never be so kind you forget to be clever
Now it's Flora's turn to softly curse under her breath. "I didn't know." She whispers, horrified. Torchline had always been pretty good since she'd arrived, and despite the fact that their little island would always boast some seedier coves, certainly no one would ever be denied healing if they needed it, regardless of who they were or what they'd done. Under her and Hadama's rule, Torchline was now a veritable paradise, Flora couldn't imagine having to lose someone to something so preventable.
As Jack continues, in the back of Flora's mind, it occurs to her that perhaps whatever it was that had the captain always holding her at arm's length, that had him tattooing forevers on his skin instead of just saying I love you, likely had more to do with his father than it did her. Much as no one wants to grow up to be like their parents for the most part, if Flora was killed—even accidentally—the chances of Jack holding a lifelong grudge were fairly high in her estimation. And, knowing that immortality would inevitably pull them apart if something else didn't, maybe the captain's reluctance to fully let her in was simply because he didn't want to be poisoned by his love for someone else the way his father had been. "You deserve to be loved, Jack." The Doubletake whispers softly, though it's possible that the way her throat suddenly felt tight meant the words were no more than an exhalation across her lips. "Don't let him make you think that you don't."
Having to stop herself from tangling her arms around him and holding him tightly against her if only because she was sure the naivety of the gesture would only make things worse, instead Flora let her fingertips comb gently through the back of the captain's hair before descending down his spine in haphazard little waves. It was precisely the way Hotaru played with her hair when she was little, and as she repeated the gesture again and again, she found the ache in her chest loosening somewhat. "If you ever wanted her to see the man you've become...we could do that, you know."
As Jack continues, in the back of Flora's mind, it occurs to her that perhaps whatever it was that had the captain always holding her at arm's length, that had him tattooing forevers on his skin instead of just saying I love you, likely had more to do with his father than it did her. Much as no one wants to grow up to be like their parents for the most part, if Flora was killed—even accidentally—the chances of Jack holding a lifelong grudge were fairly high in her estimation. And, knowing that immortality would inevitably pull them apart if something else didn't, maybe the captain's reluctance to fully let her in was simply because he didn't want to be poisoned by his love for someone else the way his father had been. "You deserve to be loved, Jack." The Doubletake whispers softly, though it's possible that the way her throat suddenly felt tight meant the words were no more than an exhalation across her lips. "Don't let him make you think that you don't."
Having to stop herself from tangling her arms around him and holding him tightly against her if only because she was sure the naivety of the gesture would only make things worse, instead Flora let her fingertips comb gently through the back of the captain's hair before descending down his spine in haphazard little waves. It was precisely the way Hotaru played with her hair when she was little, and as she repeated the gesture again and again, she found the ache in her chest loosening somewhat. "If you ever wanted her to see the man you've become...we could do that, you know."
