Chapter Text
When Ralsei first hugged Susie, she didn't see it coming.
She knew that he could heal, obviously, so when he walked up to her after she tripped and fell off that pile of trash she was expecting him to… well, pull off that healing schtick of his, however he did that, flash her with that green, sparkling magic and feel the familiar, refreshing feeling of injuries and aching subsiding…
…but then, he just HAD TO reach out and pull her into a hug. She was too stunned and surprised when his arms wrapped around her and his form melted into hers. Warm, soft and pliable, like a marshmallow, or a pillow, or a stuffed animal. He felt even more fluffy than he looked at first glance, as she felt his fur brush and burrow into her skin for that short moment.
Why was she even thinking about it, anyway? She was never someone that received physical affection, and if someone dared to touch her like that she’d just push them away and not think about it much.. at best. She’d probably get a good kick in or punch the moron in the face. So why was this any different? Why did she want to…
..well, at least he had some cotton candy to eat and get her mind off this mushy nonsense. Ralsei was trailing alongside her, both of them traversing the Cyber City in two after leaving Kris behind. Sucked for them, but she was sure that the human would be fine going solo for a while.
“Are you just going to stare at it?”
She finally broke the silence that settled for a short while after they got their cotton candy. Susie was wolfing down on it, getting that sugar in, but her eyes could note how the prince was just not touching him at all, simply staring at it and occasionally glancing happily back at her - at least he could stop being THIS cute while doing so.
“O-oh! I suppose.. I’ve never had cotton candy before..” The prince remarked sheepishly, blushing a little before finally leaning into his piece and taking the smallest of bites possible. “It’s so sweet!” They said in-between nibbles so miniscule it looked like he hadn't even touched the thing at all.
“Hey, Ralsei…” She started, unsure how to touch the subject. “That healing thing… you think you could like, teach me how to do that, for real?”
“Oh, of course Susie!” Ralsei replied swiftly. “I didn’t lie when I said that everyone could do it. In fact, you already are capable of doing magic yourself!”
“Huh? What are you talking about?” Susie questioned, confused by what he even meant by it.
“Well, your Rude Buster is in an application of magic too! Your own unique way, in fact! Everyone has their own way of using it that no one else can truly replicate!”
“..huh. Now that you turn it around like that, it does make sense. I haven't really thought about it much, just came to me like.. an instinct, I guess. A second call or something.” And the way it manifested also seemed to make sense now. She was always the mean girl, someone who was only really good at being loud, rude and breaking things, or… well, she wasn't sure if she wanted to think about it right now.
“So, if I wanted to heal instead of breaking stuff, how am I supposed to do it?” She inquired, after a moment of thought had left her silent. Ralsei didn't say anything either, only leaving her with a patient smile, as she tried to grasp everything about it in her head.
“Oh, that’s.. quite simple, actually. It all really comes down to one’s intent. When I perform my healing, I try to think about something nice, or doing something nice to another person.. and then, I channel that into action, like you do with your Rude Buster!” Ralsei explained, leaving behind a pause, before continuing. “You could try it right now, if you’d like!”
Alright. Susie supposed she might as well attempt it. It didn't really sound that much difficult after how Ralsei explained it to her, though definitely different from what she was more naturally used to. Think about something nice, for once. Closing her eyes, she tried to put her thoughts in and focus on anything positive. Like… getting unbanned from free sandwich day, or not feeling hungry for once in general, a taste of something sweet, but at the same time, something that could leave her full.
Something warm, something soft, like a pillow or a stuffed animal.. or like a fluffy princely goat monster hugging her-
OKAY.
Concentrate on those feelings, and then apply the same footsteps to how she drew out her magic otherwise - just without the rude, destructive element to it and a different, more kind one. And then, something to target it towards. There wasn't really anyone around for her to use as a training dummy, and considering he likely wouldn't mind either, Susie willed herself and sent her magic flying…
..directly at Ralsei.
What she witnessed when she opened her eyes wasn't what she exactly expected. It wasn't the same light that illuminated and pulsated when Ralsei performed his magic. Instead, a small, but notable green orb flew out of her hands and then collided with the prince, catching him slightly by surprise and leaving him with a miniscule, yet still, the sensation of being lightly healed.
“Heck yeah! How’s that for ya?” She called towards the prince trumphantly, proud of her work. Sure, it looked different from from his healing, but it behaved all the same, splintering into the familiar, almost identical green sparkles… and he did say that everyone’s magic is unique in some way, after all.
“Huh… That was impressive, Susie! I’m surprised you have managed it on your first attempt.” Ralsei remarked. “Though, erm.. I suppose it wasn’t very effective.” He paused for a moment, though followed up quickly afterwards in a larger hurry. “But, um, if you practice it enough times, I’m sure you’re going to get better in no time!”
“Huh, alright. So, I just need to keep throwing this out, right?”
“Well, yes, practice makes perfect-”
And so, Susie has begun the process of harassing and tormenting every darkner the two have come along their way. Thankfully, they were no longer forced to fear the Violent Ax Susie, and her terrible strength trashing them, but a new upstart prodigy on their way to become a healing master. No Virovirokun, Maus or Werewire were spared from being blasted by green orbs.
Ralsei followed along, trying his best to reign the beast in, scolding her for scaring darkners with her antics and even going as far as threatening her with no more cakes should she continue her behavior. That.. seemed to finally work, to an extent, but it was better than nothing - now, Susie was forced to ask every person politely before firing their healing at them.
“You know, about what you’ve said about magic before, it makes sense you’re the healing guy.” Susie remarked, finished a second serving of cotton candy in a swift chomp, the pink treat disappearing in her maw instantly.
“Really..?” Ralsei asked, glancing at Susie and seemingly… taken aback by what she just said, prying his eyes away from his own portion of cotton candy at her.
“Yeah. You’re like, all cute and mushy, and all about being nice. Of course you’d be able to heal well.” Not like her, she thought - she was still the one better at breaking stuff and trashing people around.
“That’s nice of you to say, but..” He looked more.. contemplative, self reflecting as he brought himself to a momentary pause. Did she just say something weird? “The truth is, I’m not naturally a healer, either. My speciality is also.. more destructive, I suppose.”
To prove his statement, Ralsei opened up his paw and in the balm in his hand, what he manifested wasn’t an orb of healing, but a small, orange ball of fire, strong enough for Susie to feel the warmth that radiated off the fire on her skin. This wasn’t something he’d shown to either her or Kris before.
“This.. is what I’ve been born with. But, when I was still waiting for you and Kris to arrive, I have done some thinking, and.. I suppose I’ve decided that I didn’t want to hurt people. So, I’ve put that part of me away and… I, um, I guess I became a proper healer.” He paused a little, a small, but faintly visible blush and a weird sparkle formed in his eyes as he sunk a little into his scarf. “I apologize for not disclosing it to you, I suppose it could have been useful when we confronted the King, but I- I wanted to stand what I believe in, and-”
“Nah.” Susie cut him off, as she moved and leaned a little closer towards the prince. “You’re fine, I get that. That’s… actually pretty cool. I’ve had you to teach me this stuff, but you’ve had to figure all of that on your own. I think that’s pretty great, that you decided you weren’t going to burn people up and.. uh, figure your own path and all that crap.”
“Oh..” Ralsei huffed, peeking up a little to look into Susie. Why the hell did he have to look at her like that? All cute and.. at least he wasn’t using THAT speak on her now - she was almost regretting she taught him that, almost. “I’m glad to hear that, but I think you’re great yourself too Susie, and…”
Before she could comprehend it, those arms and a bundle of fluff and fur was around her again, arms wrapped around her in a hug. She, without much thought herself, couldn’t help herself anymore, clasping the prince in an embrace of her own, though more tight and rough than his own - he didn’t seem to mind, though. The two stood there together, in silence, not saying anything to one another regarding the gesture - and if Susie or Ralsei saw or heard a glimpse of something wet, they wouldn’t talk about it either.
“ALRIGHT LET’S JUST GO ALREADY, I NEED TO LEVEL UP MY HEALING NOW!!” Susie screamed frantically, before locking herself out of the embrace, a trace of blush still lingering on her face as she released Ralsei from her hold and strided forwards to find more training dummies, dragging the fluffy prince behind.
“Oho, Susie is coming for my spot, I’m so scared!~” Ralsei chirped happily from behind. God damnit WHY DID SHE TEACH HIM SARCASM-