[SRP] Untapped Emotion (Adar x Destati)

[Epine de Rose]

 

[Epine de Rose]

"You are aware of how utterly ridiculous you are being?" Adar had managed to successfully clean himself up; he no longer smelled of sulphur and his fur was utterly pristine. It was due to this well kept appearance, and the fact that he was in the Justicar's presence, that the vast majority left him alone. Truth be told this particular household was also used to Adar's existence in their lives. They had long since established that despite his appearance, he was one of the Blue Justicar's closest confidantes and in no circumstances, was he to be trifled with. That, and the lion had never really given them cause to fear him, he'd always been courteous.

"I haven't done anything," Destati replied, glancing up from his work to regard the black lion. He was greeted with the long, and unrelenting stare of the black lion. As always, it seemed that this particular member of his collective had the capacity to read him like an open book and this afternoon was one of those instances when he was being read. "What?" he demanded after a further few minutes of staring from the individual in question.

"You are being ridiculous."

"This we have established," Destati replied. "What we have not established is how I am being ridiculous," he pointed out. "While I appreciate you may require an outlet for your frustrations and feel the need to throw insults now and then, I can't say that on this occasion I'm deserving of those particular affections."

"Your mate," Adar, as always, had ignored Destati's rather blunt rebuttal. When it came to the black lion there was very little that bothered him and his allies frustrations were simply par for the course. He would have been lying if he claimed he didn't enjoy exasperating the Justicar now and again, but he'd be damned if he ever admitted that to anyone.

"I'm not married," Destati pointed out. "Or at least I'm fairly certain I didn't sign any -"

"You are a noble," Adar interrupted with a dismissive wave of his paw, striding across the room to take a seat close to one of the small windows. It was an opening in the cave, large enough for a lion to look out, but for only a cub to slip through. "It is unbecoming of a noble to take up mistresses, let alone to produce several children with them," he continued. Even as Destati opened his mouth the black lion had already lifted his paw again to stop him. It was rare that the confidante spoke at considerable length, but there was only so much that even he could take when it came to overall moping and depression.

If there was ever a time when someone needed to pull themselves up by the bootstraps, it was now.

"The Collective may have gossiped quite a bit during their time beyond our walls but that does not mean that they were not on to something," Adar cast a sidelong glance towards the lion and shook his head. "Your pining is pitiful, you can scarcely concentrate, and you look like you have been forced to watch cubs consumed through cannibalistic acts."

"How very eloquent," Destati drawled; Adar had always had a way with words, even if few would ever be able to truly appreciate his nature.

"Regardless, the point still stands," Adar shook his head. "The misconception is that I lack the capacity to truly express myself and yet here I stand, in the same room, as a being who cannot even admit the obvious."

Destati said nothing, which came at no surprise to the black lion. The Justicar had a habit of lapsing in to silence while he attempted to formulate a rebuttal; the delay simply drew on when there was no true rebuttal to be had. Eventually, Adar knew how this would end, Destati would dismiss it with a scoff and be done with the conversation, but the black lion knew that in the grand scheme of things the point still had to be made!

"A family, of which you are exceedingly proud, exists in your space now and you have made the active decision not to pursue it and for what, exactly?"

There was a pause.

"Pride?" Adar pressed. "Or the misconception that just because the little nymph that caught your eye seems far beyond the reach of even a Justicar?" Adar's gaze was hard and it was he who scoffed first, more so out of disappointment for his own friend. Destati had rarely been a coward, but in this he had fled with his tail between his legs and his only defence had been denial in the greatest sense of the word. He'd turned himself into a martyr and Adar had already become tired of the antics, the lion wouldn't have the capacity to concentrate again if he kept ignoring the truth.

"You have an exceedingly high opinion of me if you believe I have the capacity to influence the Divine."

"You do have the capacity to influence the 'Divine'," Adar snapped. "How many times have you given that nymph instructions?" he demanded. "And how many times has she obeyed them?" he finished. Once again Destati said nothing, and perhaps even Adar would be surprised at the fact that on this occasion he didn't seem to be scoffing... he just seemed to be completely lost for words.

"Something to consider perhaps as you gaze into the abyss and feel pity for yourself," Adar growled as he rose to his feet. "But unless you pull yourself out of it, we will achieve nothing useful," he pointed out. "This was not a position you were placed in by anyone other than yourself," he added.

"And you never struck me for a martyr," he paused at the doorway and snorted. "That was always more of the politico's style," he stated as he slipped outside once more, leaving the Justicar very much to his own thoughts...

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