lionsleeps | Suisui IC Inbox

Perhaps so, but I'm afraid I'm simply an old man set in his ways. The children will just have to choose my more glorious exploits to model.

I mean, we could get into a really uncomfortable philosophical debate about the glories of war, but give me something funnier to work with.

I am a military leader...

[So like. Those are the stories okay???]

I'm afraid that, by and large, aside from frequently-embellished tales of heroism and feats of tactical genius, my reputation is largely defined by my proclivity for sleeping in odd places...

[He's self-aware at least.]

Oh. Same hat.

[ she says it with a completely straight face. those are the stories but she is trying to make friends, not get into a fight on purpose. they can save it for the third time. ]

The weirdest place I fell asleep was the top of the Storm Border. Which is kind of a giant tank, don't worry too much about it.

Ahaha!

[He'll accept this disengagement on the warfare topic. It's complicated. He'd probably agree with her in a lot of ways, but in the end it'd still be highly uncomfortable.]

Sometimes you just can't help it if you're tired, no?

[ you can't have the uncomfortable philosophical debates too early. it is better to be friendly first,

actually if Ritsuka had her preferences, she would rather not argue about it at all, but she also knows herself well enough to know it will almost certainly happen sometime. but she can make the conscious choice to avoid it for now. ]

Yeah... for me it's kind of like a light switch, though? I'm on, or I'm off.

Really? For me, it's... more of a matter of old age and boredom. But also, sometimes it's just a convenient talent to have, being able to sleep anywhere...

[Like how he tried to sleep his way out of the babyjail conversation--]

[ yeah, she raises an eyebrow at that like really? Is that what you're calling it? but nods as well. she is determined to find out how asleep is asleep for him sometime. there is a marker in her pocket right now, waiting. ]

I'm more like a battery than anything else, and sometimes I need to recharge whether I want to or not. It's gotten me out of meetings, but it usually lands me in the infirmary instead.

[You'll get him someday...]

How exactly are you "like a battery"?

[ she hesitates for a long moment, clearly weighing how honest she should be, and whether she should tell someone with eyes like that.

but he's already gotten a little bit of the story, so finally: ]

Kind of literally, actually? Most of my contracts get powered through me.

A contract with a spirit does tend to be a somewhat... symbiotic relationship...

[Though it sounds like her world's contracts are VERY DIFFERENT from what he's used to.]

If you've taken on so many it's draining you to that extent, then isn't it you who's going to make your doctor cry?

Edited 2023-10-01 04:47 (UTC)

[ there is, for just a second, an utterly gutted expression that crosses Ritsuka's face-- ]

[ --and then she huffs, not quite a laugh, her expression shifting to a little smile ]

There's not really a choice, unfortunately. Even if Doctor Roman were around to scold me, we both know there isn't anything that can be done about it.

[Ah, it seems he's hit a soft spot. It's relatable -- that feeling of loss, and inevitability.]

I see... you've lost a lot, haven't you?

[ she considers for a moment, then says, like an offer: ]

Generals and soldiers aren't the only people who get drawn into wars.

[He pauses a moment, thinking of how to respond. Then, quietly, with a melancholy look off at nothing in particular, he speaks.]

...No, they aren't. There's no such thing as a nice clean battle, nor a tragedy that leaves no scars.

Yeah.

[ she's still quiet, but now solemn instead of smiling. ]

...I wasn't supposed to be part of any of it. But when I said there wasn't any choice, I meant it.

You mentioned your world was destroyed, and you were left as the only one to fix it, if I remember correctly?

Yeah.

There were forty-eight total candidates, at one point.

[ and now there's just her. ]

[Sounds like a bad time. He doesn't envy her that burden, for sure. He sighs, resting his face on his hand, and forces a smile.]

That's a lot to carry on one person's shoulders. If I could give you more than my best wishes, I would.

I wouldn't ask for more than that. This is my responsibility to deal with.

Yours, and all those with whom you've contracted?

I've never forced anyone into it. At home, it's just--me asking for help. I ask, and they answer.

[ ... ]

Dan Heng decided he was coming with me before it happened. Even after I tried to warn him off.

I didn't mean to accuse you of forcing anyone. I was merely pointing out that you needn't speak as if you're meant to carry that weight alone.

I mean... I do, and I don't.

[ she makes a few vague gestures with both hands, aimless, not really indicating much of anything. she is aware that this next phrase might be giving away something dangerous to a man she isn't sure is actually friendly or not, but she doesn't want to hide the fact, either. ]

The thing is, they're the powerful ones. Not me. ...But if anything happens to me, they all disappear. If I die, it all falls apart.

[ ... ]

"My will forms your body, and your sword forms my destiny." That's part of it.

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