week four | mingle

[marriagebroker]

Final week at the estate! Final week with your friends. Final week with your beaus. Time to make the most of it, everyone!

In fact, to celebrate this fact, today there is a cake. It's nothing special, just a nice little cake to enjoy with your morning coffee or throughout the day. Yay, cake!

And when Wei Wuxian arrives that morning, he is going to call out once again for everyone to join him, near the cake.

"Everyone, I have another announcement!"

Hell yeah, announcements.

Boom Boom Room | Dates | Property Damage
Truth Booth Voting | Match Ceremony Voting

Comments

[poans]

[It's because she stays that he feels obliged to answer within limits, turning his head to meet her eyes. She paints such a kind picture of him when reality is colder, no matter his wishes. He understands this and isn't overtaken by it, but he must be truthful in the face of her sweetness.]

. . . That is not true, Miss Yingying. The City whence I hail is a place where one must exploit others in order to escape abuse. I knew this . . . and, despite how it may have sounded, was a willing participant in unspeakable research by way of my apathy.

[He's guilty. He's felt guilty for some time, from the moment he left his homeland in search of greener pastures.]

[embellwish]

[ Despite how it may have sounded? ]

Mm, but it said "kidnapped" and "forced"....

[ It's his past, so she won't push back too hard if that's what he says is the truth. But still, she has her own doubts. Either way, she doesn't show immediate alarm or contempt, simply furrowing her brow and trying to understand. ]

It's like I said before... I'm not a saint, either. [ She's really not, even though everyone seems to embrace her and genuinely wish for her well-being here. Her hands are stained in their own way, but even so, she doesn't think that would keep any of them from calling her kind, now. She reiterates the point gently, just wanting to show good faith and empathy. ] Was it to survive, then...?

[poans]

[If she says so, he can only believe it. Yingying has lived through a long and harsh existence, many years of which must have been lost to grief. He would hear her tales sometime, to embrace understanding and connection.]

At one point, that might have been the truth.

[Closing his eyes, he folds his arms across his chest. Survival drove them from their homes. They—he and his compatriots—longed to live and love as opposed to struggle and wither. So they fled, and . . . ]

I was once part of an organization called the League of Nine, which unwittingly broke a core tenet of the district in which we gathered. After it exploded in a colorless fire, time ceased to move for me . . . and I was taken aside by a dear compatriot, who provided food, shelter, and resources to continue my research.

[This much, he feels that he can safely share. In the end, he was nothing more than a stepping stone for the people who sought to cage him. So long as he keeps the detail of what he was told to do to himself, he can expound on what he's already alluded to via his speech at the previous ceremony.]

I would take the blue supplements he brought me, not knowing that they were sedatives, while the plaything I had made was appropriated for another purpose. It was only after I followed the words of my left-handed self, who faithfully kept me company, that I saw what was happening and departed.

[His eyes open, and he searches again for Yingying's face.]

Before then, I cared not whom they threatened. And that . . . is the true story of what transpired between me and my last remaining compatriot.

[embellwish]

[ ...A frown draws across her features, a strange expression on her usually serene and charming features. Perhaps easy to mistake as being directed at him, at first. When she speaks again, she sounds hurt on his behalf. ]

Your "dear compatriot" did all of that...?

[ Providing food and shelter to someone on the run, secretly giving them drugs, allowing Yi Sang's work to be used, unbeknownst to him, for other nefarious purposes? She draws her hand back, putting both in her own lap. What an awful friend he must have had. She's always known... that Yi Sang can be a bit oblivious, a bit passive, a bit unassuming. She always knew that there would be room for someone to take advantage of that. What she didn't know is that someone already had, and had betrayed his trust to such an extent. ]

Did you ever think that perhaps... if you hadn't been sedated, you might have felt differently?

[ Her talks with the apothecary about drugs and stimulants have taught her a lot. What psychological effects they can have on the mind. From what she understands, at least, apathy and inability to act are the most common symptoms associated with sedatives. ]

In fact, it seems to me that was by design.

[poans]

[The expression on her face isn't off-putting, because it's an unhappy memory. Shameful, even. His arms unfold, however, at the unmistakable hurt in her tone.]

The sedatives were to keep me from seeing the door that was there all along . . . but you might be correct.

[Days spent in a nearly muted haze, his retinas blinded by the white walls of that cubic room. He recalls the lassitude that surged from him when he beheld the horrors taking place just next door—the wave of regret that he hadn't swallowed all those pills he'd hidden from Gubo, the wish to pretend that nothing was wrong after the only person he had left had violated him so.]

He was there when I spoke of it. That I wanted the mirror to remain as an object of laughter between us . . . I had wanted there to be a misunderstanding, but I knew that was not the case. Thus, I departed . . . and eventually found myself here.

[embellwish]

[ Then, that's the real reason behind this oft-mentioned "journey." It's no small wonder the sort of state he was in when he arrived... nor the despondency and apathy he carried with him like a burden. Gently as she can, she takes both of his hands, her touch feather light and cool. ]

You did the right thing, walking away. Even if that meant being alone...

[ It takes a certain kind of strength to walk forward without any hope of companionship or trust at his side. She admires him even more, now, knowing the shape of his gentle sensitivity. How could anyone trample on that so carelessly? Her heart hurts. She keeps her gaze low, at the loose hold on his hands — how hard it must be for him to let anybody close, now. She won't take that for granted ever again. ]

I'm not happy it happened, but I'm glad taking this path led you to us. [ One of her thumbs strokes the back of his hand gently, almost tentatively, like she's ready for him to pull away at any second. ] No compatriot who really cared for you... would ever think to use and hurt you like that.

[ She can't imagine any of their number stooping to do something so cruel. Could he believe that? Believe that he was undeserving of such a heartless act? ]

And of course there might be things you feel remorse about from back then... but I hope that you wouldn't feel ashamed. For having been led astray.

Dedicating these grippers to you before I lose my chance

[poans]

[Yingying's hands are warm. He doesn't pull back, grounded by the comforting gesture as he is.

He won't speak overlong on this, because he will never be able to put to words the enormity of what everyone has done for him. Leaving the white square, he tottered into the night with only the clothes on his back and the faintest glimmer of hope for a place to belong. Greater still was the despair of thorough isolation, as well as his resignation to a violent death that very night, be it through wrong company or his violation of the curfew amid his wandering in the rain.

Instead, he came here where there's color and lives are treated preciously. In the gardens here, he met Yingying, whose sweetness and understanding warmed as opposed to sear. Yingying, who always considers others whereas Gubo cared for himself the most. So Yi Sang won't pull away; rather, he grasps her hands back in return.]

I may have gone astray and lost sight of where I was . . . but now, I believe I have found a path. [He looks up at her with a gentle smile.] One I shall continue to walk for as long as I am able.

Thank you, Miss Yingying. And . . . I am glad to have met you.

thanks i'll treasure these grippers my sweet jae...

[embellwish]

[ She meets his smile with a quiet one of her own, keeping their hands entwined for so long as he permits it. She's happy that he can say that so surely — and so directly, too, without so many words shrouding the true meaning. ]

Have you given it any thought? Where that path will lead you to next.

[ It's coming up, after all... soon, they'll all have to go separate ways. She knows there are those among them who intend to follow others home, perhaps even herself among them if she takes up Odile's offer of a place to start her recovery. Yi Sang... shouldn't go back to where he came from, that's for certain.

But perhaps most importantly of all, where he charts out to next is something Yi Sang needs to choose for himself, after being yanked around by the people around him. Her own home is always looking for more brilliant minds like his, and she's sure he'd have lots to offer the Bureau, if he so chose... but she wants him to see the path ahead as clearly and openly without distraction or input. This is a path he needs to forge for himself, and she wouldn't tarnish that or take that away from him for her own personal feelings. As before... she's happy just seeing him get to this point. ]

[poans]

[He sees before him two paths.]

There is something I must do.

[One takes him back to the City, where wrongs brought about by his slothfulness must be righted. This is something he eventually wishes to do, but not without some forethought so as not to squander the new lease on life he's been granted. It's also much too risky to speak of it openly here.

As for the other . . .

He spends a moment studying Yingying's face, his eyes roaming to take in every detail from the individual strands of her hair to her fond gaze and the contours of her visage against the evening lighting. The delicate crease of her brow and charming curvature of her lips that contrast the innocent wonderment in her wide eyes . . . Recalling the resilient blooms on the dying wisteria, his hands close lightly around hers.]

Until then . . . if you will have me, I would like to stay by your side and enjoy the sights together.

[embellwish]

[ His hands close around hers, and for a moment, she really feels held, enveloped warmly in the words that follow. Pure-hearted and innocent as Yi Sang is in the realm of love, sometimes, it can be hard for her to gauge just how how far ahead he has a vision for them. There can be no doubt that he cares deeply... but what's equally obvious is that this is a new, uncharted territory for him, and as such, she never knows what kind of obstacles he may run into. Thus, it's a relief for him to say that, and her body language shows that, shoulders relaxing a little more, smile easing. ]

As long as "until then" doesn't mean you'll suddenly leave me one day....

[ ...That can't be what he means, right? Staying with her until leaving to do this mysterious "thing." Well, even if it were the case, she'll figure out a way to put a stop to it. After murmuring that lilting line, though, she tips forward to brush her lips against his, soft and fleeting as a petal blowing by, almost like she's purposefully looking to leave him wanting more. Maybe she'll think about giving him another kiss if he'll confirm he's not going to foolishly leave her behind. ]

If you return with me to the Bureau, there should be plenty that will interest you there. I live in a containment center for other people who have been infected by what was on the star, you see. A lot of research and work goes into keeping us well, and preventing more of the substance's spread...

[ Aside from the soldiers, there are legions of researchers and scholars all working together to try to stop the spread of the apocalypse. She's sure he could help a lot of people there... and work together with people towards a genuinely benevolent common goal. ]

But, before that — Odile invited me to spend my early recovery in her homeland.

[ Assuming the wish can even fix what's going on with her physical form and the wisteria. She meets his eyes curiously, already cognizant that the two are close — probably closer than Yingying is to Odile herself, even. She plays with his hands idly, lacing her fingers through them. ]

So, what do you think? Shall we see the sights there?

[poans]

[Like the brush of a velvety petal, the kiss is fleeting, yet precious all the same. Yi Sang watches her pull back, his lips tingling, before his smile softens at her audible concern.

Children roamed the streets on his way to his profession, searching for a plaything with which they might toy for the day. Over time, their numbers dwindled, taken away at a young age for work in the factories he'd designed to maximize productivity. Though paid handsomely for his blueprints, the thought has always weighed heavily on him. If he goes to the Bureau, he can help those like Yingying instead of abusing others for his own survival. He can continue to breathe and move on with someone beloved at his side.

It seems that Yingying, too, has resolved to do much the same. He closes his fingers around her hands, reciprocating her gesture with a twinkle in his dark eyes. While he would've stayed by her side either way, this is truly joyous news, indeed.]

I shan't leave. [This is a promise. His future business is important, but he knows now the folly of sacrificing a person to abandonment, however unintentional.] If Miss Odile does not mind another companion to wake up beside, I should gladly settle there with you.

[In fact, little would bring him greater joy. Odile is a dear fellow whom he respects and cares for deeply, and who has lost much. He's aware of her desire for companionable company. If she should allow it, he'd be happy to provide that with Yingying, whose soothing presence is sure to put her at ease.]

Will you be making a wish, then?