Knowing him as I did, you were correct. He wasn't a man to soak his hands in blood unless he felt as though there was nothing left, and it would lose someone precious to him if he remained still.
[because...Keigo meant the world to him. as if they were flesh and blood family.]
...That said, I'll call you Alice if you call me Helena. You don't have to add the last name, if you'd rather not.
[ It's that conviction again, there in Helena's remarks, and the sentiments she describes are understandable. They can't be in the minority, thinking so.
If it came to that, who wouldn't exhaust all options in the pursuit of doing anything and everything within their power to protect someone they hold dear? ]
Well... Perhaps people will listen to you, and remember him as you do... Helena.
[ Though Alice hesitates, no more accustomed to crossing the distance he chooses than he is to finding himself surrounded by kind people, he accepts Helena's newest invitation, too. ]
[the smile she gives him is gentle, an encouragement for making that effort.]
We'll see, won't we? Even if they don't...even if his name is blackened, I'll still have my faith in him, no matter what is said. Until he returns, things will be murky - but it means there's room enough to doubt, to believe in him. This place tries your very spirit, after all.
[ Helena can't see him return her smile until his own falters, something wistful there to take its place, but he can't conceal the way his voice catches in his throat when it emerges, nor his subsequent attempt to clear it. ]
...I'm sure it makes a difference. Your faith in him... When he returns, he won't be nothing but a murderer... because there are people here who know him.
[ That knowledge eases their pain at least somewhat, too, right? And forgiveness from those affected is a precious thing. ]
When he returns, Alice...I won't presume to know your feelings on everything, for it is a difficult issue. But if you doubt in your heart, if you would want to give him a chance at demonstrating who he really is...I'm sure he'd appreciate any attempt at friendship you could muster.
[she won't tell him what to do, how to feel. but if Alice is like her, with compassion ready to be extended, she can't think of someone else who'd need it on their first day back more than him.]
[ The matter is complicated, there's no doubt about that, but what little Alice knows tells him enough. Helena is a good person, and Rantarou Amami appears to be no less so. His actions, the damning decisions of someone driven to desperation, can be traced to a goal that lends support to just that. ]
His fish await his return... and I shall offer to purchase a recommended beverage from the vending machines.
[ The very same recommendation that Rantarou Amami himself obtained for him when they met, in fact. That time, it was completely beetle-free... ]
I'll even share my exam-taking techniques again, should he need them...
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[because...Keigo meant the world to him. as if they were flesh and blood family.]
...That said, I'll call you Alice if you call me Helena. You don't have to add the last name, if you'd rather not.
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If it came to that, who wouldn't exhaust all options in the pursuit of doing anything and everything within their power to protect someone they hold dear? ]
Well... Perhaps people will listen to you, and remember him as you do... Helena.
[ Though Alice hesitates, no more accustomed to crossing the distance he chooses than he is to finding himself surrounded by kind people, he accepts Helena's newest invitation, too. ]
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We'll see, won't we? Even if they don't...even if his name is blackened, I'll still have my faith in him, no matter what is said. Until he returns, things will be murky - but it means there's room enough to doubt, to believe in him. This place tries your very spirit, after all.
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...I'm sure it makes a difference. Your faith in him... When he returns, he won't be nothing but a murderer... because there are people here who know him.
[ That knowledge eases their pain at least somewhat, too, right? And forgiveness from those affected is a precious thing. ]
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[she won't tell him what to do, how to feel. but if Alice is like her, with compassion ready to be extended, she can't think of someone else who'd need it on their first day back more than him.]
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His fish await his return... and I shall offer to purchase a recommended beverage from the vending machines.
[ The very same recommendation that Rantarou Amami himself obtained for him when they met, in fact. That time, it was completely beetle-free... ]
I'll even share my exam-taking techniques again, should he need them...