[ The small stone whizzes down the alley at a blink-and-you'll-miss-it speed. Fortunately, it's just the two of them here, so there's no risk of it accidentally hitting anyone. Only after the rock stops moving does he glance back at his company. ]
That was cool though.
[ She's bemoaning her inability to do anything more than lift a single rock, but even that's impressive to Minato. He rises to his feet and wanders down the alley until he finds the piece of stone. Minato plucks it off the floor and returns to sit on his crate with it grasped between a thumb and an index finger.
He holds it up, observing it as he turns it over, studying the tiny grooves along its surface. ]
...I can't move this rock without touching it.
[ If she can send rocks hurtling down alleys without touching any rocks, how much more could she do if she put her own hand on one? ]
[ Toph was definitely not thinking of it hitting someone. She's still a long way from her normal acute control and constant spatial awareness.
Minato's trying to be reassuring, but Toph scowls, disgruntled. It's too close to patronizing for her. She doesn't want someone to tell her something basic is incredible like she should be surprised she even managed something basic. ]
It's a party trick, [ she complains. ] It seems so easy in what I remember, I don't know why it's so hard.
But... [ A short pause. ] I guess I don't know why any of this is happening.
In any event, Toph's descriptions are reminiscent of learning how to re-use a muscle that's languished and atrophied from disuse. If that's the case, the only way to get better at it is to keep practicing: keep shooting tiny rocks down alleyways over and over again, gradually working up to bigger pieces of stone.
It's probably not a solution Toph's going to like. ]
Me neither.
[ Hm. ]
Maybe you'll be able to move bigger rocks as you remember more things.
[ Which can be brute forced, but it's difficult to provide any assistance when he doesn't know a single thing about this girl. ]
[ That hadn't occurred to her, and the idea forces Toph to think about it, lapsing out of her irritation and into thoughtfulness. Truthfully, she wouldn't mind the practicing; she's not afraid of hard work and she'll do anything to stop being dependent on others.
But if there is a faster way... ]
If these really are memories, maybe my abilities are coming back when they are. Like I only remember a few things, so I can only do a few things.
If that's the case, that's really annoying, because I can't control it.
[ At this point, it really will be luck of the draw. There's no telling what might help Toph remember things. They have to start from somewhere though. ]
...I think I started seeing flashes when I picked things up.
[ There'd been items scattered across Aldrip here and there. Some things, strangely enough, disappeared shortly after he'd picked them up. Other times, there'd been sights that were always a part of Aldrip that triggered a vision, like that time he'd caught a glimpse of someone's dog.
Hm. ]
Maybe you'll remember more if you find something from those dreams.
[ It's worth pursuing, maybe. Certainly better than nothing. ]
Oh... you're right. It's like I find something that triggers it. I was so caught up in what came after, I wasn't really paying attention to that.
[ Which obviously suggests the next step if she wants to regain more of her abilities. ]
That means we should be looking for things that are out of place, [ she says eagerly. ] You want to remember more stuff, too, right? We can look together!
[ Even Toph absent of most of her true history bosses people about by default. This is what she wants to do, and he hasn't protested anything so far, so of course he'll go along with it.
And he does. ]
I've found a couple things in the woods. And I found something by this big stone house.
[ He repeats the name, committing it to memory, before offering a small nod out of habit. ]
Minato Arisato. ...just Minato's fine though.
[ He takes his schoolbag in hand again before shuffling a bit closer to Toph. It seems she's already decided that he'll be accompanying her, so he'll wait for his new fearless leader to march onward.
Little does he know, this is just a dress rehearsal for their future shenanigans. ]
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expiationlogs2024-03-09 08:37 am
no subject
That was cool though.
[ She's bemoaning her inability to do anything more than lift a single rock, but even that's impressive to Minato. He rises to his feet and wanders down the alley until he finds the piece of stone. Minato plucks it off the floor and returns to sit on his crate with it grasped between a thumb and an index finger.
He holds it up, observing it as he turns it over, studying the tiny grooves along its surface. ]
...I can't move this rock without touching it.
[ If she can send rocks hurtling down alleys without touching any rocks, how much more could she do if she put her own hand on one? ]
no subject
Minato's trying to be reassuring, but Toph scowls, disgruntled. It's too close to patronizing for her. She doesn't want someone to tell her something basic is incredible like she should be surprised she even managed something basic. ]
It's a party trick, [ she complains. ] It seems so easy in what I remember, I don't know why it's so hard.
But... [ A short pause. ] I guess I don't know why any of this is happening.
no subject
In any event, Toph's descriptions are reminiscent of learning how to re-use a muscle that's languished and atrophied from disuse. If that's the case, the only way to get better at it is to keep practicing: keep shooting tiny rocks down alleyways over and over again, gradually working up to bigger pieces of stone.
It's probably not a solution Toph's going to like. ]
Me neither.
[ Hm. ]
Maybe you'll be able to move bigger rocks as you remember more things.
[ Which can be brute forced, but it's difficult to provide any assistance when he doesn't know a single thing about this girl. ]
no subject
[ That hadn't occurred to her, and the idea forces Toph to think about it, lapsing out of her irritation and into thoughtfulness. Truthfully, she wouldn't mind the practicing; she's not afraid of hard work and she'll do anything to stop being dependent on others.
But if there is a faster way... ]
If these really are memories, maybe my abilities are coming back when they are. Like I only remember a few things, so I can only do a few things.
If that's the case, that's really annoying, because I can't control it.
no subject
...I think I started seeing flashes when I picked things up.
[ There'd been items scattered across Aldrip here and there. Some things, strangely enough, disappeared shortly after he'd picked them up. Other times, there'd been sights that were always a part of Aldrip that triggered a vision, like that time he'd caught a glimpse of someone's dog.
Hm. ]
Maybe you'll remember more if you find something from those dreams.
[ It's worth pursuing, maybe. Certainly better than nothing. ]
no subject
[ Which obviously suggests the next step if she wants to regain more of her abilities. ]
That means we should be looking for things that are out of place, [ she says eagerly. ] You want to remember more stuff, too, right? We can look together!
no subject
Okay.
[ Aldrip isn't huge, but it isn't a tiny village of population one-hundred either. ]
...where was the last place you found something weird?
[ He doesn't say "where you saw something weird" because... yeah. If Toph needs him as a set of eyes, who is he to say no? ]
no subject
And he does. ]
I've found a couple things in the woods. And I found something by this big stone house.
My name's Toph, by the way. Toph Beifong.
no subject
[ He repeats the name, committing it to memory, before offering a small nod out of habit. ]
Minato Arisato. ...just Minato's fine though.
[ He takes his schoolbag in hand again before shuffling a bit closer to Toph. It seems she's already decided that he'll be accompanying her, so he'll wait for his new fearless leader to march onward.
Little does he know, this is just a dress rehearsal for their future shenanigans. ]