awashlogs | Event Eight.

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Event Eight.

To thee I'll return, overburdened with care;
The heart's dearest solace will smile on me there.
No more from the cottage again will I roam,
Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home.

he Town is quiet this week. No sudden quests on the forum post, no roars of werewolves in the distance... just peaceful, peaceful quiet. Of course, it's hot as hell right now, but that aside, it's pretty pleasant. You probably don't want to wander around the Town right now, but...

Naturally, now's when the Town is going to start thoroughly encouraging you to do just that.

You do want to find your doorway back home, don't you?

Better get searching! And don't mind the other worlds you might end up stumbling into first.

Welcome to Awash's eighth event log, everyone! Further information on this event can be found here at the OOC post.

You are welcome to start your own posts or logs for this event as well. If there are any questions, please ask them here. Thank you!

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[That gets a softly huffed out breath of laughter out of him. Alright, she's got him there--that could've sounded like he thought she was that, so he lets it go. No need to say it again so long as she believed him the first time, right? He's perfectly content with that.

He knows she's careful with the way she touches, so when he moves next, he's careful--

But even so, Minato knows actions speak so much louder than words. So her fingertips grave his sleeve, and quietly, he reaches out to take her hand in his own. His grip is completely loose, in case she wants to pull away--but he's not afraid of her, he's not afraid of what she would find out, and he knows she wouldn't try to pry into his past and memories without very good reason.

So.

He takes her hand, without a word about it, and nods quietly.]

Okay. Let's go there, then. I'm ready to get a good look around.

You've spent a lot of time here, right...?

[SHE WAS TRYING TO TOUCH HIS SLEEVE

What she gets instead is all of a moment’s notice via psychometry before he’s holding her hand. Shiho freezes as she always tends to do when she’s overwhelmed like this, eyes wide for a fraction of a second before she realizes that right, this is reality and time is still ticking on by. And he’s still holding her hand, lightly like he thinks he’d be the one scaring her.

It’s a good thing he’s not a psychometer, she thinks because then he’d find out her greatest secret: that she did like human contact. Actions spoke louder than words and someone reaching out, knowing who she is and not being afraid of her was the greatest expression of trust and she’s a complete and utter sucker for it. She can feel herself blushing and looks away like that’ll help at all, fingers tightening just for a moment around his before she’s leading the way to the stairs.]

...I grew up here. My parents sent me here when I was five.

[And just like that... things feel right like this. Minato may not be a psychometer, but the way that her fingers tighten around his, even briefly, says a lot of things in its own right. Has Shiho been refraining for his sake, because of her powers...?

(That seems like it could be a lonely existence, too, and Minato decides then and there that Shiho especially deserves even something as simple as holding hands more often than just this.)

For now, though? He's pretty content to follow along with her, taking it all in as best he can.]

... Because of your abilities?

[(Five is so, so young.)]

[She can see what he's thinking and decides then and there that he really is a bigger menace than even he realizes??

(Though at the same time she knows she'll never be able to resist if he really does hold her hand more so.... what can she do...)]

Because my mom had a nervous breakdown not long before and my dad didn't know how to deal with me. They thought that BABEL could help me.

[And she had known even then when she held her dad's hand as he dropped her off that while there was no doubt he loved her, he was also relieved to hand her off.]

The government had set up a kindergarten here for us.

[Look... sorry, he's gotta be a menace. Minato's quiet as she explains, but even so, it feels sad to him. On both sides, it's sad--Shiho, who had to watch her parents let go of her and hand her off to strangers as if that'll help, and her parents, for being totally incapable of dealing with what their daughter could do.

But even so...]

How was it here? Did you enjoy yourself? Is this where you met Kaoru-san...?

[She'd talked about it like there were good people here... and honestly, all Minato can hope for is that even though the circumstances leading up to it were sad, it was still a good experience for her to be here even so.]

[She never likes talking about this part and it's probably clear in the way she hesitates and even more so in the way she hold his hand just a touch tighter because she needs that support.]

I said before... that people didn't like espers, right? That applied to all of us, no matter who we were or... how old we were. Even when I was only a kid, adults thought I was... creepy.

[Not to mention the fact that people didn't hire her fellow espers to work at daycares just like they didn't allow them in certain schools, on most modes of transportation or even at amusement parks. Her expression is quiet for a moment before she takes a deep breath, shrugs and tries to smile it off.]

And I was kind of a really bad kid too, back then. I was gloomy and uncute and when Aoi-chan got here- that is, our other friend. Mine and Kaoru-chan's. When she got here, I may have sort of... bullied her. I was such a brat. All because she looked like she was happier than I was. [Though Aoi had thought at the time that she had essentially been sold to the government so her family's business could stay afloat, all because her family never told her that was not and would never be the case.]

But when Kaoru-chan got here... it was much better. She kind of... just has that way, you know? That way of loving you even when you don't love yourself... [She's said too much and coughs awkwardly, trying to wave that off.] That sort of thing anyway. She used to put on all these weird stories with our toys, making them move and doing all these different voices. She was always cheerful, no matter what.

[It's plenty obvious just how little she likes talking about this, but could he ever blame her? She's been through so much, and it sounds as though she went through it so early, too--even just as a child, she had to cope with this, and that's just not fair at all.

So he squeezes her hand gently in return, confirmation that he's right there and going nowhere, that nothing she says at this point could make him change his mind on that--and quietly, he listens.

And her words paint a sad, sad picture of a little girl who went through too much, was tossed aside and mistreated by adults around her, and as a result was defensive and wary. "Uncute" and "gloomy", Shiho says, but Minato thinks of what it would be like as a little kid in that situation and thinks that Shiho's probably always been the person she is, kindness warm in her heart, and just...grew used to defending that from the outside world.

It's sad, but...

There's hope, too, right? Just like how there's hope in Shiho's story in the form of Kaoru. And that makes him breathe out a soft sigh of relief.]

... I'm glad that you've had her by your side, Sannomiya-san. Going through that would be hard for anyone, but...

[Really, nothing he could say would be anything but trite--so he just smiles a little to himself, nodding.]

I'm really glad you to have each other.

[Isn't that what really matters?]

[Shiho tries not to read too much even when they’re holding hands but she can definitely see the relief, the way he means everything he says from the bottom of his heart.

Though she’d defend to the death her own description of herself at five years old as gloomy. She had plenty to be gloomy about, after all and she’d actively tried to be.

But she can’t deny there was hope too. If Kaoru hadn’t shown up, who knows what kind of person she would be today?]

Not just me and Kaoru. We had Aoi-chan too. Adults always used to like her a lot more than they liked either me or Kaoru-chan. She could have had it really easy, you know? But she chose us instead. Her powers can’t hurt people like ours can so adults weren’t scared of her. She could have just ignored it and her life would have been so much easier.

[But she knows even now that given the choice between something easy and something that was right, all three of them would have chosen each other time and again. After all, choosing two friends who understood you, who loved you for who you were? That was easier than anything in the entire world.]

Though in the end I guess all three of us got labelled as troublemakers. [At the top of the stairs is a wide open area, airy and open and though she knows there’s nothing really to see from the windows, she leads him there anyway to look at what is a wide expanse of blue sky.]

It didn’t feel like anyone else cared what happened to us so we thought that if no one would help us then we would help ourselves. We wanted to just get out of here, no matter what it took. [And at that time when they were ten, they had thought about resorting to murder if that meant they could be free from BABEL and from normals.]

[A trio of troublemaking girls who had powers nobody else could really even begin to comprehend, and who some people were afraid of, but who always had each other's backs... it's a nice sort of thing, isn't it? Like the sort of thing that makes for a great story.

Especially since they've all made it, right? Somehow, in some way...here they are.

It's a story of triumph, with that in mind.

So Minato follows, admiring the wide, open windows, the bright sunshine and bright blue sky, and smiles a little to himself (because honestly? He's missed it).]

... I can kind of see you and Kaoru-san as troublemakers, you know. I'm not surprised that Aoi-san was that way too.

[But...sometimes, people need a little trouble to open their eyes to what's in front of them.]

What happened then? [Did they manage to get out...?]

[Shiho finally laughs when she hears that and while she couldn’t exactly say it was a triumph, she knows that it could have been worse. That they were lucky and that their story is only just beginning.]

We were definitely bad influences on her.

[Then her eyes are back to looking at the sky but this time her expression is softer.]

Then Minamoto-san appeared. I thought he was a sucker at first. The kind of person who would let three kids break into his house because he knows what they’ve gone through and would never dream of turning them back in to the government. The kind of person who could actually say things like “you can be anything and go anywhere.” [She’s trying to make him sound like an embarrassing nerd but even that is something she finds adorable.]

I wouldn’t be here, I think I might not even be me if he hadn’t been there. We were lucky.

[... Oh...

So that's how it happened, huh? They were all alone, and then someone found them. Someone rescued them, and took care of them, and cared for them as they were, not as tools or because of what they could be.

Just for them. It's... heartwarming, and Minato knows that if he could, standing here and now, he'd thank Minamoto for being such a good person.]

I'm so glad. [He breathes that out softly, eyes fixed on the sky as well, and means every single word. It would've been too easy for them to have no one, or to be put in even worse hands because of their powers. But instead...? They ended up with someone who cared.] Really... I'm glad he was there for you guys.

[When nobody else was.

...A beat, and he adds softly:]

Thank you for trusting me with all of this.

[He knows it couldn't have been easy to share.]

[Hearing it is almost as important as seeing it with her psychometry. Even more so, probably because she feels the sincerity in every word.]

...We’re friends, right? And you’re a good person.

I should be thanking you for listening. It’s... kind of a lot. [Both in terms of exposition and in terms of her own world.] And... thanks for this too. [She gives his hand a gentle squeeze.]

We're definitely friends.

[A firm nod in response, and he squeezes her hand in return. And in all honesty:]

I know this will sound a bit strange, but-- [Well, he knows she'll understand.] You can touch me whenever you want.

I won't pull away.

[He trusts that she'll have good reasons for it, even if she does read his mind.]

[Shiho understands.

But she is also going to take issue with his wording because that is not just a bit strange to say. Maybe it’s going something to do with how relaxed he always is about everything.]

You know, if you had said that out in public someone would think you were a pervert or something. [She’s not pulling away though.]

[Minato...pauses slowly at that...

And then he clears his throat a little awkwardly.]

Ah. You're right.

[Um...]

Oops. [YEAH, OOPS, MINATO.]

[She tries not to laugh at him for... all of five seconds. It’s impossible anyways and she bursts out laughing at the fact that he noticed and that she’s somehow managed to fluster Minato ‘I’m Perfectly Fine With Someone Pointing A Gun At My Head’ Arisato even if it’s only a little bit.]

It’s fine. I promise I’ll keep what you just said a secret. And besides, I know what you mean. So...

Thanks.

[It's fine, it's fine... he doesn't seem to mind her laughing at him, anyway.

(It's a much better expression on her face than some of the worry and tenseness she'd had before. This is much better, isn't it...?)

So ultimately, he just gives her a smile in return, shaking his head.]

You don't have to thank me for that. We're friends, after all. And... you deserve to be able to hold peoples' hands.

[Because Shiho is a good person, no matter what powers she has.]

You really don’t get embarrassed when you say stuff like that, huh?

[But she’s still holding his hand anyway which is her both accepting his trust in her as well as showing that she trusted him, too.]

I think the only Normals back home who didn’t mind when I touched them like this were my parents and Minamoto-san. [Okay and Kiritsubo but he’s weird so he doesn’t get included in this.]

[His first thought is "that's far too few people", when it comes to a young girl and wanting to hold hands. No wonder she was so surprised.

His second, though, is that he's glad she at least had them. If he can be half as reliable as this Minamoto-san seems to be for them, then he'll be happy.]

Well, honestly... [And then, a little teasingly:] I don't think you need to be able to read minds to still be scary, Sannomiya-san.

[...]

Especially because I don't think that's a scary ability at all... though it's definitely amazing.

[He can see why people would think so. People have always guarded their secrets jealously, and the thought of someone who can uncover those is probably really scary.

But...

To Minato, he thinks that the capacity Shiho has to help people with it is far, far more incredible than it could ever be frightening.]

[Both of those are nice thoughts, she thinks. She’s still not used to people being so kind and maybe some part of her will always look for them to say something that edges just too much into the fear that she’s become so familiar with. But in this moment she believes in him and knows he’s sincere.]

Of course. [She’ll always be terrifying, that’s who she is and she’s sticking with it.] I can do a lot more than just read people’s minds, you know.

[Is she at least a little bit proud of her powers? Yes, even when that same feeling was mixed together with fear and worry it was always comforting to know that someone out there thought her powers were amazing.]

[It's better to see her proud of them than wary of how he'd react to them, honestly; Minato hums softly in response, tilting his head a little in clear curiosity.]

What else can you do...? I don't know very much about psychic powers, honestly.

[He doesn't even have psychic as an element, unlike later Personas... a shame.]

[Not many people do, it seems. But that’s the nature of different worlds, like how some people had initially thought Kaoru’s power was flight. Minamoto would probably do a better job at explaining all this since this had been his field of expertise and all but she’ll make an attempt anyway.]

I can read any object or any person and basically see anything they know or anything that happened to them. If you spoke a different language than I did, I could communicate with you at the same level by using psychometry just like this. If I borrowed a sword from someone, I could use it at their same level. If I was a doctor, I could use it to give patients check-ups.

I used it like that once. That time you drank poison. [Her tone is still light and teasing even though at the time she really had been very worried. Please stop drinking strange things, Minato.]

[Wow... that's impressive, actually. Minato blinks slowly as he processes that--

Languages? Reading anything like that? Using something at the same level as the previous owner? That's...]

Impressive...

[Though the poison reminder just gets a rueful look out of him.]

... I'll let you check out anything else strange I get first next time. Especially now that I know you can do this... it just makes sense to let you see what it is first.

[He'll be more careful......]

So it's okay. Now it won't ever happen again.

[Shiho doesn’t even try not to be flattered on hearing that. It’s nice.

And that rueful look only makes her smile because it’s not often she gets to tease him?]

It better not happen again. [Because really, she’s still not sure why it had happened in the first place.] But I’ll take your word for it, just this once.

I promise.

[FOR SURE!! He won't break any promises, anyway, but also...]

It'd be silly to do something dangerous when you can handle it just fine, right? I'll be counting on you, okay, Sannomiya-san? For...all sorts of things, in the future.

[Things like the poison, sure, but... in general, just being his friend and taking his hand is fine by him, especially now that he knows more about her.]

Event Eight.

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