In Due Course

[Sören]

Sören didn't consider himself superstitious, but he did understand the world to be far vaster and more complicated than a single man could understand. Prophecy had a grip on his soul, sparking in him an obsession with the unfurling of the future and the rare eyes that might glimpse some manner of the patterns ahead. He'd have liked a reliable divination, but was loathe to spare the time to find a trusted source amongst all the hokum. Nothing in his gut was off, except the mysterious manner of the deaths, and that not so much a concern as just a curiosity. Still, he did not like to feel blind.

The water stung his skin, head bowed and dripping as he considered the situation, examined it from all angles a dozen times and more. Futile and obsessive, but it soothed him nonetheless to devote the energy. By the time he dried off, dressed and returned to the lavish main room, his mood had begun to lighten. An amused glance in Declan's direction, though of course he did not interrupt, and Sören fell upon the food. For a man so seemingly gaunt, he ate well enough, and mostly ignored the tea party in his peripheral in favour of skimming through his wallet.

That night he forbade himself to enter the world of dreams; likely, he'd need the energy and clear head for tomorrow and the days to come, plus he'd uncovered little of use while still airborne. Not that the temptation did not thrum in the back of his mind, but control was the greater incentive. He slept.

*

Declan could be counted on to arrange all the practicalities, and Sören was more than content to let him handle the organisational aspects of the expedition (quite a measure of trust, considering Sören's nature), though he did cast a keen eye over all the equipment and new requisitions as they made them. He acquired new clothes on route too, having both the preference and the flair for blending to his surroundings.

After the frustration and impatience of last night, he was more amenable the following morning; enough to belatedly inquire as to Declan's family, work and other trivialities, and answer questions in kind. They caught up on the intervening years, coaxed back into friendship like the donning of an old and comfortable coat. The scent of adventure enlivened his spirits, the unfamiliarity of their surroundings as they made their way to catch the train that would take them north.