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Post by Akira Yamaguchi on Sept 21, 2009 12:25:46 GMT -5
Akira had stumbled across this shack before, ever since he had kept the path in his memory so that he could return here. It was run down, hardly fitting to live in, but sometimes Akira liked to come here to escape from everything else. He'd never run into someone here and that was why he liked it here. He wasn't so vain enough to think he was the only one who knew about this place, but so long as he could come here for some peace and quiet he was content, as content as he could be.
The blond sighed and ducked into the shack. Layers of dust covered the floor, denser in the corners that he hadn't visited. The thin blanket he had brought a while ago was still there. Frowning at its filth, Akira took off his jacket and lay it over the blanket and sat on that. He didn't lean against the wall because he didn't want to think about how long it'd gone unwashed and instead sat up straight, hands resting on his knees as he closed his eyes.
He had a lot on his mind, but it was about the same old thing. Escape, a way out, but for once he was trying to decide whether he should try to get help. He recollected his failed tries in the past and though they were humiliating, they still hadn't pushed him to find someone to help him out. A partner would just slow him down in the end, wouldn't they? Akira would have to protect them, he'd owe them something if he were helped and he wanted to leave everything about this place behind him when he escaped.
Akira reached into his pocket and extracted a beat up box. He opened it and pulled out a mangled cigarette, almost broken in half and with most of the tobacco falling out. He stuffed it in impatiently and lit up a match, ignoring the sound of the increasing winds as he lit the smoke and inhaled deeply. Now he was truly at peace, he always felt agitated unless he had a cigarette in hand. Akira flicked the ash off the end and looked through the small hole in the wall. It looked like it might rain soon. Looks like he'd have to stay out here longer than he anticipated. Ah well, he didn't care.
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Post by jezebel on Sept 22, 2009 3:25:43 GMT -5
Half lidded ruby eyes slowly roamed the wide expanse before them. The Crimson Woods, as it's been named, was all but deserted. A few animals hurried along here or there, but all in all, Jezebel didn't see another boogie or slave in sight.
The intricate hem of the woman's dress dragged along the ground behind her, countless belts clinking together with each step. In Jezebel's well-manicured grasp she held a smooth, polished umbrella handle. Like the trees forming a canopy above her, a dome of black plastic protected her from the soft pitter patter of rain.
In the other hand was a small stuffed creature. Its eyes seemed almost sewn shut in the form of two "x"s, and its mouth was turned into a tiny frown. To counter the almost depressing look, a red ball stood at attention, drooping only slightly on a stick that protruded from the creature's head. This stuffed animal, affectionately dubbed "Moogle", was Jezebel's most prized possession. She never left anywhere without it.
A gentle sigh escaped the boogie's lips; it figured the day she was actually free to do as she pleased, the weather would reflect her sour attitude of every other day. As such, her mood wasn't at its highest point. She made the conscious decision to ignore the tiny pang of annoyance however, and do all she could to spend a day to herself.
Tightly laced leather boots crunched and snapped every stray twig and fallen leaf in their path, coming down with precision and accuracy without missing a beat. This went on for several minutes, Jezebel's hair ornaments swaying and occasionally clicking upon impact. All noise ceased however, as the view of an old shack came into sight.
Jezebel knew of this place. It wasn't a shock to see it, but she hadn't actually taken the time to venture into its depths; not for years, anyway. Ordinarily, the brunette would bypass something as rundown and what some would call common in Wonderland..but Jezebel was in no hurry.
Picking up her pace, the boogie approached the decrepit building, a hand reaching out to twist the doorknob. With a loud creaking noise, the large oak entryway granted Jezebel access. Stepping over the threshold, she dully noted the heavy layer of dust on the floor as it muffled her boots.
Glancing up with an almost bored expression, she soon spotted a small surprise: another person was present in the room, and a man at that. Raking her gaze over him, it was easy to tell he was a human. If not for the almost bedraggled appearance, the sight of his clearly mortal eyes gave it away.
Jezebel tilted her head slightly, not taking her eyes off of the boy as she lowered the umbrella and pulled it closed. "What's someone like you doing in a place like this?" she asked softly, jerking her arm quickly and watching with slight revolution as small droplets of water immediately appeared on the coat of dust. [/size] |
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Post by Akira Yamaguchi on Sept 22, 2009 14:57:21 GMT -5
Akira almost decided to take a nap while he sat there. The soft sound of the rain hitting the shack was almost soothing and if he closed his eyes he could pretend he was at home. Besides, he was exhausted and could use the rest. He was just about to snub out his smoke and close his eyes when he saw the handle on the door move. All thoughts of resting abandoned, Akira sat up straighter and stared at the door, wondering who was on the other side. He hoped that whoever it was was human, the last thing he wanted to deal with right now was a Boogie. He didn't have a good view on them, didn't matter how they felt about humans, he didn't like Boogies.
The woman who stepped through the door was unlike one he'd ever seen before. It wasn't just her intricate outfit, which seemed consisted mainly of belts and buckles, or her carefully styled hair that he couldn't even follow due to all the activity there, it was her eyes. He noticed it the moment she entered the shack, looking highly out of place in such a run down environment. They looked ancient, as if they had seen the world a few times older. This led him to believe that the figure standing before him was probably a Boogie, but he'd made quick assumptions before in his life and they had led to trouble so he kept that guess to himself and stood up, just to be more on guard if he needed to be.
He didn't answer her immediately, he was gauging the situation. Akira wasn't the type of person to run from a problem, if a problem even arose, but he did like to consider his options before boldly starting something. For the time being, all was well and he crossed his arms nonchalantly over his chest, inhaling the last of the cigarette before tossing it to the floor where the dust quickly smothered the flame.
"Nothing astounding," he said. "I just prefer solitude to crowds, figured this was the best place to go."
Of course, her showing up here kind of made his whole quest for solitude pointless, but it was clear that she wasn't expecting to run into anyone either. Then again, who would ever really seek this place out? Despite his wariness of her presence, Akira had to admit to himself that he was curious why a woman such as her was doing in this dirty shack.
"I told you why I'm here, what are you doing here?" he asked.
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Post by jezebel on Sept 22, 2009 15:32:51 GMT -5
Jezebel's eyes left the boy briefly so as to roam the interior of the room. They glided over upturned furniture, peeling wallpaper, and cobwebs galore. The proof of small animals taking refuge in the shack was evident from the small makeshift nests, and termite damage was also quite visible.
"Exploring," the boogie replied almost sarcastically, gaze swiveling back to stare at the human. She lifted the closed umbrella and slipped it into her loose sleeve before raising her now free hand to her face. In an almost elegant fashion, Jezebel's slender fingers smoothed a few rogue strands of hair out of her eye.
"It was a nice day," she continued, "and I thought a walk might be nice. Unfortunately.." she trailed off and gestured to the door, "I need shelter until the weather calms down."
Her hand grasped the doorknob once more and carefully, the woman closed it before slowly making her way towards the human before her.
Bending forward, Jezebel placed once hand on her thigh and levelled her face with the man's, Moogle firmly clutched under one arm. "Unless you'd prefer I leave," she commented softly, hair falling once more to conceal one eye, lips forming into a natural pout. OOC: God, I love being sexy.... *snort* xD[/size] |
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Post by Akira Yamaguchi on Sept 23, 2009 12:39:33 GMT -5
Exploring...why did Akira feel like that wasn't the whole truth? Maybe just the way she said it, either way he wasn't really in the mood to puzzle over the true meaning of her words. It was an answer and that's all he'd been looking for.
So, they were going to be stuck in here together until the weather cleared. Of course, Akira didn't really mind the rain so if she got on his nerves he could always leave without much qualms. For now though he'd remain. Akira was rarely lonely, in fact...being near people usually ended with him getting annoyed, but at the same time she seemed intelligent enough, he felt certain he wouldn't have to worry about her making some nonsensical remark, of course, that meant he'd have to be more on guard too.
He watched as she closed the door, the muffled click sounded like a final warning, his last chance to leave, and yet Akira remained rooted to the spot, his arms still crossed casually as he simply watched her step closer to him.
When that pale face came closer to his Akira was able to see those eyes more clearly until her hair covered one. There was definitely a long history behind that eye and Akira suddenly had the notion that he was definitely not staring at a human. He frowned inwardly but kept his outward appearance composed. "I'm not so rude as to send a lady out into the rain," he said with a light shrug.
"Besides," he said. "I may prefer to be alone but if the company isn't annoying then I don't mind it."
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Post by jezebel on Sept 23, 2009 18:50:10 GMT -5
Jezebel gave a slow nod of her head and eased herself away from the man's face. Stepping away quietly, she stared down at the human in an almost curious fashion.
If it weren't for the almost sixth sense all boogies had, she might just mistake him for one of her own. He held the appearance of a toughened, world-wise individual. The way his eyes seemed cold and standoffish looked very much like they had seen many things. Unfortunate circumstances maybe, that caused him to harden himself against outsiders.
A thumb subconsciously rubbed along Moogle's stomach in a soothing manner. Her gaze traced the interior of the dim room, searching for a place to rest a moment. Upon finding nothing, the brunette turned back to the matter at hand.
"Would you also permit a lady to sit with you?" Jezebel inquired softly, the ghost of a smile flickering across her lips. OOC: Short crappy post is short and crappy. shot[/size] |
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Post by Akira Yamaguchi on Sept 24, 2009 14:17:59 GMT -5
Akira's first instinct was to say 'no' but that was because he was just so used to turning people away. Still, he had an idea that even if he did that wouldn't particularly stop her from doing so, she didn't seem like the type that would just listen to someone else when it came to a thing like sitting down. Therefore he simply shrugged and raised a hand.
"Be my guest, I don't mind," he said.
Maybe it was the rain that was making him so hospitable. If one could call it that considering they were both holed up in some desolate shack, but since she wasn't showing any signs of doing him harm, Akira really didn't see the point in being his usual self. Yes he was still guarded and he wasn't going to suddenly pore his heart and sole out to a pretty woman on a rainy day, he tried to avoid cliches as much as possible, but it'd grow terribly awkward in this small place if he were to be a complete bastard to her.
He glanced down at the coat he'd laid out over the blanket he was sitting on and with a sigh and shifted to pull it away from him and tossed it over to her. "I wouldn't trust sitting on this floor without something to cover the dirt and dust," he said.
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Post by jezebel on Sept 24, 2009 20:01:24 GMT -5
With a grateful nod of her head, Jezebel strode back to the blonde and, bunching her dress with one hand, eased herself until her back hit the wall. Drawing her knees up to her chest, the woman cradled Moogle close to her heart.
Curiously, the boogie glanced at the boy from out of the corner of her eye. She took in the outer exterior of his body. A truly handsome face, free of any blemish or mar. His skin looked rather pale in the dim light, though his ice-blue eyes shone brightly. The woman was momentarily struck by the pure beauty of such a gaze before coming back to herself. Giving an inward shake of her head, she hugged the stuffed toy closer.
"Jezebel Locke," she spoke softly, peering at the boy beside her, "That's my name."
Though she was a boogieman (or woman, as the case may be), this lady was never one to forget her manners. As such, introductions were all but necessary.
"May I ask your's?" she questioned softly, raising a hand to brush away her bangs. [/size] |
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Post by Akira Yamaguchi on Sept 24, 2009 20:16:24 GMT -5
Akira couldn't help but feel...studied a bit as she looked him over. Not that he really cared much, people could look all they wanted, besides it gave him an excuse to take in more details of her appearance. She looked like a porcelain doll, except far less delicate. Graceful, yes, but there was an air about her that told him she was not a person to be crossed. Perhaps it was just the dark and mysterious air about her, but as Akira really had no desire to start anything today, he was going to keep any confrontational remarks to himself. Besides, he never actually started a fight unless it was necessary, there just wasn't a point to random arguments.
She broke the silence with a name and Akira only then realized that they'd made no introductions yet. It was fine, things were moving slowly and Akira had no complaints about that. If things moved quickly, people were liable to expect something about him, information on his past, his hobbies, and all the other nonsense that came with meeting someone new.
"Akira Yamaguchi," he replied levelly. "So far it's been a pleasure."
He was hoping that that wouldn't change. Akira was actually feeling somewhat at peace. He was still slightly on edge around her, simply because he didn't trust anyone and hadn't expected to run into someone out here, but he was an honest man. So far, there was nothing to complain about.
"Do you explore often?" he asked, deciding to keep the topic on her rather than himself.
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Post by jezebel on Sept 24, 2009 20:37:51 GMT -5
"Akira Yamaguchi," she repeated almost whimsically, testing the name on her lips. As if deciding something, Jezebel gave a nod of her head. "Alright, Akira-kun."
Though the woman had never been outside of Wonderland (and definitely not to the human world), she was quite savvy with the different customs there. Because of Jezebel's motherly demeanour, she was prone to taking in lost children if they were wounded or else owned by a corrupt boogie.
Because of this, she had made rather decent friends with a few humans and was even taught their language to a degree. Though she didn't flaunt it, Jezebel was quite content with her extensive human knowledge without even any hands-on experience.
At the boy's next question, a soft smile graced her lips and a quiet chuckle rose from her throat.
"Not often, no," she replied, eyes dancing amusedly, "I usually don't have any spare time." Looking to her side, she tilted her head in an almost teasing fashion. "And yourself? Do you make it a habit of hiding in abandoned homes?" [/size] |
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Post by Akira Yamaguchi on Sept 24, 2009 20:47:12 GMT -5
Akira blinked, he definitely hadn't expected to hear himself referred to as Akira-kun. Was she? He looked at her and realized that he probably looked as surprised as he felt and quickly brought the mask up over his expression again. He cleared his throat slightly. "It's been a while since someone's referred to me that way," he said. Actually, he'd never been called that, he was too young, it had always been Akira-chan, but still, technicalities didn't matter right now. What mattered was Jezebel seemed to be a window to his former life. A reminder that it hadn't been a dream.
One thing was clear, Akira couldn't possibly hate her, not yet anyway. He knew it was a trivial thing, the added title, but at the same time it wasn't, it was one of the most pleasing things he'd ever heard since he'd come to Wonderland. It even brought a faint smile to his lips as he shook his head. Who would have thought today would turn out like this?
He frowned at her question and shifted his weight. "I'm not hiding," he said, miffed. He wasn't...was he? No, he refused to think that he hid from anything. His frown remained as he glanced over at her again. "I just needed a place to think," he added. He let his gaze take in their surroundings. "As I'm sure you gathered, this place doesn't get a lot of traffic, today must be some sort of exception."
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Post by jezebel on Sept 24, 2009 22:02:19 GMT -5
"Is that a bad thing?" Jezebel inquired curiously, a tongue peeking out to lick at painted lips, "I just thought it might be suitable, considering your nationality."
Ruby eyes traveled downwards, fixing on the assortment of buckled belts. With a slight furrow of her brow, Jezebel trailed a hand towards a loose one and with a tug, fastened it again.
"Oh, excuse my assumption then," Jezebel replied evenly, hand returning to its earlier place atop Moogle's head, "It's not often a human is found in these woods, though," she added.
Long fingers stroked the face of the stuffed animal in her arms. "Tell me," she continued, fingers ceasing any movement as she turned her gaze to Akira, "Does your master know where you are?" [/size] |
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Post by Akira Yamaguchi on Sept 24, 2009 22:13:35 GMT -5
"No, no...it's not bad," he replied. Akira paused for a moment. "In fact, I appreciate it, just took me a bit by surprise is all." Why the hell was he acting this way? Normally he'd just say that it did bother him just to bring the other person down and shut them out. Maybe it was because Jezebel was so considerate about it that kept him from being an ass hole.
At her next words his speculation was ended. He had been pretty sure that he was in the shack with a Boogie, but her calling him a human certainly cemented that assumption. The usual prejudice crept into him once more and he kept the suspicious glare from his face, but at the same time he had to wonder. What was her agenda? How did she feel about humans? Apparently she didn't mind talking to them, but Akira knew there were some pretty twisted Boogies out there that would only be too happy to make a human believe they were safe.
Why did he always have to think that way? Akira frowned inwardly. Just keep your guard up, other than that stop being such an idiot about this and assuming the worse he scolded himself. He shrugged lightly. "Yeah, well guess I'm not like most humans then," he said with a slight smirk. He certainly didn't band together with any of them. "Maybe they're just afraid of getting lost."
Akira frowned again at the mention of his master, his hand curling into a fist as he stared straight ahead. He hated, HATED when someone brought that up! He should count himself lucky, Garland, though odd, didn't really seem to care much about him at all. At least he didn't try to torture him much, he was a prankster, but Akira tended to avoid him as much as possible. In truth, he didn't even know what Garland thought about his wandering, and he certainly wasn't going to start worrying about it. He didn't care at all. He didn't consider himself to be anyone's slave!
"Don't refer to him that way," Akira snapped. "I don't know nor do I care whether or not he knows where I am, if he does that's his problem. I'm not about to go bowing to the whims of anyone, you Boogies may have your ways, but there's no way in hell I'm going to just lay down and let you walk all over me." Crap, lost his temper again. He went and lumped Jezebel with the rest of them even though she'd been nothing but courteous to him so far. Ah well, he was used to pissing people off.
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Post by jezebel on Sept 24, 2009 22:29:39 GMT -5
Despite the clipped remark, Jezebel kept her unwavering gaze on Akira's face. Inadvertently, she had hit a sore nerve. This wasn't the first time, however. There had been plenty of times children had shouted at her for less. As such, when humans snapped at her, Jezebel wasn't shaken by it.
"I don't know nor do I care whether or not he knows where I am, if he does that's his problem. I'm not about to go bowing to the whims of anyone, you Boogies may have your ways, but there's no way in hell I'm going to just lay down and let you walk all over me."
At this, the boogie's eyes softened marginally. A pale hand rose slowly and placed itself on the blonde's shoulder.
"I'm sorry," she replied quietly, thumb rubbing soothingly on the tense muscle, "I hadn't meant to upset you." Judging from the way he reacted, it was obvious the man was a loner. Even more so, he appeared to loath the idea of belonging to anyone, and perhaps just from being claimed he had a preconceived notion of all boogiemen.
A small pang of hurt lit up in Jezebel's chest, but she ignored it. Though she prided herself on not being the typical boogie, most didn't know it. [/size] |
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Post by Akira Yamaguchi on Sept 25, 2009 1:13:38 GMT -5
Akira nearly shrugged her hand off of his shoulder, but he didn't. He tensed far more than he was already because he wasn't one to be touched and he glared at her. He only allowed the contact briefly before he decided it was only going to make him feel worse and he moved out of her reach, standing up and pacing around the shack. He couldn't believe this. So much for this being a peaceful little encounter. No, he should have realized better, he was dealing with a Boogie after all.
Wait a minute, she had said she was sorry. No snide remark, no gloating tone, no telling him that he was just a lowly human. Akira stopped his pacing and turned to look at her. Her expression was difficult to read, but in the very least he didn't think that she was lying. If she was, it was impossible to tell and he didn't think she really had a reason to lie. From what he saw, Boogies didn't mind telling humans just how pathetic they were.
"I just don't like the term 'master'," he said, his voice sounding tired. Realizing how harsh that may have sounded, he lifted a hand to rub the back of his neck, feeling awkward. He never felt awkward...what the heck was going on with him right now? Akira grumbled to himself before crossing the floor and sitting back down, his posture rigid and his eyes closed to try and gain some composure so he didn't make a complete fool out of himself.
He was quiet for a moment before he turned his gaze back to her once again. "I just don't see where Boogies get off," he said, making sure that his statement didn't blatantly include her this time. "Stealing humans and then making them slaves, what the hell gives them the right?"
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