Things I like
-Trying to differentiate characters by their personalities.
- more of a casual vibe? trying to give them depth.
- writing moments that try to be deep is fun.
Things I don't like.
-Faulty editing and proofreading ( focusing more on writing, plus I cringe at things i wrote five minutes ago)
- too wordy, and the personalities feel forced and simillar.
- Charechters seem very manipulative and focus more on reading others than actually being people.
-lot of unnecessary fluff
- i just threw away two characters from the entire situation, including ones that realistic veneptitude might actually try to strike more of a conversation
-Lots of leaps in logic and plotholes.
Flaws of free entertainment are the sporadic distances in quality and quantity.
That look on his face at the mere sight of her. She could tell even if he hid it. Just enough of a change in his eyes to be noticeable to her and only her.
It filled her bubble up with a rage that made her feel the need to respond.
¨You look like you´re in a hurry. A bit of a surprise since it´s almost everyone here arrived on the clock.¨ A bit of a prick to start them off.
¨Fashonably late isn´t it what they call it?¨ Humor.
¨People oft forget that late part of it. Especially if they´re adoring friends are waiting for your arrival…¨ Gesturing at the general area, but stopping at lingyin.
Oh he looked uncomfortable from THAT. Delicious. Especially from the nervous look from Lingyin, she felt a bit of pity for her. Obviously wanting to reconnect with such a changed old friend.
¨Let´s not do this right now.¨ It came from the silver-haired girl, Laura is it? German, sounding cold was simple to them.
Shame. But reasonable. Everyone from what she could tell had an agenda here. Well, other than the fact that they hadn´t ordered yet. It would´ve been an even more awkward and enjoyable experience.
At least here she could rule. Even if he truly WAS better than him at fighting, she could suffice with the knowledge that he was in HER territory.
She frowned internally at the knowledge of her coping with her massive bring down.
Hubris is the mightiest sword of downfall after all.
She was proud, and she knew it. But she thought that her skills were good enough to back her words. Anything that even made her doubt that was to be dealt with.
¨So Cecelia? Why are you here? Did Houki invite you?" he said with a bit of confusion. He was faking it. No doubt. He would´ve obviously expected her arrival. The Jackal.
Oh! how she despised him, her new hours of training and drilling with Houki were proof of it. She needed to prove that she was just as good as she thought she was. The phone call almost immediately after the fight was proof of that.
What if she was removed of blue tears? Then she´d be disowned and it´d be proven she was nothing but-
No. She steeled herself from that spiral. Not here. Cold resolve always beats out in the end over blazing passion. But, no matter how often her instructor reminded her of that she always let a few drops of anger spill in.
Best to play the game and keep the yank from winning.
¨Ï can´t just let my partner in the tournament visit the enemy now can I? She might drop a few key pieces of wisdom that might give you the edge.¨
He looked at Houki briefly with his eyes narrowed. ¨Ah, I see then.¨ She was going to make sure he couldn´t enjoy any moment.
¨Did yall already order?¨ Stated after a brief sigh, it sounded like defeat.
¨Ya´ll…¨¨ Now the yellow one interjected with a slight giggle, Charles was it? More of the old news compared to ichika. The heir to the shoddy Dubois throne.
¨different languages having different words?! How abracadabrantesque…¨ he said with a bit more of a soft backhand.
¨Forgive me for thinking the Americans couldn´t handle our elegant use of language. You can´t even bother saying ¨you people! I'm surprised a yaourter like you would even be able to pronounce that.¨ A bit of a shy smile came of him from that.
¨Say HedgeHog.¨ He said with a calm smile. God it irritated her.
A bit of a frustratedly entertained look came from him.
¨English Nazes….¨ He muttered
His small victory made her bubble up with anger inside.
Lignyin was oddly enough just sitting beside everyone with houki following her lead. They probably needed to figure out a way to interject themselves into the conversation.
She couldn´t risk her relationship with her partner in the tournament. Nor with the sister to the MOTHER OF ALL IS´s… but…
¨So how have these past 6 years faired up to you?¨
Lingyin finally spoke up. And that question seemed to shut him down for a microsecond. Interesting…
He put on a surprisingly good fake smile.
¨ Some really tiring things… witness protection is a bit insane…¨ He said with a slight grimace.
There was a story in there. But background investigations and bribes lead her nowhere.
¨Ah! I´m sorry for mentioning it then!¨ She rushed that sentence, she REALLY didn´t want to mess this up in front of him… pity.
¨How has the time at IS Academy been for you?¨ That was a dubious question. It mustn´t be good from all the rumors she heard.
¨Ëh, once you get used to all the staring, fighting, and egos it´s a pretty ok place.¨ He didn´t even bother looking at her. But she could already tell.
¨actually, how did you get so good at the fighting part? Even if you are a newcomer you are more experienced than the average student, you proved that already¨ Houki finally stepped up with a bit more of a stabbing point to her words. Directed at her? But she was her ally, she hadn´t seen him in 6 years but she still-
Relax. This is a useful question.
¨Yes, who did teach you such wonderful moves?¨ Laura asked politely. She was just enjoying the water that the waiter served earlier. Even his roommate was interested.
He seemed put into more of a shock from that. She could tell the gears were already turning in his head. What came out of him next would be a fabrication of the truth. She wondered if everyone else would be able to tell.
Just before he was about to speak the waiter came around. Saved by the bell…
¨Seems like your full party is here, what would you all like to order?
Lingyin visibly shudder a bit from that. But why?
A tiny smirk came out of the German and Frenchman from that. They both looked at him at the same time.
¨Shut it.¨ She couldn´t help but give out a small giggle at that as well. Quickly stifling it.
He sighed and took a proper look at the menu.
¨Bacon cheeseburger with fries if you could.¨ A very american answer.
¨With extra dip?¨ that lead him to pause for a moment. As if he was in deep thought. Over something as simple as this?
¨No.¨
¨Alright then!¨
¨You´re doing a great job at representing your people abroad.¨ she said a bit more playfully than she wanted
¨At least my people don´t have ¨BANGERS AND MASH¨ ¨ he said with a bad recreation of her accent. It irked her but… everyone laughed a bit
Well… it lifted the mood a bit more, she had to remember to remain good relations with houki even if it killed her inside a bit.
She actually loiked bangers and mash…even if she couldn´t eat it as much as she could because of her restrictions…
Her stomach growled a bit at the thought of proper food, not just the occasional slivers of substance she occasionally slipped herself. It was worth it for her form though. And it didn´t really affect her training… too much.
¨fine then!¨ she looked at the waitress, ¨The garden salad if you could¨ god… she really could go for anything else…
¨äny sauces?¨
¨No… I´m fine¨ the sacrifices she made.
¨you ordered the salad? At a restaurant?¨ Laura said with a bit of an emphasized dumbfounded tone she couldn´t tell if she was joking or not.
¨Oh, it´s a delightfully refreshing meal, don´t knock it!¨ She hated the silent agreement.
¨ I will just have the same as him just no bacon.¨ she then began to talk to Ichika about something ¨did you know that.. The hamburger actually
And to the other´s?
Charles simply stated ¨Chicken alfredo¨ That sounded good.
Houki and lingyin ordered stirfry, but houki decided to switch instead to some ramen.
Lingyin quietly stated ¨ Tomato soup¨ why though? It didn´t seem as filling as the other options.
¨and for drinks? ¨
She seemed quietly relieved when everyone asked for water. Why would someone be uncomfortable at a restaurant they invited others to?
Her thinking was cut by ichikas new line of questioning.
¨so what was it like for you two while i was gone?" The american in him was kicking hard.
He was so obviously buying time but she would indulge him. Show him what a good life looked like.
Lingyin started off the question ¨ I just stayed with my mom at our restaurant, she even let me adopt a small dog.¨ she seemed delighted even if she was shaking.
Wait a dog? She always wanted one. But it was an ¨unnesscessary distraction to her studies¨ god she hated her tutor.
¨Oh really? Can we see?¨ she asked with genuine interest.
Lingyin brought out a chipped phone case to show her some cute videos of her dog. Showing them to everyone.
¨his name is bloppy!¨ wait what.
¨Ÿou named your dog bloppy?¨ laura asked, genuine confusion on her face. ¨That´s not a proper name for a protector.¨
Lingyin seemed a bit difensive from that. ¨He looks like a bloppy.¨ she said with a bit more forceful reassurance.
¨ I actually like it.¨ ichika said simply joined along by charles´s ¨Yes! Oh i knew a dog with the name roofles, he was this big dog that was about half my size!¨ Charles seemed to grab an interest against laura´s remark.
¨it´s an exquisite name for a friend isn´t it?¨
Laura looked a bit betrayed by the response of the first. Irritated by the second, and simply annoyed by her own. Itchika just kept silent from her words.
Lingyin seemed a bit more energized by the more positive feedback. Something was still bothering her…
Houki spoke up again. ¨Nothing much changed after you left, i just kept training with my father. It´s basically the same as her, actually how do you know each other?¨ A bit of genuine interest was put in.
¨Ẅe knew each other a long while before you two met. He just moved away after a while with his sister. ¨ Oh, that was so cold of her.
¨All the more surprising he forgot about you.¨ Tense.
Lingyin did NOT like that.
¨How he could stand someone like you is more suprising.¨
Rivalry from being forgotten.
¨I´m really sorry about that, a lot of things happened that i just couldn´t keep track. It´s nice meeting you again though.¨ He was openly not enjoying this, it´s obvious he hated every second of this conversation, another interesting tidbit to keep for later. But she knew she had to step in.
¨So ichika what do you do for fun? You don´t seem to be seen at any of the more social gatherings spots around campus, are you afraid of talking to girls?¨ It was a joking jab sent at him.
He pondered it slightly as if trying to spot the ulterior motive in her words.
¨ I usually just go to the gym for fun, if i can´t do that i just like assembling puzzles in my room, and if i´m very bored i like to play video games.¨ Who does puzzles unironically? And video games if he´s ¨really¨ bored? What guy says that?
¨So much free time must be the reason you beat me!.¨ He looked like he expected that. Shame.
¨One of was better, you just figured out who was the best. " That remark made her quiet. Dozens of hours training and she was still slipping where it mattered.
¨Ẅe´ll make sure to fix that at our match in the next day´s right cecelia?¨ Houki said with a bit more spark. Directed at lingyin to be exact.
Why? Oh- She already won her match. They´d be up against her when they won theirs against him. She hoped.
Her stomach rumbled again at its own beckoning. God she´d have to order something more, even if Laura made fun of her for it.
Speaking of, she seemed to be in a conversation of her own with Charles. He showed an unexpected amount of interest in her, did he like her?
So much to see. But it´d be better to see it at any time.
She sipped her water to be able to sate the amount of hunger, it did nothing but make her feel out her hollow stomach.
When were they gonna serve the food already?
Her thoughts were answered by the waitress coming around with her large tray.
¨Here you go!¨
The food at the academy was subpar compared to her standards but here it looked magnificent in her state of mind.
alfredo, tomato soup with bread, stirfy and the burgers. Those looked magnificent with their salty chips. Especially Ichikas.
Her salad was humbly plated infront of her.
The salad didn´t taste bad. It just wasn´t enough.
She raised her hand, to signal the waitress.
¨Actually could i have-" Lingyin did a small squeak.
That flooded a small stampede of anxiety into her. Did she deserve this? No, she was Cecelia Alcott. She wouldn´t break from something so small.
¨- a refill on my water?¨ God she regretted that decision instantly.
She wasn´t treating herself well. And everyone´s food looked so good.
She looked forward blankly trying to distract herself. She wasn´t feeling well.
She´d drank more of her water. She´d be less hungry later. She´d allow herself to eat a little more before training tomorrow. She could do so many other things.
She started eying those chips the pair had with their burgers with less subtlety.
Laura pulled hers away in a joking manner. It pained her a bit to see them go.
Itchika just stared at her. What was his problem with staring? What stupid arrrogant lower class things did he see in her? The malice bubbled up again.
Houki and Lingyin were in an argument. Charles and Laura were in a deep discussion talking about whatever. It was just him and her.
He noticed. He recoiled back a small amount. More pondering from him. What is he going to make her beg for them?
She was still a pilot. She had honor and she was an Alcott she would never-
He cut off a decent chunk of his burger with a knife near a noticeable portion of his chips. Coated it in a napkin in a way that was innoticable.
¨Hey, do you want a napkin?¨ calm, and casual.
This irritated her.
¨No. I´m fine.¨ a mere whisper
He noticed.
He simply removed the chunk of burger. But placed nearly all his chips there instead.
¨You sure? ¨
She really did want to break.
He had an agenda. A plan. He would revel in seeing her so weak and groveling.
He then kept a blank face and put an entire strip of bacon next to it.
She wanted to yell at him. Be furious at the insult to her entire being.
Looking him dead in the eyes trying to see the demon who embarassed her infront of everyone.
Only genuine empathy was there. None of the apparent bloodlust and vengeance of before.
She didn´t bother responding.
He slowly, subtly placed them infront of her.
They were right there.
She grabbed one, the smell was disgusting to her, the oil was a terrible scent. Every nerve in her body told her to just snap.
Putting it in her mouth sheer euphoria erupted from simply biting it was more than enough to make her continue. She nearly had to stop herself from getting another.
They continued to eat in silence. Only occasionally being interrupted by the more violent spurs of Houki and Lingyins argument.
Then the waitress came along.
¨is everyone enjoying their food?¨
There were a few murmurs of agreement spread along the table.
¨it- it tasted delightful.¨ She said slowly.
Ichika didn´t even say anything.
¨I have the check here already for you.¨ she gave it to Lingyin, looking calm, cooled, and collected until she saw the cost. Then her eyes betrayed her. But she remained silent through it all. Stubbornness.
A little respect and empathy came from it.
At that moment she understood. The shudders and her entire complexion over this entire meal. No one noticed.
She looked lingyin dead in the eye and decided to make her own move. But one that beffited her.
The face of cecelia alcott, british heiress came back easily.
¨Oh why should i let you pay for this grand meal! I enjoyed this thoroughly. Here, it´s my treat. I´ll pay for it.¨
She seemed to give a level of confusion from the offer. But seemed to regain composer with an added bit of hope.
¨really?¨ she asked in disbelief, and a somewhat suspicious look.
¨yes, really?¨ houki added in with a bit of a questioning glare.
¨i hope we encounter one another more from this point, no matter the results of our bouts.¨ She stated simply.
¨Oh, thank you!¨
¨but, we´re still eating…¨ Charles stated simply.
She turned back to look at ichika.
He stared directly at her.
¨So youre paying?¨
¨Why would i let my friends pay for such a nice experience?¨
Lingyin seemed a bit more uplifted by that.
He then while maintaining eye contact slowly, ever so slightly, EVER SO AGONIZING SLIGHTLY turned to the waitress.
¨ I¨d like another of my orders please, extra dip. and a cola on the side.¨
¨sure thing!¨ so responded the waitress ever so cheerily.
He just had to ruin the nice moment.
Well, there´s a start.
She sighed to herself, the costs of friendship are surprisingly monetary.