Salvation | nier: automata reader insert

.𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲

Distant and wistful, her gaze was filled with many emotions he could never hope to understand. If there was one thing he noticed about her, it seemed as if she never once showed her despair with the world around her.

He cannot claim to know human emotion as well as a human themself, but he knew enough to realize this world was nothing like she remembered. It couldn't have been easy waking up in a place she couldn't recognize nor to a world without people or anything remotely familiar. Although she never once showed 2B or him anything other than a cheerful smile, he's heard her cry.

It was an accident. While he never meant to try and catch her at a vulnerable time, his decision in visiting her room during one of their more prolonged breaks at the camp resulted in him overhearing her muffled cries through the door of her room. Each of her shaky breaths and shuddered whines were brimming with a unique emotion he couldn't quite put his finger on. Of course, he knew they were out of sadness, but a part of him couldn't fathom why.

It was after that incident that he began watching her more closely than he had before. He would watch her expression shift as new sights were taken in by her. He would watch as she conversed with 2B and the two twin androids at camp. He internally noted everything he could on her and it was in those days of observation that he came to a pressing realization. It wasn't as if [name] were hiding her anguish of the world from them, it was that they were not paying close enough attention.

There were moments while they travel across the city that she would gain a look of deep contemplation. Her brows would furrow and her mouth twists with mild curiosity as she gazed at the crumbling towers above her. It was only after a few moments that her expression would loosen and her lids would lower across her eyes as a frown would appear on her lips. These moments were brief and the darkening color of her eyes would not last long before they were once again replaced with their usual brightness.

Those fleeting seconds were short enough to miss if he wasn't observant. While the discovery of this side of her wasn't enough to answer his question, it did deepen his interest in her.

Slowly, he approached her, his soft footsteps sounding against the metallic plates of the wooden bridge they stood atop. The noise was enough to draw her attention and her wistful expression broke from her visage to be replaced with curiosity, another emotion she seemed to be wearing all too often. When she recognized it was him approaching and not 2B, who was still conversing with Pascal, an amiable smile crossed her features as he joined her side.

"Isn't it pretty?" She asks as her gaze returns back to the far-off sight. "It looks like the machines living there now never stopped using the fireworks. . ."

His attention strays on her profile for a second longer before joining her in staring at the distant amusement park they've so far only visited once before their unexpected meeting with Pascal. [name] wasn't there for their first visit and after telling her about it when they returned to the resistance camp, she made them promise to take her the next time. While 2B wasn't completely on board with the idea, [name]'s reassurance to keep herself out of trouble seemed to convince her enough.

Since meeting her, 2B was vigilant in her mission to keep [name] safe. Despite their somewhat recent meeting, 2B was quick to warm up to her. Not as if he were any different. There was something about [name] that felt all too familiar to him and the way he sunk in sync with her felt natural. There was no strain in their conversation and the silences they shared were ones without a blemish of awkwardness. He couldn't exactly describe it as well as he would like, but with her things just felt right. Like he was meant to be with her.