[ there's something about hawke's glibness that causes cinder's eyes to narrow. tilting her head as judgement seethes out of every pore. cinder is not unused to being talked to like this— like she's allowing insults to be directed her because she offers no drastic facial indicators in response. just because she doesn't look all that angry, that doesn't necessarily mean that she isn't.
hawke's tirade against spiders something cinder takes as a sign that, in this moment, cinder isn't taken encounter seriously at all. maybe it's due to hawke's previous experiences with this but it's rare for cinder to give anyone the time to day. and when she does, she wants to talk to another ruby not... another roman posing as a ruby which is an odd image but here we are. ]
Unprovoked, spiders won't do anything to harm you. Walk into its web and it just might. [ meaning don't poke the bear, or the spider, in this case. and in this case further, cinder is the spider. ] For someone who must make something of a habit of it, I imagine you must get trapped often.
[ and the unasked question being how are you still alive, then? hopefully, unlike roman, it's not because she relies on the good timing of others. cinder rests her gaze on the sword like she might already know the answer to her unspoken riddle. ]
[ as hawke picks up on cinder's metaphor, a slow smile spreads out across her face. she can't help but think if this woman wants to not appear threatening, she's doing a very poor job at it, really. so, she crosses her arms over her chest and gives a hum of thought, as if she's considering cinder's words. her eyes fall to the monster, fingers tapping against her bicep. ]
I do. Yet I haven't met a spider yet who I can't, [ she claps her hands together then, sudden and quick ] squish. Spiders are disgusting but in the end, between the two of us -- we both know who's the predator and who's the prey.
[ she shrugs and returns her hands across her chest, the message clear. if cinder wants to attack her, hawke won't hesitate. she's not ronan, no. she's not ruby either. she's older, and wiser, and far more dangerous for all her glibness. the easiest way to deal with hawke is to just let her do what she'd like, really. ]
[ appearing threatening may have been cinder's initial intention but as this... repartee wears on, cinder isn't necessarily bored nor hesitant to attack hawke at a moment's notice but is deliberating her options. the choice to continue talking only serves to do nothing but further cinder's internal irritation, attack and there's a high chance that cinder's reputation will precede her. not an intelligent play to make when there's a probability that hawke knows those pesky beacon students.
predator or prey. if the answer is obvious then cinder has done a very poor job of masking her overall objectives. she waves her own hand, dismissively. ]
Flattering. But I'm not really here to fight, honestly.
[ purposely echoing hawke's initial sentiments. still. it would be anti-climatic to end it here though so cinder shrugs. points her head to the direction of her beast at which it lunges at hawke. ]
He is, though.
[ and when and if hawke manages to defender herself and slice it half as it reaches her, cinder has already disappeared from her previous spot. hiding somewhere when she can witness the fight but not be detected herself have fun with squishing that, hawke. ]
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does the creep (haaaa....)
hawke's tirade against spiders something cinder takes as a sign that, in this moment, cinder isn't taken encounter seriously at all. maybe it's due to hawke's previous experiences with this but it's rare for cinder to give anyone the time to day. and when she does, she wants to talk to another ruby not... another roman posing as a ruby which is an odd image but here we are. ]
Unprovoked, spiders won't do anything to harm you. Walk into its web and it just might. [ meaning don't poke the bear, or the spider, in this case. and in this case further, cinder is the spider. ] For someone who must make something of a habit of it, I imagine you must get trapped often.
[ and the unasked question being how are you still alive, then? hopefully, unlike roman, it's not because she relies on the good timing of others. cinder rests her gaze on the sword like she might already know the answer to her unspoken riddle. ]
no subject
I do. Yet I haven't met a spider yet who I can't, [ she claps her hands together then, sudden and quick ] squish. Spiders are disgusting but in the end, between the two of us -- we both know who's the predator and who's the prey.
[ she shrugs and returns her hands across her chest, the message clear. if cinder wants to attack her, hawke won't hesitate. she's not ronan, no. she's not ruby either. she's older, and wiser, and far more dangerous for all her glibness. the easiest way to deal with hawke is to just let her do what she'd like, really. ]
no subject
predator or prey. if the answer is obvious then cinder has done a very poor job of masking her overall objectives. she waves her own hand, dismissively. ]
Flattering. But I'm not really here to fight, honestly.
[ purposely echoing hawke's initial sentiments. still. it would be anti-climatic to end it here though so cinder shrugs. points her head to the direction of her beast at which it lunges at hawke. ]
He is, though.
[ and when and if hawke manages to defender herself and slice it half as it reaches her, cinder has already disappeared from her previous spot. hiding somewhere when she can witness the fight but not be detected herself have fun with squishing that, hawke. ]