She had looked quite thoughtful, or quite absorbed in the process - but yes, as it turned out, she was most definitely overqualified for this. He would never have guessed it, but now that she had said it he wasn’t in the least surprised. Not that he knew a great deal about archaeology. (He might have the concentration for it, and no qualms about getting brilliantly dusty, but he’d also be too clumsy by half.)

“Ah,” Elias said emphatically, “well, that explains it.” It was more than the being still, somehow. “So you’re used to handling far more fragile things than this,” he mused out loud, newly curious, and putting two and two together with a grin. “And to warmer climes, I take it?”

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