slavecrowned | empatheias: mailbox

Oh! I do, actually— well, only a little.

[They've met once, but he seemed pleasant enough.]

We ran into each other during that treasure hunt... he was friendly, but there was something just a little bit hollow about it?

[Like a part of him was empty, maybe.]

[ He breathes out a little laugh, though there isn’t much humor in the sound. ]

Count on you to be far sharper than I, where that’s concerned. I met him some time ago, at the rebel base in Shaarnath. He seemed pleasant enough then.

Now… I think where may be some truth to your assessment. I ran into him in the forest outside of town a couple of days ago, he’d been hurt and I stepped into help. It was there I bore witness to his abilities – namely an ability to manifest the will of his own heart as a creature. I cannot pretend to know if the creature’s appearance in any way reflects how he truly is as a person, and that is not the true issue.

He explained to me that in his world, here is an entire plane of existence that is built out of the desires of people’s hearts, and that venturing into this world would allow someone to alter others – or kill them altogether. I am fairly certain he meant to imply that he is familiar with the latter, personally.

I'm not so sure I would say sharper.

[There's a soft note of uncertainty in her voice, though she doesn't voice exactly what's on her mind— what she'd thought she had glimpsed in him was just a little bit familiar. She knew what it was like to have an aching void inside of you, and was beginning to understand all the different ways that could change a person.

She frowns to herself as she considers Arthur's words, curious.]

Manifest the will of his own heart... like he's summoning himself?

[She thinks she follows.]

Alter others how, I wonder... did he say anything else that made you think he meant that last part, or what sort of people he was talking about? He's a detective, isn't he?

[ If it is experience that lends her insight, then Arthur would most certainly say she's sharper. Arthur doesn't know pain or suffering or the need to hide what he is, so he has no idea what that even looks like. ]

Something like that. What I saw was– well, here.

[ There is a pause, as an image manifests it over their connection. Akechi's “Persona”, the one named Loki as Arthur remembers it, manifesting within the protective dome of Sacred Soil to cleave a giant wasp in two.

He allows that image to linger a moment, letting Terra take it in before he speaks again. ]

He claimed that twisted desires cause a more notable presence in this world – the Metaverse, he called it – and that confronting the manifestation of these desires in the Metaverse might convince their owner to change their ways in the real world.

But... mm. It was a rather deliberate inclusion. It almost felt as if he was daring me to question him about it.

[She frowns further as she searches the memory he shares with her for details— the summoning of an Esper is the closest thing she has for comparison, but rather than calling another being, the power this young man draws on is from within himself, much like her own and yet wholly different in its manifestation. One thing is for certain: it's quite unlike anything she's ever seen before.

She pauses before she answers further, considering.]

In that world, hearts can be swayed...

[But that's not the part that worries her.]

Do you think it might have been a warning, then? He could be concerned that you're getting too close, but...

[It seems almost too simple if this is the case.]

Maybe he needs someone to talk to. Even with what little we know, it sounds like it would be a lot for anyone to carry.

[ He falls quiet, an air of consideration permeating the link, though there is something more that lurks in the connection – something he is trying to keep safely tucked away, but he can hardly keep it from her. He could never keep anything from her.

It's... a sense of shame. ]

Terra, when you showed me your Esper form, were you worried that I'd hate you?

[There's another pause before she answers, the link between them growing heavier with that hesitation— but she's never lied to him yet, and she's not about to now. His own sense of shame is met with fear, even though the reveal in question is one they've long moved past.]

I was. That you'd hate me, or be afraid of me... that you would think I was a monster.

[There's certainly precedent for that. When she'd first transformed, it had been terrifying, for both her and the people around her.]

[ It’s as if the space that was once full of warmth and affection is now full of lead, but, he supposes, this is not an easy topic to broach. Fear wriggles its way in, and Arthur instantly regrets this line of questioning. He would never doubt her, never see her as anything other than beautiful, wonderful Terra, no matter the skin she wears.

But he has started down this path, and now he must see it through to the end. ]

I feel like a coward. I accepted you – I do accept you, no matter what, and this young man all but challenged me to see a potentially very ugly side of himself, and I was truly afraid that I might actually hate him for whatever truth I might uncover.

I changed the subject, in the end.

It's different with us, isn't it?

[There's only a faint note of uncertainty in her voice— but it was, wasn't it? He and Akechi may consider one another friends, but she and Arthur had been so close when she'd finally made that reveal that of course it wouldn't change anything. Still, that didn't change the fact that she'd been afraid to tell him in the first place. Maybe Akechi, too, was afraid— and all too used to people turning away when they found out who he really was.

Maybe he was daring someone to accept him.]

We knew each other well, but your friendship with him... it's still new, isn't it? At least by comparison. I don't think the fact that you were afraid makes you a coward.

[ Terra offers him a new perspective, one that he’d been too caught up in his own head to see. He and Terra had already been dating by the time she decided to take the leap and show him her Esper form. With as head over heels as he is for her, there was no way he wouldn’t make room in his heart for all sides of Terra, human or not. ]

It is, you're right. It’s just…

[ For once, Arthur finds himself at a loss for words. He has no way to properly describe how conflicted the whole thing makes him feel, and how he truly did feel like the worst person imaginable when Akechi practically challenged him and he backed down. ]

What am I supposed to do?

I don't know.

[She sounds noticeably disappointed at that; she wishes she had a better answer for him, that she knew enough to really help with this in some way. She exhales slowly, frowning to herself.]

I think... if you're willing, then try to reach out to him again. Show him he hasn't scared you away.

[At least not for good.]

If you think this is a friendship you want to pursue, if you think you can help him, then you shouldn't give up.

[ He doesn’t expect Terra to have all the answers, but there is still a small part of him that echoes her disappointment. He should know better than to hope for a simple solution to a very complex issue, and he in no way wants to belittle the help she’s given him already. Her perspective on this matter has been just what he needs, and she’s helped to pull him out of his rather self-pitying line of thinking. ]

You’re right. I… hm, I don’t know if I can help him, but I think that someone should try, at the very least.

I think so, too.

[The situation itself is far too complicated for wishes and hopes to be enough, but she knows Arthur to always be good to his word. If he thinks someone should try, then she knows he will do his very best to do exactly that.]

I'd... like to try, too, if I can.

[She's only met the young man once, but it was clear to her even then that he was lonely.]

I think about who I might have been if nobody had reached out to me. Sometimes that's all it takes.

[ She has a point - sometimes that is all it takes, and it seems to strengthen his resolve all the more. ]

I think that’s a wonderful idea. You probably understand where he’s coming from more than I.

[ Terra’s kind soul would be good for anyone, he thinks, but she’ll be able to commiserate on a level that Arthur would not and that might make a world of difference. ]

Terra… thank you. That you were even willing to listen means a lot to me.

He may not think he wants anyone to help him, but if he told you as much as he did, some part of him must want to connect with others— to be accepted, maybe.

[To be forgiven, which is a feeling Terra knows all too well, except there are some things she doesn't think even she can be forgiven for. The only thing to do is to move forward being better than she once was, trying to bring good into the world however she can.

She smiles to herself, and there's another pulse of affectionate warmth between the two of them.]

As if you had to ask. Never doubt that I'll be here for you.

Together, then. Let is see if we cannot help this boy in some small way, at the very least.

[ It makes sense, when she puts it like that. If there are truly dark things in Akechi's past, he may well be used to people running from them, much like Arthur nearly did. He still may not like what he finds but if Terra is right – if Akechi is truly in want of someone to connect with, to not turn and run in the face of the ugly side of himself, then Arthur means to hold his ground. There is something resolute that echoes through the connection, the mental and emotional equivalent of a determined nod. ]

I am a lucky man.

[ Terra has a way of taking Arthur's self doubt and warming it away, melting it like snow in the face of the springtime sun, and there will never come a time when he is not grateful for that. Whether he is too caught up in his own problems or simply feels a bit down about himself, her presence helps him so very much. ]

Together.

[The same as they do everything else, in her opinion— as ever, she believes them to be strongest as a team, with far too many years of no one but herself for company to prove her right.]

I think we're both lucky, personally. I know you'll always do the same for me.

[He's made that abundantly clear.]

Do you think you'll be able to rest easily now?

As easy as I am ever able to, without you here.

[ Apparently, she did well enough at easing his troubles that he actually finds it in him to flirt a bit. The concept of flirting as a whole it still pretty new to him, especially given that he and Terra are already an item, but this slips out as easy as anything. ]

[Even now, after so many months together, such remarks still bring color to her cheeks, even when he's not there to say them in person. He'll feel the brief heat of flattered embarrassment, followed by a much softer, more affectionate warmth. She used to wonder whether or not she would be capable of feeling such things, but he summons those emotions from her with absolute ease, sometimes even unbidden.]

Maybe I should be there tomorrow to ensure you get a good night's sleep.

[She feels her cheeks grow just a bit warmer even saying so, despite the fact that it would hardly be the first time.]

I love you. Please, don't think badly of yourself just because you hesitated. You're only human.

[ Between the two of them, flirty banter only goes so far. He knows what she’s implying and it’s nothing they haven’t done before, but he still finds himself flustered by the sheer fac that they’re saying all this out loud… in their heads.

It’s complicated. ]

Well, I certainly wouldn’t say no.

[ Even if he is blushing. They try so hard. ]

I know, I know. It seems that even I sometimes need the reminder. Thank you again, Terra. I love you, too. Sleep well, darling.

I'll be happy to offer that reminder whenever you need.

[The hot flush of embarrassment is replaced by something much softer and more affectionate. He would, and does, do the same for her.]

Goodnight, love. Sleep well.

[The connection between them will sever, but not without leaving a warm, comfortable feeling in her chest in its wake. Despite the difficult topic of conversation, she knows she'll sleep better just for having spoken to him.]

empatheias: mailbox

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