Silver Notes: This idea came to me yesterday and I couldn't not write it.


Inyssa crossed her arms tightly, glaring down at the young girl sitting across from her on the couch, although she didn't seem to notice, or care for that matter. She slouched back on the seat, looking bored, finger playing with a tuft of her long blonde hair.

"So, playing the silence game?" Inyssa whispered in irritation. "That's fine. I can sit here and wait for you all day, Devi."

"No you can't," said Devi, not looking up from her finger. "I'm twelve, I've got waaaay more free time in my hands than you. If I stay here long enough, I'll miss a class or two. If you stay here long enough, you'll lose your job. So go ahead. Wait all you want."

Punk-ass kid, thought Inyssa, clicking her tongue. I just had to go and teach her the art of debate.

"You might be right on that front, but there's something besides time I've got you beat at."

She knew Devi's pride would make her take the bait, because she would have too in her position. The kid froze, looking for the first time at her mother, one eyebrow raised.

"Oh yeah, and what's that?"

"Boredom tolerance," said Inyssa, lips quirking up into a grin. "I've got plenty of practice at sitting in one place doing nothing but thinking for hours. Think you could do the same?"

A hint of nervousness rose up Devi's pale face. Her eyes immediately went to her foot, which had already started tapping against the couch impatiently. More than that, Inyssa had seen her change her sitting posture three times in the past few minutes.

Inyssa's grin widened. "You're like a Pachirisu on a sugar rush. But hey, if you think you can out-lazy me, go ahead. I've got all day."

It only took a few more seconds of deliberation for Devi's resolve to crack. She sat up straight and folded her arms in much the same way her mother was doing, shooting her an icy glare which could have frozen a lake.

"Ugh, fine. God, you're so annoying," she complained, shaking her head. "What do you want, hag?"

Inyssa clicked her tongue. "First off, call me that again and you lose your console privileges for a week."

"Hgh!" Devi's eyes went wide, their bright green gleaming with horror at the thought. "I… ugh. What do you want… oh dear mother of mine?"

Same venom as before, sighed Inyssa. Oh well.

"I was hoping you could tell me something–"

"Yes, you're wrinkles are totally noticeable. You're getting on in age," Devi told her. "Though hey, you've had those bags under your eyes ever since you were a kid, so your face can't get that much worse."

Inyssa gave her a sly smile. "That's where you're wrong, kiddo. These aren't wrinkles, they are the weathered lines carved upon the face of a hardened trainer by time itself. It is the mark of a true veteran."

"Really? I thought they were there because you never moisturize," said Devi. "Why doesn't dad have the same wrinkles then?"

"Look. We all know dad got all the good genes of his family, and you and I got none. That's precisely why you moisturize; because you inherited my dry skin," argued Inyssa. "Also because you for some fucking reason care about other people's opinion of your appearance."

"Wh–what the hell!?" Devi shot up, squinting at her in anger. "Weren't you the one that said my outfit from the other day was a mess? Didn't you say a lady should always look her best?"

Inyssa scoffed. "Yes, for herself, not other people! And besides, I gave you that constructive criticism out of the goodness of my heart. You told me you were going for a pastel goth look, but you were wearing a bright green scarf. It's like you'd never heard of complementary colors before."

"Oh yeah!? Says the woman who always dresses like someone's lesbian vampire aunt!" countered Devi, throwing her fists down on the sofa. "I'm perfectly capable of crafting my own aesthetic, thank you very much."

"Hmph. Whatever you say, just don't come crying to me when you end up looking like a fluorescent shrimp."

"Bright colors are in nowadays. No one's into that traditional depressing goth shit anymore," Devi argued passionately. "Kids these days prefer their nihilism with a dash of sugar, in case you haven't noticed."

Inyssa let out a sigh, shaking her head disapprovingly.

"Tell me about it. Kids these days with their optimism and wanting to go outside and play all day… what happened to staying inside and playing videogames all day?"

"We do that too," shrugged Devi. "Just… y'know, at night. We know how to ration our time."

"A hopeless generation," muttered Inyssa. "Wait, no! We got totally off track from what I was trying to talk to you about."

"Well if it's anything like the rest of this conversation I'm sure it'll be a blast," whispered Devi.

"Right! It's about school." She saw Devi's face pale at that. "I got a call from your principal earlier today. Do you know what she told me?"

Devi gulped, fingers curling and uncurling anxiously against the fabric of the couch. "I'm… sure you're about to tell me."

"Apparently, someone was playing a shooter game on her phone with friends when she saw a classmate getting bullied, and decided to… interfere. Very violently. Do you know who this someone might be?"

"Well… I'm not sure," Devi smiled nervously. "But whoever it was, I'm sure she beat the shit out of those bullies like they deserved."

Inyssa nodded courtly. "So it seems. I'm guessing someone's martial arts lessons from aunt Maylene have been coming in handy."

"Mmmaybe." Devi looked to the side. "Look, what do you want me to say, that I'm sorry? Because I'm not. Those assholes totally deserved what I did to them."

Inyssa opened her mouth, then closed it. She blinked a few times, looking confusedly at her daughter.

"What? No… no, that's not what I mean," she said. "The fighting the bullies part isn't the problem here."

"Wh–?" Devi frowned, confused, but then her eyes went wide. "Wait, you mean…"

"Yes! Why were you playing a shooter game on your phone?"

"You… can't be fucking serious," muttered Devi. "That's what you're upset about? That I was playing games on my phone?"

Inyssa shook her head. "Not just any game. First-person shooters of all things! I mean… I understand that you can't really bring a console with you to class, but I'm sure there's plenty of better games you could've downloaded to play, even to play with friends!"

Devi stared at her mother with mouth agape, trying to process what she'd just heard.

"So… your problem isn't that I fought a bunch of bullies, and it isn't that I was playing games in class," she summarized, almost whispering. "It's that the game I was playing… was a first-person shooter?"

"Precisely," Inyssa nodded passionately. "But trust me, it's not about the game's violence or anything like that. First-person shooters are just… always lazily designed. No signs of a rich lore or a fun and dynamic gameplay style or an interesting ambience and aesthetic. They are games designed to numb your emotions, not stimulate them. And I'll be damned if I let my daughter be swayed by such low-quality trash!"

The room fell to silence, both mother and daughter staring at each other with wildly different expressions and levels of interest in the conversation being had. After a few seconds, Devi fell back against the couch, closing her eyes and sighing. She looked utterly drained of her will to live.

"You are, without a doubt… the most ridiculous woman I've ever met," Devi whispered to herself. "You're such a loser, it's unbelievable."

"At least I'm a loser with good taste!" Inyssa said proudly. "Come on, give me your phone. I'm sure I can find better games for you to play during class."

"Oh my god, no!" Devi shouted, embarrassed. "Look, mom… I tried out the games you recommended to me, but they just… weren't for me, okay? I don't like the same games you do!"

"Wh–? But…!"

"Look. Sometimes I just wanna play a fun game with friends for a little while without having to read walls of text or get killed over and over or walk through a bunch of really pretty set-pieces that bore the shit out of me. Sometimes, I just wanna shoot stuff! Turn my brain off for a while! Those are the kinds of games I like!"

Inyssa let out a gasp, eyes shooting wide in shock. One of her hands grasped at her chest.

"Honey… you don't mean that," she said, her voice full of emotion.

"Yes I do!" shouted Devi, face red with anger. "Your taste in games and clothes and everything else sucks! I'm gonna keep dressing up in pastel and play a bunch of shooters with friends and play outside a bunch and you can't stop me!"

Then, with that said, Devi shot up from the couch and stomped her way upstairs toward her room, face contorted in anger. Inyssa was left behind, speechless.

As she saw her daughter disappear up the stairs, a single, solitary tear ran down her cheeks.


Inyssa finished detailing the scenario to Johanna and took in a deep breath, tired of speaking.

"And that," she finished, "is why I don't want to have kids."

Johanna simply blinked at that, a lopsided smile forming on her face.

You know… maybe it is better if she doesn't have any, she thought. If this is what she thinks will be her biggest worry with a kid…

"Well… that is a totally understandable position to have," said Johanna. "Even if your reasons are… well, anyway. There is one thing that caught my interest."

Inyssa raised an eyebrow. "Hm?"

"Your hypothetical daughter, Devi… you have ashen hair like me, but she was blonde," said Johanna. "Is there a reason for that?"

Inyssa's expression seized up. She stared at her in panic for what felt like an entire minute, then finally spoke.

"…This conversation is over."