1. I think that Gen is trying to show his appreciation to Relius, and that at the same time, not smiling means that he wanted to show that he was sincere. Also, I don't know why, but when I first read it, I always thought that it meant that Relius was jealous of Irene, because Gen kissed her. Haha, it's weird, but I always thought he had the tiniest crush on them both.
2. For the story in Qoa, by Eddis, I thought that it was both Eddis trying to reassure herself that Gen's crazy plan would be good for him, and also, for the reader, an analogue of the relationship between Gen and Irene, as they both can be placed in the position of either Horreon (I am not sure of the spelling) or Hespira. As for the one in Koa, I believe that Gen was uncomfortable with it because he knew that gods' gifts were dangerous things, and since he is close to refusing the one given to him, he is afraid he would end up like Klimun if he had lied. On the other hand, there was also the fact that words were very important things, and promises, which sort of echoes the theme of Gen lying and his words being moon promises; he never outright lies when things are important, so his words are really like moon promises, except they are trustworthy, unlike Irene thought in Qoa.
3. The king is a new power, so being a subject, especially a grudging one, no doubt they wished to catalogue his greatest weaknesses and such. It is important, because one, knowledge is power, and two, it means that Gen is still attached to Eddis greatly, which is understandable, but it affects his political stance, and three, he looks weak to them, and it is a perfect thing to be exploited.
I probably contradicted myself somewhere in the mess, so pardon me! :)
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Date: 6/26/13 03:36 am (UTC)2. For the story in Qoa, by Eddis, I thought that it was both Eddis trying to reassure herself that Gen's crazy plan would be good for him, and also, for the reader, an analogue of the relationship between Gen and Irene, as they both can be placed in the position of either Horreon (I am not sure of the spelling) or Hespira. As for the one in Koa, I believe that Gen was uncomfortable with it because he knew that gods' gifts were dangerous things, and since he is close to refusing the one given to him, he is afraid he would end up like Klimun if he had lied. On the other hand, there was also the fact that words were very important things, and promises, which sort of echoes the theme of Gen lying and his words being moon promises; he never outright lies when things are important, so his words are really like moon promises, except they are trustworthy, unlike Irene thought in Qoa.
3. The king is a new power, so being a subject, especially a grudging one, no doubt they wished to catalogue his greatest weaknesses and such. It is important, because one, knowledge is power, and two, it means that Gen is still attached to Eddis greatly, which is understandable, but it affects his political stance, and three, he looks weak to them, and it is a perfect thing to be exploited.
I probably contradicted myself somewhere in the mess, so pardon me! :)