Comforts of Home [Vanyel/Violet]

In those moments he was petting the dragon, Violet could see a little boy in Vanyel. Something about that thing must have reminded him of a better time, or a specific moment… or person. Finding out it was handmade only helped her understand how important it was. “Sorry… for taking it, I mean…” Violet said, only to be surprised that he put it around her neck. With a light redness to her face, she picked the dragon off her neck and held it out in front of her, looking at its face. "I've never..." Violet stopped and then held the plushy to her chest again. "What was your Mom like?"

Vanyel chuckled softly as she apologized, leading him to gently ruffle her hair. Given that it was still in the house, she didn't seem to have any malicious intent behind it. Plus, it was a plushie, and...girls tended to like cute things, so, it wasn't really a big surprise that she wanted it. He doubted she was gonna run off with it, so, he wasn't too averse to letting her have it for now.

"It's okay. I mean, a lot of people probably would find it weird, and I know at least one of my old friends would never let me hear the end of it, if they found out. And, I mean, you didn't throw it away or anything, so, it's not a big deal."

He smiled as she picked up the toy, eventually cradling it to her chest again, but, his expression turned to one of surprise as she asked about his mom. The topic never really came up often, even outside of their friendship, so, he was a bit taken aback at her showing interest. Plus, he hadn't seen his mom in a long, long time -- he didn't even know if she knew he was still alive, and vice versa.

"She taught me a lot of what I know about martial arts today, and was...really the only parental figure I had growing up. While taking care of me, she taught a lot of other students, too. She's probably one of the best martial artists in China. Don't know if she's still doing that, though. It's...been a long time since I saw her."

98% of this post was done in Discord...

Violet watched him as he talked about his Mom. The two of them had very different feelings about their parents, or at least about their moms; Violet could tell that just by his tone. Violet hated hers and if she ever spoke about it, that’d come off clear very quickly. Laying back down on her side, Violet kept a firm hug on the plushy. It was hers for now, sorta… maybe. He gave it back, so… His fault.

“Why has it been so long?” she asked curiously.

"I...I ran away from home. It's how I ended up here in the first place."

He gestured to the room, but more to the home itself. He had stayed in this place since he first started living there. It wasn't the biggest place in the world, but it fit everything he needed. Basic necessities, a decently sized kitchen and common space, and a bed that, although it was able to fit two, never had more than one occupant.

Violet perked up at the mention of running away. "Me too... sorta. I was sent to the City of Lights to live with my Aunt, but I... Well, I didn't make it. Anyways, why did you run away from home? Did your Mom hate you?"

"No...at least, I don't think she did. My dad was never around. I don't even remember what he looked like. But...at first, it was fine, but, eventually Mom got...harsher with me. Practice was longer, mistakes were more...severely punished. She always was upset that dad was never around, even though he was sending money and shit to support us..."

Instinctively, Vanyel's arms started to wrap around himself at the memory, becoming more antsy as he thought back to it.

"I never understood...why did she hate him more than she loved me?"

There was so much going through Violet's mind, but even with those unanswered questions she wanted to let out, she couldn't take her eyes off him. She reached out and tugged on his sleeve. She struggled getting the words out, but she kept trying. "I'm sorry... I don't think it's your fault though... Mom's just do that... It's normal to get mad at your kid when your husband doesn't like them either... It's just the way things are..." That's how it was for Violet, at least...

As she tugged on his sleeve, Vanyel slowly turned to face her, before turning back forward.

"No...it doesn't make sense. Dad always sent money to make sure we didn't end up on the street, but...why wasn't he there, then?! She didn't do any of it before he left...I-I don't think so, at least..."

Violet withdrew, scooting back on the bed. "Sorry... I'm not smart enough for something like this... I don't know how to help."

His head immediately turned at hearing that, slowly reaching to her.

"No, no, that's not it...I just...started rambling. I'm sorry. What about you? Why'd you run away?"

Violet pressed her cheek into the plushy. "My Dad didn't leave... but he hated me so much and so did Mom. I was supposed to go live with... I already mentioned that, but I barely knew her and she is my Mom's sister, so... I..." Violet whimpered, looking away from Vanyel. "I'm sorry... I... finally met my Aunt... and I was wrong about her. She's the one who found me and brought me back... from... you know... that place."

Upon hearing the words "that place," Vanyel froze up instantly. But, as he heard her whimpering, he slowly tried to move a bit closer. If she allowed it, a gentle hand was placed on her shoulder.

"You thought she'd be like your parents, didn't you? But...I'm guessin' she wasn't?"

Violet leaned her head the opposite way, a puffed out cheek sandwiching his hand between it and her shoulder. "No, she was nice... She found me somehow... I don't even know how, but it is because of her I am not still with them..." Violet looked up to Vanyel and scooted back, taking up one side of the bed, patting the side closest to him. "You... wanna lay your head down too?" He had mentioned wanting to nap, so... Violet blushed deeply, but she kept eye contact with him.

That was good. It was good that she had found family that she could rely on -- even if it wasn't from where it should come from first. Maybe this aunt of hers could help her with the other issues that she had, ones that...he couldn't help with. As she patted the side of the bed, he chuckled softly. "I was gonna take a nap after unloadin' the groceries, but...now it's around lunchtime, and I'm sure you're gettin' hungry. You wanna come and help me with it?"

'No, I want you to lay down so we can keep talking without hurting my neck...'

"Okay, that sounds good," Violet said as she moved to get up, an arm still keeping the plushy close. She was hiding any remaining pain well, but it wasn't non-existent.

A hand went to her shoulder again, a look of concern coming to his face. "Are you sure? If you don't want to, it's okay. Hell, we can push it back a bit if you want, too."

Violet stopped moving when his hand touched her shoulder. It wasn't in a startled way, but as if he had just stopped her from continuing what she was doing. "I'm... not hungry yet... Besides, you never tell me this kind of stuff about you. I guess, I don't ask often... Sorry about that..."

Vanyel smiled, reaching up to gently ruffle her hair. "That's okay, and, we don't gotta eat just yet. So...you wanna learn more about me, then?"

Violet smiled, her blush continuing as she nodded. "I am sleeping in your bed, and you're my roommate. We should know about each other, right?"

Vanyel chucked softly, easing himself down and resting his cheek on his hand, propped up by his elbow. "Fair 'nuff. I'll try and answer just about anythin' you wanna know. Don't really have a whole lotta big secrets, so, shoot. And...you don't gotta answer stuff I might ask out of obligation, y'know."

Suddenly, Violet was hiding her face behind his plushy, one eye visible and watching him. "I... agree, I think. Sorry... I, um..."

'He's... very close...'

"Uh," Violet cleared her throat, but did not come out from hiding. "So, did your interest in dragons come from your Mom making this?" Her only visible eye glanced down to the captured plushy.

Vanyel blinked a few times, concerned. "Am...I too close or somethin'?"

Regardless of the answer, he inched back a little bit, but, the question made a new sense of life come to his face as an almost child-like smile came to his face.

"Actually, the plush came after. One of the few things I actually kept from my dad was...a copy of A Journey to the West."

"You're fine... You didn't have to move..."

Violet brought her face out from behind the plush. For a few moments after he answered, she was just staring at him, not breaking eye contact.

"I... didn't read that book... How are your eyes that color?"

She said that, but given that she finally brought her face out from behind the plush, he definitely was either too close, or some other problem that he wasn't aware of. Then, there was the question about his eyes. He blinked a few times, his free hand slowly raising to gently touch under them as he thought about it. Did his eyes look that strange? Sure, they were different than conventional Chinese, but, he hadn't really thought of them as anything particularly extraordinary.

"Uh...what do you mean? I don't have special contacts or anything, they just...are that way."

"So... they're real?" Violet blinked in surprise. "They're just... kinda... I don't know... nice? Rare... Like your hair until I caught you bleaching it." Violet playfully stuck out her tongue. "Why do you bleach it?"

"Well...yeah? I'm not doin' anything to 'em, so...they're about as real as real can get."

...Wait, she'd seen him bleaching his hair? When? How had he not seen or heard her? Vanyel opened his mouth to speak, before his free hand rose up to to rub the side of his neck.

"...Mmm, it's not really easy to explain. I ended up doing it when I was in my teens, and it sorta just...stuck."

Violet raised up from the bed, getting closer to Vanyel and looking into his eyes. "I'm jealous... They're beautiful."

Violet tilted her head. "Your face is red and you're leaning away from me. Am I too close this time?" Regardless of the answer, she returned to her previous position. "Now ask me a question; it's only fair."

"J-Just a bit, yeah." As Violet returned to her prior position, Vanyel would as well. Eventually, his expression shifted to a quizzical one as he tried to think of a question.

"Hmm...what show did you get the scythe idea from?"

Violet blinked and then smiled. "The Walking Dead. There is this scene where this badass one-swing-kills this zombie when it's trying to eat this other chick... Went clean through!"

Vanyel's brow furrowed at the origin. "There are scythes in that show? I thought the most it deviated from guns was like...a katana and a crossbow."

Violet nodded with a little excitement. "Only one. It's toward the beginning... Only one scene, but it left an impact, I guess." Violet rolled over on her stomach and raised her feet in the air, slowly rocking them back and forth. "So, what are your powers like? I know you did something to my food to make me feel better, but I don't understand it."

His face flushed a bit as he went back to rubbing the side of his neck. "Well, they're not really fully developed yet, but, I've been trying to use Mediumship to impart energy into things I cook, or just food in general, and give them healing properties."

Violet tilted her head. "Was that bad to ask?" She stopped rocking her feet back and forth and went back to laying flat. "Sorry..."

"N-No, no, I just...I don't really get the chance to talk about this stuff often." He reached out with a hand, gently rubbing her shoulder. "Most of how I've talked about it has just been...a lot of analyzing and whatnot. People never really asked about them like that."

Violet narrowed her eyes in curiosity for only a moment and then looked to his hand... and then back to him. "Why not?" she asked, referring to his not talking about it "like that" before.

"People just aren't really interested in hearing about it, I guess." He shrugged as best he could with one arm. "Then again, I get really into detail about the whole thing, so..."

"Mediumship..." she repeated the word like she was sounding out something from a new language. "Dad tried to teach me that, but I am not very good at learning things. Hey, how come you agreed to teach me when I asked?"

"He tried to teach you Mediumship? I thought you were a Quincy?" His brow furrowed in confusion, but was quick to change to one more of wistfulness. "Well...I saw you were trying to train, and, I thought I might be able to help. I'm still a bit new to the whole teaching thing, but, teaching someone in Gracen Arms made me more open to the idea."

"I am! I think... Who knows? I'm horrible at all that, so maybe I'm wrong, but Dad tried to teach me everything..."

Violet seemed deep in thought for a moment, staring at the sheets of the bed, brow furrowed.

"Well... thanks for trying." she said with a saddened smile.

Vanyel reached up to pat her on the head, smiling softly.

"Vi, there aren't any bad students. Just bad teachers. If you're not gettin' it, that just means you haven't had a good enough teacher yet. You're doin' amazing with martial arts. I can only help so much with your Quincy stuff, but, maybe your aunt could help you out."

Violet closed her eyes, her smile continuing as her head was pat. She noticed he did that a lot...

"Maybe..." she looked back up to him and reached out to ruffle his hair, copying the many times he had done it to her since they met. "I don't think I'm that good though; you're very far beyond anything I ever hope to reach." Truth be told, Violet wasn't much of a fighter in the sense of close quarters combat. Her instincts were all off, something Vanyel would have realized while helping her.

He didn't like that he was being used as a metric for success, especially for someone who was still learning. She was progressing at a good rate, far more than usual students would, and that was not something to sneeze at. It was something she had every right to take pride in. But, at the same time, he had noticed that even with her steady progress, close combat didn't really seem to be her forte.

Quincy, from what he understood, were known for being ranged fighters, using bows, guns, and other various means to accomplish that. While he wasn't an expert on the matter, he was very well-versed in firearms at the least. He had mentioned image training when he first met her, so, perhaps he'd have to get her licensed and see how she'd fare in that department.

But, with how long their little chat had gone on, he figured that Violet was bound to be more hungry now. So, Vanyel slowly began to sit up, offering a hand to her if she needed it.

"Lunch sound good now? If you're up for it, you can help me make it. Plus, we could both use a drink after all that."

Violet was a little lost in thought until he started moving. Everything she felt in this moment was unfamiliar; she couldn’t even define it. Her eyes shifted back up to him once he was sitting up. She followed suit, reaching out to take his hand and being helped up. “Uh, yes, please. I’ll try,” Violet said, mind still lost on another issue. She followed him to the kitchen, taking the steps slow to prevent pain.

In the kitchen, Violet stood back and watched first, unsure of how to help. She wasn’t exactly a cook, no one ever taught her how. She could boil water, though one time she forgot, boiled the pot dry, and then burnt through the bottom. It was an old, thin pot, but that was still impressive. “So… how will I be able to help?”

As Violet took his hand and he helped her up, Vanyel was careful, staying near in case she needed to lean on him. But, thankfully, she'd been recovering pretty well. As they stepped into the kitchen, Vanyel turned around to face her, a smile on his face. Even if he hadn't been playing the martial arts teacher role for very long, teaching Senna had warmed him up to the idea as a whole. Since it now was about one of his other biggest passions, he couldn't help but smile and be excited.

"Anythin' in particular you wanna have? Name it, and I can probably make it."

“I suck at cooking… I can clean just fine though,” Violet said and then walked over to the fridge to see what they had. She wasn’t sure exactly what he had, and they were in a different country, so she didn’t know what a lot of the meals here were. “I… Hm…” Violet rubbed the back of her head. She would ask for something like French toast… but was that something that he even knew how to make? “Um…” Violet continued looking, but the longer she took, the more worried she got about it. “Do… Do you… Uh… Just toast is fine.” She gave up, not wanting to annoy him.

She sucked at cooking? Well, it wasn't something that anyone could really be good at overnight. Hell, it took him most of his life to get to where he was now, and he sure didn't make anything particularly tasty when he was starting out. But, seeing her struggle made him worried. Maybe he shouldn't have said "probably." As she gave up, Vanyel gently ruffled her hair.

"I'm not just makin' toast for you. Need more to eat than that. Listen, Vi, even if it's somethin' that we don't got ingredients for, I can make a quick run to the store again. No big deal. Anythin' you wanna eat, don't care what it is, let me know. Even if I don't know it, I can always look up a recipe and we can learn together."

“That’s… really nice…” Violet’s cheeks reddened for a moment. He was too nice to her sometimes. She didn’t deserve it. “Well, do you know what French toast is?” Violet asked, but she was a native Texan, so she wouldn’t just assume he knew. Besides, a lot of the cuisine in the City of Light was Asian, at least in the area that she was living in. That city was too huge to explore the rest. Violet opened the fridge again, looking to see if they had eggs. “I had it once and loved it, so Mom never made it again,” Violet said in somewhat of a slip of the tongue about her past.

French toast? That was definitely doable. Vanyel smiled, nodded, and leaned down to look into the fridge. He knew he had just bought eggs, where had he put them again...? He looked around, before finally finding them and carefully pulling the carton out. Just as he set them on the counter, he heard the snippet about her past. Wait, she enjoyed it, then it was never made again? Had he heard that right?

That...didn't have a whole lot of possible answers, just from that phrasing alone, and none of them were ones he liked. Turned to the counter and looking down at the carton, he slowly opened it, checking if any of the eggshells were broken, before rummaging through the cabinets for a pan. He wasn't going to comment on it, at least not now.

"Okay, so, French toast is really easy. Takes two eggs, some milk, some vanilla extract, and some cinnamon-sugar mix. Well, and the bread too, obviously."

Setting out the other required ingredients, a couple bowls, the tools for the job, before finally washing his hands, Vanyel turned to Violet with an uncharacteristic smile on his face. It wasn't often he was so excited for something.

"Ready? I'll guide you, but, I want you to get a feel for the process, alright?"