prompted starter.
@heldaloft.
“ a dead end, we’ll have better luck finding an alternate … route … ” ice that flowed so freely from fingertips seemed to retreat, up his arm, to strike his chest, keep his lungs in place while he realised the gravity of his mistake. body language ; too free, too easy. the guarded, orchestrated way in which he kept his body in perfect, noble form had melted over time, in the strangest of consistent companions. qiáng was reckless, but also intelligent, intuitive in a way that kaeya was all too familiar with. he would have been berating himself for such obvious cues, if he didn’t have the sneaking suspicion that his companion had secrets of their own to hide.
kaeya had been reading the ancient glyphs too closely, barely legible and carved into the crumbling rock with something akin to desperation. this was a warning of some kind. had he not been tracing the lines, one by one, perhaps he wouldn’t have come off as so suspicious when he did turn back to meet qiáng’s inquisitive gaze, pausing for only a second, swallowing a little too loudly, artfully forcing humour back into his voice. if they knew what this text was, then it would confirm some of kaeya’s earlier instincts, but if they didn’t, kaeya could find a way to play it off. he’d have to. “ … you wouldn’t happen to know what this says, would you ? ”
steady breaths — your friend is not a celestial vanguard.
𝚃𝙷𝙴𝙸𝚁 𝙶𝙰𝚉𝙴 𝙽𝙰𝚁𝚁𝙾𝚆𝚂 — 𝙸𝙽𝚀𝚄𝙸𝚂𝙸𝚃𝙸𝚅𝙴 & 𝙵𝙸𝚁𝙼 , while they watched him examine the peculiar markings on the crumbling ruins . it was supposed to be a typical endeavor : delving into this place in search of answers . this … predicament was anything but . nose twitches on occasion as arms cross over their chest — the intensity of their stare well - practiced after years of existence [ that kaeya need not know about ] . the second he turns around — as soon as the motion begins , qiáng’s expression changes to curiosity to craftily obscure the surprise etched onto their features … all before the other turned around completely . lips part & a disappointed sigh — a shake of the head . ❛ unfortunately , i know nothing about it . ❜
[ liar . you know , but it would reveal far too much ] .
living for as long as them gives you time to practice the art of lying , mostly out of stability & not wanting someone to know each & every thing about you . ❛ what about yourself ? you seemed awfully engrossed in the text . not many take an interest in incredibly old architecture . ❜