Lolo turned his gaze. He had grown up in relative plenty and while his personal wealth had ebbed and flowed in the years before and since the Calamity, being confronted with the reality that impeded the education of so many discomfited him. Staring forward at the wall, at nothing, he spoke.
"Miss Joz, while the comforts of the student are secondary to his or her efforts, yours is hardly a situation conducive to learning. If we are going to determine your aetheric viability, you will need to dedicate yourself wholly to the pursuit. Otherwise, I fear I've nothing to teach you." He paused momentarily before making his proposal, preempting any wet eyes or whimpers of protest which would frighten and discourage his constitution.
"If you prove yourself a dedicated and earnest student, I will aid you for a time. It is the natural situation of a master and apprentice, after all, and I can support the both of us modestly without too great an adjustment. A roof over your head and a full belly will keep your mind and senses much sharper than overlong hours of begging and hard labor."
His speech thus concluded, he again turned his head toward the girl seated at his side and awaited her reply.
"Miss Joz, while the comforts of the student are secondary to his or her efforts, yours is hardly a situation conducive to learning. If we are going to determine your aetheric viability, you will need to dedicate yourself wholly to the pursuit. Otherwise, I fear I've nothing to teach you." He paused momentarily before making his proposal, preempting any wet eyes or whimpers of protest which would frighten and discourage his constitution.
"If you prove yourself a dedicated and earnest student, I will aid you for a time. It is the natural situation of a master and apprentice, after all, and I can support the both of us modestly without too great an adjustment. A roof over your head and a full belly will keep your mind and senses much sharper than overlong hours of begging and hard labor."
His speech thus concluded, he again turned his head toward the girl seated at his side and awaited her reply.
