[Kawase gets an appreciative smile. Yet no matter how his expressions shift, none of his smiles ever manage to carry a feeling of sincerity.] I'm glad you understand. There are a great many considerations for one of my profession, in a situation like this. After all, if things were to grow unstable here, the result could spill over into the human realm, and that wouldn't be very good at all.
It's in my interests to see this place remain in a certain ... balance.
[The reaction that he gets from his patient observation is interesting. It wasn't necessarily intended to be a psychological test, and yet the way that Kawase cracks into nerves tells Matoba enough. Even the cursed space around them reacts to his shift in mood, and Matoba notes that, too. Stormclouds? For a moment, that is all he is considering, but as he carefully examines Kawase for further reaction, he sees it.]
[The first time he had seen that shade of blue, Tama was chased up a tree like a stray cat. It was in his desperation to be rescued from the isonade; he had looked at Matoba, and had some strange reaction to what he saw, and Matoba had seen it clearly; the unnatural shade of blue, like an aquarium tank. Here, he sees only an echo of that, something that reflects through Kawase's eyes from his inner spirit rather than an active reflection of his being. Matoba blinks, and his lips part as if to say something in surprise, and then he... smiles.]
It's interesting, right? If we were in the human realm, you might not be able to see it, but the influence of Hell is such that all mortals can see ayakashi and spells regardless of innate ability. [Matoba raises a hand to his face, and lifts aside the shag of hair that always fell over the right side so that he could see the charm more clearly. The ofuda had a design painted over it like a stylized eye, or a target ring.] This is a protective charm against a malicious ayakashi which seeks to devour my right eye. I have no reason to attack a fellow human, Segawa-san.
...Well, unless you give me one. [He smiles cheerfully as if it was a joke, and drops his hair again.]
no subject
It's in my interests to see this place remain in a certain ... balance.
[The reaction that he gets from his patient observation is interesting. It wasn't necessarily intended to be a psychological test, and yet the way that Kawase cracks into nerves tells Matoba enough. Even the cursed space around them reacts to his shift in mood, and Matoba notes that, too. Stormclouds? For a moment, that is all he is considering, but as he carefully examines Kawase for further reaction, he sees it.]
[The first time he had seen that shade of blue, Tama was chased up a tree like a stray cat. It was in his desperation to be rescued from the isonade; he had looked at Matoba, and had some strange reaction to what he saw, and Matoba had seen it clearly; the unnatural shade of blue, like an aquarium tank. Here, he sees only an echo of that, something that reflects through Kawase's eyes from his inner spirit rather than an active reflection of his being. Matoba blinks, and his lips part as if to say something in surprise, and then he... smiles.]
It's interesting, right? If we were in the human realm, you might not be able to see it, but the influence of Hell is such that all mortals can see ayakashi and spells regardless of innate ability. [Matoba raises a hand to his face, and lifts aside the shag of hair that always fell over the right side so that he could see the charm more clearly. The ofuda had a design painted over it like a stylized eye, or a target ring.] This is a protective charm against a malicious ayakashi which seeks to devour my right eye. I have no reason to attack a fellow human, Segawa-san.
...Well, unless you give me one. [He smiles cheerfully as if it was a joke, and drops his hair again.]