[i]How would Dolly do this?

She'd... know the right thing to say. She always does. They're her spear and net, and maybe that's why she likes to be disarmed. To not have to be responsible for using all of them. To put her trust in a goddess who doesn't deserve her, just because of the weight of all those words. But she never acts like they're a burden, except when she's leaning in and begging for her goddess to shut her up.

But that's not the kind of reassurance Ksharta Talonna needs.

What would Dolly say? You're a good cook? She can't even eat the smoke. You're pretty? Seduction would make Ksharta Talonna freeze and then bolt. How dare you doubt my judgment? She's already sniffling, Jade, do you want to actually truly make her cry?

If you want a victory, we can go steal one! Pick someone here, we'll be pirates tonight! No, she'd have to want that, and the heart of Ksharta Talonna doesn't want that. What does it want?

"Give me your hand," the goddess demands. She holds her own out impatiently, and when Ksharta Talonna reaches out, she takes that little cook-knight's hand in two of her own. "Ksharta Talonna," she says, "I am not a goddess of knowing things. I could hunt your dreams out of you, but that would be..." She flashes her fangs. "Difficult on you. And I take care of the little cats who give themselves to me."

It is important to say out loud. It is important to be. She will not deserve Dolly if she cannot make this true.

"I cannot make you happy forever," she continues. "Not even our Grandmothers can do that. But I am sorry that... that my blessing has not made you happy for now." Is it true? Yes. It is. "That I have not brought you victory in battle, because I defeated you and carved that defeat into the world. That I have not shown you a way that you can be a great knight and a great cook, because I have been lost myself. That I have not declared war on your hunting lodge for the sake of possessing you, or offered you a place among my priestesses. I have failed you in many ways, Ksharta Talonna, and even I do not know how to make you happy, or which of these things would make you feel that I am worthy of worship."

She squeezes. She tries to make it a Dolly squeeze. The kind that makes people feel connected, even without a glove.

"But there is a place in the house of the goddess for you. If you wish to hunt your courage until you catch it, I will make you our knight, and a place by Dolly's side. If you want to see if cooking makes you happy, then I will make you our cook, and no dish will be outside our reach. And if you want a mortal lover, I will help you [b]catch[/b] one. They will pale in comparison to me, but..."

She sniffs, and tries to look magnanimous and not like someone who has recently begged her high priestess not to leave her for a more fleshy paramour. "But they will always be there to touch, and you will be able to smell their desire, and I suppose it is intimidating to be one of my concubines, not knowing if I am going to bring you dizzying rewards or terrible punishments." She is so understanding. So generous. So composed. And...

And she hasn't made Ksharta Talonna happy.

"Whatever you choose to hunt," she concludes, "you will be safe and protected by me, as long as you choose. I am Smokeless Jade Fires; I am undefeated in battle and the hunt." Never defeated. Not even once. Whispered Promise and the Red Band can sneer all they want. She always wins. "I doomed you to defeat, and for that I owe you my blessings. I will be your jackal as you flush out joy."[/i]

[[i]Emotional Support[/i] hit an [b]11[/b], if Ksharta Talonna chooses to accept Jade's attempts to help her.]

[hr]

Dolly flicks an ear in... irritation.

"Valynia," she says, and she's indignant, not quite like she was when first kidnapped but still with more fire than she's shown all night. "How can you... you can't insult her and then ask me to... and... you [i]pirate![/i]" Her body language is muddled, her tail's tip is flicking, she's finding it hard to look Valynia in the eye, she's plainly flustered, but she's clenching her fists and a word away from stomping her foot like a kitten.

It's not easy for protagonists, is it? Not in her favorite stories. And now she's in one, thanks to her goddess, and all the things which look clear from the outside are all muddled and difficult and she's weak, she's so easy to sweep off her feet, but you can't [i]say[/i] that about Jade! Right after she leaves! Right after she fell to her knees, desperate for her, and the [i]relief[/i] when she saw her goddess again after being kidnapped, but...

But she [i]wants[/i] Valynia and Jade to fight over her. Just not in a way that hurts either of them. And that only works in stories, doesn't it, Dolly? And here Valynia is, dangling the perfect compromise in front of her, so why is she so angry, just like when Valynia first grabbed hold of her, dangerous and sensual and... and so [i]greedy![/i]

[i]I. Want. You.[/i]

But Valynia isn't the one who fell to her knees and begged for her. For only her. Valynia didn't offer to give up anything for Dolly's sake, didn't offer to reform her ways, to beg Jade's blessing, to bring her treasures and gifts and offer her the universe.

[i]I'll take the goddess you come with if I must...[/i]

How dare [i]anyone[/i] talk about Jade that way?

Even a stupid sexy pirate dangling dizzying indulgence in front of her?

"...the others like Jade more than they like me," she admits. "She's the one who attracts attention. She's the rival that Angela wants, and she's the power that Ksharta craves. But they like me, too. In their own ways. But you don't like Jade at all. Valynia, how can I be with someone who doesn't like [i]both[/i] of us? Her strength [i]and[/i] whatever both of you see in me. [i]Our[/i] desire to be what others need. She brought me here, she showed me the stars, she lets me dance, she wants me just as much as you do, and all you see when you look at us is [i]me[/i]. And if I say yes..."

If I say yes, you'll want me longer and longer, and you'll start wondering why you have to share me.

Also, you are strong, and embarrassed, and greedy, and you don't like it when people say no to you, do you?

Dolly's heart tightens. For the first time tonight, she actually feels a little frightened. That's the flipside of being attracted to dangerous girls, isn't it? The danger. And Jade feels dangerous but she's really not, but being alone with Valynia right after turning her down is... is just asking for her to reveal that she's got a path cleared to her mecha and Dolly's coming with her whether she likes it or not.

Or maybe she'll just be sad. And Dolly will feel terrible, and kick herself for assuming the worst, and wish she'd been able to be cleverer, better at words, or the kind of warrior that she is when Jade's guiding her hands, or even just smart enough to realize what Jade was bottling up.

Either way, Dolly tries to look fierce. Like a high priestess. Like someone whose girlfriend was just insulted. Like someone who should not be trifled with, Valynia Bander. What sort of huntress are [i]you?[/i]