Horse Eden : Imperial WBs x West

November 18, 2024 08:01 PM

Posts: 95
#1257117
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| OC Owned by Imp
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Phoebe Nightlingale

⋆⁺｡˚⋆˙‧₊☽ ◯ ☾₊‧˙⋆˚｡⁺⋆

Phoebe, for the briefest of moments, doubted it when he stated his quarters were untouched, especially when she was accustomed to being in rooms that held great meaning and sentimental value. She realized he was being honest and merely blunt when she saw the faintest of smiles on his face, something more than foreign for him to do. Never, in the entire time she had known him, has she seen him smile nor even thought it was possible; it was a ridiculous notion to think and believe, but it was true nonetheless. Her gaze had lingered- albeit briefly- on the chain that sporadically swayed as it hung in isolation against the door. She would have asked what it was since it seemed to be the only item of value on display, but she knew better. It was always a gamble when it came to asking Rhys questions about himself. Either he would be willing to indulge in an answer or outright withdraw from the conversation; the likelihood of him even considering providing an answer was basically nonexistent.

She paid careful attention to his movements and instructions when he started to show her the suturing process, gradually shifting closer to him for a clearer view. It felt so odd yet familiar, the entire experience, to be precise. Clearly it was not familiar in the sense they had done this before, but familiar in the sense that she felt almost.. at home. Phoebe knew at that exact moment that she was truly going insane and that her need for any form of companionship was becoming a genuine problem. However, who could really blame her? She had felt isolated and alone with no one to turn to for years; the accident had been the thing to fuel it, making people realize how one traumatic event was enough to erase the potential someone had.

"Seems easy enough," Phoebe concluded as she settled in the stool beside his own, briefly glancing over the part of the wound that was untended. There were still remnants of blood staining his skin, but the amount was greatly reduced to the point where it only made her hesitate for a few seconds. Once he set down the materials on the table, she grabbed a nearby rag she had noticed, soaking it in water before carefully pressing it against the back of the wound. She wanted to be as careful as possible and could barely tolerate the idea of accidentally hurting him, although it was most likely inevitable in this situation. Upon finishing cleaning the wound, which she had done just in case it had become dirty again, she took in a deep breath: it was time for the hard part.

"I apologize in advance if it hurts," she apologized since she already knew that this was most likely going to be a painful process. The apology may have been unnecessary, but she thought he deserved one; anyone did if they were about to endure being stirched up. She could hardly imagine what it was like to feel the needle penetrating then exiting one`s skin repetitively for who knows how long. Phoebe started slowly at first, pausing whenever Rhys flinched or tensed or even moved the slightest inch; she truly was being as careful as possible. It still felt so weird being physically close with him and within the privacy of his quarters, but she persisted in believing this was her desperate need for companionship, not for any other alternate, possible reason. Regardless, she was supposed to view him as lesser than and as someone that was nonexistent, yet here she was, treating him like both an equal and a friend.

"I can bandage it," Phoebe reassured him when he offered to do it himself. After all, she was already helping him and she believed that the more he moved the more likely he would accidentally worsen his injury. She smiled again as she shifted slightly, meeting his gaze before refocusing on stitching up his wound with careful precision. "Unless you're that much in a hurry for me to leave."

November 18, 2024 08:22 PM

Posts: 11968
#1257137
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Rhys was being unnaturally open, and for him, smiley, at the moment, which was weird all by itself, even weirder because he had technically just been shot... like, most people would count that as a traumatizing experience, but nooo, here he was, feeling happy that Phoebe was showing parts of her old self again. Was he slightly insane for this? Yes, but he had been all along. Merely seeing the smile that was plastered on her face made him feel better about his sad existance. He may not have anything of importance to live for, but honestly, seeing those smiles was a good enough reason. He may not hold any real attatchment to Phoebe, nor did he count her as a friend, but for some reason, just being near her always seemed to internally lighten his mood. She was like a virus... that helped him. Somehow.

It was interesting to him how mere hours ago, she had been distant and anxious around him, but now she seemed relaxed. He distracted himself by running through millions of reasons why this could be, some of them being more entertainable ideas than the others. She was like the one logic puzzle that he could never solve, but it always entertained him to try. He had always enjoyed puzzles of any sort, and when he was young, he'd save up all the money he earned just to 1) buy food, or 2) Go to escape rooms. He was fascinated with the places, and always ended up getting out within minutes. Brain teasers were another one of the things that offered him what little joy he experienced in his bleak life. That was why Phoebe was so interesting. All the other royals were shallow and unimportant. He could figure out their motives and what they were thinking merely by looking at their cobra like eyes. She was different.

As she prepared to do what he had shown her, he turned away slightly to give her better access to the shoulder, and mentally prepared himself... pain usually wasn't a problem, but he also coped with it by hissing and growling under his breath most of the time, and he didn't want to do that with her here. He would prefer wincing over that, but ideally, he wouldn't give a reaction. Sadly, the ideal world was never reality. As he felt the needle pierce his skin, he grit his teeth, his black eyes closing and his head bowing slightly as he waited it out. In and out the needle ran, sending pinpricks of pain through his skin, which in turn made his shoulder throb all the more. Occasionally, he winced slightly, or his muscles tensed, and he could feel her pause every time, so he tried to keep his reactions to a minimum. He appreciated that she was being careful and not haphazardly stabbing him... definitely helped with the way he wanted to treat her. Rhys was very much a you get what you give kind of person, so if people were unnecessarily rude to him, he'd return the favor. If someone was kind to him, he'd usually just act respectable. Kindness had never been his thing.

As he felt her tie the knot he had showed her, he shifted slightly, relaxing the tiniest bit. Finally, the slow mental torture was over. Although he was used to pain, it played tricks on the mind knowing that you were going to be poked again and again but you never knew when the next poke was coming. He turned back towards her a little, quirking an eyebrow at her words. He was about to resond when she added something else, and another faint, almost nonexistant smile flitted briefly onto his lips. "I just don't want to waste your time, princess." He rumbled quietly, his voice reverberating lowly around the room. "However, if you want to assist with bandaging it, I wouldn't be opposed to the idea." His roundabout way of saying it wouldn't be fun for him to bandage it himself, so he'd appreciate help.

November 18, 2024 09:25 PM

Posts: 95
#1257182
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Phoebe Nightlingale

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``My time is never wasted,`` Phoebe`s response was a simple one, her voice matter-of-fact and as calm as it could possibly be in that precise moment. She was used to individuals telling her that the majority of things she indulged in were major wastes of her time, specifically her love for withdrawing into her room and read books for hours upon hours. Of course, she understood why they believed it was a waste of time, but they did not understand why she believed otherwise; it was one of her few respites. The smile that had nearly shown on his face had nearly gone unnoticed since she had already withdrawn into her thoughts, yet she had caught the small upward turn of his lips out of her peripheral. It made her wonder if she was not the only one feeling so relaxed at that precise moment, hidden away from the scrutiny and chaos that existed outside of his quarters. In a way, she was also to blame for said chaos, but only because she was a royal and nothing more.

``I`ll try my best to not jostle you while doing this,`` Phoebe mumbled beneath her breath as she finished with the conclusive knot, setting down the needle on a nearby paper towel. She grabbed the bundles of bandages and started working on his shoulder again whilst glancing into his eyes every few seconds. It amazed her how much one could miss from simply being too far away to notice things, like how his dark eyes didn`t seem as dark as they truly were; this could possibly be her mind playing tricks on her, of course. Little did she know, it was also likely that he could notice things he had never noticed before, small details that hinted towards the event he seemed to be on the verge of figuring out. Phoebe was mostly silent for the remainder of her tending to his shoulder, occasionally whispering an apology. She was as careful as she was before, her soft hands guiding the fabric against his skin. The last thing she wanted to do was make her work sloppy.

``It`s kind of sad, `` she stated suddenly as she paused, her hands hovering midair with the bandages resting against her fingers. There was a high chance she was about to cross a major boundary that Rhys secretly had, but she found herself growing more confident, more comfortable even, around him. She had been this comfortable with him before, yet she had never dared hint towards what she felt towards him or anyone else for that matter through words. For a split second, she found herself wanting to retract her words and say she had misspoken, yet she continued onwards. ``The thought of you having.. no one, to be precise.``

Phoebe probably should have thought of a better way to word her verbalization, but it was too late to take back what had already been said. As if knowing she had probably overstepped, she resumed bandaging his shoulder, her pace faster than it had been before yet still with the same amount of care and caution. Her words not only originated from the knowledge that Rhys probably tended to himself everyday without the help of anyone else, but from the curiosity of if he was similar to her. Maybe if she were more honest with him, if he was aware of the feelings she tustled with on a daily basis, then maybe.. that would clear this tension that was lingering in the air around them; the tension was mostly from the both of them feeling uncertain about why they were suddenly so close whilst simultaneously being so far away from each other.

November 18, 2024 11:33 PM

Posts: 11968
#1257242
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Rhys slowly brought his dark gaze to her, studying her face for a moment. "I wasn't insinuating that you decide to 'waste' your time, if that's what you thought." He stated quietly, seeing the look that flitted through her gaze. He could tell that she'd had things like that said to her, yet that's not what he meant. "If you want to help bandage my wound, you may. It is not my decision what you decide to do with your time." He added calmly. He hadn't meant to act like she did things that were meaningless or useless... he saw everything anyone did as valued practices in their own lives. If you sat outside for 3 hours just staring at the butterflies, that was not a waste of time if you wanted to do it. If you spent months planning for one night, it was not a waste of time if you enjoyed the night. He did not believe that anyone wasted their time, if they got what they wanted to get done, done. If your purpose of staring at the butterflies was to calm yourself, and you successfully did that, then he'd say good job. Mission complete. If your purpose of spending months to plan one night was to make that night memorable, and it was... good job. Mission accomplished. Most people would call the fact that he spent his afternoons swimming and fishing useless, but to him, it was the most productive thing he'd ever done. His purpose for being out there was to relax, and he always accomplished that, so in his eyes, it was time well spent.

He tilted his head slightly at her mumbled words. "Don't worry about hurting me. Nothing you do will affect me too much." He replied. He'd literally had people that had hurt him purposefully because something went wrong in their day, so the fact that she was being so gentle, even though she had her own worries and problems, was much appreciated. Although it did cause minor pain, and winces were a factor of that minor pain, it still was a mere pinprick compared to everything else. He turned his dark gaze to her yet again as she started bandaging his shoulder, his eyes focused on her expression as she glanced at him every once in a while. His eyes, although they almost always looked black, were now revealing the truth that she was closer. They were actually a deep, dark, ocean blue with specks of gold near the pupil. Unusual, but that word described everything about him quite well.

As he studied her face, he saw her light blue eyes were flecked with a darker blue. As he had observed, and as most people didn't realize, almost everyone had more than one color to their eye. They all had unique spirals and patterns near their iris, and every eye was a work of art in itself. Another thing he noticed was the...almost... slight... film covering her right eye. It was just.. a little off. Not exactly the same as her left eye. So small and miniscule that it was barely noticeable, yet his sharp gaze picked it up. His gaze trailed down to the faint freckling across her nose and upper cheeks, something else he usually missed. Her dainty expression, yet with a mark of determination. High, almost fragile looking cheekbones. He didn't think he had ever been this immersed in someone's face that he was noticing their bone structure, but here he was. First time for everything, he supposed.

Rhys was distracted by her words, his gaze breaking from her face to flit to the window, as if it had the explanation for her quick speaking, then back to her eyes. He waited, expectantly, for her to finish, his head tilted a fraction of an inch to the side and his eyes focusing on hers. When she finished, he just stared for a moment, contemplating what she had just said, before finally, a sound escaped that he hadn't ever barely even heard from himself before, and he knew she hadn't. He almost surprised himself with it- a chuckle, low, reverberating through his chest and warming him up from the inside out. A real chuckle. Miracles must happen, because the last time he remembered doing anything more than smiling was when he had snuck up on a stray cat and startled it, and the poor creature had been so bewildered it didn't even know what to do.

"Wow." He shook his head slowly, amusement flashing in his eyes. "And you call me blunt, mm?" His lips upturned in the smallest of smirks before he continued. "I believe that having no one is easier than having people who don't care." He stated evenly, finding it even more amusing that she had quickly resumed her bandaging, hurrying a little more than before. Almost as if she was afraid he was going to explode like a ticking time bomb if she didn't hurry. He may not be the most open person in the world, he may have faced off against a loaded weapon with no fear, and he may have had a glare that could turn people's hearts to ice... but he was still very much human, and he felt emotions, just like everyone else.

November 19, 2024 12:06 AM

Posts: 95
#1257247
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Phoebe Nightlingale

⋆⁺｡˚⋆˙‧₊☽ ◯ ☾₊‧˙⋆˚｡⁺⋆

Phoebe continued to work on his shoulder, her pace still rather hastened yet simultaneously meticulous and mindful. She did not want to take any risks when it came to Rhys, especially when things seemed to be moving in a positive direction for once; it had been years since she felt so at home and she refused to accidentally ruin it all.. that dreadful feeling of everything slipping through her fingers was something she never wanted to relive. Her gaze flitted upwards to meet his gaze once again and in an attempt to confirm that she had not been going insane when she saw the true hues that danced around his irises. Truth be told, she was stunned by the contrast of the dark, nearly midnight black void and the lighter, yet still dark, pigments of blue that were accentuated by small specks of gold. Phoebe never really paid attention when it came to facial features or unique attributes that each individual had, yet she was practically infatuated with Rhys. Would she ever admit it aloud? No, but she figured he would read her like an open book; she was getting used to it at this point and found it the slightest bit heartwarming.

The event that followed shortly after was one she had never thought possible, her eyes widening as she watched it unfold. Rhys had chuckled at what she had said and had even went to the lengths of making a joke of sorts, something foreign to her and presumably everyone else that had ever interacted with him. If she had not been so surprised and shocked, she would have probably smiled or laughed along with him, but she was merey silent as she processed it. To make things more surpising, she also noticed the smirk that was twisting his usually reserved expression, warming her heart in ways she had never experienced before. Had she, Phoebe of all people, managed to make Rhys chuckle and smirk, albeit a little? She thoroughly believed she was going insane now since there was no way this was happening. She welcomed and loved the idea of him being himself with her, but it was all so unexpected.

"That is a fair point, I suppose," she whispered in response to his words, smiling briefly when she finally finished bandaging his wound. With a sigh, she returned the remainder of the bandages where she had found them before resettling where she was situated beside him, knowing he would probably tell her to leave now that her part was done. However, she found herself wanting to stay, afraid that the moment she walked out those doors would be when Rhys would retreat into his inner shell; she did not want to lose this side of him, ever. She was coming to terms with what was going on within her and it was beginning to make sense. The confusion and the need to ensure he was okay were all stemming from one simple thing: affection. Was she aware of what type of sffection she was experiencing? No, which was understandable since it had taken her hours to identify it.

"Is it truly worth being alone though?" Phoebe pondered aloud as she propped her chin up with one of her hands, her hair cascading down past her shoulders. She was no longer gazing up at him like she had been, instead staring down at the table of where they sat together as if she were examining it. He was probably aware that she was on the verge of revealing what she had been feeling for the past few years: the disdain, the feeling of not belonging, the unbridled fear of anything that she did not know, and, most importantly, the desperate need for someone to accept her as she was. "It seems terrible. A life lived alone seems so.. pointless."

November 19, 2024 12:36 AM

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#1257250
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Even after her pace increased just slightly, he still felt how careful she was being... it was strangely endearing. However, he also noticed the look on her face- like she was just barely holding this moment together, like it was glass waiting to shatter. Which he understood. They had both never really been this open with each other before, and she was enjoying it, it seemed. He bet that she just didn't want the moment to end because she snapped him out of whatever weird phase he was in by making a sudden movement. It was almost amusing, in a way, how she was being so careful, like one wrong thing would make this whole conversation come crashing to the ground in a matter of seconds. Although this was strange for him, and he had spoken and smiled more in this conversation than he had in the last 20 or so years, he wasn't going to abruptly stop because she accidently slipped up and bumped his shoulder or something. He had kind of accepted that tonight was weird, and he wasn't going to try to force anything back to normal. He may... possibly... prefer this. Maybe. It was... nice. Just talking with her for once. No sarcasm or scowls. ...just talking to each other like the individuals they were.

He saw how bewildered and surprised she was by the fact that she had chuckled... honestly, he couldn't say much, considering he had felt the same way. It didn't stop the amusement he felt, however. Her silence told measures, especially about what she had observed the last, what, 4 or so years that she had actually acknowledged his existence? No smiling, laughing, or anything, but here he was, having just chuckled, and he was pretty sure he broke something it her brain. It was almost enough for him to crack another small smile. Although Rhys commonly found things funny, he tended to keep it inside, but he had the urge to smile as he watched the surprise, doubt at what just happened, and pleasure as she realized that she had single handedly made Rhys Danger chuckle unfold in her eyes.

He stayed where he was as she finished with the wound and sat back down in the place beside him, still observing her actions and movements. Every second, he felt closer to unlocking her secret, but he also felt different. Like her fiery inferno was melting away at his icy heart, revealing the layers underneath. As Lucifer said... I'm like an onion. An Irresistible one. The quote that may fit that better was from Shrek. 'Ogres are like onions. We have layers.' That excluded the long park about donkey suggesting that they stink and many other ridiculous things, but that wasn't the point. The point was, Rhys' heart was layered, and he felt like the ice was being melted away. His defenses were crumbling under the warm happiness of Phoebe, and he didn't know how to stop it... or if he wanted to.

He didn't ask her to leave, nor did he want to. As he had thought before, and as he was quite sure she was thinking now... they both didn't want this rare occasion to end. The next morning, he wondered if he'd wake up differently. Wake up feeling the same as he had yesterday. Forget about their conversation altogether. Not worry about her anymore. Weirdly, he didn't want to wake up and let everything go back to normal. Especially not until he figured out unraveling her mystery. He turned his dark gaze to her again, observing the way she propped her chin on her slim hand, the way her hair cascaded over her shoulders like a waterfall, the way her gaze was now fixed on the table. A fleeting, forbidden thought broke into the walls of his mind... she looked quite beautiful like this... but he immediately shoved it back out and slammed the doors of his brain on its face. Now was not the time to ruin his life by showing any bit of that kind of affection to a royal. Her father, the king, wouldn't waste a heartbeat having him thrown out if he even lifted a finger towards Phoebe. Plus, just yesterday they could've been considered enemies, and he wasn't even sure if, at this very moment, they could be considered friends. Everything was rather uncertain.

Until it wasn't.

The pieces clicked together in a matter of seconds as she spoke.. the slight longing in her tone, the way her eyes glazed over a little as she stared at the table, the way she exhaled quietly as she delivered the words, everything. It all suddenly made sense. Years of evidence all stacked up to showing him this, and finally, it clicked. It was the answer to his conundrum. The answer to her. All she wanted was to be accepted. Cared about. Loved. Treated like she was important. All her parents had ever done were point out her mistakes, never telling her what good she had done. She had always had to live up to unreachable standards, and had always been punished when she didn't reach them. It all made sense now.

Rhys stared at her like he had just discovered gravity, his eyes widened just slightly. He was vaguely wondering how he hadn't figured it out until now, but it didn't matter. He realized he had never seen her hanging out with anyone or talking to anyone other than her aunt and him for longer than five minutes, unless forced against her own will, like with her father. He ignored the slight flurry of warmth as he realized, as well, that he was one of the exclusive people that she chose to hang around, even though he knew he was insufferable.

"You're important, Phoebe." He stated out of the blue, firmly, his gaze sharpening as he locked it with hers. It was the first time he had... ever used her real name. "You matter just as much, if not more, than everyone else. You have done far more to help people. I promise, if you show yourself to someone, they will prove to you that you can be cared about for who you are, flaws and all. And believe me, you make many less mistakes than most people." Rhys continued lowly, his gaze intense yet gentle at the same time. "Do you understand me?"

November 19, 2024 08:42 AM

Posts: 95
#1257279
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Phoebe Nightlingale

⋆⁺｡˚⋆˙‧₊☽ ◯ ☾₊‧˙⋆˚｡⁺⋆

She could tell that he was thinking incredibly deeply, especially by the intensity of his unwavering stare that she could feel over her shoulder. Of course, she was already accustomed to his seemingly all-knowing stare and dark, but not as dark as she formerly thought they were, eyes, yet there was something.. different this time. Phoebe was struggling to figure out what he was thinking at that exact moment, wondering if he was in the throes of piecing her puzzle pieces together. She was tempted to lift her chin from her hand in order to meet his stare, but she had already decided it best to simply wait for him to speak or act; patience, she had learned, truly was a virtue that most could only dream of having. Nothing could have prepared her for what was about to unfold between them, especially when she was already feeling the weight of all her emotions. It was suffocating and crushing, all of it making every inch of her as miserable as it possible could although she constantly tried her best to conceal it.

Phoebe eventually lifted her chin from her hand and tilted it slightly, angling her gaze so that she could see him clearly compared to the smoky haze that had been inflicted on her right eye. Since the silence had stretched out between them, she had partly believed that he had either zoned out or deemed it unneccessary to respond to her words, yet the expression on his face screamed otherwise. The glimmer in his eyes was almost akin to triumph, over what she was clueless about, and they had widened as if.. he had actually figured something out. She was stunned at the flow of words that were leaving his mouth, so much so that her own eyes had widened. Rhys, the cold-hearted, reserved Rhys, had called her important; the likelihood of such a thing happening was nonexistent. To make it more surprising, he had used her real name, something no servant or non-royal had ever dared to do since it was a sign of closeness, whether it be friendship or a mutual understanding of each other.

Yet Rhys did not stop there, continuing on and unknowingly warming the parts of her heart that had been so cold and empty for the past few years. Phoebe was persuaded that, if this was not a dream, that this was him acting out of sympathy and kindness; the thought of him genuinely meaning every word did things to her that she wished to never acknowledge. But the look on his face and the gentle, meaningful gaze he was using.. she could not deny that he meant every word he had said. She did not know how to react to Rhys for the first time, usually responding sarcastically or dismissing the truth in his words; both of which would ruin whatever was occuring between them, which was something she honestly could not bear. No one could deny that Rhys had successfully made her realize that she did not have to be so cold and empty anymore as long as she was willing to be open and honest.

The impact his words had on her was obvious, even more so when she had to look away from his stare although it was the most gentle it had probably ever been. His words had been meant to reassure her, yet she found herself on the verge of.. crying. She was not a stranger to the sting of tears that fell down one`s face whenever they were overwhelmed with emotion, but she did not want Rhys to see it; it was ironic given that he had just told her the key was to simply show herself to someone. Phoebe`s breath hitched slightly as she closed her eyes and folded her arms across her chest, a painfully clear sign she was holding in her emotions once again. She would rather cry alone in the darkness and solitude of her room compared to here, Rhys` quarters and in front of Rhys himself. She doubted any servant had ever seen a royal cry; royals, if they even had the ability to cry, would certainly do it behind closed doors. Her father had imprinted that on her mind, how emotion was the first step to a royal`s downfall; another reason why she was scared- almost petrified- of crying in front of Rhys. It was simply the sad, harsh truth of the moment.

``I.. understand, Rhys,`` Phoebe whispered loud enough for him to hear once she had regained some composure, although her emotions were still at their peak. It was unbelievable how Rhys of all people was the first one to figure her out, even Morana had not pieced things together. She prayed that he would leave it at that and move on because she was certain that if he continued speaking on the matter that the flood gates would open. He was making it harder and more painful for her to think that, no matter what was happening right now, that it had to be temporary. Friendship, let alone anything more or less than that, was deeply disdained whenever it was between a royal and a servant; the repurcussions.. she did not want to imagine what anyone would do to Rhys if they even knew she had been with him in his quarters for what felt like hours. The very last thing she wanted was for Rhys to suffer, even if it was going to tear her to shreds all over again. It was as if fate was mocking her, giving her a taste of what she so desperately craved while simultaneously reminding her that Rhys was a servant.

If she had not been so aware of who she was with and what they were discussing, she probably would have allowed herself to cry and a moment of weakness and vulnerability. Furthermore, she would not deny that she had even been tempted to hug him out of gratitude and another emotion she refused to give a name. The fact that Rhys had singlehandedly managed, whether on accident or on purpose, to warm the pieces of her heart that had been neglected so long was what was making this so much harder. With the amount of emotion she was feeling, one could say that he owned a piece of her heart, something only her parents and Morana had done before, yet for all different and vast reasons.

November 19, 2024 09:12 AM

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#1257285
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Rhys very clearly saw his words hit her like a stack of bricks... or... well... a semi truck may be more accurate. He was not the type of person to even say that many words in a sentence, nevermind the fact that the sentence was so out of character, but he hadn't surprised himself this time. He had done that purposefully, and he had meant every word. He was sick of watching her be put down by everyone and told that she wasn't good enough... even if he didn't really realize it before, it had been staring him in the face this whole time. He knew it was a bit... well... risky to not only point out the one thing no one else had to a royal, but to use her real name. He was painfully aware that they were as seperated as two people could be. She was a princess, the daughter of a king. He was a servant. She was like a light to everyone around her. He was like a 6'5 tattooed and scarred storm cloud that everyone avoided like the plague. The couldn't be more different if they tried, yet he spoke anyway. He knew if he went too far, or even continued, he could burrow himself into a hole that he'd never be able to get out of, but he really didn't care. She needed to hear this, from someone, and if no one else had figured it out yet, then he was the messenger.

Rhys continued to fix his gaze on her, though it was less sharp and studying now, and a little bit more gentle.. and... maybe even caring. Not in a special way, just ... genuine care for what she was feeling. He noticed how she turned her gaze away, how she immediately blinked- he was assuming, back tears- and he knew full well how big of an impact his words had. Like he had just hit her with a wall. He assumed she had never been told anything like that before, considering the emotions he practically saw exploding in her chest, and how she crossed her arms over her chest as if holding them in, like if she didn't have her arms crossed that they'd spill out in a river. He could tell how she was furiously trying to hold back tears... he had known he'd get a reaction, but he hadn't really expected that.... then again, he had zeroed in on the root of all her uncertainty and the reason why she hid herself from everyone, so of course he was going to get a big reaction.

Rhys tilted his head at her whispered words, watching her closely to try and tell if she was just saying that or if she really meant it. He needed her to mean it... he needed her to know his words were true. He paused for a long while, trying to decide a couple million things, before he finally deemed himself actually insane and did one more, last thing to make sure, to drill his point in. It was important to him, more than a lot of things, for her to believe what he was saying. She could hear the words and all, but he didn't think she really believed them. He sucked in a silent breath and brushed his fingers under her chin for a split second, just enough to turn her head towards him. "You are perfect, just the way you are. I won't say more, but.... I mean it. These are rare words to hear, but they come all the way from the depths of what you know as an icy heart. You are perfect, just the way you are." He stated firmly, lowly, meeting her gaze before withdrawing. He needed to make darn sure that she understood the weight behind his words. He wasn't just spitballing, wasn't just throwing random things out there. He was speaking what he believed as the truth. She could choose whether to believe him or not, but he needed, absolutely needed, to get his point across, as firmly and concretely as possible.

November 19, 2024 09:40 AM

Posts: 95
#1257294
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Phoebe Nightlingale

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Phoebe remained immersed in her own thoughts for a while, trying her best to conceal the raging storm of conflicting emotions he had evoked deep within her. She had never expected Rhys of all people to be the one to finally notice her, truly notice her and realize how much she had been struggling for years now. Was it sad that it had been him instead of Morana and her own parents? Yes, but she could not deny that she felt almost glad that it had been him. Phoebe knew they were treading on dangerous ground at this point, more so than they had mere seconds ago, but who could honestly blame her? She needed- desperately- to reinforce that this would never happen again or, at the very least, anythiing as personal as this moment had been. Truth be told, she was already feeling emotions a royal should never feel; perhaps it was a spur of the moment, but only time could tell.

Her eyes fluttered open when she felt the unfamiliar sensation of a hand gently guiding her chin, finding herself meeting his gentle gaze again. She knew that he had a valid reason to touch her like this since he was making sure he had her focus, but still.. gods, she truly was going insane. Phoebe listened to every syllable that left his mouth as he spoke, holding onto every word like a lifeline. She knew this was probably the only time he would ever do this, being himself, to be more exact. However, if this was the only moment she would ever have with him like this, she knew she needed to rid herself of the emotions he was stirring. Phoebe doubted she would ever be able to since people often clung onto those that were everything they seemingly needed and, right now, she needed Rhys and his words.

Rhys had called her perfect just then, something no one had ever called her. Morana had called her a good person, someone that was willing to sacrifice herself for the better of another, but perfect.. It was almost as if Rhys was genuinely trying to make her cry, but she knew that wasn`t his goal. The sincerity and care that was hiding in the undertones of his voice was the biggest indicator that he meant it all, every last word. Phoebe could no longer hold back the tears that had been threatening to spill ever since he had verbalized his realization, the small streaks cascading down her face as she continued to meet his gaze.

``You`re too kind,`` she whispered, her voice strained from the weight of emotions she was feeling. Phoebe`s lips, however, upturned into a small smile, an indication that his words had certainly left their mark. It was odd calling Rhys of all people kind, but it was the truth in her eyes; beneath that cold, terrifying outer layer, there was a caring, gentle Rhys that had never been on the surface for the majority of his life. Knowing it was not the best idea to simply sit there and cry like she was already doing, she tried to lighten the mood, even if he would take it wrong. ``I presume making a royal cry was not on your bucket list?``

November 19, 2024 10:03 AM