If anyone could Gommage from pure embarrassment, I'm sure we would have. Bless Emma for taking it in hand before things got that far.
[ Her laugh is worth it, as is the sparkle in her eyes. Better: he prefers to see Maelle smiling and happy than worried over something that never ended up happening, and probably will never happen. ]
[Maelle still wanted to jump into the sea as Emma decided to leave no stone left unturned in her explanations. But she only did it so she would be prepared, and now, a little older, Maelle appreciates it.]
I've got two sisters who love me. I'm pretty lucky.
[ He misses Emma, more than he thought he would. They'd always been close, but over the last few years, between her work and his, they'd seen less and less of each other. Their adult lives had taken them in different directions.
Still, he wishes he could talk to her, seek the practical advice she was always so adept at offering. She loves them both, he knows. If he has any regrets, it's that he and Maelle had left Emma back there in Lumiere, alone. ]
[Maelle grew to love him with ease. She knows it, and she dips her head with a smile.]
You are.
[Save for the fact that he's up next for the Gommage, and lost four years with the woman he loves because of their views that didn't quite align. It's sad, but some people have so much less than that, and Gustave is okay. Sad, surely, but he's not lacking love.]
[ He'd tried, he had. Tried to be the best older brother he could be, to her and to Emma both. He'd tried to show her all the love and support he could, to cheer her up when she was sad, to teach her the things she needed to know.
And in return he'd been given more love than he could ever have expected or known what to do with. His life, he thinks, has been a rich one.
He arches his eyebrows at her, purposeful and teasing. ]
Does that mean you'll stop making fun of me all the time?
Mmm... [Maelle considers this!] Nah. There's just so much to make fun of. It's my favorite thing.
[One of them, anyway. There are so many things she treasures, even the times they would sit in silence while he worked on one project or another and she flipped through a book. Time together was time together, and Maelle didn't need to be actively terrorizing him to be happy. The calm and peace was always just as good as the laughter.]
[ He leans toward her, incredulous eyebrows pushing up before he settles back again, grinning out at the continent spread dark and shattered before them. ]
And here I thought your favorite thing was trying to beat me in a duel.
[A girl can have many, no? She laughs, knowing he doesn't take offense to her teasing. There's too much love here. Her ease around him and the warmth in her eyes when she looks at him gives her away. Maelle adores Gustave, but that doesn't mean she can't bully him a little bit. It's fun.]
And excuse you, what do you mean trying? I've beaten you plenty of times.
[Just maybe not that last time before they departed to the continent.]
Okay, you've beaten me sometimes. Don't get cocky, Maelle.
[ It's light and teasing but there's a level of seriousness to it all the same: he has nightmares about Maelle leaping to an attack, giving him that brilliant, mischievous smile of hers, and then—
There's so much here that could hurt her. Kill her. His worry is a constant low-level hum under every thought and action. He's stopped noticing the times when he's stepped in front of her, a protective hand reaching out to push her back. If anything tries to get to her, it'll have to go through him, first, but... she's quick, and he's not sure he can always reach her in time. ]
Maybe your memory needs a refresher. I've been slacking on making you train while we've been here, but you could always use a real challenge, make sure you're not losing your edge.
Training is a little pointless when this is what we've trained for, isn't it? The Paintress awaits, but the Nevrons, too. I'm getting plenty of practice.
[And she keeps an eye on him. The others, too, but it's Gustave she looks to first of all. He's smart and strong but she worries that may not be enough. The beach was--bad. She thought she lost him, there, and ever since she's been determined to make sure that never happens again. She stays near. Fights harder. Right for the kill, no playing around, no theatrics. The less time something is alive, the less time Gustave is in danger. She worries less for herself.
The worst thing that could happen here is that she loses him. Really loses him.]
... but if you'd like to get revenge for my intrusive question, I'll allow a duel.
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no subject
Date: 2025-05-27 09:19 pm (UTC)That would have made me gommage well before my time.
[They're allowed to make that joke.]
no subject
Date: 2025-05-28 10:26 pm (UTC)[ Her laugh is worth it, as is the sparkle in her eyes. Better: he prefers to see Maelle smiling and happy than worried over something that never ended up happening, and probably will never happen. ]
no subject
Date: 2025-05-29 07:51 pm (UTC)[Maelle still wanted to jump into the sea as Emma decided to leave no stone left unturned in her explanations. But she only did it so she would be prepared, and now, a little older, Maelle appreciates it.]
no subject
Date: 2025-05-30 03:39 pm (UTC)[ He misses Emma, more than he thought he would. They'd always been close, but over the last few years, between her work and his, they'd seen less and less of each other. Their adult lives had taken them in different directions.
Still, he wishes he could talk to her, seek the practical advice she was always so adept at offering. She loves them both, he knows. If he has any regrets, it's that he and Maelle had left Emma back there in Lumiere, alone. ]
no subject
Date: 2025-05-31 02:35 am (UTC)You are.
[Save for the fact that he's up next for the Gommage, and lost four years with the woman he loves because of their views that didn't quite align. It's sad, but some people have so much less than that, and Gustave is okay. Sad, surely, but he's not lacking love.]
I think I'm pretty lucky, too.
no subject
Date: 2025-06-07 01:41 pm (UTC)And in return he'd been given more love than he could ever have expected or known what to do with. His life, he thinks, has been a rich one.
He arches his eyebrows at her, purposeful and teasing. ]
Does that mean you'll stop making fun of me all the time?
no subject
Date: 2025-06-08 02:10 am (UTC)[One of them, anyway. There are so many things she treasures, even the times they would sit in silence while he worked on one project or another and she flipped through a book. Time together was time together, and Maelle didn't need to be actively terrorizing him to be happy. The calm and peace was always just as good as the laughter.]
no subject
Date: 2025-06-11 12:16 am (UTC)[ He leans toward her, incredulous eyebrows pushing up before he settles back again, grinning out at the continent spread dark and shattered before them. ]
And here I thought your favorite thing was trying to beat me in a duel.
no subject
Date: 2025-06-11 01:25 am (UTC)[A girl can have many, no? She laughs, knowing he doesn't take offense to her teasing. There's too much love here. Her ease around him and the warmth in her eyes when she looks at him gives her away. Maelle adores Gustave, but that doesn't mean she can't bully him a little bit. It's fun.]
And excuse you, what do you mean trying? I've beaten you plenty of times.
[Just maybe not that last time before they departed to the continent.]
Perhaps your memory is going, old man.
no subject
Date: 2025-06-18 01:05 pm (UTC)[ It's light and teasing but there's a level of seriousness to it all the same: he has nightmares about Maelle leaping to an attack, giving him that brilliant, mischievous smile of hers, and then—
There's so much here that could hurt her. Kill her. His worry is a constant low-level hum under every thought and action. He's stopped noticing the times when he's stepped in front of her, a protective hand reaching out to push her back. If anything tries to get to her, it'll have to go through him, first, but... she's quick, and he's not sure he can always reach her in time. ]
Maybe your memory needs a refresher. I've been slacking on making you train while we've been here, but you could always use a real challenge, make sure you're not losing your edge.
no subject
Date: 2025-06-19 04:17 am (UTC)[And she keeps an eye on him. The others, too, but it's Gustave she looks to first of all. He's smart and strong but she worries that may not be enough. The beach was--bad. She thought she lost him, there, and ever since she's been determined to make sure that never happens again. She stays near. Fights harder. Right for the kill, no playing around, no theatrics. The less time something is alive, the less time Gustave is in danger. She worries less for herself.
The worst thing that could happen here is that she loses him. Really loses him.]
... but if you'd like to get revenge for my intrusive question, I'll allow a duel.
[She smiles at him, sweet as honey.]