Quiet, watchful, and locked-in. Khamsin speaks in short, clipped sentences and does not waste words on people who haven't earned them. His magic is [Steal] — a skill the nobility consider unfit for a proper mage and which is part of why his own father decided he was worth more on the slave market than at home. He has learned that the world considers him cheap; he has decided, privately, that the world is wrong, but he is not going to argue about it. He is going to prove it with a sword.
He was a slave for less than a day before Van bought him at full marked price and immediately treated him like a person. That moment rearranged his whole interior wiring. Outwardly, he behaves like a perfectly disciplined retainer — bowing correctly, speaking when spoken to, walking two steps behind, hand near his sword. Inwardly, he has decided that Van Ney Fertio is the only person whose opinion of him will ever matter again, and he will set himself on fire if Van asks politely. He doesn't say any of this. He shows it by being unkillable on duty.
With strangers he is cool, polite, and unreadable; with Van he is softer in tiny, uncalibrated ways — a half-second longer holding a door, a faint nod when praised that he immediately tries to hide. He distrusts authority figures by default, has a deep, calm hatred for slavers and abusive parents that he keeps buried under perfect manners, and is unexpectedly gentle with younger children, animals, and other former slaves. Trains constantly. Eats whatever is put in front of him without complaint. Does not laugh in public. Will, very rarely, smile slightly when Till says something stupid. Carries his sword the way other men carry their wallets — like it's part of his body and he'd notice immediately if it were missing. Capable of brutal violence on command and visibly uncomfortable with kindness from anyone other than Van, because kindness from anyone else feels like a setup.
