waitingforplayer2

[ The subject changes more suddenly than she expected, and it takes several moments for her to catch up to him.

She's ... anxious, at first, at being questioned. But as he continues on, she starts to relax again, a little. Considers the moves he's making on the board.

Carefully makes a move of her own, thinking more. Then she looks back to him with a small smile. ]

You're a good teacher, Atem-kun. [ She twirls one of the pieces on the board a bit - it doesn't affect the game, but it's something to do. ] About all of the things there are to learn here.

[ Absently, she rubs at her arm, which has started to itch-- wincing when it hurts more than she expects. ]

I don't want to get even. It was an accident, by a friend. And-- they helped me after. [ Carefully avoiding pronouns, even.

But she looks at him, and trusts--, well, hopes-- that what she's saying won't leave the room. Even saying this much feels like too much. ] So... I'll be okay, once I heal, I think.

I had good teachers, when I first arrived.

[He says in reply, moving a piece of his own. There were level-100 players...Noa, Javert...who had given him guidance. Now he's the high ranking god follower with an arsenal of powers...so, it's right to help anyone new who wants it.]

It's hard to do well here, especially if you're a kind person.

But I like you, so I want to see you achieve your win conditions!

[One last move, and his turn's up.]

Do you have an idea of what those are, yet? What do you want out of this world?

["A friend and an accident" is good enough for him; he lets the subject of injuries drop.]

[ Oh. Well, that's hard to respond to.

Not his move-- though it's a good move, she's pretty sure. So she busies herself with a counter-measure first. ]

Umm... [ She watches the board while he takes his turn, turning the question over in her head. Finally she speaks up, hesitantly. ]

I guess it feels like it doesn't really matter... I could disappear from here at any time, right? So I just have to make it until then.

[ She plays with one of her head-tentacles idly, feeling sort of uncomfortable talking about it. ]

Before, um... I just wanted more time to play games with my friends. And I got that here, sort of.

[ She's not really seeing the board, now. She's seeing a floor far away, covered in blood, and her best friend's shoes in front of her as he watches. ]

So, anything fun I get to do here is kind of like a bonus level, right? It's New Game Plus.

[New Game Plus.

That's one way to think about having a second chance after dying. For Atem, it hadn't been...it had been a different level, a minigame that lasted much longer than any of the others. But...Nanami knows she died, then. She must know.

He reaches out and gently takes her hand, and if she doesn't pull back, he'll squeeze it, gently. No more contact than that, but it's a grounding point, an anchor to their current reality. Her eyes are distant, and though Atem doesn't know exactly what's going on behind them, he can smell on her that it isn't good. There are dark parts of yourself that you can get lost in, if you end up in the wrong place, or hear the wrong words...and it can be very lonely to have to pull free of that yourself.]

It's fine to be here to have fun. That's a good goal!

[He prompts, looking for her response.]

[ The dark bloody hall floor fades away, and he's squeezing her hand, and she looks up and finds his kind face watching hers.

She nods and smiles a little, her head-tentacles waving idly, brushing against the wound and making her wince again. ]

There's a lot that's fun and different here. [ She pauses, looking down at the game. Whose turn... hers, right? She has to finish her countermeasure... ]

Mm... and there's friends. [ Whom she loves very much. ] So things are pretty okay, really.

[ She'll treasure what she has, because it's a lot more than she ever expected. ]

That's good.

[He'll hold her hand until she pulls it back, contact that's light and easy and comfortable.]

That's what I want, too...I want to make as many good memories as possible, more than I can count, while I can. It's not always easy, but...even in a difficult game, you can still find the fun, right?

Yeah...

[ Something about the way he says it... even as she takes her hand back to move a piece, she considers him.

I died thousands of years ago, and my spirit was sealed away. He'd said that to her, maybe a week or two ago now. And the way he talks about making memories while he can... it's familiar. ]

How old were you, when you died the first time?

[ What a question to ask, and out of the blue. But the room is quiet, and the game is long. They've both got nothing but time. ]

[He looks at her, wondering if he's been perceived -- if she's seen through the light part of I want to make a hundred hundred memories! So many I forget a lifetime's worth! into the dark behind it. Not easy to say. His tone and face are neutral when he replies, makes the statement of fact:]

Sixteen.

[Too soon, he feels.

I want to go to the afterlife, one day. But not yet. Not yet, I'm not ready, I don't want to go now, I don't want to be sent away...

It's only when he thinks sent away that the muscles in his face twitch, a tell. There's aching loneliness behind this wish for more memories, an emptiness in half his soul that nothing yet has filled.]

[ Younger than her.

She gets up. Before either of them knowing it, she's hugging him, gently with her good arm.

It's not fair. He should've had more time. But now they both get it, at least. ]

Then let's make some really, really good memories here.

[She's--?

?!

That's not what Atem expected. Not at all.

Even after everything she's been through...she can still find it in her to be kind.

He takes a deep breath in, and then -- slightly, just slightly, leans in. His own arm, the opposite of hers, comes up and wraps around her back.]

Yeah. A million of them...so many good times that we can't keep track of them all!

[He's fine. He's just going to. Hug her back, and let his tail wag, slowly, gently, behind him.]

You're a really kind person, you know. That kindness...I've only seen kindness like that in one other person.

Edited 2022-07-04 23:27 (UTC)

Ah... it's not a big deal!!

[ It feels a bit awkward to be called out like that, actually. It's not even the first time. But she'll hug him as long as he needs, gentle and warm. ]

Who was the other person?

The person who had this apartment before you -- Yugi.

It takes a rare kind of strength, to be kind even when you're hurting, yourself. Not everybody has it.

[Atem certainly doesn't, he thinks. He has confidence instead -- the strength to fight back.

(He is horribly incorrect.)]

Try not to lose it...but also, don't forget, you have to take care of yourself, too. Don't just look out for others, Nanami. Be sure to rest, when you need it.

The one with the game collection? [ This is starting to sound like somebody she'd like to meet someday. She finally breaks off from the hug long enough to look around at the apartment walls, wondering what they were like when that person was here-- whether they were less bare, more lived-in.

That's also long enough for her to remember-- oh yeah, they were playing a game. She half-listens to Atem's advice. ]

Oh, I'm trying to! Protect my heart, like you said. [ She moves one of her pieces. ] But I'm okay, really. There's been a lot to do, but a lot of it has been fun!

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