[He laughs again, delighted at the reaction, and the pure, unweighted childishness of it is really only a hair different from the way the new Ariel used to laugh, before he started to pull away from Tristan. But in a blink it cuts off, as he flips back to normal--

--and instantly recoils. He goes from lazy reclining to skittering back in an instant, til he's pressed against the side of the bed, wide-eyed and white-faced.]

I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'msorryI'msorryI-I--