A Day Off in the Mist (Open RP)

[Kirihara Takumi]

"Are you sure?! Err..." Takumi coughed, trying to settle down. "I mean, are you sure? I wouldn't mind at all if you wanted to just lie down for a bit while I cook... Um... sorry about the outburst, it was silly of me..."

"Stupid, stupid, stupid! I'm being such a terrible host, first with not getting her fed and now with the outburst... No, relax. I need to relax..."

He was about to reach into his robe for his flask of shochu, but stopped himself - that would be a very bad idea with her around... Instead, he picked up his cup of tea and downed the rest of it quickly, closing his eyes and letting out a sigh afterwards.

"Right..." he said absently.

[Hishime]

‘Are you sure?!’ The man practically screamed at her. The girl took another step backwards, starting to feel a little more nervous. A cold shiver went down her spine. ‘I mean, are you sure? I wouldn’t mind at all if you wanted to just lie down for a bit while I cook.’ His voice was much calmer this time, which was a delight for the shinobi.

Hishime just stared at the man with innocent, deep eyes. Watching him as he reached inside his robe for something. Then, he suddenly picked up his half-empty teacup and drank everything in one shot.

‘Right..’ Takumi mumbled, placing the cup back on the wooden table.

“Right..” Hishime repeated quietly. For some reason, her heart was racing in her chest. Her breathing was heavier and her face a bit paler but also warmer at the same time. Silence filled the empty room, both of them didn’t speak. She looked away, now staring at the floor, feeling rather uncomfortable out of a sudden.

[Kirihara Takumi]

Usually Takumi didn't mind silence, but this one was very uncomfortable... He glanced at his guest and noticed that she had gone pale (or rather, paler) and taken a step back...

"Sorry," he sighed wearily... He was so frustrated with himself at this point...

... And she was looking away from him completely. That wasn't a good sign...

"Calm like the ocean long after the storm..." he whispered to himself, as if to make it true in himself. Takumi sighed again as his soft blue eyes stared at the floor in front of his feet. "I hope i didn't scare you..."

[Hishime]

‘Sorry..’ Takumi apologized quietly. ‘I hope I didn’t scare you..’ Hishime looked back up at him, but didn’t look his straight in the eye. She cleared her throat awkwardly. She could only blame herself for letting her emotional part take over, even if it was just for a few seconds. The look on her face turned back to what it was before; curious, deep eyes and a little smile, while she still had her guard up.

“No.” The kunoichi spoke softly. “But I suggest you don’t raise your voice like that. It would be very unusual to scream for someone who lives alone.” A short pause followed, allowing the ninja to take a deep breath, and push away the softer part of her. “And it wouldn’t be a good thing if some people came by..”

By saying this, she was giving away a lot of personal stuff, actually too much for her liking. She probably had a lot to explain by now. But she felt like she had to tell him that, it would be important later. She only hoped that he wouldn’t ask a lot of questions. But, then again, she could always just avoid answering them, like she usually did.

[Kirihara Takumi]

"Hmm... I suppose you're right." Takumi looked up, and was puzzled at the way her expression reverted to a curious innocence... Now it seemed to him thoroughly untrustworthy and unnatural... like a mask. And from what she was saying, it didn't sound like she was really supposed to be here. Takumi frowned, unsure of what to do. His expression went completely blank, and he stared at the wall.

"You should probably get started with the meal. I'm sure you're very hungry," he said in a dull voice. Things were getting so complicated... and he had a feeling it wasn't going to stop here.

[Hishime]

‘You should probably get started wit the meal. I’m sure you’re very hungry.’ The man was acting differently than before. He was looking away from her, the tone in his voice had changed. All this was enough for Hishime to know that he didn’t trust her anymore, at least not completely.

“Yeah..” She mumbled quietly. “I probably should.” Like before, her answers were short, yet showing exactly what she meant. She still felt a little nervous, although she was hiding it. When her other side took over, she had practically ruined everything. Starting with trust, ending with a shelter. But, for now, he would at least let her eat something, which was already a big thing to her.

“Show me the way, then.” That smile crossed her face again. The little smile. The smile that would always hide her true feelings, the smile she hated so much. “Any suggestions?”

[Kirihara Takumi]

"... No, feel free to make whatever pleases you," Takumi replied in that same dull tone as he led the way to the kitchen. "Just... nothing from that case," he said, pointing to a black box sitting in the corner. "I have plenty of rice, miso, tofu, dried seaweed... Konoha ramen... Yep, whatever strikes your fancy..."

Takumi shuddered at his emotional void - if he were capable of hatred right now, he would hate being like this. He just switched off all emotion... but he needed to figure out what he should do without them getting in the way.

"Oh yes," he continued. "The eggs are over here, the vegetables here, the meats over here, utensils here... I don't have any fish, I'm afraid. I normally go out to eat for fish. Kirigakure is good at fish," he noted blandly.

"Gather more information first, no decision can be reached until a clear picture of the situation comes into view," his thoughts told him, as emotionless as his face and voice.

[Hishime]

Hishime shut her eyes tightly for a short moment, quietly following him to the kitchen. The emotionless tone in his voice, she didn’t like it. It was hard to believe that she could sound like that. To be honest, she wasn’t really listening to what Takumi was saying. Her eyes shifter across the room, it was pretty much the same as everything else, simple but nice.

It didn’t feel right, at least not to her. Takumi had been so nice before, and now he sounded so cold. Slowly, the shinobi untied the pouch from her hip. “Please take this..” She muttered quietly, holding the pouch in both of her arms, eyeing the man with softened eyes. “My medical equipment, plus my weapons. To prove that I won’t cause any harm.”

[Kirihara Takumi]

Medical equipment...

"So you're a medical ninja?" Takumi asked, a spark of curiosity rising in his voice. He carefully took the pouch from her and held it as if it might break at any moment. Medical equipment, and her weapons... that's what she says, at least. She hasn't exactly been proving herself trustworthy. But... the look in her eyes...

"All right, I'll put it somewhere safe... but soon enough we will need to have a little talk, you understand?" Takumi walked over to the doorway, but stopped. "But thank you..." he mumbled, his voice barely audible. With that, he left her alone in the kitchen, going off to put her gear in a safe place.

[Hishime]

A deep sigh came from the kunoichi’s lips as she was finally left alone. A little talk? She had had a lot of those ‘little talks’ in her life. Every one of them was practically the same. What’s your name? Where are you from? What are you doing here? Who’s after you? Etc. All the annoying, yet painful bullshit.

With a curious look on her face, she wandered across the small kitchen. Now she only had to figure out what to cook for dinner. Something simple? Something fancy? She carefully opened the fridge and cupboards, and started to collect the contents that she would probably need. Nodding proudly to herself, she began cutting the needed vegetables: carrot, celery, ginger, asparagus...

It took about twenty-five minutes to get everything finished. The rice was cooked, the vegetables ready, the chicken done. Quickly grabbing two plates, she placed them carefully on the worktop. She gently took a spoon, putting a bit of rice in both of the plates. She filled the other half with the vegetables and chicken. She had to admit, it wasn’t much, pretty simple actually, but it had the vitamins and calories that were needed.

[Kirihara Takumi]

"Maybe I'm being a little too hard on Yuki... I mean, I'm sure she has her reasons for everything..."

After a while, Takumi had started doubting himself. He had started acting so cold to her... Did she really deserve it? And demanding that they have a 'little talk'... Did he really have the right to pry?

"Of course I have the right, but that doesn't mean I should," he thought. Takumi dwelled upon what their little talk might include... "... Her real name. I'd like to know at least that much... Beyond that... I'll let her decide what else needs telling. But I will need to lay down some rules..."

Takumi laid down on the floor, letting his imagination run loose. Perhaps she was a missing-nin on the run from her homeland for the sins she has committed... That would certainly explain a lot. Or maybe she was sent here on a secret mission as a spy in preparation for a large-scale attack, or perhaps as an assassin... Maybe she has some terrible disease she means to unleash upon our land, but it will take her a while to make it sufficiently contagious, or perhaps she'd need to stay until its work was completed so she could destroy it before her land could take over the area safely... No, no, she'd given him her medical tools, that one couldn't be it...

Medical tools... All of his other ideas seemed much better suited to other sorts of ninja, not medical ninja... except maybe the one about the missing-nin. Still, just because it was possible didn't make it true... but if it was? If it was, what would he do? Takumi closed his eyes and sighed, trying not to think too much. Answers would come. They always did.

[Hishime]

Hishime started at the food, actually ignoring her hunger. She inhaled deeply, trying to calm herself down, even a little would be acceptable. She was nervous, very nervous. ‘A little talk’. What if he wanted to know everything? What was he thinking about her? Would he betray her? Would he believe her? Would she still be welcome? Many more questions filled her head...

She slowly glanced over her shoulder, looking at the door, then quickly looked back forward. She always managed to get herself in these situations. Would it ever stop?

According to the way Takumi was acting towards her, she could tell that he had extreme doubts about her. She was sure that he was wondering if she was a missing-nin, like all the others did. And she would probably have to explain everything. But, there was one special thing that she prayed he wouldn’t ask her. ‘Why did you run away?’ Sure, she could just blow that question away with another mysterious answer, but it was painful. Very painful. And knowing the situation she was in right now, there was a chance that she would also have to tell him about that...

The girl wandered across the room like a lost child, finding herself a wall to lean against. She exhaled, letting herself slide down the wall. She hit the floor with a barely audible thud.

‘Yuki’ just stared out in front of her, not knowing how much time had passed since she was sitting there. Being honest, she admitted to herself; she was scared. Her hands were slightly shaking, her face warm yet very pale. She was afraid of what was about to come; the future.

[Kirihara Takumi]

Takumi was on his back, staring at the ceiling as countless thoughts ran through his head, analyzing and calculating, trying to determine his next actions. He just couldn't keep his mind quiet.

"If she's a missing-nin... I can look into that on my own, there's no need to ask her at this point. Inpolite, perhaps, but probably safer that way. I can always ask her later, after I know. Of course, it'll be easier to find out about her once I get her real name...."

Takumi glanced over at the kitchen. Yuki was certainly taking a long time... He sighed and got up from the floor.

"Better go check on her..."

When Takumi appeared in the doorway, he saw Yuki sitting against the wall, pale and shaking - was she okay? Takumi gave the slightest of coughs to get her attention without startling her too much. Fear... that's what it was. She was afraid...

She was afraid...

[Hishime]

Hishime bit her lip, trying her hardest to stop her shaking at the very least. What if someone saw her like this? What would they think? She could already imagine what they would call her; coward, crybaby, --

A silent cough shook her out of her thoughts. She didn’t even look up, just stared at the floor, wide-eyed. Her heart was racing, her breathing heavily. “C-can’t you just leave me alone for one f*cking m-moment?” The girl would have slapped herself for stuttering, but that wouldn’t change anything about the situation.

Takumi had caught her, curled up into a ball, shaking and pale, what would he be thinking? She didn’t even want to know. Slowly, she moved her hands towards her face, resting her forehead on them to make it even harder to see her eyes. She inhaled deeply, then exhaled. She had to calm down, this wasn’t going to help...

[Kirihara Takumi]

"... Of course. My apologies."

Giving a slight bow, Takumi disappeared back into the other room. He'd actually left her alone for a while, that's why he went to check on her. Takumi once more rested on his back, staring off into space while he waited. His thoughts had fallen completely silent now, which was probably just as well... Absently, he began to softly sing something he'd made a while back...

"Staring at the ceiling
Tracing the patterns with my eyes
I get the feeling
You'll soon be home to criticize
My way of living
Can't stand to look into your eyes
So unforgiving
They just see a fool that never tries
You don't realize..."

Takumi drifted off, not bothering to finish the song. It was pointless anyway...