[ his presence isn't subtle in the shrouded silhouette it passes over her and the plants, like an eclipse blotting out light, but she doesn't suspect he intends it to be. alina's instinctive reaction is the burden of tension in her shoulders, a knot that never unwinds at unexpected company. a quick motion drops her hands to her knees as she squints past the artificial lighting overhead, where the high contrast blends the angles of his face into a blur. ]
Trick?
[ a dull echo, like it hasn't registered, too distracted trying to categorize him as familiar or unfamiliar. but once the comprehension sinks in, she frowns. wonders if she's meant to take offense by the casualness of it, like it's a party trick or — some common weather phenomenon. oh, look, another rainbow.
in her internal debate, she lands firmly on just this side of defensive. not quite committed to it, but committed enough that it seeps through as she wipes her hands off on her knees, a little furrow working itself between her eyebrows. ]
If you think you can do better, you're welcome to it.
[ says alina starkov, blissfully unaware she's talking to a powerful wizard who — as she is very well convinced, from just one sentence — likely believes he can do exactly like. ]
no subject
Trick?
[ a dull echo, like it hasn't registered, too distracted trying to categorize him as familiar or unfamiliar. but once the comprehension sinks in, she frowns. wonders if she's meant to take offense by the casualness of it, like it's a party trick or — some common weather phenomenon. oh, look, another rainbow.
in her internal debate, she lands firmly on just this side of defensive. not quite committed to it, but committed enough that it seeps through as she wipes her hands off on her knees, a little furrow working itself between her eyebrows. ]
If you think you can do better, you're welcome to it.
[ says alina starkov, blissfully unaware she's talking to a powerful wizard who — as she is very well convinced, from just one sentence — likely believes he can do exactly like. ]