[ there's a brief sheepish sweaty smile that's like "yes, really" but what karlach says is more important, and it quickly melts into a look of surprise and - horror, for her, really. ]
[ unfortunately people being sold off is not completly unfamiliar, but the idea of being sold off into hell - now that's a new one. he looks briefly stunned, frowning harder, though... it sounds like this has a happy ending, so. ]
... You escaped Hell? That's - that's amazing. [ genuine as always. ] The amount of strength it must have taken you to be able to do such a thing...
Being brave enough to see the way out, though - that's a strength in and of itself.
[ there's real conviction there, too - words he so genuinely believes, and as the initial excitement wears off, the smile remains, softening a little still. ]
I bet! Even spending a few hours in Hell can be pretty draining... I can't even imagine ten years.
[ rondo gives a little, exaggerated shiver at the sense memory of it all - hell with its strange, off-putting structures, its heavy, ominous, toxic presence... it's a bad place to be. ]
[ this does not bother him at all!! in fact, it's a little comforting. rondo looks down at his hands, going momentarily quiet even as he leans a little further into karlach's warmth. warm... ]
... To stop the armies of hell from invading Orsterra.
[ for rondo, it's just familiar and comforting in a way nothing else could possibly be. his right hand comes up to touch his heart, remaining there. warm. ]
Haha, yeah... [ Yeah.... ] The... that was the last thing we were doing. I've been in and out of Hell a few times, now.
[ ... ]
... The shoes of the Flameguard are pretty big to fill.
he looks down at his hands. it makes his heart ache just thinking about it, even now - it still feels so fresh, so tender, a wound that'd never heal just right. sazantos was the last thing that rondo saw, after all. the final moment before his eyes snapped open, here. ]
.... The former Flameguard was my... [ my everything. ] ... my mentor, though I don't feel as though that properly encapsulates how much he has done for me. And while I took on the role as his successor, I did not expect to take it for - decades, maybe. If I even could. I honestly wasn't sure that he'd ever...
[ he trails off here, mouth wobbling before he pulls it back in. ]
He is the reason why we had to bring armies to the Gate of Finis - the gate of hell. He is the one who is leading the opposing force. [ ... ] Sir Sazantos betrayed all of us.
[there's a pause - and then she gently wraps an arm around his shoulders and holds him close.]
... Gods, I'm sorry.
[maybe she doesn't know the whole story, but she can get that it hurts. she's good at seeing that, at least. and she can empathize, even. sometimes the person you trust the most betrays you and it isn't something you can crawl back from so easy.]
Makes it harder, doesn't it? When you love the person.
[it doesn't have to be romantic, just - caring. it's hard.]
[ there's something just so comforting about karlach - her presence, her demeanor, and her warmth, like being held in the sacred flame's embrace himself. it makes any of his defenses - as small as they are - to just shatter. there's something about it's so much harder when you love the person that puts a lump in his throat, and rondo's eyes well up, unbidden, with tears.
he stares at the ground for a second, blurry as it is, and - he can't even really say anything at first, choked up on the feeling, leaning into her a little further.
so instead, rondo just nods, expression crumpling a little, closing his eyes tight. yeah. yeah, that's exactly it. it hurts so much more when you love someone, and rondo, for every meaning of the word, loved sazantos. and for as much as the others have been kind to him about it, there's something so different about a complete, new stranger, understanding exactly how he feels. ]
aaa, she watches him get choked up, and she knows exactly how it feels. the situation's a little different for her, but it doesn't matter. having your trust and care thrown in your face like that is rotten. so - carefully, when his expression crumples, she turns entirely and wraps him up in a full on hug.
and she's good at it, too. she's big and warm, solid, and not afraid to be close. so - she hugs him, resting her hand on the back of his head. she doesn't say anything! but it's okay. he can cry if he needs, she doesn't mind.]
it comes with a hiccup and a sob, not nearly as quiet as it should. because this is just - this is so tender that it feels like a wound that's never going to heal, and it's hitting him all like a truck now that they're stuck in this place. now that he's finally slowed down enough to process it again, all of the grief and the misery of the past few weeks compounds all at once. he's trying not to be too obvious about it, but his fingers come up to return the warm, solid hug, and he squeezes, tight.
it's okay to be weak, for a few minutes. it's okay to be hurt, to be fragile, to be vulnerable. ]
[AAAAAAA GOD she's so sad, but it's okay, she doesn't mind doing this! she turns so she can better hold him, her tail coming up to wrap around him too. this is the kind of thing that she thinks so many people need, and she's glad that even if they don't know each other all that well yet, he's comfortable enough to let go with her. it makes her feel good, to be a safe harbor.
she'll stay here and gently pet his hair. it's okay.]
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Um - yes.
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... You? Really? Huh. [a beat.] That's Avernus. For us, anyway. Spent ten years there.
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Ten years...? Why?
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But not now. I got out.
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... You escaped Hell? That's - that's amazing. [ genuine as always. ] The amount of strength it must have taken you to be able to do such a thing...
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Don't give me too much credit. I just took the first chance I saw, and it landed me in a whole other kettle of fuck, but - yeah.
I'm never going back. [she says, as little tattooed flames flicker across the underside of her jaw.]
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[ there's real conviction there, too - words he so genuinely believes, and as the initial excitement wears off, the smile remains, softening a little still. ]
I believe it.
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Hah. Thanks. [she says, and it's genuine. very much so.] First thing I did was get my hands all over the grass. I missed green.
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[ rondo gives a little, exaggerated shiver at the sense memory of it all - hell with its strange, off-putting structures, its heavy, ominous, toxic presence... it's a bad place to be. ]
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Why were you there?
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... To stop the armies of hell from invading Orsterra.
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Gods, nothing like some high stakes.
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Haha, yeah... [ Yeah.... ] The... that was the last thing we were doing. I've been in and out of Hell a few times, now.
[ ... ]
... The shoes of the Flameguard are pretty big to fill.
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[she remembers the paladin talk.]
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[ there's like - a long pause before he says it.
... ] It's... what I've been training for. For... it's been almost ten years since I first decided I wanted to.
[ the ink curls, flickers. not being strong enough to stop him it says. ]
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[not accusatory or anything, just, y'know. she's getting the idea the way he got it wasn't satisfactory.]
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[ quiet.
he looks down at his hands. it makes his heart ache just thinking about it, even now - it still feels so fresh, so tender, a wound that'd never heal just right. sazantos was the last thing that rondo saw, after all. the final moment before his eyes snapped open, here. ]
.... The former Flameguard was my... [ my everything. ] ... my mentor, though I don't feel as though that properly encapsulates how much he has done for me. And while I took on the role as his successor, I did not expect to take it for - decades, maybe. If I even could. I honestly wasn't sure that he'd ever...
[ he trails off here, mouth wobbling before he pulls it back in. ]
He is the reason why we had to bring armies to the Gate of Finis - the gate of hell. He is the one who is leading the opposing force. [ ... ] Sir Sazantos betrayed all of us.
[ he betrayed me. ]
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... Gods, I'm sorry.
[maybe she doesn't know the whole story, but she can get that it hurts. she's good at seeing that, at least. and she can empathize, even. sometimes the person you trust the most betrays you and it isn't something you can crawl back from so easy.]
Makes it harder, doesn't it? When you love the person.
[it doesn't have to be romantic, just - caring. it's hard.]
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he stares at the ground for a second, blurry as it is, and - he can't even really say anything at first, choked up on the feeling, leaning into her a little further.
so instead, rondo just nods, expression crumpling a little, closing his eyes tight. yeah. yeah, that's exactly it. it hurts so much more when you love someone, and rondo, for every meaning of the word, loved sazantos. and for as much as the others have been kind to him about it, there's something so different about a complete, new stranger, understanding exactly how he feels. ]
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aaa, she watches him get choked up, and she knows exactly how it feels. the situation's a little different for her, but it doesn't matter. having your trust and care thrown in your face like that is rotten. so - carefully, when his expression crumples, she turns entirely and wraps him up in a full on hug.
and she's good at it, too. she's big and warm, solid, and not afraid to be close. so - she hugs him, resting her hand on the back of his head. she doesn't say anything! but it's okay. he can cry if he needs, she doesn't mind.]
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he immediately bursts into tears?
it comes with a hiccup and a sob, not nearly as quiet as it should. because this is just - this is so tender that it feels like a wound that's never going to heal, and it's hitting him all like a truck now that they're stuck in this place. now that he's finally slowed down enough to process it again, all of the grief and the misery of the past few weeks compounds all at once. he's trying not to be too obvious about it, but his fingers come up to return the warm, solid hug, and he squeezes, tight.
it's okay to be weak, for a few minutes. it's okay to be hurt, to be fragile, to be vulnerable. ]
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she'll stay here and gently pet his hair. it's okay.]