[Basil takes a deep breath through his nose. The impatient thrumming stopped....]

It’s nice to meet you, too, Asriel. [He hopes the fortune is vague. God, he hopes it’s vague, and ambiguous, and leaves everything to the imagination and the blanks can only be filled by Basil, like how Asriel seemed to understand a deeper melancholy in his own.]

I-if you insist… I hope it’s a good one, haha.

[Basil shuffles aside, to let Asriel take first place in line. His feet feel like lead, scraping across deadwood.]