2024-06-29: A Slow-Motion Disaster
- Log: A Slow-Motion Disaster
- Cast: Suletta Mercury, Miorine Rembran
- Where: Asticassia - Library
- Date: 2024-06-29
- Summary: Miorine viciously confronts Suletta in the library over talking to Elan... but in the end, she can't argue with her heart. (Content warning: physical/emotional abuse)
<Pose Tracker> Suletta Mercury has posed.
Studying at the library...!
It's always so e x c i t i n g!
Students ALWAYS study at the library. They even have STUDY GROUPS. (Suletta Mercury does not have a study group.) They take books and they photocopy pages from them to use in their reports! They look things up on the computers! They have naps in the comfy chairs!
And that's where Suletta is at, right now, a book on the history and practice of oxygenation in mobile suits resting still open on her chest as it rises and falls evenly. Her head lilts to one side against the comfy backrest, her untamed hair even wilder for the disturbance. One hand droops down over the armrest, while the other rests on top of her book, lightly.
Zzz...
<Pose Tracker> Miorine Rembran has posed.
Miorine Rembran never studies at the library. Most of the time she doesn't even study. Her classes were trivial to her, she pulls them off rather casually. If Suletta sees her doing homework, then it's rapid fire.
Thus, one might consider the library a Miorine-free safe zone.
After all, she doesn't come here, and there are rules. Rules against one's volume being above a certain level.
Napping is thus... safe? Right... right...
"Suletta!"
The swing of Miorine's bag against the back of Suletta's head, unfortunately, proves otherwise. It's not a particularly 'do actual damage' swing, but it is hard enough to sting, to awaken.
"SULETTA!"
"Shhh!"
Miorine ignores the onlookers 'This is a library' noises putting a hand on her hip and looming... yes LOOMING over Suletta's space.
She looks beyond irritated - she's gone straight into angry territory.
"Why was Elan apologizing to me all of a sudden? What did you do?"
<Pose Tracker> Suletta Mercury has posed.
Suletta is absorbing knowledge through the power of slumber...! Unfortunately, it also means she can't hear the music building in the background, warning everyone that --
"YEEP!"
Suletta yelps, grasping at the back of her head as she bends forward, her book scattering to the floor. She's not all that hurt physically; it still hurts. Immediately, she apologises for what she thinks she's done wrong: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!! It was an exam, so I had to turn my phone off!"
... as if Miorine is upset she didn't pick her phone up, that one time.
But no -- as she finds herself pressed back into her chair again by Miorine's looming presence, she informs her just what her sins were.
"M-Mr. Elan? I didn't tell him it was you, I didn't! I didn't say your name at all! H-he just thought of you since he knew it was bad!"
<Pose Tracker> Miorine Rembran has posed.
"Who cares about that!?"
Miorine initially hiss-shouts, because library etiquette, but then she corrects it, "Just set it to vibrate from now on for me only, if I need to get ahold of you, an exam isn't an excuse!"
How is it NOT an excuse!? Also didn't she just say who cares about that? How can she so confidently switch gears from dismissing it to actually seeming mad about it?!
Miorine's eyes flicker for a moment, as if she's considering the subject matter, and...
"Members of the Three Branches don't just apologize. You remember Guel don't you? You had to make him."
She doesn't think that was a wise use of what Suletta gets when the stakes are so high, but it's what she decided on, and even if she thinks it's a waste that's not that important.
She straightens up, "Why would he just..." Her brow furrows, like she's going to deescalate, and for a moment Suletta might feel less pressured then...
"Wait. Why were you even talking to him at all!?" Oh no, now she's stepped into Suletta's personal space and she's POINTING A FINGER right at her chin. "I told you not to even speak to him! He's the enemy! What do you not get about that!?"
"Shhh!" Someone else in the library hisses at her, and Miorine hisses back, "YOU HUSH! This is between the two of us!"
<Pose Tracker> Suletta Mercury has posed.
Who cares about that? Miorine cares about that! The shift in her demands is dizzying, but Suletta tries to keep up, anyway. "Th-- the rules--" she stammers out, but she doesn't quite manage to get there.
And then, "I, I didn't..."
But she isn't able to choke that out before Miorine jumps to her next conclusion, either.
"H-h-he offered t-to walk me to c-c-class! That's all!" Suletta reaches for her book, only to find it's FALLEN DOWN, so she has to hide behind her hands instead. "That's all! That's really all!"
<Pose Tracker> Miorine Rembran has posed.
Miorine really isn't giving Suletta much time to respond to anything is she? And yet like a bull charging down the street during some Earth Festival, she keeps going.
"That's all!? SULETTA!" Miorine yells again loudly enough that they both may need to fear the wrath of the Library Fuzz soon.
Miorine keeps leaning this way, and that way to get into her face, around her inadequate shield of her hands, "How do you not get this! He's the heir to one of the three branches! He's a schemer and a snake! If he's being nice to you then it's because he just wants to get to me!"
She finally hooks her fingers around the hands, trying to yank them apart and look Suletta in the eyes with all her terrifying, smol power. (Yes she's having to tip toe this one too.)
"You're the Holder now! Don't you understand? It means everyone is out to get you! Because everyone's out to get me! You can't just fall head over heels for the first guy who pretends to be nice to you!"
<Pose Tracker> Suletta Mercury has posed.
Could... could the Library Fuzz save Suletta...?!
(Probably not. They'd probably arrest her for inciting the incident. The fuzz are never particularly helpful in these situations...)
No -- she's left to flinch down, trying to make herself tinier than Miorine, which is a trial with how big she is. She covers her eyes to try and get away from Miorine's disapproving expression, as if not being able to see her means that Miorine can't see Suletta either. "B-b-b-b-but, I--"
Suletta is a strong girl, but she neither expects to brace against Miorine, nor could she bring herself to; Miorine yanks her hands away, and she finds herself pinned under her considerable efforts to loom.
She doesn't find the fact that Miorine has to stand on tip-toe to get in her face blunts the terror all that much. Nor the embarrassment, as Miorine loudly announces her secret crush to the entire library, and her cheeks colour brightly as her eyes grow wider still. "M-M-M-M-Miss Miorine!" She protests, mouth agape. "I-I-I-I-I--!! I! I! I-I don't think -- h-he's pretending," she manages to squeak out, eventually.
Defending him.
<Pose Tracker> Miorine Rembran has posed.
It's true, just like that! Miorine announced it! And the thing is Suletta didn't even tell her. She just assumes it's like that, because she just assumes Suletta is a Sex-Crazed Idiot who just wants to go on dates.
Suletta however in cringing, embarrassed terror protests, and then...
"Haah!?" Miorine makes a noise of just disbelief at the ridiculous thing that just came out of Suletta's mouth.
"And how do you figure that! You said there was noone around your age where you grew up on Mercury!"
She was paying attention!? "You don't even know the first thing about how boys operate!"
Well Suletta probably knows the first thing? But Miorine at least says she doesn't, "The ones who act nice? They're just lying about what they're really after! You can't let yourself be so boy-crazy that you forget where you are! If you do, then it's over for both of us!"
<Pose Tracker> Suletta Mercury has posed.
Is it really so ridiculous... that Suletta doesn't think Elan is lying...?
Suletta flinches, when Miorine points out her inexperience. "Mm," she hums, lips pressed tightly together, swallowing behind them.
She doesn't... know how boys operate, does she...?
"I -- I'm sorry," she says quietly, looking down, as if she could escape Miorine's disapproving gaze. "I just think he's nice... I'm sorry."
She sounds so much more defeated, now it's caught up to her -- that she's risking Miorine, too. Surely she knew that, but... it didn't seem like just walking with him was so bad. It didn't seem so bad, but...
<Pose Tracker> Miorine Rembran has posed.
Suleta at first says she's 'sorry', and Miorine draws back because of course she won this one right? She just expects Suletta to capitulate to her.
But...
'I just think he's nice... I'm sorry.'
"Are you even listening to what I'm saying?!"
For a moment, it's like Miorine was just going to keep yelling - and in fact, she feels it.
That time, after Suletta beat Guel, after she helped her by taking care of the sabotage...
... it felt good. She felt... happy... even if just for a short while.
It wasn't so bad to fight her battles alongside someone else. It felt good to play her father's game, by his rules and beat him by it.
But now she's starting to see how much Suletta being a Bumpkin is going to crash into reality. Even with Miorine being raised in this place... she still...
Miorine finally draws herself back up, and looks away, and... there's more distance.
"Don't be 'sorry'. After all... he's 'nice' isn't he? You know better."
Miorine tells her coldly, looking away from her. "Do whatever you want. Obviously I expected too much of you."
She definitely expected too much of her. She needs to consider escape routes again as if it were a more urgent matter.
"When he turns out to be like all the rest and your heart gets broken, don't come crying to me about it."
Miorine starts walking away, and it's no longer like she was walking away from something heated. The anger isn't quite there...
... just...
... disappointment.
<Pose Tracker> Suletta Mercury has posed.
"I -- I am, Miss Miorine! I'm sorry!" Suletta's done something wrong, again... and she expects Miorine to keep yelling, too.
When Miorine draws away, Suletta takes the opportunity to draw her hands in front of her again, fingers curled, clutched in front of her. Tightly, tightly, all wound up like a twisted spring. Her mother would...
But mom isn't here to protect her, right now. She wanted to come to school, so she has to figure it out. Miorine says she knows better, and chill settles in her heart as she realises how badly she's messed up -- that Miorine will just let her fail. "M-Miss Miorine..." She starts, tremulous, but she doesn't have the strength to stop her.
She's... disappointed in her.
"I'm sorry," she says, looking down, though she can't be sure Miorine is even still here.
"I'm sorry I like him."
<Pose Tracker> Miorine Rembran has posed.
Miorine does stop for a moment as Suletta keeps talking. Pausing in her footsteps.
Her eyes close. She's still turned away from her.
It's painful.
It'd be easier if someone could just stop the way they feel wouldn't it? It'd be easier if she could stop.
You say how much you care about me, but you don't even trust me enough to handle that much!
"Don't bother."
She knows better than anyone someone can't change the way they feel.
"Just don't drag me down with you."
And then she keeps walking.