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[She can definitely feel how glad he is, yes. But even though he never told her his brother was around, she still feels like she somehow should have known.

They're friends, aren't they? Then again, she doesn't have any siblings, so it really never came up, did it...?]

Still, I wish I could have met him.

Edited 2015-07-05 05:24 (UTC)

[Still adjusting the bracelet, the shrug is evident in his tone. Who knows? He doesn't keep tabs on the people III has met.]

His name is Michael. He has pink hair.

[Pink. IV's eyes are pink, she thinks idly. It's one of her favorite colors, but she's not sure that matters much now. She feels like she would remember someone with pink hair, but there were so many costumes that day when they were all forced into that photoshoot.

She did see someone though, didn't she?]

Maybe...

[She trails off in thought. But no, she can't know for certain.]

I'm not too sure.

But... why do you say he didn't belong?

[There aren't that many boys with pink hair, IV thinks. If it's a maybe, they can narrow it down later.

Finished playing with the placement of his sleeve under the bracelet, he drapes his arm over the back of the bench again.]

This isn't a place for someone like him. He has things to do back in Heartland.

... We all had things to do.

[She doesn't want to get homesick. She doesn't want to think about her mom's cooking, about Jolyne and the others at the newspaper, about Elize, Teepo, Alvin... Rowen.

She shakes her head.]

You too, IV. Don't you have more trophies to win, and... and more titles to earn, things like that?

You still made a place for yourself here, and I think that's really great.

For a while, I thought this was my new place . . . the hell I'd be living in for the rest of my conscious time.

[He gives a breathy, sardonic laugh. To be honest, they all probably have a one-way ticket to Hell: him, III, V. For arguably good intentions, they did terrible things.]

We've all done things. But do I have more to do? . . . I suppose I do.

[It's suddenly hard to look at him, especially when he laughs. He's never heard that before. She doesn't have Athena's special hearing power, but she's certain that everything he's saying sounds bitter and pained.

"Hell" ... she wonders if it's really so bad here.]

I know you do. And those are all reasons to keep going, so... don't talk like Michael's the only one.

[With a little more confidence at that being said, she turns to face him again with determination.]

No matter where you guys are, you have purpose.

Michael's different.

[Probably. He rolls his head the other way to look Leia in the eye. What's coming out his mouth is dramatic, but the delivery is entirely casual; he's long resigned himself to this way of thinking.]

And I know I have a purpose. You don't have to remind me.

That's funny. It feels like I do.

[Her tone is entirely casual as well. Gentle, and not argumentative--though it could be interpreted that way for obvious reasons.

So what if Michael's different? That's how it should be. They still deserved to stay together, and she can't blame him for being upset.]

I was already reminded once.

[All this reminding, and he's going to start perceiving it as nagging. He's always been good about knowing and clinging to his purpose. That's one thing he's stubborn about and can do.

He pauses, thinking.]

It's not that I ever gave up.

[The point of reminders is that it's something easily forgotten. There's nothing wrong with hearing it more than once, but she's not going to push the issue.]

Then what was it?

[What happened to you...?]

[He stares ahead again. Talking about it doesn't put him on the spot, but it's still a lot to think about in its own way. Whenever he thinks he's done, something happens, and he begins to think more for different reasons.]

I don't know how to describe it. Anyway, it's not important. I know the truth now.

[When he freezes up like that--well, she knows it isn't a good sign. She doesn't feel entirely shut out though, not yet...

So there's that. All she can do is encourage him.]

You can tell me.

You're not the problem.

[He knows Leia well enough by now. The thought of telling her doesn't bother him. Rather, it's finding the right words that's hard. IV looks away, considering, before he sets his sight back front.]

. . . I told you there was an invasion. I was a casualty.

[His words are at first light and reassuring; and then they sink like stones in water, taking down her heart with it. It doesn't fully hit her right away what he truly means, but--

She can see Cline. She can see Agria, Presa, Jiao, and Wingul. She can Julius...

She knows, and she hates it.]

You were a--

[Which is not to say she wants to admit it. Her eyes are wide with shock, and she continues to watch him even though he can't seem to reciprocate.

It's hard to breathe. She doesn't know what to say, and she wants to deny it because he's here and he's real, and yet a lot of gaps are filled in--some she didn't even realize were there.

Things make sense, more or less.]

No... No way. So at the ball, the reason your clothes were all...

[He nods like he would when discussing anything else. Recalling the moment leaves him quite pensive, but that's all it is - a moment or a page in the long chapter of his story.]

My last memory is of losing.

[And a little after that. It had felt so much like drifting to sleep through intense exhaustion. His right hand tingles at the memory of the excruciating pain. He no longer feels any of it.]

[She looks ahead. It's comforting to focus on something else--something pretty, like flowers. She feels like she understands no why he's doing it.]

Losing.

You mean a duel? But that-- that doesn't mean you had to die!

[It's a game, isn't it?]

In the most duels, it doesn't.

[He looks down, staring at his knees and how the light reflects off the cream-colored material of his pants.]

But this one had everything at stake, and I couldn't change anything.

[Leia's hands gently close into fists as she tries to understand, but she doesn't. Normally, asking the right questions and having that epiphany is a thrill, but she doesn't like this.

It's too hard to tell whether she's actually helping him, or... if she's just hurting him and reopening wounds.

Her voice quiets again to match his after her outburst.]

Was it to stop the invasion?

[As far as IV is concerned, he's merely stating the facts. He has to pause and consider her question, however, because that's where it gets a little less straightforward.]

That was half the reason.

[He's not that selfless. To the contrary, he's selfish.]

[Everyone's allowed to be selfish sometimes. We can't all be do-gooders, as much as it would make life easier. She knows that.

With an answer like that, she'll turn to face him again.]

What about the other half?

Edited 2015-07-06 02:39 (UTC)

To bring my only friend back.

[He doesn't turn to face Leia, much less see the gardens in front of him. He vividly recalls that duel and the circumstances surrounding it. Remembering them reminds him of that distantly regretful feeling again, and he huffs. Jeez.]

Even though he did it to himself, I couldn't stand by and let him do as he pleased. I had to do something.

[IV actually seems less selfish now--if she even thought so at all (she didn't). Without context, she can't really know for sure, but acting on behalf of someone else, with everything at stake... that's selfless.

Even if it was for his own sake, which seems to be what he's implying--it's hard to fault him if his claim is true. "His only friend," a proud champion like him...

She can barely believe it, yet she knows he isn't lying.]

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