Stavanger Bay hyperparadise

Well, this was becoming more than he bargained for. He winced, slightly, when the kid started yelling, and was very, very inclined to just excuse himself from this conflict. Not his problem.

No, but it takes a village, he had to remind himself. And even if he decided to excuse himself, he no doubt would teach the kid that this was an okay way to behave (which it wasn't) and would probably have to deal with a very spoiled brat running around. And he would have no one to blame but himself. Sort of.

With that in mind, Aesop sighed, long suffering. He stopped paying much attention to Atreyu, if he needed to deal with him he would deal with him later. For now he needed to get Charon to calm his fluffy little butt. Aesop backed up a few paces, then sat on his haunches, face grave and disappointed.

"A shame," he sighed, the most emotive he'd been yet, "and I was thinkin' you might be the perfect candidate, since I've been lookin' to take an apprentice. What, with the way you were so great at interrogatin' our friend here. Would'a taught you swimmin' and what have you, but I don't think I could take a guy who can't admit when he's done wrong." And then he shook his head slowly, as if bemoaning the loss of a candidate.

Now, this was banking on a whole lot, mostly that the youth held Aesop in any esteem. But he wanted to get the kid off of the defense, because terrorizing him wouldn't do Aesop much good at all, not if the youth was linked at all to Thistle.

God, he forgot that kids could be such a handful.