Thomas is impressed by his choice of company: unflappable in tense social situations, an ease of bearing in the presence of hierarchical betters, excellent manners, and most importantly an intriguing puzzle waiting to be solved. That last is a rare quality, especially within the corridors of nobility, with the aristocracy guarding their secrets without remorse, or being too foolish to have anything worth analyzing. Unfortunately, before he could continue making his young new friend's acquaintance, he was forced to cut himself off as royalty approached, bouncing towards them in an unexpectedly age-appropriate gate. Thomas chided himself for expecting royal children to be fundamentally different from more plebeian stock, and made a mental note to remember this lesson for later.

Answering the princess' question was not difficult, and he gave his new-found companion slight credit for her answer. Thomas bows formally, before descending to one knee to address the princess on slightly-below-eye level.

"Good afternoon, your highness. To answer your question, of course I am afraid. I am going blindly into danger, and the fear is only exacerbated by my ignorance, causing my imagination to create all manner of horrors to insist on being just around the next bend in the road. However, my fear is of little consequence. Rationally I know that the human mind has a tendency to scare itself, and in all my evaluations our safety is rather likely. It has always been my policy to observe my fear only as more data to be collected, and relying instead on what I can verify."

Thomas, being vaguely pleased with his long-winded response, stands back up smiling. He always liked children, and regardless of lineage this particular example is just as charming as the rest. Thomas makes a note of remembering this moment when his pupils at the Academy are being difficult - such joys of teaching are often overshadowed by present discontent.

Thomas briefly finds it odd that a princess of royal blood is being so carelessly guarded. Ostensibly, Thomas, if he were so inclined, could do serious harm to the princess, quick as silver, and not be stopped. There was not even particularly diligent  security upon entering: he simply stated his purpose and status, and was let in. Any second-rate cutthroat with a falsified piece of identification could be in Thomas' very position, and chaos would be inevitable. Perhaps the Empress thought her daughter's arrival at the garden was too unlikely to be able to be planned for, but bribery of a nursemaid or some other casual scheme could produce reliable results.

Thomas did not think the Empress, or especially the Emperor, a fool, and concluded that there must be some invisible security - perhaps a means of verification of identity, or some manner of physical prevention around the castle or on the body of the princess. Thomas noted this down for future study: any scenario would be interesting, though Thomas silently hoped it was the latter of his woefully uninformed guesses, both for increased security of governmental figures, but also from a purely academic interest. Thomas wondered who among his contacts could get him access to the rune arrays that would power such devices, if they even exist, and decided to tuck such quandaries away for later; he needed to be on his guard for political machinations or possible breaches in decorum to avoid.