[Merlin accepts the bottle from her--he still can't believe Arthur named his pokemon after Gwen--and tucks it into his bag. Then he clasps his hands behind his back to hide their shaking.]
Arthur. [His voice comes out quieter, smaller than he'd wanted, so he clears his throat. The urge to laugh this off, fall back into the routine, delay the conversation another day only grows stronger. But he pushes it back, draws strength from the feel of the warm metal encircling his thumb, from the frame of the glasses pressing into his thigh from inside his pocket, and continues.]
no subject
Arthur. [His voice comes out quieter, smaller than he'd wanted, so he clears his throat. The urge to laugh this off, fall back into the routine, delay the conversation another day only grows stronger. But he pushes it back, draws strength from the feel of the warm metal encircling his thumb, from the frame of the glasses pressing into his thigh from inside his pocket, and continues.]
What do you expect from me while we're here?