intraspective | Reno's (& Elena's) place, Edge, Gaia, Monday Afternoon

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Reno's (& Elena's) place, Edge, Gaia, Monday Afternoon

Ino had her stuff packed and was cross-legged on the floor giving the seedlings she'd sent Reno a little while ago a good looking over while waiting for her portal.

She was still… iffy about that whole Fandom Thing, but while being around was fun, she was pretty sure that putting it off would only make it worse.

Zen. She was zen. Okay. As much as Ino ever was.

Which… wasn't very. But alrighty then. Lying to herself was totally healthy!

"So," she said, "you wouldn't whine if I wanted to come kill monsters some more sometime?"

[NFB due to distance and for the red-haired Turk!]

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"Knew it," she drawled softly. "You spend way too much time on them to want to do something like that. Now, beating peoples' heads in? I can totally see. Destroying the world? Not so much."

"Few roads, maybe. Some man-made constructs. I'm always good at droppin' shit when someone's gotta die, yo."

Well, he was. Plates, criminal dumbfucks, overpasses. You name it.

Ino was just going to lean over until she could try and poke Reno in the leg.

"Yes," she said, staring up at him. "You are good at destruction. That's a skill to be valued too, and it's not the only one you've got."

Awww, the Rookie cared.

Reno offered her a little grin, and then a wink and a thumbs-up.

"What can I say? There's somethin's gotta get done, I do it an' I do it good."

Humble, wasn't he?

"People notice that," she said, sitting up. "And depend on it."

He considered that. Considered it good.

"Talkin' of, you doin' any better?"

Ino made a face at him. Denial was easier when people weren't talking about it after all.

"I--maybe?" she said, giving that a bit of a shrug. "You know it's... easier here. Than in Fandom? Because, hell, any glance around and you see that this ain't no sunshine and roses place to be."

"That's... helpful."

That also wasn't entirely an answer, Ino.

"All the better for hidin' from it."

Yeah, Reno knew that song and dance number well enough to perform it solo and acapella.

"You know I'd let you stay forever if I figured it'd do you any real good, Ino. But this ain't the place for you. People on the island might not get it, but I got my phone if you need me."

"I got it on speed dial even," she said, shooting him a glance. "And--yeah. It's not. I have my own world, even if the... growing pains are a bit hard."

Yay understatements.

She laughed softly. "Though, I suppose, if I utterly had to pick a different world, this one wouldn't be bad. I could do good here, I think."

"You could kick ass here," Reno laughed. "You're already kickin' my ass with your plant knowledge, yo. Just what I need is you gettin' so damn good you're showin' me up durin' monster hunts or somethin'."

"Watch me," she promised, "I'll get better. Rookies do that, you know."

Or they died, but that was a depressing thought when she was a rookie.

Reno wasn't going to mention his track record with Rookies. Nope. He was going to grin and nod and agree. Rookies totally got better, when they weren't killed on-duty while saving the world.

Dammit anyhow.

"You're gonna have to save some monsters for me, when that happens. I'll get bored, eatin' your dust all the time, yo."

"If I get that good," Ino told him, "it means that you've been lazing 'round too and deserve to eat my dust."

Oh, for that, Reno was going to have to smirk and throw his kaleidoscope at her.

"Yeah, yeah, Rookie. Keep sellin' yourself short like that an' I'm gonna have to put you on some kinda strict trainin' regimen, yo."

She caught it and tucked it under one arm. "See if I give this back to you," Ino said, sticking her tongue out at him.

A beat.

Another beat.

"...I'm not particularly against more training." No, really, she seriously wasn't against it. This was Ino after all. "And I wasn't selling myself short."

Snerk.

"Well, then I'm flattered, zoto. What are you doin' for trainin' now, anyhow?"

Ino leaned back, elbows propping herself up and considered that.

"Mostly physical--running, practicing my taijutsu, beginner training with a spear which is more for arm strength in my case than any desperate need to use it." She chewed on her lower lip. "I'm not allowed to practice half my powers at Fandom, though I study the theory, and the other half I add into my other training. Like, spear training while standing on water and stuff."

More contemplation.

"Medical studies too," she added, "I can fix broken bones now, and some concussions, it depends on the specific injury, but I'm getting better at that."

"Built-in cure spell," Reno mused. "Handy stuff."

He drummed his fingers against his knee once, which meant, naturally, that Mako was going to come running. Game!

"Theory's better'n nothin', I guess." He tilted his head, idly wrestling at the ferret with one hand. "You makin' any progress with the rest of it? The spear and runnin' and stuff?"

"Built-in but have to be careful 'cause it does drain energy," she replied.

Ino gave that a bit of a shrug. "I'm no longer falling behind when compared to others who were in my graduating class. It's a marked improvement, from even, like, six months ago, but I don't want to stay level, I want to keep getting better."

"Any spell is gonna drain energy," Reno replied, shrugging. "I can't cast Thundaga endlessly, either. Gotta stop an' recharge sooner or later."

Or down an Ether. Either or. It was still something Reno had never understood. If all of those tree-huggers insisted that using magic was draining the planet, then why on Gaia was it so damn draining to cast those spells? If it was the planet doing all the work, you'd think it would be that much easier to pull off, really.

"Gettin' better's how it's done. Don't ever settle for stayin' level, Ino. You gotta make me eat your dust sometime, got that?"

"Yes, sir," she said, grinning over at him. "Duly noted and all of that. I'll get so badass you can't hold a candle to me."

And of course, Reno had to shoot off a grin and a half-assed salute, at that.

"Well, I look forward to gettin' my ass kicked by you in the future, then, Rookie."

Ino just had to stick her tongue out at that, really.

Then glance at the clock and sigh. "I should probably go wait outside."

Yes, that was a bit of a sulk.

"Eh, you'll do fine," Reno said, almost dismissively. "You don't gotta tell 'em nothin', back there. Jus' keep your chin up an' look 'em in the eye an' think, 'Fuck you, I did my job.' An' then be damn proud that you did it well."

That attitude was pretty much the only thing that had gotten Reno through some of the worst of it, yes.

"C'mon, Ino. Mako an' I'll walk you to your portal."

"Mako too?" she asked almost lightly, getting to her feet and slinging her bag over her shoulder. "I feel all special and stuff."

"I'll hold you to the fine stuff though."

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Reno's (& Elena's) place, Edge, Gaia, Monday Afternoon

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