Hina scene
Nov. 24th, 2014 09:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
akinoameHad this idea in my head. I'm hoping I can use it someday, but it's too pretty not to share.
"What if he never made it back from Africa?" Ankh asked.
"How can you say that?" Hina challenged. "Don't you realize how close it's come to him dying, over and over?"
Ankh didn't stop, asking, "Or what if he never went at all? What if I never escaped the seal?"
She shook her head. "I don't..."
"You understand," he argued. "If he never became OOO. If you never met us. Can you honestly say your life wouldn't be happier that way?"
Her first instinct was to argue, but deep down, she knew he had a point. The Greeed would never escape and attack. Dr. Maki probably would never have the means to try to bring about the end of the world. There would be threats, of course, but they would easily be handled by other Riders the way they always were.
As for her life? It was terrifying how easy it was to picture. Shingo would never have been hurt and would have remained her loving, protective older brother. She would never have had to worry about trying to save him, and she would have made her apprenticeship in France far earlier, possibly even be a designer by now.
There would be no reason to mourn a boy who'd died trying to save a little girl in a war-torn African village. Hina would never have known Eiji and thus would never miss him. There would be no reason to grieve over a pile of Medals that never had truly lived and thus never would have truly died. There would be no fights, no questions of who was going to betray who, no nights spent awake and crying because there was no way to have them both and her brother, all at the same time. No heartbreak, no pain.
"No," she finally said.
Ankh raised an eyebrow. "No?"
"No," she re-emphasized. "Things would be easier, but I wouldn't appreciate that happiness the way I can now. Eiji taught me that because life is harsh and sad, we need to enjoy the good in it as fully as we can. And you taught me that you can't understand what something's like unless you experience it for yourself, so there's no use in thinking of what-ifs."
She had to wonder if her brother had some control right now, because Ankh so rarely smiled genuinely. But there it was, for a brief moment, right on his face.
"Good," he answered. "That's just the answer I was hoping for."
"What if he never made it back from Africa?" Ankh asked.
"How can you say that?" Hina challenged. "Don't you realize how close it's come to him dying, over and over?"
Ankh didn't stop, asking, "Or what if he never went at all? What if I never escaped the seal?"
She shook her head. "I don't..."
"You understand," he argued. "If he never became OOO. If you never met us. Can you honestly say your life wouldn't be happier that way?"
Her first instinct was to argue, but deep down, she knew he had a point. The Greeed would never escape and attack. Dr. Maki probably would never have the means to try to bring about the end of the world. There would be threats, of course, but they would easily be handled by other Riders the way they always were.
As for her life? It was terrifying how easy it was to picture. Shingo would never have been hurt and would have remained her loving, protective older brother. She would never have had to worry about trying to save him, and she would have made her apprenticeship in France far earlier, possibly even be a designer by now.
There would be no reason to mourn a boy who'd died trying to save a little girl in a war-torn African village. Hina would never have known Eiji and thus would never miss him. There would be no reason to grieve over a pile of Medals that never had truly lived and thus never would have truly died. There would be no fights, no questions of who was going to betray who, no nights spent awake and crying because there was no way to have them both and her brother, all at the same time. No heartbreak, no pain.
"No," she finally said.
Ankh raised an eyebrow. "No?"
"No," she re-emphasized. "Things would be easier, but I wouldn't appreciate that happiness the way I can now. Eiji taught me that because life is harsh and sad, we need to enjoy the good in it as fully as we can. And you taught me that you can't understand what something's like unless you experience it for yourself, so there's no use in thinking of what-ifs."
She had to wonder if her brother had some control right now, because Ankh so rarely smiled genuinely. But there it was, for a brief moment, right on his face.
"Good," he answered. "That's just the answer I was hoping for."