He listened, watching.[break]
He listened, carefully.[break][break]

The first words to meet his ears were no surprise, given her initial disposition. Nihilism only met itself with nihilism so many times, after all— but had been everything else that he was more concerned about. Though he hadn’t quite intended to when he’d originally found her that day, he found himself idling calmly and vigilantly as he so often did while on the clock. To say the situation at hand turned into an interrogation wouldn’t have been entirely accurate, but at the same time, it wouldn’t have been inaccurate.[break][break]

After all, he was a bit worried, no matter how much of an inkling he’d formed of her from past encounters.[break][break]

Said worry, however, was faintly eased as the silence filled the air, only to be cut short by the next words to leave her lips. Though his expression remained unchanging—an uncharacteristic distance and unreadable touch strewn upon his features—he couldn’t help but feel relieved at the line of thought she’d been speaking along.[break][break]

”Because the little things are what matter the most,” he followed up, his eyes finally softening the tiniest bit as his lip quirked upward. A breath left his lips as his gaze remained upon her, all while he relaxed further into his seat and crossed his legs. ”Like you said— we die. Everyone. No matter what we’ve done, or what we’ve experienced, we all die eventually.”[break][break]


He furrowed his brows slightly while still watching her.[break][break]

”...But ‘til then, we’re still here. If you choose to wake up every day, then it’s up to you to find a way to make it worthwhile— struggles and all~.”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
notes

☉

”What exactly’s the point of living if you’ve got nothing to live for— no biases, no driving motivations, nothing?”[break][break]

A question so loaded, of course, yet so nonchalantly posed without missing a beat.[break][break]

While she, herself, seemed to shift and adjust in light and acknowledgment of an inquiry-to-be, he simply remained as he was: relaxed. Watchful. Waiting. Though hidden from the eyesight of any and all, the tapping of his fingers gradually trailed into a stop as he watched her eyes; watched her expression; watched her.

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
notes

☉

”You learn to detach yourself in a lot of professions,” he corrected, a small smile of equal parts wryness and amusement, alike, tugging upon his lips in contrast to the expression he’d worn prior. His eyes remained upon her as hers only remained upon the papers before her. ”Just part of the world today, kid. …It’s fine if y’know how to rein yourself back in when it’s needed.”[break][break]

His gaze lingered upon her for a little while longer.[break]
He leaned back against his seat before long, sighing while slipping his hands into his pockets.[break][break]

”And I may have a family, yeah— but that’s only one of the major reasons what you’re saying is right~.”[break][break]

He tapped his fingers against his legs in thought, his lips relaxing from their prior tug once more.[break][break]

”...On that note, I wanna ask you something, kid.”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
notes

☉

Her words met his ears, loud and clear.[break]
A silence followed within their midst.[break][break]

Before terribly long, however, he found himself inhaling deeply in thought whilst leaning back within the very seat he’d taken for himself, all while crossing his arms with a faint (and some would say uncharacteristic) furrow of the brows. The nature of his profession called for a sort of keen perception on the norm; one that, despite outward tendencies, had always remained intact while both on and off duty, alike.[break][break]

As such, he’d only needed a moment to gather the look upon her face, and even less to note the tone—the difference between normalcy and otherwise—within her tone.[break][break]

”...Sounds to me like you just don’t have anything worthwhile, then,” had been the first words, bluntly, to leave his lips. His eyes dwindled upon the surface before him within an idle manner; a simple, absentminded gesture that could have very well suggested little thought amidst his remarks.[break][break]

Yet, despite however long one would even try to read between the lines, they’d always be met with the same thing.[break]
Pure, blatant honesty— the type that carried confidence and utmost awareness.[break][break]

”It’s the first thought I have, at least,” he added not long after, raising a brow faintly while casting a subtle glance from the corner of his eye. ”Most people at least have some sort of bias if they got something important enough to them.”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
notes

☉

Open mindedness had always been something he considered to be a strong suit of his.[break]
In reality, it was nothing short of the truth.[break][break]

Yet, in those moments, he couldn’t help but listen with an attentive—but more pressingly, almost grave—ear; a foil as far shotted away from his common demeanor as could be. As the winds and seas of erosion carved their ways through the very earth they called home, the former traces of lighthearted nature that so commonly graced his own visage had trickled away as he gave her words some acknowledgment.[break][break]

His brows hardened in tandem to a hardened gaze that eyed her, pensively.[break]
He hummed, inhaling deeply and slowly.[break][break]

”So,” he started off, ”you’re basically thinking they have more of a right to life than we do?”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
notes

☉

”Uh huh. So…still studying~.”[break][break]

A soft, chuckling sigh of faux (maybe it hadn’t actually been faux) exasperation left his lips as the words accompanied them, all while hues of a gentle, curious azure lingered upon both her and the texts laid before her. In light of the response he’d received, however, his attention only seemed to further stay upon the aforementioned books within the other’s focus, and after an idling, absentminded hum, he strode forward a few steps before pulling a chair for himself.[break][break]

Better to do so, rather than looking like a solicitor, after all.[break][break]

”...I do find it odd, though,” he sighed, quirking a lip as he sat himself down. A faint crease of the brow surfaced as both furrowed gently, all while he leaned back and crossed his arms within a thoughtful manner. ”Moreso concerning, though. That kinda stuff just seems…weird. Dangerous. If you ask me, it shouldn’t be stuff we engage with…”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
notes

☉

Though the skepticism upon her face had been as telltale as it always was, there was a sense of relief that embodied the smile upon his lips—gentle and grateful as it was—as it persisted upon his lips. Its span only proved to broaden faintly upon noting her affection, and as she shifted away following the touch of her lips against his cheek, he’d merely breathed a soft, humming chuckle while a hand of hers within his own once more.[break][break]

He returned the gesture with a softened kiss against her knuckles before watching as she shifted towards the table.[break][break]

”Trust me, I’ll be doing everything in my power to make sure it never happens~.” He released her hand in favor of placing his own upon her back, rubbing it within a form of idle reassurance for a simple moment or so. ”I agree with you, though. …I’m sure everything’ll work out.”[break][break]

He inhaled deeply, breathing a hefty sigh before leaning forward once more to reach for the plates he’d set down some time beforehand. Taking both of them into his hands, he offered one towards her while leaning back to lounge yet again.[break][break]

”...That aside, let’s think on that again later~.”

DAPHNE STONE [break]
pls end after your post lol

☉

A chuckle escaped his lips as his feet shifted beneath him, bringing him within a brief stride towards his previously dispatched Pokemon. ”Oh, c’mon. It’s not like this is the first time I’ve done it, kid,” he mused on, sparing her a quick glance from over his shoulder. ”Y’know the drill. I send her out for recon. She comes back with whatever she finds. Same old, same old~.”[break][break]

He looked towards the specter before him once more.[break][break]

”That said, though, what did you—”[break][break]

He stopped short as the Gengar shook her head (body? entire being? the Gengar anatomy was honestly an enigma to him), promptly beating him to the punch. A soft, idly thoughtful hum escaped his lips as he crossed his arms.[break][break]

”...Nooothing. Gotcha~.”[break][break]

Inhaling deeply, he clicked his tongue a few times before sighing and beginning to walk again.[break][break]

”Well, that’s…good, honestly. Just means there’s probably nothing to worry about,” he added while starting down the hallway once more. ”C’mooon. Sooner we clear the place, the sooner we can get you outta here~.”

FIORA HYE-JIN YUN [break]
mission: you're not the one

☉