Paladins: Aftermath

Laina was sitting by the fire, closed-off and silent, when Werendril sat down beside her and handed her a cup. 

 "My apologies," he said. "This isn't a proper service. It cools too fast in a pewter cup. You'll have to choose between burning your fingers and waiting until the tea is too cool to properly enjoy." 

Laina turned her head to look at him. "You make tea." 

Werendril shrugged, self-deprecating. "I do my best."

Laina grasped the handle, sipped at the tea, and set it back down immediately. Then she pulled her jacket off, folded one sleeve around the cup, and tried again. "You're right. If it's hot enough to drink, it's too hot to pick up. But..." She raised it again, and took a long, slow drink. "It's really excellent. Is that a touch of rosemary? It balances nicely against the alcohol." She turned her head again, looked the true elf squarely in the eyes, and asked: "Are you trying to get me drunk and seduce me?"

Werendril shook his head. "No, and I should have warned you. But this is a tradition among the Order of the Golden Bow, the paladins of Corellon Larethian. You killed someone today, in the service of your god. It was a good thing, and necessary, but those not called from birth often find it a hard thing to adjust to. I certainly did." 

"Nepthys," muttered Laina, who had evidently decided that she needed to start using the name of her patron goddess as a curse. "What are you, my paladin daddy? Don't answer that."

Werendril shook his head. "You don't need a parent for this," he said. "I doubt you even need a mentor. You found your own way here, and you'll find your own way onward. But a bit of this -- aletheis -- helps settle the nerves, and that can be helpful after your first battle, or the first time you've spoken with your god, let alone both. Darkness, it still helps me and I should be used to this by now."

"All right," she said, and drained half the cup in a single gulp. "So you're not planning to take advantage of me, and you're not approaching me for favors, and since you can make tea like this it's no wonder that Tarric wasn't so impressed by what I had to offer."

"Tarric knew you were desperate to escape," Werendril said. "He wouldn't take advantage of that."

"Maybe," said Laina. "Probably. But Tarric's attention was on you. Even when I was pressed up against him, he was focused on you. I don't know, maybe it's different for paladins, but if you were one of my regular customers I'd say you should go after that." 

Werendil blinked. "You think so?"

Laina nodded. "That's what it looks like from the human-tea-server-who-just-became-a-paladin-herself perspective."

Werendril sat back and said, "Huh."