[log] Mizuki, Shiiba
Date: [backdated] 10.22.05
Rating: G
Summary: A random meeting between Mizuki and Shiiba. :D
The library was quite possibly the most underused room in the Brotherhood manor. Which really, was a shame. Though it was not an institution's library, by any means, and nothing like the expansive rows of shelves Shiiba had known at Ryuhana or even at her university, it was a comfortable room. The walls were filled, floor to ceiling, with shelf after shelf over books. Each book had been hand-selected, screened, and left on the shelves in a chaotic order. It wasn't a very bright room, though what lighting it did had was newer than the building.
Shiiba had made herself comfortable in the a large, overstuffed chair situated near the back corner hours earlier. Dressed in nothing more than a pair of calf-length sweats and a simple tank top, the young woman's laptop was perched on her knees. Her hair was pulled up, twisted around two hair sticks; large chunks stuck up at odd angles. Music played softly from the laptop's speaker, and the only other noise was the clickity-clack of her bright red nails as they danced across the keys. Hitting enter, she settled back in the chair and slide her finger over the glide, watching the webpage scroll.
Brown eyes narrowed as she read. Another anti-mutant policy, though not in Japan, fortunately. But they were still cropping up more and more. She clicked another link, following the maze of stories and half-truths that humans called 'journalism,' and she knew as propaganda. Reaching over, she picked up her cup of tea from a nearby table and took a sip.
"Oh damn," she grimaced, spitting it back out just as quickly. Cold Earl Grey. "Ew." With a small sigh, she held out her other hand and concentrated. A small flicker of energy bubbled out of her palm, them formed into a small, orange-and-red swirling ball. This, she dropped into the cup and swirled with her finger. The water heated to a temperature she could drink. With a smile, she plucked out the bubble and let it reabsorb into her skin.
He didn't know why, but Mizuki had taken a liking to the readings that were available in the little Brotherhood Library. Maybe because quite a few of them were outdated, and thus ridiculously amusing, but others were full of anger and violent human emotions that were intriguing, if not utterly foreign to him. And maybe he liked the books because he was finding himself taking so many odd naps during the day that he often couldn't sleep at night.
Brushing his hair from his eyes, Mizuki scanned the shelves casually, looking for anything that caught his eye. Turning the corner, he nearly jumped, seeing a lovely young lady he had never seen before. Smiling slightly, he cleared his throat, hoping not to surprise her. Wasn't it his lucky day, to find someone here of all places.
Shiiba paused in her typing and glanced in the direction of a cough, large brown eyes blinking her surprise. She was normally left alone in the back corner of the library -- which suited her just fine. However, this was a school, of a sort, and schools meant students wandering about.
Though just what one was doing in the library…? Shiiba shrugged, mentally, because who could really figure students out?
Instead, the brown-haired woman donned a bright smile for the young man who lurked near the corner of the shelves. "Hello, there," she said cheerily. "May I help you with something?"
Perfect. The woman seemed friendly, and rather welcoming. Smiling sweetly, Mizuki shook his head, moving a little closer to be polite. "Ah, no, actually. I was just surprised so see someone here.. Not many of us appreciate this Library, I'm afraid.." Mizuki kept his voice low and soft, something trusting and soothing to the ears. He had to play it careful, for if he overdid it, he might lose an ally before he could manage to earn her trust. "Do you come here often?"
Shiiba's smile brightened just marginally, if only because his last line was one she heard entirely too often -- even it was normally in a different context. However, this was a teenage mutant before her, not some thirty-something with a bad comb over. She could tolerate what sounded like a really bad pick-up line from someone his age. Reaching up to brush a stray piece of hair behind her ears, she replied, "I'm not used to seeing people here either. Such a shame." She pouted and shrugged. "It's such a nice, quiet part of the house."
Reclining in her chair, Shiiba absently minimized the window she's be studying. "I'm in here as often as I can be. It's so much nicer than any of the offices. Of course, you students don’t have to worry about that," she added as an afterthought.
"Offices? Oh, are you not a student here? I wouldn't have guessed." Mizuki eyed the chair across from her for a moment before sitting down with a little smile, hoping she wouldn't mind. He brushed his hair back, twirling a dark strand between his fingers for a moment. She had been studying something, and seemed very alert to her surroundings. He wondered just what she could do.
"Ah, my name is Mizuki Hajime. And you are?"
A student? Shiiba giggled lightly at the idea. She hadn't been a student at the Brotherhood's institution for a couple of years now, but it was flattering that anyone might think so. "Oh no, I’m on the staff, " Shiiba replied. Though exactly what she did around the school…well. The students really didn't need to think of her as anything more that Sakaki-san's secretary, and their occasional tutor. Brown eyes never wavered from the young man as he sat across from her. He had a delicate air about him, fine boned hands and curly hair.
However, Shiiba was well aware that the most delicate of mutants could also be the most deadly. It was an irony the bubbly young woman appreciated. At his name, she furrowed her brow and pondered the student records she'd dug through a few days ago. The young man across from her wasn't a physical -- obvious without even looking at the records -- but she couldn't recall offhand what his ability was. She made a mental note to look it up again later.
Putting that thought aside, she replied, "Shiiba Saori. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Ah, someone with more power than his bumbling classmates. She would be a good ally to have, especially since she would most likely know more of the inner workings of the Brotherhood. Smiling softly, Mizuki bowed his head. "The pleasure is mine."
He pondered for a moment what approach to take with her and decided it'd be too much to turn on the charm so early in the game. So he settled for comfortable, trustful and intriguing. "The library is such a nice place to get work done. I've been doing research into the older theories of human evolution and that kind of thing. Fascinatingly out of date, I must say.. What, may I ask, strikes your interest, Shiiba-san?"
"Oh, like Darwin?" Shiiba asked with a small smile. Truthfully, her interests had never meandered into that particular direction. Evolution was all good and well, but all that she had gotten out of it was 'survival of the fittest.' And really, what more did she need? Inclining her head slightly, Shiiba raised one hand and tapped a brightly polished nail against her lip. "I really haven't looked through many of the books, to be honest. I just like it back here because it's so quiet. Though if the books are out of date, then they really wouldn't be of much interest to me anyway. I tend to prefer philosophy and current events," she explained. "Politics, new medical and technological discoveries. Things like that."
She considered reopening her laptop and continuing to skim the article that had just caught her eye, but that would be rude to the young man across from her. Instead, she rested her other hand on the cover of the small computer and pondered exactly how to engage him. After all, he was a student at the facility, and part of her responsibility was keeping a watchful over their activities. Thus, it could never hurt to be on good terms with them.
Though…there were a few exceptions to that plan already.
"So, Mizuki-kun," she said, settling on a neutral topic. "How are your classes and training sessions going?"
"Politics? How fascinating.." he murmured just slightly at her topics, not really finding any of it very interesting. Modern politics were just repeats of the past mistakes and obviously, when he would do a much, much better job at ruling the world, he had little care for the ideas of those standing in his way.
"Ah, training..." Truth be told, it was more than a little irritating. But he wasn't about to let her know everything that bothered him--that would give away too many of the weaknesses that seemed to be springing up like wild flowers. "Ma, its going, I suppose. I am finding my own personal goals and the goals of the professors here to be very, very different. While I'm very aware of the need to expand my skills, I am not quite sure if expanding them in certain directions really benefits me in any way. And I haven't had a current.. ah, difficulty worked out yet, so at the moment, I seem to be going at a rather flat pace." He paused, tipping his head to the side with a smile. "Do you partake in training as well, Shiiba-san?"
Shiiba could recognize the tone of casual disinterest easily enough, but really, she hadn't expected her fascination with political tête-tes to be shared by many. Pity, so far as she was concerned; the Machiavellian manipulations politicians put themselves through for small gains were hilarious to the young woman. But perhaps more so, a keen awareness of the structures that humans planned to put in place gave her leverage when it came to undermining them.
That, however, was an argument for another time.
Instead, she listened attentively to the young man across from her and quickly ticked off a few things that caught her attention. His self interest, for one thing, was useful, but potentially troublesome. "Training is quite possibly the worst part of having a mutant ability," she offered with a small sigh of sympathy. "But, who knows? Maybe the skills the doctors want you to work on would also be useful to you in their own way." Shiiba shrugged, then rolled her eyes thoughtfully. "After all, we mutants have to be able to adapt to anything and pushing ourselves and our powers in new directions is the best way to do it. And yes, I train." She laughed. "Self-directed, for the most part."
"I suppose.." he murmured, not willing to give in just yet and agree with his foolish instructors. As far as he was concerned, they had little idea about just who they were dealing with and if he really wanted to, he could take them all over. But that would just be foolish. And he didn't mind the idea of having one more talent to use against anyone who got in his way.
"Oh? How dedicated." He was devilishly curious to find out just what she did, and had much less of a chance to see her in action if she wasn't a student. Smiling softly, he tried a bit more of a convincing tone, hoping to loosen her up. "Just what is it that you do?"
Shiiba was an amicable person by nature, and already forthright about her mutant power, but a small nudge every now and then didn't hurt. "I blow things up," she answered automatically, her smile cheery and light. The exchange of information on mutations was almost a custom, right after name, age and status. To prove her point, she extended her hand and shifted her focus. The palm seemed to ripple as the plasma-based energy took shape into a very small orb that floated just about her outstretched hand. "With these." Dark brown eyes traversed the room, and found nothing suitable for a target. Pouting, she pondered letting the small, self-generated explosive go off mid-air.
But where was the fun in that.
Sighing, she refocused and let the orb sink back into her skin. It stung a bit more going in than it had going out -- she never felt anything when she generated them -- but it was a mild sensation for such a small little flare. Setting her arm back down, she turned her attention back to the young man. "It's not that much, really," Shiiba confessed with a small shrug, then winked, "but it's lots of fun. How about you, Mizuki-kun?"
Mizuki's eyebrows rose with appreciation--for being able to 'blow things up', Shiiba-san's powers manifested themselves rather elegantly. She seemed rather adept at controlling the balls of energy, and Mizuki had a feeling she could do quite a bit more than make that size of orb. He noticed the slight look of discomfort in her eyes as she reabsorbed the energy (quite a fascinating trick!) and wondered just how painful it could become.
"Me?" He blinked for a moment, not sure how he should go about answering. He had been giving himself away quite easily recently, but too many of those he had talked to were interested in his own story, rather than preoccupied with their own troubles. He couldn't help being so very intriguing, however, so he just had to learn to get used to it.
Smiling slightly, he kept it simple. "Voice Augmentation. Nothing too exciting, I'm afraid..." and if she wanted to know more, he would answer her accordingly. But only if she asked the right questions. He had to keep some sort of mystery, didn't he?
"Voice augmentation?" Shiiba repeated, blinking. Well, Mizuki-kun had said that it wasn't exciting. Though that was a rather broad power description, as it could be everything from altering one's voice to match certain pitches on to altering one's own sonic wavelengths. None of which sounded really interesting to Shiiba, but she would admit that she a bit biased towards flashy powers. Her own notwithstanding.
She gave no indication of this on her features however, instead tilting her head to one side and looking a bit curious. It wasn't like she couldn't just look up the details. Honestly, if most of the boys knew half of what was in their files…but they didn't. And she did.
Funny, that.
"Mmm…it doesn't have to be exciting, so long as you can make use of it, Mizuki-kun," she decided aloud. Stroking her chin with one nail, she added "What's your trainer having you do that so unpleasant for you?" Because, in hindsight, she had realized that most of what her instructors at Ryuhana had wanted her to do wasn't nearly as bad as she thought, though in the end, it also hadn't been enough.
She was a clever one, oh yes. Mizuki could tell she was curious--who wasn't, after all? Wasn't he just the most fascinating thing on the planet?--but she kept a cool face. She was probably playing on his ego (not that he had a big one or anything), waiting for him to say something. Which was exactly why he wasn't going to give out many details. Oh no, he had her figured out.
"Ah, that. They're insisting on me using my talents in a way that is quite far from what I ever imagined doing. They've got quite a.. ah..focus on the more violent, destructive qualities than can be achieved, instead of the finer points of subtly that I enjoy. I can't help that its not my style, you know."
His…style?
If it wouldn't have been completely impolite of her, Shiiba probably would have laughed. Instead, she held the giggle-fit that threatened to burst forth from her lips neatly in place. Only a small brightening of her eyes gave any outward indication of her amusement to the idea.
"That's their job, Mizuki-kun," she replied patiently. "To push you and your power into new directions that you wouldn't think of on your own. As for the 'destructive' qualities..." She trailed off, pausing. Her own powers were very outward, flashy -- and yes, dangerous, when she put her mind to it; conversely, her original training at Ryuhana had been completely directed towards controlling and suppressing them. Even though she didn't like to think back to the time when she was first recruited to the Brotherhood's side, she had to admit that the extremist measures better suited her. There was something about cutting loose with her power that was, for her, exhilarating.
It was hard to imagine someone else not enjoying it.
"I don't suppose you've noticed that Brotherhood isn't exactly benign, have you? I mean, there's a time to be subtle, yes." Blowing up a building was only a good idea if the right people were in it, and that sort of information required the right contacts, which meant she had to be trusted and seemingly harmless. "But when it comes down to it, you need to learn to balance the two. Besides," a small shrug, "powers change, Mizuki-kun. Right now, your power may be better geared towards subtly, but a future development in it might change that at any time, no matter what your own tastes dictate. We're mutants," she grinned. "We evolve all the time."
Mizuki felt a pout coming on and suppressed it, looking down to pick some lint off his pants. It wasn't like he didn't know all that-- he was practically a genius, after all, and the goals of the Brotherhood were quite clear to him. But that didn't mean he had to like it. And wasn't he supposed to know himself better than everyone else? He didn't like the idea of being lectured by someone who was only a few years older.
"Mmm, I suppose so." he murmured, not supposing at all. It really didn't do to listen to other people sometimes--they didn't know what they were talking about after all. "I guess I'll just have to keep at it, mm?" He chuckled slightly, shaking off the annoyance to play the gracious loser. He could play it so well sometimes, even though he felt like throwing a fit. But those only worked back in middle school. And how well they worked...
"Sounds like it," Shiiba acceded with a nod. She shifted in her chair, uncrossing her ankles and pulling one knee on top of the other. The laptop teetered as she moved, but she held it in place with the palm of her hand. She could hear the disinterest in the younger mutant's tone, but well…teenagers, right? It wasn't like she'd cared much for advice when she'd been his age.
Oh well. His choice, she thought. She couldn't force any of them to do anything that they didn't want to -- even to listen.
Instead, she leaned the laptop on the floor next to her chair and stretched her arms overhead. "I'm sure you'll do great," she told him with a bright smile. "Just keep trying."
"Ah, I shall." Mizuki smiled, truly intending to keep trying. Trying at what, well.. that was a different story entirely. Running a hand through his hair, he caught sight of his watch and blinked. The time had past very quickly, and he had a few things to do before another set of training.
"I'm afraid I'll have to call this meeting short... Training that I must work very hard at is approaching." Smirking slightly, he bowed his head toward her. "I hope we can continue another time?"
Meeting? That earned Mizuki a delighted tittered from the young mutant woman. Well, he certainly was adorable in his own, narcissistic kind of way. "Of course, Mizuki-kun," she agreed, giving him a playful wink. "Nothing should get between you and your training, after all."
Her eyes stayed fixed on the teen until he disappeared behind the bookshelves. Shaking her head, mostly in amusement, Shiiba flipped open her laptop and refreshed the webpage she'd been studying.
Rating: G
Summary: A random meeting between Mizuki and Shiiba. :D
The library was quite possibly the most underused room in the Brotherhood manor. Which really, was a shame. Though it was not an institution's library, by any means, and nothing like the expansive rows of shelves Shiiba had known at Ryuhana or even at her university, it was a comfortable room. The walls were filled, floor to ceiling, with shelf after shelf over books. Each book had been hand-selected, screened, and left on the shelves in a chaotic order. It wasn't a very bright room, though what lighting it did had was newer than the building.
Shiiba had made herself comfortable in the a large, overstuffed chair situated near the back corner hours earlier. Dressed in nothing more than a pair of calf-length sweats and a simple tank top, the young woman's laptop was perched on her knees. Her hair was pulled up, twisted around two hair sticks; large chunks stuck up at odd angles. Music played softly from the laptop's speaker, and the only other noise was the clickity-clack of her bright red nails as they danced across the keys. Hitting enter, she settled back in the chair and slide her finger over the glide, watching the webpage scroll.
Brown eyes narrowed as she read. Another anti-mutant policy, though not in Japan, fortunately. But they were still cropping up more and more. She clicked another link, following the maze of stories and half-truths that humans called 'journalism,' and she knew as propaganda. Reaching over, she picked up her cup of tea from a nearby table and took a sip.
"Oh damn," she grimaced, spitting it back out just as quickly. Cold Earl Grey. "Ew." With a small sigh, she held out her other hand and concentrated. A small flicker of energy bubbled out of her palm, them formed into a small, orange-and-red swirling ball. This, she dropped into the cup and swirled with her finger. The water heated to a temperature she could drink. With a smile, she plucked out the bubble and let it reabsorb into her skin.
He didn't know why, but Mizuki had taken a liking to the readings that were available in the little Brotherhood Library. Maybe because quite a few of them were outdated, and thus ridiculously amusing, but others were full of anger and violent human emotions that were intriguing, if not utterly foreign to him. And maybe he liked the books because he was finding himself taking so many odd naps during the day that he often couldn't sleep at night.
Brushing his hair from his eyes, Mizuki scanned the shelves casually, looking for anything that caught his eye. Turning the corner, he nearly jumped, seeing a lovely young lady he had never seen before. Smiling slightly, he cleared his throat, hoping not to surprise her. Wasn't it his lucky day, to find someone here of all places.
Shiiba paused in her typing and glanced in the direction of a cough, large brown eyes blinking her surprise. She was normally left alone in the back corner of the library -- which suited her just fine. However, this was a school, of a sort, and schools meant students wandering about.
Though just what one was doing in the library…? Shiiba shrugged, mentally, because who could really figure students out?
Instead, the brown-haired woman donned a bright smile for the young man who lurked near the corner of the shelves. "Hello, there," she said cheerily. "May I help you with something?"
Perfect. The woman seemed friendly, and rather welcoming. Smiling sweetly, Mizuki shook his head, moving a little closer to be polite. "Ah, no, actually. I was just surprised so see someone here.. Not many of us appreciate this Library, I'm afraid.." Mizuki kept his voice low and soft, something trusting and soothing to the ears. He had to play it careful, for if he overdid it, he might lose an ally before he could manage to earn her trust. "Do you come here often?"
Shiiba's smile brightened just marginally, if only because his last line was one she heard entirely too often -- even it was normally in a different context. However, this was a teenage mutant before her, not some thirty-something with a bad comb over. She could tolerate what sounded like a really bad pick-up line from someone his age. Reaching up to brush a stray piece of hair behind her ears, she replied, "I'm not used to seeing people here either. Such a shame." She pouted and shrugged. "It's such a nice, quiet part of the house."
Reclining in her chair, Shiiba absently minimized the window she's be studying. "I'm in here as often as I can be. It's so much nicer than any of the offices. Of course, you students don’t have to worry about that," she added as an afterthought.
"Offices? Oh, are you not a student here? I wouldn't have guessed." Mizuki eyed the chair across from her for a moment before sitting down with a little smile, hoping she wouldn't mind. He brushed his hair back, twirling a dark strand between his fingers for a moment. She had been studying something, and seemed very alert to her surroundings. He wondered just what she could do.
"Ah, my name is Mizuki Hajime. And you are?"
A student? Shiiba giggled lightly at the idea. She hadn't been a student at the Brotherhood's institution for a couple of years now, but it was flattering that anyone might think so. "Oh no, I’m on the staff, " Shiiba replied. Though exactly what she did around the school…well. The students really didn't need to think of her as anything more that Sakaki-san's secretary, and their occasional tutor. Brown eyes never wavered from the young man as he sat across from her. He had a delicate air about him, fine boned hands and curly hair.
However, Shiiba was well aware that the most delicate of mutants could also be the most deadly. It was an irony the bubbly young woman appreciated. At his name, she furrowed her brow and pondered the student records she'd dug through a few days ago. The young man across from her wasn't a physical -- obvious without even looking at the records -- but she couldn't recall offhand what his ability was. She made a mental note to look it up again later.
Putting that thought aside, she replied, "Shiiba Saori. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Ah, someone with more power than his bumbling classmates. She would be a good ally to have, especially since she would most likely know more of the inner workings of the Brotherhood. Smiling softly, Mizuki bowed his head. "The pleasure is mine."
He pondered for a moment what approach to take with her and decided it'd be too much to turn on the charm so early in the game. So he settled for comfortable, trustful and intriguing. "The library is such a nice place to get work done. I've been doing research into the older theories of human evolution and that kind of thing. Fascinatingly out of date, I must say.. What, may I ask, strikes your interest, Shiiba-san?"
"Oh, like Darwin?" Shiiba asked with a small smile. Truthfully, her interests had never meandered into that particular direction. Evolution was all good and well, but all that she had gotten out of it was 'survival of the fittest.' And really, what more did she need? Inclining her head slightly, Shiiba raised one hand and tapped a brightly polished nail against her lip. "I really haven't looked through many of the books, to be honest. I just like it back here because it's so quiet. Though if the books are out of date, then they really wouldn't be of much interest to me anyway. I tend to prefer philosophy and current events," she explained. "Politics, new medical and technological discoveries. Things like that."
She considered reopening her laptop and continuing to skim the article that had just caught her eye, but that would be rude to the young man across from her. Instead, she rested her other hand on the cover of the small computer and pondered exactly how to engage him. After all, he was a student at the facility, and part of her responsibility was keeping a watchful over their activities. Thus, it could never hurt to be on good terms with them.
Though…there were a few exceptions to that plan already.
"So, Mizuki-kun," she said, settling on a neutral topic. "How are your classes and training sessions going?"
"Politics? How fascinating.." he murmured just slightly at her topics, not really finding any of it very interesting. Modern politics were just repeats of the past mistakes and obviously, when he would do a much, much better job at ruling the world, he had little care for the ideas of those standing in his way.
"Ah, training..." Truth be told, it was more than a little irritating. But he wasn't about to let her know everything that bothered him--that would give away too many of the weaknesses that seemed to be springing up like wild flowers. "Ma, its going, I suppose. I am finding my own personal goals and the goals of the professors here to be very, very different. While I'm very aware of the need to expand my skills, I am not quite sure if expanding them in certain directions really benefits me in any way. And I haven't had a current.. ah, difficulty worked out yet, so at the moment, I seem to be going at a rather flat pace." He paused, tipping his head to the side with a smile. "Do you partake in training as well, Shiiba-san?"
Shiiba could recognize the tone of casual disinterest easily enough, but really, she hadn't expected her fascination with political tête-tes to be shared by many. Pity, so far as she was concerned; the Machiavellian manipulations politicians put themselves through for small gains were hilarious to the young woman. But perhaps more so, a keen awareness of the structures that humans planned to put in place gave her leverage when it came to undermining them.
That, however, was an argument for another time.
Instead, she listened attentively to the young man across from her and quickly ticked off a few things that caught her attention. His self interest, for one thing, was useful, but potentially troublesome. "Training is quite possibly the worst part of having a mutant ability," she offered with a small sigh of sympathy. "But, who knows? Maybe the skills the doctors want you to work on would also be useful to you in their own way." Shiiba shrugged, then rolled her eyes thoughtfully. "After all, we mutants have to be able to adapt to anything and pushing ourselves and our powers in new directions is the best way to do it. And yes, I train." She laughed. "Self-directed, for the most part."
"I suppose.." he murmured, not willing to give in just yet and agree with his foolish instructors. As far as he was concerned, they had little idea about just who they were dealing with and if he really wanted to, he could take them all over. But that would just be foolish. And he didn't mind the idea of having one more talent to use against anyone who got in his way.
"Oh? How dedicated." He was devilishly curious to find out just what she did, and had much less of a chance to see her in action if she wasn't a student. Smiling softly, he tried a bit more of a convincing tone, hoping to loosen her up. "Just what is it that you do?"
Shiiba was an amicable person by nature, and already forthright about her mutant power, but a small nudge every now and then didn't hurt. "I blow things up," she answered automatically, her smile cheery and light. The exchange of information on mutations was almost a custom, right after name, age and status. To prove her point, she extended her hand and shifted her focus. The palm seemed to ripple as the plasma-based energy took shape into a very small orb that floated just about her outstretched hand. "With these." Dark brown eyes traversed the room, and found nothing suitable for a target. Pouting, she pondered letting the small, self-generated explosive go off mid-air.
But where was the fun in that.
Sighing, she refocused and let the orb sink back into her skin. It stung a bit more going in than it had going out -- she never felt anything when she generated them -- but it was a mild sensation for such a small little flare. Setting her arm back down, she turned her attention back to the young man. "It's not that much, really," Shiiba confessed with a small shrug, then winked, "but it's lots of fun. How about you, Mizuki-kun?"
Mizuki's eyebrows rose with appreciation--for being able to 'blow things up', Shiiba-san's powers manifested themselves rather elegantly. She seemed rather adept at controlling the balls of energy, and Mizuki had a feeling she could do quite a bit more than make that size of orb. He noticed the slight look of discomfort in her eyes as she reabsorbed the energy (quite a fascinating trick!) and wondered just how painful it could become.
"Me?" He blinked for a moment, not sure how he should go about answering. He had been giving himself away quite easily recently, but too many of those he had talked to were interested in his own story, rather than preoccupied with their own troubles. He couldn't help being so very intriguing, however, so he just had to learn to get used to it.
Smiling slightly, he kept it simple. "Voice Augmentation. Nothing too exciting, I'm afraid..." and if she wanted to know more, he would answer her accordingly. But only if she asked the right questions. He had to keep some sort of mystery, didn't he?
"Voice augmentation?" Shiiba repeated, blinking. Well, Mizuki-kun had said that it wasn't exciting. Though that was a rather broad power description, as it could be everything from altering one's voice to match certain pitches on to altering one's own sonic wavelengths. None of which sounded really interesting to Shiiba, but she would admit that she a bit biased towards flashy powers. Her own notwithstanding.
She gave no indication of this on her features however, instead tilting her head to one side and looking a bit curious. It wasn't like she couldn't just look up the details. Honestly, if most of the boys knew half of what was in their files…but they didn't. And she did.
Funny, that.
"Mmm…it doesn't have to be exciting, so long as you can make use of it, Mizuki-kun," she decided aloud. Stroking her chin with one nail, she added "What's your trainer having you do that so unpleasant for you?" Because, in hindsight, she had realized that most of what her instructors at Ryuhana had wanted her to do wasn't nearly as bad as she thought, though in the end, it also hadn't been enough.
She was a clever one, oh yes. Mizuki could tell she was curious--who wasn't, after all? Wasn't he just the most fascinating thing on the planet?--but she kept a cool face. She was probably playing on his ego (not that he had a big one or anything), waiting for him to say something. Which was exactly why he wasn't going to give out many details. Oh no, he had her figured out.
"Ah, that. They're insisting on me using my talents in a way that is quite far from what I ever imagined doing. They've got quite a.. ah..focus on the more violent, destructive qualities than can be achieved, instead of the finer points of subtly that I enjoy. I can't help that its not my style, you know."
His…style?
If it wouldn't have been completely impolite of her, Shiiba probably would have laughed. Instead, she held the giggle-fit that threatened to burst forth from her lips neatly in place. Only a small brightening of her eyes gave any outward indication of her amusement to the idea.
"That's their job, Mizuki-kun," she replied patiently. "To push you and your power into new directions that you wouldn't think of on your own. As for the 'destructive' qualities..." She trailed off, pausing. Her own powers were very outward, flashy -- and yes, dangerous, when she put her mind to it; conversely, her original training at Ryuhana had been completely directed towards controlling and suppressing them. Even though she didn't like to think back to the time when she was first recruited to the Brotherhood's side, she had to admit that the extremist measures better suited her. There was something about cutting loose with her power that was, for her, exhilarating.
It was hard to imagine someone else not enjoying it.
"I don't suppose you've noticed that Brotherhood isn't exactly benign, have you? I mean, there's a time to be subtle, yes." Blowing up a building was only a good idea if the right people were in it, and that sort of information required the right contacts, which meant she had to be trusted and seemingly harmless. "But when it comes down to it, you need to learn to balance the two. Besides," a small shrug, "powers change, Mizuki-kun. Right now, your power may be better geared towards subtly, but a future development in it might change that at any time, no matter what your own tastes dictate. We're mutants," she grinned. "We evolve all the time."
Mizuki felt a pout coming on and suppressed it, looking down to pick some lint off his pants. It wasn't like he didn't know all that-- he was practically a genius, after all, and the goals of the Brotherhood were quite clear to him. But that didn't mean he had to like it. And wasn't he supposed to know himself better than everyone else? He didn't like the idea of being lectured by someone who was only a few years older.
"Mmm, I suppose so." he murmured, not supposing at all. It really didn't do to listen to other people sometimes--they didn't know what they were talking about after all. "I guess I'll just have to keep at it, mm?" He chuckled slightly, shaking off the annoyance to play the gracious loser. He could play it so well sometimes, even though he felt like throwing a fit. But those only worked back in middle school. And how well they worked...
"Sounds like it," Shiiba acceded with a nod. She shifted in her chair, uncrossing her ankles and pulling one knee on top of the other. The laptop teetered as she moved, but she held it in place with the palm of her hand. She could hear the disinterest in the younger mutant's tone, but well…teenagers, right? It wasn't like she'd cared much for advice when she'd been his age.
Oh well. His choice, she thought. She couldn't force any of them to do anything that they didn't want to -- even to listen.
Instead, she leaned the laptop on the floor next to her chair and stretched her arms overhead. "I'm sure you'll do great," she told him with a bright smile. "Just keep trying."
"Ah, I shall." Mizuki smiled, truly intending to keep trying. Trying at what, well.. that was a different story entirely. Running a hand through his hair, he caught sight of his watch and blinked. The time had past very quickly, and he had a few things to do before another set of training.
"I'm afraid I'll have to call this meeting short... Training that I must work very hard at is approaching." Smirking slightly, he bowed his head toward her. "I hope we can continue another time?"
Meeting? That earned Mizuki a delighted tittered from the young mutant woman. Well, he certainly was adorable in his own, narcissistic kind of way. "Of course, Mizuki-kun," she agreed, giving him a playful wink. "Nothing should get between you and your training, after all."
Her eyes stayed fixed on the teen until he disappeared behind the bookshelves. Shaking her head, mostly in amusement, Shiiba flipped open her laptop and refreshed the webpage she'd been studying.