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 Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 12:29 pm
"Hn."
Yep, right back to his old speaking habits the moment his sword was passed back to him (though it seemed tha-.. Oh hell, what was he doing here? Well, either way Yossarian had his jacket) tucking it into his belt at his hip to feel the familiarity of Mugen's return, before he carefully mimicked the motion, though with less grace, landing with a nice crumpling tumble before standing again, expression straight as possible?
Knees and legs hurt? What?
Never!
Yeah, he'd feel it in a bit, but his first order of business was to snatch his jacket out of the 'pile' of clothing that Yossarian was accumulating, pulling it on half-heartedly over his clothing and belt (unlike the normal 'look' he assumed with the belt on top).
"I've been trying to figure that out since last month." he replied lightly, implying his first meeting as well.
"A double edged sword in the hands of someone who doesn't know how to use it properly." she replied, setting the tea cup down and staring at it, before glancing towards the door. Kanda and Yossarian sure had been gone a while.
A long while.
Maybe they'd run into trouble. She sure hoped that wasn't the case.
"It is rather pleasant, isn't it?" she parroted back rhetorically, before smiling a bit. "It makes me wonder why some people wait so long to seek it out or even deny such company. It makes those little dark places so much warmer."
Yeah, like scars, clocks, and bleeding to death.
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 4:41 pm
Oh, OW. Straight face of not, even Yossarian couldn't help but wince at the latter swordsman's hard fall-- or maybe that was just his own knees starting to ache and burnt from that previous 'Let's Hurl Ourselves Off A Brick Wall From High Heights' stunt.
And s**t, if that was starting to hurt now already, then when it re-thawed later...
He scowled a little at the thought, directing his disgruntlement down at the two MUFFINS that Faito had (apparently) felt they needed, vaguely wondering if the things were laced with some horrible poison. God, it was bad enough that he'd suffered a SECOND strip show for the day (HE COULDN'T UNSEE IT), but to dump sweets off on him like some kind of happy stocking stuffer was just salt in the wound.
"... Let's just be off and vacate this wretched place," he grumbled, shifting the pile a little in his arms (he was even careful with the muffins-- they could've been explosive) and turned on a heel to start back.
How come their 'relaxation' was never relaxing AT ALL?
Even Shae was finding it a little difficult to keep her posture from turning stiff as Aster rambled on, staring into her tea glass with a forcibly calm expression and just... contemplating. Yes, that was a good descriptor for it.
The woman was only making a broad general statement... so why had it felt so unsettlingly personal?
Even after a good few seconds of this contemplating she was still at an odd loss for how to respond, and settled on a thin, shallow, slightly rattling sigh.
"... Perhaps those who fail to seek companionship are only giving into the same fears you dread," she settled for saying, still stuck in that quiet tone that was just baaarely audible and subdued. "Perhaps... they're just too afraid of causing hurt to themselves or others to pursue it."
Ahaha, now that one was definitely a speaking from personal experience scenario-- not that she'd ever mention it.
"B-But it is pleasant, yes," she added a little too hastily, smothering another cough (which half-escaped into her hand) with a few swallows from the glass. "I... certainly couldn't deny that..."
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 5:02 pm
If Kanda knew anything, those muffins were, sadly, still good, prompting him to snatch one of them and prod at it carefully before ripping a piece off of it and popping it into his mouth.
Serious mercenary or not, it was free real food in comparison to the 'real food' they'd been suffering at that ungodly older couple's mansion. The only real 'problem' with it was that it was cold. But in comparison to the two of them, it was plenty warm.
"Hn. Sounds just fine." he replied, only really half-caring for Yossarian's 'suggestion' and moreso for the idea that upon their return there would hopefully be no more stripping parties as well as some clothed females who had lost their clothing to said stripping parties.
But at least conversation wasn't required. That instead allowed for Kanda to poke at the strange little muffin which hadn't seemed to have killed him yet.
Good sign.
It was in those few seconds that Asteria resumed the drinking of her tea, setting the mostly-empty cup back down after another couple of sips then looking to Shae.
"I...... think I hurt you all more than I mean to or that any of you would ever admit, so perhaps that's true."
But outside of all of the 'dark conversation topic', it was actually rather nice for Asteria to actually be sitting down and chatting with Shae for once. Sure they'd spoken plenty, but it wasn't as though they simply sat down and actually SPOKE on a conversation and bonding level.
Which led to the most random change of conversation.
"So.... is Chess complicated? I've never played it before. Just drinking games."
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 5:25 pm
... So the swordsman was actually planning to blindly trust that the exhibitionist monkey-women hadn't poisoned the food? Ha! How absolutely ignorant of him! Surely Kanda was bound to drop over and start twitching or foaming at the mouth of gasping for air within moments of ingesting the deadly muffin of DEATH... but alas, he hadn't.
Hmm...
Well if the guinea pig had survived testing, then Yossarian supposed he could give it a try as well (given that he, too, was secretly desperate for ANY source of 'real' food available), and testingly tore a chunk off the second to choke down.
Tasted like... Christmas?
Okay not quite that, but it was simple and decent and didn't SEEM to be the object of his own doom, so he'd take it.
... Which left them to walk in silence because, quite frankly, they had nothing worth talking about.
And deeper, deeper down the rabbit hole of despair Aster journeyed, dragging poor Shae (who was feeling more or less hopeless over 'tactful' responsed by now) along for the ride until, seemingly out of the blue...
"Chess?..." Now that got a little twitch from her ears, suddenly looking a little more relaxed-- maybe even pleased-- by the subject switch. Finally, something she could speak about with a semi-firm conviction!
"O-Oh, it's really not a difficult game, Ma'am," she informed her pleasantly, back to a soft smile. "the only possible difficulty is in memorizing the function of each piece, but... once that's accomplished, it's nothing but a duel of strategy between players..."
It was her game, in a way-- one of the few things she genuinely enjoyed and excelled at. That, with Blackjack and Cat's Cradle and... well, she was set for strategic and memory games.
"I could... ah... teach you, if you like, when we return...." she offered meekly, coughing into her hand. "I have a chessboard in my bag."
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 5:54 pm
Aster was sort of sold at the idea of it not 'being that difficult' until Shae said that the pieces all moved differently. s**t, she'd rather learn a new card game or something if it sounded that difficult (she already knew Shitty Boots and Scum... wow, she sure learned positively named games in her life), but it... sounded interesting enough.
"Ooooh.. I might be a bit bad at that." Asteria admitted, laughing a bit but making a rather funny noise before that, something between an 'ooh' of 'ow that hurt' and a groan of 'Oh your kidding'. Put together it sounded something closer to a 'that's a bit much for me, don't you think?'
Which, in Asteria's case, it might have been.
"There are a lot of pieces too.. I only know a couple, pawns, king, queen, and ..." pause and a smile, "the knights."
At least in her mind that was a lot, but considering that it was Asteria, that many pieces might have been overwhelming until she learned the different maneuvers.
Or whatever ended up happening ultimately.
Well at least the two of them didn't have to talk about the strange episode of the day. Kanda didn't want to know how Yossarian's 'trip' had gone, and frankly was more than happy to keep his own to himself.
Yep, the mercenary duo were so talkative. But then again, talking took up energy.
Energy is what was keeping him warm right then and he was enjoying being warm.. ISH in comparison to his half-frozen fur.
If he got anything resembling frostbite he'd be killing someone later.
An obvious someone.
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 7:48 pm
Oh, the symbolism of such words-- and Aster probably didn't even realize the volumes she told with her little nuances of speech... Even sick, Shae was far too astute for missing such things, but at the same time, far too kind to make a mention of it. So she didn't.
"Well, you've already learned the majority of the pieces, then." She tried her best to be encouraging and even succeeded... if only a little. "All that remains are the rooks and the bishops, really. I'm certain that you're very capable of playing a fair game... ah, assuming you enjoyed it, of course."
Yes, because there was no point in a game without enjoyment-- at least to the average Joes and Janes out there (which Aster qualified for splendidly).
"The moves are simple enough to remember as well," she went on, figuring that, if they had nothing else to talk about sans the... heavier philosophical mumbling, then a little tutorial was in order. "The player takes one action per turn with a single piece-- pawns can only move forward a single space, and take other pieces directly left or right diagonal. Rooks move horizontally for any stretch, knights make an 'L' shaped four square jump, bishops are horizontal. The king can move a single space in any direction, and the queen can mimic the movements of any other piece... sans the knight. Their movement is uniquely their own..."
Oh, the ironic parallel of such a statement.
And the 'knights' were on the move outside as well, both hurrying along through the streets at a quick pace and obviously ready to be through with this idiotic 'game' the two obnoxious Mench had caused.
With the adrenaline and distractions all vanished, poor Yossarian was free to focus on his miserable state of being-- what with the sore legs, the exhausted muscles, the burning lungs and coat that had almost COMPLETELY frozen over. His tail was an icicle (oh deja vu), his arms were covered in ice-chips, his clothing was stiff as a board and, dammit, even the sweat had crystallized on his brow.
... Maybe he'd throw himself back into that boiling pit to thaw once they made it back, if only to make sure he didn't get frostbite either. Damn, was there ANY feeling left in his legs?
Uuugh he just wanted to get there and be DONE WITH ALL OF THIS.
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Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 8:52 pm
Asteria made a confused face to try and understand all of this 'Philisophical' talk of the whole ordeal not even seeming to understand that there was anything deeper, though her mind had easily pulled itself into it within a few moments.
"It sounds like a challenging game... I may or may not like it in time... it just seems that... well, we don't talk much so it would give us an opportunity to get some interaction in." she admitted, smiling sheepishly and shrugging her shoulders.
"Is that horrible of me?"
She finally picked up her cup to finish of the Chai, staring into the empty cup for a moment as though appraising the odd experience that this whole thing seemed to be leading to (trying new things, pretty much), before setting it back down.
Then pausing.
...
.......
And another little smile.
"I think I'll like the knights.... Maybe one more than the other, though. Or maybe both, I don't know. Are they particularly 'popular' pieces?"
Kanda hadn't been the 'frozen person' before, so this whole thing was, while familiar, slightly foreign. But he didn't truly let on, simply crumpling the paper the muffin had been wrapped in once he was finished with it and tossing it into a bin (and giving it a suspicious leer) as they passed by it.
Then glancing to Yossarian.
Then at how far they had to go.
Shoot, two men could walk in silence, it was probably hilarious (or 'dreamy' as two little bundled up a-la-Russian style girls they passed by noted out loud), causing Kanda's fur to puff at the end of his tail ever so slightly.
"I'm growing tired of that."
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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 3:59 pm
Yossarian's tail might have puffed in the same manner as Kanda's... if it it wasn't currently a frozen furry ICICLE, that was, not even able to twitch with all of the SEETHING ANNOYANCE he felt inside at the giggly commentary of the passing females. Just what was it with women and their ridiculous assumptions?...
"It's rather loathes-- ACHOO!"
GrumblesnarlhissGROAN.
"... Loathsome," he finished, none too happy about the return of his sneezing with a whole new vengeance.
Well, at least they'd be back soon enough now; the city's 'activity' was already thinning out significantly around them, the streets growing sparser and the population less prevalent... Just another few minutes of walking (damn, this had seemed a lot quicker when they were running full-throttle after Faito and Akrii) and they'd be back at last...
So, Aster was capable of conversation with implied meaning beyond the literal? That was certainly a surprise for Shae who, while not doubting the woman's practical intelligence for a moment, had never really been given a chance to gauge her intellectual prowess.
It wasn't a bad thing, though.
"I don't find that very horrible at all," she noted, still holding onto a thin smile that actually seemed rather genuine. "Interaction is a pleasant luxury, and... I'd be honored for the company. As for the knights..."
A thoughtful sigh there, finishing off her own glass before she poured herself another.
"They're... an acquired taste for most players, I'd say," she reasoned rather slowly, carefully, "the sort of piece that takes a certain measure of work in getting accustomed to, as they're so... individualistic and unpredictable in their movements, but..." Another pause. "At the same time, such traits make them invaluable to winning."
Mmm, layers and double meanings.
Somehow, disguising one subject for another just made the whole 'intimate conversation' thing feel so much easier.
... If only she could've known that they were about to have their conversation interrupted by a certain frozen duo in the (very VERY) near future, but... alas, for all of her sharp instincts, she still wasn't a mind reader.
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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 5:30 pm
"Well that's nice to know. I'd hate to think I only made one 'friend' from all of this."
Thus came another happy sigh from Asteria who again leaned back on the bench. Indeed even if the 'disguise' had not been in place she may have still been in such a little happy place.
Dammit, when had such thoughts become a happy place for her?
She didn't know, but it was a very pleasant way to be off, or so she thought at least.
"Acquired? I'd think they'd be more popular for being unique." she replied finally after her little happy-sigh moment, which just reeked of her little feminine affections (Oh lord, another Aster might have given people cramps in terms of how much estrogen she was letting off right then).
"At least Yossarian isn't like any other man I've ever met. Hell, I think I'm in lov-........"
It was about then that her face turned BRIGHT red as the door had opened about .2 seconds prior to that comment and at least Kanda was standing in the doorway.
He wasn't exactly forcing his limbs to move, but walking wasn't exactly 'exciting' either when he was partially frozen, finding that the less people there were around the pair, the faster he was walking.
Why?
Because surrounded by empty was something unsettling for any mercenary and it also meant they were getting closer to where they were actually headed... that and it made body heat.
However, with distance covered and door opened, Kanda found himself walking into a very awkward conversation.
"..........................."
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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 6:11 pm
... Oh, the joy of EPIC TIMING FAIL in action.
Of course, as one who already knew of Aster's affections more than the woman herself probably realized, Shae wasn't shocked to hear the word 'love' being brought into the conversation, nor would she have ever leaked such a heartfelt confession-- but then the door creaked open, and the whole thing came to a grinding (not to mention vaguely HORRIFIED) halt as none other than Kanda made his reappearance... with Yossarian barely a second behind.
And that second, of course, gave him just enough delay to hear the barest fragment of the little 'girl' talk's tail end.
More specifically, that finally trailing off of 'Hell, I think I'm in........'
Wait, WHAT?!
"O-Oh, Sir, Mister Yossarian, welcome back..." Shae greeted the two as calmly as she could, forcing a light smile. "Did your... ah, mission go wel--"
"Excuse me," the dark male blurted suddenly, dropping the stack of clothes he'd been carrying down next to the empty bench-space by Aster (though avoiding eye contact, apparently) and suddenly striding past the others, off toward the far end of the room... and straight to the men's changing area.
"..." The latter girl didn't really know how to respond to such a thing, merely watching him saunter off before sighing lightly and reasoning that he was probably just... going off to re-thaw in the spring a bit.
Yes, that was it.
He had arrived to late to hear anything of importance, hadn't it?...
Oooh how she hoped-- if only for Aster's sake.
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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 6:27 pm
"Ah! I see..youtwoareokay.."
Her voice jumbled the words together on the tail-end of that statement before Yossarian dumped the pile of clothing next to her, her hand instinctively reaching out to brush against his arm before he was off and away again.
And she frowned at his retreat.
"Oh dammit...."
A woman's confession of adoration was something that was of little concern to Kanda who gave both girls a nod of acknowledgement before he was on his way to do the same as Shae had just suggested.
Unthaw.
Because frankly he was chilled to the bones and the idea of finding a heater or something for his jacket was also high on his list.
"You might want to warm those up before you put them on." he warned before he too vanished off to the back of the springs as well, the very bottom of his hair having, hilariously, frozen together with a very light layer of snow-light ice coating his fur.
Grumbleblush.
"... Maybe they'd like tea when they get out too..."
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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 7:08 pm
'Oh dammit' was right, it seemed, as Shae couldn't help but suspect that Yossarian wasn't just making a hasty exit to reach the spring quicker, but rather... to get away from a certain someone, and oh, if that was the case... Poor Asteria might've just made things very, very complicated.
"A-Ah, thank you for the warning, Sir..." she responded politely to Kanda, bowing her head in a little nod and bidding him a little wave before he, too, took his leave out back... leaving the females (once again) to their own devices.
And oh, what awkward devices they were.
Leaning over to pluck her (very COLD) jacket off the top of clothing stack, fishing in to pop a small latch on the inner pocket... and out shot none other than Del, nearly flying straight into the little female's FACE before it twisted sideways, fluttered around her head a few times, and settled on her shoulder, making little shiver-like twitches all the while.
"I... think tea would be pleasant for both of them," she agreed, very, very quietly, trying her best to play the situation off in a calm manner as she doted over her little 'pet' of sorts. "They seem as though they... rather need it..."
Well THAT was the understatement of the century for Yossarian. HA.
He'd barely stopped in the changing room long enough to peel his clothes off and grab a towel to throw on before stomping out, making sure to take his sword WITH him this time to set at the edge before, without further ado, throwing himself into the wa--
Holy HELL WAS THAT RIDICULOUSLY HOT. It felt like his SKIN was trying to melt off for the first few seconds, grimacing and hissing under his breath as feeling started (slowly and BURNINGLY) coming back to him, but... aaah.
If only the water could've boiled his thoughts away, or--
ACHOO!
... Or that damned cold.
s**t.
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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 7:36 pm
Asteria seemed to think just the same as she made a rather pathetic sounding noise before she picked up the pot and poured herself another cup of the Chai, feeling up the warmth of the cup with her hands, and then pausing, looking to her clothing...
..
Then seeming to pass off the idea she'd had.
"Yeah.. I thought so too..." she mumbled in reply then sighed, sipping at the warm drink before sinking a bit.
"Am I an idiot for loving him?"
Oh damn, hard question.
Kanda's response to the water (great, these two were just oozing with each other's company now, ugh) seemed to be less extreme, having found a nice 'over here where I don't have to look at you' location to sit in and sink down to his mid-chest, the water warmer now than it had been before.
Thus was the extreme of cold-to-hot temperature.
But at least they didn't have to talk or anything, right?
Right.
Hell, even if Kanda had been curious to Yossarian's thoughts on Asteria's statement, he wouldn't have asked. It wasn't interesting to him, afterall.
"Oooooh, that looks warm. <3"
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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 8:23 pm
Of all the questions Asteria could've asked, why that one now? Why not not the weather? Why not chess? Why not anything that Shae could've handled without choking on her tea and nearly hacking a lung up before she managed to get the noise under control again.
Ow, that had made her throat feel all horrid again; even forcing down half her glass didn't smooth it over entirely, but at least she was able to speak again in some semblance of a 'level' voice.
"I think..." Dammit, what did she think? And how could she phrase this correctly? "... I think that... you're very daring for such a thing, Ma'am. It takes a quite lot of bravery to... t-to indulge in such a thing, given the lifestyle we've chosen for ourselves..."
She felt so incredibly awkward saying those words, trying and failing to keep the frown off her face as Del settled in against her neck and she started listlessly down at her tea glass. The conversation from the cave was still playing constantly through her mind all the while, and... a-and...
And she almost felt like a hypocrite. By that logic, wasn't any bond a risk for people like them?...
Brooding, brooding all around. The girls were doing it inside and Yossarian had his hands full out in the backyard, now sunken up to his collarbone in the water and staring off at the sky with a deep frown plastered on his face. God, if he kept that too much longer it'd replace the scowl as his default expression.
'Hell, I think I'm in........'
Over and over and over, dammit dammit DAMMIT. He could've sworn he'd heard the beginning of a certain consonant following, but... at the same time, such a fragmented statement could easily apply to nearly anything, couldn't it?
With anyone else, sure.
With Asteria, though... he doubted it.
Sure, she'd developed some unusually clingy tendencies to him, but... really, that? And what about the consequences? The implications? The EVERYTHING HORRIBLE THAT COULD POSSIBLY HAPPEN FROM IT?
... He groaned and sank lower in the water, massaging one of his temples and closing both eyes in some attempt to tune out the world around him.
......... which might've worked, had there not been certain ill twists of fate in the works. And whispers from the other side of the fence.
"Ooooh, yes, indeed it does, Sister..." a second voice whispered oh-so-sweetly, swinging up just short of the high fence poles and peeking over the top before... "mmm, here we go!"
Here they wh--
"CANNONBALL!"
CHEERSPLASHBANGWHATHEHELL.
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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 9:26 pm
"Daring or just stupid to set myself up for rejection?" Ugh, why was she being so negative about it? Sure Yossarian wasn't an open book when it came to his thoughts, but why was she so certain she'd be rejected?
I still have a duty to fulfill here, and... will remain until I feel it accomplished.
Yeah. He wasn't here for others. He was there because his pride demanded it from him. Nothing good ever came of something that was forced.
Especially not bonds.
Sigh.
"Forget it even came up, mm? What would you like to talk about, Shae? It's alright to take control of the conversation instead of follow along after it, you know."
Smile.
Okay, Kanda could tell that something was bothering Yossarian, thus sighed deeply and at least found that he'd have to start something resembling a 'conversation' with his 'rival'.
"If you don't care for it, think about it, then let it go away on it's own."
Even he entertained unwanted thoughts sometimes, if only because not thinking about something only made one think about it even more. It was the easiest way to solve a problem from his point of view.
Besides, it was vague enough to not impl-
The hell?
"Wait for me!"
splash
Akrii popped out of the water up to her shoulders before sinking deeper and shivering a bit. "Oooooh, my head's cold now, Sis!" she whined, doing one thing that NONE of the Quartet would have done ever and slinking right up against Fai's side.
Yep, comfortable individuals were comfortable.
Then she poked an arm out and waved to Yossarian.
"Well it's nice to see you got back alright, brother!"
smilesmilesmile.
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