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Tweak says, "I'm obsessed with this!"

Prince Endymion (Mamoru Chiba) (prince_endymion) wrote in mirage_rpg,
@ 2008-08-08 08:25:00

Entry tags:

complete, day 10, giselle, mamoru chiba, tuxedo mask

Day Ten
Who: Mamoru and Giselle
When: Mid Afternoon
Where: The games room
What: Teaching about video games
Rating: G, I think. This is Giselle
Status: Complete

To say he hadn't been having a good few days had to pretty much be the understatement of the year. First, discovering that he was in love with a girl he had been annoyed by previously, and all the issues that came along with that like being a prince, and then, of course, the kidnapping. Getting into a verbal spat with Michiru, and a more physical one with a bald man named Riddick. This had not been the best couple of days, that was for sure. He needed some time with someone who wasn't going to attack him, either emotionally or physically.

Maybe, that's why he'd issued the invitation to the innocent redhead Giselle. From everything he'd heard, though he'd never actually met her, she was the epitome of sweetness. He doubted very much he'd have to watch himself very closely around her, and that was refreshing. He never would have thought he'd be seeking out someone like her, but she might be exactly what he needed.

So, as planned, in the afternoon after lunch, he made his way to the games room. As always, the planet seemed to know what he wanted, and there were all sorts of video games as well as consoles to play them on. He started picking through them, noting a couple of titles he hadn't even heard of, and his friend Motoki, who ran a video arcade, kept him pretty up to date on that stuff. Interesting. Maybe he'd come back here later.

For now, though, he started making a pile of various things he thought she might be interested in. Nothing too violent, of course. No first person shooters or anything. Just some simple things, like racing games, dancing games, and a selection of childrens games that he thought would be easy to learn on. He had quite a pile going when the door opened, and he turned around and politely rose to his feet, ready to greet the small redheaded girl he was here to teach.

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keoughr
2008-08-08 11:08 am UTC (link)

Giselle had opened her large blue eyes that morning to find herself surrounded by animals all cuddled in the bed with her, and the damnable storm still raging outside. With all the noise it made, she was surprised she could sleep. She had, nevertheless. She sat up, her lower lip poking out in a pout. No balcony serenade this morning either, then. She flopped back in bed and sighed softly. This was not fun at all.

About an hour later, she finally pulled herself out of bed. She found that she was a little down, and realized the weather was depressing her. She decided then and there that she was going to make the best of the dreary situation. She began to sing, and the animals in her room began to help her get dressed and tidy up. In no time, she was dressed in a pale pink gown that set off her red hair with fiery contrast. Said hair was left down with sections at her temples pulled back and clipped together at the back of her head.

She smiled at her reflection, shaking the hair that touched her just above the elbows. She spun once, and was satisfied with the way the dress moved and looked on her. Satin was her favorite fabric, at least today. She stopped suddenly and tilted her eyes up toward the ceiling. Was she forgetting something? She lifted a hand and tapped her glossy lips. "Oh!" She suddenly remembered that she had agreed to meet Mamoru in the game room for video games. Whatever that was.

She glanced at the ornate clock on her wall and saw that she only had a few more minutes to get down there. "Goodbye, friends!" She waved to the animals as she skipped out of her room and down the hall to the doors to the main building. She ran through the slight opening exposed to the elements and gasped when she finally got through the door into a hall. She looked at her dress and saw small splotches of water, but it was nothing too horrible. She would dry.

She had seen the game room before and knew where it was located. She skipped in that direction and then stopped at the door. She turned the knob and stepped inside to see one of the biggest men she'd ever seen in her life. He had muscles and he was a giant of a man. She moved her gaze from his knees up to his face, her head tilting back almost comically. She was almost a foot shorter than he was. "Why, hello!" She chirped, giggling. "I'm Giselle!"

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prince_endymion
2008-08-08 12:18 pm UTC (link)

This woman practically radiated good cheer, which normally probably would have annoyed him a little bit. Maybe not, though. He'd always found that combination of innocence and cheerfulness compelling. Some people, it was impossible to feel bad around, and this was clearly one of those people. He was glad he'd had the impulse to offer his services as a video games instructor.

"Hello, Giselle, I'm Mamoru. You might have guessed that already."

He gave the barest nod of his head, which was a couple of levels up from the barely adequate levels of politeness he gave most people. As he bowed, he took the opportunity to look her over. It wasn't that he thought she was a threat, so much, as he was just in the habit of doing that with pretty much everyone he met. He'd seen the prettiest, most innocent girls turn literally into monsters in the hands of the Dark Kingdom.

He saw nothing to alarm him, though. This girl literally radiated a sense of contentment. He could sense no taint of negative energy on her, and he'd gotten quite good at that. He softened a bit, and even smiled at her. Her reaction to him had him actually laugh a little bit. He was much, much taller than the small, pretty redhead.

"Tell me, Giselle... do you like to dance?"

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keoughr
2008-08-08 02:39 pm UTC (link)

She clasped her hands in front of her and bounced on her tip toes. "Oh yes, I gathered you were Mamoru. I am so pleased to meet you!" She chirped with a grin. She was excited to learn yet another new thing in this world. She had learned to play board games with the Doctor the previous day, and now she was going to learn a whole different breed of games.

She saw him smile and her grin widened. He seemed like a rather stoic young man, and she reveled in the ability to make most people smile. She annoyed some, without really realizing it, with her constant Pollyanna attitude. But, he didn't seem annoyed. And then when he laughed, she laughed along with him. Clapping and giggling, she nodded.

"Oh! I love to dance!" She wasn't sure exactly what dancing had to do with games, but perhaps he was just making small talk. "Do you?" She returned the query, blue eyes wide with the question. She took the opportunity to glance around the game room. There was everything from casino games, to standing arcade games, to huge stuffed chairs in front of large screens for video games. It was a teenager's fantasy.

She was fairly dancing with excitement. She enjoyed learning new things, and having a handsome teacher did nothing to lessen her excitement. She wondered if he were a prince. She looked at him, concentrating a little. He didn't really look like a prince, but appearances could be decieving. She would just have to slip it casually into the conversation at some point.

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prince_endymion
2008-08-08 04:58 pm UTC (link)

Did she actually clap? His blue eyes widened as her constant, unrelenting cheerful attitude persisted, and if anything, she seemed to be getting more happy by the second. From anyone else, he would have suspected that they were faking it. No one could be this happy all the time, right? But from her, somehow he believed it was genuine. Which was a good thing, actually, because he had no patience for people faking things like that.

With a small shake of his head at her attitude and response to his question, he led the way over to an arcade machine, one of the dancing games where you step on the part of the floor piece that was lit up. They were huge in Japan, and even he'd taken a few turns on them. They were surprisingly fun, at least if you liked to dance.

"I do like dancing, actually, and I think you will like this game. Here, I'll show you... get on the pad on the floor, here, see? Beside the one I'm on..."

Gently, he took her elbow, and led her onto the pad beside his. They both lit up in response to the pressure of their weight, and on the screen, a countdown began. He was really giving her a crash course, but then, he believed the best way to learn about something was to do it.

"Alright, Giselle, see those flashing signs on the screen? Try to touch the button that matches it on the floor with your foot. We'll go through the tutorial first..."

On the screen, it went into a very slow, basic walkthrough of the process. He kept a careful eye on his 'student', which if he was honest with himself, wasn't exactly a hardship. She was very easy to look at, and her delight when she picked something up was quite lovely.

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keoughr
2008-08-08 08:22 pm UTC (link)

Giselle was very childlike in her wonder and very real. She loved life, loved learning and loved new things and people. It all excited her and made her giddy. And none of it was at all fake. She followed behind him when he turned and led her toward a large arcade game. It had a platform with multi colored squares and arrows. Two screens and a railing behind.

She wasn't sure what this had to do with dancing, either. But, as he climbed up on it, she did the same. The satin slippers that matched her gown did not hinder her at all. Her feet were fairly small and would be able to maneuver without taking her shoes off. She didn't mind his hand on her elbow, it steadied her slightly.

But he soon let go in order to look at his screen and dance himself. She looked at the screen, then down to the arrows under her feet. She looked back and forth a few times trying to get them down and make sure she could do it, but before she knew it the tutorial had begun. She touched the top square with the ball of her foot and then moved it to the right. She tapped twice there, then once back, switched feet and tapped twice to the left.

She looked over at Mamoru and gave him a huge grin. "This is so fun!" She missed an arrow and she scowled. "Darn!" But her grin returned in full force as the pace picked up. She was trying her best, and she was rather coordinated, but trying to get everything right in her brain was the challenge. Seeing it on the screen sometimes didn't translate to what her foot should do with the information. But she was getting it.

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prince_endymion
2008-08-10 07:48 pm UTC (link)

This sort of game was huge in Japan, and he'd practiced more than he would probably actually admit to. He and Motoki, who owned an arcade, often had competitions. Mamoru managed to hold his own in them, and he had no problem with the simple tutorial. He was able to look over at her to make sure she was okay, and that she didn't fall over. He'd seen that a few times, from people trying to get it too fast.

But he actually had to smile as he watched her. Not only was she getting it, but much faster than he would have actually thought possible. She must not be lying about loving to dance. Not only was she pretty good already, but she didn't have the bored look on her face that vetrans of this game often got. She was very pretty when she smiled, he decided, and since she pretty much seemed to constantly be smiling, well, it worked out very nicely. Red hair wasn't all that common in Japan, so his eyes kept moving to the shimmering fiery strands that moved as she played the game.

Finally, though, his attention had to be pulled back to the game himself. The tutorial was over, and it was time for them to actually dance against each other. Finding himself strangely eager to reassure her, he smiled a little at her and nodded.

"It is fun, isn't it? Alright, Giselle, get ready! Whoever misses the fewest arrows wins."

On the screen, another countdown was starting, and Mamoru's tall, well-muscled body was poised and ready to go. He was also looking over at her, wondering how she'd do with the faster speed of the real game, as opposed to the tutorial.

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keoughr
2008-08-11 08:25 pm UTC (link)

She glanced up with a wide smile on her face to catch him watching her a time or two. It was so much fun, and he seemed pleased that she was enjoying herself. She consistently giggled as she moved her feet back and forth, side to side. Her red hair bouncing on her shoulders.

She turned to him as the tutorial ended. She looked back at the screen in time to see that an actual game had started. She heard his instruction and concentrated on the arrows and tried to touch as many correct ones as she could. The music was unlike anything she'd ever heard. It had a mechanical sound to it, but it was accented by the sound of their feet touching the platform.

She was alright for a first-timer, but she missed many more than he did. But, if they played the game long enough, she was sure she would be able to do as well as he did. She laughed, and it came out as a halting tittering sound that came out between jumps. She held her arms out slightly, trying to keep her balance. She was breathless when the song finally ended and it was apparent that Mamoru had won. She laughed and tucked some strands of red hair behind her ears.

"That was amazing!" She gushed, resting her hands on her hips.

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prince_endymion
2008-08-11 09:00 pm UTC (link)

When he won, he wasn't really surprised, nor did it mean all that much to him. After all, he was really practiced, and she'd just started. It wasn't time to get up on his high horse or anything. He smiled at her, slightly out of breath as the game came to an end.

"Give you a couple more tries at this, and you'll easily win. A natural."

He stepped down off the platform, and offered her his hand to help her down. As they moved away from the arcade game, he tried to decide what else would be fun. She clearly liked being active, and he wondered if video games were the best choice for her. Still, he was supposed to show her. He shrugged and led the way over to the large television, which had pretty much any console you could think of, and big comfy beanbag chairs in front of them. He searched through the stack of games until he found a simple game, and he popped it into a PlayStation before handing her a controller and sitting down in one of the chairs.

"Alright, this is a game called Bubble Bobble. You have to match up the different colors, like that, see?"

Without having to much think about it, he demonstrated aiming and firing the colorful 'marble' on the screen towards the other 'marbles' if it's own color. He glanced over at her to make sure she had gotten it, and couldn't help but notice she was still breathing a little hard from the exercise. Maybe this rest would be good for her.

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keoughr
2008-08-16 02:39 pm UTC (link)

She giggled when he said she'd easily win with a few more tries. She took his hand and followed him toward the video games. She looked at the range of options for sitting and decidedly avoided the beanbag chairs. After yesterday's fiasco with them, she was not about to attempt it again. Rather than make a fool of herself in front of the handsome young man (by herself was one thing), she sat down on the ground while he thumbed through all the video games.

She took the controller and watched him fit himself into one of the bean bag chairs. They were rather large, but he looked slightly comical. She grinned at him and looked toward the screen that had just lit up with bright colored balls. "Oh, how pretty!" She giggled and tucked her legs under her gown, leaning forward with her elbows on her knees, her delicate fingers grasping the controller.

She looked back at him when he began to explain the directions of the game and nodded. Watching the colorful marbles disappear when they were struck with a similar colored marble, she grinned. It seemed easy enough. She played with the controls on the object in her hand, trying to figure out what each little button did. She realized that even though she was supposed to be learning from this young man, she knew nothing about him.

"Mamoru, tell me about yourself?" She glanced sideways at him a moment before the game began and she tried to make the controller do what she wanted it to.

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prince_endymion
2008-08-17 10:18 am UTC (link)

Her delight really was very contagious, and he found that, somewhat to his surprise, he was nowhere near as grumpy as he'd been before she'd come into the games room. He wasn't the sort that was easily cheered up, and even when he wasn't particularly upset about something, he tended towards seriousness and stoicism. But she was unrelenting, and real about her happiness. He didn't understand it, but he did like it.

He watched her as she grinned and giggled her way through the game, having never seen anyone react to things the way she did. Even the children he'd seen play this game were more jaded than her. It was a simple, easily learned game, and he wasn't needed much. So, he just watched her. Not in a creepy way, or at least, he hoped not. Her question, though, put him off guard. He didn't talk about himself much, and usually avoided questions like that. But it was absolutely impossible to think of being rude to her, like he would to most people.

"There... isn't much to tell, Giselle. I'm from a place that I don't think you've ever heard of, called Tokyo. I'm a college student."

He shrugged. Of course, there was so much more to tell, about how he was a guardian and a prince, but he wasn't quite used to talking about those things. In fact, he couldn't remember a time that he'd actually said the words to anyone, admitted who he really was.

"What about you? Where are you from?"

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keoughr
2008-08-17 11:27 pm UTC (link)

She idly watched the game, not as interested in it as she had been in the dancing game. It was still fun to watch the brightly colored balls fly toward the rest. But it was quickly apparent she wasn't quite as coordinated with her fingers as she was with her feet. The balls built upon each other until it reached the point of no return and a big "Game Over" flashed up on the screen.

She pouted for a moment before turning to him. She'd listened to him speak of himself, but he didn't say much. At least nothing he wouldn't tell a complete stranger. "I've heard of Tokyo. It's in Japan, right?" She'd been in New York long enough to learn about a few other places in the unanimated world. But she'd never been there. "What's it like?"

"College? That's schooling, isn't it? What did you study?" She turned toward him from her place on the floor, having to look up at the tall man who was seated above her in the beanbag chair. "Other than these games, what do you do for fun?"

She settled the controller on the gown stretched over her legs and leaned back on her hands. It was easier to look up at him that way. She giggled before she began to speak, knowing that he would neither know where she came from, or be able to fathom it. But, she told him anyway. "I come from a land called Andalasia, and I don't think you have heard of it because no one else I've met has."

She grinned, waiting for him to affirm her belief that no one had any idea about the land she came from but her. "It was a wonderful place, but I liked New York and Mirage better. I do miss my friends from New York, though. And my animals friends from Andalasia. But I have made some animal friends here, too. Still, I don't think anyone can replace Pip." She smiled wistfully before brightening once more. It seemed nothing could keep this Pollyanna down.

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prince_endymion
2008-08-18 12:02 am UTC (link)

As he'd thought, the girl lost interest in the game. It didn't really surprise him, since she really had seemed like she had too much energy to sit around in front of a television for very long. Slowly, but gracefully, he pulled himself out of the beanbag chair, standing up and stretching. Then, he knelt down to be more on her level.

"You can't be comfortable down there..."

He offered her his hand to help her stand, and again, it was far more polite than he would be to most people. He didn't do stuff like that, helping people up and stuff, not all that often, not unless they were hurt and needed it. But with her, it seemed natural, and he went with it.

"Yes, that's right, I'm from Japan... not born there, but raised." He smiled, a little amused by her constant stream of questions, and kept going. "I hadn't picked a major yet, I was taking all sorts of subjects. I'd almost decided to go into Computer Science but I don't know if I could be that inactive all the time..."

He frowned when he realized he was talking up a storm, for him. That was more information than he gave anyone. It must be her open personality that encouraged the same. Very strange. And, oddly enough, he couldn't remember the last time anyone had asked him about what he was taking in school. Even Rei had never seemed to care.

"Andalasia... I've never heard of that, no." She seemed to expect that, and honestly, he'd been a little surprised when she'd heard of Japan earlier. And then that comment about New York as well. He surprised himself once more with his question, since he didn't normally care overly much about talking to people, finding out about them.

"I'm missing pieces of the puzzle... tell me your whole story, Giselle. How did you come from Andalasia to New York?"

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keoughr
2008-08-18 09:05 am UTC (link)

"Oh, I don't mind sitting on the ground. It isn't that bad." She quipped cherrily before accepting his hand up. She stood fluidly, and gracefully. She clasped her hands behind her back and bounced on the balls of her feet. She listened to his description of classes and schooling and decided she had no idea what he was talking about. She kne what computers were, of course, but she didn't know there was any sort of science behind them.

"Oh." She nodded, smiling, she could appreciate not being able to be inactive for long periods of time. She guessed that his course of study would have made that a requirement if he had continued to go to school. "If you were not born in Japan, where were you born and how did you get there?"

She was not purposefully trying to pry, but he seemed so interesting. He was so tall, and from the different nationalities she had seen in New York, most Asian's weren't as tall as he was. He must have felt a little strange being able to see over the tops of people's heads everywhere he went.

Giselle giggled when he seemed perplexed about where she came from and when he asked her to explain, she obliged. "You see, I was born and raised in Andalasia. Then I met Edward and we were going to be married. But on my wedding day, an old hag pushed me into a well and I ended up in New York. Robert and Morgan found me and let me stay at their apartment until Edward could come for me." She paused a moment. "Which he did, eventually. But before I could go back to Andalasia with him, I was pulled here."

She bounced again, hoping that her explanation was clear enough for him to understand. She knew that being pushed and pulled into different worlds was not very common. But, it had happened and she didn't know how else to explain it.

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prince_endymion
2008-08-18 11:23 am UTC (link)

Her explanation didn't make a whole lot of sense to him, but one thing he understood. She'd been pulled away from the person she'd been intending to marry, not once, but twice. Before, he wouldn't have cared very much, but it was a little bit too close to his own experience to brush it away that easily.

Still, it was a surprise to him, which seemed to be happening quite often in this conversation, when he bagan talking. As he did, he dropped her hand and walked over to a couch, large and much easier to get up off of than the beanbag chairs.

"See... when I was pulled away from Mirage I'd just found out... I don't know, some things I wasn't expecting. But there was this girl, Usagi, and I'd realized I had feelings for her... well, there's more to that, actually."

He sighed and rubbed his temples with his fingers, fighting off a headache. That had been much more information than he normally would have given to anyone, even the few friends he had. Quickly, he changed the subject, because it was coming too close to too many secrets that he'd kept for too long.

"No, I wasn't born in Japan. My mother was American, have you heard of California? She had me there, and then a Japanese couple adopted me and took me to Japan."

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keoughr
2008-08-21 01:33 pm UTC (link)

Giselle frowned slightly. She could tell that the conversation was starting to bother the giant young man. She didn't want him to be uncomfortable, so she merely nodded at his explanation and then moved off the subject. The almost constant smile returned to her face when he started to talk about his home and the places he was from, however.

"Yes, I've heard of California. I understand that it is very sunny there." She loved the sun. Nature was good to her, but the weather raging outside seemed more like a childish fit the Planet was having than anything. She didn't like it, and she didn't want to encourage it. She felt that the Planet was angry for some reason, but she didn't know what it was.

"Do you like to sing, Mamoru?" She asked him. She loved to sing, and she was reminded of the sunrise duet she and Legolas had performed several days ago. "I love singing. I do it every morning, and the birds sing with me. But I haven't been able to with the hurricane." She pouted for a second before brighening again. "What else do you like to do?" She sat down on the couch near him, perched on the edge with one ankled crossed over the other and tucked back.

She was glad that Mamoru had taken the time to teach her how to play the games. She might have to come back and try the dancing one again. It was fun. "Thank you for teaching me how to play these games, Mamoru." She leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "You are very kind." She drew back, settling her hands in her lap and beaming at him.

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prince_endymion
2008-08-21 02:36 pm UTC (link)

He didn't know what he'd gone into it. Not only did he doubt that anyone but him would care, but he also had to wonder at himself for even talking about something he'd have expected to keep very secret. Maybe he was going insane. Actually, that idea would make a lot of sense. It would explain the whole Mirage thing. He didn't feel insane, but maybe that was all a party of the insanity?

Still, at least she didn't push it. He was grateful for that, more than a little. When she changed the subject, he was more than willing to go along with it.

"I do like Karaoke, although I'm not sure how good I am at it. But it's very popular where I'm from. Do you know what Karaoke is? You sing into a microphone while a screen shows you the words... so you can sing songs even if you don't know them well. It's fun. You can do it even in a hurricane."

He thought for a moment, caught off guard by her question. When was the last time someone had shown such a sincere interest in him? It was disarming. Which might be the best word for her, actually.

"I like to read, and exercise, and learn... and help people. But only people who really need it."

The dark-haired man was more than a little surprised when the small redhead leaned over and pressed her lips to his cheek. He sat perfectly still throughout, and tried for a moment to remember the last time someone had done that. Rei, maybe, but only when Usagi was around to be annoyed by it... He cleared his throat in order to respond, trying not to show how touched he was by her small gesture.

"You're welcome... I had a good time. Sometime, if you want, I'd like to show you how to do karaoke, if there's a place around here..."

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keoughr
2008-08-22 10:35 am UTC (link)

"Karaoke?" She tried the word out. She'd never heard of it, but as he went on to explain it, she knew that she would love it. "I think I would like Karaoke very much!" She gushed, clasping her hands and bringing them up near her face. She kind of went misty eyed and dreamy looking. Singing really was her passion. And she would do it any way she could.

She nodded as he went on, listening to his other interests. "No wonder you weren't breathing as hard as I was after that dancing game." She grinned. "There's really no point in helping someone who doesn't need help, is there?" She smiled.

Standing she prepared herself to go. "I would love that, Mamoru. Thank you!" She bounced slightly, thinking of a day in the future when they would go do Karaoke. It sounded like so much fun. She wished they could do it now, but she sensed that the young man needed some space. "I had a wonderful time, Mamoru. I will see you soon. Have a good day!" She chirped as she skipped toward the door and slipped out.

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prince_endymion
2008-08-22 10:55 am UTC (link)

He was just getting toward the end of what he could tolerate, when she was making her goodbye's and heading toward the door. Not only was she very pretty and sweet, but she had the rare talent of knowing when it was time to leave. How was it possible for anyone to be as perfect as she was?

"Someday soon, we'll do that, then. Farewell."

He watched as she slipped away before standing and walking over to one of the first person shooter arcade games. He'd always loved these, and he hadn't wanted to play while she was here. He sensed the violence would disturb her. As she slipped away, he was already taking the gun and pointing it at the screen, ready to play.

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