1010/Only Us

Only Us
Date of Scene:	16 January 2024
Location:	Dorms #2
Synopsis:	Hinoiri comes back to her dorm room and finally looks at the messages Dianora left her. Dianora comes home to find her unicorn is back. Neither of them is sure how to respond... so instead they sing about it. Hinoiri... hopes this counts as progress.
Cast of Characters:	Hinoiri Kirara, Double Trouble

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Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara had, finally, come home. She was not pelased with having one bedroom. She liked her space. She liked her privacy. She liked being able to close the door. But fine. Whatever. As if she was going to let Double Trouble bother her. She'd been ignoring them all week and...

... And she wasn't sure anymore. She'd hoped being around Sayaka and Klarissa would make things better. But... they didn't. She just felt guiltier. She didn't know how she felt about Sayaka. Aside from worried. She was... someone she cared about. Because she deserved better. But... love? She knew Sayaka wanted it. NEEDED. To hear it. But she... didn't know if she could ever give her that. She didn't know if she was capable of it.

And then there was Double Trouble. She didn't know where she stood with them. Did she like them? Yes? No? Where did she stand with any of them? Was love something she could be?

But she'd burnt herself. She'd been hurt. Multiple times. She'd messed up.

... She'd attacked her roommate. In a blind fury. She'd lost control. What if...

... What if Sora was right? What if Double Trouble was right? What if Sora never cared? She didn't... know if she could handle that.

So now, she was sitting on her bed. That book in front of her, closed. Unlatched... but closed. She couldn't bring herself to read it. To see what Sora had sent her. 'Please come home.' Or worse. 'Please stay away.'

So, rather than face her troubles... she decided to face other troubles. Listen, when you'd been as much of a disaster as she is, you could have entire ROWS of problems, so you could always pick and choose which to ignore!

Except... she'd expected anger when she went through Dianora's messages.

'I don't even know why I love you.' Yeah. That was something Hinoiri understood. Why love her? She wasn't... worth it. She would never be worth it. Just... stop. Please. Just stop. She had to... she had to face Sora. She had to prove she was the greatest. She couldn't slip out from under this weight. How desperately she wished she could.

But like a piece of wood that had been crushed by a house it was supporting for too long... when the weight was removed, it crumbled. It couldn't support itself, the familiar crushing sensation gone. And now she was lost and adrift and wasn't sure where, if anywhere, she stood.

How could anyone love that?

... If she didn't become an alicorn... if she didn't rise to this... She'd prove all of them right. She knew it wasn't logical. She knew it wasn't, technically, true. But.... but she was dangling over a pit and if she accepted 'It's impossible to prove myself'... she'd be cutting the only line holding her afloat. And she wasn't sure she could catch herself if she fell.

She didn't have it in her to gain a new dream. To choose something else. Because... she'd... fall.

I'm sorry I hurt you.

Please forgive me.

Please come home.

I need you.

Hinoiri stared at those texts, the tears drifting down her face. And when Dianora finally came home... when she found her unicorn, hugging her knees to her chest, tears going down her face... she only had a few words. "I... I think... maybe you're right. I'm so scared... you're right... D-Dee... But... I don't... think I can take it... I don't think... I don't think I'll survive it... if I... if I accept everything I did, everything I tried... everything... I worked for..."

"If I was worthless..."

Double Trouble has posed:
Dianora Lagorio didn't actually expect Hinoiri to come home, even though she'd begged in her text messages. She didn't seem to be reading them, and didn't seem to want anything to do with her roommate. It had been too good to be true. Dianora should have known better. She didn't want to love that stupid unicorn, but she did.

So when she stepped into the room and Hinoiri was there on her bed crying? Dianora just stood in the doorway and stared for a heartbeat.

She came home. Her unicorn came home.

Hinoiri said all of those words, but when she said worthless, well, Dianora just couldn't abide that. She stepped in, shut the door, and removed her necklace all in quick succession.

Double Trouble stuffed the necklace in their pocket as they dashed across the room, getting up onto Hinoiri's bed right next to her, their tail wrapping around her waist as their arms wrap around her shoulders.

"It's not your fault she didn't see your worth, darling. I see it plain as day. She was the problem, not you," they murmur softly.

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara lightly sniffled, looking up at them. But then... Double Trouble was there. Rushing to them. To be with them. She liked them more like this. When they were... them. Truly them. Why she preferred them as a lizard than a human was... who knew? She didn't get humans either. So maybe it was more that they were showing their true face.

"You don't... know what it was like..." she whispered. "Nobody... nobody ever... cared. Nobody ever knew. I was just..." She gulped. "I was... I don't..." Slowly, she let her legs go and leaned into the hug.

"I don't... know if I can be anything else. But... But I don't... I know this isn't working. It just... it hurts all the time and I'm so much angrier than I've ever been and... and I can do so much and I'm tired of being scared I can't but I can't give up everything I've done and... and accept it. I..."

"I'm scared. I'm so scared that you're right... that everything I worked for was.... was in vain..."

Double Trouble has posed:
Double Trouble's hand came up to gently pet Hinoiri's hair. Their tail squeezes tightly and they sigh. "Hinoiri, I love you, and it absolutely pains me to see you like this."

They pressed their lips to her temple and then murmured, "It was only in vain if what you were working for was impressing Sora. You are worth so much more than what some old nag thinks of you, Hinoiri. You are amazing and magnificent and powerful in your own right."

The faint sound of piano started to fill the room. Double Trouble didn't even notice it at first. It wasn't until they opened their mouth and started to sing that they realized something was going on. Their voice was soft and gentle, as tender as the lyrics.

    I don't need you to sell me on reasons to want you
    I don't need you to search for the proof that I should

They pulled away from Hinoiri's shoulders, their tail staying wrapped tightly around her. There's a confused look on their face, but they keep on singing, figuring that whatever it is that's making them sing, at least they're getting their point across.

    You don't have to convince me
    You don't have to be scared you're not enough
    'Cause what we've got going is good

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara looked up at Double Trouble. "What if... I'm not... good enough? What if all I am is a mistake? If I'm not perfect, what am I?"

"... Am... I perfect... the way I am?" she asked softly, looking up at her. So desperate for that approval. To matter. To be important.

Then Double Trouble started to sing. She'd... never heard them do that. Her eyes went wide. But... but selling herself was all she had. As she was, how could anyone...

... Did Dee... really... mean it? but then, the memories of Dee... as Sora flooded her mind. It had hurt so much. Like a knife in her heart...

        I don't need more reminders of how much I'm broken...
        I don't need you to fix what I just can't forget...

But, then, slowly, she reached a hand down to the tail. Stroking a finger with the scales.

        But I want to start over
        Try to quiet the noises in my head
        Can I be complete without that?

She looked up at Double Trouble. Sora had hurt her. But what if... this world was a new chance. What if it was a new opportunity? What if she... really... did just give up everything? Ascended for herself. Not for anyone else?

Double Trouble has posed:
"Goodness no, darling. Neither of us are perfect. Nobody is. Not even Sora," they say with a light laugh. They lean in to kiss her on the temple again. "But you're perfect for me. I want you exactly as you are."

    So what if it's us?
    What if it's us
    And only us
    And what came before won't count anymore or matter?
    Can we try that?

"Forget about Sora," they say, reaching across with their hand to find hers, fingers slipping between hers. "Or don't, but just stop trying to impress her." They squeeze their hands. "She doesn't matter. You've got me now." They put a kiss on her cheek.

    What if it's you
    And what if it's me
    And what if that's all that we need it to be
    And the rest of the world falls away?
    What do you say?

They lean back just an inch and look into Hinoiri's eyes. They blink, and it's weird and sideways, but it's them. They are so stupidly in love with that girl and it's so obvious in the way they look at her.

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara stared up at Double Trouble. She wasn't short, but well... the shapeshifter was definitely a tall piece of work. Perfect... for them. Could she truly be perfect for someone else?

... For them. Both of them. Could she accept doing things for herself and for Double Trouble? Could she give up on Sora? All those lessons. Loyalty. Kindness. Generosity. Honesty. Laughter. What if none of those truly mattered? She was none of those...

... But what if she could be perfect anyway?

        I never thought there'd be someone like you who could want me
        So I can give you ten thousand reasons to tell me to go
        But if you really see me
        If you like me for me and nothing else?
        Well, that's all that I've wanted for longer than you could possibly know...

And, in that moment, maybe there was a bit of an epiphany. As she felt... like she finally, a bit, understood. What she wanted. What she needed. Why couldn't Sora just... once... see her? Care? Could... this person? This creature? The one she had... believed would backstab her? "I still hate to lose... I don't know how to relax... I don't know how to accept not being the best. But... if you... can accept that... I can try to... to... let her go. And it..."

        So it can be us
        It can be us
        And only us
        And what came before won't count anymore or matter
        We can try that..."

And oh, then Double Trouble got to experience the fun that WAS Kirakirafantastica music. Duets. When they could sing in tune. When her hand squeezed Double Trouble's back.

        It's not so impossible
        Nobody else but the two of us here
        'Cause you're saying it's possible

And the unicorn was scared. terrified. This was something she'd never done before. Given up. In everything else she always doubled down. Always pushed forward. And she could feel that gaping void beneath her, threatening to swallow her whole... But... could she trust Double Trouble to not let her fall?

Double Trouble has posed:
Double Trouble could feel the magic, and they realized they'd been hearing the piano accompaniment for a while but only noticed it when they heard their harmonies with Hinoiri. Spontaneous show tunes? How could this girl be any more perfect for them?

"Nobody has it all figured out at fourteen, darling," Double Trouble says, smirking. Then they lean in to kiss her cheek again. "Just means you'll get better with age."

They lean back to continue their duet.

    We can just watch the whole world disappear
    Til you're the only one
    I still know how to see

Their tail squeezes as their hand does too. They're gazing into Hinoiri's eyes as she sings.

    It's just you and me

It's so overwhelming, the relief that they feel. They had almost entertained the thought that they'd driven her away. That they'd lost her. They'd never loved anyone before, nobody but themselves. They didn't know what to do with that feeling. It felt bad. They hated it.

But here she is, and she's moving past her mommy issues (maybe), and they're taking this relationship...somewhere. Double Trouble has no idea where it goes from here. They never got a script. This is all improv, and they're so bad at improv. As they sing, their eyes start to blink away tears.

    It'll be us
    It'll be us
    And only us
    And what came before won't count anymore

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Really, Hinoiri should have known she'd be catnip for the actress. After all, showtunes. What other magic brought THAT with it? None. Just her. Because she was amazing.

A few tears welled up in her eyes while their words harmonized.

        We can try that
        You and me
        That's all that we need it to be
        And the rest of the world falls away
        And the rest of the world falls away...

And when the world fell away, she glanced back... and she kicked the journal. Letting it fly across the ground and under Double Trouble's bed. She didn't need it. Sora had... banished her. She didn't need to know what else she said after that.

        The world falls away...
        The world falls away
        And it's only us...

Then, slowly, the music faded away and Hinoiri stared up at them. And she smiled. She hurt. But... maybe she could get better. Maybe. Just... maybe...

She'd do this for her from now on. And truly cast Sora down.

"I hope... you know I'm... a disaster. What did you say, before? 'A disaster lesbian'? Something like that... well... I... am something like that. A disaster-unicorn. But... I'll try. This time. To not... be... what I was."

"To... let myself be me... but... I... want to know who you are. What you are. I want to know everything about you. Who you were. About your home. About your life." And her hands clasped Double Trouble's so tight and...

"I won't ask you all of that now. But... just one..."

"What was your first performance, Double Trouble? What was that first thing... that made you become this dramatic, incredible creature before me?"

Double Trouble has posed:
"Darling, I love you because you're a disaster," Double Trouble said. Their hands ssqueezing hers right back. Their tail squeezing tightly. "And a hundred other reasons. You're absolutely the best thing about this world as far as I'm concerned."

But then she asked a question. And, well, it doesn't have an easy answer. "There wasn't just one time," they say, quietly. They lean back and look away, over toward their side of the room. "I've been taking on shapes since I was born. It's how I survive. I can't help but be incredible and dramatic. Darling, I was born this way."

"But that's not a very satisfying answer, so let me tell you about the first time I messed with Adora," they say. They go on to tell her about Flutterina, and all of the mischief she caused, and all of the drama of the princesses finally finding them out. When they're done, they sigh. "Those girls were so easy to manipulate. I almost miss them."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara gave a light chuckle. "Which is even more funny, because I didn't come from here." Oh, if only she knew. She leaned against them and sighed. It was... nice to hear from Double Trouble. About them. She... she was a disaster.

But she wanted to know the disaster that was Double Trouble. She wanted to know who they were. Why they were like this...

However, she'd be lying if she said she wasn't... displeased by the answer. The fact it came back to Adora and Catra. It was amusing, of course. And she laughed. But there was also... other thoughts. Did Double Trouble really consider Adora and Catra's story to be when she started? Didn't they have any stories of her own? Or was it the fact that Hinoiri knew the pair the reason that Double Trouble shared it?

There were more questions to ask... but that'd come later. For now? At least... she finally understood they were in a relationship. The two of them. And...

And this meant she had to talk with Sayaka. To tell her the truth. To let her know...

...

Okay, not today. Not right now. Maybe... later. Maybe another day. When Sayaka was stronger. For now? She didn't want to tip the other girl over when she was already so hurt.

So for now, she's just lay against her shapeshifting reptilian themfriend and... just relax. Just be. There was a world to conquer, in another dimension... but that was future Hinoiri's problem.