[ It is an odd thing for a liar. But it's not an odd one for Byerly. ]
You are not a mabari, [ is accompanied by a smile and the obvious, teasing withholding of any similar assurances that he is not old, before he repeats: ] You are a thousand things.
You are gentle and kind and serious, when I need you to be. If something bothers me, you don't joke about it. You listen.
[ He listens to Bastien in a way he does not listen to everyone—even to Alexandrie, Bastien knows, from his experience as an unhappy observer. There's something to chew on there. Some similarity between this and when Alexandrie was sitting on the floor, miserable about being denied the specific comfort she asked for, and he'd said do you want me to manipulate you? because I can—
or something. It has been enough years for even Bastien's memory to fail on the specifics.
In the meantime, while he's trying to chew, he taps the tip of By's nose. ]
It would be awful and exhausting if we had to carry on like that forever, I know—so, alright, we won't invite any people who don't like the teasing to live with us. But that part of you is not a lie.
no subject
You are not a mabari, [ is accompanied by a smile and the obvious, teasing withholding of any similar assurances that he is not old, before he repeats: ] You are a thousand things.
You are gentle and kind and serious, when I need you to be. If something bothers me, you don't joke about it. You listen.
[ He listens to Bastien in a way he does not listen to everyone—even to Alexandrie, Bastien knows, from his experience as an unhappy observer. There's something to chew on there. Some similarity between this and when Alexandrie was sitting on the floor, miserable about being denied the specific comfort she asked for, and he'd said do you want me to manipulate you? because I can—
or something. It has been enough years for even Bastien's memory to fail on the specifics.
In the meantime, while he's trying to chew, he taps the tip of By's nose. ]
It would be awful and exhausting if we had to carry on like that forever, I know—so, alright, we won't invite any people who don't like the teasing to live with us. But that part of you is not a lie.