Re: Silent Lovers

Ayami Dyrune · Ayami Dyrune on Wed Sep 10, 2008 8:17 pm

She giggled and covered her face to keep her pink cheeks hidden for a while. But hearing the rustle of his kimono, she moved her hands. She saw a purple box and wrinkled her brow. Seeing the note, she read it and her grey eyes widened. She opened the box to see the medallion that she had wanted to win so long ago. Noriko pressed her lips together as her fingers ran over the metal. Her mind went back to that day when she stood next to him, coming in second. It never occurred to her then that one day she would be in love with him. It was a battle that she had given her all for. She had proven that a woman from her lands could challenge a man from his school and prove her worth. She looked back up at him after a few moments of staring at the medal in awe. "I-I don't know what to say." Noriko held the box in her hands gently. "Its..." A smile creeped on her face. "Thank you and I do accept. Really I do." She went up on her tip toes and kissed his cheek. "Who knew that when you won then, that one day I would be your wife, friend, and mother of your daughter?" She touched his face. "And if I had to do it all over again, I would still lose to you."

Midori slipped on her ornate kimono. She stuck her new chopsticks in her hair. She grabbed her fans and took one last look in the mirror. Taking a deep breath, she nodded and then left her room, going into the living room one again. She stopped and looked at her parents. Midori smiled and hoped that one day she could have a relationship like them. They loved each other very much. She went to her seat to eat her breakfast that her mother had made. A little while later, her parents joined her but about half through eating, a loud knock was heard at the door followed by the sound of Yume's voice. And so it begins. I hope he likes his gift.

Thraster · Thraster on Sun Sep 14, 2008 5:40 am

Shinsei looked on as Yume burst rudely into the house. He heard a crash come from the other room- apparently Yume gave Midori her usual "reserved" greeting. Before entering Kenji-sama's home he removed his shoes, bowed to Lady Noriko, and presented her with a special gift- it was an umbrella that Shinsei designed. The mark of the phoenix dojo was emblazoned on the umbrella's outstretched surface- Shinsei hoped that Noriko would appreciate his effort. Shinsei presented Kenji-san with his gift as well- a hand carved wooden saya. Shinsei needed Lord Darvalel's help to complete this present- Shinsei was not gifted in the art of craftsmanship. To hand carve the sheath suitable for Kenji-sama's daisho, Shinsei needed the greatest weaponsmith in the land- and few were as skilled and experienced as Lord Darvalel. Shinsei handed the sheath to his master- hoping that Kenji would honor his gift. He hoped that everyone enjoyed the presents that he had made or bought- especially Midori. Though his chances with her as anything but a close friend had vanished in the past day, Shinsei would be satisfied to know that she accepted the gift. To him, it was the greatest test of his skills, resources, patience, and guile. Shinsei was amazed that none in the town had discovered what he was toiling over- and even more astonished that Midori, or anyone in her family, had uncovered his surprize.

Ayami Dyrune · Ayami Dyrune on Sun Sep 14, 2008 9:58 pm

Yume knocked Midori on the ground, hugging her tightly. She got up and helped Midori to her feet. Her purple eyes gleamed with excitement as she reached down and picked up her gift. "I went through the tunnels and trenches, climb the highest mountains, and even fought dangerous beasts to get you this and I hope you like it." She smiled brightly as Midori's gift wasn't "acquired". Yume just gave her all of the kimono's that were given to her on her birthday to Midori. She turned around and reached into her pocket and gave a small red pendent to Noriko. "Consider yourself lucky. A pirate never gives up treasure."

Midori watched her mother's reaction and she rolled her eyes. Yume was always the eccentric one. She opened her gift to see another kimono. Only this time it was a red one with orange trim. She smiled as she moved to her room and set it down on her bed. With that, she walked back in to see that Shinsei was now giving presents. She watched as her mother kept giving her winks and knowing smiles. Could she be anymore embarrassing? She felt her nerves trying to get the best of her but she simply walked up to Shinsei and smiled. "I can't give you your present at the moment, but I will before the day is up, promise."

After a while, Yume gasped and looked around. "Hey guys, we uh, we need to get going to the festival." She grabbed Midori and Shinsei, walking out the door bidding Noriko and Kenji a good day and that she would see them later. She didn't even notice that her best friend had failed to give her a gift. Once they were out and about, Yume moved to the other side of Shinsei. "Now you can escort both of us." Yume looked to her brother. "I need to "acquire" a gift for mom. She is the only one that I haven't gotten anything for." She finger quoted the word acquire.

Thraster · Thraster on Wed Sep 17, 2008 6:49 pm

Shinsei was no stranger to the inner workings of his sister's mind- when she said "acquire," she meant "steal."
Shinsei loved his family very much, but his honorable disposition got the better of him more often than naught in the company of his mother, grandmother, and sister- Shinsei and Thraster were set apart. Shinsei often wondered who Aiko would take after when she grew up.

The festival was a grand site to behold. Red ribbons lined the lights on every street. Children ran through the streets laughing and flying kites. As they reached the town square, Shinsei could see that some of the vendors for the faire had already set up there booths. Lord Nalardrin had already set up his arm wrestling booth- beside his table was a large hammer and a contraption used to gauge a contestant's strength. It was a tall column of metal, with a weight attached to an iron beam running up its center. At the apex of the device was a bell. Occasionally the god of strength would rise from his chair and allow own of the townsfolk a chance to defeat his machine- very few amounted to anything. Shinsei could see that Nalardrin had already fractured quite a few tables- the one he was sitting at was not long for the world. Next to the gladiatorial arena, beside the large statue of her parents- Lady Morgunn was sitting at a table with a long line. She was the spitting image of her mother- Lady Mitsuko- a young pretty face, long blonde hair, and a beautiful figure. The similarities between the two women ended there. Morgunn wore her usual assortment of pirate garb-including her flamboyantly large hat, leather boots that stopped at her knees, and a revealing black corset. Shinsei could see her captain's jacket lying behind Morgunn on the chair. She continued to smear what looked like red paint on her lips as the crowd in the line cheered- Shinsei then realized that most of the people in line were men. Lord Darvalel was next to the blacksmith shop- teaching contestants how to throw axes. They each stood behind a line and threw a practice axe at a round piece of wood- painted to resemble a bullseye. Darvalel would hand gold coins to the people who did well- maybe Yume could get some gold that way.

"Surely there is someone with a spine in this place. C'mon winner takes all- who can best me in the sword? You take the entire pouch of gold- my winnings from a morning of fleecing you good people. For a single piece of gold, you can earn 50 times as much."

Shinsei watched as the young man jingled a leather pouch in front of the now increasing crowd. He stood on a simple wooden platform- large enough for people to move around on. He obviously wasn't human- he had burnt orange skin and a fiendish smile. A barbed orange tail protruded from the hole in his trousers. His clothes were nothing special- leather pants and a vest. He used a longsword- and had probably never dueled a person from Lady Mitsuko's dojo before. This was the perfect way to help Yume. Shinsei stepped on to the platform, to the approval of the crowd. They began cheering his name- he didn't recognize anyone. Shinsei tossed a gold piece at the young man, who caught it with one hand. He was taller than Shinsei- he wondered how much older than Yume and he the boy was.

"Well, Shin-say- what do you have to say for yourself. That's a nice shiny sword you have on your waist- you should bet me for it...

Well...

What's the matter, cat got your tongue- or are you too cowardly to speak with me? Speak up."

A hush fell over the crowd, who seemed to disperse out of fear.

"What did I say?"

Shinsei assumed his stance, waiting for the stranger to make his move. He unsheathed his sword, blindly running at Shinsei- the duel was over in seconds. Shinsei slapped the stranger on the back with his katana- skillful enough to strike him with the flat side of the blade. In the same motion, Shinsei cut the gold pouch from the strangers waist- catching the pouch before his opponent hit the ground.

Ayami Dyrune · Ayami Dyrune on Wed Sep 17, 2008 8:13 pm

Midori looked all around the festival. It was bigger than last year, she was sure of that. She looked back at Yume who was looking all around for the right gift for her mother. She had forgotten the one person who had always been there for her and Midori could tell it was eating at her. She shook her head and looked to Shinsei. He seemed to be in deep thought. While honor was a big part of her family and she saw Yume's stealing as wrong, she never stopped her. It was in her spirit. Her mother after all was the goddess of thieves. She hoped that he wouldn't dwell on this for to long. Midori wanted this day to be special. It wasn't everyday that a girl danced and expressed how she felt to someone as wonderful as him. Her cheeks went pink as she thought about it. Trying not to think about it to much, she looked to her right to see Mitsu-Kami-Sama teaching children the art of folding paper. Midori wasn't to good at that. As they walked along, she say Ayami-kami-sama holding a poker tournament and that made her laugh. It was always something with gambling, every year. Hearing someone's voice that she had never heard before, she turned her head. A demon who wanted to duel. She blinked a few times. Her eyes went to Shinsei who had seemed to accept this challenge. She pressed her lips together as she didn't know how this the other was going to take to losing. But those thoughts vanished away as she heard his insults. Midori felt a draft as many flew away from the two. It angered her that someone would once again pick fun of him not having a voice. Sighing, she watched the duel and a grin popped on her face the moment Shinsei won. "Go Shinsei!" She clapped and jumped as best as she could.

Yume skipped along, keeping a good eye out for something that she knew her mother would like. However, her attention was taken away from that when she saw her grandmother in the most awesome pirate outfit she could ever imagine. "Wow! I wanna look like that when I get older." She looked down and being a teen she was slowly starting to look like a woman. She had developed a curve in her waist now and she could fit into the corsets that her grandmother had given her. They were still a little big but she just tied them as tight as they could go. She peeled her eyes away hoping to one day be a pirate and sail around the world just like Morgunn. She saw her mother and snapped her head, hoping that she didn't see her. Her attention was again turned to something completely different. A demon who she had never seem before. He had a tail like her. A smirk appeared as he was challenging people. Must not be afraid of anything. Nice. However as her brother stepped up to the plate, she felt torn on who to cheer for. Her brother she knew would win. He always won these things. But as this demons taunts turned to her brother's voice she became angry. "Hey, ugly! Don't say things like that about my brother." She couldn't finish the rest before Shinsei had cut the bag of gold. "Yeah! Now who sucks?" Yume stuck her tongue out at him and then bounced over to her brother. "Way to go Shinsei, let em know whose boss. Mom would be so proud." She said before her eyes looked sad as she couldn't think of anything to get for her mother.

Thraster · Thraster on Wed Sep 17, 2008 9:21 pm

Shinsei hopped from the platform before the young demon could get to his feet. Shinsei folded his wings behind his back- readjusting his feathers. He handed his siter the gold pouch and signed two words to her-don't steal.

He said that there was fifty gold in the pouch- so she could by mom something nice. He thought of how lucky Yume was- Shinsei never found such a golden opportunity like that when he was gathering gifts for everyone. He worked hard for every gold piece he had, and hand crafted many of the presents that he couldn't afford.

Shinsei suddenly saw the orange skinned demon jump from the platform- grabbing the coin pouch from Yume's hands. He ran towards the city gates. Yume quickly shouted something at Shinsei as she darted towards the orange-skinned thief- leaving Shinsei and Midori together.

Thraster strolled through the faire, and stopped dead in front of the kissing booth.

"Mom, what the hell do you think you're doing?!?"

"Making some gold, breaking some hearts- you know, the usual. If you've got it, you might as well use it- my mother taught me that."

" You know damn well that Lady Mitsuko would freak if she saw you doing..."

He watched as a huge grin stretched across his mother's lips.

"Oh, I see how it is"

Thraster began to walk down the line of waiting men- the ones ready to get frisky with his mother. He stretched out his arm, touching each of them on the shoulder. One-by-one, they fell to the ground as Thraster walked away.

"Hey, no fair!"

Darvalel had watched the scene happen- what a blatant misuse of Thraster's powers over mortal death. Without a word, the Lord of Fire snapped his fingers- restoring the patrons at the kissing booth to life. Darvalel chuckled to himself as the line dispursed.

"Land-loving cowards!!!"

Ayami Dyrune · Ayami Dyrune on Thu Sep 18, 2008 12:27 am

Yume ran after him, upset that the money that her brother had given her was now back in this guy's hands. Before she ran, she called out to her brother. "Make sure Midori has a good time today. Don't let this ruin your time. Make sure this meanie doesn't take anything from her." She chased after him, her hand grabbing her dagger that her mother gave her. Ayami had blessed it with luck and Yume knew that. "Stop you jerk! Give me back that gold or I will kick your butt myself. Don't think that its just my brother who can kick butt in the family." Her dress swooshed as she continue to run after him, angry that he would do this. No one stole anything from her and she wasn't going to let them get away with it. Yume saw that that she was getting close to the city gates, but she didn't care, she would leave if she had to. She was going to get that money back and get something nice for her mother.

Midori blinked and looked to see a dust cloud where Yume was standing. It was nice to know that Yume wanted her to have a good time. She shook her head. "I am sure that Yume will get it back. She is a tough fighter. That guy doesn't know what he has gotten into." She laughed and then looked back at Shinsei. "So, what do you want to for now? In about an hour I have to go preform." She said starting to walk through the streets again. Suddenly, she turned around and took his hand. "Oh, I hope that you come to the show. Mom and I worked hard on it for a long time and it wouldn't be the same without you. Besides, I still have to give you your gift." She looked down and saw that she was still holding his hand. Blushing, she kept her soft, little hand on top of his. Her heart was pounding but she couldn't help it. Mitsuko-Kami-Sama, please....let him see my dance. Please let him like it.

Thraster · Thraster on Thu Oct 02, 2008 4:37 am

Shinsei fought his first impulse- chase the thief, right the wrong, and keep his sister out of trouble. Then he realized where they were, the kingdom of Lord Darvalel- the security was better here than anywhere else in their world. Shinsei hoped that the thief would be caught by Captain Dreadnought- then he would really know what it meant to be afraid. Shinsei was certain that Yume would be safe, and he couldn't leave Midori by herself with such ruffians skulking about.

Shinsei still hadn't given Midori her gift yet either- he wondered if now was the right time to do so. Did it even matter anymore? He was certain that Midori's dance was for someone else- did it even matter if she didn't like his gift?

Shinsei began to sign to Midori. He told her that he would keep her company until she did her dance- and he was sure that everyone would love her display. He reminded her that everyone from the phoenix dojo would be attending- so he was sure that her performance would reach the correct audience.

Shinsei felt his palms begin to sweat. He couldn't bear to look at her face. He wished, at that moment, that his father would come to visit him-but in his secondary role, and not as his father...

Ayami Dyrune · Ayami Dyrune on Thu Oct 02, 2008 5:01 am

Midori shook her head as she watched Yume leave in a hurry. A light smile was on her face as she turned back to Shinsei. They were alone for a while. It lightened her heart to know that for a few moments, she could be herself and not have to hide. However her mood soon changed as he sounded depressed about going to see her dance. Did he not want to see it? No! He couldn't! She had worked so hard, so well on it. Her eyes widened into shock when he spoke of her dojo being there. Who cares if they were? It was endearing, but her mother had announced that they were to watch. She gulped and looked at her feet. "Oh....I was in hopes that you see it right up front." She twisted her foot in the dirt. "I-I worked really hard on it. I wanted to show you what I can do with magic as well as my fans. But...but if it seems boring and you really don't want to...." She felt like just disappearing into thin air. "You don't have to come..."

Was this how her mother felt when she first liked someone she wasn't supposed to like? She had so many questions for Noriko, but they would have to wait. She sighed and put her best foot forward. "Well, hopefully Yume won't miss it either. I am sure she will be back in time. We have an hour. Let's make the best of it, hmm?" She grabbed his hand and lead him through the streets with all sorts of festivities. Midori stopped and looked at him. "You are going to be right up front right?" It was eating at her now. She had to know.

Thraster · Thraster on Thu Oct 02, 2008 5:12 am

Shinsei forced his best fake smile for Midori, what kind of horrible friend would he be if he didn't wish Midori luck in her new pursuit- even if it didn't include him. He hoped Yume would be back in time- she could always cheer him up. He hoped she could do so again- he had a suspicion that he would need some serious attention when Midori performed her dance for Masa. He wondered if his mother just wasn't expressing how upset she was with him openly- maybe she didn't even realize that she was cursing her son. He was stricken with love, illness, thievery, depression, and a broken heart all in the same week- and to top it off, his sister might be missing too. If his mother wasn't upset with him yet, she would be when she learned that he let Yume run off after a sword-wielding thief.

Ayami Dyrune · Ayami Dyrune on Thu Oct 02, 2008 6:55 pm

She felt her heart skip a beat as he smiled. He would like it, she knew it. It was going to be the best dance that she ever did. Midori squeezed his hand. "I promise that it will be very special." After that, she looked away towards the crowded streets. She could see the stage where she would perform. Her mother was setting up everything. Midori got butterflies in her stomach. It was going to be soon. She was becoming anxious about it. Laughing sheepishly, she glanced back at Shinsei before leading him towards Mitsu-kami-sama's booth. "Lets make something together. I am not very good at them, but why not try huh?" It would give them some time together and being with him always seemed to calm and excite her all at the same time. "What do you want to make?" she asked before sitting down.

Thraster · Thraster on Sat Oct 04, 2008 2:45 am

Shinsei watched as Midori began folding the paper at Mitsu-sama's booth. It seemed like they just began to walk around the festival, but in actuality he watched Midori fold the better part of the afternoon away. She looked at him when she completed her bird- making its paper wings flap. He watched the light dim as its source began to sink behind the horizon. As Shinsei looked across the square, he watched as an odd looking man stood up from his grandmother's booth. The stranger had a muscular build. He was tall- taller than his father by a head. He had unkempt stubble strewn across his face. Long blond hair flowed from his brow- hanging past his shoulders. His hair covered much of his face, except a single silver eye. He had wide shoulders which were only accentuated by the long leather coat draped over them. He wore the coat against his skin- with no shirt, kimono, or tunic beneath the outer garment. A large razed scar raked across the man's chest. His boots and trousers were well worn, as if the stranger lived outdoors. Shinsei didn't realize that he had been staring at the strange traveler. The man shoved passed him without saying a word.

Shinsei realized that the time had come for Midori's dance. He thought that he might have been lucky enough to avoid sitting up front- the entire Phoenix dojo had appeared to see Midori's performance, with Masa taking his place in the front of them. He shook Midori's shoulder, trying to get her attention. He signed that it was time for her performance- and that she was sure to impress everyone in her dojo. He walked her to Noriko-sama, who was already waiting for the dance to start. Shinsei had decided to give Midori her gift after her grand appearance...

Ayami Dyrune · Ayami Dyrune on Sat Oct 04, 2008 3:42 am

She had finished making her bird. It was a mix of red and orange. Smiling, she made the wings move, but she felt her shoulder shake. Looking over, she saw Shinsei telling her that she was due to make an appearance on the stage. Was it really that time? Her heart pounded as she looked towards the stage where now everyone had shown up. Her hands were shaking some but she calmed herself. Laughing lightly, she nodded. "Well, I guess this means that I have to go ahead and perform. Now is the time right? Come on." She took his hand and walked with him towards her mother. She hoped that Noriko didn't embarrass her. She stopped and bowed to her mother and then made her way to the stage.

Her bright green eyes looked at everyone. They were all looking at her. She saw that her mother had taken care of Shinsei and he was now up front looking horrified. A soft smile came on her face as she made a silent prayer to every kami that this would be a wonderful performance. With that, she took a deep breath and let her fans unfold. She heard the music start and let the fans move with the rhythm. Her eyes followed the fans for a while and then another silent prayer to the kami. Almost instantly, her hands were covered in flame as well as the fans. She twisted around and turned gracefully, each step she took was beautiful. Her hair trailed as she moved along the stage. She closed her fans and then the fire went out. Another prayer, another fire spell. It was a ring that floated in the air. Her green eyes looked towards Shinsei as the ring changed into a phoenix. She danced around it for sometime. Closing her eyes she opened her fans and a crane appeared it flew around the phoenix for a while. A grin was growing on her face as she continue to move almost effortlessly around the image that was painted. In an instant both birds were flying together and then nestled together. She stood behind them controlling them with her fans. She rose her right hand and let the wind blow the image of the crane away. She let her left hand move the fire bird around the crowd and finally let it fall in front of Shinsei where it stared at him for a while. Its eyes were as green as Midori's. It flew around him once and then hovered beside him before a gust of wind blew the image away. Midori stood there, fans closed, huffing some. The music had ended and she bowed. The teen looked relieved that it was over and what she wanted to say to him was out there. She hoped he had liked his present. A bright smile was on her face as the kami had let her present be the best it could be.

Noriko looked at Shinsei when he walked up. A warm knowing smile was on her face. "Oh how nice of you to come Shinsei. Here take a seat by me." she said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I can promise you that this is a wonderful dance. She worked so hard on this for a certain someone. " It seemed as though she was certain that her daughter had told Shinsei that this dance was for him before she went up there. Oh how wrong she was. As the dance begin she would occasionally look at Shinsei to see his reactions. She wanted to make sure that he felt the same way about her daughter. When the phoenix appeared, she smiled. "She must really care for a crane. Look at that." She added little comments along the way that were similar, feeding off Mistuko who was sitting next to Shinsei as well. There seemed to be no escape for him at the moment. Not until the dance was over and Midori was walking back to her mother. "Well done dear. It was beautiful. I am so proud of you as is your father." She looked at the two and giggled. "But I will let you have your alone time now." With that she left them.

Thraster · Thraster on Sat Oct 04, 2008 4:48 am

Shinsei looked on as the sun set- the moon began to rise as Midori began her dance. Shinsei looked on as Masa lazily watched the display- casually shoving handfulls of popcorn into his cheeks. Shinsei was surprised to see Midori's gaze meet his own more than Masa's- she smiled at him. Shinsei excitedly smiled at Lady Mitsuko, then subdued his childish impulse to share his excitement with his family- he hoped that Mitsuko hadn't noticed. As the fire bird began to embrace him, Shinsei began to think that he may still have a chance with the only person who could ever inspire him- he had obviously inspired her dance. He heard a voice from over his shoulder.

"You mean that I get this info first for a change, my wife will be very dissappointed- looks like someone has taken a fancy to you, boy."

The voice was quickly drown out by the thunderous applause of the crowd, but Shinsei had heard Lord Darvalel. He hoped that Mitsuko-sama had not overheard his words. Shinsei then realized that all of the roars weren't simply from the crowds. Everything happened at a hurried pace- Shinsei saw as two bodies flew past the stage, hurled into the air by some unknown force.

Within seconds the beast had leapt onto the stage- looming in Midori's direction. It appeared as a huge wolf with a silver pelt- yet it walked on its hind legs. It reached towards Midori with scythe-like claws, and Shinsei moved without thinking. It was as if timed had stopped to Shinsei- he didn't remember unfolding his wings, leaving his seat, or pulling the weapon from his obi; but all of these things took place. He saw as Masa popped another piece of popcorn into his mouth- completely unconcerned for Midori's welfare. Shinsei slid on the deck of the stage, slidding between the beast's legs. The creature walked and carried his weight like a human- Shinsei didn't appreciate the view, but the monster was definitely male. As its jaws lunged towards Midori- they clamped down on the scabbard of Shinsei's new katana. To his amazement- Shinsei looked past the beast's hulking form to see Mitsuko, Mitsu, his father, and Kenji-sama still in the stands; clutching their waists. They were still reaching for their weapons, and Shinsei had moved faster than any of the masters of his dojo- it was at that moment that the beast began to press its weight down on Shinsei. The wolf was tremendously strong, within seconds Shinsei was forced to the ground. He could only hold the creature for a few more seconds, and then Shinsei would be overpowered. As he began to reach his limit, Shinsei lashed out with his last ounce of blind aggression- kicking the beast as hard as he could. His attack landed cleanly into the beast's groin- and it learched back whining. A moment's distraction was all Shinsei needed- he dropped the full force of his weight down onto the creature's skull, burying the scabbard of his katana into the beast's face. Shinsei attacked with such force that the scabbard flew free from his weapon- ending its flight at Masa's nose. The shugenja dropped his popcorn- clutching his freshly broken nose. It wasn't an intentional attack on Masa- but Shinsei was no less pleased with its outcome, even if he couldn't bring himself to admit it.

The beast collapsed to the ground, its form twisting and mutating into a different shape- one that Shinsei began to recognize. Then the crowd began to cheer- praising their young hero, and calling for the beast's destruction. He recognized the person who was emerging from the mats of hair that once composed an angry monster- it was the stranger who had bumped into him earlier. The crowds began to call all the louder for blood- but Shinsei could not bring himself to kill a helpless foe, he was human after all. The man lay their, naked and helpless, with an angry mob calling for his destruction. Shinsei held up his hand, and Lord Darvalel roared.

"You will be silent- let the boy decide what to do. He was faster than any of us to defend you and our kingdom- we will all show him some respect."

Darvalel motioned towards Shinsei. Shinsei removed his kimono, placing it on the comatose stranger- he could give the man some dignity. Lady Morgunn began to shove her way through the crowd, tossing Shinsei the scabbard of his weapon. He resheathed the weapon and checked on Midori...

Ayami Dyrune · Ayami Dyrune on Sat Oct 04, 2008 5:28 am

Mitsuko looked over at Shinsei and a grin appeared as the dance continued. She couldn't believe it. After all this time it was the little shugenja that lived next door. It was Kenji's daughter that had her great grandson's heart. She couldn't help but let out a giggle as Midori's performance continued. Oh this was to cute! Instantly her mind began to work on how to get the two together. They were perfect for one another. It was a blend that she had seen time and time again. Noriko and Kenji, now their children. It even reminded her of her relationship, she shuttered a little bit and hoped that their's wouldn't turn out like hers. But even as that thought entered her mind, her blue eyes shifted to look at her own love and she smiled. For all of his imperfections, she loved him more then anything and wouldn't trade his crabby, fiery self for anyone. Her cheeks flushed for a second as she was off in her own little world. But she wasn't there long as she heard gasps. Snapping her head up, she looked to see that Shinsei was already fighting what looked to be a huge wolf standing on its hind legs. He was protecting Midori, a selfess act. It was just like him. Her hand went quickly to her side ready to strike at a moments notice.

Midori bowed once more and then began to walk again. She had almost reached the stage, wanting so much to know how Shinsei liked it. However, she heard screams. Her eyes darted to Shinsei who she no longer saw. Where did he go? She turned around to see a rather large wolf attacking him. She gasped. No, Shinsei, what are you doing?! She reached out her hand to send a ball of fire at this monster but she couldn't muster up anything. She was spent from the dance. Midori cursed herself as she watched him struggle. Why was he doing this? Was he protecting her? Her heart was racing as she continued to watch. To her relief the tables turned and he defeated him. She let out a sigh and that was when she realized that she had been holding her kimono tightly. She released her grip and let her arms go limp. Everyone around them was cheering for him kill the beast. She lowered her head and was silent.

Morgunn chased after him, pushing people and shouting rather rude comments as she went. Her legs weren't seeming to work. She couldn't fly in the crowd and because of this it only seemed to enrage her even more. Finally, she made it through and stumbled to the front. Her blue eyes watched in horror as Shinsei was standing over the one person who dared to talk with her after her son's intervention hours earlier. She gulped and reached out her hand in defense. "Shinsei....please spare him...." Her heart felt like it was caught in her throat. "He doesn't know any better...." What more could she say to the one grandson who she had so often neglected? Guilt and fear were seen on her face now. She was becoming desperate. Anything...she would do anything if it meant ten more minutes with the mysterious man. "I will give you anything..." She could feel her mother's eyes on her now and she felt only two inches tall. She would deal with her family later. Her eyes swayed from Shinsei to the man that had attacked Midori.