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 Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2019 8:37 am
Adria rarely went out alone, and it was usually for reasons like this. He'd been restless, he was trying to write and nothing was coming out. Cambria was at a movie with Zac and he didn't want to pester anyone else in their group.
To be honest, he'd been a terrible Senshi. Things hadn't been the same for some time, and he was trying his hardest but just felt like he was falling behind.
...He'd fallen behind a long time ago. He'd been there when they helped save Evan and now, Evan was not only a Senshi, but an Eternal.
And Adria was still here, the same as he was when...
When he'd had to deal with Sanidine.
Of course, he'd had a bit of a hard time dealing with his brother after the attack, even after he'd purified, but right now he was pretty desperate for anyone to help.
He'd heard something rustling around, a noise down an alleyway and, like common sense would dictate, he had planned to just walk away. It was probably a stray cat or a rat or--yeah, no.
A strange, monkey-like youma with a skinny, elongated body and a spike at the end of its tail hurled itself at him, shrieking wildly. It was upon him before he could escape, and their battle was a struggle.
Adria should have been better, he knew this. He'd hit it, he'd kicked it, he'd tried to fight it off with a an old piece of would and beat it over the creatures head so much that the wood broke. A trashcan lid--he'd run, when he couldn't make a dent on it, but it followed him.
Ten minutes, maybe, he'd been fighting this thing. He was out of breath, scraped and bruised, and the thing still seemed to have as much energy as when it started.
He wasn't giving up, but when the youma leaped on him, when it pinned him to the ground and screeched in his face so loudly that his ears rang, that he couldn't hear for a few seconds....
He wondered if maybe he was going to go out because of this.
He had a large rock in his hand and he swung it at the youma as a fit of adrenaline and self preservation flooded through him, but the youma was swinging its tail like it was going to slam the spike down into him.
The rock collided with the youma's temple before its tail did; it missed. But, it wasn't dusted.
Adria struck again, and again; he hadn't taken a gulp of breath in half a minute and his heart was pounding so loudly he thought it might explode in his chest.
He prayed for someone, anyone, to come, as if he really thought the words in his head might summon some miraculous savior.
It was unreasonable and unlikely, but he hoped with all his heart anyway.
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Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2019 8:46 am
Kibirev had decided to go on a short patrol while Leander was at work and so far it had been nothing more than a relaxing walk, as most of her patrols were.
Though…there was a strange…awful screeching sound that made the girl pause in her tracks, eyes widening in fear. It didn’t sound…human…and she began to tremble slightly, worried that she maybe should have waited for Arnica to be with her before going out…but…
No. She was strong. She had earned the rank of a super senshi and…she was stronger than her brother so why was she…acting so afraid…?
Running towards the source of the sound, Kibirev saw some deranged creature on top of what looked and felt like a senshi…a senshi on the other side of things and she hesitated once again, though as she saw the creature look as though it were about to finish the senshi off, she acted without thinking, grabbing a large rock of her own and slamming into the monkey like creature, smashing the rock against its face over and over until it surprised her and let out one last, angry screech before it turned into a large pile of dust.
She sat there, blinking rapidly and feeling so confused for a long moment before she got up and walked to the senshi who had been in trouble. “…Um…are you alive?”
It seemed as good a question as any.
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Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2019 7:18 pm
Adria had been fighting as hard as he could, struggling to take care of the creature before it could take care of him. He was in a trance; his heart rate was explosive and he could see the Dark Mirror Senshi in front of him, but he couldn't process that she had just helped him defeat the youma that was out for his blood.
"I--" he began, but his mind kept looping. He wanted to say something but any time he tried to speak he froze up. She was chaos. She had helped him? She was chaos. This was a trap? She was chaos. Was she attacking him?
His vision was swimming; he clutched the rock he'd been fighting with so hard that his hand was bleeding. He was breathing too quickly and he couldn't focus. He'd had panic attacks before, he should have been able to identify it. Should have been able to try and curb it.
Should have been able to...
Do anything.
He forgot how to breathe, instead.
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Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2019 7:25 pm
Kibirev watched the blonde senshi before her and swallowed hard, unsure of what to do. Finally she hesitated and reached out a hand towards him, though pulled it back after a second. “Hey…Hey it’s okay…it’s gone! You’re not going to get hurt anymore I um…”
What was she supposed to do? she couldn’t just…let him stay here…he looked as though he were about to explode and…
Suddenly Kibirev held her hand close to her face, whispering. “Tranquil Foxglove!” She blew the magic towards the boy and as the flowers made contact with him, she threw her arms around him, hugging him tightly, trying to provide all of the reassurance that she could in that one gesture. “You’re safe. I don’t know who you are, but I won’t hurt you. It’s okay. You’re going to be okay, I promise!”
She was trembling, afraid for him, afraid that he might strike her with the rock…but more afraid that he would end up hurting himself. Kibirev had had many panic attacks in her time…and she had never had someone around for the worst of them…
It was hard to know what this senshi wanted but she gave all that she had wanted during hers. Support. Affection. Reassurance.
“We’ve got this…”
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Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2019 7:43 pm
Adria didn't even have the wits to brace himself for an attack; he just looked at her, brows knit and then--
Ah.
And then, he breathed.
The rock fell from his hand and he instinctively wrapped his arms around her, not sure why he felt so relaxed, why it felt like embracing an old friend. The concerns melted away; his heart seemed confused, but it rapidly returned to its normal pace. He didn't feel lightheaded or alarmed, just peaceful.
It didn't matter that a youma almost killed him, or that she was a Dark Mirror Senshi, or that he'd been scared...
Everything felt okay. Just like he'd asked for, she'd shown up. She'd helped.
"S-sorry," he said, managing to make the words come out. His mind felt like honey, moving slowly, languidly. It wasn't unpleasant, but it wasn't particularly useful for conversation. He rested against her and exhaled, savoring each breath like it was a new treasure.
It took him a few seconds more but he closed his eyes. Still in her tranquil trance, he spoke in a calm, dazed sort of way. "...You showed up just in time. What's your name?"
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Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2019 7:51 pm
When he returned the embrace, Kibirev relaxed, nuzzling closer. “There you go…It’s all right…” Her voice was soft and she reached a black gloved hand up to softly stroke his hair. “Don’t be sorry. You’re safe. I did show up just in time I…I heard that creature scream and I just…I was going to run away but I’m glad that I didn’t…”
He was breathing again and that made her happy. Like she had actually done something worthwhile.
“I’m Sailor Kibirev…it’s nice to meet you…but maybe next time…we can hang out and there not be a scary monster trying to kill you, okay?”
Finally she drew away and placed a hand on his cheek. “…What’s your name? Are you feeling better? I’m glad that you’re breathing again…you were scaring me a little. I thought you were going to pass out.”
Idly, she wondered if she should have let him get eaten by the monster but…no…it wouldn’t have felt right. She did the right thing…even if he was on the wrong side.
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Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2019 8:14 pm
"Yeah," Adria said quickly. "That sounds like a good plan. I'd rather no youma, please. I think I've had enough of them, I didn't even mean to run into that one. I'm--I'm Adria."
Her magic was fading slowly, but it had served its purpose; he seemed like he was relaxing still.
"I'm...sorry you had to see that. I really." He shook his head and exhaled. "...It's just a long night. I should have been able to handle it. I've fought youma before. I don't like them, but I've fought them and--they were never like that. It was like, no matter what I did, it wasn't enough. I hit it. I used my magic on it. I tried to lose it."
He shuddered.
"...I just don't understand. I didn't even want to fight. But it's not like you can reason with them." He closed his eyes and rubbed them tiredly. "...You're chaos, but. It's not like the Negaverse. The Negaverse--I have to fight back the urge to throw up any time I feel them. But you...your magic is really nice. Thank you, for saving me from the youma. And, ah. From myself."
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Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2019 8:27 pm
Kibirev nodded. “It’s nice to meet you, Adria…and I’m not sorry I had to see it…I think…I think it was better to see that than see you dead from it…that was a scary…you called it a youma? I didn’t even really…realize those even existed. I mean, obviously I knew there were scary things in the city but…”
But she was sheltered, and she knew it. “I’m part of the Dark Mirror Court…Um…I’m glad that I don’t make you want to throw up, that’s a good goal in life…be a decent enough person that others don’t…vomit.”
She gave a little smile and seemed almost sheepish. “I’ll save you whenever you need saving, okay Adria? I’d like to be friends if you’re interested in it...I don’t have very many friends and…you seem really nice. Your hugs are warm and I liked it.”
Sides didn’t really matter…did they?
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Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2019 9:10 pm
"Yeah, we can be friends," he said, perhaps a bit too quickly. He tried not to seem too eager and offered a quick smile. "I--sorry, about that Negaverse thing. It's just, I wound up in the hospital for a while, and...I mean, it took a long time to get better. And now, I think...I spent so much time worrying about getting hurt that I'm not paying as much attention to the battle when I'm in it and...ah," he sighed and raked his fingers through his hair, a little tense and visible frustrated at himself.
"I need to pay more attention. I need to get stronger." He exhaled and shook his head, trying to return to a better mood. He would have plenty of time to chastise himself later, he didn't need to do so in front of this girl.
He just offered her a kind, tired smile. Now that the battle was over, his adrenaline was dropping and he was losing all the energy he'd thought he had. "But, I would like to be friends, I think. I don't--I don't really know much about the Dark Mirror Court. I know your...I mean, I know you feel like Chaos, but...you don't seem bad? So we...don't have to be enemies. If that's okay? I mean." He looked at where the youma had been just a few seconds ago. "...You did save me, so how could you be bad?"
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Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2019 9:17 pm
Kibirev listened, and looked concerned at his words. He had ended up in the hospital? That sounded terrifying. It was because of the Negaverse? She didn’t know much about them but…she’d be wary if she ever ran into one…she didn’t have the time or energy to end up in the hospital and…she sure didn’t have any insurance to cover the bills that would come from that.
“Oh…” She swallowed and sat next to him, looping her arm through his and resting a head on his shoulder. “I’m glad you want to be friends. I don’t have too many…I don’t know much about anything other than my own court, really. But we’re not that bad, I don’t think. Some of us have awful manners and are headstrong and…stupid. But. We’re not cruel…unless. Well. They weren’t the best when we got into a really interesting situation and kind of got kidnapped for a while…but…”
Kibirev let her eyes close and just enjoyed the warmth that Adria provided, relaxing. “But we got out of there. So no harm was done. And I won’t ever be your enemy, I promise. You’ll always have me for a friend.”
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Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2019 7:17 am
Adria was a bit surprised that it was so easy to relax with her resting against him and he wasn't sure if it was because he was exhausted or because she genuinely didn't seem dangerous, but...
Ah, thoughts like that were things that got you hurt, or worse. He wasn't supposed to let down his guard. But...she didn't seem to know much about any other Court, and he didn't know much about hers.
"Maybe we could benefit each other?" he suggested after a second. "I mean. If we're going to be friends, anyway. Maybe...we could get together some other time and just talk about our--what our groups are doing? I mean, I'd like to hear about that kidnapping, sometimes. If--if you want to talk about it."
He didn't know what most of the White Moon was doing, but he liked to think he was smart enough that he could have found something to talk to her about that could help her but not put him at a weakness. And...to be honest, he didn't know enough about the Dark Mirror Court to have a clear idea of them--and he didn't know if Cambria had many friends on their side.
...Maybe he could find some useful information and have an excuse to spend some time with her.
Although, he couldn't help but feel a little pathetic that he had to go out of his way to try and find an excuse to see his best friend and spend time with her, but she was so busy these days. It wasn't her fault, he knew most of this was just in his head. It was his own self doubt and disbelief that he had any worth, especially when he'd fallen so far behind Malus.
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Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2019 2:46 pm
Kibirev nodded. “All right. I’d like that…do you wanna meet tomorrow night maybe? I’d like to bring you something nice to eat, I could get ice cream or something and we can just have a nice time and just…talk or something?”
It sounded so nice to her, the chance to just talk with Adria…her new friend…and he seemed eager to be her friend too…and that made her feel so warm inside. “It can be just really relaxing maybe. And…we can talk about everything. I’ll tell you about what happened with all of us, and you can tell me about yourself…but tonight…I think you should get a nice bath—do you have any bath bombs or something that smells good? I can bring you something to help you relax but I can’t bring it until tomorrow…but I think a nice bubble bath or something like that would be really relaxing. That’s one of my favorite ways to unwind, at least.”
Her hand patted the top of his and she pulled away. “Anyway, maybe invite a friend over tonight? You had a bad scare and you shouldn’t be alone…I’d invite you over if I could but…”
…But he was wearing white.
…Maybe one day she could change his mind though…that would be nice.
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Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2019 7:27 pm
"I--yeah," he nodded after a few seconds and offered her a kind smile. "...Thank you, for being so understanding. I don't really meet people who are so nice, um. I just wanted to say thank you. I'm going to go home and take a bath, I probably have some bath bombs."
He knew he did, things he'd gotten for Christmas that he thought were silly and couldn't imagine using. Now...
She seemed like she knew what she was talking about, and he knew he needed to do something to relax.
"I--I'll see if anyone can come over. But--thanks. Yeah, we," he offered her a smile. "We can meet up again. Here, tomorrow night. At ten?" he suggested, quickly growing too tired, too lethargic, to wonder if she could be setting up a trap.
Could people with such a kind smile plan such terrible things, though?
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Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2019 7:38 pm
Kibirev returned the smile and got up, nodding and looking as though she had just been told she won the lottery. “All right! I’ll bring you some things, things that help me calm down, I’ll make you a care package, Adria!”
She looked suddenly delighted and took his hand once more, squeezing it gently. “You’re going to be all right. You’re safe. You’re quite safe. Now, go home and just take care of you. I’ll see you tomorrow, friend!”
When she said the word, her whole face lit up and she laughed. “…It’s so stupid…I didn’t have any friends until so recently…and now I just…I keep getting so many and it makes me so happy I could just cry…” Kibirev didn’t cry, but she did lean down to kiss the other senshi’s cheek and then ran off, slipping through the nearest mirror that she found.
She would make a great care package for Adria…and he would be happy. He was already safe but…she would see that he was relaxed. And happy. He was her friend now, and the smile didn’t leave the girl’s face for the rest of the night.
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