[She spends a solid minute wondering if she should bring her naginata. It's the nice green one with the feathers, the one that always makes her feel stronger when she uses it. But-- no. She doesn't want Akechi to think she's a threat, or to think she feels threatened by him in return. She does bring her Evoker, though, just in case, strapping it to her thigh and making sure its covered by a knee-length skirt. Then it's just boots and a light jacket, and she's on her way up the hill.
It's closer from the farmhouse than from town, so she intends to make it there first and wait under one of the trees for shade. In the meantime, she'll pop her headphones in and watch the clouds.]
[Naginata would definitely have been an overkill. Their previously friendly relationship might have soured after their recent encounters, which was fully Akechi's own fault. That much he admits. But that didn't mean he had any malice intentions towards her. Bringing a weapon to what Akechi intended to be a civilized conversation would have just made him laugh.
The hill is a little bit farther away from the town than the farm, it seems. Since when Akechi arrives on their promised place Kotone is already there.]
Shiomi-san. [He nods at her as a greeting. She seems more like herself now compared to their last meeting.]
[Her music isn't so loud that she can't hear him coming, so she takes her headphones out at the sound of his footsteps and gives him a smile. It's not quite as bright or carefree as they have been in the past, but it does at least look like it reaches her eyes.]
Hey. [She pats the ground, offering him the space to sit next to her if he wants. The grass is nice and soft, warmed by the sun.] How's your finger?
[She'd asked that already, but now she's trying to get a look herself, to see if it's been magically healed, or still in its splint for stabilization.]
It's fine. [It's said with a hint of annoyance. He can see her trying to take a peer at his hand so he just crosses his arms over his chest. Well, at least the swelling has gone down and he's managed to fit another pair of gloves!]
[True, it had been him to initiate the meeting this time. But he imagined it'd be easier to let her have a chance to ask any questions she might have and start from there.]
[Really? She doesn't laugh, even though the question is absolutely absurd. The answer is simple enough to be obvious, but if he's asking, then he must not know her very well at all. So even though she gives him a bit of an odd look, she takes a few seconds to think about how to explain it in a way he might understand.]
If you saw me pointing a gun at Akira and threatening to shoot him, you'd step in, wouldn't you? You'd want an explanation if I was hurting him, even if we both told you to leave?
I'm not afraid of getting shot myself. I thought he'd shot you.
[It had reminded her of when Shinji had gotten shot, during the Dark Hour, and all they could do was rush him to a hospital while he bled out. Her gaze goes a little distant at that memory, sitting with the rest of the team while they waited for the Dark Hour to end, for the doctors at the hospital to un-transmogrify so they could finally stabilize him.]
And I don't shoot my friends. Dazai-san is...
[Well. He's certainly something, and she just ends that sentence with a shrug.]
[Understand, not empathize. It's normal human behavior, really. Wanting to protect friends and other people you care about. This is why relationships like that are ultimately nothing but chains holding you back in Akechi's eyes. There's no one he wouldn't shoot without a hesitation if the situation called for it. Not even Akira is safe.
(Although, he knows that's a lie. He wouldn't kill Akira, not when he's already surrendered his own life to his hands before. Even now, he trusts that Akira is there to pull the trigger when the times right.)]
However, there are times when simply talking won't be enough with people like him and me. Even Akira knows this.
[Stating the obvious, maybe, but she thinks it's important to say. She and Akira are very similar in some ways, maybe in important ways, but not in everything. It sounds like certainly not in this.
She draws one knee in toward herself and glances sideways at him, weighing what she wants to say on her tongue. It could make him angry, depending on what Akira's told him. It could send him flying off into another rage like she'd witnessed with Dazai, an image completely juxtaposed from the neat young man she'd thought she'd known. But she has to know.]
Why wouldn't you tell him about Oda-san and Ango? I know you're not part of the Port Mafia or any of those other groups, 'cause you're from where Akira's from, and those groups don't exist where he's from.
No, you're not. But you share the same hero complex as he does.
[She had just stated that she wasn't scared of getting hurt herself as long the other party was safe. He's witnessed the same self-sacrificing behavior in Akira countless of times. And needless to say, he hates it. He wishes that both of them would be more selfish and place their own wellbeing ahead of Akechi's, who himself doesn't hesitate throwing others to the wolves.
It's a behavior that doesn't fit in his world view.]
Ah, that. [he shrugs nonchalantly, looking down at her. Somehow she looks now smaller than before.]
I would have. It just happens that he, too, had information I wanted to know but refused to tell me. So I didn't see any reason for me to share my knowledge with him.
[Her nose wrinkles a bit when he calls it a "hero complex." If that's a hero complex, then every single member of SEES has the same thing. Some are worse than she is about it!
But they're not here to talk about SEES. They're here to talk about Akechi, and her wrinkled nose fades into a frown as she meets his eyes.]
What did you want to know that he wouldn't tell you?
[Like... there's the problem of how Akechi knows Oda's name, and Ango's, but her first assumption would have been mistaken identity, not malevolence.]
[He had been curious about Dazai's ability to cut the connection between him and his personas. What was the origin and true nature of his powers. If he could sever the bond so easily Akechi wondered if he could do the opposite as well. It had been a stretch but still something he needed to confirm.]
I would have been willing to exchange the information but he didn't agree.
[Sorry Akechi, she doesn't buy that. Like, okay, on Dazai's part it's not unbelievable based on his history to think Akechi and his knowledge is a threat, but what could Dazai know that could possibly be so important?]
[A heavy silence falls between them as Akechi keeps her gaze fixated on her, eyes half open and expression pensive. No, it was a fucking stupid reason to fight but Akechi wanted to see how far Dazai would have spiraled, and the anger mixed with desperation when realizing that Akechi didn't have anything useful to tell him. It would have been so fucking ridiculous, almost worth to die for.]
It felt good. [He says with a somber voice. The pain had sucked. But it did feel good to have someone to direct all his aimless rage and frustration at. To be able to let it all out and give in to that darkness in him that just wanted to kill and destroy. Bring forth the chaos.
He's not sure if he ever could make her understand that, no matter how much he tried to explain.]
[Her frown doesn't last long, either, becoming something more pensive to mirror him as she watches him. It's not something she can understand, no matter how hard she tries, but it's not completely foreign, either. Some people thrived on making others feel pain, or wanting to see destruction, or wanting to feel better about themselves. She doesn't know which, if any, of those apply to Akechi, but... it's not unheard of.]
You're the kind of person who likes to fight, aren't you?
[It's a quiet, honest observation that runs contrary to the image he'd projected when they'd been learning to cook, or teaching her to gamble, but it seems to fit him better after that display the other day.
And, well. As long as Akechi isn't stupid enough to attack Dazai on sight, that's good enough for her. She'll leave handling Dazai himself to Chuuya.]
Something like that. [He remembers how Yoshizawa had called him "a ruthless kind of person" when she had seen him fight for the first time. She hadn't been wrong. Nothing soothed him quite like violence, being able to indulge in his most animalistic desires and just tear the world apart. Destroy everything, just like he had been.
There is yet another brief pause between his words as he weights his thoughts in his mind, wondering whether he should disclose the truth to her.
Well.. she had been honest about the subject.]
You're not the only one who is surviving on a borrowed time, Shiomi-san.
[Not Shinji, bless him, but Akihiko. She can't imagine they'd get along, though; they're too alike in some respects, but very different in others. Akechi would probably make Akihiko angry, she thinks.
But she looks up at him, blinking once with some muted surprise, but taking it in stride. Oh. Okay. That's... good, she guesses? Or well, not good. But she understands that a little better.]
[Hm. She's never had to talk about the particulars before. Not even with Shinji. Dazai, and now Akechi, are the only ones who know.
She tilts her head, not refusing to answer, but taking the time to put her thoughts in order. Ah, it's kind of annoying to explain, isn't it...? She makes a bit of a face, scrunching her nose up.]
It's hard to explain. Do you know anything about Nyx, or the Fall...?
[Like, he's a Persona-user too, so maybe she'll be lucky and he'll have heard about all that. Akira hadn't known what the Dark Hour was, though, so... it can't be that easy.]
[He doesn't rush her. Instead he stands there silently, allowing her to take her time. Because god knows, these things if any take time. He's not even sure where he would begin himself. Akira had shared with him that Kotone was 'like them', which could mean only so many things.
If personas were truly involved with her story, he can only imagine it to be complicated and messy one.]
Yeah, pretty much. I figure Akira told you some stuff...?
[Oh, that's a relief, audible in her voice that it's one less thing she has to explain. But her neck kind of hurts from looking up at him, so she pats the ground next to her again.]
[Akechi would rather stay standing up, but he'll comply with her wishes this time. He steps forwards to proceed sit down on the spot she had just just gestured at.]
He only told me the most crucial information, I believe. He said that you're like us.
[She isn't sure if she should feel hurt or not that Akira had told Akechi after she'd expressly asked him not to. It seems so trivial now in the wake of everything else, though, and besides; she'd told Shinji that very same night.
Resting her head against her draw-in knee, she gazes sideways at him, once again wondering just which arcana he is to Akira. She doesn't know enough about him to guess herself yet, and there's no mysterious voice to give her any hints, either.]
Anyway, the short version is that Nyx was coming. My team tried to fight her, but she was impossible to kill. It wasn't that we weren't strong enough, it's just... it was impossible. [Her voice takes on a curious note, like she's telling someone else's story instead of her own.] The best we could do was seal her away. The best I could do was seal her away.
[There's a lot more to it than that, but he'd only asked about the circumstances, not her backstory. She just shrugs one shoulder as if to say there it is.]
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[She spends a solid minute wondering if she should bring her naginata. It's the nice green one with the feathers, the one that always makes her feel stronger when she uses it. But-- no. She doesn't want Akechi to think she's a threat, or to think she feels threatened by him in return. She does bring her Evoker, though, just in case, strapping it to her thigh and making sure its covered by a knee-length skirt. Then it's just boots and a light jacket, and she's on her way up the hill.
It's closer from the farmhouse than from town, so she intends to make it there first and wait under one of the trees for shade. In the meantime, she'll pop her headphones in and watch the clouds.]
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The hill is a little bit farther away from the town than the farm, it seems. Since when Akechi arrives on their promised place Kotone is already there.]
Shiomi-san. [He nods at her as a greeting. She seems more like herself now compared to their last meeting.]
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Hey. [She pats the ground, offering him the space to sit next to her if he wants. The grass is nice and soft, warmed by the sun.] How's your finger?
[She'd asked that already, but now she's trying to get a look herself, to see if it's been magically healed, or still in its splint for stabilization.]
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Is there anything else you'd like to ask.
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[Said simply and patiently. If he doesn't want to play along with small talk, he can tell her why he wanted to talk!]
So I guess that's what I should be asking you, huh? What'd you want to talk about?
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[True, it had been him to initiate the meeting this time. But he imagined it'd be easier to let her have a chance to ask any questions she might have and start from there.]
Why didn't you leave when we asked you to?
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If you saw me pointing a gun at Akira and threatening to shoot him, you'd step in, wouldn't you? You'd want an explanation if I was hurting him, even if we both told you to leave?
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[Said very bluntly. He knows it'd be against Akira's wishes but in situation like that he wouldn't have any need for answers.]
You're surprisingly afraid of gunshots for a someone who carries a gun.
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[It had reminded her of when Shinji had gotten shot, during the Dark Hour, and all they could do was rush him to a hospital while he bled out. Her gaze goes a little distant at that memory, sitting with the rest of the team while they waited for the Dark Hour to end, for the doctors at the hospital to un-transmogrify so they could finally stabilize him.]
And I don't shoot my friends. Dazai-san is...
[Well. He's certainly something, and she just ends that sentence with a shrug.]
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[Understand, not empathize. It's normal human behavior, really. Wanting to protect friends and other people you care about. This is why relationships like that are ultimately nothing but chains holding you back in Akechi's eyes. There's no one he wouldn't shoot without a hesitation if the situation called for it. Not even Akira is safe.
(Although, he knows that's a lie. He wouldn't kill Akira, not when he's already surrendered his own life to his hands before. Even now, he trusts that Akira is there to pull the trigger when the times right.)]
However, there are times when simply talking won't be enough with people like him and me. Even Akira knows this.
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[Stating the obvious, maybe, but she thinks it's important to say. She and Akira are very similar in some ways, maybe in important ways, but not in everything. It sounds like certainly not in this.
She draws one knee in toward herself and glances sideways at him, weighing what she wants to say on her tongue. It could make him angry, depending on what Akira's told him. It could send him flying off into another rage like she'd witnessed with Dazai, an image completely juxtaposed from the neat young man she'd thought she'd known. But she has to know.]
Why wouldn't you tell him about Oda-san and Ango? I know you're not part of the Port Mafia or any of those other groups, 'cause you're from where Akira's from, and those groups don't exist where he's from.
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[She had just stated that she wasn't scared of getting hurt herself as long the other party was safe. He's witnessed the same self-sacrificing behavior in Akira countless of times. And needless to say, he hates it. He wishes that both of them would be more selfish and place their own wellbeing ahead of Akechi's, who himself doesn't hesitate throwing others to the wolves.
It's a behavior that doesn't fit in his world view.]
Ah, that. [he shrugs nonchalantly, looking down at her. Somehow she looks now smaller than before.]
I would have. It just happens that he, too, had information I wanted to know but refused to tell me. So I didn't see any reason for me to share my knowledge with him.
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But they're not here to talk about SEES. They're here to talk about Akechi, and her wrinkled nose fades into a frown as she meets his eyes.]
What did you want to know that he wouldn't tell you?
[Like... there's the problem of how Akechi knows Oda's name, and Ango's, but her first assumption would have been mistaken identity, not malevolence.]
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[He had been curious about Dazai's ability to cut the connection between him and his personas. What was the origin and true nature of his powers. If he could sever the bond so easily Akechi wondered if he could do the opposite as well. It had been a stretch but still something he needed to confirm.]
I would have been willing to exchange the information but he didn't agree.
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[Sorry Akechi, she doesn't buy that. Like, okay, on Dazai's part it's not unbelievable based on his history to think Akechi and his knowledge is a threat, but what could Dazai know that could possibly be so important?]
What are you gonna do if you see him again?
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It felt good. [He says with a somber voice. The pain had sucked. But it did feel good to have someone to direct all his aimless rage and frustration at. To be able to let it all out and give in to that darkness in him that just wanted to kill and destroy. Bring forth the chaos.
He's not sure if he ever could make her understand that, no matter how much he tried to explain.]
Depends on him.
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You're the kind of person who likes to fight, aren't you?
[It's a quiet, honest observation that runs contrary to the image he'd projected when they'd been learning to cook, or teaching her to gamble, but it seems to fit him better after that display the other day.
And, well. As long as Akechi isn't stupid enough to attack Dazai on sight, that's good enough for her. She'll leave handling Dazai himself to Chuuya.]
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There is yet another brief pause between his words as he weights his thoughts in his mind, wondering whether he should disclose the truth to her.
Well.. she had been honest about the subject.]
You're not the only one who is surviving on a borrowed time, Shiomi-san.
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[Not Shinji, bless him, but Akihiko. She can't imagine they'd get along, though; they're too alike in some respects, but very different in others. Akechi would probably make Akihiko angry, she thinks.
But she looks up at him, blinking once with some muted surprise, but taking it in stride. Oh. Okay. That's... good, she guesses? Or well, not good. But she understands that a little better.]
What happened...?
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[He shoots back almost immediately. Yeah, there's no way he's going to share the events that took place in the engine room just like that]
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She tilts her head, not refusing to answer, but taking the time to put her thoughts in order. Ah, it's kind of annoying to explain, isn't it...? She makes a bit of a face, scrunching her nose up.]
It's hard to explain. Do you know anything about Nyx, or the Fall...?
[Like, he's a Persona-user too, so maybe she'll be lucky and he'll have heard about all that. Akira hadn't known what the Dark Hour was, though, so... it can't be that easy.]
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If personas were truly involved with her story, he can only imagine it to be complicated and messy one.]
Nyx? As in the Goddess of the night?
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[Oh, that's a relief, audible in her voice that it's one less thing she has to explain. But her neck kind of hurts from looking up at him, so she pats the ground next to her again.]
Sit down, please? It's kind of a long story.
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He only told me the most crucial information, I believe. He said that you're like us.
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[She isn't sure if she should feel hurt or not that Akira had told Akechi after she'd expressly asked him not to. It seems so trivial now in the wake of everything else, though, and besides; she'd told Shinji that very same night.
Resting her head against her draw-in knee, she gazes sideways at him, once again wondering just which arcana he is to Akira. She doesn't know enough about him to guess herself yet, and there's no mysterious voice to give her any hints, either.]
Anyway, the short version is that Nyx was coming. My team tried to fight her, but she was impossible to kill. It wasn't that we weren't strong enough, it's just... it was impossible. [Her voice takes on a curious note, like she's telling someone else's story instead of her own.] The best we could do was seal her away. The best I could do was seal her away.
[There's a lot more to it than that, but he'd only asked about the circumstances, not her backstory. She just shrugs one shoulder as if to say there it is.]
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