Oh, he feels that sharp, choking flash of fear from Shen Jiye, and only a fraction of a second later absorbs both its reason and the fear itself. And as his did reaches out for Taylor mei he joins him, the span of only fractions of a second enough to tell himself, over and over and, that he would have felt her loss, known if she were gone, even as the fear that this time he might not almost chokes him.
And then she's there, her mind blooming open like a flower turned to the sun, bright and warm and alive, and full of hope and joy that he can't help but echo back to her at her news. He has nothing to offer but love and pride and happiness for her second graduation, and the touch of his mind against them both is in every way but the physical a strong, warm embrace. He doesn't have to tell either of them how unreservedly happy he is for her, and so he just lets them feel it.
The fear melts into hope and warmth as well as he smiles in his nest of odds and ends. He returns the feel of that warm hug from his gege, a soft and light brush of fingers tugging on braids over the hope he's the nest to find this happiness, and then focuses back on T.
I'm so happy for you, meimei. Are you... do you want to come to the Greenhouse? We've been busy.
Not at the moment, but I will be there soon, if you wish. He absolutely wants to join them, but he wants to give didi time to share all he's done to care for her bugs while she couldn't first.
He felt her coming, the light taste of her mind against his, but even so there's a slight tensing to his shoulders that he manages to dismiss shortly. Then he turns a little to hug her back, the small deep spider sitting on a loop of his braids making a little click sound like a lady sniffing at inappropriate behavior.
The moths don't scatter completely, only lazily move to sit on his braid. Scraps does disturb his gu though, which sticks its head out from under the fold of his shirt and makes a tiny screeching sound.
"Is she a sign of you accepting pieces of yourself including the bad parts?"
Taylor laughs, the sound easy. Younger than she usually sounds.
"Palismen need to know what you want in your life. Which means I needed to realize what I want.
"Hunter and I were talking about my feelings for Rags. Rags decided he's not staying on his world, which means I'm not going to his world. I was mad. Because I wanted to go fight that war."
"And what you want isn't something that you think you want, at least not deep down."
He reached up to give the palismen a skritch under her chin. "I can understand it if you were going to help, but not if you were going just to fight. There is a difference."
"Yeah. I was angry at Rags because I didn't just want to make sure he was safe, I wanted to go win another war. And I don't... I don't think that's me. I want to make sure it's not."
"It's not you, at least not the you I can feel inside," he replied softly, giving her a tiny little smile. "Please tell me you didn't go yelling t him about it."
"Stuck with it, but I think it's also better for you. Meimei, fighting forever isn't always an answer." And he makes a face, waving a hand at the scattering of moths as they drift over. "Not that I'm the best person to speak on this."
"There's no question it's better for me." But she doesn't quite keep the sourness out of it. "He's setting up a home for us in Kamurocho instead. Japan, Earth. We'll live near Dad.
"Not like there won't be fighting there - I mean, you've met Dad - but not the sort I've gotten used to."
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Re: little mental poke after pairings 9/16
And then she's there, her mind blooming open like a flower turned to the sun, bright and warm and alive, and full of hope and joy that he can't help but echo back to her at her news. He has nothing to offer but love and pride and happiness for her second graduation, and the touch of his mind against them both is in every way but the physical a strong, warm embrace. He doesn't have to tell either of them how unreservedly happy he is for her, and so he just lets them feel it.
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I'm so happy for you, meimei. Are you... do you want to come to the Greenhouse? We've been busy.
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And she is, in just a few minutes, running light-footed with Scraps at her heels. She all but sprints to hug him, arms tight around her brother.
The Greenhouse isn't hers anymore, and it's not been easy for her to come, but that's miles away from her mind right now.
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"Meimei, and is this your Scraps?"
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"Scraps, meet Didi. Shen Jiye, my brother."
The ferretipede elongates, leaning far out from Taylor's hands to sniff at him, and chirps. Another magic man?
Taylor glances down at her, brows raised. "She says you smell like... dreams?"
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"Dreams? I suppose I do have some of that skill in my fingers. Can she sense our abilities?"
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He holds out his hand for Scraps, eyebrows raised to see what she would do even as a few dull blue moths came to settle on his shoulder.
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"Something I've very glad of.
"From something Hunter showed me, I think I actually graduated the moment she woke," she says, more softly.
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"Is she a sign of you accepting pieces of yourself including the bad parts?"
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"Palismen need to know what you want in your life. Which means I needed to realize what I want.
"Hunter and I were talking about my feelings for Rags. Rags decided he's not staying on his world, which means I'm not going to his world. I was mad. Because I wanted to go fight that war."
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He reached up to give the palismen a skritch under her chin. "I can understand it if you were going to help, but not if you were going just to fight. There is a difference."
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"Not like there won't be fighting there - I mean, you've met Dad - but not the sort I've gotten used to."
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"I know. And I know how hard it is to stick to."