2272/On the road to the Korma

On the road to the Korma
Date of Scene:	26 January 2025
Location:	Korma Chameleon
Synopsis:	Hinoiri and Rashmi have a brief, if meaningful, discussion about what happened during the time loop.
Cast of Characters:	Hinoiri Kirara, Rashmi Terios
Tinyplot:	Hinoiri's Eternal Loop

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Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara was walking a dangerous, painful and long, winding road. Filled with fire and burning buildings. But... at least she wasn'twalking alone anymore.

Well, was walking it metaphorically. Technically, she was just walking on the sidewalk by Rashmi, her bag held over her lap. "So... uhhh, I asked you to walk with me because... well... a few reasons. There were some things during the loop that... came up. And I felt we should talk about."

"The first, most important one. In your living room, there's a lamp by the television. The wiring in it is a bit frayed, you'd want to get that looked at, especially as the walls in that room are a bit... dry. Combined with the oils in the kitchen that have kind of... soaked in... it's... kind of a fire hazard. I don't think it'll go up anytime soon... but definitely make sure your parents look at it."

"... The second thing is, I'm uhhhh... I'm... I guess I should just... say it. I know you'll accept it. Still accept me. But it's hard, you know? I was... Equivalence. Was, being the operative word. I... managed to cobble a device together, with... some stuff I'd found and a magical object I'd stolen. I... can't be that anymore, I returned the piece I stole. But... considering.... the hurt I caused you and Nicomachea... I felt... I owed you this... I'm sorry."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
That is a *lot* to process during one walk, honestly. The fact that there is a fire hazard in her childhood home, that could have gone up at any moment -- and that probably *had* gone up in front of Hinoiri during the time loop, how else could she have such detailed knowledge? -- is, to use a massive understatement, chilling.

So it's understandable that she's busy working out how to come up with a good excuse to pass the knowledge onto her parents, that she misses the rest of it at first.

But when she rewinds the conversation in her head, she stares at Hinoiri, blinking rapidly. "Wait, you were...? And you-- Because you thought--"

When Rashmi found out during the time loop, there was a moment of incandescant anger. But since that endless day, Hinoiri has learned much, and Rashmi has *seen* more to her friend and ex-nemesis.

"It's funny," she says after a moment around a chuckle. "I remember talking about Equivalence, and outright *saying* she makes terrible choices under pressure, just like my friend Hinoiri. Well... now I know why."

She does pause the walk though, and turn to face Hinoiri directly. "I won't say I don't wish you hadn't done that, kicked Nicomachea. But he didn't take any damage that he couldn't fix in time, and... well, it's also not the worst he's been hurt."

    << *BONG!* >> << CONFIRMED, MASTER. THE GREATEST LEVEL OF DAMAGE THIS UNIT HAS TAKEN REQUIRED SIX DAYS IN THE HANDS OF A MEISTER, AND FIVE MORE FOR SELF-REPAIR MODULE ACTIVATION PROCESSES TO COMPLETE. >>

*Is* Nicomachea being nice in not mentioning *who* broke him that hard? Tough to tell, really, but books can apparently be salty too.

"The point is," Rashmi says, "your apology is appreciated, and accepted, and I'm buying the samosas."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara blinked a few times and then... "Yeah. Terrible choices, that tracks. In my defense... I've gotten a bit better, I think," she said with a small grin.

A bit. More like a lot...

However, when Rashmi stops, so does she. "For... what it's worth? I didn't understand, really, what Nicomachea was. You uhhh... explained it. Thouroughly. Very, very thouroughly." Pause. "And, for what it's worth, you did strangle me in one timeline. I... likely deserved it, though." She was just going to leave out the 'why'. She deserved it, probably good enough. "And you did know about the loops then."

When the apology is accepted, though, she reaches out... and she hugs Rashmi. Tightly. Closing her eyes and smiling. "Thank you, Rashmi. For everything you've done for me. And... probably still will... I know I've got a long road ahead, still. But... I'm lucky to have people like you to walk it with me."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Naw," Rashmi says, smiling. "You've gotten a *lot* better since then. Like, if I didn't know where it came from, I'd be worried *about* you."

When Hinoiri describes how she learned what she learned about Devices, Rashmi is... concerned. Especially when it turns out she tried to *strangle* her? That sounds... it would have had to be a really, really extreme moment, possibly involving mind control on at least one party? But she shakes her head. "I mean, you might think so, but I don't... I'm glad that didn't happen in the end, or I'd be seriously worried about me, too. And the important thing is... now you know. And now you get why this whole upgrade project is turning me into a ball of fret and worry, which I want to spend today *not* thinking about."

The hug, when it comes, is returned without hesitation. "Hey," she says quietly. "It's not a problem. Because in the end? You proved me right about you, and I'm *happy* to support you. However long the road is, you *definitely* got a friend next to you the whole way."