Still seated in meditative posture, Sho Tenshin couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle as Ffamran sil Vadris bent over to pick up the offered jacket and quickly slipped it on. "Oh, excuse my amusement, I had simply never seen a proud lord in such need of a dog's charity that'll bend for it, ohohoho", he ironized at the expense of the dark skinned lad. Ah, the audacity of youth. Sho had been similarly proud in a way, though in different circumstances, many years ago. He had learned to let go of much of that atitude in time, and part of his eventual role as a teacher had been lowering such egos. After all how can one learn if one thinks they know best?

Now the old man rose to his feet with surprising sprightliness for his apparent frailty and looked around once more, taking stock of the people around him and taking in the introductions and especially the apparent task at hand. [i]My, what a disparate group[/i], he thought to himself. Though nothing betrayed this outwardly, he questioned the wisdom in gathering such a band instead of creating an organized, coordinated force if their mission was truly so important. He did not know what to make of the idea that even greater beings, ones that could toy with the cycle of life, might find their judgement impaired by personal whims.

Putting those thoughts aside, he pressed his palms together as a gesture of greeting for the others. "Once again, I am Sho Tenshin of the land of Hakugawa in the east. Forgive me if I should have heard of you all, but tales from the west only recently began to spread during my life". The old man gave the group a slight bow. "As for any further steps, before we depart I should like to give the dead here burial", he continued, looking about with clear pity in his clouded eyes. "Whatever happened here was bad enough, these people should be given at least the peace of the grave".