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 Posted: Mon Feb 27, 2012 12:06 am
 
This is a PRP between Ishtar (Faylun) and Van (Kurama no Koishi).
Setting:
Two former classmates run into each other in the most unexpected of places.
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Posted: Mon Feb 27, 2012 1:05 am
It was not unusual to see Van at the temple these days, despite her disdain for what the building stood for and her general uneasiness when it came to dealing with soul conduits. Now that Sara, one of her close friends, was a priestess, it generally couldn’t be avoided. The captain was much more mobile than the other woman, whose duties required her to stay on site most of the time. This particular afternoon, Van had decided to stop by before a nightly mission called her away again, but she had learned with some surprise that the Priestess was out. She’d simply have to catch her another time.
On her way out of the main temple, Van brushed against someone—with anyone else, she would have simply continued walking without excusing herself, but something about the girl’s wine-colored hair triggered her memory, and she turned around. It was a moment before Van said anything, her brow furrowing slightly as she gave the girl a quick once over. Was it really... “Ishtar?”
It was entirely possible that she was mistaking a stranger for someone whom she hadn’t known very well. Van and Ishtar had never been too friendly in school, presumably for the same reason that Van was always slut-shamed and never had any close female friends. There never was any grounds for the slight friction between them, though; they had been girls and girls were simply catty. In the end, the two had always minded their own business, and the captain had experienced enough now that such trivial conflicts were all water under the bridge. Goddess knew that Van would do anything to return to earlier times, where all she had to worry about were bitchy girls and what to wear.
There was something particularly off about this encounter, though. Van blinked, her amethyst eyes bemused. “I... didn’t know you were training to become a soul conduit.” Her statement came out as more of a question—she’d never pegged the other girl as the type to follow the more mystical path, especially since the classes they’d had together were training and battle-centric. She couldn’t figure out why else the girl would be here, of all places, and merely settled for fixing her with an expectant look.
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Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 7:36 pm
Oh no. Van had recognized her. Ishtar tried to keep her face blank as she decided on how to answer Van. Should she lie? Should she explain the truth?
Oh, why hadn't she simply refused Sara's request? Ishtar pursed her lips as she remembered Sara that morning, gently shaking Ish out of bed. Every day, Ishtar was grateful for the priestess, for Sara seemed like a guardian angel that had come out of the blue. She provided Ishtar with shelter, food, and above all comfort. And of course, on all the days Sarangerel decided to guilt Ishtar into actually repaying a part of her kindness...Ishtar had to be reminded of her own mistakes and laziness.
In the form of Van.
As Ishtar left her rooms and walked towards the front entrance of the temple, she saw a figure clad in gorgeously styled captain regalia, with hair the color of night. It took a few moments for Ishtar to realize that it was Âu Tuyết Vân, a former acquaintance from the Academy. My, had she grown up over time. Ishtar hardly recognized this different Van---she seemed so much more reposed and calm than than the prideful, catty teenager she once was. Granted, Ishtar was different as well; the changes in Van, however, seemed to have been for the better. Ishtar saw her own self as a clearly deteriorated shadow of her former self, while Van's pride and arrogance from years back seemed to have been justified. Ishtar recognized Van's posture and distinct, commandeering attitude as somebody who had---amazingly---recently been promoted as Captain.
Captain. Ishtar tried to look away from Van as the girl walked towards her, but luckily Van paid no notice. Maybe, maybe, Ishtar would be able to slip by and prevent an awkward reunion. It was shameful enough to realize that Van was a Legionnaire captain now, while Ishtar still had yet to fully confirm her acceptance into the Legion itself. Please don't notice me. Come on, come on. Ishtar silently thought as she tried to quietly slide by Van and out the exit. There were times when Ishtar wished she had the invisibility she once had as a child---years of standing in the circus spotlight had destroyed that skill of hers, however.
It was proven, now, that Ishtar was still able to be noticed. Just as she made her way to the exit, Ishtar brushed past Van. The violet-eyed woman turned around suddenly, and Ishtar's cheeks flushed.
"Ishtar? I...didn't know you were training to become a soul conduit."
Here it was. The confrontation. Ishtar debated on whether or not to simply continue walking, or if she finally had to present an explanation. It was rude, though, to ignore a captain---even if it was Van.
"Oh, Van! Hello. I didn't---well, I didn't see you there."Lying, Ishtar continued. "I didn't know you were the religious type?" In truth, Ishtar knew next to nothing about Van. They had never been close in the Academy, but then again, Ishtar had practically never gone to classes either.
Hopefully, though, Van would take this as a prompt to talk about herself. Ishtar had evaded many an interrogation when her questioners had been turned towards talking about themselves. She needed to evade these questions, but Van seemed far too curious.
"Van, don't tell me you're a captain now? It's been far too long."
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Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2012 8:16 pm
Ishtar’s attempts to avoid her were lost on the captain, for though on the battlefield they were supposed to keep keen awareness of their surroundings, it also meant knowing what to discount of what she could perceive. Van didn’t see the other woman until the memory had stirred from her mind. As she leveled her gaze onto Ishtar now, she noticed that the magenta-clad Lunarian hadn’t changed much from what she remembered of her, except that she was older as all of them had aged. Her revealing style remained the same, above all, which was interesting given the fact that she seemed to train at the temple. Of course, Van was hardly one to judge a person on whether they followed social norms as far as clothing. She never had, either.
Her lips threatened to twist upwards in a wry smile at the mention of her supposed piety. Van, religious? She preferred the term spiritual—she’d never be caught dead worshipping with other Lunarians at a temple. The captain’s face remained in a slightly amused cast as she answered, “Ah, hardly. I was simply paying the priestess a visit; she’s a dear friend of mine.” Sara’s friendship was one of the very few that remained of her relationships from the Academy. Friends were harder to come by as the years went on and the war progressed.
Van fell in stride with Ishtar as they spoke, unaware of any discomfort this may have caused the girl. “I am,” she acknowledged, her voice expressing neither pride nor derision. The Van of any other age would have taken a moment to sing her own praises, but not here. She assumed that Ishtar had progressed similarly since the last time they’d seen each other, and besides, Van was still not too pleased with the circumstances of her promotion, no matter how capable she’d been of taking on the responsibility.
“How long has it been? I don’t think I’ve seen you since we were at the Academy—those were the days,” she said, glancing sideways at her companion as they walked off the temple grounds together. It wasn’t just to be polite—Van was perfectly content to forget about any rocky moments in their past.
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