[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]shoulders roll with a shrug. his apology, his sentiment... they fall away with the movement.

and she doesn't have much else to say besides a soft, "it's fine."

is it? yeah, it will be once the sting wears off.

despite herself, she lets out a shaky sigh, breath fanning out against the window.

"really," she turns, then, and the smile she flashes feels pained. "i'm used to it. no worries."

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]ah...

she shifts uncomfortably. silence follows and she's, truthfully, cursing that they're in a cart right now. the urge to run bubbles up and settles as a pit in her stomach.

and she's always running. from cops, league, relationships... somehow, she wants to laugh despite it all. it'll come out bitter, she knows, and it's swallowed down to die in her throat.

"i gotcha," she finally murmurs.

and without much more to say on the subject, she turns her attention back to the window. back to the people with their mundane lives, existing peacefully, happily.

she's certain, now. it's not possible.

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]she breathes out a soft sigh of relief at his voice.

and when he comes closer, she's shifting to sit up. well, trying to, anyway.

a pained hiss escapes with the movement. every inch of her body hurts. which is worse, the rushing in her head or the searing pain of her shoulder.

"no shit," she mumbles, clearly cranky and uncomfortable. it's not his fault, really. no, it's a sick combination of her own stupidity and the nasty actions of another at work here.

her gaze softens slightly when she finally manages to look at him without her eyes feeling like they're gonna pop out of her skull.

"are you okay?"

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]she wakes with a startled gasp to pristine white ceilings.

blinking once, twice, thrice doesn’t bring any clarity. no, she finds nothing but an incessant beeping.

and when her head turns, she squeezes her eyes shut and waits for the pounding ache to slowly fade.

”cian?” she croaks, throat dry and sore. what’s beeping? where are they?

were they not just in the street? how long was she out?

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]the question catches her off guard.

she stills, finally taking her eyes off the people below and dragging them to cian.

her head tilts, cheeks flush, and she’s suddenly unable to maintain eye contact.

”if that’s what you wanted,” she murmurs. wow, the floor is so interesting now!

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]she doesn't look at him, doesn't speak up.

no, she simply... gazes down at the people below.

and, she wonders, if their lives are simple and easy and happy.

he speaks again and she lets out a little sigh at the thought. good, so it's not just her that thinks of the little things taken for granted. simple, mundane, pleasant. small moments of time often forgotten in the grand scheme of things. and god, she wants them more than any pretty jewel she could possibly snatch up.

"maybe you could," she murmurs quietly. and part of her wonders if that's what he deserves... most of her knows, however, that if he can have it then so could she.

the cart continues to drift upward and the people below grow smaller.

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]agonizing pain keeps her from fully shutting her eyes.

she wants to slip into nothing, to go limp against pavement. her body’s tired, beaten down, bleeding out.

and when he jostles her shoulders, she whimpers, teeth clamping down onto her lower lip.

”fuck.”

she knows the sound.

moving, however, is difficult. her luxray snarls and rips flesh one last time before backing away. it circles her, then, and rumbles warning growls at cian.

”let’s go,” she hisses through gritted teeth. and she tries to stand. really, she does, but vision goes black before she can stabilize and her luxray is swooping beneath her, shielding her from cracking her skull against pavement… again.

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]the flush deepens slightly beneath the weight of his smile.

and really, she's glad that her first carnival is with him.

"you better," she giggles. a wink follows before she's turning her attention back to the people. the ride slowly chugs to life and their cart begins to move.

"do you ever wish for dull moments?" comes softly after a few moments of silence tick away between them. "like, mundane or domestic i guess?"

a normal life.

sometimes, she wants it. and then she remembers... it's not meant for people like her.

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]this would be easier if she had the proper tools to win...

her whip, a knife, anything. instead, she has determination and a bloodthirsty cat snarling in the wings.

her scolipede stands tall in front of cian. it glances back toward him as he begins to stir but focus needs to be required elsewhere. the quickness needed to provide a life-saving protect has to be top priority. his politoed has him, that much her team understands.

and giada, bless her heart, is wrestling on the ground with the enemy. he tries to take aim, tries to maneuver around her flailing limbs to get cian in his sights but she's moving too much for a clean shot. no matter, she's just as good a target as he.

the echo of a gunshot rings out into the night, into their ears.

and she's toppling over with a sharp yelp, hands giving up on the fight to prod at her body. blood pools out from her shoulder and she's quickly slipping in and out of blackness.

her body hits pavement and this is the final straw for her snarling luxray. the cat leaps onto the man and rips into his skin without hesitation.

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]after twenty long minutes and a bathroom break for cian, they're finally settling into the cabin.

she's quick to press up against the window with a giggle. the ride hasn't fully moved yet but she just knows it's gonna be a pretty sight.

his question draws her away from people watching. and when her head turns, she's flashing a bright smile.

"absolutely," she chirps. "i love carnivals." well, now she does after experiencing it for once.

a small silence follows before she's asking the question of him.

"are you?" a pause, a slight flush. "having fun, i mean."

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]staring down the barrel of a .45 is not how she expected this date to end...

he swivels and takes aim in a different place. and really, she'd rather it be pointed at her than him.

her hands reach for pokeballs, scrambling to prevent a slaughter. the man walks away towards cian as a large cat and a poison horse shift into existence. she's hauling herself up onto the back of her scolipede with gritted teeth. fight through the pain, you stupid bitch. come on!

"oi," she calls as they begin to move. her scolipede advances on the man with a quickness, the snarling luxray sticking close to hooved legs. "eyes here."

and it probably isn't a good idea but she's launching herself off the scolipede anyway, tackling the man to the ground.

her scolipede moves to stand in front of cian while the luxray circles, growls rising in tandem with the faint buzz of electricity.

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]cue another eye roll... he's full of shit.

she sneaks another fried oreo out of the bag while he isn't looking.

and when he gestures toward the ferris wheel, she's mid chew. her head turns to stare at it and as she chews, she hums soft approval.

"dunno," she offers after swallowing the last of the oreo. "don't think i've ever been up that high." scaling buildings for a living doesn't count toward that, right?

the long line prompts her to gravitate toward the attraction. a curiosity for the experience adds to her following question.

"can we go on it?"

CIAN MAHER
mission

[attr="class","giada"]

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

[attr="class","giada i"]he approaches with an ease that chills her down to bone.

and part of her wonders if he's a weird hallucination. real or fake, there's still dread clawing at her insides.

"why?"

blood still pours, her body still screams with pain. it's becoming increasingly clear for both of them that she has little to no fight in her... not like this.

her eyes dart toward cian's slumped body and the fear grows into a festering monster.

and almost surprisingly, she finds no words wanting to clamor out of her throat.

what can she say, anyway, in the face of this?

CIAN MAHER
mission