Dan smiled back at her, super satisfied to see someone enjoying the gift he'd brought. He'd been worried when he'd seen the palace that his fellows would have too refined a pallet to take simple joy in something you got for 7 bucks at a pizza plack. Still, the thing she said was strange. "You haven't given me any reason not to trust you. I was more interested in knowing know what you thought of the story, or the palace. It's not every day you meet someone from a different Earth, after all."

As Stefan asked his question Dan set his box on the floor, stood up, and gave the woman his hand. The vibe he gave off was trusting and curious, not unlike that of a kitten tentatively reaching out its paw to touch it's owner for the first time. "I'm Daniel, by the way. It's nice to make your acquaintance, miss." 

That's when the man who had been lurking at the back of the room spoke up loudly. Dan looked over and saw darkness swirling around. In an instant his entire demeanor changed. The kitten was gone, pulling back as his whole body tensed itself to spring. What replaced it was a battle wary stray, small and scarred all over yet unwilling to back down from any sort of rival. When the portal snapped to life in front of them, leading to that realm of teaming darkness, his own blade flashed into his hand as he unconsciously moved forward in front of his new friend. Closer to the portal, between the group and the portal, never taking his eyes off the portal.

When it finally snapped shut he shifted his gaze to the man. He didn't move otherwise, but his pool noodle vanished from his hand. "He's right." Dan said, in the closest tone to begrudging he could muster. "I've been to whole towns that look exactly like that. We've tried our hardest back home, but we can't stem the tide. I don't believe it matters how our worlds came to be. All I care bout is protecting them. If I can't do that with my power..."

He looked back, gazing from Stefan to Tocsax, then up to the Emperor. "...Then I don't see any problem trying things their way. If it works, then it works. If it dosen't, at least I know I tried something."

[@Shoddy McCoy][@Letter Bee][@Gisk]