The Blue Guardian Angel [Lola]

Her mouth would gap in surprise at Hyde’s words, “I can’t ask you to do something like that for me. I’ve seen the knowledgeable TV, and it says that money is important. There is no way I would allow you to use it on me.” She gave a pout as she places her hands on her hips, “And don’t think you can fool me with that funny voice and that cheerful smile. I may not pay attention in class, but school has made me smarter.” She could not let him pay for her, “Although, if you order some ice cream I may steal a bite.” Loopholes were nice like that, and they could even get her out of her own rules, “So let’s go have some of that sweet cold cream!” She really wanted to try a little. Just a little. She would also give him a cheerful smile, “And I can teach you a little about math. I don’t want my guests to fail their classes.” Not that she cared about that, but it seemed to be a thing with humans.

That’s the spirit!” Hyde was glad that Lola agreed  to tag along, she was even going to fit some lessons in there. “Well, I guess you could fit a lesson in there about math and money if you want. But the true mystery is the reason why ice cream keeps tasting so good.”  Hyde would walk in after Lola and  literally jump at the front of the counter. “Lucky, slow business day for the best ice cream shop. “ Hyde would then look back over to  Lola  called her over. “ Ok,  let’s start with  vanilla ice cream and the world class chocolate ice cream .  After paying for the scoops, Hyde would get two spoons and hand one to Lola. Alright, moment of truth, don’t hold back Lola. We’re sharing  remember?

Vanilla Ice Cream

Spoiler:

World Class Chocolate Ice Cream

Spoiler:

She would put her finger up to her chin to think, “Maybe there is some special thing only ice cream has. I remember seeing lots of people eat it all year long. Well, that’s not true. They seemed to stop eating it when it got cold out. That’s another thing I never understood. Why does it get so cold outside? My home never seems to change weather. Even when we’re at the bottom of an ocean, my home is nice.” She was suddenly glad she didn’t need to worry about the Velvet Room getting super cold. She would watch him order the ice cream before handing her a spoon. Thankfully, she had seen enough people do this to understand how it should be eaten. She stuck the spoon in and took out a small chunk of the vanilla before putting it in her mouth. The second it touched her tongue, her face lit up, “This is delicious.” She couldn’t even fully describe how good it was. She would repeat with the chocolate. It was just as good. The human world really was filled with wonders.

Its good right?!” Hyde would say as he used his spoon to take some bites of the ice cream as well. “You know, I never understood that as well. I think that my favorite weather is summer. IT’s nice and hot, you could wear simple and comfortable clothing. Also, you could play at the beach and build sand castles, and cool off by eating delicious treats. And Ice cream Is definitely one of those treats. “ Hyde would say this with a smile, he was relatively happy that he had a chance to share his ice cream with his friend.

“So, out of the chocolate and vanilla, which one do you like the most?” Hyde would say this as he started to eat a little bit of both flavors.

She would sneak in another bite of the vanilla ice cream, before setting down her spoon, “Well, I’m grateful it doesn’t change. If you haven’t noticed, we have a uniform we have to wear.” Not that she ever wore her uniform. She stuck with clothing that was more comfortable on her end. It made her stick out around her more rule abiding siblings. She has to think about what weather she liked, “Honestly, I like this new Velvet Room. It’s nice to watch the fishes swim by. I spend a lot of time there trying to play with them, but they always swim away.” She wished they weren’t so stubborn, “Sometimes I stop when guests stop by. That isn’t as often as I’d hope though.” She’d laugh before answering his next question, “I like the vanilla one. The chocolate is nice, but the vanilla is much more smooth to eat. The chocolate is rich and yummy as well, but smooth goes down easier.” She wasn’t completely used to the decadence of some human food, so her logic was simple.

New velvet room? That’s pretty interesting; I didn’t know you guys had multiple velvet rooms. How do you keep track of the mortgage that you hold on each room? Or is it one of those portable houses that changes shape everywhere you go? “ Hyde was quiet for a beat before he continued . “Don’t you think it’s hard to make friend if you move so often? Why not stay in azores so we can hang out all the time?!” Hyde didn’t really understand what it meant to be an attendant, or for them to move around a lot. However, he would be happy if he was able to spend some more time with Lola.

“Alright! We found out your favorite, vanilla !” Hyde would then shift the vanilla ice cream over to Lola. “You can have the rest, I’ll settle with the chocolate. I would uch rater you enjoy the vanilla instead. “

She would shake her head at his question, “I don’t know what a mortgage is, but I don’t think it applies to us. My home is a little out of the way for any sort of normal human dwelling requirements. I’m sure you already figured that out.” She didn’t think that was easy to overlook. When he mentioned friends, she would have to think, “I didn’t go to school until recently, and some attendants don’t move between branches. I just moved because I thought I could do more here than I could there. Some of my siblings didn’t transfer with me, and some weren’t at the last branch. In fact, I think I may be the only one that moved. But… I’d like to hang out with you more.” It’s not like she had anything to stay for. Her only guest had met an unfortunate fate. She would gasp when he gave her the ice cream, “I told you I can’t just take this.” She would feel guilty if she did.

You know.... I just realized that you have a really big family. Do you like your siblings a lot? Do you guys get along or do you guys fight? I don’t know what it means to have a brother or sister or anything, but I always thought it was nice to hear about others families.  “Whenever she decided to elaborate about her big family or not, Hyde would proceed  happily gesture his hand over to the ice cream. “You are MY attendant. Do you know what that means? It means I  have to make sure that  you assist me in times of trouble , and I can't finish two ice creams by myself right now. It was just a coincidence that vanilla ice cream turned out to be your favorite, purely coincidental.  Besides, Eating ice cream is a challenge, sometimes you have to decide on whenever you want to lick it with your tongue or use your spoon.  Tough decisions right? I’m clearly in trouble here, I’ll get a headache if I eat too much ice cream alone, so it’s your job to help me. Does that make you feel a little less guilt if you are doing your job?”  Hyde wasn’t taking no for an answer, and  Lola was going to learn how stubborn he could be eventually.

She would tap her spoon against the table, “I like my siblings. Each of us is different and some are funny in how much they don’t understand the human world. They need to study more. I spent a long time studying before I felt comfortable acting like one of you.” She stared at the ice cream, feeling her stomach rumble and her mouth water, “Stop using that kind of logic with me. It’s my one weakness. It’s not fair that you would exploit it like that. That’s so mean of you, Hyde.” She wanted to be a good attendant, but she wasn’t sure this was the way. He was saying it was though, so maybe it was. Could doing this really help him or was he just playing with her? How was she supposed to deal with this while still being a good attendant to her guests? She wanted to be helpful in more ways than just their issues involving just Persona, but she was sure this wasn’t it.

One of us? You make it sound like you are a different species or something? You might be unique, but you are no alien. You take after my likeness as a human being, so i wouldn't look at you any differently than that. Not saying this like i'm underestimating you either, you are more like a.....superhero! That's a good comparison." After a small laugh, Hyde would continue to try to tempt Lola into eating the ice cream.

I’m not being mean at all; I’m just making sure you understand the importance of being my partner. So far I’m making it up as I go but try to bear with me here. Rule number one my partner is always inclined to eat delicious foods with me. This means that you, “My attendant”, also has access to delicious treats that you see most people eating and me, like this ice cream right here. Plus, its better if partners assist each other in times of hunger, like right now!” Hyde was really trying to play into the fact that Lola was hungry; he also didn’t want her going back home hungry after hanging out what him.

After taking another spoonful of the chocolate ice cream, Hyde would sit back into the chair. “ Lola, you have no real reason to feel bad about me sharing with you. You are my friend, my attendant, I didn’t even get a chance to sign your book because I was so busy. At least…let me try to make it up to you…. Please?”

She blushed when Hyde compared her to a superhero, “I’m not a hero. I’m more like the sidekick that you go to when you need to bounce idea off of someone. You’re being much too kind when you compare me to something like that. As for being human…” She would twist uncomfortably in her seat, “How old do you think I am?” This was the only way she could try and explain it to him. She looked like a high schooler, but could he figure out how old she really was? She doubted he would be able to tell. Heck, she often forgot how old she really was. She stopped counting a while ago.

She would look down at the ice cream once again before poking it with her spoon. What else was she supposed to do? It would melt if she didn’t eat it, “Fine, I’ll eat this one. Only because I don’t want you to have wasted the money you spent on it.” She would stick in her spoon and start eating the cool treat. She really did like how ice cream tasted and felt going down her throat. It was this amazing treat she found that made her feel all bubbly inside, “And don’t worry about not signing my book. It’s magic, Silly. It signs itself once you decide to make me your attendant. It’s special like that. I mean, you can sign it if you want, but you aren’t actually required to.” The proof of that was that his name was already in her Compendium, along with two others. It was good it did it on its own, or she would forget to have people sign it all the time.

How old? Well….. You look like a princess to be exact, so I would say that you are maybe twenty or something? That’s how old you look, I could even say eighteen. Either way, I think that you got the fountain of youth going for you right now. I think you are around my age, but that just makes you a bit more easier to talk to. “ Hyde would then begin to take a small break from finishing his chocolate ice cream. “ Well, I don’t think that a sidekick would be any less important than a hero. Look at robin; he used to be a sidekick before becoming a super hero by himself right? So we all start somewhere, no matter who we are.”

After finishing the ice cream and throwing the small container away. Hyde had an idea. ”Well, maybe we should be a little different. Along with my name, I’ll give you my actual signature too!

She shook her head when Hyde guessed her age, “Honestly, I stopped keeping track of my age after I hit my early forties. It just got depressing after that.” She didn’t actually remember how old she was anymore. She thought it was more fun to go with the flow, “I can tell you that when it comes to me and my siblings, I am probably one of the younger ones.” She wasn’t nearly as old as some of the others. She’d take another spoonful of ice cream, “I was born this way, and I will stay this way forever. I’m not human, Hyde. I only look human.” In other words, the things they had to do differed greatly from one another. She had something to say about robin though, “You know that when one leaves, another just takes his place, right? Robin may not have been the best example. Maybe the Spoiler… Then again, she was a hero that became a sidekick and then died so… Nevermind.” She had no idea what she was saying.

Hyde practically froze  with a shocked look on his face. She’s forty years old? What in the hell is going on? At the same time, she said that she only looked human, it didn’t  mean that she was human. “That’s true, but I’m pretty shocked. I guess this makes you one of the lucky ones. You were born as a teenager, isn’t that great? Instead of even stating an age, just say you are forever young,  that’s a cool way to go about it.” However, something strange happened. Hyde managed to catch on top a mix-up  with the Robin character that Lola stated.

“Hm? She? Robin is a boy though Lola…” When she said never mind, Hyde felt that there could be something on her mind and decided to ask her about it. “ Hey…. Is…something bothering you? A hero that became a sidekick....... what did you mean by that?”

He laughed, “Eternally young. I was born young and I’ll always be young. I will never really get any older. It’s a bit strange to think about.” She stuffed her face with more ice cream and hummed, “At least I look like I’m a decent age. Personally, I try to tell people I’m seventeen. I’m not sure how I feel about that. It was strange when I was first born and I wanted to go outside. Human children are so small when they’re born, and then you grow up… In many ways.” She would wave off her mention of heroes, “I was talking about the Spoiler. She’s a female superhero that eventually became a short-lived Robin. Then she died, but not really, and became batgirl when she returned. Except, I can’t remember if she is or not anymore.” Lola was over forty years old. She had enough time to read comics and understand their vast continuity. She finished off the last of the ice cream before she knew what had happened. She was missing the creamy goodness already, “My main point though, is that I am not a hero. I am merely here to help the real heroes along their journey. That is my job, and it makes me happy.” She never knew that this could actually bring joy to her life, but it had so far. It was strange in a way.