hikaru catchall

[exercisms]

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WEEK THREE - TUESDAY MORNING

[heartablaze]

[She's wading through one of the tiny fishing streams neae the jungle village, plucking up smooth, even rocks and setting them into a pile. Her sword is nearby, and she's quick to move it whenever she is out of arm's reach.

By the time Mob walks over, she has taken a break to simply lean down and watch the smaller of the fish wiggle past through the clear water, letting her bare feet dig into the sand and pebbles. When she spots him out of the corner of her eyes, she'll give a wave, slicking her bangs out of her face.]

Hi, Shigeo-kun! Have you been standing there a while?

[exercisms]

Hikaru-san.

[He hasn't been there too long, but he probably did stand there awkwardly for a little while before approaching.]

What are you doing?

[heartablaze]

Finding rocks. [See? Rocks! Here they are! It is a very neat little pile.] I wanna write names on them and put them near the shrine in the inn. The stream makes them nice and smooth, so I think they'll look nice.

You wanna help? I had something I wanted to ask you, anyway.

[exercisms]

Mm. That sounds nice. I'll help.

[He'll start looking for rocks, too, but will look up at her at the last comment.]

What is it?

[heartablaze]

I promised you I'd try to remind you, and I wanna keep my word. [She straightens up, a few extra rocks in her hands.]

Do you remember what you promised your brother, Shigeo-kun?

[exercisms]

That's kind of you.

[He brightens up at that.]

. . . I do remember. I promised him that I would change.

[heartablaze]

[She beams. Yay, he has remembered! Sure hope this wasn't what he forgets in two days oh no!]

Yeah! Okay, good. Next time I see you, I'll ask again, okay?

[exercisms]

Yeah! Do you remember Umi-chan and Fuu-chan?

[Her friends!]

You didn't write them in your book.

[heartablaze]

...Eh?

[She looks up from where she's leaned over, tilting her head in confusion.]

Do I remember... what, Shigeo-kun? I didn't hear you.

[exercisms]

Oh no. . .

[Her friends. Oh no!]

I wrote it down in your book. Your friends, the ones you didn't want to forget.

[heartablaze]

You... did?

[This is the first she's heard of it?]

My book was empty this morning, Shigeo-kun... I mean, outside of what Hansa-san and I wrote...

Maybe I just missed it? I've got a lot of friends, but...

I... don't think I ever told you about any of them. Did I?

[exercisms]

You. . . you told me about two of your friends that you didn't want to forget.

[But the book didn't help :( Oh no.]

[heartablaze]

...Did I?

[Her brow furrows. Who... else was left? Who would she have ever asked someone to remember like that?

Slowly, she starts listing off on her fingers.]

Clef, Presea, Ferio, Ascot, Caldina, Rafaga, Emeraude, Zagato, Lantis, Primera, Eagle... um...

It wasn't any of those?

[exercisms]

[Shaking his head, increasingly dismayed. He's silent for a long time.]

Hikaru-san, is it okay if I tell you about some of my friends?

[heartablaze]

[oh no mob don't look sad.... :(]

Yeah! You said you're a second-year, right?

[exercisms]

Mm.

[But he's not going to tell her about his friends from school. He loves them, but they're not his most important people.]

Um. Their names are Umi-chan and Fuu-chan.

[Can she understand him when he says that?]

[heartablaze]

Umi-chan... Fuu-chan...

[Said as though the sounds are foreign.]

Mm.... They're cute names! Are they girls at your school?

[exercisms]

They live in Tokyo! But when we get out of here, I'm going to go visit them there.

[Smiling just a little at that.]

Do you want to come meet them, then?

stares into the sun

[heartablaze]

Meet them?

[I mean, that sounds like fun! But hm.]

I don't know what that place is, though, Shigeo-kun... I think that's where Usagi-chan and Yoshizawa-chan might live, though? Oh, and Shiro-san, too.

[exercisms]

[Oh, hmm. Yikes.]

Where do you live?

[heartablaze]

Cefiro. [Said very confidently.] It's an important place to me.

[exercisms]

Well. . . we'll figure out a way for you to come visit us in Tokyo. If we can come here, it's possible!

I just really want you to meet them, because I think you'd get along with them.

[heartablaze]

Mm... I'd like that.

[She's started a little project with funnier shaped rocks on the shore - they won't work for what she needs for the shrine, but that doesn't mean she can't have a little fun with it. Right now it just looks kind of like the start of a box or something.]

Shigeo-kun, um...

Thank you. For... standing up for me a little during the trial. I know you shouldn't have had to do that.

[exercisms]

[Hikaru. . .

He continues picking up rocks, but he looks a little troubled.]

Vezda-san is not very tactful. He pushes too hard without thinking, and takes his feelings about things out on others.

[heartablaze]

Mmn.

I know he can get kind of angry really fast... but he wasn't wrong to ask what he did or anything.

[He didn't have proof that she was telling the truth, after all.]

I'm gonna try to talk to him later. I told him I would. I... think he'll still be mad, but...

I just didn't think telling something like that completely was a good idea. I didn't want to hide it, or that I used it... but I... I think bringing up anything more than that would have just made things even worse when we were supposed to be talking about Raven and Laine-san.