Maea
The worst of all blessings
Arguing had not been on the agenda for today, yet it seemed to be where they were headed. The way Liam was phrasing his response chafed against sore spots in her, triggering all those insecure parts that whispered how wrong she was, how demanding, how uptight and stingy with her affections - how dare she require reciprocity instead of pouring all of herself without stopping to question if it was a mutual thing, wanted, needed or even a healthy thing to do.
"Not all, but most relationships are that way, aren't they? You give of love and care, time and attention, and in the majority of cases expect something in return. Respect, gratitude - what is returned depends on the relation but there's always something, some kind of exchange." Carefully setting her plate aside, Maea shifted in her seat so she could look at him. "If you don't need that, then fine. I do, though. Otherwise, I'd feel more a servant than a friend. If I don't get a choice, if I can't say no - to me, that is the same as being enslaved. Which is what most of the Family's so called 'friends' describe it once they've been relieved of the influence."
Her tail flicked in a slow, measured papttern, and as she pulled her legs up beneath her, it wrapped neatly around her knees - nudging the outside of his thigh briefly, perhaps by accident or perhaps in some unconscious reassurance that disagreeing didn't have to mean driving him away.
"Let me ask this, then - if Vox or Pierce or Dahlia asked you to do something, could you say no? If they asked you to kill, or betray someone you cared about - can you go against them?"
"Not all, but most relationships are that way, aren't they? You give of love and care, time and attention, and in the majority of cases expect something in return. Respect, gratitude - what is returned depends on the relation but there's always something, some kind of exchange." Carefully setting her plate aside, Maea shifted in her seat so she could look at him. "If you don't need that, then fine. I do, though. Otherwise, I'd feel more a servant than a friend. If I don't get a choice, if I can't say no - to me, that is the same as being enslaved. Which is what most of the Family's so called 'friends' describe it once they've been relieved of the influence."
Her tail flicked in a slow, measured papttern, and as she pulled her legs up beneath her, it wrapped neatly around her knees - nudging the outside of his thigh briefly, perhaps by accident or perhaps in some unconscious reassurance that disagreeing didn't have to mean driving him away.
"Let me ask this, then - if Vox or Pierce or Dahlia asked you to do something, could you say no? If they asked you to kill, or betray someone you cared about - can you go against them?"
The most beautiful of curses
Base by Skylark
