[PRP] Manipulative Envy (Cressida & Okeanos)

[Tartara Seabreeze]

Birds chirping above, the grass a vibrant green and the sky a deep blue, today was a brilliant day. Apple in hand, the emerald green pae strolled through the loka nei forest and inhaled deeply when she reached her destination. Sein Lagoon. It was much more peaceful than the Tuatha Ri Lake, and just as nice. Making her way over to the cliff edge, she sat down and allowed her legs to dangle before beginning to chomp on her apple. Down below in the lagoon she knew pae played, but up on her little ledge not many ever ventured. It was a perfect time to just sit, relax and take in the day. No brothers, no father, no mother, no aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, or cousins. Just, her.  

[Seiana_ZI]

Okeanos didn't ... play.

Well, he did play, but it probably wasn't the play that most would think of. He certainly did not play like a child, no, unless that child had some kind of greater intent, but that so rarely happened... unless they were Okeanos himself, but even then, he was just a bully then--how childish, how immature--and not so much what he was now, cold and calculating as he watched those near the lagoon from a place up above.

He had recently taken a dip in the water and was refreshed, running hands through dark blue hair. He preferred being near the water in general, but being in the water for extended periods of time could be ... dull. The waters were totally ruled by the Naiad Court, which he dreaded. Their ways were too... stodgy for him, and he had no interest in going out and hunting to feed others.

Okeanos snorted.

The area near the lagoon remained relatively quiet, and Okeanos did prefer it that way. It was a place he knew he could retreat to just be with himself and those he took out here, knowing that the bulk of the naiad population--and the population in general--kept closer to the center of the lake. Sure, there were some that made their homes in the lagoon, but he could also easily avoid them, especially when he took to the ledges where nearly no naiad bothered to tread.

Indeed, no naiad, but teenaged demon girl? He rolled his eyes.

The naiad hopped down from the tree he had climbed up on, moving to walk up behind the demonic girl. Without a care in the world, he flicked one of her antenna with a yellow finger, smirking.

"Thought you were alone?"

Tartara Seabreeze

 

[Tartara Seabreeze]

She could almost fall asleep up here. Taking another bite of apple, she chewed thoughtfully about what to do for the rest of the day. Going back home to family was not on her top ten favorite things to do, but hunting perhaps. That rush when she stabbed that deer in the throat, the warm blood spilling all over her... The train of thought abruptly ended when she heard a soft noise behind her. A creature of the forest? She focused on the sounds, faintly hearing footsteps. Who in the name of Everlasting Nightmare dared to bother her? Turning her head, emerald lips parting to lash out, she moved just in time to get her antenna flicked. Her eyes widened slightly and suddenly what ever whip lash she was about to deliver popped right out of her head. Someone. Touched her. "Apparently that's too much to ask." She spoke rather flatly, her eyes going from shock to an almost glare. Naiad. "I'd suggest asking before touching. Why don't you go back down to the water before you dry out?" To a regular pae'il, she was being rude. For Cressida, she was actively trying not to be confrontational to being touched. By a stranger.  

[Seiana_ZI]

The reaction he gained was, perhaps, even more hilarious than he was expecting.

He had cut off her words before she could come up with any kind of comeback, and that was alone enough to make the naiad give a winning smirk. It was her continued reaction that made Okeanos' smirk grow, having to attempt to bury down the attempt to laugh aloud. Yes, cutting her words off by flicking her antenna? Too easy. What was perhaps even more too easy about this woman was that she was trying to snark about him going back to the water? Was that all she had?

Was this girl even trying? He tilted his head slightly, his smirk a bit condescending despite any attempt he might have given to seem nice. It was hard to hide his pure amusement of the reactions he was getting from this woman, though, and the comebacks she was attempting. "I just came out of the water. Nice try, though. I suggest trying harder."

That was the only piece of advice he would likely ever give.

He leaned in a bit closer, arms crossed over his chest, looking into the girl's green eyes as if he was trying to find something within them. His own blue eyes seemed to almost be looking beyond her, off in some other place, before they focused on her, almost severely, gaze as piercing as it had been distant just a moment ago. "Why should I ask? You are present. My fingers wish to explore those things that are present."

The grin spread onto his face.

"They don't need permission from green-eyed girls."

Tartara Seabreeze

 

[Tartara Seabreeze]

Strike one; anyone new. Strike two; touching her. Strike three; his annoyingly stupid smirk. Cressida already had far more than she wanted to see of the naiad and he had only shown up a bare minute ago. Why did she attract the worst kind of pae? She flicked her half eaten apple over the ledge, uncaring if it hit one of the pae below. The female wished she could throw him off the edge after it, but he lacked wings. As emerald locked on sky blue, she met his stare evenly. "If you stick your fingers in places they shouldn't be, you could lose them." The threat was now thinly veiled as he plucked her nerves. "Do you make it a habit to pop up when you're clearly unwanted? Or are you that starved for attention?" Steadily less civil. Out of any pae in the nearby area, he probably picked the one who least wanted attention. Either he had incredibly bad luck or was simply stupid. Her money was on the latter, considering he lacked all self control.

EDIT:

Seiana_ZI

OOC: Why not? XDD  

[Seiana_ZI]

Was that a threat?

So thinly veiled, at that! So easy to trigger that it made him outright snort this time, unable to hold back his derision.

"You could lose your body if you stick it in the wrong place, too, but that did not seem to stop you, did it?" His grin did not seem to lessen, staying there like it was glued as he circled the green demon. Did she think she was tough? That was ... quaint. To escalate so quickly showed that she had no backbone at all, an easy target, just striking out at whatever came by her person like a crocodile, except missing any teeth to truly bite with.

Starved for attention, she attempted?

"Oh, no, no, no, not starved at all. I get plenty enough attention when I command it." His presence certainly seemed to command attention, his walk confident, his general demeanor almost smug at the moment. While it was obvious the smugness was a result of the fact that Cressida had been so quick to react, it spoke of an unnatural confidence he possessed, almost as if he could do no wrong in his eyes .. and perhaps no wrong in anyone else's, either.

Her stare was solid against his, but he seemed to care not a bit, continuing to snap his gaze back to her when he willed it, looking elsewhere when he deemed it was proper to do so. At this moment, he decided it was time to let his eyes bore into her again, searching for an answer, perhaps a cause...

"What brings green-eyed upstarts up here?"

Tartara Seabreeze

 

[Tartara Seabreeze]

At the snort she almost punched him. Almost. Cressida swung her legs to the side, off the ledge. Temper, temper...Don't waste energy on small fry. She smoothly stood in one motion, fluid like water, her skin sparkling from her fathers inheritance. Still her eyes remained on the others, her gaze shifting from aggressive to calculating. No matter how different a pae might try to present or even genuinely think itself, they fell into a category. Even she fell into one. The trick was figuring out which one. Once one knew the base, one can derail it. "I'm not impressed." Perhaps for a moment she was surprised, but now that her mood had officially turned for the worse she stopped trying to play 'nice'. It was her own fault for even attempting. Normal pae and their social etiquette were boring and inane. But Guardians, his stare was unnerving. That however she would never let show, and her gaze never left his until he moved first. "You're not worth my time explaining."

Seiana_ZI

 

[Seiana_ZI]

She wasn't impressed? Oh no, slay him now, he didn't deserve to live because he had failed to impress a green-eyed teenager!

Needless to say, he seemed to disregard her remarks as if she had not even said them. Of course, on the other hand, addressing her remarks might draw more amusement, and that was the reason why he offered his response of, "I'm so terribly sorry I bore you..."

Except it was very obvious he wasn't.

He wasn't worth her time explaining? Hm, did she mean explaining herself or explaining him? He laughed aloud, mirth obvious in his eyes even as he gazed elsewhere. ... Not that looking elsewhere lasted too long, more amused by locking his gaze with the quick to snap to her own defense teenaged one, especially as she continued to do just that.

"Perhaps I should be. You are so perilously close..."

His smirk was almost a bit sinister, but it faded to something more genial.

"Do you enjoy being so close to the water?" His tone was nothing but polite, his smile, disarming. "You could get closer."

Tartara Seabreeze

 

[Tartara Seabreeze]

"Apology accepted." She responded without missing a beat. Of course she knew that he was being sarcastic, that was beside the point. As the conversation continued on, she was becoming more aware that her back was facing the ledge. If he was insinuating about pushing her off, she was prepared for it. She would drag him with her, and unlike the Naiad, she could fly. But that didn't mean she wanted to stick around the perilous edge. It still made her uneasy. "I prefer land. Water is...filled with unintelligent fish." Another quick jab. Normally Cressida didn't feel so edgy when met with opposition, but there was decidedly something...Off about the naiad. Something she honestly hadn't come across before. It was subtle, the bit of smirk, the way his eyes danced with delight, how she couldn't get a feel of what he was after. Dangerous she could handle. But bat-crazy? Uneasy as she was about the male, it wasn't fear. She felt confident about getting away, and her backbone wouldn't let her run now. "But if you want to get back to the water, be my guest. I enjoyed the area much more without you chirping in my ear." Again, how did she manage to attract the worst kind of pae? Was it the shamrock bringing her bad luck?

Seiana_zi

 

[Seiana_ZI]

Either this girl was losing her game, or she never had game in the first place.

Personally, Okeanos was more inclined to agree with the latter statement, especially as she came back with another brilliant comment about the water being filled with unintelligent fish. He was certain that was an attempted jab at him, but the attempted jab fell flat on its face. Sure, there were definitely unintelligent fish in the water. Most fish were not sentient. He was also a naiad, which was not exactly a fish. The statement was actually perfectly logical to him, and therefore, her attempt at a jab was simply met with the arch of a brow.

She seemed to be pondering over him, this he noticed. Was she trying to think of ways to get out of more entertaining reactions? That would not do. He clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth, leaning back from her for the moment to observe her down his nose. What would be her move? What would be her attempts?

Mm, her attempts were often so pitiful.

He looked over her shoulder out into the horizon, where the waters seemed to go on for a distance he could not explain, the sun seeming only reachable at the ends of the waters. His expression froze there, for the moment, no significant twitch or move of his face as he seemed to stare out into the horizon. If he had seen anything out there, it was hard to say, but then perhaps he was not looking at anything, just as suddenly moving back to address her.

"Did you?"

Was that supposed to be rhetorical?

"This land is most certainly not for green-eyed mimickers."

A pause.

"What brings you out to such a perilous ledge? Do you enjoy the scent of dead fish in the afternoons? Have you sniffed it?"

Tartara Seabreeze

 

[Tartara Seabreeze]

There it was again. He seemed to have an odd obsession with knowing why she was up there. At first, it could have been simple conversation. But to bring it up again after she ignored him the first time... Why did he care? It went beyond curiosity now. If it was all he was after, her answer was rather dull, and he would be on his way. However it had grown into something much more. At the thought of having something, even just the tiniest thing, over him...She smiled. For the first time for their conversation, the green pae smiled. "Of course. Don't you get that often? Surely I'm not the only one to find your company...loathsome." Not that she didn't get the same. Most pae, scratch that. ALL pae, family aside, hated her. Which was fine by her since she didn't like them right back. It was unusual for her to have a conversation this long with anyone, more so strange because it was fairly obvious neither liked each other. But for what ever reason, the Naiad simply would not leave her be. A gust of wind rolled through, ruffling her crimson hair and bringing the scent of the fish as if on cue from his statement. "It's plain to see that your company is unwelcome. Why do you continue to annoy me with these inane questions?"

seiana_zi

 

[Seiana_ZI]

She was smiling? Interesting. She must have thought she had an upper hand.

The statement she delivered in response earned a snort. Clearly, she was wrong.

"This implies you think I care." The naiad tilted his head once again, staring into her eyes as he did so. His hands swung behind him, clasping together as he moved to stretch, eyes suddenly off her as he leaned forward to pull his arms over his head, muscles in his shoulder obviously flexing in some show of physical strength.

He didn't seem to be showing off, though, not pausing in any particular length to make a point. Rather, he dropped his arms back, flexing his back now to stretch himself out further. The gusting wind did not seem to bother him, taking in a large breath of the gust of air as it blew over him, taking some of the moisture on his skin with it. Hm. No matter. He lifted himself up once again, brushing himself off as if the wind had left some dust on his body when it went by.

Why? She was asking why?

Once again, Okeanos tilted his head, squinting in an attempt to stare even deeper into her eyes. Yes, it was rather plain to see that she did not want him to be present. Perhaps that was what made it the most amusing of all, a laugh leaving his lips as he tilted his head the other way, nearing her once again. He got almost uncomfortably close, leaning in towards her as she continued to stand so close to the ledge, almost encouraging her to fall into the lagoon below them.

And that smile spread across his face again, growing as his eyes began to almost dance in delight.

"Why do you continue to stand so close to the edge?"

It was as good of a question as any.

Tartara Seabreeze

 

[Tartara Seabreeze]

When his hands swung behind him, she instantly tensed. She couldn't help it. It was an automatic response due to her guard being up, even though the female appeared to be completely at ease. That small movement gave her away, but she wouldn't make the mistake of reacting to it further on the slight chance the male didn't notice. The tense was less than half a second before her body relaxed again, her face unchanging. When he flexed, she took the opportunity to stretch her own wings, a self-reminder that if anything happened she could fly away. Why did he stare so intently, as if to stare into her soul? Was she so interesting, or was it simply because he was bat-crazy? Finally, when he leaned towards her she side stepped to the right, curving slightly around to be by his side. Away from the ledge, and further away from his face. "Because I felt like it." She spoke dryly, still refusing him a proper answer. "Now I feel like standing over here. I do what I want. Like your impolite fingers."

seiana_zi

 

[Seiana_ZI]

The sidestep earned a quirked brow, but nothing more, watching as she moved herself from where she was to another position beside him. In some ways, it brought her closer to him than she was before, and Okeanos observed this by glancing between the ground and her eyes for a moment, before locking his gaze back on her eyes once again, a simple twirl enough to look her straight in the eyes.

She did what she wanted? An interesting argument. He reached down to simply flick one of her antenna again, in a display of his own fingers doing as they wished.

"You speak large words for a small one. Do you even know what it means to do what you want?"

It was an oddly philosophical question, but Okeanos did not ask it rhetorically, moving to pace around her, going behind her--well away from the "perilous" cliff edge--and settling at the other side, flicking an antenna once again, this time the opposite antenna to match his opposite hand. Not caring if she bothered to take a swing at him, he drew the hand back to his side slowly, watching her nonchalantly.

"No person truly does what they want. The older they get, the less they understand."

He had learned that from firsthand experience. And while he managed to separate himself from the shackles that societies attempted to put on him, so few succeeded at that. The entirety of the naiad had failed at that, even Leitha, especially Leitha perhaps... There was a moment he pondered, tongue flicking out to run against his drying lips, before he suddenly snapped out of it, looking more seriously at her once again.

"You most certainly do not."

Tartara Seabreeze

 

[Tartara Seabreeze]

Again with the eyes. Her hands fell onto her hips, growing tired of this game or whatever it was. Then as if in slow motion, she watched as he dared flick her antenna once more. Her right eye twitched. "I'm warning you...don't. Touch. Me." Suddenly her voice became ice cold. Before her anger was pure irritation, it mattered little. But now, she felt a rage boiling. "I don't care about existential-who-gives-a. But get this through your head." When his hand lifted, her own shot up to clamp around his wrist, a foot from her other antenna. "You'll find out how little I care if you keep touching me." Big words for a female who didn't have any powers at the moment. But Cressida had many buttons; Kids, loud pae, annoying situations... and touching her was at the top of the list. Especially her delicate antenna. With a bit of a shove of his arm, she let go and took a step back from him.

Seiana_Zi