[hider=OOC Header]
Time for a bridge post to a collab.
[/hider]

Apparently, one of the few ways to actually get past Ciaran's facade of nicety was to upset him. And based on how into Phil's face he was getting, he was very upset. Or at least angry. There was a subtle yet key difference, namely that "upset" also covered sadness mixed with the anger. "Smad", as one absurdist response to a post querying ways to convey simultaneous rage and sorrow put it.

Honestly, Phil didn't really care, and his expression remained blank behind his shades. Wasn't that the point of Stands, anyway? That they sort of... how did that one SORE guy put it, pulled together like magnets or something? Sure, the change in expressions was a somewhat worrying indicator of Ciaran's psychological health, but in the end, that emotion Ciaran was feeling was on Ciaran. He had the problem with showing off, not Phil - indeed, he was the one who was more likely to draw attention at this point, all things considered. He made them look like two lovers having a spat shortly before they stopped being lovers. Gay lovers. Which was an odd thought, since they'd only met very recently. Admittedly, Ciaran [i]did[/i] have nice legs. But then, if looks were all that mattered... actually, Phil put a lot of emphasis on looks, huh? So, alright, the phrasing was off, but he had time to come up with a better way of putting it whilst he made a counterstatement.

'Look, I think you're getting a little overexcited,' Phil began, keeping his tone quiet, relaxed and even friendly. You know, approachable. Unlike his arms, which were still pinned beneath two separate stacks of bags, and thus were unable to emote anything, though he could certainly shrug. 'A few hands [i]might[/i] have been visible for, what, a second? You'd have to be actively looking to see something like that. Besides, the sigils don't stick out that much. Look, they're already vanishing, it's totally fine.' Even as he spoke, the fifteen second limit began to strike, and the lotuses began fading out in order. Practically unnoticable, and even if somebody did notice, what would they make of it? It could just as easily be a trick of the eye for them.

'Anyway, I'm sure it'll be fine,' he continued with a shrug, now entirely secure in his position. 'Stand users are, to my understanding, extremely rare as it is. The chances of another one showing up here are practically nothing.'