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 Posted: Wed May 30, 2007 4:44 am
 Green fringed silver hair kept flopping stubbornly back into Kitsyn's face as she worked, so she shoved it back up through her scarf and tightened the cloth. It had rained pretty heavily the night before, so she'd gone out rather early that morning to make sure the paintball coarse didn't have any miscellaneous debris that needed to be moved. Unfortunately, it had; some branches appeared to have been washed onto the field when the nearby stream overran, and she wanted to get it out of the way now just in case they decided to go ahead and play a game later.
Of course, playing a game later today might not be feasible. The clouds overhead, while not as dark and threatening as they had been the afternoon of the day before, were still decidedly gray. Dull light filtered down, and lingering shadows masked the view of the nearby stream; it was still audibly swollen from overfilling the night before, though.
This was one of those times when Kitsyn was glad her clothing washed easily in spite of the bright red color of her scarf and pants. She was also thankful for the lack of sleeves on her shirt, because she didn't feel like dealing with pushing sleeves up repeatedly right now. Granted, it made it easier for her exposed forlegs to get scratched by the twigs on the decidedly stubborn branch she was trying to drag off the course at the moment, but she didn't really mind that so much.
Cheerful as Kitsyn tended to be, she actually prefered days when the sky was covered with thick clouds or even overcast. She also enjoyed rain. Just one of many things about her that might seem anomolous to some, but she didn't really even think twice about things like that. And she was currnetly more concerned with trying to move this stupid branch, anyway.
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Posted: Wed Jun 06, 2007 3:32 pm
 The Mountain was crawling with peculiarities, accommodating only a handful of individuals he might have labeled dangerous while the vast majority merely displayed a wide range of intriguing eccentricities. He had long since come to the conclusion that the kitsusagi busying herself with the cleaning was of the latter category, if only for her choice of pastime. At the very least, she seemed determined to haul off even the most obstinate of fallen tree limbs despite the damp conditions, and the continuous movement gave his eyes something to track while his mind wandered.
Riku had been perched in the tree for the better part of the morning, his mood pensive as he detachedly observed the curious maintenance of the area below. The rain storm from the previous night had left his jacket sopping wet and the cloudy skies denied him the drying aspect of sunshine, but he was content to remain on the sturdy branch and wait for the skies to clear. His blindfold was drooping wetly over his eyes, but he hadn't bothered to remove the strip of cloth and wring it out, letting his own modest body heat gently dry it while his paws dangled tiredly.
After spending the last several weeks memorizing the terrain and the Mountain's occupants, the silver-haired journeyman was convinced that he had obtained everything of significance from the area, and that the time to move on was fast approaching. Soon it would be another place to investigate, new surroundings and inhabitants to scrutinize while he searched and battled aimlessly for a half-forgotten purpose. His departure would make only the faintest of ripples, marked by the small concern of a soft-spoken kitsusagi that had offered him pie and friendship only to find he would one day be gone without a trace. He would have preferred that no one notice his absence, but it had been his own carelessness that had led her to encounter him at all, and so he let it weigh quietly on his conscience as he waited quietly for the signal to leave.
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Posted: Wed Jun 06, 2007 9:25 pm
Having finally wrestled the branch to the fringes of the open patch of ground they'd been attempting to turn into a kitsusagi-style paintball course, Kitsyn flopped unceremoniously and with utter lack of concern onto the damp ground. It was all grass here, anyway, so while she might get wet she didn't have to fear for any more mud on her clothing.
A flicker of red up in a tree caught her eye, and she turned her eyes but nothing else to examine the area further, thinking it might be a cardinal or some such red feathered bird. When she realized it was a tail she slowly stood up and made her way toward a small branch she hadn't quite gotten to yet that was near the tree, keeping her concentration on that in hopes of not startling whomever had perched above. Considering how quiet the morning had been aside from her own activities, this person must have been up there for some time.
Once she was close enough she looked upward abruptly into the branches, spying the dark leather coat and the flash of silver hair, but above all, the blindfold over the kitsu's face.
It was obvious by the expression on her face, however fleeting it was before she returned it to a more bland look, that she recognized him. Not as in the "I think I've seen you" sort of recognize, but the type that stated specifically through a glance alone "I know you but I wasn't expecting to see you". The only audible response to his presence for the time being, however, was, "How long have you been up there? I'd have gotten a cramp by now, sitting like that."
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Posted: Fri Jun 08, 2007 12:02 pm
Riku knew he had been spotted before his observer became completely aware of what she was seeing, and the slow-paced, purposeful way she walked toward his resting form only caused his mouth to tilt downward. The caution failed to fool him, as did the forced captivation with the sprig that had been overlooked until that moment. He had assumed her either oblivious, blind, or a fair measure of both when she'd proceeded to walk below his post for a large part the morning without taking note of his presence, but it appeared that the quirky female had finally caught on and was exercising care not to startle him.
He felt rather than saw her face turn up, and his hindered eyes perceived only a vague suggestion of the familiarity laced in the expression displayed there before it was gone. His muscles remembered tension, a droplet of doubt splashing in his mind, causing sharp shards of light to fill jagged spaces of thought as he considered whether or not he'd judged the threat she presented incorrectly. He did not know her save from passing observation, nothing distinctly recognizable in her scent or her brightly colored choice of clothing.
Riku quickly stoppered the uneasiness when she spoke, his features impassive despite the straightforward method used to address him. He had been decidedly careless, first in allowing her to see him and then in his decision to stay despite of her approach. Maybe he was losing his edge, ground down by storms and rocky surroundings; more likely, he was growing weary of the constant isolation.
"Ahead of you and before daybreak," He answered quietly, deciding not to direct a reply to the second part of her statement. He wasn't feeling particularly cramped, but there was a puckered knot in the branch that he hadn't bothered to notice before, the hardwood poking unpleasantly through his jacket and into his ribcage if he adjusted his position.
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Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2007 11:39 am
"Well, you can come down now if you want. I've already seen you and no one else is supposed to show until three this afternoon... and that's only if the rain doesn't come back. ...You ever play paintball?" Riku was the competetive sort, after all. Or, had been...
Geez, what was she supposed to say? By the way, I know who you are what you did and things are ok now so don't worry about it, and by the way I'm pretty sure your friends are around here somewhere? Yeah... sure.
She went ahead and dragged the branch off to the edge of the course, pondering the wisdom of revealing her unwarranted knowledge. Having disposed of the offending dead wood she paused in her activities to "listen to the ether" as she put it. ...Yep. Sora and Kairi had already passed through. She heaved a sigh that had all the weight of the world behind it - perhaps several worlds - and peered sideways at him. "...So have you found them yet, or are you avoiding them now?" If he really was Riku... he'd know who she was talking about. ...And she doubted he'd be at all comfortable with the sudden change in situation.
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Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:06 pm
"... No." He replied quietly to the question, appearing to have ignored the suggestion entirely as his veiled gaze began to stray once more. Riku preferred the vantage point of a tree branch to the uncertainty of the ground, the partiality due more to his own stubborn streak than any genuine paranoia revolving around a surprise attack. He had yet to encounter anything that posed a threat greater than himself, and he'd become comfortable in the knowledge that he would sense such a being before it became aware of his presence. It wasn't precisely arrogance - though it did border on that possibility, even if much of his self-confidence had been burned to a fine, powdery ash - it was merely a combination of conviction and experience.
One ear flicked unconsciously toward sound when she moved again, evidently still preoccupied with clearing the ground below for the event she had mentioned in brief before. The air was thick with moisture, and it was like breathing in cumulonimbus formations in an attempt to derive oxygen. It didn't seem like painting of any sort would hold up under such weather, but he was getting the distinct impression that whatever paintball was, it had little to do with displaying one's artistic self.
It wasn't until she spoke again that the lightning aspect of the previous night was revisited, a supercell of tangled emotions that seemed focused on cutting off his air supply. The male descended in a blur of washed-out colors and intent, and his eyes might have been blazing beneath the thin fold of sodden fabric across his face.
"How do you know about any of that?" His voice was low and just shy of threatening, a nerve laid bare and prodded by a stranger. He had never misjudged something so entirely in his life, and he wasn't relishing the feeling of ignorance devoid of bliss.
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Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 5:41 pm
"Honestly? I have no idea." It was frustrating, to say the least. "I have memories of places and things I can't possibly have seen. I feel like a jigsaw puzzle that someone decided to throw together from puzzles that have nothing to do with one another." She picked up a particularly small branch and tossed it to the side. "Normally I don't say anything, but I thought it was important. If you actually want to know Sora and Kairi are here, anyway. I just don't know where."
She wasn't a threat. Not to him, anyway. If anything she was an ally, if he chose to see the fact. He wasn't likely to want to make friends, not yet. "You can lower your hackles, oh angst-monger. I'm sorry I sprung it on you like that, but I'm no danger to you. Whatever piece of me came from where you come from likes you. And no one's going to hear about you from me." Except maybe Sora and Kairi, if she ever ran into either of them.
She continued prowling around. Getting looked at like that made the fur on the back of her neck stand on end. So... should she tell him that the Organization is here, or not? They weren't causing trouble, so maybe it wasn't worth bringing them up.
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Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2007 2:46 pm
He had expected a multitude of responses - some ominous while others were simple and lighthearted explanations - but her claim to unknowing had not been one of them. His brows knit, the tautness of his frame holding solid in the face of her annoyance while he listened with a severe frown. It wasn't until she mentioned their names that something in him, some knot of oily toxins and thick-plaited misery, came partially undone and began to leak viscous alienation inside his chest cavity. If she knew, then it wasn't an elaborate lie; if she knew, then there was a chance of finding them again.
"Or are you avoiding them now?" He looked away, not shamed by her sharp belittlement, but instead stinging from some old, many-layered failure. "Sorry." He mumbled when he felt her discomfort for his hostility creeping over his skin, the apology falling almost unconsciously from his mouth like pearl dropped at random by a standoffish clam. Their names were enough to remind him, to soften him like a shadow coaxed by illumination, and Riku couldn't help but wonder if that should have worried him.
He said nothing when she walked away, the silver-haired male still somewhat lost in thought and doubtful feeling. The kitsusagi both wanted to and resented the thought of asking her if she knew where they were now, the duo somehow hidden from his senses when everything else was stripped of all concealment and thrust at him without warning.
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Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2007 4:15 pm
The apology gave her pause and she raised an eyebrow, turning to look at him and sitting down slowly. "I can't say where they are, exactly. But..." She gazed down the mountain toward Realm. "They're either up on Mountain here somewhere, or down in Realm. I can sense that much."
She padded over to a dirt patch and sketched a quick map. "The borders aren't quite that definite but... maybe it'll help you narrow things down." She gave him a sad, but very brief, glance. "I'd do more to help if I could... only thing I can really do is keep an eye out for them, though. I've got people to take care of..."
She returned to her cleaning for a bit and then glanced over thoughtfully. "D'you have paintball on your world? For all I do know, I know a lot less..." She chuckled briefly at her own ineptitude.
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2007 1:08 pm
He grimaced at her guesses, already knowing the vastness of the two territories she was suggesting. The Mountain he was familiar with, but the Realm was uncharted and beyond his limited scope of comprehension. Riku decided then with little opposing thought that it would be the next area he would journey to, the effort not so much hopeful as it was resigned. He had to find them, to see them safe, even if it cost him more than he would willingly recognize.
The silver-haired male glanced down at the makeshift map, not so much seeing the lines left behind as he was able to watch the motions used to draw them. It would have been far more simple if he had just removed his blindfold, the strap of material finally dry against his eyes again, but it was not yet the time for that. "You've helped enough." He reassured her, not bothering to ask after who she was caring for or why, knowing that they were not his answers to receive.
Riku had been deciding upon a route in his head when her next curious question hit him, prompting the youth to glance with puzzlement at the helpful female. "... I don't remember." He replied after a deliberate moment of thought, the starlit strands of his hair fluttering with his dark cloak in an innocuous breeze. "It's... been a long time since I was there last."
It was impossible to tell whether the confession bothered him or not, his voice and features apparently unaffected while he spoke of it. Riku wondered about his neutral feelings on the matter for as long as he felt comfortable with forgetfulness, but he soon left them behind, intent instead upon his renewed purpose.
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2007 3:55 pm
Kitsyn tilted her head and looked thoughtful. "Well... it's a combat game. You can play different games, of course, but it basically boils down to shooting at eachother with air rifles designed to fire paint bullets. ...Leaves some nasty bruises if you fire at close range." She made a face while yanking a large branch off of one of the short walls that had been set up for cover. "I guess if, after you find Sora, you ever wanna subject him to a few rounds you can drag him up here. If you feel like playing with my little group, anyway... I've only got the one key to the shed with the equipment." She shrugged. "You guys may never show up but... hey, invitation's open."
She heaved the branch away and flopped down to another breather. "And I guess if you ever want to get out of the rain or something and you're in the area of Realm HQ... my place is about a 30 minute walk from there toward Mountain here. It's big, white, and there's a pool in the back yard." She grinned slightly. "...Invitation's open on that one, too." Meaning she knew he probably wouldn't take her up on it, but he was free to change his mind.
She mulled it over for a few minutes, knowing that if he ever took up either invitation... or even if he didn't, he was still likely to run into some of the Nobodies at some point. So, she might as well tell him... "By the way... some of the Nobodies are here. Some Dusks, and the Organization. The Org. is a cranky bunch for the most part but they've given up making trouble. At least insofar as I know. They seem content annoying the crap out of eachother." She stretched and sat up. "Some of them even have kids... I'm even looking after one of Xigbar's. I've got a Dusk, too, his name is Shoom and he's completely insane." Her voice was filled with irritated affection when speaking about the Duskitsu. "I have no idea how any of them would react to you, though I doubt you'd have anything to worry about from Xigbar and his brood, aside from them trying to be irritating."
She went back to her work again. "I guess I thought you should know about that too... if you run into any of them. Don't actually see them often myself. There aren't any Heartless here, though... and hopefully there won't be any. So I guess you can relax on that front."
She paused to look at him again. "You wanna check out one of the paintball guns or something? Or do you need to go?" It was sort of fun talking... at him, but he probably wanted to get on the move to find his friends, too, so she wasn't going to keep him.
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Posted: Mon Jun 25, 2007 4:54 pm
Riku was surprised to find that paint ball sounded like a game he might have played once, dredging up reluctant memories of a carefree and energetic existence on his shared isle of childhood. Mention of Sora merely crystallized the thought, some form of play infused with a heavily competitive air that they both might have engaged in with distinctly different mindsets. He expelled the lead growing in his chest with a sharp breath, the reminiscences almost painful in their poignancy. Now that he knew he was close, the anticipation was even more severe and hard to contain.
When the invitations came, the suddenness of them startled him, not only because he had thought their interaction strained and uncomfortable, but also since he'd done nothing to earn the female's permission. It was strange when nearly everyone he encountered seemed intent on giving him a relationship to consider, a reason to stay. Did he deserve any of it - the kindness, the forgiveness, the hope - or was it just another rock thrown at his face to distract him from his ultimate purpose?
And then there was the matter of what would happen when he found Sora and Kairi, what he would do and how he would feel while basking in the glow of nostalgia and earnest smiles. Supposing they would even care to admit him back into their tight knit circle of two; assuming he wouldn't be a third wheel that would burden them even as they rallied around him. It was an old worry, one that he had worn down to sharp edges and left to turn bitingly cold and real. It might have been unfounded, and he acknowledged that as easily as he did the changes the darkness had inflicted upon his form. But even knowing, even remembering, could not shake the apprehension: only seeing them whole and unhurt would convince him.
"Nobodies?" He repeated sharply, features hardening again into something less whimsical visitor and more toughened warrior. The Organization had been a problem, even dismantled and spread out across a wide space, they were still a threat. Riku couldn't help but flinch back at the mention of children, especially of the trigger-happy Xigbar. They were reproducing? He was caught between ridiculous laughter and aversion, deciding instead to remain quiet even as he contemplated what would have bothered giving a Nobody children. That was supposing the decision to procreate had been mutual.
"I should get going," He replied finally, hardly reassured by her examples of how far the Organization had come from their days of pillaging stolen hearts. Sora was capable enough of taking care of himself, but Kairi presented an easier target, and there was no way of telling how the two would fare if what remained of the thirteen members decided to reunite.
"... I appreciate the direction," He added, glancing at her instead of turning his veiled gaze to the dusty tracks in the soil. He made a point to never quite say thank you.
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Posted: Mon Jun 25, 2007 6:20 pm
She paused at his sharp when repeating the question/statement of Nobodies. "Yeah... I guess I can't say that you won't have anything to worry about on that front. Most of the Dusks are harmless... aside from being annoying. I don't know what any of the Organization members would do if they saw you. I do know they haven't been doing much of anything in general." She sat down with a bit of a sigh. "Bryna and Shoom are definitely nothing for you to worry about. And they're the only Nobodies that have ever been around my house, too, if you're wondering."
She knew about his private fears. She knew them thoroughly, had a few of her own on some fronts that were similar. But they were private fears, and they would best be allayed by his friends. And since he chose to go look for them, and it was his right to go, she would see him off with as much affirmation of friendship as she could manage without making him too uncomfortable. "Good luck, Riku. You're welcome any time. Them too, when you find them. And if you ever need anything... door's always open." She gave him a crooked smile and waved him off.
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Posted: Mon Jun 25, 2007 10:39 pm
It was beyond him as to why she would choose to protect two Nobodies out of the hoard from which they had spawned, but he grounded that particular thought before it took flight and spilled out of his mouth in the form of a question. If she saw it fit to defend Xigbar's undoubtedly obnoxious progeny, then that was her decision to make and his to accept without protest. She had helped him to the best of her abilities, and that meant that he was at the very least obligated to keep his misgivings from coloring the air between them.
"I'll keep that in mind," He said after a hesitant moment, more to reassure her than to give any actual insight into the state of uproar in his head. Heartless were dangerous, but Nobodies were clever and quick on top of lethal. If he had to pit himself against any one of the Organization, it would've proven a close match. If he had to exercise his skills before a number of them, then his chances deteriorated rapidly.
"Take care," He pronounced slowly, making certain she heard the explicit warning behind the words before he tossed one last short glance at her map and was gone in a swirl of charcoal-colored dust.
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