Day 15

[loveandwillpower]

Akira's not in the infirmary, which is just as well. Or in his room, which is... actually a pretty good sign, if her third guess is on point.

Her third guess is Ichigo's room, so that's where she's knocking. And hoping that Ichigo's the heavier sleeper between the two, and also that they're asleep. She's not interrupting anything, she knows this because she is naturally in tune with the power of love. Or because she had her ear to the door for a minute and nobody's that quiet. It's totally the power of love, though, nobody can prove otherwise.

Comments

[purrtagonist]

Based on what she told me about her upbringing, that isn't really surprising.

[loveandwillpower]

Yeah, like - she's got all that witch stuff and servants, but nobody who cared about pushing her into having a good time?

[ She's getting huffy again. Righteous indignation comes easily to superheroes. ]

She doesn't even know what she's missing! She's older than I am but she's never had the chance to goof off at an arcade, or have a real sleepover, or, you know, all the normal girl stuff!

[purrtagonist]

And she said that she was "created" specifically to die. What's up with that? She absolutely deserves the chance to be a normal teenager for once in her life.

[loveandwillpower]

Even if it'd take a miracle for her to get a normal life, I've pulled off miracles before.

[ It's usually Usagi who does the heavy lifting on miracles, but look, Minako's an Ultimate knockoff moon princess right now, surely that's enough to score a happy ending for one lonely girl. ]

...Three more nights. If she makes it through the next one, and sticks with Ichigo the one after that - yeah, last one, ask her for help with something. Baking a cake, or a surprise party, whatever it is, if it's for Ichigo, she'll go for it!

[purrtagonist]

And then she and Ichigo can get out of here.

[considering Ichigo seems to be like, at the end of his rope, Akira thinks that's a really good thing]

[1/2]

[loveandwillpower]

If I can get the both of them out of it, that's a win as far as I'm concerned.

[2/2]

[loveandwillpower]

...I want you safe too, of course, but you don't set off my guardian instincts!

You're a total Tuxedo Mask type, after all.

[purrtagonist]

[opens his mouth, and closes it again]

Tuxedo who?

[loveandwillpower]

He's a superhero where I'm from.

He sweeps in out of nowhere and saves people and tosses roses around, he used to be a jewel thief but now he's a good guy full time.

And he wears a mask like the one on your profile.

[ Bet Akira can't guess what else he wears. ]

[purrtagonist]

[. . . wow holy shit, she totally has him pegged as a Tuxedo Mask type character. he's stunned into silence for a moment, before his need to be SASSY bubbles to the surface]

Does he also happen to wear a tuxedo?

[loveandwillpower]

Wow, how did you guess!

[ She's never asked whether Mamoru came up with the name himself or not for fear of losing respect for him. ]

...And a cape.

[purrtagonist]

[that is probably for the best]

Oooh, the cape is an aspect of the outfit I never would've called. What a surprise.

[loveandwillpower]

Yeah, he's good at surprises, always popping up from window displays or jumping in through windows, he's got all these speeches.

[ She's getting sidetracked here, she does have another reason to talk about Tuxedo Mask other than hashtag aesthetic ]

Good at it when he's being a superhero, anyway. He looks cool, but he's second-rate as a boyfriend.

[purrtagonist]

[. . . he isn't following]

[also totally assuming that he is HER boyfriend]

Second-rate? I think he's lucky he isn't here to hear that.

[loveandwillpower]

[ A reasonable assumption that whips right over Minako's head because it's a rare occasion in which her love life isn't center stage in priority. ]

He's a lucky guy for a lot of reasons.

[ Usagi is great, even if she's also. Usagi. Minako's her bff she's allowed to be biased. ]

He's the cool, mature type so he doesn't think to ask about stuff like birthdays or anniversaries, or stuff that means a lot to her but not much to him.

[ Like sticking around long enough to say good morning, probably? That's not actually something Usagi has complained about, Minako would 120% know if that were the case. ]

[purrtagonist]

. . . oh. "Her?" I kind of assumed you were talking about your own boyfriend.

[implications are still going over his head]

[loveandwillpower]

He's only my boyfriend on television.

[ Okay, Sailor V's boyfriend on television. It's not like he can fact-check her, let her enjoy the benefits of her alter-ego's fame for once. ]

He's dating my best friend in real life.

[purrtagonist]

Ah. No wonder you're so quick to point out his flaws.

[with a touch of amusement]

[loveandwillpower]

Well, yeah! Whenever he makes her cry, I'm the first one to hear about it!

She's really sensitive, but since he's such a cool guy to her in and out of the mask, she feels bad about bothering him with stuff that'll make her sound like she doesn't measure up. [ this last part is only a little bit true, Minako is not a subjective witness to the miracle romance of the century ]

[purrtagonist]

[whoa!! holy insecurities, batman]

I hope you encourage her to speak up when she feels like she should. Relationships should be equal, and everyone within one should be able to communicate.

[loveandwillpower]

Yeah, totally, totally!

[ Minako says like she didn't fake her own god damn death when she saw her main squeeze kissing another girl. ]

Hey, when's Ichigo's birthday?

[purrtagonist]

[. . . UUUUUUUUUUH. . .]

I-- don't. . . know. . .

[loveandwillpower]

You don't?

[ Her voice is syrupy sweet. ]

[purrtagonist]

We've only known each other for two weeks, and it never came up.

[loveandwillpower]

You'd better find out soon, just in case. And tell him yours!

[ Now who's Mr. Communication? ]