How did you know?

It was a quiet grey morning, as Arvin made his way towards on of his crewmates houses, not far off from the coast of Faline. He'd visited just a week earlier, and what had just meant to be an effort to better get to know Ellis Etoiles, and his family, had quickly turned a little unusual. At least for Arvin, though he undeniably could feel the tension between himself and Ellis' son, Reuwel. It'd been an innocent question, really, but the way it had been posed... Arvin had started to suspect something more was up - that it hadn't been pure curiosity, but that something had prompted Reuwel to ask.

So he was now making his way back to Ellis, on the prompt of asking Reuwel to consider a position on board of his ship, The Golden Stag. As much as he could always use another crew member on board, especially one who he'd already trust due to being Ellis' son, it was mostly a ruse in order to talk with Reuwel privately, about what exactly had prompted him to ask him that question, a week earlier.

He knocked on the door, and upon being met with the sight of Ellis' wife, greeted her with a big smile. "Ah, miss Etoiles! I was wondering, if I might be so lucky to have a word with your son, Reuwel? I believe Ellis let you know I'd come by for a little chat?" He spoke with a smooth charm, yet a tinge of uncertainty lured in the back of his head. Ellis' wife was quick to greet him back and went to fetch Reuwel. In the meantime, he took a second to look around their little home, admiring the quiet lifestyle Ellis' family had made for themselves, one he had yet to discover for himself.

---

He hadn't given it much thought yet, the conversation he was about to have with Reuwel. As he waited in the small dining room, listening to Ellis' wife call out for Reuwel, he took a deep breath, rose to his feet and straightened his uniform. When the other appeared before him, looking quite nervous, Arvin offered a smile - hoping it would either calm the boy or at least offer him a sense of comfort. He wasn't here to fight or anything.

"Reuwel! Glad you're here!" He greeted the young man, as the other approached the door, signalling for them to step outside. He offered miss Etoiles a smile, before going outside again. It was a lovely home, one he'd love to have himself, had he not been a captain of his own ship. Close to the sea, small and cozy. "I wanted to talk about some things with you. For one, if you'd like to join your father on The Golden Stag. Secondly, and probably a bit more important, I'd like to inquire about a curious question you posed yesterday." He looked to the other, as he went through the things he wanted to discuss with Reuwel. He wanted to be straightforward with him, and not sugarcoat it.

There was silent for a moment, as the two walked further away from Reuwel's home, and neared the beach. There was nothing particularly serious about the request, but rather, Arvin had felt there was something more than normal curiosity to Reuwel's question, and he needed an answer for that.

---

It wasn’t hard to see the tension that rose, not only from Arvin’s arrival itself but also from the question he’d asked. He gave Reuwel a moment to gather his thoughts, react in whatever way he needed to and to then answer. Meanwhile, the soft sinking feeling of their steps took his attention. Usually, the sand near the harbour was of the more dense sort - or in some places even replaced by rocks totally. It was nice to spend a moment away from it all, even if prompted by a curious inquiry. 

Nodding along to the answer from Reuwel, he gazed to the ocean for a moment. Maybe it was just an assumption, nothing more. As curious as he’d been to the assumption, maybe he was wrong as well. Truly, he had no clue whether there was something to worry about, it just seemed a lot of curious instances had come together all at once. Perhaps he really was overthinking it. 

“There’s no reason to be worried, Reuwel. Even if your assumption was true, it is of no interest to me, to pass it on to others.” He hoped his words could help reassure the lad. “Your assumption... It may hold some truth to it, but I myself am not sure. That’s why I wanted to inquire about it, know why and what made you ask.”

He then looked at the other, hoping Reuwel felt at ease. He wasn’t here to trouble him.

---

A part of Arvin felt concerned, at the quiet mumble from Reuwel's throat. While magic wasn't anything he'd personally thought much about - neither the use nor whether it was good or bad, he could see how people would be scared of it. Monster attacks didn't come out of the blue, it was a symbol of the corruption of mages. And though there weren't many mages, the destruction the monsters brought was still massive and something to fear.

He didn't interrupt the other, simple holding his hands behind his back as he listened to the other explain. He hadn't thought he was magic, so while Reuwel seemed hesitant to reveal of his little knowledge of his own magic, Arvin couldn't hold it against him. If indeed he was magic, he didn't even know that himself - and he was far older than Reuwel was. Reuwel seemed to stop, Arvin following suit as he looked at the young man, eyes narrowed. He was equally confused, curious and a little worried, at what Reuwel seemed to have to tell.

He took in the words in silence for a moment. Not quite stunned, no, but surprised. He knew he was a drunken bastard on many a night, and his dreams... Longing, focused on one thing usually. And dear god, the hangover the next day was something else, but that didn't really correlate with any type of magic - that was just alcohol doing its job. "I'm... Surprised to hear this, I must say. But I'm very appreciative of this knowledge. I haven't the slightest hint of what it may be, but just knowing is... eye opening, to say the least.

"Looking to the ocean, the waves lazily licking the beach before returning to the sea, his mind seemed empty for a second. Clueless. "This is most definitely something to process, and hopefully an answer will reveal itself at some point, letting me know what's going on." He spoke after a long pause. "Thank you, for letting me know this Reuwel." 

"If you will, I'd love to hear more about your own magic"