He hefted the bag over his shoulder, carrying it in the most macho fashion possible without damaging the stitching. If he popped a thread it wouldn't be the last he heard of it. It didn't matter how many bags Niah had or how easily she could procure more, a lady simply didn't like her things being damaged. When Brom was younger he may have had trouble understanding that, but now he equated it to how he'd feel if his sword was chipped or his chainmail was missing a ring. The things we owned were so very satisfying when you could keep them in perfect condition... those first signs of wear were the hardest to deal with. After something was already 'worn' it was a lot easier, maybe even comforting, to see their frayed edges.<br/><br/>Following her down the hallway toward the ladder, Brom was overcome with some slight unease himself, unknowingly similar to Niah's own coursing emotions... but his were completely of his own making. He didn't look forward to stepping out onto that deck following her now. It would mean the end of another mission, another journey, together. Every time they could enjoy something like this, it felt like he got one of those rare familiar smiles as a reward and it made anything else dim in comparison. It wasn't like they had much else to fear during these missions... the only thing to fear were the Enemies and they were far away, last he heard.<br/><br/>"Huh?" He stopped just in time to avoid bumping into her. What was she saying?<span style="font-style: italic">Feel? Hear?</span>Brom stopped and seriously considered their surroundings, taking this as both a challenge and a serious threat from some unseen assassin. He tuned his ears and his instincts to try and search out every empty space that could hide a poisoned blade... "No, I don't. Are you okay?" He shook his head and asked. "Do you want me to go on ahead and make sure everything is fine?"<br/><br/>These weren't the offers of an impatient bodyguard you might find under someone else's employ. Sometimes the Holden's had hunches, it was simply a fact that you knew once you'd served them for long enough, and their intuition was very rarely incorrect. When Niah told Brom she felt something, he listened.