[He gets up and gives her a rough hug, leaning on her a little, not enough to let her collapse, but definitely enough so that she knows he's leaning on her metaphorically as well as physically.] I have to face it. If we ever come up against anything like this again, I won't have time to retreat. Or time at all. So I have to see it all the way through. Every step.
[But he closes his eyes and tightens the hug a little before pulling back and patting her head with a softer grin.]
[It's dizzying to him how he can still grin, but it's all on high speed in cycle. The life, the death, the pain, the joy, the sorrow, the excitement, it's dizzying and he can't control it, so why feel it at all? But to tune it out would be running away, and he's stubborn too.]
And I want you to promise me, you'll still enjoy yourself, okay?
[He gets down into one knee in the sand again, and rests a single hand on her head.] I hadn't gotten to see you smile as much as you were here, and that made me really glad.
[He's dizzy and almost wants to cry again. Frustration that she can't always smile, that life hands her more reasons to be serious than happy, that he and Ikki are also part of that, and he shakes it off, a dull hum. He can handle this, just focus. So long as he doesn't breathe it in so deeply he can hold it out.]
[He pokes her nose playfully.] Enjoy it. Because we might not come back for awhile, eh? [Or ever.]
[He gets back up to his feet and lightly leans on her head thinking briefly of Haruta -- more that push and pull. The inability to forget the past even while running towards the future.] Do that for me and I'll let you understand some things about phoenixes when we go, deal?
no subject
[He gets up and gives her a rough hug, leaning on her a little, not enough to let her collapse, but definitely enough so that she knows he's leaning on her metaphorically as well as physically.] I have to face it. If we ever come up against anything like this again, I won't have time to retreat. Or time at all. So I have to see it all the way through. Every step.
[But he closes his eyes and tightens the hug a little before pulling back and patting her head with a softer grin.]
[It's dizzying to him how he can still grin, but it's all on high speed in cycle. The life, the death, the pain, the joy, the sorrow, the excitement, it's dizzying and he can't control it, so why feel it at all? But to tune it out would be running away, and he's stubborn too.]
And I want you to promise me, you'll still enjoy yourself, okay?
[He gets down into one knee in the sand again, and rests a single hand on her head.] I hadn't gotten to see you smile as much as you were here, and that made me really glad.
[He's dizzy and almost wants to cry again. Frustration that she can't always smile, that life hands her more reasons to be serious than happy, that he and Ikki are also part of that, and he shakes it off, a dull hum. He can handle this, just focus. So long as he doesn't breathe it in so deeply he can hold it out.]
[He pokes her nose playfully.] Enjoy it. Because we might not come back for awhile, eh? [Or ever.]
[He gets back up to his feet and lightly leans on her head thinking briefly of Haruta -- more that push and pull. The inability to forget the past even while running towards the future.] Do that for me and I'll let you understand some things about phoenixes when we go, deal?