More importantly now seems like a good time to cancel your date tonight

"Asune about tonight." You open walk into the arena. Asune has her sword drawn and you suddenly reconsider canceling.

"Fight one to draw blood wins." Asune answers.

"Wh –"

Asune launches herself at you much faster than you thought she could you move. Dodging to the left she rotates as she passes to slash at your right side. You avoid her and jump back to get some distance. You are unarmed and she isn't but even though she is faster than you thought she isn't fast enough to take advantage of her weapon. You raise you arms up to try and get her pause when you see a lack of sleeve on your left arm, the arm that was protected by your body in your dodge.

You'd worn the multi-coloured outfit you were planing on accidentally' destroying. Seeing its left sleeve reduced to ribbon while effective is a little more concerning since you weren't the one doing the destroying.

Before you could ask her to stop she launched herself at you again. Figuring you aren't going to get her to stop unless you stop her you wait until she is close then fire your arm up to grab her sword wielding wrist. When she was in position your right arm shot up to grab her. Too fast. You only noticed it after you had started moving. Your right sleeve was disintegrating from the speed which meant you might hurt her. You stopped your arm suddenly just below Asune's. The air pressure didn't stop and slammed into her forcing her arm up anyway.

Your chest felt hot. It was a weird feeling. A diagonal line along your chest. When you looked down you saw blood. A lot of blood. Your magic responded to the wound sealing it without any scar but it told you how deep it was. Asune had slash you from the bottom of you left rib to your right shoulder exposing your rib cage in a line. The muscles were repaired without evidence of damage but even repaired you felt a linger line of heat.

You looked at Asune with shock. You didn't think she'd hurt you, despite all your experience with her you never thought she would really hurt you. She tilted her head. "You won't hurt me." She said it more as an observation. "Why?"

"I don't want to hurt anyone." You say running a finger along your now exposed chest.

"I give you permission." Asune said.

"Wh –"

You were interrupted by another slash opening up your chest from the right this time. The damage was fixed almost as quickly as it was made but now that you know the heat was pain it hurt this time.

"You can hurt me." Asune reconfirmed as a slash opened up along your hand and forearm that had been inspected the healed skip.

"Stop!" You shout jumping back only for her to close the distance.

"If you don't hurt me I won't." Asune said you felt heat on your right calf when it healed you knew she had cut through everything but the bone. She raised a hand to your face.

"STOP!" You shout grabbing her forearm. You weren't controlling your strength and speed so as your hand closed around her you felt a pop as you snapped a bone. You let go and looked at her arm. A bone was protruding from her skin but her hand wasn't drooping so you'd only broken one bone. "Sorr –"

You were cut off by her lips meeting yours. "I knew you could do it." She said softly. "How did it feel?" She asked cradling her forearm almost lovingly as it healed.

"I don't want to hurt you or anyone." You say deeply uncomfortable.

Asune smiled at you. "You don't need the mask Christopher. When someone wants you to hurt them you can." She stepped back from you still smiling. "I have a present for you tonight. You'll like it."

"Enough Asune. I'm not like you I don't want to or like hurting people." You say firmly not wanting anything more to do with anything like this anymore. The image of Asune's protruding bone was making your stomach feel unhappy.

Asune looked almost scared as you finished talking and you felt her aura run along your skin. "I'm not alone." She said firmly and walked towards you. "You and me are the same." It was almost childlike, the desperation in her voice. "We're the same I'm not alone and neither are you, we can stop pretending with each other." She reach over and cupped your face in her hand. Her vulnerability was throwing you off and you didn't resist. "Please Christopher, I want to be with you not the mask."

You could see the **** longing in her aura and hear it in her aura. "I'm not like you Asune." You didn't expect it but you hurt her just then, deeply and it felt bad, eighteen years of your own suppressed isolation so recently commuted came to mind. "But," you reached up and took her hands in yours, "You're not alone." She didn't look convinced. "About tonight."

Asune pulled back seeming placated. "You will like your present." Was all she said before walking off.

You could just leave it there, Asune was a lot more emotionally **** than you thought she was so she might not take the canceled date so well and she had just opened on several parts of your body. You hadn't reinforced your skin in the parts she slashed, which is a glaring issue you hadn't even considered until this moment. However, you didn't want to lead her on. "I had already set up a dinner with Vatarie and I don't know how long it will go." You rush out reinforcing your entire body just to be safe.

Asune pauses for a moment. "Then we will have lunch. I will collect you before midday." She sounded indifferent to the change of plans you guess spending time with you is her goal not spending specific times with you.

She walked away and you didn't have the heart to cancel entirely so you let her walk away. Looking down at your clothes you were impressed by the damage. A cross along your chest, your left sleeve in ribbon, your right one gone entirely after your acceleration, your left trouser a calf shorter than your right. It wasn't totally destroyed but you were confident it was largely beyond repair. For good measure you kicked your right leg out fast enough to destroy some of the trouser.

Well at least you were satisfied with one thing after this.