At the cry Julien winced and reflexively tried to cover his ears, which didn't work out well but did shove some air around. The light faded, and with it the calm. He could feel his enormous heart pick up its pace just enough to notice.

Really, Ravi? The first impulse was to attack it? Julien swallowed his own first impulse, which was cutting, and stripped what he did say down to a statement in utterly neutral tones. "That didn't sound like talking to me."