|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2012 9:18 pm
Irene's battle with Iris had left her confused and unhappy. She knew that she wasn't an amazing fighter. She never had been, so she had a lot of work ahead of her. But she had thought that she'd put in a lot of work. Even when she was busy or tired, she went on patrol. She helped to take down youma, and helped civilians run away when they were cornered. She abided by the rules that the Captain had set out; she always patrolled with a partner, and she kept in contact.
So what was she doing wrong? How were all her teammates- even the youngest ones- succeeding, while she was left behind? All of the others were Super Senshi now, except for the boys, which Irene chalked up to them being defective. Even the ones who were awakened after her were proving themselves more. And while she was happy for them, she was also wondering when it was her turn.
Finally, she got tired of wondering. After a fairly uneventful patrol, she stopped a few blocks from her house and turned around. "*********, may I ask you a favor?" If anyone could fix this, ********* could. And while Irene didn't like the idea of asking someone else for their help, she had run out of other options.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2012 9:47 pm
It was like the youma were all napping tonight. However, that didn't mean that a cat and one of her senshi coudn't patrol. It was never a bad idea to be too careful when it came to the Negaverse.
As the pair moved along their pathway, ********* collar jingled in a cheery manner, which only seemed to accent the type of feline she was. So when Irene asked her vague question, the feline tilted her head in the dark haired girl's direction with a smile upon her maw.
"Irene, you know you can ask me anything! So go ahead, shoot!" The manx didn't skip a beat in their steady rhythm of walking along on their patrol.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2012 10:20 pm
That was true. Irene did feel as though she could ask ********* anything. ********* was the one who introduced her to this whole senshi mess, but she was also the one responsible for making Irene feel like she had people to rely on. She never would have met Hygiea or Eunomia or the other Asteroids if not for *********. She never would have known what a cool person Iris was underneath the gruff demeanor. (Also, she and Yvette would be dead, but that wasn't really the point she was going for.)
Still, she was a bit uncomfortable with her question, and took a couple of moments to get the words right before speaking. "You've done so much for me, and so I don't want to ask for more if I can avoid it, but I don't think I can anymore. Everyone else on the team is so strong. They can do so much, and I really feel like despite my best efforts, I'm only dragging everyone down." This was so hard to say, but she had to be honest or it would seem like she was looking for handouts. "I've tried to improve, but I think I've hit the limit of what I'm able to do on my own."
There were other avenues she hadn't fully explored, of course. Training with others, like the kind that Iris had tried with her. Even more training on her own, trying everything she could think of until it worked. Throwing herself into more battles by herself. None of these seemed promising though, and the latter seemed downright deadly, so she took a deep breath and went for the clincher. "I know you can make us stronger, and I was wondering if you could maybe, um, do that for me. Like you did for Eunomia and people. Please."
Not the most eloquent phrasing, but it did get the point across. Irene bit her lip and looked at ********* nervously, wondering how her plea would be received.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2012 11:10 pm
As the duo walked, the feline listened intently, eyes perhaps upon the girl more than on the direction she was walking in. However, there were no nearby walls for her to walk into, so no random comedic wall-crashes were going to happen.
Eventually, the manx just stopped walking, as if signaling that she wanted the girl to stop too. "Well, I am pretty sure you aren't dragging anybody down, Irene." Sure, there was the incident at the meeting with all the smoke, but that wasn't really dragging anybody down since everyone was somewhat suffering from the smoke.
Her haunches sat down against the ground, and she tilted her head slightly more to the side. It was indeed no secret that the cats had a major hand in assisting senshi to reach their potential. However, it was rarely done in such a direct manner.
"To be honest, I don't think you should be judging your own success upon that of others. However... I don't see any problem with me giving this a shot." With a paw, she pointed out in front of her.
"If I could see your henshin pen... I'll see what I can do!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2012 11:21 pm
Irene smiled and pulled out her pen, her nervousness evaporating. Of course ********* would understand, and of course ********* would help. She had been silly to think otherwise. Still, she was glad that she had explained her feelings fully, and felt confident that now that she had, everything was going to get better.
"I'm ready!" she said, setting the pen down in front of ********* and taking a step back. If she'd been more open to ideas, not judging herself based on others would have been a good one to try. Instead, her entire body tingled with excitement and anticipation as she watched the guardian do whatever it was she needed to do.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 8:10 pm
The manx waited for Irene to step back, then she placed her paw upon the object in front of her. With a smile, she closed her eyes. ********* was well practiced on how these things went down. She had intervened several times when other senshi had been in potentially dangerous situations and given them a boost that they had long been ready for.
All it took was for her to close her eyes, focus on the henshin pen and connect with the power that the object was synchronized with. It did take some concentration, but Irene was such a polite little thing that ********* was more than certain she wouldn't poke or prod her as she aimed to assist the girl.
Her paw could feel the faintest sensation of warmth beneath her digits, a sure sign of the power which Irene already held. However, as the manx had cleared her mind, preparing for the warmth to flood that single paw of hers, the sensation remained steady, almost dull.
For Irene, it would be several long, quiet moments of ********* just standing there, eyes closed, seeming quite focused on whatever task it was she was concentrating upon.
For *********, it was much longer.
...this isn't right...
Usually she was able to maintain a certain level of calmness as she attempted to unlock a senshi's potential. Yet as she found an absence of that familiar sensation, her mind was losing much of the calmness. She couldn't have been doing this wrong, since she had been doing it right for so long.
So what was wrong?
Eventually, her eyes peeked open, looking to the pen still beneath her paw. It was still exactly the same as it had been to start. Her distress was quite apparent as she mewled out in a subdued, yet panicked manner "...I... I don't understand... this...has never happened before..."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 8:25 pm
It was kind of interesting, watching ********* at work. Irene knew that the cat was doing something, but to her it looked like she was just poking a really ornate pen. If she didn't know better, she could imagine that it was just an ordinary cat and just an ordinary pen. That was what she'd thought a year ago, the first time they met. Now she knew so much more. Now she was a senshi, and she was about to become even more than that.
Or so she thought. But her excited expression faltered slightly as ********* opened her eyes. "Uh... am I doing something wrong? Should I not be watching? I can close my eyes, if you want. Or do I need to power down first? Because I can do that." There was more than a hint of desperation in her voice. Irene needed this to work. She had no idea what to do if it didn't.
"Could you try again? Please?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 8:54 pm
********* kitty brow furrowed at the pen, as if she was trying to figure out the answer to some tricky puzzle. The way she was practically glaring at the pen seemed as if she was not managing to solve the equation.
Despite the hints of stress bothering her, she did her best to keep a pleasant tone with Irene. "You didn't do anything wrong... You can watch, you can stay powered up.. or not... it's up to you..."
For a moment, the manx's paw abandoned the pen, and she proceeded to pace approximately 10 times about the object. She occasionally paused, poking the object, now seeming to inspect it.
There's nothing flawed with the device... Finishing her rounds, the manx sat herself down and tilted her head to the side curiously.
This was very puzzling, and quite honestly, very frustrating.
"I suppose I could give this another go, Irene..." Despite her attempts to reassure the girl, her voice faltered like an uncertain kitty.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 9:07 pm
"I don't understand." That much was painfully clear, as Irene started to pace, wringing her hands and trying to figure out what was going wrong. ********* assured her that it wasn't her fault. But if it wasn't hers, then whose was it? *********? Irene didn't want to make that accusation without proof, especially when ********* was doing her a favor, but she didn't know what else to do.
"Why isn't it working?" She had gone beyond desperation and into panic. "I mean, if I'm doing things right, then it should work, right? You said it would work." Usually, when someone said Irene would get what she wanted, she stopped worrying. Now her worry was only intensifying. Was ********* holding out on her for some reason? Pretending that it wasn't working? But why would she do something like that?
Unless... "It's because I'm not good enough." Her voice wavered, but she kept talking. "Because I'm not strong, like the others. That's why you won't do it. Isn't it, *********>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 10:07 pm
An ear twitched on the feline. And then a pair of green eyes blinked.
She tilted her head in puzzlement. In a sincere voice, the manx replied "I swear, Irene... I am not holding back for any reason."
As if to prove the girl that she was trying her hardest, the feline rather suddenly shot up in height, taking on a form she usually didn't take on so rashly. ********* pressed with her fingers and the palm of her newly formed hands over Irene's heart. Her other arm quickly pulled the girl up close so she could hug her in an awkward one-armed manner. Once more, she closed her eyes and once more sought out that familiar warmth.
Again, only a dull warmth seemed to touch her fingers, which caused the fur on the back of her ears to stand up in irritation.
...why... isn't this working?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 10:13 pm
At first, Irene stiffened. She was in no mood for a cooldown hug, or really any kind of physical contact. But when she realized that ********* was trying to do something, she relaxed a little. And then a little more. This could still work. Maybe she just needed to relax, maybe that was the problem all along. And she did want ********* to be on her side. And, okay, there was a part of her that just liked hugs.
Which was why she was content to let ********* hold her for several long moments. She didn't hug back, but she didn't try to pull away either.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 10:24 pm
Her hand lowered from the girl's chest, retreating from the project.
Nothing.
********* was typically a chipper critter, but this was truly shaking up her nerves. She refused to let herself cry, considering her current company, but there was something she truly couldn't hide from Irene due to their physical contact.
The Mauvian was trembling.
"...I... I don't get it..." With that... the silver haired girl stepped back a few times before shrinking back.
"...This... has never happened before..."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 10:55 pm
How was that even possible? ********* was a guardian cat. Guardians protected people. They guided people. They did not suddenly have slumps where nothing worked the way it was supposed to. They were not allowed to not know what was going on. How could they guide or protect anyone if they were as in the dark as everyone else?
This was wrong. This was all wrong. Shuddering, Irene shook ********* off and roughly pushed her away. Not with any force, but just because she didn't want to be anywhere near her anymore. "If this is your way of letting me down gently, it's not working!" Of course it wasn't. Nothing was working.
"Why won't you help me?" Unlike *********, Irene couldn't keep from crying, as she felt like the whole world was out to get her. "You said you would! You said that the first time we met, and I believed you! So why did you wait until now to do this?" This? What was this? Irene wasn't even sure what she was saying, but the words kept coming. "That whole thing about not comparing myself to the others was a lie, wasn't it? Or is it because you don't think I can ever be like them, so I shouldn't try? Well, I'll show you! I'll show all of you!"
Even through her tears, Irene looked angry and defiant. But she rather spoiled the look by sticking her tongue out at ********* before she grabbed her pen off the ground and ran, tears still streaming down her face.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 11:12 pm
It wasn't hard to notice the tears from where the small cat was. Tears had a very distinct smell to them. It wasn't in the manx's nature to try and make anyone cry. Let alone one of her girls.
It was throwing her for a loop. Her mouth didn't feel like it wanted to even function anymore. She wanted to try and reassure the young girl, but what could she say? ********* already had told her that she was trying her best. The manx didn't have any answers for why it wasn't working out, and she knew she should have had the answers.
She couldn't even get any words out before Irene started on her way, rushing off to put some distance between herself and her guardian.
"W-wait..." The round manx attempted to pursue the senshi, but her short feline legs were no match to that of a pair belonging to a perfectly healthy senshi racing away. Eventually, ********* had to slow down and stop.
What had even just happened? It would take a while before the manx could will herself to move on again, but once she found the strength to head on her way, she soon enough found her paws attempting to bring her over to Ellie's home.
Maybe she needed to chat with the captain.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
