Constans climbed to his feet to accept his apprentice's robe from Bethen, having to brace himself against the wall with an elbow to manage this feat. Even in the dark and with her blanket draped around him it wasn't difficult to notice that Consans seemed little better for the healing of his injury. His skin was too waxen to be healthy, the sleepless circles around his eyes too dark, and his weariness betrayed by the way he always seemed to lean against something when he stood. In retrospect, hadn't he looked pale lately? Hadn't he so often seemed tired beneath his smiles?
Damnation. Gritting his teeth through Bethen's explanation, Constans tossed her blanket back onto her bed and yanked his old robes on awkwardly, one-handed. Between cover of darkness and his companion's prissy determination not to look at him, he at the very least still felt secure that his fine latticework of cuts and scars should go unnoticed. He had been painstaking in any case; they were difficult to observe even in the best of circumstances.
"I'm still light-headed," he admitted grudgingly, tugging his sleeve down over his hand as Bethen turned around again. "I'll get over it."
He murmured, "Should have known you'd run into Aurin down there. He's been haunting our hallway like the world's most obnoxious ghost ever since he took his vows. I swear he asks for that detail just to mess with me..." Sighing bitterly, he amended, "But there I go being paranoid."
Rubbing his thumb absently against the fabric clenched in his hand, he considered his options before continuing. "I don't know if I should stay here, Beth. People are going to start waking up after a while, and you have a reputation as a stick in the mud to protect." Constans flashed her a teasing smile, looking exhausted and vulnerable despite his best efforts to the contrary.