1/25/2003
02:33
AM
Logfile
from Chase.
Villa
Palladio
-------------------------------==============-------------------------------
Historic
elegance -- the Italian architecture of this home, being one of the first and
only in New York City, is classic. Four ivy-covered columns line a central
section, shrouding the main entrance in shadow, while two wings are set several
feet behind. Something akin to white stucco covers dark grey brick, though many
windows are set into the stonework to provide light to the interior, though
shutters of pale orange sit to each side of each window. Well-known to be a
historical landmark, though its once-large front lawn has been reduced by city
development, the low brick wall -- once the interior wall -- is still intact,
complete with wrought iron gate (that, it must be said, has a unobtrustive
automatic opener) leading up to a small garage.
The
inside is, upon first look, as elegant as the outside, well-suited to holding
social parties and other such things, but glimpses into other doors show a
different face indeed: comfortable, overstuffed furniture and soft light,
mingled with the trappings of modern life -- television, computer, and such --
provide a note of family life, and from the wear upon the furniture, it's
well-used. Books are left scattered here and there in the family rooms, while
the rest of the house is pristine.
Anana(#253)
and Brice(#250) are here.
Exit:
Exit (to Broadway - off 72nd Street)
Waiting
out by the gate is a casually clad Anana, complete with knitted hat and
mittens, seeming /far/ more comfortable in such than in, say, her uniform.
However, patience is not one of her virtues; she continually checks her
cellphone and shifts impatiently from foot to foot, waiting for someone or
something. Which would be, of course, Brice and Chase. "C'mooooon."
Chase
trundles along beside Brice, smile just a wee bit wry. Arms are shoved into his
pockets. Hat? Mittens? Bah, its nice out. Silly Anana. Silly, silly girl.
"And you should have see the way she was looking at that Hiroshi kid. I'm
telling you... those Suzaku... Don't trust them as far as I can throw
them."
Brice
has - thankfully - mananged to acquire a much thicker coat over the past couple
days, so Anana may not recognize him through the coat and scarf and the two
bags over hsi shoulders (damn classes) - but Chase is a fairly obvious
give-away. "You may not, but Trevor's all right. Haven't met the others.
And Miaka passed the test, whatever you say - I still fully expect Ash and
Anana to castrate you for that, you know."
Some
people didn't live for two hundred years sans a body in an ice cave. It's bound
to up a person's cold resistance. Anana spots the two, then waves and skids
neatly across the icy-then-slushy sidewalks. "You took your time... and
Trevor's nice, yeah. Castrate him? I think Ash wouldn't like that, but anyway,
let's get inside? I left milk in the microwave for hot chocolate, and I have
marshmallows, too, and /news/."
And she
promptly opens the gate to the villa, dragging (should they not protest
overmuch) the two up to the front door.
Chase
is immediately giving off his most innocent smile, "What? I have no clue
what either of you are talking about." He chuckles though at Anana's
rather exuberant greeting, and thus the dragging of his person as well.
"Goodness, Anana. Did someone feed you a chocolate bar or something
today?"
A
twelve-year-old has a cell. Damnit, Brice needs one. And gets dragged, pretty
much expecting it from the Genbu females at this point. "How much hot
chocolate have you already had, kid? And yeah you do Chase, don't give me that
look." He finds his feet again once inside and begins upwrapping his head
and neck from the scarf-entombment. "And what's this news about?"
Dragging
the two into the same family room as before, complete with comfortable chairs,
books, TV and assorted other things, Anana quickly disappears, then returns
with three mugs of hot chocolate balanced on a tray. "It was /cold/,"
she protests, pulling a face at both of them. "And I only had one mug
before you got here. And news, right. The Suzaku and Seiryuu seem to be fairly
neutral at this point towards each other, or so Hiroshi said after you-"
She levels a glare at Chase this time. "-left me in his apartment and told
me to talk to him, and do you know /why/ I act like that around him?"
Chase
is really good at That Look, thank you very much. He has had a very long time
to practice it. Usually it actually works. Durn. He is drug within, murmuring,
"Okay, nice place, shorty. Clearly you are affording this on your paper
route salary." He shrugs off his jacket, readjusting his ball cap, and
then reaches for a mug with a nod of appreciation. He blinks owlishly back at
the girl, "Because you have a crush on him."
Brice
has to muffle a snort of laughter into his just-accepted mug, making lotsa
little bubbles. Chase has a point with the Hiroshi thing. "Don't start on
the house, I've already gotten the lecture. And that's the news? That the
Seiryuu and Suzaku are getting along all right?" Somehow he definitely
expected more than that. "That's nothing you couldn't have said over the
phone. What else is up?"
Anana
quirks an eyebrow at Chase. "No, Dad's on Wall Street, and Mom likes
entertaining, so we have this house," she explains and all but facefaults.
"Not really." Sardonically. "He has a bit of a crush on me, and
he's very nice, but he watches out for me, and I get more information that way,
plus he watches out for Ash." Self-delusion is lovely, really.
"Chase, you already know this. But it's got to do with the priestesses. At
this point... it looks like to stop the four yin gods, all four of /our/
priestesses are going to have... to summon our Gods."
Chase
flickers a glance askance to Brice, the twinkle in his eyes having nothing to
do with the light. "Actually, I'm rather surprised that they are playing
nice," he muses lightly. With mug in hand, he wanders a way a little,
taking up position leaning against a wall. At Anana's last words, he smirks
slightly, lips drawing into a tight line, and he looks away.
Oh
no... Oh no, you did not just say that Anana... Tenuous grip on reality
smashing to bits at the current moment... For the second time in twenty-four
hours, Brice is stunned beyond all speech. He now remembers exactly /what/
happened last time Takiko summoned Genbu - and that was bad enough. He doesn't
yet know what happened to her after she went back. But still, they were
separated, and he and Tomite died. That's a pretty good cause for alarm,
dontcha think? But still, there IS one advantage... He swallows a couple times
to wet his suddenly-dry throat. "Well, she can't switch worlds on us now.
We can help her after all."
Anana
thought about a few ways to say this, and settled with the blunt approach. She,
however, only had the vaguest suspicions of what happened to Takiko, having
died soon after the miko's return to the world she considered 'home'.
"That's the good thing about this," she says, settling down at
Brice's feet and looking up at him. "Another good thing about this is that
those who have rivalries between the groups /can't/ do anything to each other
because we don't know if the shinzaho still exist or /anything/."
Chase
exhales slowly, setting the mug down onto a table or such. He pushes away from
the wall, moving towards Brice at a slow pace, "Look. Everything is so new
right now. For all we know, things will change in the future, right? Were
what... four now?" He reaches over as if to clasp Brice on the back, then
looking down at Anana with a wry grin, trying to lighten the mood, "Are
you saying that I can't give the Suzaku a hard time or something? I was kind of
planning on that for the months ahead."
"/NO/
tormenting the feathered ones, Case." Automatic reaction. Gotta love it.
"I don't want to be on Trevor's bad side - and I /severely/ doubt you want
the kid over there-" he nods down at Anana"-to cute you to death for
doing it." Ahh, a return ofnormalcy, at least somewhat. Thank you Chase.
Brice quickly drains the rest of his chocolate. "So, if no one can kill
each other, that should make things easier - should we start scouting jewelry
stores in an effort to find the necklace?"
"And
you call /me/ immature, Chase?" Anana asks, trying not to laugh. "I
know what you did. I /do/ have Chiriko's memories, you know. Another reason why
he's so nice to me, and me to him." Curling her fingers around the mug of
hot chocolate in unconscious search for warmth, the girl smiles up at her two
pseudo-older-brothers. "I wouldn't cute him to death. I'd shove him in a
room with Kourin and Trevor. And... um. As for the necklace, I don't know where
it would be, or if it's even here now. What happens to a shinzaho when it's
used to summon a god?"
Chase
does his best to pout, or at least try to be dramatic about it. Ah well,
doesn't work all that well. He grins over to Brice, "As if I haven't seen
that necklace enough in my dreams... do we really have to start looking over
pawn shops and such for it some more?" He sighs heavily, flickering a
glance to Anana, "You wouldn't dare... I don't know them, but that still
sounds like a fate worse than death. Well, that is unless I can get them into a
good game of poker, have some beers. Sake. Whatever..."
"You're
underage." Again, automatic reaction. Gets the feeling that this is going
to be a frequent pattern with him and Chase. "I have no idea, Anana - I'd
assume that it'd just go back to being a normal necklace, or whatever the
object is. And I'm not that desperate to go hunting for it myself - it's been
several centuries, who knows if it even still exists? And if it does, who knows
if it's even in this /country/, not to mention this city?" Yeah, Brice is
a realist most of the time - at least he's not a pessimistic realist.
Pouting
successfully is more of Anana's domain anyway. "Or even this dimension. I
mean, I don't even know if our old world is the same as this one," she
says, nodding at Brice, then grinning at Chase. "I think that Kourin would
take you up on that and probably drink you under the table, but I dunno. Trevor
might, too." Another sip at sugar-sweet chocolate. "Underage for
what?"
Chase
smirks across to Brice, even if deep in some portion inside of him he rather
enjoys his big brother's commentary. Ahhhhhh. So good. "Look, if we need
the necklace, I'm sure we'll be able to find it. I didn't watch it for
two-hundred years and not remember what it looks like." He shrugs his
shoulders, "But, I'm not sure that we even need to start looking into that
yet." He blinks back at Anana, "This Kourin is a Suzaku, eh?" He
is skeptical. "I'd like to see that happen. You should set us up."
"He's
too young to be drinking alcohol, let alone buying it." Not that most of
the bars in the country care as long as you've got some valid form of payment.
Oh well. "I remember it perfectly too-" he's remembered it longer
than anything else, practically "-but I'm not that wild of having to
search the entire globe for something that may not exist or may not be in this
dimension or universe or whatever." They might come from another
dimension? Head trip... "And don't, Anana, no knowing what he'd do to him.
Or her." No, Brice doesn't know Kourin. Is it that obvious?
"Exactly.
I hate to say it, but Fate's far too weird around us to make us lose track of
that necklace if we really need it," Anana says firmly. "And Kourin?
She's a Suzaku, and, um. Well, she's just... interesting." There're no
words, really. "I don't think she'd hurt him? Those were her bracelets
that broke Miaka out of your ice, anyway."
Chase
rolls his eyes at Brice, "Aw, come on. I'll let you join in as well? That
way you can chaperone or something." And he can try to get his dear
brother smashed. Ohhhh, the possibilities. Ohhhh, the blackmail.
"She?" Okay, that puts an entirely new spin on things, "Is she
good looking?" If not, all that beer and sake will make her that way.
"Is
she involved with anyone?" No use in having Chase get decapitated. And
Brice relents at the thought that he can join in - the Southern Stiltedness is
rubbing away. "I'd insist on buying - you're not getting arrested on my
watch."
"...actually,
I don't think giving your ladyfriend an autographed album would be wise,"
Trevor says, raising a brow as he ambles in behind Darren. "Oh, I've got
it." He enters the room, duly impressed, and waves at Anana - and look,
it's Brice too. Nevertheless, he returns his attention to Darren, then draws
from his pocket a business card, a pen, and lip gloss. "Mint
flavored," the young man comments, reading the Winter's Kiss brand label.
"What will they think of next?" A quick, chic application and a light
kiss to the back of the card, along with Trevor's signature, and he hands the
card to Anana's brother. "Don't forget, um... red carnations." He
winks, then makes his approach towards the small group. "Anana darling!
I'm going to move in with you."
"Um,"
Anana says, looking for any escape at this point. "She's sort of... um. In
love with someone else, I think?" And... she's saved by the bell. And her
brother. Who is, by this point, looking torn between freaking out and
worshiping the ground that Trevor walks on. "Anana," he says, giving
his little sister a wide-eyed look, "You really have weird friends. But
cool ones." And then he leaves. Thank goodness. "Thanks for coming,
Trevor. What did my brother want? And Brice, Chase, this is Trevor. Trevor,
this is Brice, and this is Chase."
Chase
sighs, loudly. Mmmm, mention of the authorities. Must definitely remember not
to mention the job to big brother. Throat clears as he does his best to change
the subject, "Oh, no need to worry about that. But anyway.." Look
someone else is here, and as such this seishi is left to blink at Trevor rather
owlishly. And then blink some more. Speechless. He has been rendered
speechless.
The
unaccomplishable has been accomplished - Chase has shut up. Brice is definitely
appreciative of whoever can do that. "We've met. Hey, Trevor." He
steps forward, holding out a hand for a shake. Yes, he's been living under a
rock - he has no clue who Trevor is. "How've things been going? And have
you seen Cat lately?" He's pretty concerned for the Byakko seishi, both of
them - especially after last night. The way Lee described their relationship,
nothing should've shook it, but that little argument that he was part of
definitely did. Something's wrong there.
Trevor
is dressed in elegant whites, a suit and round collar making him shine,
complete with a slick jacket cleverly concealing within its depths a holy sword.
No jokes now - the holiness is so great it glows. "Brice and I have
already met," the man offers, flashing the seishi a bright smile and
clasping his hand for a moment and extends it to the new guy. "And it's
always good to see new faces. Nice to meet you, Chase."
Awkward
silence, anyone? The other man gets a raised brow, and a laugh. He's pretty,
and he knows it. "No, I haven't seen Cat. Something wrong?"
"Trevor?
Do you like poker?" Anana asks, all but fluttering her eyelashes at him.
Maybe they can get Brice to keep on twitching. Closing the door after peering
this way and that down the hallway to ensure that Darren's disappeared, she
turns back to the Suzaku. "And what did you do to Darren? He nearly fell
down the stairs just now." Such a concerned little sister when it comes to
her older brother? No, she just knows that he's resilient. "Chase was
interested in playing poker with you and Kourin sometime."
Chase
is drawn out of his silence at Anana's words. He is abruptly clearing his throat,
an almost sloppy smile on his lips. Heh.... Heh heh. "Yeah, its great to
meet you... Trevor." Nice. Wait. What did Anana say? "Oh... this is
the same Trevor?" He gives the pretty boy another assessing glance before
shrugging, "Maybe not."
"Lovers'
quarrel, as far as I can tell. Lee was getting sloshed in Chinatown last
night." Leave out the details, they don't need 'em anyway. "I wanted
to know how she was doing." Brice rolls his eyes at the mention of poker,
then shakes his head. He's leaving all card game-references alone from now on.
"Anyhow, what's going on with your faction?" Yes, he knows who Trevor
is in this context. "How's your miko?" He gives Chase a distinct
warning look. "Don't start it. Just don't start it."
Trevor
runs a hand back through his hair, and by some kind of magic, it falls
perfectly back into place. Chalk it up to a good stylist, or natural talent.
"Only if the stakes end up on the floor eventually," he replies,
winking at Chase. He's joking, of course. No... really. Taking a seat and
folding his hands in his lap, the young man looks perfectly innocent. "I
think he recognized me, and had a girl he wanted to impress. I gave him a
little advice, and did him a tiny favor." Blink blink. "Well, I hope
everything turns out all right. Catherine was terribly nice to me. To be
honest, I've been recording for the past couple of days. Johnston tells me
we're coming together, that Miaka is a sweetie, and that evil is trying to
destroy the world." But Trevor still looks good, so it can't be all bad.
Chase
blinks rather owlishly at all of the names being bandied about before him at the
speed of light. Whoa. Whoa there. Most if it simply passes through one ear and
right out the other. So, he sits, sipping cooled cocoa, and offering a wry grin
to Brice every once in awhile. "What?... Oh, you worry far too much."
"I
don't think I got that, Trevor, and I don't think I want to," Anana
informs him. "The stakes of the poker game, that is." And with due
aplomb, she settles back down upon her own seat, drawing her legs up onto the
chair and watching the byplay. "Yes, this is the same Trevor. Suzaku
seishi Hotohori, meet Tomite and Hikitsu." She gestures first to Chase,
then to Brice. "And you know who I am. I think."
"Johnston?
Who's Johnston?" At last, someone /else/ with an Aristocratic British Snob
name! Brice nods over to Anana. "He's the one who told me about Miaka -
first clear memory I had. I still haven't thanked you for that." Another
head nod in Trevor's direction is the thanks, and Brice takes a seat on one end
of the couch. "According to everyone, evil's trying to destroy the world,
so that's nothing new. The kid over there told us that one of the Seiryuu was
tortured and another went insane. From what I've heard, that's pretty par for
the course for them." Actually, he's not bitter - his internal tactfulness
filter seems to be in the "off" position at the moment. "Oh,
you're a musician?" Duh. Brice. Duh.
"Tomite,"
Trevor repeats, brows raised and looking from one man to the other. "And
Hikitsu. You two froze my miko in solid ice once." And had Hotohori only
been there, he would've probably made a valiant attempt to kick some ass. No,
stay at home, heika-sama. No, defend the country, heika-sama. Stupid
counselors. "I'm only glad it came to some good in this life. As for
Johnston, he claims to be my agent. I'm only sure that he's Chichiri, Suzaku
seishi, though." Something about the face. A little concern floats into
his eyes, and he nods his head gravely. No love lost between Suzaku and
Seiryuu, but Amiboshi did comfort him in a time of need once; the attempted
assassination was all but forgotten in the wake of Miaka's grief.
"Yeah..." A blink, and an elegant segue to a different subject.
"A musician."
"Johnston
is Chichiri. The blue haired one with the funny face," Anana says,
grinning. "And... well, Amiboshi and Suboshi are... special." She's
really flubbing for ways to describe people today, really. "I haven't
talked to Suboshi to see why things happened like they did, or talked to
Nicholas to see what he's going to do about it -- at least, I'm not mad at
Hiroshi for interrupting me the other day, but oh-" Back on topic, Anana.
"Four yin gods, one priestess for all four. Hiroshi's trying to chart the
stars, but he's getting really bad feelings about it. According to him, all the
different seishi of the Four Gods -- ours, I mean -- need to work together. And
the priestesses will have to summon their respective gods again." She does
pause long enough to throw a warning look at Chase. "I need to talk to
Nicholas and Tori again. I hope they're not /too/ mad at me." Death
threats are /so/ hard to deal with. Pause another beat, and then, in her
perkiest tone, Anana says, "Can I come to a recording sometime? I'll be
/really/ quiet!"
Chase
blinks owlishly at Brice, rolls his eyes, and looks as though he is going to
reach over and smack his big brother on the back of the head. "You /do/
get out now and again, don't you?" Clearly, Brice has been living under a
rock. A big moldy one at that. Although he won't go quite embarrass himself
with an explanation as to who Trevor is. But at the mention of Miaka, Chase
simply looks back to Trevor with an expression that basically reads -And your
point being? But then he is getting glared at by Anana. What? He hasn't done
anything yet. But he is blinking at her query to Trevor, "I might just
have to tag along as well. You know, kids these days. Need to keep an eye on
her." Yeah, whatever.
And
Brice gets whacked, making him rock forward to keep his balance, then glare at
his little brother and take a similar whack at his back - only harder.
"Hey, I wasn't the one who made her strip." And if Hotohori had tried
to attack, he would've met the nice thick ice wall, just like Tama. Ooh,
emeperor pancake - new delicacy at IHOP! "Yes, I /do/ get out,
nimrod." Siblings - even pseudo-siblings. They never change. "I don't
think they're too mad at you Anana - I'm willing to bet something very bad
would have happened by now if they were." Something like the house
exploding. "And do I need to keep an eye on /both/ of you?" Gives
them his best, fiercest, sternest Big Brother Glare. "No disturbing when
recording." He had a musician friend, and nearly got his head torn off
when he unknowingly broke that rule.
Trevor
lattices his fingers and gathers his thoughts together, wincing in realization.
"I might've thought that if two people were tormented in tandem it
would've been them. Suzaku," he says, rubbing his temples, "Why are
you so merciful?" Hey, Hotohori allowed himself to get wet in a pond for
Miaka once. It ruined his hair for /hours/; he could do anything for his miko.
"I think you should tell me why you're not mad at Hiroshi, Anana-darling.
And we could go have a chat with Nicholas together." He turns his head
towards Brice and laughs it off. "Don't worry; I'd be honored to see you
two around the studio. Just don't bug the drummer." Shudder. Scary.
Anana
squirms slightly under Brice's stare, but manages to stop for long enough to
eye Chase. "I asked first," she mutters under her breath. A wee bit
competitive at times, perhaps. "And these two had a reason for doing what
they did." Such as being stuck in a cave for two hundred years. It's her
turn to twitch, however, and shift in her seat when Trevor requests for her to
talk about /why/ she's not mad at Hiroshi, glancing at Brice again. "Umm."
Saved by an offer. "Thank you!! I'll be /really/ good.|"
Chase
winces at the hit, shooting a grin back at Brice. "And neither did you
object." -if you want to get technical about this. He clears his throat
and then nods back to Trevor. Heh, honored. "Just let us know what is most
convenient for you..." One rather delighted grin is shot over to Anana,
before he is looking to Brice once more, "Oh, you know you want to come
too. Admit it."
"Actually,
not really. Been there. Done that. Didn't get a t-shirt. No interest
left." Brice shakes his head and rubs his temple, wondering why he's even
bothering. They'll just figure out some other way to do it - might as well save
the energy. "I officially declare my non-responsibility for both of you.
Youre parents or other relatives are /not/ allowed to sue me if something
happens to you in the course of your 'curiosity.' Will you be my witness,
Trevor?" No, he doesn't trust either of the "young ones."
"And would you really take her to Nicholas? Apparently he's going to be my
professor, I don't want to piss him off prematurely."
"You're
all invited," Trevor says magnanimously, knowing in his soul of souls that
Johnston is going to murder him for wreaking havoc with the system. Then again,
it's for new old friends; why not? His mouth widens slowly into a grin in
Brice's direction. "But you're supposed to watch over the little ones. A
shepherd leading the flock, so to speak." Granted, shepherds usually get
big hitting sticks to go with the job. "And you can stay out of it, if you
want. If we're to have negotiations, it would be nice to have an amicable
representative of every god there." Trevor doesn't apply here, really. Ahh
well.
But big
hitting sticks would leave /bruises/. And bruises are Bad (tm). Anana
mock-pouts at Brice. "You're no fun. What happens if Chase gets taken
hostage by a little old..." She trails off, then clears her throat, trying
unsuccessfully to smother a smirk. "Never mind. But Nicholas really isn't
that bad. I had tea and sandwiches with him and Tori. That's Soi. It was really
fun until Hiroshi tried to be all gallant and 'save me from my own
folly'."
Chase
doesn't like the sound of this. Little ones? He even mouths those words to
Anana, and then shoots an almost offended look his way. That better not be a
crack on his height. Or anything else. He chuckles at Anana's words, slowly
shaking his head from side to side, "Tea and sandwiches with Seiryuu? What
is the world coming to? Maybe we should invite them to that poker game as
well." Imagine the entertainment. "Hiroshi... so is that what has the
two of you acting all funny? Besides the obvious?"
Brice
blinks at the moniker for the other two - then grins, verrrrry widely.
"Shepards have gone out of fashion. I think the term is 'riot police'
now." Ehehehehehehe, just wait 'til those snakes come back - or that
handy-dandy wall-building ability. Anyone for a frosty time out? He gives Anana
one of those 'ohhhhhh' looks. "So /that's/ why you're so ticked at him.
You weren't really specific on that - not that Chase helped any." He can't
really blame her. Chiriko might be smart, but does he have Anana's common
sense? Or, to rephrase, the common sense she usually has? "And do you
think Anana is an amicable-enough representative of the biological impossibility,
or should I show up as well?" That question was probably unnecessary -
Nick seems to like Anana.
And
that fact in itself is scary.
Luring
the girl into a false sense of security, no doubt. Hmph. "Well, Nakago
killed my past incarnation. I'm a little leery about having people chum around
with him." Trevor sighs, wincing apologetically at Anana. Concessions,
however, must be made. "The battle we fought, however, was senseless. If
we need to unite, we need to communicate. If Hiroshi has reduced our chances of
this, I am profoundly sorry." See? There is something buried underneath
all the pretty. The fact that it's a politician might be a little worrisome.
"If you want to meet your Professor on interesting terms, you're welcome
to it. It's not for me to decide."
Aside
from the fact that one, I remember everything he does from when he was Chiriko,
two, he remembers nearly the same about /me/ as Hatsui, and three, we're kids
when everyone else is an adult?" Anana asks Chase dryly, resettling
herself upon the couch and shrugging at Brice. "It's all right now. It
just made me mad that he thought I /needed/ rescuing. Tori wouldn't let
Nicholas hurt me, and anyway, I can defend myself, to a point." She smiles
at Trevor, shaking her head gently. "It wasn't senseless to you, and as I
said, things are fine now.""
Chase
chuckles, reaching over as if to ruffle Anana's hair, "Down, girl. It's
fine." He smiles softly, crossing his arms over his chest, simply smirking
Brice-wards because... well, because that is what he does, and he is very good
at it. "And your companions lost a shinzaho that we guarded for 200
hundred years in our spiritual forms to the Seiryuu before they could barely
step out of the temple. Think I should still be a wee bit cranky about that as
well?"
Brice
ignores Chase's smirk - he's very good at that, had over 200 years of practice.
"Much as I hate to agree with Mr. Impetuous over there, he's got a point.
The shinzaho was /not/ that easy to lose - I think we have a right to take
exception to it. But I can see your point with Nakago." Yes, the
politician is scary. There's enough of them in the world as is. "Anana, do
you trust Tori enough so that one of us-" at the moment he's thinking
either him or Ash, not Chase "-can talk with her privately? And do you
have the means to arrange it?" Hey, back-up planning never hurt anyone.
"And yeah, you definitely can defend yourself." He stillll remembers
the pillow.
"Things
are fine." Trevor's echo is mostly to himself, and he closes his eyes.
When those cornflower blues open again, however, his face has undergone a
dramatic metamorphosis, oozing delighted optimism. Chase's comment gets a warm
laugh and he shakes his head slowly. "Miaka, as I'm sure you noticed, had
more spirit than survival instinct." In fact, most of the Suzaku seishi
shared that common trait. It's a wonder that they lost so many battles, yet
managed to win the war. "This is so terrifying, yet interesting. All of
our fates, entrusted in a young lady with pink hair."
Anana
gets to her feet (after tossing a dirty look at Chase for rumpling her hair)
and bows in Trevor's direction, adding a little flourish to the conversation
for /her/ part. "I'm honoured that you trust me with it," she says,
straightening up and tucking her hair back behind her ears. "And... Tori?
Yes, if you wish. She's not hard to approach at all." Padding over to the
coat she tossed so casually on an empty chair, she hauls out her wallet and
pulls a business card out, holding it out for whomever wants to see it.
"Her phone number's there, as well as her business. A club or something.
It's opening soon. But anyway, which of you wants to talk to her? I will tell
you this... she's /very/ beautiful. And /very/ in love with Nicholas. So I
don't think that flirting with her would be too good an idea."
Chase
is still fairly sure he'll have a thing or two to say to Miaka if he ever
crosses paths with her, but instead he opts for the soft smile at this moment.
Innocence incarnate -or something. He glances back over to Brice, not smirking,
but more along the lines of an astonished gasp. "Hey, if we have that
poker game, we can all get together and talk. And get drunk. Reminisce. And
probably even get along -even come to an agreement about things, so don't you
go getting all like that with me." He rolls his eyes, but shrugs his
shoulders, "Whatever you all wish to do, I'm game for it."
Brice
shrugs at the insinuation Trevor is making with the statement about Anana.
"I trust her, believe it or not. She's not dumb." Generally. Or, maybe
a better word would be hyper. He heads up to said-chibi and plucks the card
from her grasp, reading it aloud. "Fate and Fantasy..." Immediately
he starts wondering what kind of club would have that name, but eh, let 'im
wonder. "Victoria... All right, doesn't seem too complicated. I was
thinking me, or Ash, or both of us, could go see what her take on things
is." And at the beautiful-woman-no-flirting remark, "Well, that rules
Chase out." Immediately ducks to avoid whatever physical retaliation Chase
comes up with.
Trevor
slips his cell phone out of his pocket, recording the information, then does a
doubletake. "Tori as in... Victoria? As in, the place that just opened up?
God, J Lo wanted to take me there yesterday, but I told her I was busy. I guess
she doesn't have much of an electricity bill, does she?" Oh, just ignore
him. "I'll just wait until we get a proper footing, and then speak with
Nicholas. As influential as Soi may be, Nakago holds the power, unless he's
lost all of his old self." Trevor doesn't need or want to flirt with
anyone; he's got enough problems as it is. Granted, Johnston manages most of
them, but the little pop icon still gets to complain. So there.
"If
you're getting drunk, I'm /not/ going to be there," Anana says crisply, pulling
a comically disgusted face at Chase. He jokes, she makes faces at him. It's a
lovely brother-sister relationship. "I think Hiroshi's already talked to
Nicholas. Kourin wasn't very pleased with him over that. I dunno. He's sort of
scary, and I know I have to be careful, but I like him, too." It's
something about the charisma. "And I guess it's that place? She's very
nice, you know."
Chase
is right on back to glaring at Brice again. "You know? You take all the
fun out of everything." He sighs before flopping onto a couch, chair,
wherever will suit for a moment. Head lolls back as he stares at the ceiling,
finger tracing idle lines on the fabric of the seat. "I'm not getting
drunk, and I'd give you chocolate or something like that," he mutters to
Anana.
Brice
actually has a very high tolerance for alcohol - thank god. He'd better
chaperone. No, higher-up ulterior motives have nothing to do with that.
"Isn't that what an older brother's supposed to do?" he smirks at
Chase. "Keep the younger from being put under house arrest? You're still
not buying the alcohol." He gives a little concession. "At least not
where I can see it." Hey, he /was/ young and dumb once. Still is a lot of
the time. "How powerful was Nakago?" The statement has been made that
he's powerful, but Brice isn't entirely sure what that means.
"I
don't blame her," Trevor says, wincing. "As smart as Hiroshi is, he's
also very little, and can't defend himself against Nakago, as far as I'm aware.
Kourin and I both keep that in mind; she might even be a little more over
protective than I am." He smiles, leaning back. "I suppose I'm not
qualified to make an opinion until I actually meet Nicholas, though." The
young man crosses his arms, answering Brice's question slowly. "Tenkou - I
assume you're familiar with that name - tried to use Nakago to take over this
realm via Tokyo. I guess you could say that he was powerful enough. It was nice
to see that he managed to find some what of a heart, though."
"You're
taking up too much space, Chase," Anana informs him, then quite promptly
hops up onto the couch... and lands squarely on his stomach. Such abuse.
"You'd give me chocolate, huh?" Let him gasp a bit while she
addresses the other questions. "Well... the phrase 'one man army' comes to
mind, Brice. More power than I have, even if you include the amount I can't
/touch/." Attention flicks to Trevor, and she bites her lip briefly.
"I need to hear that story in full sometime."
Chase
is silent for a moment as he listens to Tervor explain this mysterious Tenkou,
still sprawled upon the seat. He frowns just the slightest, turning his head to
the side to watch the peacock with consternation. "Bah, I can't even
afford the alcohol now. School books. Deposit on the apartment. I'm going to be
eating over at Ash's quite a bit the next week or so." Only, she doesn't
know it yet. But then, he is attacked... by the little. *Whoosh* All of the air
goes streaming out of him, only to be sucked back in with a gasp. "I don't
think you need any more chocolate, shorty." Heavy thing. But, he conforms
as he becomes her seat, reaching a hand up tousle her hair once more. Its his
job.
Brice
whistles; even for an evil-doer, that's an impressive track record. "Don't
suppose we could pin the invasion of Hokkan in our time on him - I've still got
issues with the commander then." Yeah, commander-cicle, anyone? He'll
gladly do it if they confirm the guy's identity - and if he's a bastard now,
too. "It's no use asking me for help Chase, I'm worse than you are - don't
even have a proper-sized bedroom." Oh, that came out so bad. But let it
pass. He grins at Anana's treatment of Chase, and in return, his of her - he
might act gruff sometimes, but really he's glad that everyone seems to be
having good lives and is comfortable with each other. "So, Anana, do you
know when Tori will be at work next week?"
"That's
a story for another time," says Trevor (namely when the player gets a
chance to rewatch the OVAs. Cough.) A brow is raised in Chase's direction, and
he reaches over to ruffle Anana's hair, grinning. "Wow, that is
unexpectedly more fun than it looks." He watches the three seishi, a grin
tugging his lips - think Hiroshi would allow himself to be tousled now and
then? Maaybe not.
"I
always need more chocolate," Anana informs Chase, now quite comfortable in
spite of the tousled hair (which goes ignored for the moment, in spite of it
being done twice over). "And I wish I could offer help, but only my Mom
really knows what's going on with me, and I don't think I could explain it to
Dad without him trying to find me a psychiatrist or something." Even if
Darren's a suspicious sort. "And why is it fun to mess up my hair? Do I
have to mess up yours, Trevor? I'm sure your fans-" She's one, but she's
actually getting to talk to him about stuff that's more serious than hobbies.
"-would love to see the 'mussed' look."
The fun
part is provoking Anana. That is the whole reason for the hair-tousling.
Mention something about a crush on Hiroshi and she can look the very same way.
chase mentions, "I think I might actually have some. Somewhere." With
the ramen and peanut butter. He peers beyond Anana and over to Trevor,
chuckling, but he doesn't say another word.
Ahhhhhh,
the life of the college student, living hand to mouth while guzzling caffeine -
no, Trevor does /not/ count. "Guess it's my turn." Brice grins and
ruffles Anana's hair as well - then turns and completely tousles Chase's,
perhaps just a /bit/ harder than necessary, with a smirk. And steps away
quickly. "Well, since we all feel so nice and fuzzy, guess it's a rather
inopportune time to bring up a rather uncomfortable subject." But he's
gonna. "Anana, I know I'm bugging you with this, but please tell me
nothing else has happened besides those brothers getting in trouble."
"Check
next month's Enquirer. It's not so much that I mind getting pictures taken of
me at the beach, but it was a little windy that day," Trevor sighs,
patting down his head just to make certain that each strand is in its proper,
perfect place. Brice is watched and snickered at, but as the conversation turns
serious again, his attention turns full to Anana. "Yes, do tell," he
prompts, watching the girl intensely.
Anana
claps a hand over her head again, glaring around. "Enough with the
hair-messing! Meanieheads, the lot of you!" It'd be a far more dire insult
if it weren't delivered with a hint of laughter behind the worlds. "And
it's not an uncomfortable subject. Umm. Nothing else that I can remember's
happened /yet/. I don't think it's going to stop; if anything, it's gonna get
lots worse." As she speaks, she's trying to fingercomb her hair straight
-- Chase gets a breathing respite as she hops off of him, settling upon the
floor instead. "Oh." Er. They're not going to like this one. "There
was getting Kourin's bracelets back, so Hiroshi told me, and a plant monster,
and, um, just before I ran into Ashleigh the first time, Hiroshi had just
killed a monster that she tried to hit with her skateboard."
Chase
gaahs. Tair-messing. He is immediately slapping a hand up to try to stop Brice
from doing far more damage. "You know, it's a good thing she is sitting on
me," he calls over to him. Otherwise he'll what? Give Brice a wedgie?
Ponder that. But he does look back to Brice, frowning slightly at those words,
and then looking back to Anana as she bounces off of him. And then peering at
her harder. "Wait... What was that?" His mind clearly hasn't caught
up with all of this yet. "What did Ash do?"
That...
That... That sounds so much like Ash Brice isn't surprised one bit. He just
gives a sort of long-suffering sigh, one hand coming up to press his temple -
need to stop at a drugstore on the way home for aspirin. He's gonna need it for
awhile. "Okay Anana, give us the details." He won't flip out over
this - if he was, he would have already. And he's actually kinda proud of the
little guy (Hiroshi) for taking care of the monster - from what he's gathered,
the boy isn't exactly the toughest seishi around.
"Oh
yeah, that was weird," Trevor says, elaborating on the part he's actually
familiar with. "We were going to get Kourin's bracelets back, from this
old oriental cabinet in a warehouse. Funny thing was, though, that there was a
guardian defending the box - a red creature with tentacles in a pit. Furtunately,
it responded well to Nuriko having been there, and backed down... but it was
more magic than I had thought we'd be seeing anytime soon." Hiroshi's not
too touch, but he plays the leaf whistle like nobody's business.
Anana
tosses her arms out wide in a visible expression of 'I have no clue'. "I
was hiding from Darren -- he was trying to drag me home -- and saw Hiroshi and
Ash in an alleyway, and there was a lot of water around, so I guess it must've
been something water-based-" She knows about monsters, more about the
chi-eating sort, but still. "-maybe an elemental or something, I don't
know. Anyway, Hiroshi called me over, and said that there'd been a monster, and
then I saw Ash, and she didn't remember me at first, but then she did, and it
was so great. But she /still/ tried to hit it with her skateboard."
Tentacle
monster? *twitch* Chase blinks owlishly at Trevor for a long moment before
pushing up to stand once more. "That's... disturbing." He flickers
another look at Anana, mouth drawing into a fine line, "How is it that
everyone else gets to do all of the fun stuff?" That's it. This has to
change. He moves over to locate his jacket again, pulling it on. "Anana?
You. Me. Tomorrow. My place. Chocolate... Be there. Until then, I'm going to
wander the streets and hope something with scales, a nasty attitude, and more
than six eyes jumps me." And before Brice can say a word edgewise, he
hauls ass right out the door.
Brice
is /so/ gonna start calling Chase Owl-boy. Oh hell yeah. But this reaction is
expected - a Tomite-leash has not yet been invented. Maybe that should be his
next project. Ahh, let the boy have some fun, he probably /was/ being too
overprotective. Brice just shakes his head at the door and yells after the
departing dark head "Just try and come back in fewer than three pieces! I
don't wanna have to put 'em together again!" He drops his voice to normal.
"And damn, we gotta get Ash a better weapon than a skateboard. Anyone have
something sharp on hand? Somehow I can picture her taking a kitchen knife
around in her boot." Yep, he /can/ see it, that's the scary part.