estoria | (no subject)

Entry tags:

(no subject)

Who: Temari and OPEN
When: During the event
Where: Wherever you want
What: So a broken little dove is following her around. What could possibly go wrong here?
Rating/Warning: Nothing too terrible. Some bloody memories, if they come up.

[a]
[Temari of the Sand, sister and bodyguard to the Kazekage of the Hidden Village of Sand in the Land of Wind and respected leader of her village is currently failing at shopping for food. In her defense, she's completely distracted by both the ridiculous selection she apparently has and the small broken dove following her around. No one else has commented on it, so she's pretty sure she's either gone absolutely insane or something weird is happening thanks to this rather unpredictable place.

Hard to say but the way her gaze keeps settling on something that, for all intents and purposes, doesn't seem to be really there while she's trying to read an ingredient list mind garner comments.]

[b]
[The garden is a favorite place of hers already and here is where she finds some time to address the small, sad creature dogging her steps. She kneels but doesn't try to touch the dove -- there's a touch of paranoia still, wondering what would happen if she did try. But even with the paranoia comes aching sympathy; so broken and tattered and just plain pitiful.]

So what happened to you? [She's painfully aware that it seems she's speaking to the ground but Temari has never been that self-conscious.] Poor thing. You should be flying.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

(ooc: But before I just do the thing I just thought, permission to have Ankh's fox immediately throw her into a memory from here?

Also ability permissions for whenever that might become relevant.)

(I am absolutely okay with that, yes!

As for permissions, I'll fill it out when I get a little more time, but Temari's Big Desires right now are: to go home and to find some really good weapons.)

[The gardens have become something of a favorite place for Ankh, as well, if only because there are plenty of trees for him to perch in. And right now, especially, trees are a welcome thing, as are rooftops. Anything that keeps a bit of space between the thing following him around and other people, since nothing good seems to come of it brushing against anyone else.

He sees her kneel down on the ground not far away but doesn't bother looking too closely. The words strike a chord, though, because one of the few things he can easily find sympathy for is a bird that's unable to fly. He glances down again, just in time to see his fox touch her foot, and send her into one of his memories:

Those wings should be his. It's all he can think as he watches Eiji transform into TaJaDor and take flight. It's been so long since he's flown, since he had his wings ripped from him so someone else, someone who wore that same damn suit, could use them instead.

The battle ends. Eiji no longer needs those medals, and now it's time for him to take them back. He absorbs them, and immediately a wing sprouts from his back. Just one, but even if it's only that much, it feels right. Like he's regained a piece of himself he's desperately needed.

But then it shatters. He can't maintain it, and even that one wing has been taken away from him again. His hand shakes as he looks at it, and then clenches into a fist. This isn't the end. It's just that those three medals weren't enough. He'll find the rest, like he was going to anyway, and then maybe...

Maybe he can fly again.

When she comes out of it, she'll find the man from the memory up in the nearest tree, trying very hard to not look the slightest bit interested. She missed the part where he was cursing at the fox because it was supposed to stay up in the tree with him, not go running around trying to find people on the ground.]

[She doesn't see the fox, of course, so the memories come without any sort of warning. Temari falls back off her heels, hand to her chest, and spends a moment in absolute confusion. The longing for flight is what hits her immediately and she gasps even as she reaches for the pouch at her waist.

What is this?

As the memories fade, she comes to her knees and her hand closes on the kunai in her pouch, though she doesn't draw it. Her gaze is almost wild as she looks around and when she sees him, she stares for a moment.] What was that?

[As she's looking around, he's feeling appropriately dizzy. At least he's had this happen before and understands the question, much as he seems less than pleased to answer it.]

A memory you shouldn't have seen, probably.

[She does not pull the kunai; the tension in her shoulders begins to coalesce to something a little more organized, less panicked.]

Yours? [It's not really a question; she can figure that much out.] What happened?

[What happened is an invisible fox ran over her foot, but that sounds more than a little odd. Though at this point he's starting to realise that he hasn't seen the bird she apparently had been talking to, either, and he can put two and two together. Maybe they aren't all foxes.]

You were talking to a bird, weren't you? Something that looks like it's made of fog?

[If she didn't have her own invisible friend, she might have drawn the kunai if he'd said that. Talk about odd. She glances at the dove, wing dragging the ground, and looks back to him.]

It's been following me around all day.

Tch. [So he was right, then.] I guess everyone has one of those things.

[And some of them are birds, apparently. New information.]

That's what happens when they run into someone. They show off memories. [Without permission or giving any clue what the memory they showed might have been.] What was it you saw?

[Temari nodded slowly as she withdrew her hand - sans kunai - from the pouch.] So if anyone brushes against the one following me... [She says it quietly, almost musing to herself.]

[she looks up at him, brow furrowed.] You wanted to fly? [She saw more than that, but that was the general gist of whole thing.]

[He's not sure what moment that was, since that was something he wanted for quite a while. But it tells him enough, if that's what stood out. He moves from his spot in the tree, and he doesn't need his wings to hop down from there, but he spreads them anyway, staying in the air just a second longer than necessary before he lands and lets them disappear again, leaving only a couple scattered red feathers behind. An unspoken answer to the inevitable question of whether he ever got his wings. He looks a bit smug as he glances back at her.]

Yeah. I wanted that.

[She eyes the wings with a long moment, residual traces of longing that's not hers placated by the sight.]

You have it. [She nods.] Good.

I usually get what I want, in the end.

[Doesn't he sound confident.]

I admire those who do.

[If anything there's a bit of a smirk as he turns to walk away before his fox finds an excuse to run into her a second time. Unfortunately for him, he doesn't know where her bird is by now and accidentally steps through it.]

[Temari takes a step forward, hand rising as if to stop him, but too late.] Oh no...

[She stumbles to a stop, suddenly lightheaded for a moment. Her hand covers her mouth, if only because she knows what's going to happen and there's nothing she can do about it. Someone else seeing her memories... Nothing about that is okay.

He'll see snippets of times with her brothers: growing up in a joyless household, scared to death of one brother and trying to protect the other. Monster, they whisper, and she feels frightened and sad all at once.

Gaara, half-transformed into the Shukaku beast, tossing her aside with impunity and she was so frightened she could only cower and cry.

Then the news of Kankurou's poisoning and Gaara's abduction; such fear and grief and anger filled her heart that should hardly move.]

[He freezes for a moment as the memories take hold, and maybe there are hints of the emotions being tossed at him on his face; fear and sadness are too natural in his eyes. He eventually blinks, glancing around to regain a sense of his surroundings as he comes out of it. It's not as confusing as the first time that happened, at least. But still...

His gaze lands on Temari and at this point it's calculatedly neutral, though he looks a little deeper than before.]

[There was no way he would ever accept this as Normal, and Neji's fairly certain he isn't one of the Leaf-nin that this one manages to intimidate so easily. It's just. There was a large gap between Politics, Diplomacy, Partnership, and now-- the Domestic.

At least they had clothing, said a small voice in the back of his head. 'What's the matter, never seen tile flooring' is another thing that comes to his head but Neji Hyuga valued his life, thanks, difficult as it was to believe. That only left the Obvious to fall back on. Again.] Having some difficulty, Temari-san?

[Welcome to the New Normal, Neji. Everyone needs to shop for food. Wait until you see her planting things. She glances up at him, brow raised.]

Not a bit, why?

[Well, she's no fun.]

If you wanted a hand, I'd lend it.

[Because everyone needed to eat, she-wolf of Suna or not.] It took me longer than I care to admit to get used to everyday life here. It also took a while to acclimate to having a spirit trailing behind me- I assume that's what you keep glancing at and that you're not actually admiring the flooring. [Feel free to tell him he's wrong.]

As interesting as the flooring is-- [It's not] --you're right. It looks like a bird who's seen better days.

[Look, she's honest. As much as a part of her might want to snort and walk away, she's actually trying to be nice. It's tough.]

A bird?

[Yes a bird. She'd literally just said. Neji takes a moment to attempt to save face. That means turning to where he supposes the dove that's been following him is supposed to be. It's-- asleep? Preening? Well.] There's a dove with me.

[There are different kinds of birds, okay.] But I can't see yours.

[Temari follows his gaze, frowning when she sees nothing.] At least I'm not going crazy alone.

[She points out where 'her' bird is, nestled on the tile and cooing pathetically.] Also a dove.

[Not that you can, you know, see it or anything.]

[Wonderful, they're birds of a feather.]

No, it doesn't seem the situation's unique to us. [He feels there's something else to say, something a little more important like. Right.] I'd try to keep it close, apparently they can cause trouble if they stray too far away.

[And anyway-] How are you settling into the city?

[Must they flock together?]

Yeah, I'll keep an eye on it. If it's following me, it's there for a reason.

[At least, she likes to think so. She raises a brow at his question.] I'm shopping for food. I guess that's settling in just fine.

[Please no.] That's what one would think, but things don't always make sense in this place.

[For example, how does one even set a ghost on fire.

For example, different timelines.

For example-- CERES beach episode.

So why was Temari looking at him as if he was stupid?]

Everyone has to eat, it doesn't mean you don't have any questions about this place.

[Leon has the angriest black cat following him, and yet he still hasn't put together the pieces that she probably has something too.

No, instead he's frowning, crossing his arms, brows furrowing.]

What do you think you're doing?

[Mind your own business, Leon.]

[She looks up at Leon, frowning and unimpressed.]

Did I offend you somehow?

[Oh... it's so rare that people actually call him out on his rude attitude that for a moment he looks a little taken aback.]

... You were speaking to nothing. I think I am more than entitled to ask what you are doing.

I am speaking to a bird that no one else can see. [Excuse you, it's not nothing.]

That hardly sounds any better.

[Jeeze!!! It sounds ridiculous!!

...But also plausible, especially when he considers his own angry cat following him around.]

At least be aware of how you appear when you do things like this.

[Really? He's going to lecture her about decorum here?]

Does it really look like I care? If I want to speak to something I see, then I speak to something I see.

[She's so blase about it that he's actually thrown by it...... he's not used to people having that sort of attitude about life.

It's kind of confusing.]

...What? [???] Are you not concerned about looking utterly ridiculous?

[Temari stands, hands on hips.] If someone thinks I look ridiculous when I'm doing something perfectly reasonable, that's they're problem.

[... what a mindboggling way to live.]

Nonetheless, it will also be made your problem, won't it?

[She shrugs.] Only if someone decides to call me out on it unnecessarily.

[Was that some shade right there.]

...Hmph. Even so, you looked ridiculous.

[ Shihoudou, a person lacking all sense of personal space, is suddenly up close and personal. She also has a broken dove following her, but she mainly ignores it. ]

Oh! Did you lose your mind too!

[Temari fumbles the package she's holding as she takes a step back and stares wide-eyed at her sudden companion. Personal bubble. Space. This one's never heard of it, apparently.]

My mind is very much intact, thank you. [For now. If that doesn't happen again.]

[ She just follows, apparently insisting on staying way too close for anyone's (except Shihoudou's) comfort. ]

Eh, you sure? It's fun to lose it! It might drop at any time!

[Wow. Okay. Temari puts the box she's holding between them.]

You've lost yours a few times, haven't you?

A lot than a few times, actually! Because granny is shit old!

What is wrong with you?

Oh, lots and lots of stuff! I'm moldy all over and right through!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

(no subject)

B

Re: B

Alright, long intro tag is a go!

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

A

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

b;

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

a

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject