ice bridge (kaeya)

[malewife]

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[malewife]

[ Joonghyuk takes a moment before making his next move. ]

Are you lonely then, Kaeya Alberich?

[callalilies]

What a question.

[ nudging another piece with care into place. ]

Sometimes, I suppose I find myself starved for company, yes.

[malewife]

[ He's thinking... The silence is long, but he's still here. ]

I've lived long enough in a ruined world where I've pushed people away because it made progressing easier. Using them as stepping stones got you far... And it was easier to deal with loss and betrayal.

[ For when you unintentionally get attached, but yes. He also knows what it means to be alone, though for different reasons. ]

No one wants to be hated or alone. Not even the coldest of people. [ ... ] Are you willing to take a gamble?

[callalilies]

[ there's part of kaeya that understands this to a point. he used to believe in acceptable losses. ]

Mm, what sort of gamble?

[ he leans over the board, moves a knight forward. ]

[malewife]

I am part of the Temporals.

[ He places his king on the middle of the board, defenseless and open. This is the gamble. ]

[callalilies]

[ kaeya takes this in for a long moment and closes his eye. ]

Yoo Joonghyuk. [ this is information kaeya has played close to his chest, silent against his heart. and here is the gamble now dead center of the board. the king he gave him stands, a lone, chipped pillar. the knight nearby that kaeya had moved earlier is missing an ear, a chunk taken out of its neck, but it stands proud in heavy white stone.

he moves nothing. ]

The Celestials.

[malewife]

[ Hm. He doesn't look disappointed. The king stays where it is and Joonghyuk doesn't bring it back. His fingers drum against the surface. ]

I believe that you are a man that cares to see others prosper and that is why I told you.

[ Like the king, defenseless and vulnerable is the spot Joonghyuk intentionally puts himself in, but what's a more intense way of forming bonds than placing your life in someone's hands? ]

I didn't expect you to share your secret.

[callalilies]

I didn't expect that to be your gamble.

[ kaeya brings a heel up onto the cushion, leaning back. he watches the king and knight on the board, little broken bits and pieces ]

While I do not believe a friendship is favor for favor... I do believe we must be on equal footing. Knowledge for knowledge. [ i don't give it so freely, not the things that matter, but i like you, yoo joonghyuk. ]

[malewife]

I only take risks that are worth taking.

[ It's still a pleasant surprise? Kaeya is nobler than he assumed, but he's also aware of his own skewed outlook on people. While Joonghyuk doesn't drink the tea, Niah starts lapping it up. ]

Would you call this game a stalemate?

[callalilies]

[ kaeya notes that niah has made her way to nose into the cup, beginning to lap at the tea inside. it's just mint. a little stale, but still somehow a touch refreshing none the less. polaris from his little cushion looks rather pleased, tail tapping softly on the ground. ]

For this game, yes. So the king lives another day.

[malewife]

[ Yes, Niah who eats nothing and drinks nothing, much like his human counterpart, has taken it upon himself to taste the tea. ]

We can play a couple of more rounds of actual chess.

[ that can be their thursday before split. ]