[Her demeanor doesn't change by much, although it's very clear that she's studying him. Perhaps she always was, but it's more noticeable, now, in her thoughtful look, eyes switching between sides of his face. 'They usually don't,' she is tempted to say, but doesn't.]
It was a very good guess. [Or more than, if accuracy counts for anything. There's something only half-humorous in her,] I'll have to be more careful, next time.
[And she might, actually, because for all that he's been able to ingratiate himself well so far, she is not so foolish as to be taken in by a few charming words. He's every bit as subject to her long-term evaluation as anyone she meets in this place or any other. Such an enormous percentage of the people she's met in her life - prior to Cerealia, that is - have been possessed of inclinations that were to her detriment and the detriment of those around her, and surely she can't be blamed for her wariness. The back of her mind is always hard at work neatly cataloguing every word and action of any person she comes across for later use and the formation of a subconscious evaluation of their level of - or potential for, rather - threat, and that includes his. Perceptiveness is acceptable (pleasant, even) as long as it's used without malicious intent.]
That's true. [She says, having seen far enough into a great enough number of hearts and minds to feel comfortable with the principle, herself, but when she adds a quiet,] More or less. [of her own, it's from a different kind of experience. After all, a Nobody is not quite like anything - anyone - else.] But it's funny, how easy that can be to overlook. People still seem to find so many things to fight about, even when they'd be better off helping each other.
[That's something that's been on her mind lately, after what she came into for her first proper ViViD level.]
no subject
It was a very good guess. [Or more than, if accuracy counts for anything. There's something only half-humorous in her,] I'll have to be more careful, next time.
[And she might, actually, because for all that he's been able to ingratiate himself well so far, she is not so foolish as to be taken in by a few charming words. He's every bit as subject to her long-term evaluation as anyone she meets in this place or any other. Such an enormous percentage of the people she's met in her life - prior to Cerealia, that is - have been possessed of inclinations that were to her detriment and the detriment of those around her, and surely she can't be blamed for her wariness. The back of her mind is always hard at work neatly cataloguing every word and action of any person she comes across for later use and the formation of a subconscious evaluation of their level of - or potential for, rather - threat, and that includes his. Perceptiveness is acceptable (pleasant, even) as long as it's used without malicious intent.]
That's true. [She says, having seen far enough into a great enough number of hearts and minds to feel comfortable with the principle, herself, but when she adds a quiet,] More or less. [of her own, it's from a different kind of experience. After all, a Nobody is not quite like anything - anyone - else.] But it's funny, how easy that can be to overlook. People still seem to find so many things to fight about, even when they'd be better off helping each other.
[That's something that's been on her mind lately, after what she came into for her first proper ViViD level.]