⠀ blink . . . blink . . . oh, that does it ! suddenly, and without any warning, she kicks him square in the shin, before lunging forward to grab the camera out of his hands .

⠀ she clumsily grabs for camera, catching it as it fell . . . only to fall right alongside it . 〝 play stupid games win stupid prizes ! 〞 from the grass she holds the camera out and takes another photo of herself on accident .

⠀ 〝 ouch ! hey ! if you wanted it so bad you shouldn't have been a public menace ! 〞 despite the kick, when he went to snatch the camera back her whole upper half came with it, as if they were about to have a tug-of-war over it.

⠀ yank ! 〝 yeah ? prove it ! if you were being so innocent then why were you hiding in the first place, huh ?〞 pull !

⠀ 〝 i refuse to believe you weren't pointing this at me without proof saying otherwise, insecurity be damned ! surely i wouldn't have been blinded twice if you weren't !〞 they must look ridiculous.

⠀ her cheeks warm to a soft pink as the truth settles in, and she folds her arms tight across her chest, avoiding his eyes while he rises with the camera . 〝 w-well you can hardly blame me . 〞 a brief silence . 〝 sorry . 〞

⠀ her shoulders tense at the sudden lift, but she steadies as he sets her upright . 〝 i, um, appreciate you saying that. . . maybe next time when you're feeling impulsive you should skip the whole hiding in bushes . . . thing . 〞

⠀ she watches the camera disappear behind him . ? ? ? 〝 i understand devotion to a craft well enough . . . but to chase it so fiercely only to cast the instrument aside like it is nothing . . . that’s the part i can’t really follow. 〞

⠀ 〝 sonnet. and hey, listen, that's nice of you to offer, but i don't have a home. i just wander from place to place, maybe camp out somewhere if i don't buy a room to stay in for the night.〞 a slight shrug follows, unbothered.

⠀ glancing over her shoulder to the bush he'd been so proudly inhabiting, she nods, responding: 〝 oh wow, dabi— i don’t think i’ve ever slept in a bush before . . . i think it’d be too itchy for me. how do you manage ? 〞

⠀ her fists clenched so tightly that her neatly manicured nails began to press into her palms, though the rest of her remained as composed as she could manage . 〝 if you so insist . . . 〞

⠀ 〝 ah . . . sorry, i don't sleep with people i've only just met . . . 〞 turns towards her things . 〝 and besides i've got my own bedroll, pillows, a sleep mask— 〞 admittedly her bag looks far too small to reasonably hold any of that .

⠀ 〝 why aren't you allowed there ? 〞

⠀ ouch, touchy subject . she rummages through her belongings and pulls out some of the healthier rations and a small bottle of wine, leaving them on the bench before hoisting her pack atop her shoulders . 〝 alright, thank you, i guess . 〞

shifting her blonde hair aside so it won’t snag under her pack, she turns back to face him with faint confusion: 〝 it sounded like you wanted me to leave . 〞

quietly drawing the 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓 in her journal

𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒆𝒓 𝑮-𝑻𝒚𝒑𝒆 1𝒔𝒕 𝑪𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒔 𝑺𝑶𝑳𝑫𝑰𝑬𝑹, 𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒔 𝑹𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒔𝒐𝒅𝒐𝒔 『ジェネシス・ラプソードス』

⠀ 〝 the whole 𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑠𝑘 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑓 thing from about thirty seconds ago ? 〞