He looked at her with a slight, wry smile for her closeness. She wasn't what his world would define as normal, that much was certain, but she was still human enough and young if he had to guess. Physicality had nothing to do with it so much as her demeanor, as detached as it currently was, and he appreciated the kindness.

"It was a long time ago," he said. Ages. Longer than the rise and fall of entire empires. It was still true. "I try to focus on the living now."