The grandfather regarded him quietly. Then, with the air of someone who had been waiting for precisely this response, he said, "Which is why I was asking him."
Etienne looked as though he might actually combust.
Terrius decided that, perhaps, it was time to intervene.
"Etienne—"
"No!" Etienne spun toward him. "And you, stop answering his questions!"
Terrius fell silent.
He couldn't remember the last time someone had told him not to answer a question before he had even been asked one. Under other circumstances, he might have found it ridiculous. Under these circumstances, he wasn't entirely sure what to make of it.
Etienne seemed equally uncertain about what to do next. He glanced between Terrius and his grandfather, his embarrassment gradually giving way to something more earnest.
"I don't need you to promise anything," he muttered, directing the words at Terrius this time. "And I certainly don't need you to stay just because my grandfather thinks you should."
