INASSOUVI

Whatever choice of innuendo, whatever game she is imploring— there is no denying he is shocked by her nerve. He is tossed right in the middle of her ocean, figuring how much force was needed to keep himself afloat, and how much could cause a venturi effect. He was only confident that if he let her, she could drag him down to the depths with her. Thankfully, he was not yet committed to the thought of damnation with her. He was perfectly willing to flirt with it but not succumb to it.

He doesn’t answer at first, given time to contemplate his agitating and catastrophic thoughts with a bite of the soup. It’s good, of course. But his tongue feels heavy, and Will is thoroughly stuck for the right words. Toying with him, he wants to complain, but it would only come out petulant now. There is also the conflicting desire to just bite her and remind her precisely who she was being coquettish with. She would certainly rethink her words.

the silence sets a boundary. he doesn't need to say another word for her to back off. no bite needed, naturally, though it's hard to say how things might've evolved if he did; would she bite back? would she fear? or would it merely make her blood run hotter?

alas, the illusion of normalcy must remain, and she puts the devouring creature in her to sleep.

“ mhmm, ” is all she says to his compliment. no mention of his promise to kiss the chef whatsoever. the chef continues feeding, one spoon to him for every two to herself, giving him as much space to reject anything held before his mouth. soon, the bowl is empty, and she gathers everything for washing. a few dogs follow her to the kitchen and back, entirely helpless to reading the room.

“ do you feel better now? ” she has dried her hands with a towel and then with her sweater, but her hands are still cold. she sits next to him once more, pressing the back of her hand against his forehead. “ let me know when you want to sleep. i'll stay on the couch. ”

Probably more so than him. She has no one; her reality was just these inflexible experiences of memorizing about other people, and Will G at least has the others he experiences throughout his shifts at Lumon. Data Refinement and the others in his own branch. They’re all innies–people he has become bound to. They have their own individual purposes and desires outside of their outtie’s wants for them. Were they not deserving of it? 

His eyes blink down to her exposed arms. At first, his expression doesn’t shift. And then it does. His misdirected fury at her for her ignorance is directed at the appropriate culprit. Something unsettled and enormously uncomfortable settles in his gut, eyes darting to the cameras in the corner of the room. Someone was watching them now. How much longer until someone comes and breaks them apart?

Will G stands, traversing the space between them, hands closing around her wrist firmly as he pulls her up, yanking her towards the door, not slowing to catch her up from her stumbling. 

Enough was fucking enough. 

maybe she is made obedient. maybe she simply has not learnt the specific response to manhandling yet. either way, despite her stumble, she gravitates towards him and the door, amazed by the beast that pounds in her chest.

hello. she thinks to herself. i thought you were dead.

there is no clue how she knew of that concept, the distinction between life and death; for all she knows, the only observable hint of life in her is the way she breathes, calm and leveled, a simple motion that brings her whatever miniscule relief she can afford. and now she is really, really breathing. will leads her down the hallway, taking turns she was never allowed to take; she breaths with her mouth open, very ungraceful, the exact opposite of what lumon prefers.

this place is a maze. at their third turn, miss rosey finds herself thinking; curiously, Will G seems to realise this too. with limited experience to the corridors, miss rosey has only a few hints to whether they are taking the correct path, one being the presence of obstruction.

“ stop where you are! ”

Lauma  too  remains  quiet  as  the  move  ,  conserving  any  energy  she  had  for  the  short  journey.  She  tried  once  to  let  go  and  support  herself  once  they  were  in  some  what  of  a  steady  rhythem  ,  but  it  seems  she  needed  more  support  than  she  would  have  liked  in  this  moment.  Keeping  her  eyes  down  towards  the  cobbles  of  mondstadts  streets  ,  Lauma  was  thankful  that  no  one  seemed  to  know  her  here.  If  she  had  been  in  Nasha  town  ,  the  poor  moonchanter  would  have  been  stopped  multiple  times  already.

Her  room  was  on  the  first  floor  ,  well  sized  ,  aesthetically  it  seemed  to  fit  in  with  the  rest  of  what  Lauma  had  seen  of  the  city  so  far.  She  was  thankful  once  her  bed  came  into  view  and  she  was  finally  away  from  the  sun.  ❝  I  will  repay  you  somehow  for  your  kindness  ❞ ,  speaking  to  Rosaria  once  again  now  she  was  able  to  sit.  ❝  even  if  the  price  be  to  never  speak  to  me  again  ❞ ,  a  sorrowful  smile  ,  but  Lauma  didn't  know  what  Rosaria  was  thinking  after  all  this  time.

there's considerable silence between her first sentence and the second, time well used to arrange her thoughts and preen her words and weed out her madness. soon enough, lauma will return to nod krai; there won't be another encounter in the foreseeable future. and this, whatever this mess is, will have time to fade away.

“ it was fun. but that's all i'm up for. i should've communicated better before starting anything. that's on me. ” there are many things she could say. the only word she won't say is sorry. no, she isn't sorry for being who she is. “ i'll have someone bring you a parasol. ”

Jean  had  let  it  go  last  night  ,  if  Rosaria  wanted  to  get  patched  up  alone  ,  the  acting  grandmaster  was  not  going  to  take  that  away  from  her  but  today  ,  she  would  be  continuing  the  conversation.  Having  already  cleared  having  a  quiet  word  the  Rosaria  through  sister  Victoria  ,  Jean  would  like  to  see  what  kind  of  escape  she  would  put  up  this  time.

❝  not  so  fast  Rosaria  ❞ ,  the  acting  grandmaster  catches  up  to  the  other  ,  lowering  her  voice  now  so  only  the  two  of  them  could  hear.  ❝  are  you  alright  today  ?  ❞ were  her  wounds  clean  ,  did  she  need  anything  ?  too  many  questions  might  just  scare  her  away  ,  Jean  would  keep  it  simple  for  now.

hate might be too strong a word, but she is nothing if not extreme. mondstadt's kindness is the only reason she has a home, and yet it's a weight that often suffocates her. all the well-meaning souls with their all-encompassing goodness cannot begin to comprehend how a crooked woman like her feels under their constant watch. when everyone, consciously or not, tries to fix you.

jean walks over. she considers her options and decides to make a run for it. even if she can't get away, jean will certainly pick up on the hint and keep it short.

“ acting grandmaster, ” rosaria turns her head to offer a nod. she is putting on her best poker face as to not let her frustration show. “ of course, all is well. ”

in case that's not convincing enough, she gives jean a thumbs up. “ don't you have work to do? ”

Jean  knew  better  than  to  jump  down  the  others  throat  with  concern  ,  at  least  not  here  out  in  public.  There  was  no  doubting  that  Rosaria  was  being  serious  ,  which  did  lead  the  acting  grand  master  to  frown  ,  suddenly  hoping  there  was  something  she  could  do  to  lessen  the  load  that  made  life  in  Mondstadt  that  unbearable. 

Still  there  were  many  things  Jean  wasn't  privvy  to  knowing  ,  and  she  wasn't  someone  who  could  fix  everything  with  the  click  of  her  fingers  ,  but  perhaps  watching  out  for  Rosaria  a  little  more  going  forward  could  be  a  step  in  the  right  direction. 

She  can't  help  but  blush  as  Rosaria  commends  her  ,  ❝  okay  shhh  ❞ feeling  her  head  sink  a  little  into  her  neck  ,  Jean  still  cared  about  apperances  ,  drinking  in  the  middle  of  the  day  was  not  something  the  acting  grandmaster  should  be  caught  doing  ,  even  on  her  birthday.

❝  please  don't  tell  me  there  is  some  thing  planned  ?  ❞ she  hated  a  fuss.

“ that's my guess. by the way, you didn't hear if from me. ” she refuses to confirm or deny it, but that alone should be enough an answer. “ and i certainly won't tell you what to do or where to go. angel's share is packed as it is on a regular weekend. you might prefer some private time on your big day. who's to say? ”

sorry to everyone who is breaking their back to make this party happen.