Open Log
Characters: wavesoakedlegs, behisstrength, kagayakashi and all the guests!
Location: 12 Olie Street in the Phanga neighbourhood.
Time: Throughout the afternoon.
Style: Whatever you wish!
Status: This is an open log for Gracia's birthday celebrations, so set up threads and mingle with one another. Anybody is welcome! Your hosts and behisstrength will be around, of course but the mundanes won't, so ( Read more... )
Location: 12 Olie Street in the Phanga neighbourhood.
Time: Throughout the afternoon.
Style: Whatever you wish!
Status: This is an open log for Gracia's birthday celebrations, so set up threads and mingle with one another. Anybody is welcome! Your hosts and behisstrength will be around, of course but the mundanes won't, so ( Read more... )
I could have done no less.
[He wonders if he should ask Gracia to open Motochika's gifts before opening his second one. Because the second one contains a carved necklace; a carved necklace with his own name and the name of Tenkai carved into it. The fake name he'd taken after the Battle of Yamazaki. The two names are linked to imply they are the same person, as is the truth, and there is also an inscription detailing where he'd fled to and lived as Tenkai.]
[Mitsuhide had thought long and hard about whether or not it was right to let her know. He did not know the specifics of what had happened in her world, after all. But in the end he'd decided she had a right to know, and decided to give her the information in the form of something that she could wear. That way, when she was sent back home, she might still have it with her even if she forgot Vatheon.]
[It was a chance to heal her broken heart, back there.]
...when you have opened that one, my girl, open Lord Motochika's gifts.
[A brief nod.]
I think it would be best to leave my second one until very last.
[After all, things would get emotional.]
Reply
[ Eventually she opened the larger box and sat in marvel at the new hair accessories. She removed her headband and tried one on. Gracia laughed and stood up, hands on her hips. ]
How do I look?
[ She sat back down and examined all the contents of the large box before letting out a contented sigh and placing the box back on the table. The smaller one was, as promised, left to her side for last. ]
Thank you for this, father. I'll wear them with pride every day!
[ She turned to Motochika afterwards, a mischievous look on her face. ]
It's swim wear, isn't it? I bet it is!
Reply
Not quite.
[He hands over the largest box first. Inside is a complete outfit: unique shoes, leggings, dress, leather obi, belt and a hairpin. There are a couple more gifts in there, wrapped individually -- a fur stole and a couple of nail varnish sets.
Next is the smaller package. Inside is a leather bound journal; the pages are blank, save for the first, in which Motochika has left a note, as well as an illustrated picture of Gracia with the ocean above and a melody noted down in the remaining space. It reads: Take record of your explorations and experiences. Look back, witness the echo of your legacy, and strive onwards.]
Happy birthday, Gracia.
Reply
[Mitsuhide laughs at the little display, growing quiet only when Motochika hands over his gifts. He just watches then, curious himself as to what they contain.]
Reply
She was smiling so much she felt her cheeks would break at any minute!
As she sets the shoes down by her feet, leaving a mental note to try them on before anybody else would show up, Gracia holds the leggings and the obi, and mentally pictures herself wearing the entire get-up. The dress was, she immediately noticed, in Motochika's colors - the fur stole would have looked great with it! Her mind was going all over the place. There were so many gifts in just one box, she didn't know what to do or how to react! Eventually, when she finished marveling at all of the things inside, Gracia sighed even louder this time and set it all by her father's first present. ]
This is too much. Motochika, thank you! They're such wonderful clothes, such cute and foreign designs! And with what father gave me for my hair - aah, I can see myself wearing it all now! [ Her expression was of pure happiness, her heart swelling from the warmth and love. Without much hesitation, Gracia embraced the nearest limb she could find of Motochika's, not letting go until she remembered there was still the smaller package left to open. ]
And there's still this one as well. I wonder what it could be? [ Gracia unwrapped the smaller one quickly and as she examined the exterior of the journal, she had a feeling she would be using this present more than she would his first. Gracia opened it carefully and caressed the smooth pages with the pads of her fingertips - the words written at the front were read and understood clearly and in earnest. She already had the urge to write her adventures. ]
[ Turning to Motochika once more, Gracia gave him a sort of knowing look, and held the journal close to her chest. ] I will. Motochika and father will be the first two people to read it. I promise.
Reply
Excellent.
[He says simply, enjoying the moment before it passes.
Motochika continues to watch her -- he is curious about Mitsuhide's last gift. The fact that it's to be opened last hints at its significance.]
Reply
[The journal, now. That was pretty much a perfect present.
I am certain your writing will be very vivid indeed, my girl.
[He sits up straight, expression turning soft and tone of voice growing more quiet.]
Everything else has been opened now, so... you may open the second one I gifted to you.
Reply
[ The said second gift was just about to fall off the edge of the couch before Gracia was given the go signal to open it. Grabbing it by the side, Gracia takes a deep breath and smiles. She had been gifted with more than she ever imagined she could be gifted with; what else was there left? That made her want to know even more than before, so she rips at the wrapping and bites her lip in anticipation. Eventually, she opens the box itself, and a beautifully crafted wooden necklace greeted her. ]
Did you make this, father? [ The more significant details of the necklace had yet to be discovered, so she spends a few moments examining merely its exterior. When it comes to that her eyes read what's carved on the surface, her smile slowly disappears. She holds it closer to her, reading it back and forth until she realizes something strange. ]
Tenkai? [ Gracia turns her head to her father, then back to the necklace. Their names - Tenkai's and her father's name - they were linked. That could mean but two things; that he had a twin brother (which was without a doubt out of the question, she of all people would know) or Tenkai and Akechi Mitsuhide were the same person. A slim finger caresses the carving before she addresses her father once more. ]
Your other name is...Tenkai? [ Then there was the other part of the necklace - was that a place? She wasn't sure where it was, it definitely wasn't a city she knew of or a general area she's been to. Taking into account how she almost never leaves the castle because they keep her in...needless to say, Gracia's confused. ]
I don't understand. What do these all mean?
Reply
Rather than interfering Motochika stays quiet, silently witnessing the progression.]
Reply
This part details a province, a city to start from, a village along the way and the path from that village which leads to a hut.
[He points to the two names, next.]
You are close with this part. Nankobo Tenkai is the name I took after the Battle of Yamazaki, unworthy of my true name as I was.
[Mitsuhide moves back again, closing his eyes for a moment. Many difficult memories and thoughts move through his mind, but he holds the sadness back; this is a time to focus on Gracia and what he is giving to her.]
I was not sure at first whether or not I should give this to you; things happened a little differently for you at Yamazaki, after all. But in the end I decided I should. That necklace contains the information you would need to find Akechi Mitsuhide back in Japan.
Reply
But why didn't he come back? Why did he hide? Didn't he know his daughter survived the battle? He could have come to her, she would have welcomed him back without hesitation - and then it hit her. Gracia's hands fell slowly down her lap, the necklace grasped limply in her palm. Things happened differently for them, all the talk about alternate universes and timelines...it all made sense. She moves her head to glance at Motochika, then to her father. She looked like she was about to cry, a stark contrast to her previous disposition before seeing the necklace. No wonder he wanted her to save it for last. ]
Where was I, father? In your time, where was I during Yamazaki? [ She turns away abruptly. ] I wasn't there. You went to this place on the necklace because you had nowhere else to go. [ Gracia couldn't help herself. A single tear manages to fall. ] And Motochika...he...[ Died. Another tear falls. ]
[ Give her a minute to let it all sink in. There was so much she didn't know, so much she kept hidden and locked away. All the depression, the tension...it was all coming back whether she willed them to or not. Give her a minute. This was painful. ]
Reply
Look at my face, my girl.
[He looks at her directly, eyes sad but posture strong, so she can see his face properly. Mitsuhide is only 25 years old, and if she was to really look, she would see how young he was.]
In my Japan, I was obviously born later than in yours. There is more. You see, I have no wife... I had no daughter...
[Because he'd been so focused on his devotion to Nobunaga that the pleas of his family to take a wife had been, if not ignored, then put to one side. I can marry once his rule is certain. That is what he had always thought. Fate had made it otherwise.]
Whatever happened in Yamazaki for you, I know this; I would never abandon you or Lord Motochika in battle. Whatever version of me it may be. If I disappeared before my dear Lord d-died, then... then it was not willingly. I also know that after Yamazaki, I felt worthless. No good to anyone.
[Mitsuhide did not stop looking at Gracia. It was taking a lot of effort to hold back his own sorrow; he blinked once, and his eyes became stronger, masking what he felt. Everything about him was reassuring, kind, certain. No doubt he would later need to seek comfort from Motochika, but for now...]
You have always told me you knew I survived, you knew I had lived. If you can hold onto that certainty, Gracia, then I can tell you what you will likely find, if you seek out that hut.
[He took a moment to breathe, giving her time to process what he had said and himself time to prepare for what she was likely to say and ask. Strong. He had to been strong for her, right now. Mitsuhide spares a glance for Motochika, a slightly pleading expression moving across his features briefly.]
Reply
Despite the dramatic turn of mood -- despite Gracia's tears and Mitsuhide's underlying sorrow -- he recognises that this is a step forward on the long path to healing. They have not lead easy lives, but they have survived, and so they must reconcile themselves with the past and carry that with them into the future. No one else can do it for them.
Motochika moves so that he can take a hand each into both of his; he brings Mitsuhide's and Gracia's hands together, afterwards, and then holds them between his own palms. His grip firm, though not uncomfortably so.
They needed this talk -- that much was clear. That did not mean they had to go without physical comfort, the literal feeling of not being alone, as they addressed loss and abandonment.]
Reply
Strangely enough though, it didn't hurt. It was merely the motion that she felt inside of her, but it brought her no pain.
After Motochika moves to place their hands together she finds herself breaking eye contact briefly, just so she can glance at it - all three of their hands joined together in one way or another. She blinks, feeling the warmth radiate from the contact. She moves her fingers gently across her father's palms, eventually intertwining them. She realizes that the necklace in her hand was trapped underneath their hands as well. It makes her smile a bit. ]
I can't imagine you being that different. Even if you had no family where you came from, you're still my father. [ Gracia looks up at him again. ] Nothing will change that.
I know you would never abandon me or Motochika. But I was still scared when you left. I was finally by your side during your battles, and then all of a sudden, you were gone and I didn't know what to do again. [ She looks back down at their hands, and grasps his a bit more firmly than before. ] I never stopped believing you'd come back. I never once considered you died. Never.
You must have been so alone in that place on the necklace...[ When she finally finds the courage to look back at her father's gaze, those eyes so sad and hurt and in pain, Gracia's cheeks are already stained with tears, unable to hold them back any longer. Her poor father. ] We were both so alone...
[ She hiccups quietly. She had so much to tell him, but she couldn't find the composure to do so yet. ]
Reply
[One day... as far as he was concerned, they would all be returned to their worlds. Different versions of the same one, but still different. Nothing that Motochika had ever said had managed to persuade him otherwise. Back in his own, there was nobody who would miss him. His daughter and his lover, in their own, should not be alone and would not. The ache in his own heart at the thought of it did not matter.]
[His eyes remain strong, though, even as those thoughts run through his mind. He tightens his own grip.]
Breathe deeply, my girl. Nice and steady. You will not need to be alone again.
[In truth, every time he has heard it, a part of him has felt a little unsure of the wisdom of allowing her into battle. How had that happened? Mitsuhide would have done everything he could to shield her from war. Loss, pain, death... there was no need for her to be so directly exposed. Gracia must have made the decision herself, to follow him. How do the people he loves most always end up being so stubborn? It makes him feel a wave of fondness amongst all the sad emotions currently dominating him.]
The Mitsuhide you find there... will be everything I said. A broken man who feels useless, and deserving of his fate. There is a strong likelihood you will be told it is better for you to live a good life without him, for both... logical and illogical reasons.
[He closes his eyes for a few seconds, breathing deeply himself.]
You will face a difficult battle, Gracia. It will likely take a long, long time before you can draw him out of the hut.
[Who would know better than himself, after all? Nearly a year in Vatheon, and still...]
Reply
The choice of gift says plenty about Mitsuhide: that Mitsuhide had never truly given up on living despite all appearances. Perhaps their happiness will always be tempered by the tragedy they have experienced, but to Motochika eyes, this is a sign that even in their own versions of their land, they will both be at peace one day.]
Yet in time you will succeed, or you would not have been given this gift.
Reply
Leave a comment