Long Conversations

[Nox]

People told Nox he was cocky, he was, but he knew what he could and could not do, the fact that Aria believed he agreed either said she was more cocky than he was, or she knew something he didn't. Nox supposed she did, she could feel his emotions after all. She knew more about him the little time they'd known each other than any other person short of Aurora who had been in his life. And she was probably the only person that would understand everything, without actually having to say much. That in and of itself that sounded good to Nox. He hated explaining himself, especially to girls. Guys had their guy logic, the I get what you feel, but let's not talk about it. He liked that.

Aria started telling him things, things that were personal. Her life had been horrible. He couldn't even begin to understand what killing with a kiss felt like. He couldn't help it, he flinched, his hands in hers, she was touching him. She knew how he felt. Aria reassured him, like she was used to the feeling, knowing someone was afraid of you. That had to be horrible. To know exactly what a person thought of you through the smiles and the friendliness, everyone had their mask, and she saw through it. He muttered to himself, "Hell of a life."


Basically it came down to one thing and that was she enjoyed the kill. The hunt helped, it always did. Nox felt drawn to the hunt, to stopping the monsters from hurting someone else. To ending its life. He couldn't say he enjoyed it but he couldn't deny it either. He wanted to hunt, wanted the thrill of the kill, the eventuality that something bigger and better would best him. The thrill of death, it was a risk worth taking, and this little girl in front of him strove towards it, enjoyed it and was asking him to join her in it. Nox should have been afraid, but the thrill of danger was intoxicating. He wondered how she felt, what she felt during her darkness as she called it. Nox swallowed and pulled his hands from hers as she sat back and closed her eyes.

He thought about what she was offering him. And the thrill didn't die down, she wasn't coaxing a reaction from him. He knew this could end badly. She was like a drowning girl, who would take her potential rescuer down with her. Could he do that? Falling down the rabbit hole, Nox grinned at the literary reference, granted he'd never read the books, but he remembered the ancient cartoon from his childhood. "So you want me to go hunting with a girl who claims to enjoy killing, what will keep you from hurting me?"
It was meant as a joke, but the look she gave him was the utmost serious face he'd seen since she walked in.

"Nothing. We will have to work on your free will."
Aria was straight-faced, she understood he was joking, he could see that she was trying to scare him. And really he should have just walked away. But Aria intrigued him, not as a girl who he'd like to see naked, she was just such an enigma, such a mystery he had to know, had to understand.

He put his hands on top of hers. "Not sure how we can work on my free will, but where do I sign up? I don't know if this will work. You mention hunting, and we've done so well before, so easily we mesh together in a fight, I want more. I've never fought with anyone who's like you. Even Aurora who I know like the back of my hand, we don't fight that well together."


Aria smiled at him, it was a pretty smile, she was genuinely happy, "We will do better than that in the end. We've lots of training to do together. Hunting is only part of it."


Nox laughed, "So I become your padawan?"


Aria smiled, "No, we become partners. I can teach you, and you can teach me. We'll teach each other, work together, find the right balance to make everything work."


Nox nodded, "When do we start?"
It was exciting, scary but exciting.