Brennan, not being familiar with the history of the area, soaked up the tale with watchful eyes. Any information that he could get would be advantageous, but that was not forefront in his mind. The truth was that Brennan liked people, and he liked hearing their stories and finding out what made them who they were. Rather than disliking everyone who was not a member of their village, Brennan preferred to find out if he liked or disliked a person on an individual basis.
Contrary to what some may think when they meet him, Brennan can dislike people. Some people just rub him the wrong way, but more often than that, the worst is when they insult something that he cares about.
Thus far, despite his hesitancy, he was warming up to the younger, far shorter women. Her small smile brought out the beginnings of a true grin of his own, "So you wanted to do the same?" He could respect that. There was nothing more precious than home, and no higher calling than wanting to protect it.