<div style="text-align: justify;">Marissa really didn’t feel like there was anything wrong with Nanook’s behavior. She liked him, and felt that he liked her and wanted to help her. It might be a very odd way of helping, but he had indeed helped her. She was, now, in charge of her own fate again. <br/><br/>Shaking her head when Nanook asked her if she would like to see a wagging tail, Marissa couldn’t help but laugh. “You do know that some people are born with something similar to a tail, right? But I don’t know if they wag it…”, she commented, laughing at the breaks between words. A bit more serious, Marissa nodded when Nanook told her she could just machine wash his suit. “I’ll take a look at it when I get home”, Marissa promised. “I wouldn’t want it to be ruined, so I’ll see what can be done. But don’t worry, I won’t take too long. I’m really looking forward to going somewhere nice with you”. <br/><br/>Smiling when Nanook caught her hint about a hug, Marissa hugged him back. Her smile was a lot gentler than him, but that was just to be expected. Marissa was a kindly soul, and had just become a werewolf, so it would probably take some time for her to pick up on some traits she would eventually develop. The nose rub made Marissa’s smile grow a little wider. It was clear that she was enjoying it. When Nanook told her that the name ‘Eskimo kisses’ for that was wrong, she smiled. “I hope that doesn’t mean we can’t do this again. I have to confess I like it”, the girl replied, repeating that ‘Eskimo kiss’ after her words. <br/><br/>Allowing Nanook to kiss her properly, Marissa stood on her tiptoes, her hands resting on his shoulders. She didn’t think much, but it felt very natural and easy to kiss Nanook like this. <br/><br/>After the kiss, Marissa took a long and deep breath, trying to steel herself for the moments ahead. She wasn’t too comfortable with the idea of talking about her past again, but not because she didn’t trust Nanook. It was because those were very painful memories she would have liked to forget. <br/><br/>After her deep breath and removing her shoes to get more comfortable, Marissa waited for Nanook to join her, noticing his initiative in getting them water. She might as well need it after speaking. <br/><br/>Marissa didn’t mind the sound of the fans, and she was used to being all right in any kind of environment. And, small as she was, Marissa felt cold easily, so it was perfectly fine for her to be at an environment without air conditioning. “Don’t worry, it’s okay”, she replied quietly. Even if it wasn’t, Marissa wouldn’t have complained. She never did, to be honest. <br/><br/>Keeping silent for a moment, Marissa sighed and laid on Nanook’s bed, choosing the best position she could find. Closing her eyes for a few seconds just to think about what she would say, Marissa finally started speaking, her voice quiet and soft. <br/><br/>While she spoke, Marissa kept her arms over Nanook’s, so he wouldn’t feel like he had to let her go at any point. Shaking her head when Nanook offered to turn some music on, Marissa sighed. “Thank you, but no. I just need you here”, she replied quietly. Feeling Nanook play with her hair helped Marissa relax, and when she started speaking, the young woman sounded a little calmer.<br/><br/>“All right. I’m sorry if there are… holes in my story, but there are things I actually don’t remember”, she explained, before starting. “I was born in a small town down South. Really small, it was mostly farmhouses. It was a nice place”. Marissa paused and smiled to herself. She really missed living in a small town and spending more time with animals than with people. Shaking her head, Marissa carried on. “My father… went away, or passed away, I’m not really sure, when I was very little. He simply wasn’t there anymore and I… I didn’t ask too many questions. After he left, my mother was always angry and impatient”. Marissa frowned a little and continued speaking. “After my father left or died, things started getting harder and harder. We were never rich, but it got more complicated when it became only the two of us. I didn’t know how to do much, and I was too young to be of help, and she was so mad at me all the time…”. Another sigh, and she carried on. “I will confess that my memory is sort of hazy about the next years. It was a pretty dull life, until I was fourteen. She was always… yelling at me, sometimes she would hit me when she was too angry, and I kind of… got used to it, I guess. After a while, I didn’t care all that much”. The girl swallowed hard. “I… that was when the farm house caught on fire. I didn’t know… I don’t know how it started, but it did. We were asleep. I don’t really know what caused it. It might have been a candle, or a faulty wire, I can’t really tell. All I know is that I barely had time to run out of the house. My mother… didn’t. I still saw her, upstairs - I slept downstairs -, screaming, and… asking for help”. <br/><br/>Another deep breath was taken during a break. “I didn’t try to get back in. I was afraid, and… she had been pretty horrible to me in the past years, so… I feel horrible saying that, but I didn’t want to try”. She paused again and closed her eyes. “I confess I… felt kind of… not happy, but relieved when she…”. Marissa stopped, unable to complete the sentence. “I think that was when I started… breaking, splitting myself in two… I think that’s when she was born”. Marissa broke her narrative again, and then turned to face Nanook. “Should I go on, or do you think I’m a horrible person and would want me to go away?”, she asked, quietly.</div>