"Hey, no," Xanthippe said, much softer than she would've expected herself to sound because soft was still a pretty new thing for her, just in general. She'd chewed on her lip a little, watching his anger, and now she slowly moved to run her hand through his hair. "No. You don't have to -- I don't care."

Wait, that came out wrong.

"I mean, I don't mind. It's... I wanna know things. About you." And it was true. Seemed to surprise even her, a little.