scythe_lucifer | (no subject)

[she stares, wide-eyed at her free arms] But...aren't you far stronger than I am?

[with an expression of mild consternation] So...she bends her arms up and does her best to get them in the position he's described]...something like this? [and she tries to break his hold]

Nose or throat.

[ It's a reminder, trying to get her not to question so much as to do. ]

And seriously, come at me. As hard as you can. I'll heal, and fast. You don't have to worry about hurting me.

[she mutters under her breath "nose or throat," then moves her right hand off of his arm and tries to bring the palm of her hand up as hard as she can manage (which is surprisingly strong, but she'd been used to helping Uncle Julian in and out of his wheelchair] and towards the sound of his voice]

[ He doesn't move out of the way but lets her hit him as hard as she can. She nails him in the nose and while he doesn't hear anything break, he knows there will be blood shortly. ]

Fuck. [ He hisses the word softly, letting go of her and standing up straight, head back, covering his nose lest the blood get everywhere. ]

See? Now you've hit a guy hard enough to bleed. You know you can.

Now you run.

[which is far harder than she'd expected. she could feel his nose against her palm and while it made her feel guilty it, in a way, made her feel as though perhaps she could do what he was telling her to]

I'm sorry! [her first impulse is to run and get a lukewarm towel for him to hold against his nose]

Yes, yes. I'd rather not have hurt you in the process, but. I can do it.

...run? How so?

[ Rowan chuckles at the towel, at her entire reaction, though he does take the towel and hold it to his nose. It's better than getting blood on the mat, which he's sure they'll get in trouble for. In fact, he steps off the mat and to the side to wait for his nanites to take care of the damage. ]

I just mean, if you were in that situation, you would run after you hurt him and got him to let you go. Don't stay to fight or prove a point. You're just focused on your own safety. So you'd run, screaming.

[she can't help it, she was raised to be a caretaker. and she'd suppose that blood stains would be difficult to get out of the mat, following him off to the side]

Yes. I would. I know I'm no match for the--the various citizens of this city. I couldn't even hope to try for years, years I'd rather not spend here.

Yeah, I know.

[ He pulls the towel away from his face after a few seconds, sniffing to confirm that the bleeding has at least stopped. He doesn't have pain nanites anymore, or rather their dialed down to zero, but the ache in his nose is far from distracting. ]

I hope the worst you get is the Rubies or something like them. They seem to be assholes rather than superpowered.

[she sighs] Becoming proficient was far too much to hope for.

[she's so glad to see that his nose isn't bleeding anymore]

Yes. The Rubies. They seem to think they own the Down.

Hey, you can become good though. [ He doesn't want her to come away from this disheartened but more confident. ] There's nothing stopping you but practice.

[ He sniffs to make sure he can breathe properly, then carefully folds the towel so the blood is hidden and sets it aside. ]

They do. Someone tried to tell me they weren't all that bad, but... I don't know. Everything I hear about them sounds worse and worse.

I--well, I hope so? In time? [she still sounds a little uncertain.

and in the meantime, she sort of frets, knotting her hands together]

It does. They're why I'm usually too afraid to go into the Down unless who I'm meeting knows exactly when I should arrive.

[ He nods. He doesn't understand that fear because he never grew up in a world that had gangs, not like this or the ones from Constance's home, probably. But he knows her fear and it's valid. ]

All the more reason to get good at your defense. And a good reason to buy that stuff. Mace? Something to throw in their faces.

[she'd been assaulted and terrified by the people of the village when their house caught fire. she'd forgiven them for being afraid of her and her sister, but the mental scars remain]

I can't say that I've ever heard of mace? It's good, though? It works?

Not the cooking mace. [ Because he realizes belatedly that that could be a point of confusion. ]

They probably have it somewhere in the city. It's a chemical you spray at people, in the eyes, and it causes a lot of pain. Then you can run.

Oh. It must be spicy, Father always detested spicy things.

I wouldn't know where to begin looking, I suppose could ask?