Night 47: Main Hallway, 1-Center

[tyki_pon]

[From here]Tyki moved further down the hallway at an easy pace, noticing the lack of other patients around here but he didn't really care much about it. Perhaps it meant no one would snag any smokes away from under his nose this time, but then again, that may have been too optimistic. Eh, but that hardly meant that another person would get away

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[goldenroulette]

[from here]

Beatrice made sure she was a few feet away, and in the shadows, before leaning against the wall, coughing. "I really was trying to throw up a barrier for the both of us, you idiot. Don't assume I wasn't trying to fight back."

Her voice softened then, though - no. Not softened, so much as questioned. "How did you know what I was going to ask you?"

[dreadofthegrave]

"Oh? I'm supposed to block something even a witch couldn't evade?" Battler returned on a light note of sarcasm. It did sound like something he might try, or maybe more accurately, something he might think of. In fairytales, the knight often protected the princess even with his own back. He probably would have, if given the chance, but those kind of stories were named such because they never quite fit into reality. He wasn't a knight, nor she a princess. Unequal footing wouldn't necessarily work in his favor; his strength wasn't automatically guaranteed solely by the color of his pieces. When facing a stronger opponent, it was inevitable that white might end up in check. Right now, it was more appropriate to at least be glad it hadn't ended in mate

[goldenroulette]

"...Tch." She tried to fold her arms over her chest, turning away just a bit to again try and hide the worst of that blow, but she couldn't. Blood stained her lips, though it wasn't visible in the dim light. The first thoughts that came to her mind were teasing, but she kept them to herself for the moment, for the most part. "I wouldn't have put it past you to try to do so. It runs in your family, Battler

[dreadofthegrave]

.... So, the use of red was prohibited? Or maybe just restricted. Considering where they were, that could mean a lot of things. There was something blocking it, the rules were different here, or she was intentionally leading him astray. The last actually seemed the least likely at this point; they were past the stage of petty tricks. Perhaps the reason didn't even matter so much as the fact it was denied; in the world of the gameboard, of conflicting truths, where witches and demons roamed freely, it was the only real guarantee of anything. In other words, without that red, nothing was going to be confirmed or denied

[goldenroulette]

She had turned away for a moment, trying to think that through herself. Beatrice had accepted at some point in the blur that was the sedation she'd taken that morning that she couldn't blame this on either of those two meddling Voyagers, nor could she blame it on herself. She had, perhaps, given up too soon, but it was too late to blame herself for that; it was an action she wouldn't and couldn't regret. Not now, not on this board, and not ever.

Those words shook her out of her thoughts - the things she hadn't had the chance to ask, but were being stated as clearly as if she had.

Who...am I?

Her vision blurred for just a moment, but if he wasn't going to show weakness right now, then she certainly couldn't - no. It wasn't that she couldn't show that weakness, it was that she didn't want to do it. She had perhaps shown her hand too much in this short time, gotten her hopes up a bit more than she should have, but she wouldn't do that again.

This is why you're my opponent. This determination is why you're the only one who will

[dreadofthegrave]

Was that confidence real? Was his own? They weren't questions that needed answers. Just moments before, he'd wondered if she still might secretly be suffering, but even a fake, forced confidence eliminated the need to do so. Showing that kind of face meant only one thing, right? Perseverance. The will not to give in. He'd been asked once how he could tell that Beatrice was putting everything into her fight, ad he found that the answer was still exactly the same: I can tell just by looking. Therefore, neither could waver. They may have possessed similar goals here, but those were only temporary. Before all else, they were opponents, and he'd already swore that he would never lose sight of that. Hard feelings might still remain and may never be absolved, but the rules of good sportsmanship forbade that from coming into play. In other words, they'd fight with everything, not holding back, and there would be no bitter tears at the end. Only a kid hated the victor, when they should instead be using that loss to come back even stronger.

[goldenroulette]

[to derp]