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 Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2012 4:29 pm
 
This is a PRP between Mu Ying [[Zyphiris]] and Yue Lao [[Face Your Demons]].
Setting:
While Mu Ying is taking his bird out for a flight, Yue Lao inadvertantly happens upon him. She's in a contemplative mood, however, and seems to want to talk to the student about... aspirations? Also the weather. Never not the weather.
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Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2012 5:23 pm
When Yue Lao closed her eyes, she could see the snow fall in her mind. It fell in thick, fat flakes, and made her shiver. She was wearing her fur-lined cloak, and shrugged further into it. Lately, thinking about the pilgrimage she would have to make, Yue Lao had been pacing around the outskirts of the city very often. As if it caged her in, and she was planning her escape.
She opened her eyes again, and looked out at the gates, and into the landscape beyond. It would be so easy to just... walk out. To leave. But she wouldn't, and couldn't do that. She cast her mind back to the house by the beach, the place the Qians had gifted her and her new husband. It was home, now. She'd never leave that place. But she did need to travel, at least a little.. it wasn't unusual, however. Her husband was a Tenryu, so he understood the trials of war, the necessity of leaving on deployment for long chunks of time.
She would still miss him, though. Yue Lao took a deep breath, and hummed softly to herself. Kind of out of tune. Hime-san sat on her shoulder, grooming her, slicking the stay hair back into the braid. Was that a flash of wing?... She thought she saw something taking flight, and was immediately curious. How many birds like that were around the city? Yue Lao wandered over to where she thought the bird had come from, trying to find its owner. Meanwhile, her brain was full of thoughts of snow, and mountains, and the cold divide of city life and pilgrimage.
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Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2012 6:07 pm
As if she needed any more help imagining the landscape of snow her mind kept seeing, the fluttering of snow-white feathers came to an eventual halt and on the tree perched the magnificent bird, staring at the contemplative captain, unblinking. Beneath the shade, tucked away into one of the tree's branches was a young lunarian sleeping, painting the perfect picture of an idyllic life.
Idyllic indeed, the young man had little to concern himself with these days. Being suspended from watch duty and left to do the simple chores at home had fortunately or unfortunately, freed up a significant amount of his time. Perhaps it was for the better, he was managing to keep awake during the day more often, and getting chased out of class less. Still, he couldn't quite break away from his habit of having an afternoon nap, or one that lasted until the early moments of dusk.
Mhmm, he hummed, stirring from his sleep to acknowledge his companion's presence. Mu Ying awoke to find the owl's head turned away from him, staring down at the respectable woman and her companion. He was about to turn away from them until she hooted. Mu Ying stared at the snowy owl thoughtfully, scratching the back of her head. What was it now that piqued her interest so much? The young lunarian's gaze flitted back down at the two of them below, finally conceding and sliding down the tree gracefully.
“My respects to you captain, what brings you here today?” he greeted with a bow, straightening back up and evening out his robes into a more presentable state, not to impress her, but out of respect. These were the people at the front of the war, the people they supported and assisted with their expertise and information. For him at least, they were to be accorded with the highest honour, even though they weren't the harbingers of the peace he so desired to see.
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Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 9:54 am
It felt like a dream, watching the snowy feathered bird perch on a tree, staring. Yue Lao tipped her head, and shushed Hime-san, who was attempting to bare his little fangs at the gorgeous bird. It reminded her of her husband, as all beautiful birds now did; on the other hand, however, her husband was far more harsh in his appearance. Battle-hardened. Yue felt a fondness in her chest, thinking of his face. It was a good thing she was tough, what with all his scaliness now. A stillness settled over the typically boisterous captain, yet again.
She followed the line of the branches to the Lunarian who slept at the base of the tree. Curious. She tilted her head, and shifted her cloak to free her arms. She would say something, but it might frighten the boy awake. She didn't much want to have to defend herself from some half-asleep wildly upset student, so for once in her life, Yue Lao waited.
She didn't have to wait long. He finally stirred, and looked as though he was going to ignore her, which brought a half-smile to her face. "Your respects? Guess we've definitely never met, then," she replied, laughing. She winked at the student. He was elegant, that was certain, an intense contrast from Yue and her bright colours, her abrasive personality. "Captain Yue Lao, pleased to meet you." With that, she did afford him a bow, Hime-san leaping away to avoid being thrown off. Her golden lion tamarin stood beside her ankle, holding on with one dark hand. He did not look at ease, yet.
"I'm just thinking about what to do," she added, "so take it easy. I'm not here on official business."
Even though lately, she seemed to be doing a lot more for the Emperor's name than she had as a Fighter. She hadn't realized the extent of the duties her husband had shouldered alone for so long. Yue waited, wondering who this student was-- if he was always out here, on the outskirts, it would make sense she had never seen him before.
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2012 7:28 pm
“I guess not then,” he chuckled, making himself slightly more at ease but maintaining some form of formality around his superior. Outgoing and down to earth the respectable woman may seem, he knew better than to dispense with his manners, not because he was so afraid of offending her but that it was just in his nature and upbringing. “Mu Ying, the pleasure is mine,” he returned the greeting, similarly with a bow.
Xue Ning however, wasn't taking too well with the new company ... or rather, just the monkey. The owl glowered at Hime-san from her perch on Mu Ying's shoulder, twisting her head sideways down to continue staring at the golden lion tamarin with those huge dark eyes of hers. Needless to say, Mu Ying was a little embarrassed with her hostility, yet he wouldn't chide her, not when there were others around. The young man reached up to stroke the back of her head and gave her a reproachful look to tell her to be polite. And if need be, she could be sent home first.
That approach seemed to work, and the lunarian could then turn his attention back to the captain. “Dare I ask what it may be?” he questioned, perhaps a little too boldly, knowing fully that she had all the right to not accord him with an answer. Who knows, perhaps he might know something that could be useful or give her greater clarity. He was not unobliged to share what he knew with those who served under the emperor.
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Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2012 6:50 pm
Yue Lao acknowledged his manners silently and with appreciation. Even if she didn't particularly care of the young man was polite or not, it was still a nice trait to have, she supposed. Nice, and unusual; Yue Lao had never met anyone who was as outwardly calm as he appeared to be. Sara was the only comparable one, and she had her moments. The woman might seem to be sweet and meek, but she was far from it; Sara could bite if provoked. Naturally, if this young man was employed either to the cause of Legion or Noble, he would be similarly inclinded, she supposed.
Which was he, she wondered? He was dressed so immaculately, but Sara did as well; something about being a soul conduit. Hime-san chittered at the owl, bordering on screeching, as it stared at him. "Oh, Hime-san, stop it," she reproached her golden lion tamarin, scooping him up and fixing him back on her shoulder. He turned his face to stare at her with daggers in his eyes, and she muttered under her breath: "Don't make me bite you. You know I will, so don't test me," she told him. "I hate the taste of monkeys," she added on, bitterly. While Mu Ying had the manners not to reproach his familiar in public, Yue Lao was not of the same mind. Her monkey, acquired when she was a student on a shenanigan with her half-brother, was typically a source of near-constant frustration. Well, he used to be.
Lately he'd been a lot better. She pet him gently, and for a moment, there was tenderness and calm. A moment. Yue Lao did not thrive in either such environments. Unless it was a moment alone with her husband, whom she cared for more than anyone. He was, so far, the only one who'd ever been able to tame her at all. "I'm being sent on a mission from which I might not return," she said, "and I think before this happens... I am going to go scout out the mountains, and complete a pilgrimmage." Yue Lao did not really have secrets. Of course, she would not say what mission if prompted, but this simple information was personal.
"I think I need to clear my head, and prepare for the war's resurgence," she added. A clear, even and calm explanation of exactly how she felt. It surprised even her. There was something about today, at the outskirts, that calmed the captain. Even the appearance of the snowy-haired young man and his owl contributed to the strange sensation she had stepped into another world.
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Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2012 12:42 am
Mu Ying could not help but notice Yue Lao's scrutiny of him as he spoke, perhaps as she was wary of who it was that would dare ask about matters so personal. The young lunarian smiled genially as he waited, wondering if he should have hinted more clearly, to which of the factions his loyalties lay. Ah, but that would have struck him as being too suspicious as well, and unnecessary for what could simply be kept to light-hearted chatter.
For all the effort to exercise the proper set of manners around his superiors, he could not, however, keep his surprise and amusement at the captain's threats to her companion to himself, chuckling lightly and bringing his sleeve up to his face to hide his smile behind it. “My apologies,” he smiled, “But do allow me to antagonize Hime-san no further.” Bringing his hand to his shoulder where Xue Ning was, he offered her a new perch. The signal for her to fly home was given, and with an outstretched arm, he sent her on her way. His gaze lingered on the owl as she took flight, almost as if to make sure she was headed in the right direction; but after years of flying through these skies, even he trusted her sense of direction more than he did his own.
Had he managed to appease the tamarin? His attention was now turned back to Yue Lao and her companion, hoping to see that the signs of agitation were gone. Instead, he was to be surprised at the captain opening up to him, telling him of her plans for a pilgrimage and more importantly, of a mission that did not guarantee her return. Of course, while the critical details of neither were mentioned, she had revealed enough for him to consider it a privilege to have been accorded with such a level of trust, where otherwise these things would have been kept in secrecy.
“Indeed, the mountains do seem like a prime choice for a pilgrimage,” he reaffirmed her thoughtfully. A moment of silence passed as he took the rest of what she had said in. Yes, soon the fighting would intensify once more.
This time, it was his turn to bare his heart out, if only just a little. “When do you suppose this war would end?” he spoke softly, staring into the distance. The Lunaria that he had always dreamed of, where its skies were clear of the smoke from battle, where the air was carried not the scent of blood, just when would it come to be?Face your demons So sorry for the late tag! OTL
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