Re: A Much Friendlier Encounter

[Kade Lazarus]

Unsurprisingly Kotone had more she could say about Tatsu, but Kade imagined they shouldn’t just sit around hating on someone who wasn’t there. At least not doing it just to do it. If it made them feel better, or if it was actually a discussion of why he was a problem, then yes. He was trying to avoid getting worked up for being worked up’s sake.

“Well I am sorry for any experiences you’ve had with him…. And for the one I had with him,” he sighed. Apparently all it took was Kade being a dragon slayer for Kotone to open up a lot. She talked about her father and being young. He nodded as he listened to her, turning on the oven so it would be warm by the time the ingredients were ready. “Well, I am glad for the pride. The depression makes sense… its hard to be alone, and you’re probably the most alone I have seen. It’s a shame, since I can see you’re a good person and people would like having you around if you let yourself.”

At the mention of the B rank mission that Kade had specifically given to Ren to take, he coughed a little, “Yeah… that one… she did it all on her own. Came back looking pretty beat up… but it did help her self-confidence, which is great,” he agreed. He hadn’t talked about his past, but he figured letting Kotone talk on her birthday was nicer.

[Kotone]

“Being alone means you can’t be abandoned again,” Kotone told Kade seriously, pausing her help momentarily as she said it. She didn’t look up; she just stared forward as if reliving the feelings. Truthfully, she was taking great pains to do the opposite of what was at this point in her nature to do, for the most part. Sure, she made friends if she wasn’t trying too hard in one direction or the other, but when she actually tried… it was always to push people away, and always completely on purpose no matter how it looked. “Whoever said it was better to have loved and lost… has no idea what the pain of that loss feels like.”

Kotone mentally shook her head, blinking a time or two outwardly as she came out of her dark spiral. “That said, I didn’t want to be such a huge hypocrite anymore. Dragon slayers are more than big-mouthed braggarts.” Kotone was still a very proud person. It was just slightly harder to tell with her no longer lashing out at every perceived threat just as much or more than she did any actual heroing.

Kotone paused at the mention of Ren getting hurt. Ren certainly hadn’t mentioned it that she could remember, not that she’d asked. Ren had seemed fine at the time, after all. “Good,” she agreed when Kade told her it had helped her self-confidence. Kotone was pretty self-assured herself, to the point of it nearly being a bad thing. Even now she hated to accept help when she actually needed it, at least in a fight. "Ren deserves to feel confident. I just don't think anyone can do that for her but her."

[Kade Lazarus]

Well, it was clear that Kotone had her issues. They all did, but she was a loner. He sighed, “Yes…. Well that sounds like how some people I know live, and I’ve seen how much good it does to them. I’d rather be hurt than stop living life completely…” he could do it alone. It wasn’t his nature. He loved being a part of his guild and that community. “Besides, a hero without any attachment to their people isn’t so much a hero as… someone strong who is doing something good for the time. That can quickly sour.” Maybe that was what had happened with Tatsu. Although he’d seen no evidence that the boy was ever actually good to begin with.

“That is definitely true,” Kade agreed. They were more than braggarts, even if some of them might not agree. It was still weird to be having this conversation with her, about something he never talked to anyone about. It wouldn’t surprise him that Ren didn’t mention getting hurt. She didn’t like people to worry about her. “I imagine that’s true… although you certainly seem to have helped. At least she is more motivated now.” He mixed all the ingredients and got a man ready for the oven.

[Kotone]

“I know,” Kotone still looked serious as she glanced at Kade, an unamused look on her face. It wasn’t directed *at* him, however. “I was that hero. I was proud of being a hero, but….” She turned to face him completely, crossing her arms as she did so. She was going to continue, but instead she looked off to the side, a bit ashamed. “…Dad wouldn’t have been so proud of me for a couple of years…” That was one reason Kotone hated Tatsuma so much. She hadn’t had anyone willing to pin her to a tree and tell her how stupid she’d become. Not out of love or hatred. Yet he didn’t seem to care. Not last she saw.


She sighed, ceasing her helping momentarily as she turned and leaned on the counter, facing the other way as she stared off in the opposite direction. She’d gone through most of this completely alone. Raven had been around when it first happened, but they’d been busy, and she hadn’t been in an emotional state to take his deception at the time, no matter how good or bad his reason might have been. She shook her head. “Anyway,” she turned around, going back to her assistance. She was stupid, throwing all of this baggage on Kade. They weren’t guildmates. They were only friends because of Ren and him being a dragon slayer, at least at this point. But… for some reason that was enough for now, while Kotone was feeling a bit down. “Look, it was stupid. I was stupid.”

[Kade Lazarus]

She didn’t seem to appreciate his comment. He didn’t mean any harm though. It was nice to learn more about her, both from what she told him and how she reacted to things. He didn’t even have to tell her anything about himself thus far. He liked to keep it that way, mostly. Maybe it would have been nice to talk about himself to someone who would understand, but he still wasn’t planning to offer.

He must have said something wrong though. She sighed and stopped helping. He didn’t know what was wrong, but he frowned when she claimed to be stupid. “Don’t worry about it. I don’t know much about what you’ve done in the past, besides hearing of the famed ice dragon slayer… who was more than happy to tell me about her impressive feats… but I don’t hold that against you. It was pretty amusing,” he admitted, smiling. “Whatever has happened since then, you seem to have grown up a lot. I’ve grown up some… I had a bit of a meltdown recently, and I’m just back from that. So I’m in no position to think you are stupid,” he explained, hoping it helped some. He didn’t want her to be stressing out on her birthday. Besides, he really meant what he was saying.

[Kotone]

Kade hadn’t said anything wrong. She’d simply been reminded that she’d been the kind of dragon slayer he disliked, even if it had amused him for some reason at the time. So he exploded once? Kotone actually laughed, seeming to cheer up. “Kade, I get the feeling you’re a great guy if you feel bad for exploding once. Exploding is like half of my personality so far. Now it’s my turn to be jealous.” Geeze, this guy was basically her idol if he was as perfect as he accidentally implied. “I appreciate the thought though. Really.” Kotone rolled her eyes when he wasn’t looking. Once again the eye roll was not at him, but at the sheer difference between the pair… She couldn’t help but appreciate that difference. "Not that it might not have been bad. Er..." Kotone hoped she didn't offend him with her reaction.

“Hey, I’ve been dumping on you for no good reason, so if you want to discuss that, it’s your call,” the younger dragon slayer told Kade with a glance in his direction. “I guess the two of us could take turns since we can relate and all, eh?” Kotone decided with a nod, reaching up and taking down her ponytail, moving away from the cake ingredients to keep from getting hair in the cake when she shook her head. She also felt the need to take off her long black jacket, which she placed on the counter where they weren’t working. It left her in her usual skirt and short-sleeved blouse and boots.

[Kade Lazarus]

He gave an almost embarrassed laugh. She really didn’t know the gravity of the situation. “Oh, my explosions are a bit more volatile than what you might be imagining. That was one of the most important things Celtor taught me… to keep my calm,” he explained, sighing. He was no one’s idol. Or he didn’t think he was. Truth be told he actually was looked up to by a lot of guild mates. He loved them all, and he made sure to be very well known within the group. He even tried to welcome any new members, and it was crucial to him to represent his guild well. Still, it didn’t make him perfect. “And recently I lost that. It was a pretty shameful display, but I probably don’t need to bore you with the details.” He’d give them if asked, but it wasn’t really a proud moment… or day… or week.

He smirked as Kotone offered to take turns sharing. “I’ve gotten in the habit of not doing that… you know, side effects of the secrecy. Or I guess…. You might not know that,” he said, making a thoughtful face, “But no doubt the lack of relatable people has taken its toll. The only person I let slip to I was a slayer was Ren, and that wasn’t exactly well thought out. Before you anyway,” he agreed. She looked like a cute young girl who could have had a normal and happy life, but that was certainly not what had happened. He eventually put the cake in the oven. “So if I seem less chatty about it… I don’t know, its habit.”

[Kotone]

Kotone shook her head, still grinning despite Kade’s self-depreciation when it came to losing his temper this one time. She brushed her fingers through her hair quickly, letting out a surprisingly casual giggle. She normally was only remotely girly in the way she dressed; she was aggressive, forward, and physically rather strong, even if it was entirely because of her magic. “If I can make … two or three years’ worth of mistakes and you can act like I’m even remotely worth spending time with, I think people can get past one giant meltdown. As long as they know you took it seriously enough to learn from it.”

The cake already smelled delicious, and he’d just put the birthday treat into the oven. “You know, I’m not sure you know how a two-way exchange works. I get to be angsty to you, and you get to return the favor since you’re obviously upset about it, and you don’t want me to feel like I complain too much.” Kotone sat on the counter, her feet no longer touching the floor due to the high surfaces. She was grinning, at least, and had a bit of a playful sparkle in her eye. Something about Kade’s attitude struck her as relieving … or something. “At least… I think that’s how that works. I’m not an expert on friendships.”

[Kade Lazarus]

Kotone didn’t know. He needed to stop trying to convince her. However she laughed, so whatever was happening, at least it wasn’t annoying her. That was good. She continued to express knowing more about him losing his temper than he knew of it. She could pretend that years of how she acted made her worse than his once. It wasn’t once though, and it was the degree with which he lost his cool, not the number of times. It was the breakdown of all the self-control he’d been taught. It was personal. It was letting someone push him to that. It wasn’t something he needed to say out loud. “Its not really about them getting past it, as me getting past it. But regardless, I feel better being home now.”

On to nicer topics. The cake in the oven gave Kade a long time to simple stand and talk with Kotone. Or sit, since she made herself at home on the counter. “Fair enough,” he agreed. Him talking so she didn’t roll into a ball of angst sounded like a plan. Although his life story wasn’t thrilled. “Hm… well… I lived in Hosenka Town with my parents until I was five… some dark guild wizards killed them, and someone in Lamia Scale distracted them so I didn’t die too… I ran away… ended up with Celtor, and until I was fifteen he and I lived alone on an island. He… disappeared and I had to come to mainland to survive. I headed back to this area and joined Lamia Scale. Thus has been my life since then,” he said, although it was clear his story didn’t really say how his life had been. More to guess it.

[Kotone]

Kotone nodded to Kade when he corrected her to being something he had to get past. He didn’t understand how much he was preaching to the choir. Kotone had been pretty depressive for a little while after Tatsuma had gotten her to start thinking about her own stupid behavior. She still didn’t like people that much overall, but she did care about them more. She did care about doing as her father had taught her, and she had a real reason to put her heart into it again. For now, it was enough.

“I live in Hosenka town now,” Kotone told Kade with a slightly raised eyebrow. “I’ve got a place an old woman, Mrs. Kocher, doesn’t use, so she let me keep it when I helped the town when I was younger. It’s… kind of my hideaway, even if it’s not actually all that secret. It’s kind of nice to have a place to actually think of as home though.” Kotone shrugged, looking Kade overe idly. He wasn’t too bad looking. It wasn’t something that mattered to someone like Kotone, but she was still human and she couldn’t help but note these things privately to herself every once in a awhile. “If we’re both in town for some reason feel free to stop by if you want a place to crash for free. I’ve got a couch. I can even push Sid off of it.”

Sid had been notably quiet this whole time. He’d actually slipped out of her bag somewhere before she’d gotten inside. He was a strangely loyal cat, though, and never strayed too far from where Kotone was. They were as joined at the hip as a cat and girl could be. He was probably sitting outside licking his paws and waiting for her to emerge in her own time. He could make do napping until then. “I gotta say though, you’re as bad as me. People know the basics about me, I suppose, but I’m not good at sharing deeper things. Tell you what? we could take turns. You ask me a question, I get to ask you a question. We've got time to kill before the cake is done anyway.”

[Kade Lazarus]

Apparently the little ice-dragon slayer lived in Hosenka. Although he’d heard of her, it wasn’t as if Kade really kept tabs on Kotone. This was news to him. Maybe it shouldn’t have been, but he really didn’t venture to Hosenka town. “Heh, I don’t really visit there… I have a tombstone though,” he said, scratching the side of his face before chuckling, “I guess that’s what happens when your family dies brutally and you go missing. Assumptions. I always figured going back and telling them I was alive would cause too many questions… all of which answered with ‘dragon,’ in some way or other. So I avoid the area. But perhaps I’ll make an exception and visit you. After all, you’ve been to my home a time or two already,” he told her, smiling more easily now. It had been a rough time recently, so talking to a non-psychotic dragon slayer was definitely pleasant.

Being secretive came with the territory, but Kade supposed it wouldn’t hurt to open up to Kotone. That was why he was trying anyway, so he shouldn’t second guess himself. Well, maybe he should, based on recent actions… but then again, those actions hadn’t been based in thought so much as reaction… This was based on thought, so it was fine. “Alright… hm… questions… how did you end up with your father?” It seemed smart. Start at the beginning. Probably an awful beginning, admittedly… but a beginning all the same. Besides, he’d told her about his.

[Kotone]

Kotone honestly hoped he did stop by sometime. It would be an interesting experience, considering her tastes were incredibly girly while her general personality wasn’t. Her house was filled with stuffed animals and even a mostly tasteful amount of pinks and other girly colors. She didn’t really insist or beg that he did though. It would both be weird and against who she was. Besides, despite offering she wanted other people to take initiative so she’d know they actually wanted to be friends, if she was actually going to try and make some. So far only Ren had gone out of her way to engineer a meeting with Kotone.

“Alright,” Kotone nodded, her hair spilling over her shoulders slightly as she shifted. “I don’t know a lot of it. I just know that dad found me in the woods and raised me in the mountains. I survived because of the dragon slayer magic he taught me, since humans can’t normally live in the cold of the mountain peaks. I’d tell you more, but… he never thought it was important. Dad always was a weird one. He was always aloof and never directly answering your questions. And *veeeery* stubbon. But he cared, in dragonish… aloof… way. I’m not sure how much he actually knew about humans though.”

Kotone sighed and put her hair back up in its usual ponytail. “Alright, my turn again. I’m not very good at getting into people’s pasts and stuff, so I’ll probably just hop around to random questions that pop into my head and maybe I’ll learn something,” she told him. “Like… I know you’re around Ren a lot. Do you have a girlfriend? What kind of girl do you even like? Is that too random or personal?” Kotone was curious about Kade, more his personality than his past, but she planned to learn what she could about his past from the way he answered whatever came to mind.

[Kade Lazarus]

Kade had been to Hosenka recently… for a job. A job he’d taken due to recently relived violent tendencies. He didn’t feel that part was important. Besides, it didn’t change the fact that he tried to keep a low profile while there. It would be interesting to compare how all the dragon slayers lived. What about them seemed normal and human, and what about them seemed to reflect their dragon upbringings. Add in personalities and income… and yeah, Kade liked that sort of stuff. His room was a big larger. He’d had a roommate, but they eventually moved out. So he had a large room, with assorted furniture, and several book shelves. He was a collector after all.

Apparently Kotone wasn’t that much in the know about her past, but she did tell him some about her time with her father. It sounded nice, though clearly different from his own experiences. Kade nodded idly to show he was listening. “I’m sure you made quite the pair. And he raised you to have a very thick skin.”

So now it was her turn to ask him something. Her choice surprised him. Well that was on subject to ask about… his expression showed he hadn’t expected that. “Uh yeah, well… I mean, no… I mean…” he took a deep breath, “Yes, I hang out with Ren a lot, or I do when I am able. No I do not have a girlfriend.” It wasn’t even that awkward a question, but being asked out of the blue by a girl apparently flustered Kade enough that he had to regroup. He ran his fingers through his hair, temporarily remembering he should get it cut or pull it back, “I’ve had a girlfriend, in the past… but not in a few years. Its… pretty random, but not too random. Uh… I guess I just like nice. They don’t have to be boisterous, but I don’t mind people who are very talkative, or very quiet. I value someone’s character. Are they honest? Do they belittle people? Do they care about the people around them? That’s what I look for… in everyone, so it translates into girls I like, I suppose. I’ve met a lot of people, so I don’t have the most specific of tastes,” he shrugged.

Now it was his turn. What did he want to ask? Well with that on his mind, he mentally shrugged, “And what about you? Got a boyfriend? Or romantic preferences?” In his mind he figured someone else would find this conversation weird, but he enjoyed it anyway.

[Kotone]

Kotone couldn’t help but chuckle again. Kade was certainly caught off guard by her question. She hadn’t exactly thought out the question, she improvised. She almost always improvised. She could plan carefully, but she found her instincts were worth a whole lot more than a carefully laid out plan. Sure, she might have a goal in mind, but that didn’t mean the individual steps were especially well thought-out. She nodded at his answer. It made sense. She knew from personal experience that being the jerk meant people wouldn’t like you, so it made his answer vague, but honest. Even if he hadn’t thought it out a ton, as far as she could tell.

Then he turned the question around. She should have expected it.  It was a logical step in the conversation, but that didn’t mean she’d considered the possibility of him asking her. She automatically blushed. Thoughts involving herself and romance tended to fluster her more than just about anything else. “I ah,” she started, looking down at her knees, “No boyfriend,” she shook her head. “A past of... being the jerk you don't like isn’t... conducive to… that…” Plus she was convinced she wasn’t meant to have one. She was eighteen and had never even had a proper romantic interest. She was a closet romantic though, and had been known to fantasize a bit about some vague guy. Only Sidney knew anything about that.

She wanted to stop the blush, but that wasn’t going to happen. Instead she glanced back up at him slightly awkwardly before starting to answer and looking away. “I don’t know. I uh… I never really… thought I was dating material,” she admitted after a moment. “I would like someone strong though. And someone I could look up to. Like… I dunno,” she shook her head, her ponytail following suit, what with gravity and all. She forgot to ask another question, unfortunately. She should have realized he would return the question. She was such a mess when she tried to talk about herself that way. Not that she’d had much of an opportunity.

[Kade Lazarus]

The tough dragon slayer certainly had an endearing side. He smiled as she got just as flustered as he had, except more so. It was more amusing because she was the one who had brought up the topic in the first place. Maybe she was human after all.

Kotone blushed and awkwardly looked away to pause from answered. It was pretty clear she wasn’t dating anyone, even before she said it. From how she was acting at least. He hadn’t found her particularly jerkish before. She was cocky, and he found it funny because she hadn’t known her was a dragon slayer, but she was with Ren. Being tolerated by Ren automatically made you a wonderful person in this scenario. “I didn’t personally consider you a jerk, you know. Immature, but… well, you think I was too hard on myself for losing my temper… I think you might be too hard on yourself now. But that’s just us being contradictory maybe.”

Kotone finally looked back at Kade and he just gave her a small smile to reassure her. He didn’t mind her being awkward. He wasn’t going to tell her it was cute though, because… really, he was positive that would make things worse. “Well I don’t see any reason why you wouldn’t be dating material. Especially now that you seem to be figuring yourself out more, and maturing. If you can grow as much as you seem to have since the last time I saw you… you can certainly date. If you find someone. And you seem more like someone who would have her pick of men. Men who like strong willed women who can beat them up. Which… a good deal of men would find attractive, just so you know,” he told her with a small laugh. Maybe less for the beating up thing, but self-sufficiency yes. “So, did you have any other questions for me?”

[Kotone]

Kotone’s apparent endearing side wasn’t even intentional. Though that might have contributed to the endearing part. Kotone rarely actually thought of herself as human, though she didn’t voice that out loud. It was most apparent by the way she referred to normal people as “humans.”

Kotone sighed, the blush lessening a bit but remaining as Kade told her she was being too hard on herself. Was she? Maybe. But she’d had very few friends unless they were stubborn enough to see past her immaturity, and even those were people who she hadn’t considered her friends. Was she really dating material? Kotone stared vaguely down at her lap while she thought about his words. She was attractive, strong-willed, and apparently had several traits that appealed to men. “I’m surprised no one has proposed such a thing to me then,” she joked with a nervous chuckle. She didn’t mean it, and that was obvious.

The cake was starting to smell delicious in its semi-cooked state. Her dragon slayer sense of smell was strong, and the cake was almost distracting. She never cooked her own sweets. Maybe she should figure out baking instead of just campfire cooking. “What’s with the trees and plants and things?” she asked, in a bit more of a rude way than it had sounded in her head. “I mean… you really like gardening, right?”

[Kade Lazarus]

While Kade had spent energy on working to fit in more with normal society, it seemed as if Kotone had done the opposite. Wanting to be different, and acting out to do so. Maybe it was wrong, but it really did come off that way to him. She seemed to be trying to mature now though, so maybe that wasn’t the same anymore.

She seemed to relax and joked that she was surprised no guys had made their interest known. “Could be they’re intimidated,” he said. He knew she was kidding, but it was a valid point. Still, they could change the topic. She had a question to ask him. Luckily he enjoyed the question. She worded it oddly, but he didn’t mind. It went back to how she didn’t fit into normal society.

“My mother used to garden. My father, in Hosenka… he was a doctor. They did a lot with the herbs she grew, but I never really understood it. When Celtor adopted me and we lived on the island I had a garden. We didn’t really have wild game on the island, so either he could take me to mainland to hunt… or I could fish… or I could garden. So I’ve always been gardening. Plus I love fruit, and I can’t exactly hunt fruit,” he smirked. “Not that I don’t enjoy hunting… I don’t know how much attention you paid to all of the tournament… but I’m happy out there. So, do you have anything you collect?” He collected… anything, so he liked this question.

[Kotone]

Kotone looked over to the side, a slightly silly grin on her face. She chuckled in a way that suggested she might have been just a little bit embarrassed. “It’s normally a bit of a secret. I uh, collect stuffed animals.” Collect was probably a weak word. Kotone hoarded stuffed animals. She had more stuffed animals than literally anything else. The occasionally adorable dragon slayer picked up her bag she’d sat down on the counter next to her, pulling out a small stuffed rabbit she’d picked up on the way. It was an impulse buy. She couldn’t help it. “Like this…”

Kotone held out the rabbit for Kade. Her expression matched her thoughts on the rabbit: it was cute, just like her smile. It was one of the few times she seemed as girly as she was on the inside. She would probably name all of them if she didn’t have hundreds. She’d given up on it. “I picked it up on the way here. It was too cute to pass up.” Kotone blinked a couple of times before deciding to ask another question. “Why did you join Lamia Scale?” It was a simple question, and one that, in a way, highlighted the differences in the two dragon slayers. Kotone was afraid of joining a guild. Kade, obviously, was not.

[Kade Lazarus]

Well Kotone was just full of the right answer. He felt honored that she told him a secret, but then again… he’d told her his biggest secret today, so maybe it wasn’t that weird. She collected stuffed animals. That was perhaps the most adorable thing he could think of. It was… innocent. She even pulled a stuffed rabbit. He smiled, “That is quite cute. I actually… well, my friend, he has a lot of rabbits. They live in a hutch out back, next to the garden. I feed them vegetables. Have you seen them?”

It was sincerely adorable to see her smiling like that. Well, they didn’t have time to dwell on that topic though, because now it was her turn. Why did he join Lamia Scale. “Well… they saved my life. When my parents were killed, it was someone in Lamia Scale who fought them off long enough that I lived. So I knew that my whole life… and I came back here and… partially it was childhood worship, partially I was lost without anyone to guide me… completely alone… and partially… I needed to do something. I needed to accomplish something. He loved learning, and studying, and experiencing human culture… and how could I carry on that life without… being in it? So… Lamia Scale. Since then things have changed but… that was why I joined,” he told her. It was clear he was fond of what he said. Fond of the memories. Besides the death thing, of course. “And on the same token… why aren’t you in a guild, Kotone?”

[Kotone]

Kotone shook her head. "I haven't seen them," she told Kade as she hopped off of the counter. Sure, it wasn't hard to land gracefully from such a short height, but Kotone was a pretty graceful person. Not like Ren could be on accident, but she was certainly above average. "I suppose Ren hasn't thought to have me visit rabbits," she shrugged.

Kade explained his reason for joining Lamia Scale, just as asked. In some ways, his answer was pretty predictable. She wasn't used to to dragon slayers having any amount of hero worship in their personalities. Usually they thought they were better than the average person for the exact same reason she still struggled not to. Dragons were so much more impressive than people, and they'd been raised by the majestic and highly intelligent and powerful beings.

Time to return the favor, since the seemed to be taking turns asking the same questions she came up with for the most part. "I'm a loner," she told him, stating the obvious. She'd have to go a bit further if she was going to practice actually talking about herself a bit, and she knew it. She took a short moment to consider the rest of her words. "I don't do well with people, and in my experience, guild mates are sort of like an extended family to each other. It's actually really cool. I just have have... I won't be abandoned by a third family," she admitted seriously. It was an honest answer, and it potentially put a damper on the conversation. "I suppose when it comes right down to it, I've got major relationship issues. I'm bitter, I'm afraid, what have you. It's stupid. I'd like to think that wouldn't happen... if I had a reason to get over it. But I guess I won't be the one to make the first step. I can't."

She felt pathetic saying that to Kade, despite softening it as much as she could manage. Here they'd just talked about some secret hidden wish she might possibly have a relationship with someone someday even though that was probably impossible... and now she was basically saying she was incapable of a relationship. She wanted to say it was different. She wanted to clarify or something so she didn't sound like a liar... but how did she know it woudln't be the same? She sighed. "Like I said, it's stupid. I suppose I at least partially want what I can't... or possibly shouldn't have. I wasn't lying about the stuff before.. it's just... it's complicated."

[Kade Lazarus]

It wasn’t really surprising that Ren hadn’t shown Kotone the rabbits. It was still surprising Ren tried to interact with someone by choice. That was rare. “Most likely. Even though they aren’t mine, they’re the closest I have to pets.” And he supposed he probably shouldn’t ever have pets. He had a grasp for why his friend adopted all those rabbits, though it wasn’t his place to share that with Kotone. He collected stories, but he didn’t share them inconsiderately.

Kade asked why Kotone was not in a guild and the first answer was obvious. A loner. Yes, he’d gathered that much. Didn’t do well with people. Well that was also accurate. Except thus far it sounded like the exact same answer Ren might have given, and yet Ren was in a guild. A third family? How had her first family abandoned her? His had died… and if she was too young to remember her first, as he’d gathered, and it seemed her dragon father had really not felt like explaining… this was curious. No, he couldn’t comment on this. He needed to just keep listening, even if his natural curiosity was getting the better of him.

“I wouldn’t think you were lying. You sound lonely… but not disohnest,” he explained, his voice softening. He was a nice guy for the most part, but he tried especially hard to be kind to people who clearly needed someone. Even if most of those people rejected help when it was offered. “Its not stupid to want things you can’t or shouldn’t have. Its human nature, I think. And you’re perfectly entitled to want people in your life but be afraid of being hurt again. You wouldn’t be sane if you weren’t hurt by your past. Even I have…” he exhaled, closing his eyes. Things he didn’t talk about. Even now he wasn’t, but mentioning it a little was frustrating, “I have my issues, that I don’t bring up if I can help it. I just hope that you can start letting people into your life, because much as I’m sure you could benefit from having friends… people would benefit from having you in their life as well.”

[Kotone]

Kotone had never had her real family properly explained to her. Whether Krendall wasn’t aware, or it was just another one of those things the aloof dragon found unimportant in the face of raising her to be a dragon slayer was impossible to say. Kotone had never tried to guess. She’d always been curious about her family, but she’d never held a grudge against them until she was about thirteen, when the bitterness of having to deal with Krendall never coming back had twisted her into holding a grudge against both of her families for leaving her all alone in a world where she didn’t fit in anymore. She felt abandoned by her family, just like she did with her father, regardless of what their real story was.

Lonely. Kotone tried not to think about lonely. She’d been by herself her whole life and been perfectly- no, that was what had caused her to become so bull-headed for a year or two. She wasn’t fine alone. She just also wasn’t fine getting involved with people in general. It put her in a tough place. “Everyone has issues,” Kotone told Kade gently, “Some people just don’t let the world make them bitter. I don’t know if they’re lucky or just better people than me.”

Kotone knew how the world in general benefited from her being around. She wasn’t sure how individuals did so much. Maybe Ren. For some reason Ren had a way of bringing out Kotone’s more friendly instincts. It must be one of her gifts. She just imprinted on dragon slayers or something. At least the ones who were either less crazy or were slowly learning from their mistakes in life. “Thanks Kade, really,” she nodded. “You should know, saying thanks might be simple to some people, but I don’t do it often, so I mean it when I say it.”

Oh, right, she was pretty sure it was her turn to ask a question. She was starting to lose track. “Every time I come here you seem pretty popular. At least when you aren’t trying to escape from people for some cooling off. Why is that?”

[Kade Lazarus]

What Kotone had been through and how it had affected her made sense. However she wasn’t exceptionally forthcoming with all of that information. That meant that although Kade figured she had reasons for everything, he didn’t actually know what all those reasons were. She seemed the perfect candidate for a hug, but he didn’t get the vibe that she would want someone in her personal space. He was not the kind of man to invade someone’s physical space uninvited. Maybe their social privacy, but not physical space.

Kotone thanked Kade and he smiled. He wasn’t sure why he earned her thanks, but he liked it anyway. It came after the comment that everyone had issues. He’d had a lot of time to work out his bitterness. Celtor had helped. Celtor leaving him… well he was not thrilled, but he was old enough and wise enough to know there had to be a reason. Yes, it sucked, and yes, it wasn’t fair, and yes he could easily work himself into a lather if he allowed that… but he didn’t. There was nothing to be gained from doing that.

He nodded when the thanks came, and of course his smiling. And now they were back to questions. If he was to understand her right now, her question was why he was popular? Really? He had an answer for that, after laughing at the strangeness of it. “Well… I think partially because people like me. I can’t tell you why they’d go and do that though,” he teased lightly. “Beyond that… I talk to people a lot. I’ve been in Lamia Scale for seven years, and… I just like people. Admittedly, I thought I was above everyone when I got to Akane island… but I realized I’m not. They’re just people with different stories than I have. I make a point to know everyone in this guild. To hear their stories, to help them, and make sure if they don’t think anyone around here has time for them… I do. They’re my people, and I guess they like me for some of that,” he kept smiling, but it was a bit more emotional looking. The emotion in his eyes. He really loved Lamia Scale. “I guess its just happened along the way. So, how long have you had your cat? He wandered off somewhere.”

[Kotone]

Kade liked people. More than that, he loved Lamia Scale. She’d only ever seen traits that strong in… in Fairy Tail’s own Guild Master, Ranor Taiga. But from a guy as young as Kade, it was… amazing.  Kotone nodded, a grinning at his answer. It was more than she’d hoped for as an answer, and told her more than she’d thought she would gain from such a simple, unassuming question. She didn’t say anything though, once again remaining quiet and simply thinking about his words a bit. That is, until he decided to ask her about Sid.

“I’ve had Sid for about four years,” Kotone told Kade. “I found him in Cerulean town in an alleyway as a kitten about four years ago. He follows me everywhere now. It’s really nice to have the company, actually. He’s a little brat. Always trying to steal my food if he thinks I’m not looking.” She was obviously fond of Sid despite calling him a brat. “He’s great at knowing when to stay away too. If he senses a fight coming he’ll go find somewhere safe so I don’t have to worry about him. Right now he’s probably somewhere outside the guild hall. Maybe he’s looking for Ren. He seems to like her quite a bit.”

[Kade Lazarus]

Kade didn’t know how much Kotone had heard in his answer. He didn’t know how much there was to hear. He was just part of a guild that had become his home. If Celtor came back, Kade wouldn’t go running off and abandoning his guild. He was an adult now, and he had his own home. He would absolutely head back to their island though, and get things from the castle. It was a lovely place, and he hoped it hadn’t fallen into disrepair in his absence. Still, it showed how much he loved his new home. If the last seven years could be considered recent events.
 

“Well he must be pretty clever then. And you certainly seem to care about him, even if he’s a brat. I’m sure he loved you too,” he told her with a smile. It was nice to talk casually, and nice to see what made people happy. “Ren is fond of things that don’t scare her, and I don’t think she’d ever had a pet… so I’m sure that helps. Have you ever wanted more animals? Not that you need any, I am just curious. Its…” the thought just occurred to him, but he felt like explaining himself, “strays. A lot of animals are strays, and a lot of people are strays… and… they don’t know where to go because they’re alone… sometimes I feel like I should go out and find a bunch of stray animals and bring them back here. That’s probably really weird sounding.” Idealistic. Stupid. Silly. Weird. Whatever it was, he wasn’t shy about voicing his thoughts on these topics. Even when he wasn’t asked to.

[Kotone]

“Maybe Ren should have a pet,” Kotone thought idly, shrugging to herself. She was certainly a caring girl, and she had no qualms about cats, even if she did with humans that weren’t Kotone. Suddenly, he was asking about more pets. Rather, he was asking if Kotone had ever wanted more pets. Followed by talking about finding strays who needed a home and bringing them back to Lamia Scale. Kotone grinned, shaking her head at Kade. Not from disagreement, but from some level of amusement.

“Strays, huh? Like me?” she asked him with a slightly raised eyebrow as if to emphasize the question that she had asked in response to his own. She let out another chuckle. “It’s not weird. I’m sure a lot of strays want a home. Or could use one whether they know it or not,” Kotone decided. Kotone was one of the stray people, technically speaking, but she knew far more stray animals she didn’t have time or energy for. Sidney was kind of lucky like that.

There was nothing wrong with idealism. Kotone was no longer especially idealistic, but she still had her moments. It was one reason she hadn’t given completely in to her bitterness awhile back. She still wanted to be a hero, even if she resented the people she wanted to save. She was glad she didn’t feel like that so much anymore, even if it was hard not to every once in awhile.

[Kade Lazarus]

“Probably. But I wouldn’t suggest it to her.” He knew how she got about things. It was hard to predict, but never all that surprising. She was improving, but he couldn’t say that would account for too much. He was a bit embarrassed, maybe, over his randomness, but there was no harm. He shrugged when she asked if he meant strays like her. Yes. “Sounds like you get my meaning.”

“So, Kotone,” Kade said after a pause. He wasn’t sure when Ren would come back, but he knew when she did his chance to talk to Kotone would be mostly gone. He wouldn’t take their time away from them. They were friends, and both seemed to rub together well. “What are your plans for the rest of the day? If we’re lucky Ren will be back sometime today and you can see her again… but I am interested in getting more time to talk to you. How often are you actually at your house in Hosenka?” He was under the impression she travelled a lot. It came from her not having a home, and how she talked about Hosenka. Much as he would like to show up in town and surprise her with a visit, it wouldn’t do much good if she wasn’t home, now would it?

[Kotone]

Kade certainly had a strange recruitment method. Just run out and find strays. Stray people or animals, from the sound of it. Kotone suddenly imagined Sid in a Lamia Scale Tattoo. She wasn’t even sure if cats could get guild tattoos. The girl was pretty sure Kade was talking about people as much or more than animals, though. She said nothing else. He was neither asking her to join as Fairy Tail had more than once, nor did his statement seem to require any response.

“… My… plans?” Kotone was suddenly confused. Kade was asking her plans? Why? He was interested in getting more time to talk. That was interesting… maybe he wasn’t just doing her a favor after all. She couldn’t hide the surprise at him being interested in continuing to talk to her. “I uh, I’m at my house a varying amount… I’ve been on a… vacation lately,” she told him. “If I’m not here I’ll probably be there for the next few days. Other than that… your guess is as good as mine.”

As for his original question… “As for the rest of the day… I guess I don’t have any. We can do whatever,” she told Kade, actually kind of excited at the thought. She’d thought they were just waiting on the cake and he was being nice to her because of her obvious desire to talk to another dragon slayer. He actually wanted to talk to her.

[Sponsored content]