@dawnight asked: " You know... When I first joined the Union, you were one of the few people who did not outright believe I was not to be trusted... that what I was was someone I no longer am... " Leora takes a deep inhale, closing her eyes before giving Tang Xuan a gentle smile " I wished to say thank you. It means a lot to me to see someone in this world be so trusting of another. It made my introduction to the Union a bit more welcoming. "
In the middle of pulling the top off of a snack, he pauses as Leora speaks. Perched on the railing of one of the city's many roofs, he balances on the balls of his feet and shifts slightly to turn his head toward his current patrol partner. Rather than the usual steely sternness he's grown accustomed to, the other redhead seems... hesitant? No, more like thoughtful. Not that Leora's as hotheaded as his usual partner (no one is as hotheaded as his favorite gēmen) but she's still... intense. More so when she's got those bright, sharp eyes trained dead on him.
Taking his time to finish peeling open his pudding, he pulls the little spoon attached to the outer lid out and taps it against his lip. The nonchalance is a pretense when he asks, absently:
"Was it really that big a deal?"
Tang Xuan says it, but he knows the answer. Though the Union is a great place, a lot of its older members are still sore over the split that created the Shadow Decree. And while Leora is far from a part of that initial group, that she'd been part of their organization at all had left other Espers- old and new- on edge. Even when it came to the best and brightest, fear could sometimes get the best of them in unexpected ways. He'd seen the near-coldness, the wariness in a lot of his coworkers, and had immediately set about in trying to change their reactions. He wasn't unaware of his own pull with his fellow Union Chiefs, after all, even if he seldom saw fit to do anything with it.
The spoon goes into the pudding, and he brings the mouthful up carefully. His eyes aren't on Leora anymore, if only because her smile feels too grateful for something that was just him being nice.
More like being stupid and gullible, his brother's voice sneers in his head, and he blinks it away, rolling the spoon in his mouth as he swallows the bite. Plucking it back out, he goes in for another, less cautious bite, letting the sweet, mellow flavor fill his mouth and soothe his heart. Pushing the spoon to the corner of his mouth, he rocks a bit on his toes as he turns to face her again, leaning his cheek on his palm.
"...you're welcome," he mumbles at length, trying hard not to look bashful (and failing). "It's the least I could do for a future fellow Ops Chief." He grins around the spoon still pressed against his cheek, piercings standing out in further relief as his cheeks dimple beneath them. It's bright and warm, kind- though swiftly turns mischievous as he retrieves the spoon again, pointing it at her with a faint wiggle of his eyebrows.
"Buuuut, if you really want to thank me, I won't ever say no to more pudding."
