elemancy | week 6; exhaustion

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week 6; exhaustion

[the end of the night comes, the meeting with who remains ends...

and noct really doesn't want to go back to his room just yet. he doesn't really want to deal with ash right now, and—well, he's still concerned about milla. even after seeing her in the meeting, the way she actually relied on him for help after jason hit her—it's hard to let that go. for someone who constantly keeps going, who had even said as much to him just a day earlier?

it's hard to ignore.

so it's her door he finds himself in front of again, knocking lightly.]

Hey, it's me. [he figures she'll know his voice easily enough, but he says it instead so she doesn't have to actually get up if she doesn't want to.]

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[unsurprisingly, Milla is lying prone on her bed when Noctis comes to visit, trying to ignore the way her ribs throb with every breath she takes. she has an open book (the flower language book) laid out over her eyes, too. but when she hears the knocking, she sits up, and the book falls into her lap]

[she does know his voice well by now]

Ah-- of course. Come on it. It isn't locked.

Thanks.

[he'll say that as he makes his way into the room—and visibly a bit relieved once he closes the door behind him to see that milla's already resting.]

...You can lay down. Jason... really did a number on you before. [which is, naturally, part of why he's here. it's definitely not a business meeting.

he'll perch himself at the edge of the bed, similar to what she'd done for him the night before. which... would probably normally be a bit embarrassing to him, but he's tired and worn down—and yesterday's comforts definitely nudge him to pursue that approach a bit more than he normally would.]

"Did a number?" I wouldn't say that. He hit hard, but it only hurt because I was already injured.

[she can't find it in her to blame Jason for what happened. his anger, his fury. . . she gets it. she was pretty pissed, too. she just had a little more self-control about it]

[she closes the book and tucks it underneath her pillow as she adjusts her sitting position, although she suppresses a few good winces as she does so. ow. moving hurts]

Did a number on your recovery.

[that technically counts. even if he gets it, seeing her injuries get aggravated over it only worked him up a bit more—even though his own ribs are a bit sore and bruised from jason's thrashing.]

...Don't move too much, you'll just aggravate it more. [he winces a bit seeing her wince. sympathy wincing? his own personal discomfort? who knows.]

Honestly, I'll be fine. This is nothing compared to some of the injuries I sustained back home. Once, my legs were rendered completely immobile for weeks.

[THAT HAD BEEN TORTURE. at least this way, she can still like. move]

Are you all right? I know you took a few harsh blows yourself.

[for a moment, noct just gives her a bit of a stunned look. only milla could say something like that so casually and brush him off like he's being irrational for being concerned about her busted ribs.

which is why he doesn't even try to argue it. he knows that milla is going to act like it's not a big deal, especially if this is marginally better than before.]

I've taken worse blows too. It's... gonna bruise, but I've gotten hurt more training than from that.

[hm!]

Then that is that. There's no need for either of us to worry. We're both fine.

[physically. . .]

As close to "fine" as it gets.

[he's not sure any of them are really fine after these weekend's events. but he doesn't really want to focus on that part right now. no business, this is a friend thing.]

Still feels like I could collapse for a couple of weeks to try and sleep it off.

[she scoots closer to him, so they're sitting shoulder to shoulder, and this time she doesn't bother hesitating before she leans against him]

You're quite welcome to stay here for a bit, if you're worried Ash might interrupt your sleep. My room is peaceful.

[and quiet, ever since Yuna died, so. it'd be nice to have company]

[just like the previous night, the contact definitely brings solace that noctis doesn't seem all that interested in moving away from. he shifts slightly, leaning against milla in turn before he hums out a quiet sound.]

Sounds nice. No nagging from him for a bit might be good. [he kind of doesn't really want to leave, anyway.]

...You've been all alone here ever since, huh? [since yuna died. the notion crossed his mind, given that she was a person with a lot of presence.

but he hadn't entirely considered how that could get lonely for milla. even if his roommate is ash he's still not entirely alone night after night, which has been helpful enough to him. but what about for her?]

[they can just. lean for a bit. yeah. . . this helps ease the frustration and anger over the events of the trial. it helps ease the pain of not being able to catch Shinnosuke's killer]

I suppose you could say that. Xion visited me a few times. [but now Xion's dead, so] I don't get lonely easily, however. And I keep myself occupied by maintaining Yuna's possessions.

That sounds just like you.

[to not get lonely easily, and to find ways to occupy her time so well.

but he'll still lean anyway, fingers drumming a bit idly against his legs.]

Guess you can just give me a knock if you want some company sometimes. [even if she doesn't get lonely easily, sometimes just knowing someone's around makes it a little less so.]

[aw. . . she actually likes the sound of that. she might not get lonely easy, but the room feels very empty. some company never hurts]

I'll make sure to keep that in mind. Are you certain Ash wouldn't get. . . ah. Jealous?

[is she teasing? yes, she's teasing, I'm sorry Noct]

[he gets it—he's not really all that into being alone, and ash hardly counts most of the time.

and speaking of which... he groans at that teasing. milla, why!]

I'm seriously never going to live that down, huh. [even though that was entirely ash.]

[BECAUSE!! she's entertained, give her this laughter she deserves it??]

Very likely not, though you don't have much reason to be embarrassed.

I'm... not sure I agree with that. It was pretty embarrassing.

[though he can't deny it's better that she's got something to laugh about.

...even if it's at his expense right now.]

[poor Noctis]

[she tilts her head slightly to look at him, but it means her cheek is pressed against his shoulder now. she's not quite resting her head on it, but. . .! it's close]

Was it? I don't understand. Kissing is. . . "normal" for humans, correct?

[well, he definitely won't move—he wouldn't want to knock right into her face like that—she's got enough injuries, after all.]

Well... I mean. For some, yeah. But it's usually, mutual, I guess. And... with feelings.

[he can feel his own face heating up a bit, cheeks flushing from having to explain it. he knows that this may not be something milla really understands or has experienced because of her spirit thing and the isolation she's told him about.

so he'll do his best to explain it, however embarrassing it may be.]

He did that because he was pissed off at me and wanted to make a point. Not because of... any... good feelings, or whatever. [and also:] I'm not into him like that, either.

[he's an angry robot, they can hardly even hold a civil conversation half the the time.

(ugh, he's so embarrassed though.)]

[she's read about it in books, it's okay Noctis. you should see her smut collection. her books, unfortunately, did not cover awkward anger kisses between robots and humans]

. . . oh! I see. I suppose that just makes Ash a strange character.

[her confusion quickly morphs into pensiveness, and thank goodness for Noct's dignity she changes the subject. somewhat]

Although I've discovered that much for myself. I'm not quite sure. . . what to make of him.

[he would definitely, absolutely die of embarrassment from her smut collection. it would definitely kill him.

the change of subject is probably for the better, because that whole day with ash still baffles him. he never wanted that at all, even if it served its purpose.]

Wish I could tell you. Even after six weeks, I'm still not sure what to do about him.

[he shifts very slightly, to make the positioning a little more comfortable, though noct does wince for a brief moment.] I'm just keeping an eye on him.

[well if he's shifting, she's shifting so she's leaning against him even more. it helps relieve some pressure on her ribs]

. . .

[she also lifts a hand to her chin, brows furrowing]

Do you think him trustworthy?

[in the context of the game, of course. do they really have to talk business now? yes, apparently]

[well, at least noct can't be blamed for ruining the moment on this one with his lack of action.]

...Not really. [ouch.] I don't think he'd kill people just to do it, but I think if he "won," he'd be a hassle. He's pretty serious about hating humans. It makes him... unpredictable, I guess.

[in any case, she can lean on him like this while they talk about it, though noct's kind of hoping they don't talk business too much tonight. it's exhausting and a bit depressing to never take a load off.]

Yes, that was my impression as well. I tried to talk to him about his perspective on humans, urge him to attempt to look at them from a new one, but--

[naturally, that had culminated in him locking her out entirely. she wishes she could have done more.]

I'm concerned for his reasons for asking the Bounties to come forward at the trial earlier today. A few days before, he approached me and wished to enlist my help in locating the Deputy and the Bounty Leader.

[. . .]

I feel he has ulterior motives. I'm just not sure what they are.

Yeah. I think so too. That's why I didn't say anything when he asked... and why I don't plan on telling him at all.

[he's not sure what ash is up to, and he hasn't had a chance to talk to him.]

I can try talking to him. He... kind of trusts me, I think. But it might not be enough for him to actually give up whatever else he's after.

[he's concderned about it, and:]

...You be careful around him too, just in case.

I don't think he'll give up what he's after to anyone. But I assure you, I intend to be careful.

[her gut is telling her that Ash knows a lot more than he's letting on, but right now, she doesn't even have an inkling of what that might be. she's feeling this conversation starting to weigh heavily on her as well, and with a small sigh (a shallow sigh, her ribs still hurt), she flops backwards onto the bed so she can stare at the ceiling]

[gently. gingerly. it's less of a flop and more her gently easing herself down]

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