Techniques of the Three Year-old Heart [Kiyr]

[Kyrie Blaze]

"Everything."

It was a simple, yet oh-so-complex answer that was delivered with a measured blink. It encompassed endless possibilities. Not just facts. But all the paths that one simple thing could fragment into and how it was connected to the whole and where and why. It wasn't just limited to the Crows or Delilah, but held out its hand for so much more. And that one word summed it all up in the most simple of ways.

And true to her word, she would ask questions. Kyrie would not squander an opportunity to learn. And she wanted to know of where Delilah came from to get to this point before she dug for what she was like now, and what she had planned for the future.

Some of the questions may be harder....but Delilah didn't seem like she would be the type to shy away. She appeared to be very diligent and direct.

"What was your life like before all of...this happened?"

[Delilah A. Black]

"Everything."

Delilah chuckled again. Ah, so familiar. The First marveled at the girl's inherent curiosity and her hunger for knowledge. Not so very unlike herself. It was a voracious need that she understood well, hence her openness. She had nothing to hide anyway.

"What was your life like before all of...this happened?"

A grin and a silent laugh. Cut to the quick, this one. "How far back are we talking here? Ah, who cares. May as well tell you all of it. You'll either ask or wonder until the end of time. Might take a while, though.

"Grew up in Beverly Hills. I'm your classic rich girl, spoiled rotten, only child, life handed to her on a silver platter. But I had a bit of an attitude problem. Got into a lot of fights and it didn't go unnoticed. Dad signed me up for martial arts and piano lessons. Keep my hands busy. Then I took up saxophone, violin, guitar, bass...with so many tasks to keep me from getting bored, things got better.

"When I was twelve, my dad was killed. Same night, on my way home, I was attacked in an alley. Came home to find mom sobbing over his body." some emotion had started to bleed into her voice, regret, a deep sadness she always carried with her. Her hand toyed absently with her hair; that was when she had decided to grow it out. "Mom got remarried a few months later to my Uncle on my Dad's side. Said I needed a father figure...and she was right. He was the one who taught me how to fix cars...and then bikes, boats...electrical systems. Trucks. Planes. Batteries. Energy sources. You name it. He died too, when I was fourteen. Heart attack.

"Mom shipped me off to school after that, some boarding school. She paid for everything with the inheritance from both husbands, moved to England and tried to keep me on a tight leash. But then I heard about Public School Two Five Nine...I was restless. I wanted more. So i cut myself off from my mother, enrolled at the school with her forged signature and struck out on my own. BIIIIG mistake. So hard. I started working in a restaurant to make money on the side.

"Met my first boyfriend, he got fucked up a couple of times, blahblahblah, and it led me to joining Militia, which is now the start of Crows. That was alllll because of 'Unfettered', 'ZE GERMAN' as they call him. I didn't want anything to do with gangs or in school violence...but I came to trust him and soon, I wanted to help him anyway I could. And I did and still do to this day."

Skipping over some unnecessary bits here, like how she and her boyfriend broke up, what happened between her and 'Unfettered'...stealing that meth and getting shot. Minor things.

"Before that, though, I got a call that my mother had died in England and I was supposed to identify her remains...which was just her purse and some hair. There was nothing else. So she was declared dead and I got the whooole inheritance. Dad's company, my step-dad's mechanics shop, the house, the money. All of it. Contributed some to Militia, tried to help out as many charities as I could, met a wonderful man...and then it fell apart.

"In San Francisco, after an earthquake leveled the school in Long Beach and we were all transferred there, I was arrested after we moved some gang members by sea from one area to another...I plead guilty to some ridiculous charges. I couldn't let them find out about Militia or try and investigate any deeper just to save my own hide...so, I went to jail."

Finally, Delilah let out a long heavy sigh, a far away look in her blue eyes as she stared up at the sky.

"Prison was...awful is a mild way of describing it. My inmates took advantage of me and I snapped. Completely. Seriously injured two, killed the third. With my bare hands.

"That was my first kill."

A pause as she turned that over in her mind again for the millionth time. After a moment, she began speaking again.

"They transferred me to a mental institution. I was so volatile that I would attack almost anyone who came near me by this point, and for whatever reason, I couldn't remember what I had done. But I was getting better. Once I was ready for a group therapy session, they brought me in...and who should I see there but my mother."

She let out a bitter laugh.

"She was talking about how she had hired men to kill me and my father so she could settle some debt of some sort, and then faked her death when she was being suspected of fraud in England. I never really found out all of the details...I snapped again. Beat her to a bloody pulp with my bare hands. Ten men hauled me out of the room, screaming, and bound me to my bed. But the damage was done, I remembered everything. And I couldn't live with myself.

"Taking a life is not a simple thing. And worse, I had taken one out of anger. Maybe it was justified. Maybe they deserved it and my honour and safety was worth that life. But in that moment I learned that one life is not above another, and I had robbed someone of a child, a sister, maybe a mother. That knowledge nearly killed me. I was an empty shell and I'd never felt so alone in my life.

"But, as it turns out, I wasn't as alone as I thought. 'Unfettered' sent one of his men for me and he lit a fire under my ass. They broke me out, took me to a safe house...and that's when I found out I was three months pregnant. THAT got my ass in gear. I was so atrophied and emaciated from not eating and slowly letting myself die that I needed to work hard to get myself in condition to actually give birth. I wasn't sure if I would ever see Stu again...but he had inadvertently left me something to live for.

"I gave birth and, after finding my sensei, took up training again. I started up my own shop again under an assumed name, helping 'Unfettered' set up militia for an upcoming confrontation with Barker. There, I raised Oliver with the help of my friends...my surrogate family.

"And then it all went to hell for a second time, when the bombs fell. I wasn't with my family defending the school that day. They needed me to stay behind and keep my son safe, but oh, I wanted to be there. I ran with Oliver to the Nest, and officially became a Crow. The rest...is more recent."

And she would fall silent at last, a small breath deflating her chest as she remembered it for the umpteenth time.

[Kyrie Blaze]

Kyrie listened quietly throughout the recount of Delilah's life, tucking puzzle pieces here and there and reordering them as certain aspects came to light, or receded into the background. And the questions that spawned from the story. All of the questions.

She felt that Delilah wasn't looking for sympathy for her past. Understanding, yes. But not sympathy or pity.

"Your father was murdered? Thieves? ...and your attack; how were you attacked, and was it at all connected?" She started slow. The one positive note she wanted to keep for after. Kyrie couldn't fathom how Delilah's mother thought she could keep a tight leash on her daughter when she was partway around the world.

The blonde slowly tipped her head to the side.

"Your first boyfriend. What happened to him?"

It was purposefully kept general and vague. She could have meant whether he was still alive. She may have meant how they broke up.

She was also leaving gaps in the conversation so that Delilah could answer before she moved on. She didn't need to ask why she took jail time.

"The man you met in San Francisco, what happened to him? Both in relation to whatever you two had, and why he apparently did not visit you during your sentenced term. Was that the 'Stu' you mentioned later on? How old were you when you were convicted?" Kyrie's hands smoothed gently over the cover of her book. "How did your inmates take advantage of you to push you so far? The injuries your two inmates sustained. What were they? Why and how did your mother wind up at the same therapy session that should have been exclusively reserved for 'convicted criminals and felons', and the unstable, such as yourself? Had she moved back to keep an eye on you or did she not have any idea of your situation? ...it seems to be rather stupid, to me, if she even remotely wanted to remain dead that she should move back in close proximity to you. Did you simply injure her or did she pass on? How long was this span of time--from your incarceration to the point that "Unfettered" sent his men to break you out?"

'Convicted criminals and felons' was used mildly and gently. To her, it made no sense, which was why she was asking. She didn't really have any questions on her being pregnant. Aside from one.

"How old is Oliver, now..?"

Another pause, and a tiny smile flickered to life on her lips. She had a decent poker face through the whole thing...not really giving away what she thought.

"Perhaps on one of your days off, you would take me up on my invitation for you to come and play an instrument? One of my fellow Dragons has musical talent and found something rather interesting...and I play the piano, myself."

[Delilah A. Black]

Delilah listened as Kiyr started rattling off her questions, expecting at least a few. She shook her head from side to side, shrugging, "The attack was definitely connected; men were sent to attack me and my dad, so they started with him first and they grossly underestimated me. Mercenaries. Nameless. I never saw them again."

"Your first boyfriend. What happened to him?"

Delilah rolled her eyes at the thought of Rem. Hooo... "We broke-up after he asked me to marry him. When I was sixteen. After that, I have no idea happened to him."

"The man you met in San Francisco, what happened to him? Both in relation to whatever you two had, and why he apparently did not visit you during your sentenced term. Was that the 'Stu' you mentioned later on? How old were you when you were convicted?"

"It's the same man, yeah. Stu and I met in a dive bar in San Franscisco, fell in love and, before I took the mission that wound up getting me sent to jail, he had to go back to England to see to the family business as his father was ailing. We lost touch when I was imprisoned."

And then the flood of questions started.

"How did your inmates take advantage of you to push you so far? The injuries your two inmates sustained. What were they? Why and how did your mother wind up at the same therapy session that should have been exclusively reserved for 'convicted criminals and felons', and the unstable, such as yourself? Had she moved back to keep an eye on you or did she not have any idea of your situation? ...it seems to be rather stupid, to me, if she even remotely wanted to remain dead that she should move back in close proximity to you. Did you simply injure her or did she pass on? How long was this span of time--from your incarceration to the point that "Unfettered" sent his men to break you out?"

Delilah would blink at Kiyr for a moment before bursting into laughter. "Oh man, you weren't kidding when you said you had questions. Okay, give me a sec...

"My inmates..." she let out a quick breath before speaking again, "They pretty much raped me. Hard for girls to do, but sodomy is still possible if you have the tools. The injury of the first was an impacted sternum, when I hit her in the chest. The other one, I pulled her esophagus away from her trachea, and crushed it.

"My mother was going by an assumed name and she was in for a mental breakdown. they wanted her evaluated before a trial for fraud, murder and attempted murder, both my father's and mine. It was pure chance. I injured her very badly, but I was never told what became of her. I haven't seen or spoken to her since that day. I was in there for about four weeks before "Unfettered" came for me."

"How old is Oliver, now..?"

Delilah turned her head to look at Kiyr again, smiling. "He's five. And I'm twenty three, if you were wondering."

"Perhaps on one of your days off, you would take me up on my invitation for you to come and play an instrument? One of my fellow Dragons has musical talent and found something rather interesting...and I play the piano, myself."

"Really?" Delilah looked 'round at Kiyr, smile widening. "You know, it's a shame how few people play instruments these days. I also play saxophone, violin, guitar, bass, and the flute. Oh, and I speak Japanese, German, Spanish and sign."

Because that seemed like helpful information.

[Kyrie Blaze]

"The third's injuries?" There had been three and Kiyr had not asked what injuries the third sustained to take her life. And now she did.

She was quiet for a little while, though Delilah earned a surprised and owlish blink at her laugh. Well, Kiyr had warned her. Her questions tended to have questions after marrying another question. They had little question children and it was all one great big, happy family.

"What were your mother's injuries, just from what you remember doing to her? ...did you ever blame your mother, in whole or in part, for any length of time, for what happened? Your father's murder, had it not happened, could have changed everything. Or nothing. Or small details."

The timeline was easily fit into place. So she refused marriage at sixteen, but was pregnant at eighteen? It seemed to the blonde there was a little bit of something amiss there, but she couldn't say. It hadn't been her life, after all and she couldn't say how much Delilah would have grown up mentally in those two years. Perhaps even so little as a year and a half.

"...with all the stress and trauma, I think you are lucky you did not miscarry." She mentioned, off-handedly, not as an insult. It almost bordered on a type of quiet awe. She held Delilah's gaze when she looked over and gave a very minute smile.

"True, but not everyone has an instrument to play. With my history...there was no way I could have toted a piano around with me. The cellist I know perhaps had an easier time." A pause. Many languages. All quite helpful. "Je parle deux langues: l'anglais et français. Vous disposez d'un ensemble impressionnant de compétences linguistiques. Je suis supris."

But that was not all of her questions.

"What are your intentions for the future? We both know that eliminating Barker is a shared goal of the entire world's populace...but say we manage to defeat him, and say you are still alive along with the three Dragon Elders. What are your intentions for after that? And other gangs."

Blue eyes stared unflinchingly at Delilah. First her history, now her future.

[Delilah A. Black]

"A caved in skull, near as I can remember,"

she had never been told what had happened to her old cell mate father than the fact that she was dead. But from what she remembered of the incident...there wasn't much left of her face for her family to recognize.

"My mom...i don't really remember. I sort of blacked out. I remember hitting her in the face a lot, though. And a lot of blood. I don't think I killed her, they would have told me. Or maybe they wanted to spare me. Hard to know. She probably is dead by now.

"...but I don't blame her. I can't let use the actions of another person or my past as an excuse for who I am and what I've done. There are too many 'if's to look back on that I could have done differently or had not happen to me; I've just come to accept what is rather than what might have been.

"And yeah, it's a damn miracle, though I think that's why his hair is white, maybe from malnutrition at the beginning. I was eating, but I was still wasting away. And once I learned I was pregnant, after they broke me out...I knew if I didn't do something that I would never be able to forgive myself if neglected my needs so poorly that it caused the death of..." she trailed off with a small sigh.

She had to agree with the statements about the instrument and their lack of availability. She sighed at the thought of all her fine pieces, currently holed up in the basement of her old house. If the place hadn't been looted or was still standing.

On the last set of questions Kiyr had for her, Delilah would take a minute to think on that. What did she want?

After a moment, Delilah would smile wryly and speak, amused at herself. "I have no plans."

She turned her head to grin at Kiyr before looking back at the sky. She was serious.

"--personally, anyway. I believe wholly in that every moment could be your last, and in these times...it very well could be. I am prepared to die for the cause I am committed to now. That means the future 'plans' really only reflect upon my schedule. Besides, plans are too constricting; situations always vary, and setting a firm plan leads to something going awry. I would rather let it happen to me...and then react to it.

"What I would like though...." she paused, thoughtfully. "There is nothing in this world I want more for all the gangs to be unified and work together. Not to defeat Barker, though that is important; but to repair and rebuild the world. If you want to look at it from a neutral, universal perspective, our school, our initial resistance led to the downfall of the world. Resisting was not a mistake, not ever, but we must acknowledge that...there was an oversight. We have to make it right, for the innocent. We can't bring back the dead, but we can help the survivours live."

[Kyrie Blaze]

Kyrie remained quiet, studiously so, as Delilah continued to answer her questions. In contrast, if for a very short time, the delicate-looking blonde had blamed her family. Blamed herself. Survivor's Guilt. And then she held onto something so important to her it was intrinsic from years of reinforcement: love.

Her thoughts echoed. '...she is strong.'

Not all strength was physical power. Not all power came from flesh and blood and bone. Perhaps it was due to her personal orientation and how she was raised that she could see it, in this moment at the very least.

Kiyr was quiet at the response, watchful. Wary. She didn't fully believe Delilah had no personal plans. Every living human had desires, wishes, dreams, and needs. To get the unity of the gangs she would need the power to do so, named as an influential part of the Crows or not. To see it rebuilt she would need to maintain the power in whatever form it took.

She was tempted to shake her head, but curled her fingers together over the closed book instead. When she spoke, she held the same tone. Curious and non-judgemental. Just seeking a better understanding of what made Delilah tick and function.

"...being prepared for death is not wrong, and there is strength in being reactionary - with eyes wide open and unclouded - but are you equally as prepared to live..? If you have no plans - and your plans should be flexible to mitigate damage should things not quite turn out according to what they were, considering the future is never concrete aside from dieing - then what else makes the cause worth fighting for? If you die when you should have lived to carry on to another battle, because you were prepared to, and misread something because, maybe, maybe you thought this was the time...would you be able to bear the weight and consequences if there is life after death?"

If she saw further ruin? She had to believe to push on, had to get back up and act with the knowledge that she could be the one to help end it. To help life flourish again.

But without arrogance: the opposite could be just as true.

Kyrie herself would not hesitate to die for the Dragons - more family than she cared to admit - if it was required, but she would fight to put death off as long as possible, regardless. Because she had to. Kyrie gave herself no choice.

[Delilah A. Black]

Delilah cracked a grin at the next set of Kiyr's questions, a low laugh rumbling in her chest. In response, Delilah sat herself up, turned her back to Kiyr...and pulled the strap of her tank-top down over her shoulder, revealing the printed script of the tattoo emblazened on her pale flesh. It would read:

once more into the fray
into the last good fight i'll ever know
live and die on this day
live and die on this day

Delilah would look over this shoulder at Kiyr, smiling.

"Don't misunderstand: I'm not ruled by death, but by life. I will not go quietly into death because I am fighting for life with every fibre of my being; I am all too aware of the things that would or might happen if I were to die. I like to think of it as rock climbing without the rope. The bit of fear that you get, of knowing that Death is patiently waiting for you either breaks you or makes you. It pushes you farther and makes you want to live above everything else because no matter what happens, life is so, so precious.

"As for the afterlife," A sardonic twist of her lips would seem to answer, but Delilah knew the girl would require more elaboration. "I don't believe there is one. I've seen too much to be able to believe in something that optimistic. Besides, I don't want to use 'i want to have a good eternal life' as an excuse for being a decent person. It's enough for me to just be one. Or, at least, try to be.

But if there is one, then I expect to be judged fairly for my actions in my time here, good and bad. If that means I mess up and die before my time and get to see all my friends and family die because I wasn't there, that is on me and me alone. It's already happened in the last few years, in fact. I can never make up for not being there when they need me, but, I can't be everywhere at once, despite trying.

"That's why I don't need plans. I want to enjoy the free fall and put my heart into whatever crosses my path at that moment. I have my mind on other things of course; responsibility, my son, my own needs. It's called 'san-shin no kata or the 'techniques of the three-year old heart'. Do you see a kid worrying about plans or what to do next? It's like that, for me. Open honesty, experiencing everything anew, as if it were happening for the first time. It keeps you grounded in why were here and why we're fighting, which is to preserve life and the ability to truly live."

That was a fairly Asian and hard to understand concept, but she tried to keep it simple. San-shin was not something that could be explained; it simply was.

[Kyrie Blaze]

Kyrie was momentarily confused as Delilah turned away from her...and even more with a flash of surprise and mild panic as she slid the strap of her tank top down--and then internally breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of writing. She leaned forwards slightly to read the words, now feeling reassured that this wasn't...wasn't some other lesson in life.

Not that she thought Delilah would pull anything like that out on her, but the wary and cautious nature of the blonde thought it better safe than sorry. The past few years of her life had been based on that, in part.

She leaned back after, listening and watching Delilah as she explained, watching the expressions and emotions. It was easy to see that this was a core element as to who she was.

'I would simply like one last opportunity to see them, instead of the memories safe within my soul. Within dreams.'[/i]

She didn't try to delude herself; though she had been raised in the Christian faith - Church every Sunday - after Barker made his move against the world she had found herself in a profound state of indecision regarding her Faith. Hopeful, yes, but unwanting to believe He could let such destruction reign, that He would call so many Angels to Him. So, she made no comment upon Delilah's words on it, understanding the woman's own view on the matter, and even agreeing.

Already her mind clicked forwards to the next questions she wanted to ask Del, now that the path had been opened to it.

As Delilah mentioned wanting to enjoy the free fall, Kyrie's eyes flickered with recognition. She listened, absorbing the words if such a thing were possible, and turning them over, but gently.

If it were possible for her to fly, she would be. Her legs gave her wings as she flung herself from a rooftop, laughter bubbling in her throat and escaping into the air. Her legs came together as she completed the drop to the roof that was lower down, the balls of her feet tapping down before she directed her body into a roll, dispersing the force and momentum from her free fall.

The rush and the sheerjoy of her normal runs. That she threw herself into each of them, that her worries melted away and she was just there for the feeling and exhilaration...

And each time was new.

Life was so much more simple, back then. Even now, she could tie in the concept that Delilah was sharing with her with the present.

She was a Dragon.

And as such, she was a Warrior. And she threw herself into the task, the position. To a surprising degree, perhaps, to some.

She was quiet. Almost eerily so, aside from the slight shift to her fingers and a quiet, slow exhale. She tilted her head.

"...so tell me...who is your enemy, Delilah..?"

She had progressed to questions that she had been given, that she gave the Elders in the Interview. This was something she wondered if she would progress to, but it was a subtle nod to Delilah's progression, in her eyes.[/font]

[Delilah A. Black]

Delilah watched as Kiyr's eyes took on a far away look, and she turned her whole body around to look at the young blonde woman, politely curious.

And then very intrigued when she asked that question. Delilah's little smile tightened wistfully and she looked away for a moment.

"...those who would do me or those I love harm," she said, which might have been an obvious answer considering her character. "....or those who would to unjustifiable harm to others. And, if I am completely honest with myself, I can include my own name on the list of enemies." She chuckled to herself.

[Kyrie Blaze]

Kiyr was glad she named herself an enemy. She liked that Delilah, too, saw that in herself; both the capacity for, and the knowledge that she had, probably, at some point, done either of the two. It was important to recognize the 'evil', one had.

And to know what would overcome it.

"What does being a Crow mean to you..?"

It made it seem like, perhaps, she was interested in them. In joining them?

While Kyrie was genuinely interested in knowing, it was also a cover, a lull. She let Delilah answer, but would hold further questions on that line for something else.

"If a no-win situation presented itself, where you had one family member," She purposefully hadn't asked Delilah what family meant to her, letting her draw her own conclusions as to what Kiyr was alluding to, "Or a small group of people that were friends and may as well be family, and it was your last action to save either option, with your death and the death of those you did not choose being the final result, which would you choose to save? And why..?

She had asked David this question, as well, and it was fitting. Maybe a little alarming as she hadn't lead into it in the way she had, for her Elders. She wanted to see how Delilah would stand to the potential of having the rug pulled out of her...and what her last moral choice would be.

[Delilah A. Black]

"What does being a Crow mean to you..?"

Delilah chuckled to herself, already knowing her answer. "Being a Crow is justice. Unbiased, nonjudgmental, honest, and free. No one is any more above or less than each other and people are pretty much allowed to do what they want, as long as it doesn't affect the survival of another person.

"But in that sense, it is also unconditional love. Love for your neighbour, your friend, your family, strangers. It's not about doing favours for people and expecting something in return; you do things because it's the right thing to do. So, that's what it is; justice, compassion and grace. And liberty for the oppressed, but that does without saying."

But Delilah was impressed. This girl really knew how to make a person think. She was aware, uncomfortably, that she was being undressed by this girl until nothing was left but her naked soul. It was interesting to be talked to in such a way, by someone she really didn't know, but it didn't bother her, surprisingly. It was getting to know someone without waiting all the months and years in between. Efficient and eye opening. She truly appreciated that.

"If a no-win situation presented itself, where you had one family member, Or a small group of people that were friends and may as well be family, and it was your last action to save either option, with your death and the death of those you did not choose being the final result, which would you choose to save? And why..?

Well. Wasn't that a can of worms. Delilah let out a long heavy sigh, sorrow washing over her in a wave. She had asked herself this a million times, and always she came to the same, depressing answer.

"My only blood left alive is my son," she said quietly, using him because the already deceased members of her family wouldn't have even been a concern, even if they were alive. "And he means more to me than anything else in the world. But if it came down to it, and I could save either him or the people I love and shaped me into who I am now, the people who have the best chance of saving the world from Barker even after I am long gone...I would choose the latter."

Delilah closed her eyes against the tide of emotion that brought. It even hurt to think about. "And never would I be more deserving or welcoming of the death that took me with him."

Love was her weakness as much as it was a strength. It came down to cold logic in the end; Oliver would surely die without her or that close group of friends who were more like family to her, which was the opposite side of that scenario. She couldn't allow the situation to die completely. Without her, they might not win or live, but they at least had a chance. Oliver would have none. This could be considered merciful, but it still made Delilah feel absolutely terrible.

Eyes still closed, she smirked wryly. "Though this is why I have precautions in place to prevent just that. Oliver never leaves Crow territory and when I'm not with him, I leave him only with people I could trust my own life with.

"My boy means the world to me. And if he were to die, so would I. I can't afford to be so selfish that I would put my happiness above the possible survival of the world."

[Kyrie Blaze]

Kiyr sat quietly through Delilah's responses, her posture remaining quiet though her eyes flickered thoughtfully. Kyrie herself could have made an excellent Crow. But her heart was with the Dragons, both for everything they could offer to her...and everything they meant to her.

Gauging, but not judgmental. Watchful, but not critical. The thing was...there were no wrong answers to this. It was up to the person to decide which person was where, and from there, how they would choose. The other portion was that it depended on the person's definition of family and how that related to the friends that were part of the other decision.

Finally, when she was through, Kiyr couldn't help but to let a slow, shaky exhale free.

That, if anything, would be proof enough of Kiyr's thoughts. Coupled with the way her eyes had progressively softened, there could be no doubt of Kiyr's opinion and approval, despite the depressing image. She understood, though.

All too well, she understood.

She inclined her head, essentially giving Delilah a small bow, but it was deeply respectful.

[Delilah A. Black]

Silence followed her answer to Kiyr's question and Delilah would exhale slowly to collect her thoughts. She thought, perhaps, that the answer had surprised the girl, or worse, disgusted her. But she stood by her statement; the mechanic had never been the type of woman to flip-flop decisions. Once her mind was made up, that was usually that.

When at last she opened her eyes, she found them widening at the sight of...Kiyr bowing to her? A flush immediately coloured her cheeks and her eyebrows shot up. Nooooonononono, stahp, no, don't do thaaaat

"...what are your thoughts, Kiyr?" she inquired softly. "So many questions...what conclusions have you come to? Do you have any more?"

Delilah privately found herself hoping that she did.

[Kyrie Blaze]

Kiyr raised her head as Delilah spoke, questioning her. It took a little while to gather her thoughts.

"If I never have more questions, then clearly I am doing something wrong." She began. "And to come to a conclusion would mean that I am closing myself off to other answers to build the picture I seek to see; which is a foolish trap to fall into. My opinion will - and must - constantly change and grow to accommodate the way people change...

"But from what I have seen, you are a strong and powerful person in your own right, capable of making hard choices and seeing a larger picture than your own personal gains and wishes. Which, I believe, is important for building a future. And I hope that the scenario I presented you with should never come to pass, because the world needs more views like yours just as much as it needs views that differ to grow."