drawsblood | { inbox for ximilia }

Hm. Doesn't taste like it.

[ But that doesn't stop him from taking another swig. ]

I'm not sure a dog would enjoy being on this station. It would never wish to leave the sunlight room, as I so often feel. But perhaps after this is all finished.

[ He trails off, thinking of the miracle it would be if he actually gets this magic reversed. ]

It was. A great deal of walking and fighting.

[ He holds the bottle by the neck and turns it back and forth in a gentle sort of shake as he speaks before offering it back. ]

Will this help you sleep?

Doesn’t seem like you mind.

[She watches him as he takes another swig from the bottle, leaning against the arm of the chair.]

Pretty sure they’d never even allow one here anyway.

[She thinks about how he wouldn’t even remember this conversation, and that feeling of sadness strengthens again. Taking the bottle from him, she takes a shots worth. She can feel the threat of tears so she hands it back to him, and scratches at the side of her face to hide her eyes from view as she looks around the room. Using it as an excuse that she’s just observing what his room is like.]

I don’t know, maybe. I’m kind of a night owl.

[Once she’s pretty confident that she’s not actually about to cry, Daisy turns her attention back onto him.]

What about you?

[ His room doesn't give much insight into his character. Besides the dirty clothes peeking out from under the bed, he has a knapsack propped up in a corner and a bottle of whiskey on his bedside table along with a plain, white pill bottle. There are some empty food wrappers and perhaps through the open closet door she can make out the shine of more silver foil packaging from the food he's hoarded in there. Purely out of a need to be prepared should the station get taken over by a rough AI again and they're deprived of supply drops.

But in the time she's looking around he observes the state she's in and takes an interest in reading the side of the vodka bottle. Joric really doesn't know what to say to crying women. He lives under the assumption that anything he says in emotional situations just makes things worse, so he never says anything at all. And when she turns the conversation back to him? Well, he's thinking maybe she's not ready to talk about it, whatever has her feeling upset. ]

Hm?

[ Looking up from the bottle, he needs a moment to digest what she's said. ]

Oh. No, not really. I tend to awaken early.

[Daisy notices the pill bottle and is quick to look away from it, feeling as though even just glancing at it is an invasion of privacy.]

I didn’t take you for a morning person.

[She doesn’t reach for the bottle yet, instead choosing to wait for the rest of what she’s drank to sink in. Chewing on the inside of her cheek, Daisy looks towards the ceiling for a moment. Blinking away the tears before they can fall.]

I can go, if it’s late for you.

Edited 2023-02-16 06:07 (UTC)

I was a soldier. We always had to awaken early to do chores around camp, or break it down and march.

[ He doesn't answer right away. The normal thing to do would be to ask if she wants to talk about what's upsetting her, but Joric is about as emotionally constipated as they come. You would have to drag his feelings out of him at knife point for all he expresses. But he recognizes she's hurting and he sets the bottle on the floor beside the leg of the chair. ]

Do you want to go?

[Frowning, Daisy looks down at her hands that she’s twisting in her lap. She wasn’t great at talking about her feelings either, but even just choosing to be here instead of alone in her room was an improvement to how she usually handled things like this.

She shakes her head no in response to his question.]

I don’t want to be alone right now.

[An honest answer, that definitely wouldn’t have been as easy to say if she were sober.]

All right.

[ So now two people that don't know how to talk about feelings are just hanging out together while one of them is upset. Joric is just going to stare at spots around the room like he thinks he'll find answers there. ]

[Chewing on the inside of her cheek again, Daisy sits in silence for a few minutes until she finally brings up the subject of why she’s so upset.]

Did you hear what Newt said? Over comms.

[ Oh. That makes sense. He really only recognized two names on that list and that was from only one interaction with them. He can see how that would hit harder for those who have formed bonds here. ]

I did. You are feeling the loss of them?

[Daisy nods, looking up at the ceiling as if that will keep the tears from falling. It doesn’t and she’s quick to wipe at her cheeks when she feels them rolling down.]

Do you know what happens when we leave?

Well, we must recover all orbs and have done our personal goals to have the power to undo our regrets so I suppose they go home without their regret undone.

[Daisy shakes her head,]

We forget everything and everyone from here.

[ He's silent for a long moment before he ventures to ask: ]

And you wish to be remembered by them?

I’ve—

[Daisy swallows thickly, pushing the knot out of her throat.]

I’ve been here almost two years. I don’t want to forget that, or all of the people I’ve met here. People I’ve come to care about.

[ It's honestly not something he's considered before. Since he hadn't known what happened to those who went home, obviously this hasn't been a topic to dwell on, but on the other hand, he didn't think much about what he'd look back on once he was home. Maybe he's lacking in sentimentality, or maybe he's just being dumb. Either are just as likely for him. ]

I can see why, but if nothing can be done to prevent it than all you can do is enjoy what you have while you have it.

[She’s seen the other side of this all. How her father just forgot her, and while she knows he’s a happier person because of his memory being wiped, it doesn’t prevent the hurt she feels.

That was going to be her one day, just forgetting the people she cares about exist. She won’t even search for them because she won’t remember them. And she can’t enjoy what she has because there’s something she can’t have.

Someone, specifically.

It’s a selfish thought, and so is her next thought as her eyes fall to his lips. That maybe she can have a short lived distraction from the pain.]

Is that your plan?

I honestly haven't given it much thought.

[ He's not about to admit to what his life was like before arriving here. Isolating himself, living in the wilds, and just wallowing in his situation. Any type of interaction with others without risk of turning on them is a blessing. ]

I suppose I'm not taking any of this for granted, but once I return to my land this will be behind me. I can accept that.

We’re going to forget each other exists.

[And while she may not be nearly as close to him as she is with others here, she’s enjoyed getting to know him.

Reaching for the bottle again, Daisy takes a long swig before holding it out in offer to him.]

Yes.

[ But if that's the way things have to be in order for them to undo their pasts, than he'll accept it. ]

But we're not home yet. So we exist to each other now.

[ He takes the bottle and likewise takes a long swig. This will probably be the last of it he has to drink tonight. ]

[Daisy smiles sadly when he points out that they’re not home yet. And that selfish thought crosses her mind again as she watches him drink from the bottle,]

We do.

[She reaches a hand, tentatively placing it on his leg.]

[ The touch is definitely welcome, though he does have a caveat if she's thinking of more. ]

I don't kiss crying women, so are your tears all dried up now?

[That gets a weak but genuine laugh out of her as she leans forward in the chair, closer to him.]

They are.

[And this time she’s not at risk for getting her lips torn apart by his tusks.]

[ Always a plus to not draw blood while making out. He shifts to the edge of the bed to meet her but it still seems too far so he grips the arms of the chair and scoots it with her in it closer to him. ]

Good.

[Not expecting to be pulled closer while sitting in the chair, Daisy’s eyes go wide in surprise. Smiling for the first time in a few days, her eyes fall to his lips again before leaning in to kiss him.

Joel was right about having distractions, but right now? That’s exactly what she needs.]

Edited 2023-02-17 19:12 (UTC)

[ He can't say he minds being used as a distraction. Maybe if he ever needs one someday she'll return the favor. His lips meet hers and it's definitely better now that his mouth is the right shape again. There's no hesitation because there's no risk of injury via tusk so he just goes for it and cups her jaw in his hand. ]

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject