Despair on Display

~ C h a p t e r I - P a r t I I I~

Rei felt as if a burden was lifted from her shoulders, and she relaxed her shoulders.

"Thank you." She nodded, and the two of them headed for Hestia's dorm.

Once in Hestia's room, Hestia plopped onto the bed and patted the seat next to her, inviting Rei to join her. Rei quickly slipped her flats off, set them by the door, and sat on the bed.

"You know you can relax with me, right, Rei?"

Rei turned to Hestia and blinked.
"I do not wish to be rude-"

"Oh, quit your worrying, Rei! I'm here to help you, aight? I get wanting to be on guard and all, but here, you're allowed to relax!"

Rei hesitated for a moment before completely falling back and lying on the bed.

"...I feel better."

"Well, I would hope you are! Now, you wanted to me? You feeling down?"

"Of course I am. And you are not?"

The corner of Hestia's mouth twitched and she smiled.

"Feeling down? Because I believe the BS of that bear that can probably be knocked over like a peg? No, not at all! Sure, I'm scared, but for the most part, knowing that we are all working together to find answers helps a lot. Like, believe it or not, we did find out new information today, didn't we? We found that there is something beneath the stairs- which I'm sure we will be able to explore eventually- and that the other room leads.. to the trial room? I think that was mentioned in the rules before, but we don't need to worry about that room, since we will never need to use it!"

Rei smiled. She at first thought that Hestia was too relaxed in a situation like this, but after hearing her line of thinking, Rei had to admit that she admired it. Perhaps she could work to change her way if thinking to reflect Hestia's, but now was not the chance. She wanted to distract herself. Maybe she could use this time to get to know Hestia a bit more...?

"That is not a bad way of thinking- I'll have to remember that- thank you." Rei sat up and turned to face Hestia.

Hestia flashed a wide smile. "Hah! I knew I could get you to loosen up! Easier than I expected! Don't give me that look, I'm only messing with ya!"

Rei couldn't help but keep on smiling. Hestia was right. It wouldn't hurt to loosen up from time to time.

For now, at least.

"Um... you know, I was wondering, how did you ever get your Ultimate?"

"Oh, my Ultimate? Well, when ya got family members with a bunch of explosives and fireworks, it's hard to avoid the excitement of setting off those explosives! Boom! Bam! Brightly colored lights! Loud, exciting, noises! My parents say my cousins were bad influences, I tell ya, but hey, it kept life colorful! Literally! Same family members decide to set me up with some famous people, and before I knew it, BAM! Ultimate! It really was a blur, honestly. I just know that I messed with explosives a lot. Maybe ask Artemis, she would probably know. She always was dragged along to my work sessions and all and wrote everything down. She would know the details! But what about yourself, miss musician?"

Rei listened to Hestia's story, intrigued. She was a bit confused on how Hestia didn't remember the details of how she got her own talent, but she decided not to push it.

"Oh, that sounds... very interesting! I have never worked with fire or explosives or any of the sort, so I suppose I do not know what the... thrill is like?" She said, shrugging. "But as for how I got my talent? It was fate: my entire family is one grand orchestra. It was expected that I earn the Ultimate title in some instrument. For me in particular, my parents were hoping I be the Ultimate... well, some woodwind insteument. Though.. it just happened to be that I found my interest in composing rather than... playing." She furrowed her eyebrows, before looking back up at Hestia. "That is all, really."

Hestia hung onto every word. "Oh, how fancy! I'm sure you worked hard to earn your title! And it seems to be that you enjoy producing the music more than playing it!"

Rei immediately sat up straight, soaking in every drop of praise.
"Why, yes, I do consider myself the very best of the best. When it comes to music, I reign supreme." She replied, closing her eyes and smiling.

"And as you should! You worked hard to earn that title, so absolutely live up to it! Heck yeah!"
Hestia pumped her fists in the air, as if to cheer Rei on.

Rei smiled, and responded with a yawn. She immediately covered her mouth and winced.
"My apologies- I did not realize how tired I was."

Hestia smiled sympathetically. "I understand that, hun! Interacting gets the best of us."

Rei smiled, glad that Hestia understood, and yawned again.
"I think... I am going to go to sleep- I hate to cut our conversation short, but I think it's best if I sleep. I apologize."

Hestia shook her head and waved her hand in dismissal. "No no, don't worry! I totally get it! You need to rest! My one concern is that it's not nearly time for dinner yet- will you be okay?"

Rei nodded. "Yes, I shall be fine. Do not worry about me. Thank you for talking to me, Azumi-sa-" Rei noticed Hestia's look that she was giving her, and Rei quickly corrected herself. "...Hestia."

Hestia smiled at the change, grinned, and gave a thumbs up. "Not a problem at all, hun! I'll see ya tomorrow at breakfast, kay? Sweet dreams and rest well, Rei!" Hestia called out, waving goodbye.

Rei waved back, and left the room. She felt in much better spirits and relaxed after talking to Hestia and getting to know her a bit more. As she made her way to her room, her thoughts were occupied with the comforting words of Hestia, and Rei had no trouble falling asleep that night.