[ Some part of him can admit - to himself only, of course - that part of that had been a test. Not a particularly good or well thought out one like he might've been able to come up with if he'd known he'd be walking into the hot springs to find Linhardt here, but it very quickly narrows down the lingering (and not yet thought of) questions he has about the other man's stance on things.
At the mention of mutual interest there's another slight, casual handwave like they're discussing something trivial and not establishing a clear baseline of where things are, where they intersect, and where they'll go from here. But despite any appearances he's giving off intentionally or otherwise, Claude's listening very carefully. Trust is a spectrum, and though he'd had no desire to become adversaries, it's nice to hear once again they won't be that simply because of which sides they stood on during a war which has turned out differently for them both. All of it is reasonable. All of it is a fairly accurate assessment with which he can find no finer points to argue.
By the end of it, Claude supposes he has his answer about what would've happened had his intent to be duplicitous rather than playing up something else. And most of all, he finds he rather respects Linhardt for it. ]
Something tells me now's not the time to compliment myself when it comes to matters of intelligence. I meant more that there was time to tackle the rest of what comes from Fodlan later than having to do it all now. Abraxas is more than enough to get used to, trust me. [ There's the slightest wry quirk of one corner of his mouth then in partial amusement and partial callback to what Linhardt's just said. ] If the past year's taught me anything, it doesn't get less confusing the longer you're here.
And hiding somewhere to wait for the perfect moment does some exactly like something Yuri would do, truthfully. There's been occasional mandatory visits we've had to take so it would've been difficult to miss him on those, not accounting for the months in between where he might've been here and then not. But... [ Now there's a crease in his brow that's not something put upon or meant to be anything other than what it is, since there's something else to be addressed in there despite saying chatting about Fodlan would wait for sometime later just seconds ago. ] Monica. As in... the girl we found with Flayn?
[ That's both a question and a subtle additional question in one, the latter being meant for if it's another difference in what they remember since there's more to it than that from what he lived. Even as someone who prides himself on remembering, there are some things about that year before the war which seem like they're etched in his memory. But - it wouldn't be the first time or even the tenth or twentieth time he's discovered his memories don't match those of someone else from Fodlan, so it seems worth asking. ]
I have a feeling your memory's still far better than mine when it comes to the matters of magic. Promise you won't judge me too harshly when you see some of the textbooks, alright?
no subject
At the mention of mutual interest there's another slight, casual handwave like they're discussing something trivial and not establishing a clear baseline of where things are, where they intersect, and where they'll go from here. But despite any appearances he's giving off intentionally or otherwise, Claude's listening very carefully. Trust is a spectrum, and though he'd had no desire to become adversaries, it's nice to hear once again they won't be that simply because of which sides they stood on during a war which has turned out differently for them both. All of it is reasonable. All of it is a fairly accurate assessment with which he can find no finer points to argue.
By the end of it, Claude supposes he has his answer about what would've happened had his intent to be duplicitous rather than playing up something else. And most of all, he finds he rather respects Linhardt for it. ]
Something tells me now's not the time to compliment myself when it comes to matters of intelligence. I meant more that there was time to tackle the rest of what comes from Fodlan later than having to do it all now. Abraxas is more than enough to get used to, trust me. [ There's the slightest wry quirk of one corner of his mouth then in partial amusement and partial callback to what Linhardt's just said. ] If the past year's taught me anything, it doesn't get less confusing the longer you're here.
And hiding somewhere to wait for the perfect moment does some exactly like something Yuri would do, truthfully. There's been occasional mandatory visits we've had to take so it would've been difficult to miss him on those, not accounting for the months in between where he might've been here and then not. But... [ Now there's a crease in his brow that's not something put upon or meant to be anything other than what it is, since there's something else to be addressed in there despite saying chatting about Fodlan would wait for sometime later just seconds ago. ] Monica. As in... the girl we found with Flayn?
[ That's both a question and a subtle additional question in one, the latter being meant for if it's another difference in what they remember since there's more to it than that from what he lived. Even as someone who prides himself on remembering, there are some things about that year before the war which seem like they're etched in his memory. But - it wouldn't be the first time or even the tenth or twentieth time he's discovered his memories don't match those of someone else from Fodlan, so it seems worth asking. ]
I have a feeling your memory's still far better than mine when it comes to the matters of magic. Promise you won't judge me too harshly when you see some of the textbooks, alright?