Derek knows all of life is (cyclical) wrote in rooms,
Re: Mariner's Inn: Jeze C/Max M
[Perhaps she simply had low standards on matters of family and what made for a good one, but this she didn't say, the words kept wisely behind her teeth.] You can't make choices for anyone, but that never stops anyone from attempting it. [She rolled her shoulders - she knew little more about Lin than she knew about Daniel and neither one was little more than words on a page. She'd felt more towards heroines in novels.
The joke, while unknown to her, still made her smile. She tilted her chin up like a cat's for that touch though, eyes falling closed and lips curling as if she was one giant mound of cat. It was the only thing she had in common with the little mouse-chasers.] It's mandatory that I pretend. Here it's barely permissible for me to walk down the street on my own and I am forever a delicate flower in need of a strong arm to keep me safe. Where we came from we had different rules. [Max survived by taking strength in her rigidity; Jeze's came from her flow. The curves of her mouth turned teasing as she rolled into Max, one hand grasping her wrist and tugging it around her waist to make a shelter out of her arms.]
See? [Her gaze followed the gesture.] Yes. The boys will be round soon to start picking it up. They'll melt some of it down, take some of it to other shops where they'll remove any jeweler's markings and sell it as their own. [The money earned would be funneled back to Annie's and she'd get her cut in the upcoming weeks.] You're going to have to lace me back into my corset again before they do.