"... Ugh so much cooler," she leaned against the rail, the gears turning in her head. /We know what your type is... Fuck that guy./. "... Seriously, what does he mean?" She frowned, turning to Jas. "That pisses me off... The unholy angel wants to say-"

"Never mind that," Jas replied, smoothly, derailing Lydia's oncoming rant, resting his elbows on the rail. He looked up at her. "I actually wanted to talk to you about the exit exam." Lydia straightened up, a bit annoyed, ready to tear a chunk out of him. "Woah there," Jas soothed, raising his hands up. "Take it easy. You're as difficult to deal with as a chihuahua crossbred with a cactus. I'm not trying to talk you out of it. I just want to know that you know what you're getting into..." He turned around, leaning back against the rail. "Because you're not a bad fighter, and you /seem/ to have a strong desire to do good..."

"What's that mean?" Lydia returned, a bit calmer, walking across the deck, the cool air blowing across her skin. "Exit exam, it's really serious. Um, big arena that's different every year. Power advantage is different usually. Last year was good for earth types... Dangerous. People get really violent." She paused, ruffling her hair.

"Did you know people have died?" Jas questioned. "I've seen it. And they don't show that on screen. Then they make you, and everyone forget that person existed... Except the people who physically see it... They can't make us forget that... Definitely not a game, Lydia." 

"I didn't say it was! I'm taking it seriously..." Lydia muttered.

"No, you're not." Jas shook his head. "You've plateaued, haven't you?" Lydia stiffened, trying to figure out how he knew that. "Thought so..." When Lydia protested, he explained, "Before, when we fought, you'd improve at a scary rate. Last time, you didn't get any better... You're slow, Lydia, and not terribly creative. You have a short attack radius. A long distance enemy like Mythos could take you out easily... Have you considered anything to overcome these? Your strength, Lydia, is not useful to you anymore. The reason you've plateaued is because that's the only thing you work on... And that's great but you need other talents."

"Did you come out here to insult me?" Lydia asked, gloomily.

"No, I came out here to avoid forgetting you existed." He answered. "Seriously, though, I'm trying to help you, and you're still angry... You're a hell of a lot nicer half-drunk. Maybe you should stay half-drunk," Jas frowned. Lydia flipped him off. "No, seriously. You've been here four years and haven't even tried to associate with anyone, except Adrian... It's like you view us as your enemies and him as your ally..." 

"You're all my enemies," Lydia protested.

"Lydia, whatever you have going on with him is kind of... Weird. It's unnatural." Jas frowned. "I'm just telling you, hero to hero, it's weird to be that close to your villain. Do you see me making lunch dates with Titan? Let me ask you this. After you won in the arena, who's the first person you talked to about it?" /Adrian.../ "Exactly, you went to see Adrian. I know you did because the whole school was talking about it. You left the arena without even a word to go tell Adrian," he replied, reading the slightly guilty look on her face. "The last big thing that happened?" Lydia recalled Thomas's attack, and how afterwards, she'd gotten consolation from Adrian. "I don't know the answer this time but I can guess. It's not normal. There's a crazy rumor that you and Adrian have always stayed the same rank, the whole four years, but I don't even believe that..." He shook his head. "Without planning it, it's impossible... And I can't believe that you'd be that crazy. No one is rooting for you to win the exit exam because of all this weird bullshit... I've had freshmen come to me to ask me if it's normal to be that close to your villain. It's confusing the freshmen, and embarrassing the seniors... You should probably get that settled." 

Lydia reflected on his words. /Is he right? Are we unnaturally close? I mean, we didn't plan the rank thing... But it is really weird... I didn't plan to see Adrian after the last rank match, just sort of happened. He came to see me... The Thomas thing... I still don't know why I told him... He always saves my ass when I need it... Isn't that normal?/ she silently reflected on it. "It is kind of weird... Yeah, I don't know. Thanks, I guess. I'll think about it. All of it. How to get stronger, and Adrian..." /I wonder what he thinks.../ She backed away. "Excuse me." She headed inside, walking toward the living room, mentally confused by what Jas said. Realizing the temperature inside the building, she slipped her coat off, annoyed. /It's hotter than the fires of hell in here.../ She tied it around her waist, forgetting that the bruises on her neck were the reason she was wearing it, glancing around at the people she passed. 

She spotted Adrian in the center of the same room he'd been in before, and she called out to him. "Heeeey! Adrian!" She hollered, waving. She saw that girl from before skipping off, and she frowned to herself. /Wonder what he's said to her to make her so happy...?/ She wondered. /Worry about that later./ "Adrian," she strolled toward him, moving past Dillon, grabbing Adrian's wrist, tugging on it. "Hey! Do you think our relationship is unnatural?" The question came out a bit louder and differently than she intended, the word unnatural drawn out, and she saw a few nearby heads swivel in interest, but she ignored them, looking up at him, deeply curious. Her cheeks were still flushed from the alcohol in her system.