[Guy is relaxing against the tent's side as he waits, looking relatively relaxed and well all thing considered. He's exchanged his usual colorful attire for the more somber uniform of the CDC, though it's suffered some wear from the drop. His blackglass is out. Every now and then he looks up to check for Xion, but he's otherwise preoccupied.
When he finally does spot her, he's quick to rise to his feet with a warm smile.]
[ Xion hadn't worn her team uniform during the drop; her Organization cloak had protected her well enough when her Juggernaut had run out. But like Guy, she's changed now, too. It was nice, to have the chance to clean off and get changed into fresh clothes after the long march here. The sombre uniform somehow suits her small frame well.
His smile gets an answering one, though it's faint. ]
Good to see you too, Guy. What did you want to show me?
You'll see. [What an enigmatic response. But he doesn't intend to leave her in the dark--he wants to see how she is, first and foremost. He inclines his head towards a path leading away from the center of the camp.]
Let's walk around for a bit. There's a patch of flowers I saw on our way in I want to find.
... okay. I'm just ... not sure I'll be good company, but as long as you want me here. [ Her smile this time is a little better, a little brighter, though still deeply self-deprecating. ]
[Her response and smile rings a little too close to those of a good friend. Maybe that's why he's trying so hard to keep her spirits up. He remembers what Zelos told him during the Christmas feast, with words as hard as his look had been: Don't use me to cope. But he knows this is different.
Xion is young and kind. It's impossible to shield her from what the CDC does, but he wants to make coping with it easier, somehow.
All these thoughts run through his head as he begins walking, his steps slow and even.]
Sorry if this is out of the blue, but have you read my file, Xion?
[ The idea of using another person as a coping mechanism would be a deeply uncomfortable one for her, for reasons she'd be hard pressed to pin down. The thought that she could inflict herself on someone in such a way... would be something she'd never want.
But then again, she's always thought of being able to go to her friends for anything. She's never had any reason to think otherwise. Not yet, anyway.
His question wins a startled look before she cuts her gaze away. Her discomfort is clear in the sudden tight line of her shoulders. ]
... no. I don't like reading them. I know I probably should, but...
[Whatever her response was to be, Guy was ready to accept it. He isn't exactly happy at the idea of all that information bared to the public, but he understands it's impossible to demand complete privacy from a huge group. Her answer is something he prefers, and he tries to show it with a shake of his head.]
It's your personal preference. There's nothing wrong with it. Honestly, I'm glad to hear that. It means I can tell you what I've wanted to tell you without any preconceptions.
[A beat.]
Did you know I spent most of my life as a servant to nobility?
[ She tries not to sigh in relief at his response, but can't help the quirking at the corners of her mouth anyway. Her shoulders relax, too, and she clasps her hands behind her back. ]
... a servant?
[ That gets her to blink, staring upwards into space. Social class is an almost-total mystery to her. What little she knows of it is from Beast's castle, and his strange servants. ]
You mean, like ... a maid, or a butler, or something?
Kinda. [He admits, some days at the manor did have him feeling like a maid. Guy's clearly amused with how broadly he grins.] I was permitted as the personal companion to the duke's son. On top of my duties as a servant, I had to attend to and entertain my master.
[He drops his voice, as if telling a secret. He covers his mouth partially with a hand.] Between you and me, he had a big, soft heart he tried to cover up by being tough. He was the sort of person who'd take in a stray kitten if it meowed loud enough.
Edited (I DECIDED TO ADD MORE) 2015-02-18 08:25 (UTC)
[ Xion ducks her head, but that does nothing to hide the little giggle that escapes her. She smiles up at him from beneath a loosely curled fist held over her mouth. ]
He sounds a lot nicer than he pretended to be. So... you attended him? What does that mean?
It meant I was his friend. [And father, and brother. Whatever Duke Fabre couldn't provide for his son, Guy was to provide. Luke always protested he wasn't just a servant, and in a way he'd been right.]
For most of his life, my master wasn't allowed to leave the grounds out of fear for his safety. Being locked up for years can be lonely, even with company. I was supposed to make it easier on him by being there for him. You could say we were inseparable.
[He chuckles.] Sure, he could be a spoiled brat because of his upbringing, but the years we spent together was valuable to me. If I could handle him, I could handle anyone.
[ She's invested now, visibly a little cheered and paying attention to his story as he describes his life with Luke. So invested is she, in fact, that his last sentence doesn't really sink in for a moment. And when it does, she is physically taken aback with surprise. ]
You mean... Guy, by anyone, do you mean ... me?
[ She's not sure. But she suddenly remembers that she'd told him not a few minutes ago that she wasn't sure she'd be good company... ]
Kind of? Ha ha, that makes you sound like trouble, though. You aren't. [He idly scratches the back of his head.] What I'm trying to say is being a servant had me looking at the smaller picture.
[The path's tapering off into vegetation. The soft glow of bioluminescence of flowers and insects alike are beginning to thicken in the air.]
... it's peaceful out here. Can you see the flowers?
[ She gives him a little smile, one that's grateful and sweet, and nods. She's not sure what else to say. The smaller picture...
His question gets her to divert her focus from him and out to the fields. The sight makes her face soften into a real smile for the first time. ]
It is peaceful. I'd never seen plants that glow until we got to Macha. But the flowers... [ It's only as the light fades that the bioluminescence grows stronger. Xion stands up on her tiptoes, peering out. ] ... come on, let's get a little closer.
[It's that smile, soft and gentle like a breaking dawn, that he was seeking out. There isn't much he can do for Xion in a situation like this. He can't protect her from what she's most afraid of, can't stop her from witnessing the horrors that came from working with the CDC. He isn't sure if he can protect himself, in the end.
But it's like he said: the smaller picture was just as important as the larger one. Even if it's for just a moment, Guy can help her forget the dirtiness of their mission and to focus on the transient beauty of now. It's the least he can offer her. It's what she deserves.]
Sure. [Macha is a world of beautiful danger, but there's no threat to be found in this shining field. He's careful as he steps down, doing his best not to crush any flowers. A difficult task, considering how many there are. Guy winds up leaning against a tree that stands at the edges of the field, unwilling to go much further.]
You want to pick some? [It's a quiet question.]
Edited (don't tag at 12:30 am) 2015-03-17 07:30 (UTC)
[ Xion stands some feet away from Guy, her boots so close to the edge of the field that her toes touch the flower stalks. She's got both hands pressed over her mouth, her eyes huge and round with wonder.
Ever since she touched down on Macha, Xion has tried to disconnect herself from the world. To see it as a mission, a target, simply one place of what will likely be many more. And the ever-present danger, the flowers that addled her mind and the natives that took and tried to kill her friends, had made that oh so slightly easier. Macha had become a hostile place, a name associated only with darkness and fire.
But this field is different. It's like nothing she's ever seen before. Flowers that glow... they're beautiful and ethereal, like something out of her brightest dreams. The longer she looks out over the field of laurienn, the more her chest wrenches with emotion, and all at once Xion finds her eyes have flooded with tears.
Very carefully she kneels down, reaching out to brush her fingers along the petals of the nearest flower. Guy's question pulls a smile out of her that is huge and watery and very touched. ]
Yeah. I'd like that.
[ The smaller picture... this must be what he meant. With gentle fingers, Xion reaches out to pluck the flowers, one at a time. ]
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no subject
Sorry... I was just talking to Garrus a little while ago, and we talked about some of this stuff, too.
FROM: xion@cdc.org
I was just going to say I don't really want the time to think. Whenever I stop, I think about what we're doing here, and...
FROM: xion@cdc.org
The more I think about it, the worse I feel. I'm just trying to focus on my duties, instead.
no subject
FROM: cecil.guy@cdc.org
Hey, Xion.
FROM: cecil.guy@cdc.org
How about I show you something? It sounds like you've got a lot on your mind and too much time.
no subject
Huh?
FROM: xion@cdc.org
I mean ... sure, of course. I'm always happy to see you, Guy. Where do you want me to meet you?
no subject
How about that tent in the middle of camp?
no subject
Sure. I'll see you soon.
no subject
When he finally does spot her, he's quick to rise to his feet with a warm smile.]
Hey, good to see you.
no subject
His smile gets an answering one, though it's faint. ]
Good to see you too, Guy. What did you want to show me?
no subject
Let's walk around for a bit. There's a patch of flowers I saw on our way in I want to find.
no subject
no subject
Xion is young and kind. It's impossible to shield her from what the CDC does, but he wants to make coping with it easier, somehow.
All these thoughts run through his head as he begins walking, his steps slow and even.]
Sorry if this is out of the blue, but have you read my file, Xion?
no subject
But then again, she's always thought of being able to go to her friends for anything. She's never had any reason to think otherwise. Not yet, anyway.
His question wins a startled look before she cuts her gaze away. Her discomfort is clear in the sudden tight line of her shoulders. ]
... no. I don't like reading them. I know I probably should, but...
[ I have secrets of my own. ]
no subject
It's your personal preference. There's nothing wrong with it. Honestly, I'm glad to hear that. It means I can tell you what I've wanted to tell you without any preconceptions.
[A beat.]
Did you know I spent most of my life as a servant to nobility?
no subject
... a servant?
[ That gets her to blink, staring upwards into space. Social class is an almost-total mystery to her. What little she knows of it is from Beast's castle, and his strange servants. ]
You mean, like ... a maid, or a butler, or something?
[ sorry guy. ]
no subject
[He drops his voice, as if telling a secret. He covers his mouth partially with a hand.] Between you and me, he had a big, soft heart he tried to cover up by being tough. He was the sort of person who'd take in a stray kitten if it meowed loud enough.
no subject
He sounds a lot nicer than he pretended to be. So... you attended him? What does that mean?
no subject
For most of his life, my master wasn't allowed to leave the grounds out of fear for his safety. Being locked up for years can be lonely, even with company. I was supposed to make it easier on him by being there for him. You could say we were inseparable.
[He chuckles.] Sure, he could be a spoiled brat because of his upbringing, but the years we spent together was valuable to me. If I could handle him, I could handle anyone.
no subject
You mean... Guy, by anyone, do you mean ... me?
[ She's not sure. But she suddenly remembers that she'd told him not a few minutes ago that she wasn't sure she'd be good company... ]
no subject
[The path's tapering off into vegetation. The soft glow of bioluminescence of flowers and insects alike are beginning to thicken in the air.]
... it's peaceful out here. Can you see the flowers?
no subject
His question gets her to divert her focus from him and out to the fields. The sight makes her face soften into a real smile for the first time. ]
It is peaceful. I'd never seen plants that glow until we got to Macha. But the flowers... [ It's only as the light fades that the bioluminescence grows stronger. Xion stands up on her tiptoes, peering out. ] ... come on, let's get a little closer.
[ Does she seem a little excited? ]
no subject
But it's like he said: the smaller picture was just as important as the larger one. Even if it's for just a moment, Guy can help her forget the dirtiness of their mission and to focus on the transient beauty of now. It's the least he can offer her. It's what she deserves.]
Sure. [Macha is a world of beautiful danger, but there's no threat to be found in this shining field. He's careful as he steps down, doing his best not to crush any flowers. A difficult task, considering how many there are. Guy winds up leaning against a tree that stands at the edges of the field, unwilling to go much further.]
You want to pick some? [It's a quiet question.]
no subject
Ever since she touched down on Macha, Xion has tried to disconnect herself from the world. To see it as a mission, a target, simply one place of what will likely be many more. And the ever-present danger, the flowers that addled her mind and the natives that took and tried to kill her friends, had made that oh so slightly easier. Macha had become a hostile place, a name associated only with darkness and fire.
But this field is different. It's like nothing she's ever seen before. Flowers that glow... they're beautiful and ethereal, like something out of her brightest dreams. The longer she looks out over the field of laurienn, the more her chest wrenches with emotion, and all at once Xion finds her eyes have flooded with tears.
Very carefully she kneels down, reaching out to brush her fingers along the petals of the nearest flower. Guy's question pulls a smile out of her that is huge and watery and very touched. ]
Yeah. I'd like that.
[ The smaller picture... this must be what he meant. With gentle fingers, Xion reaches out to pluck the flowers, one at a time. ]