Zee Oddwyn
((Eboshi: Sitting in the dappled shade beneath one of the trees near the Kitsu headquarters, Eboshi slowly sipped at a small dish of sake, and watched as the leaves slowly spiraled to the ground. The bottle sat at her side, mostly full. Unusually, for Eboshi, she was remembering the leaves of the Forest around Iron Town. Being industriously minded, the wistful feeling she felt at that moment for her old home was rather distressing.

She took another sip, hoping for company to take her mind off her thoughts.))


Zero Dream
Not too far away, there was a kistu and his guardian coming toward the tree where Eboshi was. The guardian chattered on happily and the kistu... seemed like it wanted to jump off the nearest cliff.

However, it did not take long until the small, brown furred guardian noticed her, grinned, and took of in her direction.

"Why, you look bored, lady~ Say, ain't there nothing I can do to make ya feel bett-

Unfortunately for Daxter, his companion has caught up with him, and he found himself stuck in a flurry of tails. He muttered something that sounded like "JAAAKKKKKK !!!" But who really knew ?

"Im sorry. He's an idiot." The armored kistu rolled his eyes and sat, finally freeing the guardian from his furred prison. He huffed and simply leaped on his shoulder. "Uh... My name is Jak. You would be... ?"

Clearly, he was not used to being social.


Zee Oddwyn

Eboshi laughed, a surprisingly hearty laugh out of the somber Kitsu, and passed Jak the dish of sake hospitably.

"Idiots have their use." she replied to his comment, smiling slightly at the sulking guardian. "Companionship is hard to price. Hajimemashite. I am Eboshi. Doozo yoroshiku."

She spoke like a leader with a follower, with grace, but slightly distant. She wasn't exactly used to being social either. But the sake helped.


Zero Dream
"I must admit." Jak gave a prod to Daxter with an ear right before he laid down in a shade, visibly that had been a warning to his companion to shift his balance so he would not topple over. Normally he would have just left, but... no, not this time. This one seemed to perk his interest. Jak sniffed at the bowl for a moment and drank some. Hmmm... Not bad at all.

"Hajimemawha ?" Daxter peered as far as he could without losing balance, visibely curious. "Can't understand ya, lady."


Zee Oddwyn
Again, Eboshi smiled.

"It means 'Nice to meet you. How do you do?' in the land of my birth." she explained, offering the guardian a smaller cup of sake procured from somewhere under her cloak.

Returning her attention to Jak, she remarked, "Your armor looks very similar to that of a Samurai. Are you a warrior, by any chance, Jak-san?"


Zero Dream

Thankfully, Daxter seemed much more focused on the bowl of sake than speaking, only remembering to chirp a quick thank you before lapping away.

This had the possibility to end with a very drunk ottsel, but Jak didn't intervene. Maybe one day he would learn.

"Ah, so you came from japan, or am I mistaken ?" One lopped ear went back and forth idely. "I am not a samurai, but I guess you could call me a warrior. Not always a willing one, but a warrior nonetheless."


Zee Oddwyn
"I suppose that makes two of us." Eboshi replied, "Perceptive of you, Jak-san. Yes, I come from Japan."

She took another sip from her sake, and appraised Jak calmly. He wasn't a bad looking Kitsu, for a foreigner. His eyes confirmed the truth of what he'd said. In fact, he reminded her,slightly of Ashitaka, though he seemed far less naive. His eyes had seen much.

Life here was quiet, though.

"Do you miss it? Fighting?" she asked. She often times felt that she'd been put out to pasture since her arrival. There was no Emperor to defy here. No Iron Town to defend, and no Forest Gods to tame.

Boring.

She wondered if Jak also missed it.


Zero Dream
Unlike her, however, Jak could not find any resemblance in between this one and any of the ladies he had known. Kiera had been much more energic, and Ashelin... better not think about that. Eboshi was much calmer, seemed much more mature, and that put him at ease. She also did seem to have seen alot...

"...I do, sometimes." He had to admit. His dark half still carved it, no matter how much he wished that aspect of himself did not exist. "And then some days I don't. It depends. You used to fight also, then ?"


"Yes." she replied, and told him a little of the story. She told him because she did not want him to go. She told him about her Iron Town, her army of rescued prostitutes, fighting feudal Lords and her society's oppression of females, the Animal Gods, and her part in the slaying of the Forest God. She spoke calmly, and only the occasional twitch of her tails hinted at the emotions behind the words.

At the end, she refilled their sake dishes, including Daxter's, and was silent, inviting Jak to reciprocate with a slight tilt of her head and a lifted ear. She was an interested audience.

Zero Dream

While Jak thought, he lapped another sip of sake. Perhaps it was already making it's effect, as he was even pondering about returning the favor. He never really talked about it. Never wanted to. Yet, it seemed fitting to return the favor.

And so, he did - he started off about when him and Daxter where kits, about the pool of dark echo that turned the guardian into what he was now - about how he found himself experimented on, and was eventually freed by his companion. About his two selves - the dark tormentor and the kind angel. About they eventually where exiled from the city and had to once more fight for survival in an harsh wasteland, where he finally found out who he truly was.

Hopefully he had not been too boring to his host.


Zee Oddwyn
When Jak had finished, Eboshi sat back, eyes half-lidded, and turned over his story in her mind. In ways, it was hard to believe. Time travel? An interesting notion. In spite of herself, she found herself giving Jak a genuine smile. It must have been the sake, but she felt immensely pleased in having met, against all odds in this new world, an equal.

"You have lived a busy life, Jak-san." she commented, lifting up the sake bottle to refill his dish, she realized that most of it was gone, so poured a small amount into each of their dishes, and raised hers in a toast.

"To our past." she said, "To our future, whatever it may hold."


Zero Dream
He had half-expected her to laugh him off. After all, he probably would not have believed in his own story if he had not, well, lived it. One ear perked a bit when she did not, and he nodded. "Busier than I had thought it would when I was younger, that for sure." Likewise, he lifted his own dish to toast. "And to hope the future will be what we would both look for."

Hope. He thought he was done with that long ago. But right now, he was... happy, he had to admit. Relaxed. It made it easy to hope.


Zee Oddwyn


Eboshi nodded at his addition, and tossed back the last bit of sake, feeling it warm the back of her throat. She packed away the empty sake bottle into somewhere in her cape, and rose, gracefully in spite of her advancing inebriation. She bowed to Jak.

"It seems the sake is gone. Sumimasen. Pardon me." she translated for the benefit for the sake of Daxter. "Perhaps you would like to accompany back to the Headquarters? I still have one of the rifles the lepers fashioned for me. Having used many yourself, you might find it interesting, if old-fashioned."


Zero Dream
The same ear that had lopped down now perked up in obivious interest. The kistu might now have spoken much, but to those who bothered to look, he could be very easy to read.

"I would definitively be interested. Let us go, then ?"

The armored kistu stood and stretched, almost like a cat, and, once noticing his little furry friend was a wee-bit too drunk (Daxter babbeling incoerently usually lead to that) Jak caught him by the collar and set him on his shoulder himself.

"Pardon him. He never did hold his alcohol well." In truth, Jak seemed almost amused.

Zee Oddwyn
Eboshi, watching the small guardian babble on Jak's shoulder, chuckled, again a surprisingly hearty sound, and fell into step with Jak, leading, but remaining at his side. She didn't apologize for getting Daxter drunk. Jak didn't seem to mind, and Daxter certainly didn't.

It wasn't a very long trip back. Eboshi told Jak about how her lepers had fashioned the first rifle, and the various improvements they'd made, especially in regards to reducing the weight and kick of the gun for the female workers of the Town.

When they arrived at Eboshi's modest room, a few tatami mats covered the floor, dotted with cushions for sitting, and a small closet, from which she pulled the long, red rifle. She lifted it easily and gave it to Jak, letting him inspect it as he liked.

"What do you think, Jak-san?" she asked, pride in her voice. She had always been proud of the achievements of the lepers. This particular rifle, while not the lightest model, had been specifically made and given to Eboshi. A gift.


Zero Dream
And, as much as he seemed to be holding his liquor well, Jax wasn't quite walking in a straight line. Still, he looked stellar next to the babbeling, chittering guardian that did his best not to tumble straight off his perch. He listened, nodding along to her explainations until they got there. Mindful of where he walked, he peered down at the gun as he was presented to him, studying it with definite interest, sitting down to weight it in his paws. Not too light, and not too heavy either. He wasn't too found of lighter guns for whatever reason. It just seemed that the lighter they where, the less punch they packed.

"This is not a kind of weapon I am used to see, but it is definitively interesting. One can tell it has been made and handled with care." Care he rarely extended to his own weaponry, but hey - randomly growing claws left nasty marks, weither he cared or not.


Zee Oddwyn
Eboshi might have said something about taking care of connections to your past, but the sake was having a detrimental effect on her vocabulary. Instead, she nodded at his compliment, and carefully put the gun back into its place.

Not one to stint on hospitality, she pulled out one of her extra bottles of sake, and placed it on the stove to let it heat up. This particular type tasted best hot, and was a tad gentler on the senses.

She made to take a seat by Jak, but wobbled, and inadvertently placed a paw upon his leg to steady herself. Once safely on the ground, she realized what she was doing, but hesitated before removing her paw.

"Sumimasen." she said, smiling.



Zero Dream
Jak didn't like to be touched. It was probably why he always wore so much armor in the first place. But maybe it was the sake, or maybe it was her, but he didn't care, right now, and, for the first time in the conversation, and for the first time in ages, smiled a genuine smile. "Don't worry."

Thankfully Daxter had since passed out on one of the cushions and so would not be able to tease him about the fact later.