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 Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 9:46 pm
 
This is a private role play between Kiran [Kazu-chan] and Yue Lao [Face Your Demons].
Setting:
Main Street.
Yue Lao spots Kiran eavesdropping from above, and picks up a valuable new skill; will it lead to friendship, or a volatile confrontation?
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Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 11:40 pm
The voices swallowed Yue Lao in a much-needed bubble of interaction. It was as if, stepping onto the main street, she had left the tedium of being alone behind her. Now, she was a part of this web of living things, of Lunarians bustling about, shopping, eating, talking, greeting one another, parting ways. It was perfect for Yue Lao. She stood in the center for a moment, parting the traffic and generally getting in the way, before she started off into the street.
She wasn't there for a particular reason. The bustling area made her feel at ease, even if she was worried or tired. It energized her. It also fed her need for physical contact; no matter how much a stranger might try to avoid her in the crowded street, she could still brush past them. A brush of their hand against her arm, or their shoulders hitting each other: anything was satisfying, though not satiating.
It also served another purpose. In the close quarters, Yue could pick out voices here and there, follow certain people, observe. She played a game where she would give herself to a certain distance, and have to guess what personality the Lunarian had, what they were out to do, or what their life was like. So, for example, she might spot a Lunarian with bright pink hair, purchasing a snack from a vending cart. Yue could choose to figure out her personality by the time she left the cart. Details like the way the girl stood, whether or not she talked with her hands, what facial expressions she used; all of those added to Yue Lao's portrait of the stranger. It wasn't just in the subject, though. The interaction between the stranger and the vendor was an important one. If the girl was charming, the vendor would look more at ease, happier, more open. If she was rude, the smile would appear false, or thin. Little exercises like that, games with herself, made Yue Lao's day.
She walked down the length of the street once, and then back again. On her second trip, she spotted two flamboyantly dressed male lunarians. One of them had a hat that seemed to be as tall as his torso, and she snickered to herself. Looked like something a noble would wear. According to her mother, anyway; Chishio's voice was always in Yue Lao's head, as far as her allegiance was concerned. In any case, Yue Lao thought their conversation looked like it might be interesting, but she hadn't quite made it up to them before they started to walk away. Observation was so difficult sometimes, when her targets seemed to sense her approaching. It didn't happen all the time, but some days it was frustrating. She kicked a pebble down the street and sighed, casting her eyes upwards. It was then she did a double-take. Was that a Lunarian, up there?...
Yue Lao snuck down a narrow sidestreet beside the building, and hauled herself up on some bins, latching onto the side of the roof and hoisting herself up. It was a good thing she had been lifting so much for her other-mother, lately; it wasn't as easy as she assumed it would be, pulling herself onto the roof. She knelt there, on her hands and knees, before getting to her feet. She didn't pay as much heed to the building's strength as she should have, but rather swaggered down to the edge, where she thought she had seen someone.
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Posted: Sun Sep 05, 2010 9:10 pm
Kiran arrived at the Main Street early in the day before the crowds swarmed in, bustling with activity. He had little to do that day and decided to spend most of it relaxing. Perhaps he would be lucky enough to find someone new to scam or overhear some interesting conversations from passersby. So far, nothing he learned from random people proved useful, but maybe someday, he would pick up on some important information that could be put to good use if given to the person. Or blackmail someone, though he had yet to bother resorting to such means to make a bit of money.
Coming to a narrow alleyway, Kiran ducked into it, unnoticed by the few people currently milling about the street or starting to set up their shops for the day. Over the years, scaling the walls of building became a simple task for him. As long as he could find good hand and foot holds, he could climb just about anything. He reached the rooftop in a matter of minutes. Recalling a previous experience, Kiran was careful with his footing as he neared the edge of the rooftop. It would reflect poorly on him if he lost his footing and took a tumble back down to the ground. That would certainly result in embarrassment for him.
Kiran settled down on the rooftop, laying on his stomach as he stared down at the people walking by below him. He didn't worry much about concealing himself from passersby. After all, hardly anyone ever bothered to look up, so he felt confident that he would remain out of sight from most, if not all, of those who visited the Main Street. But with attention focused on what conversations that he could overhear from his position, Kiran hardly paid any attention to anyone who might sneak up behind him.
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Posted: Tue Sep 07, 2010 10:27 am
It was a Lunarian. Yue Lao could hardly make out any details about him, since his back was to her, but he was lean and the scales of his arms almost seemed to have a sheen to them. Yue Lao was curious as to why he was there, and how often he did this. She hadn't ever noticed him before, but that didn't mean he hadn't been there, she supposed. After all, if the others didn't look up to notice him, perhaps she had just been too distracted to look up as well.
Yue Lao kept walking towards him on the roof, her soft sandals silent as possible. He anklets, hidden under the white cloth, jangled softly. She was waiting for him to turn around, but when he didn't, she addressed him.
"Do you come here often?" Yue said, grinning. She flipped her braid behind her shoulder idly, and lowered herself gingerly to her knees, so she could get closer to the edge, and the stranger. She didn't want to give his hiding place away. "Or maybe you dropped something over the edge?..." Without particular concern or discomfort, Yue Lao inched over to the side of the roof and lay on her stomach as well, to do so. The voices of people below her drifted up immediately. She grinned wider, and pulled back over the edge before she could get spotted. One Lunarian might be unnoticed, but Yue Lao would certainly not add to his camouflage. She turned to look at the stranger. Her body language and mannerisms made it seem like she had known him for a long time, rather than the reality of not even knowing his name.
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Posted: Tue Sep 07, 2010 2:08 pm
Kiran kept his attention on the conversations taking place below him, though most of them were just Lunarians bartering with vendors or swapping recipes or bits of gossips about torrid affairs with little proof beyond second hand knowledge. All in all, it was a slow day for gathering information. But the day was only starting, and there was plenty of time left to pick one or two bits of decent information.
A voice behind him made him jerk. Kiran backed away from the edge, fearful of accidentally losing his balance and taking a nosedive into the ground below him. He turned on his knees and stared at the Lunarian who approached him. Stunned and confused by her presence, Kiran watched in silence as she knelt then looked over the edge of the roof.
"Why do you want to know?" he asked warily as he eyed her. If she planned on running off to tell other people about his hobby, it would only lead to problems for him. Especially if his mother heard about it. Oh, how furious she would be! Spying on people and listening on things they might not want others knowing wouldn't sit well with her. Until he learned what this Lunarian wanted, Kiran didn't want to reveal too much of himself to her.
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Posted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 10:48 am
It seemed like she'd startled him. Yue Lao was about to laugh, when she realized she didn't want her voice to carry down to the street. She covered her mouth with one hand and shook lightly with laughter, making barely a sound. So suspicious! Yue Lao immediately began to log his reactions mentally, observing him with a smile.
"So defensive, such a wild criminal," Yue answered, covering her mouth to laugh again. "Does it matter what I know, don't, have or won't? Know what, besides?" Yue Lao crossed her arms over her chest and shifted her weight on the roof.
He didn't seem very confident in his questionable hobby, which meant he was probably harmless as far as other crimes might go. She could hardly imagine this stranger as a hardened criminal, eavesdropping over the sides of roofs. Yue Lao lay back on the roof, twisting her torso so that she could observe Kiran anyway, propping her head up on her hand, elbow on the roof. "You could drop things on people, from up here," Yue Lao observed, her voice devoid of inflection. She watched his face for reactions, briefly, and then turned to look back across the roofs. Did anyone ever go onto their own roof? It seemed as though someone must love to be high up as well, and see roofs for the valuable storage they might pose. If the roof was built well enough, that is.
She still had a lot of questions. Who was the stranger, what kind of Lunarian was he? He already seemed a little suspicious and slow to warm up, but Yue was hardly concerned. She had spare time, since she didn't work until late, and what she was buying could wait. Yue Lao looked back at Kiran and winked.
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Posted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 4:35 pm
Kiran frowned, uncertain of how to take her reaction. She was laughing? At him? He failed to see what exactly was funny about the current situation. Leaning back on his elbows, he watched the other Lunarian carefully. He tried to appear casual, like there was nothing unusual in their meeting on the rooftop.
"Who said anything about being a criminal?" Kiran technically wasn't doing anything wrong, in his opinion. All he was doing was sitting on a rooftop. If he overhead conversations here and there, was that his fault? And the people passing by weren't exactly whispering their secrets to each other. At least, that was his excuse if anyone tried to accuse him of wrongdoing. "Now that wouldn't be very nice." Though there was some amusement in the idea of causing a little trouble.
Kiran tilted his head, curious about the other Lunarian. After all, it was rare for him to encounter anyone else on a rooftop. In fact, this was the first time he had such encounter. "What brings you up here?" It seemed a bit unusual to him to find a girl up here with him. His sister was much the girly girl, and his mother certainly wouldn't be caught climbing up onto rooftops for no apparent reason.
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Posted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 8:02 pm
Yue Lao tilted her head a little in her hand as Kiran leaned back. "If you're not criminal, and this is a fine activity, you don't mind if I go down there and tell everyone what you've been doing, right?" Yue Lao tugged at her lower lip, eyes glinting. Yue didn't find anything particularly wrong with eavesdropping, really. It was what one did with the information gleaned, she felt, that truly determined their character. Their guilt. Still, she wanted to provoke answers, not find a comfort zone.
"So you're concerned about being nice?..." Yue pursed her lips, and grinned again. He didn't seem like someone who was overly concerned with the safety of others, but perhaps that was a false initial observation, or perhaps he had other traits beneath the supposed callousness. Yue loved the initial moments of a first meeting; she had so much to get wrong, so many questions to ask, so many gestures to assess and observe. He also tilted his head, much like she did, and she grinned wide, recognizing the gesture.
Should she answer him? Truthfully? Well, maybe she would have a little fun first. "Oh, I might have just seen a bird fly up here... maybe I lost my cat. Or maybe I'm part beast and feel the need to get as close to the moon as possible, so I can howl away at it." Yue Lao lay back as she listed them off, and stretched out on the roof. It was getting pretty warm up there. She felt good, sunbathing. She howled softly, just a silly Awoooo sound, and looked over at Kiran, to wink. She stretched out one hand and traced her finger down his arm. "You never answered my first question, mister criminal! But maybe I have a new one for you, now." Yue smiled, her eyes barely slits, and pulled her hand away, settling into the roof comfortably. It was in situations like this she was glad she wore loose, light pants underneath her over robe.
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Posted: Thu Sep 09, 2010 1:23 pm
"Now wait a minute!" Kiran grabbed hold of her arm, half worried that she would put her words into action. If she went around announcing to everyone about his eavesdropping, he would have to find a new place to do some information gathering. But this was one of the more populated areas, providing plenty of opportunities for picking up tidbits. He would hate to give it up. "Just because I'm not doing anything wrong, it doesn't mean you have to go around telling everyone about it." His hand remained around her arm. He left there for a while longer before pulling it away. He leaned back again as he eyed her suspiciously. "You're not going to go around telling people, right?"
Kiran shrugged, a simple roll of one shoulder as he looked out at the view the rooftop provided. But he could still the other Lunarian out the corner of his eye. "For one, I wouldn't want people to suddenly start scanning the rooftop for people throwing stuff at them. That would kind of ruining things, wouldn't it?"
The comment made Kiran turn his gaze back onto her. He lifted one teal eyebrow at her. He didn't exactly how to respond to someone howling in the manner of a wolf. But he doubted any of those reasons listed were her true reasons for climbing to the rooftop. That was okay though. He wasn't telling her everything. It didn't surprise him that she might keep some things secret as well.
He remained still as her finger tickled down his arm. "And what is this new question?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 09, 2010 11:39 pm
Kiran reacted much as she suspected; he wasn't quite as nonchalante about his activities as his earlier answer might have indicated. Her eyes narrowed further, and if she was a cat, she would have purred: his hand was clasped around her arm. The physical contact made her skin warm, her heart race. It was her superficial weakness. When she spoke again, it was low, content, reassuring. "I'm comfy right here; why would I share this valuable hobby with others of my own will? No, secrets are best when kept," Yue Lao said. Of course she didn't intend to go spill his secret. But now she had her answer, too. She was trying to tie what she was learning together, in order to form a thread for his personality.
"I suppose it might ruin our fun if they were more alert, yes. Sound reasoning, mister criminal. Something bothering you about your shoulder?" Yue Lao asked, nodding towards his shoulder. Yue couldn't help but wink, yet again, when the stranger raised an eyebrow at her. Yue wasn't trying to keep secrets, per se. She simply preferred a chase, sometimes. A riddle, here or there. That was the way she was.
Yue Lao was pleased, in a sort of self-satisfied way, that he didn't pull away when she touched his arm. That was a good sign. Yue smiled at him, looking progressively like the wolf she had pretended to be, though perhaps with the contentment of a feline. In any case, her smile looked as though she was considering how edible he might be. "Hmm, new question..." Yue Lao had been cycling through many potential questions, so she picked the easiest one, for the time being. "Do you have a real name, or would you prefer I call you 'mister criminal' indefinitely?"
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Posted: Fri Sep 10, 2010 12:19 pm
Kiran could agree with that. Secrets were best when kept. Unless there was something to get from telling them, which kept him guarded about revealing too much about himself to this strange Lunarian. He wasn't certain what to make of the way she had said it either. "Do you often climb up on rooftops to eavesdrop on people?"
Kiran shook his head, almost letting a half grin slip across his face. "No, nothing is bothering my shoulder," he replied. But he didn't like that she kept referring to him as a criminal. He might try to scam people out of their money, but she didn't know that. And aside from doing a little eavesdropping, he wasn't doing anything really against the law. So it irked him somewhat to be called that repeatedly.
Kiran's brow creased as he watched the other Lunarian. He couldn't quite figure her out from her expressions and actions. After deciding there was no harm in telling her his name, he said, "It's Kiran. And I suppose you have a real name too? Or I could just call you 'that wolf girl.'"
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Posted: Sat Sep 11, 2010 10:34 am
As far as secrets were concerned, Yue Lao saw more eye to eye with Kiran than she knew. It was true that Yue would probably tell a secret if it was valuable. She did enjoy keeping them, though; they were like little treasures, or clues to some kind of higher meaning. So far as an individual was concerned, anyway. "Hardly! I'm a good girl," Yue Lao answered, winking at Kiran, "This is my first time up here, listening in on people, stealing their secrets."
He almost seemed like he might smile, but didn't. Yue would have to dig down to get to that part of him, perhaps. It didn't occur to her that calling him mister criminal would bother him; Yue Lao often nicknamed those she met. Almost everyone she knew had a nickname, whether they liked it or not. If nothing else, there was seldom any mystery to how Yue Lao saw someone. The nicknames served too purposes, in the end: they illustrated how Yue might perceive a Lunarian, but they also needled at them. It was a simple way to find out someone's patience, tolerance, and sense of humour. She had yet to receive a nickname in return, really. "No, nothing? But you roll it? A habit, I guess."
Then Kiran suggested a nickname of sorts, which made her laugh, "Wolf girl? If only! Oh, the things I could do," Yue grinned, reaching out and brushing Kiran's arm again. "Since you gave me your name, I'll trade you mine. I am Yue Lao, just. Don't forget it," she said, blowing him a kiss. She looked down to the street.
"What do you use their secrets for, anyway, Kiran?" Yue asked, suddenly, shifting so she lay on her belly, and could peek back over the roof edge again. She made sure her braid was tucked behind her, instead of dangling down. It was true, people never really did look up.
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Posted: Sat Sep 11, 2010 2:09 pm
"A good girl, huh?" Kiran laughed to himself. "And if I'm mister criminal, I guess that would make me a bad influence on you." The idea amused him but at the same time didn't. He wouldn't want his younger sister to encounter someone that would be a poor influence on her.
He rolled his shoulder again with a playful grin flashing across his face. "Could be," he answered with an air of mystery. Actually, he had never really noticed the habit of rolling one shoulder in a shrug. It was just something that he did without really realizing he did it. But that wasn't unusual for him. He often signed with his hands without really pay attention to the fact that his hands were going through the motions. He tried to only do that around his sister, but sometimes, his hands just moved on their own accord. He glanced at Yue Lao. She hadn't asked about that little oddity of his, so he assumed he hadn't been signing unconsciously as he spoke.
"Not a wolf girl? Then should I be calling you by some other nickname?" Kiran lowered his gaze, watching as her hand brushed his arm again. It sent an odd sensation down his arm. He didn't know what to make of the random touches, the winks, and especially not the blowing of a kiss. Trying to ignore the strangeness of it, he focused back on the conversation.
"I never said anything about using them. Though I guess there's always the idea of blackmailing people if the information is worth anything," he answered jokingly. He hadn't actually done anything like that. So far, he hadn't done much of anything with the information he gathered, but that didn't mean he wouldn't someday get something out of this little habit of his. He rolled his shoulder again, watching Yue Lao cautiously. "It's just a habit of mine."
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Posted: Sat Sep 11, 2010 11:48 pm
The laughter was a step in a most favourable direction. "Either you're laughing about me being good, or being female, and I think I am quite clearly female, so I suppose it's the former." Yue Lao sat back up again, to converse with Kiran better. She crossed her eyes at him briefly, and answered, "If we were everything we were called, I would also know a lamb and a princess, to name a couple. In any case, could you be a bad influence? In whose opinion, anyway? Maybe I'm the bad influence; maybe I'll ruin you, who knows?" Yue Lao laughed. The idea of her ruining anyone was ridiculous, even to her. She was harmless, as far as that was concerned. Although she was often in the way, irritating, needling, or other such obnoxious behaviours, she had no malicious intent. Only a sort of academic or anthropological curiosity.
Yue was thrilled by how Kiran was changing. His smile only made her smile worse, because it encouraged her. However much he joked around, or made her feel comfortable, she would respond with an increasing degree of essentially ridiculous behaviour. It was probably his only salvation that he hadn't responded to her physical touch. If Kiran wanted to remain at all separate from Yue Lao, he would be better off keeping to that principle. She was enjoying herself regardless. "Nicknames are meant to be gifted, I don't go around calling myself anything, especially not something other than my name," Yue responded, laughing. What a silly notion, nicknaming herself. "That is to say, no one has given me a nickname before, really! I'm usually the one giving out nicknames." She did, indeed, love them. She believed in calling others what they were, which was why she would base the names she gave people on their character. If Kiran turned out to be not much of a criminal at all, she would, of course, ammend his nickname. For now, eavesdropping, and that kind of shifty undertone amounted to enough for her to keep it.
"Hmm, blackmail?" Yue Lao wiggled her eyebrows up and down, grinning. Yue Lao was not one to orchestrate things like blackmail, however; any secrets she kept would be hers for the purpose of studying someone, or knowing the things they sought to hide. However much she loved seeking her own personal gain, blackmail seemed like such a mess, and it would interfere with her larger goal of getting closer and deeper into the lives of others. "You know, there are lots of things youve never said to me, I'm not about to assume that the things you haven't said are all true! You know?" Yue pursed her lips.
"Got any other fascinating habits, Kiran?" Yue asked. It was actually quite amazing she was using his name, instead of his nickname, at all. She might revert soon, and he would probably never know how rare it was for her to use someone's real name after she'd already bestowed a nickname. It probably had something to do with the fact she was still assessing his true nature, and wanted to be sure that he really was mister criminal, and not just He Who Eavesdrops And Is Otherwise Quite Nice.
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Posted: Sun Sep 12, 2010 10:32 am
Kiran let his gaze travel down the length of her body then up it again. "Most definitely female," he agreed with a half smirk. "A princess? Now that could be interesting. Maybe. Either that, or really irritating. I guess that really depends on the type of 'princess' she is." He trailed off, lost in a momentary thought. When she was little, his sister always loved stories about princesses awaiting rescue from her prince. Kiran shook his head.
"You? A bad influence?" Kiran couldn't stop the chuckle that escaped him. It was hard to imagine Yue Lao being a bad influence on anyone. Especially him. "And just how might you ruin me?" He smiled easily at her, still trying to imagine Yue Lao luring people down the wrong path.
"I see." Kiran nodded. Nicknames were something new for him. No one had really ever given him one, until now, though he hoped that mister criminal didn't stick. He doubted people would react kindly to someone who was referred to as a criminal. "I guess I'll have to think up something better than 'that wolf girl' for you."
Kiran lifted one brow in response to the eyebrow wiggle that Yue Lao sent at him. "And what would those things be?" He knew he was being rather guarded about what information he revealed to Yue Lao. Probably more guarded than he had been with anyone else. But maybe it was in part to the idea that she should some similar qualities, in his mind. Sneaking about, watching people, observing their interactions, listening to their secrets.
"Well, now that would depend on your opinion of fascinating," he answered with another roll of his shoulder. "Do you have an fascinating habits?" he returned, thinking it only fair that he learn a little about her as well.
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