Snow in the Summer

[subconmodo]

Who: Avery Atchison, Jailbreak, Valvatorez, Hieke, Héctor, Puella Tempus, James Griffin, Ekkehardt Gehring
What: A mission to stop a queen who just can't let it go.
Where: A museum ice manor in Germany, August 20th.
Warning: Violence, disturbing imagery, one (1) yandere

[No top text here. Will instead be breaking everything down into sections. Make sure to hit up the plotting post if you haven't already!]

Comments

[subconmodo]

"You're the one who should be worried. You do realize we're up against a woman who wiped out an entire kingdom all on her own, right?" He gestures to the manor before them.

"And just look at that: we're already getting the cold shoulder."

[spelleton]

"I can't say I think much of her hospitality so far. It's not exactly a warm welcome." His voice is dry. That one was almost a joke.

He exhales, after a moment, eyes on the manor and not on him. "It would be foolish not to take a dangerous opponent seriously. But she doesn't worry me overmuch. There's ways to handle such people, even if it requires rather more work on my part."

And what he doesn't say is Of course I'm worried, but she's not the one that worries me. He doesn't think it would help.

[subconmodo]

Avery has to double take. "Did... Did you just make a pun?!" Despite his misgivings with this whole situation, he can't help but almost feel a little proud.

[spelleton]

He considers this solemnly for a moment without a single change in his incredibly serious expression. Then he cracks a sharp grin that's mostly teeth and amusement.

"What, did you think I was incapable of humor?"

[subconmodo]

He holds up a finger. "Incapable of humor? No. Puns? Maybe." The smallest hint of a sly smile cracks through.

"I suppose I underestimated you. You always did seem to be a chill sort of fellow."

[spelleton]

"Oh, you wound me." He presses a hand to his chest, brief and theatrical and completely unnecessary.

"I'm not completely cold, you know." Not that he's ever made these traits obvious, but there we go. He's solidly confirmed to have a shitty sense of humor, he can't hide behind stonewalling any more. "I just don't have a reason to use puns to break the ice with people, as it were."

[subconmodo]

"Oh, I completely understand. You're the type to need both rime AND reason, eh? Or are you afraid of things starting off a little frosty"

[spelleton]

"What can I say? I'm naturally temperature-sensitive." His tone is light and casual. The smile remains, though it actually does look marginally friendlier now that he's not showing his teeth so much.

"I wouldn't want to use the wrong line and have people freeze me out of an interesting conversation, after all. You never know how someone will take a pun."

[subconmodo]

"Psh, that's no excuse to leave a good pun out in the cold! Let them get angry! They'll cool off eventually."

He looks lighter than he has since he stepped on the plane, the tension still there, buzzing in his skin, flaring with every cold wind, but more relaxed. More at ease.

[spelleton]

He's pleased at that, though he doesn't let it show. If he can do anything to ease Avery's understandable tension, even slightly, then he'll count it as a victory.

He laughs, short and quiet. "But it's more interesting to deploy them selectively, don't you think? Maybe the wait is frostrating, but the reactions are worth it."

Look at them, having a normal conversation. It's n(ice).