Roen gave Khadai a sidelong glance when he responded. But catching the change in his tone and expression, she found herself continuing to watch him when he brought out the runestone in his hand. Her gaze came to rest on his hand's movements over patterns on the stone. She said nothing as she contemplated his words.
“I was so certain, before.†She finally broke the quiet with a soft murmur. “I knew what my path was, my purpose, and what I believed in. About the world, about the people in it.†The paladin paused at her own words. Has so much changed in a year? She idly rubbed at her breastplate, furrowing her brow at the possibility of sharing what had come to pass. And yet, despite her reluctance, a part of her wished to know Khadai’s thoughts on the matter--those odd, brusque, foreign thoughts that were not so strange to her.
A heartbeat later, Roen tugged on the chain around her neck, pulling out a pair of amethyst earrings hanging from them. Her fingers carefully traced the elaborate filigrees of silver and gold, and when they swung from the silver chain, they jingled lightly. Her grey eyes watched them for a moment, her expression saddening.
“‘Why would a man wear such a thing?’ I thought, when I first saw them. The man wore these flashy jingling earrings that drew my attention. His jokes and obnoxious grins were the same. Just to draw the attention, perhaps to mislead others from what should have been their focus.†She continued to watch the earrings, as the deep purple gem caught the light of the flickering flames in the distance.
“He rarely said what was on his mind,†she said quietly. “Even with me... and I was one of the few people that he came to trust. And he did not trust very many.â€
The paladin shrugged, her expression muted. “He was like me, in ways that we both wanted to change what we saw was wrong. We saw that the rich grew richer, and the poor grew sicker. The gap between the two sides only seemed to grow wider every sun.â€
“That was how things were…†She paused and shook her head. “How things... are in Ul’dah. It is where coin dictates who rules.â€
A span of silence fell between them again. “It is not too different from what you saw in the Brume.†She snorted bitterly. “And in that, I suppose I did not really run away from anything at all.â€
“I was so certain, before.†She finally broke the quiet with a soft murmur. “I knew what my path was, my purpose, and what I believed in. About the world, about the people in it.†The paladin paused at her own words. Has so much changed in a year? She idly rubbed at her breastplate, furrowing her brow at the possibility of sharing what had come to pass. And yet, despite her reluctance, a part of her wished to know Khadai’s thoughts on the matter--those odd, brusque, foreign thoughts that were not so strange to her.
A heartbeat later, Roen tugged on the chain around her neck, pulling out a pair of amethyst earrings hanging from them. Her fingers carefully traced the elaborate filigrees of silver and gold, and when they swung from the silver chain, they jingled lightly. Her grey eyes watched them for a moment, her expression saddening.
“‘Why would a man wear such a thing?’ I thought, when I first saw them. The man wore these flashy jingling earrings that drew my attention. His jokes and obnoxious grins were the same. Just to draw the attention, perhaps to mislead others from what should have been their focus.†She continued to watch the earrings, as the deep purple gem caught the light of the flickering flames in the distance.
“He rarely said what was on his mind,†she said quietly. “Even with me... and I was one of the few people that he came to trust. And he did not trust very many.â€
The paladin shrugged, her expression muted. “He was like me, in ways that we both wanted to change what we saw was wrong. We saw that the rich grew richer, and the poor grew sicker. The gap between the two sides only seemed to grow wider every sun.â€
“That was how things were…†She paused and shook her head. “How things... are in Ul’dah. It is where coin dictates who rules.â€
A span of silence fell between them again. “It is not too different from what you saw in the Brume.†She snorted bitterly. “And in that, I suppose I did not really run away from anything at all.â€
