Three hundred years of experience tell him to keep his mouth shut, metaphorically speaking. The last day, however, has done more than a little to rattle him; he's learned quite suddenly about great evils beyond even his own painful experiences. And this girl, he knows by seeing her here, has been dragged from her home the same as he has.

"They aren't," he says, making his decision. All the same, if she's offering a hand to pet him he'll bump his head into it. He's not too proud for scritches.