Being Human (Maria)

The engine puttered out as the gas died in Isaac's bike, and as he pulled the Goggles from his face and rested them further up on his brass-colored helmet, he marveled again at Mallory's handiwork. It was just supposed to be a tune up, but she'd really outdone herself. He had half a mind to recommend her as the Cadet's official resource for vehicle maintenance. But, he didn't have time to worry about that now. Instead, he looked up at the church with a bemused smile on his face.

After Domiona, he was beginning to look at this excursion with Maria a little differently. He couldn't say how exactly, but it was different. Getting off the bike, the boy hung his helmet from the handlebar. The Church towered dark and imposing as always in front of him, and he approached with a leisurely gait, and a pleasant smile on his face. The doors of the church were rarely if ever locked during the day, but he was surprised to find them open now. Perhaps it was because she was expecting him. It wouldn't do for him to knock loudly and wake up all the nuns with his entrance. What did the other nuns think of Maria going to the movies with a boy? Did they care? He wondered lightly about it as he stepped a little inside, looked around, and said in a soft voice "Maria? You around?"

In the first few bales of screeching, it failed to do its job. But after the next set, Maria began to rise from her bed as the ceiling first greeted her sight. She was blank-faced and emotionless, almost as if she didn't even realize where she was. But the Cadet quickly gained semblance of awareness at the time. For a moment there, she froze and debated if she could move the arrangement at another time... but, no. It really wouldn't do. She could already hear the tongue-lashing and guilt-tripping scolding Brit would give her for pushing away this opportunity. She really was a dear...


A quick face wash, a brush of hair, and clothes changing after, she found herself looking into a mirror. They were going out for a movie, weren't they? She peered into the reflective surface to survey the dress she wore. Was it... presentable? Maybe, in Brittany's eyes it was. If that fashionista was okay with it, maybe it was okay with him. Though these high heels were going to be... a pain. How could anyone get used to them, she wondered. The idea of having to spend the entire night walking in them wasn't an attractive one, but one Maria was willing to acclimate to.

As she began to leave, the Cadet gave one cursory glance at the coffin sitting there in all of its lonesome. It was strange, finally having to leave it alone after all this time. There was no way she'd be able to take it with her inside a theater, so this was the only way. A shudder in her spine shivered through her, but it wasn't foreboding enough for her to finally close the door on it.

After carefully scurrying down the stairs and past the hallways and the kitchen to grab a few pick-me-ups in her purse, she began to hear the sound of an engine purring before dying outside and the cacophony of the door creaking open heralding the "hello" that came after. Maria would be found coming down through the empty hallway while waving at him.

Isaac had some expectations, mainly a nun's habit, maybe glasses, which he'd noticed Maria wore sometimes when she wasn't on a mission. The girl that greeted him in the antechamber right now...was not what he had expected. He had done a very good job of convincing himself that this was not a date, but seeing Maria looking like this pushed him over some kind of edge that he hadn't known he was standing on. He wanted it to be a date. Even if they would both likely die in some tragic dungeon mission some night...He wanted it. Did she want it to? Was that why she had decided to dress up like this? Even though it was casual enough, he felt a little underdressed in his simple tan slacks and black button up shirt. His hands wen to the pockets of his coat. "No, No, I just got here."

Now that she's was beginning to notice and think about it, it was interesting how he looked so much Albrecht, attire-wise. If only the coat wasn't as long. Isaac looked rough, casual even. It didn't look bad on him. But it made her begin to feel a little fidgety as she began to gently turn left and right on one foot as the blush on her cheeks grew pink. Her hands began burying itself into her small purse, drawing out what looked like a plastic food container full of its own mishmash of contents and a few bags of snacks for him to see. "I brought a few snacks with me from the kitchen. I've got some of the leftovers I made from a bakery sale and a thermos of lemon juice. Ah, don't worry, there aren't any raisins in the cookies..."

Then a thought ran through her head when she was beginning to feel some discomfort from standing. She hid her unease with a slightly wider smile.

Isaac had just been standing there letting his mind play tricks on him, only half registering her words. "Heh...thanks." He cleared his throat, seeing her bring out her snacks. He had fully intended to spoil her with snacks at the theatre, but he couldn't help but find it endearing that she'd brought cookies and snacks to drink. She'd never been to see a movie, that was true, so it wasn't a bad plan. Saved money, either way.

He chuckled a little, smiling. "I don't mind raisins. I'll eat basically anything." He replied, though he did prefer them without if he was honest. He could feel the moment dragging on a little, and he took a few steps toward the door when she asked her question.

"Nah," He said, opening the door, showing his bike to the girl. "I thought we'd take this lovely lady. Unless you'd prefer to take the train." He shrugged, walking over to the bike. It was a fairly simple bike, not glossy or painted fancy. It looked almost like one of the simple military bikes you might see in movies. Isaac liked things that were simple or looked old. Things with history behind them.

Maria's shoulders became slightly more relaxed as he didn't mind either way. Whether it was from being polite or not, it was appreciated. After all, a lot of these were leftovers and not quite fresh out of the oven. Though they were still all good. She began to follow after Isaac, still struggling to ignore the discomfort poking in her feet on each step. Her fears of having to walk all the way were gone in the next breath of relief as her eyes laid upon the motorcycle. "No, it's fine. This works better... It looks very nice."

While eyeing the vehicle, the sheer idea of shouldering Andraste while riding this bike with isaac was one that nearly soured her expression. it would be such a nightmare to try to balance such uneven weight on something much substantially smaller and lighter.

Isaac smiled at her reaction to the bike, glad that she appreciated the ride. It was quaint but it was what he had, and he loved it, and took very good care of it. At her question about helmets, he motioned toward the bag that was strapped behind the seat. Unzipping it, he pulled out a black and blue helmet. His own silver helmet was on the ground on the otherside of the bike. Somehow, it'd fallen off the handlebar. He gave a wry smile as he bent to pick it up, and holding up both helmets triumphantly he replied, "A boyscout is always prepared."

The smile that spread across his face was reassuring, and he handed the helmet to her gingerly. "Not that I got to finish, considering the organization didn't survive the Divide." She shrugged, saddling the bike and patting the seat behind him. "Shall we? We're burning starlight."

She had to admit. Isaac seemed like a good person, even if a little bit headstrong. He didn't exactly quite appear to be as responsible at first. But he certainly was well on his way proving otherwise to Maria's satisfaction. Just as she was about to comment about his membership in the Scouts, the follow-up to it not surviving caught the words in her throat. But she wisely deigned not to broach on that topic and instead put the helmet on. "Of course, let's."

At first, getting on was easy enough. But a sudden realization dawned on her. There were no seatbelts on this thing. Of course there weren't, it was a motorcycle. There was only one way to safely hang on. She hesitantly began to cross her arms across his stomach and leaned against his back, slightly flushing her face along the way. This was just a ride, right? And they were only co-workers wanting to hang out. Yes, this must be it. Certainly, this was true. Her teeth almost chattered in embarrassment, struggling to keep her composure. Thank the Lord for helmets...