Setting
Kampf, meanwhile, raised a palm rather gently, as if in a calming manner, and he did his best to explain, "One that I cannot accept. My tongue was the one out of line, as you are a guest in my house and I should not have spoken of your gracious nature so idly." He then smiled, hoping to defuse the situation, "Nor should your spirit. It's quite commendable."
There. Now Liese could hardly scold her later.
Kampf held his smile, matching the younger Redwing's as best he could, "It wouldn't hurt me," he paused, looking down at his small swath of the table, chuckling, "to finally have a pretty woman call me by name." He was being honest there, somewhat. It literally had been centuries since a woman had spoken to him in such a manner, not since that Coalition assassin on the train to Dinsmärk...
Oh Dinsmärk! How he longed to walk its streets again, to feel the kiss of Scatterran air upon his skin once more. His face changed with this, his eyes, for a moment, taking on a distant look, though he soon bore again his rather jovial expression. He was the only one still alive in the Hegemony who remembered those days, who remembered their home...
He had a look on his face, of remembering, though it had been brief. "My L- Josef, what were you thinking of, just a second ago? I would love to hear?"
The more he spoke on the matter, the more distant he seemed to become, a tear beginning to well up in his eyes before he wiped it away, regaining his composure. "I'm terribly sorry. That was rather rude of me, Sieglinde, please pardon my nostalgia."
Kampf, for all of his Imperial trappings and nobility, couldn't escape the fact that he liked the working man's dish.
Gesturing towards his attendants, he spoke more to his guest than his lieutenant as he announced, "Simply state what you wish, they'll be happy to get it to you." He would wait though, no need for him to be hasty. There were more interesting things at the table, anyway.
Kampf chose a rather basic selection of the ham, spaetzle and vegetables, waiting once everything had been set down and for the others to begin before he took a bite. Good, as always, the recipes were old, yes, but they were still quite good. He was distracted from his food, however, by his company and, with a pat of his mouth with his napkin, he decided to speak again, "I know this might seem an odd question, but my thoughts of Scatter piqued my curiosity... are you familiar with any classical literature?" Within the Hegemony, the term 'classical' generally referred to the time before the Exodus, before what they considered to be the dark ages and the rebirth of the Belko-Azrik people.
It was like speaking to Wing. A Scatterran Wing.
He waved down an attendant, whispering something to him before he soon stepped off, Kampf apologizing for the interruption as he finished, eager to continue, "Pardon me, but, it makes me wonder, what era do you take a liking to? I know that I have a thing for the Old Empire, before my father's time..."
“Ah. They're all so amazing. Hard to find a good variety though, to my sorrow.” Getting older books wasn't exactly easy as going to a book store. Her family despaired enough that her reading would leave her needed corrective eye surgery.
“Of course, the family has a collection, but I've already read most of that.” He had been alive so long, he was probably more than familiar with all the older books.
He picked some more at his food, interested instead with his company, "Sieghilde, remind me, once we're finished, I rarely get the chance to discuss such matters with people that it's reminded me... If it wouldn't interrupt your plans, I'd be delighted to show you my library here."
Though it was hard to refuse her God, she knew she had to.
"I am sorry sir, but I believe it may be best if i use today to get settled into my rooms here, rather than go to your library. Please, forgive me." She looked down to her plate, clearly not happy to refuse, but refusing to accept.
"I cannot wait until someone sets something new! Whoever decided Liese's military style was good for the social scene is a fool." She murmured under her breath, then sighed. She was staying at the Redwing house on the planet of course, little used as it apparently was. Liese was lucky to be at the emperor's right hand of course, but it meant that the woman had a room in residence. After that debacle of a dinner, Linde would not stay in residence with the Emperor. She'd only make a fool of herself again.
She kept her eyes on her vanity mirror, her strokes slow and even, not even paying attention to who was in the doorway. "Is there something I'm needed for?" She asked, not expecting so. "Or did the first of the party invitations finally start to arrive." She would have a few days reprieve of course, as a polite and silent remark to her status before she was besieged with invitations. After all, she would only be here a handful of weeks.
It was odd. He hadn't apologized to anyone in... at least five centuries. How strange this felt!