WEEK ONE | SATURDAY NIGHT 11PM

[eternaldivide]

[ After Mithos was done with his night investigation he heads back onto the train and starts to go to his room. So much happened this week and he feels like there's more questions than answers.

And ... speaking of questions. Him and Atsushi were going to meet in his room to discuss the events of ... Monday.

So Mithos makes his way back into his room a little before the time they agreed to meet with and waited quietly. He ... hated being in this room by himself. But that's not something he's going to admit to anyone anytime soon. ]

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[whitemoontiger]

[ Things had been just a little insane this week, on more than one level he wanted to admit to. Yet he'd made it through it all the same. Keeping an eye on the time, Atsushi then realized that it was getting close to the time for him and Mithos to meet so he headed over there without wasting another second as he didn't want to be late.

Once there, he knocked twice on Mithos' door. ]

Hey. It's me. I hope i'm not too early.

[eternaldivide]

[ Once he hears the knock on the door Mithos goes to open. ]

Hey. No, not at all. You're right on time, come in.

[ He'll open the door wide enough for Atsushi to come in. ]

... How have you been.

[ ... That's... how people normally start conversations like this right ]

[whitemoontiger]

[ Offering something of a small smile, Atsushi came in with a small nod of his head. Mostly relieved he wasn't too early or anything, but once in the room, he did turn back to look at Mithos with a small touch of surprise on his face that soon shifted into something almost resembling exhaustion. ]

A little tired after how things went this week, but all things considered, i'm not doing too badly.

[ Okay so some things were worse than others but he couldn't just come out and say that yet. ]

What about you?

[eternaldivide]

[ Mithos isn't surprised. He's pretty exhausted himself. Of course, he's done his best not to show that whenever he's outside of his room. Even now he's trying not to show it in front of Atsushi. ]

Same. It's ... been a long week, hasn't it. I think I'm hanging in there just as much as everyone else, here.

[ Least he wants to try to believe that and that he's not worse.

... ]

I ... Noticed you didn't say anything about what happened there during the meeting.

[ 'There' being pretty obvious ]

[whitemoontiger]

Yeah. You've held yourself together pretty well though, but if you're tired... you don't have to hide it from me.

[ Atsushi's tone is soft and non-assuming, gaze trailing briefly to the floor before his shoulders fell a touch. He was an honest person so it wasn't in his nature to really lie about things, and yet the truth of what happened came up soon enough in what the other teen was asking him. ]

I... I couldn't. If either of us said anything about killing something there, it would have painted both of us in a bad light and someone was likely going to get mad at us for doing it.

[eternaldivide]

S-Sorry. I ... I guess I'm just used to doing so.

[ Not just guess he pretty much knows that it is how he carries himself. More mature than he ought to be for his age, and hiding how he truly feels unless he feels like it's safe to...

But ... at least he admitted it to Atsushi. That's a step. Even if it's just because they're both holding a secret here. ]

Yeah. Part of me feels bad for withholding information but ... I couldn't bring myself to tell them something that could possibly turn them against us. I don't ... want to be hated here too... So when you also didn't say anything I ... was relieved.

[whitemoontiger]

It's okay. I... can only guess you've had to grow up too quickly or something like that for you to be this way.

[ He doesn't say this negatively, but there's something compassionate in his voice and lined within his very expression as he says that. ]

Something like that... it definitely would have turned them against us in some way. They wouldn't have looked at us the same way as they do now, so I understand that.

[ Atsushi steels himself a bit before he walks the short distance over to Mithos and placed his hand on his shoulder lightly. Not trying to be invasive, but moreso supportive in the best way he can muster right now. ]

I don't know why it is you're hated back home, but I know how it feels. I spent the first eighteen years of my life being hated before I found my new job and people that accept me for who I am. [ That's a little tidbit he doesn't always tell most people, after all. So this is kind of a secret in this case. ] As long as we're here, I'll do my best to try and make it so you don't ever have to feel hated by anyone.

[eternaldivide]

[ Mithos simply nods at what Atsushi first says. He's in agreement there. Hearing that they killed a dragon would have definitely had at least one of them looking at them different. And it's ... not something that he wanted.

When Atsushi's hand touches his shoulder he jumps slightly, looking up at him with eyes widened a bit. They soften though, when he hears Atushi's little tidbit. He doesn't have the details but ... it's much like his story, isn't it. Sort of.

Enough for Mithos to feel, even just a little bit, more at ease. ]

So ... you're different in some way, as well. Different than usual humans.

[ ... ]

Thank you... I'll ... try to extend the same to you, as long as we keep this secret of ours.

[ ... ]

May I ... ask what kind of people are the ones who did accept you? For who you are?

[ He won't be surprised if Atsushi says no. But if he does Mithos might just ... return the favor. ]

[whitemoontiger]

[ That first second when he'd touched Mithos' shoulder, he'd almost drawn it back at that initial reaction in thinking he'd really done the wrong thing right then. His own shoulders relax and he then eventually draws his hand back amidst a small step back, not wanting to invade Mithos' personal space too much. ]

Yeah. I'm... what they call a 'gifted' individual. I can do something that humans can't, and am the only one with this particular ability, and has a lot to do with why I spent most of my life being despised and hated.

[ He's come to terms with this by now somewhat so he doesn't feel nearly as bad saying this aloud to someone. ]

You're welcome. I'm not the type of person to share secrets, especially something like that so you don't have to worry about that being known to anyone else but us.

[ Now that's not a question he was entirely expecting, but nothing he can't at all handle. Atsushi closed his eyes briefly, a smile tugging at his lips now as well. ]

Of course. They're... people who are also gifted with supernatural abilities like me. They know what it's like to be different from most of society, and... they're the most unique and weird bunch of people i've ever known in my life but they're like family to me now.

[eternaldivide]

A human with gifted abilities ... [ Yes they absolutely sounds familiar. It's ... what half-elves essentially are. ] Yes, I can understand why. Humans ... fear what they can't understand. Instead of trying to take the time to understand it, they hate its existence instead.

[ And yes. He does sound particularly bitter about this. But then he shifts back to his normal tone. ]

Neither am I. Your secrets are safe with me.

[ And upon hearing about Atsushi's new found family Mithos couldn't help but smile himself. ]

I'm glad you found family within those who have suffered the same. It ... must be easier to handle if you're all together.

CW: mention of child abuse

[whitemoontiger]

[ It was strangely comforting, knowing that there was someone out there who related in some way to your situation in life and how you were treated. He can't help trying to shove down that small bitterness that came with talking about that stuff, mostly in that there was a LOT of truth in what Mithos had said.

His orphanage treated him like actual dirt; especially the headmaster. He didn't even know why the other kids had ostracized him, other than for being different but it had hurt quite a bit. Almost as much as the physical and mental torture he was forced to endure at his headmaster's hands, sometimes even being caged like an animal and not even knowing why. ]

That's true. If it's easier to hate something than trying to understand it, they just do it. Without missing a breath.

[ His chest ached at this, even as that same bitterness dripped from the tail end of his words, thinking of his headmaster and he didn't even know why. Was it the weird gaps in his memory? That was something he didn't completely want to dwell on right now. ]

I'm glad to hear it. Thank you.

[ Gone was the bitterness and with it's absence came a smile once again, a soft laugh escaping him. A gentle warmth welling up in his chest when he thought of his unofficial family and their significance in his life. ]

I am too. I never thought i'd find it but... I did. [ A small nod of his head and he then lets out a soft hum. ] I hadn't thought about it until now but... yeah. It really is. We actually do what we can to try and help others, and to try and make the city a little bit safer using the abilities that set us apart from everyone else.

[eternaldivide]

All you can do is speak up and hope that one day, they might listen. But that ... takes courage. And not everyone has the courage to stand up for themselves.

[ Mithos ... definitely falters quite a bit, despite all he's done back home. It's thanks to the small support that he has that he hasn't. But if that support system wasn't there then .... ]

No need to thank me. I'm just glad we're in mutual agreement.

[ And with that Mithos' own bitterness leaves momentarily as he listens to Atsushi speak more about his unofficial family. ]

Oh really? So instead of turning away you're using your powers to help despite it all. I ... really admire that. That must take a lot of courage.

[ Ah the "courage" bit cycled back so quickly wow ]

[whitemoontiger]

You're right. It took me a couple years to learn that, but it never quite clicked until I was out of the orphanage and I saw other people trying to do just that and hugely unable to.

[ Such as Kyouka who suffered and had to kill people. He knew how much it hurt and how she wanted to fight back but never really could, forced to have a weapon that killed her family. She had only seen herself as a tool for the mafia but never had enough of a voice or anyone to listen or help her escape that life.

Nobody had been able to reach out to her and do that. ]

Yeah. It feels good to be able to use what I thought was a curse and what made me so hated, to help others out and use it to protect people.

[ He takes a second before shaking his head, but there's still a light smile in place as he does so. ]

Not quite. A lot of it came from seeing how my family at the Agency were able to stand up and face their enemies and use their abilities for good, along with their belief in me being able to do the same.

[ Atsushi laughs softly and he shifted his weight to his other foot, closing his eyes briefly. He feels really good being able to talk about this honestly. ]

Believing in someone and giving them support can do a lot of good. More than you'd ever expect.