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 Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 1:02 pm
The room was nearly empty.
Everything that had been in it was now in boxes; the few boxes that there were showed just how little had existed in the first place. Most of the boxes were marked as books or 'things for storage,' and slowly, they were disappearing one by one as the solemn owner of the belongings moved them from the dorm into the new one. There was one large box that was unmarked, and it had been the first to be moved.
There weren't many boxes left, a half a dozen at best, and the room had been empty for a half hour as the owner of the items took a lunch break with his friend, Banish. It had been long and lonely, but RuiZhi was trudging his way back to the old dorm, holding the fed black cat. It would be good to move and get rid of the old things, but he knew that no amount of packing would get rid of the memories. Of China, of the school, of the death, of the loss...of his room mate, who he didn't know was dead or alive.
He guessed this was growing up, and quite frankly, he wasn't impressed.
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 1:09 pm
The room was nearly empty.
Scyeth frowned, but really, what did he expect? He had left without a word to anyone. His note didn't explain anything. He couldn't really think they'd keep his stuff. Oh. His skateboard. Scyeth sighed sadly and began to investigate the boxes. Books, it said. Well that wasn't interesting. Things for storage? He took a quick peek. Huh. These must be RuiZhi's things? Was he getting a new roommate?
At that, the blond at to scowl. And that was when the door opened. Scyeth whipped around, ready to rip into the new kid. Who was holding the cat. His cat? (Oh yeah. He had a cat. Hey, that was his cat!) And looked Chinese. And familiar. Scyeth blinked and rubbed his eyes. Oh. Oh! It was RuiZhi! Scyeth frowned and tucked a strand of hair behind his ear (he was still wearing most of his hair up these days), tipping his hair to one side. He was taller. And. It was weird, what a couple of months could do to someone.
Scyeth just stood there and said nothing at all. He had become very accustomed to saying nothing recently.
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 1:23 pm
The Chinese youth opened the door, holding Banish carefully as he did so, lifting his gaze to find a pair of very unhappy blues glaring back at him.
RuiZhi jumped a little, not having expected anyone to be in the room. At first, he assumed it was the boy who'd be taking the room after he left, but those eyes...they pinned him. As his own brown eyes started to readjust to the dimmly lit room, he began to recognize the other, and the recognition hit him like a forgotten memory. The hair was different...he wasn't smiling...but it had to be.
"Scyeth?" he practically croaked in surprise, jaw becoming slack. He was grateful Banish removed himself from his arms, or the animal would have been dropped in the momentary numbness that seized him. It was Scyeth. His room mate. But what had happened to him?
That could wait. RuiZhi suddenly felt very small and young again, relief flooding feeling back into his limbs as he realized that Scyeth was back, that he was alive. He wanted to ask where he'd been, and why, and why he had left without word, why no one could tell him where the blonde had been...but that could wait, too.
His feet carried him, since his mind had seemed to stop. Slender arms wrapped around the taller boy's shoulders - who wasn't quite as tall as he remembered - drawing himself up and the other down into a hug. RuiZhi didn't know what to say. He didn't know if there was anything to say, and so he simply hugged the only friend he had in the world, shaken and relieved.
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:36 pm
Suffice to say little (or, not so little) RuiZhi had completely taken Scyeth by surprise. He wasn't really expecting his roommate to be happy to see him, nevermind this happy to see him. And that's when he got a hug. He got a hug. Scyeth could not even remember the last time someone gave him a hug. Oh sure, he'd kissed plenty of people, gotten pats on the back, or little one-armed hugs, but this? This was a very happy, very friendly hug. It was something new. But...Scyeth didn't not like it.
In fact, he almost smiled as he curled his arms around RuiZhi's waist, forgetting himself and the other. It just seemed like the right thing to do at the time, and since he wasn't really thinking properly, his arms never really saw the need to consult his brain about the matter. And it made him feel a little better, the hug. Made coming back (and going away) almost worth the misery of four months in solitude and complete, and utter bordem. It was very lonely, out in the middle of no where. He settled comfortably where they stood and let out a long, satisfied sigh.
He was very content to stand there in silence, the awkwardness of the situation still not occuring to him. Though, the blond supposed perhaps he should say something at the very least. So, he settled on a simple "...hey."
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:50 pm
RuiZhi laughed, just a little; it sounded more like a choking type of laughter than anything. Hey. Gone for a quarter of a year and that's all his roommate had to say. Not that he was surprised, but...it was more like Scyeth, and it gave him a small measure of comfort.
It didn't occur to the Chinese youth that the hug was odd at all; between Rylenn and his sister, he was almost used to physical touch and hugs for all occassions. Only after it lingered for a space of time likely considered not normal did he pull back, and even then it was just a movement of his head so that he could look at his friend.
All the questions buzzed through his head again, drumming in his mind like rain on a tin roof. He looked up at the demure face of his friend, not sure what to make of the situation. Did he ask? Did he wait for Scyeth to tell? And more importantly--
"What did you do to your hair?" RuiZhi fussed over the blonde's cropped locks, lifting a hand to turn Scyeth's face to the side so he could better see. "It looks good, but I didn't think you'd part with your hair."
Or your clothes. Or your board. Not even your cat, he wanted to add, but he kept his mouth shut, offering up a small smile instead. Woah. A smile. That wasn't something he'd done for a while, was it?
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 5:23 pm
His hair was a very, very touchy subject and Scyeth tensed, ready to snap a defense when RuiZhi said he...liked it? Oh. Scyeth gave a half-hearted shrug and shook his head. "It's just hair," he justified. And the earrings? Well, he wasn't going to bring that up if RuiZhi didn't. But he caught RuiZhi's smile and sighed a little, trying to muster a smile of his own and...
...there was nothing.
He just shrugged and closed his eyes, ducking his head a little. He couldn't look at that smile if he couldn't return it. The blond said nothing for a while and did nothing for a while, again, a state he was far too used to, until it occured to him he'd been gone for four months and never told anyone why. So...maybe he had better. "Sorry," he mumbled. Starting with an apology seemed like a very good idea.
"But I didn't know I was leaving until they came to get me. I didn't have time to say good-bye."
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:03 pm
Scyeth didn't smile.
Oh god.
RuiZhi almost grabbed Scyeth's face to make sure it wasn't broken when the other started to speak, freezing him in mid-motion. His hands slowly moved to rest on the taller boy's shoulders, his expression drawing in immediate concern. Not only did the fiesty boy apologize, but the words thereafter were terribly unsettling. His eyebrows were knitted in unspoken worry, which he knew Scyeth would hate, but he couldn't help it.
"Who got you?" he breathed more than voiced, almost scared. Someone snatched his friend and he came back in this state...it couldn't be good. He didn't know what to say, and so he kept quiet, simply standing against Scyeth in case he was needed.
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:10 pm
"Oh, right." Scyeth shook his head. "My father sent for me." He shrugged. What else was there to say. "I had to go home. To the Outback, really. And it was really..." The blond frowned, trying to figure out how to express what exactly he had gone through. "It was really dull," he finally finished. Yeah. Dull was a really good word for it. "There's nothing to do, in the middle of no where."He shrugged again, looking away. Uh oh. Here it came.  The crazy urge to confess. "I made friends with one of my bodyguards." Friends would be putting it lightly, Scyeth thought, but he didn't like Adrian anymore than a friend and Adrian was married, or something weird like that. "And I got another one fired." Shawna was hot, but that was about as far as her good qualities went. He shrugged. "My dad was really pissed about my grades. And my hair."He twisted to peer back at RuiZhi again. OKay, it wasn't exactly what he wanted to confess, but it was a start.
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:21 pm
To say he was confused was an utter understatement. He didn't understand how Scyeth's dad could have caused all this, but he truthfully didn't know much about Scyeth to make that assumption anyway. "I see...I'm sorry to hear that."
RuiZhi moved a hand to rub his jaw thoughtfully, even more lost. How was this a bad thing? "I'm happy you made friends," he said pleasantly, despite the strange well of confusion that bubbled in his chest. He wanted to ask if it made his stay go better, but he mentioned getting one fired, and RuiZhi was completely baffled. How does making a friend get one fired? The Chinese boy was all sorts of lost, and he wasn't sure there was a place to start and find what was really going on.
When Scyeth looked at him again, he smiled as reassuringly as he could. It had been some time since he had smiled so freely, and so honestly. "I can help you with your grades. I wont even tell you where I put your board if you don't want me to." RuiZhi grinned just a little at that, patting the taller boy's shoulder before dropping his hands to his sides. "As long as you like your hair, that's what matters."
This was better, a little more like the unique boy he knew. Still, he was unsettled, and couldn't pinpoint why.
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:33 pm
Scyeth did not feel any better having said any of that. He'd have to explain more. He didn't really want to, but he did. He tucked that same strand of blond hair behind his ear and shrugged. "Yeah. I guess I like my hair," he said absently, too busy trying to figure out what it was he actually wanted to say in the first place. He took a step back and took a deep breath. Hey, wait a minute. When did he become such a spineless coward?
"Zhi, you don't have to help me, I can take care of that by myself." He should have been taking care of it in the first place. Scyeth shrugged and watched Zhi for a few more silent moments. He was out of practice. "Look. I really like you. A lot." Scyeth had to supress a flush, but couldn't keep the tips of his ears from burning red. "But. There's a problem with that." Scyeth shook his head and sighed. A very big problem, as the truth may be. "It's my family." He shrugged and moved his mouth, unable to find the words until he finally decided being blunt was the only option.
"Zhi. I'm a demon."
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:41 pm
RuiZhi kept himself from blanching at the dismissal of his offer for help, instead just giving a little nod. He knew Scyeth was smart enough to do things on his own, or else he wouldn't be here, but the seriousness that the older youth was acting out in was still perplexing the younger boy.
And then he continued to be serious while saying strange things. Really strange. His lips quirked into another smile, although his expression clearly said he wasn't entirely sure what Scyeth was trying to say. "I like you too, I wouldn't have been taking care of Banish otherwise." That was a joke, obviously, as the Chinese boy doted on that cat far more than his owner ever did.
His stomach knotted on the last part. RuiZhi didn't know what Scyeth was getting at with that statement, either by insinuating that he was a bad person or...that he was like the things in China...
"You're not a bad person, Scy," he used the nickname gently. "I don't know what happened but it's hardly your fault."
RuiZhi had a horrible feeling that he was missing something, and that the 'something' was going to come crashing onto his head at any moment.
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:47 pm
Scyeth flinched. He didn't get it. He didn't get any of it. He clenched his jaw and shook his head and how did he make this clearer? He should probably forget the first part, that was completely out of the question now. Should have just kept your mouth shut, Scyeth and kept living your very happy little lie. Even if it did make you feel bad, it was a lot more fun that this was promising to be.
"I'm not really a good person," he said slowly, "but that's not what I mean. I'm a demon, Zhi. I'm not human. My ears?" Surely he had noticed Scyeth wasn't wearing his trademark hat and...his ears. Well, the boy was smart. He should be able to put two and two together. And then that would be the end, but at least it was some sort of honest end, right?
...how very unfair life could be, sometimes.
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:59 pm
The boy bit his lip, knowing he had just hurt his friend, although he had no idea how. He listened, eyes averted as Scyeth spoke, obviously not agreeing with the first part. The second was like a slap to the face.
Brown eyes shifted to look where the other had indicated, just then noting the elongated ears. They were...longer than an elf's, and he remembered. Remembered that terrible day when his sister and idol were dying. Remembered how he looked. He knew then that Scyeth was serious.
He didn't know how to react. There was a good deal of shock that overshadowed the other knee-jerk reactions of fear and disbelief, both of which faded quickly. Scyeth? From Australia? A demon? But the demons had been killers! Scyeth wasn't a killer! Hell, he wasn't even all that scary, not really, and...
It didn't matter.
The thought popped into RuiZhi's head and quite possibly startled him more than Scyeth's admittance. It was like some type of block in his mind, something that stopped any fear or revolt, a calm acceptance that he had felt with Dante and Irame. Scyeth was what he was, and more importantly, he was who he was. He was the skateboarding, fun-loving youth that RuiZhi had grown to...that he...
His arms slid around Scyeth's torso, enfolding him in another hug, this one a bit tighter than the first. "Does that mean you want me to stay away from you?" he asked quietly. "Because I wont. You're still my friend. We still have walls to decorate and board lessons...what you are doesn't make who you are any less important to me, Scyeth. I still like you. So if you're trying to scare me off or something, you're going to have to try harder."
His home was the birthplace of Luna and Her people. RuiZhi was forgiving...and he was loving. Scyeth would need to push far harder than this if he was trying to warn RuiZhi away.
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 7:28 pm
Scyeth didn't understand. RuiZhi was okay with this? (He must be, as he was being squished into a hug again.) Most humans weren't okay with that sort of thing at all, demons had a bad rap. One that was probably half-earned and half rumors. But still, this was a very surprising, very...interesting turn of events. No, he definitely was not expecting a hug. But he would take the hug, for sure. And he would return it, even. (It was a shame he'd let that first part of his confession go.)
"No," he muttered, filled with some sort of exhausted relief. Waiting was very draining, you know! "No, I'm not trying to scare you off," he admitted, and happily. "I just...thought you should know." It really had to do with confession number one, but said confession would only be known as that, because RuiZhi did not really acknowledge it and Scyeth was entirely too flustered to bring that sort of thing up again.
"...but. I'm glad we can still be friends. You're really important to me, too."
A tremendous weight had been lifted from the youth's soul. Maybe confessions weren't so bad after all.
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 7:42 pm
RuiZhi was grateful he had been taught some sense of warmth, as it seemed Scyeth was sorely in need of his hug. And so, he did the most logical thing he could, and continued to hug him, rubbing his back absently. He didn't think Scy would know his history with the demons, and maybe it was just as well. He certainly didn't want his friend to feel guilty about that above all else.
"You didn't have to, but...thanks..." The youth smiled up at the other, giving him a gentle pat on the back. "I'm just glad you're okay. I didn't know what happened to you, and none of the teachers did either. I thought...I thought the worst, since you left everything behind." RuiZhi's smile thinned into something a little more sad, brown eye straying for Scyeth's face over to his ears.
So his best friend was a demon. It would probably be best not to mention it to anyone...least of all his sister.
The boy was taken by the strangest desire to touch Scyeth's ears. His cheeks flushed a little, and he rationalized that it was just for scientific purposes. Really, how many people got to embrace a demon, anyway?
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