{oOo}
Beryl tried not to be distracted by the many works of art along the hallway they were walking in, even as Fulgrim began to point out places that he and his officers would be going to. Silently, she focused on his words, with almost unnerving focus, though the visor she still wore may have added to the creepy factor. And yet. Even with the visor, Fulgrim could probably tell she wasn't used to places like this. So richly decorated. So ornate. So overblown and barely saved from being gaudy.
The wealth of entire nations adorned his ship and he used it like this? A part of Beryl wondered if this had always been under the veneer of the man she fell in love with, still loves.
"Are you not used to bright light?" Fulgrim asked somewhere between a landscape of one the planets his Children had conquered and bust. It was disconcerting but he suddenly realized he had no idea whose bust it was. He glanced at it, trying to remember the face. Still, it was a good sculpture, so he wasn't about to get rid of it just because he couldn't remember it.
(Keep away from bare walls. He doesn't need to work day and night, fighting to keep ages old systems from falling apart. He doesn't have to eat nutrition bars and protein paste, he doesn't have to think about saving every single thing.)
For a moment Beryl was surprised by the nonsequitur, then she caught on. "The visor is a part of my armor, my lord. And it filters light well enough." Somewhat sheepishly, she added, "It is also easier to hide behind."
Damn Slaaneshi. She was still getting used to the idea that not everyone was going to use the look in her eyes to troll her.
"I am from a ... rather" she searched for an appropriate word. "less sophisticated world, my lord. I am still adjusting to the surroundings." Also, she very carefully did not mention, Fabius Bile was looking at her like she was a steak and she desired to punch him through a wall.
For a moment, several conflicting notions fought in Fulgrim's mind. On the one hand, it reminded him of Konrad (poor Konrad, it was all his fault, why couldn't he help?), but on the other hand, he couldn't help but think of Mortarion and his stupid stubborn refusal to accept any sort of decoration.
"Chemos wasn't very sophisticated before joining the Imperium either," he finally replied. He smiled at the thought—it really was glorious to be part of Father's work. (To be alive, not just living. To have a purpose higher then surviving another day)
Technically, Beryl thought, sophistication hadn't been the term she'd really meant, but hey, he was smiling.
Gorgeously smiling. She could feel her brain cells melting right there. Yeah.
Damn, she was blushing under the visor, wasn't she?
Thank goodness for the visor!
Chemos, she remembered, vaguely, was doing very well nowadays. "Thank you for taking the time to show me around, milord. I would probably get lost very easily in this place..It's very.. " Quick, find a word, find a word..."grand." And huge. And built for people almost twice her size. And ostentatious. And overblown.
She stuffed the thoughts away hurriedly, head tilted slightly and clearly completely fascinated by him.
Fulgrim looked pleased. Admittedly, not extremely so, but it was a rather noticeable change from the Fulgrim she would remember. The one earlier would just take her approval for granted. This one only seemed to, but clearly was at least slightly worried about the opinion of others.
"Glad to be of assistance," he said, favouring her with a grin. "If you have any problems with the manuals, you can always ask one of the Marines on duty—they should be able to call somebody who can help you. I wish I could do it personally, but I have other duties I have to attend to."
Clearly, he had not noticed the blush.
The grin he favored her with was a thing of beauty, and certainly helped keep her in a state of euphoria long enough to perform her newly given duties.
At least until she noticed Fabius staring at her again. Godsblasted pervert.
{oOo}