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[ The way she says it sounds nice is hollow, like she doesn't really think so, and Raleigh feels something sink in his chest. Disappointment. Maybe her opinion matters more to him than he really understood? He'd be going on a whim and without a plan, after all. Or maybe--

--is it coming from Mako, not him? He wouldn't have predicted the ghost drift to be so distinct, after only a few times. Even if it is, he's not sure what it means. He's not actually in her head anymore. They're quiet for a moment, until Raleigh decides to take a deep breath and a risk. Just play it cool... ]

Do you like French food? You could come with me.

[Oh. Mako peeks over at him, trying to read his expression. It's not like he would joke about something like that, but after being in his head, she's realizing communicating normally leaves so many gaps that she'd never noticed before. Besides, this feels important, almost fragile somehow. Going with him is exactly what she wants, she just doesn't know how to navigate it.]

...Would that be okay?

[So much for playing it cool. Mako sounds almost painfully hopeful.]

[ Between the way she's looking at him and the eagerness in her voice, Raleigh's pretty sure his heart skips a beat. Staying together is what she wanted too, they were both just too uncertain to be the one to suggest it. His mouth curves into a tiny smile, and he nods at her. ]

Yeah. I'd like that. And it doesn't have to be forever.

[ Whoops. That came out wrong. ]

France, I mean.

[ Wait, maybe that's worse... ]

Or us. I-- you can always go if--

[ Someone please stop him. ]

[Mako smiles back, and it slowly turns into a little grin when he fumbles. She hesitates, then moves her hand closer, just enough to brush her pinky against his. Maybe both of them just aren't used to this. Raleigh has spent the last five years working on the wall, isolating himself, from what she understand of it. Before that, his drift partner was his brother—they were always going to be important to one another, co-pilots or not. She's utterly out of her depth, but maybe he isn't that far behind.]

I'd like to stay with you.

[That's the only thing that feels certain right now.]

[ Oh thank god, Raleigh thinks, letting out the tense breath he'd drawn when he fumbled and wasn't sure what part she'd choose to focus on. He's still reluctant to dump the full load of his codependent tendencies on her, especially not knowing what they are to each other at this point, but... they're something.

She brushes their fingers together and Raleigh turns his hand over for her, an invitation to hold on properly. ]

Paris or Marseille?

[It's so simple to slip her hand into his, though what's far less simple is the way her heart skips a beat when she does it.]

Where was your mother from?

[ His fingers curl around hers, thumb stroking the back of her hand affectionately. It's been... a very long time since he held anyone's hand. He's not even sure he remembers how long. But it's really nice right now, with Mako. They could make a habit of it, he thinks. ]

A little town called Saint Sauveur. It's outside Bordeaux.

[It's very, very nice, and that's probably obvious from the way she can't stop smiling.]

Would you like to go there?

[ It's contagious. As strange as it feels to be planning anything at all, he's also... happy. When was the last time he was happy? The joyous rush of relief and victory has been a thing recently, sure, but this is different. He almost wants to just attribute it to Mako as well, but it's more like she just reawakened his ability to be happy again. He'll have to relearn what it's like, along with how to think ahead in the first place. Living one moment to the next isn't gonna cut it if he wants to stay by her side. ]

I'd like to see it at least. Probably wouldn't find any work there, though, I'll have to stick to cities.

[ Unless he wants to actually go to school for something, all he knows is industrial construction. Not much call for that in a small town. ]

[He's probably right, but for once, Mako thinks she might be okay with not having a concrete plan. They're a bit aimless, but maybe that's okay for right now.]

We can start there, then.

[But wait.]

I don't know any French.

[ Raleigh grins again at that, because it's a smaller problem than she might think. Immersion does wonders and she might recognize a little bit if she hears it, after drifting with him. ]

I can teach you. We hopped all over the world when I was a kid, you'd be surprised how fast you can pick things up.

Okay. I'll teach you more Japanese.

[Fix his accent, is what she means.]

I'm actually pretty fluent, but I don't speak it all that mu-- [ oh, that's what she means, isn't it? ] -- hey. I'm not that bad.

[Mako smiles again, giving his hand a gentle, experimental little squeeze.]

You're a little out of practice.

[ Well he can't actually argue that. He squeezes back, ceding the point. ]

Okay. Fix my accent, then, I can do better.

You aren't terrible.

[Really, he's not. She was impressed with his fluency.]

Glowing praise.

[ He's not actually offended, which is probably made more obvious as he squeezes her hand again affectionately. ]

Languages are sort of a hobby for me.

[That makes sense, given the three languages she knows about, but still, it's nice to learn these little things about him, things beyond the drift.]

What other languages do you speak?

[ They pick up a lot from drifting, but the fact is they really haven't known each other very long and only did it a few times. Raleigh wants to learn more about Mako, too, and they'll have the time for that now. To really get to know each other. ]

Fluently? English, French, Japanese, Hungarian, and German. And little bits I picked up visiting other places... like my Spanish is passable but it varies so much by region I'd want to pick up a book before going anywhere specific.

[Wow, that's more than she expected. Certainly more than she knows.]

How did you learn that many? Did you teach yourself?

Kind of. Mom taught me French and we lived in Budapest, Munich, Tokyo, Spain, Lima... you learn a ton in full immersion and then I got the rosetta stones to keep it up.

It helps to keep my mind occupied.

[Of course he would want to keep his mind occupied. She knows that's why he spent so much time working on the wall, too—little details picked up in the drift.]

Do you still need to keep your mind occupied?

[ Raleigh actually takes a moment to consider that. Things have been so busy since he came back to the PPDC, even after the mission's success. It's still been a flurry of debriefings and parties and interviews that are only just now starting to die down. He's different, having drifted again. The space where his brother always was doesn't feel quite as empty. Part of Mako is there now, he can still feel her, but the fact is... they're not going to do it anymore. So the silence that's haunted him the past five years might still be an issue, when life is quiet again too. ]

Honestly, I'm not sure. I guess we'll see?

[Mako just nods. She understands that instinct to work yourself to exhaustion. It's something she's struggling with now, largely because there's nothing to work on. It gives her far too much time to think about Sensei and the others. She's not sure if leaving Hong Kong will help that or make it worse.]

I used to find things that were broken and try to repair them, or come here and help with maintenance.

[Even if that wasn't her job. The crews got used to it quickly enough.]

[ He nods, because they have that in common. ]

Gotta keep busy. I know that feeling.

You won't find anything quite like a Jaeger to engineer, but I bet work will still be easy to come by. Just pick a field.

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setpoint - 2018-04-29 05:29 (UTC) - Expand