estoria | one quarter-medusa, a hat on legs, and a bunny walk into a bar--

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one quarter-medusa, a hat on legs, and a bunny walk into a bar--

Who: Mary (

existency) and Zara (

sewayaku)
When: Forward-dated to January 3 let's say
Where: A park; Zara and Mary's apartment
What: Mary eventually brings home a boy
Rating/Warning: ... Everyone is adorable I don't know how else to prepare you--

[ Truth be told, Mary's wary of stepping out on her own, after the chaos that had led to a blizzard, her mother's gentle voice and her not-so-gentle laughter as she'd disappeared. No amount of chasing, of begging her to come back had yielded any results, and then had come that man with the monsters--

Even thinking about it now makes Mary shudder, but she'd still had to go to work. And now, returning home, she's being quick about it. Who knew what else was out there, lurking? More angry murderous men in red? Another familiar face willing to leave her behind again?

A...

... Hat?

Mary slows as she passes the park, squinting as though narrowing her eyes will help things make sense. She knows that hat, its owner-- did he really, really like this place? ]

Cole?

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[ Mary hardly minds; she attaches herself fairly quickly to her friends, but she's still shy. She'll just glance off to the side, pensive. ]

I'm not all that good with a lot of people. Especially when they stare. [ Which hadn't been a problem, given Kido's eye power, but... ]

[ He nods in understanding, since he doesn't particularly like it either. He remembers expressing his concerns to the Inquisitor about how people's eyes stuck to him more than usual, and how that made him uncomfortable... It's the same here too, really. But just like Skyhold, they forget before long too. It's a minor discomfort, so he knows how to deal with it better now. ]

I don't like it either. But... It's all right.

[ He stops swinging his legs, then hops off the wall. ]

Most of them forget. You didn't, though.

Of course I wouldn't forget!

[ Mary bristling isn't all that impressive, for that medusa blood running through her veins. She still manages to look incredibly nonthreatening, the longer tendrils in the front just shifting a bit, independent from the rest of her hair. ]

You're my friend-- I-I think-- [ Well, she shouldn't force him into it, probably. ] And I could never forget my friends!

[ And how could anyone forget a hat like his?? ]

[ He still fidgets habitually, but when Mary speaks, Cole looks up again, showing his face with less shyness, though he's so surprised that it's almost like she had struck him. His fidgeting stops, and though there's still that sort of tone of uncertainty in his voice, it's also mixed with something very genuinely touched. ]

You... would like to be my friend?

[ He has to question it, because it's surprising to him. Even with the warmth that some people in the Inquisition had shown him, it's still not so long ago that he was lost and lonely in the dark with only one person to even be able to see him. ]

[ It's the question, the way he voices it, that strikes home hard. She can't say that he's entirely like her; maybe he likes being alone. But there's something in his tone that speaks otherwise, and Mary can hardly forget the years she'd spent trapped in her own home, frightened and fragile. ]

You... said it before, that I'm different. But you weren't scared. And you're weird, but you're nice.

... So yes. I want to.

[ ... Said Mary to her feet. ]

[ It's easier if they're not looking at each other, since these are both two socially inept nerd not-children...

Cole stares for just a moment, and it feels like a great warmth in his chest, the same sort as when Rhys had called him a friend. There's pain too, since that comes with the remembrance that he had needed to leave, but if anything—

If anything, the Inquisition has taught him more that what he is is all right. He's not a demon or a monster, not unless he forgot himself and wanted to be. It wasn't everyone that accepted him, but when people extend their kindness in little ways like this, Cole is deeply touched. He still doesn't smile, but there's a smile in his voice that's touched and gentle. ]

Then... Then yes. I'd like to be your friend too, Mary.

[ Socially inept nerd not-entirely-human not-children need to stick together. There's so few of them.

And if Mary was a more mature medusa, she might have settled for a quietly pleased smile, like her mother would have shown. She is, however, not so good at subtlety like Shion (or Cole), so while his voice conveys the sentiment enough... Mary beams. Who knew, tripping and falling in front of a stranger would eventually lead to friendship?

... With someone other than Seto, anyway, and there had been books involved in that one. But she'd offered friendship, and Cole had accepted, and because of it, Mary now feels slightly braver in this new step of their relationship.

Enough to reach out, grasp his larger hands in her own, and squeeze.

Ignore the fact that her fingers are still trembling because INITIATING CONTACT, they're friends now. ]

Then it's a promise! I won't ever forget you, Cole!

[ He almost withdraws as she reaches out, skittish as he is, but he's glad he decides against it. His hands are rigid and stiff in her own for a moment, since he's really not used to being touched at all, but the gesture is friendly, and the warm enthusiasm in her expression as well as that careful trembling of her hands gets him to relax a little. His hands are worn and rough, but when he squeezes back, it's gentle. ]

I'm glad, then. I won't forget you either, Mary.

[ Of course he wouldn't, but it felt like the right thing to say. ]

I think I'm too strange to be forgotten that easily.

[ Things Mary Kozakura says completely sincerely. ]

[ It's that sincerity that surprises him, so Cole pauses, then cants his head lightly to the side before he asks: ]

Are you strange?

[ Which implies that Cole doesn't see her as being strange at all, of course. ]

[ Cole, you're like a mind-reading mostly invisible skinny stick in a hat, of course you'd be a little more open-minded-- ]

I think so? I'm supposed to be a monster, but I don't want to be like that, but I can't be entirely human either... so I think it's probably strange to a lot of people.

...But not everyone is human.

[ It's hard for him to imagine, since even in Thedas, where humans were definitely the most common, there were also other kinds of people. He knows some them very well! So for someone to just be strange because they're not human is odd to him. ]

You look very human. Elves at least have their ears, and Qunari have their horns...

Qun... so Cole, you come from a place where not everyone is human?

[ Like Nesso and Zara and Elza? She's really starting to wonder if that's why most people are so okay with Mary being what she is.

A pause. ]

-- And no one tries to hurt them because they're not?

[ He nods to the first question, but the second one gets him to frown a little. It's hard for him to explain, since put that way, it's hard for him to really think through. ]

...Sometimes. Bad people hurt them because they're not. But there are elves, dwarves, Qunari and others. Humans get along with the dwarves, a careful alliance. They took the elves' home a long time ago, and it's sad to the elves. Some remember, but most don't. And the Qunari follow the Qun which sets out their whole life, so they fight, sometimes. It's what they're meant to do.

[ He tilts his head slightly ]

It's different. They don't fight because of what they are. It's because of what they believe, instead.

... I get it. [ And she does, and she's relieved because of it. She's curious, about elves and dwarves, and Qunari, but Cole's as shy as she is. She can't ask him as many rapidfire questions as she'd toss at Seto. ] Like how people will have wars over what they believe in... I've read about it before.

Then I'm really glad there are more worlds where not being completely human isn't bad.

[ And even hers had people in it who had accepted her. ]

Yes.

[ He answers that with more conviction, at least, and he nods with a softer smile to show that he understands and agrees. That much is easier for him to do, since it's not quite as complicated. No matter how long it is, Cole always thinks that there will be gaps in things he understands, since the spirit part of him struggles with what humans know very well. ]

And here, too. You're you, and that's all that matters. No matter what you are, you can do good.

[ But that compliment is followed by shy fidgeting as he nods. ]

...That's what I think, at least. That's what people tell me.

... That sounds like really good advice. Were those people your friends?

[ Or really good motivational speaking strangers, she's heard of weirder. But Mary wonders if she can remember that. No matter what she is... so long as she doesn't want to hurt anyone, is that really all that matters? ]

Yes.

[ There's a fondness in his voice that's very easily apparent, so it seems like they're close friends, even. Though really, Cole considers every friend a close one. He's touched by the kindness of it every time. ]

It's what Solas tells me. He knows more than most people about a lot of things. But about spirits too. So he helps me understand when it's hard to.

[ One of the wise ones... like Kido? She seemed to know a lot, at any rate. If Cole has someone to help him, then she's glad.

Mary nods, although curiosity prompts another question: ]

Are any of your friends here?

Yes.

[ Which by how he had been speaking of his friend, might be a surprising answer. But he nods to Mary, and gives the grossest answer possible. ]

You are.

[ Any other person wouldn't have been surprised or flustered, because they did just confirm that yes, friendship between them was something that had just happened-- and yet, Mary's going from her usual pale complexion to BRIGHT-ASS PINK, completely caught off-guard.

And also slightly concerned, because she's not his only friend, is she? He may be a hat on legs that has visibility issues to the people around him, but he's a nice semi-invisible hat on legs--

Hold on, she's got to stop making incoherent squeaky noises and actually form words. ]

Nng-- [ No, real words, Mary. ] I-I mean, from home! Your home! Friends you live with??

Oh. I'm sorry.

[ For the misunderstanding, he means, though with how flustered she gets, he's a bit confused, since he's not sure how to take it. Had he said something good or bad...? He can't sense that he hurt her feelings, so he can only guess it must be something better, but it's still hard to tell. ]

Then, no. I haven't met anyone from my home. But I don't live with my friends. [ A pause, as he thinks about it, then he nods before adding: ] That's right. I don't really live with anyone. I don't need to, so I don't want to bother them.

... No one?

[ As this is someone who got adopted by calling someone in the middle of the night in tears over a traumatizing nightmare-- Mary's looking pretty dismayed. ]

Then, you live all by yourself? Isn't that lonely? I know I'd hate having to do that again...

[ Cole shakes his head, since to him, he doesn't think of it in the same way, and that becomes clear pretty quickly. ]

Not really. I don't live anywhere. I stay where people are. Where they're happy.

[ He looks to the side, though what his gaze falls on in the park is unclear. ]

People like the park. So I like it here too.

You stay in the park??

[ No, you can't stay in the park! If you stayed in a forest, that would be different, especially if you had a roof over your head, but she doesn't see any houses built in the park and does that mean he sleeps outside and that's just bad, so immediately after her surprised yelp-- ]

You can't stay in the park.

[ Don't even argue. ]

[ The reason why she would assert this isn't something that Cole picks up on, so he looks confused and a little concerned, like he's worried he's done something wrong. ]

...I can't?

You can't! You need to live inside where it won't maybe rain or snow or do weird things to you!

...It's fine, though.

[ She's concerned about him, but he's not sure why. It's nice, since it's the sort of thing that always deeply warms his heart, but it's still a surprise every time. ]

I like the rain. It's soft.

It's wet.

[ Well, yes. ]

So you should live with me. [ Well, with her and Zara, but still, it's better than living in the park. ]

[ He's surprised, almost in disbelief, and it actually causes him to withdraw a little bit physically. The idea of actually living with people... That was a little frightening to him. He liked being unseen, in a way. It felt more right to him, though what was right was also difficult too. He fidgets nervously, twisting his hands together, but his response is soft. ]

It wouldn't be quiet. I'd be listening, hearing, speaking without stopping. Pain twists and turns, crying out for mother, but—

[ His line sets in a thin line, and the fidgeting stops. ]

It's kind. But you don't have to.

I know. [ That much, she does now, and she almost regrets asking when it looks so uncomfortable. But... no matter what, she doesn't think leaving him to stay out here alone is a good idea. A lack of quiet could be overwhelming, Mary also knows that much, but once you got used to it... it was almost comforting, coming from the people you knew. ]

But I still want to.

[ A pause; it's her turn to fidget. ]

Is it too loud around me?

Everyone has a voice that the Fade hears.

[ It's not quite an answer, because it's not quite something that Cole can answer. He used the word loud because it was the best way to describe it, since some hurt came to him more readily than others. But for the most part, it was random. Little pieces floating in, and he's the one to grasp them and weave them into a bandage. ]

...If you want, though. I'll come.

... If it's okay. [ She won't force him to, but it's either she takes him home or she goes running out to look for him with an umbrella or a blanket or anything else to help shelter him from the elements. ]

It's... okay.

[ But he's still very shy about it, since to him, it's almost a frightening prospect. Living in the attic of the tavern was nice, since the only person that ever really came up there was the Inquisitor. So living with someone else, he thinks that he'll just hide a little more. ]

I don't know where you live, though.

Oh! [ Right-- she quickly straightens, pointing off in some random direction. ] I can show you where. I've gotten a lot better at not getting lost.

[ How comforting. ]

Lost...

[ He cants his head to the side, like he's reconsidering, but he ends up nodding. ]

If we get lost, I can find the way. It's hard to get lost. There's always a direction to pull, so there's always a way to go.

...

I wish I had pull-y directions.

[ Maybe life would be easier. ]

You don't?

[ Clearly, this is a surprise to him... He assumed everyone did, but he's also generally surrounded by people with excellent survival skills that don't exactly get lost. So. ]

I know how to get to my old house from back home... but otherwise, I usually need someone to help me.

[ SHE SUCKS. ]

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one quarter-medusa, a hat on legs, and a bunny walk into a bar--

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this tag gave me diabetes

well at least both of us are suffering

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1/2

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