bethen avilla ; the circle mage (bethe) wrote in thedas,
Beth almost wanted to ask "who" and feign total innocence when Aurin said the word his with such disdain, though she quickly realized that he hadn't instantly thought of Constans because he was suspicious of what she was doing there. Instead, it was now just his instinct to assume and take offense at anything that had to do with the apprentice. And somehow, that was actually a relief this time. She relaxed at not having to add in another awkward and guilty explanation of what she was doing there, and waited for his answer.
If she had been even remotely upset about him before, all of that was completely dissolved when he told her that he'd gone and shared stolen cookies with children. Like the Tower's very own Black Fox. Oh yes, Aurin was a complete monster.
Someone had to be lying to her, but it seemed less and less likely that it was Aurin. But that still didn't explain what had happened to Constans. It wasn't like he could just trip himself on a sharp corner to receive that kind of injury. And even if he had, being clumsy wasn't something to be so ashamed of that he couldn't seek out the Senior Enchanter of Healing instead. This was all wrong.
But if Aurin was as clueless as he seemed, she didn't want to get him involved now. However, having practically blurted out that last inquiry wasn't going to make it easy. Knowing full well that she wasn't the greatest liar, Bethen decided that the best approach was to be honest: "Oh. I...heard a rumor that someone was trying to pull a prank. I didn't know if it was true or not. Just wanted to be sure no one was hurt or in any sort of trouble." That was the truth. She shouldn't have felt nearly as guilty as she did, or looked, either. Beth shrugged lamely, "Glad it didn't happen, then. Or if it still hasn't yet, best for you to be on your guard, right? Not that I'm saying you need to be. Or that you ought be suspicious of anyone in particular. Because you shouldn't, since no one's done anything wrong. And you don't need to tell the Knight-Commander about it. Or take matters into your own hands. Not that you would, would you?"
...well, that was a load of verbal incontinence. Her anxiety had gotten her rambling, and by the time she could finally stop herself, she also realized that her wide eyes were very clearly resting on the sword on his back not at all on his face.