Wade Briggs in Still Star-Crossed (s1) as Benvolio Montague

part 1 / ? .

❝ a less trusting person might think this all sounds very suspicious. ❞ ❝ you say all the right words, but i’m not sure you mean the right things. ❞ ❝ i know somewhere quiet. somewhere intimate. somewhere we can…indulge in each other. ❞ ❝ eugh, don’t be nice to me. it makes me want to be nice back. ❞ ❝ we needn’t be enemies. there’s plenty of those to go around already. ❞ ❝ there’s a steeliness to you, an unwavering tenacity in the face of, to be frank, quite dire odds. ❞ ❝ even the waves of fate can break upon the shores of will. ❞ ❝ i appreciate anyone that opens a conversation with threats of bodily harm. ❞ ❝ oh, you know me - ever the optimist. i’m trying to focus on the positives. ❞ ❝ i’m not easily impressed by people, but you’re stronger than i gave you credit for. ❞ ❝ there’s an air about you. something alien. ❞ ❝ loosen the grip on your pride for one blasted moment, won’t you? ❞ ❝ it’s been a long time since someone stuck their neck out for me like that. ❞ ❝ there’s something odd about this village. people skulk around like they’ve something to hide. ❞ ❝ you know, if you want to spend time with me, you only have to say so. ❞ ❝ i want to know what the world sees when it looks at me. what you see. ❞ ❝ what’s better than a devil you don’t know? a devil you do. ❞ ❝ you must know that you’re…that you’re very special to me. ❞ ❝ the gods are nothing if not vindictive in their vengeance. ❞ ❝ stay with me a while, will you? day will come all too soon. ❞ ❝ here’s my little treat with their cheeks all flushed. ❞ ❝ i am terrified. i will not claim otherwise. ❞ ❝ my apologies. i’m not quite myself yet. i had the strangest dream last night. ❞ ❝ we didn’t die today. tomorrow, perhaps. but not today. ❞ ❝ leader’s need to make tough decisions. we do what we must. ❞ ❝ i think that unknowable powers come with unknowable consequences. ❞ ❝ i’ve had a lifetime’s fill of watching little men puff themselves up with grand titles. ❞ ❝ in these times, all we can trust are the blades in our hands. ❞ ❝ it’s not easy to turn away from one you once loved. ❞ ❝ much has been promised to you, hasn’t it? but what has been taken from you? ❞ ❝ damn it all. i can do nothing right - not a damn thing. ❞ ❝ every instinct i have tells me that nothing’s changed. that i’m still just a means to an end. ❞ ❝ do not speak of a story you only know the half of. ❞ ❝ i dreamt every night that you’d come back to me. that somehow it was all a nightmare dawn would undo. ❞ ❝ when the time comes to strike, you must take it. for there may be only one chance. ❞ ❝ your eyes. there is pain, endless and deep. but also devotion - blazing like the sun. ❞ ❝ you’re adorable even when you’re teasing me. ❞ ❝ i don’t need your help, and i don’t need your pity. ❞ ❝ i’m more than what i was. and i’m not afraid of anything any more. ❞ ❝ i said exactly what i meant: i love you. you should never, never doubt that. ❞ ❝ this is all like some sort of terrible dream. but it’s real, isn’t it? ❞ ❝ there is no redemption. can’t you see? it is too late. ❞ ❝ i don’t know that it was brave. i just know that it was right. ❞ ❝ you took those bastards down like it was nothing. it…was amazing. ❞ ❝ they underestimated me. so they paid the price. ❞ ❝ we fight, we die, and we just hope that when our time comes, there is someone else to take our place. ❞ ❝ unfortunately for me, you’re my friend. rescuing you from mortal peril is my right. ❞ ❝ what did you think i was going to say? 'oh, come here, i'll kiss you better'? ❞ ❝ flowers are so overrated. they're bright, gaudy, and almost never make good poisons. ❞ ❝ i’ve been lied to, my whole life. and i was gullible enough to just believe it. ❞ ❝ you know, i never pictured myself as a hero. never thought i'd be the one they toast for saving so many lives. and now that i'm here…i hate it. ❞ ❝ you know, i feel a connection between us. like we're two souls walking the same path. ❞ ❝ the forgiving sort, are you? you should be careful. plenty would take advantage of that. ❞

... at least Varka makes sense. Maybe this is even the first time young Rosaria hears anyone in this city make any sense at all - blessings from the Anemo Archon are all well and good, but what's a blessing really doing to protect a city? Do people really expect that at the first sign of an issue, their beloved Barbatos is going to spring from his box and save the day, and all will be well that ends well?

That's not how the world works, and she resents the Church for trying to convince her otherwise. She resents Sister Victoria for treating her like the child she is, for giving talks of embracing the light-heartedness of childhood and youth while she still can, while not forgetting her noviceship and the responsibilities entailed.

That's right. Rosaria hasn't been a child in a very long time, and there is maybe a little hint of pride simmering in her chest, in that connivence established between her and Varka - two veterans who have seen the world for what it is, and aren't afraid of saying it and staring right back at its ugly face.

at her other question, varka barked out a laugh. the tenseness of his tone was now long gone as he spoke,

feel free to change pronouns / wording!

“ do you remember what comes next? ”

“ when can we bury him? ”  

“ the ground is too cold to dig. ”  

“ it was dark, see what you wanna see sometimes. ”

“ i sensed doubt in there. ”  

“ i need to know you’re with me. ”  

“ you think we can just take it? ”  

“ any sudden moves, i put one right between your eyes. ”

“ we didn’t even hear you coming. ”  

“ you can’t drag this back on your own. ”  

“ i’m not following you anywhere. ”  

“ it’s not code, do as i said. ”  

“ you know, you really shouldn’t be out here all on your own. ”

“ from where i’m sitting, you shouldn’t be out here on your own. ”

“ it’s hard to trust strangers. ”  

“ is this some weird cult thing? ”  

“ the whole world ended and you still believe that shit. ”

“ i actually started believing after the world ended. ”  

“ luck? there’s no such thing as luck. ”  

“ i believe everything happens for a reason. ”  

“ you won’t survive for long out there. ”  

“ i can protect you. ”  

“ you should kill him. ”  

“ i’m gonna lead them away from you, but if anybody makes it down here you fucking kill them, you got it? ”

“ do not fall asleep. ”  

“ you so hungry for vengeance? deliver it. ”  

“ i started worrying you wouldn’t wake up. ”  

“ why am i in a cage? ”  

“ i’m afraid of you. ”  

“ you’re a dangerous person, you’ve certainly proven that. ”

“ the others, they want me to kill you for all that’s happened. ”

“ i stopped them. ”  

“ you can’t survive on your own, no one can. ”  

“ i’m not on my own. ”  

“ you focus right here, or i’ll pop your fucking kneecap off. ”

“ you’re gonna chop me up into little pieces. ”  

“ you don’t believe that. ”  

“ you remind me of me. ”  

“ you have a violent heart. ”  

“ what did you say? everything happens for a reason, right? ”

“ no one infected fights this hard to stay alive. ”  

“ neither one of us is dying today. ”  

“ it’s me. ”  

“ it’s okay, baby girl. i got you. ”  

“ you fucking tell them. ”  

“ you’re so tough. ”  

“ it’s not your fault. ”  

“ i can’t kill you. ”  

“ have you ever played this? boggle? it’s a word game. ”

“ if you want to beat me at something it would be this. ”

“ i haven’t played in forever. ”  

“ i was thinking maybe i could teach you. ”  

“ you want to learn how to play guitar? ”  

“ i was thinking we blast our way through that rubble. ”

“ i’ll give you a boost. ”  

“ you kinda seem extra quiet today. ”  

“ don’t scare it. ”  

“ is it everything you hoped for? ”  

“ can’t deny that view. ”  

“ maybe there’s nothing bad out there but so far there’s always been something bad out there. ”

“ i’m only saying there’s risk. ”  

“ after all we’ve been through, everything i’ve done - it can’t be for nothing. ”

“ i know you want to protect me. ”  

“ i’ll follow you anywhere you go. ”  

“ there’s no half-way with this, we finish what we started. ”

“ they were way better at stitching you up than i was. ”  

“ there’s no story. ”  

“ i couldn’t see the point anymore. ”  

“ i couldn’t have been more ready. ”  

“ when i went to pull the trigger i flinched. ”  

“ so time heals all wounds, i guess. ”  

“ you know what i’m in the mood for? shitty puns. ”  

“ people are making apocalypse jokes like there’s no tomorrow. too soon? ”

“ moon rocks taste better than earth rocks. why? because they’re meteor. ”

“ what did the green grape say to the purple grape? breathe, you idiot. ”

“ you got hit pretty hard. ”  

“ you are the one person i never wanted to be in debt to, but i owe you. ”

“ there is no one else. ”

“ i’m the only one who understands. ”  

“ he tries anything, shoot him. ”  

“ i didn’t hear anyone say ‘stop’. ”  

“ i don’t have time for this. ”  

“ how did you get in here? ”  

“ you can’t keep her safe forever. ”  

“ it isn’t for you to decide. ”  

“ it’s not too late, even now, even after what you’ve done. ”

“ it’s alright, you’re with me. ”  

“ take it slow, the drugs are still wearing off. ”  

“ they’ve stopped looking for a cure. ”  

“ i barely got you out of there. ”  

“ were people hurt? ”  

“ i’m taking us home. ”  

“ she got us close enough, we gotta walk the rest of the way. ”

“ bet you would’ve liked her back. ”  

“ not much further now. ”  

“ she got bit, too. ”  

“ she was the first to die. ”  

“ that’s not on you. ”  

“ sometimes things don’t work out the way we hope. ”  

bruce smiled into the frigde as he listen to the boy talk.... it was honestly hard not to. the energy the kid gave off was hard not to feel effected by it. bruce felt himself constantly almost being taken back by it.

closing the fridge. though as even with bruce's basic knowledge of cooking he knew those options weren't ones he could find in the fridge and also due to this knowledge he had enough self-awareness with it that even if he did... it would probably be better for everyone if he just order some food.