[he's just going to smirk but he's twitchy. His smile is bright and brittle.]

...you're wasting time with me?

[a flicker of some emotion that's unreadable
]




.

This is ...impossible. thank you but no. I'm needed.

If there is even the slightest chance I may see my friends here, then I am most certainly "game," as the youths say!

Oh how I long to tell them all how terribly I've missed them. Heaven is quite lovely and all, but it's rather difficult to enjoy paradise without the ones you hold most dear.

She...hasn't forgotten about me.

[ His voice is almost breathless, awed, as he plays the message over in his mind. Eyes flicker as he tries to hold onto every word, every sound. His mind lingers on her voice, a gentleness he's unused to... Her salutation...

'Dearest Albedo'...

Dearest... He scoffs. ]

What a thing to say...

[ And yet, he keeps repeating it over and over in his head. Dearest. Dearest. Dearest, dearest, dearest, dearestdearestdearestdearestdearest--

a shaky exhale as he closes his eyes. In spite of himself, his cheeks are flushed. ]

I...do truly need to think.

[ He's so unused to feeling, let alone this intensely. Returning to the comfort of his own analytical musings would be a welcome respite. ]

Seems I still won't be getting any rest.

Fine. I'll see where this takes me.