The hunter's caution at the offered water came as no surprise, and despite their strange sense of amiability Elariel was not offended. It showed that he was wise; their friendly banter was one thing, but neither could afford to truly drop their guard. His gaze when she requested his name was intense though, and it took all of her stubbornness to maintain it. It didn't feel calculating, or sinister,  but truly curious, and that (perhaps) was worse. He was trying to decide whether she was trustworthy or not, whether he could sacrifice his identity to her.<br/><br/><i>Tae'loren</i><br/><br/>It rolled off his tongue as though he owned it. It was a group of syllables that he knew intimately, it poured from his mouth and caressed her ears with the grace and comfort of knowing oneself truly. As she looked at him she knew that, even if it wasn't his real name, it should be. But she believed him. Had he offered his full name she would have been more skeptical. With only his first name it would be more difficult to discern his lineage. In truth, though, Elariel was not overly concerned with his lineage. She was more concerned with what he would offer in the hear and now.<br/><br/>When Elariel tumbled out of her musings she noticed that Tae'loren was still watching her, this time his eyes settling much lower on her body. After a moment a barely audible growl, more like a vibration of the tension in the room, made her body flush with heat and her muscles tense with need. If her body hadn't reacted then she might have ignored it, but something changed in the room then. Elariel watched with interest as the hunter closed his eyes and breathed deeply. She couldn't be sure of what he was thinking; was his consciousness finally rearing up against his capture, or was it something deeper... more primal. Once again the heat in her body gave her a hint, and she was glad that his hungry gaze was no longer on her.<br/><br/>"Tae'loren," Elariel murmured softly, testing the name with her tongue and lips and finding it pleasant. She graced him with a thankful smile. "Thank you."<br/><br/>She let out a gentle sigh and looked around. There were still a couple of hours to pass until her colleagues returned at dusk and she had no intention to return to Roe'nor and Neras' presence. She turned her attention to her pack straightened up in one fluid movement. She then rustled through the canvas bag and pulled out two tomes. One was a history of Sin'dorei architecture and the other was a discourse on the social and political used of magic. She found both of them thoroughly absorbing, but she wasn't certain that Tae'loren would. Nevertheless she put the books on the ground in front of him before crossing back to the window sill and sinking onto the ground in front of it. She crossed her legs and sat with her back straight.<br/><br/>"Feel free to read those if you want, or you can entertain your mind in whatever way you desire. When dusk arrived we will go to meet the others."<br/><br/>Elariel then took a deep breath and drew herself into a semi-meditative state. She was aware enough of her surroundings to know what Tae'loren was doing, but at rest enough to be able to recover her mana. Unless he spoke to her or moved too much she would try and remain meditative. She resolved to give him some privacy until just before dusk, when she knew she would need to ask him some more questions.<div class="messageTextEndMarker"> </div>