635/Emotional Entanglement

Emotional Entanglement
Date of Scene:	27 November 2015
Location:	Uminari City - Seishou Public School
Synopsis:	Ayana tricks Ikiko into allowing her to steal most of Ikiko's energy. But instead of feeling betrayed or angry, Ikiko tells Ayana she understands, and forgives her for it. Ayana protects her friend untils he at least comes back to, then they part ways. Love is so confusing.
Cast of Characters:	Ikiko Hisakata, Ayana

---

Ayana has posed:
Ikiko had a note in her locker around lunch time, today. Written in the fox-girl's relatively poor script, it said, "Wait for me after detention! I've got something to show you! - Vm~"

Of course Ayana has detention. She pretty much always has detention. Whether it's for falling asleep in class, making rude noises, being truant, being tardy, or failing her homework, the foxgirl's time in detention could largely be analagous to an extra class. It's enough to wonder how she manages not to get suspended entirely.

Ayana emerges from detention in her Middle school uniform--just one more thing that sets her slightly apart from Ikiko and Reiko--with a black bow instead of the proscribed red (another reason for detention), and tall black knitted wool stockings (look, it's cold this time of year).

"Iki-chaaaaaaan," Ayana calls as she emerges from the building. She seems bored, but also very smug and proud of herself about something. There is a little hint of deviousness and desire in there, along with a little bit of nervousness. What's she nervous about? Possibly it's whatever she's holding behind her back with both hands.

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko Hisakata had been surprised (and somewhat intrigued) by Ayana's letter, so she made it a point to deal with club activities in a hurry. After all, being there on time means more time to hang out with Ayana! <3

The younger girl's face brightens as her fox-friend arrives. "Aya-chan!" Ikiko beams, hurrying on over. Her feelings of happiness and love are clear, as are the hints of curiosity and reassurance.

"Other than detention, how was your day?" she asks, bounding over to hug Ayana and try to peek at whatever the older girl is hiding behind her back.

Ayana has posed:
"Mmhhhh, boring," Ayana says unhappily, but she does put her arms around Ikiko in return. The feelings of nervousness come startlingly to the fore as the two touch, no matter how much Ayana acts like she isn't nervous. At least there's also legitimate feelings of love coming across, as well.

"I fell asleep in mathematics again, and then got called up to write in English on the board, and my English is awful." She keeps one hand tightly closed around something, preventing Ikiko from viewing it. "How was your day?"

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko Hisakata blinks at the increased nervousness, but still leans into the hug. "We were practicing the recorder today," she remarks with a wince. "I know I'm not a musician, but if some of my classmates put as much effort into practice as they did into volume..."

She shakes her head. "The other classes were okay, although a bit uneventful, and there weren't many things that needed doing for club time." An inquisitive glance at the closed hand. "Wha'cha got, Aya-chan?"

Ayana has posed:
The nervousness swells to nearly overwhelm all of Ayana's other emotions, and she turns away from Ikiko. "W...well," she says, then glances around. "Let's go somewhere no one can see," Ayana explains. She reaches down and grabs Ikiko's hand in her own, gently, then turns to lead the younger girl around the side of the school, where the bushes will protect them from view.

Once out of sight, Ayana takes a deep breath, then turns and holds out her hand to Ikiko. In it, there is a glimmering black gemstone; dark and seductive, as if it wants Ikiko to touch it.

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
More curiosity and reassurance comes from Ikiko as she goes with Ayana, giving the other girl's hand a small squeeze of encouragement. With all of the magical stuff in their lives, having to hide from other, non-magical people doesn't seem too unusual.

When Ayana holds out the gemstone, Ikiko leans closer, eyes wide. "Oh, pretty," she whispers, her hands near her face as she stares at the gem. There's a sense of respectful care from her, and her movements suggests that she doesn't want to accidentally mar the beautiful stone.

Ayana has posed:
"Mmmm," Ayana agrees quietly, watching Ikiko peer at the gem for a few moments. "Iki-chan," she says after a bit, breaking her own silence. "Do you trust me?"

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko Hisakata looks up at Ayana. "I trust you," she smiles warmly, emphasized by the trust and love for the fox-girl in her heart.

There is also a note of distrustful wariness in there as well, but that is not directed towards Ayana.

Ayana has posed:
Ayana swallows a little. The distrustfulness probably should be directed at her, and she knows it. But instead, she takes Ikiko's hand in her own once again, this time intertwining her fingers palm-to-palm as she steps ever so close to the brunette.

"I'm sorry," Ayana says, as she presses the gem to Ikiko's chest with her other hand.

The moment the little black gem comes into contact with Ikiko, it starts to drain her energy, sapping away her strength and energy just like one of Riventon's retrievers might do. Just like Ayana herself did, the other day, when her Gloom activated after the bath.

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko Hisakata blushes slightly as Ayana intertwines their fingers and steps closer. The two already have a pretty snuggly relationship, but this feels unexpectedly romantic! "A-Aya-chan..." she murmurs, barely aware of what else is going on, or even what Ayana is saying.

...wait, an apology? Wh--

And then the gem touches Ikiko, and the drain begins.

The younger girl flinches, her fingers entwined with Ayana's reflexively tightening onto the instinctive source of comfort. She's faced Ayana Kaiju and the fierce parasite that infested her fox-friend; she's been point blank to Ayana's Gloom of fury. In both cases, her heart told her to hold on, and the pain eventually lessened.

Her heart is still telling her to hold on, but her mind thinks the pain might be getting worse.

She forces herself to look Ayana in the eye. "W-why...?" she whispers, her heart whimpering with a mix of love and disbelief. "Why, Aya-chan? I-is he making you do this? Is that why...?"

Ayana has posed:
The nervousness Ayana had been feeling since leaving the classroom has been replaced, now with self-hatred. There's love in there, for Ikiko, at least, but certainly none for herself. "He's sick," Ayana tells Ikiko unhappily.

"I'm so sorry," Ayana repeats, even as she gently lowers Ikiko to the ground, keeping the gem in place while it drains her best friend of energy. "I need to make him better. I need him to trust me again."

But oh how she hates what she's doing, right now. "I know you won't forgive me for this. I won't, either. I told you, I'm bad for you, Iki-chan. I'm the villain. You shouldn't trust me." But she doesn't stop.

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
There's a wincing grimace as Ikiko continues to be drained of energy, then her brows furrow as there's a jumble of conflicting emotions, seeming to contradict each other and aimed in several directions at once.

She finally opens an eye again. "Y-you silly fox," she wheezes, in the same tone as when Ayana calls her 'dumb dog' -- playfully loving, with no harm behind it. "You do have a habit of h-hurting yourself when you're proving your love to another, d-don't you?"

Ikiko smiles weakly. "I u-understand why you're doing this, A-Aya-chan," she breathes. "I-I don't agree w-with it, but I c-can understand why you're d-doing it. A-and I can't q-quite blame you."

A brief flicker of love, respect, and anxious self-disappointment crosses her heart, all aimed towards someone elsewhere. "I-if someone that i-important to me was v-very ill, I'd p-probably do everything I c-could to make them f-feel better," she admits, her voice shaky from the loss of energy.

Ayana has posed:
Ayana looks away from Ikiko at these words, too ashamed of her choices to meet the other girl's eyes. "Just ... go to sleep," she begs gently. "It will hurt less, and I will watch over you until you wake up," she promises.

She sniffles a little, moved to tears by her own self-loathing and Ikiko's love. "I wish you'd just stop believing in me. Then you wouldn't get hurt like this."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
"B-but who w-would keep y-you from b-being hurt?" Ikiko counters, barely conscious. She does her best to give Ayana a warm smile, but the face doesn't have the energy to match the heart. "A-Aya-chan, I lo--"

And with that, she finally passes out. There is weariness within her, as would be expected for having her energy drained. But there is also trust -- confidence that she is safe from youma and bully, because Ayana is there. And, despite the fox-girl's continued efforts, there is another thing:

There is still love. <3

Ayana has posed:
The moment Ikiko passes out, Ayana pulls the gem off of the girl with a grimace. "I'm so sorry, Iki-chan," she cries gently. "I love you, too." Ayana drops the gem into her bag, where it clinks against a second little gemstone much like this one.

Lifting Ikiko into her arms, Ayana puts her back to the wall of the school, and hugs Ikiko close, keeping the girl as warm as possible while she sleeps. And so Ayana waits, with no other recourse, for her friend to start to recover.

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
It takes several minutes, but finally Ikiko starts to stir. She blinks her eyes groggily, then closes them again and snuggles closer to Ayana. "Five more minutes," she murmurs, a small smile of contentment on her face.

There's still a sense of weariness about her, but there is also a strong feeling of comfort, both given and received -- a feeling that grows stronger as she cuddles closer.

Ayana has posed:
Ayana sighs, relieved as Ikiko starts to rouse again. She snuggles Ikiko gently and nuzzles her cheek against the other girl's. "Take as long as you need," she murmurs softly. "My brother can wait a few more minutes."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko's smile softly widens, and she turns her head just long enough to lightly kiss Ayana's cheek. "Thanks, Aya-chan," she whispers, then she leans her head onto the fox-girl's shoulder and settles in for a short, more intentional nap, her heart filled with love and contentment.

Ayana has posed:
There is an overwhelming feeling of confusion from Ayana at Ikiko's words. Thanks?! Why would Ikiko thank her? She just drained almost all of Ikiko's energy; the poor girl probably won't fully recover for days! And yet she's thanking Ayana?

The fox-girl wipes at her eyes and sniffles again, then lowers her forehead to rest on the back of Ikiko's. "Dumb dog," she mumbles quietly.

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
"Mrbl mrr," Ikiko sleep-mumbles with a sense of affection. She occasionally shifts in her sleep, but it mostly seems to be to cuddle more.

Her dreams are mostly unclear and lacking in major events, but there's an emotional undercurrent to them, a constant theme with fluctuating variations. The one constant is the sense of being with Ayana, of being happy alongside of Ayana, and of Ayana's happiness as well. All of this, viewed through a curtain of hopeful wishing, framed with a sense of determination.

Ayana has posed:
But Ayana isn't happy with herself. She's still too busy hating herself to be happy, even if she is glad that Ikiko wasn't hurt too badly. Carefully, she wraps her legs around Ikiko, too, hugging her close as she can as she protects her friend until she's better enough to wake.

While Ikiko dreams of happiness, Ayana dwells on her own evil nature, and that of Takashi's. She had been so certain that doing things his way was the only right thing to do. But now, with her bond to the boy disrupted--with her new bond with Ikiko so prominent--it's hard to remember why she thought that. Certainly she loves him; certainly she wants him to be happy and healthy. But as Ayana looks at Ikiko sleeping clutched in Ayana's arms, the foxgirl wonders whether Takashi is worth this pain.

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
After about half an hour, Ikiko wakes up with a yawn, then nuzzles Ayana's cheek. "I should probably head home," she says with a disappointed sign, stretching for a bit before giving Ayana a hug.

She stays like that for a minute, then reluctantly stands up, a faint longing for snuggly comfort remaining. She leans against the wall for a moment, just to make redundantly sure that she's okay, then offers Ayana a hand up. "I should probably pick up some snacks on the way home," Ikiko muses. "Some food might help with feeling more awake."

Ayana has posed:
Ayana just stares at Ikiko's offered hand, then looks away. "Yeah," she agrees quietly. "Snacks," she mumbles, lowering her eyes towards the grass. She wipes her eyes on her sleeve again, then sighs and slides up the wall to her feet, not using Ikiko's hand to help herself up. Self-hatred rules her emotions, alongside regret and confusion. She doesn't deserve Ikiko's help. "Go home, dumb dog. Stop trusting evil foxes."

Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko Hisakata watches Ayana stand up, the fox-girl's emotions nearly physical in their intensity. She tilts her head as she ponders the offered advice, then makes a determined face as she makes up her mind.

Taking both of Ayana's hands, Ikiko steps up and kisses the tip of the older girl's nose defiantly. "Silly fox," she beams. "See you tomorrow, Aya-chan!"

And with that, she starts walking off, her otherwise lethargic pace improved with a swell of energy stemming from confidence.

Ayana has posed:
"Huh?" Ayana's fox-ears pop up alertly at the kiss from Ikiko to her nose. She stares after the retreating Ikiko, as a blush slowly forms on her cheeks.

"S..stupid dog!" she calls after Ikiko unhappily. Except she's not really unhappy. There's no question that she's a little relieved at Ikiko's acceptance of her, just the way she is. Sure, she still hates herself. But if Ikiko likes her, maybe that can make up for it.