to those who really make your life worthwhile [closed]

[windbreak]

Who: Maribelle and Yosuke
What: Is everyone sick of talking about attempted murders? Because there is totally more talking to do about attempted murders.
When: Hella backdated to D531 evening, the day after this rubbish, because what is my life :|b
Where: The Freya welcome hall, initially
Rating: PG-13 for teenagers, as ever.

In the end, he took her home and left her there. It was one of those ideas that seem sensible at the time, when you don't know how long this godawful fog is going to linger, how close half the people over at the hospital must be to flipping out in just the same way, how far you can trust yourself after checking that she's breathing and nothing is broken. In the cold light of day, even the little of it that earlier managed to peek out through the pouring rain, it breaks down completely. That's why he's back. It's why he's nervous, too.

In the end, he still hasn't gotten around to straightening out the clusterfuck of yesterday in his head, let alone figuring out who to blame. Part of him still hopes it was one long bad dream. He's had bad dreams like that. It would be so much easier to stomach - way easier than thinking about all the other times he's run into walls that looked like easy ways out.

In the end, he knocks on her door long before he's finished psyching himself up, but it's not as if he can take it back after that.

"Maribelle?"

Comments

[windbreak]

"Wha?" stammered Yosuke, snapping out of the minor daze he'd fallen into the second she touched him. Oh, just the rabbit. Sheesh, no need to give himself a heart attack. "Um, just sugar's fine."

But that was the answer he'd hoped for, wasn't it? She said she was going to keep away from now on, so that settled it. He couldn't claim she was important to him if he wasn't going to trust her even that far.

And if it really was settled, there was no point wallowing in could-haves or maybes any longer tonight. Instead, he pushed himself away from the chair, hopping back to his feet.

"All that aside, I'm glad you're okay. So... wanna go for a walk?" he suggested, managing a smile again. "... I know it's kinda damp out right now, but we could find somewhere."

[damselled]

Maribelle nodded, slipping some sugar cubes into Yosuke's tea before going back to him with it. She sipped her own tea in silence, letting it soothe her after the trying time they'd all had. She only looked up when Yosuke spoke, and managed an amused eyebrow raise.

"You wish to go for a walk, even though it's raining?" she said, a slight smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "You do realize that my parasol isn't meant for rain, do you not?" Even so, getting out of this place for awhile seemed like a nice idea...

[windbreak]

"You don't have a real umbrella? I think I might have picked up a spare one a while back. I dunno, I could check! Or ask Kanji."

Reaching over, he risked a very light pat on her shoulder. Well, she was the one who fell into him first. ...And he could always just say he was trying to get at the teacup.

"C'mon. You didn't plan on turning into a shut-in for the rest of your life just 'cause one thing happened, right?"

[damselled]

"Oh, heavens," sighed Maribelle, exasperated, "I'm certain there are a few for communal use in the lobby." She smiled gently at the pat on her shoulder - really, was Yosuke always so skittish around women? - and shook her head. "Indeed, I haven't. Besides, this is hardly the worst thing to happen to me." The worst, of course, being her capture and interrogation by Gangrel's mad dogs - and the fact that her capture indirectly led to the Exalt's death.

[windbreak]

"Then let's go!" he chirped, putting his cup down and quite possibly startling the reinhare back. Sooner or later, he'd have to break the real question, and not just to Maribelle - but right now, when she obviously needed distracting more than anything else, didn't have to be the time. That was what friends were for. ...Yeah.

[damselled]

She smiled, then - a little - and placed their cups near the sink, to wash later. Then she dared to reach out, gently taking Yosuke's hand and coming closer to him. "Yosuke, I... thank you," she managed. "And I'm sorry. I truly wished to be fair to everyone, and I believed listening to your concerns while giving Tohru an honest chance to prove himself would be best... but I was wrong. He's a vicious cad, and I... I wish I had never met the wretched beast." True, Maribelle did her best to treat everyone fairly and equally - but hindsight was rather 20/20.

[windbreak]

Yosuke looked at her, surprised, but didn't pull away - of course he didn't, of course he wouldn't, of course he couldn't waste what was almost certainly going to be a few decades' worth of bad karma. ... Call him inexperienced, but he'd thought her hand would be softer. Huh.

That aside, for once, he knew why he was letting so much inane bullshit run freely through his head even at a time like this, and that meant it wasn't working as well as he'd hoped. He mustered a smile almost as warm as his usual one, except for the momentary nervous flicker in his eyes. "Forget about him. For all his talk, he's nobody special," he said. "Just remember you're okay."

[damselled]

Usually, Maribelle's hands were incredibly soft - but this was a time of war, and so now was hardly the moment to go about following a beauty regime. She still took care of herself, of course, but she had bigger things to worry about now than the latest fashions, or even the gossip at court.

She looked at Yosuke, noticing the look in his eyes. "Yosuke, what is it?"

[windbreak]

"Oh, s-sorry!" Man, he had to stop getting distracted like this. Who had time to care about the heavy stuff when there was a girl holding onto his hand? Nobody, that's who! Even more nobody than that nobody. "I just spaced out for a second. Guess my head wasn't totally back in the game after this week... Yeah, let's go! Gotta spend our youths while we can!"

As far as he was concerned, that was that.

[damselled]

Maribelle, of course, gave him a skeptical look, but let go - for now. This situation was stressful enough without doubting each other. Honestly, though, she needed to tell him something she'd wanted to tell him for some time (but had refrained, perhaps foolishly, due to his request that she not speak of Adachi to him). "Yosuke," she began, withdrawing her hand from his and stepping back, "I must tell you something."

[windbreak]

"You t-" He cuts himself off, amending his surprised response just about in time, and folds his arms before looking back at her - aw, well, it was nice while it lasted. "You do? What's up?"

[damselled]

What had Yosuke been about to say? Whatever it was, it was gone now, and Maribelle gathered her courage. "It is... Tohru," she said, frowning. "Some time before he attacked me, we had taken to training together. During our last time doing so, he... kissed me." She shut her eyes, shaking her head. "Naturally, I did not speak to him after that until what you saw, but..." But what? She had used her powers on him, and according to Adachi, that had been what had caused him to have done such a thing. Could it be true?

[windbreak]

Yosuke's eyes narrowed, less with distaste than with the same suddenly closed-off look he'd had a minute - but as soon as he realised it, he glanced away, hopefully before Maribelle could mistake it for a glare aimed at her. "Wow, what a creep," he said, his tone of voice still as light as he could keep it. "Isn't he actually like thirty? Old enough to get off on calling everyone whippersnappers, at least."

[damselled]

Fortunately for Yosuke, Maribelle's eyes were lowered before he looked away. "Age does not matter in Ylisse," she told him, a tad confused. "I am above the legal age for marriage in my home country. What was important was the fact that his advances were neither invited nor welcome." Furthermore, he'd been unfaithful to his own significant other in doing so, something that had troubled Maribelle a great deal. "But it does not matter now, I suppose. I will be glad to have done with it."

[windbreak]

"Yeah, good plan. Like I said." Trying to muster a little more of his habitual good cheer, Yosuke flashed her a dry smile. "And take it from me - whatever you're used to back home, he's not. He's just a creep till the end of time."

This time he held out his hand, deliberately and hopefully.

[damselled]

Maribelle nodded. "I suppose the cultural differences must make it all a great deal more confusing." Such as honorifics - why were they after the name, instead of before? And why did there seem to be so very many of them?

Mentally shaking those thoughts away, she stepped closer to Yosuke, managing a smile as she gently laid her hand in his.