[ His ... faith? .... wins a surprised look that she won't vocalize in any way, so he won't know she's doing it. Still, she ends up wondering what exactly she's done to make him think that. Or, perhaps more accurately ... not done?

Hm.

Well, anyway. His question produces a silence of a different character. Xion's silences are normally all waiting hush, the held breath before one speaks like there's always something she wants to say but simply won't let herself voice. This silence is different. Its quality is still and empty, and has an unknowable depth.

Does Xion ... trust Shinnosuke?

She knows how she feels about him, sure. She knows that she spends more time with him than with anyone else, except perhaps for Percy. She knows that she might one day be very foolish, and do something she'll regret in the name of protecting him.

But does she trust him? Trust him to save her life? Trust him to simply not take it? Even if she can, can she trust he won't do that to someone else? ]

... a few things, [ she finally says. ] A little bit about what this world really is, and some things about the roles.

[ Another pause. When she speaks again, it's with a seriousness he'll have very rarely heard from her. There's a sense of urgency to the way she says it. ]

Shinnosuke... I have to be sure. Can you promise me you're telling the truth when you say you don't have a role? It's really, really important.