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 Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 4:20 pm
It was one of those days.
You know, the kind where your thoughts sort of materialize right in front of your eyes... Or above your head. Riyo hadn't seen Hel since... Well, since they shared that awful dream together. Most of the feline felt angry, hurt, and maybe even a little dejected that her so-called friend had been too busy to even stick her head in and say hello. The small part that wasn't always concerned with her own well-being worried.
But seriously. Even Titus had come to visit Riyo during the three weeks she hadn't left her room. What was the valkyrie's excuse? The question plagued her as she grabbed her jacket and headed for the exit of the demon dorms. Time for another meal run, she guessed. When would it be time for a laundry run? Whenever she felt like it. Wrinkled clothes be damned, she had more important things to think about!
With a loud huff, the exit door of the dorms swung open. Maybe she'd try that pizza place down the road this time. Yes. Greasy pizza with anchovies sounded delicious.
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Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 4:35 pm
It wasn’t that she forgot…no, Hel did not forget about things, much less people.
A lot of things had happened between then and now. Too many things. She was still trying to get back on her feet since all of those things, and as such, Hel was running along the top of the demon dorms. More parkour, of course! The reaper slid down one of the sloped roofs, and was about to try and grab onto the gutter except…
She missed.
Hel’s arms flailed wildly as she tried in vain to grab the edge of the roof that was rapidly rising above her. “Son of a b***h!” The ghoul hissed and knowing the inevitable was coming, Hel braced herself for a ground landing.
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Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 4:43 pm
Oh, the 'son of a b***h' hadn't escaped her ears. In fact, they stood on end at the unexpected and familiar voice. Where had it come from? The wooshing sound above her head answered that question for her.
"What the-" Those two words were always followed by disaster. Inevitable disaster. There was only time to look up and gawk at the sadistic irony of the situation. Quick brain, quick! Do something to prevent the ouchies that are sure to rise out of this situation.
So what did Riyo do? She held out her arms to try and catch the small projectile heading straight towards her.
It uh. It really didn't work.
There were no screams, just the hissing of air as it was forced out of the feline's lungs and the sound of dirt dancing under the ghoul's only clean piece of clothing. What a great day to go outside.
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Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 4:58 pm
Hel was expecting a rough, hard landing…so imagine her surprise when it was slightly cushioned and warm? Had she landed on Titus!? That would be awesome!
The reaper rolled off of her poor victim and immediately leapt to her feet, whipping around and expected to see the dark form of Titus…but caught sight of long fair hair instead. Hel blinked, and then squinted. “…Riyo!” The reaper announced, genuinely surprised. The ghoul came back over and grabbed the cat ghoul’s wrist, yanking the ghoul back onto her feet, where she then started to brush off the dirt from her clothes. “It has been a while! I hope you do not mind me…ah…dropping in!”
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Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 5:21 pm
It took Riyo a moment to get her bearing's straight after being painfully lifted back to her feet. The cat ghoul's tail shifted and swayed to keep her balance while her legs worked to retain some semblance of working. It took her about ten seconds to get it back together, but after she did, all she could muster up was a glare at the valkyrie.
After a deep breath to replenish her supply of air, Riyo finally mustered up the gumption to say something. "I'm surprised you even remember my name." A sarcastic statement... But her tone was harsh. "Who were you again? That one ghoul who threatened me while I was having a nervous breakdown, right?" Riyo tried to shove Hel's hands away, a little surprised at the words that came out of her mouth. That bothered her a lot more than she thought it had, apparently.
"Go to Hell... Hel." Okay. That didn't sound as edgy as she'd hoped, but it didn't matter. It looked like Riyo was going to turn around and try to walk away.
Riyo didn't deny that she was a selfish creature. Not to herself, and not to other people. Her first thoughts were on how Hel had hurt her, not on why, and not on how long ago it might've been. Moreover, if she had been thinking about anything other than that, maybe the bakeneko would've realized that a ghoul who was once capable of flight just fell from the sky... And how odd of an occurrence that was.
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Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 5:53 pm
Hel paused after she helped Riyo to her feet, staring at the ghoul with a raised brow as she snapped at her. What was this? Hel not immediately yelling back? Not getting snappy in return? Not punching Riyo in the face? Hel’s hands dropped to her sides as she just stared at Riyo, and after a moment she crossed them, frowning.
“Still holding onto that piece of past, eh? Some things do not change, it seems. If you are looking for an apology, do not hold your breath.” Hel’s tone was flat, but resolute. “I stand by what I said and did. Out of all the times to be losing yourself, that was not the time. Not when your friends and team mates were counting on you, and most certainly not in front of those false reapers.” The ghoul then snorted, amused, at Riyo’s attempt to tell her to beat it more or less. “It would have been better to say ‘******** off’, ya?”
Hel made no movement right now. She wasn’t going to chase after the ghoul, especially if she was going to be like that.
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Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 6:31 pm
"Yes. Some things never do change." Riyo interjected after Hel made it clear she had no intention of apologizing. Well what did she expect? Hel? Apologize? That was like expecting the devil to fart a rainbow.
In the back of Riyo's mind, she knew Hel was right. Through that whole trial, all the feline had managed to do was feel sorry for herself. Think about how pathetic she had been. How she had failed to prove herself a worthy leader... Or a worthy friend. Then there was the finale, where she went out with an almost literal bang.
"It's not like I chose to lose it! It just... Happened." What a terrible excuse. Even Riyo cringed at her own words. So if she hadn't expected Hel to apologize, what DID she want here? Closure? Or was she expecting something?
The ghoul stopped in her tracks and sighed. Her fingers reached up to comb through her frazzled blonde hair, as she had taken to doing recently. Sort of like a nervous tick. "I just don't understand you, Hel. You were so eager to be my friend and.. You just..." Didn't seem to care.
"... You're just..." No, she was just being honest. Telling Riyo she done goofed like only Hel could.
"Why didn't you come see me?" It was the real problem here. What was really eating at her. The question came out of nowhere, and so did the look she gave the valkyrie. It wasn't anger this time. She looked hurt.
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Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 6:54 pm
The reaper rolled her eyes with a sigh, resting her hands on her hips now as she tapped her foot. Lame excuse was lame. “I am not complicated, Riyo.” Hel informed her lamely. “But…I am not surprised that you complicate matters that do not need to be complicated." She raised a brow as Riyo seemed to try uttering a statement…but didn’t end up finishing it. At the last words and the look, the reaper let out a deep sigh, though it lacked annoyance…it was just…resigned.
“Why? Because a lot of s**t happened after the trials, that is why.” It was an understatement, really.
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Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 7:28 pm
Well, what OTHER response had Riyo expected? "A lot of s**t? That's all you're going to give me?" The ghoul finally turned back around to face Hel, brows furrowed as if she was trying to look mad again. She was obviously failing. "What?! Did you lose a limb or s-" It was also one of those days where irony had a front row seat to all the mistakes you were going to make. Yelling out things like an a*****e in a movie theater. Really, Riyo was just trying to throw out something that seemed so ridiculous it wouldn't happen.
But now that she was actually looking at the reaper (not just glaring her down pettily), Riyo noticed something different. Something had changed about Hel. Or rather, it had disappeared completely.
2 + 2. She fell from the sky + Hel was missing something important.
And there was 4. That tricky little b*****d.
Open mouth. Insert foot.
It took Riyo all of two seconds to change from looking mildly annoyed to completely dismal. The demoness's insensitivity surprised even her sometimes. "M-milkshakes then?" Yes. Milkshake time. Time for milkshakes.
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Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 7:41 pm
“It is a two way street, Riyo.” Meaning she could have easily sought her out too. Well…yeah…saying ‘a lot of s**t’ was kind of lame on Hel’s part…but that was the best way she could sum it up. As the cat ghoul more or less shoved her foot in her mouth, Hel’s lips pulled down into a troubled frown briefly as her brows furrowed. Just because it happened and that she accepted that it happened…didn’t make the loss pointed out any easier. “Two limbs, actually.” She replied lamely. The ghoul looked away from a moment, off into the distance, before she shrugged and let her arms swing a bit as she started to walk towards town. “Milkshakes sound lovely.”
As she walked past Riyo…the proof was in the pudding. The slits in the back of Hel’s tunic that were there for her wings, were now heavily stitched and closed.
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Posted: Wed Jun 06, 2012 5:45 am
Riyo wasn't sure she had ever felt so bad for letting her mouth run without a leash. Especially when Hel passed her. How had it happened? Why hadn't Cricket been able to fix her? Luckily, the guilt filled her throat to the brim, and Riyo knew that opening it now would risk spewing unecessary apologies.
Instead of remaining two steps behind the reaper, the cat demon hustled to walk along side her. Red eyes stayed glued forward on the road ahead until they reached the store. Would the cashier remember their spat? It didnt particularly worry the feline. Wordlessly, the ghoul held open the door for Hel, hoping to Jack things wouldn't be awkward when they finally sat down.
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Posted: Fri Jun 08, 2012 4:53 pm
Hel remained silent for the duration of the walk as well, glancing over at Riyo momentarily as she fell into step with her. The ghoul linked her hands behind her head as they walked, not at all enjoying the awkward silence…but not capable of breaking it at the moment either. As the demoness held the door open for her, she slipped inside with a grateful nod, and approached the counter, knowing what she wanted already.
Her hand already slipped into her bloomer pocket to fish out seeds.
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Posted: Fri Jun 08, 2012 5:51 pm
As soon as the ghoul was in, Riyo let go of the door... Which, incidentally ended up bopping some kid in the face. Oops. Well s**t, she wasn't holding the door for him. What did he think would happen?
The sound of jingling seeds coming from Hel's general direction caused Riyo to forget about the little boil and close the distance between them. "Lemme get it." It was more of a demand than a request, as one would've expected. "So we can stop being so awkwardly quiet." The ghoul didn't really consider it proper repayment for what she said. She couldn't really tell how deep the thoughtless comment had cut, but hopefully this would be enough to reopen the bridge of conversation.
As if she was worried the valkyrie wouldn't accept, Riyo hurriedly shoved a handful of silver seeds onto the counter. "I want vanilla. No cherry." Those cherries were too damn sweet.
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 9:44 am
The ghoul stared at RIyo for a long moment, and did something rather surprising. She didn’t push the issue. She retracted her seeds, though she did pop a few into the tip jar, and pocketed the rest. “Strawberry for me…with cherry, ya?” As she waited not, she looked back over at Riyo. Whether the demoness realized it or not…Hel didn’t really hold the thoughtless comment against her. It was what it was…and they were who they were after all.
Hurtful things were pretty much a given.
“How have you been fairing, friend?”
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 11:58 am
Hel wasn't going to fight her? Miracles did happen. After paying the man at the front, Riyo waited patiently and took her milkshake to a table for two.
"I um. I'm getting better, I guess." Which was a surprising thing for Riyo to say. There wasn't any sarcasm attached. Just an honest answer. "Actually... There's been something I wanted to tell you, not that you don't realize it already." The ghoul grabbed her straw as she spoke, stirring the whipped cream around idly. She couldn't look up at the valkyrie. Not if she was going to admit she was wrong.
"You were right, Hel. You... You were absolutely right. It's my fault for letting the past run my life. The only reason it can still affect me is because I let it." The ghoul let out a sigh after getting that off her chest. "I've been thinking a lot for the past few weeks. I feel like it's all I've done. Where I am. What I'm doing. How I live... None of it satisfies me. I'm not happy with who I am. Who I let myself become." Riyo's eyes became sullen as she told her friend the truth, finally sipping on her milkshake. "I want something better.."
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