Ridahne wrinkled her brow thoughtfully, the ink patterns on her face scrunching and warping with her skin. "Apples huh? Hmm, wouldn't have guessed that. You're children of the stone, I wouldn't translate that to apples necessarily. Though if you'd said peaches..." she chuckled at her own joke. "Those at least have a "stone" in them. I wonder what the sirens say about Astra and its beginnings. Honestly, I'm ashamed to say I haven't met many of them. I've seen a lot of siren sailors pass through of course, but never really sat down and chatted with them much. They were always busy and so was I." 

Somewhere, distantly, an owl hooted softly, and another answered it. The sounds of people and voices and hurried feet were dwindling, and the sounds of the night prevailed. A soft, ever present rustling hummed from the leaves as the winds filtered through them, and a chorus of crickets accompanied it. There was even the faint sound of music coming from one place or another, always cheerful and soft. Ridahne had never really considered how big Astra was. Sure, she'd seen maps and had traveled much, but that didn't mean she had any idea how big it was. How could she really know if she could not see it all at once? Ridahne was about to answer when Darin stopped, her breathing suddenly spiking into short, choppy breaths. 

Oh, Ridahne knew that look. She'd dealt with it before, though the issue had been something entirely different. She'd seen Takhun unravel like this before. Twice. Ridahne had done it a few times herself. It was a spiraling panic that, regardless of the source, would only get worse if left unmanaged. Ridahne turned, putting her hands on Darin's shoulders with a firm grip as she made deep and direct eye contact. Ridahne was a force, and usually the heat of her fire was bent towards anger, towards a fight. Not now. She was still a force, a strong, steady, inexorable force that all the winds of Astra could not move, yet something about her demeanor was softened, gentler. Her amber eyes sought Darin's and would not look away. "Hey." Her voice was so soft, yet she remained an anchor. "Take a deep breath. Take a few. I'll be honest with you, Darin, I don't know how long this will take. I'm only following you, after all. But I do know you won't do it alone, not if I have anything to say about it. I know the prospect is intimidating, and your life has significantly changed with all this. It will some more, I expect. But I'm here. I'm with you, and I could think of no one else that I'd rather trust the Seed with. No one."