3/16/2003

03:55 AM

Logfile from Ichijin.

 

Royal Elizabeth-Penthouse 1

Mahogany is prevalent, drawing along the dramatic lines of this rather swanky penthouse. Opening into the outer hallway is a pair of double doors, raised upon a couple of steps before the sunken front area. With expansive wood floors and vaulting ceiling, the space afforded is extraordinarily luxurious.  Even more impressive is the view granted by the panel windows that look out onto a wide balcony dressed with topiary and the spread of Manhattan.

Within, there is a grouping of leather couches rather close to a fireplace and just off to the side of an open bar area. Further along and closer to the windows is a long dining table rimmed with high-backed chairs as off to the left leads to the kitchen. On to the right is a set of stairs that lead up towards a loft that overlooks the entire area. Over all, there is an almost impersonal aura to the place, with no personality other than what the interior decorator left it with.

Obvious exits:

Exit   Loft   Bedroom

 

Sebastian is here, and not doing a bit of work. No lap tops, no organized chaos of papers and reports, not even a minion in evidence for him to order about. The man is actually outside on the terrace, forearms braced against the railing as he leans forward, simply watching the city before him.

 

Reese is a study in entropy. Her entrance is announced by the front door opening, and immediately arms fling wide, various bags and papers flying in sundry directions. Hair, body, mind all loose, she dashes into the kitchen and rescues a slice of cheesecake, still intact. "Oh, thank god..." she purrs, scooping the cake up into her hands and biting down. "Seb?" Food before men. Ain't it always the way?

 

My, she sure does make quite a bit of an entrance now, does she? Sebastian chuckles wryly at all of the noises, turning around to lean against the railing and watch Reese through the windows. Cheesecake... What is it with women and cheesecake? "Out here," he calls softly, and then takes a drink from the glass he holds.

 

Reese munches indelicately on her confection, a hand held underneath her snack to catch falling crumbs. Stepping alongside Sebastian, she folds her body over the balcony's railing, gazing down below and letting sprinkles of cheesecake race downwards. "What's up?" she asks, tilting her head at the man and pairing it with a grin. "Got a little ahead in corporate raiding, so decided to take a break?"

 

Sebastian blinks over at Reese as she eats away, earning another grin from him. "Not all that much, actually. Just... enjoying the evening." Cheesecake is eyed before he is looking back to her, "Just finished a deal earlier today and actually considered taking a couple of days off and away from the office. And how has your day been?"

 

Reese lets her body balance on the brink, gazing at Sebastian and raising a brow. "Ooh, something I could take advantage of. Maybe I should opt to skip my classes for a couple days, too." She winks, then turns back towards the city, watching the people like a child watches insects: the girl is all fascination, power. "My day has been better than usual, I guess. Though, outside of here, it's all same old same old."

 

Sebastian is smiling once more. He moves over to stand behind Reese, looking to curl and arm about her front. "We both take some time off... I could portal us far away from here and we could enjoy ourselves?" He chuckles softly once more, "That is good to hear though. All has been well with you?"

 

Reese hmms at the contact, a feline delight taken at the warmth of mere presence. "Ohh," she purrs, twisting her head to look up. "That sounds fantastic. We'll go off somewhere with no metaphysical or mental strains, no one to rescue or nurse back to health, no unexpected guests." She wraps her hand around the arm at her waist, decadently rolling shoulders upwards. "Well enough. And you?"

 

Sebastian is smiling at her response, "That sounds delightful... if only we could." Yes, that last little bit is rather wry. He drops his head forward to give her a kiss to her neck, "Well enough, I suppose. I think Kieran and I met a new seishi just last evening. Possibly one of the Suzaku. Possibly. Helped to partially destroy a dojo the other day. All is well."

 

"It's nice to dream," Reese replies glumly, twisting her body around to face Sebastian and wrapping her arms around his neck. "A new one?" she asks, curiously eyeing the man. Though her face betrays interest, the rest of her does not, still hung up on the thought of escaping city and senshi life. Fingers toy through the man's hair, muscles loosen mildly: all the while, she continues. "Destroy a dojo. Wonderful."

 

Sebastian keeps his hold on Reese, smiling down to her, "We think so, at least that was how it sounded when he said things now and again." Well, seeing as she is playing with his hair, he will fiddle with her's as well, drawing fingers through it, "Well, one tries to give our God a suitable sacrifice now and again." Yeah, he ends that with a wink.

 

The mention of their mutual god stops Reese's actions for a moment, her brow furrowing lightly. "About Homasubi," Reese begins, the barest brush of a frown crossing her face before it speeds away. "What do you think he wants, really? I've tried beating up seishi, you've got your propensity to destroying buildings... But it doesn't seem to have helped the Yin much. Why are we here, Seb?"

 

Sebastian is frowning as well, more at her question than anything. "Reese, I try to make a point to not question our God. His wants and desires? These I do not know, other than what is obvious. Destruction. When he wishes us to know his will, I will follow it, but until then I will do what I can to bring about his release, and stop the Yang from summoning their gods to oppose ours." Okay, enough with the religious rhetoric. "Why are we here? Because it is time? Because something will happen? Because we are necessary? I don't know... what are your thoughts on this?"

 

"I don't know," Reese murmurs, sighing. "Maybe I'm just a little jealous of Kier, or Malachai. They both seem like they've got some real direction in their lives. Kier's goddess talks to him, gives him orders. Malachai just oozes confidence, and seems to know really where he's going. I just get in trouble with people, because I'm not sure what Homasubi's standing is on all this."

 

Sebastian tightens his arms about her, dropping his head once more so that his cheek rests against her hair, "Nearly every day I try to go down to the temple and kneel before Homasubi's statue. I do not assume he will speak to me. But I have always tried to do what I thought was right. What I felt was right. He made me for the purpose of seeking his unleashing upon this world, and I have always worked to that end, different now, but still working for that end."

 

Reese nods her head gently, holding her body very still for a moment and concentrating hard on breathing, movement, every part of a human being that moves. "All right." She pauses for a moment, then closes her eyes and purses lips. "What do you think he'll do once he gets here? Homasubi, I mean. He's the god of destruction, right? What's the chance that he'll just bulldoze everything, wish or no wish?"

 

"There is much to be achieved in destruction, Reese. By rending things, obliterating them, tearing it all apart..." There is almost a hint a pleasure in his voice as Sebastian speaks such, caressing those 'destructive' words as only a lover of such would. "By ridding one's life of the trappings of what was created, you can build anew... or you can leave an absence of all else. Clean and pure. Is that what Homasubi wishes? I do not know."

 

Reese watches Sebastian with the intensity of a feverish disciple, pushing his forelock away absently, while focusing on his words, his mouth. "You see the problem with that, though... is that we are a part of what was created. It troubles me," she murmurs, sighing wholeheartedly. "And..." The woman stops, looks away, and considers her own question, finally letting it out with a quirk of the head. "What do /you/ want?"

 

Sebastian blinks down at her, frowning just the slightest, almost as if in confusion. "You've asked me this before. And at the time, I responded by saying that it wasn't what I wanted, but what Homasubi wanted. But... things are different." And then he is trailing off once more, clearly in thought, his voice now far away, "I do not know what I want. There must be something..." His gaze drops as if to search her, "I want to do what is right for our god, but I want..."  Again, frowning, still lost in thoughts he can't seem to grasp.

 

"I remember," Reese replies, her whisper hushed and comforting. Smooth hands drift slowly and calmly to the man's face, cupping his jaw and holding his eyes to hers. "I don't want to press you." Concern battles with curiosity, but something inherently protective and matronly destroys both as they war in her mind and expression both. "I was just curious. But Kieran has shown you that there is something beyond Homasubi, and your wants are not there to be locked away and kept hidden. I act upon mine, whether they are before me and stated, or subconscious. It's not something that I can avoid."

 

Sebastian is rescued by Reese once more, but there is still a lingering touch of confusion gracing his brow. He blinks down at her, sighing softly, "It is not just Kieran. He managed to crack me, but you... Reese, you've done just as much if not more, even before that moment." His arms tighten around her once more, as if trying to draw her even closer to him. "But yes, I know that you can be rather... spontaneous in your actions, and I cannot tell you how many times I've agonized over your tendance to leap first and not consider the situation."

 

Reese quirks her brow upwards with a touch of embarrassment, an apology on her lips before she can even think to hold it back. "I'm sorry," she murmurs once, then again. The first she is unsure of, blurted quickly, only to ease the smile from Sebastian's face. The second bears more feeling. "I don't mean to make you worry. It's just that..." She stops, then restates herself. "There's something about me that I don't think Kieran understands or approves of. I think only Rathan knows fully that I /am/ fighting a war. I'm crusading so that people can be happy again. I want them to know joy," she admits, "and I'm going to tear apart all that blocks their path. These machinations and, and these senseless battles - they bore me, they're useless to me. This lack of anything productive to do, it disgusts me. I can't bear to see the people hurt."

 

Sebastian reaches a hand over to place two fingers against her lips, "Hush. Do not apologize over that, Reese. Never apologize for how you make me feel, be it worry or endearment." He sighs softly, "Joy, is it?" He grows quiet once more, considering her words even if his face looks rather blank. It takes a moment before he can reply once more. "I don't want you to feel as though you are doing nothing. I want to help you so that you are doing what you think you must, because I wish you see you feeling productive. What can I do to help you?"

 

Reese tilts her head and smiles at the gesture, her expression clearly delighted, her smile twitching her mouth beneath Sebastian's touch. Her hand moves gently to draw his away, though, as she nods sincerely in reply. "I might be a bit more selfish than Rathan, however - last I checked, he didn't care much for what happened to himself." That same hand detaches and waves airily aside the issue. "No, I know that they're necessary, and I told Lexie when I first met her that I would have my own use when the time came. I think every warrior has his measure of impatience, though, and I've got mine. I kind of understand the real Crusaders, now - knowing that my god exists is always a plus, though."

 

Sebastian looks down at her, the faint grin perched upon his lips. "You have focus... are you sure that you are not the... rock in this relationship, Reese," he speaks softly, an almost teasing quality to his voice. The man drops his head, leaning over to give her a soft kiss. "Crusaders... I like that comparison."

 

Reese wrinkles her nose at the thought, but gives it its due consideration. "If I am, then I'm an easily bruised and diverted rock, sitting in hurricaine conditions just off the Cape of Good Hope. Then again," she adds, her demeanor still frank in spite of the quip, "I haven't the baggage that most other people bear. If I follow my wants, at least those had the kindness to be blunt about themselves." Sebastian is tendered a meaningful look, then his hair gets a fluff, her tone transforming immediately. "I would find it pretty apt too, save for the fact that they were doomed to failure."

 

Sebastian leans his back up against the railing, bracing himself as he pulls Reese with him, "Well, my rock... at least I know that you are a steadfast one that will weather the toughest of storms. Tempered well." Fingers lightly trace the angles of her face, moving from her brows to her nose, on to her cheeks. "Speaking of those wants of yours, anything besides bringing joy onto this world that I should know about as well?"

 

Reese says nothing, biting her own tongue at the one secret she has never revealed, unwilling to admit the extent of her own self-sacrifice. "That's me," she murmurs weakly, laying her head against Sebastian's chest and feeling his breath, savoring the minor details of life, and a body's functioning. The question is considered for a moment, and her final answer is firm. "To protect my family to my greatest extent, from anything that may come." Yes, this means that if Homasubi wants to bulldoze his servants, he'll have to face Akurei first. But he's a giant roast pork: it shouldn't be too difficult.

 

Sebastian smooths his hand over the back of her head as Reese lays against his chest. "Your family," he echoes softly, barely whispering the words. "As a member of your family, I thank you for those words, and know that the same sentiment is echoed by myself. I will do anything for you, and for Rathan. And by extension to Aubrey and Kieran as well. But, above all, know that you are most important to me, you wanting me to protect you or not."

 

Reese hmms contentedly into Sebastian's shirt, throat vibrating softly. Able to abandon thoughts of death and destruction for a warm moment in space and time, the woman slides her hands over the fabric at the man's back, closing her eyes and letting tactile sensations dominate. "No need to thank," she insists, though the reciprocity makes her heart thud violently, a blush warming on her face. "Oh, Sebastian..." she breathes, smiling.

 

Sebastian is smiling faintly once more, gathering her tightly to him. "No, I believe that I do need to thank you, Reese. I didn't do it nearly enough early on, and I'm sure some thanks are owed to you. Of this I am sure. You are appreciated more than I think you understand." He is looking down at her once more, reaching a hand down to try to tilt her face to look up at him.

 

"Nonsense," Reese reemphasizes, though it's quite obvious that she's tickled pink by the sentiment. "I don't need thanks. I can feel it, and spoken or not, that comforts me enough. Honestly," she adds, flicking her eyes to his, "I ask for nothing else. And this is a privilege that I never really expected." She grins, pressing her lips lightly to Sebastian's cheek.

Sebastian is chuckling softly, and he is simply not going to take just a smooch to his cheek. No, instead he turns his head so that her lips will be meeting his for one rather generous kiss. He murmurs against her lips, "Please try to expect more from me. If nothing, it'll at least keep me on my toes, my dear." A brief frown, "Speaking of... I have something for you."

 

Reese cringes a bit and offers an ironic twist of the lip en route to a grin. "I think that being able to call you when I'm in trouble is expetation enough. Considering how often people randomly attack me," riiiight, "that's more than enough." Call it getting spoiled, but Reese was getting a little used to the warm, smiling Sebastian: this new segue into frowning is worrisome to the woman, and she straightens, thrown by the sudden change. "Hmm? For me?"

 

Sebastian is the Cuddle Oni, remember? Or something along those lines. He gives her another kiss, this time to her forehead before gently removing himself from her, but still keeping a hold of a hand. He begins to lead her back into the penthouse, drawing her over towards the couch. "Sit, please. Yes, a present."

 

Reese was mildly disturbed by Sebastian's change, but if he's going to play the part of the teddy bear, the poor girl's going to faint dead away. She allows herself to be led slowly, though the mention of the word present earns a blink: curiouser and curiouser. Finally, the woman slips gently from her feet to the couch, grinning cheekily. "Shall I close my eyes or anything?"

 

"Not unless you want to," Sebastian replies, his voice far away for the moment. "It is already wrapped." But he does eventually return, "Alas, I would have much rather have brought you home a seishi to play with, wrapped all neat and tidy with a bow, but seeing as I have none, you will have to do with this." He moves to take a seat upon the sofa, beside her, a package in his hands, about a foot wide and one and a half long, two inches thick or thereabouts. "I wrapped it myself. Well, with a little help from Kieran." Never wrapped a present before in his life. Scary. He offers it to her.

 

Reese is duly surprised, a perceptive mind already cranking into a higher gear as she guesses valiantly as to the package's contents. "Tsk," she says softly, "I could get a seishi to fit into a box this size." Yes, we've already established that she's a very frightening kinda girl. Giggling, the woman slides the bow off, saving it to a side, then picks meticulously at the tape, working away at it with a nail. After a moment's frustration, she decides to cheat a little, pulling out a hair then pushing a touch of magic into it, making it straighten and sharpen, flicking it through the tape like an exacto knife and peeling the paper back. "First time? I never would've guessed."

 

And what Reese is to see is a book. Rather simple looking, but very, very old. Leather binding definitely shows wear and the gold lettering upon the cover is faint. "I found it at an estate auction. I imagined you would appreciate it. I believe it is from the fourteenth century, an anatomy book of that time." Sebastian's gaze flickers from the book and back over to her, almost expectant.

 

Reese holds the book in her lap gingerly, flipping through the pages as the man speaks. Eyes are opened wide in fascination and she brushes away obstructing hair, tracing fingers over intricate illustrations and small script, mouthing the words as she reads. Body freezes for a moment, eyes clouding over, and she closes the book delicately. Fingers run lovingly over the cover; lashes blink rapidfire over eyes, then she shuts them, setting the book carefully onto the coffee table. Shock? Horror? Disappointment? It all comes down to one tense moment, a hesitating silence that Reese stretches to its fullest extent. Then... *glomp!* "Eee! It's so /cool/!!" Corpse fangirl. What a freak, Reese is.

 

Sebastian was getting awfully worried there. Maybe he should have got her the Operation game instead. He could still call up a minion to run out and get that yet. He looks about ready to reach for the phone, when he is glomped. Oh my. Oooooooohhhhhh my. He falls back on the sofa with the force, and then simply cannot help chuckling at the reaction. "It clearly meets with your approval."

 

Reese climbs above Sebastian, looking down at him then - for all intents and purposes - doing push-ups. One for a brief kiss, and up again as she giggles, two, a hug, another laugh, and again, and again. "That's my Seb," she murmurs, grinning, "always able to understate things with style." She turns her head and looks at the book, her mind torn, but opts instead for the man beneath her, all starry-eyes and glee. "Thank you so much!" Her kiss after that is long and impassioned, emotion from before mingling with ecstacy and finding a medium for ample expression.

 

Sebastian is pleased beyond anything that she is so happy with the gift. Hrm. He definitely must do this giving thing more often, especially considering the rewards. Absolutely fascinated at her reaction, it shows in his eyes as he watches her, a spark most definitely there. He is chuckling once more, holding her tight against him and responding quite readily with the kiss. Nope, he doesn't say anything, but he'll definitely show her later.

 

Look at all those repressed Christmases bubbling out and bursting forth, withheld gift-receiving enthusiasm transforming into some kind of energy. In excess. And then some. (Now look at the player's brain implode. Yay!)