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Post by Hitotsugi Sorano on Dec 28, 2006 22:13:43 GMT -5
Gossip, that is. Keeping track of such must be an acquired skill Sorano never learned, because five or six rumors later, and she was completely lost as to what was fact or fiction. Emperor this, embargo that. War, maybe; or maybe it's all a government ruse to scare everyone?
Either way, being blind to the situation was a bad idea. Too bad getting the facts straight was all but impossible outside of the castle.
Maybe I should've stuck around a bit longer...
She frowned, taking a broad, tired sweep with the broom in hand and leaned back on her heels, looking out a window in a bit of a daze. The change of surroundings was nice--there were trees to look at, which she liked. In all the buzz at market, it was a relief to have been able to come here and feel a sense of peace.
Best choice I made all...life! she thought, lips twitching to a thoughtful smile.
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Post by Kyokutei Ieyasu on Dec 28, 2006 23:08:11 GMT -5
The bustle of the market would drown out any insecurities of silence within the household. There was a light wind in the air, causing the floorboards to creak and the sweeping noise of the broom - a synthetic rhythm at that. Of course the home was like his native tongue, where only he could slip through the doorways and move forward without the hint of disturbance. Sometimes big pictures never made a different; one of them was sharing a home with Sorano. This was his queue to turn the corner, eyes slanted - irises aglow. Sorano, the frail prey within his trap, was an easy target to hit.
Hitting, as brutal as it sounded, was his term for flinging after the girl in a full out graceful pounce. Not enough to really face plant Sorano but definitely enough to startle her. After his arms were tugged around the girl's shoulder blade, Kyo tilted Sorano back into his arms - seeing the broom held upwards in an attempt of defense. "...Hello there!" He greeted, smile fitted into the portrait of his expression.
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Post by Hitotsugi Sorano on Dec 28, 2006 23:18:31 GMT -5
"Eep!"
Sorano squeaked in surprise, arms jerking the broom up in a poor attempt of retaliation. Falling back a bit and turning her head to get a face full of light, familiar hair, she huffed in what would have been exasperation, but she couldn't really muster up any hostility.
"You scared the daylights out of me!" she cried, as if that would make up for the mouse-like reaction she had. Biting down a laugh, she pulled against his arms feebly.
"Welcome home, anyway. I didn't think you'd be back so soon!"
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Post by Kyokutei Ieyasu on Dec 28, 2006 23:32:20 GMT -5
The lids of his eyes raised and his eyes took on a glass-framed. His neck was craned to the left as he looked down at Sorano, enjoying the twisted view made by surprise. "The sun is inside of you?" he mocked at the cliché expression, knowing very well the sun would always stay in the sky. At the slipping gesture, he hoisted Sorano back up to her feet and allowed his arms to digress. "You should always expect the unexpected?" he questioned, wondering if that was his try at advice.
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Post by Hitotsugi Sorano on Dec 28, 2006 23:42:26 GMT -5
"I guess I should also expect to die from shock sooner or later," she retorted lightly, turning to face him and prodding his shoulder with the broom handle. "Had my needles been in hand, I might've accidentally stabbed you, you know! I'd feel bad, but it'd be your own fault."
She propped the broom up against a nearby wall, and then pointed at the ground before him. "You forgot to take your shoes off again," she remarked with what should have been agitation, but was rather lighthearted instead.
"Where did you go today?" A rather dull question, but Sorano was genuinely curious; he seemed to have a natural ability to meet odd people or just...get himself into trouble one way or the other.
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Post by Kyokutei Ieyasu on Dec 28, 2006 23:51:44 GMT -5
The prodding took him off guard and he tilted to the side a little, eyes shifting to the right. His attention span decided to shift momentarily before he rolled his head down to stare above his toes. Apparently he had a bad habit with his shoes, like he never picked up the tradition by removing shoes. Promptly, he bent down and picked up his shoes before running away from Sorano. Kyo had tossed them outside the door, allowing one of them to roll on the wood and land next to Sorano's shoes. He came back, with a wide grin.
"Either way I probably would have deserved the stab, with karma and all.." there was a sage nod from him before he crept up a little closer. "Today .. I considered signing up under a false name to get back into the Shogun's unit to rip his head off and bunt it across the ocean to China. Then I decided that was highly improbable as well as impossible, so I came home to see if you had any better ideas." It was hard to tell if he was joking or not.
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Post by Hitotsugi Sorano on Dec 29, 2006 0:02:38 GMT -5
Sorano shook her head with a smile as the boy ran off to deposit his shoes outside. He was an enigma, wrapped in a condundrum, for sure. She leaned up against the wall she had set the broom as Kyo returned to give his reply.
Listening, she wasn't sure whether to laugh or not; it wasn't easy to interpret what was serious and what was a joke with this guy. Nodding and tapping her finger on her lips for a moment, she hmm'd and then answered.
"Maybe it'd be easier to join up with a group opposing the Almighty Jerk and go that way? I mean, surely somebody's fed up enough with the nonsense going on to take action, right?"
She shrugged a bit, twining a couple fingers in her hair as she thought about it. "It seems a little more sensible than sneaking back in there and being recognized, and then killed and who knows what else."
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Post by Kyokutei Ieyasu on Dec 29, 2006 0:09:52 GMT -5
The tapping was like a withdrawal from cocaine and he slowly moved forward to place his hand just above Sorano's. To bystanders it would probably appear as though he was holding her mouth shut from speaking further. Then there was the motion of the hair and his free hand lifted to catch that as well. Though in reality, Kyo was no harm, he was just easily distracted and amused by the smallest gestures. "That's a good idea, I have an idea where and who I can go to.."
"..unless you want me to use 'we'?" He wasn't so sure if Sorano was in this with him. But out of his own annoyance he let his hands slip away from Sorano's.
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Post by Hitotsugi Sorano on Dec 29, 2006 0:15:19 GMT -5
Days ago, the closeness would have greatly alarmed Sorano. She was used to it, more or less; he wasn't trying to harm her, so why should she have to be worried? Still, she couldn't help but watch out of curiosity at his reactions, trying to get some kind of pattern out of it all.
"Really? Who?" The notion of meeting someone just as fed up with the Shogun, and able to do something about it...
At the question, she started, ears reddening a bit. "Well. I mean, it's your call, ultimately. If you don't want me to get involved, I'll..." she looked up sheepishly, "probably go behind your back and get involved anyhow.
"So. Yeah, uh. Yes--'we'. That works."
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Post by Kyokutei Ieyasu on Dec 29, 2006 1:03:38 GMT -5
"The anti-shogunate people?" he asked, knowing he just stuck a fancy word at the front of 'shogunate' to make it seem like such a group existed. "I'm quite positive a group like that would exist but getting information like that is really underground. That would mean more traveling. To leave here, that may take weeks or even months before he get a heads up on the information. I wouldn't be surprised if Akiyama is sending a group to find them now."
Kyo's noticed the change of the girl's flesh and he laughed quietly. "So are we going to go find this group or pretend like I didn't throw anti in front of the word shogunate?"
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Post by Hitotsugi Sorano on Dec 29, 2006 1:16:20 GMT -5
Sorano made to quickly clasp her hands together in affirmation, but had forgotten the one hand tangled in her hair. Yank, wince; she hastily wrestled her hand free and folded both in front of her.
"Let's go find them before the Shogunate finds them first, then! I mean, it's only an underground organization working to overthrow the current government."
She bit her lip momentarily, considering all that Kyo had previously mentioned. It did seem slightly..unlikely that they would be successful.
"It'd be easier if we had a lead. From somebody on the inside. Some hearsay, or paper..papers..." She blinked, then jumped slightly, struck with a sudden realization. She almost smacked her forehead for her ineptitude.
"I took--well, scavanged a bit of document from the castle, while I was still working there. I never looked at any of it, but I kept it anyway. There might be something useful in that."
Or not, she interjected to herself glumly, even as she moved to go and uncover them from her small pile of belongings she had brought with her.
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Post by Kyokutei Ieyasu on Dec 29, 2006 20:30:12 GMT -5
Kyo trailed after the girl, amused that she even bothered to use other words that would divert from 'stole'. She was a saint compared to everyone else but she had a dark side as well. As she moved through the pile to take the papers, he started to pace behind her - eyes rolled up towards the ceiling. "Well, it would have to be someone Akiyama knows and trusts. I mean clearly, if Akiyama knows you don't like him .. you're good as dead," the truth was hard to swallow but he said it anyways.
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Post by Hitotsugi Sorano on Dec 29, 2006 21:57:39 GMT -5
Sorano grimaced a little at Kyo's statement. Well, that's true enough. If either of us show up there again, we're pretty dead.
"Nothing...nothing...nothing..." Sorano's pile of useful stolen papers was gradually starting to look like a pile of worthless notes. Her expression got a little more annoyed with each passing scribble and sidenote.
"Oh, wait!" she grabbed at a piece of parchment she had just tossed aside after glancing at it only momentarily. Squinting a little, she gave it a second look.
"There's a passing mention about country samurai that might be planning to stir up trouble." She turned the note around, looking for additional writing. Finding none, she frowned a little.
"Well, that was useful." She looked over her shoulder, up at Kyo. "I don't have any clue where they'd be at. Well, besides not here."
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