Description: Cherise investigates her new co-worker. After a bit of a tense start, the two decide that a spar is the best way to gauge one another as co-workers: and as potential friends.
A great deal had happened to Suzume Nakatani in recent weeks, ever since her first arrival in Southtown and her subsequent fortuitous 'discovery' by Shihong Mao. She had gained the favor-- or at least, the faint tolerance-- of Geese Howard himself, in a altogether -painful-, but educational meeting with the King of Southtown. She had then been approached by one of the last people she'd expected to see within the bounds of Geese's domain... Ryouhara Seishirou, that wayward son of the Ryouhara clan.
His words to her, despite her new arrangements with Howard, still weigh heavily on her mind even now. She cannot say she was not entirely disinterested. She is a practical woman now, eminently sensible, almost cold in how efficiently she looks out for herself. Howard is a safe, long-term investment. But that part of her that always loved to be part of something great-- to bend her ability to something grand, to have /worth/-- has not entirely died.
It's been over a year since he died. She is starting to become restless again-- starting to yearn again-- and the sensation bothers her.
But for the time being, she's managed to push it from her mind. It's the weekend, Suzume has a little free time... and she thinks her apartment needs some fresh fruit. Asian pears in particular. Dressed down (in her estimation) in a white button-down and khaki slacks, she wanders from stall to stall choosily, her bangles clink-clinking against one another as she sifts through the choices with heavily-ringed hands.
Her polished black cane-- lacquered, one might almost surmise-- remains, as always, close by her side, though she never uses it to walk.
However, those such as Suzume should count themselves lucky to curry the favor of a man that powerful in a city like this, lest they end up mysteriously falling off a building or being found in the trunk of someone's car a week later. Then again, Geese's whims and favors are handed out to the strangest of people. Suzume Nakatani, Mao Shihong, and...
Cherise Bouchard.
It isn't all that hard to miss her, considering that she's riding the bus in the most literal of senses, the silver-haired girl sitting with her legs folded and hands in her lap while the wind blows back her hair and her head tilts to and fro to avoid the occasional bug. She springs off once she gets where she wants to-- much to the driver's dismay at having that girl steal a ride -yet again- from the city-- and hurries off into the thick of Southtown before he can get up from his seat to chase after and shake his fist.
And she stalks her prey from word of mouth alone, after getting information from her partner after the band rehearsal just the other day, a ghost in the daylight stalking the cane-carrying woman that just wants to pick up a little fruit. Aside from a nagging curiosity as to the caliber of woman that even Mao Shihong has interest in, there's no other apparent reason to stalk this girl-- stalk her with the intent to give her the proper greeting as she does to all of her friends, cohorts, and the sort of greeting her 'boyfriend' hates.
Almost appearing from nowhere, almost appearing as if she's teleported, arms reach out to wrap around the waist of Suzume Nakatani while she reaches out to get those pears, the weight of Cherise's chest pressing to her back and leaning to whisper in her ear.
"Those look -delicious-."
Words spoken by the French-accented girl in the soft long-sleeved black turtleneck dress, the gold bracelets around either wrist lightly dinging together.
To sneak up on a ninja is the crowning achievement of stealth. That Cherise manages it will only be a favorable mark for her and her skill later on, in Suzume's mind.
Right now, however, Suzume is severely displeased.
Suzume freezes dead still when Cherise enfolds her, smilingly murmuring her approval in her ear. She is quiet and still for a long time, her hand poised on the edge of the produce cart while the merchant baffledly looks back and forth between the women. Suzume's brow, nearly imperceptibly, twitches. She draws a breath, as if to cool her temper.
Then, eerily enough, she smiles. The expression is very, very thin, but unusually enough... also gracious. "Do I know you?" she eventually asks, very cordially, the lilt of her voice bearing no annoyance at all. It seems almost harmless!
That is, up until she finishes her sentence. "Because if I don't, you're going to forfeit your arms in the next five seconds."
That gives Cherise about three seconds to explain herself satisfactorily. Suzume, who has already shifted her hands to tighten a readied grasp on her innocuous cane, only needs one second each for both of those troublesome appendages.
"You mean Mao Shihong did not tell you all about me?"
Should that buy her just a little more time, the silver-haired girl lulls her head back and lets out a sigh, amusement hanging from her glossed lips. Her arms slowly withdraw from around Suzume's waist, slinking back to her sides and folding casually under her chest.
Cherise steps back, tilting her head forward a little, staring over the thin black wire rims of the sunglasses that sit on her face, looking through the veil of gray hair and over the strong darkness-- it casts her blue eyes in a more stark light, complimented by the sharp smile on her face.
"I am Cherise Bouchard. Mao is my partner, and all three of us have ... mutual employment. Or have you forgotten?"
Cherise Bouchard. She had heard of the woman, yes-- but she had never met her, nor had Cherise ever been described to the young kunoichi. A Frenchwoman, friend and close associate of Mao Shihong... and another of Geese's enforcers. The cold, irritated threat that had smoldered in Suzume's eyes starts to change. It transmutes into a muted sort of polite interest.
"It's harder to recognize those who sneak up from behind," she eventually replies, her voice now more even-- more calm. She straightens up as Cherise withdraws and backs away a step or two, and finally turns to face and appraise the other. Her eyes linger on the gold bangles about Cherise's wrists, seeming to see past their innocuous appearance to their true purpose; if only because her own 'decorations' also serve a far more grim purpose than their looks suggest.
After a few moments of this cool, composed regard... Suzume smiles. The expression is faint and reserved, but it's a hell of a lot better than what Cherise initially got from her in the way of a response. "Though I must commend you for successfully catching me by surprise. Mr. Howard, I see, does not waste his time with the talentless."
"I was told of you; and I have not forgotten. But until now, I had not been able to meet you." The woman inclines her head slightly, a sight more agreeable now she isn't being stealth-hugged. "Suzume Nakatani," she says, offering her name in the Western fashion, "--but you must know that already."
It seems almost as though Cherise is the polar opposite-- more interested in the person than sizing them up for a fight, seeing what they have to bring to the table. Either some sort of faith or misguided confidence in her own abilities leads her around or... she's just as crazy as they say, and as she appears.
It's still a boatload of fun, either way.
Cherise flips her hand casually, waving off Suzume's compliments. "Oh, no, no, please do not flatter me so. I am just a guitar player." But then she introduces herself properly, bringing the silver-haired wire assassin to treat her new 'coworker' in a similar manner. Taking Suzume's hand in one, then both hands, she gives the young woman a proper handshake and smiles. "It is so nice to finally meet you. Perhaps sometime we will have the enjoyment of you hurting me. Have you been in Southtown long? We should have some wine sometime."
"I note ability," Suzume smiles faintly, her attitude entirely too gracious and smooth for a contract killer, "where I see it." She doesn't even protest when Cherise takes her hand affectionately, letting the girl hold it in that girlish manner with an amused look. The initial tenseness of their odd meeting aside, Suzume is starting to like this girl for her peculiar French charm and her cheerful, open attitude... much as she liked the the cool efficiency and smiling confidence of Shihong. These two women form a pair Suzume could come to like very much.
It helps that they share her particular brand of ruthlessness... and, where Cherise in particular is concerned, it especially helps that Suzume is a little unhinged herself... amoral, pleasant in the way a sociopath is pleasant, and gracefully efficient to the point of cruelty.
"It's nice to meet you as well, Miss Bouchard." Suzume's grasp has, by now, slackened on the hilt of that weapon, her wariness largely evaporated. And she lets Cherise cling on to her hand as long as she likes; she's not squeamish of physical contact, having once been a girl as vivacious and affectionate as Cherise herself. "I've only been in Southtown a short time... perhaps sometime, you can enlighten me as to the highlights of the city. And wine sounds lovely... but a spar sounds lovelier. I am curious to see your abilities."
Strangely enough, Suzume's pleasant regard doesn't even skip a beat at the patently -odd- phrasing of 'the enjoyment of you hurting me.' Perhaps she heard more about Cherise than she at first let on... or perhaps she's just THAT mentally off herself.
"Well, thank you."
The hands holding Suzume linger for awhile, especially during the conversation. It isn't a tight grasp or a desparate hold, but the texture of her hands is notable. Even a glance at her hands would show the numerous small scars she has on her fingers, front and back, each at an extremely thin width and long-- always in straight lines, never curving awkwardly. Those mangled fingers are Cherise's proof of training and skill-- even if she claims she's shredded her fingers up so much by playing the guitar.
Only after releasing Suzume's hand does Cherise slide off her sunglasses, folding one of the bridges in and hooking the other into her mouth. She leaves her lips parted the slightest of amounts, just letting the accessory sit there rather than hiding them away in whatever pockets her dress could concievably have.
Cherise's weight shifts, looking up the street, farther up the hill. "There is not too much to see, I am afraid, unless I missed something. That way is one of those Japanese shrines," she remarks, freeing up her sunglasses to point northerly. "There is also an amusement park. I went there once, the rides were fun."
Hey, she's still only nineteen. "Oh, but-- hmm," she trails off, folding one arm and resting her other elbow on her wrist. "I would give you a demonstration now, if you would like~." To punctuate this statement, the French girl's hand paws forward as if she were some sort of cat. And yet, with the smooth downward wag of her fingers with that pawing motion, hints of silver energy hiss from her fingertips-- barely visible, but -there-.
"Or would you rather go somewhere a little more... private?"
The strange feel of Cherise's hands doesn't escape Suzume's notice. The kunoichi's gaze even tracks downwards a bit when Cherise lets go, the roughness of the other young woman's skin drawing a curious sort of look. Unerringly straight scars. Perhaps it's just a result of an innocuous hobby... but then again, few pastimes undertaken for fun leave wounds that would scar so cleanly and thinly.
She listens as Cherise talks-- she asked for the remarks, after all, but her mind is on this strange girl and her strange hands. She is curious to know how her new compatriot fights. And then, soon enough, Cherise gives her a clear opening to ask for a fight. The girl swipes forward, trailing silver energy from her hands, and Suzume's eyes follow the argent wisps. Her eyes half-lid in interest, a smile starting to peek out along her mouth.
"No... I think you have missed nothing. I feel the same as you. Southtown itself is not much... but the people here? Amazing." A tilt of her head indicates the long-since vanished sparklings of energy. "So we may skip the shrines, and the parks... and entertain one another." Yes. She would like a demonstration, if only to know what Shihong's partner in crime can do.
"Why waste time?" Suzume's cane lifts in a teasing arc, in a motion almost chiding... and then the curving length drops, falling squarely into her hand with a hollow sound. Her hands, grasped securely on either side of that barely-there seam in the cane, suddenly pull /apart/-- and a gleaming inch of steel says a coy hello to Cherise. "To find a private place would be such a bother... and we have enough space right here."
"That is true."
Oh, but what about all of those delicious fruits just over there, just beyond the reach of her fingers?
Cherise looks down to the cane in Suzume's hand as she brings it about, taking a careful and controlled step back to adjust, carefully gauging the distance between them. She also gauges the length of her arm, and the cane... especially now that a bare inch of steel is staring her right in the eye.
Show and tell time, then?
*tsssssssssssssssss*
Biting down at the bracelet around her right wrist, her hand lowers a bit with her teeth holding a small golden weight, one part of the tip hooked. It has a smooth, well-crafted shape-- a teardrop, almost. But between the weight and the braclet is a taut line of silver that seems to be almost barely visible to the naked eye, showing up well against the dark colors she wears today.
Releasing the weight from her teeth, Cherise whips her arm backward in a smooth arc, the length of wire in the bracelet spooling out to a greater distance almost of it's own volition, as if a dog ready to attack on the master's whim. The sunglasses are lightly tossed atop the fruit on the stand, and the French girl's mouth bends into a broad smile.
Producing a coin from nowhere, she snaps it into the air with a flick of her thumb, her legs spreading to lower her stance and center her ready.
"When it hits the ground-!!"
COMBATSYS: Cherise has started a fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Cherise 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Suzume has joined the fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Suzume 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Cherise
*ting*
The coin strikes the ground on edge.
Cherise doesn't even bother to see if it lands heads or tails, springing into action immediately. Her hand drops low, the energy she used before once again manifesting-- not as paper thin trails of light, not as a cute showing of her powers... but as terrible weapons, meant to give Suzume an introduction to the sort of abilities to expect from Cherise Bouchard in the future.
Her fingers claw up and fan out, her hand tightening up-- and then it scoops upward in a terrible swing. From the tips of her fingers, the energy cuts through the air in the wake of her swing, screaming toward the newest member of Southtown's Syndicate. The four blades of force are hell-bent on striking Suzume and rolling upward like some sort of rending claw, trying to shred clothing and cut into her body.
"A welcoming gift!!"
COMBATSYS: Suzume blocks Cherise's Argent Claw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////// ]
Suzume 0/-------/------=|-------\-------\0 Cherise
Suzume shows her own weapon, revealing that her innocuous cane is hardly just a mere length of wood-- and with a sudden hiss, Cherise reveals her own hidden arsenal. Suzume's eyes widen fractionally, impressed, as that length of slashing wire spools out of Cherise's innocuous bracelet. Her eyes rest not on the flipping coin that Cherise tosses to determine the start of their spar... but on the other girl's movements. The way she expertly handles that wire.
But soon enough, Cherise shows her first attack is not actually going to be precipitated by that arcing wire. The other girl arcs in quick, an upwards rake of her hand sending silver energy slashing towards Suzume, and the kunoichi reacts quickly. Her blade rips out of its scabbard, coating with Suzume's white chi as it goes, and the energized steel intercepts the brunt of the attack. Some of it spills past, however... and what does get past, Suzume -feels-.
"You neither hold back nor waste time," Suzume observes with a smirk, looking at her rent clothing and shallow wounds left by that energy. This force... it's the same strange stuff as Shihong used. Painful and foreign... and very potent. Small wonder Howard chose to take notice of them. "Both attributes I can admire."
One smooth motion resheathes her sword, and the woman gauges Cherise carefully. She had at first taken the other to be a mere wireslinger... but the proficiency she's displayed with this strange energy merits some closer, more wary study.
COMBATSYS: Suzume focuses on her next action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////// ]
Suzume 0/-------/------=|-------\-------\0 Cherise
"He he he he, ha ha ha ha haha heh--"
There's no 'marginal' or 'fraction' in this girl's presence now, her arm hooking back after the throw of the energy. Suzume stops, and partially stops that technique. While she takes the time to observe Cherise, she'll likely notice a few things...
The most important, she's charging.
In a lesser sense, her eyes are wider, her pupils are narrower. Like she were zeroing in on Suzume and nothing else mattered, as if beating the woman were to become her singular joy in life, Cherise moves toward her in a rushed gait. Her left leg hits hard on the sidewalk just in front of Suzume, her expensive boots finding purchase immediately while her right leg cocks back with her knee bent-- folded in, as it seems, much in the way her partner would-- and lashes out with a direct, knifing heel kick at the Japanese woman's stomach. Her posture is steady, but agile, the look in her eyes saying there's more than the single-minded intent going on inside her head...
COMBATSYS: Suzume interrupts Light Kick from Cherise with Shidarezakura.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Suzume 0/-------/----===|===----\-------\0 Cherise
She had heard Cherise was mad. And what she observes now cements those rumors. But somehow, Suzume is not offput by the other young woman's wild laughter and direct violence. Indeed, she seems genuinely amused and appreciative of that wild abandon, perhaps envying her that lack of restraint. Perhaps others would fear for their lives, facing down such a person... but Suzume has known enough people like Cherise to deduce that this madness is merely an expression of pure joy.
She will, however, have to focus-- Cherise is still a dangerous sort.
Cherise rushes in. And Suzume just coils, her body turning so that her right side faces the other woman, her shoulder presenting forward as if she were going to try to weather the attack. The only thing wrong with that image is the fact that her shikomizue hovers at a tense ready at her left side, one hand grasping the hilt and the other vised about the scabbard.
Suzume accepts the first instants of Cherise's sharp kick, a hiss of pain pulled from her as the heel slams home with not inconsiderable force. But in the next instant, the kunoichi retaliates instantly in one blurred movement. The blade kicks out of its scabbard so fast it rings a high note on exit, her other hand jerking the scabbard backwards slightly to facilitate the rapid draw, and Suzume arcs her sword in a chi-crackling, full downwards slash straight into Cherise. The chi lacing her blade cuts out shortly after contact, blasting into nothingness, and within seconds of the initial draw Suzume's blade is slammed straight back into the sheath.
Could it be? Someone that understands her? Someone that knows what lurks in the depths of that strange girl's mind, or can at least relate to it? If only Cherise was psychic like the folks on television, then she would be able to recognize a kindred spirit in the girl wielding the cane-sword.
The kick lands, and Suzume pushes through it. The smile on Cherise's face is gone in the instant the blade screams out of the sheath and rips downward faster than she had initially anticipated, bringing a moment of tension and the pre-prepared left leg into play-- pushing her away from the attack well too late, still, but it could keep her from being struck with a following attack.
Reaching back with her hands, bending backwards, she handsprings onto her weathered palms and pushes off to land on her feet. There's a shuddering tension in her body, but now her eyes look more lit and alive than ever before. "Being cut with a sword... ahn~! It's the best."
Punctuated with a hand on the cut on her body, the rip in her turtleneck dress and the ginger touch at one section of the place struck with the blow-- a little blood on her fingers. Blood that she takes back, lifting her hand and licking a curled finger with a quick fleck of the tongue.
"Iaijutsu?"
Taking her first step with a powerful stride, Cherise leans hard to the side and throws her legs into the air, twisting a hard and acrobatic circle horizontally before landing hard on one leg, using the momentum gained to spring one more time, though perhaps uncomfortably close to Suzume. Thrusting out her leg for one more powerful heel kick, it looks almost like she's misjudged herself and kicked just short.
But people like Cherise don't make sloppy amatuer mistakes like that, do they?
A pure spike of silver bursts out of her heel, in perfect line with the rest of her leg. A spike meant to plow into Suzume and deal her a particularly harsh blow.
"More!!"
COMBATSYS: Cherise successfully hits Suzume with Argent Raid.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Suzume 0/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Cherise
Suzume and Cherise do bear their similarities. However, for all her own tendencies towards behavior normal society would consider psychotic... Suzume is not quite the masochist Cherise is. A hint of bemusement crosses her face when Cherise luxuriates in the damage caused, but it is quick to pass as something clicks in Suzume's mind. Ah. She's one of those.
You have to adjust your attack style slightly for those kinds of people.
But for all that realization, Suzume gets taken in by Cherise's next attack. Expecting a blow of the heel, the young woman starts her defense at the wrong time and place to deal with the sudden blast of energy. It slams into her unabated, sending her skidding a full few feet back, her own blood painting across the space between them. Her hands shut on her weapon tight enough her knuckles go white, but the kunoichi refuses to make a sound.
Instead, she just smiles tightly, her left hand freeing from her weapon. Her wrist flicks, a few of her silver bangles sliding off her arm and into her hand, and a sudden flex of chi -twists- and reshapes the metal... turning that heavy jewelry into a trio of rudimentary throwing knives. Iaijutsu, Cherise asks.
"Not just," she replies, arrowing those three knives at Cherise the instant their new shape takes hold.
COMBATSYS: Suzume successfully hits Cherise with Yaezakura.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Suzume 1/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Cherise
The strike was, apparently, powerful! Powerful enough to shove Suzume backwards a little more than she intended and a little harder than she expected. Perhaps toying around on her own and trying to create her own skills aside from those learned at the guidance of her father are better than she had hoped for?
But now she uses her energy-- her chi, or whatever it's called-- to bend objects to her whims and create a whole new weapon out of a fashion accessory.
Ironic.
Cherise twists and turns, trying to present profile to the knives and looking almost like she intends to smack them out of the air-- and she's successful, in part. One is deflected into lacerating across her forearm, the second mistimed-- and jamming right into her palm a scant amount. The third plows right into her thigh without reservation or an attempted counter, leaving the Frenchwoman to pull the blade out of her palm, rip the other out of her leg. A small gush of blood follows it, a short burst of red protesting the object that was just plugging up the hole in her thigh.
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha~!"
And almost like the snap of the fingers, Cherise becomes a blur of silver hair and black dress, dashing feverently across the distance between them, short as it is. Her wrist snaps, flitting around in a circle and-- Suzume may even feel the brush of foreign fingers caressing her wrist as she speeds -past- her. In that instant, Cherise, pulls on thin air... or at least, the wire there.
The spool of silver tries to clamp down around Suzume's wrist, to hold her-- and then act as a means to unsteady her. If Cherise's attack is successful, she pulls Suzume closer with a harsh tug before lunging in to meet her, her fist hooking low and upward to strike at the swordswoman's ribs. Her knuckles will never connect, either-- instead, releasing a massive burst of silver energy meant to shoot the woman back one more time, possibly even off her feet.
"Heheh he he ha ha~!"
COMBATSYS: Suzume counters Argent Striker from Cherise with Asagao.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Suzume 0/-------/-------|======-\-------\0 Cherise
It was indeed powerful. Suzume, never having had many opportunities to encounter psionic energy, has never had a chance to develop an adequate defense. Her attempts to focus her chi, as she would to dampen the effect of a chi attack, are fruitless here. She takes the full -brunt- of that blow, skidding backwards in an attempt to avoid further repercussions. "You seem," she observes wetly, "to be enjoying yourself." At first it might seem a sour sort of observation-- up until Suzume smiles. "A sentiment I can appreciate."
The added distance just means she has space in which to try and keep Cherise at bay. It's a gambit which sees some success, one blade wounding Cherise in the leg just enough to slow her a little. The wireslinger, even despite that, is still -fast- when she comes ripping in in a retaliation, however. Suzume is left very little time to prepare for that onrush.
The wire circles about her wrist, trying to catch a hold-- but with a deft movement, Suzume lets the wire clamp around a silver bangle instead, the bracelet precariously taking the pressure of the wire. The kunoichi sheds the bracelet in the next instant as Cherise -pulls-, ridding herself of it before the wire can slip off it and shut about its proper target. And as Cherise lunges forwards, Suzume meets her halfway.
Her sheathed blade comes right out of its scabbard in a quick draw, the pommel of it smashing into Cherise's hand and driving that strike-- along with the blast of energy-- wide of its mark. The weapon slams back into its scabbard, resheathing to build up momentum... and then it rakes back out again in a full-on rising iai strike, ripping across Cherise's lithe frame.
COMBATSYS: Suzume has saved the state of this fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Suzume 0/-------/-------|======-\-------\0 Cherise
The wire bites into Suzume's wrist, or so Cherise thinks-- and as she comes in to meet the newest member of the Southtown Syndicate head-on, the Japanese woman surprises even the gray-haired assassin with her deft counterstrike. The fact she's reeled in the other bracelet, even possibly Suzume's other set of throwing knives, doesn't register. It's more of the explosive burst she focuses on, the ripping slash-- the one that launches her into the air, painfully, and sends her to land on the sidewalk with a heavy smack.
"... Nyhaha... ha ha ha ha...!"
Throwing her legs up, her knees bend and her arms throw out to the sides, rolling backwards and onto her shoulder to land in a crouch. Running at Suzume, she springs into the air, whipping her arm up in a smooth arc as she reaches the apex of her leap. The wire breezes beyond the woman rather than toward her, and brings Cherise rocketing down toward the ground with her left leg arcing high and coming down to slam into the swordswoman's head with a brutal axe kick.
"Ha ha ha!"
COMBATSYS: Suzume blocks Cherise's Stiletto Axe.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////// ]
Suzume 0/-------/------=|=======\-------\0 Cherise
The woman is expecting a quick recovery, even despite that hefty blow. Cherise has proven quite hardy thus far, pushing with a maniacal glee through attacks that would have felled anyone of lesser fortitude: or lesser insanity. A swift flick and burst of chi to clean the blood away, and the blade resheathes. Suzume paces back a few circling steps as Cherise comes bolting back in, watching the French girl's movements carefully.
Suzume flinches aside from the initial wire, but soon enough realizes where the actual attack is coming from. She adjusts instantly, bringing up her sheathed weapon in order to intercept and guard against the heavy axe kick. Moments later she shoves back against the block, attempting to unbalance Cherise, and also-- to keep her in the air.
Her grasp swapping to a reverse grip, Suzume unsheathes her weapon in a harsh, upwards sweep. The blade slashes a little too far away to properly hit Cherise, and as a result one might almost think it a miscalculation: at least, up until a bright swath of white chi bursts from the blade, blasting towards the French girl in a concussive assault.
COMBATSYS: Suzume successfully hits Cherise with Hikanzakura.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Suzume 0/-------/-----==|=======\=------\1 Cherise
The kick raining down upon Suzume, Cherise's body seems to react almost immediately-- the kick crashing into the sword rather than the girl's head. Twisting hard at the waist, she literally flips head over heels to land on the toes of her boots. Though agile, light, and still prepared to dodge out of the way, Cherise finds herself attacked in a manner similar to her own Argent Raid-- the unintentional miss, the burst of energy. Cherise rolls with it, though a gasp is forced out of her lungs.
She handsprings, landing on her left palm and allowing her arm to buckle-- and then vault back onto her feet. Sliding backward from the combined momentum of the strike and her pushing off, her boots protest until finally catching traction.
And she grins.
Her arm reels backward hard, the length of wire at her disposal extending to a greater length than it has for the entirety of the battle. With a direct point of her finger, the wire launches forward and attempts to ensnare Suzume's neck...
"Ha ha ha ha ha!"
COMBATSYS: Cherise successfully hits Suzume with Argent Sniper.
[ \\\\ < > ////// ]
Suzume 1/-------/=======|=------\-------\0 Cherise
The wires seem to operate on a whole other level-- different than what physics should allow for, and all the more deadly. The wire encircles Suzume's neck and then -tightens-, clamping down like a vice. As if strangling her from a distance wasn't bad enough, Cherise pulls -hard- on the wire to drag her a few steps closer... as well as give her the room to hold the wire back further, across her chest. Picking up her left hand, she brings up two fingers and plucks the wire, heralding a burst of silver energy screaming down the line toward the swordswoman and blasting her in the face.
Blast, blast... blast, yet again. After a few of these, Cherise drops down to one knee and pulls harder, trying to drag the girl down to her knees-- and then one last pluck releases a final, savage silver burst of energy.
The wire loosens up and Cherise pulls back her arm, whipping the wire through the air and bringing her thumb up to her mouth.
"Oops. Did I break you?"
Slamming her blade back into its scabbard, Suzume huffs a breath and narrows her eyes on the incoming wire. She lifts her weapon, trying to whip to one side and let the length coil about her weapon rather than her throat, but the wire doesn't seem to obey any of the laws of physics with which Suzume-- a proficient knife thrower in her own right-- has become familiar.
Dragged forwards, Suzume's breath strangles off-- the wire also effectively cutting off any outcry, even when the repeated bursts of psychic force slam into her one after the other, each hurting worse than the last. Dragged, finally, to her knees and skidding to a halt not far from Cherise, she's released with that final burst of force, the young woman spasming when released and falling forwards to brace a hand against the ground. For a while, she does little but catch her breath and clear her mind, the assault having handily scrambled her senses.
"That hurt," Suzume eventually manages, before she pries herself slowly to some semblance of an upright position. "--as did most of your strikes. But it takes a little more to break..."
Her movements are slowed, but nonetheless she essays another attack: her left side chambering in coiled preparation for the space of an instant. One sweeping movement unsheathes her blade in a wide sweep, the weapon slashing a violent horizontal straight for the other young woman... and in the aftermath, hit or miss, the weapon retraces its path right back into the scabbard, looking as if it had never left.
COMBATSYS: Suzume can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\ <
Cherise 0/-------/------=|
COMBATSYS: Cherise blocks Suzume's Asagao.
[ \\\\ <
Cherise 0/-------/-----==|
For the time Suzume remains on the ground, her wire reels in toward her bracelet, back to where it came from. The innocent bracelet, her greatest weapon, rattles around her wrist in a few smooth loops before settling again. Cherise tucks a bit of hair behind her ear while she walks, even looking at the swordswoman with surprise when she stands back up.
"Oh."
The last attack thrown is one that she'd only just seen moments ago, the brutal slash that interrupted her in the midst of the last attack. The form is a little different, she notes, considering the usage, but the slash, the path of the blade-- all of it, she remembers.
Cherise issues a hand forward, palm turned out and literally -slapping- the blade off-trajectory. Her palm splits and blood chases the blade all the way back to the scabbard... but she doesn't seem to mind all that much.
"You'd look so good in red," she remarks while dragging her tongue across her palm.
Not a lot of people would block a slashing blade with their bare hand. Suzume notes that strange deviance from the norm even as she blasts another cleaning surge of chi across the steel, cleaning it thoroughly mid-swing just before it clicks back into the scabbard. Thereafter, she pauses a few moments-- still recovering from Cherise's potent repeated blasts of energy-- before she finally straightens slowly and somewhat stiffly.
But even despite all the pain she's in, she doesn't look too upset. A faint smile crosses her features, the expression tinged at the edges with blood.
"I've found red," she agrees, brushing blood from her mouth and straightening her crimson-splashed clothes, "is a good color for me." And with that, the woman partially turns from Cherise. Half her smile still slants over at the other, over the arch of Suzume's shoulder. "It was very nice to meet you, Miss Bouchard. But I'm afraid you've gone and just -tired- me out for the evening." The smile widens.
"We may have to save the wine for another time."
Looking at the gash in her hand, Cherise notes the depth... and yet, how clean the cut is. It didn't cut bone or tendons, at least, but it's an injury that she'll have to tend to very soon. Still, her hands move to her hips, fists set and her head cocking back for a confident grin. "You impress me. I can see why Sir Howard would go out of his way to bring you onto his staff."
"And it was nice to meet you as well, especially in such comfortable circumstances," she says, even pinching the hem of the snug dress she wears between thumb and forefinger. Almost like she was going to try a mock curtsey, at that! "Farewell!"
Picking up her sunglasses from the peach stand, she notices the sudden smear of red on one of the fruits, glancing back down at her split, bleeding palm. And then the realization dawns on her one more time, like she hadn't noticed before.
"Oh, that."
And off she goes.
Log created on 21:47:49 03/28/2008 by Suzume, and last modified on 15:59:58 04/14/2008.