[Action /Voice]

[mirrorbirth]

Comments

[Voice]

[chiisaichou]

[Ah, there you are. After Luke's little declaration and breakdown some time ago, and just not seeing or hearing a thing from Asch, Miyabi began to wonder just where he had gone. The words hit hard, so it takes her a moment to reply.

Gone. Not empty, gone.

Well, it's no surprise, then that she sees the smoke rising from the top of Ammy's tree, after all. She swings her legs as she sits on the branch, quiet for a long time to just watch. Should she say a prayer? It felt almost appropriate to do so... Finally, she opens her journal and asks, in a rather subdued tone--]

Where will you go?

[Voice]

[mirrorbirth]

[Asch doesn't respond for a long while; he's busy keeping an eye on the fire and restraining it carefully with a bit of hyperresonance here and there so it doesn't spread to the other houses. The last thing he wants is to be interrupted by a lynch mob. And naturally his eventual response is as brief as humanly possible.]

Building 2.

[Voice]

[chiisaichou]

[No worries, she's keeping an eye on the fire as well, on her side. Even if she wouldn't be able to do much - she never managed to master even the most basic of the water skills - she'd still be right there, just in case.

Pausing to think of that, building two was close to where she used to live, with Salt, she kind of sighs. A little drastic, to do this much, but who was she to judge?]

Can I come visit you once you're settled into a room? ...Please?

[Voice]

[mirrorbirth]

[Asch hesitates to answer once again, pausing to give it some thought. Much as he'd like to say no, she probably has been worried. If all she wants to do is see him, then he can give her that, at least. He's not exactly thrilled about having visitors, but rejecting her now would likely come back to bite him in the ass later.]

...If you have to. [His reluctance, can you feel it.]

[Voice]

[chiisaichou]

[Oh, she feels it. Though it's definitely putting her off a tiny bit, Miyabi has missed seeing Asch around, and speaking to him. But, she also knows these things take very long to heal. How long did it take for her to actually start being social after Issun ran away the first time? Ah, she couldn't remember... But it's with that understanding that her voice takes on a gentler tone, an honest one.]

I really would like to see you...but if you need time to move, I'm in no rush. It is nice to hear from you again, though.

[Voice]

[mirrorbirth]

We've already moved. Do whatever you like. [He pauses, and then adds as an afterthought-] Just don't expect much of a welcome.

[At least not from him.]

[Voice]

[chiisaichou]

[Sigh, just as blunt and snippish as she remembers. Perhaps for the better, too. It at least puts a tiny hint of a smile on her face.]

I won't stay for too long. Which room is yours?

[Voice]

[mirrorbirth]

...Fifth room, on the first floor. [He's not sure whether or not he can take her at her word about the length of the visit, but maybe he can get her to distract Luke or something. That would at least give him time to sort his belongings and make it vaguely resemble some sort of home. Not that he'll call it that.]

[Voice | Action]

[chiisaichou]

Okay, thank you. I'll be there soon.

[And, as promised, Miyabi arrives in decent enough time. She actually stopped by the remains of house five, just to look at whatever remained, and put a few flowers there. Just in memory of what she remembered. It'll fix itself, she had to remind herself - to keep from getting mad. It'll fix itself. It'll be new and fresh again.

...Rejuvenated.

Finally, when she arrives, she hesitates by the door, before knocking. Just once. Asch's reluctant tone made her wary of seeing him, but...well, she wanted to see him. The idiot left too much, without telling anyone. It wasn't something Miyabi liked. She had it happen too often to count, so...]

[Action]

[mirrorbirth]

[Much as he'd have liked to hide out in his room for the next few days, he'd already told Miyabi she could visit, so when the door knocks he reluctantly heads over to open it and let her in. He probably looks terribly deadpan, but he won't let himself show much else.]

[Action]

[chiisaichou]

[She had steeled herself, put on a brave face to try and perhaps cheer the two up, but seeing Asch with such a linear expression - and after a month of not hearing hear nor tails of him - her resolve crumbles away. Miyabi cracks a big smile and begins to just...giggle. Loudly. And very sudden;y wrap her arms around Asch.

She missed him. She really, honestly did miss him. And she was so afraid of people leaving her without a word, that she had put on a mask to hide it. From even before coming to Luceti, the thought of losing those she cared for was something she always frightened her, ever since Issun... But well. Seeing a friend's face was enough to cheer her up, despite the somber mood.

Sometimes you really just have to laugh and smile in these cases.]

It's good to see you again, Asch.

[Action]

[mirrorbirth]

[...That is most definitely not the response Asch had expected, judging by his startled stare. He doesn't return the embrace- actually, it takes a good amount of self control to keep himself from shoving her off, and he only tolerates it for a moment before pushing her back. She's laughing, why the hell is she laughing!? Is what he's going through so damn entertaining? Does she expect him to just smile back and accept it? Dammit...!]

[Action]

[chiisaichou]

[Ah, this was bad. She did something wrong, then? ...No. No, she didn't. Missing him, and being happy Asch even came back wasn't wrong. He just perceived it wrong, and there was no one to blame for that. It must still hurt. And then the house... Honestly, what a thing to do. And why? You can't just hope to forget something you already know by getting rid of it, especially if it was something, or someone, you cherished.

But that's not her place to say right now. Instead, she steps back, bows her head, and apologizes.]

...I'm sorry. I was just really glad to see you after so long. I was starting to really miss you.

[Action]

[mirrorbirth]

[...Grumble. Always so weird, Miyabi. Asch looks away uncomfortably, hand lifting to grip his opposing arm, fingers clenching in the fabric.]

It's better that I wasn't here.

[Even though he missed Guy's last few weeks in Luceti- ...no. Even with that, it's better that he'd left. By staying, they might've gotten into more fights, said worse things to one another, and he-

...Guy still hated him, so... there was no reason to stay. Right? It's better... better this way. He just has to keep telling himself that and it'll sink in eventually.]

[Action]

[chiisaichou]

Better for who?

[It's not said with sarcasm, or bitterness. No ill-intent meant at all, and her tone simply suggest quiet confusion. Who would want to be alone, away from everyone and everything, for so long? Especially after feeling alone when someone you care about leaves...being alone is never the best solution. Not forever.]

[Action]

[mirrorbirth]

Better for everyone. A real home isn't something that suits me anymore. [He didn't belong in one- not with Guy there, the way things were. He probably never did. And it wouldn't feel right with Guy gone, either. He hasn't had a home for ten years now, so why let himself get complacent and pretend like he deserved one? It's stupid. Better to have a temporary lodging- a little apartment, just like in Daath. A room to hold his belongings and a place to eat. That was all he ever needed.]