the stubbornness of a woman couldn't be matched, so, he allows her to do as she wills. his eyes drift to the lock of hair that she tries to tuck away, and he swallows, holding back the desire to fix it again himself.
[break][break]
not that it needed fixing.
[break][break]
a sweep of confusion slides over his face, but when he realizes what she is doing, greyson plays along. lips spreading into a gentle smile, he takes the woman's hand with his own.
[break][break]
"seems like you already know my name, guinevere. my reputation precedes me, it seems."
[break][break]
he resists the small chuckle that bubbles up.
[break][break]
"it's very nice to meet you, too."

[attr="class","ooc"]Guinevere Auclair[break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-comfey"]

Stubborn? Or dedicated?

The lock of hair brushes against her cheek, begging to be retucked by hands that aren't her own. Gwen watches him, hand extended, waiting for him to take the first step.

And he does, by fitting his hand in hers. Although he doesn't allow laughter to slip past his lips, she can see the amusement twinkling behind his eyes.

"I make it a habit to memorize the names of people that I admire."

She squeezes his hand following their brief shake, but she hesitates before beginning to pull her hand away.

"Guinevere.. what a mouthful. If you'd like.. you can call me Gwen, instead."

mission: feast or famine

Greyson Connors

☉

"well, call be honored to be worth memorizing."
[break][break]
he gives her own hand a small squeeze of his own, before dropping it back to his side.
[break][break]
"gwen. i like it. it's pretty."
[break][break]
his gaze sweeps to the table, and the feast that awaits them.
[break][break]
"this looks... really good."

[attr="class","ooc"]Guinevere Auclair[break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-comfey"]

"And I am honored to be in your company."

She winks, a light blush brushing across her cheeks. She exhales quiet, nervous laughter. The entire thing is made-up and silly, they already know each other, are quite familiar, and are quite fond. But it felt natural to start over, if amusing or silly.

"It's the season, right? Unfezant and filling, the whole meal."

She realizes, then, that it is all very nostalgic from a time in which she'd had home-cooked meals made by her mother.

mission: feast or famine

Greyson Connors

☉

"an early thanksgiving?"
[break][break]
eyes widen slightly, taken a-back by both gesture, and how quickly the holiday had come upon them. it wasn't even on his radar, so busy with work, and a childish grief.
[break][break]
"only person i've seen cook this much, and something this good looking, is my mom."
[break][break]
hands delicately lift the silverware, a lopsided grin speaking to his eagerness.
[break][break]
"shall we?"

[attr="class","ooc"]Guinevere Auclair[break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-comfey"]

"Yes! I was worried I may not have time closer to the holiday-- working, and such."

And food was the way to a man's heart, her father had said, and so she had to try.

Greyson's compliment warms her heart and she smiles, taking a seat and picking up her own utensils. It is encouraging, too, to see him smile, even if the reason is her cooking and not her, specifically.

"Please!"

She carefully cuts into her plate, lifting a bite to her lips

mission: feast or famine

Greyson Connors

☉

"did you have plans or something coming up?"
[break][break]
his words come around a mouthful of food, more instinct than manners, and he quickly covers his mouth to chew the rest of it down. from there, he repeats what he said this time more legible.
[break][break]
the food was good. too good. not eating for days on end had turned him famished, nearly ravenous, and he forces himself to slow down.

[attr="class","ooc"]Guinevere Auclair[break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-comfey"]

"Hmm.. no, not really. But it is easier to pick up stray shifts during holidays. People want to be home with their family- it's just me and I am not planning on returning to Kalos."

Which meant she had nothing better to do, really, than to work. And with her relationship with Greyson still unclear, the urge to keep busy was even more prominent.

"There is plenty more if you would like to take some home with you."

mission: feast or famine

Greyson Connors

☉

everything she said held a modicum of hesitation in it. not in it's delivery, but because their relationship was confusing.
[break][break]
she could easily spend the holidays with his family, and he'd love nothing more than for her to do that, but in order to get there...
[break][break]
his smile is weak, and nervous, and greyson puts his silverware down beside his plate.
[break][break]
"can you tell me more about your nightmare?"

[attr="class","ooc"]Guinevere Auclair[break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-comfey"]

He brings up something uncomfortable, something painful for her to speak about.

But for him, she would.

"I.. saw you and my father. But.. it was as if you two were on separate paths, and I had to make a choice."

She slowly sets her utensils down, thumb pressing the knife against the table. Her breath is shaky as she recalls the details. By now, they feel sort of hazy, because it had been just that: a dream.

"On either side, I could see the end, what would happen if I chose you or him. If I chose him, you grew sick, or something terrible happened that left you in a state of.. illness-- you would die. And if I chose you-- my father would die."

It had been an ultimatum, a punishment for being selfish. Fear gripped her, clearly, on what would happen if she did what she wanted, if she pursued a life for herself.

"I chose you."

mission: feast or famine

Greyson Connors

☉

greyson gives her a sympathetic smile, scooting his chair closer to rest his hand on hers.
[break][break]
"the nightmares made everyone irrational; we can't really hold the things we did against ourselves. that isn't fair."
[break][break]
it's hard to be confident, or supportive, in this way. not because of how things were, but because his own nightmare had send him spiraling for days after.
[break][break]
"i'm alright. your dad's alright. you're alright."

[attr="class","ooc"]Guinevere Auclair[break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-comfey"]

She'd chosen Greyson, and the punishment for that, in the mist, had been her father's rapid deterioration and illness.

It was why she had fled, had run to be with her father before he passed- only to discover that the mist had been a nightmare. It hadn't been real, and it had chased her away from the life she had wanted to live.

Gwen is out of mind until he scoots closer and she feels his hand rest on top of her own. It startles her and she sucks in a breath, it catches in the middle. On her exhale, she refocuses on Greyson and feels tears well up in her eyes.

"I know. I know-- it's why I came back. I chose you-- I choose you."

But even still, there is something awkward in the way he holds her hand. As if he is bracing himself, as if he is afraid or untrusting. It is crushing to watch him watch her with eyes that feel so cold.

mission: feast or famine

Greyson Connors

☉

he listens and absorbs her words, a trickle of guilt riding the lump in his throat. his eyes glaze over, lost in a thought — a nightmare — and they pierce through gwen to land on the wall behind her.
[break][break]
"i.. had a nightmare too."
[break][break]
he'd chosen not to talk about it; to let it rest forever in the dark recesses of his memory. but when gwen had left, it became nearly impossible to ignore.
[break][break]
"you know i just remember punching danny, and feeling so angry, gwen. then this mist swirls around me and—"
[break][break]
expression softens, his own grip on her hands tightening unconciously.
[break][break]
"—next thing i know i'm surrounded by a crowd, being ushered in the new champion of the elite four. you, danny, and my parents were there cheering me on. a-and then the world just goes dark."
[break][break]
his lip trembles, the cold void in his chest nearly has him struggling to breathe. only through practice does greyson reign it in.
[break][break]
"then you all left one-by-one. i was left alone in a darkness that pulled me beneath. i couldn't shout, o-or scream."
[break][break]
his head beat thunders against his chest, the claustrophobic feeling tightening around him again. he tries to swallow, but the lump makes it impossible. the steady, soft voice of his cracks, as his walls crumble around him.
[break][break]
"then i woke up and—"
[break][break]
you weren't there.
[break][break]
"—i was alone."
[break][break]
like her, the mist begins to form around his eyes. the best he can do is look up, and falter in his smile.

[attr="class","ooc"]Guinevere Auclair[break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-comfey"]