#▐ .｡*ﾟ━ STING & MARY: WE’RE WILD AND FLUORESCENT. // SANCTIDENTE

[killrate]

❛  that’s  the  price  you  have  to  pay  if  you  want  to  drink  before  eleven  o’clock  in  the  morning !  ❜ — sanctidente 😂

♡ @sanctidente

She raises her brows and simply focuses on her drink: plain orange juice, this time. Unsurprisingly, she finds it much easier to keep her unfocused stare fixed on the glass, than to meet Sterling's gaze.

Her eyes are tired, and, despite the ponytail, her hair's a mess, too. It's no wonder he's connecting dots to the obvious. ❝I actually haven't even started yet,❞ she admits, leaning against the counter rigidly.

❝I think this is... Maybe the longest I've ever gone on April fourth? No, I'm...❞ She trails off, setting the glass down as her fogged gaze lowers to the floor. ❝... Today's hard. My eyes are red 'cause I haven't really slept. And also because I needed to cry. A lot. Don't feel bad, Sting, I know─I look hungover.❞ She laughs, awkwardly.

The crash had broken her leg and a couple of fingers, but despite that, she had not noticed it until the paramedics took care of her. Sebastian had been taken from them too quickly for anyone to even have a chance at saving him.

She takes a breath. ❝Uh, today makes five years since my brother died. And it fucks me up. Usually, I run from this. I cope how I see fit... But last night I felt like I just... Needed to let it sink in.❞

For once.

She lifts her stare to meet his, and her hands ball up into fists. ❝I know I've never told you that. I try not to talk about it... Because I hate getting into it.❞ She admits - a little emptily. ❝It was my fault, you know? And my parents have never blamed me. But I kind of wish someone would...❞

Mary glances out the window for a brief silence, then turns her head to look at Sterling again. ❝I'm not tellin' you this to take advantage of your psychology lectures. I'm telling you because you're my friend and I have to tell someone. It's eating me alive.❞

[killrate]

‘  i  think  maybe  you’re  the  only  person  who  really  knows  who  i  am  and  still  likes  me  anyway .  ’ / haunted au !

♡ @sanctidente

Mary huffs out loud, plopping down on the couch next to him - and she says nothing at first. All she can offer is a long stare─interrupted only by her leaning to reach her glass of - oh, peach juice for a change!

❝Don't be stupid, Sting.❞ Her words are a low mutter as she stretches her legs to rest over his - regardless of whether or not he feels like being her personal leg-rest.

He'd push them off if he really wasn't in the mood for her.

❝If you would just quit it with that front, you'd see that you're not only wrong, but delusional on top of it.❞ And she has to pause to take a sip of her drink, because this is going to get horribly sappy, and very likely going to give her some type of nausea.

The one day she picks to hang out with him while sober!

❝Also, can I just say that I'm a bit surprised to hear this from you? ... Only because you're actually telling me! But no one this full of themselves really... Feels too confident, right?❞ Mary smiles weakly then, tilting her head low for a second. ❝'Nother thing we have in common, I guess.❞

A moment of silence later, she clicks her tongue, rolling her eyes. ❝I'm gonna tell you this once and only once, so pay attention, mmkay? You're cool. You're not a sheep. And you're good company. I'm... Not super-picky with friends, but there's a reason I like to have you around. You're not perfect, just like none of us are. But I like you just how you are. Even if sometimes I wish I could punch you in the mouth. 'Wouldn't trade ya' for the smartest cookie.❞ Well, that was a severely toned-down version of what she would have liked to convey, but... Mary can't seem to go there.

Not sober.

In spite of that, she does sit up, and wraps one arm around his shoulders. ❝Now, we could keep being corny... Or we could go get hotdogs. Please say hotdogs, I don't wanna go alone. I hate... Seeing ghosts in that stairway. Seems they only ever come around when I'm alone. Pretty-please~?❞

umbrella academy starters. / no longer accepting.

[killrate]

‘care for an arm wrestle, mary ? c’mon... don’t look at me like that! you have a chance — maybe.’ :)))

♡ @sanctidente

A half-lidded stare is all she offers - and it's really all he needs to see that she's unamused. Surely he's looked at her arms, right? They don't exactly scream, ' I could totally fucking beat you at arm-wrestling '.

In fact, they really work with the whole seemingly-harmless look she's got going on.

❝Are you joking?❞ She grumbles.

❛ C’mon... don’t look at me like that! You have a chance — maybe. ❜

She so obviously glances at his arm, down at her own, and then back up at his, before her gaze rests on his face again. Just to emphasize the ridiculousness of his challenge.

Mary snorts before propping her elbow up on the table to take his hand firmly. ❝Fine, don't break my arm though.❞ She warns, taking her position ( because she absolutely intends on using her body weight to help her cheat ).

And though she knows he's just messing with her, she does give him all she's got, and she does get a little hopeful ( hilarious as that is ) when his hand begins to lean in the opposite direction - arm quivering and everything.

Her gaze shifts to focus on Sting's face only when she hears a seemingly-nervous laugh, and a curse─followed by... words of encouragement.

Curious.

He knows he can't possibly lose - Mary knows this! Him cheering her on only inspires her to force herself further, and as a result his hand gets way closer to the table's surface than she thought it ever would.

It all inevitably comes crashing down on her when he finally drops the act, and in one smooth motion, brings her hand back─until the back of it gently meets the surface.

And of course, she huffs─not because she lost ( as she knew she would ), but because he actually gave her hope, damn it!

And why did she take the bait? He's freakin' ripped!

❝Oh, Sting,❞ she starts, relaxing her features before smiling, mockingly. ❝You didn't need to commit to a performance that hard! Were you craving a woman's touch that badly?❞

[killrate]

❛  you were dead.  yet, here you are.  ❜

♡ @sanctidente

Her eyes stay on his - steady & unblinking. And after taking her sweet time contemplating that, she nods slowly. ❝Yeah, that sounds about right...❞

Pacing off to the side, Mary swipes a finger delicately along the window sill, and she leaves behind a barely-noticeable trail. Evidence that she was there. Evidence that Sterling had forgotten to dust there, too, apparently.

❝... You don't look so good, Eucliffe. You look tired. And a little irritated, but that could just be me.❞ She shrugs, eventually turning to him. ❝Sorry for the blood. I don't know how to make it go away.❞ She explains, briefly. ❝But I don't look too bad, do I?❞

And if one could ignore the deep scarlet that stains her shoulder, and back, and part of her mostly-cherry-pink hair... Then, no. She doesn't look too bad. Only like she might have partied a bit too hard, with her smeared liner & mascara.

❝You're a skeptic. And yet, here you are.❞ She challenges, walking closer to him now. ❝Thought you didn't believe in ghosts.❞

spring cleaning the inbox, don’t mind me !

[killrate]

“how do you ever expect to make any new friends with that attitude?”

♡ @sanctidente

Why his words strike a nerve the way they do is... Probably a bit much for her to break down in her mind. That will probably require for her to dedicate a whole evening, and angry tears until four in the morning. Perhaps therapy, too.

She has time for neither of those things, so she pushes it all to the back of her mind. It will need to be addressed sooner or later, but it most certainly will not be happening in the presence of Sting Eucliffe, or anyone for that matter.

❝Not that I owe you or anyone an explanation, but I'm going to break this down for you like you're a twelve-year-old, mmkay?❞ She turns her body fully towards the Dragon Slayer─and her expression is a bit cold. Blank. Unlike her.

❝I've done shitty things. And I've stood by equally shitty ideals. It doesn't matter whether or not I was slightly groomed, or whatever. I did those things, and I didn't question a whole lot until it was too late. And everyone knows it. Do you really think that anyone's thrilled to get close n' cozy with me? Because I don't. I'm not gonna play stupid. I'm sure there's a lot of you waiting to see which one of us trips and falls on our face first.❞

She doesn't usually assume these things. That's a pessimist's job.

[killrate]

“what the fuck are you watching?”

♡ @sanctidente

It doesn’t look hard. Perhaps just a bit tedious, but not nearly as much as she would have imagined. It’s certainly not looking as hard as dumplings, and she still fucked them up a bit the time she tried. 

At least she hadn’t had a guest that time.

She has the hang of it now, but continues to let the video play. It’s relaxing, and quiet - and there’s nice background music, even if she can’t quite hear it. The outside world is loud. Mary rests her chin against her palm as she watches the tutorial, and instinctively turns the mobile lacrima away from the person who comes up from behind.

As if it’s something worth hiding!

❝Oh! Hello to you too.❞ She drawls, though she still smiles. ❝It’s a tutorial for a recipe I’ve thought about trying out.❞ She tells him, locking the screen. ❝I’m gonna hang out with a friend soon. They, um, have said that they like vegetarian sushi. ‘Figured I’d be nice since I haven’t seen 'im in a while, y’know?❞ She further explains, giggling almost nervously.

let them say fuck ! / accepting.

[killrate]

"so what happened, with your parents, really?"

♡ @sanctidente

Her fingers toy idly with the straw in her smoothie, and she cracks a smile. ❝Oh, I bet they’ve been asked something along the lines of this. ‘Bet someone asked them what happened to their daughter, really.❞ A low giggle, and she quiets down again.

Is she really doing this? She might as well; it’s not like her parents don’t know what she’s been up to, or where she’s been. Not since she showed her face at Crime Sorciere’s side - as one of theirs. Frankly, she should have been more glad that they’d even been willing to have her. A lesser group would have refused, she’s sure.

She leans into the counter then, suddenly disinterested in her drink; but she folds her arms over the surface and sighs deeply. ❝Well... They’re alive. They just... Lost sight of me for a little too long, and I’m sure they regret that.❞ She mutters, and takes a sip - if only to excuse herself for the silence. 

❝But to put it bluntly, they’re ex-militaries. So you can imagine how that went. I don’t like being told what to do now - imagine how that was when I started to grow a spine.❞ She explains, casually - because she’s so used to the distance by now.

❝... Yeah. That’s just it. They didn’t exactly always know what I was doing or reading, and I wasn’t getting along with either of them very well towards the end... When I left.❞ The witch clarifies, eyes unfocused, but staring blankly at her hands. She turns to Sting moments later, smiling - as though it’s nothing. Because it really shouldn’t be. Because she’s thought about it enough.

She just hasn’t necessarily said it out loud. ❝They were both asked to speak at my trial. Both by the Council, and by my defence. My mom was the one who wrote back, and I’m told she declined to speak. I never cared to know about her explanation.❞ Never dared to know, would be the correct word.

Mary perks up suddenly, and grins - propping an elbow up on the counter, cheek rested upon her closed fist. ❝You know what’s funny? My mom really kept pushing the idea that when I became more experienced, I should apply for Sabertooth. Back in the day. When they were first gaining a shit-ton of notoriety - at least outside of Fiore. 'Told her I wasn't into it. But I really just wanted to be a brat and disagree. For no reason other than to be defiant.❞

deep-ass starters / accepting.

[killrate]

‘the fucking CLOUD killed me?!’

♡ @sanctidente

❝Oooohhh... Yeah... Wait, why did it do that?❞ there is perhaps some half-sincere tone of pity, but she also doesn't even attempt to hold back her laugh. ❝So... The cloud is bad. Got it.❞

But why did he have it in the first place? God, she should have asked how to do things in this game. And it's been years since she touched a Wii-remote anyway. Mary keeps neglecting to use her items.

❝You're so dramatic, you didn't die! You're just in last place now.~❞

She doesn't forget to use her item this time, though - and with the push of a button, she releases a banana peel behind her.

Hopefully he can dodge this one.

spring cleaning the inbox, don’t mind me !

[killrate]

“ traitor! what have you done?! “

♡ @sanctidente

They’d had an agreement. She had the yellow property he needed to start building houses; and he had one of her pink ones. The deal was, they’d trade the next round─and both had an upper-hand against their banker.

Except, Sherry had offered Mary a green property─which is more valuable to her. And all she had to do was give that bit of leverage against Sting, to Sherry.

❝Sting, sweet-cheeks, c’mon, don’t make me feel bad about it! It’s nothing personal! ... I just really wanted to build houses over the green property, okay?❞

She’ll make it up to him... Eventually...

[killrate]

bond tags.