yamaboshi | open ★ it's 6 days before christmas and thirst spoke to me

[Bryn will try not to kill her

promise]

[it's probably late enough in the day - Tohsaka Rin is not a morning person at all in the slightest bit - that she's wide awake and in spite of this being another War, sometimes. . . they need breaks. fighting can happen in the evening, it's fine.]

So, Lancer, have you ever been on a date before?

[please say no so she can have a good excuse for it]

[Really, Brynhildr likes her Master. The girl is a talented mage and doesn't ask her to do unreasonable things, and she's happy to defend Rin Tohsaka with her life, as any Servant would.

She's not expecting the question, though, and it shows on her face. A date?

She knows what one is, of course. Even if they didn't do things like that in her time, it comes with the knowledge of the time granted to her by the summoning ritual.

That doesn't mean she's ever been on one, though. She shakes her head.] ...no, I haven't.

Things like that were never done when I was alive.

[the moment that Brynhildr answers with a 'no', that's when she manages to relax her shoulders in relief, grinning a little bit]

Then today's plans are settled! We are going go out on a date today. That's okay with you, right?

[even though she won't take rejection for an answer, sorry to say]

Edited 2018-12-21 04:21 (UTC)

[The surprise is evident on Brynhildr's face, even though like, it was super obvious that this question was going to follow the previous one.] We're going on a...?

Master, are you sure that's a good idea?

[She says, softly.] Going into the open like that might invite attacks from other Servants.

[Of course, that's not the only reason she's hesitant, and she's also a bad liar.]

It's fine, it's fine.

[she waves her hand dismissively, smiling in spite of Brynhildr's soft voice]

Masters don't attack each other in broad daylight. It's against the magi code.

...I see. I wasn't aware of that. [It also sounds like it's probably not true? Why would a Master or a Servant squander tactical advantage like that?

But she's not going to contradict her master on this. Brynhildr nods.] In that case, then I would be happy to accompany you on... a date.

A date means that we're going to go somewhere, correct? Just the two of us.

Well, now you know. Ordinary humans aren't allowed to see us fight, so a lot of the battles for the War end up happening during the nighttime.

[so that much is true, it seems. her lips tug into a genuine grin, however]

Yeah, we are. We're going to the next town over... maybe we can go clothes shopping?

[She nods, again. It's logical, but she also doesn't want to let her guard down. She exists now to protect her master with her life, after all.

But going out with Rin as her bodyguard shouldn't be much of a problem.] All right. If that's what you'd like.

Is there something wrong with your current wardrobe? I think it looks nice.

[Bryn assumes, naturally, that Rin is going to buy clothes for herself.]

It is.

[what she'd like, anyway, although she does blink curiously when she mentions wardrobe and--]

There's nothing wrong with my wardrobe. I was thinking of getting something for you.

Me...?

[Brynhildr looks at Rin; she's a very quiet, subdued person by nature, but there is visible surprise on her face at this.] You want to... for me?

Master, I do not believe I can accept that kindness. I manifest my appearance through your mana. I do not need extra clothes.

I wouldn't have said it if I didn't mean it.

[answered a little flippantly, but she's trying.] If I can give Saber some of my clothes, I can probably find some cute clothes for you, right?

[she'd offer her own, but Brynhildr is too tall for her outfits]

It'll be a nice change of pace!

[and honestly a good excuse to put her in this]

Oh, ah-- [That surprise gives way to a genuine expression of what almost looks like concern, but is really just Brynhildr being flustered. She has no idea what to do with this information.] That-- it really isn't necessary, but if that's what you would like...

...I... it is my duty to accompany you wherever you go, so I would certainly come with you.

[thankfully, Tohsaka can kind of tell, although she won't say anything about it for now]

Good. Then we're off!

[just gonna go grab her jacket so they can head out]

[It was probably another day, however that ended up in this crazy city.
Today though, a gift was coming for Inaba, for at some point in her day.
An orange hawk, that appeared to be completely made of fire and energy will fly toward her,
speaking with an echoey quality, soft-spoken, yet she will hear him perfectly fine.]

"Take me as your faithful companion, let the power of heat be yours"

[ Regardless of whether she might have had a 'past life' or whatever the fuck you'd call it, the moment when she sees the "gift", her eyes shoot open wide in what seems to be a mixture of things-- surprise? Shock?

Something that both the Inaba of now and the Inaba of the past would agree with: what the fuck.

It doesn't help matters much that it's made of fire, or that there's a sudden voice there because there's an immediate, clipped rejection. ]

Get away from me!

[ Inaba Himeko does not like supernatural crap. Not in this world or the next, and that's the consistent part about her, at least. However, she's definitely not able to run far enough when it meets the side of her arm, burning right through clothes and scorching her skin mildly.

It's definitely enough to make her scream and fall down in pain, to say the least. ]

[Al was just going about his business nearby, when he heard a familiar voice telling someone to get away, Al went toward it to see what's going on.

When he seems her arm on fire, he bolts toward her]

Inaba! I got ya!

[Al pulled his knife out called out to his Djinn Amon, the fire leaps from her and into his knife, before putting it away. Then asks with concern, when he sees the burnt flesh...]

What happened? Did the app give you some fire powers?

[ She's still hissing a bit from the pain of the burn, still on her knees as she tries to keep her hand away from the burnt flesh, grimacing quite a bit before her eyes narrow at him, giving him a dark look.

It probably doesn't help that her tone is completely accusatory. ]

Don't fuck with me. You know exactly what happened, don't you?

[ That doesn't entirely answer his question, but Inaba's not stupid; she heard that voice. She can connect the dots pretty easily. ]

[Al sighs loudly, he hates it when she gets paranoid.

But she is in pain, so he isn't going to make a big deal out of it]

No, I'm not. I just heard you screaming and I booked it here.

You know, the entire "save the cute damsel in distress" cliche.

[Trying to keep calm for her sake, he wanted to be a better person.
Even if some people already believed him to be a good person.
He's more inclined to think of himself as a bit of a villain, as she regards him and Al want's to prove not just her wrong, but himself.]

Again. Don't fuck with me.

[ Her voice is even harsher and colder now, especially now that he's brought that up. She's angry, frustrated, her eyebrows knitted. It's not a good look on her, to be honest. ]

I heard that voice — your voice. You caused this. Did you do it just to make yourself look like some sort of hero? So that you could save the 'cute damsel in distress'?

[Al raises an eyebrow, the harsher colder tone sort of hurt. But he isn't going to show that it did.]

What do you mean you heard my voice? I just got here, how could have I set you on fire if I just got here and you already were on fire?

[He said with confusion, then speaks with his heart, after yet another sigh.]

Please, think logically, why would I set this entire scheme?

You're really cute, yes.

But I know you're suspicious of everyone, and I understand having that mindset, it kept me alive once upon a time.

So, if I want your trust, it's on your own secret terms and I'm okay with that.

[ That causes an immediate frown in Inaba's expression, and whether or not she can tell that he's hurt in spite of him obscuring it, she won't say. ]

You just answered your own question a few sentences ago. "Did the app give you some fire powers?" Why would you immediately assume that? Why is that the first thing on your mind?

[ She's actually pretty livid now, and her eyes burn with fury. ]

Look: if I had powers, I would have remembered that by now, but I don't. The person in my memories? Maybe I'm wrong, but she didn't have any supernatural bullshit, so there's no reason for me to suddenly be sporting them in the slightest bit. So.

You want my logic? I'll give it to you. That fire hawk or whatever the fuck it was — that "gift", that so-called "faithful companion" or "power of heat"? Don't do that again.

[Al frowns and is starting to getting more pissed the longer she goes until she mentions the hawk, in which point his expression suddenly changes to genuine surprise]

Wait, a fire hawk? and it said it was a gift?

Did that hawk mention being Amon's pet at all?

That's the only fire hawk I can think of right now.

But, in Alibaba's memory, that hawk got passed to a friend of his that WANTED magic, and Alibaba wanted to give it to her.
The hawk gave her magic and stayed with her.

As far as I know, Alibaba didn't have control over it, it sort of showed up on its own that one time.

What?!

[ She's slack jawed and her expression twists from its initial anger and frustration into complete abject horror, immediately shaking her head in what seems to be an obvious fear before realizng what she's doing, tenses up and steels herself.

No, no, noー this cannot be happening. ]

I didn't hear anything about that, but regardless, you need to take responsibility for it all. I don't want magic. I have never in my lifetime wanted it. We need to find a way to get rid of it, because it's not something that was mine or a part of my past life and this isn't a gift to me. It's a curse.

[Al nods, listening to her, seeing the horror on her face, made him relax his expression, into one similar to sympathy and sadness.

sympathy for her being faced with fear, sadness as it dawns on him, he might remotely be responsible.]

Look, I THOUGHT after getting that memory, that it would be awesome if you had magic of your own, to defend yourself.
But I would NEVER force it on you.

If that thought was all that it took, I'm truly sorry. I never want to hurt you.

The hawk will need Magoi, which it can only get from a person willing to give it.
I doubt it will come for you again, most likely is looking for someone else willing to take it.

If it does, I will fight it, or try to give the Magoi it needs to survive and tell it to leave you alone, that I will feed it what it needs.

I might pass out; if so, you need to set me, or something on fire, I have febreeze and a lighter in my bag, make sure I absorb the flames, otherwise, I die.

I can defend myself without using magic.

[ Her voice is immediate and clipped. While that's not entirely true, given that she hasn't taken even the slightest bit of self-defense lessons, she can't help but be aggravated at the assumption that she would think in the slightest bit that "magic is awesome" and that her using it would also be awesome.

But reality differs from one's imagination. ]

Humans have been able to defend themselves without magic for a very, very, very long time, and that sure as hell isn't going to change now. And for the record, I only understood half of that explanation and I'm not going to set you on fire, are you a fucking dumbass?!

[ She kind of wants to just walk awway from this conversation as soon as possible, but with the comment of death hanging in the air, she's. . . not really willing to risk it. ]

[Al rolls his eyes, he hates it when people call him dumb for the fire thing, plus he is pretty sure she is in denial.]

I have SAVED you with magic, I wanted you to have magic of your own in case I wasn't around.
For you to save yourself, do you honestly think after all the times I saved you, I wouldn't worry even a little about you?

Look, I should have started by saying, fire doesn't do shit to me and I will be fine if you set me on fire.
My magic protects me against it.

The key thing about the hawk...it lives off Magoi, people's life force, it can only get that from someone willing to give some of their life for it. It only has a limited time before it dies or goes back to wherever it came from if someone doesn't take it.

All my magic is fueled by Magoi, so every time I saved you, I literally have given a part of my life for you.
One day, it might kill me, if I can't get to some fire on time, or I spent too much at once.

[ She is, in fact, not in denial in the slightest bit, but he sure can think that all he wants. Nevertheless, she can't help but pull her hand in her stomach for a second, laughing a bit. It's not laughter that thinks this is funny, however; it's something a little crueler - more or less mocking. ]

"I wanted you to have magic of your own in case I wasn't around"? What — oh my god, what kind of crap are you spouting? Don't you see that by saying that you obviously don't really give a shit about me in the slightest bit? Saying it like that isn't selfless. It's egotistical.

Besides. What do you even really know about me?

[ As someone who's walled herself up ever since she was younger, she hasn't exactly shared much about herself outside of common knowledge: her name, her age, the high school she goes to, the fact that she's a transfer student from Yokohama. Simple things. ]

Anyway, continuing from there. If you're trying to convince me that "oh, I'm literally giving my life for you, you should pity me" is going to work? Don't. Like I said, doing something like that isn't selfless at all. You're just trying to win my favor.

[The laughter, hurts him to the core. He frowns to try to hide just how much.]

You really haven't paid attention, have you?

I wanted you to have magic, for you to save yourself.

Not because it saves me the trip or for you to be grateful, if that was all I was after, I would have let you die already.

You put a huge wall up, with all of this suspicious shit you throw out.

So, of course, I don't know much, who can?

But that wall tells a story too, a sad one with pain and loneliness

Things I was forced to live with too.

I admit, it might be a bit selfish on my part, because if I could help you get better, maybe I can help myself too.

Or at least get closer to being a good person.

You're the one who hasn't realized it.

[ Inaba pays attention. In fact, you could even argue that she pays too close attention, and her expression doesn't seem to waver or shift in the slightest bit, her demeanor staying cold. ]

Or paying even the slightest bit of attention to yourself, or the words that you're saying. If a person wanted me to be "grateful", for getting powers, or saving their lives, or whatever other crap — why would they let me die? There's no point to that. I already said it, didn't I? What you said earlier is egotistical.

And more than that. You think my story is sad? You think I'm putting up a wall? Stop assuming such bullshit. You don't know anything about me! You're just — you're just projecting, aren't you?!

Did I say I was a saint?

I said I wanted to be a better person. That's all.
I don't need other people to survive, I can do that myself.

I'm not assuming some idealistic bullshit, I'm making conclusions based on data.
I thought you would appreciate that.

[Despite failing a grade, he is pretty perceptive. A trait he seems to share with his other self.]

This entire time, you have talked about yourself as a means to an end.
In no way have you tried to improve your situation
or get something for yourself,
and you don't even share small things about yourself.
Ever.

So yeah, I think you have a wall up and you're using it to hide from the world.

and since your not going to do it for yourself, let me make the suggestion,
how about we go and get some burn cream, I'll pay, you can choose which one you want so you don't get the idea that I'm trying to make it worse.

Well, your conclusions are wrong, because let me point a few things out for you: one, I never said you were a saint, nor did I say any shit about 'needing people' in the way you're probably assuming.

[ She sighs, something a little short this time. ]

Anyway, shut up. I'll repeat it once again: you don't know shit about me. I'm not self-sabotaging myself at all and again-- you're projecting. Stop it.

"Improve my situation"? I don't have problems with my life. I have friends. I have a family. There's no reason for me to be unhappy, and I'm not. And I'm not so selfless to not do things for myself. To get things for myself. You just simply don't see it at all.

[ She puts her hand up dismissively. ]

And I appreciate the offer, but I'll do it on my own. I can handle myself. I'm not some damsel in distress that needs to be coddled, or a child.

[Al also sighs]

I meant your current situation with the burns.

I didn't mean to imply that you are powerless, opposite of that actually.

You are choosing this instead of doing something for the burn, I saw that as your strength of will to not show weakness, so much to the point that you don't want to appear to need anything from anyone.

You make people engage you on your terms, even if they helped you, that doesn't mean you were a powerless damsel or a helpless child.
I saw strength and assumed pain or tragedy built it and weakness usually comes with it.

[Al extends his hand to her, his tone much more gentle and relaxed than it was before]

You want a hand up? Cause I'm sticking around for a bit in case I misunderstood the hawk, as it looks like I misunderstood you

[Even though he doesn't believe what she said about her life, trying to argue this further wasn't going to help.
It's clear to him now that the wall WASN'T his imagination, and she is protective of it.

Hopefully, she gets his point, he doesn't see her as weak, even if he does believe she has sadness, he thinks she is strong.
Even if he does have to help her from time to time.]

Edited (grammar) 2018-12-27 00:32 (UTC)

[ It's fine if he doesn't want to believe her, but hilariously enough. . . she didn't lie about a single bit of what she said. She doesn't have a bad life at all in the slightest bit; she has friends, family. No tragic backstory at all. Sure, Retrospec's been fucking up shit with the whole memories stuff and all that, but most of he memories that she's regained so far have been pretty mundane things. ]

I said that I can handle myself, didn't I?

[ She doesn't need people to coddle her. Although she does tense up the moment he speaks about 'weakness', and her tone immediately drops into something annoyed, a clear contrast to his gentleness. ]

Well, you assumed wrong. I have no tragic backstory, sorry to tell you. Were you expecting one? Because reality isn't like fiction. You can't just fucking expect every single person you meet to have some pain or tragedy like you're thinking. And more importantly? I'm not weak in any way.

[ Does not take that hand, however; it's not as if she was knocked down or anything, after all. ]

Anyway, I'll just get going.

[ And as soon as she says that, she immediately turns on her heel and walks off, obviously heading towards the nearest drugstore or pharmacy. ]

Never said you couldn't Xena.

[He said with a light-hearted tease]

Honestly? Ya it would explain a lot.

I assume everyone has either a story or a reason and most of the people I've seen have a story to explain who they are.

If what you're doing works and you're happy, you do you.

[For a strong person, it seems like she doesn't even like the implication of weakness, he was just affirming her strength but she focused on weakness.

What was with her need to supposedly not having one? Especially if there was no story to be had?

Regardless, he doesn't think much has changed. He still will respect whatever walls she puts up, even if she denies it exists until she chooses to let him in. He just hopes he will be a good friend then, unlike his previous failure.

When she turns heel to leave, he simply said goodbye with patient gentleness, turning the other direction and decides to just hunt for the hawk.]

open ★ it's 6 days before christmas and thirst spoke to me

Either of your Masters?

let me know if you want me to change up the scenario or w/e

no this is gr8

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

Starter, for Inaba

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject