a seed of hope {kousei}

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I've never been a smart guy, but even I can piece together the message the training center is trying to hammer through to me. One more missed through, another trip, another sword slipping through my fingers -- it's pretty clear that fighting just isn't my thing. Right now I'm questioning if anything is my thing, seventeen years and the only skills I've managed to hone are lying, cars and scoring and none of that bullshit is going to help.

None of that can save an angel with no wings.

I suppose it's only fair that if I can't fight then I need to learn how to survive, without cards, without a roof over my head and ready made meals at my dinner table. No, I need to leanr how to stand on my own two feet. So, it's only natural that I find myself sitting at the plants station, reading instructions on what plant does what and trying to pick them out and I manage a smile when I think I've found a winner. "Hold on, dude. Unless you want to look like a tomato, I don't think you should eat that." A voice sounds behind me and I stop dead in my tracks, spinning around to see a boy who looks about my age and a number eleven sewn on his arm.

Well shit, guess he knows a fuck ton more than I do, a single glance at the instruction manual confirms this. "Well damn, I guess you're right. Thanks for the save erm..." I trail off, glancing at his face and then the number on his arm. "Eleven? Although I'm guessing you're sick of being called that at this point." I manage a smile, tossing the berry behind me.

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"My name's Walherich. Though I don't expect you to memorize that by heart. How bout you, three?"

I smile at the irony of him calling me three and the sound of his name. Walherich, he says I probably won't remember it but I will, well I hope so anyway. I stand up, stretching my arms out. "Name's Ree, from three of course. I won't be offended if you don't remember it, I probably wouldn't." I laugh, sticking my hands in my pockets before dropping my gaze to the plants scattered around the station. Fuck, I really don't know anything about plants. These plants could be some kind of paralyzing agent and I wouldn't know at all.

"For what it's worth, I'll try not to forget the guy who stopped me from turning myself into a walking tomato," I say before pausing. "So I'm guessing you know your plants pretty well then, huh?"