“I must concede, I cannot believe that my influence has overridden the liquor; but I shall gladly be your company. It is an overdue communion, is it not?” Silas is glad to be by her side; he has no perfect knowledge of her person, but bonds that stretch beyond this lifetime stretch before them. “I have no doubt that that — tell me, how do you plead to such charges?” He delivers his words with a knowing smile; there is no need for Ruoxi’s clarification, though he asks for it all the same. “Well, if you were to strike me down, I would not be affronted you doing so; you would have good reason, if only for your own amusement.” If reason were given the chance to reign, it would protest that the person before him made no idle warnings — but Silas bade reason to sit aside, for the night was too promising, and left him endowed with only warm, happy sentiments. "We do know each other, don't we? In a way; we've shared the same warmth, thousands of times." It is rare, for Silas to speak of his gift; he treasures his connection to the sun so fiercely, that he guards all knowledge of its power, unable to translate his feelings into common language. But here, he is unguarded; he knows Ruoxi will understand. "I believe it is a fair trade — and I promise you, that I am unusually bound by a desire to speak whatever truth rests with me." Such honesty that lived within him unguarded, has become a source of concern in his own mind; but he does not delve into such thoughts now.
Ruoxi's biting refrain begs for further prompting; to understand, what has cast such a dark cloud upon the prospect of home. Silas however, does understand the art of restraint — he shall mull over the matter, but nothing further. “It is a cage, in its own way; but is it not the most comfortable one afforded to me? But you, I think, prefer the freedom that other hollows invite — even if they are uncharted, unpredictable.” It is hard for Silas to fathom Ruoxi being tested as he has; her command over her person is too great, to be unmoored by any person or cataclysm that may befall her. “I have no doubt that when we are all reconvened, much will have transpired in our separation — how could it not? The opportunity …. It shall be too great for most to resist.” The chance too, for him to step aside; to eschew his parents plans, and grant his sibling what she has long desired — a title worthy of her many gifts. But Silas does not yet know what choice he shall make; he does know, such a matter shall not bother him tonight. He is not morose as he speaks, but pensive; his brow furrows only in thought, seeking to convey the stringent airs he had felt pressing feverishly upon his brow. "All three, perhaps? I am happy to have this freedom, if only for a short spell — freedom from expectation, and freedom from the whims of others. I know I am an outlier at court; I have not spun any webs to ensnare others in."