Somnium

[Thalia]

The whirlwind was over and Thalia blinked, stunned. She glanced down at the card in her hand to assure herself the whole thing had been real, and spent a few moments fiddling about with her wallet to transcribe the details and ensure she didn't lose them. The encounter had lightened her mood, and wisps of the old Thalia surfaced through the gloom.

"You don't? I do. Always have."
A small smile slowly lifted her lips. The light breeze felt like curious fingers in the hair knotted on her head, loose strands tickling her cheeks. She closed her eyes, breathed in the scent of river and grass and sunlight, and stretched out her legs, the tension rolling out from her muscles. The day seemed brighter, and not because of the light that hovered inside her mind.

"You would?"
The offer's generosity took her by surprise. Thalia shifted to sit comfortably cross-legged, toying with the straps of her discarded sandals. "You wouldn't be scared I'd accidentally blow you up?"
The words were blithe, but she meant it sincerely. It wasn't the only reason to ward him off. She thought of the wolves in her sketchbooks. The grave marker. A man bowed away. A chest torn with three stripes. He said he'd met her as someone else, in a world of dreams, but she only remembered him as a kind face in a coffee shop. Not that she didn't believe him -- she did, and it was the very reason she'd usually shy away.

But he was also the man to whom she'd told almost all her secrets. That counted for something too, and maybe it was past time to stop hiding. "I think I'd like that. Thanks."


She was quiet a moment, considering. Her thoughts swam -- there was still so much to process -- but her mood buoyed. Aylin would be relieved, but then Thalia had always been able to find light in the gloom; perhaps she'd never had any doubt? Thalia hadn't been so sure this time. In any case, it wasn't her own problems that occupied her now. When she next looked up her expression was earnest. "Can I see them? Your eyes, I mean."