Scene #2185: Change and Sacrifice

Owner	Pose
Serori	Castlevania is sprawling beast of an abode, offering more than a few labyrinths and obstacles to waylay any would-be hero. Between its insensible construction, its numerous horrible natives, and its unholy aberrance, Castlevania could be rightly called a 'nightmare.' To Serori, it's home sweet home. Because the nightmare awful for a stranger to navigate, however, Serori's opted to save Gohan the challenge of finding her personal quarters. Serori awaits him in the dismal courtyard, not at all minding the baleful eyes of the surrounding gargoyles. The yellow t-shirt she wears stands out against all the cold iron and gray stone as a bizarre juxtaposition. At least her gi pants and sandals are more sensible and reserved.
Gohan	The summons to Castlevania by Serori immediately sends gears turning in Gohan's head. He hadn't been thinking of Serori lately. Trying to push her out of his mind and move on. As he's flying to the offered location, the change in him is apparent. He's not dressed in his Saiyan attire. Instead, he's dressed in a blue dress shirt, black slacks, and black shoes. His sword rests in a plain sheath on his waist, and a simple aegis-style shield is slung across his back. His ki aura races around him, causing him to leave a blue streak in his wake. It takes him very little time to reach Serori's location, and as he lands, he glances around the area. "Hello, Colonel," he says, his voice bland. He offers a small incline of his head, then smirks a little. "So this is where you're staying these days, huh?" he asks, crossing his arms. "Nice digs." He draws himself to full height, keeping his arms crossed. "I'm guessing you want to keep this brief. I know you're still under a lot of pressure."
Serori	He's withdrawn. He has good reason, she knows. That doesn't make the sudden change easier to bear. The last time they'd spoken -- "The last time we spoke, I wasn't very fair to you." Serori's voice takes on a low, controlled quality; what emotion is present isn't very strong. An effort's being made to keep anything she's feeling below the surface, where Gohan can't read it and guess at her intentions. "I didn't just refuse to hear you. I assaulted you. I beat you down, punished you, and refused to listen to you. Some of my wrath might have been deserved, but not all of it." While it's not easy to determine what's gotten her hard, direct stare so stormy, or to put a description to her colorless voice, the tension in her posture is still discernable. Serori's hands hang down by her thighs balled up into tight fists. She's standing at her tallest, her head back, and not just because she's trying to meet his gaze. "I want to apologize for the way I treated you that day." Serori's shoulders come up as she takes a quick breath. "I am sorry for putting my needs ahead of your own."
Gohan	Gohan shakes his head subtley. This wasn't what he expected at all, and that makes things a little different than he thought they'd be. However, he shakes his head. "It doesn't matter now, Serori," he says. Like her, he keeps emotion out of his tone. He needs to maintain his heading, to keep focus on what he wants to do. "I deserved what I got. I was acting childish. You had a point. Yes, what you said hurt. The fact that it felt like you were shoving me so far away? It hurt like hell. But you don't need to apologize. I deserved it. Things can't always remain the same, and that goes for everything. This is where we are. The question is what happens next. The past is the past, and that includes what happened last time we talked." He offers a small smile, reading her tension and attempting slightly to break it. At the same time, it's a rather wan smile. "I guess I have to apologize as well," he says, sighing. "I was just as selfish as you claim to be. Thinking only of myself, knowing the pressure you're under with Reptilon and Kakarot. So, you have my apologies for that. Adding to your workload is no way to treat a friend."
Serori	Some kind of small, frustrated sound makes its way between the hard line her lips have set. Serori looks away from him to look at a gargoyle for what seems like too long a time. The statue can't be that interesting, can it? "It's..." The saiyan huffs. Despite her efforts, her resolve is starting to crack. "...it's not an excuse. Yes, I'm -- I'm burdened. I find it hard to kill my own people, harder than I thought I would considering the kind of upbringing I had. I guess, after Vegeta showed up with his own saiyans, I had a hope that Kakarot's Neo Saiyans would be just as good for my goals." Serori's eyes flick back to his. "The blood on my hands right now is blood I never wanted to spill. Saiyan life is important to me now, more important than I realized. I have the beginnings of a realized dream. Now it's in danger, and I -- " The strength in her voice falters. Tail lashing at the air in an expression of discomfort, eyes again slanted down and to the side, Serori pushes forward with an admittance she'd make to very few. " -- I am afraid. And the fear makes me stupid. It makes me blind." A quick jerk of her head flicks the wild hair from her vision. Serori's looking at him again, glaring again. "So I was an idiot. We can both agree to it. You have always been my friend, you have always been important to me, and I, in a fit of idiocy, forgot about it." It's not like Serori to be so self-deprecating! Either her guilt is consuming, or she's furious with herself over her own behavior. Maybe it's a bit of both? If he tries to cut in and say something, she cuts him off with a sharp gesture. "I need to finish saying all this. Please, just -- wait a minute more." Another deep breath. Serori plunges forward, looking and perhaps feeling like she's diving into icy water. "Do you remember the promise we made each other a long time ago? That we'd always watch out for each other, and keep one another on -- on the right path? Something like that. It was back before I'd decided to give up any interest in the Union, and way before I dedicated myself to the Confederacy. We promised each other that we would be better than Vegeta, and that we would help each other stay strong in the face of his tyranny." "I want -- " Serori stops again; again, she looks away from him, and again, her stance changes. Fists uncoiling, tail wrapping around her waist, arms folding across her chest, she takes up a pose that's almost vulnerable. "I want to make good on my promise. You deserve it. I want to do what's right for you, because you're a saiyan, and what's right for you is right for the society I want to build. So, I'm here to give you what you asked for, last time. My -- blessing. My permission? Whatever you need from me, take it, go, and...do what you need to do to be the man that makes you happy." Serori's shoulders hunch a bit tighter, somehow. "Your ideals have shifted. You want to be noble? Go be noble. You want to -- you want to stop fighting, become a scholar? You can do that, too. Just -- go out there, pursue your dreams, and know that our friendship isn't going to change just because you're not /here/ anymore." "You can't stay in the Confederacy as you are. It's ripping you apart. I'm not going to be the one to keep you here for stupid reasons. Please, go. If -- you come back, great. If not, I won't hate you." She shuts up finally, but she's incapable of looking at him.
Gohan	Gohan blinks at the frustrated noise from Serori, then waits as she looks away from him. He can't figure out what has her in such a state, but clearly something is building inside her, and that causes the wall of stone that he has tried to keep up crumble slightly. He takes a step forward, wanting to do what comes naturally to him and hug her, let her know that it's going to be okay, but he stops. The surroundings, and their current states, make it seem inappropriate. He stops short, dropping his arms to his side instead. He listens silently, letting her speak uninterrupted. He nods a little, understanding that she doesn't like fighting a war with Saiyans. It made sense. They were her people, even if they were against her. They were his people in part as well, and he didn't forget that, but his current mental battle with self-identity allowed him a bit of distance. When she admits she's afraid, he blinks. She never showed fear. Always trying to hide it. And now, she was opening up to him about that fear? He smiles sadly. However, at her urging, he doesn't say a word. It's when she plunges into the promise they made so long ago, right after he had enacted revenge against Vegeta, that he cracks completely. The wall comes tumbling down, and despite everything he steps forward. It's a tentative gesture, but he reaches out and places his arms around her. It's light enough for her to step away, and it's not an intimate contact, but rather one of... there's a lot of emotions within it. Guilt. Sadness. Understand. He couldn't convey it all in such a simple way. The words she says hit him like an avalanche, and his eyes close. When he finally speaks, his voice in surprisingly steady. "You still remember that? I thought... it had been forgotten, when you devoted yourself to the Confederacy and soaked yourself in a path that we had never intended to follow. And yet, here you are, trying to make good on it. After I failed you in that regard? After I let you down? I..." His voice cracks, and he keeps his eyes closed. It's a good thing she's not looking at him. "What I want... is for you to be happy. That's always been my motivation. When all this started breaking apart, I had remorse for the things I had done, not only because of my nature, but because I felt like I failed in that desire. That's why I gave back Namamura. It hurt me to look at it and know I had stolen a girl's home, but it was also a symbol of my shame, for failing you." He blinks as he opens his eyes. "Don't feel tied to that promise anymore, okay?" he says, "You've always done right by me, and I... I didn't reciprocate as much as I needed to. I let you down, but maybe there's still hope. I want you to be happy. When that's done, and you can prove to me you are happy, no matter what that entails, I will seek my next path. I... Can still do certain things to make that transition easier, but I won't let you down again. It's not fair for you to be the only one to carry on with the fevered promise of a bygone age." "Let's finish what needs to be done with Reptilon and the Neo-Saiyans. I will support you however I need to in this, because I am your friend, even if I'm not a very good one sometimes." His smile turns wan again. "Maybe there's still some hope for the Neo-Saiyans if we can eliminate Kakarot."
Serori	His insistence on her own happiness makes her bristly. Though she doesn't embarrass him by pulling away, Serori does make another more obvious sound of frustration. "I /am/ happy, Gohan -- or at least, I'm not miserable. I don't know if it's the same thing. Whatever I am, I am /driven/. I have ambitions to pursue, I am satisfied by the Confederacy, I've grown enough of a pair to admit I can feel something /real/ for another person -- something not just /decided/ by physiology -- and my dreams are in arm's reach. Yes, I've made mistakes along the way, and yes, I've been selfish. I've become complacent. I earned my station, yet I've done nothing to prove I still deserve it." Serori pushes back a bit to knuckle at her eyes. "That's stopping tonight." She sounds resolute. Firm. "My happiness is not yours to protect. You /have/ to stop putting me ahead of yourself. All I've done for you is given you reason to doubt yourself. I've led you into battles you never wanted to fight. I pushed you to take Nakamura, and never rewarded you; I took you for granted. I've taken a great deal for granted, and I'm not going to do it anymore!" Serori steps back yet more until she's free of his embrace. Squaring her shoulders, she looks up at him, and meets his eyes with another of her hard, unforgiving stares. "My health and happiness are not your responsibility any longer. I was never supposed to be your reason for anything. I am supposed to be your friend, and as your friend, I am telling you that your foolishness ends tonight." Serori's frown deepens. "Making the transition 'easier' isn't your business, either. Tonight, you become a free man. Your own dreams become your priority. Your quest to find your place is your next mission. As I said, you will be welcome here at any time, and I will continue to do you the honor of considering you and treating you as my friend, but until you decide that the Confederacy /is/ your intended place -- until you decide the Saiyan Empire is where you want your power to reside -- the nature of our partnership /must/ change." She tosses her head again, to flick the hair from her eyes, but also to dismiss his doubts. "Who are you without me to define you, /Son Gohan/? Come back and tell me once you've figured it out." Smirk. "We can still crush Neo Saiyans together no matter what uniform you're wearing."
Gohan	Gohan smirks. It's a simple gesture, but one that speaks volumes. "That's all I needed to hear," Gohan says, before straightening up and dropping his arms to his sides again. "Don't you get it? That was it. I needed to be sure you are fully committed and pleased with your path. If that's the case, then you're right. This is not my place anymore. You have to do the rest, and... well, maybe I've done something to help, but even if I haven't at least it's achieved." He crosses his arms, straightening up to his full height again. "You have proven time and again that you deserve your place, Serori. People act on your orders without question, and they do it out of respect of your vision, not just because of rank." Gohan draws the shield from his back, slipping it onto his arm. "I... never have truly been free, not in my own mind. But there is nothing left to hold me back now. You have chosen your path. Mine... it's shaky. I don't know that I want to leave the Confederacy. Maybe I can follow my heart without having to leave. I don't know yet." He draws his sword. "This... these tools are part of my path, though," he says, hefting the weight of the armaments with ease. "If not physically, then definitely symbolically. I cannot deny that I am a warrior. The time for me to sit on the sidelines is over, and I can't just deny my power. But what manner of warrior will I be? I don't know yet." He's saying that a lot, huh? He smirks. "When I find the path, you won't be the last to know it. It's good to know that you'd support the decision I will have to make in the coming days." He sheathes his blade. "Maybe you weren't supposed to be my reason, but you were. That's a part of our history that I cherish, but it's just that. Feelings will always linger, but they're justified by you saying you're happy, or at least trying." He steps back, allowing his aura to whip around him. "By the way, though..." He smirks. "We're crushing Kakarot. Regardless of what they're doing now, I will keep my spark of hope alive that the Neo-Saiyans can be redeemed. That holds true for many things as well, but I won't bore you with any of that." He reaches out his shielded hand, an offer of a handshake. "Unless there are other matters to discuss, I won't linger around. I know that you have other matters to attend to, and you know that if you need my aid, you have it. So just say the word."
Serori	"A-ah...n-no. That's all I needed to talk about." Serori's smirk falters; she looks away from him. It takes her another moment's struggle to firm her voice. "Thank you. I'll let you know the plan for Kakarot once Rex relays his strategy." The handshake she returns is strong; the look returning to him isn't. "I'll see you later, Gohan. Thank you for coming, and for your understanding." The radiant aura wreathing his figure reflects brightly in the wetness stinging her black eyes. Proud to the last, she doesn't share either her conflict, or her grief. Rather than let Gohan see any further tears spilled, she turns away to start to walk back into Castlevania's interior. It's only after she hears him take off that her prowling, confident stride slows to an uncertain trudge. It's only after the heavy doors close the courtyard from view that she sinks into a low crouch, wraps her arms around her legs, and hides her face. Crying doesn't come easy to Serori. Saiyans tend to internalize their grief, so when it becomes fierce enough to break the surface, it's an almost overwhelming thing. It'll take awhile for her sobs to end, and for her sorrow to shift into a more familiar sort of controlled ache. Gohan...