Bonfire time. // Incomplete.

[xeuphonious]

Who: Euphie, plus anyone who drops by.
When: Saturday night.
Where: A spot by the river, prepared beforehand. ♥
Rating: TBA.
Warnings: TBA.
Summary: Well, it's nice to get together with friends and make new ones, right? That's what Euphie thinks.

Note: Just putting this up early so perhaps threads can be somewhat done by Sunday, and thus: posts

Comments

[emblazoning]

Prickliness aside, Toshiki had been raised in a clan right manners. Even if it was not nearly so elegant and refined as the Fuuchouin or the Kakei, but regardless... It was simply not in his nature to display finer etiquette, but he did do his best to try, when the situation called for it.

And if it meant showing a little bit of it toward Euphemia, then he'd most certainly display the effort.

"No where in particular," he replied, and some of the tension seemed to ease from his shoulders once the noise became a little more distant. Far enough for him to be comfortable; close enough that they could still enjoy the sounds and sights through the pillars of trees and ice-crusted ground. Toshiki paused when they came to a set of boulders jutting up and out of the ground, providing a decent enough place for them to sit.

Of course, away from the immediate heat of the bonfire, he instantly worried that she might not have been dressed appropriately enough to stave off the cold. A frown tugged at his face, and he found himself shrugging out of his jacket in order to drape it around his companion's shoulders instead. It would be large on her, but all the more to keep her warm. "...Sorry. The noise starts to get to me after awhile."

[xeuphonious]

It almost seemed like that straining in his muscles seemed to melt away as they stepped farther away from the group of people. Euphemia was left to wonder as to why; the change was noticeable in her friend as he relaxed, and even someone who possessed, admittedly, the perception of a hamster (as Euphie did) would notice. She had to resist the urge to unhook her arm from his, place her hands on his shoulders and almost try to massage some of that remaining tension out. She didn't understand it: why was he worked up?

Was something wrong?

Had she unintentionally done something

She almost immediately tugged the jacket off, brows furrowed in a concerned expression as she offered it back to him. "If the noise bothers you, we can stay here," she said, "but aren't you cold? You need your jacket more than I do."

[emblazoning]

Toshiki merely held up a hand and shook his head as she attempted to take the jacket off, and then he reached out to gently grasp the front of it and tug it closer about her slim shoulders. He had a sweater on beneath, so it wasn't like he was going to freeze. "I walked around that one night without one, remember? I'm fine."

The corners of his mouth quirked up into a small smile, and he took to burying his hands into his pants pockets for warmth. His gaze turned back to the flickering firelight in the distance, and his expression softened a little as he took a seat upon one of the boulders, leaving enough room for Euphemia beside him. "...We used to have gatherings like this back home, once in awhile. Bigger, though. Usually took up a few blocks." And those, he'd spent watching from windows and rooftops. Enjoying the festivities from afar, as always, unless someone decided it appropriate to drag him into the fray.

[xeuphonious]

Well then. Euphemia moved to wrap the jacket around herself, looking at Toshiki for a moment before turning away and smiling to herself. "If you say so," she mumbled, "But if you get sick, it's going to be my fault."

There'd be no arguing that point for her.

Her eyes darted back to him as he resumed speaking, and she went to sit next to him on the boulder, tucking her legs underneath her and shifting a little. Close enough to brush his shoulder, but not much closer than that. She gave him a little, unbelievable glance, trying to imagine a party that large. "That's... impressive," she said, her tone surprised. "I've never been to a party like that before."

No, her parties had been self-contained events in private ballrooms. There had been only so many people who deserved to be invited, after all.

[emblazoning]

"It was generally an event for everyone in Mugenjou." He shrugged, preferring to skip over her worries. He wasn't likely to get sick; it didn't happen often. And if it did, well, he'd do what he always did and simply hole himself away in his room for a few days until it passed. "Whatever food people could manage to gather... there was usually a big New Year's celebration."

The blonde tipped his head back, casting his gaze skyward. The trees blocked most of the view, but not like it mattered when there were no stars or moon to look at, anyway. "Might be one of the only things I miss about that place, actually."

[xeuphonious]

There were a lot of things Euphemia missed about her home: sneaking out, Suzaku, Cornelia, Arthur the cat, and then knowing Lelouch and Nunnally were alive and having them so suddenly ripped her (or was it her being ripped from them? She didn't bother to argue technicalities with herself). And the knowledge, that even after atoning for whatever sin she might have committed in the past, that she would never be returning home did have her spending a few nights with a wet face and a damp pillow. She had never been especially good at hiding her emotions.

"Do you miss a lot of things?" Euphemia found herself asking; Toshiki hadn't said much about his home aside from that first time they had met, and what holes he had left MakubeX had been able to fill. Still, she didn't see things as he had experienced them, and the curiosity to know what he thought of everything his world had been. Was being. "A big New Year's celebration sounds nice... Did they ever do fireworks? And then you have someone you kiss at midnight, right, so you can be with them for the entire, new year?"

[emblazoning]

His gaze dropped, then, and he prodded at a small rock with the toe of his boot. Miss things? Not really. "...And... not much. Sakura. Maybe a handful of other people, but... there's nothing that home had that this place does not. Possessions and such... little luxuries, being without them doesn't bother me." Toshiki glanced over, removed a hand from his pocket and ever so absently brushed a strand of Euphemia's hair back from her shoulder. He drew back immediately after, and the hand returned to his pocket.

"Fireworks... not so much. Mugenjou was kinda closed in; no real space for that. Outside had them, though." He hunched his shoulders up briefly in a sort-of shrug. "Kazuki's got a dislike for loud noises, so the few times we saw them, it was from a good distance away. As for the kissing thing... yeah, I've heard about that tradition before."

ds;f;df I FAIL I COMPLETELY FORGOT TO REPLY TO THIS, SMITE ME.

[xeuphonious]

"I think a lot about my family," Euphemia said softly. "I wonder if--well, if they're happy." She figured it was the same sort of thinking she would have had, regardless if she was caught here in Purgatorium or already ascended to wherever the dead go. Or descended, if her sins had been that heavy enough to weigh her down. "And I miss them a lot, but... Well." She shook her head, turning to Toshiki with that usual smile on her face. "I guess it'll work out, won't it? When this is all over."

She didn't mention that some horrible, selfish part of her wished that everyone could just stay here--together.

"Maybe we can have firecrackers here," Euphemia said suddenly, looking up at the upper plate to remind herself that this, too, was an enclosed space. "I always used to be afraid of fireworks when I was little, because I thought that they would fall back on me." She smiled as if that the whole idea was really, really silly. "We used to have them every New Year, and I always kissed my sister, because there as nobody else."