okay well the most important thing to note here is that she nearly drops the drink he pushes at her on the floor. the ears popping into existence, surrounded by his already very fluffy hair that she thinks would be fun to pet, is the end for her, actually. she was going to try and respond in any sensible way but there's no chance of that now.
[ ???? ?????? ???? ????? rondo starts looking around, left, then right?? his ears bounce when he does. they fit in so perfectly into his hair. his ponytail looks like a tail. it's ridiculous. ]
Uh. I think someone brought a dog, right? There's got to be a dog around here somewhere...
[ he will find you a dog (he is the dog) he will find ]
this is wildly embarrassing, but. her eyes are just on his dumb dog ears? she watches them flop around, and then, instinctively, as he looks in the other direction, she reaches up and touches them. she's going to pet the ears, by god.
this is stupid already, she's just bright pink with a drink in her hand, her free hand stretched out to scritch his brand new golden retriever ones.]
throné kneecapped by a dog. this is fair. he is very surprised when she suddenly is in his space (and her face is so pink! that's a new one!!) and reaching up, and then - oh.
.... oh why does that feel so nice. first of all. these ears are so soft. they fit perfectly in among all of his golden curls but they are extra fluffy, and being scratched behind the (dog) ears is a new experience that is also really nice??? instinctually he ducks his head into it, eyes closing
and then blinks. ]
-- Wait, what? [ and reaches up to try and touch them... except.... nooo that feels so good maybe he'll just focus on that........ ]
[there is really absolutely not a lot of things that can make throné anguis blush - she's a solidly stoic woman and she's seen so much in her life that shame is one of those things she usually lacks. it's funny that he's managed to stumble into one of the only things that can make that happen. tiny cute animals, like puppies or kitties, make all her defenses shatter.
he's cute as is, which she's stubbornly been not thinking about, and the dog ears on top of that make her weak. she scritches at his ear, watching him arch into it a little, and then he speaks and she realizes what she's doing with a very abrupt startle.
she snatches her hand back, staring at him.]
... You have dog ears. I like... dogs. [this drink is awful. ohhhh she wants to sink into the floor. let the earth reclaim her. give her freedom from being alive.]
[ ???? ??? this is a very silly drink. he kind of reaches up to touch his ears when she pulls her hands away, then the sides of his face to feel that his human normal ears sure aren't there, and then pauses, hands still resting there, looking at throné.
... ]
....you didn't have to stop...
[ she liked it??? also he did too so she should... keep doing that that was nice?? ??? ???? he does look a little embarrassed but mostly he looks the tiniest bit forlorn like a true puppy. the ears droop. ]
[like, she thinks she should stop? she's pretty sure she should, but she wants to keep petting and he looks so sad that she did. there's this errant thought that this is how all dogs feel when you stop petting them and they just can't tell you how they feel in words, and it makes her a little verklempt, actually. so carefully, she leans forward and scritches his ears again.
she's going to just take a very long drink from her glass. whew. okay. she doesn't have any words for this! her words have died, also.]
welll okay now he's embarrassed. and yet! and yet, his head ducks into her hand anyway, and if he rubs into it, it's not on purpose. he mutters, cheeks starting to go very pink: ]
[her own drink is kicking her ass and she doesn't realize it, help. she'll just pet him gently, easing her fingers to the places he seems to like the best based on how he rubs into it. she's a little mortified that her cool mysterious persona is utterly disarmed by dogs and he knows it, but also, he's embarrassed and that gives her Bullying Strength]
I - it is very strange! [ this is so mortifying. but, flustered, he also rubs into her hands and peeks at her from under his bangs. ] ... I am guessing yours doesn't make people want to just pet fluffy animals...?
No, I don't need a drink to want that. [she says, and then immediately makes an expression that's like... offended? bamboozled. like she surprised herself with what she said and now she's who is that dog in the mirror-ing at herself.]
... I think that I am either drunk, or this drink is making me... say things. [NYEH
also she instinctively brushes his bangs into his eyes like a bully. don't look at her she's dying]
[ okay. focus, focus, don't think about the ear scratches. if his head tilts into it a little further even while rondo is very clearly trying to keep his full attention on throné and consider the drink related problem that she is currently having, then don't worry about it. ]
... You don't seem very drunk to me - ack! [ and then his bangs re in his face!! he sputters a little, reaching up to try and get them back out of his eyes. like a baby. ] Hey, don't distract from it...!
[... casually scritches at a different angle to see if she can get his leg to start kicking, tbh
the spluttering makes her smirk just slightly, but:]
I don't feel drunk. [anyway she's not getting into what her drink does, she refuses to elaborate] This is the natural conclusion for you, I think. [dog ears is his final form]
Growing ears...? My natural conclusion is supposed to be the Flameguard...
[ he is BULLIED. as he turns his head another way to let her scritch another angle. like thank god there's not a tail involved because if he had one it would be wagging at a hundred miles an hour.
no! focus!! focus, rondo! do not kick your leg like a dog!! ]
So... talking. Saying things...? What kind of things is it making you say...? You haven't said anything - well, you said something embarrassing, but it was for me, not you.
[ about being a dog. because he is a dog. this is not very good for his dignity but then again, rondo doesn't actually have that much dignity? this is a key point of his character.
anyway. he is still leaning into the ear scritches but trying very valiantly to Not let throné steer the questions away. instead, earnestly, trying very hard to be helpful and/or comforting, he adds: ] ... You haven't said anything bad, Throné. Expressing the honest way you feel about things is a good thing.
[ and now that he's put his bangs back into place, he drops his hands into his lap. ] If there's something you're worried about saying, though, it'd be safe with me. I swear it on my honor as a Knight Ardante.
people don't, like. they just don't say things like this to her. some of the travelers are very good about this - hikari and partitio both have given her genuinely kind affirmations in the past, but it still makes her want to hide or deflect or just. yell, internally. this isn't even the worst she's heard, even! it's just that it's so earnest and she's not used to conversations where she doesn't have to be 100% on her guard at all times.
silence, for a moment, and then she pulls her hand away from his ears because it's not distracting him enough. this is now a punishment he can have pets when she's not pouting]
Yes, I know that you'd keep it to yourself. [she says finally, picking up the drink again. fidgety.] I don't like to tell people anything about myself, especially not how I feel. They'll use it against me. They always have.
[things the drink just has her say that it'd be like pulling teeth to get out of her otherwise for 500]
[ oh... this makes him frown, immediately. (the pets or the statement ? yes)
when throné pulls her hand away, he does reach up to kind of fix his fluff, though it does not work and he gives up on it immediately. his ears droop a little, and he frowns, scooting a little closer to her so no one can overhear their conversation. ]
... I'm sorry that people have used something like that against you. [ he can't even imagine that - then again, rondo wears his heart on his sleeve in every way possible. for better or for worse. ] Even the positive things... people can be awfully cruel, sometimes.
[ from what little he has gleaned about throné, it breaks his heart to hear it. he frowns a little further, looking down at his cup that he has now also abandoned. ]
I don't know that it helps, but... it makes me happy to hear about you. [ there's a beat - and then his ears perk! and he scoots a little closer. ] And if it makes you very uncomfortable, then perhaps I will just - not say anything! Until it passes. It shouldn't take too long, right? And then you wouldn't have to say anything you don't want to.
[she's... embarrassed? a little. when he scoots closer to her, she shifts, instinctively closing herself off, pulling her arms and legs in and making herself a bit smaller. it's a learned response to anybody getting close enough, not just him, and she has to convince herself to ease up. un-tense, not hug her arm around her waist as tightly as she's got it.
he's not a danger to her. she knows that. he's safe.]
You're ridiculous. [she says, and it'd be meaner or scarier if she wasn't so obviously pouting. a beat.] ... You're so kind. Someone is going to hurt you because of it, with all those stars in your eyes. I wish I could be like that.
[a
pause. puts her entire hand over her face with a groan.]
I don't think that it cares if you're silent or not. [she grits out.]
[ oh... throné thinks he's kind? the ridiculous comment is more normal, and he's touched, at first, visibly, actually touched, but as she continues...
well. rondo's smile softens a little - there's something unmistakably sad to it, and he decides not to address it when she keeps talking, instead just letting out a little laugh and a sympathetic, ] Oh, no.
[ poor throné. he lifts his hand to the bar to get a water sent down their way, then takes it and sets it gently in front of her when she's got her face in her hands. ]
I think you're very kind, Throné. [ maybe it makes it worse if he addresses it. should he address it. would solutions be better. ] Mm... well, maybe it's about what you think about? What are you thinking about? Maybe you can blurt out things that aren't too much that way...?
[screams!!! no!!! she isn't kind!!! she's an awful, selfish person and everybody should think that too!!!
she doesn't say anything about that part, swallowing it down roughly. she doesn't want to get into her self-esteem, because she isn't even really all that aware of it herself, and also because she doesn't like it when he looks sad. genuinely sad, not bullied.
which is why he catches her off guard with that question, even as she's reaching for the water:]
I'm thinking about how much I dislike making you look sad. [lord]
[ oh. see, this is why he thinks you're kind. because you are kind.
that's the first thing that crosses rondo's mind - he lifts his hands up for a moment, then presses them to his own face. what a genuine, sweet thing to say, even if she didn't mean to say it out loud, and rondo bites his lip to keep from making a bit deal about it, instead squishing his own cheeks gently. ]
Sad - I'm not sad. [ well. maybe it's obvious. ] You didn't do anything, I was just - you just reminded me of something, that's all. [ with a smile, bright: ] So, that's nothing to worry too much about!
[ and then the smile softens a little further. ] ... It's really sweet of you to say that, though. [ a beat. ] Even though you didn't want to say it - I'm not doing very well at being distracting.
[she's caught between like, being amused at him putting his hands on his face like he can feel if he's sad or not, and being mortified. she has her hand up, fingers massaging at the bridge of her nose, expression pinched, but. she's not mad at him! she is just exasperated with drinks like these, the ones that strip you of all privacy.]
... You do fine. [she says, after a minute, with a short sigh.] You're the one I look forward to talking to the most when things are difficult.
[she sounds resigned when she says, having given up.]
Don't say that I'm sweet. I'm not. You'll be disappointed.
[ ah. well. the resigned tone makes him look sympathetic, but he looks downright touched when she says that about talking to him, and then she immediately... ]
... Throné, you can't think saying things like that and then saying I'll be disappointed can exist in the same sphere, can you...?
[ these two statements cannot coexist ]
You're proving yourself wrong. [ a beat. ] Besides, it'd be really hard to disappoint me. I'm not unrealistic - [ and the bar is so unbelievably low, because the last person who turned out to be what they weren't turned his entire life and quite nearly all of orsterra on its head ] - and... you wouldn't let me believe a lie when it comes to that kind of thing, anyway.
it's not that she doesn't think he thinks that. there are a lot of very good people that she's known over her life that thought highly of her when they didn't know the extent of the worst of her. she wants to be good, she wants to be worth knowing, but she's tainted. she's had grave dirt embedded in her soul since she was born, and she knows that for sure, these days.]
Maybe I'm waiting for you to drop your guard so I can stab you in the back. [she says dryly. that's not the drink, sometimes you aren't sure what to say in response to someone so you're just an asshole instead.]
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[she says, thoughtfully, but then.
okay well the most important thing to note here is that she nearly drops the drink he pushes at her on the floor. the ears popping into existence, surrounded by his already very fluffy hair that she thinks would be fun to pet, is the end for her, actually. she was going to try and respond in any sensible way but there's no chance of that now.
a long pause. and then, her drink kicks in:]
Dog ears. I want to pet them. [
a
she goes violently pink]
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[ ???? ?????? ???? ????? rondo starts looking around, left, then right?? his ears bounce when he does. they fit in so perfectly into his hair. his ponytail looks like a tail. it's ridiculous. ]
Uh. I think someone brought a dog, right? There's got to be a dog around here somewhere...
[ he will find you a dog (he is the dog) he will find ]
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this is wildly embarrassing, but. her eyes are just on his dumb dog ears? she watches them flop around, and then, instinctively, as he looks in the other direction, she reaches up and touches them. she's going to pet the ears, by god.
this is stupid already, she's just bright pink with a drink in her hand, her free hand stretched out to scritch his brand new golden retriever ones.]
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throné kneecapped by a dog. this is fair. he is very surprised when she suddenly is in his space (and her face is so pink! that's a new one!!) and reaching up, and then - oh.
.... oh why does that feel so nice. first of all. these ears are so soft. they fit perfectly in among all of his golden curls but they are extra fluffy, and being scratched behind the (dog) ears is a new experience that is also really nice??? instinctually he ducks his head into it, eyes closing
and then blinks. ]
-- Wait, what? [ and reaches up to try and touch them... except.... nooo that feels so good maybe he'll just focus on that........ ]
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he's cute as is, which she's stubbornly been not thinking about, and the dog ears on top of that make her weak. she scritches at his ear, watching him arch into it a little, and then he speaks and she realizes what she's doing with a very abrupt startle.
she snatches her hand back, staring at him.]
... You have dog ears. I like... dogs. [this drink is awful. ohhhh she wants to sink into the floor. let the earth reclaim her. give her freedom from being alive.]
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[ ???? ??? this is a very silly drink. he kind of reaches up to touch his ears when she pulls her hands away, then the sides of his face to feel that his human normal ears sure aren't there, and then pauses, hands still resting there, looking at throné.
... ]
....you didn't have to stop...
[ she liked it??? also he did too so she should... keep doing that that was nice?? ??? ???? he does look a little embarrassed but mostly he looks the tiniest bit forlorn like a true puppy. the ears droop. ]
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long pause]
... Okay.
[like, she thinks she should stop? she's pretty sure she should, but she wants to keep petting and he looks so sad that she did. there's this errant thought that this is how all dogs feel when you stop petting them and they just can't tell you how they feel in words, and it makes her a little verklempt, actually. so carefully, she leans forward and scritches his ears again.
she's going to just take a very long drink from her glass. whew. okay. she doesn't have any words for this! her words have died, also.]
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welll okay now he's embarrassed. and yet! and yet, his head ducks into her hand anyway, and if he rubs into it, it's not on purpose. he mutters, cheeks starting to go very pink: ]
This...is a very silly drink.
[ it was MILK. mortifying. ]
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[her own drink is kicking her ass and she doesn't realize it, help. she'll just pet him gently, easing her fingers to the places he seems to like the best based on how he rubs into it. she's a little mortified that her cool mysterious persona is utterly disarmed by dogs and he knows it, but also, he's embarrassed and that gives her Bullying Strength]
You don't seem to either. [hehe]
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I - it is very strange! [ this is so mortifying. but, flustered, he also rubs into her hands and peeks at her from under his bangs. ] ... I am guessing yours doesn't make people want to just pet fluffy animals...?
[ great deduction genius ]
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No, I don't need a drink to want that. [she says, and then immediately makes an expression that's like... offended? bamboozled. like she surprised herself with what she said and now she's who is that dog in the mirror-ing at herself.]
... I think that I am either drunk, or this drink is making me... say things. [NYEH
also she instinctively brushes his bangs into his eyes like a bully. don't look at her she's dying]
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... You don't seem very drunk to me - ack! [ and then his bangs re in his face!! he sputters a little, reaching up to try and get them back out of his eyes. like a baby. ] Hey, don't distract from it...!
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the spluttering makes her smirk just slightly, but:]
I don't feel drunk. [anyway she's not getting into what her drink does, she refuses to elaborate] This is the natural conclusion for you, I think. [dog ears is his final form]
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[ he is BULLIED. as he turns his head another way to let her scritch another angle. like thank god there's not a tail involved because if he had one it would be wagging at a hundred miles an hour.
no! focus!! focus, rondo! do not kick your leg like a dog!! ]
So... talking. Saying things...? What kind of things is it making you say...? You haven't said anything - well, you said something embarrassing, but it was for me, not you.
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but. she wrinkles her nose, and puts the drink down.]
... Things I'd rather not say out loud. [because the drink isn't going to let her get away with dodging.] What did I say that embarrassed you, hm?
[valiantly trying to steer the ship away from her, here]
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[ about being a dog. because he is a dog. this is not very good for his dignity but then again, rondo doesn't actually have that much dignity? this is a key point of his character.
anyway. he is still leaning into the ear scritches but trying very valiantly to Not let throné steer the questions away. instead, earnestly, trying very hard to be helpful and/or comforting, he adds: ] ... You haven't said anything bad, Throné. Expressing the honest way you feel about things is a good thing.
[ and now that he's put his bangs back into place, he drops his hands into his lap. ] If there's something you're worried about saying, though, it'd be safe with me. I swear it on my honor as a Knight Ardante.
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people don't, like. they just don't say things like this to her. some of the travelers are very good about this - hikari and partitio both have given her genuinely kind affirmations in the past, but it still makes her want to hide or deflect or just. yell, internally. this isn't even the worst she's heard, even! it's just that it's so earnest and she's not used to conversations where she doesn't have to be 100% on her guard at all times.
silence, for a moment, and then she pulls her hand away from his ears because it's not distracting him enough. this is now a punishment he can have pets when she's not pouting]
Yes, I know that you'd keep it to yourself. [she says finally, picking up the drink again. fidgety.] I don't like to tell people anything about myself, especially not how I feel. They'll use it against me. They always have.
[things the drink just has her say that it'd be like pulling teeth to get out of her otherwise for 500]
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when throné pulls her hand away, he does reach up to kind of fix his fluff, though it does not work and he gives up on it immediately. his ears droop a little, and he frowns, scooting a little closer to her so no one can overhear their conversation. ]
... I'm sorry that people have used something like that against you. [ he can't even imagine that - then again, rondo wears his heart on his sleeve in every way possible. for better or for worse. ] Even the positive things... people can be awfully cruel, sometimes.
[ from what little he has gleaned about throné, it breaks his heart to hear it. he frowns a little further, looking down at his cup that he has now also abandoned. ]
I don't know that it helps, but... it makes me happy to hear about you. [ there's a beat - and then his ears perk! and he scoots a little closer. ] And if it makes you very uncomfortable, then perhaps I will just - not say anything! Until it passes. It shouldn't take too long, right? And then you wouldn't have to say anything you don't want to.
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he's not a danger to her. she knows that. he's safe.]
You're ridiculous. [she says, and it'd be meaner or scarier if she wasn't so obviously pouting. a beat.] ... You're so kind. Someone is going to hurt you because of it, with all those stars in your eyes. I wish I could be like that.
[a
pause. puts her entire hand over her face with a groan.]
I don't think that it cares if you're silent or not. [she grits out.]
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well. rondo's smile softens a little - there's something unmistakably sad to it, and he decides not to address it when she keeps talking, instead just letting out a little laugh and a sympathetic, ] Oh, no.
[ poor throné. he lifts his hand to the bar to get a water sent down their way, then takes it and sets it gently in front of her when she's got her face in her hands. ]
I think you're very kind, Throné. [ maybe it makes it worse if he addresses it. should he address it. would solutions be better. ] Mm... well, maybe it's about what you think about? What are you thinking about? Maybe you can blurt out things that aren't too much that way...?
[ everything is going to be too much ]
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she doesn't say anything about that part, swallowing it down roughly. she doesn't want to get into her self-esteem, because she isn't even really all that aware of it herself, and also because she doesn't like it when he looks sad. genuinely sad, not bullied.
which is why he catches her off guard with that question, even as she's reaching for the water:]
I'm thinking about how much I dislike making you look sad. [lord]
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that's the first thing that crosses rondo's mind - he lifts his hands up for a moment, then presses them to his own face. what a genuine, sweet thing to say, even if she didn't mean to say it out loud, and rondo bites his lip to keep from making a bit deal about it, instead squishing his own cheeks gently. ]
Sad - I'm not sad. [ well. maybe it's obvious. ] You didn't do anything, I was just - you just reminded me of something, that's all. [ with a smile, bright: ] So, that's nothing to worry too much about!
[ and then the smile softens a little further. ] ... It's really sweet of you to say that, though. [ a beat. ] Even though you didn't want to say it - I'm not doing very well at being distracting.
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... You do fine. [she says, after a minute, with a short sigh.] You're the one I look forward to talking to the most when things are difficult.
[she sounds resigned when she says, having given up.]
Don't say that I'm sweet. I'm not. You'll be disappointed.
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... Throné, you can't think saying things like that and then saying I'll be disappointed can exist in the same sphere, can you...?
[ these two statements cannot coexist ]
You're proving yourself wrong. [ a beat. ] Besides, it'd be really hard to disappoint me. I'm not unrealistic - [ and the bar is so unbelievably low, because the last person who turned out to be what they weren't turned his entire life and quite nearly all of orsterra on its head ] - and... you wouldn't let me believe a lie when it comes to that kind of thing, anyway.
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it's not that she doesn't think he thinks that. there are a lot of very good people that she's known over her life that thought highly of her when they didn't know the extent of the worst of her. she wants to be good, she wants to be worth knowing, but she's tainted. she's had grave dirt embedded in her soul since she was born, and she knows that for sure, these days.]
Maybe I'm waiting for you to drop your guard so I can stab you in the back. [she says dryly. that's not the drink, sometimes you aren't sure what to say in response to someone so you're just an asshole instead.]
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