GamblingGoblins
Child of the guillotine
"..?"
Faced with Cater's incredibly strange response to her words, Marie could only stare at him owlishly. At first, her confusion was minor. But as he began to fumble his words and sputter all whilst turning a deep shade of red, it only increased, prompting her to tilt her head pensively. "Mon chéri..?" she repeated, this time in the form of a concerned question, "Are you alright? You're acting strange again." Maybe his movie had bugged him more than he was trying to let on? Or perhaps it was something else? As he finally attained the sense to speak semi-coherent words again, it was revealed that the cause of his short circuiting was apparently something she had said. Except, he was still acting all weird, and she could barely make out what he was whispering behind his hands. The more he talked, the more lost she felt. "It's something... who says?" A pause came and went, before recognition lit her singular visible eye. "Ah, do you mean you have another close friend who calls you this? Is that it?" As per usual, she seemed to have come to her own, totally incorrect conclusion. She supposed that Cater might have had another dear friend that the phrase reminded him of. Momentarily, she worried she might've unintentionally caused him a pang of hurt longing for someone back home with her word choice, but then he went on to mumble something about it being alright and him liking it. She really couldn't keep track of what he was going on about anymore, but she couldn't help but smile, regardless. Confusing as it was, his odd, intense bout of bashfulness was endearing. She was a little concerned again when he hid his face in his hands entirely, but there wasn't much she could do about it before she had to go.
Once she'd finally returned from her film, though, she was at least glad that both boys seemed just a little more lively than they'd been when she'd left. Once Cater grasped her shoulders and she'd regained her senses, she noticed that they both had their focus on her, each expressing their concern and support for her in their own ways. She couldn't help but find herself awestruck, completely unused to this sort of positive affirmation and support. Unused to being cared for. It was... a warm feeling. Something sweet and reassuring that eased her anxiety, if just a little. Part of her was afraid to admit what she'd seen, unsure of just how her friends might take it. So far as she could tell, their own dreams were for lives spent back home with their loved ones. Would they think less of her for longing for something different? Would they dislike the thought of seeing her again once they were free? ...Would they be mad at her, for how desperately she wanted what she'd seen to be real?
Ugh. Such self-derisive thoughts weren't like her. Why did it seem both her heart and her mind had turned upon her so violently in recent times? She knew it must've had to do with her new self-awareness, but even so; it was difficult to fight off such vicious self-consciousness alone. She just felt... dazed. She did her best to snap out of it, though, focusing on the physical sensation of the fabric she'd grasped in her fingers in order to ground herself. It probably was a little rude of her to grab at the boys' sleeves like that, but it comforted her to be able to do so... and, though she didn't know it, it definitely was convenient for avoiding accidentally activating her curse. Her anxious eyes softened, and her tense muscles relaxed just a little thanks to Claude's gentle reassurance. "...Thank you," she murmured, appreciative. "You're both very kind. I... I do think I want to talk a little." The words were oddly hard to get out, considering that bluntness and speaking her mind usually came easily to her. She supposed that struggle was due to these newfound insecurities, too. "If it's really okay." After all, she didn't want to impose or be insensitive. She knew they both had lots on their minds, too. But, then, she kind of hoped all of them could take the opportunity to talk about what troubled them. The only real problem was, she didn't really have a good answer about where she wanted to go. She couldn't think straight with so many people around and so much on her mind. So when Cater offered up his room, she practically deflated with relief. An eager nod was given without hesitation.
"That would be great." Anywhere but here. She needed to get out. "Let's go." Normally, she was more of a quiet follower than a leader; however, in this case, she was obviously anxious to get out of the crowded space. Without thinking, she began to move, gently tugging on both Claude and Cater's sleeves in order to hopefully spur them to come along as well. She once again seemed totally oblivious to how rude she might've been being, too caught up in her short burst of claustrophobia to really think things through. Or, well, it was probably a mix of both that and her lack of social experience. Still, if either of them wanted to pull away, resist, or request a change of course, it'd be extremely easy to do so. As long as they got somewhere quiet and empty in the end, she'd be happy.
Faced with Cater's incredibly strange response to her words, Marie could only stare at him owlishly. At first, her confusion was minor. But as he began to fumble his words and sputter all whilst turning a deep shade of red, it only increased, prompting her to tilt her head pensively. "Mon chéri..?" she repeated, this time in the form of a concerned question, "Are you alright? You're acting strange again." Maybe his movie had bugged him more than he was trying to let on? Or perhaps it was something else? As he finally attained the sense to speak semi-coherent words again, it was revealed that the cause of his short circuiting was apparently something she had said. Except, he was still acting all weird, and she could barely make out what he was whispering behind his hands. The more he talked, the more lost she felt. "It's something... who says?" A pause came and went, before recognition lit her singular visible eye. "Ah, do you mean you have another close friend who calls you this? Is that it?" As per usual, she seemed to have come to her own, totally incorrect conclusion. She supposed that Cater might have had another dear friend that the phrase reminded him of. Momentarily, she worried she might've unintentionally caused him a pang of hurt longing for someone back home with her word choice, but then he went on to mumble something about it being alright and him liking it. She really couldn't keep track of what he was going on about anymore, but she couldn't help but smile, regardless. Confusing as it was, his odd, intense bout of bashfulness was endearing. She was a little concerned again when he hid his face in his hands entirely, but there wasn't much she could do about it before she had to go.
Once she'd finally returned from her film, though, she was at least glad that both boys seemed just a little more lively than they'd been when she'd left. Once Cater grasped her shoulders and she'd regained her senses, she noticed that they both had their focus on her, each expressing their concern and support for her in their own ways. She couldn't help but find herself awestruck, completely unused to this sort of positive affirmation and support. Unused to being cared for. It was... a warm feeling. Something sweet and reassuring that eased her anxiety, if just a little. Part of her was afraid to admit what she'd seen, unsure of just how her friends might take it. So far as she could tell, their own dreams were for lives spent back home with their loved ones. Would they think less of her for longing for something different? Would they dislike the thought of seeing her again once they were free? ...Would they be mad at her, for how desperately she wanted what she'd seen to be real?
Ugh. Such self-derisive thoughts weren't like her. Why did it seem both her heart and her mind had turned upon her so violently in recent times? She knew it must've had to do with her new self-awareness, but even so; it was difficult to fight off such vicious self-consciousness alone. She just felt... dazed. She did her best to snap out of it, though, focusing on the physical sensation of the fabric she'd grasped in her fingers in order to ground herself. It probably was a little rude of her to grab at the boys' sleeves like that, but it comforted her to be able to do so... and, though she didn't know it, it definitely was convenient for avoiding accidentally activating her curse. Her anxious eyes softened, and her tense muscles relaxed just a little thanks to Claude's gentle reassurance. "...Thank you," she murmured, appreciative. "You're both very kind. I... I do think I want to talk a little." The words were oddly hard to get out, considering that bluntness and speaking her mind usually came easily to her. She supposed that struggle was due to these newfound insecurities, too. "If it's really okay." After all, she didn't want to impose or be insensitive. She knew they both had lots on their minds, too. But, then, she kind of hoped all of them could take the opportunity to talk about what troubled them. The only real problem was, she didn't really have a good answer about where she wanted to go. She couldn't think straight with so many people around and so much on her mind. So when Cater offered up his room, she practically deflated with relief. An eager nod was given without hesitation.
"That would be great." Anywhere but here. She needed to get out. "Let's go." Normally, she was more of a quiet follower than a leader; however, in this case, she was obviously anxious to get out of the crowded space. Without thinking, she began to move, gently tugging on both Claude and Cater's sleeves in order to hopefully spur them to come along as well. She once again seemed totally oblivious to how rude she might've been being, too caught up in her short burst of claustrophobia to really think things through. Or, well, it was probably a mix of both that and her lack of social experience. Still, if either of them wanted to pull away, resist, or request a change of course, it'd be extremely easy to do so. As long as they got somewhere quiet and empty in the end, she'd be happy.
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