( day 2 )

[tearable]

[ Well. It went better than we thought, didn't it? There was no messy blood (except from her wounds) or gore to concern themselves with. Diva's body, as respectfully as Elizabeth treated her, was cleaned up and put to rest. The liquid nitrogen did its job and well - we're handwaving the rest!! Yuck!! Elizabeth was silent, focused as much as Bigby. The two strangers really didn't have a lot of conversation during this except for what was needed.

She could read a mood and the tension? Was at an all time high. Elizabeth and Bigby were both in the bathroom now a bit before the mandated curfew. Elizabeth's sleeves rolled up and her hands deeply scrubbing at her skin, trying to get the smell of blood off her skin. Whatever Bigby was saying to her, it goes over her head. She's off in her own world, looking at her own reflection in the mirror. The feeling of her nails and digits leaving red streaks of pressure onto her skin don't faze her as just... stares in front of her. The echo around her hollowed, like the whale's calls in Market Street from outside of the thick glass.

The woman took this a bit harder than she thought, feeling her chest tighten as she sees less of the girl she was and more of a woman she's scared to become. This wasn't the first time she washed away blood, but there's no... ceremonious haircut here. There's no moment of taking her destiny into her own hands when she has no power - nothing like she had hoped to achieve back in Rapture. Freedom was a long gone concept and the more she thinks about it, she can't.. she can't remember. It hurts to remember and there's parts of her that can't piece together what's missing and what was never there. ]

Comments

[tearable]

I hope to God you're not a salesman, that's all I'm saying.

[ There's a slang in her way of speaking, tying better with the mask she tries to wear. One part confidence mixed with a liquid foundation could conquer the world in strappy heels, Rapture tells the young women, so that's what she does. Bigby isn't selling an alliance to her - he's not doing much of anything than making her feel afraid.

She's a bit outmatched by him. She has no tears - no.. no way to grab a weapon unless she managed to grab one before this altercation. Elizabeth is a petite, tiny woman that's left with a man who has an anger issue. ]

You say you want trust but you're not playing well with others. [ She snaps out immediately. ] You come in here and insinuate I had some angle with paranoid allegations - you think I'm going to play the dumb starlet role now? Back. Off.

[ It's as if Bigby wants justification to react to her - to have a reason to grab her by the throat or punch her right in the mouth. Elizabeth surely knows that men in Rapture... they'll do anything to get what they want.

She does show her age more, though. She flinches, sucking in a harsh breath when his fist strikes up against the door. Elizabeth catches her breath, narrowing her eyes at his threat. ]

I don't like this as much as you do, you know. Gonna threaten me next time I have an idea that may get us out? We don't know anything that we're working with - nothing is available to us. If we don't start trying things and asking questions... we may as well get real cozy until someone decides to beat us to a pulp.

[ Elizabeth straightens her blouse and feels a bitterness rise in your throat. ]

Why should I even trust you? By the looks of it, you got a nasty little temper. If anything, you're risking coming off pretty suspicious pushing girls against walls.

[puffing]

Heh. What gave that away?

[ she's mad at him. that's expected. he cornered her in an aggressive manner and she has no reason to believe that he wasn't about to beat the hell out of her or worse. after all, Bigby knows nothing about her past and the problems she has dealt with. his intention is well meaning ― at least for himself, anyway ― and he wasn't about to do anything that didn't need to happen. the proof is that he was able to pull away without putting a hand on her. a finger, maybe, but nothing more.

... and his chest, but haaaay. ]

I think I've played more than well with you. You have to realize that we don't know what we're up against. Who they are, how many, and for how long do they plan on doing this shit. There's over thirty of us. You're the second of many that I intend to approach.

[ he defends himself accordingly. sure, she'll likely hold a bitterness towards his reactions. Bigby has done nothing but help her, whether it was by teaching her how to play pool, to help gather evidence of Charles' murder and just now with removing Diva's body. maybe she didn't expect him to get like that. once his blood is no longer boiling and his anger is more in check, it is possible he will feel bad. after all, the girl was nowhere near as old as she pretended to be.

but for now? he huffs and he puffs, trucking along even as she gets aggressive right back. ]

I do have a temper. I'm not an idiot. And sometimes that anger is too hard for me to keep in check. But I know what I'm doing right now. You needed to answer for yourself, and you did. [ he dries himself off with a paper towel before turning back to her, making sure to keep their distance. ] Not planning on pushing you into a wall again unless you ask for it.

[ she can take that however she wants to. ]

[tearable]

[ She wasn't happy, no. She feels threatened and for the first time since arriving here, she feels like a little girl. She thinks back on days when her hair was pulled back and her make-up light. When the sun felt so close and heated on her skin and now? She's grown pale in her time in Rapture and the current trends in make up amplified this. Her smooth, white skin had their fair share of cuts and bruises but as she looks down to her hands, idly, she drifts off when he talks. She doesn't feel like a girl until moments like this, where she can't summon the strength to hide her emotions.

She finally snaps her attention to him: ]

This was some... some test then? [ Elizabeth spits out in disbelief. ] Ask me about my life, about my motives, but -

[ No, man was easy to enrage. ]

If you lay your hand on me without permission again, I can assure you this moment will come up in the trial. You don't treat a lady like this - [ She feigns, using the persona she manufactured that cares more about manners than anything else, but she's hurt. It wasn't Bigby, it was herself for not... being strong enough. ] Trust me, I plan to stay alive, if that's what you're wondering. My answers all go back to me not wanting to die in this hellhole.