... I know we've had this conversation before, but I swear STR got rezzed/reborn at the very end of the series.
And I just checked, and no she wasn't. Dammit, why do I keep seeing that scene in my head.
Shards of a Broken Sun [Deprecated; see link in final post for remake]
- Thread starter Baughn
- Start date
- Crossover Sci-Fi
And I just checked, and no she wasn't. Dammit, why do I keep seeing that scene in my head.
Baughn
Healing-type writer
- Location
- Dublin
You're probably mistaking Yuu for STR. If it talks like a STR, and it walks like a STR...
Quite frankly, Yuu doesn't act anything like Matou's best friend did. This is old news, however, and Strength didn't die yesterday.
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[X] Admitting you were a broken shell of what a person is supposed to be until recently is one thing. Admitting you might be an active danger to your own family? You can't do it. The old you would have admitted it in a heartbeat to keep them safe... but you don't want to lose your family. And now she's asking you to watch him when you almost shot him a few minutes ago... You really don't know whether to laugh or cry.
-[X] "... Sorry. I just... I guess I'm not going to get used to having everything back that quickly, am I."
--[X] And you need to get that lock today. You can't risk Hiro or even Mom getting char br- Lock. Today. You will protect them, even from yourself.
Matou would have been horrified that she hurt someone, now she's horrified that she almost hurt her brother. Before, she couldn't even care of things in terms of her possessing them at all, only that other people might get hurt. She cared about others with no sense of self or emotion involved at all. Now, now she cares because they are her friends, her family, her town and so on. And she doesn't want to give them up either, something the old her would have done.
The only part I'm unsure on is if her Compassion 6 would have forced her to care about their feelings or their well-being more. So this will probably get changed more than a bit after it getstorn to shreds criticized.
-[X] "... Sorry. I just... I guess I'm not going to get used to having everything back that quickly, am I."
--[X] And you need to get that lock today. You can't risk Hiro or even Mom getting char br- Lock. Today. You will protect them, even from yourself.
Matou would have been horrified that she hurt someone, now she's horrified that she almost hurt her brother. Before, she couldn't even care of things in terms of her possessing them at all, only that other people might get hurt. She cared about others with no sense of self or emotion involved at all. Now, now she cares because they are her friends, her family, her town and so on. And she doesn't want to give them up either, something the old her would have done.
The only part I'm unsure on is if her Compassion 6 would have forced her to care about their feelings or their well-being more. So this will probably get changed more than a bit after it gets
Baughn
Healing-type writer
- Location
- Dublin
Matou? Feelings. Rock? Physical wellbeing, should she have the opportunity.
They're both horrified by what almost happened, though using "both" is of course inaccurate. More on that later.
The old her... Yes, she would have given them up. In a heartbeat, if necessary. She wouldn't even be very upset about it. However, she most certainly had emotions.
Some emotions. The ones she thought were acceptable.
They're both horrified by what almost happened, though using "both" is of course inaccurate. More on that later.
The old her... Yes, she would have given them up. In a heartbeat, if necessary. She wouldn't even be very upset about it. However, she most certainly had emotions.
Some emotions. The ones she thought were acceptable.
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Matou would be hurting her families feelings by giving them up to keep them safe though. And if I'm reading your version of Rock right she literally can't care about people beyond her Motivation with her only having Valor 4 and Conviction 4.
One of the updates had Rock mentioning it would be a few days at most until they fully fused, so... *Shrug* Kind of expected that I guess.
Yeah, that's what I was thinking as well. Can't even care about herself, surprisingly easy for me to understand that thought process with some logic and my apathy issues.
Baughn
Healing-type writer
- Location
- Dublin
The virtue ratings are an approximation at best, but in this case, it's simple enough.
Rock would defend any one of them, against anything not too terribly dangerous-and she has a loose definition of danger-because they're hers and no-one else is allowed to hurt them.
Matou is the one who cares about their opinion on the matter. Combine the two, however...
Rock would defend any one of them, against anything not too terribly dangerous-and she has a loose definition of danger-because they're hers and no-one else is allowed to hurt them.
Matou is the one who cares about their opinion on the matter. Combine the two, however...
And you might actually get the average human. Whee...
Anyway, if I'm interpreting you right, my write-in is pretty much in-character if not spot on... at least on the thought processes.
[X] Explain what needs to be done but let mom draw her own conclusions about why you don't want your little brother barging in on you after you recently regained emotions and stopped being a perfectly good girl.
-[X] Realize too late how embarrassing those conclusions will probably be.
-[X] Backpedal furiously and start trying to sink into the floor in mortification
-[X] Tell the truth if only so the embarrassment will end
-[X] Consider that as unpleasant as that was, it was still nice to be capable of feeling the embarrassment in the first place
[X] Check in on everyone.
-[X] Realize too late how embarrassing those conclusions will probably be.
-[X] Backpedal furiously and start trying to sink into the floor in mortification
-[X] Tell the truth if only so the embarrassment will end
-[X] Consider that as unpleasant as that was, it was still nice to be capable of feeling the embarrassment in the first place
[X] Check in on everyone.
Black Impulse: Monday's Turmoil: 2
Baughn
Healing-type writer
- Location
- Dublin
"Matou? What's wrong?"
She looked down at the table, ignoring her mother's question.
It was still white. Cheap plywood, plain, with a lightly patterned and well-worn tablecloth on top. A small, fresh stain from where Hiro just minutes ago had a small accident. No old stains, though underneath the tablecloth she knew she'd find a lot of scuffs, should she look, which she never did. Some of them are because of her, but most are her father's doing, and although she loved the table it had been years since that was an unconditional love.
"Matou?" A note of annoyance had crept into Mom's voice, and she winced. Mom had a right to know, no, she needed to know, but she still hadn't decided how much Mom needed to know, and she couldn't look her in the eye. Not yet.
What was she supposed to tell her? This wasn't like last night. It wasn't… Rock's reflexes weren't something she could fix. She hadn't even told Mom she could make weapons, so how was she supposed to explain that—without thinking—she'd almost killed her brother?
Mom would think she was hiding it, which she was. She might even decide to throw her out, and right now Matou wasn't at all sure that was such a bad idea. If she couldn't even control herself, what good was she?
She should just leave. Get out of here, so they wouldn't get hurt. She could survive on her own, if that was even needed; surely Saya could lend her a corner to sleep in. Then she could watch over Yuu properly, instead of running back and forth all the time.
To think, Mom was relying on her to protect him…
A choked sound escaped, somewhere between a sob and a laugh. Her fingers curled around the tablecloth. Leave? He'd get hurt. She couldn't leave, not with the world in this state, and she didn't even want to leave—it was just old habit speaking—but how could she stay?
She wanted to stay. She wanted to stay, and talk with Mom, about all the things they hadn't talked about. She wanted to play with her brother, and pay him back for being so aggravating all the time, maybe steal his icecream. Probably melted… But that couldn't happen, not ever. She couldn't—
Why don't we just lock the door?
Because—
Slowly shaking her head back and forth, she caught a glimpse of Hiro's hands, balled into fists. Her brother, who—who was worried abot her, and maybe a little scared by the sudden burst of emotions. She was hurting him.
All because she'd gotten so terribly indecisive, but wasn't that also because of Rock?
The door to our room. Her other self's thoughts felt exasperated. It has a lock. Mom has the only key. You already decided to ask her for the key, so get a grip already. Then, because she was still hesitating, We're not leaving; get that straight.
Rock was completely determined, and Matou already wavering. Without even wanting to resist, she didn't stand the slightest chance; Rock's willpower flooded in, her original—robotic—self fading under the onslaught. A small part of her crumpled, like a soap bubble popping—
Nothing in particular changed.
She took a slow breath, unclenching her hands and relaxing by an effort of will. There was no danger here, only her family. The whole episode had taken only a handful of seconds, though to Matou it felt like far more.
"…Sorry," she eventually said, forcing a smile and finally managing to look Mom in the face. "I guess… I won't get used to having everything back that quickly, will I, Mom." Only mostly a lie. "I'm fine, I think. It was a really terrible nightmare, and something you said reminded me of it, but—I'm fine. I don't want to talk about it."
She glanced at Hiro, who was sitting quietly, his eyes suspiciously wet. It'd be fine. He'd always been a strong kid, because he had to be, so he'd be fine even with you here. And what if you left, and there was a fire, or another thing like Dubhe? No, leaving was never even on the table. She would protect her family.
Mom was actually looking worried, for a bit, but her lie seemed to have satisfied her. Her face was so used to forming a smile that, even if it was thinner than an eggshell right then, Mom couldn't see through it at all. She felt like she should probably be happy about that, but really, she just felt bitter. Neither part of her had any experience at hiding emotions.
Although…
She let out a little sigh, her smile growing more genuine to match Hiro's uncertain one.
"Just one thing. Can I have the key to my room? After yesterday, I don't want Hiro to walk in on me like that… it was, um, uncomfortable." She rushed through the explanation, a light blush on her cheeks. 'Uncomfortable' was an extreme understatement, not to mention embarassing. She really shouldn't have lost control like that.
"You weren't even asleep," Hiro said, pouting. "I could hear you mumbling."
"That doesn't mean you get to jump on my bed!" Though she had definitely been asleep.
"Walk in on you?" Mom parroted your words, blinking rapidly. She retraced the last couple of sentences in her head, blush growing heavier as she realized what it must have sounded like—then again, as she consider what her blushing must look like—
"It wasn't like that!"
Mom's expression cleared up, and she realized, to her horror, that she thought it was exactly like that. No, damn it!
She sank back in her chair, hiding her by now incandescent blush behind her arms as Mom, humming a jolly little tune, headed off her fetch quest. Hiro's innocently worried questions didn't help at all. She wanted to tell her the truth, if only to make the embarassment stop, but she couldn't—she didn't want to be thrown out, and wasn't quite sure she was even thinking the same thing anyway.
Head hitting the table with a hollow thud, Matou reflected that at least they'd both gotten distracted from her real problems. Well, she wasn't about to complain about finally feeling real emotions again, but while that was obviously superior to the way she'd acted last week, the whole situation right now was just… ugh. Dammit, Mom.
———————
"Half past nine already, huh. Guess I should be going. Matou…"
She looked up from her food, and from the crossword puzzle she'd been annoying Hiro with.
Mom smiled at her. "You'll take care of your brother, right?"
"Of course, but since there's no school, is it okay if I bring him to check on my friends?"
"Well, I don't know…"
Mom looked skeptical. Hiro looked horrified, though a glance was all it took to stop him from protesting. (And since when was her face that scary?)
"I promise I'll stick to the larger streets. It's fine, right?"
"Oh, very well." Mom shrugged. "Make sure you do, and be back by six; I probably won't be back before midnight, so you'll have to make your own dinner. There's rice and… rice—" She hesitated for a second, probably thinking about the lack of power. "—But you can buy some eggs to fry on the gas oven, maybe? They won't keep for long, so they should be cheap enough."
Matou nodded along. This, at least, was normal.
"Oh, and if you're visiting your friends, why don't you work on your math while you're there? In fact… you'll be visiting that teacher of yours, right?"
"Saya-sensei? She's a councillor, not a teacher."
"I'm sure she'd do fine. So, why don't you ask her to help?"
"Eeeh…"
They went on like that for a while. A pointless conversation, set against what might easily be the end of the world, but it was also easily the happiest Matou had been since she woke up. In a minute her mother would leave for a dead-end, mostly useless bureaucratic job where they both knew half the day would be taken up by her boss trying to set her up with men, but right now they could be properly mother and child. Not so different from last week, except, last week she wouldn't have managed to push back. Wouldn't even have tried, and although Mom was obviously unprepared for her to do so, she was doing her best to accept it.
There was just one single, nagging note of uncertainty marring her happy mood.
I'm missing something—
Where had Rock gone off to?
{ } …
A/N: Second-person narratives are the devil.
A/N: Perfectionism is also the devil, and for other people.
A/N: I'm either still alive, or else undead.
A/N: It's NaNoWriMo. I will take the opportunity to write copious author's notes.
A/N: Next up is Amu.
A/N: This is not precisely a vote, but if there's anything from Matou's day you'd particularly like to see, feel free to request it. Otherwise I'll just do whatever. Don't bother with "Check on Rock!", because that one is obvious.
A/N: Will endeavour not to die again.
She looked down at the table, ignoring her mother's question.
It was still white. Cheap plywood, plain, with a lightly patterned and well-worn tablecloth on top. A small, fresh stain from where Hiro just minutes ago had a small accident. No old stains, though underneath the tablecloth she knew she'd find a lot of scuffs, should she look, which she never did. Some of them are because of her, but most are her father's doing, and although she loved the table it had been years since that was an unconditional love.
"Matou?" A note of annoyance had crept into Mom's voice, and she winced. Mom had a right to know, no, she needed to know, but she still hadn't decided how much Mom needed to know, and she couldn't look her in the eye. Not yet.
What was she supposed to tell her? This wasn't like last night. It wasn't… Rock's reflexes weren't something she could fix. She hadn't even told Mom she could make weapons, so how was she supposed to explain that—without thinking—she'd almost killed her brother?
Mom would think she was hiding it, which she was. She might even decide to throw her out, and right now Matou wasn't at all sure that was such a bad idea. If she couldn't even control herself, what good was she?
She should just leave. Get out of here, so they wouldn't get hurt. She could survive on her own, if that was even needed; surely Saya could lend her a corner to sleep in. Then she could watch over Yuu properly, instead of running back and forth all the time.
To think, Mom was relying on her to protect him…
A choked sound escaped, somewhere between a sob and a laugh. Her fingers curled around the tablecloth. Leave? He'd get hurt. She couldn't leave, not with the world in this state, and she didn't even want to leave—it was just old habit speaking—but how could she stay?
She wanted to stay. She wanted to stay, and talk with Mom, about all the things they hadn't talked about. She wanted to play with her brother, and pay him back for being so aggravating all the time, maybe steal his icecream. Probably melted… But that couldn't happen, not ever. She couldn't—
Why don't we just lock the door?
Because—
Slowly shaking her head back and forth, she caught a glimpse of Hiro's hands, balled into fists. Her brother, who—who was worried abot her, and maybe a little scared by the sudden burst of emotions. She was hurting him.
All because she'd gotten so terribly indecisive, but wasn't that also because of Rock?
The door to our room. Her other self's thoughts felt exasperated. It has a lock. Mom has the only key. You already decided to ask her for the key, so get a grip already. Then, because she was still hesitating, We're not leaving; get that straight.
Rock was completely determined, and Matou already wavering. Without even wanting to resist, she didn't stand the slightest chance; Rock's willpower flooded in, her original—robotic—self fading under the onslaught. A small part of her crumpled, like a soap bubble popping—
Nothing in particular changed.
She took a slow breath, unclenching her hands and relaxing by an effort of will. There was no danger here, only her family. The whole episode had taken only a handful of seconds, though to Matou it felt like far more.
"…Sorry," she eventually said, forcing a smile and finally managing to look Mom in the face. "I guess… I won't get used to having everything back that quickly, will I, Mom." Only mostly a lie. "I'm fine, I think. It was a really terrible nightmare, and something you said reminded me of it, but—I'm fine. I don't want to talk about it."
She glanced at Hiro, who was sitting quietly, his eyes suspiciously wet. It'd be fine. He'd always been a strong kid, because he had to be, so he'd be fine even with you here. And what if you left, and there was a fire, or another thing like Dubhe? No, leaving was never even on the table. She would protect her family.
Mom was actually looking worried, for a bit, but her lie seemed to have satisfied her. Her face was so used to forming a smile that, even if it was thinner than an eggshell right then, Mom couldn't see through it at all. She felt like she should probably be happy about that, but really, she just felt bitter. Neither part of her had any experience at hiding emotions.
Although…
She let out a little sigh, her smile growing more genuine to match Hiro's uncertain one.
"Just one thing. Can I have the key to my room? After yesterday, I don't want Hiro to walk in on me like that… it was, um, uncomfortable." She rushed through the explanation, a light blush on her cheeks. 'Uncomfortable' was an extreme understatement, not to mention embarassing. She really shouldn't have lost control like that.
"You weren't even asleep," Hiro said, pouting. "I could hear you mumbling."
"That doesn't mean you get to jump on my bed!" Though she had definitely been asleep.
"Walk in on you?" Mom parroted your words, blinking rapidly. She retraced the last couple of sentences in her head, blush growing heavier as she realized what it must have sounded like—then again, as she consider what her blushing must look like—
"It wasn't like that!"
Mom's expression cleared up, and she realized, to her horror, that she thought it was exactly like that. No, damn it!
She sank back in her chair, hiding her by now incandescent blush behind her arms as Mom, humming a jolly little tune, headed off her fetch quest. Hiro's innocently worried questions didn't help at all. She wanted to tell her the truth, if only to make the embarassment stop, but she couldn't—she didn't want to be thrown out, and wasn't quite sure she was even thinking the same thing anyway.
Head hitting the table with a hollow thud, Matou reflected that at least they'd both gotten distracted from her real problems. Well, she wasn't about to complain about finally feeling real emotions again, but while that was obviously superior to the way she'd acted last week, the whole situation right now was just… ugh. Dammit, Mom.
———————
"Half past nine already, huh. Guess I should be going. Matou…"
She looked up from her food, and from the crossword puzzle she'd been annoying Hiro with.
Mom smiled at her. "You'll take care of your brother, right?"
"Of course, but since there's no school, is it okay if I bring him to check on my friends?"
"Well, I don't know…"
Mom looked skeptical. Hiro looked horrified, though a glance was all it took to stop him from protesting. (And since when was her face that scary?)
"I promise I'll stick to the larger streets. It's fine, right?"
"Oh, very well." Mom shrugged. "Make sure you do, and be back by six; I probably won't be back before midnight, so you'll have to make your own dinner. There's rice and… rice—" She hesitated for a second, probably thinking about the lack of power. "—But you can buy some eggs to fry on the gas oven, maybe? They won't keep for long, so they should be cheap enough."
Matou nodded along. This, at least, was normal.
"Oh, and if you're visiting your friends, why don't you work on your math while you're there? In fact… you'll be visiting that teacher of yours, right?"
"Saya-sensei? She's a councillor, not a teacher."
"I'm sure she'd do fine. So, why don't you ask her to help?"
"Eeeh…"
They went on like that for a while. A pointless conversation, set against what might easily be the end of the world, but it was also easily the happiest Matou had been since she woke up. In a minute her mother would leave for a dead-end, mostly useless bureaucratic job where they both knew half the day would be taken up by her boss trying to set her up with men, but right now they could be properly mother and child. Not so different from last week, except, last week she wouldn't have managed to push back. Wouldn't even have tried, and although Mom was obviously unprepared for her to do so, she was doing her best to accept it.
There was just one single, nagging note of uncertainty marring her happy mood.
I'm missing something—
Where had Rock gone off to?
{ } …
A/N: Second-person narratives are the devil.
A/N: Perfectionism is also the devil, and for other people.
A/N: I'm either still alive, or else undead.
A/N: It's NaNoWriMo. I will take the opportunity to write copious author's notes.
A/N: Next up is Amu.
A/N: This is not precisely a vote, but if there's anything from Matou's day you'd particularly like to see, feel free to request it. Otherwise I'll just do whatever. Don't bother with "Check on Rock!", because that one is obvious.
A/N: Will endeavour not to die again.
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Hmmm, so Matou got through that conversation with out anything to bad aside great embarrassment, she seems quite uncertain about her position in life right now still. She could probably use some work on that... though some problems elsewhere perhaps remain to be fixed, if at all possible, as well... Not sure how well some of those might work out though.
Looking forward to that
Monday's Turmoil 23
Baughn
Healing-type writer
- Location
- Dublin
"See you in a while, then," Amu said.
Miki smiled back, somewhat tremulously, as she watched her sister step through the stack of TVs. "See you."
That was all of them. It was just her, now. Her, and her slowly disintegrating fort, a fact which Teddy hopefully hadn't noticed even though it was now visibly corroding. Well, and—
"Do you want to tell me what's going on now?"
She looked back at Teddy. "What makes you think anything is going on?"
"Because I'm not completely blind?" He raised an eyebrow. "This day has been crazy in so many ways. First Margaret called for help, and okay, it isn't unusual for her to make requests, but over the phone? She's some kind of transcendent being. I was never quite clear on what kind, and I didn't even realise she had a phone."
He shook his head, seemingly lost in thought for a second.
"Then there's you. I guess Margaret likes you, because she asked me to take care of you. You said this is your first time here, right?"
She nodded, mind rushing to anticipate where he was going. She hadn't known that about Margaret; actually, she couldn't recall Margaret doing anything but talking to her, but she'd still sent for Teddy somehow.
"And you like the place? I see you've made yourself at home, though there's a trick to it if you want anything to last. I might teach you if you come back. You don't feel strained?"
"It's nice." She cocked her head, reconsidering. "Also foggy, and weird I guess. Really weird. But I don't mind it too much."
"That's what I thought. You look far too energetic."
"Is that bad?" She blinked at him. Teddy was obviously leading her into something, but she couldn't see what.
"Mm, well." He sat down on thin air, the space underneath him going reflective for a moment before it formed into a simple wooden chair. "I can't say I mind. And I guess you wouldn't know, since I could feel your sister's impression on the world from half a kilometer away, but normally anyone who comes here gets exhausted in an hour or so. Less, if they aren't used to it. More, if they're strong-willed, but I can feel that, even if they aren't as extreme as her."
—Chaos-Repelling Pattern. He'd noticed that? And she didn't, couldn't use anything like it. She'd been steeling herself to explain, but he was already—
"Unlike her, you're just blending in. You aren't pushing against the world at all, and I've seen what happens to people who are too exhausted to do that." He glanced at the fort. "But you're fine. Which means you're like me. You also used to be a shadow, didn't you? In fact… I've never seen it happen, and it's hard to believe that it could, but are you Amu's shadow?"
—What?
Her thoughts came to a screeching halt. A shadow? Like those things Margaret mentioned? Teddy is?
He waved his hands frantically. "Not that it's a bad thing, of course! I'm glad you could reconcile, it just shows what a nice person you are, even if it's a little odd. How did it happen? Is that why Margaret is helping? Did Amu find you here today? I'm impressed, you already managed to take human form! That's hard!"
Relief. He hasn't figured me out at all.
And, a moment later, So that's why Margaret thought I'd enjoy meeting him. He's just like me.
"I was going to tell you," she said, smiling widely at his antics. "It's not quite right, though. I'm not a shadow, rather the opposite, though I am connected to Amu."
———————
"A dream?"
"That's what we thought, anyway. Turns out it's a little more complex, but… basically. I never had to reconcile with Amu, since we were never apart in the first place, but it's only since the last few days that I've been more than an accessory of sorts. Even then, I was still tiny. Mini-Amu."
"So that's why you like it here," Teddy said quietly, having completely dropped the 'bear' jokes. "I can't say I fully understand, but I know what it's like to be treated as something different from human. Nanako is the only one who always acted normally around me."
"She sounds like a nice girl." Miki smiled wistfully. "Ami can at least see me, but she always thinks I'm a doll or something. I wish I could change that."
"And Amu?"
She hesitated. "Amu's been nice. She's trying, very hard, but it's too easy to fall back into old patterns. It doesn't help that they're probably needed; we're smarter when we're together, and there's more at stake than just my individuality. If there hadn't been… I don't know. I absolutely don't want to lose her, either. I'd rather stay as I am than risk that."
"You shouldn't sell yourself short." He paused, frowning and pushing his eyebrows together in an exaggerated fashion. "I know I'm bearly able to tell, having been overcome by your beauty, but you seemed like a grizzlied pair of furly friendly twins to me. Don't worry so much."
A—pair of—
She let out a chuckle, quickly growing into full-on laughter. "Oh lord, were you saving that up?"
"Of course," he said, nodding wisely. "It is my beary role in society."
"Please stop. It's painful." Impulsively, she reached out to give him a hug. Mm… very different from Amu. For one thing, he was warmer. And stiffer. "Thanks, though. There, that's repayment for Maya knocking you out earlier, since I won't be able to do it after we get back to reality. Come on, let's go."
It took him nearly a minute to catch up, by which time she was impatiently tapping her foot next to the stack of TVs. Like hell she was walking through that impossibility without help.
"Hold on! There's something I wanted to tell you."
———————
"That stings! Are you sure this will work?"
"Maybe a little smaller. ...sure it will. Trust me!"
———————
A few minutes later. They'd made it through the stack, Teddy going ahead while she did some last-minute checks.
"—oes it have a hospital?"
Teddy shrugged. "I don't know, I never had to go there. Sensei would know, but it'll take us fifteen minutes to get there, if he's even at home."
"Right," Amu said. "Too many unknowns, but I don't think we have a better choice, and we might find someone helpful on the way… Come on, let's go. Speaking of which, where's Miki? You said she'd be right behind you."
The girl in question peeked around the corner of a DVD shelf. There was something weird about holding an impromptu council of war in the middle of a department store, but that wasn't why she was hiding. She still felt a little odd—compressed, like there was something pushing at her from all sides—but that wasn't it either.
Taking a deep breath, she gave herself one last once-over before stepping around the corner.
"Reporting as ordered," she said timidly, raising her head slightly to look Amu in the eyes.
There was a long moment of silence, in which she felt intensely self-conscious. She had gotten all the details right, hadn't she? The clothing she was wearing was technically part of her, and she'd had a lot of trouble at first getting the colors right. Maya at least didn't seem bothered, and Fumi just looked tired, but Amu was staring at her like she'd never seen her before. Which was obviously wrong, it hadn't been more than two or three years!
"How—" Amu said, then stepped over to give her a closer look, almost giving her a crick in the neck from looking up. "Miki? But—"
She quickly bobbed her head.
"…I didn't think I'd ever see you again." Amu dropped into a crouch, finally letting them see face to face. Her face was turning into the broadest grin. Miki could feel herself smiling back, almost uncontrollably—not that she'd ever have tried to control it. "But, how? And why?"
"Teddy helped with the 'how'," she said. She could see him leaning against a display case, looking obviously pleased with himself. "I'm not sure how long I can keep this up, but I'm going to find out! As for why—" She stretched onto her toes, doing a small pirouette before looking back to her sister. Her older sister, now, since she'd made herself a body almost identical to the last one she could clearly remember before becoming Miki, before her growth spurt. Mentally they were still twins, but she certainly didn't look it.
She had other reasons beyond practicalities for choosing that look, but she wasn't going to tell Amu that it felt like she was resuming her own, long-lost life.
"I couldn't get all the way to full size, it was just too hard to do for more than a few seconds. So I thought, maybe if I drop a few sizes…"
"You look like you're about eight," Amu diagnosed. "You look like you're me at eight, even your clothing. The only flaw is your hair."
She nodded shyly, then caught herself and repeated the motion a little more emphatically. It'd be easy to forget that she wasn't actually that child, the way everything towered over her now—Amu was a full head taller than her! Twenty-five centimeters, give or take, and probably close to twice her weight. Somehow it hadn't been an issue when she'd been literally pint-sized.
"I was trying to make it brown, but it doesn't want to stick. Dark blue is the best I can do."
Amu drew a finger through her still shoulder-length hair, splitting it and causing a shiver to run down her back. "It's pretty," she said. "Neat, I wonder what Mom and Dad will think. There's no way they're expecting this."
"You mean, there's no way they're expecting me." She could imagine Mom's confusion, right up until they hugged. And hey, finally Ami would have to treat her with some dignity. And Yoru…
She scowled. Yoru could do whatever he liked, she wasn't going to forgive him that easily. On the bright side…
"That's true. It's too bad you can't take my exact form, but—"
"The hair colour is a bit of a tell, I know. You could change yours?"
"Ran and Su."
Miki clicked her tongue. True, they'd only have one shot at this, and she wasn't leaving them out. Didn't matter, because—
"It doesn't matter if you can't go full-sized," Amu said, finishing her line of thinking.
"Triplets would still—"
"Then I'd be left out! And can they even—"
"Probably not. I don't know what the limit—"
"Hey." Fumi's voice broke in. "You pair of… whatever you are, and let me know when you figure that out. I'm sure this is very exciting, but shouldn't we be going?"
She shot her an annoyed look, noting that Fumi looked like she was about to fall asleep on her feet. Okay, she was right, and being this tired probably excused her, but even so, couldn't she see they were having a moment?
Amu, to Miki's confusion, didn't seem to agree.
"Ah—of course." Amu had paled slightly. "Right. Teddy, show us the way. Fumi, come on. I'll help you walk. Miki—"
She was left blinking.
"—How long do you think you can maintain that form?"
"An hour or two?" Amu was already walking, and she had to jog to catch up. Up ahead, Maya was watching the scene with interest. Right. Demon. Do not trust. "Maybe less if I'm exercising, I can't tell yet."
"Don't overdo it. You can hitch a ride on my shoulder if you need to."
Miki grimaced. Sure, but she didn't want to!
[ ] …
A/N: Here's a bite-sized chunk. While I work on the next part, you can decide if you'd like to say anything besides "Hospital plz! Thanks, gtgbyenow" to the poor kid. (Assuming he's there.) There's also the matter of saying goodbye to Teddy. Oh, you don't have to steer the conversations, but you can.
Miki smiled back, somewhat tremulously, as she watched her sister step through the stack of TVs. "See you."
That was all of them. It was just her, now. Her, and her slowly disintegrating fort, a fact which Teddy hopefully hadn't noticed even though it was now visibly corroding. Well, and—
"Do you want to tell me what's going on now?"
She looked back at Teddy. "What makes you think anything is going on?"
"Because I'm not completely blind?" He raised an eyebrow. "This day has been crazy in so many ways. First Margaret called for help, and okay, it isn't unusual for her to make requests, but over the phone? She's some kind of transcendent being. I was never quite clear on what kind, and I didn't even realise she had a phone."
He shook his head, seemingly lost in thought for a second.
"Then there's you. I guess Margaret likes you, because she asked me to take care of you. You said this is your first time here, right?"
She nodded, mind rushing to anticipate where he was going. She hadn't known that about Margaret; actually, she couldn't recall Margaret doing anything but talking to her, but she'd still sent for Teddy somehow.
"And you like the place? I see you've made yourself at home, though there's a trick to it if you want anything to last. I might teach you if you come back. You don't feel strained?"
"It's nice." She cocked her head, reconsidering. "Also foggy, and weird I guess. Really weird. But I don't mind it too much."
"That's what I thought. You look far too energetic."
"Is that bad?" She blinked at him. Teddy was obviously leading her into something, but she couldn't see what.
"Mm, well." He sat down on thin air, the space underneath him going reflective for a moment before it formed into a simple wooden chair. "I can't say I mind. And I guess you wouldn't know, since I could feel your sister's impression on the world from half a kilometer away, but normally anyone who comes here gets exhausted in an hour or so. Less, if they aren't used to it. More, if they're strong-willed, but I can feel that, even if they aren't as extreme as her."
—Chaos-Repelling Pattern. He'd noticed that? And she didn't, couldn't use anything like it. She'd been steeling herself to explain, but he was already—
"Unlike her, you're just blending in. You aren't pushing against the world at all, and I've seen what happens to people who are too exhausted to do that." He glanced at the fort. "But you're fine. Which means you're like me. You also used to be a shadow, didn't you? In fact… I've never seen it happen, and it's hard to believe that it could, but are you Amu's shadow?"
—What?
Her thoughts came to a screeching halt. A shadow? Like those things Margaret mentioned? Teddy is?
He waved his hands frantically. "Not that it's a bad thing, of course! I'm glad you could reconcile, it just shows what a nice person you are, even if it's a little odd. How did it happen? Is that why Margaret is helping? Did Amu find you here today? I'm impressed, you already managed to take human form! That's hard!"
Relief. He hasn't figured me out at all.
And, a moment later, So that's why Margaret thought I'd enjoy meeting him. He's just like me.
"I was going to tell you," she said, smiling widely at his antics. "It's not quite right, though. I'm not a shadow, rather the opposite, though I am connected to Amu."
———————
"A dream?"
"That's what we thought, anyway. Turns out it's a little more complex, but… basically. I never had to reconcile with Amu, since we were never apart in the first place, but it's only since the last few days that I've been more than an accessory of sorts. Even then, I was still tiny. Mini-Amu."
"So that's why you like it here," Teddy said quietly, having completely dropped the 'bear' jokes. "I can't say I fully understand, but I know what it's like to be treated as something different from human. Nanako is the only one who always acted normally around me."
"She sounds like a nice girl." Miki smiled wistfully. "Ami can at least see me, but she always thinks I'm a doll or something. I wish I could change that."
"And Amu?"
She hesitated. "Amu's been nice. She's trying, very hard, but it's too easy to fall back into old patterns. It doesn't help that they're probably needed; we're smarter when we're together, and there's more at stake than just my individuality. If there hadn't been… I don't know. I absolutely don't want to lose her, either. I'd rather stay as I am than risk that."
"You shouldn't sell yourself short." He paused, frowning and pushing his eyebrows together in an exaggerated fashion. "I know I'm bearly able to tell, having been overcome by your beauty, but you seemed like a grizzlied pair of furly friendly twins to me. Don't worry so much."
A—pair of—
She let out a chuckle, quickly growing into full-on laughter. "Oh lord, were you saving that up?"
"Of course," he said, nodding wisely. "It is my beary role in society."
"Please stop. It's painful." Impulsively, she reached out to give him a hug. Mm… very different from Amu. For one thing, he was warmer. And stiffer. "Thanks, though. There, that's repayment for Maya knocking you out earlier, since I won't be able to do it after we get back to reality. Come on, let's go."
It took him nearly a minute to catch up, by which time she was impatiently tapping her foot next to the stack of TVs. Like hell she was walking through that impossibility without help.
"Hold on! There's something I wanted to tell you."
———————
"That stings! Are you sure this will work?"
"Maybe a little smaller. ...sure it will. Trust me!"
———————
A few minutes later. They'd made it through the stack, Teddy going ahead while she did some last-minute checks.
"—oes it have a hospital?"
Teddy shrugged. "I don't know, I never had to go there. Sensei would know, but it'll take us fifteen minutes to get there, if he's even at home."
"Right," Amu said. "Too many unknowns, but I don't think we have a better choice, and we might find someone helpful on the way… Come on, let's go. Speaking of which, where's Miki? You said she'd be right behind you."
The girl in question peeked around the corner of a DVD shelf. There was something weird about holding an impromptu council of war in the middle of a department store, but that wasn't why she was hiding. She still felt a little odd—compressed, like there was something pushing at her from all sides—but that wasn't it either.
Taking a deep breath, she gave herself one last once-over before stepping around the corner.
"Reporting as ordered," she said timidly, raising her head slightly to look Amu in the eyes.
There was a long moment of silence, in which she felt intensely self-conscious. She had gotten all the details right, hadn't she? The clothing she was wearing was technically part of her, and she'd had a lot of trouble at first getting the colors right. Maya at least didn't seem bothered, and Fumi just looked tired, but Amu was staring at her like she'd never seen her before. Which was obviously wrong, it hadn't been more than two or three years!
"How—" Amu said, then stepped over to give her a closer look, almost giving her a crick in the neck from looking up. "Miki? But—"
She quickly bobbed her head.
"…I didn't think I'd ever see you again." Amu dropped into a crouch, finally letting them see face to face. Her face was turning into the broadest grin. Miki could feel herself smiling back, almost uncontrollably—not that she'd ever have tried to control it. "But, how? And why?"
"Teddy helped with the 'how'," she said. She could see him leaning against a display case, looking obviously pleased with himself. "I'm not sure how long I can keep this up, but I'm going to find out! As for why—" She stretched onto her toes, doing a small pirouette before looking back to her sister. Her older sister, now, since she'd made herself a body almost identical to the last one she could clearly remember before becoming Miki, before her growth spurt. Mentally they were still twins, but she certainly didn't look it.
She had other reasons beyond practicalities for choosing that look, but she wasn't going to tell Amu that it felt like she was resuming her own, long-lost life.
"I couldn't get all the way to full size, it was just too hard to do for more than a few seconds. So I thought, maybe if I drop a few sizes…"
"You look like you're about eight," Amu diagnosed. "You look like you're me at eight, even your clothing. The only flaw is your hair."
She nodded shyly, then caught herself and repeated the motion a little more emphatically. It'd be easy to forget that she wasn't actually that child, the way everything towered over her now—Amu was a full head taller than her! Twenty-five centimeters, give or take, and probably close to twice her weight. Somehow it hadn't been an issue when she'd been literally pint-sized.
"I was trying to make it brown, but it doesn't want to stick. Dark blue is the best I can do."
Amu drew a finger through her still shoulder-length hair, splitting it and causing a shiver to run down her back. "It's pretty," she said. "Neat, I wonder what Mom and Dad will think. There's no way they're expecting this."
"You mean, there's no way they're expecting me." She could imagine Mom's confusion, right up until they hugged. And hey, finally Ami would have to treat her with some dignity. And Yoru…
She scowled. Yoru could do whatever he liked, she wasn't going to forgive him that easily. On the bright side…
"That's true. It's too bad you can't take my exact form, but—"
"The hair colour is a bit of a tell, I know. You could change yours?"
"Ran and Su."
Miki clicked her tongue. True, they'd only have one shot at this, and she wasn't leaving them out. Didn't matter, because—
"It doesn't matter if you can't go full-sized," Amu said, finishing her line of thinking.
"Triplets would still—"
"Then I'd be left out! And can they even—"
"Probably not. I don't know what the limit—"
"Hey." Fumi's voice broke in. "You pair of… whatever you are, and let me know when you figure that out. I'm sure this is very exciting, but shouldn't we be going?"
She shot her an annoyed look, noting that Fumi looked like she was about to fall asleep on her feet. Okay, she was right, and being this tired probably excused her, but even so, couldn't she see they were having a moment?
Amu, to Miki's confusion, didn't seem to agree.
"Ah—of course." Amu had paled slightly. "Right. Teddy, show us the way. Fumi, come on. I'll help you walk. Miki—"
She was left blinking.
"—How long do you think you can maintain that form?"
"An hour or two?" Amu was already walking, and she had to jog to catch up. Up ahead, Maya was watching the scene with interest. Right. Demon. Do not trust. "Maybe less if I'm exercising, I can't tell yet."
"Don't overdo it. You can hitch a ride on my shoulder if you need to."
Miki grimaced. Sure, but she didn't want to!
[ ] …
A/N: Here's a bite-sized chunk. While I work on the next part, you can decide if you'd like to say anything besides "Hospital plz! Thanks, gtgbyenow" to the poor kid. (Assuming he's there.) There's also the matter of saying goodbye to Teddy. Oh, you don't have to steer the conversations, but you can.
I really do feel bad we have to leave her and the other two hanging like that for now, but we really can't afford to do anything about it right now. To much to do, for at least a little while longer.
And can you explain, again sorry, how Ran, Miki, or Su training gives Amu their training? It was discussed earlier that their training is what would speed up our own, but wouldn't they just raise they're own stat from a +1 to a +2 or something? And Charms don't carry right now, not that they can learn those when not fused to us anyway.
And can you explain, again sorry, how Ran, Miki, or Su training gives Amu their training? It was discussed earlier that their training is what would speed up our own, but wouldn't they just raise they're own stat from a +1 to a +2 or something? And Charms don't carry right now, not that they can learn those when not fused to us anyway.
Baughn
Healing-type writer
- Location
- Dublin
That's simple enough. If Miki learns something, then Amu has access to the same ability (or attribute) while fused. Though, they'd have to learn it the old-fashioned way for the most part; the other way around, Miki/Ran/Su have constant access to all of Amu's abilities.
I'm not sure I ever claimed they could speed up your training noticeably? But there are four of you, kind of, which certainly has the potential to help get things done.
I'm not sure I ever claimed they could speed up your training noticeably? But there are four of you, kind of, which certainly has the potential to help get things done.
I remember at some point a bunch of people was complaining, or in Alectai's case just lamenting instead, about not having enough time to train and you said/hinted that there was an easy way we were missing. Cue SV shenanigans until you just took pity on us and told us it had something to do with the Charas that I can't remember.
Thing is I had brought up making up our own lack of stats using the Charas way back when we were first making XP plans and the XP bedget we were working with was limiting us.
So I thought the trick was something else, but apparently it isn't?
-[]CALL SOMEONE that would be on base
-[] This is the information age. If people can summon demons with a cellphone then you can damn well use an internet connection and video capability for telepresence so long as there's somebody to cart around the phone/laptop on the other end
-[]Actually, getting back right now would take too long in general considering the current emergency. The internet and Skype are your friends. And with the military/government base on one end and you (high int and lore) on the other, you'll be able to manage some overrides to prevent crippling lag, power loss, or connection loss
-[]Maybe you could plot out a route that would keep you in wifi range for most of the way back (trains have wifi right?)
-[]but you can buy, borrow, or steal a laptop or even desktop. Perhaps from Junes or perhaps from "sensei"
-[]On the other hand at least that means you can afford to be a lot more friendly and talkative with Teddy's Sensei since you can just use a computer instead of having to hop on a train immediately
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Baughn
Healing-type writer
- Location
- Dublin
The trick, such as it is, is to have the charas handle any problems that don't require charms for a good outcome. This gives you more time to train.
Yes. Because we have so many of those. -__- Not to mention they're are still, mostly, mini-mes which limits them even more.
They'll be able to help with the War planning and any Lore crap that comes up at least, but not much else since they don't exactly have Excellencies. And the Dodge should keep them safe hopefully, still, just... ugh.
