the imp hums silly warning lullabies, but those startlingly bright sapphires slip back into the abyss of his shadow. its song is faint, but it lingers there - a horrid backdrop to a dramatized rendition of two star-flung souls meeting together again at last. 

"i haven't," he admits. the past is gone, but it's so much closer to him. he is looking at her and he is seeing yesterday's eyes under the fringe of her bangs. 

frustration, as it only ever has when he's around her, settles into his bones. the crossness does not flash across his face, but there is a rigidity to his normally languid stature. she has every reason not to trust him. she always has. 

"they say you're still one of the most brilliant minds in rocket. you know i have a penchant for wanting to know important people."

Lulu Flint

☉

she bristles and he thinks interesting, but his eyes only relay a soft apology, a quick dart of sorry that i overstepped. nonetheless, she gives him an answer and that is just as telling. his crooked arm draws closer, giving her just the slightest inclination of his thanks for her trust. 

and then they're through the exit and she is pulling away. they come to a stop outside the streaming line of other audience members. ianthe stays standing, watching them. she's not one to dirty her tail. 

"thank you for inviting me." and because he is not one to forget, he smiles and adds, "did you still want to take that picture?"

Yumi Hasegawa

☉

"it's hard to say," he says after a moment. on the one hand, who wouldn't want a chance to live out two decades of their entire life, knowing you'd be able to come back to the present? on the other? well, he's read what few reports there are. those that remember do so with a heavy burden. and those that don't - well, they count them lucky.

"i'm inclined to say yes, for the experience more than anything, but i've no wish to return to the actual past. i wouldn't change a thing, if i could."

except, perhaps, for rinc. 

"and you? would you change your past? if it meant your present might change too?" 

Yumi Hasegawa

☉

looking at her now reminds him of the past. it reminds him of another man's shadow. that lurching indignance that she was always far too good for the good-for-nothing waste of space he hadn't even known was dead. 

he reached out. confirmed her story. they were gone. he didn't ask after the details. it doesn't matter anymore.

why don't you want to know? he looks at her and when she takes a step forward, alecto grasps the corner of his shadows. sharp claws dig into stone and sapphires gleam under the surface of his long figure. she cackles a warning, untrusting of her approach. nikkari stays firm.

"i told you - i wanted to see you." he smiles. "do you not want to see me?"

Lulu Flint

☉

"more difficult," he says, simplistic in his obvious tone of but you don't need me to tell you that, do you? he thinks, though, that she would have done just fine given the extra obstacles in her way. especially considering she would have had a family name to string a foothold for herself.

"oh, but it's so very hard not to do that, even if only for a moment, especially when it's as though we've been there these past few hours." he shrugs on his coat and does up his buttons as they leave, nonchalantly offering his arm out for her again. ianthe falls into step behind him, nose twitching. 

he makes a face. "honestly, i would have been inclined to agree with you, but who knows what's possible now? time travel? i've heard talks of some colleagues of ours who lived in an alternate galar for two decades."

Yumi Hasegawa

☉

here is the firsthand look. here is the consequence. he can pull apart facial expressions and comb through cadences, but witnessing that which someone treasures informs him so wholly of a person's wants. needs. desires. their histories, their strife. 

yumi hasegawa is a puzzle and he's guesstimated at the pieces, but he won't know for sure how many she contains - or what lurks in the shadows of her image - until he finishes putting together all her edges. 

he steals glances at her throughout it as he languishes in his seat. her enthusiasm is quite fetching and there are scenes where he is just as enthralled, drawn by the gravitas shared by the lead and more importantly, the supporting actors. too often do directors allow the background inconsistencies to mar a monologue. 

"a stunningly well done sapphic romance," he concludes when she turns to him. "the political game was unexpectedly well written. no wonder it left such an impression on you."

Yumi Hasegawa

☉

she's on the floor, always, with an infectious charisma that only comes hand in hand with sincerity. often the most dangerous people are the ones who want to be wanted and yumi hasegawa is no exception to this rule. 

he matches her smirk in agreeance and drifts his hand down to rest on ianthe's fluff. her toes flex as he scratches her behind the ear. 

"and miss the opportunity to be part of the center of attention? i think not." he withdraws his own phone and turns it on silent right as the lights begin to dim. 

Yumi Hasegawa

☉

she's there, skulking in his shadow, despite the territory. there are monsters that dwell within these caves. and down they go - fractal spirals, marvels that shouldn't exist. alecto is uncharacteristically obedient, hidden from sight even amongst all the shiny things. 

he takes it as an ill omen. 

asking around had given him some answers, but still he's exhausted several other routes. his tenacity is unmatched. she knows this. part of him wonders if his questions have come back to her, if she's ghosting him every step of the way. 

her spectre is down there, crouched over a cluster of stunning pink and purple shards. 

"lulu," he says, by way of greeting.

Lulu Flint

☉

is that, then, why you prefer not to sit where we are?

he tucks the information away. it's another brush stroke on his painted timeline that makes up her history. he smiles at her laughter and keeps a nonchalant gaze on her while she looks out the window. there's more to just her words, especially with a topic like this. it's about the wistfulness in an expression, the bitterness that can be beholden in the corner of a lip, the crinkle of an eye. 

"such is the beauty and tragedy of shedding our adolescent eye."

he comes around the side of the car to offer his hand, and then his arm, out to yumi. once they've exited, ianthe pads behind them, keeping stride with nikkari with ease. 

they're escorted to their seats. nikkari unbuttons his suit jacket and takes a seat. they have some time before the lights dim, as others take to their seats, and he watches them attentively from their perch. 

"thank you," he says with a sideways glance. "for the box seats. given our line of work, i've always preferred positions where i can have a reliable partner out if need be." which isn't exactly a lie. ianthe is a powerhouse, protective to a fault, but she's never been his ace. yumi has yet to meet alecto, but the gremlin is here even now, skulking in his shadow. he would be remiss if he didn't use the opportunity to present some vulnerability.

Yumi Hasegawa

☉

"you flatter me," he responds as he follows her into the carriage. ianthe allows yumi the softness of her foxy ears; the flexing of her paws gives away her enjoyment. nikkari huffs in amusement as he settles next to her, replacing yumi's withdrawn hand with his own, lest the vulpix grow indignant at her lack of attention and ice the interior of the cabin. 

"i've seen marvelous reviews already, yes," he says, while casually crossing his ankle over his knee.

"but you must be excited. how many years did you say it's been?" he asks, though he knows perfectly well she hadn't said. a graduation gift is the information she'd given him, along with a picture of a strained familial relationship. he's curious to know how the show will compare to that memory - nostalgia has a way of imprinting a peculiar nonreplicable fondness on memories. 

Yumi Hasegawa
blep

☉

he fiddles with the cuffs of his slate suit jacket, nose wrinkling. he'll have to have a word with his tailor. the measurement on his right side isn't off enough to be noticeable to anyone but himself, but it irritates him nonetheless. his last person, in galar, knew to compensate for his rolex.

after she'd bought the tickets, he'd hired a driver shortly thereafter. the corviknight descend lavishly outside her front stoop and he waves a hand at chives, stepping out himself to meet his date.

ianthe mewls, but does not pad out behind him, content to curl up in the warmth he'd left behind. his fingers twist, buttoning his coat out of habit, as he rounds the corner.

she's ravishing in the twilight that descends overhead. his gaze sweeps curiously away from her form and back to the apartment she'd left behind, then back to her. when he nears, he smiles and says, "miss hasegawa," before reaching for her hand.

he brushes her knuckles to his lips in greeting and before parting, slides a fresh green stem into her hand. the rose's petals are white as fresh snow, perfectly pristine, and the stem is twisted neatly, held with a pin.

"you look lovely tonight."

Yumi Hasegawa
blep

☉