[ The winding tension that had been ratcheting up Krouse's spine and radiating down into his right palm in the form of a near-panicked itch to be holding cool metal dissipates like cold water thrown onto a red-hot stovetop, billowing up in a cloud of disorientation. ]
What?
[ He heard her perfectly fine. The blurted question hangs for a second as he blinks down at her with eyes shocked round, his heartbeat lurching faster despite the apparent shift in her attitude.
This is the second apology he's received from someone he never would have expected an apology from that he's gotten in the past month. The first was ripped out of Tattletale's mouth by force, and Krouse almost expects to see the insectile mutation of a plushie she'd been clutching latched onto Bonesaw's back or hanging onto her ankle. It's outrageously unlikely, but it seems more plausible than whatever this is.
No sign of it. No clues as to where this is coming from, or what he's supposed to take away from it. For all he knows, it's just another sick little joke with a punchline he's not equipped to get. ]
I - [ He takes a shallow breath, gets a grip. ] Thanks. It's fine. We were the ones who came for you, right?
[ A gross distortion of events, but when in doubt, make the easy concession. He doesn't care about the details of the truth, and he's sure as hell not going out of his way to try to hold anyone accountable. ]
no subject
What?
[ He heard her perfectly fine. The blurted question hangs for a second as he blinks down at her with eyes shocked round, his heartbeat lurching faster despite the apparent shift in her attitude.
This is the second apology he's received from someone he never would have expected an apology from that he's gotten in the past month. The first was ripped out of Tattletale's mouth by force, and Krouse almost expects to see the insectile mutation of a plushie she'd been clutching latched onto Bonesaw's back or hanging onto her ankle. It's outrageously unlikely, but it seems more plausible than whatever this is.
No sign of it. No clues as to where this is coming from, or what he's supposed to take away from it. For all he knows, it's just another sick little joke with a punchline he's not equipped to get. ]
I - [ He takes a shallow breath, gets a grip. ] Thanks. It's fine. We were the ones who came for you, right?
[ A gross distortion of events, but when in doubt, make the easy concession. He doesn't care about the details of the truth, and he's sure as hell not going out of his way to try to hold anyone accountable. ]