A SHEEPISH SMILE FOUND ITS way upon his face – of course it was a bit odd that he was giving Hao a flower crown. If they had grown up together like BROTHERS, rather than Yoh knowing nothing about his sibling until far later, perhaps the act would be less scrutinized, but they HADN’T. Even if they had led normal lives, they wouldn’t have lived as brothers. Brothers they were, but they also were DESCENDANT and ANCESTOR and that would have taken precedent if their lives had been normal. Regardless of how they grew up, most would think that the fact alone that Hao had done bodily damage to his friends would have deterred Yoh from attempting to be FRIENDLY with him. It was the opposite in fact. While the younger Asakura twin was by no means happy with what Hao had done, he did not hold it against the elder. That simply wasn’t the type of person Yoh was.
THE FACT THAT HAO HAD TAKEN the gift left Yoh with the warmth of happiness in his chest. He KNEW that he shouldn’t have that burst of EMOTION, let alone approach Hao with anything but the so-called destiny that he had been trained for by his family. Everyone shone a NEGATIVE light on his older brother: the X-Laws, the Asakura family, other participants, and even his friends could not see past his actions. Yoh knew that they would, and did, disapprove of his attempts at friendliness or, spirits forbid, trying to understand his brother but he had to TRY.
❛That’s right. Sometimes I guess I forget that you’ve lived so long, ❜ he admitted; there were times that he simply got caught up in the idea that he had a BROTHER and forgot that his sibling was also his ancestor. People were usually quick to remind him if he misspoke, but he wasn’t PERFECT. He couldn’t put aside his own personal feelings for the so-called ‘greater good’, as selfish as it sounded. Most looked at him as the next Asakura to take care of Hao for the next five CENTURIES, but no one had asked for his input. Truth be told, Yoh didn’t like the idea of killing Hao. He didn’t like the idea of KILLING anything, it made him UNCOMFORTABLE and not like himself. He’d rather see the goodness in Hao, where it was, and hold onto his hope that he could save his brother. Many called him naive, a DREAMER, and while words and glares could sting he didn’t have the time to care.
HOWEVER, SINCE HIS ORIGINAL excuse for trying to spend time with his brother than wasn’t filed with fighting or HEATED words was deemed INVALID, he had to think of something else. It was a shame, since he had actually been looking forward to spending an afternoon entwining flowers into circlets. There was something calming about being surrounded by the FLORA, and it was a simple enough activity that he wouldn’t have to worry about getting too tired. He wasn’t opposed to sleeping in an open field, but he wasn’t sure if Hao would appreciate it too much if he fell asleep on him.
❛Ah, well… I hadn’t thought about what we could do if not flower crowns, but do you have any ideas…–? ❜ He was hesitant to ask what Hao would like to do in order to pass time, but Yoh didn’t have any other ideas at the moment.
“Ah, well... I can’t say I have pre-planned ideas. I hadn’t expected you to come by so suddenly.” Granted, he could hear everyone’s thoughts; that was a given. However, when too many thoughts were in one area, it was difficult for even himself to focus on one particular thought. It was like a trance of voices, and sometimes he had had difficulty with a long time ago. So long ago that now, he was used to it, and it no longer affected him. Now, it was simply a matter of not being able to always deduce a particular thought from another. That, though, was something he probably would never be able to get down entirely.
How much was there to do on a simple island? While Shaman training was always an option, that wasn’t something Hao needed, and there was a better chance Yoh would get injured trying. Well, a thousand years would do that to you in terms of experience, so having that reasoning wasn’t quite boasting, right? Well... there was the beach. A walk by the ocean was in no way threatening, and even those who viewed it from the outside couldn’t mistake that. It wasn’t that Hao couldn’t beat anyone in a battle who interrupted, but who wanted pests flying around when he was trying to relax?
“We could down to the beach area and stay along shore? For all the trouble I cause, I do like to relax sometimes, you know? There’s no harm in being a bit normal once in a while.” Yoh probably wouldn’t see it that way either. If anyone, he was the one person to acknowledge that someone even of Hao’s strength was still human. The things that pushed him to do what he did and act how he acted were simply guided by the same motivations as what could be found in others.
A pause, then he carried on. “Actually, I should drop this off first so it doesn’t get wet. Who knows, it might fall into the ocean or be dirtied by sand. The stop will be quick if you’re worried.” A small laugh this time as he twirled the flower crown gently in his hand. “Not that that’s our only option. Just a suggestion off the top of my head. It’s not easy to be able to spend time with you without having a few people think it’s an apocalypse that the deadly Hao is not in fact being deadly~. Your choice, though. You’re the one who came out here looking for me, after all.”
