tushanshu_logs | [OPEN] I hear them still...

Entry tags:

[OPEN] I hear them still...

Characters: Bakura / Jack Frost / Stork
Date: March catch-all log
Location: Various around Keeliai.
Situation: Assorted run ins. Open starters in the log, closed starters in the comments. Or add your own!
Warnings/Rating: Add warnings if needed in subject headers.

A. [BAKURA] JADE SCHOOL OF KUNG FU DOJO - WOOD SECTOR
He hasn't made a big deal of it, but the dojo has been put back to rights and thoroughly cleaned up over the course of the last month. He's solved the heating problem, purchased replacements for the mats and panels which weren't salvageable (coincidentally, reports of juulan theft in certain sectors had gone up, particularly in public places where it had been pickpocketed). He'd moderately refurbished the sparse living quarters in the back, allowing him to cease renting the small unit in Fire and live at the dojo instead, which was preferable for privacy anyway.

There was no grand opening or announcement made, but when curious once-regular patrons came curiously around, having noted the freshened state of the exterior, Bakura just shrugged and let them have the practice time they requested. When they started leaving payments for the time spent in the small anteroom that doubled as an office between the main dojo floor and the back living quarters, he certainly didn't stop them.

(Equally coincidentally, the number of juulan thefts started going back down.)

B. [BAKURA] MARKET - FIRE SECTOR
With the brutal cold snap finally breaking, Bakura was less loathe to spend any time outside, and had resumed his typical habit of walking the public areas of Keeliai. The Fire Sector was still the most familiar to him, having lived there when housing was still assigned, and the atmosphere suited him. Yet more often than not, his steps were aimless, and he spent more time watching the kedan going about their lives than doing anything of note for himself; it was hard not to feel disconnected from everything now. For those who did for some reason engage him in conversation for whatever reason, found him alert but listless, as if the motions of daily life were a tedious obligation.

C. [JACK] WELCOME CENTER - CENTRAL SECTOR
The Welcome Center had officially reopened, and Jack was proud of the way they'd been able to put it back together. It had taken volunteers, to whom the spirit was grateful for the help, and the lack of harassment by his kedanese neighbours (of which there were many, given that the Center was in the hear of the commercial district of Central). Two consoles, installed by the Metalworkers, were in a bank along the one wall, and there was a holder for pamphlets and maps on the other. There was also a noticeboard for both paper posting and a chalkboard side, for leaving messages.

At the moment, the spirit was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the floor, pondering over how he was going to put up additional "check points" throughout the various sectors, to lead new arrivals to the Center if they happened to appear in other parts of Keeliai -- which was looking more and more like the standard. At Jack's side is a map of the city and surrounding area, with coloured dots added to it, corresponding to where he'd been told people had arrived recently.

D. [JACK] VARIOUS - WATER SECTOR
As things began to thaw, Jack fretted constantly over the state of the canals in the Water Sector, though for very different reasons than the Woodsmen seemed to be concerned about them. At first he went to every one of them, using his magic to keep the ice thick and dense, as the upswing in temperature actually lured more kedan onto the slippery surface. He was distracted for the first week of the month, constantly zipping on a strong breeze overhead, surveying the ice surface with an expert eye, searching for any thin spots or weaknesses.

When the weather seemed to be on a steady track toward warming, he decided that was enough sign, and started forcefully breaking up the icepacks in the canals so that they couldn't be skated on at all. He got more than a few unhappy complaints about the loss of seasonal entertainment, but he bore the chastisements with rueful grace that only a few people who knew him well would have seen through as genuine unease.

Once the canals were no longer a concern for ice however, they started becoming a problem around the city for other reasons. Flooding started small, but quickly became more of an ongoing problem. The Winter Spirit switched tracks again, freezing gathered pools of water inside people's houses so it could be broken up into chunks of ice and carted out before it caused more damage.

E. [STORK] VARIOUS - METAL SECTOR
Stork has decided that the best way to acclimate himself to this strange city is to build something, which means he's been creeping around the Metalworker's properties, literally going through their trash and fishing out all sorts of discarded odds and bobs. It isn't clear from the scrap he's gathered what he's trying to build just yet, but he's obviously stopped to assemble a few little gadgets along the way. A couple of them are clicking away merrily on sprockets on the ground, while presently Stork has his head inside a scrap bin, three-toed feet lifted slightly to reach something near the bottom.

"Oh, this looks promising..."

F. [STORK] CANALS - WATER SECTOR
Stork has a small crowd of people gathered around him, but he's barring the way to one of the Water Sector canals with both arms. He's also pretty loud, and his antics are drawing more people to come and stare at the obviously addled Foreigner.

"Stay back! The water in the canals is contaminated with Tunurian fire fungus! One swallow and you'll start growing hairy pustules on your insides! If you get anywhere near open flame, you'll explode!"

There are some jeers from the kedan, because that's the most ludicrous thing they've ever heard (and they've heard some good ones), and some of them are tired of having their path blocked and shove the Merb to the side.

"H-Hey!"

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Stork had been able to get some directions to the Healer's Guild from the locals, some of whom seemed more in the know than others, insofar as who was currently running it. But the pilot finds it easily enough, and when there's no indication of time he should arrive, he just drops by in the early morning a few days after the conversation with Aqua. The main floor is moderately busy, with some kedan discussing things or carrying supplies from one area of the Guild to the other.

He nervously interrupts one of them, the least intimidating one he can find, and asks where he might find a Foreigner named Aqua.

Raine wasn't really intending to seek Bakura out, but she'd only seen him from a distance during the bonfire night and now, in the markets on errands, when she caught white hair out of the corner of her eye she was redirecting her path before she'd made the conscious decision.

When she did notice, however, she didn't change her mind; it had been a little while, and it would be nice to know how he was doing. Raine wove across the street to eventually fall into step with Bakura, glancing over at him in part to gauge how welcome her presence was. "Good afternoon, Bakura."

Aqua is at the Guild, assisting one of the kedan with a boy who'd come in with a broken arm. Playing too roughly, most likely, and though her Cure spells are effective it's important for the bone to be set properly before the healing magic is performed; broken bones are a bit different and more complex than the magically-augmented battery she's used to patching up.

The boy, however, has decided he's not going to cooperate, and much as she wishes to be of help Aqua doesn't have the knowledge needed to set the arm of a squirming child without injuring him further. So it's almost a relief when another of the kedan walks over and informs her that a Foreigner is here to see her.

She smiles brightly at Stork when she sees him, walking over. "It's nice to see you again. Is there something I can help you with?"

Stork raises a four-fingered hand in greeting, but his eyes are darting around the Guild's main hall, as if he's trying to keep everyone in view at the same time. "You said I could come by this place," he reminded. "I still want to buy the disinfectant."

And then, as if anticipating that she'll refuse, he adds quickly, "I brought money. I made a few wind up machines and sold them."

"Hello seba-rekhet," Bakura answered, having not reacted to her sudden appearance at his side, which could be attributed to him having seen her approach or simply not caring if he was surprised.

"You're out less often, now that you spend your days in that Guild building."

It was-- something of a relief, to hear that nickname from him again, and it seemed conversation was on the table; Raine relaxed a little, a fractional difference in the set of her shoulders. "I suppose so," she agreed, thinking over her recent allocation of time briefly. "It's something that both can't and shouldn't be given half measures. I haven't seen you in a little while; have you been keeping busy?" Well was on the tip of her tongue, though she changed her mind at the last moment.

"Busy enough," Bakura replied, and because she'd changed her question at the last moment, he was able to answer affirmatively. "I decided to claim the dojo in the Wood Sector, rather than let it sit empty. It needed some work to get it back into usable condition."

And he didn't mind said work, doing most of it himself rather than hire kedan for the tasks. The things he couldn't do, that he didn't have the skill sets for, was contracted out, so that the dojo had remained largely quiet for the past month.

"The dojo?" Raine echoed. She knew Ryou had gone, but hadn't expected Bakura to pick up where he left off, excepting perhaps in possession of the Ring. "Ah-- you did work there before, didn't you." He'd mentioned it the first time they talked, now that she thought of it, back when he'd still been pretending to be Ryou. "It'd be a shame to let the space go to waste."

And it was good to hear Bakura had something to do with himself.

"I notice also you've met my brother," she added in a moment.

"Rest assured, I've already been adequately told off for daring to take possession of it," the thief muttered. Midii had certainly made her opinions on the matter clear; not, of course, that it had been enough to change the thief's mind, but he'd still had to put up with it.

"I did," he agreed. "It must be good to see him, after this much time."

The muttering earned a brief, quizzical look from Raine, because it was nowhere near what she'd meant. She was aware that not everyone held him in positive regard, but in the absence of direction from Ryou or a secondary person having been specified by Korra, Bakura had the closest thing resembling a right to the space, didn't he? "Will you encounter trouble on that front?"

His second comment, however, drew a smile from her, even if it was one with something a little bit sad around the edges. "It is," she agreed. A pause. "You seemed to be getting along." She'd seen them only from a distance that night, but enough to see how animated Genis had been.

"From the hemuiket?" Bakura scoffed. "Hardly. She's so wrapped up in proving to the rest of the world how determined and resolute that she is, she's basically forgotten how to actually live. The only trouble from her I'd expect is that she'll drop comatose in the street from lack of air up as high as she holds herself, and still find a way to blame me for it."

But then he shrugged, as if putting the issue of Midii from his mind and turning it instead to interactions with a much more pleasant child.

"He's much as you described," Bakura replied. "He thought I was half elf too, at first. Now he seems to think he'll look like me when he's older. We talked a little of different types of magic... he liked a Fire-type I summoned during the bonfires."

Sonja stumbled upon the Dojo on one of her frequent walks around the city. She soon made it a bi-weekly ritual to come to the dojo and practice. She had a smattering of different martial arts backgrounds, and one of them was very similar, if a bit different than Kung Fu. She actually started to built some rapport with some of the locals with her skill and willingness to learn from and teach others.

At one point while slipping into the office after another Kedan to drop a Juulan on the table for the absentee proprietor, she spotted Bakura.

"Hi there. I don't think I've ever seen a dojo owner who was so uninvolved with the practice space. Not that I'm not grateful for the space."

"Right, of course," she nods, "give me a moment." Aqua whisks off to a side room where she's set aside the substance in question; there had been a fairly bemused discussion about how much the Guild would be able to part within reason. She's only gone a few moments, returning with a middling-sized jar: the darting glances about the main hall had not gone unnoticed.

"I'm afraid that's all we can spare," she says apologetically, "but hopefully you'll be able to make it last."

A raised brow, mostly because Raine hadn't heard hemiuket before and had no idea to whom it might be attached. "If she does, let me know," she said finally, wryness coloring her tone. That problem, at least, she could fix, though she was sure Bakura had meant it as hyperbole.

But she let that matter slide in favor of the other, which was restraining a startled laugh. Now that was a thought, Genis maturing to look somewhat like Bakura. And not, Raine discovered as she processed the idea, wholly out of the question, and her gaze turned a little contemplative, studying Bakura's features. "Half-elves are often marked out by atypical coloration," she explained, absently. "It's the most common mutation."

There was a noticeable pause, like she was deciding something, but her expression remained roughly the same, simply considering. "I take after our mother," Raine said at length, "but I don't recall our father's face. It's... not inconceivable. Improbable, I suppose, given our disparate origins, but..." She trailed off, shrugged the idea off as a flight of fancy as well, amused. "He always has liked fire."

Stork waits in the lobby, not auspiciously placed so that he's not standing next to anyone too closely. When Aqua returns, he accepts the jar and cradles it protectively, like one would an infant.

"It's better than nothing," he answered, not bothering to disguise the relief as he looked around again. "So... you work here? Doesn't look like any Contrail Clinic that I've ever seen."

"Hello," Bakura responded, glancing up from the papers he was reading; on it was visible both kedanese writing and a number of penciled in symbols on the sides, though the actual content was obscured.

"Things seem to be running fine without my oversight, so it's easy enough to keep them that way. Besides, just because I'm not out there doesn't mean I don't know what's going on. I'll step in if there's a problem."

"If it crosses my mind," Bakura retorted, because frankly helping Midii would not be topping his list of priorities at the moment. He glanced away as Raine studied him thoughtfully, but looked over at her again when she spoke about her parentage. He's surprised to hear the admission, and he hesitates several seconds longer than a normal consideration before responding in kind.

"I-- looked like... mine, too," he said; the words sound as if they're being pried loose one syllable at a time. "Not... colour, but features. Didn't know any father, it was just her and I." He paused before adding, "Though if he'd been the reason for it, she'd have said something."

"I wasn't worried about problems arising so much as that Dojo owners tend to create curricula and run classes, or at least employ instructors who do."

Ah, watch out, Sonja you're starting to tread into 'telling people what they should be doing' territory, and they rarely react well to that. Especially for people that seem to be starting in the 'hostile' NPC attitude category.

"...those aren't notes on the console symbols, are they?"

"I'm well aware that some people need their hands held in order to learn anything. Surely there are other dojos in the city if that's the management you require or prefer," Bakura said, returning his attention to the papers he held, dismissive of the remark.

"They are," he said, adding another circle to his notes.

Sonja's face lit up. She pulled out her smartphone.

"Are you interested at all in swapping theories? I've been working with Sokka on it, and we thought that adding up the numeric representations of each sector, or alternatively the frequency of a given symbol across sectors, might add up to a time."

Bakura appeared to consider for a moment, then silently gestured that she could take a seat across from him. He spread four pieces of paper out on the wooden table, corners touching, to form a hand-drawn map of Keeliai with the sectors labeled. On the side is the following legend:

EARTH: ORANGE HEXAGON (orange soil)
PALACE?: YELLOW ARROW (sunlit = yellow. clouds?)
FIRE: RED SQUARE (red embers)
WATER: BLUE TRIANGLE (sapphire tides)
METAL: PURPLE STAR (violet ore)
WOOD: GREEN CROSS (viridian trees)

CENTRAL? (core - no symbol = pause?) OUTSIDE? (grey)
why all edges? no circle.

She handed her phone over to Bakura so he could see her chaotic (ahem *ordered chaos*) notes.

"The function of Central and the outer regions is definitely what puzzles me, still. I don't know how or even if they factor in."

"Wan is convinced that it has something to do with moving through sectors in a particular order but eh..."

There were several moments where Raine simply didn't know what to do with that. She hadn't expected-- anything, really, and while Bakura was rarely outright untruthful these days she didn't think she'd commonly heard him this honest.

And it would be the one time she hadn't actually been seeking to press any additional knowledge out of him, too. Perhaps that was why.

She tucked those little bits of his history away in her mind, in the same way she did anything of her friends, especially that which deserved to be remembered. Inclined her head in deliberate acknowledgment, and didn't push farther. "Genis was only a few days old when I became responsible for him," she offered instead, stepping around the edges of the issue. "It's... natural, I think, that he'd look for..."

Raine paused there as she came to the idea of Genis looking up to Bakura. Trust Bakura with his life-- yes, evidently she did. Trust Bakura as a role model? ... less likely. Then she shook her head, clearing that line of thought and beginning a new one. "It's-- frustrating. Having questions with no realistic chance for an answer." And that might well apply to any of them.

China was minding her own business -- well, as much as China Sorrows could mind her own business, which was not at all, really. But she was not actively seeking to pry into others' when the gadgets Stork had assembled caught her attention, mostly by virtue of being right in the direction she was heading anyway.

She stopped, then, stooped and picked one up to turn it over, curious. It wasn't hard to track it to the person with their head in a bin nearby. ...The decidedly not-human person, judging by those feet. China raised one brow, considered the small gadget again, then cleared her throat pointedly. "Yours, I presume?"

"A few days of the week, yes. I'll also be starting work at the Midnight Hotel soon, and I'm hoping to do some volunteering at the Welcome Center." She laughs, it having occurred to her that she's been picking up quite a bit of work. "I like being able to help people."

As she speaks, Aqua starts moving towards a sheltered corner of the lobby, out of the way of the main hustle. "It's certainly different from what I expected when I first heard of it. Both traditional and more technological healing is practiced here." She nods toward one of the kedan carrying a box filled with containers of salves and the shining steel of more modern medicines. "If you're interested, I can introduce you to Raine some time - she's the owner of the Guild, and a Foreigner like us."

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[OPEN] I hear them still...

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