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Jordan was in his room, but not for long; as a matter of fact, he had actually just tossed a bone-dry textbook onto his bed in frustration. He liked to read. He even rather liked studying, in general, but the author of this particular weighty tome had a style that had his eyes crossing at the sheer pomposity after barely half a chapter. Ferros had been alternating between trying to make him yawn and whining about being hungry for the past three pages, and he was very tired of both the text and his weapon's deliberate attempts to be irritating. "Fine," he said, and pulled his coat on. "We'll go run a course or something. Happy?"

Thought you'd never ask. Ferros radiated false innocence.

"You're so full of it," Jordan retorted as he opened his door. "Oh - hey, Reine. Nice to see you."

"I'm free. Couldn't concentrate on my book, so I was going to go do something." Jordan blinked at Reine, nonplussed by her skittishness. "Is something wrong?" She looked jumpy and faintly panicky; had someone been bothering her?

"A Brief Comparison of Mythological and Prophetical Commonalities, subtitle something something something, don't read it unless you're in need of a sleep aid." Jordan smiled, hoping to put Reine a little more at ease. Why was she so nervous?

"Sure, that's actually what I was about to go do," he answered. "Ferros has been prodding me for a while, so I figure he'll settle down if we go hit something. Did you have a course in mind?"

"They never would." Jordan shook his head. "But it's a relief to be around people who know it's real, and that you're not crazy. Even if you do have a voice in your head that talks back when you think." He chuckled.

I'm not sure whether to be flattered or insulted, Ferros said huffily.

Go with flattered, we'll both feel better. "You like a challenge, huh? Sure, we can try Mist." Jordan grinned at Reine; her enthusiasm was contagious, and his mood was looking up already.

"How's your stomach?" he asked as they walked, remembering the incident.

Jordan blinked, working his way through that, and laughed. "I'd say that sounds incredibly far-fetched, except for the part where we're walking around with magic weapons and fighting monsters. So maybe just a little farfetched."

He nodded. "It's good to have people you can count on," he agreed. "Glad you made it through."

"Oh, good." His lips quirked up in a slightly wicked smile. "You'll get better at it," he assured her solemnly.

"With you on that one." Jordan's thumb touched the band of Ferros's ring absently. "It's certainly a lot more effective."

"I did too." He hadn't forgotten, unlike Reine; he wasn't holding a grudge over it, but the image of Circe's blade flashing down and into his body was burned into his memory. It had been just a golem, yes, but it had been the first time he'd died. Strange to think of it that way. "I remember how, but not how it felt, thank goodness."

He had indeed seen her getting backhanded; he winced a little at the memory. "Caelius is harsh like that," he said.