Asbel almost didn't believe the words that floated back to him, and he stared with outright confusion at the back of Frey's head. Well-wishing? From [i]Frey[/i]? What trick was this?

Suspecting that the momentary kindness was quickly to be followed by some cruel prank, the phoenix maintained an unblinking stare even as the prince turned around to stare likewise. The prince's face seemed flushed, either from the weather or the lingering embarrassment of the accident, and Asbel's non-existent feathers ruffled under the observation. He almost preferred Frey's antagonism -- at least that made sense and was, in some ways, predictable. Kindness and such an open expression... Asbel had never seen Frey look so like his older brothers, and the shift set the hair on the back of his neck on end.

"Stop that," he ordered, forgetting for a moment that he spoke to a member of the royal family.

Augustine, finally realizing that his two younger companions were oddly still and silent, hazarded a glance over his shoulder. "Everything alright back there?" he called, frowning in preemptive disapproval. "Don't tell me you're fighting already."