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Claudius proved to be a proper rollercoaster, and as his face split in a dramatically broad grin, Dawali found himself fascinated. Here was this stuttering hermit, whose person Dawali was afraid to break if he coughed too hard. But then all of a sudden, while the stuttering was not gone, there was an air of comfort around him - one Dawali had seldomly seen. One thing became painfully clear: Claudius' speech problems had steered Dawali's view of him too much. The red wolf's pang of guilt disappeared quickly, though, as enthusiastic conversation continued. Dawali's darker ears perked upwards with surprised gladness. Of course Claudius could apprentice! If there was one thing the Kalona enjoyed, it was talking to anyone who would listen about plants. "That would be great!" He could easily work with this, and what a relief it was to know that they had something in common after all. "I'm keen to know more about dyes - can one make patterns easily?". He had so many questions about dyes, that he simply assumed that their first exchange was here and now. One of many to come.