Trip liked this new Sei. A Sei that had never changed had still been a unique existence in a world of sameness, a face among the blurs of faceless he'd had to be trained to see as people, but things that could change were things that could lead to infinite possibilities. Trip might have had wants, intents of his own, but letting things happen and watching them unfold could be just as fascinating.
Virus and Trip had themselves been leashes, but they hadn't been the hand at the other end. Sei hadn't been the only one freed by the destruction of Oval Tower.
Trip took his hands back and cupped Sei's face with them instead, catching that doll-like visage between callused palms to better admire it, to take in the faint spots of color in Sei's cheeks and the sparks of animation in dark eyes no longer dead. Beautiful, Trip thought, as one might of any other priceless treasure broken out of the vault where it had been forever protected but unadmired.
"I'm really not mad," he mirrored the words, the surest way to counter Sei's doubts. "You managed to do something that no one ever saw coming, not even me or Virus. That's pretty amazing."
And they had been children once, growing up together. Not in the way that normal children did, and of the three of them only Virus had succeeded at growing up all the way, but even Trip could have moments where he was utterly harmless. With Sei's face in the rough cradle of his hands, Trip bent down and pressed a short kiss to his hair, affection from an empty heart.
"You didn't ruin anything, Sei. You just started a whole new story, that's all."
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branchandroot
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Date: 2020-06-25 03:08 am (UTC)Virus and Trip had themselves been leashes, but they hadn't been the hand at the other end. Sei hadn't been the only one freed by the destruction of Oval Tower.
Trip took his hands back and cupped Sei's face with them instead, catching that doll-like visage between callused palms to better admire it, to take in the faint spots of color in Sei's cheeks and the sparks of animation in dark eyes no longer dead. Beautiful, Trip thought, as one might of any other priceless treasure broken out of the vault where it had been forever protected but unadmired.
"I'm really not mad," he mirrored the words, the surest way to counter Sei's doubts. "You managed to do something that no one ever saw coming, not even me or Virus. That's pretty amazing."
And they had been children once, growing up together. Not in the way that normal children did, and of the three of them only Virus had succeeded at growing up all the way, but even Trip could have moments where he was utterly harmless. With Sei's face in the rough cradle of his hands, Trip bent down and pressed a short kiss to his hair, affection from an empty heart.
"You didn't ruin anything, Sei. You just started a whole new story, that's all."