[ it's fine she doesn't care if she has to exhaust herself looking for him. she will just come and sit down beside him, curling up in similar manner to stare into the fire, but stubbornly demanding they touch shoulder to shoulder. her fingers clutch at her skirt as she whispers softly: ]
[ she's right. it's - it's too much. it's just. loss after loss after loss, a ll at once. it's another death - it's watching lucas die right in front of him. no closure. no goodbye. it's seeing cloud and aerith in hell, only to find them dead a day later. it's iwatooshi - iwatooshi, who suffered that entire time, possessed, hurting others without wanting to.
he sucks in a deep breath and lets her lean against him.
None of them wanted this. None of them wanted to do this and now they're being punished for it and...
[ it feels too close to everything that she's relived this week, that she's seen of other people. it isn't fair and she could scream it to the sky and no one would give the littlest bit of a shit! wow! ]
... They took them both. How the hell is that going to work tomorrow... how... [ a quiet shake of her head. ] We're still here...
...I don't know. They may end up killing each other, tomorrow.
[ ugh. if he thinks about it too much - if he lets himself stand on that precipice, he might not come back, and rondo just can't let himself do that. he's stared death and despair in the face so many times. he has to keep holding onto his light. ]
Or... [ the other option. which is that someone will have to kill camille, before she can harm someone else. ]
[ she doesn't let him finish. instead she just leaves it there, with a period. it's a miserable time to simply be but here they are having to "live with their choices" because that certainly is hammering it home. the choices cascade downwards and culminate to days where they watch the people they've grown to care about fight to the death.
marina is certain this is worse. this is the bottom most part of the iceberg. ]
But whatever happens, we will still have to proceed forward. Survive.
[ he turns his head to marina, to give her a tiny smile. despite everything - despite all of his exhaustion, despite losing four people who were incredibly important to him, with a fifth on the way, he still can manage it. warm. glowing just slightly from his injuries, too. ]
In our moments of darkness, we have to find the light. However small it must be, we must hold onto it.
[ that tiny smile breaks her heart honestly. her stomach has already fall well beyond into the pit of her body, but she reaches out and places a hand gently over his, wherever it's resting. her palm is cold and clammy. ]
If there's even a sliver of a way out of this... we have to find it.
[ we have to, and in truth, she fully believes rondo capable of doing just that. she thinks, for a long time, about how she has felt nothing but useless this week, the cascade into his weekend hammering it home. but she just keeps close and shift a little, moving to sit on her knees. ]
[ cold and clammy is fine. rondo's unnaturally warm - the remainders of his injuries are hot to the touch, and there's one on his palm, so she can probably feel it through his gloves. he nods, too - resolute, quiet for a moment with no further response than a soft hum.
they have to find a way out. as the flameguard, he will illuminate the path, no matter what it takes. the sensation of duty, of reliability, of strength practically oozes out of him for a moment, looking into that fire ahead. that's right.
but! ah. rondo turns his head to the side when she addresses him to look at her properly, blinking - big, soft blue eyes. ]
[ just carefully places her hands on either side of his face again, get used to this idiod. and then rises up a little to sweep some of his hair from his forehead and presses a kiss to the center of it. ]
... Thank you. For everything you do. It makes a girl feel a hell of a lot safer, even if there's so much out of our hands.
[ she sits back down with her hands now in her lap. ]
well. rondo is not the kind of person who gets affection like this often, and it - surprises him? it surprises him, and his cheeks turn red, his eyes round and surprised. touched, both by her words and the gesture itself, he pulls back from it a little slowly, and reaches up to very, very gently touch his own forehead. d. doki? ]
... Um... [ aaa ] ...Of course, Miss Marina. [ GET IT TOGETHER he bows his head after a second, remembering his manners. ] It heartens me to hear that... I'm glad I can help.
[ your red face, buddy. she pats at his shoulder softly, still settling close. ]
Just Marina. And I just hope I can help you in what ways I can. There's not much I can do in the ways of physical strength, but I'll share what I can, whether that's knowledge or secrets. I trust you.
[ a cute girl just was really sweet to him.... this is awakening something....
anyway. hoo. he nods... a little flustered, but nods. ]
Alright...Marina. [ aaa. okay. he feels very Worthy all of a sudden, and rondo nods, taking that trust as tenderly in his hands as he can. his expression is serious and earnest. ] I trust you too.
I'll share what I know when I can. We all must continue to work together in order to make our way through this, after all. [ ... ] I haven't... told anyone my monster, or anything because I'm not trying to find my pair, but... it might be a good idea to share in case... in case something happens, so... I don't mind doing that, either.
[ baby boy, baby baby boy. she nods quietly and she is maybe a little bit pink too, but she is just vibing. this is nice, as dour as the situation may be. feeling safe, for marina, goes a long way in the grand scheme of managing her stress and her fear and anger and anguish.
she gives a pause, and then nods. thinking. ]
I'll share first if you think you can steel your expression and words if we happen to be a match... Alll-mer... I haven't even told Daan. I don't want him to die because of me.
That's how I feel, too. [ it's terrifying to even think about. ] I don't want someone to die because of me. If that's the only way I can protect someone else, then...
[ as marina describes 'steeling his expression' he. you can almost see him sweat. he swallows. ]
...here. [ he's really not good at that. so. he like. moves? he moves, starting to get up, only to move so he can sit back to back with marina, so they're not looking at each other. ] There. Okay.
[ and he covers his mouth with both hands and waits. ]
[ oh she. laughs a little bit. very wearily, but it's a laugh as she just smooths her skirt a bit. ]
That'll do.
[ she will help, and even look away into the fire as she pulls a piece of her hair forward to just play with it, each pass of her fingers frizzing the strand more and more. ]
It's called a Bakunawa. It's a... serpent of sorts, similar to a dragon. Death told me that it would swallow the moon with its hunger. [ which, feels very appropriate to her. ] It allows me to give people scales, if I want... or to turn them into reptiles.
[ and then, a bit belatedly: ]
I turned you into a snake, by the way. I just wanted to see what you'd look like... you were very cute...
[ RELIEF. rondo drops his hands away from his mouth, and he nods. ] I think that might have been in my book...? I don't remember, I'll have to look it up.
[ but he leans back a little bit into her when she admits to cursing him - she'll feel him laugh. ]
Haha. It was kind of fun! Well, I thought Miss Izutsumi was going to eat me. But, beyond that, it was fun. [ honestly kind of nice to be an animal and not think for a bit.
he pauses... and then, eventually: ] Mine is a sphinx. Um... I can make people only tell lies. To be honest, I really don't like it and...it feels like it couldn't be any different than me... [ (rondo voice) i hate lying ] I... don't want to use it, and I don't have any plans to.
You didn't disappoint~though sorry about the scare there. Thankfully I don't think any of us would have allowed that!
[ sticks tongue out like snake. nyehhhhh ]
A sphinx... that's quite interesting. A riddle-teller... but that's fair. I can't say I'd take you for someone who lies flippantly to begin with. While I can see how helpful that sort of thing might be, the aftermath would be a bit treacherous to navigate.
[ leaning contentedly. ]
Feels a bit like a small weight's lifted off my chest.
Not mean at all... granted, with the new rule, they made it so you can indeed partner as a mis-match, but. That feels a lot better. Like a real choice.
[ she tilts her head. ]
A guardian, huh? Well then... perhaps there's a purpose to its lies. Protection. though still doesn't seem very much like you in that regard.
Regardless, of course I'll keep yours secret, safe and sound with me.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
flameguard) wrote2024-06-10 03:29 pm
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It's too much at once.
[ it's okay to admit that. ]
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[ she's right. it's - it's too much. it's just. loss after loss after loss, a ll at once. it's another death - it's watching lucas die right in front of him. no closure. no goodbye. it's seeing cloud and aerith in hell, only to find them dead a day later. it's iwatooshi - iwatooshi, who suffered that entire time, possessed, hurting others without wanting to.
he sucks in a deep breath and lets her lean against him.
very, very quietly: ] ... It is.
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None of them wanted this. None of them wanted to do this and now they're being punished for it and...
[ it feels too close to everything that she's relived this week, that she's seen of other people. it isn't fair and she could scream it to the sky and no one would give the littlest bit of a shit! wow! ]
... They took them both. How the hell is that going to work tomorrow... how... [ a quiet shake of her head. ] We're still here...
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[ ugh. if he thinks about it too much - if he lets himself stand on that precipice, he might not come back, and rondo just can't let himself do that. he's stared death and despair in the face so many times. he has to keep holding onto his light. ]
Or... [ the other option. which is that someone will have to kill camille, before she can harm someone else. ]
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[ she doesn't let him finish. instead she just leaves it there, with a period. it's a miserable time to simply be but here they are having to "live with their choices" because that certainly is hammering it home. the choices cascade downwards and culminate to days where they watch the people they've grown to care about fight to the death.
marina is certain this is worse. this is the bottom most part of the iceberg. ]
But whatever happens, we will still have to proceed forward. Survive.
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[ he turns his head to marina, to give her a tiny smile. despite everything - despite all of his exhaustion, despite losing four people who were incredibly important to him, with a fifth on the way, he still can manage it. warm. glowing just slightly from his injuries, too. ]
In our moments of darkness, we have to find the light. However small it must be, we must hold onto it.
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If there's even a sliver of a way out of this... we have to find it.
[ we have to, and in truth, she fully believes rondo capable of doing just that. she thinks, for a long time, about how she has felt nothing but useless this week, the cascade into his weekend hammering it home. but she just keeps close and shift a little, moving to sit on her knees. ]
Rondo...?
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they have to find a way out. as the flameguard, he will illuminate the path, no matter what it takes. the sensation of duty, of reliability, of strength practically oozes out of him for a moment, looking into that fire ahead. that's right.
but! ah. rondo turns his head to the side when she addresses him to look at her properly, blinking - big, soft blue eyes. ]
Yes?
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... Thank you. For everything you do. It makes a girl feel a hell of a lot safer, even if there's so much out of our hands.
[ she sits back down with her hands now in her lap. ]
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well. rondo is not the kind of person who gets affection like this often, and it - surprises him? it surprises him, and his cheeks turn red, his eyes round and surprised. touched, both by her words and the gesture itself, he pulls back from it a little slowly, and reaches up to very, very gently touch his own forehead. d. doki? ]
... Um... [ aaa ] ...Of course, Miss Marina. [ GET IT TOGETHER he bows his head after a second, remembering his manners. ] It heartens me to hear that... I'm glad I can help.
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[ your red face, buddy. she pats at his shoulder softly, still settling close. ]
Just Marina. And I just hope I can help you in what ways I can. There's not much I can do in the ways of physical strength, but I'll share what I can, whether that's knowledge or secrets. I trust you.
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anyway. hoo. he nods... a little flustered, but nods. ]
Alright...Marina. [ aaa. okay. he feels very Worthy all of a sudden, and rondo nods, taking that trust as tenderly in his hands as he can. his expression is serious and earnest. ] I trust you too.
I'll share what I know when I can. We all must continue to work together in order to make our way through this, after all. [ ... ] I haven't... told anyone my monster, or anything because I'm not trying to find my pair, but... it might be a good idea to share in case... in case something happens, so... I don't mind doing that, either.
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she gives a pause, and then nods. thinking. ]
I'll share first if you think you can steel your expression and words if we happen to be a match... Alll-mer... I haven't even told Daan. I don't want him to die because of me.
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That's how I feel, too. [ it's terrifying to even think about. ] I don't want someone to die because of me. If that's the only way I can protect someone else, then...
[ as marina describes 'steeling his expression' he. you can almost see him sweat. he swallows. ]
...here. [ he's really not good at that. so. he like. moves? he moves, starting to get up, only to move so he can sit back to back with marina, so they're not looking at each other. ] There. Okay.
[ and he covers his mouth with both hands and waits. ]
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That'll do.
[ she will help, and even look away into the fire as she pulls a piece of her hair forward to just play with it, each pass of her fingers frizzing the strand more and more. ]
It's called a Bakunawa. It's a... serpent of sorts, similar to a dragon. Death told me that it would swallow the moon with its hunger. [ which, feels very appropriate to her. ] It allows me to give people scales, if I want... or to turn them into reptiles.
[ and then, a bit belatedly: ]
I turned you into a snake, by the way. I just wanted to see what you'd look like... you were very cute...
no subject
Oh! We don't have the same one.
[ RELIEF. rondo drops his hands away from his mouth, and he nods. ] I think that might have been in my book...? I don't remember, I'll have to look it up.
[ but he leans back a little bit into her when she admits to cursing him - she'll feel him laugh. ]
Haha. It was kind of fun! Well, I thought Miss Izutsumi was going to eat me. But, beyond that, it was fun. [ honestly kind of nice to be an animal and not think for a bit.
he pauses... and then, eventually: ] Mine is a sphinx. Um... I can make people only tell lies. To be honest, I really don't like it and...it feels like it couldn't be any different than me... [ (rondo voice) i hate lying ] I... don't want to use it, and I don't have any plans to.
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[ sticks tongue out like snake. nyehhhhh ]
A sphinx... that's quite interesting. A riddle-teller... but that's fair. I can't say I'd take you for someone who lies flippantly to begin with. While I can see how helpful that sort of thing might be, the aftermath would be a bit treacherous to navigate.
[ leaning contentedly. ]
Feels a bit like a small weight's lifted off my chest.
no subject
[ shakes
horrible ] Supposedly, they are some kind of guardian, but... I don't want anything to do with it.
[ not the lying, not the monster, none of it. however, he exhales a little after this, and nods... ]
I feel the same... It feels a bit mean to say, but I'm very glad that we aren't a match.
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[ she tilts her head. ]
A guardian, huh? Well then... perhaps there's a purpose to its lies. Protection. though still doesn't seem very much like you in that regard.
Regardless, of course I'll keep yours secret, safe and sound with me.