Techniques of the Three Year-old Heart [Kiyr]

[Delilah A. Black]

Delilah nodded, obviously pleased. "Good. That understanding is what makes you such a capable fighter, Kiyr. And I'm not the only one who thinks so." the smile in her voice made it clear that Delilah sure knew who; Mathew, David, Leon...Rai, potentially. People she hadn't met yet, or people she knew that she wasn't sure Kiyr knew, for instance.

Blue eyed flicked down again to the book in the blonde girl's lap, lingering this time.

"Now that is a very old book," she commented nonchalantly, looked back up at Kiyr. "...how are you liking it?"

[Kyrie Blaze]

Things got a bit awkward for the blonde with the clear compliment and knowing lilt to Delilah's voice. Kyrie ducked her head forwards, allowing some of her hair to drift forwards to hide her face, a little. Her cheeks heated, but she murmured a polite "Thank you..." despite being off balance. She was humble when it came to others paying her compliments despite her quiet confidence in herself. She certainly didn't go around fishing for them. However, it was easier to recover with Delilah in contrast to, say, Levi.

She continued gently brushing her fingers against the book and slowly looked back up, having wrangled the blush into submission so it receded.

Kyrie thoughtfully studied Delilah, eyes soft, wide, and observant. "...it would be a lie if I said I was anything less than touched, honoured, and pleased to have received this as an anonymous gift. It is a classic, and en français, which makes it very dear, indeed. I have always loved this book, and though I have only recently started to read it, I enjoy it just as much as the first time reading it."

It was frank and honest. If Delilah wasn't the one that gave the gifts beneath the feathered tree...then she would at least know who did. Though, the lady herself was a prime candidate, despite the fact Kiyr had no clue why, aside from giving in the spirit of giving. Or how it was found out.

[Delilah A. Black]

Delilah's smile widened a bit and she chuckled to herself, turning her head away for a moment to stare out at the baseball diamond around her.

"...Well then. I'm glad you like it."

[Kyrie Blaze]

"Thank you." Call it intuition or an educated guess. Kyrie simply blinked at Delilah, watching her more intently after her reaction to Kiyr's words. Surprise was somewhat difficult to fake, after all.

[Delilah A. Black]

Delilah shook her head, "No need to thank me. I had a feeling that the book would find a better home with you than it did rotting away in my library. I'm glad to see I wasn't mistaken."

And indeed, it simply had been the mechanic's intuition that gave her the idea to go back to her old house and retrieve some books. Finding one of the rarest in her collection untouched and undamaged by the bombing that had ruined the rest of her house had been a true blessing; one she felt should be shared.

Books like that were even more rare than they were before; who knew how long it would be before people started to write fiction again, let alone print books. And this one was a treasure; the story it told of the lives of the people within, how they were all connected for good or for ill perfectly symbolized the lives of the people here in Long Beach.

For what it meant to Kiyr to receive it, it meant as much to Delilah just to give it; it was hope and the struggle against adversity. It was tragic, draining, worrisome, beautiful, heavy, terrible and very, very honest.

It was the essence of life.

[Kyrie Blaze]

"How did you know that I speak French, Delilah?" She reached up, brushing her hair back over her shoulders before letting her hands down to curl on her lap over the book. Perhaps she occasionally had a very faint accent, but she couldn't recall actually speaking the language close to her heart in front of the black-haired woman.

Kyrie let a smile bloom over her lips, a rather gentle and almost completely unguarded one. It would not linger for terribly long. Kiyr picked the book up, cradling it gently. She was fully aware of the treasure Delilah gave her, and perhaps for that and so much more...

"Would you like to listen? I can translate after, if you would like."

Books, after all, were made to be shared.

[Delilah A. Black]

"Other than the small hint of your last name, I didn't."

The truth. No preconceptions, just a vague intuitiveness that, as usual, turned to be correct.

Delilah laid back against the grass and closed her eyes, smiling. "I would very much like to hear it en Francais, sil vou plait. It's no so much the words you hear as it is the meaning behind them."

[Kyrie Blaze]

Kyrie opened the book to where she had left off, but only to tuck the feather bookmark more securely within the pages. Regardless of the reasons for Delilah's intuition being right on the gift, the blonde was touched and deeply thankful.

She inclined her head, lips quirking upward. It was true, but even so, she didn't mind translating. Kyrie's fingers gently separated the pages, her voice taking to the air...

...as she began from the beginning.

. o O ( End Thread~ )