Falling like ashes to the ground

Questions started flittering through his mind, not that any of them were any of his business. Nope, definitely not. This person was just helping him light his pipe, it wasn’t any of his business who they were or what they were doing there. Nope, he didn’t care one bit beyond getting his pipe lit.

He smiled as she came down out of the tree, and when she asked if he minded if she sat, he situated himself a bit better so that there was plenty of room and he wouldn’t be crowding her, but also so that he could talk to her and not be uncomfortably facing away from her.

Of course, plenty of room, have yourself a plop. Despite the fact that he could often be stubborn and anti-social, at his core he was actually a very sociable person, it just wasn’t something he ever really admitted to himself. Mostly because he liked to believe he was only out for himself, but even that was just a defence mechanism he’d adapted a very long time ago when everything had gone to shit in Andruil’s kingdom.

When the fire was offered, Bajie put the pipe to his mouth and leaned forward towards the offered flame, then breathed in a few puffs as it lit. Then he blew the smoke away, in the opposite direction of Megara so as not to be rude and blow the smoke directly in her face. Seeing her climb down from the tree had reminded him of things he’d much rather forget. Once upon a time, when things had been good. A son who had cherished climbing around in the trees. A son he hadn’t seen ever since he’d lost his standing amongst Andruil’s slaves.

The silence was starting to feel awkward, he hated an awkward silence. No he’d much rather fill silences with the sound of his voice, even if he wasn’t always talking with someone, he’d often talk to himself. He looked up in the tree and then back to Megara.

So does the tree climber have a name? I’m Bajie. They’d shared a flame, they could at least share their names.