-[X] Talk with Julienne, leaving her to cool off for a bit can be good but risky, and you definitely can't avoid her forever if you want to make this work.
Monday - Breakfast
Slightly-stale pastries and just-brewed coffee suffice to energize you after your morning calisthenics, while Grace, Elizabeth, and Petra go for heartier meals of ham and eggs, all three of them damp from the showers. The practice of morning runs is apparently standard in the Anglian Lancer Corps and the two exchange students in your squad continued theirs even after joining your academy since morning PT is left up to the individual trainee. The four of you make small talk as the rest of the squad trickles into the mess over the next few minutes, though it seems that Grace is still riding high on yesterday's combat exercise victory, the energy of her animated comments and boisterous laughter not diminished in the slightest.
Elizabeth provides commentary from her own perspectives, while Petra -like you- seems content to simply let the noise wash over her as she digs into the food.
Julienne -you can't help but notice- sits at the opposite corner of the table, while Raoul takes a seat between Grace and a hugely-yawning Linette, opposite Emilie. The tactician seems deep in thought, though she doesn't look at you that you can see, instead focusing on her food. After a few halfhearted attempts to engage her on Emilie's part, she seems to simply settle into a discussion of the last week's tactical studies assignments, with Raoul and Linette, managing to draw Petra into occasionally commenting as the Plötzallie girl seems to come properly awake with some food in her.
Monday - Maintenance and Repairs
"Raoul... Is everything alright?"
You wish there was time for a more in-depth talk but even if the only rounds fired were blanks, the first time servicing your Mecha after a full deployment has all of the instructors watching you closely. Talking about relationships in anything but the most abstract terms would be asking for trouble.
"C'est d'acc..."
The brush-off makes you want to shake him, but instead you turn to focus on the main gun, trying to figure out what to say next and coming up blank as you stare at the internals. How do you even begin to explain this sort of thing properly? Even just trying to get back to where you were before seems terrifyingly implausible.
A crunch of feet on the gravel and a sudden presence by your shoulder makes your heart jump into your throat before Major Morisette's voice sounds, by your ear. "Trainee Dupont! What do you see wrong with this gun?"
Frantically, you fix your eyes forwards, but while you can see all manner of wear, you can't see anything truly urgent. "Nothing that needs immediate attention, Sir." Hoping and praying that it's the right answer.
It turns out that it is not, and while the resulting lecture is informative, it is humiliating in equal measure.
Monday - Free Time
You realize that you've never really known what Julienne does during her free time. Often vanishing at the top of the hour and promptly turning up in the dorm room in time for ablutions and lights-out.
As a result, Monday's brief window of free time is mostly spent finding Julienne. A difficult proposition when she does not want to be found. However, there are only so many places she can go, even in her free block, and you manage to narrow it down a little. As long as she's not avoiding you deliberately, she'll probably be there tomorrow.
Tuesday - Lunch
"Jacqui... Tout va bien?" Emilie's soft voice has a strange way of cutting through the hubbub of voices surrounding you and you look up, your face colouring at the concern in her gaze. You're not okay, you're nervous about what you're planning to do this afternoon, and yet you can't really explain why.
"What gave it away?"
"Your foot keeps tapping." You blush further and look down, forcing your leg to stillness, steaming with embarrassment in silence. "You don't have to tell me..."
You chew on the inside of your lip for a moment, "what do you think of Julienne?" Emilie's head tilts curiously, lavender eyes studying you for a moment before she frowns.
"She really is a bit of a mystery, but she seems nice, even if I really hope I never have to face her in a real fight..." You hum noncommittally, you've all sparred with her in training of course, and while she's a tricky fighter, she isn't unbeatable by any means. But still you can't deny that the prospect of having her as a real enemy is... Not attractive.
"I've heard a few rumors... The instructors think she's some kind of prodigy." You haven't gone so far as to ask your mother if she's heard anything, but after overhearing a few chats you've noticed that at least within your own academy that Julienne is being watched very closely by the command staff. When it comes to what they've been watching her for everyone has been surprisingly tight-lipped, but whether it's because of her tactical aptitude or to do with wherever she got those skills before she joined your squad, the why is fairly easily and obviously explained.
The bell rings before you can get much further, and you force your nerves down as you get ready for another afternoon of having the instructors point out the flaws and eventual points of failure in your training Vouivres. Then showing you how to fix them. You try to force your nerves down and prepare to put some focus into it, but you can't help but wonder all the same, and that uncertainty keeps you distracted as the clock ticks onwards.
Tuesday - Free Time
The heavy door of the small lecture theater creaks softly, announcing your presence to the girl seated at the desk closest to the entrance, the butt of her pen tapping at her lips as she ponders a piece of paper you can't quite see from this angle.
She doesn't look up.
"Dupont."
"Aguillard." You inject a certain amount of gravity into your voice and there's a pause as the young strategist's pen stops, green eyes flickering for a moment in a slow blink before her gaze rises and turns to you. You see it again, that flash of hurt crossing her face, not as sharp, but no less painful to witness, still you press forward. "Have you a moment to talk?"
There's a longer pause this time, Julienne's gaze drops for a moment, her brow furrowing in a frown before her eyes flick back up, the line of her lips thinning with irritation. "I've no intention of telling anyone else what I saw."
That's… "I'm glad to hear that, but it's not what I wanted to talk about."
The frown turns into a look of startlement, then for the faintest moment you swear you can see her pouting of all things before her expression smooths over, becoming guarded. "Why else would you be seeking me out to speak in private?" You try to keep your own reactions from showing, but something must have made it to your face and the frown returns, a faint spark of genuine irritation in her eyes. "I am not in the mood to be toyed with, speak plainly."
Her accent is slipping, the Order spoken in a tone that simply assumes obedience rather than attempting to demand it, but you file that curiosity away for later. "I want to talk about the kiss I shared, but not to ask that you keep silent." Her gaze wordlessly asks that you continue and you do, "I made a mistake with Raoul. I failed to consider..." You hesitate a moment, finding yourself suddenly on uncertain footing. "...what impact my actions would have on the rest of the unit." You settle on after a moment.
You've learned to meet your mother's eyes without flinching even when she is at her angriest yet Julienne's sharpened emerald stare still nearly makes you look away for a moment. You force yourself to meet it, to match the intensity of the strategist's gaze with your own until she finally relents her tone becoming slightly whimsical, if no less threatening... "I am no mistress of romance, but surely if there is but one man sought after by many women, heartbreak becomes inevitable, does it not?" Your mouth goes dry as she looks at you as though her eyes alone could peel you open and reveal your intentions, "are you surrendering your claim?"
You've seen Julienne apply analysis and methodical strategy to many facets of her life beyond the battlefield, but while it's strange to look at from the outside, you are being reminded that for all those unusual behaviors it is terrifying to have that sort of mental focus pointed directly at you. For a moment your thoughts go to just spilling the beans and telling her everything. If you could get that mind directly on your side the possibilities would be... Well... But if she wasn't interested she'd be in position to mess up a lot of your efforts going forwards. She's so reserved with her emotions, I don't even know if she's interested in women the same way I am!
Your mind races furiously, what to do? What to say?
[ ] "Yes, at least for now." You can't tell her the whole story just yet, it's far too risky.
[ ] "Not quite." Be honest with her about your plan (such as it is) and hope she's willing to go along with it.
[ ] "No." Backtrack and cover it up! You know she won't buy it, but you can't afford to give her the wrong idea!
[ ] Grab her, kiss her, and hope for the best.
[ ] Write-in.
A/N: I will try to post the entire week's events at once, but in this case, the outcomes of this event have a lot of potential effects on the other two.
Sometimes bold action is necessary. Sometimes it will lead to ruin. Choose carefully.
