RP Log - Closed
Who: Yukimura Seiichi & Niou Masako
When: Jan. 26
Where: Rikkai's roof garden
What: a conversation and gardening
Rating/warnings: PG
Comments okay?: Sure.
On a cold January lunch hour, Yukimura's food went neglected in favor of the bare looking garden. Though some plants were lively enough to just take water, others needed some more winter maintence: he redid the wrappings on some small trees and shrubs and packed fertilizer and winter mulch around the flowers that hung in there through the chill.
Niou had snuck away from everyone, feeling like it would be a good chance to be alone for a moment or two. She was cold though, so she decided to visit the garden. Why the school kept a garden on the roof was beyond her. But it seemed to be nice enough and several students enjoyed it, so it wasn’t too bad an idea. She gravitated to some of the flowers that still have blooms of bright colors on them. Looking around to make sure no one else was around to see her, she leaned down to sniff at them.
Yukimura was crawling around on his hands and knees, completely uncaring about staining his uniform as he went flower to flower, until he happened upon a pair of shoes that were attached to a female student.
Ah, Niou.
"Excuse me a moment," Yukimura asked, looking up at her from under messy blue bangs. "I need to pack some mulch around those flowers."
Niou jumped back a bit, a bit shocked there was someone else here. She blushed a little at being...well, almost caught. He probably didn’t notice since he was on the ground. “Sorry.” She murmured. “Didn’t know anyone else was here.”
"That's quite all right," Yukimura said, turning his focus back on the flower at hand. He administered care for it as if it were the most precious thing in the world at the given time. "...There," he said, sitting back on his calves. "As you were, Niou-chan."
She twitched a bit. She hated that honorific, but it was so common, there wasn’t any point in protesting. “Ah...” She said. “I didn’t know you took care of the plants.” She said, somewhat amazed. She thought he was just a psychotic tennis player and the sadistic captain of the boys’ team. Gardening didn’t seem like it fit into the puzzle all that well.
Normally Yukimura might have reveled in making someone uncomfortable, but right now he was too preoccupied with fortifying the next beautiful flower for the upcoming cold. You can make it, he thought, with a small sincere smile on his face.
"Mmm, I'm in the beautification committee. It's nice to see someone appreciating the flowers."
There was a slight flush on her cheeks, and she looked away. “Well.....yeah...” She really didn’t know what to say. “They do look nice.” She said, shifting her feet a bit nervously. Honestly, she might have joined that committee herself if she had actually felt like applying herself to something outside of tennis.
"Thank you, I'll be sure to pass that on to the rest of the committee," he said pleasantly as he smiled at the flushing Niou and wiped the sweat off his forehead. He didn't realize that he spread dirt all over his face in doing so. "They need all the encouragement they can get to pull through the winter."
Opening another bag of mulch, he began to pat it around another flower.
Niou couldn’t help but laugh at how he was looking now. “I hope you’re planning on washing up before you go back to class.” She said. He really did look ridiculous. Dirt all over his uniform, and what seemed like every inch of his visible skin. “I hate to say it, but you’re probably going to get in trouble for looking like that.” She advised. She’d been in trouble just for having a speck of lint on hers before. Well, that was an exaggeration, but still, it seemed like she got picked on a lot. “...Want some help?” She asked. The least she could was get in trouble along with him. And it made her feel more useful than just standing there watching.
"Oh, those disciplinary people love to say things they don't mean," Yukimura said lightly. They always made like they were going to scold him, but ended up dawdling away and stammering. It would be cute if it wasn't sad. "Sure, if you're willing to get your skirt dirty. Have you ever packed flowers before?"
Niou snorted. Yukimura might think that about himself, but they seemed to mean it when it was her. “I don’t mind.” She answered. “Not really.” She answered the other question. “I catch on pretty quick though.”
"All right," Yukimura took up the mulch and shifted over to another flower to demonstrate. "The mulch will protect the flower's roots from the freezing dirt. You want to pack it in close to the flower's stem, but not so thickly that it will suffocate the plant."
“Alright.” She said, as she watched. It didn’t seem too difficult. “Are there many left?” She asked. Of course, with another person, the time would be cut in half or so. “Hey....” She drifted off. “You’re not quite as bad as I thought you were.”
"The rest of this bed needs to get done. So why don't you do that side and I'll continue along this row," Yukimura suggested and arranged the mulch between them.
At the second, he chuckled a bit, "That's good to know, Niou-chan, thank you."
“Alright.” She said, heading to the other side of the row with some of the mulch. “No, really...well, then again, I don’t really see you outside of tennis practice.” She’d occasionally watched the boys’ practices just for the heck of it. It was a huge contrast. “You seem...I don’t know...evil out there.”
Laughing a little louder as he tucked another plant in, Yukimura teased, "Exactly what I was going for, thank you for the compliment."
It did really supplement overall practice effectiveness.
Niou shook her head as she finished with one plant and moved on to the next. She concentrated on the plants for a bit. She wanted to ask him something, but she didn’t know if he would know about it or not. Why not, she figured. “What’s the deal with Kirihara-kun?” She asked. “He told me some things that I didn’t really like hearing, and I kind of want to know what it’s about.” If anyone should know, it would be his captain.
"You'd have to give me more detail than that, as I have no idea what you're talking about."
Given her overreaction to Yukimura's comment, he wondered if Kirihara had come onto her in an unpleasant way.
“Don’t worry about it then.” She said. “It wasn’t anything important, just something he mentioned to me a couple of weeks ago bothered me.” Niou dropped the conversation and went back to the flowers. “Just thought you might have some insight on his tennis playing.”
"Ah, I won't then," Yukimura smiled pleasantly at her and returned to his work. Though he did have some ideas as to why Kirihara played the way he did, and why that style was so effective for him, it wasn't appropriate to share such insights with Kirihara's girlfriend. No matter how well meaning said girlfriend was. "Don't be afraid to pack your dirt in a little more firmly."
“Oh.” She said, looking back at the dirt and fixing what she had just done. “Sorry. Got a bit sloppy there.” She worked a bit more in silence before she asked one of the other questions on her mind. “So what’s the deal with you and Sanada?”
"...The deal?" Yukimura raised a brow at her tone. "I like spending time with her. Though it's not quite mutual," he chuckled a bit at that and tucked some mulch around the flower. When he drew back to admire its fortification, he said, "But I hope one day it will be."
Niou was still bent down over her flower, and grinned. This would be good blackmail material...eventually. Schooling her expression back to normal, she looked back at him. “So you like her, huh?”
Pointing a dirty finger at Niou, Yukimura said, "Now who looks evil?"
Niou laughed at him. “I always look evil.” She retorted. “And that answered the question indirectly.”
"It's not a secret," Yukimura pointed out. "I'm sure everyone but her has managed to figure it out."
As he tucked in another plant, Yukimura remarked, "Well, you don't look evil at this second. Your laugh is almost nice."
“You have a point. She is pretty dense unless you hit upside the head with your racket.” Niou said as she sat back, almost finished with her row. “I’m sure I could try and look evil, but I’m attempting normal for a bit.” She joked.
Niou looked back at him with a strange look. “’Almost nice?’” She asked. “That was a nice. My evil laugh is even better.” She grinned. “How would feel about some...assistance...in getting Sanada to catch a clue?”
"Your attempt is almost working," he teased. "And no thanks, I don't need any assistance."
Yukimura was happy to go slow with Sanada and enjoy getting to know each other. That way, when Sanada put two and two together, it would equal four and not oh hell no.
“Darn. I hoping for a chance to mess with her head more than usual.” Niou sighed. “Guess I’ll have to find some other way then.” Packing the dirt around the last flower in her row, she brushed her hands off in front of her. “Good thing I don’t give a shit about my nails.” She said.
"Guess so," Yukimura said neutrally. It wasn't his business to interfere in the matters of Sanada's team. "After you wash your hands, use lotion to get at beneath them," he clued her in. "The dirt will stick to it and come right out."
“Thanks for the advice.” She said, leaning back on her heels. “How often do you come up here?”
"You're welcome," he patted some mulch around the last flower of his, and watched Niou as she worked on her assigned row. "And that depends on the season. Most of the time every day."
He regretted that he missed most of the summer and fall in the gardens. The only flowers he got to see were the decaying ones in the hospital.
Niou nodded as she stood up. “I see. Guess I might see you up here again then.” She said. “Let me know if you want some help again. Honestly, I’ve always liked flowers....and wanted to grow some, but...well, it’s too crowded at our house, and my brother is allergic to a lot of them, so...yeah. I’m not allowed to kill him.”
"Why not join the beautification committee?" Yukimura looked up at her from where he lounged carelessly on the ground.
She frowned. She didn’t really know if she wanted to actually commit to a committee.... “I’ll think about it.” She said. It might not be such a bad idea, but with only a few months of school left, was there really much point in doing so now?
"Lovely, and well, there's always high school," he pointed out.
The bell rang. Though Yukimura knew he should be getting to class, he didn't really wish to move. He had ten minutes before he was officially late. "What do you have next?"
“Something boring.” She answered. “I think it’s some sort of social studies class.” Niou shrugged. “Why do you ask?”
Yukimura shrugged, "Killing time before math. Does it seem so strange to ask?"
Niou laughed. “I was hoping you were going to suggest skipping class all together.” She winked at him. “I’ll go to math for you if I could.” She grinned.
"I'm not that kind of guy, Niou-chan," Yukimura grinned at her. "And that's not necessary. I use that time to make my practice tournament blocks."
Doing math in math class would be outrageous
“I didn’t think so, but I could hope.” She grinned at him, turning to head to the stairs. “I better not be late for my beauty sleep then.” She would rather be in math than in social studies. At least it would interest her than put her to sleep. Then again, maybe they just needed a new teacher.
"Beauty sleep doesn't cure evil," Yukimura said, as he planned to stay up for a few minutes longer and enjoy the outdoors. He could be a few minutes late to math.
She turned back for a moment. “Of course it doesn’t cure evil.” She agreed, tossing her head, making her ponytail swing around her shoulder. ‘It makes it prettier.”
When: Jan. 26
Where: Rikkai's roof garden
What: a conversation and gardening
Rating/warnings: PG
Comments okay?: Sure.
On a cold January lunch hour, Yukimura's food went neglected in favor of the bare looking garden. Though some plants were lively enough to just take water, others needed some more winter maintence: he redid the wrappings on some small trees and shrubs and packed fertilizer and winter mulch around the flowers that hung in there through the chill.
Niou had snuck away from everyone, feeling like it would be a good chance to be alone for a moment or two. She was cold though, so she decided to visit the garden. Why the school kept a garden on the roof was beyond her. But it seemed to be nice enough and several students enjoyed it, so it wasn’t too bad an idea. She gravitated to some of the flowers that still have blooms of bright colors on them. Looking around to make sure no one else was around to see her, she leaned down to sniff at them.
Yukimura was crawling around on his hands and knees, completely uncaring about staining his uniform as he went flower to flower, until he happened upon a pair of shoes that were attached to a female student.
Ah, Niou.
"Excuse me a moment," Yukimura asked, looking up at her from under messy blue bangs. "I need to pack some mulch around those flowers."
Niou jumped back a bit, a bit shocked there was someone else here. She blushed a little at being...well, almost caught. He probably didn’t notice since he was on the ground. “Sorry.” She murmured. “Didn’t know anyone else was here.”
"That's quite all right," Yukimura said, turning his focus back on the flower at hand. He administered care for it as if it were the most precious thing in the world at the given time. "...There," he said, sitting back on his calves. "As you were, Niou-chan."
She twitched a bit. She hated that honorific, but it was so common, there wasn’t any point in protesting. “Ah...” She said. “I didn’t know you took care of the plants.” She said, somewhat amazed. She thought he was just a psychotic tennis player and the sadistic captain of the boys’ team. Gardening didn’t seem like it fit into the puzzle all that well.
Normally Yukimura might have reveled in making someone uncomfortable, but right now he was too preoccupied with fortifying the next beautiful flower for the upcoming cold. You can make it, he thought, with a small sincere smile on his face.
"Mmm, I'm in the beautification committee. It's nice to see someone appreciating the flowers."
There was a slight flush on her cheeks, and she looked away. “Well.....yeah...” She really didn’t know what to say. “They do look nice.” She said, shifting her feet a bit nervously. Honestly, she might have joined that committee herself if she had actually felt like applying herself to something outside of tennis.
"Thank you, I'll be sure to pass that on to the rest of the committee," he said pleasantly as he smiled at the flushing Niou and wiped the sweat off his forehead. He didn't realize that he spread dirt all over his face in doing so. "They need all the encouragement they can get to pull through the winter."
Opening another bag of mulch, he began to pat it around another flower.
Niou couldn’t help but laugh at how he was looking now. “I hope you’re planning on washing up before you go back to class.” She said. He really did look ridiculous. Dirt all over his uniform, and what seemed like every inch of his visible skin. “I hate to say it, but you’re probably going to get in trouble for looking like that.” She advised. She’d been in trouble just for having a speck of lint on hers before. Well, that was an exaggeration, but still, it seemed like she got picked on a lot. “...Want some help?” She asked. The least she could was get in trouble along with him. And it made her feel more useful than just standing there watching.
"Oh, those disciplinary people love to say things they don't mean," Yukimura said lightly. They always made like they were going to scold him, but ended up dawdling away and stammering. It would be cute if it wasn't sad. "Sure, if you're willing to get your skirt dirty. Have you ever packed flowers before?"
Niou snorted. Yukimura might think that about himself, but they seemed to mean it when it was her. “I don’t mind.” She answered. “Not really.” She answered the other question. “I catch on pretty quick though.”
"All right," Yukimura took up the mulch and shifted over to another flower to demonstrate. "The mulch will protect the flower's roots from the freezing dirt. You want to pack it in close to the flower's stem, but not so thickly that it will suffocate the plant."
“Alright.” She said, as she watched. It didn’t seem too difficult. “Are there many left?” She asked. Of course, with another person, the time would be cut in half or so. “Hey....” She drifted off. “You’re not quite as bad as I thought you were.”
"The rest of this bed needs to get done. So why don't you do that side and I'll continue along this row," Yukimura suggested and arranged the mulch between them.
At the second, he chuckled a bit, "That's good to know, Niou-chan, thank you."
“Alright.” She said, heading to the other side of the row with some of the mulch. “No, really...well, then again, I don’t really see you outside of tennis practice.” She’d occasionally watched the boys’ practices just for the heck of it. It was a huge contrast. “You seem...I don’t know...evil out there.”
Laughing a little louder as he tucked another plant in, Yukimura teased, "Exactly what I was going for, thank you for the compliment."
It did really supplement overall practice effectiveness.
Niou shook her head as she finished with one plant and moved on to the next. She concentrated on the plants for a bit. She wanted to ask him something, but she didn’t know if he would know about it or not. Why not, she figured. “What’s the deal with Kirihara-kun?” She asked. “He told me some things that I didn’t really like hearing, and I kind of want to know what it’s about.” If anyone should know, it would be his captain.
"You'd have to give me more detail than that, as I have no idea what you're talking about."
Given her overreaction to Yukimura's comment, he wondered if Kirihara had come onto her in an unpleasant way.
“Don’t worry about it then.” She said. “It wasn’t anything important, just something he mentioned to me a couple of weeks ago bothered me.” Niou dropped the conversation and went back to the flowers. “Just thought you might have some insight on his tennis playing.”
"Ah, I won't then," Yukimura smiled pleasantly at her and returned to his work. Though he did have some ideas as to why Kirihara played the way he did, and why that style was so effective for him, it wasn't appropriate to share such insights with Kirihara's girlfriend. No matter how well meaning said girlfriend was. "Don't be afraid to pack your dirt in a little more firmly."
“Oh.” She said, looking back at the dirt and fixing what she had just done. “Sorry. Got a bit sloppy there.” She worked a bit more in silence before she asked one of the other questions on her mind. “So what’s the deal with you and Sanada?”
"...The deal?" Yukimura raised a brow at her tone. "I like spending time with her. Though it's not quite mutual," he chuckled a bit at that and tucked some mulch around the flower. When he drew back to admire its fortification, he said, "But I hope one day it will be."
Niou was still bent down over her flower, and grinned. This would be good blackmail material...eventually. Schooling her expression back to normal, she looked back at him. “So you like her, huh?”
Pointing a dirty finger at Niou, Yukimura said, "Now who looks evil?"
Niou laughed at him. “I always look evil.” She retorted. “And that answered the question indirectly.”
"It's not a secret," Yukimura pointed out. "I'm sure everyone but her has managed to figure it out."
As he tucked in another plant, Yukimura remarked, "Well, you don't look evil at this second. Your laugh is almost nice."
“You have a point. She is pretty dense unless you hit upside the head with your racket.” Niou said as she sat back, almost finished with her row. “I’m sure I could try and look evil, but I’m attempting normal for a bit.” She joked.
Niou looked back at him with a strange look. “’Almost nice?’” She asked. “That was a nice. My evil laugh is even better.” She grinned. “How would feel about some...assistance...in getting Sanada to catch a clue?”
"Your attempt is almost working," he teased. "And no thanks, I don't need any assistance."
Yukimura was happy to go slow with Sanada and enjoy getting to know each other. That way, when Sanada put two and two together, it would equal four and not oh hell no.
“Darn. I hoping for a chance to mess with her head more than usual.” Niou sighed. “Guess I’ll have to find some other way then.” Packing the dirt around the last flower in her row, she brushed her hands off in front of her. “Good thing I don’t give a shit about my nails.” She said.
"Guess so," Yukimura said neutrally. It wasn't his business to interfere in the matters of Sanada's team. "After you wash your hands, use lotion to get at beneath them," he clued her in. "The dirt will stick to it and come right out."
“Thanks for the advice.” She said, leaning back on her heels. “How often do you come up here?”
"You're welcome," he patted some mulch around the last flower of his, and watched Niou as she worked on her assigned row. "And that depends on the season. Most of the time every day."
He regretted that he missed most of the summer and fall in the gardens. The only flowers he got to see were the decaying ones in the hospital.
Niou nodded as she stood up. “I see. Guess I might see you up here again then.” She said. “Let me know if you want some help again. Honestly, I’ve always liked flowers....and wanted to grow some, but...well, it’s too crowded at our house, and my brother is allergic to a lot of them, so...yeah. I’m not allowed to kill him.”
"Why not join the beautification committee?" Yukimura looked up at her from where he lounged carelessly on the ground.
She frowned. She didn’t really know if she wanted to actually commit to a committee.... “I’ll think about it.” She said. It might not be such a bad idea, but with only a few months of school left, was there really much point in doing so now?
"Lovely, and well, there's always high school," he pointed out.
The bell rang. Though Yukimura knew he should be getting to class, he didn't really wish to move. He had ten minutes before he was officially late. "What do you have next?"
“Something boring.” She answered. “I think it’s some sort of social studies class.” Niou shrugged. “Why do you ask?”
Yukimura shrugged, "Killing time before math. Does it seem so strange to ask?"
Niou laughed. “I was hoping you were going to suggest skipping class all together.” She winked at him. “I’ll go to math for you if I could.” She grinned.
"I'm not that kind of guy, Niou-chan," Yukimura grinned at her. "And that's not necessary. I use that time to make my practice tournament blocks."
Doing math in math class would be outrageous
“I didn’t think so, but I could hope.” She grinned at him, turning to head to the stairs. “I better not be late for my beauty sleep then.” She would rather be in math than in social studies. At least it would interest her than put her to sleep. Then again, maybe they just needed a new teacher.
"Beauty sleep doesn't cure evil," Yukimura said, as he planned to stay up for a few minutes longer and enjoy the outdoors. He could be a few minutes late to math.
She turned back for a moment. “Of course it doesn’t cure evil.” She agreed, tossing her head, making her ponytail swing around her shoulder. ‘It makes it prettier.”