Coming from a house where everything in it could be seen by standing in a corner, the fact that Rasmus's home was large enough to warrant exploration was a source of amusement for Mori. She found the steps leading up and followed them, emerging onto the roof terrace. It was a beautiful night, and she went down to bring up a bed roll to snuggle in as she stared upwards. The shattered Tower of Eternity rose, and above her, Elysia… a beautiful spider's web of lights.
She heard the slow, deliberate footsteps, heavier, the claw drag more pronounced than the delicate Annlyn's stride. "Rasmus." She greeted, turning her head. He looked a little better; the strain of his injuries had faded somewhat from his features. He was really quite handsome, his face lit by the lantern he carried, and she was happy that it was dark and he couldn't see her face well.
"Been looking for you, little one." He chuckled, taking a slow seat in the closest chair to her, and placing the lantern on the roof beside him. "Sky watching?"
"Yes."
He leaned back in the chair, his own gaze climbing up. "Elysia." He finally noted. "Jargen has been teaching you about them, I presume."
"What he tells me confuses me." She finally admitted, and he dragged his stare from the sky.
"Oh?" He prodded when she remained silent. "Maybe I can help…"
"He tells me that they are much like we are. That they birth the blessed, daevas like we have. Aion's children as we are, but on the next hand, he tells me that they are weak and pathetic…"
His laugh was a blessing, deep and joyous. "The Elyos are many things, Moriah. Clawless. Bald. Ugly. But you are correct, they are in Aion's gaze, and they have daevas. And if you underestimate one of those clawless, bald daevas, they will be more than happy to send you home to your obelisk in disgrace."
"Bald? Ugly?" At least his story made more sense than her tutor's did.
"Personally I have a fondness for a woman with a lovely fall of back mane, long and silver. To see a woman without one is…brrrrrh." He made a vague sound of disgust. "The Elyos carry weapons, but when those fail them, they are without. We…you…and I, are weapons, Moriah. When everything else fails, Aion gave us claws to fight our way out of our corner. But you are correct to look sideways at what a tutor tells you, the Elyos are annoying. They can be a true struggle. But they are not the reason why we bear wings and take to the Abyss, Moriah. Do not lose sight of the true fight."
"My tail isn't silver." She sighed, and he shifted. Moriah's back mane was black, the same as the hair on her head. It was an oddity, to still have the coloration of a toddler just growing one in, at her age.
"No." He agreed, a slight bubble of confusion rising in his voice. "It is as black as the wings you will grow, little one. But you are still very young yet…. But you have a good, thick, long fall of it. Still a tail to be proud of."
"Nice try." She chuckled, hugging her knees and staring up. "You've been there?"
"Yes."
"And is it truly what Jargen says it is?"
He reached out a hand towards it, gazing up through his fingers. "It is a warm and beautiful place, Moriah. Very bright, enough to hurt your eyes. But it's not home. It's not Asmodae. It's not…" He shrugged. "Right, little one." He dropped the hand to rest it over his heart. "I fight for Asmodae, for my family. For you."
"Hmmmph."
"Hmmmph yourself." He replied. "It's been awhile since I've been up here. I forgot just what it was like. Used to have a brazier up here, would cook kebabs and watch the city and the sky. Sleep out when the nights were mild…"
