Chapter Text
Once I got back into my house, I was still very greatful for the knight-- probably too greatful, honestly... but his brilliant display of heroic prowess left such an impression on me that it'd feel rude not to repay him somehow. What at first felt like a few hours that stretched past my tracking of time, I made some dolls in his liking, and since he's a fairly simple looking knight, I made several of them-- each varying in quality. That didn't feel like enough though; the dolls complement the knight's looks well, but they don't feel... satisfactory enough. My body begun to shiver in fear that the knight would be disappointed or disapproving of my efforts-- probably not even considering my very existence worthy of his time-- I need to show him my affection! The track of time derailed much further that it fell down the same hole I was saved from-- probably for the best though, because that time felt well spent on this painting of the knight; it captures his heroic side wonderfully, alongside with his shining brilliance and short, cute nail.
Finally satisfied with the quality of my gifts, I thought of starting a little slow and just taking the best doll I made for him; I ventured out of my house and turned over to the Elderbug, quickly growing surprised to see him being accompanied with the-- the knight! It's him! Goodness, I can share my affection with him! What first felt like my confidence taking over, swooning the knight with my charms and impressing it with my craftsmanship, I quickly realize that my confidence wanted no play in this, and jumped into the hole my time spent went; by the time I approached the knight, I could feel my body shivering in delight and unnerving fright... Not so sure about why the last part-- he doesn't look frightening or aggressive...
The knight stared back at me with an empty, void-like look on his mask; the Elderbug was also looking at me, more so with a confused stare, whom then spoke up; "Are you okay, Bretta?" I did my best to respond, but all I could articulate was a squeaky peep towards the knight, whom hasn't budged an inch since it first laid its eyes on me. "Bretta, is there something out there?" The Elderbug turned away to where I was looking off to, promptly noting that the potential danger is nothing more than the wind gushing past us. After a bit more silence, the knight begun to animate, tilting its head towards the doll in my claws and focusing sharply onto it. My claws felt colder than usual, clenching and curling up as they were so exposed to the knight... I reassured myself that the worst outcome of this would be the knight rejecting my efforts as pointless drivel-- something crafted by a mindless bug.
Before I even realized it, I was sitting on the bench besides the knight; his presence felt odd and peculiar, but I wasn't shivering anymore... I focused onto the knight with my doll ready to be presented, only to see that he's no longer focusing on me-- but instead just staring out like a statue. What's going on in that mask? Is he thinking of me? Maybe he's planning on what to do upon departing... Given his almost perfectly still and straight posture, is he even a 'he'...? No matter-- I need to act now!
"Excuse me--" I uttered before his head snapped over to me in sharp attention; I froze up once more and turned my head away quickly-- him acknowledging my existence is a little overwhelming, honestly. I could feel his gaze upon me, awaiting for what I was going to ask it in cold, oddly-dreadful attention. My confidence slowly came back after a little bit, calming down the shivering my body kept the whole time, the feeling of being stared at by the knight slowly disappearing, and I finally gained the courage to speak up; I turned my head back over to the knight, "Excuse me, Knight--" Only to realize that I sat there for so long, the time it took for my courage to return gave ample time for the knight to leave to its own activity, left without even a peep towards me or the Elderbug. I let out a weak, disappointed sigh as I stared towards its past spot, then down towards the doll in my claws... did it even properly acknowledge the doll I made for it? Probably not... Maybe it didn't say anything due to my underconfident, shy display of presentation; perhaps that was why he showed no efforts in even speaking to me...
The Elderbug asks once more, "Bretta, is something troubling you?" I shook my head as I slid off of the bench and begun meandering back to my house in grief; my thoughts of reassuring confidence were overshadowed by the pain that I disappointed the knight beyond him seeing me as an interesting bug-- he probably doesn't even see me as a proper bug anymore...
Crud.