Roth took his fork and shoved it into his mouth in one swing.
The taste was...as he expected but it wasn't inedible. Maybe the unpredictable diet of a typical adventurer had conditioned his palette to some interesting selection of food. As he continued to eat, he glances up at his savior. She remains in her cool aura but the corners of her mouth slightly bent up, signifying a hint of...relief? It was hard to tell as it vanished just as soon as it appeared.
Roth focused more on the act of kindness rather than the actual taste of the food, as he looked over at the woman. She was still standing in front of him, watching him eat and making the interaction feel a bit weird for Roth, who was still comprehending the situation. Roth paused his chewing, as he decides to try making the atmosphere more comfortable.
"Ah...Miss, you can sit down if you want." Roth says as he pats the edge of the bed "Its fine."
Her ears fluttered at his request and she glances over the edge of the bed, before rigidly stepping forward and sitting down. As she sits down, the bed frame rattles and the mattress sinks under her weight. Roth now looks at her from the side angle and confirms that all her facial features are indeed real. He scans over her again and as he makes his way to her eyes, they make eye contact and Roth realizes that he is being weird.
"Sorry for staring, its just that...you are a bit...different."
Roth admits his inner turmoil.
He had never expected that he would be the one to use the word 'different' as he was always the one on the receiving end of such remarks. He didn't mind them as he thought of them as a features of his personality but he doesn't know how someone else would handle such words. He looks over at the girl for any signs of discomfort or possible hurt but all he finds is the same calm and quiet Beast Woman; He starts to realize that maybe he can't deduce much from her facial expressions and decides to apologize nonetheless.
"I am sorry if you found my words offending, I was-"
"How am I different?"
The beast woman presented a very straight forward yet difficult question for Roth. He knows the reasoning for finding her different but he doesn't want to risk sounding rude. Should he be honest or try to brush her question off with a vague answers? He doesn't know whether he values the authenticity of his honesty or the feelings of his new benefactor. Roth looks at her again but this time something clicks- Something in his gut urging him to speak without much consideration of anything.
"Well...Miss I don't exactly know how to say this but you seem....hard to read...you seem a bit lost...or more so...you seem empty of purpose."
The woman for the first time widens her eyes a bit and Roth catches sparkle in those yellow pupils, the scene is reminiscent of a singular star in the dark night sky. She parts her lips to say something but it seems the words catch in her throat. Roth snaps out of his reverie and realizes he might've spouted something rude in his daze,: He reflects on his words and realizes he just called her 'ambitionless', in a fancy way. He instantly back tracks and says:
"I-I take it back! I'm sorry Miss, my mind just spaced out!"
The Beast gal just looks at him with raised eyebrows, her expression a show of...confusion? No....its amusement. She watches him panic a bit more before deciding to speak in her usual calm tone.
"Its fine. I am not one to shy away from conversation. Especially one where transparency is the key feature."
Roth calms down his panicked apologies and realizes this might be their beginning of a normal or at least a longer conversation. He quickly latches on and tries to contribute to the dialogue with a innocent offer. He holds out the burnt piece of food and asks in his staple bright tone:
"Want some Miss?"
She looks at him with even wider eyes; Her expressions becoming more readable and expressive by the second. She seemingly examines his act of offering rather than the food itself before replying:
"I require no food."
Her response is a bit blunt but it seems more due to her dry social energy rather than out of malice or arrogance. Roth isn't deterred as he accepts her response and puts the food aside. He then quickly thinks of what to say, what to ask, what could potentially break the tension or what could deepen their bond if its even possible at this stage. He decided to tread lightly as he glances over at the intricate furniture.
"The shelves, drawer and that table is so nice, did you buy them Miss?"
"No...A man made them."
She replies a bit late as she follows his eyes and glances over at the furniture. Roth seeing that she is finally responding to his question decided to continue.
"Was he a craftsman?"
"Not exactly...not by his title of living at least."
Her tone brings a caress of empathy and a slight hint of nostalgia which brushes Roth. He realizes he might've crossed into sensitive topic without realizing but something in mind told him to keep going forward.
"Was he someone close to you miss?"
She pauses for a bit and looks at the fireplace before replying in a softer tone:
"I guess you could say that...he was the last person close to me."
"Was he a friend?"
Roth just moved on with the question, totally oblivious to the touchy topic he had decided not to bring up so early. The beast gal had her ears perk up and her shoulders slightly slump down, as she seems to recollect some thoughts.
"A...Friend?" She looks back to Roth and then turns her gaze to the fireplace "yes...yes, I think he was."
After her reply, there was now another round of silence but this silence wasn't awkward or unwelcomed, it was more of a reassuring anthem for two conversing souls marching into some lamentable topics and Roth knew that as he didn't proceed with his usual barrage of questions. He decided that the value of this comforting silence was more than his need for immediate clarity or connection.
After an occasional pop from the fireplace, a thought came into mind which made him realize that he had messed up the usual pattern of introduction, that almost everyone knows. He didn't get her name.
Roth clears his throat to get her attention. The beast gal turns her head back to him, her expression still carrying hints of the previous conversation and Roth says in a polite tone.
"My bad, I just realized that I haven't introduced myself. My name is Rothfork, but you can call me Roth. What's your name Miss?"
Her ears fluttered and her expression changed into more of a surprise. Her eye lids widened, as she heard his words. Her thoughts didn't spike at his name but rather at the last part where he asked for her name. She just blankly stared at him and Roth wondered if he messed up as most people wouldn't take long to reply with their name.
She turned her gaze to the open door and as the late evening wind rattles the light wooden door, she placed a hand on her chest and takes a moment . It seemed she was consoling her spirit as she kept staring outward at the darkness slowly coating the horizon of the setting sun.
Finally, just as the world seems to calm down, she says in a warm yet firm voice.
"My name is Valeonna Stellar Heart."