well, here's the thing, karlach is really good at hugs. she's big and warm and solid, and her favorite thing is to be casually touchy with people, so she's got lots of practice. she shifts, and wraps her arms around him, resting her head against his for a second. however long he wants, she'll hug him.]
[dude bro dude she understands that. sometimes all you want is a hug.
she doesn't mind him crying. she feels the big emotions all the time, so she gets it. gently, she rubs his back, and sits with him for a bit. and after that bit:]
You know, I told you before that I've had this engine for ten years, right? [she murmurs.] It made it so that I couldn't really touch anybody because I ran so hot.
But that's mostly fixed now, and it's fantastic to get to touch whoever I want whenever I want. So - what I'm saying is, if you ever want a hug, you come find me. Okay?
[being unable to touch anyone, having to be apart from them physically that way- it reminds him of someone else who had to try to keep some distance from others.
he's trying not to think about that, still just sort of-- slumped in place, here.]
...I'll, um, remember that, though. A-and if you do, then-- you can ask me, too.
[she shifts to make herself a little more comfy to lean on. it's a little like having a heated blanket.]
It was. [awful, she means. ten years of no touch nearly drove her insane, but - that's not her anymore. she's got all that she can ask for, and so she concentrates on that.]
Like the little flower bracelets you make in school, you know?
[that's what he reminds her of! like a bunch of fragile daisies tied together to make something cute, like holding someone's hand to lead them around.]
Just some of us. Tieflings stick together a bunch, right, 'cause of the people who like to shit on us. But I had other friends when I was a little one. Few humans, a dwarf, a halfling.
Guess you haven't got those either, huh? They're people just as much as me. Both short races, maybe up to your hip. Dwarves are wide, rough and tumble types, big beards. Halflings are pretty humanlike, shorter? Sneakier, lanky.
H-how many types of people are there? It sounds like there are... a lot of them.
[he's read fictional stories and stuff, sure, but this is something completely different? besides, it's not that frequently that he gets his hands on fantasy stories, either.]
Elves, half elves, tieflings, humans, halflings, gnomes, dwarves, dragonborn... half-orcs. [lists them off] I guess that's a lot. It's pretty normal in Faerun.
[yeah she thinks if he even looked at baldur's gate he might explode, tbh]
I grew up there, so it's just... home, you know? It's crowded and people shove each other and bicker over prices, and sometimes fights break out, but. The view on the rooftops is fucking stellar, and every day there's vendors walking around handing out coffee and pastries to get you to come visit proper. And the community, gods, the community, people who'd defend their cityfolk with their lives. Loyal to the end.
[there's something like, hopelessly, painfully loving in her tone. she loves her city so bad.]
... It's where I'm supposed to be. That's where I'm supposed to be.
[he takes all of that in-- the love in her voice when she speaks of it, the way that he can picture a crowded, bustling city, loud and vibrant. full of, he can only assume, people like her; she seems as if that's a scene she would fit into perfectly.
it's a contrast to arpechele in more than one way.]
... I'm sorry that you're... stuck here, instead. This place is so different from it...
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he nods before he manages to object, instead.]
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well, here's the thing, karlach is really good at hugs. she's big and warm and solid, and her favorite thing is to be casually touchy with people, so she's got lots of practice. she shifts, and wraps her arms around him, resting her head against his for a second. however long he wants, she'll hug him.]
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the sniffling is definitely not muffled anymore, being hugged makes him cry for real, but he isn't pulling away from it, clinging a little.
sometimes! you're a little affection starved!]
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she doesn't mind him crying. she feels the big emotions all the time, so she gets it. gently, she rubs his back, and sits with him for a bit. and after that bit:]
You know, I told you before that I've had this engine for ten years, right? [she murmurs.] It made it so that I couldn't really touch anybody because I ran so hot.
But that's mostly fixed now, and it's fantastic to get to touch whoever I want whenever I want. So - what I'm saying is, if you ever want a hug, you come find me. Okay?
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[being unable to touch anyone, having to be apart from them physically that way- it reminds him of someone else who had to try to keep some distance from others.
he's trying not to think about that, still just sort of-- slumped in place, here.]
...I'll, um, remember that, though. A-and if you do, then-- you can ask me, too.
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It was. [awful, she means. ten years of no touch nearly drove her insane, but - that's not her anymore. she's got all that she can ask for, and so she concentrates on that.]
Thanks, daisychain. [sure, that's a nickname]
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Daisychain...?
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[that's what he reminds her of! like a bunch of fragile daisies tied together to make something cute, like holding someone's hand to lead them around.]
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[he manages not to say he's sorry for not knowing how to make them from school, though. good work.]
B-but I like it.
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she grins a bit, mussing his hair. gently!]
I'll show you how to make one if we find a place with flowers, deal? [she's glad he likes it, though.]
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[he agrees easily enough, brightening a bit.]
I'd... like to try it out. The crowns were nice.
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Yeah, I liked 'em too, actually. We used to make smaller ones, right, 'cause of the horns? One around each.
[taps her horns.]
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Oh... I hadn't thought about that.
[a brief pause.]
All of you had horns-?
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Just some of us. Tieflings stick together a bunch, right, 'cause of the people who like to shit on us. But I had other friends when I was a little one. Few humans, a dwarf, a halfling.
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A dwarf and a halfling-? What are they like?
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Guess you haven't got those either, huh? They're people just as much as me. Both short races, maybe up to your hip. Dwarves are wide, rough and tumble types, big beards. Halflings are pretty humanlike, shorter? Sneakier, lanky.
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[he's read fictional stories and stuff, sure, but this is something completely different? besides, it's not that frequently that he gets his hands on fantasy stories, either.]
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Elves, half elves, tieflings, humans, halflings, gnomes, dwarves, dragonborn... half-orcs. [lists them off] I guess that's a lot. It's pretty normal in Faerun.
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[HELLO? WHAT IS HAPPENING IN FAERUN.]
We only have humans and Relivers...
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she laughs.]
You get used to it quick. Especially in a place like the Gate, there's so many people living practically on top of each other.
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[this is... probably the opposite of surprising, considering his Everything.]
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I grew up there, so it's just... home, you know? It's crowded and people shove each other and bicker over prices, and sometimes fights break out, but. The view on the rooftops is fucking stellar, and every day there's vendors walking around handing out coffee and pastries to get you to come visit proper. And the community, gods, the community, people who'd defend their cityfolk with their lives. Loyal to the end.
[there's something like, hopelessly, painfully loving in her tone. she loves her city so bad.]
... It's where I'm supposed to be. That's where I'm supposed to be.
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it's a contrast to arpechele in more than one way.]
... I'm sorry that you're... stuck here, instead. This place is so different from it...
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I'm a little sorry too, but not much. I'm breathing and talking and making new memories. Even if this place is terrible, that's all I can ask for.
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[he lapses into silence again there, reaching up to absently run a hand through his hair after she's smoothed it.]
Are they... important to you?
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