[ To say that Kell is shaken would be to put it lightly. But he has more experience than Holland seems to think. There are times, of course, where he comes across as boyish and foolish (like, you know, five minutes ago) but in the face of actual danger, in the face of real concern, Kell does know how to pull it together.
That's what he does now. He makes his face as impassive as he can manage, even as his heart breaks for Holland. He is still as Holland grabs him and holds him close. He wishes he could just take his mask off so they could really look at each other but he doesn't move to remove it. He just listens.
They're going to get themselves in trouble if they break out in a fight here or over do it with their magic, so he uses his own to counteract Holland's ice, thawing the space between them wordlessly. But he keeps his gaze on Holland, even as Holland starts to regain his control, little by little.
The thing is, and although it doesn't truly matter, Kell both believes him and doesn't believe him. He believes everything he says about the Danes, of course. He'd seen bits and pieces of it himself, and he knew what the Danes valued. The rest of it are pieces to the same puzzle. And he also believes that Holland values his own autonomy. But he's not sure Holland cares about the autonomy of others quite so much as he claims, and he wouldn't put it past him to use the same tricks he's always used, even now that he's out of the Danes' control. People were complicated. Holland was complicated.
And really, it didn't change the fact of the matter, or the difference between their worlds. They were unique. Not that Kell had any sense of wanting to press the point now. He can be sorry he spoke out of turn without feeling like he was wrong. What guilt he has is for Holland and Holland alone. His estimations of White London aren't anything but fact.
Not that he voices anyway of that. He just waits for Holland to finish, and then a moment longer, the two of them staring at each other, their magic singing between them, and then, finally: ]
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That's what he does now. He makes his face as impassive as he can manage, even as his heart breaks for Holland. He is still as Holland grabs him and holds him close. He wishes he could just take his mask off so they could really look at each other but he doesn't move to remove it. He just listens.
They're going to get themselves in trouble if they break out in a fight here or over do it with their magic, so he uses his own to counteract Holland's ice, thawing the space between them wordlessly. But he keeps his gaze on Holland, even as Holland starts to regain his control, little by little.
The thing is, and although it doesn't truly matter, Kell both believes him and doesn't believe him. He believes everything he says about the Danes, of course. He'd seen bits and pieces of it himself, and he knew what the Danes valued. The rest of it are pieces to the same puzzle. And he also believes that Holland values his own autonomy. But he's not sure Holland cares about the autonomy of others quite so much as he claims, and he wouldn't put it past him to use the same tricks he's always used, even now that he's out of the Danes' control. People were complicated. Holland was complicated.
And really, it didn't change the fact of the matter, or the difference between their worlds. They were unique. Not that Kell had any sense of wanting to press the point now. He can be sorry he spoke out of turn without feeling like he was wrong. What guilt he has is for Holland and Holland alone. His estimations of White London aren't anything but fact.
Not that he voices anyway of that. He just waits for Holland to finish, and then a moment longer, the two of them staring at each other, their magic singing between them, and then, finally: ]
Let's take a walk.