[ mostly, it had become his own disputes going in and out of the earpieces, trying to make his own thoughts known about the caution that should take place when making deals with any orbs (considering the consequences of his own change). but then something seems to coax marta to speak up, a surprise that has him turn to watch her as she seems to freeze with uncertainty as she speaks with sabriel.
after a few moments of the exchange, he reaches his arm out from his side of the bed, fingers curling gently around her wrist. ]
Heyβ c'mere. [ he gives a light pull, urging her to lay down and to settle comfortably against his side. ]
[ she tenses at his touch β a testament to how shaken she is considering its rarity. it takes a few steadying breaths before she eventually turns, her expression revealing it all. ]
I haven't told you yet, have I? What the orbs asked of me this time.
[ her conversation with sabriel is still vivid in her mind, magnified by the storm of uncertainty clouding her mind. though the young woman had tried to be reassuring, marta couldn't avoid feeling shaken as a daunting realization begins to grab hold of her.
the flimsy mattress they're on dips as she shifts, reclaiming her spot on the bed. curling up into the warmth of his arms has become a welcome routine by now, even if some days she wakes still marveling she can. ]
They told me to betray a friend. [ she hasn't, yet. she wonders if she even will. ] What will they ask next? What if they're never satisfied?
[ as she turns, he could see it all there in her expression, the weight of all that she carries just from a brief conversation. it's what he's tried to protect her from, avoidant of conversations pertaining to whether or not he could actually trust the orbs to fulfill their promises at all. he has his doubts, but he's refrained from sharing them with her.
after all, she's the one so willing and capable to hold onto hope, for both of them; he hasn't wanted to rip that from her.
but it doesn't mean he isn't ready for her when she seeks out the comfort of his arms, sliding one over around her to nestle against her back, holding her closer to the press of his chest. ]
They want to break us. [ there's little other explanation for it, for how much they keep testing the extent they'll all go, to give into their chaos. ] I don't ... know if they ever intend to give us what they promised, but β but it was never gonna come without a price.
[ even without taking his own changed deal into account. the things they ask of everyone β there's no kindness in it. ]
Don't bend yourself for them, Marta. [ he whispers softly, tilting his head to bring his lips against the top of her hair. ] Whatever they ask β if it goes against who you are, don't ever do it.
[ never has there been a time such as now that marta were desperate to be better at hiding her emotions. there's a measure of comfort in her curling into his arms, for sure, but there shame there too β in knowing how close she is to going back on her word, of her promise to him to hold onto that hope for the both of them. for all that hope is a familiar friend, freeing when it first visits, the longer it stays, the heavier the burden to bear.
and bending... well. how else to carry the weight but to bend?
but she knows his meaning. knows he only wishes to protect her as much as he can, with what little they all know of these orbs in the first place. the irony, of course, is that these words should come from kovacs specifically. the very same man who had agreed to lose more and more of himself the longer he remains.
though perhaps it's less irony and hypocrisy than it is begrudging wisdom. hindsight is 20/20 after all. ]
It was always going to be too good to be true, whatever the price. And I never expected fairness from something that would try to put a value on a life.
[ still... if somehow she could right that single wrong... should she? ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
action;
after a few moments of the exchange, he reaches his arm out from his side of the bed, fingers curling gently around her wrist. ]
Heyβ c'mere. [ he gives a light pull, urging her to lay down and to settle comfortably against his side. ]
no subject
I haven't told you yet, have I? What the orbs asked of me this time.
[ her conversation with sabriel is still vivid in her mind, magnified by the storm of uncertainty clouding her mind. though the young woman had tried to be reassuring, marta couldn't avoid feeling shaken as a daunting realization begins to grab hold of her.
the flimsy mattress they're on dips as she shifts, reclaiming her spot on the bed. curling up into the warmth of his arms has become a welcome routine by now, even if some days she wakes still marveling she can. ]
They told me to betray a friend. [ she hasn't, yet. she wonders if she even will. ] What will they ask next? What if they're never satisfied?
no subject
after all, she's the one so willing and capable to hold onto hope, for both of them; he hasn't wanted to rip that from her.
but it doesn't mean he isn't ready for her when she seeks out the comfort of his arms, sliding one over around her to nestle against her back, holding her closer to the press of his chest. ]
They want to break us. [ there's little other explanation for it, for how much they keep testing the extent they'll all go, to give into their chaos. ] I don't ... know if they ever intend to give us what they promised, but β but it was never gonna come without a price.
[ even without taking his own changed deal into account. the things they ask of everyone β there's no kindness in it. ]
Don't bend yourself for them, Marta. [ he whispers softly, tilting his head to bring his lips against the top of her hair. ] Whatever they ask β if it goes against who you are, don't ever do it.
no subject
and bending... well. how else to carry the weight but to bend?
but she knows his meaning. knows he only wishes to protect her as much as he can, with what little they all know of these orbs in the first place. the irony, of course, is that these words should come from kovacs specifically. the very same man who had agreed to lose more and more of himself the longer he remains.
though perhaps it's less irony and hypocrisy than it is begrudging wisdom. hindsight is 20/20 after all. ]
It was always going to be too good to be true, whatever the price. And I never expected fairness from something that would try to put a value on a life.
[ still... if somehow she could right that single wrong... should she? ]