[ Now that is an interesting piece of information: Onni said that most people come from different worlds. Not 'all', most. That means there is a small possibility of encountering someone from home. His first thought is of Zoya, but the moment he thinks it, Nikolai's stomach twists with guilt and shame. After the... incident in Balakirev he has no right to wish she were here. The sad truth is, Zoya's life will probably be a lot easier without Nikolai around. The same applies to Tolya, Tamar... even Genya and David will be better off.
Nikolai tucks that melancholy realization away for later, focusing on Onni. Either this man is a fantastic actor (always a possibility) or he has never heard of Nikolai. He generously takes the time to explain, giving the facts in a clear and straightforward way that makes Nikolai wonder if he has a military background. A social experiment... Nikolai isn't opposed to that on principle, but he isn't sure he likes being thrown into something like that without being asked.
...Especially if this place is as perilous as Onni makes it sound. Whatever had left those scratches on Onni's face must have been big. A tiger? When Onni says there is danger here, Nikolai replies with a subdued: ]
I can see that.
[ The wounds don't look deep enough to scar, at least. That's some mercy for Onni. Nikolai only realizes at that moment that he doesn't have his gloves, that his own scarred hands are visible. He flexes them self-consciously. He'll have to look into purchasing some... not that he has any money with him. ]
Ghosts and hallucinations? How tempting.
[ From the sound of it, he should be doing everything he can to avoid newly-opened parts of the city. The last thing he wants is for whatever weirdness is present there to draw out the demon.
...which is when it occurs to him that if he is stuck here, he will need to sleep here. He doesn't have his chains, he doesn't have his sleeping tonic, he doesn't have his friends to find him if he flies off who knows where in the night.
That is a much more urgent problem than the need for gloves. For now, he has no resources to draw upon to solve it. The only way to possibly begin to get those resources is to have allies. So Nikolai focuses, pushing the eerie statue far to the back of his mind and smiling at Onni. He has already demonstrated himself to be a helpful person who is willing to educate a new arrival. A useful sort of man to know.
Diplomacy is second nature to Nikolai. In a way it's soothing, to be able to fall back on such a deeply-ingrained skill. ]
What made your home so dangerous? A war?
[ In a way, he's revealing a bit about himself by making that assumption. ]
no subject
Nikolai tucks that melancholy realization away for later, focusing on Onni. Either this man is a fantastic actor (always a possibility) or he has never heard of Nikolai. He generously takes the time to explain, giving the facts in a clear and straightforward way that makes Nikolai wonder if he has a military background. A social experiment... Nikolai isn't opposed to that on principle, but he isn't sure he likes being thrown into something like that without being asked.
...Especially if this place is as perilous as Onni makes it sound. Whatever had left those scratches on Onni's face must have been big. A tiger? When Onni says there is danger here, Nikolai replies with a subdued: ]
I can see that.
[ The wounds don't look deep enough to scar, at least. That's some mercy for Onni. Nikolai only realizes at that moment that he doesn't have his gloves, that his own scarred hands are visible. He flexes them self-consciously. He'll have to look into purchasing some... not that he has any money with him. ]
Ghosts and hallucinations? How tempting.
[ From the sound of it, he should be doing everything he can to avoid newly-opened parts of the city. The last thing he wants is for whatever weirdness is present there to draw out the demon.
...which is when it occurs to him that if he is stuck here, he will need to sleep here. He doesn't have his chains, he doesn't have his sleeping tonic, he doesn't have his friends to find him if he flies off who knows where in the night.
That is a much more urgent problem than the need for gloves. For now, he has no resources to draw upon to solve it. The only way to possibly begin to get those resources is to have allies. So Nikolai focuses, pushing the eerie statue far to the back of his mind and smiling at Onni. He has already demonstrated himself to be a helpful person who is willing to educate a new arrival. A useful sort of man to know.
Diplomacy is second nature to Nikolai. In a way it's soothing, to be able to fall back on such a deeply-ingrained skill. ]
What made your home so dangerous? A war?
[ In a way, he's revealing a bit about himself by making that assumption. ]