[ Daud was used to it; that didn't mean he liked or wanted to tolerate it.
'Daud, he's alone in the world,' Billie had said. 'This is all new for him. Just... If he comes to you, don't turn him away. Please.' And Daud had agreed. For Billie's sake (and at the urging of his own long-grown guilt), he had agreed, and had housed the little shit the last time the Outsider came around. Would do the same this time, because Billie's trust meant something to him. Because they hadn't freed the bastard just to let him wander starving to his death. ]
No.
I know what to expect from you.
And right now I have one more visitor than I'd like.
[ It was true he preferred to keep his own company. There were few enough people in the world he trusted, and few enough whose opinion meant much to him. Then, too, Daud had never been averse to solitude, and age had only increased his appreciation for time spent away from others. (It was easier not to dwell on certain aspects of the past that way. Easier not to find himself confronted with remnants of the man he was.) ]
no subject
'Daud, he's alone in the world,' Billie had said. 'This is all new for him. Just... If he comes to you, don't turn him away. Please.' And Daud had agreed. For Billie's sake (and at the urging of his own long-grown guilt), he had agreed, and had housed the little shit the last time the Outsider came around. Would do the same this time, because Billie's trust meant something to him. Because they hadn't freed the bastard just to let him wander starving to his death. ]
No.
I know what to expect from you.
And right now I have one more visitor than I'd like.
[ It was true he preferred to keep his own company. There were few enough people in the world he trusted, and few enough whose opinion meant much to him. Then, too, Daud had never been averse to solitude, and age had only increased his appreciation for time spent away from others. (It was easier not to dwell on certain aspects of the past that way. Easier not to find himself confronted with remnants of the man he was.) ]