havenlogs | open | the haven

open | the haven

Who: Little Fai & Anyone
What: Fai comes back from being dead and goes out for a walk.
Where: The Haven, namely the (dead) park area.
When: March 26th, morning
Warnings: Sad...ness...? mention of child death, namely fai's.

[When he first woke up from what felt like a very restless sleep he found that about a third of his plants inside the room had died or wilted terribly. Judging by the poor state his brother was in and the distant look in Kurogane's eyes it wasn't difficult for him to understand that he had died.

He felt enraged and helpless. Maybe if Yuui hadn't been here he wouldn't have cared so much; after all was his life really worth anything beyond ensuring his brother's safety and happiness? Yet with him here he knew without the other saying anything just how much of a toll it took on him to see Fai die a second time. It was a knife to the heart, twisting slowly so as to prolong the pain.]

[A - On the way to The Haven]

[In a day or two he'd start to work on helping restore his plants from their deathly state, but for now he couldn't stand to stay in that room. Mixed with the faint smell of dust and metal the scent of his own death still hung in the air. It clung to his nose and clothes like a stain on his senses. He just needed some fresh air, that's all.

After what happened the last time he left the apartment building he's a little more wary now. He keeps close to the walls, looking every which way out of forced precaution. To anyone else it may just look like he's sneaking about.]

[B - At The Haven park]

[Sooner or later he arrives at The Haven. He had only been once before when it had first appeared and aside from the ghosts that roamed the streets he found peace there. Especially in the park, despite its grim state. He settles down next to a barren tree, dead grass crunching under him. Looking up at its limbs he runs a hand over the flaking bark.]

You must have been beautiful. [He speaks to the tree, feeling a little silly for doing so, but...] I wish I could help you more than this. [Maybe he wasn't just speaking to the tree after all.]

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[There is a girl there, poking at the ground curiously. She seems like she's looking for something, but she glances up when he speaks.]

Oh! Hello!

[She stands up, brushing bits of dead grass from her skirt.]

I'm sorry, I didn't notice there was anyone else around.

[Quite sure he was alone before he started speaking like an idiot to a dead tree, he's a bit surprised to hear someone else there too.]

N- No, it's alright... I didn't see you either. [Fai glances off, standing close to the tree.] Did I disturb you?

No, not at all.

[She walks over to the tree he's standing next to and puts a hand on it.]

It is pretty sad, isn't it? I wonder what things were like around here when this tree was planted...

[On impulse he starts to take a step back, but forces himself not to. His eyes stay locked onto what looks like the remains of a wildflower patch.] Probably a lot nicer. I wish there was some way I could help everything grow back... Maybe then this place wouldn't be so terrifying.

[Her smile brightens as she turns to face him.]

I've been thinking the same thing! I came down here to see if there's any space where I could try planting a garden.

Ah, really? [He smiles a little, finding it hard not to when she looks so happy.] If the soil isn't toxic like the kind up above I don't see why it wouldn't be possible. It'd give me more room to put the rest of my vegetables... [As it was now most of his scattered gardens took up space in the corners of the apartment complex's stairwells and around the hallways.

But a thought strikes him and that smile down.] -Oh! But that is if you wouldn't mind... sharing this space...

No, that's a wonderful idea! If we work together, we should be able to make a garden that's even bigger and better than either of us alone.

[She's caught up in the idea now. Not only would growing vegetables help the town for obvious reasons, seeing obvious signs of life and growth might cheer some people up. And once they saw it was possible, a lot of other people would probably want to help out with the garden too.]

And it'll be more fun than doing it alone, don't you think? And-!

[She stops suddenly, realizing that she might be sounding pushy or even rude.]

Um, unless you don't want to. Sorry, I tend to get carried away.

[He blinks when she says that, surprised, before smiling a little wider. He shakes his head.] No, I want to. I don't know a lot about gardening, aside from what little I read in Haven North and what I've learned through trial and error so... it'd be nice to learn together with other people.

[He moves away from the tree to the dead wildflower patch, brushing the tips of his fingers over the soil around their stems. If she's watching she may see the spark of magic that leaves his hand and disappears into the ground.] With hard work this place could be beautiful again.

One of my friends back home had a garden. I used to help him out a lot, so I do know a little bit.

[She does see the spark, but is too unfamiliar with magic to really understand what he's doing.]

I can't wait to see everything in bloom.

Really? [He looks up at her, eyes wide.] What kind of garden? Did you have flowers?

[He remembers the beautiful gardens from the palace back home. It was one of the few things he enjoyed about that place. They brought him a comfort that almost rivaled his brother's. If he was going to be stuck here he wanted to fill this place to the brim with beautiful flowers.

Fai looks back down at the dead grass. After that spark of magic a few green blades of grass start to grow. Of course if he takes his hand away he knows they'll just as quickly die again, but this tells him something important.]

I can't either. This place can't stay dead forever.

It was a vegetable garden. Things like carrots, and leeks, and cucumbers. He even planted strawberries once!

[She was all set to go on about all the recipes she'd made with those veggies, but trails off in wonderment. She's been here long enough to see all kinds of magic before. Flying and manipulating elements and many other things. But grass growing? Something about that is a thousand times more wonderful. Especially in a place like this.]

That's amazing.... How did you do that?

Strawberries... [He repeats quietly. There were a lot of strange foods that seemed common here that he'd like to try one day. Maybe when he's able to go to Haven North again...]

Huh? [Blinking he loses contact with the ground briefly, but that's all it takes for the blades of grass to wilt just like the rest around them. Fai looks a little dejected at it, but it was something he expected to happen anyways.] I can use magic, but I'm only really good at helping plants grow. Slowly over time, anyways... If I try to grow them too quickly they die. [Like this grass you see.]

[She's a little disappointed when they wilt too, but it's still impressive that he can do that at all.]

That really is incredible. It must be nice to be able to do something special like that. Something that can really make people happy.

[She crouches down and touches the patch of grass that had so briefly come alive.]

What do you think? When we plant the garden, let's put some flowers right here.

[Vegetables will be more useful, but a few flowers can't hurt.]

That's what I hope for... [To make other people happy -- to make his brother happy.

He looks up at her when she kneels down next to him.] What kind of flowers?

Hmm... I don't actually know that much about flowers. But I'd love to see something really bright, like daffodils or chrysanthemums.

[Realistically, they're better off looking for whatever will survive in a dry climate, but Tohru is a dreamer.]

Do you have any favorites?

Yes... I'd like that too. [Even if he doesn't know what those look like.]

I only know of one kind of flower. It was my mother's favorite. [He looks sad for a moment, but the smile lingers.] She'd spend all day out in the gardens surrounded by them. I think it was because they reminded her of my father.

[She can sympathize with the bittersweet feeling of remembering lost loved ones.]

Do you remember what it was called? We might be able to get seeds from Haven North.

I'm sure you're helping more than you know.

[Excuse you brother don't run off like that after dying, you almost gave him a heart attack. Thankfully he could easily locate his brother's magic, shining like a beacon to his mind's eye, and it helped to be able to fly instead of walk. Now he crouches down next to his brother, putting his hands gently on his cheeks and giving him a stern look that soon breaks into a smile - he can't help it. He's far too happy that Fai is alive to be truly angry.]

Don't disappear, okay? [He mostly means that he shouldn't go outside without telling anyone, but there is something else there too.]

Edited 2013-03-27 15:15 (UTC)

[You were sleeping, mister and judging by the bags under your eyes you needed it. No way was he going to wake him up for a silly walk.

Sure he could have asked Kurogane, but that man still pulled a knot in his throat every time he tried to talk to him. It was his own fault, not Kurogane's, but overcoming that little problem was difficult to say the least.

He knew Yuui would find him; he expected it. That stern look delivered a guilty pang to his chest and he glanced away.] Sorry... [Looking back at Yuui he reaches out to gently touch his brother's cheek, ghosting the dark spot under his eye.]

I won't, but only if you take care of yourself too.

Yeah, good luck with that.

[ It's a bit unclear which one of them he's talking to, mostly because in his mind it really doesn't matter. They're both equally impossible though, in a way, Yuui should at least be old enough to do better. It's also possible he's a bit extra grumpy after having come back to the bedroom to find that Fai had somehow managed to ~~come back to like~~ wake up and walk out during one of the very few times Kurogane was out of the room. Or possibly because he had to deal with a practically hysterical Yuui after that which had ultimately led to him being dragged off to this place. At least they'd found Fai, thank the heavens for small favours. ]

How are you feeling, kid?

[He just smiled at Kurogane's grumbling, a bit watery but very genuine, running his hands through Fai's hair. He rubbed his thumbs along his cheeks and then touched his shoulders, his hands, even his knees, as if to check that he was truly in one piece and okay, before pulling him into a tight hug.]

I waited for you.

[That is muffled against Fai's shoulder, and now comes the tears, and he tries to keep from shaking too badly.]

I'm so glad...

[Kids, man. They're like little ninjas sometimes.

He looks over at Kurogane when he comes up, cheeks tinted pink.] A lot better. I'm sorry I worried you. [Honest to God he was. Yuui he could understand, but it was still strange and unfamiliar to have someone other than his brother worry for his well being.

Pulled into his brother's embrace he returns it just as tightly. His fver dreams were still clear in his mind and knowing what they were he knew that they only made things worse for Yuui who could only watch him suffer.

He feels him cry and holds him tighter for it, looking over at Kurogane. He wants to thank him for looking out for Yuui, knowing if it weren't for him his brother may have been worse off. The worst thing is he can't promise he won't die again here. There's nothing he can do, but apologize.] I'm sorry...

[ Tch. Who said he was worried? Only he can't exactly deny it, partly because Yuui is there, and he doesn't want to have to deal with him going all overprotective or something, and partly because, well, he had worried and lying about it would just be stupid. Still, that doesn't mean that he appreciates the assumption!. ]

Hn. Just make sure there's not a next time.

[ He's going to have a talk with Fai about that later, just as soon as Yuui has stopped freaking out about the whole thing. Besides, it would probably be better if Yuui wasn't present at all, considering his overprotective nature. ]

Mage... let the kid breath. He's fine. [ And this is awkward and emotional so stop it. ]

[Yuui laughs damply as Kurogane scolds him, leaning back a bit so that he can have a proper look at Fai's face. One of his hands comes free so that he can wipe tears from his face, but he's not embarrassed of them at all. When it came to Fai, he had never scolded himself for showing emotion, even though necessity had forced him to cover it up for so very long.]

It wasn't your fault, Fai. You don't have to apologize. Instead, when someone is worried about you, you should say "thank you" for their concern, not "sorry", because when people care they want to worry about you.

[He smiles, still a bit tremulously, and fusses with Fai's clothes and hair a bit, before turning his head a bit to smile up at Kurogane.]

And I should say "thank you" too, since Kuro-chi has been so good and taken care of me.

_{[It's a new day. A new day without zombie people, and that makes it a good day, doesn't it?]}

Whatcha doing, kiddo?

_{[The voice comes from up above. Fai might not have noticed the figure sitting in the uppermost branches of a dead tree--morbidly, the dark hues in his clothes blended in with the decayed wood--but he'd noticed Fai. Children tended to stand out to his eyes, in general.]}

[A very good day.]

[He jumps, startled, like he's been caught doing something he shouldn't. It might be that he's starting to wonder if he should have left without waking up his brother, but...]

Jack? [Fai looks up at him in the tree, a little bewildered.] Um, I was going to that city... The one underground?

Scared you!

_{[Jack smiles as he says this, shifting on his hip to peer down at the child. They'd had enough bad scares to last themselves a lifetime, and then some.]}

It's me! It's a long walk down there, what for?

Did not... [A weak denial, puffing his cheeks a little.

He shrugs.] There's a place where it looks like trees and other things grew there and I want to see if maybe the soil is safe or not. I don't want to go back to Haven North again for more soil...

_{[Liar, liar, pants on fire! Jack continues to smile until the kid confesses where he's planning on going--and more importantly, where he's already been.]}

You went to Haven North to begin with?

_{[That gets a raised eyebrow out of him. Wasn't like kids had a lot of parental guidance to go by while in Haven, but still.]}

Those are some dicey trips just to get some dirt.

Well the first time was when everyone went and the second time I went with my brother, so we were alright. [He starts to fidget with his shirt.]

And it wasn't just di- soil. We also brought back food and medicine and things like that, too. [But he isn't planning to ever go back there until those tunnels are cleared.] That was a while back, though.

Brave kid. I'm a Guardian, but I'll admit, it was pretty touch-and-go when I started poking around the subway. That's between you and me, though!

_{[Jack is mostly joking, and his laughter says as much. He could understand why people might be drawn to the tunnels, however--even the kids. There were a lot of useful things in Haven North that a person couldn't get anywhere else, which was probably why Kite and his cronies had made it so hard to traverse.

He swings his legs off the branch he's on, and once he grabs his staff, hops down to join the boy on the ground.]}

Luckily, getting to the underground place is a breeze when you can just coast down! _{[Magical guy who can soar on the wind here, hi.]} But you... you planning on climbing down and climbing all the way back up again?

I have to be brave. Otherwise I'm just a burden. [He can't be useless here, no matter how scared he may be.

The question leaves him hesitating, what with Jack saying it like that... After a moment he nods.] Yeah. I- It'd be good exercise! Right?

What?

_{[Jack blinks at the kid's admission. Where had that come from? Last time Jack had checked, being brave didn't necessarily mean travelling to the center of the Earth. (For a kid on foot, getting to The Haven probably amounted to the same thing.)]}

Since when do kids like exercise? You must really want that... soil.

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open | the haven

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THAT WOULD BE B but yeah

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a!

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