(Untitled)

[bondingalchemy]

Who: Sabine and Vent.
What: A Talk.
When: August 18th, evening.
Where: Cartias Bar and Grill, Hyperion.

Comments

[guardian_wind]

"Hi there, Agent Alshire?"

And suddenly Vent appeared, sitting down next to Sabine. He didn't order a drink, but he still sat at the bar.

"I won't mince words. What are you doing here again?"

[bondingalchemy]

"Huh?" Sabine lifted her head up again and she blinked blearily to focus on Vent.

And suddenly, she sat straight up, but ended up slumping again.

"Just having a drink or two, Vice Commander. That's all."

[guardian_wind]

"But why are you having a drink?" replied Vent, frowning. "Are you just going to pour your regrets into that glass?"

[bondingalchemy]

"You may see it as weak, Vice Commander, but... I'm trying everything I can to keep it together, so turning to the bottle seems to be the best thing to do," she sighed, sipping down the whiskey when it was delivered to her.

[guardian_wind]

Vent blinked... and sighed, shaking his head.

"Sabine. Let me tell you something, alright?" he said. "For a while... a friend of mine was missing. And I did... close what you're doing now. Oh, I didn't drink but... I drove myself to the point of obsession. Dracomon ended up Dark Evolving, and I became the kind of person I'd meant to fight..."

He sighed again.

"It doesn't end there, either..."

[bondingalchemy]

Sabine listened as Vent explained what he did as she stared at the glass in front of her. Another sip of it later and she sighed.

"I haven't had many vices to lean on, and I hate to worry my family over my things, so.. I'm trying to keep it in, I guess... but please, feel free to go ahead."

[guardian_wind]

"... there was someone here several months ago. A girl I'd come to see as my sister. She was from a world like mine, only different. And for a bit... it looked like she had died. I nearly made the same mistakes, but... I came to, and it turns out she'd just been sent home."

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"In those cases, Sabine, I just got lucky. My loved ones ended up okay. But... I decided I couldn't use that to excuse my actions. I made a mistake acting the way I did. Giving into sorrow, getting upset... it's the same for any problem, really. And I'm guessing you saw a lot of troubles when you got back, too, am I right?"

Vent put a hand on her shoulder.

"Sabine, we're both soldiers, and we both got taught harsh lessons by the battlefield. We've done things we're not proud of. But in cases like this... you need to have faith that not only will your friends carry on, but so will you. We're all in this together, aren't we? It doesn't matter what world we're from... we're all in the same situation."

[bondingalchemy]

Sabine listened to Vent's words as the memories of what she did in the military came into her head. She was barked at so much for orders upon orders, was forced to do things that she didn't want to do and make decisions that she didn't want. Her hand went on top on Vent's own, bowing her head slightly.

"Yeah... can I confide in you for something, Vent... er, Vice Commander?"

[guardian_wind]

"Go right ahead, Sabine," Vent replied. "I don't mind."

[bondingalchemy]

Sabine let out a hard sigh as she bowed her head

[guardian_wind]

Vent listened to this quietly, and frowned.

"Let me ask you something, Sabine. What you did... do you think you had to do it, or did you do it out of vengeance?"

[bondingalchemy]

Sabine let out a hard sigh at that and she closed her eyes.

"At first, I thought it was out of vengeance due to how Horatio, an innocent bystander, got hurt, but... if I had continued to let them live, then... things would have spiraled out of control even more, so... I guess I had to do it."

[guardian_wind]

"... Sabine, I say I have to disagree. In dealing with dissidents, to go so far... that's a bit too much."

He shook his head.

"But it's also something you can atone for. I know for a fact what it's like on the battlefield. I've felt that urge too many times. It's a demon Sabine, but... a demon you can't overcome by going to lesser vices..."

[bondingalchemy]

"I honestly thought that I committed a great sin by taking a life of someone else, so... I, for a while, took a vacation back to Xenotime to mentally heal..."

She frowned more and sighed.

"... so, then, what do you suggest to do?"

[guardian_wind]

"... Stop drinking, and stop feeling sorry for yourself. Live every day, trying to make up for it. Talk to Greg, but don't rush into things... be a mother to those two kids of yours. I'm still trying to figure out how to be a parent, really, and Royce has problems of his own..."

He shook his head. "Basically, live. You can't... keep going from crisis to crisis with a bandage on every problem. Going on vacation, anything really... you need to do something decisive."

[bondingalchemy]

Sabine nodded while Vent's words wrapped around her.

"It's hard discarding a way of thinking, but... I can try. I... haven't lost my humanity, have I?" She questioned, sniffling slightly.