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Who: Athena Cykes [

cykedfists ] & YOU! YEAH YOU! :D
Where: ~~Simon Blackquill's apartment~~ Everywhere? IDK
Summary: Athena arrives to Hinoto-ri confused. (Hurhurhur)
Warnings: Dual Destinies spoilers in comments most likely

From the moment that Athena arrived here in Hinoto-ri with that man who appeared to her to the moment she regained consciousness, she had no idea what was going on really just.. what to do. Obviously the last time she feel asleep, she was safe and secure in her own bed. The moment she woke up, she found herself in what it seemed to be.... nothingness. She rubbed her eyes, just trying to understand what she really saw. It was possible that she was still asleep.

Once her eyes adjusted from to her surroundings around her, she noticed the particular man. This place was not her apartment and the man was not familiar. He certainly looked odd, but she's seen weirder clients/witnesses than this man. At the very least, he had manners. Only partially hearing what he said, she managed to get the gist of everything. So this man was named Philemon.... and he was... What? What exactly was 'a dweller between consciousness and unconsciousness'? Once he asked her to state her name, she figured it was just best to answer the man. Introducing herself as Athena Cykes, she noticed how apparently learning her name was a pleasing thing...

Hearing that apparently, not a lot of people remembered who they are here was a surprising notion. Did everyone else who came here come here with amnesia or something? Not that she had a lot of time to really think about it because just as soon as she was told that, she had been given a gift of some sort. Philemon called it a "Persona." She had been hoping that he'd explain just what it was or what it did to her, but obviously he had no desire to tell her. The notion of having many masks or at least his metaphor was made her wonder just what this place really was. All she knew was he was really vague. That bothered her not knowing much because he failed to explain things to her.

There was no point trying to prod him for more details though. Man was she sleepy. it could have been the affects of this place or just waking up moments before all of this happened. Regardless of her actions to stay awake, she drifted off to darkness only to wake up again in a completely different place. Come to think of it... now that she was aware of her surroundings again, she came to realize that her hair was down. Well, considering she had been sleeping in her own bed when she'd arrived here that didn't seem so weird.

However.... to find herself in another bed all together, she just hoped that she'd just gone through some weird dream. Sitting up in the bed, rubbing her eyes, she realized that it hadn't been a dream at all. All she could think was, 'Fuck.' So this did happen. She glanced next to her to realize that.... She wasn't in the bed alone. Noticing that familiar, fluffy black hair, she was almost afraid to find out if it really was who she thought it was. Upon taking a closer look, she froze. Her face turned a bright red, matching her messy bed head hair color. It was Simon. She was sleeping in the same bed as Simon!

Freaking out, she fell back and off the bed. Causing a loud thunk due to falling out of the bed, she covered her face in embarrassment. What was she doing in the same bed as Simon and why was he here too?

"Just what is going on here?!" she blurted out.

[LATER ON]

After getting her bearings of what this place was supposed to be and a run-through of the basics from Simon, she figured it would be best for her to explore a little. If she was going to be stuck here, she was going to get familiar with this place. She knew that there was no proven way out willingly, but she couldn't help but worry if Apollo and Phoenix were worried about her disappearance. She really had no idea where she was going. She probably should have been paying attention to her surroundings, huh?

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"Ah, I see. As long as they're still around," she said.

More importantly than the clothing, her badge was still on her jacket.... That was still important to her, even if it might not work here. With Widget around her neck and her earring on, she didn't have to worry about those at least.

"I didn't find much in here, but I didn't have much to begin with." Seven years in prison didn't exactly give him much time to collect things.

"What did you find when you got here then?" she asked him.

Well, seven years in prison kind of put a damper on collecting personal stuff.

"Clothing, mostly. And..."

He tilted his head slightly, indicating something on the dresser facing them. It's a picture in a frame - a little old, but still in good condition. It showed a young Athena with her mother, standing a little awkwardly but still smiling.

"... That. I have purchased a few books here, but I still do not have much."

There was a sudden sound of movement coming from the other room, before Taka flew in and perched on the bed. "And Taka, of course."

Glancing over to the dresser, she looked a little surprised. He'd kept a picture of her and her mother... After all these years.. It looked old but it looked like he took good care of it regardless. She couldn't help but remember the UR-1 incident and the fact he could have died for something he didn't do. It had been to protect her. If she had known that he was going to be executed, she would have worked harder and tried to save him quicker than she did.

Putting her hand to her mouth, she was silent for a moment. This entire time he'd thought about her and protected her. She wanted to do whatever she could to make things better. Now that he was free, aside from being here with the Phantom, she had a chance.

"Oh...," was all she said. She wanted to say more but nothing else came out. She would have said something about Taka being here, but she was more focused on those memories. "Simon.... I'm sorry. Thank you for everything you've done for me," she said, slightly tearing up.

And with that, you're just going to have to deal with a hug from Athena.

He watched her expression carefully. He didn't have to listen to her heart to have an idea of what she was thinking. The hug was a little surprising, but not unexpected, and he folded his arms around her carefully, one hand on her back and the other on the back of her head. He wasn't at all fond of physical contact, but Athena was an exception.

"For you, it wasn't difficult to sacrifice things." Well, it was still difficult... but bearable, if it was to save her. "How could I let anything happen to you? I owed her more than that. I owed you more than that." Even if she would have gotten a lighter sentence because of her age... "I blamed myself for not keeping both of you safe. And what sort of prosecutor would I be if I let a child get hurt? I knew you would never have ill intentions."

He just stood there a moment, holding her. His grip tightened slightly, and when he spoke next there was a small hitch in his tone, regret and pain being held back. "... I never told you... when you spoke at my trial... how you were the only one to truly defend me. I wished I could have reassured you then, told you it was for the best. I wanted to watch over you for her... my only real regret was that I couldn't." It was impossible to tell back then what had really happened, that it had been the work of the Phantom. The things he hadn't known... but now they knew. That fear, at least, had been put to rest.

It wasn't exactly surprising to hear him say that it wasn't hard for him to sacrifice his life her her or her mother. It wasn't exactly easy to hear, either though. While she was happy that he would do something like that for her sake because he cared, she also hated the idea that she could ruin his life. He wouldn't blame her for that, of course, but Athena wasn't as okay with it as he was.

"But... You were almost executed for something you didn't do. Just because you were protecting me. How could I possibly be okay with you taking the blame? I didn't know... I didn't know about it until after the trial. I thought there was still time...," she started, tears rolling down her face.

"That's why I promised myself. I promised to figure out a way to save you," she told him. Sure she liked drawing and robots, but once that happened, she abandoned those interests. She rarely drew anymore and focused her studies on Psychology. There had been so much that had gone on. So many fears and regrets. He had done so much for her. She wanted to return the favor. She wanted to make things better for him now that he was free.

He had no real idea of what to say. All of his study on how the mind worked, and he still had no idea how to help one of the few people who meant something to him. She wasn't a little girl anymore - she had proven that many times over, especially by defeating him in court. And yet all he could think of while he held her was how he could feel her heart beating, hear the strain in her voice. He stroked her hair gently, hoping it would at least help a bit.

"... I never wanted them to tell you. I wanted to wait until you were older. It was idiotic of me, but I wanted to save you from thinking that death was coming for someone else you knew. I wanted you to live your life for yourself." He paused, thinking over his words, trying to pick them carefully. "It isn't as if I'm not grateful for... your work. But I wanted you to pursue things for yourself, not for me."

He shifted a bit, so she could cry on his shoulder more easily. His clothes could be washed. What was important was making sure she was all right. "I wasn't afraid of dying. ... No, that's not entirely true. All humans fear their end. But I was more afraid of you being hurt. I insisted it was my fault, because I didn't want you to be involved. I didn't want you to testify, because I didn't want you to hear. I knew you would hear how I felt, and you were so young." He hadn't wanted her to hear his pain. She was so young, and she hadn't needed to be exposed to that very adult kind of terror.

The hint of a smile returned to his face as he chuckled. "After I learned you were training to become a defense attorney, I specifically requested to be notified if you were coming back. You didn't think it was coincidence that my return to court was at the same time you came home, did you? Or that your first real case on your own was against me? I wanted to make sure you were committed to what you had studied." His smile faded as he continued. "And I wanted to make sure that you were strong enough to face the very real possibility of my death. I didn't want you to become invested in what at the time was a hopeless case."

Blackquill went silent for a few long moments, before pulling away a bit to look at Athena. "... I didn't spend as long studying under your mother as I would have liked, but you remind me of her in many ways. Strong, and compassionate, and dedicated. I think... she would be very proud of you."

Athena could understand his reasoning, but she didn't exactly agree with it. That was something that was too important to leave out. She could have done so much more had she known.

"But... by pursuing this... I've find what I'm really good at. I've figured out while I was trying to save you that I really loved helping and saving other people along the way. Not just from a guilty sentence they didn't deserve, but also live in other aspects in life," she said finally.

Well, unfortunately for him... She did hear it. She knew it very well. His heart was screaming he didn't do it. She knew how scared her really was.... but who would listen to a little girl trying to use emotions as a basis? Hearing him talk about when she was trying to pass the bar exam made her a little surprised. He did seem to realize when she was new.... Her worried expression turned into a faint smile, but that only lasted for a moment.

"And how did I do, Blackquill-Sensei?" she asked, teasing him slightly. Shaking her head, "I don't think it was a hopeless case at all. Painful maybe, but I promised to get stronger. I would never think of it as hopeless," she insisted.

And then he said something surprising. Hearing him say that made her feel a little better. 'She would be very proud of you,' that stuck with her. She probably would have been. All this time Athena had it wrong. Reaching for her earring without realizing it, her expression turned into a sad frown. She never really thought that her mother didn't love her at all, but merely she didn't have the time. If anything, Athena felt lonely. But now she knew more than ever that she really did love her... She loved her a lot. Of course she did.

"Mom..." It didn't come from Athena this time though. Widget finally spoke. Most of the time she didn't like Widget speaking for her, but she didn't particularly care right now.

"You won, so how well do you think you did?" He pulled back a bit more, squeezing her shoulder gently before letting his hands drop down and taking a step back. "But I do think that she would be happy to see how you've grown."

Wiping the tears her eyes and cheeks, she nodded with a faint smile. "She's always with me, as long as I have my psychology, Widget, and my earring," she said.

"Exactly."

... They should probably get going, if only so she can get her clothing.

That would probably be good. Calming down now..., "SO uhm... you said something about a watch?" she asked.

"... Right." He picked it up off of the counter, showing it to her. "There's a radar function in it, as well as a small keyboard area and games. Most of the COMP is already on you. You simply have to think of it." On cue, a thin pair of glasses sprung out, information scrolling down it.

He grunted briefly as his eyes scanned a message. "Idiots... they don't seem to know how to properly deal with evidence." He moved his fingers in the air for a moment before letting the glasses spring back.

And here's Athena who can't help but to admire it. She had always liked technology and robotics after all.

"That's so cool!" she said.

"Oh?" she asked. What was he talking about?

He can't blame her. It's pretty interesting.

"One of the detectives is having difficulty figuring out what sort of gun a bullet found at the scene of a crime came from. I don't think guns were terribly common here before... whatever tragedy befell this place. It's still not clear what it is, since no one seems to want to speak of it."

"That seems like something that would be easy to find out though...," she said, flicking her earring. "It was that bad? Whatever it is."

"Apparently so. There's some doubt as if there's anything beyond the city's borders." He'd wanted to explore it, but... hadn't seen anything himself.

"Why hasn't anybody checked it out?" she had to wonder. "Somebody has check it out by now, right? I can't really believe that people can be here for a long period of time without exploring every option..."

"As of right now there are some extremely dangerous monsters prowling the edges of the city." It was enough to discourage most people. And it wasn't as if he had any kind of real combat skills from home like some here did.

"Oh... I see. I guess that would be a good reason as to why it hasn't been checked out then...," she said. Danger would certainly put things into perspective.

"Indeed." He was no hero. There was no real reason to go out and sacrifice himself for that kind of thing.

"Is it normally dangerous around here?" she asked him.

Edited 2014-03-11 14:22 (UTC)

"It can be. You can sometimes wake up in compromising situations. Similar to this."

At least it was a bird person.

"..... Is that so....," she said before letting out a deep sigh.

Thinking of waking up in more people's beds randomly wasn't something she looked forward to. At least she knew Simon....

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hawkattack - 2014-03-12 03:36 (UTC) - Expand

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cykedfists - 2014-03-12 03:38 (UTC) - Expand

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