Waking the Dead 2.0 || May 16, Shin Yamatai || Coming Home.

[icarusalsoflew]

[He had been... vague, whenever they had asked him exactly where they were going. Lenneth had known the moment he had oh-so-casually mentioned a detour now that the Hounds were done with their route. It had been in her eyes.

At least she is loyal. At least she respected him enough to say nothing.

He leads the War Hounds through a forest in the far reaches of the island, and they end up stepping out to a waterfall. A little further down, along the river, there's a beautiful house there. It's been restored to its former glory, properly furnished, renovated and modernized wherever it had to be. There's a garage, for one.

He takes just one moment out take the sight of it in, and try not to think of the ghosts. It never gets easier, coming back here, and yet...

Turning to them with a smile now.]

So. This was my old house. I think we can take a break here for now.




[OOC Notes:
+ The Shinta House is your typical traditional Japanese home from like, centuries back - furniture is all old and traditional. Yes, there are photos from lots of different life times here and there; if you want deets, lemme know. There's a garden out back, a small training hall, and a path into the forest that actually leads to the graves of his parents.
+ Feel free to make your own threads if you guys want to explore on your own and talk to each other! You're also welcome to tag Hikaru's thread, which I've put down there just because.]

Comments

[larue]

[ A small smile touches Josh's face at that. ]

He saved our lives.

[ He's not sure if Setsuna knows, and he's not going to assume even if there is a likelihood that she does; so he'll elaborate. ]

Stan had been sent to pick me and Yulia up and to take us to Falner. We hadn't known at the time, and he'd only really told Yulia -- but a Grendal agent had piloted the plane. God only knows what would have happened if he hadn't intervened.

[sadame]

[She doesn't respond immediately because she's peering up at you, and looking through your memories. She doesn't just see what you remember, though: she sees everything that led up to that point. The subtle details. The words and intent between everything else.]

I see.

[She tilts her head at that point, ears twitching.]

It is likely that all of you would have died. He must have seen something that the rest could not act on fast enough, and moved accordingly.

[Just because he could.]

[larue]

[ Ducking his head now, and scratching behind those ears again.

He's recalling those files he'd sifted through, what little he'd found before Lorenzo Reyes had elaborated further.

Quietly now, because he's also remembering something else: the Great Hall, shortly after the South Korea engagement, that ban. The patterns that had led up to the urge to seek out the Blade King and get some answers for himself. ]

He does a lot of saving, doesn't he?

[sadame]

[The extra passenger in your head is letting out an amused snort, as if what Josh had just said had been the most obvious thing in the world. Setsuna, in turn, is briefly staring right at your forehead, Josh, as if she heard Makoto do that.

(She did.)]

It is something that the two of us were keenly interested in doing together in the past. You could call it our way of sibling bonding.

[larue]

[ A quiet smile then, both at what you said and how you reacted to the other voice in his head. ]

That's a pretty nice way to bond.

[ Yes, he knows it might sound a little naive. But it really is a pretty cool way to spend time with your sibling, especially given that you are both two really powerful beings. ]

[sadame]

[Chuckles.]

I am glad you think so. We did meet a lot of wonderful people because of it.

[Members of the three blades included.]

[larue]

[ He's falling quiet again, and gently stroking the fur down your back. It's a nice kind of quiet though, peaceful. ]

[sadame]

[This one, on the other hand, is completely at home with the attention. And it IS nice here, all things considered.]

Thank you, by the way.

[larue]

[ Blinking at that. ]

What... for?

[sadame]

For walking with my brother. For giving him a chance.

[Looking up at you now.]

Few people dare to do that.

[larue]

[ Scratching you a little shyly behind the ears at that. ]

I'm just glad he lets us. [ That confession is soft. Kaz had called Hikaru a friend and the other man had lifted an eyebrow at that. ] He's a pretty great guy.

[ His eyes fall to those ring again. ]

[sadame]

[She's following your gaze down, then looking back up at you.]

If Makoto-san has not said anything, perhaps you need to give him more time.

[He is probably reeling from being abandoned. Being left in a state where he could not move freely, could not follow the one he cared about.

She knows the feeling.]

[larue]

[ There's a long pause before Josh finally lets out a breath. ]

Thank you.

[ He was wondering about the silence. He's used to it where it concerns Coach, but he doesn't know much about Makoto just yet.

He's going to shift now; get his legs back under him. ]

Would you like to head back to the house?