She avoided him for a few days. And a few days after that.
And it was only after a few days following that did she realize that he may have been avoiding her in turn.
Which - and wasn't this a shock - annoyed her in just the right way. Rue wasn't quite sure what to do with the feeling, having never had anything like it before. Oh, she'd been annoyed with Fakir, back when they were fighting over Mytho, but this was different.
But it wasn't abject horror at a nightmare or the numbness of despair, so she clung to this annoyance, let it build until it manifested in her something she did recognize: her old shields.
And so she tracked him down.
"I've noticed that you are avoiding me," she said primly, once she'd found him at his usual desk.
"Would you please be quiet?" he asked, keeping his gaze to his books. "We are in a library."
Stunned, Rue turned from him to collect herself. "Well," she said softly, shields cracking, "then finding me a book shouldn't be difficult."
Autor lit up with a smile - and Rue looked away.
