March; catchall; open!

[ruinsprofessor]

Characters: Raine Sage, China Sorrows, and anyone else who feels like dropping by! [open]
Date: March, mostly the first half but perhaps others. Specified in threads if necessary.
Location: all around - Healer's Guild, various sectors.
Situation: many, lots.
Warnings/Rating: Obligatory mention of China doing that thing she does, aka magical mental/emotional influence. Any others will be added as necessary.



[A] Raine, Healer's Guild, any time - The Guild has been working almost as intended, lately, and Raine's been kept busy by it. Especially during the first half of the month, with the Dust problems caused by the palace demolition, the building is often found full of people with afflictions both serious and not so serious. Raine's relatively easy to get a hold of here, especially for those having a Dust problem, as she's had some limited success clearing it from some people's systems; if she's not immediately evident in the main hall then one of the kedan healers there can usually track her down, with varying degrees of agreeability about it.

[B] Raine, Earth Sector - With her artes seeing heavy use again, and her efficiency back where it had been when she'd first been summoned to Keeliai, Raine judged that it would be worth her time to streamline them as much as possible. There was a park she'd liked in Earth, back when she'd lived there, and some days she found her way there and took an hour or two to run tests and experiment with the way she shaped her mana. Though she chose a place a little out of the way, there wasn't much she could do about the light show, and anyone passing by would see her with staff in hand, light alternately flaring at her fingertips or spinning beneath her in a circle of intricate shapes. Close enough, and she could be overheard, frowning slightly and talking to herself, not being particularly cautious about her volume. "...No, that won't work that way, the mana has to go through the intermediary stages. If only I had Master Boltzman's work to reference..."

---

[C] China, Fire Sector - China had been working steadily at customizing her residence in the Fire sector to her specifications, and while much of the inside was done, one of the wards she wanted to emplace would be significantly more useful on the outside. The weather beginning to clear offered as good an opportunity as any, and in the early evening she took her tools and began work on the outside of the front door, nonchalant, as if this was something anyone would be doing. Her work was intricate symbols, precise and delicate, graven and inked with black, and one segment had already been completed and faded into the door as if it had never been there in the first place.

[D] China, marketplaces - China had developed a follower. In some contexts she would be concerned by this, but the kedan trailing her was mostly harmless, judging by the infatuated look and the one declaration of love she'd overheard. An annoyance-- but one she could put up with for now, and not worth the trouble to dislodge.

She stopped at a stand with fine jewelry, trying to ignore the nearby hoverer, and gave the necklaces some consideration before her expression turned faintly exasperated. She was already wearing one, after all, a fine if simple piece that was somewhat less than optional if she wanted to remain living. Even so, there was one longer chain that caught her attention as a worthwhile acquisition, and a negotiation in price ensued that, if anyone nearby was paying attention, would sound rather atypical. "I couldn't possibly accept it for such a low price, you're being far too generous..."

---

[ooc stuff; if none of these suit or you want something more specific or if I've forgotten something we meant to do or if you just want to plot for fun and profit, drop me a pm or a plurk at makaricrow. anything in this month is fair game and I'll backtag basically forever, or backdate if you need it, etc.]

Comments

March 20; closed to Genis; the Hotel

[ruinsprofessor]

Things had been, if not normal between Raine and Genis, then at least something that resembled it. Still, there was that underlying strangeness, the knowledge that things were not quite right, and Raine let that linger longer than she should have, faced with a situation she had no real prior experience with and no sure knowledge of how to resolve.

But enough was enough. And it was, after all, approaching the date where winter shifted into spring, and while the math of their arrival times meant it wasn't quite right-- Raine was hardly going to miss some marking of her brother's birthday. On the twentieth she went through the Hotel in search of him, armed with something she'd been meaning to give him and the determination to get to the bottom of this situation. She'd felt distant from her brother for far too long.

When she finally did track him down, she stopped a few paces away. "If you have the time, I think we should talk," she said by way of greeting, enough of a smile on her face to forestall any of the ominous overtones 'we should talk' would usually carry.

But moooooooom.

[strokeofgenis]

For the most part, things were normal.

Ish.

Genis had gotten over... a lot about Solomon, and that included to some degree of the fact that Raine and him were dating or whatever it actually was. To say that Genis didn't care was perhaps going a little too far, but avoiding all knowledge about and experience of it wasn't one of his foremost concerns any longer. And for the most part, he didn't have any problems with hanging around Raine.

But the overwhelming warmth of the relationship wasn't quite there. It wasn't that Genis had any particular problems at the moment, but it was still an adjustment, an adjustment that for the most part Genis had, because of circumstances and because, hello, he's 12, he'd insisted upon doing all on his own. And while he had been mostly successful at it—heck, he was pretty good about taking up the slack when needed, hence why he was so good at housework—it also made his social network a little harder to deal with, especially what with Lloyd and Colette and others notably absent from this world.

Raine will find Genis in the hotel's kitchen doing a little bit of experimentation. He's not doing anything too audacious, but in fact he's learning about spices all over again. Most of the spices from Aselia that he was used to were satays, and here there was bits and bobs of just about everything, so he's sprinkling a lot of spices into a spoon to give them all a taste test in order to find the perfect ingredient for a marinade that he's working on. And he just managed to find it.

"Rosemary," Genis says, "that's perfect. Funny name but... oh, Raine!" If Raine was thinking that Genis was going to not see through the 'we should talk' message, she's got a small surprise coming. Even though she is smiling and not seemingly upset, there's... yeah... something's up.

"Give me just a second to finish this up so I can put it in the refrigerator so I can cook it tomorrow. I think I might have found a restaurant willing to hire me as a chef, but they said they needed proof that I could cook first." There's a small grumble there, but hey, it's not like he's upset over having to cook.

no buts young man

[ruinsprofessor]

There was something like hurt to it, realizing that she had already missed something important in her brother's life. This strange distance between them really needed to stop, one way or another.

"That's fine," Raine said, standing back and out of his way, her smile fading a little as easily as it had come. She watched Genis as he finished what he was doing, patient. "I'm-- glad to hear you've found something. You shouldn't have any trouble convincing them, at any rate."

Her brother's cooking had been excellent as long as she could remember, and had only ever improved.

She'd wait for Genis to be done before raising anything more. He might notice she was carrying something, tucked under one arm -- two leather-bound notebooks, to be precise, one larger than the other, the smaller worn with the weight of years.

[strokeofgenis]

"It won't take more than a minute," he promises, and that's when Genis returns to whatever sort of poultry is actually common in this world. He carefully measures a few teaspoons of rosemary and then sprinkles it atop both the meat and into the broth, giving each about half of it. And with that, he finds some nice aluminium foil, covers it up, and puts it into the refrigerator to cool down. Though as he's doing so, there's a small wish that he had taken a little longer to do that last little bit—after all, there were still so many different spices to try here—in order to prolong the wait before whatever lecture Raine has up her sleeve.

"Well, that's all there is to it. Now to just cook that in the morning and bring that over." At least he can hope. "So let me guess: I'm in trouble somehow, is that right?"

[ruinsprofessor]

Raine watched with fascination until Genis asked that question, at which point she stopped contemplating his cooking skills and blinked, bemused at him. "You haven't done anything recently that I'm aware of," she pointed out, brows raised. That came with the unspoken question: should you be in trouble?

She let that sit in the air for a moment, then shook her head. "No, I just wanted to talk to you. Things have gone on this way too long." Raine shifted her weight a little, a movement that was for her almost uncertain. "And while I'm aware the math is necessarily a little bit off, it didn't seem right to simply ignore the day."

[strokeofgenis]

He hasn't done anything to be in trouble... or at least anything that Raine could potentially know about. Sure, he might have yelled at a kedan or two, but there haven't been any spellblasting anyone's faces off yet. Not even threats... yet. Yet.

"Good," Genis says a little smugly, resting a hand thoughtfully on his chin. "Then that must mean I've hid all the evidence well enough." He's definitely joking. Or is he? But he's definitely doing a bit of trolling of Raine.

But for once, Genis is caught with a bit of surprise. "What are you talking about though? Did I do my math homework wrong or something? I know I struggled with imaginary numbers, but I thought I'd gotten that down a while ago."

[ruinsprofessor]

Tension dissolved practically in an instant as Raine gave Genis a flat, resigned sort of a look. He was far too good at that. "Genis," she said, reproachful. She had been reasonably sure he could not have gotten into too much trouble, but suddenly that surety was a lot less.

If he was comfortable enough to tease her, surely things couldn't be as bad as she'd been fearing, or as bad as they had seemed that day back in February. Raine blew her breath out in a sigh, and adopted a supremely unconcerned expression. "It's the equinox, by my figurings," she said, and, leading, "Well, if you don't want a birthday present..." And there she half-turned, as if to go.

[strokeofgenis]

Well there hadn't been any reports of Genis getting into trouble, right? Still, Genis knew that tone of Raine's, and he knew when to be mindful of it. After all, that sort of tone was usually close to the one he got whenever he went too far and would get smacked for it. "Hey, hey, it's okay. I've just been out looking for a job. Honestly, how much trouble could that really get me in?" That's not to say he hasn't been in any verbal tête-à-têtes with any of the kedan that flat out refused to hire him, but, that's not necessarily trouble.

But as Raine continues on past it, Genis suddenly figures out what she's saying, even before the word 'birthday' comes up, and suddenly Genis gets excited. "Whoever said I didn't want a birthday present?" he protests suddenly, trying to gain control of the situation again before he lost it completely. "I mean, yeah, I know it hasn't been a full year since my last birthday in Aselia, but... that doesn't mean I won't take one."

[ruinsprofessor]

How much trouble could that really get him in-- Raine shook her head. Her younger brother had a particular talent for finding trouble. Lloyd exacerbated that, true, but though Lloyd wasn't here his presence had undeniably shaped both of them. In short, she was not at all confident that Genis was going to be out of trouble.

There had to be a point where she trusted him to be careful, and she did, mostly, but-- Raine worried. She always would.

She was smiling as she turned back, amused. "By the numbers, mine should most likely now be sometime toward the beginning of September," she said. "I haven't bothered marking it, which makes the issue moot. In any case-- here." She offered him the books she'd been carrying. One was a newer book, of good quality but entirely blank; the other was significantly older, and Genis would probably recognize their mother's diary.

[strokeofgenis]

Yes, that was Raine's perpetual worry, to worry about Genis until he finally had the maturity to back all of that cocky intellectualism under that head of hair of his. In reality, Genis was certain to be a handful... especially if bad people came a-knocking.

Genis thinks a bit on the first point. "Well, I'll have to do some actual maths to figure out exactly what day my actual birthday would fall on. Does that mean I get two different birthdays now?" Oh yes, Genis, try your hardest to milk this. It won't work. "Either way, thanks so much!" He doesn't take the books but rushes over to hug his sister about her waist first. And only then does he take the two books and look at them.

"Oh fantastic! I could use a new notebook since I don't have the one I was using back in Aselia. It'll be great for doing calculations and jotting notes in." But as he looks at the second book, he certainly does recognise it. And it surprises him a little. "Why are you giving me Virginia's diary?" He doesn't say the word mom, which might be odd for Raine. But for Genis, those days are practically forgotten to the mists of childhood youth.

[ruinsprofessor]

Yeah, good luck with that one, Genis. One birthday. One.

Raine was still amused as he went for the hug, and she returned the embrace with more or less equal enthusiasm. With his recent standoffishness and the fact he was rapidly approaching his teens, she'd take what she could get.

That cheer dimmed a little, though, when Genis outright asked the question. Of course she'd known giving it was inviting the question, but-- it still wasn't something she liked talking about. "It's your family history, too," Raine pointed out, choosing the most innocuous of her various reasons. "You have as much of a right to our mother's diary as I do." More so, even, because it was the only connection to his parents he would have. "And... I'd like it if you'd hold on to it for now."

Raine was leaving out several reasons, of course, but those were mostly to do with why she didn't want it in her possession at the moment, rather than why Genis should.

[strokeofgenis]

Well, let's face it. Genis and Solomon have more or less come to terms with one another. He doesn't necessarily fully like it, but he's come to peace with it. Solomon doesn't sound like a bad guy, and well... he's still got a big world to explore and people to make friends with. So generally speaking, Genis will be back to normal... or at least an approximation of that, as much as can be given the fact that they're on a turtle world.

Still, he can't help but be both intrigued and weirded out by getting Virginia's diary. "It still feels weird calling her mom," Genis admits as he holds the diary close. "I didn't know Tethe'alla existed until you told me about it." He's being absolutely honest about it, even though she already knows all of this deep inside. But still, he could tell it was important, and if nothing else, it did give him extra reading material... on top of all the books he was reading at the university library when he got a chance. So there's that. He tosses a casual smile up to his sister after a moment. "Thanks, Raine. I'll keep it safe."

[ruinsprofessor]

"Frankly, I had forgotten Tethe'alla existed as well until Sheena came into things," Raine admitted, grimacing at the reminder of her imperfect memory.

She couldn't disagree with Genis, though. Virginia was their mother, yes, and surely they owed her their existence. Perhaps the world even owed its reunited state in part to her decision to abandon them-- now there was a strange thought. But the fact of the matter was she couldn't really be 'Mom' to them, as things were.

In a moment she shook her head, tossing off that contemplation, and smiled at him: a small thing, but no less genuine. "Thank you," she returned, rather than the more customary 'you're welcome.'

If he wasn't going to question it apart from that, Raine was moving on, as rapidly as possible. Emotions about their parents were not something she wanted to go into right now. "Two other things," she said, holding up two fingers. "You've met Bakura, correct?"

Oh well *now* you've made me curious. :P Troll.

[strokeofgenis]

Genis, for the most part, trusts his sister. And despite the fact that she does have some sort of ulterior motives, something that very frequently he'd be able to tell, he doesn't this time. It's still weird, and he's not going to admit that Raine's making the most sense of this, but it's not going to trip his "hey wait something is really wrong here" sensors. Granted, he doesn't have the trigger issues with Mum that Raine has, so... he just shrugs it off, perhaps thankfully for Raine.

At least except for her reply. "You're... welcome, I guess?" he says, noticing her "strange" reply. Honestly he can't see how he's helping her out.

But of course, it's not going to be as simple as just celebrating a simple birthday. It's of course going to be more complicated. But Genis' eyes should be in a state of focus where Raine should be able to tell that, yes, Genis does know Bakura. "Yeah, of course. I actually thought he was a half-elf at first. He's kind of mysterious, but he seems nice."

[ruinsprofessor]

Good. Genis could leave it at that, and Raine was more than happy to. The issue of Bakura, now, and as Genis responded to that question Raine pressed her fingertips very briefly to her forehead, the barest hint of a facepalm. Nice was not the first word she would have used to describe Bakura, though she supposed she was thankful that he'd been extending her brother that courtesy.

She paused over what to say for a moment, picking and choosing her words with care. "Be careful with him," Raine said at length. "Bakura is... I hesitate to say dangerous, for the majority of us here are, when roused to action. That in itself does not set him apart. But..."

The wrong tack. Raine shook her head, came at it from a different angle. "Of all the people we knew in our world, there are none he reminds me of quite so much as Mithos. I do consider him a friend, and he won't harm you, but nevertheless you should keep in mind that there's a goal that's driven him for thousands of years for which there is little if anything that he would not sacrifice, should he find it necessary. Make your own judgments on the matter, of course, but I would encourage you to keep some caution in mind."

[strokeofgenis]

Yes, Raine did start going down the wrong tack. There were so many people with magical abilities and were working with the gangs and whatever else that Genis could tell that they were all "dangerous," just like Genis was "dangerous." And he hasn't even met Valdis yet! But there is a look of scepticism when Raine starts down it, but Genis will at least let Raine finish her spiel before he interrupts; he'll give her that much.

It's only when she compares him to Mithos that Genis goes silent. "So wait, you think he's like Mithos but you also consider him to be a friend? Isn't that sort of a contradiction of sorts?" he says. He's not countering what she's saying angrily at all; Genis is in between belief and doubt and trying to find clarity between them. He's not seen any of that in Bakura yet, but at the same time... this is Raine speaking. "Besides, that thing he wants, isn't that something he could only search for in his own world? I mean, if Mithos were to come here tomorrow, he wouldn't be able to revive Martel here."

[ruinsprofessor]

"Is it?" Raine countered, turning the question back to Genis. She tilted her head a little to one side. She wasn't outright going to point out that Genis had considered Mithos a friend; that wound would still be raw, most likely, and Raine didn't think he'd ever managed to outright hate Mithos. But the point stood. In another time and place, they might have been able to keep that friendship.

In a moment she sighed lightly. "He's less driven now than he was when I met him," she acknowledged. "Part of that goal is now out of his reach, yes-- He's dead in his world, I believe." This did not even begin to approach the number of issues Bakura had. "He seeks justice, or vengeance, and peace for the ghosts he carries. The former appears to be a moot point. The latter he doesn't currently think possible, either. As Bakura is now, he's unlikely to be an active threat to other Foreigners, but that wasn't always the case." Raine lifted her shoulders in a little shrug. "It's a complicated situation, and he is not accustomed to having friends."

Pointedly, though, Raine was not warning Genis off, nor did she seem more than a little bit concerned by the prospect of Genis and Bakura keeping company, which, given that it was her brother in question, was essentially tacit confirmation that she did trust Bakura.

[strokeofgenis]

"Of course it is," Genis says. In fact, it's more of a contradiction than she knows... at least the way that he's looking at it, but that's only because Raine never really was friends with Mithos. "I mean, yeah, Mithos was my friend, and I don't hate him. I can't hate him. But I don't exactly think the two of us are friends any longer, and that's not just because he's dead. I think Mithos stopped being my friend way before, don't you?" Genis fumbles into a frown, rather saddened by that. "I mean, I wanted to change him. I still want to be friends with Mithos. And I was willing to do everything I could to change his mind and make him believe that we could all live in peace together."

The demons in Bakura's past don't seem to phase him, even though he can sympathise with them, the same way he can sympathise with Mithos' demons even now. He looks at Raine sincerely. There's confusion on his face because, clearly she's not completely warding him off or telling him not to associate with him. But at the same time, she's still bringing it up... because...

She's seeing Bakura as Mithos, not Yggdrasil.

Sometimes it's hard to remember that they were, sometimes, two very different people.

"I don't know what's happened with Bakura in his world or what it is he wants since you're not telling me that. But if Bakura is willing to be friends with and look out for people, that proves he's more like Mithos and less like Yggdrasil. That definitely means that we should give him a chance."

[ruinsprofessor]

She said Mithos for a reason, after all. If she'd meant Yggdrasill, she'd have said so, but for all that Lord Yggdrasill threw himself in front of Pronyma to protect Genis, Mithos was the one who -- however briefly -- might have thought of them as friends, as well.

There was very little Raine could say to this; at first she just nodded assent. "I realize I'm being vague," she said, with a little grimace. "I'd like to explain everything, but as none of Bakura's past presents a danger currently, I'm inclined to respect his privacy."

This said nothing of the more pertinent issues. Mithos always was a difficult subject, and for a few seconds Raine regretted bringing him up in the first place. But no, he was the most apt analogy. "I think," she started. Hesitated. "I think there was a part of Mithos that very much regretted that you could not stay friends." She reached out to rest a hand on Genis' shoulder. If she could, she would have spared him that heartache; she still remembered the way Genis had wept over Mithos' betrayal. "Keeliai has offered a number of people second chances, separated from the situations that made them what they are. Bakura is no different, I think, only older and more lost than some."

[strokeofgenis]

Genis didn't mind Mithos being brought up. Granted, it still hurt that Mithos eventually betrayed them, but at the same time, Genis had had time in advance to figure that out. When Yggrasil had dropped those pan pipes, the seed of doubt had been planted... and it was well germinated by the time they encountered Mithos again. That's not to say that a lot of who Genis had come to be wasn't shaped by Mithos and his betrayal; on the contrary, much of Genis' own ideology was an attempt to unpervert the ideals that Mithos—the original Mithos before he formed Cruxis during the great war—stood for.

"If you're talking about if Mithos regretted me choosing Lloyd over him, I'm not so sure about that," he says a little more directly. Genis had realised after enough time that Mithos had tried to drive a wedge between him and Lloyd, to bring him into his conclave of half-elves ruling over the world. Regret was definitely not a feeling that Mithos had in abundance, though there's probably a similar word to what Raine actually means. "But that's ancient history, and I think we both know enough who Mithos actually was.

"Still, even if Bakura is like Mithos in some ways, I still want to give him a chance. And if you need me to promise to be careful," he continues, now in something of a sing-songy voice, "I'll promise it." Genis would like to think he's learned the lesson from Mithos enough not to fall into it again.

[ruinsprofessor]

Raine nodded again, and did not press on the Mithos issue. For all that she could feel compassion for him, she was glad that he was dead, and that he had not succeeded in manipulating her brother, and there was little point in what-ifs by now.

"I never said you shouldn't," she said instead, quirking a little bit of a smile at Genis. She was aware he was probably humoring her on some level, but so long as he had listened, that was the main part. "And I do believe he deserves that chance. I simply wanted to be sure you understand there is significantly more to him than initially obvious."

Genis? Humouring Raine? Wherever do you get these crazy ideas?

[strokeofgenis]

"You mean more to him than the fact that he can summon creatures?" Genis says after a beat. Yes, Genis already knows that, and Genis is being a bit snarky, but he's also be forthcoming about that at least. But that just leads him to thinking more about what he says. He did say that his magic was shadow-based, but Genis had merely assumed that was something similar to the Darkness element that Shadow mentioned. Which he had merely just discarded at the time. Not that Shadow was more evil than Luna or Aska, but he did have to wonder why a summon that felt more Fire still had that element of Darkness to it.

"Bakura invited me over to talk with him at some point. He was going to show me some other summons he can do." He pauses on that before continuing onward. "I definitely want to go help him if I can. Who knows? Maybe he just needs a friend right now. Sometimes, I'd like to think that's all Mithos really needed at some point."

Ah, child psychology.

[ruinsprofessor]

"Yes, more than that," Raine said, longsuffering. They'd just been over this. No need to ask who it was that had led Bakura to asking her about Sheena, either. But if Genis had been paying attention, then he'd have felt the same odd shadows to Bakura's mana that she did, the primary reason it had been easy enough to tell him apart from Ryou.

"In any case, I'm glad to hear you two are getting along. Maybe you're right." She couldn't exactly contradict the thought that Bakura might need a friend-- simplistic as Genis' approach was, she rather thought the core idea was sound. Were Bakura and Solomon even on speaking terms at this point? Certainly possible he could use a friendship which was not quite that fraught.

At least Genis had more or less listened to her. That was all she could ask at this point. "The last thing," she said after a moment, clearly hesitating. "...About Solomon."

[strokeofgenis]

Sometimes, sometimes, being Raine's brother could be difficult. In this particular moment, it was. Genis was in a hurry to grow up, and at the moment, Genis wasn't super interested in having something mothering him to death. He was listening, and he was paying attention, though the fact that they were now on the second potentially difficult point between the two of them just made this all the more tiresome.

At least this is the last thing for the two of them to discuss. And at least he can kind of predict that this one won't be quite so bad as the last; after all, he'd worked things out with Solomon, right? Right?

Genis lets out a discontented sigh and shakes his head. "Okay, but this better be the last thing. What about Solomon?"

[ruinsprofessor]

Raine was well aware she was trying his patience, but these things were important to cover. A clearing of the air, as it were. "I understand the two of you had a chance to talk," she said. Another, brief hesitation. "I won't keep you that much longer, I'm aware you have things to do."

And that was still a strange thought, occasionally, that Genis had things in his life she didn't know much about. Raine supposed that would have had to happen eventually, but here it had happened suddenly, and it was-- odd, that was all. "I... suppose I simply wanted to know your thoughts on the matter," she said at length, careful. All joking or teasing aside -- and that she did expect -- Genis' opinion did rather matter to her.