"Marta, that's not what I meant."

"I know Emil. I'm going to go back inside. Good night."

Emil looked back at Tenebrae, who still seemed slightly taken aback. After being glared at for a few seconds, the centurion finally met Emil's eye line, though it seemed that he was still contemplating his character and whether or not he was a spiteful, old nag. Which, most of the time, seemed to be the case.

"Do you think that other people see me in that light? I am the centurion of darkness. I am a majestic, intricate creature, shrouded by intrigue and the lure of the black velvet abyss. I am a tapestry woven by the threads of the blackest night sky. I represent the eternal void, the seductive nothingness where one can lose themselves and sink into blissful oblivion, the path that is both beginning and end. I don't want people to get the impression that I am like an old, intolerant grandparent, always there giving off the elderly vibe and scent of old cabbage."

"Then maybe you should stop butting into people's conversations."

"I simply overheard."

"Every word."

"Which one would think is admirable for someone who has lived this long. Loss of hearing can be quite the issue as one grows older. Of course, I am not a human, constrained by all of the mortal…"

Emil rolled his eyes while Tenebrae continued in his idle musings, wondering how much force it would take for the centurion to revert back to core form.

"…so really, it is a gift for anyone to have the advanced auditory capabilities that I am equipped with. Why not use them to their full potential?"

"Well, if you didn't use them to spy on peop- you know what? Nevermind. I think I'm going to bed as well," sighed Emil.

"Goodnight then, Lord Emil."

"Yeah. Goodnight. Oh, uhm, what was with that look earlier?"

"Hmm? What look?"

"That look you gave me, you know, when you made the crack about being in love. Before You got Marta all mad at me."

"There wasn't a look."

"Yes there was."

"I don't recall…"

"There was a look! I remember that you shot me a look."

"Hmm. Really?

"Yes."

"I don't think so."

"But I was sure of it..."

"An unusual one?"

"Well, yeah. That's why I remembered it."

"Well, I cannot seem to recall..."

"I guess not."

"What kind of a look are you saying I gave you?"

"I don't know. But it was different that usual. It wasn't smug, exactly."

"Are you saying I'm smug?"

"I didn't say that."

"You implied it."

"I didn't mean to."

"Do you just think I'm just a smug, nosey, spiteful old nag?"

"Well, sometimes you tend to, you know, act like you know more and stuff."

"I have lived for thousands of years."

"I guess so."

"It's just a matter of logic that I would know more as I have experienced more."

"You're doing it again."

"Fine. Maybe I will just keep to myself from now on if you do not appreciate my wisdom."

"Okay, Tenebrae. But about that look-"

"I don't remember the look. What were you talking about before I gave you this supposed look that you seem so intent on deciphering?"

"A lot of things. What's happening to me, what's going to happen to us, how we've changed. You heard it all, didn't you?"

"Well, as I said before about the hearing, it wasn't entirely my fault."

"It doesn't matter. You're even more confusing than Richter. I'll see you tomorrow"

"Oh yes! Richter… now I remember."

"Remember what?"

"What you were talking about. The look."

"Yeah? What was that about? I didn't get what you were trying to say."

"I said exactly what I meant-that love is in the air."

"But what does that have to do with the look? What were you trying to say by that?"

"Well, you should get to sleep. Sweet dreams."

"TENEBRAE!"

With that, there was a small puff of grey smoke as the centurion disappeared into to cold night air.

"Wait! Tenebrae?" There was no response. He stood there for a few minutes staring at the empty space before him, watching the soft gray smoke diffuse into the air, disappearing, leaving the spot completely empty, as though nothing had even been there before.

"What is he talking about? And what did Richter have to do with anything?"

He heard a muffled chuckle from about two feet away.