Re: Gate Aside
Darrian resisted the urge sigh impatiently at Dolain’s response to Falina. What’s a vigilante? Really? He was really glad that he’d been taken off the streets at twelve, the thought of being as clueless as Dolain when it came to anything outside the gang was frightening. He didn’t seem too put out by Falina’s scathing comments, but then again, it could be he simply didn’t understand what she was saying. At this point even Darrian was starting to despair of the other elf’s intellect, and he’d never had a high opinion of him in the first place.
Falina evidently agreed with him, her annoyance at Dolain only increasing, and Darrian could not help but sympathise. Talking to Dolain could very often be pointless, and since the girl couldn’t have known him for too long, this had to be still new to her. A small blush graced her cheeks, only making her seem even cuter than before if possible, but before he could dwell on the thought, Davin appeared.
If the elf was worried about not being recognized, he needn’t have worried. He was a far cry from the small boy who had played with him in the dirt, but it would have taken several more years and many more changes for Darrian to not recognize his old friend. “Davin!” He was conscious of more than a little relief, rather than simply pleasure at seeing Davin – obviously the slavers’ hadn’t managed to get their hands on him yet.
Darrian grinned widely, feeling that at least one thing in the entire morning was looking up. He still had to find the slavers, and they still had Kay, but at least Davin was one elf free of their malicious clutches. He studied his friend closely, noting the bruises and scratches, and wondering how he had come by them. It seemed he was still as prone to mishaps as he’d been when they were younger, but at least he was safe, and the damage seemed to be mostly superficial anyway.
“You have no idea how glad I am to see you,” the elf said fervently, and it was true. There was so much they had to catch up on, but even more importantly, now he could warn him about the slaver’s plans, make sure he didn’t let himself be taken in by any strangers. Given a moment, he would have drawn the elf aside, and told him all he knew – but Falina caught his attention.
If she had been annoyed before, she looked furious now, her eyes burning with a heartfelt anger, her cheeks flushed, her entire posture rigid. Distracted momentarily from Davin, Darrian glanced between her and Dolain, wondering exactly what had happened ‘last night’ and what Dolain had done this time. This sounded a bit more serious than what he assumed Dolain was usually involved in.