Like a moth to flame.

It was a few minutes later that he followed her. she can tell by his expression that he wasn’t happy with the arrangement. It was rather ironic since he was the one who suggested this idea in the first place, now that she had went through with the proposal— he didn’t seem as appreciative that she managed to free him from the shackles of being an orphan. It didn’t matter to her as the risks and safety of other lives were more important than his tantrums of not getting what he desired in the way he expected. 

“You’re a spiteful one aren’t you?”  She remarked ignoring his demands of her silence. “Unfortunately, you don’t call the shots here. After all what kind of mother would allow their child to bark orders as if they were some tyrant?”

A hint of seriousness mixed with sarcasm to add salt to the injury, she would lead him to her car that she drove there/ Navy blues would enter the driver’s seat as she buckles up and press the start button to allow the engine to roar to life. Adjust her rear view mirror, she would only focus on the first objective which was exploring that cave. 

“We’re going to that cave where I met you, don’t worry about the guards.” She answered. “I’ll make certain that we can get through without any major trouble.’ 

  “You are not my mother!”

  She really kicked the hornets nest with her words. He didn’t think she’d actually listen to him, let alone go through the whole process, and she had the gall to throw her undeserved title in his face. Spiteful was nowhere near close to the way he felt. He was fuming because he was hoping he’d never have to see that mug of hers again after the last time, yet here they were, with him legally forced to go with her because of paperwork he had no say in. He didn’t want this.

  Though when she brought up the place of his obsession fascination, the mercurial boy’s anger was temporarily set on the back burner. With his arms folded across his chest, his seat belt was yanked by unseen forces into the locking mechanism with not so much as a finger raised by him. Did she seriously think that she could get the priests and shrine maidens to let them in?

For once, the empty visage of the starry haired scientist had displayed something that was much colder; the feeling of slight anger that she felt begin to surface. She was listening to what he have said, There was a few things that didn’t sit right with her. It was evident that some things may have hurt her feelings. While she didn’t care much about his reluctance to bond and learn— several things she won’t stand for the projection of his self-loathe of his circumstance onto her and the assumption on what use that she had for him.  Her approach towards him as she took a few strides to close the gap between them. Her navy blues were vivid as they locked gaze with his own. Her tone that was curt and even held an icy weight as she was about to say what was on her mind.

“So, you’re implying that since you consider yourself as a beast or some kind of wild creature, I should treat you as such?”

Walking towards the door of her current condo, she would unlock it and leave the door open for him Turning around, her arms across under her chest, her eyes narrowed with the stoic passage, but with the intensity of disappointment reflected into her gaze. 

“Very well, if you desire freedom and a new life there is the door,” She told him. “If you truly desire happiness and living life in the wild. Then I shall not stop you. If you choose to see yourself as a beast, then that is fine. But one thing that I won’t tolerate is that you perceive me in the same category of a “monster” when you haven’t seen the true face of one yet.”

The monsters that were more frightening than him and the power he contained lurked out there. While that power may saved him from the place he once lived, that power is useless against those creatures that would drawn to it. Of course, she couldn’t tell him why she was protecting him or her attempts to do so. Even so, she was doing her best in the best way she can, but if he didn’t want to ;learn anything. If he still resent her for giving him something he wanted or trying to do what was best—there was nothing she can do.

“If you hate me that much, then you can leave on your own will and try to survive,” Midnight told him. “However, I don’t do things because I have a desire to use people. But I wouldn’t expect someone without an ounce of gratitude towards someone who is giving him a chance at life to understand. After all, I’m just a monster in your eyes, just like everyone else. So if you hate being a Lucesco so much, then leave. I won’t stop you.” 

  “Someone without an ounce of gratitude?” Did she expect him to be grateful for the things she’s done? Did she seriously expect him to fall for an ultimatum again after the last time when his choice hardly mattered? She’d just come hunt him down like last time, only out in the wild like the beast he saw himself as.

  “A monster? I’m calling you untrustworthy and showing me that the warnings of the hags were valid. I’d always been told to stay away from people of science because of the things they’d do if they found out I wasn’t normal. You know why it’s all valid?”

  His arms came to mimic hers in a feeble attempt to defend himself from whatever wounding words may come forth from her next.

  “First time I met you, you’d been stalking me before trying to get me to save the universe as your assistant. That would’ve raised a lot of red flags for anyone my age, inhuman or otherwise, and I jumped to threats of having you thrown in jail and a joke suggestion to adopt me ‘cause that was my way out of what I saw as a dangerous situation.”

  Whereas she was opaque or maybe transparent with the things that passed her lips, he was going to make himself crystal clear. He had reasons for the way he felt, reasons that he thought were valid given how outlandish it all was. Despite how much he played the sides of being like any other kid and being something not human whatsoever, he was still a child. A youth clinging to the rules he was raised by in this society.

  “I didn’t think you’d actually do it, but  then you did. And you threw it in my face before dragging me off, by force, to the only place I’ve found in my entire life where I felt comfortable in my own skin just so you could further your own goals. I’ve never felt safe anywhere but there with exceptions of the times where I’ve been attacked. Even in my own room back at the orphanage, I never felt at ease. You ruined the cave for me that day. I’m not giving you flack because I don’t like you or the house. It’s indignation.”

  Tears burned his eyes. He wasn’t sure how or when they started to flow forth. All the child knew was the bitter sting as he tried to wipe them away. Volatile emotions erupting forth from what remained of the metaphorical bottle that barely contained them before. It hurt. It made his chest hurt.

“E-Etto, you do have a point, Professor Lucesco isn’t really great when it comes to making a first impression on people.”

She couldn’t deny anything in his counterargument against the Professor poor habits and mannerisms. She admit when she first met Midnight, she didn’t trust her and found her too abrasive to deal with. Yet, she realized the more she worked with her that there was more to the woman that meets the eye. The Professor actually behold many secrets that Rena couldn’t tell the boy. That’s something he have to learn and figure out himself in a matter of time. 

‘I guess she didn’t tell him yet.’ Rena thought. ‘It looks like all I can do now is try to be his friend.’ Of course, the road to friendship is going to be a tough one. Before Rena could attempt to forge a bond between them— actively he placed a literally wall to keep her out his length. Sympathy filled her visage; this poor kid. She wonder if his trauma runs deeper than just the situation between the Professor and himself. For now, she would have tread carefully and take baby steps. Last thing she wanted was for him to feel alone with no one he can trust.

Respecting his boundaries, Rena would remain at a distance. Sitting down with her legs crossed indian style, she would just decide to hold conversation and try to get to know him at his own comfort. She knew forcing things as they are wouldn’t go well for either of them. For now, small talk could probably ease his mind.  “Kouki, that’s a really lovely name,” Rena compliment. “So Kouki, there anything that you like to do for fun?” 

  Was she seriously just going to sit there and make conversation, barrier be damned? He was glad that they were kinda on the same page about his ‘mother’, as vastly different as their opinions were, though his mind quickly ditched that whole facet of the conversation when she asked him what he liked to do for fun. He wasn’t going to say no, but... why did that matter to her?

  “If you wanna know, I like flying, I like playing video games, and I like hanging out in the mountains. I’d probably like racing too, but there’s nobody around that’s fast enough to really have fun with it. Best I got are cars on the highway.”

  Those weren’t even something the drivers consented to, he just tried to keep up with whoever was driving fastest at the time. Nobody usually got hurt since he caught the cars before they wrecked if he really spooked them... usually. Maybe once or twice he screwed up on that front, but hey, most of the time it was a harmless way to have fun.

  ... hopefully she wasn’t going to tell her about any of this.

@energyprism​ continued from here 

This was really, really awkward. That was not the reaction that she was expecting from a child that just got recently adopted. However, she can understand his sentiments about it; the person who adopted him wasn’t the person who likely be deemed suitable for a mother. Professor Lucesco was not only someone who lacked conscience most of the time— but her roundabout why of doing things were infamous. It seems this kid was one of the people who fell victim to one of her unexplainable whims. 

“G-Gomen,” Rena stammered after the boy’s lashing. “I know Professor Lucesco is a rather odd person, but she isn’t exactly what she appears. She does cares in her own way, you just have to give her a chance.”

Rena didn’t know too much about Professor Lucesco herself. But she knew her well enough to know that under that emotionless, cold visage— she was very kind, yet rather awkward woman. Rena did wonder what made her want to adopt a child. Did this kid have something to do with their mission? Either way, this kid wasn’t thrilled about the circumstances. It did sting a bit that he didn’t trust her because she worked for the Professor. “I do work for her, but I’m not a bad person,” She disclaimed. “She’s just helping me look for my elder brother. Otherwise, I’m just helping her out in return. Don’t worry, I won’t try to hurt you or use you for anything. So, tell me. What’s your name?” 

  “That... is the biggest crock of shit I’ve heard in my life. Between her stalking me for god-knows-how long, dragging me off to my personal spot immediately after adopting me for her damn research, and solely adopting me to be a tool for her, she lost any chances she might’ve had on day- no, not even day, minute one.”

  Give her a chance... for what, to let her try to foster a relationship between them, only to get let down by her when, surprise, he didn’t have any use to her anymore? So she could try to stab him in the back with one of her scalpels? To him, that woman was a cold, unfeeling machine in all but flesh, evidence and word of mouth be damned. She wanted an obedient assistant, not a son.

  While she was obviously being genuine with the words she spoke, he wasn’t buying it. Anyone with her wasn’t to be trusted or welcomed so easily into the boy’s life. With a flippant wave of his hand, a towering barricade of transparent white light sprung into existence between the two of them, stretching to almost meet the walls and ceiling of his room. Though a solid construct it wasn’t, the heat radiating off it was hopefully enough to keep her from trying to get closer to him.

“There is saying that goes with this way of thinking:” Non fortuna homines aestimabo, sed moribus,” Midnight quoted. “I do not estimate the men for their fortune, but for their habits. Basically, your true worth is based on how you behave. Of course, it’s understanding being disappointed that you don’t get what you want in life. Yet, there are various ways to gain what you want without retorting to the latter by stealing it as a final choice.”

Midnight knew well how to gain influence over the mind; Something she hoped that Kouki would learn, Etiquette isn’t just a visage to look good for the face of the public, but it can used as a tool to gain favors and fortunate into one’s way. Of course, she didn’t expect him to understand without proper guidance for the many years of his growth. 

“If you truly want to get what you want in life, sometimes you will just have to learn how to tip the odds in your favor or as it is called: The art of manipulation and persuasion. While it’s not something that is deemed as heroic, sometimes you have to get your hands dirty just to get what you desire. By learning to adapt, you can also learn how to persuade people to give you what you want. Having proper manners is one way to do so. Do you think you can always take what you get? There are consequences behind those actions that will only make you fall deeper into the spectrum of a outcast or a path of becoming a criminal.”

She knew of the greed and power that can corrupts people in that way. The same greed which cause the raise in conflict and inevitable war. The downfall of her people and the planet she once lived on. Just as she knew the greed of obtaining power to play god; this topic was no different than that. 

“Now, enough fussing, let’s get your lessons started shall we?”

  “... you say that like I’ve ever gotten what I wanted or that I’ve stolen, and I’m pretty sure my rock being my only possession for my entire life says otherwise.”

  And like that, she lost him. It wasn’t that he viewed the acts as negative that made his attention almost immediately fly the coop, all kids knew how to play mind games to get what they wanted, himself included, though her way of going about it was like listening to a stereotypical movie villain during one of their monologues. She was trying to force the ideals of a civilization or perhaps her own personal ideals that he didn’t care for onto him, even if they still held true here on Earth. Midnight wanted him to me like a mini her, playing nice to get what he wanted. But all he ever wanted was personal freedom and the love of a family, both of which she smashed into dust.

  “Honestly... it sounds like you’d be wasting your time trying to teach me that stuff. Before you came along, all I ever did was spend time out in the mountains unless it was an adoption day or it was cutting close to curfew. Those are the kind of skills you’d teach a normal kid that wants to be around people, not a wild boy that’s more like a cryptid or a thing from myth than a person.”

  Was it an attempt to change the subject? To get out of her little lesson by reinforcing his statement from before? It didn’t matter because she’d try to spin it in some way to work for her. He’d lost interest entirely, although she didn’t have much to begin with considering the moments prior.

His expression made it obvious that he wasn’t confident in himself as far for being able to adjust and learn something new. Maybe it was easier for her because she was born to easily adapt and retain information. A soft sigh would leave her lips before she pondered how to remedy the situation. There was several ways she can do things for it. 

“There are different ways to learn things, we just have to find a way that can work for you,” She answered. “I’m certain you can do it. Besides, you’ll be surprised what you can do if you put your mind to it.”

Taking off her lab coat, she would toss it on the couch behind her, now only wearing her sweater that covers the blouse. Her navy blues would linger Kouki as she would open the book to the first chapter. A soft smile would form on her lips as she decide what should be a beginner lesson.

“I suppose we can start with something easy like using polite language,” She told him. “You’re little rough around the edges, but I think you can say please and thank you when you feel it’s needed, right?” 

  O-kay, this was a whole new side to her and he wasn’t sure if he was liking it. Did she seriously like manners to this insane extreme? Was she trying to teach him the way of her people, cause if they were, he was never going to adapt to that way of life. Civility was for people in penguin suits and her apparently, not a monstrous child whose main source of entertainment was goofing around out in the streets.

Random Starters. | Always Accepting.

  “She’s not my mother! She might’ve adopted me, but she’s not motherly in any kind of way! She’s focused on work more than anything, she’s got no emotions other than annoyed, she doesn’t do anything with me other than trying to get me to work with her, and I trust her about as much as I like her, and that’s as far as I can throw her, which I can’t!”