Joseph's first days at the palace were far from pleasant.
The absence of his personal guard and entourage forced him to depend completely on Mark's hospitality, something that already made him uncomfortable.
And being surrounded at all hours by non-humans didn't do much to calm his nerves either.
Bayle, in particular, kept unsettling him.
His manner was always impeccably courteous, but all it took was one look at him for Joseph to remember the immense creature he had turned into and feel his legs tremble a little.
Yet as the days went by, Joseph's initial discomfort gave way to something he never would have expected to feel there: tranquility.
He realized it almost a week after his arrival.
He was sitting on one of the palace balconies, a glass of wine between his fingers, watching the capital slowly light up as evening fell.
He couldn't remember the last time he had been able to stop without feeling he was wasting time.
Then he understood.
