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It’s a rather hectic night for the sins. Chatter rolls throughout the building they all stood in, many holding snacks or drinks as loud music rocked the room as three eyes found themselves turning away from some embarrassing dancing from another. Litany found her hand shaking as she gripped her cup of fruit punch, eleven shifty, disquieting eyes staring back at her in her reflection.
She didn’t know why, but she wasn’t having fun anymore. Was she ever? It’s not like anybody would want to actually talk to her, right? Shouldn’t they just run it by Dozer, instead?
Litany didn’t know how long she spent gazing into her drink, but soon found her armor grabbed by another and her shoulder jostled around. She turned around in her surprise, seeing Dozer smiling at her as they removed their hand from them, but what was more interesting was another figure standing next to him. One that she hadn’t seen before.
Her reason was lost on her, but it was like she could already feel a few of those stressed eyes dissipate at the sight of this newbie. Sturdy, long horns were the first thing to catch her eye, striking a bit of fear and curiosity into the knight. Her top was black, and akin to a sleeveless straight jacket. Her pants were baggy in the same color, and her muscular arms were unlike any Litany had seen. Diligent to her craft, surely? Just as Litany were, too? Her heart picked up a little. Such an admirable dedication.
And there was something about the way the stranger’s eyes looked her way. Something that struck a similar fear into Litany as her own many eyes did towards the sinners. Yet at the same time, although the sensation was the same, Litany didn’t feel scared of this sin at all. In its place, a spark of intrigue and security entered her bloodstream instead.
“Litany, are you there? It’s rude to stare at strangers, you know!” Dozer waved a hand in front of her face and got Litany’s attention back on himself. Their tone was playful, but it still stung Litany regardless. “This newbie wanted a word with you outside.”
Litany’s eyes went from him, then back to her for a little longer than Dozer would have liked, then back on him again.
(Yes, my liege.)
“Mhm. Just make it quick, my knight! This scene’s not as fun without you!”
As Litany’s gaze fell back onto the stranger, she held her hand out for the knight to take. She did, wrapping her freezing cold hand around the other’s beefy fingers. She fully expected the ram to flinch at the temperature, like everyone she’s ever touched did, but instead, she just ran out of the building with Litany in her grasp without a care in the world.
It was odd, the rush that Litany got while running in the other’s grasp shouldn’t have been so strong, but she could feel another stressed eye vanish as the two pushed through the part without a care in the world, and soon they’d push through those large doors and be met with the cool breeze of the outdoors.
Litany was almost sad to see the grip on her hand be broken apart, but singling out the other’s smoky scent in a madhouse of all others was just as comfortable.
The stranger rubbed her eye a bit as she stretched her arms, before holding her hand out once again for a proper handshake. The knight’s eyes lit up more than she thought they would as she reciprocated, the other opening her mouth to introduce herself.
“Shame’s the name, and Shame’s the game.”
Her voice was deep, surprisingly so. Did she want to come across as so intimidating? Is that why she asked Dozer to get Litany’s attention for her? She was so… normal? Chill? Is that why Litany felt so secure in her gaze?
The knight’s racing thoughts were quickly taken back into reality when Shame began to speak again.
“You aren’t the party type, are you?”
(Me? Well… I don’t know…) Litany shook her head. (I go a lot of places Dozer does… The yellow one, by the way… That one.)
“Hah! Fair. Truthfully, that’s the only one I know the name of right now… aside from my cousins, of course, inviting me and all… So how about you?”
(I’m… I’m Litany… Weird name, isn’t it?)
The knight silently shuddered. Why would she hesitate on such an easy question?
“That’s… Dude, that’s a gorgeous name, what?!” Shame’s tone shifted to that of a curious excitement. Litany wasn’t expecting this, and would certainly be covering her mouth with her hand if she had one. “Then look at my cousins, who’ve both got ‘Man’ in the name! Could you imagine if my name was Ramwoman? That would suck!”
(I think that would be funny!) Litany’s thoughtful voice finally seemed to ease up with a hint of humor in it. The tone of Litany’s thoughts broadcasted into her quickly brought Shame to laughter as well as she seemed to agree with that notion, and sin did that deep, hearty laugh of hers play with Litany’s heart even further.
As the laughter stopped, an air of awkwardness filled with the silence. Shame seemed to idly tilt her head, but Litany couldn’t help but feel like something was missing.
(So… what did you want to talk about?)
“Oh, yeah! Thanks for reminding me,” Shame clicked her tongue and snapped her finger. “Building my own domain pretty soon! Well… not traditionally a domain, but I really like listening to folks, so I got the honors to build it from scratch!”
(That’s so cool!) Litany thought without thinking.
She didn’t really understand the origin of Sinrow, just that it’s been at her fingertips for as long as she could remember, and that her Guilles were the only thing she actually needed to put the effort into obtaining. But the fact that Shame was going to build hers entirely from the ground up? Is that dedication to her convictions the reason she was so muscular?
“Say, I saw you looking at your drink back there… That thoughtfulness in your eyes is unlike one I’ve seen from anyone else, you know? That’s what drew me to you.”
Litany could feel her heart pick up even more than it had before, her gaze immediately falling off of Shame and back into the cup she still carried with her. Those eyes? Thoughtful? The words pondering in her gaze were those begging to go home. And frankly, she still wanted to leave, with those eyes bringing themselves back to Shame.
(I’m the first person you asked about this whole thing?)
“Absolutely!” Shame nodded. “The air you carry is unlike any I’ve ever seen, really.”
(O-Oh, um…) The knight began to sweat. (Nobody’s ever said that to me before…)
More accurately, Litany couldn’t remember if that was the case. Did Shame feel the oppression in her armor before talking to her? Did she know that the knight she had her sights set on was like a string played with in Dozer’s fingers? Did Litany have to be if she didn’t want to?
Surely, she didn’t. And whatever Shame had her sights set on, Litany wanted to be there before anybody else.
(I mean, thank you so much! And, um… I can help with manual labor! I’ve got underlings… Or I can just be the one to do it if you want me to!)
Before she could say anything else, Shame cupped her face in her large, warm hands, and let out that content, hearty laugh again. The two gazed into each other’s eyes, one of which was certainly more cool about it than the other, before the ram drew her hands back and clasped them together.
“Do whatever’s comfortable for you, Lit!”
{She… She came up with a nickname for me already?!}
Litany didn’t realize she had dropped her cup on the floor, but quickly nodded and began trying to conjure up less surprised sounding words that she could send to the other.
(Okay! Got it! Thank you! I’m looking forward to it!)
To her surprise, she saw that Shame’s head kept turning back and forth. To the party, to Litany, to the party again, to Litany again. At the same time, she quickly noticed how Litany was growing increasingly uncomfortable at the silence despite her discomfort she exhibited in that packed place. As such, Shame’s head stayed turned her way with her hand outstretched.
“You never promised your liege you’d be back, did you?”
(Oh… yeah! You’re right, I didn’t…)
“What do you say, you and I entertain ourselves elsewhere?”
By now, all of the stress-induced eyes from Litany had vanished as she took the ram’s hand with no more hesitation. (I’d love that!)
With that, the two turned heel away from the party for good, a new invigoration in Litany’s heart as Shame took her far, far away from everything that troubled her in that building. She was sure she’d probably catch Dozer making fun of her in there when she came back in, anyways. Whatever, it was in the past now, and she had so much more to look forward to with the ram.