[Closed] Starts with a Walk

[Willoria]

[Plotboard] All Friends Here Saori was walking through the marketplace alongside her new friend Yoshiko. The place was busy, and quite noisy, both things that she knew might make her friend anxious but in a way... that was the point. The Enkouten woman looked over and put a hand on Yoshiko's shoulder, trying to give her a small smile. "First step is the one you take out the door." she said, giving her shoulder a light squeeze before letting her hand drop. "I know you're probably on edge, but I'm here, and this is home. Even if you see things that remind you of him, that's a good thing here." In truth though, Saori felt so far out of her depth. She had no concept of how to help someone who had gone through a trauma as severe as Yoshiko had.

It was why she had done the first thing that came to mind, just took the woman on a walk through the market, hoping to learn more about her. Perhaps old favorites would help her, old haunts? She wasn't sure, but it had to be something.

[Kabu]

Life since the incident had been so very hard for Yoshiko, the young woman not having so much as left her home for some time now. Luckily her rescuers had been patient with her, willing to stick by her side and visit with her every now and again, taking the time to help calm her trauma, she even becoming friends with them in the process, and now the next step had finally came. It had taken some time and a long talk but eventually she had relented, letting Saori lead her outside to hang out with the hopes that they could get to better know each other and that the familiar sights and sounds would further help her.

And that led to the present, Yoshiko nervously sticking close to Saori as they walked through the marketplace, the young Kamizuru's wings nervously fluttering as she looked around at all the people passing by. Some part of her wanted to run back home and lock the doors but she couldn't do that, she knew that. The time for hiding had long since passed, no matter how anxious or nervous she was. "Yeah, I know. It's just... the village feels like such a different place now with all that's happened. It's a little scary." she responded to Saori, looking up at the Enkouten's face a moment before looking back down.

"You know Saori, I really appreciate what you're doing for me. It can't be easy for you." she said after a moment's silence, looking back up just in time to notice that a light snowfall had begun, finally cracking a very small smile at the sight. Despite having been around it all her life she had always loved the sight of a light shower. "Ah, I had almost forgotten just how pretty of a sight this could be."

[Ree]

Kumori woke from his deep sleep, surprisingly well rested. This was rare for him, sleeping through the night. No night terrors, no dreams at all actually. At least, none that he could immediately recall. It was strange, but he couldn’t complain. Rising from his bed, he thought about spending the day relaxing within the Fukusha compound. He might read a book, do some exercises, either way he was looking forward to not going into the village. Kumori loves his alone time. However, he was hungry and his activities would have to wait until he ate some food.

Rummaging through the cabinets in his small dwelling, Kumori begrudgingly realized he had been so focused on training throughout the week that he had not stocked up on any food. He sighed, as his plan to isolate himself for the day would not pan out. Unwillingly, he changed out of his bed clothes and got dressed in his usual day to day attire. Putting his shoes on, he exited his building and walked toward the exit/entrance to the Fukusha compound.

As he trekked through the village toward the marketplace in the center, it appeared he had dressed appropriately. A light snowfall had begun. Although he didn’t particularly mind the snow itself, he did have a few memories of his clan’s nomadic days living through harsh winters. The memories weren’t too terrible, though they weren’t fond memories either. He had supposed that joining the village always had its pros and cons, one of the pros apparently being housing. Shrugging off the thought, Kumori put his hands in his pockets and continued walking.

The marketplace didn’t seem abnormally busy, though Kumori had not wanted to be around people at all that day, so it felt like quite a bit more than usual. Pushing past people as he looked around for appetizing food stands or shops, he tried to keep bearings of his surroundings. Some people glanced at him, others held a gaze, and some ignored him entirely. After all, with his black and red hair he did stick out a bit, so he couldn’t blame them. The Fukusha emblem dangling from his neck didn’t help either. Trying to ignore people but also keeping tabs on them proved difficult. He stopped at a street food stand and purchased some dango on skewer. Pausing to take a bite, he once more looked around him. During this visual sweep, two women had caught his eye. One of them had red hair, and the other proved Kumori’s hair wasn’t so unique, being black with streaks of red. This woman also had wings that seemed to flutter nervously. Intrigued by this physical attribute, but not wanting to seem like he was staring, he took another bite out of his dango as they walked in his direction, apparently in conversation.

[Willoria]

Saori smiled almost sadly at her friend, shaking her head. "Nothing about this is hard for me." she told her, giving her a significant look. "You're not a burden, Yoshiko. It just takes time to adjust sometimes and I'm happy to help you through this. I told you that when I found you. I'm not leaving your side. I meant that." Saori looked up at the snow too, a shiver running down her spine in spite of her jacket as she shook her head again. "Honestly? I've never been that fond of snow. I wish we had a bit more sun really." she remarked, having a chuckle at herself for the statement. More sun in Iwa? Not likely. In fact.. impossible.

As they walked along, Saori suddenly caught sight of something. It seemed to be a food stand, and as Saori and Yoshiko got closer, she could see a boy there eating dango. Of course she saw his clan symbol rather quickly, as well as his uniquely colored eyes, but what really caught her eye was the dango. "Oh I could use some good dango!" she suddenly said, grinning as she practically ran over to where Kumori stood. "Is there's any good?" she asked in a rush before turning to order some for herself.

[Kabu]

"Daichi wasn't all that fond of snow either. He would always complain when we were kids and I would bug him to go out and play in it with me." Yoshiko said, giggling at the memory of her brother's annoyed face whenever he had to deal with any amount of snow. Despite still feeling a great deal of nerves and anxiety she was feeling strangely chipper.

The pair continued walking along for a while, Yoshiko surprisedly looking over towards Saori as the Enkouten made a sudden proclomation about dango and ran ahead, heading over towards a strange looking boy, coincidentally, or maybe not, eating some dango. The boy at the moment wasn't really what mattered to her though...

"Ah, Saori! Wait up, you're a lot faster than I am!" she cried out, taking off at a run to catch up with her much faster friend, panting once she had finally caught up. "I'm sorry about my friend. She's a rather excitable sort." she said to the boy, taking a note of his rather unique eyes as well as his hair color, which strangely enough matched her own in coloration. So this was a Fukusha. She had heard of them but had never actually met one before now.

And with that she turned to join Saori up at the dango stand. "Jeez Saori, running off like that that wasn't fair. I want some too."

[Ree]

As Kumori was finishing up the first half of the four dango on his skewer, he took his eyes off the pair of women walking through the marketplace for just a moment. By the time he glanced back, it appeared as if one of them were charging directly at him. Startled within but reluctant to show it, he simply faced the woman and maintained his cool physically whilst being on edge mentally. It wasn’t often people rushed him in public like that, and if they did approach him, it was rare that the intent was pure.

Kumori listened skeptically as the lady asked him if the dango were any good, turning and ordering herself some before waiting for his response. Raising an eyebrow, Kumori was on guard but intrigued by the overzealous woman. He refused to let his guard down, as he had grown accustomed to having it up at all times. Within seconds, the other woman she had been waking with, the one with wings, approached as well. This made Kumori twice as uncomfortable, though he should have expected such as they seemed to be shopping together.

Closing his eyes briefly and shrugging, Kumori acknowledged the question, but had less intentions of carrying on a conversation. “I’ve had better.” He said bluntly, shrugging at the same time. As the winged woman with similarly colored hair followed her friend, he listened, though preparing to walk away from the pair. The winged one apologized for the first woman’s behavior, proclaiming her to be the sort that’s easily excitable. “It’s fine.” Kumori said, again bluntly. Feeling the assessment of her eyes on him, Kumori took what he thought was a hint to leave. Who knows, he was quite awkward and untrusting in any situation regarding strangers.

The polite thing to do would be to make small talk, but the young Fukusha never opened up to anybody that easily, pretty faces or not. With a half ass smirk that he hoped spoke for itself and his impending departure, Kumori slowly turned away from the pair, taking another bite of his dango has he did so, careful not to let his guard down. Curiosity killed the cat. he thought to himself, though he wondered if the ‘excitable’ one would let him off that easy.

[Willoria]

Saori hardly listened as Kumori only assessed the food in such a bland way. She was practically bouncing on her feet as she waited for her order, taking it and turning to Yoshiko just as she said she'd want some too. She immediately offered her the second one she'd ordered with a grin. "I know!" she piped up, clearly having bought the second for her friend. She took the first bite and hmmmm'd a moment before looking at Kumori a moment. "You're right." she admitted, betraying that she had actually heard him. "Not the best, but decent." She seemed oblivious even to the fact that the boy was trying to leave, reaching out a hand to put on his shoulder to stop him it seemed. "I know a place that has the best though!" she exclaimed, looking over at Yoshiko with a hand still on Kumori's shoulder. "We should all go."

Without asking and without apology she grabbed a hand from each Kumori and Yoshiko with one of hers, intertwined their fingers with her and started moving off towards their new destination. She seemed to be particularly outgoing and insistent this day.

[Kabu]

"Well, I do agree that these do seem to be a bit underwhelming." Yoshiko said, taking a moment to chew on her dango before nodding in agreement. It had been a long while since she had last had Dango but she did remember having had better in the past. That said, she had no idea what was really going through Saori's mind, until the woman made a sudden exclamation and grabbed both her and the boy by the hand, leading her over towards some new destination.

"Saori, wait, what's gotten into you?! We should at the very least introduce ourselves first before trying to drag along someone that we just met." she said, looking over at Kumori out of the corner of her eyes. "I'm so sorry! I'm Kamizuru Yoshiko and my friend is Enkouten Saori. Seems like you're going to be going along with us for a time."" she said with a sheepish smile.

Really... what had gotten into Saori to have her be acting even more excitable and insistent than usual?

[Ree]

The woman had bought some of the dango from the stand as the young Fukusha turned to leave and finish his grocery shopping. She had been admitting that the food was in fact subpar, as her friend agreed, before grabbing Kumori by the shoulder. Startled, he flinched slightly, not ready for the disregard of boundaries, especially from a stranger. Although the woman seemed like she had good intentions, Kumori didn’t trust anybody. He couldn’t tell if she was oblivious to the fact he was attempting to leave or simply didn’t care.

Saori, who had yet to introduce herself, announced that she knew of a place that had better dango than the ones they had all consumed, all the while speaking with a hand still on Kumori’s shoulder. It wasn’t as if Kumori was awkward, he just wasn’t one to seek social interaction or allow it reach further than an exchange of words, so he wasn’t quite sure how to handle the situation at hand. Even if they weren’t immediately opinionated when learning of his lineage, it was extremely rare anyone went out of their way to talk to or include him in anything. With this, he was pulled from out of his comfort zone entirely when the woman announced they all should go and traded her grip on the boy’s shoulder for his hand, interlocking their fingers.

It appeared she had done so with her friend as well, who looked almost as skeptical. Saori had begun to pull them off into the opposite direction Kumori had been heading for. Although off putting and odd, Kumori didn’t feel an imminent threat from the women, but he knew he could never be sure. The more bashful woman questioned her friend’s behavior, identifying her as Enkouten Saori after introducing herself as Kamizuru Yoshiko. She also informed Kumori that it would appear he would be accompanying them.

Still skeptical and not entirely interested in having a meal with two women he had quite literally just met, or anyone at all for that matter, he wondered about some things. First of all, where was this Saori leading them? He couldn’t help but be curious about better tasting dango, though he did need to purchase some food to prepare at home. In the back of his mind he wondered if this could be some sort of ambush for one reason or another. He also wondered how he might be able to get out of this sudden, forceful commitment. He wasn’t used to such interactions with others besides his clan, and he was almost always devoid of emotion. Still, something about Saori seemed almost...motherly. Somewhere deep down inside of him he longed for that feeling but was more terrified of it than anything.

Just then he realized maybe once he actually acknowledged his familial ties, maybe they would not be so keen on keeping his company. Almost gritting his teeth, he did not return the sheepish smile from the Kamizuru. He had recognized those names, but did not know much about them. The women were older than him apparently, so he was sure they would know of his clan. “I am Fukusha Kumori.” He responded, not acknowledging her comment about him joining them as he was strung along by the Enkouten.

[Willoria]

In truth, Saori was trying her hardest to get a smile out of the boy. In the market she had spotted him from afar, his gloomy demeanor practically palpable, even at that distance. The woman was a shinobi, she was no stranger to depression and to violence, but to see one so young stuck in an eternal gloom simply broke her heart. Just as the way Yoshiko kept isolating herself bugged the woman and she'd felt a need to act, so too had she felt a need to act with the boy. But while getting a smile out of Yoshiko was proving easy, the boy seemed.... stuck. She pulled the two along to another restaurant, bringing them inside with her. "I'll take my usual spot." she told a waitress as she passed, stopping only at a corner booth. She finally released the two and removed her jacket, tossing it into the booth before sitting into it heavily and leveling her eyes at Kumori.

The smile was gone. The sparkle in her eyes were gone. Every bit of mirth had vanished.

This shift wasn't unfamiliar to others who knew Saori, who had seen her fight. The woman was completely a happy-go-lucky sort normally but in battle she was serious and never played any games. A fight was life or death and suddenly that shift had come on here. Her eyes were fixed on Kumori as she leaned against the booth, sitting sideways as she looked at him. "I'm inviting you along for a reason." she informed him, the music in her voice and words was gone as well, leaving behind not the woman but the shinobi. "Yoshiko there just got back from a mission, she lost near everyone that she cared about and I'm dragging her out to try and have some fun. No matter who dies in our lives, life keeps going on. We can let it pass us by or we can jump in, feet first." she continued, her eyes never moving away from the boy. "Your family, your clan, has endured an atrocity. I won't get into the politics of why or how, I'm not high enough up the chain to form an opinion there. But you are apart of Iwa now, and your clan's outlook of eternal isolationism will not gain you friends." she told him.

She sighed, leaning back in the seat a moment as she regarded him. "Your elders, the higher ups, they are set in their ways and they hurt. You hurt too. But you're young, you have a chance to make something of yourself here, and I am simply trying to offer an olive branch. One individual to another. Some of us need to be examples for the rest, show that a Fukusha can indeed make friends.... among the Enkouten... among the Kamizuru." As she spoke she motioned to herself and Yoshiki individually as she mentioned their family names. "Maybe you didn't wake up today thinking beyond an errand or a bite to eat... but sit, have a meal with us, and we can start the very slow process of healing the hurt done to yours."

[Kabu]

Yoshiko had seen this side of Saori only a couple times before but those circumstances had led her to know very well what it meant. This wasn't Saori when she was playing around and trying to pull along her friends for a good time. No, this was Saori when there was a job to be done. Hell, this side of the woman had been Yoshiko's first impression of her, complete with the sight and sounds of her captors and their hideout both having been completely destroyed in a flood of lava. It had frankly been a little bit shocking to find just how different Saori could be in public, but really, she was happy for it.

She took a seat beside Saori, removing her coat but remaining silent as she listened to Saori speak to Kumori, nodding every once in a while, smiling sadly at the mention of her own losses. Saori's speech honestly applied as much to her as it did to Kumori, albeit indirectly, and she fully realized that. As much as it hurt her, and she wasn't sure she would ever fully recover, the loss of her brother hadn't been the end of the world and It was really thanks to Saori and Kizami opening up to her and getting her to open up in return that she had realized that and been able to come this far.

"Saori is right, sit with us and I'm sure that we can become friends. Trust me, I'm fully aware it's not easy to open back up after being hurt so badly. The loss of my brother is the worst thing that's ever happened, and probably will happen, to me but I've begun to realize that with time, and the help of friends, things will get better, a little bit at a time. And I'm sure that the same can and will apply for you as well."

[Ree]

As Kumori was dragged into a restaurant that wasn’t too far away, he was beginning to feel overwhelmed. Saori informed the hostess she would be taking her normal spot, and plopped down into a booth after releasing their hands. Yoshiko followed and sat as well. Kumori eyed the two women once more and reluctantly sat down across from them. He didn’t know why he was still with them, but he wasn’t used to the kind of forceful kindness being exhibited. Suddenly, things got very serious.

Saori sat sideways in the booth with her back to the wall, and began addressing Kumori more directly. She seemed to be explaining why she picked him out of the crowd, beyond simply craving street food. The overzealous tone she had before had dissipated as she took on a more serious one. Considering neither one of them responded very much to his introduction of himself, he had assumed they either did not have much knowledge of his clan or were simply not prejudice against them as some of the villagers he had encountered were. From the direction this conversation was going, it proved that Saori at least did have some knowledge of the clan. It was pretty common considering how short of a time period they had been in Iwagakure, but it seemed as if she was peering right into the boy’s soul.

The dissertation of sorts was started by an acknowledgement of Yoshiko losing almost everyone she cared about on a recent mission. Saori explained that she had dragged her out and about to try and help her move forward with her life, as life goes on regardless of who has perished. Kumori listened attentively, though had to hold back a scoff as the image of his parents being murdered in front of him crept into his mind. He still looked at Saori emotionless, as he saw Yoshiko nodding out the corner of his eye. He held Saori’s eye contact as she continued, addressing the Fukusha more personally now. She acknowledged the atrocity of a large chunk being wiped out before the Fukusha were indoctrinated into Iwagakure, though didn’t believe she was informed enough to have an opinion on it. Saori also said that their inclination to isolate would earn them no friends. Kumori didn’t think friends were necessary.

Leaning back with a sigh, she looked at Kumori and continued. It was true the elder Fukusha were stuck heavier in their ways, but what Saori was offering to the young boy was an olive branch, and seemingly some kind of companionship. This could set an example among all the clans. As optimistic as this sounded, Kumori was not completely convinced. She finished off by offering to help him heal, and Yoshiko chimed in corroborating the details of what Saori was saying and that she was attempting to heal. While this all sounded good, it was difficult for Kumori to come to terms with things. After all, it was his father’s dying wish for the clan to join Iwagakure and attempt to make up for their own crimes. That was before he was executed right in front of his son. This was after an Iwagakure Shinobi murdered Kumori’s mother for trying to protect him. He was just a little boy.

Pausing for a moment, Kumori debated if this was even worth telling them. They seemed nice and seemed to have good intentions, but he wasn’t sure if he was ready to unravel the feelings he had been fighting so hard to keep buried. He wasn’t sure how he would act if he addressed them now, let alone with strangers. He decided to start by addressing Yoshiko. “I am sorry for your loss.” Kumori’s voice was monotone, though very sincere. He then spoke to both of them. “I’m afraid my life has been more complicated than what you may know about my clan alone. I don’t know if healing is possible, though I appreciate your offer and will join you both…” pausing again, Kumori then added “...if you’re paying for the food.” He smirked slightly, hoping this would get them off the subject of pain.

[Willoria]

Saori smiled as Yoshiko joined in, explaining what had happened to her in her own attempt to help the boy. It made her happy to see Yoshiko reaching out in such a way to someone she did not know. 'This could help her more than anything I could have planned...' she thought to herself, turning to Kumori as he spoke. She nodded as he mentioned things being more complicated, of that she had no doubt. She knew she could be over simplifying the situation but from her position it was the most she knew about the clan really. She could only guess what this boy had been put in the middle of, and Kumori accepting the offer of food simply brought a grin to Saori's face. "You got it." she said as a waitress came by to take drink orders and give menus.

Saori of course ordered a green tea with strawberry slices, sugar, and brown sugar, as she hated how bitter tea could get and seemed to have fun making it as sweet as possible. Once they'd given drink orders she'd simply turn to Kumori again. "I'm telling you, they have the best dango here. I mean honestly most of their food is amazing but the dango is definitely one of their best." The chippy and happy side of the woman had returned, Saori more than happy to drop the serious mood for now. In truth she hated being serious, but it was a simple side effect of being a shinobi. No matter how much she wanted to be, she simply couldn't be cheerful all the time.

"So let's see... have any hobbies, Kumori?" she asked, looking at Yoshiko as well. "How about you? I don't think we've talked about hobbies at all yet."

[Kabu]

"Of course Saori is paying. She's the one who dragged us out here after all." Yoshiko said with a grin, ordering a tea for herself though not adding much to it, actually preferring her tea to be a bit bitter. "Good dango is one thing but if the rest is good as you say I may have to order something else as well." she responded to Saori's remarks on the restaurant's quality, feeling quite a bit hungry herself.

That aside she was honestly happy to see Saori drop the serious mood, really feeling that it didn't quite suit her despite it having been present the day they had met due to circumstance. And she could feel that the woman herself felt the same way though had seemed to accept it as just part of the shinobi lifestyle. Though she really couldn't blame her for that.

Long in thought as she was, she was taken aback as Saori suddenly asked about her hobbies, a red tinge crossing her cheeks as she let out a nervous chuckle, suddenly feeling a bit shy. "Umm... well, I... like tending to flowers. I picked up the skill to keep flowers in the house for the sake of my swarm but I've come to actually really enjoy it. And I've also recently picked up and come to enjoy sweet making, mostly with things involving honey and the like. I'll make sure to prepare some for the next time you come over. I've really gotten quite good at it." she said, honestly feeling a little bit embarrassed to be revealing these things, especially in front of someone she didn't even really know yet.

"So what about you Kumori?"