"I think that in locations where one is apt to come across any number of supernatural beings that everything is tantamount."
Summerview might have been a refuge for many different species, but that didn't mean it was a sanctuary. At least, not for everyone. And it also didn't mean that it wasn't without its turmoil. There was a reason that certain mythos and legends plagued the various species in the literature. Because there was always a little bit of truth hidden within the fiction that the humans indulged in. They were all beings of fantasy and superstition, but they weren't all friends.
And that might have been one of the reasons why Rasmus clung to the secret that was his identity. That wasn't always easy living amongst other gifted individuals. People were always prone to talk. Gossip. Delve into the mysteries that were their neighbors. But Rasmus had done very well at remaining isolated, despite the ever-growing population of the small island. And he had yet to allow anyone to uncover what he was. Until now.
And that meant that Jayati being there threatened his privacy. He didn't like that. And trust was not something he gave freely to anyone, particularly strangers bearing gifts.
At least it wasn't a horse, he thought.
At reference to his smoking habits, Rasmus scoffed.
"Hardly. Making you angry is of very little consequence to me. I'll either please you or displease you, probably the latter, and you will do with that what you will."
He smirked.
"I dare you to try and arrest me though."
Rasmus snatched the bottle by the neck and drew it back across the table, taking another sip, longer this time. He listened to her without looking at her. He didn't need to. He could feel their closeness through the vibration of her breath on the air and from the sound of her tapping nails. He pushed the bottle back towards the center of the table and turned in his chair, crossing one leg over the other in a slow almost lackadaisical manner. But for all of his intentions of exhibiting an inattentive and vulnerable perception (which would have easily fooled any other person in town,) he was far from it. He wasn't a liar, but there was something of a snake in him, half hidden in the dirt to mislead a passerby of his size.
Did that make him deceptive? Well, everyone had their own method for self-preservation. This was his.
"Not knowing what you determine to be a threat, I can make no promises. But, for the most part, I keep to myself. No one here knows what I am and I indeed to keep it that way. And if you endanger that I will be very very disappointed."