The following was the continuation via Discord
LUCIAN:Lucian was in deep concentration in his study, poring over notes and instructions he had been compiling to hand over to the new General that would be taking up his position. It was only fair - he had been in the position so long, and had established many new regimes and routines. It would be a lot for the new General to get their head around the management of, even with his notes left behind.
In any case, he was determined to get it done quickly so he could move on with his life (what that was to look like, he still didn't know). He wouldn't have noticed the presence at his doorway if she hadn't spoken. At the sound of her voice, Lucian started, and looked up in alarm. Idrial. She was awake. And standing...walking...and smiling at him.
Lucian shot up from his seat so quickly it fell backwards behind him. He went to pick it up, but in doing so, accidentally swept a numbers of papers off the desk. He ignored the seat, forsaken on the floor, and secured his papers. Thoroughly embarrassed, heat rising in his cheeks, he cleared his throat.
"It is good to see you up....are you quite well?" At the offer of accompanying her outside, he balked, mostly out of pure indecision about what would be most appropriate given the circumstances. He cleared his throat again and pretended to busy himself 'organizing' his papers again on his desk to stall. Eventually, he stopped moving the papers around mindlessly, looked up and met her eyes for a moment.
"I would be glad to accompany you. Come, let us go to the garden." He made his way around the forsaken seat, and met her at the doorway, offering his arm for her to take.
IDRIAL:She really had not meant to disrupt him so catastrophically. Whatever the general had been working on had commanded his entire attention and, although her voice had been soft, it had been enough to jar and startle him. She continued to speak and tried to ignore the ensuing little calamities of the chair knocking back. The sound made her jump a little. Then, so many of the papers he had been poring over were spilling onto the floor. Oh, gods. She should not have bothered him. It had been a purely selfish endeavor.
Idrial took one step past the threshold with the intent of helping right the mess she had inadvertently caused but halted. By the time she hobbled over to the desk, he would have been finished, and besides that, it occurred to her that he may not want her anywhere near the documents. For all she knew, they were probably of great import; confidential and restricted. Not meant for eyes belonging to the likes of her. The peredhel smiled apologetically - an expression that looked more like a wince - when his eyes met hers again.
When Lucian spoke, at last, Idrial started apologizing at the same time.
“My apologies for the intrusion–” It took her a moment to register what she had said over him.
“I– yes, thank you. I am feeling much more myself now. And well enough to have made it this far.” She smiled again, polite and tentative, watching as he arranged the papers. Idrial felt she should dismiss herself from his presence and let him get back to his work. What had she been thinking? Surely the general had more important things to do than waste the afternoon hours with her - an unexpected, unwanted, perilously unwell house guest. No doubt he was counting down the hours until his home was his own again.
Then, just as she was prepared to retract the suggestion, he accepted.
“Oh!” Idrial was surprised and confused and pleased. All of which was perhaps detectable in the single little exclamation. At his approach, she set aside one of the crutches so she would be free to take his arm. Her doe eyes met his, unsure and apologetic.
“Only if it is convenient, I do not wish to trespass upon your hospitality any more than I already have.”
LUCIAN:His eyes met hers as she took his arm and the look she gave him...those eyes...Lucian could feel the heat rising again in his face. He looked away and quickly took hold of her other crutch that she had moved aside so she could take his arm. He held it, and felt it was clear that he intended to as they walked, until the time came to take her back to her room.
Idrial expressed that she felt she was trespassing on his hospitality. He shook his head in response as he stepped forward and began to support her as they walked to the garden.
"Not at all. You could never be an imposition. My home is always open to you." Suddenly feeling like he had said something out of place, he busied himself with looking around at the decals of his home's walls. To his amazement, he realized he had never taken much notice of his walls and was surprised to see such artistry in the stone.
IDRIAL:Idrial thanked him for carrying the crutch with another smile, then accepted his proffered arm upon his gracious assurance of her welcome there.
“Thank you, Lucian. It is kind of you to say so.” She was not entirely convinced but appreciated the sentiment all the same.
A sort of rigid silence followed. There had been an intensity in their met gazes that the peredhel had not entirely perceived until their eyes were mutually cast elsewhere. This always seemed to happen in some way. Palpable awkwardness between them. For her part, she did not understand why. And for his, she had several guesses and no tactful ideas for how to find out.
“The manor is beautiful,” she commented, admiring the masonry and its other adornments as they slowly passed through the house.
“Have you always lived here?”
