[ She's a little startled that he'd noticed that, but then again, she hadn't exactly been trying to hide it, either.

Huffing out a soft sigh, she shakes her head, gesturing to the piles of scrolls and texts around her. ]

A little, perhaps. It's why I came here. I wanted to understand this place more before I went to speak to her. This city... I dreamed of it before I came to these lands. It was my first encounter with this whole world. And I witnessed an old woman sacrificed to the moss. Or sacrificing herself, rather. I was troubled by what I saw, but this city is unknown to me and their traditions still a mystery. I need to learn more before I can understand what I witnessed. And I think that understanding will be invaluable before I go to speak to the matriarch.