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+---- Thread: it's just a bloodstain (/showthread.php?tid=9866)
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Flora - 08-01-2024
[say]"Wh—"[/say] Tall Man says, his smile fading somewhat as he quickly sobers beneath the captain's blue stare. [say]"No, we were..weren't we?"[/say] Looking at Flora for confirmation, for help, before Jack is trying to steal his prize and suggesting an alternative for how he might spend the rest of his evening.
Opening his mouth a few times, Tall Man looks from Flora to Jack and offers the queen an apologetic wince. She might rule Torchline, but the captain rules the bits of it that could become immediately hostile for him and his livelihood. [say]"Another time, then."[/say] He says in a low voice. For a moment it looks as though he's going to kiss Flora on the cheek, though Jack's stare has him thinking better of it. Skulking off with a very awkward boner, as soon as he slips out of view the Doubletake is whirling away from the captain with her fingers clenched into fists and her aqua eyes blazing.
[say]"What the fuck was that?"[/say] She doesn't think about slapping him, she thinks about taking the bottle of rum she'd brought with her from the bar and clobbering him with it.
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Jack - 08-01-2024
[say]"Mm, that's probably a good shout,"[/say] Jack confirms with an appreciative nod, watching over the top of Flora's head as Tall Man skedaddles off into the streets of Torchline, leaving the Doubletake alone with him all over again, despite the show she'd put on, the free shots she'd handed out, the way she'd picked and chosen from the (low, low bar, granted) patrons of the Hanged Man. The captain lets her whirl away from him, head tilting as if to admire the peculiar shade of green-blue her eyes turn when she's furious.
[say]"That'd be a waste of good rum,"[/say] he points out gently in response to her consideration. [say]"But if a slap would make you feel better, I'll stand here and take it."[/say] Just this once, anyway. As for what the fuck that was, Jack huffs out a short breath through his nose and resists the urge to reach out and shake her, like that might rearrange her thoughts into something that made more sense.
[say]"You're better than that,"[/say] he says, as if she might not have realised it, gesturing at the departing silhouette of Tall Man in the background. [say]"Better than all this, whatever's happened to put you here."[/say]
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Flora - 08-01-2024
Clenching her teeth together for all the good it does her, Flora's mind is too full of youthful fury to form words let alone a witty retort, such that she's left silently glaring at the captain and hating him all the more for the cool edge to his voice.
Barking out a sudden laugh, the queen tilts her head back as she sneers up at the stars overhead, fresh tears prickling against the backs of her eyes. [say]"As it turns out, I'm fucking not."[/say] She snaps hollowly. Gesturing to the departed Tall Man, to what she was wearing (or rather, the lack of it), the blood stains that were hidden by the pattern of Asta's shirt but not invisible to someone looking. She'd have gestured to the messiness of her situationship with both Jack and Koa if she didn't think it would do more harm than good.
[say]"Besides, you don't get to decide."[/say] Rubbing her cheek against her shoulder and expecting a snarl of pain that doesn't come, Flora shifts her bag and wonders if it would do her any good to become invisible or to use the compass to go back to the fountain. No sooner had she thought it, though, the plans became irrelevant. [say]"That isn't part of this. I keep my mouth shut about you, and you fuck me against doors or in pretty rooms."[/say] It hurts to say, because she's never really given voice to just how transactional it all was, so much so that she can barely breathe through her nose anymore but for the tears clogging her sinuses.
[say]"Fuck,"[/say] She chokes, turning away from him, hardly able to see as she begins the walk home.
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Jack - 08-01-2024
[say]"I think you are."[/say] Jack raises his eyebrows, because the gods knew he wouldn't have trusted his secret to Flora in the state she's currently in, and he's also not the type of man to make decisions with such far reaching consequences out of nowhere. Some curated thought went into this situationship, which only serves to convince him that whatever has happened to Flora, it's beyond the realms of normal for her train of thought. (Whether it's true or not, Jack certainly seems to believe it).
[say]"Actually,"[/say] he reminds her, his feet already moving as she turns away, a hand reaching out to catch her wrist, [say]"none of that has ever been set in stone, far as I recall. You never made a decision about what you wanted from me."[/say] If he's able to tug her back around to him, Jack will, eyes like blue fire in the torchlight around them. [say]"So what is it? You want to be wanted? Worshipped? Held?"[/say]
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Flora - 08-01-2024
Pulling out of his grasp because fuck you, Jack, she's going home, Flora shakes her head and continues to stumble on her way. [say]"I don't need to be a mind reader to see the way you roll your eyes at me when I ask you for something beneath you."[/say] When she'd asked him for a date, when she'd said she'd wanted to cuddle, basically anytime she'd asked him to care rather than just following a set of mental instructions. Oh, he could deliver well enough, but only because there was something in it for him, the benefit of which almost entirely dictated the amount of fucks he gave.
[say]"Or when I'm too much."[/say] Flora continues. [say]"When my thoughts aren't as pretty or pleasurable for you, and the only reason you give a fuck is because it gives you a headache."[/say] But yes, Flora did want to be held, and worshipped, and desired and a whole list of other things, but not simply because Jack was able to get off on the way it made her feel as if he were some sort of emotional freeloader.
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Jack - 08-01-2024
[say]"That's what you think? That I consider it beneath me?"[/say] Jack can't help but bark out a laugh at that, and as Flora pulls away he's right on her heels, biting at the inside of his cheek - and yes, fighting to try and swipe away the oily feel of her thoughts because they're definitely starting to affect the way he's responding to things at this point, and that's absolutely only going to fan the flames of this situation. [say]"You know fuck all about me,"[/say] he snaps nonetheless, before gritting his teeth and trying to separate her feelings from his own.
[say]"I do apologise, Flora. Do all your other mind readers have better copin' mechanisms for when you get too deep in their heads? I wasn't aware there was a protocol to follow. Maybe I'll meet up with 'em tomorrow, get some better skills for it."[/say] Fuck you, the point being, because it's not as though either of them have been involved in this particular brand of fuckery before.
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Flora - 08-01-2024
[say]"That's what most people mean when they aggressively roll their eyes when someone asks them to do something."[/say] Flora snaps back before glaring at the captain hotly over one shoulder. Taking longer steps despite the height of her heels, the queen could already see her little house on the corner up ahead, the candles and lights cheerfully glowing.
[say]"Oh right, that's on me then."[/say] The queen huffs, her gaze once again roving towards the stars in order to glare at them. [say]"I guess instead of just accepting the particular brand of asshole you are I should have pried into your personal life to better understand you?"[/say] Her thoughts shimmer with sarcasm, but at least her tears have dried up for the time being. [say]"Fuck you, Jack. You don't want to be understood, you just want to be in control. That's the only reason you're pissy about all of this."[/say] Whatever had happened to Jack to make him the man he was today didn't even really matter, did it? Because at the end of the day, he just wasn't capable of giving Flora what she wanted so why the fuck was he so against her finding it with someone else?
Oh right. Control.
[say]"Well whatever you do, it isn't really my fucking problem, now is it? You were the one who dragged me into all of this, so if it isn't going the way you thought it would, maybe you aren't quite the master fucking manipulator you always thought, huh?"[/say]
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Jack - 08-01-2024
[say]"And it's not enough for you to not want to be alone, you've gotta make impossible hoops for people to jump through so you can tell 'em all to fuck off and feel self-righteous about feelin' shit,"[/say] Jack snaps back, picking up his own pace and fully intending to overtake Flora so he might stand in front of the door to her little cottage where she can't slam it in his face.
[say]"I might've dragged you into this, but you weren't this when I did,"[/say] he hisses, gesturing at her smudged makeup, bloodstained shirt masquerading as a dress, the desperation that drips from her every thought and movement. [say]"So what the fuck happened? The you from even a few weeks ago would've told this version to figure it the fuck out because there's shit to do and region to rule."[/say]
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Flora - 08-01-2024
[say]"Impossible hoops?"[/say] Flora repeats, utterly aghast such that for a moment her thoughts are completely blank. Static shivers at the edge of her mind, but for the most part, there's nothing. [say]"Wanting someone to give a shit about me without having ulterior motives is not really that big of a fucking ask."[/say] And even if it was, who the fuck was Jack to judge?
[say]"I told you that I wouldn't be good company for you tonight. Told you that this—"[/say] She gestures at him with her chin. [say]"—wasn't what I fucking needed."[/say] Biting down on the next few words, Flora's nostrils flare somewhat as she forces herself to think them instead. I don't need some judgemental mind-reading asshole telling me that how I feel is wrong, especially after— Pain fills Flora's mind, the spreading heat of it wrapped in stifling layers of rejection that had thick black smoke clouding her thoughts.
[say]"Fuck you, as if you've always been the best version of yourself."[/say] Flora spits, trying to elbow him out of the way in order to unlock her door.
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Jack - 08-01-2024
[say]"You think that anyone gives a shit about anyone without havin' ulterior motives?"[/say] Jack says incredulously, though one could argue that he's absolutely cynical when it comes to the general population and their seedy, selfish motivations and needs. Parents and their children are possibly the only caveat, and even then, the ulterior motive is, you know, basic human survival.
[say]"Do you reckon I'd have tailed you all across fuckin' Torchline if this was just about control? You might've fucked off home with someone plannin' to choke you to death tonight, which if we're bein' honest, solves all my problems if that's all it was about."[/say] Reaching out to lean a hand against the doorframe in front of her, the captain's eyes are overbright in the moonlight, and fuck if he doesn't realise suddenly why this has riled him up so much.
Scoffing out a dark laugh and abruptly letting his hand drop, he rakes his fingers back through his hair. [say]"I'm certainly not my best fuckin' self tonight, wonderin' why I'm not good enough for you."[/say]
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Flora - 08-01-2024
[say]"Yeah I do."[/say] Flora's thoughts are too thick with hostility that it probably isn't easy at all for Jack to tell whether she's being serious or merely arguing with him for the sake of it.
[say]"That's exactly what I think!"[/say] The queen yells, perhaps a bit too loudly given the time of night, but fuck it, this was Torchline and Flora was done. [say]"I didn't heel and come with you to the Ark, so it was ofF u Go FloRa but not on my own, and then you sent away.."[/say] Had she ever gotten Tall Man's name? Well, whatever, didn't matter. [say]"—you sent him away all so things would turn out the way you thought they should."[/say] Aka her, going home alone, to feel miserable and shit about herself; but wait, there's more! [say]"Only to snap at my fucking heels about what a continued failure I am."[/say] Red-faced but not prettily so, the queen pressed her teeth together as she continued to try and elbow her way around him only to find all resistance gone.
Shoving the key into the lock despite the way her hands were shaking, Flora can only sneer as Jack's words twist something already on the verge of breaking inside her mind. [say]"Well it's like you said, all those impossible hoops and me being a shitty version of myself."[/say] Shoving her shoulder into her door to get it to open, the queen stumbles over the threshold. [say]"Don't worry, I'm sure by tomorrow I'll be back pathetically grovelling at your feet for attention, just like how you like it."[/say]
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Jack - 08-01-2024
[say]"You really can't stand the thought of someone tryin' to look out for you, can you? Ulterior motive or not."[/say] Jack gapes at her, incredulous at the lashes of anger and hostility that crackle out from her thoughts (which, be real, captain, she's 21 and what the fuck are you expecting). Standing by as she fights with the door and stumbles over the threshold, Jack remains standing out on the step, enveloped in a mix of light and darkness from the Doubletake's cheerful abode and the shadows outside.
[say]"Do you want me to go?"[/say] he asks at last, looking over her and briefly over her shoulder at the interior of the house. Because at the end of the day, she is home now, and not in any danger (presumably) of being robbed or killed by any fucking idiot who thought he could get the better of Torchline's young queen. [say]"Really want me to go? 'Cause if you do, slam the door and we'll call it a night."[/say]
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Flora - 08-01-2024
[say]"You weren't though."[/say] Flora argues. [say]"Or if that was you looking out for me, maybe you don't know me half as well as you think you do."[/say] She continues. [say]"He'd have fucked me, nowhere near as good as you, sure, but he'd have stayed. He'd have passed out in some snoring pile of limbs and I wouldn't have had to cry myself to fuck sleep, alone."[/say] Sure, she'd still have cried, she still had a helluva lot more tears to shed over what happened in the Climb, but someone would have been there. Not with cliche words and not because of some stupid agreement, but because they'd wanted to.
[say]"Why couldn't you just let me have that?"[/say] She whispers before biting back a soft cry.
Kicking off her shoes and having expected him to just barrel his way inside anyway, Flora looks at him from her sliver of moonlight and nibbles at the inside of her cheek. If he stayed...she'd already said what it was she'd wanted out of tonight, and with that recipe, Jack could have played his part without missing a single step. The problem never had been his performance, though.
[say]"You should go."[/say] It wasn't an answer to the question he'd asked, but it was the only one that mattered. It was the answer that the level-headed version of herself he accused her not of being would have given, anyway.
RE: it's just a bloodstain - Jack - 08-01-2024
[say]"For fuck's sake, Flora,"[/say] Jack hisses, pinching at the bridge of his nose and looking, for a moment, as if he's going to turn and leave her to it. But of course he doesn't, and the reality of it is because for the man with all the answers, he really has nothing to give when it comes to the question she's asked. Why couldn't he have just let her have that? Is it control, possessiveness, or something he doesn't have a name for because he's never felt it; something with the same wine-dark gaze and casually confident expression that Flora had given him back on the Ark that night?
[say]"Right,"[/say] he mutters, [say]"but that isn't what I asked."[/say] And since the door is still open rather than slamming in his face, the captain takes the opportunity to step across the threshold and click it shut behind him instead. (Likely much to the mixed relief and disappointment to all the twitching curtains outside that had been watching the spectacle). [say]"You,"[/say] he informs Flora, [say]"are infuriatingly complicated, and stubborn as shit. And I'm not going anywhere."[/say] Maybe because, surprise surprise, samesies.