"Do I think I'd be? Uh. Hm. That's a, uh... huh. Huh."

Euna stops cold in the street. She's not so far away from Mew that it's dangerous even if there was a shadowy goon waiting to ambush her at the last moment in front of her home. Which, of course, there isn't. Crimes of opportunity. Escalation, just little rocks thrown in a pond until the ripples catch something. That's where it breaks. How it breaks. Somewhere out there where she's not, there's probably a spectacular riot in progress, and she's here instead of there.

She scrunches her face under her mask. Though at no point does it occur to her to take it off. She'd already made the decision. Then she'd doubled down on it. It's like the Maid Elvia quote, 'A single sword can only protect what it's long enough to reach. But that is enough to save somebody.'

...Was it?

"Honestly? I don't know. Not sure I can separate the idea from the decision to go looking, you know? Like... no, probably not? If I wasn't trying to find something I'd be tending the gym, and it's not super likely anything would be happening there. So no. But then, yes? If I'd been out buying snacks and I saw you in there I'd jump in every time. I think. But is that because?"

She laughs. The full on Eunie treatment, doubling over, leaning on her knees until she gigglesnorts her way back into reality. All she can do is shake her head.

"Sorry, sorry. Sorry. Loaded question, huh? Under the law, those three guys were... fine? They hadn't done anything that would have triggered a self defense clause or empowered a bystander to step in. Legally, what I did was, excuse me, fucked. But they made you feel like you had to lock yourself in a store. I don't know what would have happened, but they felt safe and you didn't, and they were using that as a weapon. There's consequences for that. For this. I don't... I don't care what happens to me. Not like I care about what happens to you, Mew. To any of my students. That's [i]why[/i] I'm on the street right now. I tried staying home, it felt like I was on fire the entire time. If anything happens to-- if there's a single person out there I, nnngh. This is a hero complex thing, isn't it? I don't know. I just, I feel so tense right now. And this is, like, my only talent. Haha, ha."

This is the end of the road, the end of the conversation. Mew's safely home now, if she can just get through the door without goons pouring out of the shadows in the ultimate, final proof that Euna was meant to live in a more action movie universe where fight scenes were a part of life and not, ultimately, crimes.

Euna makes to wave, to hear the response and make final goodbyes, when she feels her spine tense up like it'd been replaced by a steel rod when she wasn't watching.

"Um. About what I just said? There's a chance the police will investigate this. I don't know if those guys from the store are the type to press charges, but precincts are going to be enthusiastic for a while to look like they're coming down hard and restoring order. And you're the, this isn't your fault, but between the two of us you're the one who stands out more. So you'll be who they question. If they do, give them my name. And I mean, like, instantly ok? Don't give details, they can try to turn that into a confession you didn't make. Just repeat 'Euna Kim attacked those men' until they let you go. Oh. And I uh, I'm sorry if I wind up costing you your training spot. I've always looked forward to your sessions, you know. They're a nice bit of regularity for me."

She gives up on the wave, and offers a bow instead. Head dipped low, eyes on the ground. This is respect, and vulnerability. In a word, trust.