[Open]

[hornedomen]

Date & Time: June 24, during the day.
Location: Within the city.
Characters: Ico, OPEN.
Summary: A group of children bully Ico and a fight begins.
Warnings: Violence.


[Five children surrounded Ico. Their ages varied though they were all near his age. They teased him for his strange clothing and especially for his horns. Ico was smaller than they were and he had a tendency to wander alone, which made the children feel in control. He tried to understand for as long as he could. The recent attack along with the sudden change in the citizens' mood made it obvious to him that most citizens were only looking for someone to blame.

The event escalated quickly when they began to grab his Mark and pull his horns. Within seconds, it turned into a bitter fight. Children, Ico included, shouted at each other while punching and kicking.]

Comments

[hornedomen]

[At first, Ico flinched when Emil grabbed him. When he saw that he was not one of the children here to hurt him, he tried to hold him and run.]

This way!

[knightofcourage]

[Emil wants to stay for just a few minutes, to see if those boys can be talked to, but he's swept up and starts running with Ico. Maybe another time, he thinks; but he's not going to argue with the one in trouble. Emil follows him without a word until they've gotten what looks like a maintainable distance from the other boys.]

Where are we going?

[hornedomen]

[There was no time to explain. He tugged on Emil's arm to indicate that he was about to turn and he went into an alleyway. At the next turn, there was a small space amongst a few bins to hide in. He waved at Emil to join him in hiding.]

[Quietly:] Hurry, before they see us.

[knightofcourage]

[Emil followed quickly, crowding himself in and watching as their pursuers came closer. He wasn't sure at first whether he should try and cram himself in further or get ready for more trouble in the worst scenario, but decided on the former - he was less worried about a fight than he was about the confrontation itself.]

[hornedomen]

[The children did not see where they went and so they ran ahead. Ico waited until he could no longer hear their footsteps before he looked around.]

I think they're gone. It's safe to come out.

[It was cramped in there so he carefully climbed out over the bin. Once he was out, he stretched.]

Thanks for helping me.

[knightofcourage]

[Emil climbs out as well, a little more carefully just in case something could still go wrong.]

No problem. I'm glad I could do something. But what happened back there?

[hornedomen]

They teased me because of my clothes and my horns. Then they were grabbing me so I pushed one of them away and they started fighting.

[knightofcourage]

Why would they...

[But Emil knows why, and he knows that he knows why. He sighs.]

Even here, when there's so much trouble, people still find ways to discriminate against each other. Is it really so hard to get along?

[hornedomen]

It wasn't always like this. I think they're looking for anyone to blame for the attack.

[He wiped the dirt off his Mark.]

But it's still foolish.

[knightofcourage]

It is. Nobody here wants to see that happen again, so the right thing to do would be to work together to stop it...but maybe they're too angry to look past any differences we have.

[hornedomen]

They can't be expected to help. They're not here for that.

[He looked at the bins, which contained rubble. Before this, he had just finished helping with the cleaning in the area. It was how he knew about this hiding spot and how he began to understand the tension present when working with the citizens.]

Maybe when they understand they'll stop fighting with us. [He looked up at Emil.] Did anyone try to hurt you?

[knightofcourage]

No, I haven't had anything happen yet...I'm sorry that this is happening to you now.

[hornedomen]

It's okay, I could have handled it. I don't think they'll bother you if you look like them. It should be easy for you, right? [Ico could not easily disguise himself for obvious reasons.]

[knightofcourage]

Maybe. But, you think...

[He hasn't given a lot of thought to the horns, but he does glance at them now.]

If that's true, then it's harder for you, isn't it?

[hornedomen]

Probably. I can't hide my horns.

[He did not sound concerned.]

I'm Ico. What's your name?

[knightofcourage]

[He doesn't sound afraid...and here Emil's uneasy just telling people who he really is - like right now. He looks normal enough, but if he'd been in one of his old forms the story would be much different. He's quiet for a moment before responding.]

Oh, sorry. My name is Emil.

[hornedomen]

[He watched him curiously during the silence, but he was unable to discern what Emil was thinking about.]

I'm glad you helped me. I live in unit 802. You should visit and I'll give you something. I have coins and pretty stones and lots of other things.

[knightofcourage]

Oh, no, I couldn't do that.

[Emil shakes his head.]

I'm just glad I could do something to help. I've...been in that situation before, for other reasons.

[hornedomen]

You have? What happened?

[knightofcourage]

Well...I was bullied a lot in the town I used to live in. I was new, and they blamed me for the monsters that came around the same time I did, among other things.

[The monsters kind of actually were his fault, in retrospect.]

[hornedomen]

They blamed you for a coincidence? That doesn't make sense.

Are you returning to that town if the Initiative sends you back?

[knightofcourage]

No, I'm not. But I wish I could, actually. There were some other things that were going on back then, too, but things have changed since I left there.

[hornedomen]

Why can't you go back? If it's because they're treating you badly, maybe you can get help. Do their parents know what they did?

[knightofcourage]

It's a little more complicated than that. I've made peace with those people, but I can't go back for other reasons.

[hornedomen]

[He did not understand, but he did not pry.]

Where will you go when you return?