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You find yourself awe-stricken.
You'd never been given the chance to see a troll and from the furious way Karkat had talked about his experiences with them, you had begun to assume they were all ten-foot tall monsters, with long, jagged teeth, rugged horns, and burning eyes.
But this..
This is not what you expected.
Your name is Kanaya Maryam and you are staring at your first troll.
(To be fair, she is staring back at you, too.)
You're nearly the same height. If her horns counted, which you decided they don't since they arch straight upwards, she would be taller then you. Counting her horns would just be unfair.
And, yes. Her gaze is burning.. But not in the predatory way you anticipated. It's curious, wandering every inch of you like a scientist eyeing their experiment. Her eyes are big, colored yellow with the faintest hints of her blood color in them.. You feel like you could get lost in her endless eyes.
Are you blushing? Certainly not.
"Is there something on my face?" She-- Roehse -- breaks the silence. You're startled by the sound of her voice. It's a lot lighter then you expected. With a subtle hint of hoarseness and an accent you can't place.
(Of course you can't place it. She's not from Earth.)
"No! No, nothing." You exclaim, perhaps a little too quickly. She seems amused, at least. She smiles, lips peeled back slightly to show off her teeth.
They're not jagged. Just.. Sharp. Pristine white. They look like a sharks.
Her fins flutter slightly when she hears you speak and you positively beam. That was.. adorable.
"Did I-Did I say my name? Did I introduce myself yet?" You fumble over your words, damning yourself for your lack of composure.
Roehse seems to like it, at least. She smiles wider, her fins flutter once again. "You introduced yourself over the messenger. But you never spoke your name."
You brush your hand through your hair, sweeping some of the brunette locks out of your face. "Kanaya.. Kanaya Maryam."
"Kanaya." She echoes softly. You feel your heart flutter. "Roehse Lalond. It is an honor to meet you."
"And you as well!"
You can't handle looking at her smile much longer. It makes butterflies blossom in your stomach. You're so nervous, it's hard to handle. It was one thing when she was a line of text on your computer screen.. Now? She's a living, breathing.. Being.
And she's laughing.
Why is she laughing-
"You're doing it again. Really, you're starting to make me nervous." Her voice is so smooth, you're certain you could slide across it.
A sheepish laugh slips from your throat as you force yourself to look away. "I'm sorry.. I'm sorry, I was just.. Fascinated. That's all.." You feel your face heating up and Roehse tilts her head, putting herself back into your line of sight with a side step.
"Fascinated? Please, elaborate."
The amusement in her tone makes you worry that you've said the wrong thing. She seems like she's seconds away from laughing in your face. You swallow a lump in your throat.
"The.. Differences. Between our species.. Just seem like something that would be worth investigating further. I don't know about you, but I know nearly nothing about trolls."
Roehse stares at you.
Her eyebrows arch slightly.
(Is she judging you? That is a very judgmental look on her face.
"Well, why didn't you just say so?" You blink, your mouth opens to speak but no words come to mind, so you close it again. "Perhaps we can sit with a cup of tea and exchange whatever cultural information we can."
Come on, Kanaya, get ahold of yourself.
You nod quickly. What is it about this troll--? She gets under your skin and has you a flustered mess with just a smile. Maybe it's the teeth.
"That sounds- That would be lovely, yes, I would love that. We could make it something we do.. Given that we have plenty of time.. Starting with learning vital parts of the places we lost would be best, don't you agree?" You don't give her a chance to respond. "I have some journals lying around, I believe, perfect for taking notes-- Not that you have to, but I would like to. Probably. I think I would, if only for the things I find about just your species and-and that isn't even counting the things I'll learn about your culture, and--" You notice the look she's giving you. That vaguely judgmental look. Her lips curled at the corners, eyebrows arched toward the inky black hairline. "And.. And.. I am.. Talking.. A lot, aren't I?"
Roehse nods and you feel apart of yourself die. "Nothing wrong with it. I've heard far worse, far longer rants, about far less interesting topics, from far less appealing partners.. At the very least.." Roehse pauses. You wonder if her composure faltered for a moment or if it was just your imagination. "I do like the sound of your voice."
Oh, you could swoon. Shoot, no. You're not allowed to swoon. You haven't known her long enough to swoon, have you? Does your talks over Pesterchum count? You're not sure..You'd like to think it does, but the other part of you is insisting that it does not.
You may not swoon, but you do beam. A wide smile gracing your lips as you catch her fins fluttering once again. (That must be a good sign. It only happens when she seems particularly happy.)
"Well, Miss Lalond.. The feeling would be mutual there." She laughs quietly into the palm of her hand.
If there are any deities listening, you need help. Her laughter is really just music to your ears.
You've got your work cut out for you if you plan on not falling for her.
"Kanaya!"
You almost flinch from the abrupt noise interrupting your talk. You don't want to say it's embarrassing.. Since you care about the distressed boy.. But..
"Sounds like your moirail needs you." Roehse muses. The word sound weird, almost unnatural. You don't get the chance to ask her what it means, today. In the brief time between you looking away from Roehse and toward Karkat, she disappears.
..At least, you think while Karkat whines, you have plans with her later.