001↠ Action/Voice
[There is something extraordinarily jarring about finding yourself in a chilled, unfamiliar forest, when two seconds ago you were under the sea, fighting off a legion of crazed fishmen. The blonde man clad in the usual New Feather's garb is none too pleased with this switch once he gathers his bearings, and he sets off in a direction that might be
( Read more... )
Comments 834
Reply
Yeah, it's me. [a bit of a smile... and then, after a pause]
I swear you've gotten more beautiful, Milly-chan~!
Reply
Oh never mind, everybody's going to be so happy, you made everybody miss you terribly I hope you know!
Reply
Oh, did I? Sorry about that. I didn't get much of a choice either way.
Reply
Reply
This is all so damn confusing.
While he figures - knows - that someone's in the kitchen, the path to getting there is hardly straight-forward. He finds a chair and sits in it, stares at the ceiling in a way his memory finds ironic. He glances at the stairs that lead to the upstairs level - what was it called again? - then at the booths. The tables. The few people eating and chatting to themselves... It's like he never left.
And after those five minutes of quiet observation, Sanji stands up and pushes the chair back in place, slips his hands into his pockets, and heads over for the kitchen. He spots a man with light hair, back turned - What's his name? Should remember it.]
... Oi. [He doesn't approach completely, choosing rather to ( ... )
Reply
Sanji-san?
[But surprise turns to a bright smile, because that's definitely- well, okay, the beard is new and different, but it's still definitely Sanji.]
You're back!
Reply
Ah, there it is. The memory he was looking for. All at once the hesitancy from before is replaced with something brighter and more at ease. He can't help but grin back]
Yo, Yukito. Guess I can't leave this place alone.
Reply
But it did. And that meant that someone important to her had returned. Her stomach clenches with excitement and she wastes no time, running toward the direction the needle pointed. She hoped mama wouldn't be mad at her, because-because...
Papa!! Big Bro-they're waiting, they gotta be waiting-!!
And it's only when the needle lets her reach her destination that she skids to a stop in the thick under-foliage, breathing heavy with both hands gripping her 'map', determined scowl on her face.
Staring at Sanji, not quite coming to grips that it really was him, that it wasn't all just a weird daydream or a nightmare.]
Big bro...!
Reply
He stares too, tensed up and unsure of why there is a human kid on what should be a fishman island. A slave? That's the first logical jump, but she is dressed in good clothes and hasn't shied from the sight of him.
... Big bro, huh? That hurts. Stirs something. God knows why.]
Uh... [A small, unsure smile, to start with. He squats down to her level] Little Miss, I don't suppose you know where exactly this is, huh?
Reply
Reply
...
Little miss isn't right...
Reply
She's felt... stronger. Much stronger than she can remember being.
She hums a little tune, adjusting her bandanna and returning to the back to start preparing more tea for lingering customers. Carefully taking leaves from one pot, a few herbs from this, mixing and grinding them... It's a wonderful-smelling environment, she thinks. It reminds her of home. Of something natural.
... of a lot of things...
Eyes closed, she sniffs the air and smiles to herself, calling out to the sound of footsteps approaching the back, as she herself starts toward them wiping her hands and focused down at them contently.]
Sheena-san, I think we're running low on green leaves...
Reply
[Sheena isn't the one to answer her. The voice comes from a man; a sheepish-looking one, blonde hair and a goatee, who's been biding his time outside and nearly chewed up a cigarette rather than smoke it properly.
This one... he remembers her name. That he forgot in the first place is a piece of shame he'll harbor for weeks. But at least, right now, he can try to smile, and hope a blank stare isn't his reply.
... He's hoping for too much, isn't he?] I know you might not, ah... remember-- but that's alright! [He's hasty to add that in] It's been a while, after all.
Reply
But. This was not how she expected to run back into you.
Might not remember? Oh, Sanji.]
Reply
...Sanji-san... It's very hard to forget someone like you.
Reply
Xion had been trying -- so, so hard -- to cope with the loss of one of her best friends. Of her dad, her actual and only dad. It was like he'd died. It was -- that bad -- maybe worse -- worse than actual death, here in Luceti. People, at least, came back from that. But when they left Luceti, they didn't always come back. and if they came back, they didn't always remember. And they didn't especially remember broken little memory constructs, puppets, monsters that could barely even be said to really exist.
She had tried so, so hard to be strong. To be brave. To move on. To pretend she'd be okay, pretend so, so hard she started to believe it. She'd promised Sayo, and Nami -- she'd cried all over Axel, and Roxas, and maybe made the think she'd be okay when that couldn't have been further from the truth -- she'd forgotten how to smile -- she'd wanted to live for him. for both of them. She'd sworn it. She'd sworn to herself through a haze of tears so hard she'd ( ... )
Reply
He fucked up. There's no two ways around this. Luceti didn't make him throw out precious expectations to impressionable girls would who be crushed if he left. No no, that's all his mistake. If she doesn't punch him on sight like she should, he'll give himself a concussion just to balance out the negative karma.
The falling bag hitting dirt breaks his concentration, and he spares a semi-interested glance to the side... before his body freezes still.
And suddenly, he doesn't feel ready anymore. A voice demands he move already, go apologize. There she is, idiot. Think of how long she's been waiting! But the order doesn't reach his feet. It doesn't even reach his chest. He keeps forgetting to ( ... )
Reply
Hey. I'm back.
Reply
[ It's the first word out of her mouth, before she can even think to stop it. Her hands are rising, as if to cover her mouth, but she can't quite complete the action -- doesn't know what she's doing with herself. Doesn't know what to think. How to even begin. ]
That's ...
[ It starts in her chest, tight, and sharp, and pulling vaguely to the right. ]
No, you...
[ Her hands complete their journey, finally, pressing over her mouth. All at once he goes out of focus - wobbling, like a mirage, through the tears that have sprung to her eyes. It adds to the unreality of it, the -- the impossibility of -- ]
I ... I was .... I was trying so hard ... !
[ She realizes abruptly her breath is hitching in her throat. Sticking, tight, painful. Her shoulders jump. Why does she always cry ( ... )
Reply
Leave a comment