"Less history, too, and what it has is - nice."

"You can tell that sort of thing?"

"I can tell what it means to me."

"Huh."

"You have very good taste."

"Thanks."

Giggle. "And talent, too."

"Helped by a knowledgeable tutor."

Preen!

Then: "Going outside's going to be - amazing."

"Want to go for a walk?"

"Absolutely."

"Let's go, then."

Ellie scoops up the knife and sheath.

She shivers.

"Lead the way."

Out they go.

She stares at everything, especially once they're outside, spinning around, a look of awe on her face.

" - I haven't been able to see outside my room - since," she says, abruptly.

"How much perception did you have in the house?"

"I could feel and hear things inside my territory, but - I couldn't see anything outside my room, and my senses were weaker outside the house, and I couldn't perceive anything off the grounds at all. And 'feeling' isn't entirely the right word? I had - a sense of where everything is, and what things did or didn't belong to me."

"Must have been strange."

"Yeah. It was."

"Mostly - lonely and boring, though. I moved everything I cared about to my room, where I could keep it from decaying, but... I've read all my books more times than I can count, by now."

Hum.

"There's more books, now."

"I bet."

"I - do want to get my books and stuff out of my room, lots of the books are rare and on magic and they're useful..."

"...I don't think I could stand to go back in there, right now."

"I can get them when I go back to get my things."

"Thanks."

"You're really good."

"Yeah, I'm just casually great."

"I'm noticing."