[PRP] Coffee Talk (Cee/Brenley)

[iloveyouDIE]

"You can sit ya know." Cee, after shaking with him, had sunken back into the sofa. She could feel Snap's weight upon her, serious and silent and coiled for action if need be.

"You assume'a whole lotta s**t ya know?" Her legs crossed, heeled foot bobbing. She was a tiny little thing without all the hair and shoes. Just a tiny girl. "You gonna pass judgement on some'un else's choice? I seen monsters. Not all of em even have legs. Some'of em wanna kill kill kill.. some'of em are beasts." She shrugged. "Some of em ain't gotta place. Ain't you ever felt like you were different? No one understood ya?"She looked around the room, this caricature of something she only knew from old TV.

"Back in the human world people be judging errybody all the time. I know it's like that here too." Her eyes drifted to him, coaxing that she wasn't so bad. "You ain't got enough money. Or maybe yer... a demon and he's a monster.. or," she was winging it, "maybe you b'lieve in God and someone else don't. People git treated bad. They jus' wanna matter."

Cee leaned on the arm of the sofa, propping her head on her hand. "Every single one, who makes a choice like that, they makin the choice ta matter. That s**t ain't light. How you gonna judge em on that?"

smerdle

 

[Smerdle]

And then, because he was still flustered and a little annoyed, Brenley blurted out the first response that came to mind.

"I judge them because they would willingly help you to hurt me."

How hypocritical, after what he had done to Pachua.

The reaper slumped when he realized what he had actually said, his brows wrinkling with guilt that he quickly pushed down. He was not a danger to his kind or the humans, and although feeling like he didn't belong was a daily occurrence, it wasn't enough of a reason to give up his autonomy. He couldn't think of anything that would be. When he spoke again, he did so with his composure regained.

"Unless you can somehow convince me that there isn't a hunter who would make me join you when I didn't agree to, I'll just keep trying to learn about you if it's all the same. It takes all kinds, as you say." He swallowed. "But I'll try not to judge or assume as much, if that means anything."

Brenley shuffled forward and reluctantly sat with a cautious jingle of jewelry and belts, perching himself on the edge of a cushion. After his petulant tirade he almost needed a rest. He pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers and scrubbed his hand down over his chin, the gestures of an older creature. "My father is a gryphon. In some circles, it's not uncommon." He sighed. "I shouldn't be sitting. I should be going. I've made a fool of myself and if you're not going to try killing me, I should..." He remained seated.

iloveyouDIE

 

[iloveyouDIE]

Cee lifted her brows at his blurting out.

"A mugger on'a street would willinly hurt ya too. Youse are just like us. I know. You got yer cities and yer families and yer jerks and yer nice people. I'm sittin here an I ain't hurtin ya. My weapon? She'da ******** strangled you aready if she wasn't what she is righ'now. You'da been walking yer minipet in'a woods somewhere and BAM. You'da been murdered. Not cause'a me. Not cause'a any white coat."

Of course anything Cee said had to be handled with a grain of salt, but Brenley (Iggy) didn't know that.

"Sides.. the weapon thing ain't work so well unless yer willin, so I dunno where yer gettin yer info from." She actually reached out to pat his knee, then touched one of his bangles. "Oh my gaaahd this is so cute. I love jangly s**t." She threw out a foot where a silver anklet dangled on her ankle. It looked like wrapped vines with thorns.

"Ya know.. where I come from? Little kids git scared, just little ******** kids, and no one believes the s**t they see is real and they git picked on and bullied." She frowned. "And they ******** kill themselves. Little ********.... scarelings. And they die. For good." Cee leaned back then, her face more serious. "An that s**t ain't cool ok. Youse may not die but little ******** human kids can... So I'm doin this job."

smerdle

 

[Smerdle]

He knew he should leave before he relayed more personal facts or got into any real trouble, but the more seemingly truthful information she baited him with, the more he wanted to stay. Despite what she had said about his own kind hurting him, he was no more frightened of them than he had been before, nor was he moved by tales of human scarelings who couldn't handle the more... enthusiastic representatives of his kind. Bren could only assume most humans made it out of childhood just fine. Though that did beg the question—if a human killed himself, was the citizen of Halloween that provoked him to do so responsible? If they never touched the child, was it murder?

In the end it was not sympathy for humans or curiosity about her angry, inanimate companion that prompted him to remain. It was the news that weaponization didn't take if one wasn't willing. Wasn't that something.

A faint smile lightened his expression as he nodded distractedly at her bangle. He would refrain from commenting on her language. He wouldn't point out that she was prioritizing her people's scarelings over his either. Frankly, he didn't care all that much. If what she said was true, he was safe. And even if she was lying, he had something new to ponder.

"I'm... um.... sorry," he said absently, still perched on the edge of his cushion. "I suppose that's not... cool." He gathered the bits of stone hanging from the end of his scarf and silenced them in his hand. "Do you like what you do?"

iloveyouDIE

hello travelers i have finally fought my way out of my post-dance haze

 

[iloveyouDIE]

"It's a job. You gotta have a job." Cee shrugged easily. "It ain't borin and it's not like people can live sittin on there a** doin nothin."

It wasn't a commital answer, but was par for the course amongst most adults. You worked because you had to. You just chose the least boring job from the many necessary evils.

"What're you gonna do?"

smerdle

 

[Smerdle]

No more personal information. He had just vowed not to share anything else about himself, and yet he found he was speaking again.

"Sell enchantments. Travel. I don't think I'm cut out for gathering FEAR though. So." He swallowed. The truth was, he didn't know what he was going to do, so it kind of didn't matter if he told her anyway.

"I might teach, I guess. I could give lessons about you." Realizing that sounded kind of antagonistic when said aloud, he added, "Only... good things." Bren looked at her appraisingly, wondering where she was keeping her weapon, even though her attitude and demeanor had quite successfully convinced him she wouldn't use it.

iloveyouDIE

 

[iloveyouDIE]

"I hope it'sa class on me personally.." She cackled with laughter, hand resting on her chest a moment. "Best class ever."

"Yer cute, Iggy." Cee snorted a bit stretched to stand. She was about done with their convo though. He was too cautious, too sure of himself to be a good candidate. Sure, they could be convinced of just about anything if pressure was placed properly, but this one had too much experience with hunters she was fairly sure.

"You should run along home though. Unless you wanna fight fer the fun of it."

smerdle

 

[Smerdle]

"You are..." Confusing. That very emotion was evident in his lowered voice if not admitted aloud. From his perspective, she had been defensive, seductive, sympathetic, and accusatory over the relatively short time he had known her. Although he had yet to meet a hunter he felt any real compassion for, he couldn't help but wonder how the ones who interacted with her every day managed it.

"You are interesting. But thank you." He wasn't sure he wanted her compliment, but it wouldn't hurt to be polite. "It's been nice talking to you." Now that was more sincere. After only ever escaping this place with varying degrees of bruises, it was nice to walk out relatively unharmed. Now the only problem was actually getting finding the exit.

The reaper rose to his feet, glancing around the gothic room. "Maybe we'll meet again someday."

iloveyouDIE