"That must have gone well." By 'well', Anton assumed 'explosively'. Larrikin did love children. He wasn't always appropriate and wasn't always aware of how he came across to children who didn't need as much affection as he did, but he loved them. The idea of Anton having one must have sent him haywire.

The second part made Anton pause. "I hadn't realised you were watching me so closely." The observation wasn't inaccurate, but Anton had grown used to either people not feeling the need to say so, like the Dead Men, or no one simply noticing. "Yes, the gist has that effect when I'm particularly active or emotional. It always has."

The idea that there might be something else responsible ... well, the thought had never occurred to Anton before. The gist was what had made him Shudder.