She shook her head gently. "Easy now." She says gently, placing her hand on the others shoulders. "That must have been very hard to learn." She mutters softly. Charlie hugged her and place a soft hand on her head. "It's hard to lose someone who is close to you."
Riverpaw returned the hug tightly, coughing out a quiet, muffled sob. "I-it was- I didn't just learn it, it happened r-right in front of me." She muttered. "S-some issue w-with a family feud and…my uncle did it…I-I invited him in. S-Stars, I'm so sorry, I-I can't- I can't think about it without..this happening." She pulled her face away and rubbed her eyes. "Ugh, sorry, I don't wanna mess up your dress."
"It's alright." She mutters, running a hand through her hair, listening to the sad story. She hugged the other gently before softly letting her go. "I am sorry that such an unfortunate thing happened to your family. She must have been a kind woman." She mutters, a look of concern in her eyes.
Sniffling a bit, she nodded, but finally rid her red face of tears. She placed a hand over the red crystal hanging from the silver string around her neck. "She gave me this on the s-same day. I hardly ever take it off." She sighed, taking a few breaths, then looked up worriedly at Charlie. "Sorry that I'm…I came over to help you because you were sad and n-now I'm crying over my own problems." She glanced at the school building. "And during Homecoming."
She smiled a little. "It is alright. I asked the questions." Charlie placed a soft hand on her shoulder. "Dances were never my thing." She replies, looking towards the building. "Maybe once would I go. But tonight is not a night for dancing." She smiled weakly.
"I guess not. It's kind of fun, though, w-when you're with someone."
Riverpaw blinked, realizing she was still clinging to Charlie, and she swallowed a lump in her throat. She didn't know this girl, and wasn't sure if she should back off by now, but the closeness made her feel better.
"That is true." She hummed softly to the tune that she heard before looking down at Riverpaw. She didn't mind supporting someone who needed help. Especially when that person offered her help when no one else did. She still swayed with the music, but she wasn't paying attention to the school music, she was humming her own. It sounded like a lullaby.
Riverpaw's ears caught the humming, and she smiled a little. "That's lovely." She said, resting her head against the other as they swayed. "What is it?"
I'm back! I'm dreadfully sorry about that!//
(Totally cool! Everything okay?)
She looked down at the other and smiled a little bit. "My mother sang it to me. She used to do so before I went to bed." Charlie looked up at the stars and continued to hum softly. She appeared to be rather relaxed.
Riverpaw giggled quietly. "My mommy would sing to me before bed, too. Sometimes, my sister and I would sing with her and we'd fall asleep in her arms." She took a deep breath and gazed up with Charlie, watching the other's face. The energy around them felt much better now.
Charlie smiled. "My brother and I were very close until he left with his fiancé. I never liked her. She was always so harsh towards me and my father, placing on a mask when my brother appeared." She sighed before smiling down at Riverpaw. "You're a very good dancer."
"T-thank you…um, so are you." She smiled back, unable to hide her happiness. She wasn't expecting to make any friends tonight, but it seemed like that's what was happening. She felt like she had been staring too long, so she blinked and looked at the sky, focusing on the brightest star she could see.
She hummed softly as she looked around before sighing happily. It was nice once, not being alone. She loved this. It had been the first time in ages that she had actually danced with someone. Charlie looked at the stars as well and smiles a little.
Riverpaw was going to say something else, but was interrupted by a familiar snicker from behind Charlie.
"Well, well, what have we here?" Riverpaw tensed and peeked past the tall girl to see Danielle standing there with a smirk on her face, her red dress seemingly glowing the same way her eyes did.
Charlie looked over and sighed softly. "Who let a rat out?" She looked rather annoyed that she had been interrupted of her perfect bliss. She barely gave Danielle a second look before looking at Riverpaw and mouthing, "It's okay. I'll keep you safe."
Riverpaw smiled at the gesture, then shook her head. "O-oh, no it's okay. She's my friend." She said. She hesitantly removed herself from the other's grasp and went over to the bunny girl, who instantly flung an arm over her shoulders.
"So, I see you're having fun." Danielle teased. Riverpaw laughed nervously, hiding her red face in the friend's arm. "Really, though, are you good? She's not some succubus that lured you to her, is she?"
"W-what?" Riverpaw looked up and glanced at Charlie. "No, Danielle. I noticed that she was sad, so I went and helped. She's been really nice to me."
"Uh-huh."
Charlie raised a brow before sighing as she watched them talk. "If anything I'm just human." She rolled her eyes says as she looked around. She didn't look pleased. She had preferred a quiet evening. not one that was interrupted. She looked around and brushed some of her hair out of her face. She shook her head and looked around with an almost annoyed expression.
Riverpaw watched Charlie for a moment, but her thoughts were interrupted by Danielle patting her head. "Didn't mean to interrupt, so, my bad. I'll leave you two be." She looked at Charlie as she hugged Riverpaw tightly. "You, take care of my baby."
Without another word, she kissed Riverpaw's cheek and ran back into the building.
Riverpaw sighed, looking up worriedly at Charlie. "Um, s-sorry about…her. You look upset now."
Charlie watched her go with a hand on her hip. "No, no. It's alright." She mutters quietly. She looked rather tired as she tried to relax as she looked around. She didn't feel like she was peaceful again. She glanced at her watch. "It's fine. I should probably be heading home." She mutters quietly.
Riverpaw tried to hide to the quiet whimper that came from her. Dang it, Danielle. She inhaled and hugged her arms. "O-okay. If you gotta… I'm probably going to call my s-sister, anyway." She silently watched the other for a few moments, then swallowed the lump in her throat. "I'm sorry if I..i-if Danielle messed this up. S-she's just a lot sometimes a-and I don't…y'know. S-so, sorry."
She smiled warmly. "Don't worry about it, River." Her Russian accent was thick and gentle. "And if you would like, I can give you a ride home." She says, her eyes sparkling in the starlight. She looked rather calm. "It is good that you have friends that care about you." She runs a hand through her hair before smiling at the other.
"Y-yeah, they can be a little much, though." Riverpaw muttered, though there was fondness in her voice. "But I do love them." She glanced at the building, then pulled her phone from one of the pockets in her dress and quickly checked the time before looking at Charlie. "A ride w-would be nice, but I don't want to bother you. I'm sure you want to get home as soon as possible." She caught herself staring once again.
Charlie shook her head. "It wouldn't bother me at all. My father isn't home. So I wouldn't mind." She offered a kind smile as she gazed down at the other. She tugs at her dress, making it a bit more comfortable. "So its not to bad." Charlie placed a hand on her hip.