catchall; ylfa

[ohthehumanities]

I put ylfa on my shoulders and run away fastly

Comments

[honkinbigteeth]

[she nods. and then sort of tilts her head and smiles.]

He said it, but I can't imagine he's alone in thinking it.

[ohthehumanities]

...No, I'm sure he isn't. [He doesn't seem angry about this--just kind of... dejected. It's a very "disappointed but not surprised" demeanor.] But even so, I can't sit back and say nothing.

[honkinbigteeth]

[she sort of smiles at that. almost like it's cute.]

I know. It's maybe not the best idea to make him an enemy, but...I understand what you were going for. It would be really nice if we all agreed just to play games and do tasks to compete.

[ohthehumanities]

[Kaveh waves a hand dismissively.]

I'm not afraid of him. I'm not as delicate as I look. [This man wears dangly earrings? Maybe it's fine.] But yes, it would've been.

Still--I can't ask people not to fight for their lives. I do understand that. I just wish that the survival of the winners didn't have to come at the hands of others. They'll have to live with that burden for the rest of their lives.

[And sure, he knows that not everybody will be broken up about it, or drown in guilt, but... still. It's asking a lot.]

[honkinbigteeth]

[this twink. she finds it endearing.]

It would be a lot better if we could just compete based on tasks and competitions.

[ohthehumanities]

[He's just out here saying things with his whole chest.]

Yes, it would. [Sigh. He chews on his lip, then glances at her.] Do you have a team settled, Ylfa?

[honkinbigteeth]

[nodding...]

Gerard is setting something up. But I know I have to focus and try to get us home. I mean, there's a lot riding on us.

[ohthehumanities]

Gerard...? Oh, yes, the--prince. [Right.] I didn't know you two were from the same place.

[honkinbigteeth]

He is my precious companion.

[she says this like she got this phrasing from someone else.]

[ohthehumanities]

[Kaveh. Squints.]

Are you sure?

[honkinbigteeth]

Yes! We're buds. We've been traveling together for a while now.

[ohthehumanities]

[He will just. Accept this, politely and a little awkwardly.]

Right. Well, I'm glad you're with someone you can trust--that makes it easier.

[honkinbigteeth]

Well, I'd rather he wasn't dead. And I'm a little worried about everyone else, too...but it's a lot less lonely to have a good friend.

I kind of found this group after things broke bad a bit back where I'm from, and I'm not quite sure I'm ready to be a lone wolf.

[ohthehumanities]

[DAMN, HOW RELATABLE THOUGH. Kaveh's gaze softens into sympathy. I hope Ylfa knows that Kaveh will kill everyone in this room and then himself if anything happens to her.]

...Yes. I wish Nahida wasn't here, as well. [For a lot of reasons. He tilts his head slightly, though.] Will you tell me about your group? If you don't mind, of course.

[honkinbigteeth]

Back home, you mean?

...Well, Mother was my neighbor. He used to read stories to the kids when I was growing up, so I guess I figured he was as trustworthy an adult as any. He had some problems of his own involving his son, so I started tagging along to keep him safe. He's not much of a fighter, but he has some impressive spells.

On the road, we ran into Princess Rosamund and Prince Gerard, and Pinocchio and Pib. You already know Gerard. Rosamund is the best, she's my hero. She's a beautiful princess who was supposed to be woken up from a hundred year sleep by her true love, but he never showed up so she's figuring it out. You would think she'd be conceited since she's royalty but she's so nice and she knows everything about navigating in the forest. Pinocchio has a very scary stepmother who asked him to look after Rosamund. He looks like a puppet, but he's actually a real boy. He's very smart and good at magic. Pib is a cat, but not a normal cat. He wears boots and he's trickstery.

[ohthehumanities]

[Kaveh nods along as she speaks, propping his chin in his hand to listen. It's something he can comprehend in theory, of course, but while he has plenty of friends, even close ones, he thinks it's likely not the same.]

That's quite the group. I'm not much of a traveler myself--not like you all, I mean.

[honkinbigteeth]

Neither was I. Never went further than grandma's house in the woods.

[ohthehumanities]

[Kaveh nods again, then falls quiet for a moment. When he speaks again, it's more tentative, like he'll pull back if he's being too nosy.]

...You're trying to get back to them, then? Your group?

[honkinbigteeth]

...Yeah. I really want to get back to them. I think they're going to need me.

[ohthehumanities]

[Kaveh's gaze softens. It's not touch week yet so he doesn't try to ruffle her ears or anything, but the Caring Vibe is still there.]

...Don't worry. We'll get you home.

[honkinbigteeth]

[awww, kaveh. she seems touched anyway.]

Hey, that's not up to you. You need to worry about getting yourself home.

[ohthehumanities]

[Does he, though, Ylfa... what if he rips off his mask and reveals he was Scaramouche all along...]

Mm. [Wow, how noncommittal] I'll still try to figure something out. We have a little time.

[Before people get desperate enough to do murders, maybe.]

[honkinbigteeth]

[ylfa would like scaramouche just fine so that's okay by her.

...anyway, she's not stupid, so.]

Good. Because Nahida is depending on you. Imagine how much it would hurt for someone like her to be unable to protect even the one person she most wants to.