He attempted to shrug off the clapped hand to his shoulder, too stubborn to respond especially well to physical directives when they were making suggestions he did not much like. While he was hesitant to be overly impudent in public, Theodore was still considering arguing.
It was fortunate, perhaps, that the next thing he heard was enticement. Whilst he was not - and would not pretend to be - on the best terms with his father, the all-too-transparent bribery was something of a perk. Theodore supposed his father might be just as generous and compromising if he were more cooperative, but then again, he tended to use this thought as an excuse not to feel guilty accepting all the spoils of bribery without a single intention to be corrupted or softened by it. He would be no more pleasant at home, and he would not take back an ounce of his hostility, because there were a lot of things that couldn't be taken back, like marriages and second sons and the fading of his mother's memory.
Still, the idea of returning the next day with Kenton in tow was gratifying enough for Theodore to refrain from arguing back outright. "If you say so," he intoned, with a pointed sigh. His reluctant acquiescence was only suddenly countered by the leap upwards of his brows at his father's - wait, was that supposed to have been funny? Was he really laughing? The light-hearted father-son discussions could not feasibly go so far to allow Theodore to accept terrible wit and embarrassing laughter in this parental company.
Rolling his eyes rather than saying anything, he tossed a last look back at the marketplace and then stared glumly towards the forest again, though he did consciously indulge himself in his dawdling, meandering steps, so that at least they would not have to go home quite so soon. Perhaps his father might alter his decision... well that was unlikely, but that didn't mean he had to walk right by his father's side and suffer more wince-inducing humour.
It was fortunate, perhaps, that the next thing he heard was enticement. Whilst he was not - and would not pretend to be - on the best terms with his father, the all-too-transparent bribery was something of a perk. Theodore supposed his father might be just as generous and compromising if he were more cooperative, but then again, he tended to use this thought as an excuse not to feel guilty accepting all the spoils of bribery without a single intention to be corrupted or softened by it. He would be no more pleasant at home, and he would not take back an ounce of his hostility, because there were a lot of things that couldn't be taken back, like marriages and second sons and the fading of his mother's memory.
Still, the idea of returning the next day with Kenton in tow was gratifying enough for Theodore to refrain from arguing back outright. "If you say so," he intoned, with a pointed sigh. His reluctant acquiescence was only suddenly countered by the leap upwards of his brows at his father's - wait, was that supposed to have been funny? Was he really laughing? The light-hearted father-son discussions could not feasibly go so far to allow Theodore to accept terrible wit and embarrassing laughter in this parental company.
Rolling his eyes rather than saying anything, he tossed a last look back at the marketplace and then stared glumly towards the forest again, though he did consciously indulge himself in his dawdling, meandering steps, so that at least they would not have to go home quite so soon. Perhaps his father might alter his decision... well that was unlikely, but that didn't mean he had to walk right by his father's side and suffer more wince-inducing humour.
