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Post by Solomon on Jan 15, 2017 20:54:05 GMT -7
“Evidently.” He grumbled to himself.
He could only push a tactic for so long. It was his personal go-to, thus why he had offered it first, but if Aurora wasn’t going to play along, it wasn’t going to work. It was time to move on. With what he spent the time Aurora was taking trying - and as seemed to be the case, failing - to get up attempting to figure out. She did actually manage, and he considered doing something, but he figured she’d be sitting down or leaning against something soon, so he paid it little mind.
“I’m not trying to trap you.” He sighed. “Why would you think-”
She’d been coming towards him, but he’d been expecting her to be going for something beyond him, not the person who was sitting and probably not very stable. It was one thing to support someone’s weight with one’s shoulders. One’s head and neck were an entirely other. Further considering the core and back muscles that would normally come in and compensate were busy supporting his own upper half and Bolide wasn’t particularly difficult to knock over on a good day, he caved forward and away from Aurora, landing on his side with a pained yelp and an oomph.
After a moment to let the surprise abate, he pulled himself back up to a sit, and - more prepared this time - would help her with the same if she needed it.
It was then that Bolide’s composure broke.
“Will you stop moving around?!” He said, barely short of a shout. “You’re going to reopen your injuries and I’m going to have to figure out what the hell I’m supposed to do with a slipshod trying to die on me by blood loss. Again. Your panicking is causing more problems than it’s solving, Aurora. Rushing is going to cause more problems than it’s going to solve.” He let out a long breath and his frustrations. His voice was lower than before, but he returned to the even calm. “I know I’m asking a lot of you, but please, will you at least sit down and talk your plan out with me? I don’t know how reactive I’ll be if I don’t know exactly what we’re going to be doing. I’ve… never been in a situation like this before.” He admitted with a pained sigh. “Only read and heard about what other people have done, and a hell lot of good that’s done me so far.”
It felt counterintuitive and more than a little rude to pose it like this considering she was clearly in a much worse state than he was, but it never worked to make it about Aurora. Aurora didn’t need help, so therefore he was going to need it.
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Post by Aurora Disicio on Jan 16, 2017 9:34:24 GMT -7
The fact that her new crutch was living and injured didn't occur to her when she decided to lean on Bolide's head. Aurora was falling, he was the closet thing, she had to touch him in order to teleport anyway, it was the most logical thing to do at the time. When he collapsed under her weight, she was just as surprised as he was. She tried to keep herself upright, but her punctured core wouldn't have it. After only a moment of trying to stay upright, she collapsed with him, landing on top of him. Yet another sudden shock to her injured body left her unable to move. She couldn't even wiggle enough to roll off of him. There was little she could do but let him help her upright again. Even if she couldn't maintain such a position on her own and needed something to lean on.
"I can't stay here!" It was clear she was trying to yell, but her injuries left her voice airy without much power behind it. "I am not panicking! I just need to get to Dullahan and the rest will be easy!" Her breathing got heavier, enough so that it bordered on hyperventilating. "We just need to go there and beat the shit out of anyone that's between us and there. I have no idea where I am or what's out there, so getting more specific is impossible! Also unnecessary because this isn't hard! Now MOVE!"
Aurora attempted to throw a punch or a kick, but her body recoiled once she tried. At most, she would forcefully tap him before her body decided it had enough. It was then that she realized she wouldn't be able to fight like this. Another beat of sweat dripped down her face, and her breathing rate increased further. She needed something heavy, but everything in this room was light and cheap. The biggest thing appeared to be the coffee table. She picked it up with her power so she wouldn't be completely unarmed and helpless.
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Post by Solomon on Jan 16, 2017 15:45:11 GMT -7
Being landed on was about as pleasant as landing on the ground. Bolide had grumbled no shortage of unintelligible words that were supposed to hash out as swears under his breath, and after making sure he had good - albeit not necessarily painless - grip on Aurora, pulled them both up to sit. He leant her his shoulder to lean on because he was still the closest thing, but not his arm - after reaching to grab his helmet from the short distance it’d rolled, he stiffly rested his hands on the vizor and shifted awkwardly to sit cross-legged. It’d been a lot easier to feign comfort when they were about to leave and it was a part of the act, and he hadn’t just had her suddenly drop on him.
Under normal circumstances, after being punched with the sum of power Aurora had managed, he would gently poke her in the side where he remembered one of the cuts to be to further prove the point her body appeared to be making. Her previous statement, however, caught him so off guard that he hardly noticed he’d been punched at all.
“You want to what.” She may as well have just told him she intended to walk on the surface of the sun. Solomon drew in a long breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. Had it been anyone else under any other circumstances, he would’ve thought they were joking. She was completely serious, wasn’t she?
Books, files, and the papers inside the files spilled onto the floor with the departure of the table. The mess did not help Bolide’s mood.
“You want to, in this state, essentially challenge every person between us and Dullahan to a fight.” He repeated in Bolide’s disbelief. “Are- are you trying to get yourself killed?! You can’t even stand up without support. The hell kind of good do you think you’re going to be in a fight? What if someone takes me out? Then you’re stuck, aren’t you? And have you considered that maybe, just maybe, the bulk of the people there are either on our side and shouldn’t be attacked or shouldn’t be alerted of your current state because they’ll take it as an opportunity to try to take the faction?”
He was suddenly extremely glad he hadn’t played along and taken them outside. He was willing to - and had - take a lot for this mission, but he was not dragging an injured Aurora back to base after he’d been stabbed and while he had a fraction of his usual abilities, while Aurora was using the remainder of hers to upset every trigger happy super they came across.
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Post by Aurora Disicio on Jan 16, 2017 16:39:45 GMT -7
"I have to hit them before they can hit me! I can't hide!"
Aurora already dismissed staying trapped in the unknown location, no matter how safe it seemed. It didn't feel safe, it felt suffocating. That wasn't what she was referring to when she said she couldn't hide though. It was the same reason she moved in flashy ways and made sure that everyone knew what she was doing: her power had no sense of subtlety. It was impossible for her to both be prepared for a fight and hide. It was becoming increasingly clear that Bolide had no intention of helping and just wanted to keep her here, so she had to rely on her own abilities. That meant she couldn't hide; she couldn't try to sneak her way to some place that was actually safe. Everything was a threat she had to be ready for. Even the movements of the falling objects from the table caught her eye. The table dropped on top of them until she realized what they were and picked it back up again. Even if it was a phantom it continued to cement the idea that this place was not safe.
She no longer had the patience to wait. As far as she was concerned, Bolide was actively working against her at this point. What he hoped to accomplish, she had no idea. Aurora had no intention of waiting long enough to find out. Everything was wrong. Everything was dangerous.
"I don't have time for any of this!"
The ceiling dissolved into a cloud of particles, lighting up the room as though someone just turned the lights on. Aurora payed no mind to what was sitting on top of the roof. A few things fell, provoking more violent action from her every time she saw something move. Shortly after, she dropped the roof again, creating a ramp to the next floor. She didn't know the whole way up, but she could improvise. Her aurora darted towards her as fast as she could move it. A long wooden pole formed in her hands, and once again, she tried to pull herself up. This time she had no intention of trying to get Bolide to help her. She could only rely on her own power.
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Post by Solomon on Jan 16, 2017 18:57:27 GMT -7
Aurora certainly proved her powers were working fine. Bolide flinched as objects came toppling to the floor, just glad that nothing fell towards them. Even if Aurora was attacking every shadow like she was indeed expecting it to attack her first. If he’d thought she wouldn’t keep to her word before, now he was certain. Anyone who had the misfortune to cross her path was going to be attacked like her life was on the line. If she was unlucky, it would be.
She was getting up, and he couldn’t let her walk to her death. If no one stopped her, she was going to do something she was going to regret. How unfortunate he was the only one around.
Logic - of all kinds - wasn’t working. He doubted he had anything of his own that was going to get her to stay, and lying wasn’t going to work long-term. He was going to have to try brute force. Bolide stood up and stepped behind her. Ignoring her aurora, he wrapped his arms around her torso and upper arms, making sure he had a good hold. Then, he shifted his weight backwards and down, much like if he was going to drop into a chair behind him. He braced himself to instead hit the ground.
Regardless of if they did fall or not, he had no intention of letting go of Aurora, and further braced himself to be taken as a threatening shadow. If she wanted to go, she was going to have to carry him.
He spoke quickly and quietly - between impacts, if need be - even though he wasn’t expecting words to do much at this point. “You can’t go out there like this. You’re going to hurt someone, or someone’s going to hurt you. Aurora, there is no rush. There’s no one who needs you to save them. You have time. People can take care of themselves. It’s going to be okay. I promise, it’s going to be okay.”
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Post by Aurora Disicio on Jan 17, 2017 7:45:28 GMT -7
By the time Aurora noticed the movement behind her, it was too late. Bolide's arms were moving around her, and her attempt to turn around quickly failed because of his grip. He was too close for her to use her power properly. Anything she tried to drop on him would also land on her. Even if he was taller, the risk of injury to herself was too high. Instead, she made do with repeatedly hitting him in the face and chin with the wooden pole she was using to help her walk. Even that didn't work for long. When she started to fall backwards, she lost her grip on it and it rolled a few feet away. She could have used her power to bring it back to her, but even if she did she wouldn't be able to hit him at this angle. The impact with the ground made her go limp momentarily again, but was a short respite.
"Let go of me!"
Aurora squirmed, throwing her weight back and forth while using her hands to pry at his fingers in an attempt to make him lose his grip. If that didn't work, she'd use every other means she could think of to get him to let go. Kicking, using her head against his chest and chin, and even sending her aurora into his face. Without the metal on her shoes her kicks wouldn't do as much, but she was less concerned about causing damage with her aurora than she normally was. She kept it completely condensed, making it painfully bright as well as painful to the touch. It could easily cut through skin like this. While her body was still having difficulty moving because of her injuries, her power had no such limitation. It was easily able to spin at high speeds around Bolide's face. It would try to worm its way into anything it could: his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.
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Post by Solomon on Jan 18, 2017 16:08:53 GMT -7
Against his best interests and possibly hers, he did not let go. He also discovered Aurora’s apparent keenness to aim for the face. He’d had one eye closed in a wince after the stick, and the other soon followed when her aurora came for its own follow up. It lessened the strong urge to indeed let go and try to cover his eyes - and soon nose - from the burning light and abrasion, at least. The cloth mask he was wearing fully covered his mouth, but there were holes for the nose for better breathing. The aurora would have no trouble getting through that and his entirely uncovered ears, nor had he reacted quickly enough to fully protect his eyes. His breath caught as he tried not to breath in any more than he doubtless already had. Bare skin, the sides of his face and forehead, stung and then grew wet as the cuts accumulated and drew blood.
It was almost enough the first time Aurora threw her weight left to break his grip. He grunted in pain as the knife wounds on that arm burned in protest, and for a moment his fingers and arm slipped. He had to react quickly to keep himself from letting go entirely. Contrary to Aurora’s attempts, however, attacking him was only making him hold on tighter. He couldn’t make it that easy, could he? If she wanted to go out and get herself killed, she was going to have to work for it. Bolide’s shoulders and arms became considerably more tense. His knuckles were white and immobile. His left side gave way more than his right, but never fully. In an attempt to fend off some of the aurora, he pressed his forehead into her shoulder, in spite of any position that would put his head in relation to hers. He’d take a headbutt far above the tornado of small blades.
His fight and flight response was trying to convince him to agree with Aurora. Remaining around angry supers while unprepared - and aggravating them further, as it were - flew in the face of every ounce of common sense he had. It was the exact recipe for how one ended up half dead in a field. The kind of thing misfortune, in one form or another, loved to take advantage of. He really should have left her be by now, mission or not.This wasn’t a usual battle where people knew better than to take it too far; she was jumping at shadows and outright attacking him. Escalating the situation was not a risk he wanted to take.
It was, of course, one he was going to take anyway. He was buckling down and riding this out. She was going to have to give up sometime.
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Post by Aurora Disicio on Jan 19, 2017 16:58:30 GMT -7
The increased pressure against her wounds sent sharp pains all throughout her body. Every squeeze made her let out a pained cry bordering on a scream, and made her thrash harder. There wasn't much coordination between her various flailing body parts. It was like they were each acting independently trying to cause as much damage as possible, even if she couldn't move very well because of her wounds. She reacted to every movement he made as though he were trying to rip her apart. Her fingers dug into his hands, her legs tried to crush or kick whatever they could hit, and she was even trying to use her elbows while her hands were occupied. During that, she continued trying to wiggle her way free, noting that throwing herself in one of the directions was more effective than the other. Her aurora never let up, even as he got closer. The particle cloud never once touched her skin, even when he was right up against her. It was like there was an invisible force field surrounding her that her aurora couldn't bypass. Once his head moved close enough to hers, she started using her head as a weapon against his. It hurt, but everything hurt and she had to get out of here.
A bit of liquid splashed onto her jaw, giving Bolide a moment of respite. Aurora slapped her face to deal with this new threat. Her body shuddered at the self inflicted pain, but now that the problem was dealt with she went right back to thrashing. It wasn't until she reached for his hands again that she noticed something wrong. There was blood on her hand. Where did it come from? It wasn't there moments ago, was there a new wound on her face? One of her hands gripped his hand hard, her nails digging into it once again. The other brushed her face, smearing the blood on it. There was nothing there. The wounds on her jaw were all on the other side. It took a moment, but the source of the blood dawned on her and she froze. It wasn't like when her body went limp, it was stiff and completely motionless save for the involuntary shaking. Even her breathing stopped. Her aurora stopped as well, remaining in a motionless cloud around his face. If he moved it wouldn't follow.
From the beginning, the thing she was worried about most was other people getting hurt because of this. It was why she prioritized Bolide's safety over her own. It was why she suddenly felt a desperate need to get out of this hole. But it happened. It wasn't 'someone' that hurt him, it was her. Thoughts swirled around in her head, but she couldn't make sense of any of them. Her face was starting to turn red by the time her breathing started again. It was just as shaky and uneven as before, but not as fast. A moment later, she found her voice again, but still couldn't find her words. She forced out something, as though suddenly her throat was only a hair thick and she had to try hard to forcibly push them out.
"You're bleeding."
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Post by Solomon on Jan 21, 2017 17:17:33 GMT -7
The first solution he’s offered to Aurora was his own go-to in stressful situations; alert her that she was no longer calm and this needed to be changed, and attempted to give her something else to think about in order to do so. Although it had negligible, if not negative effects for her, it had become an invaluable skill for him. He could feel his heart pick up by Aurora’s yelling and the effort to keep from faltering again. It was undeniably painful as it was to be repeatedly hit with seemingly anything available - where it hurt, he was willing to bet she was aiming - and find that attempting to guard himself from the aurora did nothing, but he’d had worse - fought through worse, even just recently, and pain had become, for him, that distraction. Solomon steadied his breathing and remained still and stiff, until Aurora suddenly did the same. She’d frozen so fully that he would’ve been worried she’d fainted again if not for her rigidness and the lingering aurora.
After he’d confirmed the aurora had stopped along with her, he hazarded moving his head slowly out of the cloud. To his relief, it stayed where it was. He let out a long and hard breath out of his nose to try to clear out of any remaining particles, or at least help get rid of the lingering feeling of having sandpaper up it. Cautiously, he opened his eyes to see what had finally stopped the faction leader, but closed one as a thin trickle of blood ran down over the lid from his forehead. Aurora looked like she’d just been struck by lightning. After the previous pauses, he remained tense, expecting her to begin the attack again. It was a great relief to instead hear her speak, even if the words were forced and obvious.
“Yes, that’s what happens when people get hurt.” He retorted dryly. “And that’s what happens when you act rashly.” But he relaxed almost immediately after she spoke. The tension in his arms and back evaporated, and while he didn’t let go of her for fear she might consider opening her stomach again a fine trade for getting to her feet and outside quickly, he did his best not to put any further pressure on her. He let out a sigh and rubbed a spot on his index finger where Aurora’s nail had gone particularly deep with his thumb. It was always the small ones that were the most annoying.
Bleeding was what had done it. It was slightly disappointing in that it would be hard to directly replicate, and should a similar situation arise he may have to return again to throwing everything he had at the wall in the hopes something stuck, but by this point he was more than happy to just take it. The ever important ‘why’ something had worked wasn’t completely unclear, either. Concern seemed the most likely root of the response. It wouldn’t surprise him if it was somehow linked to her idea that she needed to save everyone - whether they thought they needed it or not - and her rush to leave after he’d mentioned Dullahan. Nor would it, he was coming to realize, if it was a main drive behind her current actions as a whole, given the number of mentions and how much it would explain. The priority seemed an odd one for someone who thought she was in the right when she kicked the major in the knees and whom was planning on rebuilding the city to her wants, the needs and wants of unpowereds - and very possibly other supers - aside. It didn’t quite fit the idealistic leader who would let nothing stand in her way. The more he’d gotten to know her, however, he found it did fit Aurora.
It was something he could work with, and so would give the assumption a try. “But I’m fine.” He said reassuringly. His brow arched slightly upwards, and he turned his head to try to see her face. “I’m a lot more worried about you.”
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Post by Aurora Disicio on Jan 21, 2017 19:57:09 GMT -7
Trying to calm down through normal methods would require her to believe that something was wrong in the first place. Her body and mind completely rejected that idea. It didn't matter that she was having difficulty moving, her mind ignored it. It didn't matter that she was sweating, shaking, or having difficulty breathing, it didn't register. Nothing was wrong, and trying to pretend like something was wrong was insulting and maddening. The blood was harder to deny. Aurora already confirmed it wasn't hers; there were no wounds on that part of her jaw. That meant it came from somewhere else, and there was only place it could have come from. It was rare for her to draw blood. She was careful with her aurora, normally keeping it spread out enough that it wouldn't cause more than skin irritation. Even when she attacked she tried to cause as little damage as possible, especially against other supers. It required a great deal of escalation for her to do something that would draw blood. No matter how much she tried to reject what was happening, that was enough to make it clear that something was wrong. That could not be denied any longer.
His words cut through her like another knife. Enough so, that her breathing stopped again for a moment. He wasn't wrong of course, but she didn't know what to do about it. It already happened, she knew that, but her mind started to fixate on that as much as much as it did on getting out of here moments ago. But there was nothing she could do about it. The worst part was, her desire to get out of here hadn't diminished. Now that Bolide was relaxed and his grip was weak, she still wanted to pull herself away, even if it meant tearing his arms apart. This time, Aurora knew she couldn't do that. She couldn't let that happen again. So, she remained stiff with a white knuckle grip on her coat. She was simultaneously easy and difficult to move. There was no resistance from her, but her body was so stiff that it felt like her joints were welded in place. Her pupils were still dilated, but the anger faded from her face. Instead, there was only fear and sadness.
She opened her mouth to say something, but no sound came out. What was she even supposed to say here? As much as she wanted to say that there was nothing wrong and they should get out of here, could she honestly claim that anymore? If nothing was wrong he wouldn't be bleeding. If noting was wrong, she wouldn't have to force herself to not move. However, she couldn't place what the reason was. All she knew was that she didn't want to die and she didn't want anyone else to die. It still felt like that could happen.
Aurora looked up at him when he turned to look at her. She didn't look away from his face, even knowing that she caused the damage there. She wasn't sure if she believed that he was fine, but saw no reason to contest it for now. Still, she felt like she should say something. As difficult as it was to make sense of the situation, she ended up going with the first thing that came to mind.
"Why does this keep happening?"
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Post by Solomon on Jan 23, 2017 1:12:19 GMT -7
It wasn’t the most comfortable of places, the floor, but Solomon saw no reason to move. Aurora had finally relaxed - as much as he could expect right now, at least, which mostly constituted her no longer attacking him. He wanted to stir the water as little as possible.
Some people liked to have comforting words said to them when they were lacking in anything to say. Others found it annoying and prefered to settle their thoughts in silence, and may grow angry if others wouldn’t let them. Solomon was still cursing his lack of knowledge of Aurora on the subject, but settled on the safer of the two. He waited quietly for her to speak first.
There was a pause as he considered how to respond. “This has happened before?” He asked softly, mostly for lack of knowing what ‘this’ this was.
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Post by Aurora Disicio on Jan 23, 2017 8:33:03 GMT -7
Dredging up that memory wasn't pleasant. Aurora looked down, her head and neck jerking like a machine in desperate need of maintenance. Her hands clutched the lapels on her coat as tight as she could manage, and she pulled her arms close to her chest. It felt like her chest was burning and her back stung. Once again, it took her awhile to find her words. The scenes were playing out clearly in her head, but that only made it harder to find her words.
"The police nearly killed me. But it's more than that. Everyone wants me dead." She shut her eyes tightly. "First it was my family, then my classmates, then people that were supposed to be my friends, then the government itself, then..." Her words got caught in her throat again. After a long pause, she continued her voice louder than before. "Where the hell am I supposed to go?"
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Post by Solomon on Jan 25, 2017 22:00:31 GMT -7
Bolide remained silent until she was fully finished, and not just out of respect to let her do so. The injuries on her back were coming into context. This wasn't the first time this had happened, nor did it seem likely to be the last. No wonder she was having doubts - and suspicions about him. It wasn’t until after a long breath and a longer pause that Solomon finalized his answer, and a second thoughtful moment before Bolide began.
“To your allies.” Bolide said with certainty. “The world is full of asinine assholes who’ll turn on you the moment they can make a dime, or it looks like there’s a sliver of a chance you might do the same to them. I know it can sometimes seem like the only person anyone ever cares about is themselves, and if you trip, they’ll all just watch you fall. Hell, half of them will stick out their foot to do it if given the chance. Sometimes they look like they’re having damn fun while doing it.” He spat.
“But not everyone is like that. Some people really do care about others. I didn’t used to think so, but I know for certain now,” his gaze trailed downward as he paused, before returning upwards to her, “because I met you.”
Bolide's head dropped downward and he swallowed like he was fighting off a catch in his own throat. His expression remained serious, but when he started again, his tone had become soft. “There are, and will continue to be, people who truly care about you. Not everyone wants you dead, and some will fight to make sure you stay alive. You just have to find them. And make sure you don’t push them away when you do.” He added quietly. “Someone will have your back, if you let them.”
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Post by Aurora Disicio on Jan 29, 2017 12:37:43 GMT -7
Allies. Yes, that was the difference. Aurora could rattle off several names off the top of her head that would feel the need to do something about what happened, and who would have helped her if they were there. Even at her most tense, she never once doubted them. She could dozens more that would be sad or angry if Aurora Disico disappeared. That wasn't the case last time. Last time she was pretty sure her 'death' was celebrated. This time, she was sure some people would celebrate her death, but most of those people didn't matter and the rest of them celebrated strange things because they were assholes. It was to be expected.
Gradually, Aurora's breathing became more regular and less shallow. Her shoulders relaxed and, while she didn't let go of the collar of her coat, her grip on it loosened. It took significantly longer, but gradually her body stopped shaking as well. There was still a slight shake in her hands, but it was small enough that it only showed because of how her coat was moving because of it. Her mind was still running on overdrive, trying to make sense of so many different ideas that she couldn't even follow them all. She felt emotionally and physically exhausted. Ultimately, she needed to get to Dullahan, the sooner the better. That idea wasn't going to go away. But after what happened, she still wasn't going to try to force herself away from Bolide. Right now, she didn't even want to stand up. Even sitting up was tiring. Eventually she flopped against his arms, on the good side if her memory was correct.
Several minutes passed before his words registered completely. What it meant for her specifically, that she actually had allies this time, registered more quickly but the general meaning took longer. Aurora knew people weren't evil, she didn't doubt that anymore. If it weren't for the efforts of a few people that might not be the case anymore, but those efforts did pay off. At first she thought his words were just advice that she didn't need, but thinking on them left her confused. He thought people were like that in general? Why did he do even half of what he did? What was the point in changing the world if people were evil? It didn't make any sense. She was too tired to think on it too hard, but once again the feeling that something was wrong crept up on her.
"People aren't evil. You shouldn't think of them that way."
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Post by Solomon on Feb 5, 2017 21:22:11 GMT -7
The silence began to stretch into minutes. He’d seen no reason to interrupt it, nor any reason to stop the inevitability of his mind wandering off that soon followed. He kept himself vaguely aware of Aurora, enough for the back of his mind to notice her breathing slow and to not startle if she spoke up again.
It was not enough, however, to notice her flop until after the fact and he’d gone completely rigid. Solomon measuredly let out the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, and made himself relax with it. Even so, Bolide was unable to hide that he had very little idea what to do. Today as a whole had been a day of not having the slightest idea of what to do for the young super. But he was keeping it together well, he thought, even if he remained almost completely still until an opportunity dawned on Solomon. Bolide was glad to support Aurora’s weight, be it with his arm or his chest, and would try to help her to a comfortable position. Then, as long as she let him, he wrapped his arms gently around her waist, careful not to squeeze. He was fine to lapse back into silence until she spoke.
He thought about her statement for several moments before responding with certainty. “No, people aren’t evil. But they aren’t good either. Anyone has the potential to be both, but as things stand, the world does a lot better job at drawing out and rewarding the evil than it does the good. Just look at who’s ‘winning’ in society right now.” Bolide explained. “I know I used to think like that, but I don’t anymore. It’s an easy trap to fall into when you’re seventeen and everyone you thought was helping you turns out to be working against you.” His voice dropped like he was only half intending to speak aloud. “When you change your views, it can be easy to believe but hard to prove.”
Bolide trailed off. His head dipped and his brow knotted like he needed to say something important and was trying to find the wording. When he picked up again, his voice was only slightly louder.
“But I still don’t fully understand. Why’d you do it? Why did you protect me over yourself?”
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