Vollax was having a weird two days so far.
Yesterday he had been eating lunch peacefully at a secluded table in the cafeteria when that black-haired girl, Luna had sat down opposite to him.
In the end, Vollax just ignored her and ate his lunch under her uncomfortable gaze.
For today, Vollax chose a different table just in case and sat down with his lunch.
'Peace and quiet.' Vollax sighed tightening his bandana around his head, the soft murmur of voices fading away into the low bustle of the cafeteria.
Digging in, Vollax didn't notice Luna sitting down across him until he raised his head.
"Oh shit!" Vollax cursed as he flinched backward, dropping his spoon.
Luna just looked at him with the same expressionless face as always.
Vollax breathed out, calming himself from the jumpscare.
Glaring at Luna, Vollax asked, "Why are you here?"
"...can't I sit here?" Luna responded softly.
"No," Vollax said flatly. "Leave."
To that, Luna just started eating silently.
Vollax felt his anger bubble up and he snapped, "Look is this revenge for trying to read your thoughts?"
"Cause if it is, I'm not apologizing."
"....no, I just wanted to sit here," Luna said plainly.
Vollax's eyes twitched, 'Bullshit.'
After watching Luna eat a few more spoons of food, Vollax resigned himself to sitting there.
'Too much work to move,' Vollax thought while using his fork to eat.
"What do you want?" Vollax after a few mouthfuls.
'She definitely wants something.' Although he couldn't hear her thoughts or read her, he knew people's behavior well enough that they wouldn't do such a thing without wanting anything in return.
"...nothing," Luna responded after a pause.
"Bullshit," Vollax cursed out loud. "You definitely want to ask something."
Although Vollax sounded confident, in reality, he was just guessing Luna's intentions.
'Seems like I guessed right.' Vollax thought after seeing Luna pause and stare at him.
"Spit it out." Vollax sighed. 'I guess I'll humor her for taking me to the nurse.'
"...how does your gift work?" Luna asked after a few seconds.
Vollax just stared at her.
"You could've asked anyone that," Vollax rolled his eyes.
Luna shook her head and gestured for Vollax to answer.
"I can hear the thoughts of people when it's active," Vollax answered in the end.
"....you can hear someone's thoughts?" Luna asked raising her eyebrows. She had already figured that out, but it was still a small shock to her.
"Everyone," Vollax corrected. "I can hear everyone's thoughts when it's active."
To that Luna's eyes widened as she tried to imagine how that would be.
"Are you done now?" Vollax asked stabbing his food with the fork.
Luna shook her head hurriedly.
"...I have a few more questions."
"Just great." Vollax cursed some more but didn't move away.
"....can you choose someone to focus your gift on?"
"Yes."
"....What's the...bandana for?" Luna asked a question that was on her mind for a while after she saw Vollax remove it to read her mind.
"It turns my gift off," Vollax answered simply.
Luna furrowed her brows, "....does that mean that your gift is active all the time?"
"No, I just wear the bandana because it protects my head from stupidity."
Not minding his tone, Luna continued, "...how is your gift...active?"
"It's an internal gift," Vollax answered Luna.
Hearing this, understanding dawned on her. While most gifts were external in nature, they were suppressed in Aster City. This was all due to the Supreme's barrier that prevented civilians or unruly groups from causing mass destruction.
Only those that had a pass or went to designated areas could activate their gift externally.
'So that's why. Internal gifts aren't affected by the supreme's barrier...then I can't seek help from there either...' Luna thought despondently. She had initially thought that she could ask for the Supreme's help to help loosen the restrictions on her emotions. But now she was sure that it was an internal problem as it wasn't affected by the barrier.
Luna had already tried loosening the restrictions herself, but for that, she had to locate it. And unlike finding the parasite, Luna had no idea where this restriction was in her body. She had to give up in the end and had to think of an alternative to try to break the restrictions.
"...can you teach me how to use my gift internally?" Luna asked her final question to Vollax. Previously she had just wanted to understand Vollax's gift and see if it would help in her situation, but now...
'If his gift is internal, he should know something about internal usage.'
"No," Vollax answered unhesitantly and finished the last bite of his food.
Taking his plate, Vollax left to drop it off, leaving Luna sitting there unable to react on time.
Dropping her half-raised hand, pressed her lips into a thin line.
"....jerk."
----------
'Today's Wildlife Bio class was a drag...' Luna sighed to herself. Although it was mostly pretty interesting to Luna, she couldn't bring herself to enjoy today's class.
'Why did she have to pick herbs for today...'
Ms. Jasmine's wildlife bio class was...interestingly structured, to say the least. Every class hopped from one topic or animal/plant to the next. The weird part was that sometimes the next plant/animal wouldn't have a connection to the previously discussed topic. And when asked about it, Ms. Jasmine would just brush it under the rug.
'Is...is she teaching randomly?' A thought struck Luna based on the pattern of Ms. Jasmine's classes.
'No no, it can't be..there must be some connection.' Luna reaffirmed her faith and stepped up to her front door.
Luna opened the door and walked into the living room and her face twitched imperceptibly.
'Someone's here.'
Not to arouse suspicion, Luna headed inside, dropped her bag, and headed to get a glass of water.
Passing by the table, Luna casually glanced at it and headed into the small kitchen.
Having downed the glass of water, Luna headed upstairs to the bedroom.
"Luna, come here," a voice called out from the dining table.
Turning back, Luna saw a person materialize out of the shadow already seated at the dining table.
Halting, Luna stood still for a moment as if considering the person's 'request'.
Complying with his 'request' Luna sat herself down at the table opposite to an elderly man clad entirely in black. Although why he even needed black clothing when his gift was 'Shadow Rellocation', Luna still couldn't bring herself to understand.
An uncomfortable silence descended upon the pair as two pairs of black eyes clashed, one old and one young.
The old man was the one to break the silence first, "Why were you admitted to Spectrum Hospital?"
Silence.
'Of course, he was watching...' Luna thought bitterly.
'But I guess he doesn't know how that happened...' Luna comforted herself.
While Luna was gathering her thoughts, 5 seconds had already passed by as she tried to think of a good excuse.
'Something major enough to get hospitalized, but minor enough that I only had to stay overnight....'
'If I lie, the old man will find out.'
'But I can't tell the truth....'
'Well, not the whole truth anyway.'
Mustering up her energy, Luna forced herself to speak clearly.
"I overexerted my gift and had to be hospitalized for the night. It wasn't anything major.' She commented.
The old man's eyebrows rose slightly in surprise and dropped the next instant.
"I see," the old man accepted the answer as he hadn't sensed any falsehood in the statement. And as for Luna taking time to answer, he was already used to it.
Without another word, the old man disappeared into his shadow leaving the house empty save for Luna still sitting at the dining table.
'I need better home security...' Luna sighed internally.