idolpro | HEART GAME: REQUIEM (run 2)

[Of course. Of course.]

Well... This's home, isn't it?

[She stays put for another few selfish moments before getting to her feet, setting her stance. Who knows if she can pull this off--she's not strong enough to leave Hurricane or Heart!Nem to leave them out of this--but she calls out anyway]

C-come out. We're not gonna hurt you.

They get up alongside you, and Nemesis keeps her blade out and ready, but she says, curiously, "... home? For us, maybe..."

Hurricane casts Enhance on you, just in case-- you gain +3 STR.

Nothing responds from deeper in the cave, within the darkness.

Edited 2019-02-20 21:39 (UTC)

[ffffffffffffff why is everything always in the darkness,]

[But after talking a bunch of shit earlier to Hierophant she can't exactly just ignore it, not here. So. She waves at Nemesis to put her sword away (or at least to stay back--it's not like she can win anyway) and takes another few steps forward, deeper into the cave. She continues to call out to the batmonster]

You're not gonna make me go in there, are you? I'm--really not feeling the dark lately. That one's not your fault, at least.

Nemesis hangs back with Hurricane, a little, at your gesture, looking... confused, mostly.

At least your own sword still glows, gently illuminating the area near you. And for a long moment, again, there's not any sort of response--

Until a pair of bright green eyes peer out at you from around some rocks, narrowed. There's a soft, half-hearted hiss, more like a frightened cat than something angry or threatening.

------O-okay. Okay. Okay.

[She's honestly not sure who she's trying to calm more, the monster or herself. At any rate, she doesn't try to approach, and even stands the sword in a convenient tuft of mud or junk or whatever, so it can give some light without her having to actively brandish it, then takes a (small) step away.

And then she pauses, again taking a moment to gather herself--trying to get her pulse down from heart attack range]

...Okay?

It still takes a while for the monster to move, so you have some time to try to relax your heart rate.

And when it does move, it sort of... crawls out from behind the rocks on all fours-- awkwardly, because its limbs are fairly long-- and creeps toward you a couple of feet... then stops.

And it hunkers down, kind of like a loafed cat, eyes narrowed almost closed and ears flat, wings hunched, the only teeth visible those long canines it couldn't hide if it tried.

And despite all this, it hisses again, weakly.

[She can't quite hide a flinch, but--well, she's here now, so just grits her teeth and digs her fingers into her palms...okay. Okay. Now what?]

...Um, okay. Hi. Can you talk?

It stares for a moment.

And then gestures to your sword with one clawed finger, then to itself.

...Huh?

--O-oh. Well--it's dark. But we already know how that one turns out, so--don't worry about it. I just wanted to...uh...talk?

[She really doesn't look like she wants to talk at all. But she doesn't look like she wants to fight either, so it's kind of the truth]

Shakes its head, and motions slightly towards its neck-- ... then it huffs, lightly, and seems to give up on whatever line of thought it had, tucking its arm back under itself.

And just lays its head against the ground, eyes nearly closed. And now it's just some weird fuzzy unmoving ball.

[Uh]

[Huh]

[...Kind of stands there awkwardly, staring at it]

Um...

[She steps...closer...? And if it doesn't move, closer still. Just...approaching until it does something to spook her, honestly]

Edited 2019-02-21 02:21 (UTC)

Except for the rise and fall of its breath, it's perfectly still.

[Shifts awkwardly again, then, crouches down near it--within an armslength. She clenches and unclenches her fists for the nth time.]

Um--hey, look. If you wanna crash out or whatever, that's--fine. But we're looking for the True Heart. So if you know where she is...can you help?

It shifts-- slowly enough not to startle, and just enough to look at her, eyes squinted as if in pain and.

...

"I'm sorry."

It speaks. In a gravelly voice, sure, but... familiar.

[She freezes anyway. Then:]

...For what?

Its eyes close.

"... didn't mean to hurt you," it says, whispering. "Didn't-- know it was you, until... I just-- I saw my bass, so I thought--"

It goes quiet for a long moment.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I'm like this. M'not gonna tell you you shouldn't be scared. Should be."

[Nemesis is quiet, just absorbing this for some time. Then she unslings the bass from her back, and places it down between them]

Uh...here. Wasn't trying to steal it or nothing. I dunno how to play yet anyways.

Edited 2019-02-21 03:12 (UTC)

It opens its eyes to watch, and very slowly sits up, slouching and hunched over, to pick the bass up. Which is... a little small, held against it, but it still manages to pluck out a slow tune on it anyway.

And it relaxes some, head bowed.

"... thank you."

[Hesitates, then]

If you'd've used your words from the beginning, you wouldn't've had this problem. Going around freaking out everybody else in here for no reason... Just because you gotta use like three toothbrushes to get your whole mouth doesn't mean you gotta be all horror movie about it.

"... well," it says, still idly plucking at those strings, and not looking at you. "Monsters are scary, right? So it's... fine.

But I'm. I'm never going to do that to you again. I'm never going to hurt you like that again. And if I... need to be dealt with, to prevent you from looking at me like you have been-- like you think I'm going to rip you apart-- you should just pick up that sword and use it, right now."

...If you're the one who did something wrong, howcome I gotta fix it?

[Shifts her stance and squares her shoulders, the nervous fussing from earlier shifting to actually being upset]

--You keep saying you're not gonna do something like that again--so prove it. Be a better person--a better monster or whatever--live as someone who doesn't do that kinda stuff. And yeah, that'll take a lot longer than me going Highlander on you but it's kinda worth it, isn't it? I-I mean, if it's not, then...

[She trails off, folding her arms tight.]

It stops playing, and finally looks up at you again, quiet. Its ears still flat, but it looks... a little surprised?

"I-- ..."

It looks down again. Somehow, it seems a little smaller than before. Less frighteningly large.

"You're worth that. More than that, too. I'm. I'm trying, I just.

...

When you... looked at me, like that, I thought... I thought you deserved to... do something about it. So you don't have to be scared anymore."

I did do something about it. I decided I'd talk to you, and I decided I'd listen. Isn't that what you wanted?

Quiet again, for a moment.

"... I don't know what I want," it admits. When you blink it seems even smaller still-- only just larger than a person. "I... Thank you. I'm sorry."

Stop being sorry! You don't need to be sorry. You need to be someone you can care about. Then it doesn't matter if you're scary sometimes...or if you don't know what you want, even. 'Cause then...at least you won't have to be alone in here.

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