Not be easily damaged, be very light so I can move in it easily, make arrows miss me or miss vital places if they can't be deflected. We wouldn't be able to counter your world's magic.

That does sound useful.

One thing you might want to do, once you're up to it, is see if you can learn some of this world's magic from someone who can teach it safely. I can't, kobolds aren't well-liked and I'd probably be attacked just trying to go into another species' village to ask, but if we can come up with a good enough story about how you got here I don't think you'll have that problem, and they should be able to teach you how to at least see the local magic. Plus once you've learned to cast safely at all, I can teach you my form too.

I would like that very much.

She grins. Something to look forward to, then.

She goes and gets herself something to eat. What's next for you foodwise, do you think? Soup, you said - any particular kind?

Consistency's probably more important than ingredients.

Nod. Thin, I'm assuming, to start? I can do that with most things.

Yes. Thank you. 

No problem. How do you feel about animal things that aren't meat? I have some honey, it's usually best to save that for later in the season but if it'll help now we can use it now, and it's not very likely but it's possible that I can find some eggs - if I can, I know how to use the shells in soup, they're good for bone healing.

The problem is the Enemy's fondness for feeding me other people. Eggs seem safe enough and I could definitely use the calcium, yes.

The kobold: doesn't panic. See how not panicking she is? No panic here, not at all, no sir.

I can work with that, she sends, a bit distantly.

I never ate it voluntarily, he says, a bit defensive.

I know. I'm not upset about you. She doesn't sound very reassuring; she's too focused on keeping herself together.

Should I just not share things about Angband, because it gets worse than that.

Warning me first would be a good idea. But I expect I'll be more okay hearing about most things than I am about that.

Okay.

It's not as if he needs to talk about it. 

She's calming down, some, now.

When I said the tigerfolk aren't usually a problem... when they were, that was it. They took one of my friends, and I was there to see it... it's personal, in a way most things aren't. Doesn't take much to remind me. I'll be okay.

You could just kill me and save us both a lot of trouble, he resists the urge to suggest.

I'm so sorry.

She very badly wants a hug. She starts singing, instead; a funeral song, though her thoughts don't identify it as such.

That's fine.

He doesn't join in.

She's much calmer when she finishes.

Sorry about that.

You don't need to apologize.

Maybe. That still wasn't fair to you, though.

I really would rather be trusted than accommodated, and worked with rather than worked around. 

Confusion. Those aren't mutually exclusive.

In practice they usually seem to be.