ClockworkCadence
Planetoid
- Joined
- Aug 8, 2017
A couple seconds passed. A few more. Silence upon silence stacked upon each other, each adding weight, each choking the air with a bit more pressure. Neither person within this secret bubble of solitude seemed to be willing to be the first to move, emotions masked behind a thick shield, any indication of their status as a living human downplayed and subtle. He stared at her, but she returned the gaze plainly, deep and rather intense despite it lacking the ferocity she'd displayed prior. It was the focus of curiosity, the trained look of an explorer trying to map out new terrain. Those steely eyes contained a whole universe unknown to her, and maybe if she looked into their depths long enough, she might find answers to all the mysteries within the man.
Or maybe not. The moment was cut short as her attention fell upon the strangely warm smile, striking if only due to its rarity. His hand registered in her peripheral vision, getting oddly close to her face until—
...Wait.
What?
Did he just... boop her nose? Truly, legitimately, boop?
She was unsure if she was going to erupt in anger or get up and walk out Theodoor without a single glance back, but instead she unfortunately settled on staring at him with the oddest look in the world, some sort of mix between an angry pout, a confused stare, and an amused yet disbelieving smirk. She didn't know what was more embarrassing—the fact that he booped her, or the fact that he decided to boop in the first place. Words tried to well up in her throat as he casually told her to settle, but they died out before they could fully form, her cheeks flushing a frustrated red. His words vaguely registered in her mind, deciding first to take his advice to settle down with a curt sigh as her face returned to a neutral look, arms crossing as she considered the rest of his sentences.
"Why am I worth the effort to senselessly dig about with, then?" She wondered aloud, puzzled by his interest and caught up in her own curiosity about how his mind operated. She may be bright and resourceful, but she was by no means the most talented with her spells, nor the most outspoken and headstrong, unless she was backed into a corner. She could understand if he was trying to assess her strengths and weakness, but this sort of information just seemed too personal for their professional relationship—not that she could change anything now, as she'd already willingly opened up to him about such matters. Still, the fact that he somehow considered her divulging of her background worth it in some way intrigued her—just how would he use that information? Considering his unorthodox methods, she should have been terrified at the idea of him knowing more than just surface details about her, but somehow, she just felt interested in finding out how his unique mind decided to utilize it.
She still sat pondering the root of his intentions as she patiently watched him search for something that would undoubtedly surprise her like most of his erratic behavior had so far, the fact that he was still searching a couple minutes later catching her attention. Wait, just how many drawers did he have? Was there always that many? Something told her that was probably the case, as he reached much further than the shallow drawer could ever hope to contain, pulling out something that indeed surprised her.
"Okay...?" She blinked at the random choice of object, seemingly much more important than what met the eye as her fingers clasped around the offered utensil. The hairbrush was turned over once, twice in her hand, admiring the polished wooden handle yet searching curiously for the true purpose undoubtedly hidden within. Nothing readily apparent caught her eye, gaze shifting to his as she considered the possibilities. Could it have as simple an answer as it seemed? Curiously, her hand slowly lifted the object towards her head, trying to read his expression in case it would curse her or something—not that she had any hope that his face would betray anything anyway. The soft bristles touched against her scalp, slowly trailing down the length of her dark, wavy hair as she cautiously waited for a sign that something might happen.
Sherlin's hands went back to his mouth, chin perched on his thumbs, smiling between his fingers. As the brush touched her head, the normal swooshing sound of the brush through her hair was strangely absent. It was silent through her hair, except for the faintest of humming. The faintest of humming, and the following, "Hello, Ms. Hudson," in an amused-sounding voice of professor Sherlin.
"Wha—" Her bright blue eyes lit up, burning holes into his lips, partially hidden by his hands, but it didn't hide the fact that they hadn't moved with his words. Not even the slightest chin motion—he just hadn't spoken. At least, not out loud—the brush was held out in front of her, glancing towards it with realization before she looked back to him in disbelief. He'd enchanted it for telepathic communication? "Why..." She started slowly, many questions wanting to sprout from that stem, but knowing she should only settle on one. "...would this be useful to me?"
His voice began to say something into her mind—"Well, natura...y ...t ...ld...."—but it fizzled out as if the signal had gone weak. Sherlin waved a finger at the brush. "Oh, do keep doing that if you want to keep hearing me." He put his hands down and leaned to his desk. "This classroom has its tools. It has the armadillo, it has that brush. It has others, which will be unveiled over time. You will find a use for them. Or, you won't, and you will have missed something."
Of course things weren't ever going to be directly spelled out—yet somehow, she preferred it that way. She liked the mystery and the challenge—and Sherlin was definitely never lacking in either. Seemingly satisfied with that answer, her head nodded, a short little motion of understanding as she let the brush come to rest calmly in her lap.
The plainness in his voice as he spoke about his reasons for being here surprised her, having expected he wouldn't answer, but taking this opportunity to understand him a bit better while he was willing to give her straightforward answers. "Very work-oriented, quite detached from any internal or personal reasons." The hairbrush was left atop her thighs as she crossed her arms, face analytical as she scrutinized his expression. "You told me why they put you here, not why you did. You could go anywhere for a paycheck. You haven't given me a reason why you feel like you can teach better than anyone else. So, can't I ask the same question again about this?" Her lips settled into a gently teasing smirk, an eyebrow quirked as she leaned back in her chair and mimicked the stoic yet casual posture he had taken earlier. "Why are you here?" She paused for a moment, wondering whether she should dig any further, but the words were already leaving her mouth before she realized it. "And what happened during your last assignment that could cause so much death and destruction?"
Or maybe not. The moment was cut short as her attention fell upon the strangely warm smile, striking if only due to its rarity. His hand registered in her peripheral vision, getting oddly close to her face until—
...Wait.
What?
Did he just... boop her nose? Truly, legitimately, boop?
She was unsure if she was going to erupt in anger or get up and walk out Theodoor without a single glance back, but instead she unfortunately settled on staring at him with the oddest look in the world, some sort of mix between an angry pout, a confused stare, and an amused yet disbelieving smirk. She didn't know what was more embarrassing—the fact that he booped her, or the fact that he decided to boop in the first place. Words tried to well up in her throat as he casually told her to settle, but they died out before they could fully form, her cheeks flushing a frustrated red. His words vaguely registered in her mind, deciding first to take his advice to settle down with a curt sigh as her face returned to a neutral look, arms crossing as she considered the rest of his sentences.
"Why am I worth the effort to senselessly dig about with, then?" She wondered aloud, puzzled by his interest and caught up in her own curiosity about how his mind operated. She may be bright and resourceful, but she was by no means the most talented with her spells, nor the most outspoken and headstrong, unless she was backed into a corner. She could understand if he was trying to assess her strengths and weakness, but this sort of information just seemed too personal for their professional relationship—not that she could change anything now, as she'd already willingly opened up to him about such matters. Still, the fact that he somehow considered her divulging of her background worth it in some way intrigued her—just how would he use that information? Considering his unorthodox methods, she should have been terrified at the idea of him knowing more than just surface details about her, but somehow, she just felt interested in finding out how his unique mind decided to utilize it.
She still sat pondering the root of his intentions as she patiently watched him search for something that would undoubtedly surprise her like most of his erratic behavior had so far, the fact that he was still searching a couple minutes later catching her attention. Wait, just how many drawers did he have? Was there always that many? Something told her that was probably the case, as he reached much further than the shallow drawer could ever hope to contain, pulling out something that indeed surprised her.
"Okay...?" She blinked at the random choice of object, seemingly much more important than what met the eye as her fingers clasped around the offered utensil. The hairbrush was turned over once, twice in her hand, admiring the polished wooden handle yet searching curiously for the true purpose undoubtedly hidden within. Nothing readily apparent caught her eye, gaze shifting to his as she considered the possibilities. Could it have as simple an answer as it seemed? Curiously, her hand slowly lifted the object towards her head, trying to read his expression in case it would curse her or something—not that she had any hope that his face would betray anything anyway. The soft bristles touched against her scalp, slowly trailing down the length of her dark, wavy hair as she cautiously waited for a sign that something might happen.
Sherlin's hands went back to his mouth, chin perched on his thumbs, smiling between his fingers. As the brush touched her head, the normal swooshing sound of the brush through her hair was strangely absent. It was silent through her hair, except for the faintest of humming. The faintest of humming, and the following, "Hello, Ms. Hudson," in an amused-sounding voice of professor Sherlin.
"Wha—" Her bright blue eyes lit up, burning holes into his lips, partially hidden by his hands, but it didn't hide the fact that they hadn't moved with his words. Not even the slightest chin motion—he just hadn't spoken. At least, not out loud—the brush was held out in front of her, glancing towards it with realization before she looked back to him in disbelief. He'd enchanted it for telepathic communication? "Why..." She started slowly, many questions wanting to sprout from that stem, but knowing she should only settle on one. "...would this be useful to me?"
His voice began to say something into her mind—"Well, natura...y ...t ...ld...."—but it fizzled out as if the signal had gone weak. Sherlin waved a finger at the brush. "Oh, do keep doing that if you want to keep hearing me." He put his hands down and leaned to his desk. "This classroom has its tools. It has the armadillo, it has that brush. It has others, which will be unveiled over time. You will find a use for them. Or, you won't, and you will have missed something."
Of course things weren't ever going to be directly spelled out—yet somehow, she preferred it that way. She liked the mystery and the challenge—and Sherlin was definitely never lacking in either. Seemingly satisfied with that answer, her head nodded, a short little motion of understanding as she let the brush come to rest calmly in her lap.
The plainness in his voice as he spoke about his reasons for being here surprised her, having expected he wouldn't answer, but taking this opportunity to understand him a bit better while he was willing to give her straightforward answers. "Very work-oriented, quite detached from any internal or personal reasons." The hairbrush was left atop her thighs as she crossed her arms, face analytical as she scrutinized his expression. "You told me why they put you here, not why you did. You could go anywhere for a paycheck. You haven't given me a reason why you feel like you can teach better than anyone else. So, can't I ask the same question again about this?" Her lips settled into a gently teasing smirk, an eyebrow quirked as she leaned back in her chair and mimicked the stoic yet casual posture he had taken earlier. "Why are you here?" She paused for a moment, wondering whether she should dig any further, but the words were already leaving her mouth before she realized it. "And what happened during your last assignment that could cause so much death and destruction?"