Usually I try not to do anything that might harm humans, but your abilities should nullify a little nicotine. [if not her own magic, then at least that of her spirits]
There are more of Gilgamesh's kind?
[Several golden kings like that. What a scary thought.
Douman takes a moment to consider her answer while he exhales a lazy trail of smoke and watches it slowly rise and disperse.]
That would explain why one chose me. I was quite the number in my younger times, although nobody would have ever described me with something as nice as "spunky". ...Ebisu seems to be the opposite, though.
Kuwabara's startled sound of protest is enough to bring Kurama's focus back, at least. Offering an apologetic glance in his direction as the fox relaxes the firm grip before their attention turns fully on Hiei instead. Only for him to dodge anything remotely close to a direct answer. Typical.
“No one here is amused.” Which would have been obvious if he'd looked past his own jealousy for a moment.
“Other than our captors, at any rate." His head tips in indication as he continues, "Perhaps we should move away from the tunnel if we would like to escape the lingering effects.”
[She is, even if Aloy is sounding pretty amused about it. Hasn't even occurred to her yet that she can't help but tell the truth. Might take a little while, given Aloy tends to tell the truth regardless - it's more a matter of how motivated she is to offer it.
As she watches, A2 seems to hesitate to touch the flowers. Worried about their fragility, maybe.]
They're real. I don't have a name for them, though - don't think they grow in my part of the world.
[Yes. Out loud. And hardly meant how it's probably taken. He just doesn't expect her to get wrapped up with him again. That, and she's one of the few asking about his capabilities.]
I bet it won't do anything... [But sure, why not? He'll fuck around and they'll find out. What's he got to lose?]
Let's see how far I can toss your present, then~. ♪
[It's a chance to show off. He can't help but grin at her. All fangs and excitement as he pulls his arm back, makes sure she's watching and throws it headlong into the party. He's pretty strong without his powers, so it's no surprise to watch it clear a good distance before he turns to her, practically beaming with pride.]
How's that-- ack!! [No sooner does the question leave his lips when it happens. The very present he's sent off comes flying back. Unfortunately for Chuuya, he's just tall enough to have it crash into the back of his head. Or that's how it looks as the damn thing knocks him forward into a stumble toward her. Yet the present doesn't crumple upon contact with the hand that tries to stop it. In fact, it's almost as if something stops the force of upon contact. Even if fingers now securely hold it. Huh.]
[ Ange is pretty sure she missed something there. She was about to call out and warn the other about the present's trajectory, but she doesn't manage to force the words out in time. Especially when she's totally caught off guard by something entirely different happening than what she imagined.. ]
Did that thing just stop in the air?
[ It's not really what she saw, but Ange isn't sure what she did see just now, actually. All she knows is that it's definitely not natural that the present didn't hit him. ]
[Well, having the damn thing fly back at him wasn't what he was expecting. He simply reacts, an instinctive calculation he can just do at this point when it comes to manipulating gravity.
He can move out of the way, sure, but the chances of it hitting her instead makes the choice easier. What's worse is she notices and all he can do is drag out a sigh. Present in one hand, scratching fingers through the hair by his ear with the other. Frustration evident in gesture and tone and in the way he doesn't look right at her.]
Yeah. Somethin' like that.
[She's just going to ask more questions, isn't she? He doesn't blame her, even looks at her now.]
You ever seen someone who could manipulate gravity before?
Looks like they got bored and spiced things up with cages and coffins later. I woke up in a damn cage and after the shit going on back home, I wasn't in the best mood to deal with it, either. So, that makes two of us. Cheers?
[He sounds as tired and grumpy as he feels just thinking about it. Enough so that he almost finishes his first cheap drink. What's next but the love locomotive? A lame attempt at selling boxed wine if he's ever seen it.]
Were you even at that carnival? Besides the cages, it was pretty fun, I guess.
[Then, after ordering that lame ass name for a boxed wine. For two. Why the hell not?]
[The amusement in Aloy's voice is not lost on A2, and she tries to frown on it, only to end up unable to manage it. Instead it turns out mildly puzzled, like she's trying to work out how she feels about Aloy's amusement, which should be annoyed but is something else.
Carefully, she picks up one of the flowers by its delicate stem, keeping it gently pinched between two fingers. The strength in her hands was capable of tearing through metal and catching bullets, but it's hard to tell right now. The translucent petals allow light to filter through, and she wonders how something so fragile could be a living thing.]
I like flowers.
[It's said in a distracted murmur.] But I don't know what I'm supposed to do with them.
[A2 considers this. She'd seen mice before. Rodents who hid timidly in small nooks and crannies, in the dark spaces underneath buildings.
The comparison makes her frown, more to herself. She tries to formulate a response.] Those little animals? Mm. You're smarter than those things. They get killed all the time.
[By birds, usually. Or else some other predator.] The crows are smart. [... A shake of her head.] You're not loud enough to be a crow. They never shut up.
[After a delay:] Aloy's your sister. The "machine hunter." Right?
[ The thought of being like a crow had never occurred to her. They were smart, but she'd read they were known for being playful too. Was she playful? She was curious for sure... ]
Yes, that's her. With the long red hair in braids. Probably looking very serious and doing a million things.
[A2 nods in tacit approval. Crows were much better than mice, in her opinion. Clever animals with the ability to problem solve and work together for results. And they looked kind of cool.
The description of Aloy makes A2's mouth twitch up into a half-smile that is gone quickly.] Mm. We've met. She asks a lot of questions.
So what's it like? Having a sister.
Edited 2025-03-20 16:06 (UTC)
late ass tagback because i lost this notif... i'm gomen
[A dismissive scoff at his answer. A2 turns her head again, arms crossed, glaring at nothing in particular.
... Though eventually, she seems to lose whatever ire was possessing her, and only looks resigned.] Maybe some people are free to.
[Everyone was so idealistic here, so sure of their inherent right to do this or that. To be happy, to enjoy things, to live in a way they wanted to. But she is convinced that these privileges are outside of her reach. She was an android, designed for a meaningless purpose. Whatever this place was... it was only a brief reprieve, wasn't it? Even though she had destroyed the Tower, even though...
She can't think about the rest. Instead:]
... I don't have any wishes. [It's stated quietly and without much emotion.] There's not any point in it.
[ Laughter escaped Hakuno. Oh, it was certainly true. She couldn't deny that. ]
Well, let me tell you. The Gods that I met so far, none of them would allow me to live, so if anything, if I was going to die, I might as well give them a piece of my mind.
[ For a little while, it'd felt like they did nothing but argue. It felt inevitable sometimes when they'd started fighting immediately after Aloy arrived.
She loves Aloy, at least as much as she knows what it is to love someone, but it hadn't been this difficult in Second Time Around. ]
When we first met, we fought all the time. We didn't know the other existed until we met, and I think - we expected each other to be different. Aloy is everything I'm not...all the best parts of Elisabet.
It startles him, the way she suddenly turns to him and hugs him like that, but doesn’t that mean that Kotone needs the companionship more than ever? Especially when she’s the kind of person to hide behind a mask, although he’s glad that she can be this honest with him. Maybe it’s hard not too, when he’s always been someone born from her own heart.
So he returns the hug in full, running soothing circles behind her back.]
You don’t need to force yourself to feel something you don’t feel, Kotone-chan.
[Because that’s the root of all this, isn’t it? The desire to be happy all the time because you don’t want to worry anyone else. Ryoji knows that feeling all too well, because it’s something he would do too.]
The fact that it hurts just shows how much he means to you. It’s because you cherish your time with him that you can’t be happy with him being gone. And that’s okay.
[Is this what Aloy looked like when Talanah gave her flowers? Aloy would like to think she was more collected around the other hunter, but she hasn't really thought about how many thoughts she voices without thinking about it. They could both be terribly easy to read, couldn't they.
What do you do with flowers? Well...Aloy had been lucky. There always seemed to be someone at base to care for them, these days, so they'd always be there when the hunter wandered back in. It's probably Zo making sure a friend's gift thrives. She should probably check sometime.
Her voice is lighter than usual, not burdened with the usual stresses and pressure Aloy assigns herself.]
Decoration. Uh - some people would wear them. Or if you're staying put somewhere, you could put them on display.
[ Where to begin? Minato nods but falls silent as he considers how to describe this particular friend. ]
He's someone who wasn't human, but loves humans too.
[ Perhaps it's no wonder that Death would be in love with life. Without one, the other cannot exist. ]
Someone who wants to experience all that the world has to offer. ...maybe if he had the choice, he'd choose to be a human too.
[ Minato folds his hands in his lap as he contemplates this. Ryoji seemed to truly enjoy and treasure his time spent as a student, even if getting a little too excited about exploring all that humanity had to offer landed him in trouble. ]
Maybe that's... why he's here too.
[ After all, Minato's always been a firm believer that everything must happen for a particular reason. ]
[A2 is quiet as she listens. It's out of politeness, but it's also because she feels unsettled listening to this. No... unsettled wasn't right, not exactly. Troubled. It's troubling.
She isn't the best at the careful navigation of emotion, say nothing of dealing with another person's insecurities. She decides to ask a question, instead.]
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