[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i”]"ready for what?"

the concept is lost on her - perhaps because she doesn't think of anything other than human company and the concept of existing in the same room. it's a comforting thought, one she's still adjusting to the need for.

his hand brushes against her arm and warmth blooms quickly. it spreads to her fingertips.

"i did."

it's more honest than she'd like, really, but it lingers all the same.

"are you going to stay?"

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i”]confusion settles with a few blinks, head tilting slightly.

"you lied about having tails to...?"

get her into his bedroom?

understanding slowly bleeds through her expression enough for a small smile to rise.

"you could've come visit more if you missed me, you know."

he knows, though, doesn't he?

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i”]"you're a dick - and you owe me another coffee."

leaving just the very end of her cold brew? an actual crime.

she sips the remaining bit (which isn't much) and stands.

"lead the way."

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i”]she huffs, coffee relinquished beneath close proximity and the tickling breath fanning out against her cheeks.

”maybe you should, i dunno, get your own coffee if you’re that thirsty?”

if he drinks it all on her, the aftermath will not be pretty.

”it’s not my thing, but i wouldn’t say no if you wanted to show off.”

maybe her coffee would be safe, then.

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i”]amusement bleeds through a light laugh.

”i didn’t peg you for the tail type.”

he leans and she watches in the way a cat would a mouse.

is she interested? familiar territory looms.

”maybe i am. what then?”

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]a tail up your...? no way.

she looks like a deer in headlights at the thought.

"people actually do that?"

her hand sneaks to retrieve her coffee from him and return it to its rightful owner (her lips). a sip only half washes down the thought of tails in people's bodies.

"wait, wait, wait."

lips curl into half a smirk.

"why do you know about people putting tails up their you know what? something you wanna tell me?"

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]an eye roll follows before her coffee is relinquished, placed in his outstretched hand.

"well, for one..."

her eyes drift toward the window, toward the sea of people beneath.

"some of them wear tails sometimes?"

a laugh escapes.

"never saw that before. is that, like, a thing or something?"

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]"ugh, really?"

her nose scrunches with mild disdain.

"it took four tries for me..."

oh well. it's not like she had much schooling anyway.

her shoulders roll into a lazy shrug and her iced coffee rises. after a sip, she answers.

"also nothing exciting. well, unless you count people watching."

the grin widens.

"did you know there's some characters on the streets of rustboro?"

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]"oh, no, it's okay!"

she flashes a small smile, waving the concept of any disturbance right out of the air.

and really, he isn't in her way. if anything, he's a welcome distraction from a freight train of thoughts she can't seem to dispel. they cling like cigarette smoke, heavy and pungent in the air.

"well, we can't get very far without blending in first."

fading into the background, present but more part of the room than the crowd. it's always her first move... drawing attention to one party while the other pilfers the goods also works. perhaps they'll have to do both, in the end.

"are you familiar with tonight's event?"

Aidan Hereford

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]a light laugh escapes, echoing long after his bag hits the floor.

"do you?"

she grins.

"understandable, really."

a hand pats the free space on the back of the couch in an attempt to get him to join her.

"how've you been? anything exciting happen lately?"

she's bored, it seems, as she looks to sink claws into something entertaining.

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]days bleed into weeks and at some point, she forgets this isn't her home. rustboro becomes familiar, comfortable, almost warm. the cityscape outside the window is second nature to gaze at now, as if she's always been meant to admire large buildings and the sea of people on the streets below.

it's comforting too, she realizes, to simply exist in a place where no one wants anything from her. there's no missions, no demands, no grabbing whatever she can to feed herself.

and maybe things are meant to be peaceful, not chaotic or a jumbled mess of fight or flight instincts constantly fighting for dominance.

a soft hum escapes at the thought and she takes another sip of her sawsbucks cold brew before continuing to stare out the window from her perch on the back of the couch. moving it closer to the window was a good choice, she decides.

he'll find her still perched, too absorbed in the city life outside to notice the door squeak open and click shut. it isn't until she hears footsteps that her head turns. everything about her movements seems languid, like a cat having just awoken from sunbathing for hours.

"hey."

CIAN MAHER