paris ♔ so you'll keep the world at bay | keep your secrets and your scars.

[silvermaid]

♬ The Storm - Boy & Bear

WHO || Anastacia, Christos, Faye, Aedan, Felicity, Taenya Farstorm
WHAT || The Knights travel to Paris, get some sight seeing in, and meet with the councilwoman.
WHERE || Paris, France
WHEN || August 26th IGNORE WHAT WYNN SAID ABOUT A COUPLE OF WEEKS, I DO WHAT I WANT
HOW || Actionspam

[ this post covers all events from the flight to paris through the initial meeting to get things rolling on the mission. there will be three relevant threads below, please wait for them to be posted to comment ♥ ]

Comments

[bittersweeter]

Probably. [And then everyone can see Lila act like a real girl.] He's a good guy, you know. Actual good guy. Solves crimes, saves kittens from trees, looks out for the downtrodden. [She is not bluffing... about the good guy part.]

[reallywicked]

[There's just something about the way she talks about him that makes Faye jealous. If she's ever felt like that about someone? She doesn't remember it. She's quiet, pretending to be more interested on getting to the next store.]

[uncurse]

Do people ever start relationships with guys they don't think are good? I'm pretty sure usually, they don't figure out if they're wrong til later.

[bittersweeter]

[Lila's mouth presses into a line.] Well, if he turns out of be a murderer on his days off I will let you know. [No she won't.] But considering his mom isn't going to set me up to be raped just for the fun of it, I think he is a huge step up from Cassel. So can we drop it?

[reallywicked]

[Faye turns back towards Lila and arches one eyebrow. They don't talk much about their past. On Faye's part it's because she doesn't remember anything. But apparently Lila does remember. And it sounds...interesting.]

I've been thinking about picking out a new conquest. The pirate left something to be desired.

[Ho hum just purposefully bringing that back up in front of Emma. Just in case you thought you were friends or something ridiculous like that.]

[uncurse]

[ emma had fixed lila with a concerned look, ready to jump in, but faye's remark drags all of that to a screeching halt. rather than acknowledge her discomfort or prepare the 'romance is different than conquest and there's no prize for sleeping with strangers' talk, she chooses to clam up herself. she points out the store to their left. ]

You wanted to hit Agnes B, right?

[ that is a much easier thing to say than anything regarding the levels of pissed she still manages to be about hook. ]

[bittersweeter]

Yes. [And she is annoyingly grateful to both of them for dropping it and changing the subject. Even if she will never admit it and the only one that gets a grateful look is Emma because if she looked at Faye, well. Well, she'd have to acknowledge she just burst out with that in public. Oops.

But now all the fun is diminished and Lila doesn't actually want to go shopping, she wants to curl up with a giant bottle of Belvedere and sleep, neither of which are going to happen.] Let's go. [And she will veer in that direction regardless.]

[reallywicked]

[Wow, Faye is the only one still enjoying herself huh? Too bad she doesn't care much to bother with other people's feelings. She does give Lila a quick glance while she's busy shooting grateful eyes at Emma because she sure does plan on asking Lila what the hell that was about later on. Oh well. The walk to the next store can be done in awkward silence apparently.]

[uncurse]

[ 2/3 people don't want to be here and are too stubborn to say anything. awesome. emma holds the door open for faye and lila because she's a gentleman. she's way too used to silence to feel the need to break it with anything. ]

[bittersweeter]

[Emma is a gentleman, wow. Chivalry ain't dead.

Don't worry, Lila will break this awkward silence, as she do.] You still gonna cockblock me from lingerie?

[reallywicked]

You could always just go without. [Faye offers with a wicked smirk. She will just be over here checking out lacy and sheer things in black and red.]

[uncurse]

[ a shrug that comes off as a clear no. ]

You know what you're doing.

[bittersweeter]

Thanks. [She pokes at some clothes halfheartedly before drifting back to Emma.] I'm fine. You had that worried mom look.

[reallywicked]

[Faye is oblivious to this heart warming exchange. Too busy finding sexy underthings, thanks.]

[uncurse]

I'm not a mom.

[ emma feels the need to point out, though she feels her gut twisting as she says it, thinking of the chance she'd given up. thinking of the child she's been told brought her to storybrooke. whoever he did turn out to be, he's not someone she remembers.

still. her look softens, and she gives a grim, half-smile to lila. ]

I just ... didn't know. [ she raises a hand to wave it off. with the number of losers she's been through in her life, none of them have ever reached near what lila's described. and that breaks her heart. emma's life has been rough enough, she doesn't want this girl to have gone through worse than her. ] I'm glad you found a good one.

[bittersweeter]

It doesn't come up often, it's not dinner conversation. [None of her life is, but she's fine with that. She doesn't like people knowing she was ever that weak and pathetic -- because no matter how many people tell her it wasn't her fault and that she shouldn't be ashamed of her actions, including Cassel, she is still going to feel that way. It isn't something you get over. Emma's gotten almost the whole story, at least that chapter, she might as well get the rest, that the curse was Cassel's mom's present for her son.

Her fingers twist around her wrist, leaving little streaks of pink that disappear under the edge of her white gloves.] That's not what I was thanking you for though. [The nervous gesture continues as she twists her fingers together, leather pulled taut over her knuckles, which she's looking down at steadily.] People don't worry about me. They worry about what I'm going to do. But you... [She lifts her eyes a moment to look at Emma and then pointedly looks away, watching Faye.] You give a shit. About me. And I'm not used to it, so. Thanks.

[uncurse]

Guess I just ... know what it's like. Not having someone. [ and, more importantly: needing someone. no one wants to be alone, and the last thing emma wants is to watch this fragile girl have to face it all by herself. it had been too much for emma, and she's done nothing but run from herself as a result.

maybe she can do something good with it, maybe she can help lila instead of just breaking everything she touches because she's too damn guarded and petrified. she can't say you're welcome because she can't handle being properly thanked. gratitude in her direction makes her feel like she has value, and she's not used to that. she clears her throat. ]

I'm gonna wait outside. I don't have anybody who'd see this stuff, anyway. [ she gestures with a nod around at the racks, then takes a step back. she gives lila a tight smile. ] You can talk to me. If you need it.

[bittersweeter]

Yeah, okay. [It's not much but she doesn't know what else to say. She nods before moving in the opposite direction, toward Faye, sticking a smile on her face that actually grows to something resembling genuine as she approaches her friend.] Oh, my god, Faye, put that down and step back slowly from the prostitute wear. [She snickers as she grabs one of the lacy things out of Faye's hand and tosses it over her shoulder.] That was whore red, not I'm a pretentious slut and my bra cost more than your education red. Hmm, try this one, elegent and yet still completely available and incredibly slutty. Very nice.

[And she's back.]

[reallywicked]

Shut up. [She counters immediately, but she... puts down what she's holding and snatches Lila's suggestion out of her hand.] What about you? Anything this not-prince of yours likes?

[bittersweeter]

[She snickers, but shrugs, rifling through shades of blue until she finds a royal blue set in her size with little roses embroidered over it.] I don't know, I've never asked. We don't talk much. [She grabs something purple with white and gold stars as well. When Lila wears underwear she does not believe in white cotton. She believes in pretty from the ground up.] But if he doesn't like it then he can buy me something he likes all by himself.