern before turning to the guard and trying to be as amicable and peaceful as possible.

"I am so sorry, this is-- we are not quite familiar with your customs, and this is a-- prized beast my companion brought from home."

"That thing's a fuckin' pet?" the guard asked incredulously, momentarily stopping Rho from retreating into the door while they were both distracted.

"Yes, a pet, a most tame one, I assure you. I do apologize, but I really must speak with my kinsman here, urgently," Ana said sweetly, and Rhosiris recognized the soft bell-like tone of a wordsmith trying very hard to get his own way. Which served him just as well, inching Hero further to the open doorway.

"A pet," the guard said, as if in a daze, finally shaking his head and wagging a stern finger in their collective direction, "just mind it, yeah? No wild animals in the halls."

"No wild animals in the halls, of course," Ana continued in that soft, sweet tone, stepping backwards and all but shoving Rho inside, "we understand, thank you very much, sir."

Rho barely got inside before Ana closed the door with a solid thunk, and turned a white-hot stare right onto Rhosiris.

"What. The fuck. Is THAT." Pointing rather hysterically at Hero.

Herostratus was a fine warrior. Such a fine warrior that instead of perhaps trying to protect Rho from the new stranger, he simply set the pair of golden eyes on the different coloured strelf and leaned forward to give a thankful lick to the pointed finger.

He'd remember it. Hero was in there. He would remember everything. But acting like a totally normal human was a bit beyond him at the moment and once the door was closed and he was surrounded by familiar and unfamiliar smells he went from protective wolf to faithful companion puppy. Safe! Hero's fluffy tail gave a tick-toc and he pressed his face to Rhos leg before taking the hand not in his fur gently into his mouth, giving a muffled half bark noise.

He turned his head to find Rhos room and gave another ruff. Though, maybe they wanted to talk? Hero moved himself, instinctively more than comfort, to sit at Rhos feet, carefully positioned between his favorite person ever and the new elf. A tilt of his head, and he dropped Rhos hand for a casual loll of his tongue so he could also show off all his sharp teeth.

Ana immediately withdrew his hand, holding it close to his chest as he watched the large wolf all but press into Rho. Rho, for his own part, was less bothered by Hero's attempts to physically merge with him, and more bothered by all the attention he was getting.

Which, of course, was made worse as Valys wandered over with a bottle of unknown contents, also staring down at Hero.

"Nice pet."

"He's not a pet–"

"Your highness, please tell me that is not actually a wild animal–"

"Don't call me that and no, he's not a wild animal, he's–"

"Where'd you even get it?" Valys asked, taking another swig.

"His name is Herostratus, and he... I..." Rhosiris sighed and gestured helplessly, "...this is the opo."

The effect was immediate. Whatever liquid Valys had been taking a swig of found a new home on the floor as he choked, coughing and sputtering as he looked up at Rho in horror.

"The fuck's wrong with you?"

"He wasn't a dog when we did it!" Rhosiris snapped, all of him bristling at the very accusation.

"A shapechanger? That's a shapechanger?" Ana asked, as if that were somehow worse than what Valys had presented.

"I don't know! We were sitting out in a field, and then he just... this!" he gestured again, "Do something?"

Ana grimaced a bit, before slowly approaching, hands held out for Hero to sniff and hopefully not bite right off his wrists.

"Hello... Herostratus?"

The simple words 'Your Highness' had Heros ears perk up and he could feel his senses sharpen, his mind hone in on those words. His tongue went back into his mouth and he was, momentarily, no longer Herostratus-Puppy-Time but mentally an in between of himself and his wolf form. Like a splash of cold water to bring him back to himself, to some degree.

It was probably a little odd to watch a wolf's gaze change and harden, the golden eyes change from cute but mostly vacant to sharp and intelligent. Rho was a 'your highness'? Hero ruffed and looked towards the newest elf, gave something as close to laughter as possible when they spat out their drink. In actuality it was just a singular loud bark, and Hero pressed the side of his head to Rho again, though he made a little growling noise at how Ana said the word 'shapechanger' but didn't look over.

This was Rhos family, which meant that he was safe. His gaze turned to Ana, eyes sharp again and he removed himself from his seat at Rhos feet and took a few careful steps towards the outstretched hands. A few impulsive sniffs and Hero reached out his own large paw and put it into Ana's hand with a low ruff of greeting and something like a nod. The attempt to shake hands was there, but without thumbs it was just pressure and a bark to reciprocate the greeting as best he could. A helpless look as possible over his shoulder towards Rho and another low whiff... What he wouldn't give to have a voice right now. And hands.

And to not be a wolf. Hero looked around the room for a window, staring at it intently as if willing the moon to just show up in the room and for the sun to rise.

"Easy-- oh," Ana said, a little anticlimactically, as Hero plopped his paw right into one of his hands. He seemed unsure of what to do at first, before local customs caught up with him and he gently shook the offered paw up and down. "Does he understand us?"

"As far as I can tell, yes," Rhosiris said with a small sigh, looking back and away from the others to drag over an ornamental chair just to get off his feet for another moment. For all of the resting he had been able to do earlier, it seemed as if he was three times as tired for it. He settled down quickly enough, hand returning to Hero's head and neck to give him a few reassuring pets. "That, or I've been talking at him like a madman."

"You are absolutely a madman," Valys chimed in, dragging over another chair and taking a deep drink from his bottle, eyes not leaving Hero for a single moment. Which both annoyed Rhosiris and reassured him, because drunkard though Valys was, he was a reliable sort, and this was a very big animal with very big teeth very near their sworn charge.

Anastolyr, for his part, slowly knelt down before Hero, brows knit and mouth moving soft and wordless as he touched over Hero's snout and chest. The two Phaetons sat back in silence, letting him work, until Ana shook his head and stood up again.

"Whatever it is, this isn't witchcraft. There's nothing for me to undo." He looked over at Rho apologetically. "If he turns back, that will be his own doing."

"If he turns back," Valys added ever-so-helpfully.

"Wonderful." Rhosiris said with a sigh, though his hand never left Hero for a moment. He sighed again, and slowly stood up, feeling exhaustion deep in his bones. "I'm going to bed."

"Your-- Rhosiris, perhaps we should ask one of our hosts for advice? He's their people, surely they must know something."

Rhosiris felt a growl well up in his throat, and he only just barely managed to cut it off before it manifested properly.

"You heard that man," he said, after a moment of composing himself, "he called him a wild animal."

"Rhosiris--"

"I said no," Rho said, with such finality that even Valys, who had not said a damn word, snapped his mouth shut. Rhosiris gave a small tug to Hero's fur to get him to come along, before stepping away from the other elves and heading for the room he'd occupied since they'd managed to gain some hospitality. As if to put an even more final note on the matter, Rhosiris shut the door most unquietly, before promptly falling face first into the bed.

After another moment, he turned his face away from the pillow enough to look over at Hero.

"You will turn back, won't you?"

Patiently, Hero waited for the examination to be done. Though at first he assumed it was simply to pet his neck and touch his face. He held still and remained that way since it seemed polite and Rho was just there anyway. No witchcraft. Hero gave a tilt of his head and his ear perked up while he pondered those words in his fuzzy head. No. No witchcraft. He moved to rest his chin on Rho's leg while he was seated, could sense how tired and unhappy he was. A little wuff from Hero and he remained as close as ever, pressed against leg, walking in step.

The door slamming closed made him jump and look over his shoulder with wide eyes before he blinked at Rho moving to fall face first into the bed. While he was walking around the room, his long nails clicking on the floor, he sat down in front of a window and shoved his head up past any curtains to look out at the sky. Dawn was still a decent ways away and he poked his head back down from the curtain when he'd heard Rho moving.

The question got as much as an affirmative 'wuff' as was possible and Hero gave his tail a tick-tock before he moved back to the bed, making sure to drag his feet over any carpet available to remove whatever grass was maybe left behind.

Then he jumped up on the bed, laying down and putting his head on his paws and giving Rho a look that could only be apologetic. He gave another little wuff and closed his eyes briefly before pressing to Rho's side and sighing. It didn't take much, Hero was exhausted, but he pressed his nose to Rho's side and watched the large sunshine bright elf. An expectant look, like he was expecting this elf to sleep.

How did a wolf indicate someone should sleep? In an attempt to suggest it, Hero lifted his head up, then put his head down on his paws, eyes closed and feigned sleeping, then looked at Rho. He did this two more times, before he placed his head on his paws with his eyes open, with the expecting look persisting.

Rhosiris watched as Hero tried desperately to communicate with him, golden eyes blinking slowly as he propped his head up just a bit more. After about the third time of Hero raising and lowering his head, it all clicked, and Rhosiris couldn't help a soft bout of laughter. He wasn't sure why it was so funny, just that it was, and for some reason or another having Hero there pantomiming in wolf form just... cheered him up.

"It's still so damn hot," he said, more for the sake of conversation than anything else. He rolled onto his side to better face Hero, one hand settling over the wolf's head and rubbing at his ears.

"Change back soon," he said, tiredly, his blinking slowing by the minute until he simply didn't bother opening his eyes again, "you owe me more picnics."

Perhaps it was the stress of the day. Perhaps it was the stress of the pregnancy. Perhaps it was the weather, miserable and humid. Or perhaps it was simply that this was the first time in a long time he had felt any semblance of peace, and his nervous system had decided to latch onto it like a man dying of thirst. Either way, it didn't take long before Rho was dozing away again, drifting lightly into sleep.

The birds were beginning their chirping. In addition to that his nose was itchy. Hero brought a hand to his face to gently rub the itch away before he wrapped his arm around the deliciously warm body pillow and moved himself closer to it. He nuzzled into Rhos belly and sighed before his eyes snapped open. Human once again. Hero closed his eyes and found he had tangled himself with the elf.

Half curled around, Hero had positioned himself to have one arm wrapped around Rhos back, his head resting on the elfs torso with his other arm draped over lower belly and hips. He looked at his arm, giving himself as much a once over as he could without moving. Hero usually drugged himself and slept through it and the symptoms.

Dawn was here, but he never went back with as much violence as he transformed. His fingernails were still harder and more sharp, his heating was sensitive. No doubt his eyes looked more wold-gold than Hero-gold at the moment. He drew his tongue over his teeth and found those a little too sharp as well.  Maybe by midday he'd be back to normal.

Hero hadn't moved much at all, wanting to let Rho rest as best he could. Still, he placed a hand on Rho's hip and drew little circles gently. It was nice to be human again. Hero moved his head, the braid from the night before had come loose and it was just a curtain of inky black hair. More of the night before returned and he just pressed his face into Rhosiris stomach and groaned like one would lament into a pillow.

What an absolutely tragic situation to be in. Maybe he should try to sneak out? Good idea. Gently and with caution, Rho removed his arm from under Rhosiris and did his best to roll off the bed.

To find he was completely nude. "Ah. Yes. Of course. Wolves don't wear pants" He whispered to himself before he started to tip toe around the room, looking for some article of clothing to save some dignity.

Rhosiris blinked his eyes open, the bit of movement enough to wake him but not enough to get him to leave his very comfortable spot. He watched Hero tiredly for a moment, before finally having mercy on the poor man.

"The chest to the left," he said, voice still rough with sleep. "Tunic. Leggings. May be long on you."

Hero froze when Rho spoke, like he'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Slowly he looked over his shoulder and then looked towards the chest, before he went and helped himself. As much as he didn't mind being naked in the presence of Rho, he minded being naked in a very unfamiliar place.

"Never in my life has anything been 'too long' for me," he commented softly, mostly to himself, adjusting the clothing and pulling his hair from beneath the collar. He pulled the leggings up as far as he could manage and still, they were so long. The tunic was too long. Rho really wasn't kidding, how could anyone be so tall.

Hero gently chewed on his lip, his teeth still a little sharp from his wolf night. And then looked at the door, then back at Rho before Hero threw propriety and good manners to the wind and just went to the bed again, climbing onto it gently and moving to lay down on his back.

"I suspect you'll have questions when you wake up fully," Hero whispered, hands resting on his belly. Why was he so anxious? Why was his heart pounding so hard he could feel it in his ears. Probably because it isn't every day you find out someone can turn into a fuzzy-brain wolf.

"Questions, yes." Rho said softly, before rolling over with a grunt so he could face Hero more properly. There was still some oddness to the man, in his manner, in some details, in his very smell, but Rhosiris was genuinely more relieved that the man was, well... a man.

"Are you... are you well?" It seemed a ridiculous question even before it was out of his mouth, but given how... awful the initial transformation had seemed, it was surprising he had been able to sleep through the reverse.

"Am I well?" Hero repeated, going introspective for a time. He lifted his hands up to examine his nails,feel his palms and bring his hands to his mouth to poke at his teeth. It was a natural thing for him, the transformation. He didn't fully understand how it worked, never had a mind to learn. He'd drugged himself up and slept through them regularly.

"I suppose," he whispered, drawing his finger tips together and resting his hands on his stomach again. "I... Usually I'm more careful. I try to sleep through it, so I'm not... fuzzy. Infact the ingredients are waiting on my desk in my room." Hero cleared his throat, "The full moon transforms me, but it's less aggressive when I'm sleeping and tucked away from view. A blessing I guess." He closed his eyes and sighed.

"I'm sorry you had to deal with that," His voice was a little raw sounding, heartbeat making his pulse near visible, "I appreciate you taking me inside. I'm myself but... not quite myself when I'm like that." Except when they got here, and words were spoken and attention was honed. Hero didn't mention it, didn't mention that he'd never even tried to control his bestial wolf form. An untapped resource to some, likely.

"Thank you," he whispered and then paused, "Why did your kin seem so offended by shapechangers?"

Rhosiris shifted again, becoming more awake the more he heard in Hero's voice, the tone yanking the last vestiges of sleep from him. He moved his arm to provide more pillowing for his head, watching Hero closely as he listened.

"...I was afraid the guards would shoot at you," he said, shaking his head after a moment as if to dismiss the very notion, unable to handle it even in the hypothetical.

"Only very powerful magicians can change their shape," he explained instead, "or it's done through a very powerful curse. In the isles, you don't see it so often, and when it does happen, it's something to be cautious of. ...Another difference, between there and here. You're not dangerous."

Afraid the guards would shoot him.

Hero paused, a sort of far away look in his eyes while he processed that. A wild wolf in the middle of the barracks would raise eyebrows and the method of dealing with it would depend on who... Dealt with it. If he was skinned as wolf, would it stay as a wolf or would they wake up to having the skin of a man? Something he decided he'd rather not find out. Maybe add chains to the next batch on the off chance he tried to escape his room.

Usually the closed door kept him in there, by virtue of doorknob but no thumbs, but who knew how determined a wolf who didn't want to be in a room could be?

Golden eyes flicked to Rhosiris' when he started to explain shapeshifting. Powerful magicians. Curses. He frowned slightly at the word cursed and then the dismissal that he wasn't dangerous. Was that safe? Was he not dangerous? Hero looked at his hands, flexing his fingers before he moved to sit up and think. Like he couldn't quite get the thoughts out while laying down.

"What if I hurt you?" Hero shook his head and looked over his shoulder, "Please. I don't..." He sighed and pushed a hand through his hair, "I've never tried to control it. I'm never... Conscious like that. Me being myself could have been a total fluke, when we got here and met your kin it felt like I was rising out of water and coming to myself but I was still not fully me." Hero moved a hand like he was reaching out to touch Rho and then pulled it back, "I don't know what I'd do with myself if I hurt you, even by accident."

Standing again he rolled his shoulders and a memory from the night before flicked his through his mind, and he turned around a small playful smirk on his face, a lame attempt to alleviate the tension he'd created, "Am I being snuck out to keep the mystery of who your Wolf Lover is or should I waltz through the room?"

Rhosiris, for his part, listened quietly, just watching Hero move about as he seemed to be figuring out last night same as any of them. He only moved to rest on his other side, still watching Hero from the bed.

Sure, the very rational part of his brain should have been ringing all the alarm bells. A shapechanger who couldn't control himself? Who normally wasn't himself? A truly wild animal that acted as any wild animal would?

But the first thing Hero had done was try to get Rhosiris back where he had belonged - or, well, where the rest of his kin were. Belonged was a very strong word.

The somber thought was broken some by Hero's joke, and Rhosiris gave a loud snort of amusement.

"Please walk, Valys will never believe me, otherwise." He chewed at his lip a bit before continuing, softer and more sincere. "You don't need to sneak."

Rhosiris slowly sat up, thankful that the little one had decided that this morning he didn't need to be horrifically sick, and set his feet down on the cool floor with a sigh.

"When does this happen?"

A little smirk pulled at his lips and Hero put his hands on his hips, contemplating for a moment of just sneaking away. Leave Rho with his kin and having to explain that the wolf did turn back into a person, they just left early. No, really. Hero sobered up at the question.

"The full moon," it was a simple answer, there was more to it, there always was more to it and he shuffled his feet and cleared his throat. "Nothing stops it," a little shrug, "but if I'm not in direct moon light it's less of a... violent transformation. Kind of like this morning." He wiggled his fingers, his once sharp nails now much more normal looking. Hero rubbed his wrists and looked away, chin down. Kin slayer. Dragon tracker. Werewolf.

"I... I'm not sorry I didn't tell you. But I apologize for making you witness that. That was definitely a third or fourth picnic kind of topic. I was careless and not paying attention." Hero was happy though, to a degree, that it came out so soon. If he wasn't attached too much it would be easier to deal with rejection and throw himself into projects.

Though there was something to consider of a bit more serious nature, "I... I don't know if it... will pass on." He stated as delicately as he could, giving a lingering look to Rhos abdomen clearing his throat and wringing his hands. "It's a curse. I think, but it's been so long our family history on paper doesn't go back far enough, passed from mother to daughter.  Except when..." Hero lifted his hands and dropped them back to his side, "Except when there are no daughters, apparently."

"So I should keep the child out of direct moonlight, just in case?" Rhosiris cracked a tired smile, before finally mustering the energy to stand up. After all, why not? Why wouldn't this whole situation be as wildly complicated as possible?

If it was passed down from mother to daughter in most circumstances, then it was fine, right? But if there were no daughters, then it also happened. And, to make it even more complicated, there wasn't exactly a mother here, either. As handsome as Hero was Rhosiris was very sure none in his line had ever included one of the Ztara Vratazi, and the people of these southlands were so... different.

He very well might have a puppy, and wouldn't that be what he deserved? Genuinely, he should have been having the meltdown of the century, just an absolute cacophony of panic and despair, and yet there he stood, feeling rather like someone had only mildly inconvenienced him or made mention his child might have allergies.

It was madness. But, hey, madness ran in his family, now didn't it?

"I'm not angry you didn't tell me. I... am glad I know, though. Imagine, if we'd never seen one another again, and this one just grows up barking at squirrels." He shook his head after a moment. "...I'm starving, and if I stay in here either I will sleep the day away or my kin will think you've eaten me. Do you want breakfast?"

Hero's breath felt like rocks in his chest and he hadn't realized he'd been holding his breath until Rho just... Asked him if he was hungry.

A little confused, Hero gave a numb little nod and blinked away the weird water in his eyes while he let out the air to take a small breath back in. He hadn't even known how anxious he was, until it was brushed away like just another little thing. Like having a grey hair or something that just... Was.

Hero gave a little smile and offered his elbow to Rho to guide the golden elf out of the room. "I'd love breakfast. I'm absolutely famished," and then Hero cleared his throat, "and for the record I'm pretty sure I've chased more squirrels as a man than I ever have on four legs." He paused again, "and I'd have certainly noticed a tiny wolf chasing a squirrel being chased by a giant golden elf."

A deep breath, and he fixed his hair over his shoulders and turned his head to look at Rho "Do I look handsome? I wouldn't want your kin to mistake me for an animal."

Rhosiris took the offered elbow, stepping close and feeling remarkably well for it. It must have been a very good day, for the little one to be so well behaved, but then again, it was only morning. Plenty of the day left to be wildly uncomfortable in.

Rhosiris turned to look at him upon request, and couldn't help but tilt his head to the side mischievously, feigning true criticism.

"Handsome? Yes, quite, would be led away to the barracks again." Rho chuckled softly, "And for the record, the only one of my kin who would mistake you for an animal, mistakes all of your kind for one another. ...Though I suppose even he would notice a man chasing squirrels."

Rhosiris guided them both through the door, and was thankful to see that there was not, in fact, a collection of elves waiting to pry into his business. Which was at once a blessing and a curse, because he could not also shake Hero at them and go 'see?! I'm not completely insane!'

Still, proving himself was a much lower priority than food was, his stomach twisting in urgency to hurry up and get to it.

"...Why were you chasing squirrels?"

A pause and Hero looked down at his hands. Sure they weren't golden or blue or something but he still looked regular enough that he didn't look like an animal. All it got Rho was a look with a tweaked up eyebrow of confusion and a curiosity on who exactly this person was. Possibly blind? Either way, Hero kept his comments to himself and let himself be lead by Rho.

He'd been in the castle plenty of times, but never really inside. These were the rooms people lived in. He'd just been in the briefing areas. The war areas. As one of the less socially acceptable people to have, any events where he'd been invited were always on the outskirts looking in. Hero couldn't help how he chewed on his lip while he walked around just the littlest bit nervously. Would anyone ask where the dog had gone?

Probably not. Surely the guard would have changed by now and while 'watch out, the big orange one has a dog' was probably mentioned, the big orange one clearly did not have a dog now. "The squirrel stole my food," Hero shrugged, like that was obviously why he'd chase a squirrel. Did he count as a guest? Hero felt his heartbeat pick up and he had to control his breathing so he didn't just panic himself into oblivion. Even if they just stayed in the Star Striders suites, it still felt like he was in some sort of forbidden area.

Outside was home. The training grounds were familiar. The stables where Sunshine lived while he was back on the grounds were comfortable. Hero always felt odd inside the walls. No one ever gave him dirty looks, but they were never overtly friendly. Not that Hero had ever tried to endear himself to anyone to begin with.

Maybe it was because he wasn't in his armor. Sneaking into the kitchen was one though but being in the halls was something else entirely. He was thinking too much, "What's an Opo?" Hero finally asked, the word slipping into his head and out his mouth while it was trying to grasp at anything new to mull over.

Rhosiris, for his part, looked perfectly at ease walking through the halls. It was different, certainly, than the grand Halls of home, with their labyrinthine wings and steep ceilings lined with banners glittering in lamplight. But really, a noble house was a noble house, and Rhosiris carried himself with all the sense of Belonging as any other guest of the Regent.

He paused at the banquet hall doors, open and lightly guarded as they were during the breakfast hours, and considered how best to answer Hero's question. Not for lack of wanting so much as lack of knowing how to explain it without speaking the... dirtier details in front of strangers.

It was a natural act, it was perfectly normal, but enough months in the southlands had taught him and all of his kin just how readily embarrassed these humans could be about how they each had been made.

"Opo is... our word for the one who does not give birth." He finally settled on, simply, before finding a seat at one of the lesser tables, gesturing at the seat beside him for Hero to take.

The silent lingered and Hero smiled at the quiet way Rho tried to politely word what the word was. The one who does not give birth. He sat down beside Rho as offered and made sure to sit so that their legs were pressed together under the table. More for himself than anything, while he wasnt transformed anymore he was still feeling territorial. Rational Hero knew that was impolite, maybe a bit weird. Recently wolfy Hero didn't give a fuck.

"I see," he paused and glanced down at Rhos stomach before he pushed his long black hair over his shoulder and rested his hands on the table. Mornings in the grand hall were buffet style to accommodate the guests and workers. Dinners were seperate but mornings, everyone got the same food (mostly). Hero stood up again, resting a hand on Rhos shoulder before he gave it a squeeze. He gave Rho a look and smiled, "I'll get us breakfast. It's just over there. No bread things, right?"

He had to admit, he was more than a bit surprised. When had he mentioned bread? The previous day had had so much happen in it, he wasn't quite sure what all they had talked about. Well, it wasn't some great secret, anyway, and stars knew how often the Starstriders had grumbled and griped in private at the southern obsession with bread. Perhaps Hero had simply heard enough rumors to just know better.

Still, the fact it was remembered, known, at all was enough to give Rhosiris a very pleasant warm feeling, amplified by the touch to his shoulder. The emptiness left behind when Hero pulled away was markedly more pronounced, as if a chill draft had sprung up in exactly that spot. Rho was tempted, just for a moment, to follow Hero to the food table just to be rid of the chill.

"I... yes, no bread, thank you." A far more sensible response, despite that temptation only growing by the minute. "I'm not especially familiar with local cuisine, I'll just ask you to bring back what you think is good."

Being back what he thought was good. For some reason that made Hero terribly nervous. What if Rho didn't like the things he liked? What if the elf just full on upchucked at the choices Hero made? Of all the things to be nervous about 'Rho may not like what I pick,' was so high on the list he felt butterflies in his stomach.

Maybe a bit of everything? Minus the bread. His own plate had bread and butter, some eggs and some veggies with potatoes. The plate for Rho was what he assumed was good for ... expecting... people. There was some sausages, eggs, a few slices of tomato, a couple wedges of apple and potatoes. This was breakfast right?

Heros stomach grumbled and he turned back to the table, placing Rho's breakfast down in front of the golden elf before sitting and digging into his own. "I didnt actually knew what you liked, just stick what you can't stomach onto my plate." He said softly, buttering his bread, Hero paused and leaned back, chewing while he thought. "What do you like? Anything in particular? Fruit? Vegetables?"