chroma | catchall for vin

[countermeasures]

i haven't had coffee yet so this won't be pretty yet

Comments

[allomantic]

Yes, probably.

[she's still frowning, though.]

[countermeasures]

I don't mind continuing to look, if there's nothing else you'd rather read about...

[allomantic]

...I will ask one of the residents if they think there is any useful information to learn here. It is better than searching without guidance.

[countermeasures]

That's a good idea.

[honestly "prism stuff" sounds like something we'd get out of a mini cyoa.




want to try and do a mini cyoa?]

In the meantime, we can find something else to practice your reading with.

[allomantic]

[tragically i already grabbed someone else for one this week but points at eyes points at you for next time]

What do you usually like to read?

[countermeasures]

[fair and valid]

Medical books, to learn new techniques... but I also like poetry.

[allomantic]

[nodding slightly]

...It does seem like it suits you.

[countermeasures]

Thank you... I think?

[she smiles]

Poetry will usually be less dense than other books are. Why don't we find a book of poems to practice with?

[allomantic]

[she nods.]

Maybe we will find one you recognize.

[countermeasures]

Maybe we will...

[her voice trails off a little, and she brings a hand up to brush her fingertips against her throat. for a moment, she seems on the verge of saying something, but then she shakes her head and continues on down the bookshelves, looking for poems.]

[allomantic]

[a beat, surprised.]

...Is there something wrong?

[countermeasures]

...no, it's fine. My mind just wandered for a moment or two.

[thinking about poetry she recognizes made her think of home which gave her the weirdest urge to talk about her sad backstory?




unfortunately she's kind of cagey about that so she bites her lip and continues searching for poetry instead.]

[allomantic]

I see...

[she still sounds a little bit concerned, but she won't push further.]

[countermeasures]

...aha! Here's something.

[she offers vin a book. yes, i know this is a website and not a book, but we're going to pretend everything in those links is contained in the pages.]

[allomantic]

[taking the book carefully and flipping through it.]

Which is your favorite?

[countermeasures]

Hmm... they're all pretty in their own way. They evoke a certain kind of feeling.

[she looks over vin's shoulder to see which pages she's looking at.]

There's one I like about peach blossoms at a temple... ah, there!

[she reaches over to tap the page, then recites.]

"Across the world this June, the petals have all fallen,
But the mountain temple's peach blossom has just begun to bloom.
I regretted so much that spring had gone without a trace;
I didn't know that it had only moved up here."

[allomantic]

[she's silent for a moment, thinking that over.]

What do you take from it?

[countermeasures]

It depends on my mood when I read it...

Sometimes, it's inspiring. Even if you think you've lost something, it might not be gone for good. You might be able to find it somewhere else, if you look a little harder.

But sometimes it reminds me that good things can leave you and go to someone else.

[allomantic]

[that makes her seem even more thoughtful.]'

What do you think right now, then?

[countermeasures]

...it's a little closer to the second one, I think.

[allomantic]

[a tiny little smile, though it's thoughtful more than it is happy.]

Someone told me once that luck, or happiness, comes in waves, kind of. That if you've faced sorrow or adversity, it would mean that good things would come your way shortly. After everything that I've been through, I told him that would just make me worry that if something good happened to me, I would be scared the world would take it away soon.

[...ah. she pauses, blinking.]

I don't know why I... Never mind.

[countermeasures]

[oh no vin...]

...you didn't mean to share that, did you?

[a beat...]

Don't worry. I won't tell anyone... but I'm afraid I won't be able to forget I heard it, either.

[allomantic]

[she nods at that first part, affirming that she didn't mean to say it, but at the second portion of what jiuqing says... she looks a little uncomfortable, but not strictly unhappy.]

You... do not need to remember it. It is not important.

[countermeasures]

It hits a little close to home. I don't think I can forget, even if you'd prefer that I did.

[allomantic]

I see.

[she pauses for a moment, awkward, but:]

I would not mind hearing about it, if you wanted.