Astrid stopped her chewing midway through the sandwich when Nathaniel stared at her food, which effectively ended her ravaging of the sandwich. Once she swallowed, Beans cleared her throat, turning to Nathaniel with a smile. "Oh! Yea I suppose you don't know what all of this is, I can explain though." Astrid beamed at him, gathering her thoughts before continuing.

"So this sandwich," she pointed at the half eaten PB&J, "is made out of peanut butter and jelly! Peanut butter is basically what it sounds like, peanuts. I'm pretty sure they like, grind up the peanuts and add oils and sugar and stuff and bam! You have peanut butter." Astrid beamed, opening the sandwich slightly to show him the creamy peanut butter. "As for the jelly, it's like jam, but without the fruit chunks. I like jam more but I ran out," Astrid said sheepishly, her free hand scratching her neck as it turned light pink with embarrassment.

"As for these," she held up the bag of chips, "these are potato chips! They're made of potatoes and I think they fry them or something. I'm not sure, regardless, it's all delicious." Astrid shrugged, opening the bag of chips and inhaling deeply. Without thinking about it, Astrid opened her big mouth. "Do you want some?" At first, she didn't seem to catch her slip up, and held out the bag for Nathaniel to try. That's when she realized that she was trying to feed a ghost. "Oh my glob I am so so so sorry. I forgot, I'm sorry." Astrid flushed red, quickly bringing the bag back to her, feeling more and more stupid by the second.

Nathaniel did not seem offended. Rather, there was an amused expression on his face, "I'll admit that for a moment, I thought of grabbing a 'potato chip', so do not feel bad. The sand which sounds intriguing - I would not have thought to combine jam - or jelly, I suppose, peanuts. An..." Nathaniel paused for a moment, carefully considering his words, "Odd... combination. So is the idea of making those... crunchy, small potatoes. I suppose there are also many other foods that would not make sense to me."

Nathaniel observed Astrid for a long moment, then internally sighed. It seemed as though Astrid would put large amounts of pressure on herself for ever mistake - no matter how small, "Do not feel sorry. It was a simple mistake. Even I forget my spectral limits at times, and I have been in this form for a long time."

A soft sigh of relief escaped Beans' lips, and she couldn't help but smile. She had felt horrible, not wanting her mess up to offend Nathaniel in any way. It came as a relief when he told her it was fine, that her apology wasn't needed really. Although she still felt stupid, she wasn't as mad at herself as she'd been before, and that was a good thing.

"Sorry, I just don't want to offend you or step over any boundaries. I just want you to be free, and not stuck here for forever, all alone. And I won't let that happen." Suddenly, Astrid apologetic expression changed into one of fierce stubbornness and determination. Astrid was here to help Nathaniel as much as she could, and she'd do it. No one deserved to be alone.

Nathaniel huffed a small laugh, shaking his head in a resigned way - although there wasn't any regret or annoyance in his posture, "Thank you, Astrid, for your bold words and iron will. Now, though," he said gently, gesturing towards the sky, "It is late, and I'd imagine it gets quite cold on the stone. I do hope you have something, since I believe you were planning to stay for a few days. As well, maintaining a more solid form throughout the day has drained me, so this is a goodnight for now." Once Astrid was settled, Nathaniel would be able to relax, and slip away, becoming nearly invisible. He'd stay in the room where he was murdered for the long hours of the night - the further he got from that location, the more... not energy, as that was for humans, but it was a close descriptor... got sucked out of him. That is partly why he could not leave the manor.

Astrid had just finished her sandwich and chips when a wide yawn escaped her lips. Surprisingly enough, she was rather tired. Despite the fact that normally she went to bed at anywhere between 2 a.m. to 11 p.m. she was exhausted yet. It was odd, but she supposed that it had to do with all that had gone on that day. Discovering Nathaniel's existence, running around to get books and clothes and food, she needed to sleep, that was certain. With a nod, she looked through her bag.

"Oh, okay, well I have a sleeping bag so I'll be fine. I can put on my jacket if I get too cold." With deft hands she took out the sleeping bag and a unicorn stuffed animal that turned into a pillow. One of the best designs ever made she was sure. "See, I'm all set! Have a good night Nathaniel." Beans beamed at him, her eyes shining in the light of the lantern.

Nathaniel spared Astrid's gear a quick glance, curiosity dancing briefly over his features before he looked back up at Astrid. He could inquire about the strange items later, perhaps, but he would not keep her up any longer, "Pleasant dreams, Astrid."

Nathaniel then stopped focusing on containing his form, and his solid form slipped away. He was hardly visible mow, and silently unfurled his body from its position on the floor, and left the main floor of the manor - leaving behind Astrid, the books, and the feeling of being human for the first time in decades.

As Nathaniel disappeared, Astrid gave him a smile, though curiosity was evident on her expression, and waved him off. Soon enough, Beans was tucked away in her sleeping bag, and flicked the lantern off quietly. As time passed, her eyelid grew heavy and she slowly drifted off to sleep, the sounds of the night lulling her into sleep's warm embrace.

~

Ts?)

sure! do you want to go to the next morning, or maybe a few days later, when nathaniel has a lot more context about history, and they talk about stuff/lets her ask him questions that im pretty sure astrid has/clarify things that dont make sense.

-

im good with whatever!!!

The few days later sounds great! Do you wanna start or should I?

please start