[Stephen looks comfortable -at ease- and it puts Essek in the same place with- well, with all of this, really.
From the moment he’s stepped foot out of orientation, he’s had the guise of the Dynasty’s Shadowhand firmly in place, a thing far less easy when it had been so thoroughly and unceremoniously taken apart by the Mighty Nein. He hasn’t been that Essek in some months and not needing to pretend to be had been a surprising relief. One he felt again as he took Stephen’s hand with a smile.
This wasn’t home, but it was safe and a place he might be able to slowly put that guise back down, in time.]
Small or large, we start somewhere, and here seems a good place.
[He gestures to the door behind him with his free hand and pulls it shut with magic, then gives a small wave to the cape lurking by the corner.]
[The hold Stephen offers to Essek is very measured--nothing too tight, nothing too intimate, just a steady hold with the vaguest sense of a tremor that always rolls through Stephen's fingers when he's not very focused on keeping them still.
He lets the moment settle neatly between them, just letting the contact soak up the main focus and energy for a few moments as a slow, small smile crosses his face.]
And it's very good to see you. Here.
['With me' remains firmly unspoken, though potentially implied along with the very mildest tightening of the hold he has on Essek's hand before he carefully loosens the grip and lets go to instead gesture down the hallway.]
How about I show you around and we see if we can't help you to make yourself at home.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
no subject
From the moment he’s stepped foot out of orientation, he’s had the guise of the Dynasty’s Shadowhand firmly in place, a thing far less easy when it had been so thoroughly and unceremoniously taken apart by the Mighty Nein. He hasn’t been that Essek in some months and not needing to pretend to be had been a surprising relief. One he felt again as he took Stephen’s hand with a smile.
This wasn’t home, but it was safe and a place he might be able to slowly put that guise back down, in time.]
Small or large, we start somewhere, and here seems a good place.
[He gestures to the door behind him with his free hand and pulls it shut with magic, then gives a small wave to the cape lurking by the corner.]
Hello to you as well.
no subject
He lets the moment settle neatly between them, just letting the contact soak up the main focus and energy for a few moments as a slow, small smile crosses his face.]
And it's very good to see you. Here.
['With me' remains firmly unspoken, though potentially implied along with the very mildest tightening of the hold he has on Essek's hand before he carefully loosens the grip and lets go to instead gesture down the hallway.]
How about I show you around and we see if we can't help you to make yourself at home.