A look of betrayal flashed in his eyes as he felt himself pull away from Camellia's touch. Was she daft? His eyes widened a fraction at the words that rolled off her tongue. Hoennian, Paldean, Kalosian -- any of those languages fell on deaf ears as his brain failed to properly register them. She was talking in a way that lacked any proper meaning behind it. Topher furrowed his brows as he attempted to, at first, doubt what she chose to say in favor of the fact she might have just been bluffing. But the way she eyed him, as if she wanted her own betrayal to feel justified. For Topher, he owed them his very being. So naturally his stance remained on the defense.

"You're joking, right?" his voice cracked.

Paranoia laced his tone as he spoke. He wanted to understand her stance on the matter but he just couldn't. The more he glanced at her, the more his perception of the very woman he'd fallen for began to warp and bend into something grotesque and obscene. Her edges frayed and broke as what he believed to be true of her bled out and stained the eggshell carpet beneath them. And as the pool of his proverbial perception crept towards him, Topher felt his body take a step back, then another, and another.

His breath hitched as he felt the wall meet his back. Fingers brushed against the cool material of the doorknob. Topher had the option of escape, but while his mind raced as any conditioned follower's would, his heart yearned for him to stay. It knew she had a point, and a fair one at that. But the question always lingered of: what if? What if they found someone better and hunted them? What if the very faction they shared a brotherhood with struck them down the moment that betrayal was even implied? His mind ran to the worst conclusion, and naturally it made his stomach twist and turn. It was only natural for someone who had been a victim his entire life to feel defensive towards something that he considered to be his saving grace.

"I think...," he steadied his tone with a sharp inhale. "I think that you sound stupid right now. And I know that's not you, Cam. But you sound so..."

He bit his lip as the word felt like an acrid taste on the tip of his tongue.

"Resolute in your choice."

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Camellia Lemaitre

His expression steeled for her insult. What could she call him? Weak? Pathetic? A coward? All insults he'd heard before and from people that were supposed to care for him. But she never finished that thought. Topher readied himself for a verbal lashing that he rightfully deserved, but found himself floored when she cut herself off and hit him with her final words. His mouth fell agape as he looked at her for a moment, attempting to find the words that he wanted to say. (But what could he say? Nothing would fix this.) Suffice to say he was used to people saying what they could to try and hurt him. This one was the killing blow, and the way his eyes burned and yearned for tears to break the floodgates was evident enough of that.

"Fine."

Fine? Everything wasn't fine. But he wouldn't give her the satisfaction of letting her soak up his hurt. He turned to face the door and kept his back to her. Once Topher managed to catch sight of the doorknob and give it a twist, he stepped out into the hall. There was so much more he wanted to do, so much more he wanted to say, but Camellia had clearly made her choice. Now it was time for him to make his. As he stepped away, he couldn't help the burning feeling that rose in his throat.

Fuck, this choice hurt.

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Camellia Lemaitre