my blade is your blade.

Aori gave her Dark Knight mentor a smile.

“I find the Darkness a Dark Knight wields is comforting and well… different.  When I think of the Darkness, I think of the evil kind that have taken shape as the Ascians.  They manipulated so many people over the course of history including the mighty dragons and the beastmen, and now they have their strings in Ishgard,” Aori said.  "The Light that Hydaelyn brought onto me has dimmed because of my so-called friendship with Midgardsomr.  If I haven’t … bonded with Midgardsomr… Moenbryda would still be alive.  It’s coming back, but through even harder trials.“

     ‘NEATH HIS HELM, the pensive tug to his lips smooths out, and he exhales from his nose, though it’s needless. 

          “Ciaran Cadeyrn, at your service.” Oh, was he tempted to just forget about this effort entirely and go back to his daily business. It didn’t seem worth the effort at this point, to go about making peace with a stranger simply for how they looked. Sure, they looked intimidating, but was it worth the time? “A member of the Ul’dahn Syndicate, to be specific.”

   Ah, try as he might to keep his voice cheerful, it seemed to gain a bit of an edge. A sharpness at the end of each sentence, an impatience, for the lalafell had things to do and places to be. He couldn’t very well waste his time showing foreigners the ins and outs of the city of Ul’dah, could he? Nay. So he sent his chocobo on its way, into the city’s stables ahead of him, unconcerned for the creature’s wellbeing. It could fight if it needed to.

     FUNNY, Fray was wondering the same thing — is it really worth the time? Surely he could get around fine by himself. On the other hand, there was no telling how much Fray would learn from someone so esteemed instead of fumbling through things in the city himself. After all, Fray wasn’t overly interested in Ul’dah. 

     ❛ Call me Fray. Ciaran, eh, and a member of the Ul’dahn Syndicate, no less? Color me impressed, ❜ Fray said, the lie sitting pretty on his tongue and ringing as true as it might have if he had been fully honest — he was not exactly impressed in the least, though the question of why Ciaran was willing to help still was unanswered. Fray rubbed his hands together, the slide of his palms across one another smooth and unworried. ❛ I see myself around. I’ve been in Ishgard quite a lot as of late. This is just about as opposite as could be. ❜