[IC] Fateful Convergence

[Vocalia]

"W-Well, umm... I-I guess I was just flustered after all that happened, but I appreciate your thoughts nonetheless," Eryn replied, slowly finding his presence to be rather comforting. "It's been a while since I could come to an anime convention like this. I've been so busy over the past two years with my studies that I don't have a lot of time to go out very often. In a way, I suppose I have forgotten what it feels like to be amongst so many people who share the same passion, hobby, or interest as I do, even though we don't know one another," she said as she bit into her takoyaki, then offered the small bowl of savory dish to him with a smile. "Here, please have some. It's the least I could offer."

[Daxam]

Sean looks at Eryn for a moment and smiles. "Why not?" Taking a bite, he silently chews before swallowing, saying afterward, "That's pretty good! I'll have to get some for myself, next time." After taking a quick bite of his soba, he offers it to Eryn and says, "This isn't bad, either." Before she can take a bite, however, he picks up one of the bags of tiroru and says, "Oh, and have this. Consider it my gift to you for deciding to share this lunch with me."

[Vocalia]

Eryn was slightly reluctant to accept the bag of tiroru at first, but then she realized that she could be seen as rude if she didn't let Sean return her favor, so she accepted it and nodded graciously. "Thank you very much, Sean. You don't have to, but I really appreciate it," she replied, then timidly took a bite out of the soba, humming softly as the savory flavor flooded her taste buds. "Oh my! The soba is quite firm, yet flavorful, and the broth is just delectable!"

[Daxam]

"Isn't it?":Sean asks, grinning. "I haven't had soba this good since the last convention I went to." The next few moments pass in content silence as they enjoy their food, sometimes sharing it between them, before Sean says, "You mentioned earlier that you were studying. Do you still go to school?"

[Vocalia]

"Oh, I'm actually studying for my double bachelor degree in Arts and Business in university," Eryn replied, sounding less timid and more at ease now that she had spent a bit of time with Sean. "It's really nothing impressive and the two degrees take quite a bit of my time, leaving me with little time to spend to attend to my hobbies, but I do enjoy the experience."

[Daxam]

Sean smiles and replies, "Actually, that is pretty impressive. I haven't heard of many people going that far. It's always nice to meet a nice, intelligent girl every once in awhile." Still smiling, he finishes his soba, then moves onto his korokke before adding, "I just hope you weren't bullied like I was when I went to high school. Some people just don't appreciate a bright mind, sadly."

[Vocalia]

Taking a bite out of her takoyaki, Eryn's smile momentarily turned somber as she said to him, "Unfortunately, even I wasn't immune to that treatment. While everyone in university has been very kind to me and are great people in general, I did suffer from harassment before I graduated high school due to many things about me, one of which was my tendency to pick things up quickly. I guess people just don't like anyone they see as deviations from what they see as norms and would either force them to conform or disappear, which is quite sad indeed."

[Daxam]

Sean chuckles and says, "I always figured everyone would be too busy fawning over you to notice that. I mean, I'm sorry if I'm overstepping any boundaries, but you're really pretty, you know. Even though you're dressed up, I mean." Looking away, a slight blush on his face, he adds, trying to keep the focus off of what he had just said, "I was bullied, too, especially considering how old I was when I went into high school. Not many people take kindly to the fact that I was on the road to graduating before my fifteenth birthday."

[Vocalia]

"Umm... Well... You're not... that off the mark..." Eryn replied timidly, her cheeks now adorned with a rosy blush. She recalled the number of daily secret admirer letters sent to her dorm mailbox and how her classmates would point out how anyone would kill to have a woman with "a complete package" like her, a woman with a golden heart, hunger for intellectual pursuits, and the appearance that reflected who she really was. When Sean told her why he was bullied, she gasped in shock. "How? If I were your classmate, I would have hounded you for days on end, asking for your studying strategies and plans! To graduate at that age is an impressive feat! Do forgive me if I'm being too direct, but I'm honestly proud of you for it."

[Daxam]

Sean chuckles and says, "Well, I wouldn't have been able to tell you how I managed that. Everything just kinda comes natural to me, both in and out of the classroom." Hearing that Eryn was proud of him, a complete stranger, makes him feel unbelievably happy, for some reason, as if it were his life's purpose to get her approval, even if they only met just an hour or two ago. Turning back to her, he asks, "Are you staying here the whole weekend?"

[Vocalia]

Nodding enthusiastically, Eryn looked at Sean and replied, "Yes, I am! I'm staying at the hotel reserved for the convention attendants with a few other people since we can't afford to book a hotel room separately." Biting into her seaweed-wrapped onigiri, the young lady felt a strong, seemingly innate desire to get to know Sean more. From the short time they had spent interacting with one another, they found quite a few things in common with one another and she felt that he had such a magnetic personality that drew her to him. She didn't know why, but it was as if something deep inside her was being invited and welcomed into his personal space and it somehow made her happy. "What about you, Sean? Will you be staying as well?"

[Daxam]

Hearing that Eryn would be staying the weekend, he can't help but grin, feeling incredibly happy that he'd be able to talk to her more. "Yeah, I have my own room at the same hotel!" he says. "Although, I kinda wish I would've brought someone along. I've been to a lot of these conventions by myself and it gets pretty lonely." Grinning, he adds, "Although, now that I've made an awesome friend like you, it won't be so bad!"

[Vocalia]

Eryn felt a sense of accomplishment from just knowing that she had made Sean's day a lot better just by befriending him. As if she was infected by his happiness and excitement, she nodded with a big smile, or a smile as big as she naturally could muster, and replied, "I hope we can both have fun at the convention this year. There are so many things I'd like to do. It really is a pleasure to know you, Sean!"

[Daxam]

Sean chuckles and says, "I'm glad you think so. It's an even greater pleasure to know you, Eryn." Soon, he finishes his food, except for his on bag of tiroru, which he plans on snacking on throughout the day, and patiently waits for Eryn to finish hers. When she finally does, he asks, "So, do you have to go meet with someone or would you mind joining me for a little while?"

[Vocalia]

Shaking her head, Eryn pulled out a tissue from her small strap purse and shook her head. "Well, I don't have any plans with other people today and I certainly wouldn't mind coming along with you," she replied, wiping her mouth clean and then wrapping all the trash before disposing it at a designated bin. It seemed that she was quite a tidy person in general. Looking back at Sean while holding onto her bag of tiroru, she smiled and said, "Shall we move on?"

[Daxam]

"Sure," Sean says, standing up and leading Eryn away from the corner. As they walk, he couldn't help but notice the glances thrown their way, the result of his and Eryn's meeting. His face slightly flushed as he thinks about it once more, he looks for something to distract himself, which he finds at a manga booth. Pointing at it, he says, "Hey, let's go see if this guy has anything worth buying, shall we?"

[Vocalia]

Eryn nodded, noticing that the booth appeared to attract some attention. She was about to walk towards the booth with Sean when she heard footsteps approaching them. Turning around, she saw a few men, looking no older than herself, looking at her with lecherous eyes. "Nice costume," he said with a pretentious smile, his eyes seemed to be fixed at a spot on her upper torso, another on her lower torso, and nothing else. "I-I'm sorry... but my eyes a-are up here," Eryn said to him, trying to be stern, but quickly found herself feeling overwhelmed as his friends ignored Sean and approached her even though her body language clearly stated that she wanted to be nowhere near them. "Come on. There's nothing wrong with complimenting your dress. You should be happy that we even notice," another said arrogantly.

[Daxam]

Sean was on his way to the booth when he heard Eryn talking to someone. Turning around, he finds a group of young men crowding around her, like sharks attacking a helpless animal. Seeing where they were focusing, he feels himself get angry as he walks over to them. Placing a hand on Eryn's shoulder, he gazes into one of the men's eyes, the one who started speaking to Eryn and seemed to be the leader. "She's with me," he says, to which the man laughs. "Really?" he asks. "Well, I guess we'll just have to do something about that, then." Getting the message, one of the man starts moving around Sean toward his back. Faster than the men could react, Sean spins around and grabs the man by the collar of his shirt as he continues the spin. He then effortlessly lifts the man off of his feet, safely over Eryn, and into a couple of his friends. "If you don't wanna see what I'm really capable of," he warns, "I'd back off if I were you."

[Vocalia]

Eryn cringed and looked away from the men as Sean tossed one around like a piece of paper and the resulting commotion began to attract more attention to them than it was beforehand. However, she was much more worried about Sean's safety and quickly held one arm. "Sean, please don't! We-"

"You son of a bitch! You think you're all that, huh? You in your stupid costume and your bitch in her rape dress!" The last bit of his remark finally provoked Eryn for real. She calmly let Sean go, then walked up to the smirking man. "Oh? You've finally decided to j-" His sentence ended with a high-pitched shriek as Eryn's red shoe ended up flying up and hitting the man square in the groins. Had the altercation set in an anime world, the man's eyes would have flown out of the sockets and his face contorted into a wide jaw-drop. With an angry frown and tearful eyes, she watched as the man squirmed and rolled on the ground while his friends tried to help themselves up.

[Daxam]

Sean took a step forward, ready to flatten the man's nose, but stopped as Eryn walked up to him. Sean then watched in admiration as Eryn essentially ruined any chances the man had at fatherhood. Stepping up to the man she had just emasculated, Sean then crouches and peers into his eyes. As the man looks, Sean shows him, just with his eyes, a brief glimpse of what he could do to him. The man, now scared witless by the convention goer in front of him, as well as the woman behind him, loses the last bit of dignity he had as the sharp scent of urine fills the air. Sean straightens up and turns around, placing a hand on Eryn's shoulder, and quietly says, "Come on. Let's go find something else to do."