~♥TWENTY-ONE♥~

[generalflirt]

[Action]

[Okay, so after flouncing the house yesterday and taking up residence in a random apartment in the middle of the night, taking only his journal and the clothes on his back, Masaomi is now left with a few things to do today on the 8th, now that he rested all of the seventh. He is of course ditching school if there is any, but he will be heading to three different places:

1) The Smithy, to see if he can't find or request the construction of a collapsible baton, like the ones he used in the draft
2) The clothing shop, because he left all his hoodies/other outfits at home. In fact, he's still wearing the ninja vest he wore in the draft today, albeit mercifully with a washed pair of pants and a washed T-shirt.
3) looking for people

He is specifically looking for his closest non-Mikado friends, those who need to be protected, or those he respects/figures can do something (slatebreaker, seiriald, markofthebrave, boomchuka, wise_maiden, liketofu, heavenslament, poppetry, falenandawn, mischiefbreeder, its_troublesome, acowardlyoak, anddeathsdoctor) though will not object if other people run into him. He is however, in the darkest of all moods right now, and still is a little weak, despite a day or rest. He'll be all over town looking for these people (mostly because he isn't entirely sure where all of them live) and such.

-FOR THE RECORD IF YOU ARE ON THAT LIST AND DON'T HAVE TIME/ENERGY FOR A THREAD, FEEL FREE TO ASSUME HE GAVE THEM A HEADS-UP. EDIT: Also heads up if they can't be found for some reason or another. Just give me a ring somehow to know you saw. Also, like I said, anyone is free to tag whenever. Have at.

EDIT2: for context of why he booked it from the house see this thread (heavy spoilers for later DRRR novels)]

Comments

[markofthebrave]

[Normally she might pester him about it, but she selects green tea and prepares their cups while the kettle reaches its boiling point.] Okay.

[And then, when everything's done... she turns to face him on the opposite side of the counter. Had he looked so worn at the end of the last draft? He'd been injured then too, a broken ankle and bored out of his mind. But no... no he hadn't looked quite like this.

Tentative:] I'm glad you made it back all right.

[generalflirt]

Nn.

I am too.

[This one was so different. Last time he was scared, he hesitated and made mistakes which lead to him being injured. Last time he messed up, but ultimately he has comrades: ones he could depend on and... looking back, he almost finds that time to be nostalgic now in comparison to what this draft felt like, or what he feels like now.

He was lucky to survive. Very lucky. If not for Raine, he's sure, he would have died. Maybe he even did die, he's not even sure.

He doesn't look at her, just push off the wall and go to lean on the counter itself]

[markofthebrave]

[And Katara goes still, in the way that animals go still when they're tensing to bolt, as if any movement would interfere with the importance of listening.]

It was.. very bad, wasn't it.

[generalflirt]

[...] I stuck with a team.

[I kept my promise. He allows himself a nod to confirm it. It was bad, it was really bad, all things considered]

[markofthebrave]

[Something in her just - crumbles at that.] Good. Thank you.

[This is an attempt at a smile but mostly there is just still - concern. And relief.]

[generalflirt]

[He watches it for a moment, the look on her face... it's one of the most beautiful things he's ever seen. So beautiful, in fact, he hangs his head a little so that the radiance of her look right now doesn't burn him.

He's too broken to be deserving of that.]

Ah... it was a promise.

[markofthebrave]

[Katara smiles and nods at that - and opens her mouth to say something silly and trite like 'well, good,' when the tea kettle whistles.]

I'm still glad.

[And she goes to get the tea and pour the water.]

[generalflirt]

[Oh- the tea. He... can't smile still but he watcher her work with it and waits for his cup. He needs to change the topic soon... needs to. But he can't bring it out just yet]

[markofthebrave]

[And with the tea happily poured into cups, Katara hands him his mug with a small smile.]

Here you go.

[And she makes her way back through the dining area over to the sofas.]

[generalflirt]

Ah... thank you, Katara. [But he needs to say it to her. About... Izaya. Nnngh. He takes the mug and follows her, the respositioning is nice and the couch is more comfy]

[markofthebrave]

I'm glad you came to see me today. It's good to see that you're okay.

[...even if you look as though you're fighting something off. It's still nice to see that someone is OK.]

[generalflirt]

Mm. It must be something you're really glad of. [He says this lightly. He's not accusing her - far from it - it's merely that she's said things like that a few times now. He can't help but wonder if she's not okay herself]

[markofthebrave]

[She tries to smile.] I hate being left behind, waiting to see if everyone is going to come back all right. And we never know how long we have with people here.

[A definite shadow crosses her face now.] And when they go home... [yeah, she falters before she presses on] it's just hard.

[They forget... you forget... nothing means anything here, but it hurts so much...]

[generalflirt]

[The topic changed entirely there. He looks at his mug for a moment, and then back at her. They're sitting, so the position isn't the best but... he's dumb. He doesn't understand what she might be saying (who is gone??) but he knows how he felt when Mikado left and he knows she faltered there.

So he leans over towards her, spreading his arms. He's not much of a hugger, but she is, so maybe he should offer?]

1/2

[markofthebrave]

[Katara blinks, startled by the offer.]

[markofthebrave]

[And then she laughs a little. The tea and their positions on the sofa make this awkward - but she can't really turn an offer like that down, now can she? She leans forward for a brief, half-hug.]

Thanks.

[generalflirt]

[And the half-hug lasts just a whole before he pulls off, smiling a little bit. But when he's off, he sighs]

Of course~

[markofthebrave]

[And she glances down, offers a brief explanation.] Zoro and Brook went home.

[Her 'son' and her 'grandfather.' Her friends, and the very good friends of her friends.]

[generalflirt]

[...] Ah.

[And the he takes this moment to take a sip of his tea]

[markofthebrave]

[...

Right. Setting that aside now.]

So, do you want to talk about it?

[The answer is probably 'no,' but that won't stop her from asking.]

[generalflirt]

About what, Katara?

[He says this lightly as he sets the tea down. So it's business time?]

[markofthebrave]

The draft?

[That's why you came, right?]

1/2

[generalflirt]

-Oh, right.

[generalflirt]

[...] Before that, I'm here to tell you that there is a certain someone in Luceti now.

[markofthebrave]

[She sets her tea down on the table, giving him her full attention.]

Okay?