[Dakki nods quickly, mouth pulling into a line, eyes averted. Another Echo.] I'm sorry...
[But what's done is done. And Tachibana has thoughtful things to say on the matter. Up comes a hand, tapping absently as her cheek as she considers things.]
He... might have been pulled from a different point in time. Es... Estinien, when he first came here, he'd been taken right after a terrible battle that had been nearly a year ago, for me. This Isaka, maybe it's the same?
And I suspect Estinien had thought he'd died. If it's a matter of being somehow pulled here between the moment he'd been defeated and the moment you sealed him...
[She tilts her head the other way, shrugging again.]
We know so little about how we come to be here. All we can do is... speculate.
It would be the same to Isaka, no matter when his consciousness was pulled in. And with how Undead can be turned back into their base energy and stored in just a card...
[[he trailed off, shaking his head.]]
Utterly ridiculous, all of this. [[The words are half sighed, half muttered.]]
[Dakki nods along with him, then quietly turns about to fetch tea bags for each of their mugs. What else is there to say? There's so much theory and uncertainty about it all, it is ridiculous.]
...whatever the reason he's here, he's here. The same for... for the one that has me worried. The 'why' isn't as important as the 'what do we do'.
He looked so... broken, after I defeated him. After I told him that the Sealing Stone... [[he trailed off a moment.]]
The thing that created him, his god, could not longer reach him. That there was no way he could do what the Sealing Stone created him to do, in this world.
[[his finger tapped restlessly on the table.]]
There was another Undead that I saw, reacting to the knowledge that the Battle Fight couldn't be won. She was utterly different than Isaka. Of all the Undead...
[[again, he trails off, just shaking his head. There was too much that just... wouldn't make sense.]]
The despair and look of loss in her face... it was the same.
[That he doesn't know what to do, she understands without explanation. But an explanation comes anyway and... then she understands. It's the sort of understanding that settles upon you like a weight, that rests in the pit of your stomach. Though she has turned about to face Tachibana as he explains, she has to lean her weight back against the kitchen counter and just... take it in.]
Such a long list of sins to account for, and when it's all done it's... it's not always what you'd think, is it?
[It's her turn to fidget a little, a hand coming up to her chest, thumb worrying against her clenched fingers. What do they do, now, in this place of pity and bittersweet victory?]
The... one that's here, that I worry about... Emet-Selch's his name. An immortal being, an 'Ascian'. He'd spent ages, ages and ages, since the dawn of time, bringing Calamities into being... and then we learn, it was all to rebuild the world he'd lost. To bring back the people he'd lost.
[Is that enough of an explanation? She takes a breath, then lets it out slowly.]
I killed him. We killed him. And as he stood there, a hole clear through him, his form dissolving into aether, he said... "Remember us." The people of his world, and what they were.
[Is the kettle done? She needs a distraction. She needs a reason to turn away.]
And now he's here. And he knows he lost. And I have tried so, so hard to hate him, and... I can't. So I'm trying to be kind.
The Undead were made to battle for control of the world. The one who won would have their species dominate. The Undead that were released by accident in my time were fighting to have a world in their image.
To that end, Isaka kidnapped Kenzaki, and Karasuma. Mind controlled countless people. Had a new Belt created that wound up almost destroying Mutsuki completely. Killed Sayoko...!
[[His hands tighten into tight fists before slowly, his shoulders and hands go slack again.]]
I've spent 15 years hating him. 15 years having nightmares because of him. 15 years....
Fighting, because they had no choice but to fight? Mm... it was the same for Emet-Selch, in a way.
[Elaborating might be too complicated, though... The kettle's almost ready. Not quite boiling yet. And so she waits, turned partly away from Tachibana.]
You're a good man. So you still pity him. Even after all that.
[Maybe someone needs to give voice to the idea. Maybe he just needs to be reminded of his own goodness.]
[A weakness? Dakki's brow knits, and she wants to protest... but is he entirely wrong? There are people that only know how to use, only know how to hurt.]
Then don't give him that opening.
[Aah, and there goes the kettle. She wastes no time, pouring water into mugs so that the tea can steep. Which gives her something easier to fix her eyes on as she continues.]
You don't have to hate him, but... but you don't have to help him. He made his bed. Let him lie in it.
[She then brings the mugs over, sets one down in front of him, then has herself a seat with her own. That last question.... she looks very uncertain, but her expression softens.]
...would she want you to do that? Would she want you to carry that hate with you?
[[Such a simple thing to say, don't give someone an opening to take advantage of. But was that sort of thing even possible? If you were always on guard against being tricked...
He'd lived that way, once. It had been exhausting, and in the end, he had lashed out at the people he should have trusted, and lost nearly everything...
He was quiet, looking down at his reflection in his mug]]
...I don't know.
[[The admittance is soft and quiet. Everything was far too complicated to feel as if he knew anything, any more]]
[Maybe she doesn't have any good answers to provide, but Dakki can't bear to see him sit there, looking so lost and miserable over the matter. And so she reaches out a hand, to rest it over one of his.]
You don't have to handle him alone, at least. If you're worried about him still causing trouble, I'll do all I can to help you stop him.
[She's not the smart one with the plans, she is the weapon that people throw at their problems... but she's more than happy to be thrown at this problem, for a friend.]
[[The touch almost startled him, and he looked up, eyes wide and alarmingly vulnerable for a moment before his expression softened into a faint smile.]]
Thank you. But I think with Isaka here...
[[he trailed off, a faint huff escaping as he shook his head.]]
I'm not who I was, 15 years ago, even if he's the same. In terms of fighting, I don't think he'll be a threat. As long as people are guarded against his mind control powers...
I think the only person he can really affect is me.
[[another small huff escaped, Tachibana's expression relaxing further.]]
He'd deserve it.
Back home, it was only Undead energy that could harm an Undead, but the rules in this world may be different. Wouldn't be uncalled for to test that out.
[[he finally shifts his hand to properly be holding hers, giving it a small squeeze back]]
[A warning like that is more of a challenge, for someone like Dakki. She takes it in with a confident nod of understanding.]
I think the 'energy' of many different worlds manifests in more or less the same ways, in this place. If I've the occasion to test it out, I'm certain I'll do well.
[Was that enough to solve it all? Not in its entirety, no, but they've at least gotten some things off their minds. And now, before either of them can pick those weighty emotions back up...]
You're welcome. Aah, and now that I'm thinking of it... I'll not be needing all of my furniture when I move. Is there anything that you think you'd need, Tachibana?
[[Tachibana blinked a few times, the question catching him a little off guard.]]
I have a bed and a table already.
[[he said, with the slightly confused air of someone who. Doesn't. Quite get that an apartment needs more than just that. Even as he's sitting in one that's properly furnished.]]
[Do... do all men have no idea how to furnish a living space? No, no, even Estinien, hopeless as he was with his oddly-lit apartment full of incredibly boring furniture, was doing more than that.]
You... you've no need for some shelves? A coffee table? A... a couch to sit on?
[It seems... mostly straightforward to her, but she's still a little confused that he could say such a thing. At the chance to let her do some of the deciding, she brightens.]
Aah, I'd be happy to! But I might need to see your place, just to get an idea of what would be best.
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[But what's done is done. And Tachibana has thoughtful things to say on the matter. Up comes a hand, tapping absently as her cheek as she considers things.]
He... might have been pulled from a different point in time. Es... Estinien, when he first came here, he'd been taken right after a terrible battle that had been nearly a year ago, for me. This Isaka, maybe it's the same?
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He knew I had sealed him. They way he reacted...
[[another moment of tense, lips tightly together silence.]]
He was sure he had been unsealed, until I showed him his card.
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And I suspect Estinien had thought he'd died. If it's a matter of being somehow pulled here between the moment he'd been defeated and the moment you sealed him...
[She tilts her head the other way, shrugging again.]
We know so little about how we come to be here. All we can do is... speculate.
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[[he trailed off, shaking his head.]]
Utterly ridiculous, all of this. [[The words are half sighed, half muttered.]]
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...whatever the reason he's here, he's here. The same for... for the one that has me worried. The 'why' isn't as important as the 'what do we do'.
[She looks back at him, expression soft.]
What... do you want to do?
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I don't know.
[[the admittance is soft, and almost tired.]]
He looked so... broken, after I defeated him. After I told him that the Sealing Stone... [[he trailed off a moment.]]
The thing that created him, his god, could not longer reach him. That there was no way he could do what the Sealing Stone created him to do, in this world.
[[his finger tapped restlessly on the table.]]
There was another Undead that I saw, reacting to the knowledge that the Battle Fight couldn't be won. She was utterly different than Isaka. Of all the Undead...
[[again, he trails off, just shaking his head. There was too much that just... wouldn't make sense.]]
The despair and look of loss in her face... it was the same.
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Such a long list of sins to account for, and when it's all done it's... it's not always what you'd think, is it?
[It's her turn to fidget a little, a hand coming up to her chest, thumb worrying against her clenched fingers. What do they do, now, in this place of pity and bittersweet victory?]
The... one that's here, that I worry about... Emet-Selch's his name. An immortal being, an 'Ascian'. He'd spent ages, ages and ages, since the dawn of time, bringing Calamities into being... and then we learn, it was all to rebuild the world he'd lost. To bring back the people he'd lost.
[Is that enough of an explanation? She takes a breath, then lets it out slowly.]
I killed him. We killed him. And as he stood there, a hole clear through him, his form dissolving into aether, he said... "Remember us." The people of his world, and what they were.
[Is the kettle done? She needs a distraction. She needs a reason to turn away.]
And now he's here. And he knows he lost. And I have tried so, so hard to hate him, and... I can't. So I'm trying to be kind.
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The Undead were made to battle for control of the world. The one who won would have their species dominate. The Undead that were released by accident in my time were fighting to have a world in their image.
To that end, Isaka kidnapped Kenzaki, and Karasuma. Mind controlled countless people. Had a new Belt created that wound up almost destroying Mutsuki completely. Killed Sayoko...!
[[His hands tighten into tight fists before slowly, his shoulders and hands go slack again.]]
I've spent 15 years hating him. 15 years having nightmares because of him. 15 years....
[[he trails off again.]]
The bastard doesn't deserve pity, but I still...!
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[Elaborating might be too complicated, though... The kettle's almost ready. Not quite boiling yet. And so she waits, turned partly away from Tachibana.]
You're a good man. So you still pity him. Even after all that.
[Maybe someone needs to give voice to the idea. Maybe he just needs to be reminded of his own goodness.]
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... it feels like it's just another weakness that'll be exploited.
[[The admittance is small, tired and heavy with shame.]]
He took advantage of my weaknesses the first time, what if this gives him an opening to do it again?
[[another small pause before he added in a more quiet voice:]]
... am I betraying Sayoko, by not being able to keep hating him...?
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Then don't give him that opening.
[Aah, and there goes the kettle. She wastes no time, pouring water into mugs so that the tea can steep. Which gives her something easier to fix her eyes on as she continues.]
You don't have to hate him, but... but you don't have to help him. He made his bed. Let him lie in it.
[She then brings the mugs over, sets one down in front of him, then has herself a seat with her own. That last question.... she looks very uncertain, but her expression softens.]
...would she want you to do that? Would she want you to carry that hate with you?
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He'd lived that way, once. It had been exhausting, and in the end, he had lashed out at the people he should have trusted, and lost nearly everything...
He was quiet, looking down at his reflection in his mug]]
...I don't know.
[[The admittance is soft and quiet. Everything was far too complicated to feel as if he knew anything, any more]]
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You don't have to handle him alone, at least. If you're worried about him still causing trouble, I'll do all I can to help you stop him.
[She's not the smart one with the plans, she is the weapon that people throw at their problems... but she's more than happy to be thrown at this problem, for a friend.]
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Thank you. But I think with Isaka here...
[[he trailed off, a faint huff escaping as he shook his head.]]
I'm not who I was, 15 years ago, even if he's the same. In terms of fighting, I don't think he'll be a threat. As long as people are guarded against his mind control powers...
I think the only person he can really affect is me.
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Even if you're strong enough on your own, it never hurts to have someone to watch your back. You don't have to carry it all yourself.
[Such good advice. Advice that she always does mean to take for herself...]
And the more you talk about him, the more I want to give him a good thrashing.
[She smiles at that. Maybe... maybe a little too widely.]
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He'd deserve it.
Back home, it was only Undead energy that could harm an Undead, but the rules in this world may be different. Wouldn't be uncalled for to test that out.
[[he finally shifts his hand to properly be holding hers, giving it a small squeeze back]]
Thank you.
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I think the 'energy' of many different worlds manifests in more or less the same ways, in this place. If I've the occasion to test it out, I'm certain I'll do well.
[Was that enough to solve it all? Not in its entirety, no, but they've at least gotten some things off their minds. And now, before either of them can pick those weighty emotions back up...]
You're welcome. Aah, and now that I'm thinking of it... I'll not be needing all of my furniture when I move. Is there anything that you think you'd need, Tachibana?
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I have a bed and a table already.
[[he said, with the slightly confused air of someone who. Doesn't. Quite get that an apartment needs more than just that. Even as he's sitting in one that's properly furnished.]]
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A... a bed and a table? That's all?
[Do... do all men have no idea how to furnish a living space? No, no, even Estinien, hopeless as he was with his oddly-lit apartment full of incredibly boring furniture, was doing more than that.]
You... you've no need for some shelves? A coffee table? A... a couch to sit on?
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[[His knee was bouncing slightly in a bit of awkward self awareness.]]
... the apartment I tended to keep back home... is a bit odd to most people, isn't it?
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[Though already, she's starting to draw some conclusions and imagine some things.]
...anyroad! You're welcome to first pick of the things that I won't be taking along with me!
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Wouldn't really know what to pick. [[he sounds a bit apologetic at that]] But whatever you'd like to pick out for me, I'll be happy to accept.
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[It seems... mostly straightforward to her, but she's still a little confused that he could say such a thing. At the chance to let her do some of the deciding, she brightens.]
Aah, I'd be happy to! But I might need to see your place, just to get an idea of what would be best.
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