How do we always end up here (Sentinel)

Naomi stared at her phone with a worried expression. She wasn’t sure how to start this phone call. What was she supposed to say? Did it even matter at this point? Probably not. He had already seen her subconscious and her Shadow was pretty bold. This was not going to be a good conversation. She pushed the buttons to call Alphonse, trying to overcome her fear. She listened as the phones rang, swallowing the lump in her throat. She would keep listening until he either picked up, or the answering machine got to her. Either way, her message would be the same (with a few variations for if she was talking to a live person or not), “Umm… Alphonse, hi. I was wondering if we could get together today. I don’t really mind where. I just think I need to tell you something, and I’d rather do it face-to-face than over the phone, so…” She wasn’t sure how to start this conversation. She just wanted to meet up with him and get this over with. She was not the type of person to just say this stuff, so this was a first, and it was making her head hurt to think about it, “Actually, we both know where the church is and it isn’t busy this time of day, so maybe we can meet there.” She knew that he knew it. They had been there several times before. She would hang up her phones and make her way there. This was not going to be a fun day.

Hearing the phone ring the android would quickly answer it, before being rather surprised that Naomi was calling him. He heard her speak about a desire to talk to him about something face to face. This surprised the android, what on earth could she have to tell him that was so pressing. "That is perfectly acceptable, where do you want to meet?" The android asked and that is when Naomi mentioned the church once more. The android nodded his head, "That is reasonable to me, I will meet you over there soon!" Since Maria would be over at a friend's the android knew he had a bit of time to meet with Naomi, the android would make his way to the church to meet Naomi. It was a bit ironic that only a little while ago the android had revealed his biggest secret to Naomi, and now they might be doing the same here as well. However, shouldn't have everything bad about her come out through her awakening or quest to gain more power? Unless...it was buried so deep that not even the shadow dared to reveal it. Regardless, Sentinel would be waiting in the Church by the time Naomi arrived waiting to see what she had to discuss with him.

It was times like this that Naomi wished she worshipped a god of some kind. One of them would be really useful right now. Instead, she could only wait for her meeting with Alphonse. She walked in silence while thoughts raced through her head. She didn’t even attempt to pull up her tablet and do, well, anything to take her mind off of it. She just walked and thought about how she was going to say everything she wanted to. She would get to the church with a bit of guilt, seeing as Alphonse was already there. Had she made him wait long? She hoped not. She wouldn’t say anything, but instead sat close to him, “Somehow, we always end up here. How does this keep happening?” She knew how. It was something easy to find, so it was a good spot for meeting up. She would sit in silence for a little while longer, only breaking it when she felt good and ready, “No more joking. I know you were there to hear everything my Shadow said, but I think I owe you a real explanation. I need to tell you myself, not just have you hear about it from her.” This was hard for her. She didn’t talk about her past with anyone. She had hinted at it once or twice with Sharaku and maybe him, but she had never stated it outright. Now was the time she’d have to come clean. She’d avoid eye contact with him, as this was already hard enough on her. Knowing he was looking at her and actually processing her words would make her so nervous she’d have to run. She knew she could do this though. She confessed something hard to her; now it was her turn.

Alphonse turned to see Naomi and waved to her noting her haste in sitting down. There was something really bugging her, rarely if ever did he see her like this. The machine was more than a bit confused as to why she would question as to why they always ended up here, Sentinel did not see the point in such a question. What mattered was that they felt comfortable being here and discussing what ever they need to discuss here. "It matters little in the long run, all that matters it that we feel comfortable talking to one another here in this place." The android said trying to comfort Naomi however he can, he cared about her quite a bit.

When her demanor and tone changed, the android nodded ready to tackle whatever Naomi had to say, "Naomi there is little that you can say to change my mind. Worry not you won't make me stop being your friend so easily." With that the android was ready for whatever Naomi had to say. It would be difficult for her to sway Sentinel so easily from being her friend. While he liked to analyze what was said a lot, that was natural of the android, but it would still make it difficult to sway his opinion of Naomi.

She almost chuckled when Alphonse said it would be hard to sway his opinion of her, “That’s nice to know.” At least it made her feel a little better. She was still sitting in silence, for the most part. She didn’t know what to say next. She would finally find it in her to explain herself, “Remember how my Shadow said I was a brat as a kid? She wasn’t wrong.” She would sigh, “Umm… I grew up in Standasen. If you’ve ever been there, you know it isn’t the best place to live.” She called it home for so long that it didn’t bother her, “My mom used to try to keep me inside because she was worried about me getting into trouble, but I used to go looking for it myself. I would go outside and go to the other islands all the time. I remember having fun causing trouble.” She was being purposefully vague about what ‘trouble’ meant. She only wanted to reveal so much at a time. She was trying her best to tell him about this subject, which she wasn’t completely comfortable with.

The android listened intently to what his friend was saying when she asked her question, he nodded his head. He knew it wasn't the best island, but hearing that Naomi went looking for trouble was not exactly inspiring, and it concerned the android a bit. It was obvious she was taking this slowly in order to break the news to him easier, but his eyes also detected that it was partly because she didn't want to tell him everything. The android could understand what she was going through, after all he had done the same in this same spot.

"Naomi, take your time, I understand that this must be difficult for you, but remember that as your friend you can tell me anything, alright?" The android said doing his best to reassure her and comfort her. When she looked up he would be offering her a comforting smile to let her know that she was safe to tell him whatever she wanted, and he would keep it as a secret until his grave. Whenever that may be. The android was loyal like that....so long as it did not endanger his primary objective that is.

She would laugh. He was so understanding of her situation, even though he had the right to think her problems were silly. Compared to his past, it seemed like she had nothing to worry about. Still, her past was hers and it would always be what haunted her, “I’ve broken the law. Several times, in fact. Never got caught, but I did it.” She would finally say, “Mostly, I did it as a kid. I got into fights and bullied other people just to see them squirm. I thought they deserved it, because everyone did. I wanted to make other people pay for having things I didn’t.” She would sigh again as she though, “I started breaking the law after I stopped bullying others. It wasn’t because I could or because I wanted to. I thought I needed to. It’s always just been me and my mom, and she didn’t earn enough to support both of us. At first, I didn’t do anything with questionable legality. I just did really basic stuff like helping people fix their computer problems and trying to help them build better ones. I’m still not good at that actually.” The words kept spewing out of her mouth, since she knew any break could cause her to stop forever, “It wasn’t until I found someone who wanted… something else that I got into a different line of work. I stopped caring about if I was doing the right thing or not. I just cared about the money.” She was having trouble keeping her thoughts straight. In was coming out as one long ramble and she didn’t know how to stop.

The android sat there and listened to what she explained. Evidently Naomi had broken the law several times it started with fights because she was envious, then because she felt like she had to help her mother, and the way she did that was genuine and that was acceptable. Then...she got into...what sounded like hacking considering how we went from building computers to doing something less than legal. Here she was motivated by greed. The android nodded his head in understanding he thinks he sees what the issue is.

"I think I see what you are saying. As a child you sound, to me, that you were envious of others for having toys that you didn't have. Which to some degree is natural, the way you handled it...perhaps less natural, but you were younger. You have no doubt changed from that point. The second is because you felt the need to have a duty to your mother, which is also explainable, but also quite kind that you were trying to help your mother in such a way." The android paused before tackling the third issue...here it seemed she was motivated by greed, and this might require a somewhat more delicate approach.

"However, I must express some concern about this activity you are taking part of. It makes me worry about you and your safety. I don't want you to get in trouble or hurt, I understand it might be difficult, but....I don't want to see any of my friends get hurt. Maria doesn't want you to get hurt either. So all that I ask is that you don't participate any further in these crimes. As a friend, I only want what's best for you." The android said, his voice a bit solemn as though he was worried about Naomi, in fact if he could cry then he would start to do so. He didn't want Naomi to get hurt, she had great skills, but she needed a more productive way to use them!

She would twist her hair around her finger, “It’s not like I do it all the time. Most of my work is perfectly legal. I try to avoid the illegal stuff if I can. It’s just that the money is good and my family needs it sometimes.” She needed to help pull her weight in her house, but she couldn’t do much, “I know how to take care of myself. I’m just not always great at doing the thing that’s right. But… I’m trying to change. I just thought I owed you an explanation for what you saw in the place. Don’t worry too much about me. I’m not a reckless kid anymore.” And she didn’t think she would be for a while. She still had some anger issues, but that was nothing. What really mattered is that she was changing all the time. How strange was that? As a kid, she never wanted to change, but now she embraced it, [color=#ffcc00] “I should thank you, too.” [color=#ffcc00] She would add on out of context.

The android let out a sigh of relief as she said that she tried to avoid the illegal stuff, so she wasn't driven by greed and continually doing it. That made him feel a lot better that it was more of a desperation scenario that made it far more understandable. The android nodded as she spoke about trying to change and how she felt as though she owed him an explanation. "You've grown up quite a bit now because of that awakening, I'm rather proud of you. You are rather grown up now, I saw that during the awakening, but now it is more apparent to me. " The android said grinning toward her, but he was surprised when Naomi said that she should thank him.

"Whatever for? My assistance was something that any friend would do. Unless...are you thanking me for something else?" Sentinel asked, wondering what on earth Naomi was thanking him for, it made no sense to him. Surely she understood that as friends they had to watch each other's backs, right? Oh...that reminds him, they ought to meet with Maria to do something fun and cute! Maria would enjoy that quite a bit!

She would almost look proud when he said she looked more grownup, “Really? Does that mean I look more like an adult now?” Her general behavior was childlike, but she was more mature than she let on. She wanted to be simultaneously an adult and a child. For her, that was the ultimate sign that she was becoming the person she wanted to be. Now, she could embrace the parts of her that were adult-like without fearing her world would crumble apart if she stopped acting like a child, “Of course, I’m still a child deep down. That hasn’t changed.” She would laugh and stick out her tongue. She would pout a little when he asked why she was thanking him, “You act like I shouldn’t thank you. Just because we’re friends doesn’t mean I shouldn’t thank your good deeds.” He would have to learn that people were going to thank him if they were grateful, “I also need to thank you for helping me grow. There are a lot of things that got me to where I am, but you are definitely one of them.” She’d smile.

The android pondered what Naomi had asked...well now that she mentioned it. "Yes, I think you do." he said with a smile, granted he did not assume that would change her childish behavior. Which she seemed to confirm, that was almost too much to ask for her to change. She might be growing up, but being a child would always be part of her. That much was evident. However, it seemed that she was not going to give up thanking him, the android merely grinned. "It is my pleasure to be of assistance, Naomi." Though the topic seemed to remind him of something important, something that he should most likely bring up to her of all people.

"Naomi, I'd like to ask you a really big favor, if that's alright." Sentinel said, what he was going to ask was huge. He honestly doubted it would occur, but he needed to have a fail-safe in place. He had to make sure that she would be okay no matter what happened to him. He had to protect her, and if it came down to the fact that he had to give his life to do it...then he would. Without a doubt in his mind, he would. Granted, if he did then he would need someone to step in and protect Maria since he would be...out of commission. He'd hate to have to do it to a friend, but the android was not given many choices in the matter to be perfectly honest. He just hoped that Naomi would be....understanding.

Naomi placed her hand on her hips and puffed out her chest, “Thank you very much. I believe in no time, you will not be able to tell me apart from a real adult.” Even though she was nearly a legal adult. She would never really act like one though, “I can see it already. My house will be made of papier-mâché and it will be decorated with glitter. I will eat candy all day and play games for a living.” She was obviously joking… mostly. It wouldn’t stop her from trying to have a nonsensical life or leisure. When Alphonse said he needed a favor, she would tilt her head, “What is it? If I can do it, I will. We’re friends, so I want to help, if I can.” She didn’t say yes outright, since she didn’t know what she was agreeing to. She did want to help though. That, and it seemed like this was important to him. She needed to be sure to listen to him carefully and do her best. She would stare at him with wide eyes while she waited for him to state his favor.

The android looked at Naomi a bit surprised by how she described her house, it was the sort of house that Maria would want to live in. One of happiness and joy. It would be fitting, but he was going to be dropping a heavy burden upon Naomi. He just wanted her consent about this one last thing that he deemed of the utmost importance. It dealt with Maria and he had to ensure that if he were to sacrifice himself, she would have some sort of caretaker. When Naomi said that she was willing to help, the android he nodded.

"Naomi, if anything were to happen to me...out in those other worlds. I'd like you to watch over Maria." He didn't like to say it, but he had to consider the possibility of it happening. "I'm not saying something will happen, but if something does happen. I want to know that she will be safe. Naomi, I do not want to place this burden on you, but Maria likes you and you two seem to get along well. Not to mention, I think she would love to spend more time with you. I have my reservations about the others of our team, but you and her...I have a feeling you two would get along well." The android said, she didn't have to accept the favor if she didn't want to. It was quite the burden that he was asking to take upon her, and he would understand if she declined the offer. However, he needed to know her answer before looking elsewhere.

Naomi would blink a few times while she processed what Alphonse had just said. She couldn’t have heard that right. Could she? She didn’t think she misheard him, but that question was so strange she couldn’t have heard it right, either, “You want me to take care of Maria if something happens to you?” She asked, just to make sure she wasn’t crazy. She would then puff up her cheeks and furl her brow, “I don’t like that kind of talk. I know you’re just saying it in case, but I still don’t like it.” She would calm herself down and sigh, “You can’t leave Maria alone. You’re the only person she has left. She needs you, so you have to promise not to never come back. No matter what happens. Please?” Maria needed him. If he was gone, she would lose everyone she knew. That would be cruel to the poor girl, “But, I guess… If something happens, I can try to raise her.” Although, Naomi wasn’t an adult yet, so she didn’t know how.