"I'm glad to see that you've remained safe all this time, sir."
Rath of the Kutolah nodded, his lips forming the faintest of smiles as he acknowledged the young man before him. To the untrained eye, he was yet but another stoic Sacaen warrior; however, those who knew him best would consider him to be somewhere near positively beaming at the moment. "I'm glad to see that you're well too, Shin."
"Your father is with General Roy right now, discussing the current state of affairs in Bulgar," said Shin without pause as he relaxed out of the partial bow he'd assumed at first sight of his elder tribesman. "That is, of course, assuming you have some sort of report or information for one or both of them..."
"You've learned to speak more than I recall."
"I-I, well, I... Yes, sir."
Rath chuckled and shook his head. "Still as uptight as ever, though." If Shin had any objections to the comment, he made no show of it. "Before you take me to see the leader of this army, I'd like to speak to my daughter, if you don't mind showing me to where she would be." He didn't need to ask if Shin knew where she was; Shin always knew.
However, Shin's demeanor suddenly shifted into defense mode. He averted his eyes to the trunk of a nearby tree, crossing his arms over his chest in some subconscious attempt at building a barrier between them. "W-well about that..." Any further words were choked out by some mesh of an audible sigh and a cough.
"About what?" All traces of amusement had dropped from Rath's voice. He fixed an icy gaze at the boy, unable to hide the turmoil that had surfaced at the slightest hint that something was not okay. Aside from his father, who could hardly be considered close to him at all, his daughter was all that remained of his family.
"Lady Sue is... she's..."
"Yes?"
Shin closed his eyes tightly. "She's eating dinner over there." With an obvious lack of enthusiasm, he slung his arm in the general direction of the remains of a campfire a small distance away. From the look on his face, it was obvious that he had a million and one words to add onto the few he'd already spoken, but Rath hadn't seen his daugher in nigh two years and had every right to nod and continue on his way as if the exchange had been completely pleasant for the both of them. Reluctantly, the young man gathered every ounce of his willpower and followed his best friend's father towards the inviting glow beyond the trees. "I can explain everything," he said as he caught up, as if it were an afterthought.
"Explain what?" Rath didn't turn his head, but those eyes were turned back on him, peering into the very depths of his soul.
There were only two men in the world who could make Shin squirm like he did just then, even while trotting alongside the tall man. "Actually, no, I can't. Forget I said that, sir."
Rath focused his gaze forward once again. "If there is anything I need to know, say it now." They had already reached the final line of trees. Any further delay would have been useless on Shin's part, and they both knew it.
Neither of the pair spoke as Rath's movement came to a complete halt, his eyes scanning the clearing for any sign of his daughter.
Shin took several steps to the side, just in case.
A voice drifted their way, carried on the winds of fate. "You're so weird." The voice was definitely female, the words laced with thick traces of a Sacaen accent. The girl was laughing freely as she spoke, a melodious sound rarely heard even before the disastrous invasion of their homeland. Rath's eyes softened as he recognized the girl he'd sent off all those months ago, even before he could pinpoint her location.
"I-I can't help it!" her companion, from the sounds of it, replied. A series of awkward gesticulations drew their line of sight to a pair of figures slightly off to their right, and suddenly, their quest was complete. "You can't just do that and act like it's no big deal!"
Sue was sitting beneath a tall tree, fingers entwined with those belonging to a fair-haired boy Rath certainly did not recognize. "Why not?" she asked the strange foreigner, a sly grin belying her innocent tone.
"Because it's not fair," said the boy with a hint of false indignation in his voice. Rath recognized the accent immediately after those words were spoken.
Turning his attention from where his daughter was getting entirely way too comfortable with some Pheraen boy, Rath focused a hard gaze on Shin. "How could you let this happen."
"I've failed you, sir. I apologize."