Is This Soul Mine?

They're making both regardless, but as water boils and a tea bag is placed in two cups, and two others are set out beside the coffee pot, the doll returns with chocolate.

Handed over, she looks at the paper and though she doesn't smile there's a cute little huff, a flare of nostrils as if maybe she did smile or sigh.

The Ida doll moves to grab a paper too and writes for a few moments.

"The Mirror...this unit doesn't know but..." Gently she shows Daiyu her paper. Her page is has four columns unlike Daiyu's. The middle two are like and dislike, the other two aren't listed yet and there's a horizontal line that isn't titled either.

Slowly she writes Coffee and Tea in the likes line. "This unit likes both but.." She leaves the tea and coffee, then writes tea in the column to the left of it and fills in the title finally, 'Likes a lot', writing Tea but adding a plus sign with 'sugar'.

"This unit likes sugar a lot...coffee does not seem to be better with sugar. But.." She then writes Coffee + chilled in the 'likes a lot', "Iced coffee... very nice."

The doll adds more, in the original coffee, she adds a plus with 'creamer/milk' but then adds Coffee in the dislike tab with nothing. Finally she adds 'Dark Roast Coffee' into the Dislikes a lot, and adds something like 'pineapple juice' into the space below the columns, and adds that title 'haven't tried'.

"This unit.. knows this is confusing time for you... what Miss Daiyu... is trying to figure all this out already. But your paper..." The doll folds her page and lets Daiyu focus on her smaller simpler page.

"You start...here. You try... you decide. And if you don't know, you add this part first." She adds the 'haven't tried' part but instead of it being written that way, she writes it as 'I want to try it again'.

"This unit's paper... changed a lot, many many eraser marks. Every time this unit experienced something new... this unit's mind was changed. This is... scary for Miss Daiyu. It was for the Mirror too... but even she started here... a want to try it all again."

"You have things you like too, then?" It felt like a silly question to ask someone, but is this doll a person? How lifelike did this Ida make her? Daiyu is curious to know more, but the doll has left her to retrieve the beverages.

In the meantime, Daiyu looks down at her paper. After thinking for a moment, she takes the pen and writes something down.

"Ah, I was just writing down what you had given me earlier. The rice balls. It feels a little silly to say I liked them. I don't think I had a proper chance with how starving I was." Should she move it to the 'I want to try it again' category?

"Your creator sounds a little childish. Do you all take after her, then?" Daiyu chuckles to herself, teasing. Her attention is then directed towards the beverages, more things to try. The doll had stated she liked these with sugar, but for the purpose of the exercise, Daiyu decides to try them without to start. First, the tea.

The aroma hits her first, then the taste. "Mmmm... I think... I like this." She has to take a few more tastes, then writes it down in the 'like' category. Next, the coffee, which does not go down so well.

"Urgh, perhaps your creator has a point after all." She laughs, feeling a bit bashful over her earlier comment. She takes some of the creamer and sugar to try and change the taste, but stops when she looks up at the doll.

"Ah, you've splashed some creamer on your face." Daiyu takes a napkin and gently wipes the girl's face clean of the creamer, then, she has a thought. Daiyu places the napkin aside and feels the girl's face with her hand. She gasps at just how lifelike she feels.

Compared to Ida before, though Ida herself is not so tall, the dolls are rather short. Well crafted, just mature enough that one might confuse them for either perfect dolls in a specialty shop, or a model for small sizes of clothing.

"It is curiosity and passion towards the unknown that seems to catch the Mirror's eyes..but perhaps the Mirror has always been like that."

Though they inform what they can, the doll does observe Daiyu with the same sort of curiosity that it's creator might have. Looking upon her with some sense of marvel as she tries all these new things, blinking for a moment when asked the next question.

"The Mirror is childish yes, she...no this unit wasn't meant to share that. Please dismiss that remark. Replace it with the remark that this unit does learn and take after what the Mirror has achieved so far with their experiences yes."

If she wasn't embarrassed before, being told that she had made a mess, the doll actually seems to heat up. Like a real person her cheeks turn rosy, eyes dart to the side for a second before she gently tries to lower Daiyu's hand from her cheek.

Imperfect.

Well crafted, stunning little dolls, but there are little mistakes, little slips. They're flawed, and perhaps that helps highlight how real they feel.

Edina's memories of Remilia stir within her mind. Alva and the other girls cling to her, and Flavia pushes her away, but none are replacements for her beloved. She who Edina would push to her limit then comfort her with cold arms and a wicked smile. Remilia, no matter how angry she got, would always just let Edina continue.

That's what she craves, that sick relationship she and her used to have. To have emotional control over Remilia, but also delight in seeing her fight back. Alva's complaints and fury sate a little of Edina's hunger for that type of contact, but that hunger runs deep, and a thrall like her couldn't hope to ever sate it.

"That's enough, dear." Edina places a kiss onto Alva's nose and hoists her up a little more. "You have already proclaimed your loyalty, although I'd love to hear more out of you." Edina uses a finger to play with Alva's hair. "My cute little bunny~"

Her loving disposition is broken once Edina leans in closer. Edina caresses Alva's cheek then digs her claws just deep enough to break skin and cause some bleeding.

To be such a killer, to simply pop her head into Flavia's view and make her feel uneasy. Moments of suddenly catching the other thrall's eyes, to make them stiffen up, unsure what Alva might do. How frustrating it is, to be called a simple harmless bunny.

All cozy and weak in her arms, she squirms and tries to resist. So utterly at Edina's call, even if her killer instincts desire her to scream out and resist. That part of her mind that could not form one thought of empathy or sympathy, is consumed by Edina's presence.

"Lady Edina..." Her beautiful perfect doll face, her perfect form that was accepted by Edina, is being stained by her. Anyone else that blemishes her, she drives her knife into immediately, but Edina only gets that soft gasp and little twists.

How tragic, that poor Alva... is simply just not Remilia, that she can't coax that side of Edina out, to be pushed to her utter limit so she can cuddle up to Edina... How terrible that, that LOSER gets more of her eyes. "Ah..."

She's rolled back, pinned down. "A-always..." Alva would in any other case, wait for the monster to near... to get them close to stab them throat and carve them open.

But not Edina, and perhaps Edina knows this. How a thrall like Alva could never truly fight back and resist... thus she could never truly forgive and cozy up.

Amaya doesn't let the frustration show, of course. She is a professional.

"I understand that, yes. But it's the voices of hundreds or thousands cheering me on to win the day, beat the baddie, and get home totally safe! Knowing that people care, it goes a long, long way in the toughest battles. They don't need to wine and dine me to do that. It's like at a sports festival when all your classmates are cheering you on! Or like those shounens where the hero has his friends telling him to dig just a lil' bit deeper," she retorts with a wink and a smile.

It's telling that Flavia has difficulty understanding the concept of supporters, especially in conjunction with her answer to Amaya's question. The magical girl casually stares down her interviewer, soaking in every detail she can about the woman.

It's clear that she is lonely, contrary to the information Sissel's provided. Even if she is meeting these other women, they don't fill that lonely hole in her own heart. So, they're not significant others...Maybe they do hire her? Maybe Sissel's right...Or maybe it's something else. Flavia's shown some odd behaviors already. It wouldn't be a stretch to say she's doing this out of a misunderstanding...

"If that's how you want to see it, then I guess I can't say that you're wrong. If I can inspire you to be something a little bit more, then I'm doing my job as a heroine. Though, I'm sure the friends you do have help with the loneliness, right? I mean, you hang out with them often enough...is what I like to think."

Spaces left blank so Flavia can ask Amaya later these same things, to talk about her friend making and love life, anything that shows how hard it is for a celebrity to try and live both a normal and business life.

Stuff she has written down, already drawing parallels between the magical girl's double life and a celebrity's personal and private life.

"The cheers from fans and those who care, it's important. But even those in a work place, don't view all their coworkers as people they can share a drink with, or meet up outside work hours for a bite. Non-romantic I mean, friends."

Flavia looks up, "fans put idols and magical girls on pedestals right? E-even me.. I'm a super fan as you say... would my offering you to hang out for a bit be taken seriously right? You need to protect your identity, it's a risk and a para-social situation. I think... that would make one feel lonely then, when desiring someone to rely on, the people to open up to are limited."

She rests her notebook and pen for a second, "I wonder if Hasegawa-san feels this too? Difficulty finding someone to inform of their lifestyle with? She did seem excited that we were both rather recluse to our classes, come and go? Ah sorry, she only set this up with a contact no? I shouldn't pretend either of us know her."

Shaking her head, she's about to move on before Ama-chan's question sees her seize up. Flavia was about to get back to her long list of questions, rather than simply sharing thoughts with an amazing magical girl before her.

"That..." Flavia doesn't know that Ama-chan would know anything, but the magical girl has seen her, she has seen her with all those features and without. Yet she's not brought them up again...

Biting her lip, her thighs rub together. Flavia nervously places a hand on her notebook to cover it, as if to suggest this is off the record.

"You're... a real magical girl. You've seen monsters, beasts. Things that control people... my friends."

Her shoulders sink a little, "my friends... are not themselves anymore Ama-chan. But you are right... I could never abandon them... just seeing them, knowing I haven't lost them. It does alleviate the loneliness, but it doesn't fix it."

Her eyes catch Ama-chan's, those yellow eyes almost piercing with a sort of... gaze that penetrates one's soul, there's a hint of rose across her cheeks.

"You do inspire me, because of heroines like you. Even someone weak like me, I can be there for them. Even if I'm alone, no matter how much they hurt me."

"I won't abandon you." She says it like it's a confession, like she's speaking right to the people she wants to save the most. But in this case it's words that sing right to the magical girl before her.

"Don't you want someone like that? That sort of close someone? Far beyond fans?..." In a way Flavia is speaking her own vulnerability, how lonely it is to shoulder her own impossible task of freeing her friends from Edina.

Equating it with a magical girl's endless struggle to save her city, all alone on the mountaintop.

Silence fills the room, Flavia truly hasn't realize that she's gone a little far for an interview. She merely wishes to understand how someone like Ama-chan can keep smiling despite it all, being a hero with so much pressure...

once again I ask of your help, I hate this but I won't have enough to cover bills and other necessary expenses (groceries, pet food). I need at anywhere between $100 to $200 by the june 9th. I am sorry for being in this constant mess.