[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/ffeBWYD.jpg[/img][/center]

In the midst of everyone's conversations, Apophis leaned over and whispered to Sangue, [color=ed1c24]"I'm hungry. I'll eat when I find the cafeteria."[/color]

When the young snake turned to him with her idle expression, she nodded, prompting Apophis to leave the room without another word. He did not bother to say anything else to the people around him. He did get what he wanted- a quick look at Sangue's team. And he wasn't about to skip food over something so simple.

Sangue, on the other hand, remained with her team, glancing between everyone.

Costa... was a good mother. Sangue knew she wasn't one to judge people's characters reliably, but the way Costa actively spent time with her daughter was pleasant.

Soon, an odd thought entered her head.

[center]She wondered what her parents were like.[/center]

She knew what they looked like when she was a baby. A picture had been left behind, only to be torn apart and disfigured when she encountered the first person directly hostile towards her. In the smudged picture, she could not recall the color of their eyes. Her mother had long hair flowing beautifully behind her, and her father's sunset hair, while not standing out, was easy to remember.

But those features weren't what caught Sangue's attention.

Their smiles did.

It left a bittersweet feeling in her heart. To not know anything of her parents, who could have known the most about her. They could have known her real name, the whereabouts of her sister who was nowhere to be found... She had no reason to smile back at them, for she knew so little about them. And until they ever met again, that would remain so.

Although she continued to stay quiet about her thoughts on her team, it was almost obvious to her as to why she held them close to her heart.

They taught and gave her reasons to smile.

That was all she could ask for.

As Amy grinned, and as Ben smiled, and as Lauren let her mother ruffle her hair, Sangue's heart warmed.

Though...

Now that she thought about it, everyone seemed to be ruffling Lauren's hair.

She never touched someone's head before.

And suddenly, she got curious. To see what it felt like to pat someone's head.

[color=f7976a][i]...Should... I...?[/i][/color]

Second thoughts initially flooded into Sangue's head, but she quietly approached Lauren anyway. Looking up at the Negasi, she did nothing for a few seconds before she slowly lifted her human hand. It rose slowly, and it soon lifted above Sangue's head.

She then let the hand descend just as slowly as it had ascended. Letting her palm rest against Lauren's head awkwardly, she shook her hand to mimic how everyone ruffled Lauren's hair, her expression remaining as idle as ever.

It was a strange feeling, but ruffling Lauren's hair felt nice.

She pulled away shortly afterward with the thought of not annoying Lauren by ruffling her hair too much. Sangue's soft gaze remained set on Lauren's hair.

[sub][@Kaithas][@Krayzikk][@Plank Sinatra][/sub]