"Oh, I believe it." El muttered, half to herself. She had been watching him the whole time and caught the look he cast her, but just raised her eyebrows in defiant response. I mean, there hadn't been any question about whether or not he liked being where he was, that much was abundantly clear, she thought. She still thought it was stupid. How could you say whether or not you liked it when you'd lived there your entire life?
When he handed her the tea, she gave it a curious little sniff - a habit her father had HATED - and then took a long draft of it. Yep. Tea really wasn't her thing, beyond being a slightly more flavorful improvement on water. It was a little bitter, which she did like, but the rest of it too... groundy. Almost sweet and a little leafy. She didn't dislike it, but she couldn't say she liked it either. Her face didn't change much, beyond the slight shrug of her lips, but she issued an obligatory, "Thanks," before setting the cup on the ground. She looked up at him, then back out the window she'd come. The sun had set and the night was growing truly dark, now. "I'd ask why you were looking at me like you've never seen another human before, but I'm guessing it's because you haven't." She didn't look at him when she said that, and her voice was flat. Not angry, but as if it didn't really matter to her, and she was just saying it to say something. "You're an odd one. Afraid enough not to leave, but brave enough to let a stranger in. Then again, I am a woman, and we're not supposed to be much good at taking care of ourselves." She chuckled and closed her eyes, back still pressing up against the wall, pulling her crossed legs up casually to her chest. She didn't feel bitter about the assessment she thought he had made of her. It had used to offend her when other people and her foster brothers thought she was just a weak girl who couldn't do anything, but then everyone had switched to thinking she could do something like rule a kingdom and she discovered she'd rather have people undervalue her than believe in her.
Her body didn't relax much, but she felt her closed eyelids pulling heavily down, telling her, along with other little things, how grateful she was to be out of her armor, and how tiring the day had been. She'd soon fall asleep if he didn't catch her attention again.