[ Johanna absentmindedly pokes at the fireflies, watching them buzz around as she antagonizes them. The longer she lies here, the more relaxed she becomes. Not quite happy, but not bristling with anger and hostility, either.
Still. Bianca's story sounds like prison, life or no, but Johanna isn't going to argue. She's seen people take to their captors in more fucked-up ways than this. ]
I'm guessing you worked on the other?
[ Johanna keeps her voice carefully flat, but the fireflies' spell is broken, just a bit. She knows what Bianca is going to say. She can figure out what Bianca has done, and Johanna doesn't like it one bit. ]
[Bianca is silent for a long moment, while conflicting emotions chase themselves around her mind like a different, darker kind of firefly. Guilt and shame are there, and defensive anger hot on their heels. What was I supposed to do, just let myself die?
Finally, Bianca breathes deeply, leaning on the scent of Johanna's skin and the wiry strength of her bones, and shoves all the emotions roughly out of sight.]
Yes. Yes, I did.
[She lets the moment, the one in which she's very deliberately refraining from explaining, excusing or apologising, hang for another breath, and then continues speaking.]
The two barges drew closer to each other, influenced each other. We would find ourselves experiencing our counterparts' lives and memories. Then, finally, they collided. I found myself trapped on the first barge for a month while the two of them battled for supremacy. Battled to decide which of the two would continue existing.
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[ Johanna absentmindedly pokes at the fireflies, watching them buzz around as she antagonizes them. The longer she lies here, the more relaxed she becomes. Not quite happy, but not bristling with anger and hostility, either.
Still. Bianca's story sounds like prison, life or no, but Johanna isn't going to argue. She's seen people take to their captors in more fucked-up ways than this. ]
I'm guessing you worked on the other?
[ Johanna keeps her voice carefully flat, but the fireflies' spell is broken, just a bit. She knows what Bianca is going to say. She can figure out what Bianca has done, and Johanna doesn't like it one bit. ]
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Finally, Bianca breathes deeply, leaning on the scent of Johanna's skin and the wiry strength of her bones, and shoves all the emotions roughly out of sight.]
Yes. Yes, I did.
[She lets the moment, the one in which she's very deliberately refraining from explaining, excusing or apologising, hang for another breath, and then continues speaking.]
The two barges drew closer to each other, influenced each other. We would find ourselves experiencing our counterparts' lives and memories. Then, finally, they collided. I found myself trapped on the first barge for a month while the two of them battled for supremacy. Battled to decide which of the two would continue existing.