[He jerks back as Astarion does, but whereas the other man scrambles and tries desperately to get away, Fenris freezes. No sudden movements, no lurching hand reaching, no. Fenris goes still, so that Astarion can see for himself that nothing is trying to trap him.
It could have gone worse, he thinks, in those breathless few seconds as they stare at one another, hearts thudding and panic thick in the air. There are a thousand ways this could have gone worse. Fenris has woken screaming from nightmares before; he has woken savagely, knife in hand, desperately stabbing at phantom shadows. So yes, on the whole, a bitten tongue and sweat-soaked tangled sheets are the least of their problems.
But there is something inherently awful about being witnessed. That, Fenris cannot help.]
There's no one here but you and I.
[Calm. Not patronizingly soft, no, but simply a statement of fact. The tension in the room eases, and so he sits slowly on the mattress, his eyes locked on Astarion all the while.]
He is not here.
[Is his master a man? Ah, but it doesn't matter, not really. It's the statement of fact that counts more than the details. And maybe he's off-base, maybe he's dreaming of some other horror, but . . . well. Former slave, and Fenris suspects they all of them are haunted by the same ghosts.]
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It could have gone worse, he thinks, in those breathless few seconds as they stare at one another, hearts thudding and panic thick in the air. There are a thousand ways this could have gone worse. Fenris has woken screaming from nightmares before; he has woken savagely, knife in hand, desperately stabbing at phantom shadows. So yes, on the whole, a bitten tongue and sweat-soaked tangled sheets are the least of their problems.
But there is something inherently awful about being witnessed. That, Fenris cannot help.]
There's no one here but you and I.
[Calm. Not patronizingly soft, no, but simply a statement of fact. The tension in the room eases, and so he sits slowly on the mattress, his eyes locked on Astarion all the while.]
He is not here.
[Is his master a man? Ah, but it doesn't matter, not really. It's the statement of fact that counts more than the details. And maybe he's off-base, maybe he's dreaming of some other horror, but . . . well. Former slave, and Fenris suspects they all of them are haunted by the same ghosts.]