when was the last time she came out at the night? when was the last time she came out without an ulterior motive? [break][break]

nowadays everything is for a greater reason. it's for the best, it's for science, it's for research, it's for this, it's for that, and she never gave a chance to be able just be. she doesn't know what's gotten into her when she decides that there's nothing wrong with coming out to be just that. [break][break]

were it not for the barrier, she'd think the night's weather was nice. had she not felt like she was being cooked in a microwave, she might have enjoyed it more. [break][break]

she needed time away from the other trainers, and the other employees, so she came out here. at least there's a breeze, and the sundress that isn't hers flutters in the wind enough to cool her off. [break][break]

in her walk, she finds a familiar figure sitting in front of a bonfire. she has half the mind to walk away. she should walk away. it's odd when she doesn't. [break][break]

"is this spot taken?" she tilts her head, pointing to the empty space beside him.

Leonidas Stone

☉

A familiar voice met his ears before long.[break]
He looked up, blinking, before a grin spread across his lips as per common instinct.[break][break]

”...Can’t say it is, nah,” he hummed, eyelids lowered with a spark of amusement within their flickering, amber hues. He rose a brow towards her after some thought, eventually shifting to the side a bit more in order to allow her more room.[break][break]

He relished the breeze as it blew by, tracing his eyes towards the fire once more as the scent of it met his senses.[break][break]

”...Didn’t expect to see you out here,” he added on, chuckling. ”Finally have some free time? Studying and stuff done for now?”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
mission: hot summer nights

☉

the crackling of the fire accompanies his chuckle, and she watches as he moves to give her space. [break][break]

it's slight, but a smile reflects the glow of the flames just a little bit away from them. "good." she leans back with her hands in the ground, watching the fire, then raising her gaze to the stars above them. if the sand didn't risk going into her hair again, she'd lean back and lay down. [break][break]

a soft exhale leaves her lips when the breeze blows by. it's welcome, and it's cooling, especially when the barrier has been keeping the heat in hoenn. "something like that." she hums, taking in a breath of fresh air. "it's hard to study in this heat." she tilts her head, covered cheek against her shoulder "... and i've had a lot on my mind."

Leonidas Stone

☉

He raised a brow, leaning forward where he sat while propping his chin against the heel of his palm, and his elbow atop the respective knee. Tilting his head against his own touch, he smiled with equal parts intrigue and idle amusement.[break][break]

”A lot on your mind, huh…?” he hummed softly, a lingering, amble gaze upon her. ”You wanna talk about it~?”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
mission: hot summer nights

☉

"no, i don't." [break][break]

keep it in the confines of her mind, but the only thing that stops her is the way she already said that she'd.. do the opposite. it doesn't sit well with her when she knows that she wanted to be a bit more honest. her lips curl into a frown as she maintains an empty gaze on the embers. [break][break]

"... but if you must know" she caves, anyways "-- i've been reflecting on my life." she lets out a soft sigh, lowering her gaze back to the ground she's seated on. "what i've accomplished, what i've learned, so forth." her voice is lower, before it raises with a forced smile. [break][break]

"since there's a meteor hurling towards us~."

Leonidas Stone

☉

He widened his eyes slightly upon noting her response, sitting just a bit straighter once realizing that he, oddly and finally enough, had been branded a confidant.[break][break]

The smile upon his lips diminished in light of the aforementioned surprise, as well, though a look of curiosity and intrigue remained within his eyes, nevertheless. His hands fell within the space between his knees as his form shifted, finding solace and embrace within one another as their fingers twined, softly, as their host began pondering.[break][break]

A shadow of his former expression returned upon hearing her later words, however wry and wistful it may have been.[break][break]

”...That’s fair, honestly,” he hummed, chuckling softly.[break][break]

He’d done his fair share of it since escaping that dreaded cyberscape, anyways— and even before then, as well.[break][break]

”So? Spill the beans, then~.”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
mission: hot summer nights

☉

she catches the surprise in her peripheral, and her lips quirk into a slight smile. it's less forced this time. [break][break]

but she won't say anything; it's enough to revel in the silent shock. but she'll insist that lying leaves a bad taste in her mouth, or maybe it's that the events of cyberchase have finally caught up to her, and she's taken more time between her studies to do some self reflection. an old coworker said something that's stuck with her, burrowing small claws into her flesh. [break][break]

she gives him a glance and smiles a bit more, planting a hand into the sand as she turns her body to raise her other hand, and gently give his shoulder a gentle flick. "you're nosy." she doesn't hate it. [break][break]

when she leans back, she lowers onto her elbows, gazing up at the sky as she hums in pensive thought. "i'm not really proud, or happy of my life." she's smiling when she speaks, but it's wry, and she doesn't know if smiling will be able to soften the blow. "i became a nurse to help others" she starts, hand raising to gently tug at the strings of the eyepatch. there's a pause in her words when she does, followed by a scoffing chuckle "but it doesn't feel like i can help anyone."[break][break]

"honestly," she lowers her gaze to the flaming bonfire "... it feels like i've hurt more people than i could ever save."

Leonidas Stone

☉

’Nosy,’ she said.[break]
He chuckled.[break][break]

”I’d say it’s one of my more redeeming qualities~,” he cooed in equal parts jest and genuine intent, alike. He eyed her for a while longer, noting the particulars of the expression upon her face before adding a quieter and calmer, ”Everyone deserves to be listened to, after all,” soon after.[break][break]

Though she’d taken her eyes to the skies above, he still took note of the aforementioned look upon her face. One moment past. Two. He went on to look in the same direction before long.[break][break]

”...And why would you say that, though, mmn~?” he mused after some amount of silence, raising his brows towards naught more than the stars shining high above. ”From what I know, you’re good at what you do, so the sentiment isn’t really justified, in my opinion~...”[break][break]

He tilted his head, faintly, to peer towards her from the corner of his eye once more.[break][break]

”...Unless my gut feeling’s right, and there’s a bit more context behind the opinion to be had?”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
mission: hot summer nights

☉

redeeming? [break][break]

frankly, it's more of an annoyance, or an irritation, but what ever helps him sleep better at night. he's optimistic, and he's trying too hard to see the good in people - or even worse, he genuinely believes in what he preaches, and in that case, there's a little concern for the day he comes across someone too far from salvation. [break][break]

not that she falls under the category. [break][break]

"ah? it sounds like you're giving me too much credit." the smile doesn't waver, but her eyes are maintaining a fixated gaze on the sky. instead she chuckles, because it's a little laughable. it's a little naive. "although i know i'm good at what i do," (it's the one thing she knows how to do, even with her eyes closed) "there's still a lot of people who won't be saved." [break][break]

when she speaks, she lets out a huff of warm air from her lips. then she caves and lays her back, fully, against the grass. her body turns to the side to face towards him, legs lifting up slightly, curling towards her stomach as her arms are held together. it's been a while since they were trapped in that digital space, and the sudden destruction's reminded her of why she left hoenn in the first place. [break][break]

loathe is she to admit that his gut feeling is correct; why is it so keen? she watches with an uncovered eye, then smiles, softly, with a hint of defeat. "a little." she sighs, and her body eases up. "none that i'm willing to share, though~" so tough luck, she'll say with a soft snicker. then she quiets down, and her gaze softens. there's a silence, and maybe a tiny bit of nostalgia she feels as the flames warm exposed skin. [break][break]

"... i had more pokemon, once." she mumbles, softly. her gaze falls to the ground. "and in the end, i couldn't save them." a twang in her heart resounds so loudly, but she doesn't have the right to feel this way.

Leonidas Stone

☉

It was hard to be disappointed when the assumed became reality. Most people he’d had the pleasure of knowing often took him for the type of blind optimism; to figure that the best case scenario would be enacted by none others’ hands than his own. He only hoped that it could be the case.[break][break]

Regardless of his hopes and dreams, however, he knew that most things were simply wishful thinking.[break][break]

So, upon noting the woman’s responses, his own had simply come in the form of a soft smile of amusement, as well as a chuckle to join it. ”So closed off as always,” he mused, sighing quietly. ”Can’t say I’m surprised, but I’m sure you remember that my offer still stands~.”[break][break]

And it stood, at the very least, for the later words she’d spoken.[break][break]

A smaller bout of silence overtook him as he noted the words spoken to him. His lips pursed gently and idly as his gaze drifted upward once more.[break][break]

”Well, was it actually something within your control?”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
mission: hot summer nights

☉

was it?[break][break]

"it was." she'll tell herself, and tell the world; it was something she could have stopped herself from doing. it's something that she could have kept at bay, and she'll blame herself for her own incompetence. it's why she's stuck with the pokemon she has now, though most new, almost all brought back as a result of familiarity (the original necroma and necronoma would probably look at her in distaste, disgust. what would they think in the afterlife?). [break][break]

"though" the words still weigh heavy, no matter how long it's been ".. the majority of them were released into the wild." she sighs, nestling her cheek against the crook of her elbow as her arm bends, used as a cushion for the side of her head. [break][break]

there's insecurity, isn't there? knowing the looks that people have given her in rocket, both in concern and disgust. her gaze traces back up to watch his profile, now more intently than the last time. "... i guess it was half in my control." her knees curl up closer to her stomach and her chest, and her other arm moves to loosely hook them around her legs. an old memory makes her skin stand, crawling up her spine with the slimy slither of regret. [break][break]

and so softly was her voice as she mumbles against her skin: "i didn't want to hurt them."

Leonidas Stone

☉

Skeptical.[break]
…Skeptical, and yet he simply had to take her word for it.[break][break]

Amber hues remained upon the heavens strewn above them for a while longer as the woman spoke her part, eventually veiling over with a softened touch as another, thoughtful hum escaped his lips. His chest lifted once more with a gradual breath, his hands joining together within a fold in the space of his lap as he crossed a leg over the other.[break][break]

...Released, huh? Half in her control…[break][break]

A confession he hadn’t quite been expecting, though one he’d received, nevertheless. His gaze remained high prior to eventually straying within a gradual manner, eventually finding itself looming upon the person by him from the edge of its boundaries. He eyed her; her positioning; her demeanor. The faltering tone she’d offered hadn’t been lost upon him, though within those moments, he simply took the words in for what they were between her own displays.[break][break]

He’d only been able to peer towards the flame in intended thought for just a moment before noting the faintly tapered words tacked on, driving him to look over once more.[break][break]

”...Pardon?”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
mission: hot summer nights

☉

it's complicated when she wants to explain it. [break][break]

neither of her parents were in psychology, though with how interested father was, he may as well have been (he was so good at. manipulation and so good with people; he may as well). when she thinks back to how she used to be, she clicks her tongue, eyes maintain their gaze on him, though now they aren't looking at anything. she's only staring deep into her thoughts. [break][break]

when their eyes meet, there's a pause. he's heard her and, back then, she would have burst into a pool of red, stammering, anxious and desperate to push the topic aside. before, she would have been fearful of what he'd think, fearful of her words, fearful of herself and the world around her. [break][break]

has anything changed?[break][break]

"... no." it's nothing important that he needs to know (note the later part of that; he doesn't need to know). now, she doesn't bother to force the wry smile as her expression returns to its flat default. ".. it's nothing." she says again, now only with a soft crack to her soft voice. but based on the gaze he puts on her, he'll commit it to memory, even if he doesn't press on it. [break][break]

maybe it's the summer heat finally messing with her mind. [break][break]

it's finally clouding her judgement. [break][break]

she takes a deep breath - and this time it's a little shaky "it's nothing." she'll say with a shaky exhale. it's for herself.

Leonidas Stone

☉