Zuko-kun. [ Just his name, but with it, all her worries are poured out. She hadn't been able to see him since that post he'd made, and after all that had happened...
She should have called. She doesn't know why she didn't. ]
Y-Yes, I do, I... [ She casts a quick glance around, turning away from the rest to cover the device against her mouth. ] Where are you? Are you okay? [ Her hand flutters up to grip her clips, pinned once more to her yukata. ]
[He shakes his head, answering one of those questions, and it isn't difficult to pinpoint which. Very not okay, but he doesn't want to get into it right now, doesn't want to drag Orihime down.]
Mokuhi... [ There's a quiet rustling on the other end as Orihime draws something out of her yukata's sleeve. Their map. Her eyes skim over the sketch quickly before she nods, determined. ]
I'll be there soon.
[ She hesitates for a moment, listening on the other end, and then stands, turning the device off to head out. ]
[Zuko gives a curt nod and ends the feed in turn, drawing himself up from his seat.
Mokuhi is mostly deserted, spotted with only a few of the non-natives loitering around or in their rooms, unless they've tried to escape. It feels hollow, almost ghostly. He waits for Orihime outside much like their first meeting reversed.]
[ It takes her a few minutes, but she arrives like she'd promised. Somehow, even in the darkness of the settled night, her hair still stands out, signalling her arrival before her excited little wave could.
She looks a mess.
Hair hastily done up in a messy bun on her head, skin smudged with dirt and dust, and her pink yukata torn up and stained with earth.
Still, though, she's waving as she approaches, a smile on her lips as if she were greeting an old friend. As she nears, a bit of her energy drops, but the warmth in her smile is still there. ]
[You look worse than I do goes unsaid, though it's in the wave of concern emitting in his voice and expression. Zuko leads her into the house regardless, hand gesturing for Orihime to follow.]
[ An embarrassed laugh answers him first, one hand going up to rub the back of her head while she follows after him. ]
Ah - yes, I'm fine! It looks worse than it is, I promise! I haven't had a chance to go home and change yet and on the way here I kind of fell... twice. [ Hence the dirt along her skin. She sounds tired, though, too much energy spent healing over the past couple of days. ]
[ She takes the damp cloth with a grateful smile, her thanks nothing more than an exhalation of breath due to her fatigue. A vast difference from that energy she'd had upon their first meeting, but she either doesn't seem to notice, or is doing her best to act as if it isn't an issue.
She lingers by the doorway, unsure where to go, where she should be, and takes a moment there to pass the cool cloth over her face and down over the column of her neck.
She also takes that time to watch him, noting how he moves, how his own mood is considerably lower. ]
[ She hadn't a doubt this dealt with Tyki - a man whom she'd never met before, but has since then been enlightened about. He was the very creature that had attacked her and nearly killed Kurosaki-kun and Ishida-kun when they'd shown up to her rescue. He was the very thing that Zuko-kun had warned her about, yet she still stubbornly thought she could handle it...
She bites down on the inside of her chin, keeping away her own dark and bitter thoughts for the sake of the other. Clutching the cloth in her hand, she takes up his offer and quietly sits herself down on the pillows, opting to draw her knees up to her chest rather then sit on her legs for the time being. They were still covered in earth, after all, and she didn't want to dirty the pillows anymore than she already is.
She smiles up at the other, patient yet expectant. She pats the pile of pillows just beside her. She doesn't speak, just in case he has more to say. ]
[Disapproving of that secretly, since he'd just wash them off anyway - but knowing he'd do the same thing - Zuko comes over to sit. Being near Orihime, it's the closest he's been to anyone since visiting Iroh, and before that... he doesn't like to think.]
It's dark in here, hold on.
[Zuko leans across the floor with a flat palm braced, lighting a lantern and a small row of candles with only a wave of fingers.]
[ Orihime watches in mute wonder as, one by one, the candles around the room are lit, as if by-- ]
Magic...
[ She'd breathed the word out before really thinking about it, voice thick with the wonderment of a child. But as she takes in what just happened, and applies it to what she already knows of the prince sitting beside her...
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Hello?
[ She hadn't thought to check who'd been calling before picking up. ]
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[Sorry if I'm bothering you is implied.]
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And then a shaky, relieved breath. ]
Zuko-kun. [ Just his name, but with it, all her worries are poured out. She hadn't been able to see him since that post he'd made, and after all that had happened...
She should have called. She doesn't know why she didn't. ]
Y-Yes, I do, I... [ She casts a quick glance around, turning away from the rest to cover the device against her mouth. ] Where are you? Are you okay? [ Her hand flutters up to grip her clips, pinned once more to her yukata. ]
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I'm back at Mokuhi. I... a lot happened.
If you want, we can talk here.
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I'll be there soon.
[ She hesitates for a moment, listening on the other end, and then stands, turning the device off to head out. ]
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Mokuhi is mostly deserted, spotted with only a few of the non-natives loitering around or in their rooms, unless they've tried to escape. It feels hollow, almost ghostly. He waits for Orihime outside much like their first meeting reversed.]
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She looks a mess.
Hair hastily done up in a messy bun on her head, skin smudged with dirt and dust, and her pink yukata torn up and stained with earth.
Still, though, she's waving as she approaches, a smile on her lips as if she were greeting an old friend. As she nears, a bit of her energy drops, but the warmth in her smile is still there. ]
I didn't keep you waiting, did I?
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[You look worse than I do goes unsaid, though it's in the wave of concern emitting in his voice and expression. Zuko leads her into the house regardless, hand gesturing for Orihime to follow.]
What happened?
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Ah - yes, I'm fine! It looks worse than it is, I promise! I haven't had a chance to go home and change yet and on the way here I kind of fell... twice. [ Hence the dirt along her skin. She sounds tired, though, too much energy spent healing over the past couple of days. ]
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[Concern never ebbing, considering it's been days since the attack, Zuko coaxes her in. Also, WHY SO CLUMSY.]
Here.
[He brings it over after dampening the towel in a bowl of water, evidently used for just such an occasion.]
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She lingers by the doorway, unsure where to go, where she should be, and takes a moment there to pass the cool cloth over her face and down over the column of her neck.
She also takes that time to watch him, noting how he moves, how his own mood is considerably lower. ]
...how are you, Zuko-kun?
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You can sit down on the pillows over there - by the table, it's okay.
[The prince moves across to slide the door shut at her back, paneled fusuma whispering over the floor.]
... I've been better, I guess. Tyki found me. Back in Camellia.
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She bites down on the inside of her chin, keeping away her own dark and bitter thoughts for the sake of the other. Clutching the cloth in her hand, she takes up his offer and quietly sits herself down on the pillows, opting to draw her knees up to her chest rather then sit on her legs for the time being. They were still covered in earth, after all, and she didn't want to dirty the pillows anymore than she already is.
She smiles up at the other, patient yet expectant. She pats the pile of pillows just beside her. She doesn't speak, just in case he has more to say. ]
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It's dark in here, hold on.
[Zuko leans across the floor with a flat palm braced, lighting a lantern and a small row of candles with only a wave of fingers.]
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Magic...
[ She'd breathed the word out before really thinking about it, voice thick with the wonderment of a child. But as she takes in what just happened, and applies it to what she already knows of the prince sitting beside her...
She smiles, turning to him. ]
...Fire Nation, huh?
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