[His fingers tighten into fists. What...would he do if something like this happened again? He remembers how Stahn had asked for his help, and how Leon had barely been able to do anything even then--and his eyes narrow as his expression tightens.
If this happens again--and it might, because this is Cerealia--then...]
... I'll stop them myself before they can be a proper threat. I won't allow this to happen again.
[Because, after all, Leon is a perfectionist. He does learn from his mistakes. It's just difficult for him to shake off the fact that he made them in the first place.]
There you go. I realize it can be difficult to not review things that have happened in the past and feel some sort of anxiety over them-- but that's not anything any of us can change so easily. What's important right now is that you and Stahn are safe and in one piece, and if it does happen again, you'll put an end to it.
[If it does happen again...he'll put an end to it.
She says it so certainly, and it's...hearing someone else say it that really helps. People have (rightfully, honestly) been doubting him the entire time this robot thing has been happening, and even if he's stuck to his guns, there's something different about hearing someone he trusts say that he could do it.
Just like that.
He'll be able to put an end to it.]
...Yes. That's correct. If something like this happens again, I will be ready to handle the situation.
[... It's a bit like a weight off of his shoulders, oddly. How did that happen so easily?]
[... He supposes he will be. There's still a lot he and Stahn are going to have to figure out in the wake of all of this, but... he really will be fine. He'll be able to handle this next time it appears. And in the end, what it means is that he didn't want to raise his blade to his friend again, and honestly?
Leon finds it hard to see that entirely as a bad thing, after everything he'd done before.
Perhaps he is capable of learning from his mistakes. Either way, he just sighs softly, glancing away--but it's more a mix of embarrassment and weariness than anything this time.]
It... isn't as though that was ever in doubt.
[It's odd how talking with Otome settles him, though. More and more, that reminds him of Marian while also being uniquely Otome as well. Which is why after a moment, his mouth goes before his brain can entirely catch up.]
Otome, you are-- [Wait, no, BACK IT UP, his brain has caught up and this is not what he wants to be talking about right now. What was he thinking?]
[ She won't call into question how insecure he'd seemed when he was talking about it. Perhaps he'd just needed someone to agree with him, completely and sincerely. Whatever the case, Leon seems more tired than upset, and that's really all she can ask for.
... Well, no, okay, she can ask one more thing, when he suddenly cuts himself off. Both eyebrows raise slightly in faint surprise and more than mild curiosity, but still, her voice remains soft. ]
[But doesn't she deserve to know? He's not really sure at this point how much he should or shouldn't say, especially considering how things had ended for Marian, but...
On the other hand, he ran out of time to talk to Marian, didn't he?
Knowing that much, shouldn't he at least...say something before it's too late?]
... Rather... I am grateful...for your patience. [And understanding. And kindness. And... everything.] I told you once that you were likely simply trying to act as though you cared for your own gain and that was...doing you a disservice.
I can't claim to know anything about what you've been through, other than what you've told me. [ If she's surprised (and she is), she doesn't show it, only looking at him steadily. ] And I won't ask, either.
... When you told me that, I wasn't offended. There are certainly people like that, and I have my own moments of selfishness, I won't lie.
[He'll shake his head quickly at that. He hasn't done anything but be his typical, suspicious, paranoid self. The fact that Otome kept reaching out to him anyway, without ever asking anything in return...that's all thanks to her, and he knows he hasn't done anything to make her efforts any easier.
[Why do you have to... not let him escape... he looks discomfited at that, glancing away.
..............]
Truthfully, you... [..... should he even......... well, it's too late to back down now, right? She at least deserves to know this much.]
... You reminded me of someone, then. [Someone incredibly dear to him.] I do not believe that assessment was incorrect, either, now that I know you better.
[ That... could mean anything, but from how hesitantly he began, she doesn't think it's a bad comparison. So Otome merely blinks and waits for him to continue. ]
The person who practically raised him, and was always kind to him. The only one who ever seemed to care for so long--Otome has traces of Marian in her, in the way that she is always looking out for other people to no benefit for herself, the way that she has that motherly air to her, and the way that in the end, he has the sneaking suspicion that she'd put his health before hers.
It would go terribly, too.
But he doesn't really know how to say all of that, so instead, he can only finish lamely:]
I see. [ Somewhat. That doesn't answer much, but now she's 97% certain that this mysterious person of Leon's is someone he cares about. If just because he'd have much more to say if she wasn't. ]
She sounds like someone I wouldn't mind meeting, one day.
[ ... Interesting response there, but Otome only nods (not that he can see it) and reaches out to lightly touch his shoulder. It's brief, before she draws her hand back. ]
I suppose it's just something we won't know about until it happens.
He honestly can't imagine why. She says something like that so sincerely, so certainly. He doesn't understand why she's so sure over something that he finds it almost hard to believe.
Except Otome wouldn't lie to him.
Which means...she's sincerely glad that she was able to meet him.
He stares at her for a long moment, eyes wide, and then he glances away quickly, but he's more embarrassed than anything.]
...There.... is no reason for that. I haven't-- [He hasn't done anything to be grateful for. And... and it's not fair either for her to be so happy to have met him when he's not even alive anymore.]
You should know that I am--
[...Dead. That there's nothing left for him. That she's getting attached to a corpse.]
I'm going to have an argument for both of those statements, if you'd like to complete them.
[ He hasn't done anything? Why did he have to do anything? He'd simply been himself, and yes, Leon could be more than a little abrasive and prickly, but he cared deeply for the few people he allowed closer-- she'd seen that much for herself. He'd been through more than any sixteen-year-old boy ought to have dealt with, and Otome can't help but love him.
Even with what she knows... why would that make him any less worth caring about? ]
[He frowns tightly at that, immediately. That...she's so certain of it immediately, and he doesn't understand why. Why is she even... so sure of this?]
What? Why? [...And then he realizes that that's a bit too vulnerable, and puts him in a bit too vulnerable a position.]
That is, there is no possible way that you could even know what I intended to say. [H-hmph!]
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[ Except her group but you know, that was completely different. ]
I suppose, the question is, if something like this happened again, what would you do?
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If this happens again--and it might, because this is Cerealia--then...]
... I'll stop them myself before they can be a proper threat. I won't allow this to happen again.
[Because, after all, Leon is a perfectionist. He does learn from his mistakes. It's just difficult for him to shake off the fact that he made them in the first place.]
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She says it so certainly, and it's...hearing someone else say it that really helps. People have (rightfully, honestly) been doubting him the entire time this robot thing has been happening, and even if he's stuck to his guns, there's something different about hearing someone he trusts say that he could do it.
Just like that.
He'll be able to put an end to it.]
...Yes. That's correct. If something like this happens again, I will be ready to handle the situation.
[... It's a bit like a weight off of his shoulders, oddly. How did that happen so easily?]
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[ And he sounds like he believes it now, too. ]
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Leon finds it hard to see that entirely as a bad thing, after everything he'd done before.
Perhaps he is capable of learning from his mistakes. Either way, he just sighs softly, glancing away--but it's more a mix of embarrassment and weariness than anything this time.]
It... isn't as though that was ever in doubt.
[It's odd how talking with Otome settles him, though. More and more, that reminds him of Marian while also being uniquely Otome as well. Which is why after a moment, his mouth goes before his brain can entirely catch up.]
Otome, you are-- [Wait, no, BACK IT UP, his brain has caught up and this is not what he wants to be talking about right now. What was he thinking?]
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... Well, no, okay, she can ask one more thing, when he suddenly cuts himself off. Both eyebrows raise slightly in faint surprise and more than mild curiosity, but still, her voice remains soft. ]
I am...?
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[But doesn't she deserve to know? He's not really sure at this point how much he should or shouldn't say, especially considering how things had ended for Marian, but...
On the other hand, he ran out of time to talk to Marian, didn't he?
Knowing that much, shouldn't he at least...say something before it's too late?]
... Rather... I am grateful...for your patience. [And understanding. And kindness. And... everything.] I told you once that you were likely simply trying to act as though you cared for your own gain and that was...doing you a disservice.
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... When you told me that, I wasn't offended. There are certainly people like that, and I have my own moments of selfishness, I won't lie.
But thank you, Leon. For giving me a chance.
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[He'll shake his head quickly at that. He hasn't done anything but be his typical, suspicious, paranoid self. The fact that Otome kept reaching out to him anyway, without ever asking anything in return...that's all thanks to her, and he knows he hasn't done anything to make her efforts any easier.
It feels wrong to be thanked by her for that.]
Don't be ridiculous.
[He's the one who's lucky here.]
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... So if I managed to convince you that I'm sincere, that's also because you let me.
[ And had cared, himself, but she won't mention that. Leon was one of those people who definitely required baby steps. ]
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I... did nothing of the sort, enough. Besides, it is hardly as though you would allow anyone to stop you from doing what you wish.
[Otome's headstrong, he's learned that by now.]
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..............]
Truthfully, you... [..... should he even......... well, it's too late to back down now, right? She at least deserves to know this much.]
... You reminded me of someone, then. [Someone incredibly dear to him.] I do not believe that assessment was incorrect, either, now that I know you better.
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[ That... could mean anything, but from how hesitantly he began, she doesn't think it's a bad comparison. So Otome merely blinks and waits for him to continue. ]
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[... Very important to him.
The person who practically raised him, and was always kind to him. The only one who ever seemed to care for so long--Otome has traces of Marian in her, in the way that she is always looking out for other people to no benefit for herself, the way that she has that motherly air to her, and the way that in the end, he has the sneaking suspicion that she'd put his health before hers.
It would go terribly, too.
But he doesn't really know how to say all of that, so instead, he can only finish lamely:]
--a lot like you. [Obviously.]
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She sounds like someone I wouldn't mind meeting, one day.
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[That comes immediately, almost too quickly--and then he bites his tongue, shaking his head. No, that isn't true. It's just... him.
Even if he wasn't dead, he wouldn't be able to see Marian again, not after what he put her through.
But the pause drags on too long, and he looks away.]
That is--perhaps someday, you would be able to.
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I suppose it's just something we won't know about until it happens.
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... Marian. Her name is Marian.
[A beat, and...]
...For if you ever are granted that opportunity.
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For now, I'll consider myself lucky enough that I was able to meet you.
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He honestly can't imagine why. She says something like that so sincerely, so certainly. He doesn't understand why she's so sure over something that he finds it almost hard to believe.
Except Otome wouldn't lie to him.
Which means...she's sincerely glad that she was able to meet him.
He stares at her for a long moment, eyes wide, and then he glances away quickly, but he's more embarrassed than anything.]
...There.... is no reason for that. I haven't-- [He hasn't done anything to be grateful for. And... and it's not fair either for her to be so happy to have met him when he's not even alive anymore.]
You should know that I am--
[...Dead. That there's nothing left for him. That she's getting attached to a corpse.]
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[ He hasn't done anything? Why did he have to do anything? He'd simply been himself, and yes, Leon could be more than a little abrasive and prickly, but he cared deeply for the few people he allowed closer-- she'd seen that much for herself. He'd been through more than any sixteen-year-old boy ought to have dealt with, and Otome can't help but love him.
Even with what she knows... why would that make him any less worth caring about? ]
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What? Why? [...And then he realizes that that's a bit too vulnerable, and puts him in a bit too vulnerable a position.]
That is, there is no possible way that you could even know what I intended to say. [H-hmph!]
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But as it stands, either way, my opinion won't be changing.
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