[ There's a little almost-hiccup as she presses a hand over her mouth, trying to swallow away her tears. His gentleness makes it better and worse at the same time. If nothing else, she can at least try not to cry. Her effort is a valiant one and in the end it proves effective. ]
[ But her attempts to compose herself also give her time to think, and the more she does that, the more she comes to recognize her own failings in this. No, he doesn't understand - won't understand, because that's the kind of person he is. She can hardly blame him. But she-- she has always had the obligation of trying to do what's best for the heroes who are too good, and it seems that that duty persists, even now. Exhaling slowly, she swipes at her eyes to free them from the remainder of the saltwater. ]
You know?
[ It's quiet, and maybe if she weren't in the process of experiencing several of her worst fears simultaneously, she'd manage some note of false cheer in that. She doesn't. In the end, all she achieves is a somewhat disconcerting evenness. ]
You're right.
[ Her hands come to rest in her lap, but she doesn't look up at him. ]
Thank you, Rock. ... And I'm sorry.
[ The fingers of one hand curl inward. At first, there is nothing, and then - a strange, roiling Darkness begins to seep out of the ground underneath her. It doesn't reach for him, doesn't spread; it lingers around her and begins to build up from there. If he means to stop her from making her escape, he'd best be quick. ]
no subject
[ But her attempts to compose herself also give her time to think, and the more she does that, the more she comes to recognize her own failings in this. No, he doesn't understand - won't understand, because that's the kind of person he is. She can hardly blame him. But she-- she has always had the obligation of trying to do what's best for the heroes who are too good, and it seems that that duty persists, even now. Exhaling slowly, she swipes at her eyes to free them from the remainder of the saltwater. ]
You know?
[ It's quiet, and maybe if she weren't in the process of experiencing several of her worst fears simultaneously, she'd manage some note of false cheer in that. She doesn't. In the end, all she achieves is a somewhat disconcerting evenness. ]
You're right.
[ Her hands come to rest in her lap, but she doesn't look up at him. ]
Thank you, Rock. ... And I'm sorry.
[ The fingers of one hand curl inward. At first, there is nothing, and then - a strange, roiling Darkness begins to seep out of the ground underneath her. It doesn't reach for him, doesn't spread; it lingers around her and begins to build up from there. If he means to stop her from making her escape, he'd best be quick. ]