Midnight Pretenders (JeanxPieck)

Midnight Pretenders

"Midnight pretenders
Hiding in the darkness
For a short time, they share a warmth
Secret love
The morning is sneaking through the window
And the lovers are rushing to go their seperate ways
In the end, still with pain they
Say goodbye"
-Tomoko Aran

      She rushed across the platform, her luggage in tow, struggling against the throng of people scattering in all directions to meet their own connections. Beads of sweat were rolling down her temples as she tried to collect herself and her whereabouts. She paused and checked her ticket to make sure she was boarding the proper train for a final time. Tucking the stray pieces of hair behind her ears and with an exhausted sigh, she made her way towards the boarding entrance.

It was a late summer evening, the sun was near the end of setting and the moon was slowly rising in the sky. Looking up, you could see both of them, one chasing the other into the night. The streetlights began to illuminate the platform as most travel goers cleared out. This was the last departure of the day. The last streaks of daylight took their leave as the locomotive took its final passengers.

Pieck set her belongings down on her small bed and began to unpack, doing so quickly with hopes to still make it in time for dinner service. She chastised herself for her own tardiness, barely making it on board in time. Her stateroom was small and modest, but still had a very tasteful quality to it. Her bed was narrow and quite high up, but it would suite her decently enough. There was a small end table with an antique lamp upon it. The room was themed with oriental motifs of rich, darks ambers and indigos. From the large cabin window to the left of the bed hung cream privacy shades. The walls of the cabin were boarded with wood paneling and the ceiling had been painted a soft beige. To the right of the room, Pieck was shoving her few articles of clothing into the provided bureau. As she finished, she looked herself over in the long mirror above the dresser.

She looked worn and flushed. She hair was sticking out in an array of places and her hat was hanging by the pins. She removed her hat and tossed it on the end table. Her jade blouse had wrinkled up in certain places where sweat had begun to dry up. She shifted her long black skirts in an attempt to readjust them properly. She instinctually tried to fix her armband, realizing she wasn't wearing it. Her palms became clammy; she tried to calm herself. She was on a mission and she couldn't risk being outed as an Eldian on a train full of other Marleyans. It was just one night, she'd done this plenty of times, this would be just like any other trip. All she had to do was play her part and nobody would suspect her for the thing they all feared and hated. With a final deep breath, Pieck turned and exited her room into the pit.

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Jean sat at his own table in the dining car. Seated by the window, he pushed his food around with his fork. His nervousness was stifling his appetite. The cabin was filled with other passengers, every table packed with people loudly gossiping and laughing. Children were being scolded for bad table manners and soft music was trailing throughout. The lights were soft but well lit and fine dinnerware was placed delicately on white linen clad tables. Each table was decorated with a small vase overflowing with native wildflowers. Their sweet scent calmed him as he compelled himself to eat.

He looked down at the table as he ate, occasionally glancing at the vase of flowers, or outside the window, and even at the folded newspaper he held with him. He rarely dared to look up, fearing eye contact with another guest. It would only be a few days before the assault in Marley if everything went according to plan. He didn't want to think of it, he had a difficult time as it was being alone on his journey. He now wished that Connie and Sasha had joined him, it would have been more bearable at least with their foolishness to keep him distracted. He sighed as he swallowed his food and wiped his lips with a napkin. He pushed his hair back out of his eyes and pulled open his newspaper, scanning idly through it.