Realistic or Modern The Conman and the Sneak Thief

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Of course Persia was pleased to see Hera as well, though she'd never admit as such. Instead she responded in her usual demeanor, "I don't have anything to steal, Pickpocket." An odd response to someone saying it's nice to meet you, but Persia doesn't do warm and fuzzy too well. She delivered this with a squint of her eyes. It was her way of teasing, though it could easily be taken as her suspecting Hera of attempting to pickpocket her.

A strange thought crossed Persia's mind. Hera was actually rather beautiful. She's commented on Hera's looks before, but it was a stab at her, to take away from her skills because of her looks. Persia pondered the thought. Was it because this was the first time they weren't at odds, or in a survival situation? Persia didn't realize a rosy hue brighten her dark face as she continued staring at Hera. She had lost track of time, feeling like a captive. She thought it may be some sort of weird Stockholm syndrome type effect.

 

[Araellion]

Hera giggled at Persia's response, not entirely sure what she had been expecting. "Oh I don't know. I'm sure I could find something else to steal." Hera said in a teasing tone, even though she herself wasn't even sure what she was saying. Oh well, let the girl interpret her words however she wished.

"But really, you could have called and said you were alright. I've been worried." She sobered up, letting her thoughts wander to less pleasant places. Maybe it was for the best that she hadn't called. Hera had been worried about another phonecall about her being in trouble. Looking at Persia now though she seemed mostly fine.

"Actually, are you alright? You look flushed." A frown now adorned her face as Hera stepped closer. She reached out to feel the girls face with the back of her hand, frown deepening. "You're warm. Are you sure you don't have a fever?"

It would be bad if the wound got infected, or if she got sick when her immune system already had so much to deal with.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Steal something else? Persia responded with a look of confusion. She looked herself up and down, going through a mental note of things Hera could steal off of her, though this left no sense of clarity. Hera's next reply cause Persia to scoff.

Of course Persia had thought to call, but like everything else, she wouldn't admit it. Hera was worried? All Persia could muster was, "I..." She trailed off as Hera continued, frozen to the spot by some unforseen forces as her eyes darted from place to place.

Hera reached out towards Persia. For the shortest moment she leaned into the touch. She closed her eyes, almost nuzzling herself into Hera's hand. But that moment quickly vanished.

The combination of closing her eyes and feeling the intimate touch brought back painful memories. Persia flinched back violently. Her cheeks paled and a panicked look flashed into her eyes. Though it lasted for a moment longer, that too quickly dissipated, leaving her usual cold features.

She wanted to quickly change the topic, but didn't know how. All she could say was, "Let's go," before any plan was even discussed. Persia turned towards the shop and began to make her way there in an attempt to stop Hera from questioning anything.

 

[Araellion]

Hera startled as well when Persia flinched, not having expected that reaction. Then again, what had she expected? She had always known that she needs to be cautious with the other woman to not scare her off. Hera felt like apologising for crossing a line, but wasn't given the chance.

So she just gave Persia another blank look, archived this conversation for later dissection, and followed Persia inside. Hera plastered herself against Persia's side, careful not to touch her any more than necessary. "So, remind me again what you wanted from here?"

Thier best bet was to act as customers, so Hera looked around the place, pretending to check out the items while memorising exits and any possible camera positions.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia wanted desperately to revisit that tender moment. What did Persia want from Hera? Another strange thought crossed her mind. Would "You" be an appropriate answer? Persia's cheeks flushed for a moment as she realized she said that out loud. She had rushed in here to escape an embarrassing moment, she didn't really know what to do. She had no plan, and wasn't good at winging things.

Persia realized the question was about the job and she felt stupid for her earlier answer. She tried to play it off by adding in, "need to get the card." There was already a long, awkward pause between her answers, and she hoped Hera didn't pick anything up from it.

Persia wasn't sure how to proceed. With the conversation or the job. She could have, with even a modicum of planning, have rewired the door after hours or climbed through some vents. But at the moment, in the store, surrounded by people, she was clueless. Her clulessness had slipped through a little onto her face, though she worked to quickly cover it up. She didn't know what to do, so she simply stared at Hera, waiting for an answer.

 

[Araellion]

Hera waited patiently for Persia to collect her thoughts. It seemed the lack of planning really wasn't the girl's usual way of going about things. That was the only reason Hera could think of for the other thif to be so...flustered? No, that wasn't a good word for it. Unprerared? Yes, that seemed fitting.

"Yeah, yeah, I have the card. Doesn't answer my question though." Hera said, trying to seem inconspicuous and like they were here to shop. She was probably being overly cautious—even if anyone overhead them, she doubted they would care.

Keeping an eye out for the one with the card, Hera lightly grabbed Persia's hand, earlier promise to herself about being more careful forgotten. "Oooh, let's look over there," Hera pointed at some shelves at the other end of the store. "Looks interesting."

Hera led the way, looking for all the world like this was a common occurrence—her dragging Persia around like she had the right to do so. Even so, her grip was loose enough for Persia to shake her off if she wanted to. In truth, Hera was mostly just trying to learn the layout of the place and to spot the one with the card. She idly picked up a snow globe with cute penguins hugging inside and gave it a shake, a smile spreading on her face. "Awww, isn't that adorable?" She eagerly held the globe out for Persia to see.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia fidgeted uncomfortably at being pressed for not actually answering the question. Normally she would give some mean response, but in front of Hera, she simply didn't know how to respond, so she just kept her cold features and remained silent.

Hera snatched up Persia's hand, catching her by surprise, but to her relief, not triggering any PTSD. Rather than resisting, Persia embraced the action. She held on tightly as Hera led her about, looking at the various merchandise. She didn't care for shopping, but the warmth of Hera's hand was comforting. It felt natural, and exciting, and once again caused Persia's cheeks to flush.

Persia had forgotten the job entirely. Not something she would have done on a serious job, but this was something she didn't even need. She was just living in the moment. All stress and worries melted away. Hera held out a snowglobe, giving it a little shake to show her. She returned a cold gaze, showing a lack of amusement. Of course she loved this moment, here with Hera, but as per usual, she wouldn't admit it, so she replied with, "It's stupid." Despite her attitude, she held on to Hera's hand, waiting for her to continue as she gazed into Hera's eyes, wondering what she would do next. The job only a distant memory at this point.

 

[Araellion]

Hera let out a startled laugh at the response, not caring about how crass it was. Because really, she has gotten so used to Persia and the way she talks by now. It would have been more shocking if she had been enthusiastic about a snow globe with hugging penguins of all things. In the back of her mind Hera wondered when Persia's rudeness had stopped bothering her.

Smile widenening, she gave the globe a few more shakes without looking at it. "You're lucky I like you," She said with a teasing tone. Hera gave their clasped hands a slight squeeze to drive home the point. There were very few people Hera would tolerate rudeness from after all.

Turning the globe upside down, Hera took one look at the price before putting it back down. Not that money was in any way a problem, but it was the principle of the matter. She knew this place had to make money, but good lord.

With a shake of the head, Hera turned back to Persia, not minding how close they were now standing to avoid pushing something off the shelves. Well, that could also be just Hera being overly cautious. Her mother had struck the fear of god into her at a young age about not standing close to anything in stores, lest she breaks something.

"Welp, we're definitely not getting that," Hera waved her free hand at the globes. "What about you? Anything interesting?"

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

"You're lucky I like you." Hera's comment was unexpected. It caused Persia to pause. She wondered what Hera meant by it. Yet another strange thought crossed her mind. Did she have expectations for what Hera meant? Persia swallowed, feeling uncomfortable, but otherwise said nothing, her face was still her usual cold self.

They stood close together. Hera was taller than Persia, which caused Persia to look up slightly, their face inches apart. Hera started to turn the globe around, inspecting it. She was so close, Persia could just lean in and...,

"Hello, can I help you? If you're interested in snow globes, I have an assortment of them in the back. I'm sure we can come to some sort of agreement." The chipper voice interrupted Persia's train of thought. She turned angrily to face the sound, still holding on to Hera's hand. It was a short man, the same height as Persia. He was young looking, but his crow's feet gave his age away, and well groomed. His shirt said manager on it. The interruption gave Persia time to think about the path her mind had been taking. She remained silent, giving the man her usual cold glare, which caused him to shift in place, feeling uneasy.

 

[Araellion]

Hera noticed how tense Persia was before the voice of the man penetrated her thoughts. She turned to face him with her smile still firmly in place, even though it now had more of an icy politeness to it than the softness of just seconds earlier. With her thumb, Hera softly rubbed the back of Persia's hand, trying to make her relax a bit.

"Mmmh, I don't know. I would love to see a huge wall of snowglobes though!" Just the absurd mental image of that was enough to thaw her iciness a bit. Even though it probably wouldn't be as interesting as her thoughts made the idea out to be.

A part of her mind found it all suspicious though. Why in the world would a manager be walking around trying to get customers? Didn't they have staff for that? What kind of arrangement was this man trying to make? Probably a sale, Hera told herself, but still. Oh well, she wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.

"What do you think, darling? Wanna look at some more globes?" Her smile widened when she looked back at Persia. Hera had a feeling that looking at more snow globes was the last thing either of them wanted.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

The man's interruption brought Persia's mind back to reality. Suddenly her fantasy was over. Hera rubbing the back of her hand madr her aware of the position she was in. She was now acutely aware of her situation. Now embarrassed, combined with the ridiculous thought of a wall of snow globes, Persia yanked her hand from Hera.

Persia lost track of the job. Not that it was a real job, but Persia's thoughts were back on it. She noticed the very card they needed, dangling, along with several other keys, from the man's belt loop. She pointed at the shelf behind them, at nothing in particular, "I want to know more about that."

Persia had ended up pointing at a glass figurine. A red and orange dragonfly. Her face never changed from her usual coldness, leaving one to wonder if she truly had any interest. She grabbed the manager by the shoulder and turned him around, leaving Hera behind, as she began asking arbitrary questions about the glass. How was it made? What was the material? How fragile was it? How do they get the color in the glass? Persia hoped the neverending questions would give Hera the opportunity she needed.

 

[Araellion]

Hera cast a concerned glance at Persia, images of earlier when she had tried to touch her entering her mind. Alright, so maybe trying to touch her too much wouldn't be good. Then again, she hadn't seemed to mind. Or was the other thief only holding on so tightly to her hand because of discomfort? Stress? Damned if Hera knew.

She didn't even get a chance to ask about it, and a petty part of her figured that that was by design. But that was fine. Hera wouldn't push if Persia didn't want to talk about it. Besides, they had better things to do at the moment. She hadn't even noticed that she was frowning until both Persia and the manager were turned away.

Taking a moment to appreciate how funny this situation was, a smile was once again on her face. Not that she could ever frown for long periods of time anyway, but Persia interviewing the manager about something Hera was 99% sure he had no idea about helped matters along.

With a shake of the head, Hera got to work. She carefully lead the card through the loop. It was a lot better if she managed to take only the card without disturbing the other keys. That way the man hopefully wouldn't notice the loss until it was too late. Hera bit her lip in concentration and prayed that nobody else was watching.

The card popped of the ring, and Hera quickly pulled out her wallet from the inside-pocket of her coat, putting the card together with her other ones. With that done, and with her wallet still in her hand, she looked over their shoulders at the item they were discussing with a tilt to her head. The glass figurine was pretty. And wasn't that a good enough reason to buy it?

"Well, I'll buy the dragonfly if you won't," Hera piped up. It would hopefully look less suspicious if they bought something. Though she would admit to having more selfish reasons. Hera wasn't one to take memorabilia from jobs, but this job was special.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia was thankful when Hera interrupted her questioning. "Whatever," was the only thing Persia offered before walking off, leaving Hera to deal with things on her own now. She left the store and waited for Hera outside the entrance.

The manager gave a nervous chuckle. He tried to be casual and personable when he said, "Your girlfriend certainly is an interesting character. Well, let's grt this beautiful crystal dragonfly ringed up for ya. Is it a gift for her? She seemed pretty interested in it." He gently picked up the figurine and started to make his way to the counter.

Persia waited impatiently outside. The weather was nice at this time of day. A little warm, with a gentle breeze running by, bringing the scent of food from restaurants upwind. Persia fidgeted with her hands, her thoughts returning to earlier. She found herself wishing for those moments again. Holding hands and standing close to Hera. She found herself once more lost in thought, forgetting her surroundings.

 

[Araellion]

Hera shrugged to herself as Persia walked out. Leaving each other alone on a job didn't sit well with her, but then this wasn't exactly a proper heist. It still made her slightly unhappy. She couldn't tell if it was annoyance or sadness, and refused to dwell on it.

Her smile widened at the manager's questions, Hera eagerly picking up the thread of conversation. "Yeah, she really is something." The words themselves could probably be interpreted in many ways, but the lovesick look on her face alone told the entire story. She followed the manager to the disk, taking out some loose change from her wallet.

"It is a gift," Hera confirmed, her mind spinning with possibilities. She is sad Persia isn't here to hear this, but also slightly grateful for it. "You see, one of our first proper dates was a picnic in the forest. There were these things flying around everywhere. They were huge, absolutely terrifying." Here Hera shuddered at the false memory. "But now the dragonflies just remind me of her."

She looked up at the ceiling, loosing herself in her mind for a moment before snapping out of it. "Ah, sorry. I tend to ramble." Her smile turned sheepish and she put a few extra coins on the counter. More than enough to cover the cost of the figurine and then some. It was partially to hopefully cover part of the expense for what they were going to steal.

Hera usually took things from rich business people, or from other thieves sometimes to give to the police. Stealing from a small business made her stomach clench with guilt. And like in the olden days, she threw money at her guilt to make it go away.

She thanked the manager and walked outside, barely holding in her laughter as she made her way to Persia. "Oh my lord, you should have seen that," Hera spoke through her giggles. "He thought we were a couple. Isn't that ridiculous?" Now Hera was just full on laughing, but trying to reign it in. It wasn't proper to stand out here laughing like a lunatic.

"Oh god," Hera wiped the tears from her eyes as her laughter tapered off. "Oh, and this is a gift, if you want it." She held out the wrapped dragonfly to Persia.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Hera laughed at the possibility of them being a couple. Was that really so bad? Persia grew increasingly angry, a scowl creeping on her face and venom seeping into her voice. She ignored the offered gift, "Where's the card?"

Hera fished the card from her wallet, showing off her skills as she held it up. Persia snatched it angrily from Hera. Her anger grew and grew. Upset that Hera laughed at the thought of them being together, even though Persia never gave any indication that was even a thought.

Angry, Persia smacked away the glass gift from Hera's outstretched hand. It tumbled to the floor with the cracking sound of glass. The wrapping contained the mess, though the dragonfly was now in innumerable pieces, beyond repair. With that, Persia turned towards her car, leaving Hera behind. "That's all you're needed for," barked out Persia on her way to her car, ready to leave the situation behind her.

 

[Araellion]

Hera winced at the sound of shattering glass, looking at the wrapped mess on the ground. Well, that had been entirely unnecessary. She wanted to shout something at Persia's retreating form, but her brain was still frozen. What could she have said anyway? Probably nothing. Anything she would have tried to say would have probably just made things worse. Yeah, the other thief just needed some time to cool off. What in the world had brought on that anyway? Hera knew Persia had some anger issues, but good lord.

With a sigh, Hera bent down to pick it up, careful in case the shards had cut open the wrapping. The last thing she wanted was Jamie questioning how she had cut herself. Hera couldn't even lie and say she had been cooking because Jamie knows her too well. Thankfully she managed to throw away the wrapping and its contents without any injuries.

That left her mind time to wander as Hera walked around the city with no destination in mind. She wasn't really upset about it. The money hadn't been a waste since it helped their cover, and if Persia hadn't wanted it then it would end up cluttering Hera's apartment. She let out another wince at the thought of Skimbles knocking it over. Probably for the best that it had shattered here.

Even so, Hera didn't have that good feeling she usually got from a job well done. She had been in such a good mood just a few seconds ago too.

Hera could tolerate a lot. Lots of people had told her that she had the patience of a Saint, something she had deliberately worked on improving when she was younger. And even now her near endless well of patience wasn't close to running dry. She was more sad for Persia than because of her. Hera did find her coldness slightly amusing, especially since some parts of it was mostly a facade. But now she started to wonder how much of it was just a mask.

The few times Hera had touched Persia, the other woman had leaned into it, and Hera couldn't blame her. Poor dear was probably touch starved. But was there other reasons? Something to think about later when she had a clearer mind.

For now she deliberated on seeing Persia again. For while Hera could and would put up with a lot, she had her limits. Open communication was important to her, and she would absolutely not let Persia get away without a lecture on the subject. Her mind was buzzing, but at this point it was pure white noise. She couldn't concentrate on anything besides moving her feet, one foot in front of the other.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia left the scene, nearly in a rage. She was supposed to have already met with her brother, but got side tracked. Time she now felt was wasted. So she made her way to her brother now.

Garrett was doing well enough. He was still at his home, which was a gift leftover from their father. Garrett lived there by himself. Persia chose to live separately to keep her occupation hidden.

The door was unlocked, Garrett knew she would be stopping by. He gave a big smile when he saw her. He instantly knew she was upset. Persia said, "I meant to bring you a gift, but I forgot it." Garrett laughed and waved the statement away. He was never one for gifts anyways.

"What's wrong, P?" Asked Garrett, using a childhood nickname.

"Nothing," returned Persia bluntly.

Garrett gave a knowing smile. Persia knew he wouldn't let it go. He knew her too well. So she made her way to the table to sit and talk with her brother.

"So, what's wrong?" Garrett probed.

Garrett was one of the only people Persia could talk freely around, so she started, "There's this lady," this statement caused an eyebrow to raise on Garrett's face. It wasn't unheard of, Persia being with a woman. She dated one in high school, but otherwise had been strictly into men. "She laughed at the idea of us being together." A sour look poured over her face as she said this.

"Sounds like she's special," said Garrett knowingly.

Persia instantly replied, "No, she's stupid."

Garrett laughed at the childish insult he knew was code for something she liked. "Does she know how you feel?"

Persia's eyes dropped, "I don't know how I feel." She sighed and paused before continuing. "She's pretty. And she comforts me. Takes care of me, no questions asked. I don't get why she is the way she is. But I think that's just the way she is. She probably treats everyone like that, and I was stupid for thinking I was special." Persia let out a disgruntled huff.

Garrett gave some advice he knew Persia wouldn't want to hear, "You should talk to her. Tell her how you feel." He knew talking wasn't her strong suit, but it was still something she needed to do.

Persia gave an eye roll, but she knew he was right, "Ugh, Fine." Garrett gavd a chuckle at Persia's version of agreeing. The two spent the rest of the evening chatting away about various topics, Persia's anger dissipated.

 

[Araellion]

It took a few hours for the buzzing in her brain to subside. And when it did, Hera looked around and had no idea where she was. Her eyes widened in surprise, both at completely blacking out and the duration of it. Sure, she did kinda overload her brain sometimes and end up useless for a while, but this could have been dangerous. But even as she told herself that she knew it wasn't true. She had a hard time snapping herself out of that state, but outside influences usually did the trick.

Her hands were shaking from the shock, the events of the day finally catching up with her. God, this was so stupid. She wanted to be mad at herself for not reacting to things better. Hera wasn't even bloody upset about anything, her brain had just decided to take a time out.

She fished out her phone from another one of the many pockets this coat had, another thing she loved about it. After a second of thought, she decided to call Jamie instead of an uber. Best case; she could take her home. Worst case; She'd offer up some emotional support and tell her to get a god damned taxi. Both of those outcomes sounded great right now.

"Hey Jamie, you busy?" Hera cursed her voice for shaking.

"No. What's up?" God, the concern in her voice was making Hera feel guilty.

"Just...a long day."

Hera went on to explain everything that had happened since she left the station, putting pressure on the fact that she wasn't upset or hurt in any way.

There was a moment of silence on the other end before Jamie sighed. "You know, for someone so good with people, you can be a bloody idiot sometimes. And that's coming from me."

Hera let out a giggle at that, feeling slightly better just from hearing Jamie's voice. "Are you gonna tell me what I'm missing?"

"Nope. I could be wrong after all. I'm sure you'll figure it out."

Well, that was certainly helpful. "Can you at least come and pick me up? I have no idea where I am."

"I would, but I'm stuck with overtime because someone decided to ditch a meeting." Jamie thankfully sounded more teasing than upset, but it still made Hera feel guilty.

"I'll make it up to you later," Hera promised with a far more serious tone than strictly necessary. "See you later, and thank you."

Well, she didn't have a ride, but at least she was feeling a lot better now. Hera found a bench and sat down to get her bearings. She would call a taxi later, but that was later. For now she would relax.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia spent the next week trying to plan how she was going to talk to Hera. Maybe she shouldn't have broken the glass dragonfly. Perhaps Hera hated her now. Why was she so angry? Why did Hera laugh at the idea of them being together? Thinking about it made her angry, but her brother was right. He was always right. She needed to talk to Hera to clarify things.

There was a museum that dealt in unique crystal sculptures. It reminded Persia of the dragonfly she smashed. She thought it might be a good way to atone for her actions. There was a particular sculpture. It was a heart, made from a fusion of rubies and saphires. It was a magnificent piece, with the added bonus of being the highest value piece in the museum. It was labeled as two halves of a whole.

Persia had the details painstakingly planned out using her usual methods. She knew the layout, the guard patrol routes, shift changes, cameras, everything. She even had a plan for Hera. They were going to rob this thing in broad daylight. It would be a difficult job, but depending on how good Hera was at distractions, it could also be easy.

Now all she had to do was convince Hera to help. She grabbed her phone and called Hera. She eyed the manager's keycard sitting on her nightstand. She still hasn't used it. She wondered what Hera would have to say about it, since she never got anything out of the job. Though, neither did she. She started to get nervous, her palms starting to get sweaty as she waited for Hera to pick up.

 

[Araellion]

Hera spent the week immersed in work. Actual proper, decent-human-being, slightly soulsucking, work. While all the red tape, and meetings, and paperwork was a pain, getting to do undercover work together with Jamie was always fun.

It also kept her busy which was unintentional, but much needed. She didn't think about Persia except for late at night when there was literally nothing else to do. A part of her wanted to reach out and fix things, but another part of her screamed at her. Why should Hera be the one to try and fix things? She hadn't done anything wrong. Or if she had, Persia hadn't told her what it was, and that was her fault, not Hera's.

All in all, Hera was a tad bit cross with the girl. Not enough to deliberately avoid her though. Because what good would that do? Hera was above doing the silent treatment and Persia deserved better than that.

Currently she was sitting with Jamie in her living room once again, because loose files on the floor and cats didn't go together well. They had learnt that the hard way and kept all work dates at Jamie's place thereafter.

They were going over some papers with sums of money, which of course meant that Hera had completely lost interest, so her phone ringing was a bit of a relief. Jamie was glaring at her, so Hera gave her an apologetic look before answering the phone.

"Hi, who is it?" Her tone was overly cheerful, which was the usual for answering the phone.

Jamie face-palmed, causing Hera to shoot her a curious look. "You didn't check the caller?" Jamie was trying to whisper and shout at the same time, the result being not very quiet and having the added bonus of being slightly difficult to understand.

Hera shook her head no, and motioned for Jamie to shut up.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia had planned out everything. Every detail. Even the words she would use when talking to Hera. That all went out the window when she heard Hera's voice. She suddenly choked up, unsure of herself. She managed a weak, "I..." Then a short pause later she continued, "I have another job for us to do." Her voice lacked its usual cold edge as she forgot herself when Hera picked up.

If Hera was upset with her, or refused, she wasn't sure how she'd proceed. She knew she should apologize, but it was so difficult. Sweat started to trickle down her back and the pits of her arms, making her feel uncomfortable as she waited for Hera's reply.

 

[Araellion]

"Oh." Hera didn't even know what exactly she was reacting to. A part of her wasn't surprised that it would be Persia calling. The only other people who called were Jamie and her mom after all. Who else but Persia could it be?

"I don't know. I'm busy with work right now." The work was still only in the planning stage and Hera could probably get out of it, but she still felt bad about skipping out of the meetings a week ago and leaving Jamie with overtime. She wasn't about to go and do that again.

"Besides, I am a tad bit cross with you," Hera said softly, not intending to or wanting to upset the girl. "If you want us to work together you actually have to talk to me."

Jamie's gaze was burning with curiosity, and a dark part of Hera delighted in making her wait. She gave her a serene smile, and once again shook her head when Jamie motioned for Hera to put the phone on speaker. With a roll of the eyes, Jamie crawled over and put her ear to the other side of the phone so she could hear as well.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

Persia started to feel panicked. Her throat dried, her jaw became tense. She felt like she was losing Hera. She didn't know what to say. Should she apologize? Should she tell her she'll work harder to talk to her? Her mind was panicking, but all she could muster was an, "I need you." Her voice had lost its edge. It was soft, almost a whisper, containing all over her secrets in those three words. She almost added in, 'for the job,' as an afterthought, but her mind was still too panicked, even for her muscle memory to take over.

Persia paced about her room. She held the phone with one hand and bit her nails with the other. A habit she hasn't done for many years, since she used to be bullied in school. Sweat continued to drench her clothes as her nervousness continued. She felt so stupid, being in this situation. What was it she wanted anyways? Why was she trying so hard? Was it Hera's warm, caring personality? Was it her looks? The way she walked? Smelled? Smiled? Her soft, gentle touch? The way she laughed when Persia said mean things, like Hera knew she didn't mean them? She felt like hanging up and forgetting the whole thing. The whole situation was stupid.

 

[Araellion]

Hera let out a soundless sigh, not sure how to respond. She leaned into Jamie who was still plastered to her side to hear the phone. At least her being close was comforting. Didn't make it easier to figure out what to say though. All she wanted right now was to not think about it, and curl up on the floor and relax.

"So you promise to talk with me? That's all I'm asking, darling." Her voice had a soft, soothing quality to it. Like she was trying to tame a wild animal. Not that bad of a comparison when she thought about it, but she would never let Persia know about her thoughts. As honest as Hera was, even she knew that some things were better kept to herself.

A part of her was protesting. As much as she wanted to make Persia feel better, Hera did have other things to do. Not only that, but Persia hadn't been good to her so far. But something in the girl's voice made Hera want to at least check up on her.

 

[PauciloquentPumpkin]

"Fine, whatever." Was Persia's reply. She didn't mean to say that, it just slipped out as an automatic response. She wished she had said it in a nicer tone. She wondered if it was too late to add in, "I will." Well, it slipped, so it was too late to wonder now.

Persia's index fingernail was chewed to bits as she moved on to her second one. She felt like she was in her public speaking class again in high school. The same nervous feeling overcame her body. She twisted and turned as her clothes began sticking to her body, increasingly wet from nervous sweat.