2017-06-11: For As Long As You Need
- Log: For As Long As You Need
- Cast: Riesenlied, Noeline
- Where: Old Petra
- Date: 11th June, 2017
- Summary: Riesenlied's fear of the Guardians leads her to struggle against that which she knows may become a problem one day...
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
In the wake of Mother's revival and subsequent failure to awake, Riesenlied has made herself... a little more scarce -- it's a common habit of hers, throwing herself into work. But it isn't just that. The event was deeply troubling for her, and rattles her in more ways than just one... and it shows. She's disappeared into the actual administration and command centres of Old Petra, down at the bottommost layers of the compound, and Cetiri appears to have gone with her.
Noeline might be able to catch a snippet of their conversation prior to her entering, on inquiry on where they might be.
"... it's unavoidable," Riesenlied is heard murmuring. "From the intelligence Lord Volsung provided, the Guardian statues would need to be struck down."
"Indeed. This, of course, aligns with our view of the Guardians and where they stand against us." It's Cetiri.
"... that's true," Riesenlied sounds rather reluctant.
"You are troubled."
"Well... about Noeline... would she agree to this?" Riesenlied finds herself musing. "... she is enamored with them, after all..."
"You speak of the shard within her."
There is a deep gasp, and a whimper from Riesenlied. "She went to that Abbey to inquisit more about her nature, did she not... it is not as if she just views it as a part of her that needs to be removed. ... in fact, she has used it in battle as well."
"... you are reminded of the past, are you not?"
"... the Guardians are truly fickle, and they are inexorable. ... and this time... if there truly must be another sacrifice..." There's something approaching a deep pain in her voice. "Well... I guess if it is Noeline... I don't mind dying at her hands..."
"You are truly, excessively morbid."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline has not been unaffected by the scenes around Mother's revival, as much as she might like to pretend otherwise. Though she might not show it often, she does have some level of pride in herself as a Metal Demon - albeit rather dented in the wake of the Adlehyde attack - and even she was not immune to the rising tide of optimism that filled the hall as Mother awoke and her eyes opened. It would have brought many of her woes and worries to the fore, admittedly - but it would also have been an achievement for her kind.
For her, however, the biggest source of worry is not their Mother's lapse back into a pained sleep - the thought that they have not yet reached some point of no return is almost a relief, not that she would ever publicly admit that - but the resurgence of the question she's been grappling with ever since she began to feel a presence in the back of her mind: what exactly is she? If Guardians are anathema to Metal Demons yet she can hear their voice, if no Metal Demon would ever sympathize with humans and side with them as easily as she can - does she even count as one anymore?
By and large, she's managed to put that worry off, or at least push it far enough back that all she needs to do is worry at the edges. But it remains, and she thinks of it now as she leans against the wall alongside the doorway, her ears picking up the snatches of conversation. It is perhaps a little sneaky to be listening in to a private conversation; ruefully, she considers that once a spy, always a spy, and some habits are hard to break.
"--I am inclined to agree with Cetiri," she finally decides to break her silence and barge in at Riesenlied's last comment, planting her hands on her hips with a distinct huff as she strides into the office. "Since when have I ever said that I intend to turn so completely against my people, let alone those I care about? I would have thought my conduct in the days since coming to Old Petra might have helped establish that much," she adds. It comes out a little more hurt than she'd really like - but then, the idea of Riese getting herself killed has been a bit of a sore point recently.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied places her hands to her knees, rather visibly trembling as Cetiri sits next to her in a position one might affectionately call the master-and-dog posture. She's been crying, and it rather visibly shows, lowering her head as she looks to Noeline.
"... N-Noeline," she mumbles.
"It is hard," Cetiri points out, "For you to reconcile your feelings with your fear, Riesenlied. This is not about trust, is it? You trust Noeline."
"... I do... wholeheartedly," Riesenlied looks like she needs guidance on what to speak, catching onto it with a nod. "... but... then what will you do? Setting our brethren aside for a moment... what would you do if the Guardian within you makes you choose, Noeline?"
Her voice sounds more frayed and fearful than ever, nothing like the empathic and heartened Riesenlied that she usually is.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Almost immediately Noeline slows her pace, the better to take in the scene, and draws in a long breath in a forced attempt to calm herself. It's another habit that's hard to break - when you're not certain about a situation, slow down, and pay attention to all you can. She finds herself needing a second sigh, almost a surprise - though split between Old Petra and Adlehyde as she is, perhaps it's understandable.
"... that depends what it is making me choose," she finally offers, her voice a little softer as she kneels next to Riesenlied, on Cetiri's other side. "Did it bid me to tear the Teardrop from Siegfried's hand, no matter what? Did it prevent me from speaking to the Princess, and asking her to give the Teardrop up to us? ... just as I am a very strange Metal Demon, I feel as if the Guardian within me is a very strange Guardian," she huffs, the noise of it a little harsh and self-deprecating.
Still, she reaches out - carefully - to let her hand rest atop Riesenlied's. No more than that; she doesn't want to spook the other woman, after all, not when she's having this much difficulty. "... but I would never turn my blade upon you. For that matter, I would never so much as allow myself to be forced. I value my freedom - my right to choose for myself - above all else. If that were ever in danger because of these shards within me, I would rather turn my blade upon myself, instead." Her voice is still soft, but her expression is firm, her crimson eyes alight with a fierce sort of feeling.
She holds it for a moment, and then sighs out, her free hand reaching up to brush at her hair briefly more out of a need to release some tension than anything else. "... until then... these shards inside of me may represent a way in which the two sides of this war might communicate. If our end goal is in trying to bridge that gap, it may be important."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied's eyes shrink towards more of that fear, her pupils dilating the moment Noeline speaks of hurting herself. "N-no! No!"
She glances around herself, desperately, her wings stiffening as they furl around herself. She clutches at her head and covers her hands, wailing for a moment longer. "It might happen... it will happen... they aren't so kind... they aren't so kind, Noeline... don't fool yourself..."
She's kind of... ranting, to herself, at this point, a little thrown off kilter and definitely not quite in her right mind. Noeline knows Riesenlied enough to know that tone of voice, though this certainly is a new level of extreme.
Cetiri sighs for a moment, and quietly coils her tail to try to pat Riesenlied on the side of her wing. "... mm ... you have been working for hours now. You should retire for now, and take a rest."
"No, please... don't take yourself away..." Noeline has partially disconnected.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"... I am not going anywhere," Noeline whispers; this time, she rests her hand upon Riesenlied's hair, brushing through that part of it she can reach amongst the blonde's wings. "I promise you that. I will kick, and scream, and fuss for my freedom, more than any annoying child might. I would not let even a Guardian take it away from me so easily or so simply," she sums up, her voice gentle but edged with steel as she always is on this topic.
The spy relents the next moment, though, letting out a heaving sigh. "Honestly..." she mutters, the noise a little fonder as she maneuvers Riesenlied towards her arms, chiding even if she's not sure the commander can actually hear her or is able to pay attention right at this moment. "Even a metal demon can burn themselves out, you know... rest, at least for a while."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
The winged woman peers towards Noeline, her eyes seemingly distant as she looks towards her. "... there may come a time... when you can't have everything," she murmurs to herself, trembling as she wraps at her arms. Cetiri's tail wags for a little longer, and then she eventually coaxes Riesenlied to get up and head towards her own quarters. She lies down rather easily, sighing as she slumps to one side and feverishly tosses her arms around herself tighter.
"We should... perhaps leave her be for now," advises the doge scientist.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Visibly, Noeline wavers towards where Riesenlied lies, reluctant to simply leave the commander alone when she's that affected; she huffs once, and then again, apparently not certain what to even say on the matter and struggling slightly with her own worries in the face of it. "... ... more than anything, I have just promised I will not take myself away," she points out to the open air after a long moment, stepping slowly towards the cot on which Riese is lying as if to test the waters of her presence.
She remains on the edge, silent for a moment, then lets out a sigh. "... the only thing I can say for certain right at this moment is that I do not wish to hurt you further," she notes quietly. "And that I will work to see your dreams realized however I can. If that needs me to put myself in any form of danger, so be it - you have faced enough on your own that making up for it will already be hard."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied cups at her mouth further, shivering tightly, her breaths rather frantic and shallow. Her glistening eyes are gazing ever softly towards Noeline's and she reaches to her hand tightly and bites at her lip, swallowing fervently. "... just be aware ..." but the energy just seems to kind of fade out of her straight afterwards, and whatever she wishes to say just seems to die with the breath of her words.
Cetiri looks up towards her, and says, "... the Guardians have already made an example of one that tried to position themselves between them and Riesenlied. It did not end... well."
She pauses, glancing towards the winged woman, then saying, "I can tell you of that tale, so long ago, if you would like."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
At the very least, Noeline stays by the other demon's side until she lapses into an uncomfortable sleep - and then some time beyond, her hand held within the other woman's. She seems disinclined to move, at the very least, even going so far as to move around a little to make herself more comfortable.
When Cetiri makes the quiet offer, her brow furrows immediately. "... would she really be comfortable with my knowing?" she wonders after a moment, huffing out an uncertain breath. "Or without her express permission? ... I can't deny that I'm curious, of course," she adds as she turns her frown towards the canine demon. "That said, I am not at all certain whether it is appropriate, and that is /me/ saying that of all people," she adds, grumbling rather at the end of it.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"... I would say no," Cetiri says, in that incredibly blunt fashion of hers. "But neither am I comfortable with letting her suffer spectres of the past, unable to help herself. It will consume her, if left unchecked." She flecks her tail as she says, "Also, you are not so polite and kind that you would turn me down."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"Excuse /me/," huffs the Crimson Noble in return, her arms... arm... folded. After a while she lowers it again, foregoing the automatic motion because it looks a little silly with only one arm. "I do believe I /just/ tried to show a little decorum. Surely that should count?" she adds with a sharper grump, flicking out her hair instead. There we go, that works.
"At the very least, I do not wish to know out of some petty jealousy," she adds, just a little unconvincingly. "That much I could simply take and cope with on my own merit. Nor do I wish to know out of the hope of finding some quick fix, since I rather doubt there /is/ one. Like it or not, these shards and this voice are embedded in me, and my metal is a bit too specialized for me to simply reform myself and spit them out," she huffs. "And if I am some 'favoured' of the Guardians, the stories suggest that ridding myself of them would not be quite that easy even if I could."
Noeline pauses, looking down towards the winged girl as she tosses and turns; her eyes are a little distant for a moment, then she blinks it away. "... but I do at least wish to understand her woes more fully. Not to mention the contradiction she's trapped herself in - after all, isn't it rather odd to want to know why this hatred between our races started, while refusing to talk to one side of the affair?"
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Cetiri lets out a series of electronic beeps that might sound a bit like a snort. Or is it a little laugh? It's hard to tell, with her robotic nature.
"It would be possible. It would just not be pleasant," Cetiri mentions. "We play this dangerous game out of the hopes of a positive outcome, after all. Whether it is likely or not... well, that is now up to you, is it not?"
Says the one who granted her armour and weapons of a metal that the shard would not reject.
"Of course, you say that, but that is assuming the Guardians are on the side of the humans. They may favour them, but is that true allegiance? Are the humans that they choose as their 'favoured' -- or you -- truly their allies, or do they have an ulterior motive, like so many of the other forces that exist on the surface of this world?"
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"That is a fair point," allows Noeline with something of a sigh, tilting her head as she looks towards the corner of the room. "... at the very least, my visit to the Abbey was not fruitless. The 'Hades' Guardian - apparently, a rather maligned Guardian, and for the most part sealed away. Perhaps it simply doesn't have the same interests at heart as the rest?" she wonders aloud - and then frowns in another distant moment, tugging at the thread of a thought that might not be her own. "Or content to simply sit back and watch, perhaps."
"--still-- we have precious little to go off of right at this moment, and I will take what I get if it means it might help shed some light on things we know nothing about. It isn't as if I'm throwing my trust wholly behind them - but it is an avenue of information that I am capable of tracing, and that /is/ rather my job," she huffs pridefully, allowing herself another flick of hair.
Her pause after it is a little too long, though, and in the midst of it there is a furtive glance as she checks whether Riese is absolutely, certainly asleep. "... consider that declaration of mine insurance, of a sort. ... I will not let myself get overcome, if it means disrupting Riesenlied's dream."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"Declarations are but pretty words," Cetiri muses. "I will assist you to the best of my abilities, but whether or not you are overcome... it will take more than just conviction. Much like what that strange white knight that Riesenlied is entirely too fond of speaking to said... nurture it, lest it nurtures you."
She looks up towards the air for a moment, then slips down and moves a bit closer. Riese appears to have just gone out cold, rather restless in her dreamless sleep. "Centuries ago... back before we were known for what we accomplished. When we were nothing. There was a tribe, out in the Arctican Northern Steppes. The Fereshte tribe."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"The name certainly rings a bell," Noeline mutters to herself - though it's not necessarily for the reasons Cetiri thinks, not out of a sheer recognition so much as the spy joining the dots between Riesenlied's self-styled nature and some of the artefacts she has to hand. "Or at least, I might have paid them a little interest during my time in Arctica. At that point, I would not have particularly known Riese's name, I suppose, outside of a general understanding of their situation."
She falls silent after that, though, tilting her head slowly forwards to invite the canine scientist to continue. Here, at least, she can be an excellent listener when she wants to.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"Well... as I understand it, the events that transpired were before you were constructed," Cetiri muses. "The tribe survived well afterwards, of course, but they were all mum about the events that came to claim the life of their shaman... they were a shade of their former selves, back then. They were a vibrant, bustling tribe that commanded the epicentre of the trade roads of the Steppes -- a rarity in the harsh arctic conditions. Riesenlied was separated from us, on one of our excursions... she disappeared into a snowstorm."
A pause. "She came back to us a week later, exhulting her tales of how she encountered a human tribe and a girl that treated her well... ...she was no less innocent then she was now, I suppose."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
If Noeline's snort is a little rude, she doesn't seem apologetic; instead, grinning to herself, she rolls her eyes. "... really, now. Only Riese could manage three hundred years and still claim the same sort of innocence throughout," she sighs in a way that is totally not fond, nuh-uh. "... still... that is a long way to fall, all of a sudden. As you say, if they were quite so large, I am sure I would have heard more about them."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"Four, even, and counting," Cetiri lets out a response that's laced with that eletronic noise that kinda sounds like laughter again. "Yes, though. The Fereshte are a Zoa Baskarian tribe, and you can imagine how the loss of a shaman can destabilise a community. They worshipped the Guardian of Life... Odoryuk. They were healers, travelling far along the Steppes, and fostered a community of nomadic tribes around this service. ... Have you heard of the Guardian?"
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"Only superficially," Noeline responds, her voice almost clipped as she briefly becomes the spy of old. "I know the name, and the domain - but any extended study of the Abbey's books will take a little longer than that for me to properly take in. Still-- I do know exactly what you mean," she adds, flicking out her hair once more before taking Riese's hand once more. "Most of the tribes in that area were matriachal, and very prone to fragmenting and reforming as required. I suppose you could say it was one of my first insights into a human's chaotic nature."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"Indeed... where a shaman falters, her tribe shall know shame. Smaller tribes will be consumed to larger ones. Such is the nature of their fluid and shifting nature. In a way, they are not much different than now the Photosphere espouses competition," Cetiri muses.
"But... regardless, there was this girl--"
"Nasrin," comes the voice from the bed. Riesenlied quietly sits up, taking a haggard breath as she rubs her eyes.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline doesn't jump, to her credit - though she does start ever so slightly, her hand tightening around the other woman's for a moment. "... welcome back," she tries instead, a smile playing slightly at the corner of her lips-- before she huffs, planting her free hand on her hip. "Really, you wouldn't believe it! Cetiri just up and started telling me all sorts of private things about you!"
Perhaps it's to lighten the mood a little - though she falters quietly a moment later, nodding her head. "... go on."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"Only because it is necessary," Cetiri flatly says, just as brusque as always.
"... no, given how churlishly I reacted..." Riesenlied admits, lowering her head, shivering still -- she still looks rather fragile and vulnerable. "I am sorry... it is rather unbecoming of me, to be so thoroughly consumed by my fear."
"Where your brethren hate, perhaps it is fear that grips you instead," Cetiri points out.
"Regardless... the shaman of life of the Fereshte tribe... Nasrin," she speaks as she drapes her arms around herself. "She was the first human that ever showed me kindness... rather, the first person to. ... she was warm, full of mirth and kindness, patient and understanding... ... it might not be an exaggeration that I adopted many of my own mannerisms from her...?"
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Slowly, Noeline shakes her head-- and shifts, so as to be sitting that bit closer to Riesenlied's side. "... honestly, you worry too much about being becoming or not," states the biggest hypocrite in the world. "It is fine. I am still here, after all."
She pauses-- and furrows her brow in what might be a held-back spike of jealousy. "I doubt it was all her," she huffs, feeling just a little put-upon as she grumbles and feels for some ground. "It would be very difficult for her to have instilled all of that within you in a few days if you were not already receptive to it, after all."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"Hmm.... well," Riesenlied tilts her head, maybe just a little bit blind to jealousy for her own good, "I visited her time and again, after the first trip. For months, I came to assist the tribe in their woes... with the Ebony Wings as they were, we needed to utilise all the advantages we could get. Befriending the tribes were one of the only ways we had..."
Cetiri's tail flecks from time to time. "But this could not continue. Every time you came back injured, she earnestly tended to your side... healing your wounds. With the Guardian's power." A pause. "And it harmed you."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"--really, you berate me as being reckless with the Guardians!" Noeline huffs all of a sudden, her eyebrows rocketing upwards. "You already are of a lighter form of metal, and one more brittle - who knows what something like that would have done to you?!" she blurts, and sighs as she puts her hand to her forehead and leans sideways into Riesenlied. "... honestly..."
It takes her a moment to catch up, then lets out a long breath. "I understand why you did it, certainly, but at the same time-- that was remarkably dangerous."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied blinks and-- stammers, a little panicked, "I--I... well, the first time, I did not know. ... I did not even know what a Guardian was, Noeline... I was very young at this point..." She lowers her head. "... I was being foolish, though. I hid the fact that the Guardian's magic did harm to me, inside. It looked as if I was repaired, yet..."
Her lips thin. "I could feel their presence, bearing down upon me. It was a clear and present warning... Odoryuk's glare upon me. ... it was frightening, wordless and yet oppressive."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline's sigh is still rather haggard, tilting her head to one side still as she lets out another sigh and burrows in a little closer. At the very least, she does listen solemnly to Riesenlied's story, her brow furrowing just a little come the end of it. "... and I assume that Odoryuk - blessed with such a serious domain - chose to take out its retribution on all and sundry, instead of just one person?"
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied hesitates, for a longer moment. "Months had passed, before I had realised it. I grew so close to Nasrin... I learnt what it meant to smile, and take the sights, and be gentle and caring to others..."
Cetiri mumbles, "The others had bore notice as well. It was rather uncanny to see you be so attached, but no one really wished to say otherwise at that point."
"...but one day... we all fought a great beast that laid us low, and I--" Riese swallows. "I was badly hurt... and Nasrin came to my aid to heal me, summoning a greater power of Life than I had ever experienced before. It overwhelmed me, and rendered me unconscious..."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"--you're all softer than I am," mumbles Noeline in Cetiri's direction, her arms folded as she softly huffs over the story, probably about two inches tall and in the corner of the panel at this point.
She looks back to Riese as she follows the tale, shaking her head slightly. "... you never told her what it did to you? ... though, if she were anything like you are now, I rather assume that wouldn't have stopped her from making the attempt, at the very least."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"Hindsight is always perfect, as they say..." Cetiri muses. "I did suggest that we should perhaps forcibly remove you from the tribe, but you wouldn't have had any of it. You would have done something even more reckless."
Riesenlied lowers her head, sighing and shivering a little more violently as she drapes her arms around herself. "... I do not know if she discovered it on her own or if something else happened..." She bites at her lip, trembling. "The next time I met her, at her quarter... it was dark, and she had..." Her eyes widen a little more, as she begins to breathe a little more haphazardly.
"... she had taken her life..."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
Noeline is at least capable of respectful silences; she bows her head slightly in recognition, her hand squeezing the other metal demon's as she thins her lips. "... my condolences," she says after a long moment, her voice held steady but quiet.
It hardly seems enough, and Noeline seems aware of that much - and at the same time, can't help but let her mind tick over the situation at the same time, examining it from a number of angles - albeit with a spike of guilt for looking at it so clinically.
"... did she leave you anything?" she wonders quietly, glancing sidelong at Riesenlied. "A note, or--..."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
There is a haggard noise from Riesenlied as she shook her head, though she has to pause -- squeezing Noeline's hand a little tighter. "N-no, she..." she pauses. "No, I don't think so... her room was cold, dark... she had pierced herself with the ceremonial dagger they used in their rituals... and..."
She shudders. "She had the most peaceful look on her face... as if she had accepted something I could truly never understand... why... Noeline? Why... when you said you'd rather take yourself before harming me, I..."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"... I apologize," Noeline bows her head - and looks up, with a light quirk of a smile on her face - devoid of humor or mirth, and ever so slightly rueful and sad. "I-- certainly did not expect to touch on so dangerous and volatile a memory. ... that was never my intention," she promises with a light tilt of her haead.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied tries to calm herself, clinging onto that hand so desperately as she lowers herself closer. "... you weren't to know. How were you to know...? I was the one acting unsightly..." she closes her legs tighter, leaning in that manner she's gotten so used to when she needs her support.
Cetiri shakes her head. "You have not changed at all in four hundred years. It is unbelievable."
"C-Cetiri!" Riesenlied balks.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"I can at least vouch for three of those four hundred years," Noeline adds from the other side, as airily as can be as she tucks an arm around Riesenlied. "... I promise, I will do nothing of the sort to you," she adds immediately afterwards, her voice quiet but imperious. "And I will be on my guard, and let you know if the situation changes in any way. To be quite honest, that is what I am doing /already/," she adds with a lost and amused sigh. "But, I suppose I should make it clearer, hm?"
"At the same time... well, perhaps you heard me explain myself to Cetiri," the Crimson Noble adds as she catches Riese's gaze. "This is a road that I can walk, in order to help bridge the gap between us. Perhaps it will come to nothing - perhaps it will be key in fostering a little less hatred between our groups. But until I know for sure, all I can do is follow my instincts - and I suppose I /do/ have a habit of being curious to a fault," she snickers to herself.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied has a faint little noise, saying, "... I rather wish I could walk freely with you, and see those people the way that you can play both roles... there will come a day, sometime..." She drapes her head down gently, to nestle it against Noeline's shoulder. "But I shall not be disheartened."
Cetiri scoffs just a little bit, which comes as a shrill electronic noise. "You already sneak out to speak to so many people that you are giving your scouts canniptions. Do not rush, Riesenlied. The worst you always have done is fret too much."
Riesenlied looks towards Noeline, and nestles herself that much closer. "... I have faith... in you, in the Wings. You've all taken such good care of me... I want to return at least a pittance of it in turn."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
"That day will come, I suspect," huffs the spy gently, but with utmost confidence. "After all, have you not already made new allies, and made peace with old ones? ... I will do what I can to continue making contact with them, and others around Adlehyde. Little by little, we will forge more in the way of peace and understanding. I might not /exactly/ be the sort to offer much in the way of diplomacy - but I will at least do what I can to bring them to you to talk," she adds with a sigh and a shake of her head.
There is a comfortable pause as she allows the commander a chance to rest; Noeline's cheeks threaten to colour, but she does accept the fact that Riese is sneaking into her with at least a little in the way of smoothness, glancing at Cetiri for a moment with an almost comically unimpressed frown. "... I think that any of the Wings would have a very difficult time thinking you have done too /little/ for them."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Cetiri lets out a scoff as she murmurs, "... it is the least I can do, after all that has happened. I shall take my leave now. I would suggest you both enjoy quality time. Scientist's orders."
She whips her tail up and sneaks off at a record pace afterwards, even as Riesenlied herself flares up to protest, "U-uhh...! Between her and the Seraph that K.K. left here... really, there is no end to the teasing, is there?" She pauses. "There is a Seraph here. I am trying my best to hone my senses to see her, but I will need your help... she is, um, a whimsical sort... and has flirted with me..." She clings a bit tighter, maybe feeling a bit insecure.
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
... Noeline can't hide the smirk, even as her eyebrows raise and she lets out a grumpy huff. For a moment it leaves her looking more confused than anything, torn between her possessive streak and her mischievous one. "A Seraph?" she echoes finally as her brain starts to sort the various threads out. "Those are-- the spirit-like creatures that were from Sorey's world, yes? Whyever would one be on that Trial Knight's side?" she immediately muses to herself - after all, it's likely that she's pegged them in her memory as a sort of Guardian-Lite.
She shakes it away, though, frowning a little. "I do remember him saying that detecting a Seraph - if you have not already got the gift - is at least partially a matter of time. It may be that you're more able to detect her as you stay in contact with her."
"Not-- that I will let that happen for long, if this /flirting/ continues," she puffs up her cheeks the next moment as her mind see-saws away from the curious side of things and back to the other end of the scale and makes a seriously extravagant motion - more than usual - to flick out her hair. "I might be the whimsical sort as well, but at least that does not extend to my feelings."
"... I will have a word with her," she adds afterwards, veering back towards seriousness but rubbing Riese's arm in their embrace. "I-- would also like to look over Volsung's information, as well. It should go without saying, given that I am who I am, but... the timing of his intervention leaves me suspicious. I suppose that coming in at our lowest point and promising us the stars is just 'good politics' - but no harm in being safe about it."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied nods very gently, saying, "... on that front as well... a Veruni has approached us, and after discussion, I have come to the conclusion that he would be a good fit with the Wings." Good lord, Riesenlied, and you still call yourself lonely? "It is Mister Ambrosius, who accompanied us to the Hollow... I would not have thought him to be a Veruni, but as fate would have it, his thoughts align with ours. I do believe Lord Volsung to require a bit more caution... the hatred in his eyes, his speech is unmistakable."
A pause, as she admits and draws a little leg up further to stroke at Noeline's hair, "But for now... please... just stay with me... I still feel quite fragile."
<Pose Tracker> Noeline has posed.
For just a moment, Noeline catches her breath and swallows - it's timed with the touch at her hair, and now her cheeks have definitely begun to colour. "--well-- really, now, do you think a Crimson Noble could leave her charge alone after an entreaty like that?" she declares haughtily, bringing her legs up under her to make herself more comfortable. Noeline, did you just revert to archaic speech out of embarrassment?
"... I will be here as long as you need. Worry not. I am, after all, here to protect you - whether you want it or not, you are rather stuck with me, hm?"