I breathe out, relaxing as soon as I see him. I hadn't realised quite how tense I was. That whole experience with Hiroto was -- unsettling, to say the least
( ... )
"I'm doing better," I tell her honestly. "I have surely been through worse, before."
I have the feeling that there's more she wants to say. I have known her long enough to recognize her body language, and none of it tells me "casual". As in actual casual.
...No, there's something else.
Not that she's not genuinely concerned, I know she is and I can't appreciate it enough. I might have been sent to some other dimension, forced to fight an entire army of mecha-humans, hit my head more than once and be shot in the arm, but that's nothing compared to what Jasmine had to go through. To fight against what she had to fight, trying so desperately to not lose herself. And no sooner was she back to her own body, she had to go and use her powers almost right away to save Gou-san. One can't possibly try to compare what's harsher.
"How are you doing?" I ask her, my smile dimmer. She might have something else she wants to say, but I really do want to know.
He says he's all right. I think I believe him. Sen-chan has reserves of strength and courage that others might not recognise, but just like the rest of our team, I know how tough he is.
He says kindly, "How are you doing?"
...I wasn't expecting that.
I look up at him, my eyes suddenly blurry, then I have to look away and swallow. This isn't meant to be about me. I came here to find out how he's feeling, and to try to help him with Umeko. I'm not meant to be rubbing my eyes like a tired two year old... but I am.
"Sorry, Sen-chan," I manage eventually. "I'm fine, really. I just wanted to ask you a few things."
Settling everything didn't take long; I haven't brought too many things, to begin with. It's better to keep things simple, you never know when you have to get ready to move.
The first class, "A History of 6th Heroes", won't start until two hours later, so I have some free time until then. I figure that I can take a look around the school grounds, get familiar with the surroundings in case something happens, and know where I can keep up with my training.
It's a good day to walk, the weather is fairly pleasant, and so is the view. I allow myself to grin slightly when I come across a set of flowerbeds. Miu would certainly love this.
The quiet doesn't last long, as I hear someone scream even as I feel their aura.
I recognize both right away. It's herI should know better. Her aura doesn't say "in trouble". Yet I find myself heading to where I heard the scream come from, obviously not that far from here. It doesn't take me much to find her
( ... )
Hiroto. A few meters away. My view of him's obscured by Sen-chan, which is just fine by me. I can only see a tiny sliver of him, so he'll only barely be able to see my face. I didn't even hear him approach, I suppose because he moves quietly and I was distracted.
I tense, just a little, not up to a confrontation over my inability to control myself -- but then I see his face and catch an impression from his mind.
Empathy. Not pity, not irritation, not sickly, patronising sympathy, just... empathy for someone who's not coping.
I'm still embarrassed that he's seen me like this. It's bad enough that Sen-chan should see, though at least he's family. I don't think Hiroto's realised that I have seen him, which is a relief. He's already closing himself off again -- I feel his mental walls come down, and see that same dismissive expression come over his face. He turns and walks away.
Jasmine seems to finally relax, and even manages a weak smile. Or at least, as best as she can.
I'm about to smile back at her, when I notice her tense again, albeit just a little and not for too long. She's looking past my shoulder, even though I'm sort of shadowing her viewing range. Frowning, I turn my head to see what she's looking at.
A man wearing a sand-colored jacket - is it reading "batabata bata"?? What is that? - is walking away from us. But soon enough, as if he notices that he's being watched, he pauses and slowly turns back to look at us.
No, scratch that. To look at Jasmine.
His face looks expressionless, and his body language gives away nothing.
I look at him, then look at Jasmine, then at him again. There seems to be an odd tension between them that I just can't quite grasp, but before I can begin to analyze it, the man turns again and walks away.
I turn back to look at Jasmine. I don't ask, but I know my face says it all.
Sen-chan looks down at me with a confused expression on his face that I have to admit is quite adorable. I sigh, rest my head on his shoulder for a moment again, then push away from him gently.
"I helped him earlier today. His name is Hiroto. He wasn't... impressed at my attempts to help. The person he was fighting got away." I continue hastily, not wanting to dwell on that, "He's with the Go-ongers. His team seems quite pleasant."
I wince, wishing I could take that back, as it's a backhanded insult to Hiroto -- and I don't mean to do that. It's not fair to him, even if I don't particularly like him.
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"I'm doing better," I tell her honestly. "I have surely been through worse, before."
I have the feeling that there's more she wants to say. I have known her long enough to recognize her body language, and none of it tells me "casual". As in actual casual.
...No, there's something else.
Not that she's not genuinely concerned, I know she is and I can't appreciate it enough. I might have been sent to some other dimension, forced to fight an entire army of mecha-humans, hit my head more than once and be shot in the arm, but that's nothing compared to what Jasmine had to go through. To fight against what she had to fight, trying so desperately to not lose herself. And no sooner was she back to her own body, she had to go and use her powers almost right away to save Gou-san. One can't possibly try to compare what's harsher.
"How are you doing?" I ask her, my smile dimmer. She might have something else she wants to say, but I really do want to know.
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He says kindly, "How are you doing?"
...I wasn't expecting that.
I look up at him, my eyes suddenly blurry, then I have to look away and swallow. This isn't meant to be about me. I came here to find out how he's feeling, and to try to help him with Umeko. I'm not meant to be rubbing my eyes like a tired two year old... but I am.
"Sorry, Sen-chan," I manage eventually. "I'm fine, really. I just wanted to ask you a few things."
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The first class, "A History of 6th Heroes", won't start until two hours later, so I have some free time until then. I figure that I can take a look around the school grounds, get familiar with the surroundings in case something happens, and know where I can keep up with my training.
It's a good day to walk, the weather is fairly pleasant, and so is the view. I allow myself to grin slightly when I come across a set of flowerbeds. Miu would certainly love this.
The quiet doesn't last long, as I hear someone scream even as I feel their aura.
I recognize both right away. It's herI should know better. Her aura doesn't say "in trouble". Yet I find myself heading to where I heard the scream come from, obviously not that far from here. It doesn't take me much to find her ( ... )
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HIM.
Hiroto. A few meters away. My view of him's obscured by Sen-chan, which is just fine by me. I can only see a tiny sliver of him, so he'll only barely be able to see my face. I didn't even hear him approach, I suppose because he moves quietly and I was distracted.
I tense, just a little, not up to a confrontation over my inability to control myself -- but then I see his face and catch an impression from his mind.
Empathy. Not pity, not irritation, not sickly, patronising sympathy, just... empathy for someone who's not coping.
I'm still embarrassed that he's seen me like this. It's bad enough that Sen-chan should see, though at least he's family. I don't think Hiroto's realised that I have seen him, which is a relief. He's already closing himself off again -- I feel his mental walls come down, and see that same dismissive expression come over his face. He turns and walks away.
...there may be more to him than I'd thought.
He's still infuriating.
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I'm about to smile back at her, when I notice her tense again, albeit just a little and not for too long. She's looking past my shoulder, even though I'm sort of shadowing her viewing range. Frowning, I turn my head to see what she's looking at.
A man wearing a sand-colored jacket - is it reading "batabata bata"?? What is that? - is walking away from us. But soon enough, as if he notices that he's being watched, he pauses and slowly turns back to look at us.
No, scratch that. To look at Jasmine.
His face looks expressionless, and his body language gives away nothing.
I look at him, then look at Jasmine, then at him again. There seems to be an odd tension between them that I just can't quite grasp, but before I can begin to analyze it, the man turns again and walks away.
I turn back to look at Jasmine. I don't ask, but I know my face says it all.
What was that about?
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"I helped him earlier today. His name is Hiroto. He wasn't... impressed at my attempts to help. The person he was fighting got away." I continue hastily, not wanting to dwell on that, "He's with the Go-ongers. His team seems quite pleasant."
I wince, wishing I could take that back, as it's a backhanded insult to Hiroto -- and I don't mean to do that. It's not fair to him, even if I don't particularly like him.
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