As strong as the seas are stormy.</style>
If Oxy hadn't been on her shit list already, the moment an unseen force launched rocks down the beach at Alice, he secured his spot there with ease. Alice yelped at the same time that Hotaru leapt to defend her companion, the rocks bouncing off her lean figure as her ears fell against her cranium in a snarl of warning. Her protective instincts were still fresh, still vibrant and volatile. Alice was right back to playing in the sand moments later, but the insult had been made. "Watch it," she hissed, a cobra in a lamb's coat, a flash of promise in her sharp fox eyes. But with a little effort she let her hackles lower, trying to remind herself for the purpose of this...encounter.
Beneath the impressive weight of her gaze he flails, and for a moment she entertains the thought of him writhing beneath her in pain, in the grip of death itself. She yearns for it. But Hotaru knew how to bide her time, how to watch her step and word her praises and offers to sway those of weaker mind and lower guard to her bosom. Confidence was a must, but Hotaru had never fallen prey to arrogance, and she hoped she never would. Her twin had offered too much of that, perhaps it was simply lacking in the beautiful thief.
Her nickname drawled out of his stained lips, and she mourned the loss of a potentially amazing underling in him. What a shame. But Hotaru deigned to count her wins, not her losses, in that moment. "Druggie," she said with an easy feigned fondness, a light smile on her lips and warmth radiating with amusement from her eyes. An actress on a stage, the killer who was always mistaken until the very end, the reveal.
A delicate brow raised and she tilted her head quietly at him. For a moment she had no idea what he was blathering on about, Snowflake and all that, but then she had to choke back a snarl. That ice bitch, she growled. Her attempts to return her godmother's armor to its rightful owner had Elsa's visage permanently detailed in her mind. Snowflake was a Fall denizen like Oxy, and her marking was painfully obvious. Instead, Hotaru smiled a little, understanding pouring from her pores.
"Ah, yes. Love can be quite distracting." Had Hotaru ever really loved? Before Arya, she hadn't even loved someone platonically. And romantically? Did she even really love Rhiannon, or was that merely attraction, lust? But she was an actress for a reason, and though she could never really understand, she made it seem as if she did. That was something she could ruminate on in private, where her shortcomings were not able to be viewed so easily by those who could hurt her.
Shifting to a more inviting, secretive stance, she let her gaze fall onto him. "I hope things have not changed that much," she cooed. "It would be such a waste on my end, after everything I've done. Should I count you out of this game? Or perhaps I can offer something for your...Snowflake in the deal?" Without knowing how deep his affections ran for his little ice particle, Hotaru was out on a limb in that moment, excitement burning in her veins until it was distracting even for Alice. This was the moment of truth.
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[P] wear more pastels and put your hair down
