For once, this hall was devoid of traffic, though people were beginning to appear in the adjacent areas. Ken simply looked on and ran, seeing little point in staying in one place.
To change the subject, Raine asked, "Would you mind if I watched you with Forte? Obviously, it's been a while since I was taught any self-defense." She wasn't going on kid herself on that; she didn't want a repeat of what that woman had done to her.
Sheena turned around and started walking backwards so she could see Raine a bit better, confident that she wouldn't hit anything as long as no one stupidly ran out in front of her. She blinked a little and cocked her head.
"Yeah... Like I'm going to tell you no when I'm teaching someone who may as well be the biggest baby ever. Who knows how much he'd wail if he stubbed his toe during training." She rolled her eyes. "I'm also really worried about him. Aside from the whole robot thing."
The ninja scratched the back of her neck. "I think he got a visitor or something. Did you see his rambling post about doppelgangers on the board?"
"Yes. Honestly, having had them a week ago, I'm still not certain what to think of them." She could have lived without seeing her "mother", but the child that looked like Genis... she just wanted to be there for him, true identities be damned.
"Though despite not being fully human, at least I had the advantage of keeping my real form... I can see why he would be so disoriented."
The ninja glanced back over her shoulder before looking back. "I dunno... Forte seems to think he might not be the real Forte because of this Wily guy." she said. "I... want to help but... well, I'm not sure what to do if he doesn't think he's the real him. It'd really suck if that was true and someone just stuck his memories in another body."
Sheena shivered at the thought. "I just creeped myself out."
"There's more to elven heritage than that, you know," Raine said dryly. "Really, it's the human blood I wouldn't miss." There were supposed to be certain advantages physically to being a half-elf; she supposed she wasn't quite as delicate as a full elf (she rarely got sick in any sense), but she was so used to pretending she didn't have any human blood at all that she mostly dismissed its influence on her.
As for the reference essentially to copies... she didn't want to think about it.
Sheena glared. "Of course there's more than that, but the ears are the part you hide." She sighed. "Okay, so not having your magic would really suck, so I'm glad you're still all elfy."
"I hide them because they're the most obvious sign I'm not a full elf," Raine pointed out. "If I were, this hairstyle wouldn't really conceal them." Her mother's ears were mostly hidden, yes, but they could be glimpsed occasionally when she moved. Raine and Genis' couldn't be, or at least not enough to determine anything.
"However, if I weren't half human, I likely would have never left Heimdall... and I never would have gotten interested in ruins." She smiled faintly. Without an interest in those--really, what would she be doing with her life?
"So... uh... I wanted to ask you your thoughts on something, but I swear to Luna that if you use it as a chance to treat me like a child, I will hurt you in interesting ways," Sheena said with a defensive glare.
Sheena added another glare just to punctuate her point. The her expression turned inward and she seemed a bit more like the lonely young woman that had originally tried to assassinate Colette, before they'd all become friends.
"So... umm... What do you think about the idea that friends are kinda the replacement for parents when a person's grown up?" Soubi had brought the concept up and it made sense to Sheena. She'd never known her parents, so she wasn't sure how to compare them, yet Raine had. Sure, the half-elf had been abandoned, but she did have a decent amount of years with her parents.
That was unexpected. Raine actually thought about it for a few moments before replying, "I can see some people doing that, but while most people do seem to equate close friends with family, considering them as something like parents seems unusual."
Honestly, she wasn't even very close to some of the people who had helped look after her when she and Genis first got to Iselia. She liked them, but fear had kept her from attaching much, and after that--she'd grown up enough to technically not need the help.
Sheena shook her head. "No, I don't mean an actual replacement, but more that friend fill that niche." She fell silent for a moment. "Like when thing happen and parents aren't in your life anymore..."
"...I can't say I did," Raine admitted quietly. She did have friends her age and older, but she almost preferred younger; it was just easier to be the parent than the child, for her.
For a lot of reasons, life would probably seem a lot easier when she was a few centuries old.
"No," Raine said firmly. "A lot of us may have pasts we regret, but that doesn't make us broken--at least, not beyond repair." She had been broken before, but she'd recovered, if slowly, for the most part. Not always the same as she had been, and she didn't like all the changes in herself that had resulted, but she refused to give up for good.
She had people to take care of here, and people waiting for her at home; having something to hold onto helped.
To change the subject, Raine asked, "Would you mind if I watched you with Forte? Obviously, it's been a while since I was taught any self-defense." She wasn't going on kid herself on that; she didn't want a repeat of what that woman had done to her.
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"Yeah... Like I'm going to tell you no when I'm teaching someone who may as well be the biggest baby ever. Who knows how much he'd wail if he stubbed his toe during training." She rolled her eyes. "I'm also really worried about him. Aside from the whole robot thing."
The ninja scratched the back of her neck. "I think he got a visitor or something. Did you see his rambling post about doppelgangers on the board?"
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"Though despite not being fully human, at least I had the advantage of keeping my real form... I can see why he would be so disoriented."
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The ninja glanced back over her shoulder before looking back. "I dunno... Forte seems to think he might not be the real Forte because of this Wily guy." she said. "I... want to help but... well, I'm not sure what to do if he doesn't think he's the real him. It'd really suck if that was true and someone just stuck his memories in another body."
Sheena shivered at the thought. "I just creeped myself out."
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As for the reference essentially to copies... she didn't want to think about it.
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"However, if I weren't half human, I likely would have never left Heimdall... and I never would have gotten interested in ruins." She smiled faintly. Without an interest in those--really, what would she be doing with her life?
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"Got that?"
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And hopefully Sheena knew better than to go to her with romance questions.
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"So... umm... What do you think about the idea that friends are kinda the replacement for parents when a person's grown up?" Soubi had brought the concept up and it made sense to Sheena. She'd never known her parents, so she wasn't sure how to compare them, yet Raine had. Sure, the half-elf had been abandoned, but she did have a decent amount of years with her parents.
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Honestly, she wasn't even very close to some of the people who had helped look after her when she and Genis first got to Iselia. She liked them, but fear had kept her from attaching much, and after that--she'd grown up enough to technically not need the help.
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For a lot of reasons, life would probably seem a lot easier when she was a few centuries old.
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"We're all a bunch of broken idiots, aren't we?" The question was barely audible and the ninja wasn't looking at Raine.
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She had people to take care of here, and people waiting for her at home; having something to hold onto helped.
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Sheena still didn't look at Raine as she peered around. "Let's hurry up."
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