[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]the longer he talks, the warier she grows.

and at some point, something in her simply... snaps. she stops quickly, whipping around to face him in a whirlwind of white hair and angry red eyes. she thinks of Felix Gallagher for a moment in between rising rage, of the way he held her.

there's no. fucking. way.

"shut the fuck up." it's rare, truthfully, for illeana to lose it so quickly. usually it takes longer. perhaps matias simply has that effect on her, whether they're aware or not.

"you have some nerve, you know? accusing a friend you don't even know of being involved in rocket? ridiculous."

fists curl into balls at her sides but she doesn't swing. not yet, anyway. her golurk rumbles a soft warning, more to matias than its trainer.

"where the fuck was the league when i was chained to the floor in a cell, huh? where the fuck were you?" nowhere.

the league let her rot there.

MATIAS SILPH
eggs in one basket

warnings of aggression and possible acts are ignored. her golurk may rumble and illeana may ball her fists, but they are far from the worse things he's encountered.[break][break]

"how else could they have gotten you out?"[break][break]

he pushes and pushes because he knows he can get away with it. virizion's posture shifts as well, stiffening as though she's ready to react.[break][break]

"i didn't know you were captured. if i had, your friend wouldn't have had to set you free."[break][break]

disgusting.[break][break]

"are you really that naive to think your friend isn't involved with them, illie?"

[attr="class","ooc"]illeana reyes[break]

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

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]he pushes buttons and some small part of her lets him.

her face twists into a scowl as she steps closer into his space. he towers over her, sure, but there's enough venom in her stare to make up for a height difference.

"they broke me out while you let me rot in there."

and the laugh she lets out is snarky, mocking.

"you think i'd just randomly take a vacation without a word?" better yet... "what, were you gonna save me? my fucking hero."

she doesn't go so far as to spit on him. no, the words are enough.

and yet, they don't stop him from continuing to push until she breaks. the pieces are jagged, bloody as they fall. and when they shatter on the ground, her fist rapidly swings at his jaw. she puts her weight into it, enough to do something.

"i'd rather rot in that cell again than stand here and let you tell me who to trust. i trusted the league, i trusted you."

she swings again as her golurk tries to step up to hold her back. unfortunately, the automaton is too slow.

"you all let me rot in there like i was nothing." and maybe she really is nothing to the league, to him, to everyone. and maybe it doesn't even matter.

MATIAS SILPH
eggs in one basket

he lets her hit him. her fist against his jaw is enough to snap his head to the side. he's surprised, honestly, because he never expected her to act on it.[break][break]

is this the byproduct of the league's failure, then?[break][break]

or is it rocket's influence?[break][break]

"i'd be careful, illie."[break][break]

she hits him again.[break][break]

"because you're starting to sound a whole lot like them."[break][break]

blood starts to leak from his lips. he raises a hand to smear it off.[break][break]

it's hard not to laugh.[break][break]

"go back to that cell, then. fuck the league. fuck everything you've worked for just because you've developed some fucking connection with a piece of shit you think is your friend."

[attr="class","ooc"]illeana reyes[break]

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

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]with the floodgates open, there's no stopping the rushing tide.

anger, disappointment, pain, betrayal. they all mix and mingle into a concoction that keeps her advancing, keeps her swinging. there's pain in her dominant hand and pearly pink mist does little to help the situation. it doesn't ease her, it doesn't heal her. it does nothing, just as the league did.

"don't call me that." she snarls and tries to swing once more. "you don't have the fucking right."

in her right mind, she'd back off at the sight of blood. it triggers an innate urge to mend and heal what's pained, what's injured, what's broken. and yet, his blood bubbling down from his lips doesn't stop the childish rampage she's on.

no... perhaps, in a sick and twisted combination of connections and blood, it goads her further.

"what do you know of connections, huh?" he broke all of his, shattered like porcelain on the floor and for what? "i gave everything to the league. my work, my life, my relationship, my body and where did that leave me? chained up like an animal for slaughter in the enemies hands while the whole lot of you did. absolutely. nothing."

at what point, however, does she start to blame herself instead of them? after all... she's the one who willingly became a disposable pawn to the league, to FERNANDO SILPH, to him. and no matter how many times she hits him ort how loud she screams, it doesn't make her any more important, cherished, loved.

MATIAS SILPH
eggs in one basket

at this point, their argument has begun to stir quite a bit of commotion which has attracted a few bystanders to curiously look over. some of the more nosy ones gossip amongst themselves; wordless whispers that hold no value to matias.[break][break]

this time, her swing is caught. his hand catches her at her wrist, holding it as he scoffs.[break][break]

"you think you're the only one who's had to make sacrifices?"[break][break]

this time, his words drip with judgment.[break][break]

"we bleed, we hurt, and we sacrifice not because we want to but because that's what's expected of us — what's required. i'm sorry you were stupid enough to get caught but that's on you. the league owes you nothing."[break][break]

releasing her wrist, he gestures around them.[break][break]

"nobody owes you anything! this is what you fucking signed up for. but you're out, you're free, and you're alive. that's more than most can say."[break][break]

a MAGICAL LEAF floats between them, drifting with the wind.[break][break]

"so grow the fuck up, illie, and move on."

[attr="class","ooc"]illeana reyes[break]

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

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]the bystanders are nothing more than little bugs watching a show. she ignores them as she ignores everything: shoving them down and letting unruly emotions run rampant.

and sometimes, it works. other times... it ends like this, with her wrist caught and her eyes on fire.

"spare me your hero lecture, matias."

it's infuriating, insufferable. sacrifices mean little in the grand scheme of things. they're still pawns on a chessboard, existing until the next move. and what happens when the entire board is thrown? when it flips?

what happens when she no longer plays the part?

and perhaps, in some regard, their paths are similar. lambs led astray by "good intentions" and left to wonder if they're better or worse than the things hunting them. perhaps they aren't and that's the whole point. at least, for her anyway... he makes it very clear she's different than them. nothing more than a stupid girl in over her stupid head, right?

at least the naivety has finally fucking died.

"i didn't sign up for being a fucking prisoner. no one signs up for that." and really, it's still her own fault but she's blaming whoever she can to feel better.

he strikes a nerve as one always does. she gives into it as she gives into most things: without an ounce of hesitation. the magical leaf flutters and bitterly, she wishes it'd crumble.

"move on? move on?" a look of utter disbelief rises. and then, venom. she snarls, jabbing a finger into his chest. "get the fuck off your high horse. you move on."

there's a grudge she doesn't know, doesn't understand. and yet, it's so tangible... she can practically choke on it.

MATIAS SILPH
eggs in one basket

his chest is jabbed but the venom never quite sinks in, perhaps nullified by something far worse within him.[break][break]

"it's like i'm talking to a fucking wall."[break][break]

despite that, he sees change — growth, perhaps, of a young scientist finally opening their eyes to the bitterness of things. from here, he can only hope.[break][break]

the egg still in his arms is shoved back into hers. this isn't his responsibility nor does he feel inclined to help out anymore.[break][break]

"do better, illie, and don't get yourself caught again."[break][break]

and with that, he steps away, making his departure.

[attr="class","ooc"]illeana reyes[break]

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