>I'm not going to complain; we agreed you'd deal with things your way while I poke around in here,But I will voice that I don't see why you chose to do this. >And my response to you is that if I tried to explain it, you wouldn't understand, or if you did, you would disagree with what I was thinking.Either way, now isn't a good time >Fine, Dhakhaan rhaan der o.>Fate be with you.<

"Remind me of what to expect while meeting this guy." Hal kept his tone level while telling Birnerd what to do. Hal stood slightly behind and to the side of Birnerd, facing the mansion of the man who'd given Birnerd his task. The area around them was filled with empty fields of grass as far as Hal could see; the journey here from the closest town hadn't been short. Hal failed to gather any useful information about his prospective employer back in town, not for lack of trying. No one he'd asked said anything worthwhile; they knew of the man, but many of them didn't even know his name, they'd dealt with his employees, but they were purely business interactions, nothing more. A few of them had met him directly, but all they had to say was that he was blatantly wealthy and didn't stick around to talk. The only useful information anyone had was that the man didn't spend all his time here, often leaving the region for months on end, leaving the mansion staff without work till he returned.

"Don't antagonize him, but don't give ground to him. That would be my advice." Birnerd said in a way that sounded nervous, but Hal doubted it had to do with the question or the coming meeting. "He's not cruel; he just leads a life in a world separate from you and me, you more than I, makes talking with him a little complicated." Birnerd seemed to put a persona together with every word, building up the character he'd shown Hal when they first met. "I could say it's like we speak two different languages, but I think that might make it sound easy." Birnerd finished slipping into his role with ease.

"What about his son, the one I'm supposed to protect?" Hal asked this question despite already knowing the answer.

"Rich brat, never knew hardship, dad was absent, mom gave him everything. He'll give you trouble, but you have to get him out of the trial in one piece." Birnerd sneered out the response, but the aggression sounded fake to Hal. "No matter how much it pains you not to, don't tear out his tongue; his dad might take issue with that."

"And, you'll have everything ready for our arrangement by the time the trial ends?" Hal asked.

"Even if it kills me," Birnerd replied, his persona dropping for an instant only to come back just as quickly. "Should we head inside? I'm in a tad bit of a hurry, and standing about doesn't improve that.

Hal didn't vocally reply, choosing to agree with Birnerd by sticking his hand into his field of view, to usher him to lead onward.

Inside the mansion, Hal tried to take note of the interior, hallways that appeared to lead to a single door, paths meant to hide the staff from view, so on and so forth. Despite this, Hal soon gave up on noting the environment himself, opting instead to listen to the shadows of the manor and what secrets they knew.

"Recognise, familiar, don't know, dust, so much dust, empty, another, new, more, more." The shadows whispered seemingly random words. At the moment, the first two words were the only useable ones without further context, and these were only useful because Hal could tell what spurred them on. The shadows reacted the same way any time Birnerd crossed through one; each time, they acted as if seeing a familiar face was outside the norm, like they saw so many new faces that recognizing one was something to remember. From this, Hal could guess that the staff had a high turnover rate, but without any dark rumors in town to tie that to, Hal didn't see a reason to take note of it. Outside of that, the only thing Hal could figure out is that somewhere in the mansion was covered in dust or something akin to it. But again, none of this was helpful for Hal.

Hal found it irritating. Everyone had some sort of secret or some kind of rumor about them. From what Birnerd had said about the man, the owner of this place should be no exception, but Hal could find neither hide nor tail of anything about the man other than basic trivia. Whoever the man was, he either lived a life that's so unbearably dull that even the shadows ignored him, or he was so paranoid about hiding his secrets that he never once brought mention of them into this house. Considering he was cautious about someone trying to snuff out his son, Hal was willing to wager it was the second option, and that idea left Hal with a good bit of caution and annoyance in his chest.

The staff didn't seem frightened the few times Hal caught sight of them, they lacked the practiced movements of someone who'd cleaned the same space hundreds of times. They all seemed unaccustomed to the jobs they currently fulfilled. No one appeared afraid that a single mistake would cost them dearly, or desperate for the job to the point of going above and beyond to satisfy the whims of their employer; they just looked new to the job. The shadows didn't know much about them; the only thing Hal could gather was that, like everyone else, there was a room none of them entered, not that the shadows helped in finding where that room was.

All of this put Hal on edge as he walked behind Birnerd. He'd grown used to knowing something about his environment, and lacking that information left him irritable and somewhat reckless.

>Tinct, you're better at sniffing things out than I am,Mind giving a whiff or two, see if you smell anything? Hal felt Tinct take over the muscles, the transition feeling as odd as ever. Instinct seemed to hold back on what he took over, as Hal could feel the crawling feeling of his skin turning green halt not far from his nose, but he still made sure his face was obscured nonetheless.

>I smell something I don't recognize, but it's faint.I smell dust, and dirt, and a few other things, but it's all odd like nothing has been around long enough to leave a lasting impression on this place.< Tinct continued, providing Hal with more information that only hinted at something without giving Hal anything exceptional to work with.

"What's got you so wound up?" Birnerd asked Hal, having turned to face Hal while he was distracted.

"Only guesswork at the moment, but it appears that all the staff get replaced frequently and aren't allowed in certain sections of the mansion," Hal replied, making sure to keep his voice barely above a whisper.

"How-" "-Don't ask or say anything about it.” Hal cut Birnerd off before he could ask anything. "What do you need me to do when we meet this guy?" Hal steered Birnerd away from his curiosity. "What's his name anyway, considering I forgot to ask?" He continued, forcing another question onto Birnerd so that the man couldn't ask any of his own. "Do you want me to stand around silently, do I kneel, do I bow, what, I'm not exactly aware of the social norms this far north?" Hal bombarded Birnerd with another inquiry. "Well?" He prodded.

"I get it. I get it." Birnerd replied. "Don't say anything until I introduce you, and keep your waist bent until told otherwise," Birnerd answered some of Hal's questions but seemed to avoid the first.

Hal wanted to prod further for the man's name, but Birnerd stopped in front of a door right as Hal opened his mouth. He gestured to the door as if to say this was the destination, and Hal would have to wait to complain about anything.

Hal followed Birnerd into the room, stopping two paces back from the man. Hal made sure to follow Birnerds directions, bending his waist slightly in a semi-formal bow, but that didn't stop his eyes from wandering the room, which appeared to be an office. The walls matched the rest of the house, a dull white that left little to no impression on the observer. The trim was plain, lacking any of the ornate decoration Hal would expect of the place. Hal could see a single small, clouded glass window on the far side of the room, behind the desk where the man sat. Looking at the desk itself revealed a lacquered black wood construction that left the ankles and feet of the one behind it visible for all to see. The legs weren't ordinary square legs of the cheapest furniture, but neither were they the intricately handcrafted art pieces of a master craftsman. They, like everything else in this house, were dull, almost purposely so. The man at the desk was slightly more interesting than his mansion, but only just. Hal couldn't see his face, as he hadn't looked up from what he was doing, but he had short silver hair that looked well-groomed. But that's where the intrigue stopped. His clothes were boring; clearly, ones worn more out of comfort and mobility rather than for show. Hal doubted the man would wear them in public, but around his own home, they were the perfect balance between, ‘easy to put on and clean,’ and ‘I refuse to wear anything below a certain quality.’ It was again, just boring.

"So you've returned." His voice was deep, rumbling, confident. "I should hope you've brought someone worth my time." He didn't look up at Birnerd, keeping his face directed down to the parchment in front of him, his silvery hair the only part of him Hal could see. It was a move Hal recognized, one to signify you hadn't yet earned his full attention. "Or would I be so lucky that you've come with something else in mind." He spoke to Birnerd with a tone that said the question wasn't a question, still refusing to look up. His voice sounded level, emotionless, but Hal picked up the tiniest glimmers of cruel glee in his tone. "I did tell you that whatever candidate you brought this time, they'd have to be exceptional to make up for the disappointment of the last one." He didn't react to the words, but Hal felt the air around him change; he enjoyed the memory of the last candidate Birnerd brought in. "Well, let's hear it. What makes this one unique compared to the rest? I doubt you found the one I wanted, so who'd you find to replace my ideal?" This time the question sounded of a one meant for Birnerd to answer. The air around the silver-haired man turned thick like he'd made his expectations a physical force, and Birnerd would either succeed in cutting through them or choke on them.

"Well, ever one to go above and beyond expectation, I found precisely the fellow you fancied." Birnerd seemed to dance forward to the desk before lowering his head and waving his arm toward Hal.

"Oh?' He twitched at Birnerds words, his head finally lifting to face the two other occupants of the room. While Hal still didn't know the man's name, he now held little doubt that this man was beyond recognizable. The silver hair was one thing, Hal had seen more than a few who had a similar shade to them. What Hal hadn't seen before were silver eyes. Lacking the distinct black dot of a pupil, the man in front of Hal had eyes that appeared as two pools of molten silver. Warm-looking but blatantly dangerous, they stood out amongst the man's otherwise average features. His chin was sharp, but not overly so, and his nose was pointed, still a far cry from the sharp point of Birnerd’s or Instinct’s. He had strong cheekbones with just a bit of meat around them, and a forehead just barely wrinkled by age.

Even with his average features, those silver eyes stood out so much to Hal that he was positive anyone who saw them would remember them for life.

"Let's hear it then. Who have you brought before me?" The man almost commanded Birnerd to speak.

"Permit me the pleasure of introducing him." Birnerd turned away to have one side of him toward the desk and his other toward Hal. "Hal, the strongest child I've had the displeasure of meeting face to face." Birnerd acted out his play like either of his audience members cared. "A mage powerful enough to put even Henrique Feldsain to shame, tied to a brain with enough wit to evade me for three weeks, and I honestly believed him too good to be true." Birnerd seemed to be selling the man on Hal. “His personality is a tad rough, I mean, he cracked my nose the second time we faced one another, but I'd say he's excellent." Birnerd was a showman, not a salesman, and it showed in his words; still, he was doing what he had to.

"Hmm." The silver-eyed man expressed doubt with a single sound, conveying to Birnerd that this wasn't enough. "And, what assurance do I have that someone so strong is capable of entering the trial?" He asked Birnerd a question, clearly keeping his attention away from Hal.

"Oh, what a wonderous question, sir." Birnerd clearly enjoyed participation in his act. "And as your question is so perfect, it gets us to the best part about my friend Hal. Hal, despite all I've said about his ability, is not even fourteen, guaranteeing he'll gain entry to the trial."

"OH!" His silver eyes opened wide; shock layered over curiosity evident in those pupilless orbs. With an almost distracting amount of intent, he turned those eyes to face Hal, acknowledging him for the first time since he'd entered the room. "While I trust Birnerd's word, I do wish to see your capability for myself." He spoke, and from the corner of Hal's eye, he saw Birnerd shift nervously at the man focusing on Hal. "So, Hal," his voice felt odd to Hal, lacking emotion, despite sounding like it was overjoyed. "Prove yourself." He commanded, and Hal felt compelled to obey.