fortunefail | - 91 [Action/written]

[Action]

[When Yuan awakens, it's in a state of complete grogginess and disorientation. It takes him a few minutes to get his thoughts together enough to realize that he's lying face-down on cold, hard ground. And that lying on the ground is generally considered a bad thing. As he moves to sit up, willing his head to stop spinning, he comes to another realization. A soft breeze is prickling at his bare skin. He's outside, in the forest, and he's not wearing a shirt. Just those standard New Feather pants and shoes. His hair's not tied back either.

Damn.

He moves himself into a sitting position to get his memories in order. He'd been drafted. There was some sort of illness going around and he'd caught it. He'd asked Raine for help, but it hadn't done much good. The symptoms returned. And then... Then nothing. Going by his current situation, it isn't too hard to guess what had happened, but... What is he missing? Aside from nausea, his entire body is working just fine. All his senses are intact. Lightning magic crackles between his fingers when he tries to summon it. Luminous wings flicker on his back for a few seconds, before he allows them to disappear again.

Is it memories? Or had he not died at all?

The sun's position tells him it's some time in the afternoon. A glimpse through his journal tells him he'd been gone for over a week and missed a few things. He pauses at an entry that was put up by Sheena a few days ago. Sayo... That's right, Kratos told him about that just before they entered the battlefield. He snaps the journal shut, shakes pooling locks of blue hair back and gets to his feet, starting the trek back home. As he goes, he crosses his arms over his chest. Would it have killed the Malnosso to provide him with a shirt? By the looks of things, he ended up south east of the village, which means he has to cross the whole thing to get to his home.

Anyone's free to run into him, but beware, he's in a terrible mood.]

[Written | Filtered to Raine, Sheena and Zelos]

[When he does finally reach house #8 and opens the door, the first thing he notices is a foul smell. It isn't strong, but his enhanced senses catch it immediately. It's coming from the kitchen and the source can be located with ease. The refrigerator. They hadn't cleared it out before leaving for the draft. If it still hasn't been done a week after the draft's conclusion, that means Kratos hasn't been by the house either.

Ignoring the stench, he sits down at the dinner table and flips his journal open to write a message to Raine and Sheena. Zelos is added as an afterthought, if only because Tethe'alla's Chosen had been drafted as well.]

Have you seen Kratos this past week?

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

Nope. Haven't seen you this past week either. ...So what happened?

[Not, what happened on the draft. She's learned not to ask. Without using so many words, she's after what they took from him, if they took something.]

[Jeb's shopping for both him and Silver. Things had been sort of tense since the conversation Silver wasn't even aware they had, so Jeb was more than happy to agree to get some things for them. His arms are full of bags, and he's making his way home. When he spots Yuan, his expression is one of concern.] Yuan?

[It wasn't good to stay inside all the time, even when it's chilly out. And so, Utena was out and about to stretch her legs, and that's when she spots Yuan. She frowns--did this guy get experimented on? Her own experience with that makes her stomach twist and a bitter taste linger in her mouth. If he went through the same thing, she should probably help him out.]

Hey! [And now she's approaching.]

[Yuan knows that if he died, Raine would have told Sheena. That is, unless she was a fatality in the draft as well. It's hard to say and so it's hard to determine just what Sheena is asking him. One thing's for sure, he doesn't know what happened and he doesn't know what sort of effect it's had on him.]

Your guess is as good as mine, at this point.

[Yuan's features twitch in dismay for a second. He was really hoping to get home unnoticed, but when you pass straight through the village in this attire, you're bound to get remarks. He's not halting his stride in the least.]

I'm busy.

[Great, even more attention. Yuan's starting to regret not taking the long way around the village, like he did last time the Malnosso dropped him off somewhere inconvenient. Not that it had done him much good back then, either.]

Yes? [There's a very distinct note of impatience in his voice.]

I'm sorry... [Guiltily looks off to the side.] It's just-- you--

[He knows Yuan was drafted too, and he's able to put two and two together. He takes out an apple, holding it out to the man.]

Even if you're busy, you should probably eat. [Someone is not a stranger to having to force people to eat. Especially people who are antisocial jerks. You better take it, Yuan.]

[At the sight of that apple, Yuan's stomach churns uneasily. He's still nauseous- likely a side effect of not having had proper food for a while. The only way to fix it is to ease himself back into eating meals, but he dismisses the apple with an idle wave of the hand regardless.]

I'll eat when I get home.

[Hey, what gives? She's just expressing concern.]

Jeez, you don't need to be like that. You just look like you came back from them, that's all.

That's all the more reason I don't want to be disturbed.

[Because to Yuan, this encounter isn't a helping hand. This is being caught during a moment of weakness. Utena may have good intentions, but good intentions won't do him any good.]

No, but someone should really put a leash on him. That guy always goes missing.

[Seriously, not a bad idea.]

[He should've expected a useless comment like that from Zelos.]

There's a difference between making yourself disappear and simply disappearing.

[Hey Yuan, how about running into one incredibly out-of-the-loop woman?

At this point, Grune has run into two recently resurrected friends, but being the eternal optimist that she is, it hasn't occurred to her that there might be a similar reason for why she hasn't seen Yuan all week. And so, when she sees him crossing the village in rather unseasonal clothing, she's entirely cheerful.]

Good morning, Yuan!

[Oh no, it's Grune. He could never truly give her the cold shoulder. He's still bad-tempered and in a hurry, but he'll at least attempt to be civil.]

Hello Grune.

[And she's just going to happily stroll closer now....]

Are you out for a little walk?

[Maybe they can walk together!]

I was just heading home. [Which is true enough. His arms wrap themselves closer around his chest. It isn't the cold that bothers him, it's just the notion of showing bare skin. Especially in front of a woman like Grune.]

[Grune doesn't see anything wrong with Yuan's state of undress--but then again, she's walked in on people naked on a couple of occasions and not seen anything wrong with that, either. What is modesty.]

Oh, why don't we go together?

... If you insist. [Perhaps if other people see he's got company, they'll stop running over to him to offer assistance. Best plan.]

[And now, because things aren't awkward enough yet, Grune is going to hold out her hand for him to take.]

It's nice to see you. I don't think we've had a little visit for a while, have we?

Okay, so guess. I can wait.

I just said I don't know. [The way his pen left deep scratches rather than neat curved letters may be a good indicator for Sheena that he's frustrated.] Why are you so eager to find out?

[He'll stubbornly ignore that hand as he continues on his way to the house.]

It has been a while.

[He doesn't have to know! He has to speculate. Sheena frowns and takes her time with answering.]

Maybe I'm worried.

[It takes a few more moments before Yuan writes down his own response.]

Don't be. I've yet to find any reason to worry.

Says you. That's what I'd say to people to shut them up too.

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