Levani’s words struck him as though freezing water had been thrown in his face, her irritation revealing the true mistake he had made. She was right, of course, that he had been apologizing for actions that required no such reaction. A small, mirthful smile split his lips as she scolded him, admonishing him for his thoughtless apologies for his heartfelt actions. “As you say lass. I’ll promise you this then… I’ll wait for your anger at my actions before apologizing. Though I may just push to see how much of me you will tolerate.” The quite laugh that followed his statement showed the tease for what it was, though his words were true enough.<br/><br/>Her ire with him at that moment, over his apologies, helped him to realize that she truly did care for him, much as he did for her, even if she couldn’t exactly find the words to express as much. It was a comforting thought, knowing that he had been mistaken, that he had obviously read some of her reactions wrong. The situation made him chuckle, finding humor in the fact that he found her even more endearing as she scolded him.<br/><br/>Kallo let his eyes fall closed as Levani leaned forward and pressed her soft, warm lips to his forehead, offering him a token of affection for all his troubles. It surprised him how much that small gesture meant to him, the action proving to him that she desired his companionship, that it wasn’t just out of need to save her forest. As she settled her small frame against his body, resting her head on his chest, Kallo let his head fall back against the mossy bank, his arms sliding around her form as they both took the moment for what it was, sharing the lull in their journey.<br/><br/>As he opened his mouth to speak to her, the thin fingers of her hands pressed against his lips, telling him that his words were unnecessary, that he should just take her actions for what they were, that to dilute such a gesture with idle chatter would discredit her. With a grin on his face, he pushed the thoughts from his mind and relaxed against the bank of the stream, grateful to simply hold Levani in his arms, even for a short time. There would be time enough for words later, time enough to further explore what it was that was growing between them, to face the fears and hopes such emotions would bring to the both of them.<br/><br/>His pale eyes opened as she removed her hand and placed it against his chest, offering him an explanation of what the twin necklaces meant. “It is a beautiful and thoughtful gift lass. I will cherish them…” ‘As I do you.’, was the unspoken ending to his statement, a sentiment he felt didn’t need to be said, not after the blissful peace they’d just shared. “Thank you lass.”<br/><br/>Kallo nodded his agreement as she spoke of utilizing the rest of their day for more productive actions. As much as he wanted to keep her there, wrapped in his arms, he knew she was right, that they needed to get moving, that their journey couldn’t wait for such trivial pursuits. Not yet anyway. “I’ll worry over the fire lass, since you don’t think I should go hunt for ingredients. Just bring me what you can find and I’ll see if I can’t make use of them.” He motioned to the roots that she collected from the bank as he got to his feet, moving to collect his pile of armor and clothes. “The roots should work well enough of their own if you can’t find anything else though.”<br/><br/>Circling around the emerald hill to the campsite, he laid his armor and clothes out to dry in the sun before turning to look at Levani, nodding to the entrance to her hovel. “I don’t suppose you have a mortar and pestle? I can make do with a couple hard stones if need be, but it would make my job much easier.” After waiting for a response, he ventured around the campsite, gathering an arm full of fallen branches to feed into the fire. Taking a seat by the fire, he began to stoke the flames back to life, though he kept the flames small. With the fire brought back to life, Kallo took a few of the branches and fashioned a hanging rack that sat about a foot above the flames. Nodding in satisfaction, he gathered up the roots Levani had brought back and skewered them on a mostly straight stick, then hung them over the fire to begin drying out. As he sat there, focused on the roots, he put Levani from his mind, choosing to stop fanning the flames of the chaos in his mind over his feeling towards her, choosing instead to simply allow things to settle as they may.<br/><br/>When Levani chose to come back to camp, after her hunt for more herbs for his use, he motioned for her to come join him by the fire. “I’ve been thinking lass. I need to find a new weapon. I can handle myself without a blade or bow, but I fear that I’ll become more of a liability to you without something more than my wits and my hands. This tribe… these, Ineasi, as you call them, do they have the capabilities to work metal? They don’t have to have the skill, I know how to forge, I just need the actual equipment to be able to make myself a new weapon… maybe even replace some of the plates on my armor. The metal of my armor is becoming quite fatigued and I fear it may break soon, if I don’t do something about it.”