'Thiefy' seems ready to quip something in reply to the goatherd's first statement, but at the second statement his expression darkens - and the cobra graces the goatherd with a pretty dirty look for it too. "After everything the ritual took from Kul Elna? Did you think it was just their lives? Their names, their kas, their hearts - there's nothing left of any of them for me to remember!" He meets the other's gaze head on, glaring daggers back, and jabs an accusing finger at the other man. "But you! You're one of us, don't even try to argue - but look at all you have, even your face - how did all that happen, you ~run off~ in time? Ditched us all?"
"If he got away, you'd remember him." The cobra interrupts in a cool tone.
"Tch!" 'Thiefy' ...has to admit the cobra has a point, but he'd rather be angry. That was a low blow and at bare minimum this familiar-stranger should know it - so he sweeps an arm in a grand dismissive gesture, bracelets jangling. "Maybe there's just nothing worth remembering."
"Brat -"
"Fine, but - ugh." The man in gold grumbles to himself a bit as he refocuses. When he looks back to the goatherd, he has a smile in place. A too-sharp smile, but it's not entirely a forced one. "It's been a while - I really have done a lot. The question's too broad. I can guess what you meant, but don't blame me if I guessed wrong.
"Hm, where do I begin... Well first I grew up in a village of faceless, insane ghosts - which you seem to have forgotten, but hey that's understandable, it's very a forgettable -"
"Brat -"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm getting to it." 'Thiefy' waves off the annoyed cobra's incoming objection. Then he looks at the goatherd flatly, anticipating a different objection. "And I tried to fix them, I really did. That's what led to me making off with one of the Items - and then wouldn't you know it, but that just didn't go well." He snaps his fingers in a 'well, dangit' gesture. "I was dying, the pharaoh had taken my name - the demon's, too - but he'd also left me alone with the one Item I could bargain with, sooo... H-heheh..." He shrugs, grinning. "Now, I'm about to skip over a lot, but if I guessed your question right, that's all irrelevant to the answer."
And he begins counting off on his fingers: "I convinced the demon to give my plan a try; I gambled that the pharaoh's Item would hang onto Diabound's Name for us and got that right in one; so we invoked my ka's Name, and with it I opened a connection to him through me from the Ring, and from the Ring through the Door to - well, the rest of the demon in question (we are avoiding certain Names here); aaand..." 'Thiefy' pauses for a moment, genuinely doublechecking that he's covered the major steps, before placing his hand on the cobra's head: "...we replaced the essence inside Diabound's form with his."
'Thiefy' and the cobra both look to the goatherd then, not to gloat or make some show of defiance, but simply wanting confirmation that 'Thiefy' had answered the right question.
cw: reference to the kul elna massacre
"If he got away, you'd remember him." The cobra interrupts in a cool tone.
"Tch!" 'Thiefy' ...has to admit the cobra has a point, but he'd rather be angry. That was a low blow and at bare minimum this familiar-stranger should know it - so he sweeps an arm in a grand dismissive gesture, bracelets jangling. "Maybe there's just nothing worth remembering."
"Brat -"
"Fine, but - ugh." The man in gold grumbles to himself a bit as he refocuses. When he looks back to the goatherd, he has a smile in place. A too-sharp smile, but it's not entirely a forced one. "It's been a while - I really have done a lot. The question's too broad. I can guess what you meant, but don't blame me if I guessed wrong.
"Hm, where do I begin... Well first I grew up in a village of faceless, insane ghosts - which you seem to have forgotten, but hey that's understandable, it's very a forgettable -"
"Brat -"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm getting to it." 'Thiefy' waves off the annoyed cobra's incoming objection. Then he looks at the goatherd flatly, anticipating a different objection. "And I tried to fix them, I really did. That's what led to me making off with one of the Items - and then wouldn't you know it, but that just didn't go well." He snaps his fingers in a 'well, dangit' gesture. "I was dying, the pharaoh had taken my name - the demon's, too - but he'd also left me alone with the one Item I could bargain with, sooo... H-heheh..." He shrugs, grinning. "Now, I'm about to skip over a lot, but if I guessed your question right, that's all irrelevant to the answer."
And he begins counting off on his fingers: "I convinced the demon to give my plan a try; I gambled that the pharaoh's Item would hang onto Diabound's Name for us and got that right in one; so we invoked my ka's Name, and with it I opened a connection to him through me from the Ring, and from the Ring through the Door to - well, the rest of the demon in question (we are avoiding certain Names here); aaand..." 'Thiefy' pauses for a moment, genuinely doublechecking that he's covered the major steps, before placing his hand on the cobra's head: "...we replaced the essence inside Diabound's form with his."
'Thiefy' and the cobra both look to the goatherd then, not to gloat or make some show of defiance, but simply wanting confirmation that 'Thiefy' had answered the right question.
Behold: idiots.