[As much as he wants to point out that Elsa's logic doesn't really fly and Lup isn't psychic and can't tell who someone's into just by looking at them, he realises that probably wouldn't be productive in the slightest right now. He's not sure what WOULD be productive. He's not sure what he can do, or...
Okay. Marco takes a deep breath. He knows that his eagerness to offer help when, in fact, he's not sure he can provide any at all may be kind of a problem sometimes, but that doesn't mean it's a problem here! Heck, he's talked to a fake representation of his husband's ex-wife. He's kind of qualified.
But he's not a mind reader, is the thing. Although... Maybe he ought to remind Elsa that she isn't one, either?]
No, no, I know. I can tell. I mean... Because you're telling me all this. I-I can assure you it's not obvious. [Gotta reassure her, since obviously she's pretty worried about that.]
But... We can't really be sure she's joking, now can we?
[Look, Elsa's logic is usually better than this, and looking back on this conversation she might feel a little embarrassed at how she's reaching, but... in the moment, when that knot in her chest is clenching like a vice and all her insecurities are flaring up in a way that they haven't since her coronation... it's hard to get a grip on her thundercloud of thoughts.
Except... what he says makes her brows furrow, and she looks up from her worrying hands back to him.]
[Is... is it bad to assume that? Elsa knows she's sheltered, that many people here are from times far in the future to her, that her idea of romance and marriage are.... very separate... but that at least is something that should be a given, right???]
If someone's married, why would they flirt with someone else? They... they have their spouse. They have no need to try and attract anyone else.
Well... [He nods, more to acknowledge her point than exactly to agree with it.] By that logic, why would they flirt as a joke? If their spouse doesn't like it, it doesn't really matter what the intention is. So, I mean... I'm guessing Barry doesn't have a problem with it.
[His hands gesticulate with every other word. All the nervous energy from trying to put together an argument that'll hopefully help Elsa has to go somewhere.]
And maybe... Mind you, I'm not sure... But maybe they have that kind of open relationship going on.
[It's funny, how both their nervous energy can be seen most with their hands. But while Marco flails around, Elsa fidgets nonstop, pressing her palms together or twisting up her fingers. But that little tic pauses, and now she looks more confused than worried.]
[Oh man. Marco hasn't ever given any thought to be BEING in an open relationship, but... Elsa doesn't even know what that means, does she?]
An open relationship. [Some more gesticulating. Some pursing of the lips.] Some couples are... They mutually agree that they're free to see other people.
[It's... certainly odd. But when Elsa thinks about it... that was sort of a thing in her time, wasn't it? Marriages among royals were much more often than not made for political reasons, and it wasn't unheard of for one or both spouses to take a lover on the side. But with Lup and Barry... they love each other. With an incredible intensity that even Elsa could see it, whenever she comes to help with the farm. It's unfair to compare them to that. To compare them to that... she feels kind of bad.]
That would explain why Lup acts like that. [Still... she doesn't look too reassured.] I... I still don't think I should ever let her find out about this, though.
[Blame her parents and their encouragement of damaging coping methods with bad emotions!]
It's... [Again, she wars with the urge to clam up and the desire to talk. She shouldn't talk about this, she just has to deal with it...! But no. Elsa's never been a very emotionally strong person, and eventually she crumbles.] I can't let her know, because if what you say is true about this "open relationship"... I can't let myself reciprocate. Because of my responsibilities.
[... Right. She's only ever told Lup and Juno about her title. Good thing their conversation has already been all kinds of awkward; one more dramatic reveal certainly can't make things worse, can it?]
In my own world... in Arendelle, I was its queen. [A pause, as she lets that sink in.] And as queen, there are certain... expectations. I'm expected to marry a man of high birth, a king or a prince. I'm expected to have children with him, to have an heir continue the royal line.
[Technically she could make her sister her heir, but that would eventually put that duty on Anna, and after seeing her relationship with Lorna, and their wedding... Elsa could never do that to her.]
A true relationship... it was never in the cards for me.
[Even before she realized her attraction to women, she never really entertained the idea of a true romantic relationship. It was a nice fantasy, of course, but between her issues with her powers and her problems getting close to people, Elsa never seriously thought that fantasy could ever be a reality. And now...]
[Even in the context of this conversation, both mundane enough to feel familiar to Marco and personal enough to feel ever so slightly awkward, the revelation that he's been talking to royalty makes his train of thought get lost for a moment. Not even just royalty, but an actual queen. A queen running a small shop. A CEO working as a coder and secretary in a small workshop. Familiarity, sympathy, a dash of wait-no-I-have-no-idea-what-that's-like--
It's this short derail that likely makes him blurt out, before anything else:] Oh, I'm-- I'm sorry. I didn't know.
[But then the rest of his brain starts catching up, and he furrows his brow.]
[That apology manages to get a laugh out of Elsa. It sounds a bit strained, but the slight twitch at the corners of her mouth is proof that it's at least genuine, if a bit buried under everything else Elsa is currently feeling right now.]
No, it's fine. I haven't told many people, simply because... it was easier, if nobody knew.
[But that's another issue for another day. Because his next words.... mmm. She'd lie if that thought hadn't very briefly crossed her mind during all of this, but still... she shakes her head.]
But I can't stay here forever. I... I don't know if I want to. I love the friends I've made here, and the life I've settled into [people-eating aside of course] is bearable... but someday, if we can ever find a way to return home... I will be going back to Arendelle.
If.... if I let myself fall into a relationship here... it will have to end, when I return home. And I'm not sure I could bear it.
[Elsa is a person who hated herself for a long time. She had no love for herself, for her powers, for anything about her own life. To let someone in who can love her, who chooses to love her and who can make her feel good about herself, only to have to cut those ties because of tradition... that would hurt just as badly as her forced separation from Anna had.]
[It's a quiet sound; the sound of someone who hadn't thought of this at all, despite it seeming so obvious once it's out there. Marco is married now not only because he loves Fiddleford, but also because he doesn't think he can or will return home. How could he, the way he is now? He doesn't have it in him to run a company anymore. Maybe he shouldn't even be allowed to.
But if Elsa wants to go home...]
... Maybe you wouldn't have to go alone. Although-- Although I guess that still wouldn't let you... [Wait. He looks straight at her.] Why do you have to marry a man? If you're the queen, can't you just change the rules?
[Elsa would be lying if she said she hadn't thought about that before. Not in relation to all of this, of course, but when she was first coronated, back when she still had to keep her powers a secret, she thought that she might be able to go against her father's orders. She was the queen! But...]
I can't... the family line has to continue somehow. If I don't do it, Anna will have to, and the last thing I want is for that duty to fall to her.
Will she? I guess... Unless you instituted a democracy, or... [He's already trailing off before he can even finish the thought, because part of him acknowledges that casually suggesting a political revolution in Elsa's home might be kind of out there.
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Okay. Marco takes a deep breath. He knows that his eagerness to offer help when, in fact, he's not sure he can provide any at all may be kind of a problem sometimes, but that doesn't mean it's a problem here! Heck, he's talked to a fake representation of his husband's ex-wife. He's kind of qualified.
But he's not a mind reader, is the thing. Although... Maybe he ought to remind Elsa that she isn't one, either?]
No, no, I know. I can tell. I mean... Because you're telling me all this. I-I can assure you it's not obvious. [Gotta reassure her, since obviously she's pretty worried about that.]
But... We can't really be sure she's joking, now can we?
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Except... what he says makes her brows furrow, and she looks up from her worrying hands back to him.]
... What? You think she's serious?
[HAHA, GOOD ONE....]
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[He may be encroaching on personal territory with this question, but maybe it would help to ask...]
Why exactly are you sure she's only joking? Is it because she's married?
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[Is... is it bad to assume that? Elsa knows she's sheltered, that many people here are from times far in the future to her, that her idea of romance and marriage are.... very separate... but that at least is something that should be a given, right???]
If someone's married, why would they flirt with someone else? They... they have their spouse. They have no need to try and attract anyone else.
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[His hands gesticulate with every other word. All the nervous energy from trying to put together an argument that'll hopefully help Elsa has to go somewhere.]
And maybe... Mind you, I'm not sure... But maybe they have that kind of open relationship going on.
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A what?
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An open relationship. [Some more gesticulating. Some pursing of the lips.] Some couples are... They mutually agree that they're free to see other people.
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[It's... certainly odd. But when Elsa thinks about it... that was sort of a thing in her time, wasn't it? Marriages among royals were much more often than not made for political reasons, and it wasn't unheard of for one or both spouses to take a lover on the side. But with Lup and Barry... they love each other. With an incredible intensity that even Elsa could see it, whenever she comes to help with the farm. It's unfair to compare them to that. To compare them to that... she feels kind of bad.]
That would explain why Lup acts like that. [Still... she doesn't look too reassured.] I... I still don't think I should ever let her find out about this, though.
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[Dang, Elsa, you don't make this easy, thinks Marco Evangelisti to himself, hypocritically.
Another nod of acknowledgement. He gets where she's coming from, really, but he still thinks it's best to keep talking her through this.]
I'm not saying you should run out and tell her right now... But why are you afraid of her finding out? Especially if she's flirting on purpose.
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It's... [Again, she wars with the urge to clam up and the desire to talk. She shouldn't talk about this, she just has to deal with it...! But no. Elsa's never been a very emotionally strong person, and eventually she crumbles.] I can't let her know, because if what you say is true about this "open relationship"... I can't let myself reciprocate. Because of my responsibilities.
[there she said it]
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His drink has doubtlessly gone cold by now, but that's fine by him.]
What... responsibilities?
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In my own world... in Arendelle, I was its queen. [A pause, as she lets that sink in.] And as queen, there are certain... expectations. I'm expected to marry a man of high birth, a king or a prince. I'm expected to have children with him, to have an heir continue the royal line.
[Technically she could make her sister her heir, but that would eventually put that duty on Anna, and after seeing her relationship with Lorna, and their wedding... Elsa could never do that to her.]
A true relationship... it was never in the cards for me.
[Even before she realized her attraction to women, she never really entertained the idea of a true romantic relationship. It was a nice fantasy, of course, but between her issues with her powers and her problems getting close to people, Elsa never seriously thought that fantasy could ever be a reality. And now...]
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It's this short derail that likely makes him blurt out, before anything else:] Oh, I'm-- I'm sorry. I didn't know.
[But then the rest of his brain starts catching up, and he furrows his brow.]
... This isn't Arendelle, though. Right?
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No, it's fine. I haven't told many people, simply because... it was easier, if nobody knew.
[But that's another issue for another day. Because his next words.... mmm. She'd lie if that thought hadn't very briefly crossed her mind during all of this, but still... she shakes her head.]
But I can't stay here forever. I... I don't know if I want to. I love the friends I've made here, and the life I've settled into [people-eating aside of course] is bearable... but someday, if we can ever find a way to return home... I will be going back to Arendelle.
If.... if I let myself fall into a relationship here... it will have to end, when I return home. And I'm not sure I could bear it.
[Elsa is a person who hated herself for a long time. She had no love for herself, for her powers, for anything about her own life. To let someone in who can love her, who chooses to love her and who can make her feel good about herself, only to have to cut those ties because of tradition... that would hurt just as badly as her forced separation from Anna had.]
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[It's a quiet sound; the sound of someone who hadn't thought of this at all, despite it seeming so obvious once it's out there. Marco is married now not only because he loves Fiddleford, but also because he doesn't think he can or will return home. How could he, the way he is now? He doesn't have it in him to run a company anymore. Maybe he shouldn't even be allowed to.
But if Elsa wants to go home...]
... Maybe you wouldn't have to go alone. Although-- Although I guess that still wouldn't let you... [Wait. He looks straight at her.] Why do you have to marry a man? If you're the queen, can't you just change the rules?
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I can't... the family line has to continue somehow. If I don't do it, Anna will have to, and the last thing I want is for that duty to fall to her.
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He sighs.]
You could adopt a child. Could you adopt?