[ He'd been keeping his gaze steady on her, shard held out without wavering despite her clear agitation, but those last words do finally earn a blink and a slow exhale. 'I don't want you to.' Somehow, the blunt, straightforward, almost child-like honesty of that statement hits him harder than any rational argument she could have thrown his way. Gen looks down as he lowers his hand for the moment, looking down at his shard sitting in his palm, absently rubbing his thumb against a jagged edge. ]

... s'not like it's anything you have to worry about. This side's a mess, y'know.

[ 'This side.' The Meridian. He tries to say it casually, but Misa can probably feel the faint prickle of discomfort that swims through his veins whenever he has to talk about himself as a Meridian. After all, it's not like he's ever really felt like he belongs amongst the Meridians' ranks. ]

Well, there's some strong people, but everyone's so busy bitching at each other that nothing really gets done. And 'sides, it's not like me being on this side makes'em any stronger. Even if I ended with some abilities after ending up here, I was still just a normal person before all this. It won't really make a difference.

[ He's being deliberately obtuse, and he's sure she can tell. But talking about his alliance with the Meridian in terms of manpower and combat abilities makes it easier to brush off, he thinks. For now, he wants to get the subject off the table, at least temporarily -- Misa's Blight needs to be dealt with first. So with that said, Gen raises his shard once more, holding it forth a little more forcefully. ]

C'mon, hurry up. I don't like having it out for too long.