[ in days, kaveh finds that this is the first time he has allowed himself to be seen, and finds, too, that he does not enjoy it. alhaitham had been good at reading through his mask before. alhaitham does not need kaveh to show him pages of his book. yet kaveh, who is always a bleeding heart, who wears it in his sleeves and wields it with pride, cannot will himself not to trust when trust is due.

it is not comfortable to be seen. it is not a topic of conversation he has ever engaged, before. his self-worth is his to deal with. it is not meant to be the focus of a conversation, and it burns on touch.

kaveh measures his words, still. he does not retrieve that ounce of trust. ]

Vissudha? Yes. You? No. [ this, then, is how he begins.

he allows his eyes to fall for a moment, and scan the food. none of it seems appetizing anymore. he feels gross in his own skin. he could really use a bath. ]

But you're Alhaitham, Crown Prince of Vissudha. Whether you want it or not, you wear your nation on your shoulders. It takes work to separate both. [ kaveh would know, after all. ] My self-worth has nothing to do with this, it's just logic. I am one man. Avidya has a population of its own. Tighnari cannot put his life amidst cross-fire without the reassurance he will not be hit. Between asserting to my well-being, and keeping his people safe, there are very few people who would choose the smaller number. Tighnari is not one of them, is all.