Annella could barely keep up. She was lucky that Yuri was giant, enough so that she could just stand on her toes if she wanted to find him if she lost him in the crowd. It didn’t take too long for them to exit the mess hall and she could only breathe a sigh of relief. She wondered if she was bothering him; he seemed like someone who needed to be alone after a while of interaction with strangers (and really, they hadn’t even been in each other’s presence for more than fifteen minutes, she would guess). 

She kept quiet beside him, once the halls became less populated with excited cadets, her mind wandered off to her grandmother. This was probably the first time in a while she had a chance to think about her actions. Not even three months ago was she sent the notice of her parent’s demise, so she didn’t have long to prepare anyone for her sudden decision to enlist, especially her grandmother. Annella played with her fingers nervously. [i]She would never be happy about my choice, but this is the only way I can help…[/i]

When she heard the giant beside her hum, it startled her out of her thoughts, her gaze falling on him as she blinked owlishly. She almost felt guilty when he stopped. He seemed to be more relaxed when he wasn’t forced to speak with her, a stranger, and she tore her gaze away from his form awkwardly, opting to stare at her feet as they made their way through the maze of the camp towards their dorm.

[color=6ecff6]"It...might sound weird...but...do you believe in honour above most things in life?"[/color] 

Annella pondered the question, her mouth pulled down slightly. She didn’t know how to respond. On one hand, she believed that honour was important, but not a priority in life. All her actions were not due to honour, but it was more for the sake of others. She never cared about her lineage, only that she was here and now it was her turn to contribute to humanity. Yuri continued speaking once it was obvious she wasn’t going to respond. 

Annella listened carefully, her mind already trying to wrap around what he was saying as she thought about what she could say next. It was obvious he looked up to his father a lot, and the last thing she wanted to do was insult him by sounding like she didn’t care. [color=bc8dbf]”’[i]Do not shame when you can still provide a good title[/i].’”[/color] She parroted back to him, [color=bc8dbf]”Those so-sounds like wise words to live by, b-but don’t you ever feel stressed because of the weight of their expectations? That whatever you do may not be doing enough to the eyes of your ancestors?”[/color] She asked him curiously. 

[color=bc8dbf]”T-to me, it’s important that you do not shame your elders, but I like to believe that my grandparents trust me enough that whatever I do, or try to do, will be fine as long as I’m happy. I- I don’t like having people’s expectations on m-me, I hate to disappoint people. A-and its worse if it’s my grandparents that I disappoint, because I care about them and their o-opinions too much.”[/color] She stopped herself, [color=bc8dbf]”I’m sorry if I’m not m-making any sense, I just don’t kn-know how to say anything without worrying that I’m g-going to insult you.”[/color]