"Not if it's a fast-acting poison," is an easier rejoinder to offer up than a response to Richard's gratitude.

Is Ellis joking? It's hard to say. His gaze had followed Thot down to where she's sprawling, all absurdly long limbs. Ellis' fingers trail one long leg carefully before looking back across the table.

"You've been kind to me," Ellis says, because it feels true to him. That earns him something in return from Ellis, who has so few, specific tokens of friendship to give in return. He can do no magic, nor parse any science, and his attempts at navigating friendship feel haphazard at best, but—