Description: After discovering that Shurui is occupying a back room of the YFCC, K' decides to bring her home under the rationales that 1) best not to leave something that NESTS wants to reclaim at the YFCC 2) the girl might make a good present for Whip.
He wouldn't have come back here at all, if not for what Kula had told him when they met in Russia. She'd attacked the place, on Igniz's orders, and she hadn't done it in order to get at him.
He had entertained the fact that it might be a trap. That someone had simply told Kula to tell him there had been a YFCC attack in order to entice him back to that location. It'd be far easier to track him there, after all, and he was self-centered enough to find it possible that everything revolved around him like that. And why should Kula give him information like that, at all? That didn't add up-- unless--
He wanted to resist the urge to trust her... to believe that the girl really was weakening in her resolve to kill him and his. But more and more, the signs were beginning to point in that direction. More and more, he found his own desire to kill her weakening... and he was starting to feel like a failure to his sister for that fact.
Still suspicious, he'd given it a few days before he'd returned to the YFCC... and he'd come late in the evening, when less people were likely to be at the center. He'd told Whip where he was going, but had not invited or asked her along. If it was a trap, he didn't want her anywhere near it. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he remembered uneasily that Shurui had wanted to see his sister-- but he pushed away the disquiet by telling himself it could be arranged another time.
Letting himself in through a back way quietly, he starts working his way through the dimmed center quietly. He's relieved almost no one else is present; he doesn't really feel comfortable here anymore, not since he-- as he perceives it-- brought trouble to the place. Almost as an afterthought, it occurs to him to take out his phone and text the girl a brief message: where are you.
Luck may have been on Shurui's side that day, whether or not the object of NESTS's desire was her, the children, or some rare book in the library. After all, even if she wasn't what they were attacking the center for, her presence there could only serve to make things even worse.
So where was she? At the nearby five and dime, obsessively comparing the brands of microwavable and otherwise easily prepared foods to see which had the most value for less. If it weren't for this anal tendency, she would have gotten back sooner and likewise would have met Kula. Which, in retrospect? Maybe not a *bad* thing, but it wouldn't a *good* thing either.
The resulting crowd of medics and gawkers that came after the fight made the girl feel uncomfortably suspucious. So, like a smart girl, she kept a reasonable distance back until things cleared up. Perhaps she is a coward in some people's minds for straying away when people's lives hung in the balance, but, as she's gathered afterwards after being strangely planted at the YFCC following a drunken blank in her memory, she can't go screwing people's plans up because she feels like she needs to pitch in. Save the fight for when it comes down to you and you only.
The following days have been spent in intense paranoia, with the girl feeling more aware of the children that come to the YFCC than ever before. It could just be here they're coming after, but.... what's to keep them from taking them too? Like they took K' and Whip?
The phone message hits her phone during dinner time, interrupting her mid-slurp as she greedily sucks the contents of a cup of instant noodles. Stoping, she fishes out her phone irritably, staring at the enlarged message before it clicks in. 'where are you' ..... K''s trying to reach her? Did something happen?! Knocking over two empty cups lying next to her, she begins speaking into the phone, the translator placing sound to word before sending it out.
'Back room of Why Heft See See second to the left is something wrong'
..... Shurui's phone never gets better.
K' already suspects-- and told Kula as much, much to the girl's discomfort-- that Igniz's goal is indeed the children. At this point, getting ahold of K' and Shurui would simply be a nice bonus on top of the capture of a bunch of young, malleable, and above all promising young fighters.
By this time, K' has learned to decipher the puzzling messages that come from Shurui's somewhat retarded cell phone. If there's an incomprehensible series of four words in the message, he's learned, the girl is probably trying to say something about the YFCC. A moment of squinting, and he discerns which room the girl is in; not bothering to do anything so nice as text back in order to allay her fears, he flips the phone shut and ghosts off.
The door is shut. K' pauses momentarily, listening-- and brooding, as is his wont. How long has it been, he wonders, since that day at Gedo? At least three weeks. For an instant, an unfamiliar sensation hits him: one of guilt. Shaking it off, he opens the door: his suspicious yellow eyes immediately peeking in to scan the area. Should there be no one but Shurui inside, he proceeds cautiously within with a deep distrust.
"...You been here the whole time?" The gruff quality of his voice disguises, well enough, whatever discomfiting prickles of conscience he might be experiencing.
The room is dim except for the light of a study lamp, perched atop a stacked pile of dog-eared donated books for the YFCC library. Underneath the light of the lamp is a book, open with a magnifying glass sitting atop it. Much of the room is taken up by boxes or outdated paperwork, but, in spite of the shadows they cast and Shurui's paranoid state, she doesn't seem *too* disturbed.
Then again, it's all just a blurry mess to her. Unneccessary to worry about until her sight picks up anything living inside. So far, just a stray mouse.
Weird living conditions, and perhaps something that K' could see as something worth that newborn guilt. If only he knew that this was something comfortable for Shurui. A roof over one's head, a microwave, kids coming in and harrassing you, lots of books to read? It's a bittersweet paradise.
"You can come in, you know," Shurui deadpans as her eyes pick up on K''s faint signal, so familiar to her. "There's no one else that's been back here. I would've known." That is, unless someone was able to disguise their aura, but to remain hidden this long? That would be getting *too* paranoid. "... Yeah," is her next answer. "Is something up? Did NESTS try to send someone after you?"
K' scans the room. His yellow eyes, vaguely lucent in the half-light in the manner of a cat's, flicker over the stacks of books and papers. His expression remains unreadable, but past the mask of stoicism there's a hint of something else.
There is guilt, in the sense that he feels he's fucked up yet again. That he's made yet another mistake... as should be expected, really, given the walking mistake he -is-. But now, there's also anger, and though that anger is partly self-directed... it's not entirely so. He enters silently when prompted to do so, his tall form moving like a shadow amongst the deeper shadows thrown by the stacks of paper.
"Nothing's up. Nobody's been sent after me you don't already know about." Which basically means, 'nobody's been after me but Kula.' It's also, partially, a lie; Seishirou was, even if only briefly, after him as well. Pacing restlessly around her living space with the vague dissatisfaction of a father who vastly disapproves of his daughter's living conditions, he eventually comes to a stop with his back to Shurui. One hand creeps up to rest on his hip as he considers what to say in silence.
"Just needed to keep track of you," he finally admits, as slowly and heavily as if doing so takes a great deal out of him. "I don't start things I don't finish." He eventually angles a yellow eye over his shoulder at her, his regard sharp and hawklike. "And I heard this place got attacked. You want to move on, now-- while I'm here-- is the time."
As tempting as it would be to tell K' that the room was safe, Shurui knows enough to keep her mouth shut. Her eyes can lie; this much has been proven. There are people whose abilities confuse her sight, whether indirectly or intentionally. Better to be safe than sorry.
Hearing K''s response, Shurui's silent a moment. "I'll take your word for it." Why argue at this specific point in time? Shurui's got no specific proof either way. She'll just go back to her noodles before they become lukewarm paste. .... Even while her guest paces around like a nervous tiger in a cage. Eyes briefly meet, Shurui's eyelids drop. ".... It was quiet back here," she says as her excuse, before sulking in the remains of her noodle dinner.
vShurui finishes just before K' makes his final conclusion. She sets the cup aside.
There's nothing but silent for a while, Shurui's mind comparing the two situations. "They'll come here whether we're here or not, but." She frowns, grabbing a plastic bag and stuffing the remains of her three noodle cups within. "It's not safe here, either. If NESTS comes here for anything, me being around will just be a nice bonus." She turns her head towards the lanky man with thoughtful regard. "Do you have a place in mind I can stay? As long as I have a roof other my head and a quiet place to sleep, I'm fine." Not a hint of a negative vibe comes out in those last few words; Shurui's eyes regard K' with utmost honesty. "My actual stuff's safe at Gedo High, too.
K' would do his prowling even if told the room was safe. His pacing is as much a nervous habit, at this point, as it is actually undertaken in fear that someone is lurking about in the shadows. It ceases, eventually, and he subsides into stillness: considering what to do next. The nice thing about Shurui, he thinks absently to himself, is that she never argues with him. She always listens: not like some terrible sisters he can name.
They'll come here whether we're here or not, Shurui notes. It's something that K' himself is starting to realize, ever since Kula told him that the objective of her attack (was she even telling the truth?) was not to recapture either of them. No, the YFCC seems to be on NESTS's radar for entirely different reasons now. There's no sense in trying to remove themselves from this place anymore; not only will NESTS continue to hunt them no matter where they go, they'll continue to attack the center as well.
The YFCC might just be one of the last places that would give aid to a pair like them; and more than that, K' grudgingly feels as if he owes the place a debt.
Watching as she gathers her meagre possessions together, K' suffers something extremely rare: a slight pang in his chest. Disquieted by the foreign sensation, he shakes it off, narrowing his eyes and focusing back on the subject at hand. Do you have a place in mind I can stay, she asks. He considers a moment, eyes going distant, before his gaze sharpens back on hers.
"...Come with me." That cryptic injunction delivered, K' waits for her to get her stuff together-- and promptly turns about, stalking out the door and back out towards the exit from which he came.
Just that. 'Come with me.' Shurui's dark eyes slowly blink before she slowly nods. "They need to focus on what's important here. We can protect ourselves. Those kids can't. I don't know if they're after me or not, but I can choose to not make myself a liability."
There's not much in the way of belongings to be had; most of it is cleaning up trash. "Most of this stuff's from the YFCC; if I need something, we can go by my apartment," she says, dumping the plastic bag into the garbage. "All I really need is a place to sleep and a book. Food, too, but I still got funds to take care of myself for a while."
It's not that Shurui gives in to K''s demands. It's just that she already thinks along the same lines when it comes to her own safety. She'll still do things that K' dislikes, but she doesn't go picking fights unless she knows the consequences are ones she can take. A match against a high-powered opponent? Well, what doesn't kill her doesn't make her stronger. A fight in a dark alleyway? Only if she can't run away.
It doesn't take long before she's ready. "So. This place. Will there be some books there? Or should I take some with me? I'm sure Alma won't mind." she asks, regarding the stacked pile of books. It's strange, talking about such things with another person, especially K'. Something almost... pleasent, in a way. To feel that comfortable with someone usually so surly; that has to be something rare. Even if K' may not share in her wonder, this may just be one thing Shurui'll selfishly take for what it feels to her. "Everything here's just from around storage; I can come back and clean it later."
Much of what Shurui says is, in K''s estimation, mere rambling. Silent and brooding as if carved from stone, waiting severely for her to finish gathering her things together and cleaning up her erstwhile living space, he makes very little reply to her assessment of what she needs and doesn't need. He sees no need for his input there.
Certainly, Shurui isn't one to meekly cave to every demand he makes. K', however, isn't really in much a position to discern or care about those specifics; Shurui doesn't argue with him much, and that's all that's important. He doesn't need to know the reasons why not, or that she only fails to argue because she usually agrees with his logic. He's a bit direct like that... a bit self-centered.
A little uncommunicative, too; Shurui's ready to go, and he still hasn't said a word. He doesn't speak again, in fact, until he's asked a direct question. "Books...?" He ruminates on this perhaps a little longer than is strictly necessary; he's in his apartment so infrequently the place might well have blossomed some reading material while he wasn't paying attention, and he wouldn't be any the wiser. "...take some if they're that important," he eventually shrugs.
He gives her another few moments, and once she's ready turns and settles into a swift walk. Expecting Shurui to follow along, K' doesn't slow his pace or even glance over his shoulder as he leads her out of the building and down the streets. He's silent up until they've walked about five minutes. "You shouldn't," he abruptly says, still not turning to look at her, "have to live in a back room." From the sound of his voice, there is something personal about his sentiments on that.
"...." Shrugging as she hears K''s vague comment, Shurui goes through the pile of books, thinning them down to a select few, which she places into a bag. "I'm ready."
"... Is that what this is about?" Shurui blinks, as if genuinely surprised. "..." She looks around her surroundings with an almost naive look to her. ".... I've been in worse," she mumbles to herself in curiosity, itching the side of her head. .... She has this entire room to herself, homework's being brought to her to do, she could even listen to the radio! And it's quiet.
Poor K'. Shurui, for all the time she spent cold and constantly hungry, never felt she was anything less of a human. She was never the inferior or superior; whatever memories she had at NESTS were erased for the sake of maintaining the integrity of her future sanity. And after that, she simply was. No one looked at her as inferior; they also just 'was', being on the street for reasons none of them cared to name. Even Marise's torture failed to make lasting marks on the girl's self esteem; it just hurt her in other ways where she was more fragile.
A back room is a back room. ... Maybe it's filled with cobwebs or something. She can't see stuff like that.
Again, poor K'.
K' doesn't offer to elaborate on why the concept of being put in a back room bothers him. He doesn't really explain why it is he has a problem with the idea of being put with the books and the papers. He doesn't see the need to tell Shurui that, for all the life he can remember, he was treated as something fundamentally inferior: put in storage rooms like an object, spoken of like a gun, and treated as a thing primarily because he didn't come off the conveyor belt with the desired specs.
The actual dynamic is startlingly complicated. He was always convinced of his own superiority over the mundane people of the world, indoctrinated by NESTS to the point where he used to refer to people laughingly as 'humans' as if he weren't one himself. But among those of NESTS-- the chosen people, as Igniz would say-- he was continually reminded he was a nothing-- a failure. A weak excuse for a creation when held up against others NESTS had engineered. Among them, he still wasn't a human. He wasn't an anything.
He was forgotten about, shuffled aside, and when he was remembered he was referred to in deprecating tones. He considered himself property-- an object-- and for a long time he accepted his place as an object relegated to back rooms and storage lockers. Seeing Shurui accept the status quo when she could and should strive to attain more reminds him of a time when he was similarly accepting. And it bothers him.
Of course, YFCC lacks the malevolence of NESTS; of course, it wouldn't be their intention to imply anything so sinister. They might not even have had input in where Shurui chose to stay, opting to let her select her own haunts. K' himself doesn't believe there was any maliciousness on their part. It's simply that the situation touched a nerve in him, reminding him of where he once was.
Perhaps that's why he's chosen to take her here instead: to a nondescript door in a nondescript apartment building. He fumbles for his keys, saying nothing still unless spoken to, offering no explanation of where this is or why he's taken her here. Perhaps a vacant apartment? Perhaps the abode of a friend? Whatever it is, he's soon opening the door, stepping inside... expecting Shurui to follow him in.
There was no being a failure, or being a success. Not until Shurui met Muda. And even then, it was far from the same treatment as K'- Muda aimed to teach her how to be a proper member of society, with a strict, yet patient manner. And boy, did Shurui fail. The pronounication of her fledgling Chinese (oh god it gave her nightmares), the rubbery texture of her food, the tendency to use what little brute force she had instead of the cunning, yet exhaustive style he taught her. But none of it was without her wanting to be there. And she was rewarded with a firmer grasp of something close to normal life, a valuable commodity few NESTS experiments ever had except arguably a few exceptions.
"...." 'You shouldn't have to live in a back room.' What was this, all of a sudden? Sure, perhaps he just looked at the place and thought the YFCC was 'to blame', when it was Shurui's choice and blunt insistence all along. Front rooms were classrooms or prone to people coming and going. She wanted privacy. .... But wouldn't K' be prone to, well, 'not caring' when it came to details like that? It sure as hell couldn't be pity.
That nervous gait, that way he looked around him-
"..." Shurui looks around at the blurry surroundings, the glowing auras of people walking by as they walk up to the apartment. For now, she stays silent, trying to discern their location like a bat with its echoes. More than likely, she might have a vague idea of where they were.
.... Until they get into the building. Shurui follows the silent glowing figure of K', for a second wondering if she made the right choice. ".... Where are we?"
Couldn't it be pity? Could K' be so inhuman as to be incapable of that emotion? The boy himself is unforthcoming with the answers to those questions. Certainly, most of the time, he's too self-absorbed to pity other people... or even to think appreciably about their needs and wants. But every so often, an exception to every rule always comes along...
Pushing the door open, K' enters in silence, tossing his keys carelessly onto a side table and shucking off his jacket. The article gets left on a chair back as K' passes it by, wandering his slow way through the apartment in a search for his sister. Poor Shurui's probably left standing confused and unsure in the foyer, but K' doesn't appear to notice.
He doesn't notice up until her voice speaks up, asking where the hell they are. His head lifts, K' turning a puzzled gaze towards her, before he finally seems to remember her presence. "...We live here. Whip and I." And with that, he simply... makes a somewhat helpless and expansive gesture of his left hand, indicating she can poke however much she feels like. "Guess you could stay a while until it's safe for you to go back."
As confidently as she can manage, Shurui moves over to the chair evidenced by K''s movements, dropping her plastic bag of books and a few clothes onto the seat portion. Is there a table there? She checks for objects.
It's like a game, almost. You look for clues and associations. If there's a chair, you look for a table. You see how many chairs there are. You find out if you are in a kitchen area. Is there a fridge. The understanding expands, further and further, light confirming colored shapes of objects. It keeps going, until you find yourself so familiar with a place that you could walk around it without hesitation.
This private game is interrupted by K''s answer towards her. A surprised look crosses her face. He took her.... here? Isn't this his space? His protective bubble against the world when things get too annoying to deal with on civil terms? Eventually, all Shurui can says is, ".... ah." Then, "..... You sure that's okay with you? And will Whip mind a third person around?"
It *can't* be pity. She'd have to hit him and refuse it if it was, if only to provide an example before it went too far. "... You got a couch? I can sleep on that. If you don't got that, I can handle a sofa chair." Matter-of-factly. After all, isn't that what guests that sleep over do? Unless there's a third bed- she definitely won't refuse *that*.
Is it okay with him, she asks, and a scoff of irritation issues from K''s direction. The ambulatory flames that represent him dim slightly in her vision, as he moves further away. "If it weren't," he replies evenly, a flat finality to his voice, "you wouldn't be here. I'm not around here much other than to sleep, anyway; I don't care." Well, that answers that. And if /K'/ can tolerate someone, it's almost certain that the easy-going Whip would have no problem at all.
In fact, Whip would likely be /happy/ to be able to do something for the girl who brought her to reunite with her brother. And said brother, grumpy and cold and callous as he is, can in his turn bring himself to do a few favors for the girl who helped find him his twin sister.
Settling on the couch at about the same time Shurui mentions it, K' slackens into the cushions with the lazy irritability of a restless cat. Half-lidded yellow eyes watch Shurui as she fumbles around; but it never occurs to K' to help show her around, or aid her in getting used to the environs. He's oblivious in that regard.
And he seems, at least, to be aware of his fundamental cluelessness. Now that he's brought a Shurui home, he has no real idea what to do with her. The girl starts talking about living arrangements and K' just stares blankly at her. A few moments pass. And then, he replies slowly, seeming to think the solution to this problem is foisting the organizational details off on his sister, "...We can figure that out when Whip gets home."
The irritation is something Shurui almost finds slightly on the edge of comical now, despite her knowledge of how dangerous K' could be. "Good point," she admits, crossing her arms. K''s gestures have never empty in Shurui's experience; if he will allow for something, it won't be because of societal pressure or manners.
The fumbling grows more confident as time goes on, albiet laced with the nervous knowledge that a pair of amber eyes are possibly on her. She looks in the kitchen, before unceremoniously opening the fridge and poking her head inside. Hearing K''s comment after his period of silence, Shurui shrugs with a hidden smirk. ".... That works."
Need to see what she's dealing with, here. If she's going to stay here longer than a day, she *wants* to make use of the kitchen she's got here. Another cup of instant noodle's certain to make her retch.
And that's when the window pretty much suddenly rips open. And there's a pair of hands lowering down to grasp ten fingers on the sill.
K' took off without handing out an invitation, but Whip didn't mind. She wouldn't have accepted one.
With all her newfound health and mobility, care of a treacherous doctor whose lies were as skillful as his healing hands, the Ikari soldier's first priority is catching up on all her misplaced responsibilites. The first of which was catching up on the backlog of Ikari assignments, making sure to volunteer herself for the most utterly insane of quasi-domestic missions to prove her worth to the military company -- as well as to her own self. She's scheduled for mainland Asia within the next week; probably the usual peacekeeping around the boundaries of the Black Sea.
She'd been meaning to get some sun.
In the meantime, Whip had a lot on her plate to keep herself busy. One, she had to cast an intelligence net out for the name 'Ryouhara' with all possible aliases, and she's keeping her sat-tel live for the first sign of anything coming back to her. She's hoping it will be soon; after all, she opened up one of her foreign bank accounts as incentive.
Two, she had to assess the security detail on her new home HQ, the apartment, and make sure whatever security hole allowed that strange doctor to walk in will never be a repeat performance.
And that's why Whip is currently upside-down, half-hanging in the window... AGAIN.
Looking as though she's partially trapise-ing off the apartment roof and it's interconnecting fire escape, the young soldier handstands off the sill like a gymnist on a horse vault, her legs bracing her from outside the wall, and between her teeth she's got a mouthful of extension wires and black cables, their long lengths hanging downwards from what appears the rooftop above.
Not quite noticing that there are others in the house, possibly because she's expecting her brother back hours later, Whip is prepping for a little radio shack recon.
The window opens. K' is on his feet and halfway to it in the next instant, lambent fire already racing off his upper arms and shoulders like raised hackles, his posture alert and tense. If they were followed here, whoever followed them is /in for it/--
K' pauses. His eyes narrow, head tilting as he studies the figure in the window. He stares a long few moments. Then his eyes hood, his tense stance relaxing, the fire lacing him going out with a sad and muted *paff*. Dropping his face into his hand, he rubs at his temples in a moment of long-suffering realization. His nerves, he decides, can't take much more of this.
He turns away, facing his back to the window and the girl in it, pushing his hand up irritably through his hair and stalking slowly back to the couch. With an annoyed grunt, he lets his hand fall back to his side afterwards, slouching back into his customary indifferent stance.
"Whip!" The name cracks with a sharp authoritativeness through the air, though K' doesn't bother to turn around to look at the girl he's addressing. His head tilts towards Shurui. "Visitor." And with that, K' ensconces himself back on the couch, seemingly determined to let the girls work things out between themselves.
.... Well, it turns out that Shurui is *just* as paranoid as the watchful K', tensing as soon as her senses pick up the trace of a stray aura. And reacting before her memory even has a chance to identify the energy- guts say that anyone come from the window *cannot* be an ally.
But Shurui's guts are WRONNNNGGGGGGG "..... Whip...?" The door of the fridge Shurui was inspecting hides the knife in one hand, held at ready like she was inspecting ninjas to just appear from the ceiling. Which, if Shurui actually knew about a certain 'doctor's' visit, might not be such an impossible event.
She squints her eyes, as if the action had any bearing on focusing her memory. ".... Whip." A hand snakes back in an attempt to quietly press the knife back into its proper holder on the counter. She grits her teeth. "My name's Shurui, not visitor. God."
"Whip!" snaps the more severe of the amnesiac twins.
There's a pause, and less aggressively, less accusatory, Whip shoulders away some of the flyaway curtains to peek an eye into the apartment. It lands bemusedly on K', looking a little surprised to find them there. "Mmmpghan?" she replies innocently around a mouthful of cords, gumming them haphazardly as her hands are busy elsewhere -- trying not to let her fall off the side of the building.
Finally, and with a dexterity that just should not be possible in the natural world, she plants her hands, rolls her shoulders until the blades are rotated a near three-sixty, and curls her backs until the spine comes close to doubling like a stretching cat. The very bendy Ikari soldier gets one knee up against the top of the window, and bracing her weight in her tight environs, finally frees on hand to spit out her cords and cables and drape them into the apartment.
Somewhat dryly, Whip is repeating herself to the nth power the moment her mouth is free, "Hey goober, remember what I told you about being on fire in the house? Maybe you don't care enough about damage deposits, but I do, and last time WAS the last time I'm going to clean scorch marks out of the laminate -- what?"
Visitor?
Whip's head snaps in the other direction, her attention pulled as taut as violin strings. Her cursory interest, however, pauses on the spot when 'Visitor' reveals it has a name. And a face. A very, very familiar face.
Whip's eyes widen. Her skin pales. Her entire, upside-down and very dangly body locks up like rigor mortis. For a tic, she's completely still.
Then: "--SHURUI!"
Suddenly and fiercely grinning about ten gigawatts, the soldier all but EXPLODES from the window and descends upon the poor hapless girl like the wrath of God descending. There, she tries to pluck her right from the spot, utilizing every inch of her genetically-modified strength to HUG diamonds out of the girl's genetic code's trace atoms of carbon.
It was probably safer to stay in the YFCC.
K' rolls his eyes at Whip's admonishment. If this is the nth time she's had to say this to K', she better prepare to say it nth + 1, because he doesn't look like he's listening at all. Instead, he just leans back in a decidedly catlike sprawl, taking up way too much space in that long-legged, lazy way he has. Head dipped nearly onto his chest, gaze flicked up through his bangs, he regards Whip's reaction to Shurui with some... muted amusement. "She wanted," he notes to Whip in the aftermath, "to see you."
So worth it to bring her out here, just to see this.
At first, when Whip sees her, Shurui momentairely wonders if the woman has found something inherently 'off' in her presence there. Not that there *should* be; why the heck would there be? But Shurui's not sure of anything right now, being in the domain of two people she's gotten to know through unlikely situations.
She wanted to see her? When did Shurui tell K' *that*? "When did I say th-" The words are cut off as K' gets his revenge in the form of a rushing Whip crashing into Shurui at unheard of speed. "Mmmphf!!" Hands crinkle in the air helplessly, eyes bulge, teeth grit. God, she sure as hell hopes K' has the decency to not find amusement in th- oh, fuck that, it's K'. If he wasn't the sort to burst out laughing, he would.
"Y.... crsh..... ow"
Not all that aware of her own strength, Whip happily hugs a few years out of Shurui's life, smiling from ear to ear. It's not common that the young soldier is ever this affectionate, but that girl has earned herself an unbreakable friendship. The girl's own vertebrae will probably snap from the force of the gushing hug than would Whip's sworn loyalty to her.
After a good, hard, happy squeeze, the Ikari looks likely to happily let Shurui go-- then K' speaks his piece, and surprise flickers transparently over her face. "Really?" she chirps, sounding surprised and pleased, and Shurui gets garrotted into a second iron mary hug. Fortunately, thankfully, mercy of God-ily, Whip eventually lets go., her jaws of life retreating to an amiable arm draped over Shurui's shoulders. She peeks down at the shorter girl, her dark eyes lit up with barely-restrained joy. Having friends stop unexpectedly by is a rare treat, and to Whip, more precious than diamonds. "I've missed you too! How are you doing?! Are you well? K' hasn't been an asshole to you, right? Do you want a beer? Are you staying for supper?"
"She might stay longer than that," K' notes dryly from his position over on the other side of the apartment. "I found her in a back room of the YFCC." He leaves it at that, but the implication should be clear to Whip: it'd probably be better if she stays here for a while, do you mind?
Briefly, he considers reminding Whip not to break houseguests in half. He decides doing so would be too much effort. Shurui's confusion over when she asked to see Whip, choked off as it is by the hug of death, isn't quite registered; but what IS registered is Whip's question as to whether he's been an asshole, to which K' growls a deep, warning, "-Hey-, fuck off," from his corner of the room.
"For fucks's sake, don't make it sound like it was their idea. It was mine! I bet if Alma had his way, it'd be the other extreme." ..... Whatever that may be. Lots of fuu fuu, perhaps. "It was quiet, no one bugged me except the kids, and I didn't have to push shit around." She looks downward with her eyes closed and her arms folded, determined to prove some sort of weird point. "There was a bunch of books there too I hadn't seen." Back rooms are goldmines for treasure. And therein lies some of the other basis for Shurui's relatively nuetral view of the situation, compared to the negative symbolism it held for K'. She's not going to recieve pity for something K' possibly took as some sort of Cinderella scenerio!
..... No. It's not that. It's always something else. "...." She pauses, arms unfolding. ".... That really bugged you, didn't it?" she asks, her tone softer, if not genuinely curious. K' and Whip have proven to be complicated people to figure out- each has a front that is easily adjusted to and percieved, but these smaller, more subtle facuets...
Subtle facuets like Whip's inhumane hugging abilities, which squeeze precious life force from the Gedo student like juice from an orange. ".... I think I'll pass on the beer..." she says between gulps of air.
Releasing Shurui curiously, Whip's head turns to glance at her brother when he implies that their friend will be staying for longer than dinner. Does she mind?
Her entire face becomes dominated by her widely-smiling mouth. No, Whip doesn't seem to mind much at all. With a lingering look on K', her eyes creased with a proud, grateful, silent look of affection, the soldier soon angles her attention back on Shurui, beaming down on the younger girl. "Hey," she announces vibrantly, already sold on the idea of a third, and /female/ roommate, "there's books here too! I can get you whatever you want! You'll love boondogging it at our place! Oh!" Her eyes and grin widen. "I'll set you up in my bedroom. It's quiet and spacious as hell in there, and I keep it clean. You'll love it. I'll go fix it up right now!"
There's books here too? Well, that confirms things. Shurui'll be able to take care of keeping herself entertained! "... I dunno how long I'm stayin'. I mean, by now, I think NESTS may not be so interested in me-" .... But interested in something worse. Possibly. The heopful tone in Shurui's voice dampens immediately, her words stopping in mid-air. "..... It's just until things cool down," she finally replies in a far more sober tone. "Kula was sent as a messenger to YFCC. They're going to attack the place, apparently. Not smart for me to stay there."
"I can sleep on the couch..." Shurui briefly catches herself looking to the unsympathetic K' for some sort of remark, only to remember that, well, it's K'. He's probably being entertained by this. "Or do you have a sleeping bag? I can use that too." Surely she doesn't mean she's going to give up her *bed* for Shurui, after all! Where is Whip going to sleep then?
"I'm not," K' seems to feel it necessary to note, "saying it was their idea." K' knows exactly what Alma is like, after all, and he'd have to be stupid to think that Towazu would let Shurui stay in that place until the girl insisted upon it.
Whatever milder mood he might have slipped into, however, is quick to evaporate when Shurui's tone softens into that more serious question. Still not looking over at Whip or Shurui-- his gaze stays moodily fixed on the window instead of the other people in his presence-- he frowns, and holds his silence. The fact he doesn't reply aloud should be answer enough: yes, it did bother him. However, he doesn't seem up to explaining why.
He's quiet up until the issue of who's sleeping where comes up. He doesn't look around, doesn't even turn his head, but after a few moments he interrupts his way into the conversation anyway. "Don't be stupid," is his scathing contribution to the debate. "I'm sleeping here."
Mentioning NESTS sobers Whip quicker than a swig of tabasco. That intelligence weighs down on her good mood, the mirth visibly draining out of the girl's face. Her expression darkens around the corners, betraying all her previous, light-hearted display with the coldier, severe soldier that lurks underneath. The Ikari looks unnerved and decided at the same time; K' will know that expression on her face intimately. It means she intends to stop it.
But, for now?
"You're not sleeping on the couch," Whip tells Shurui indulgently, the look in her eyes mollifying when they return on the girl. "I might be new at a lot of this, but I know I'd be a lousy host sticking you there. Besides, I'm an old soldier," adds the young woman who barely looks twenty, stepping back to stretch her back and shoulders with a few pops of weathered joints. "My body still can't get used to beds. Keeps me up all night. You'll like in my room."
Whip's left eye winks, and she's stepping away, no doubt to follow through with her prior threat. She's going to start dressing up her bedroom for Shurui, with or without the girl's consent, and absolutely while ignoring anything K' has to say. Whip doesn't even look his way, because to acknowledge him would only be to encourage him, and he's staying in his damn room.
" ...Besides, I won't even be using it when I'm out of country next week," Whip is mentioning on purpose the instant she's slipped into the bedroom and disappears out of sight. Now that's military training.
"It's your bed, I guess," Shurui finally says, shoulders shrugging. "It wasn't like I was used to a bed at one point, so I'm good at adapting either way." Arguing over the more humble choices of bedding? Eh, she'll be easy and stick with whatever Whip is stubborn on.
It'll.... just be weird, that first night. A bed smelling like someone else, though not unpleasantly. That's something so personal when all your sensitive nose can do is pick up on it all night before it grows accustomed. How long does that take? Shurui read it in a book someplace. Ten minutes? Thirt-
Okay, now it's a matter of where the *other* two will sleep. "...." Shurui looks between the two cluelessly as they exchange indirect words and wills, the air electrifying with the weight of two stubborn siblings to the point that even someone deaf, dumb, and blind couldn't miss it. A hand goes up to itch at Shurui's head. Is this..... how siblings act around one another? Granted, the two have only known each other for a limited amount of time, but the way they respond to each other is not idle annoyance or apathy. K' is *reacting*. Whip is being *che- well, to be truthful, the first experience Shurui had of Whip involved the latter party being drunk and out of her min- Wait. Does this mean Whip's going to be away? Shurui'll be with K'?
Suddenly the prospect of Whip being around isn't so bad. With K''s tendency to overlook convention and the two of them sharing living space, it may get a little.... peevey once the novelty wears off. ...... Does he knock before going into a bathroom?
Good thing K' isn't looking at Whip, then. If he were, he'd already be preempting her decision with his typical overbearing irritability. Instead, he just frowns more and more deeply as he finds himself going entirely ignored, his words pinging off Whip as if they weren't spoken at all.
K' doesn't like being ignored, and if he were any more emotive a person than he is, some hurt might actually show up in his expression over it. He has problems enough feeling like a nonentity, like someone not even worth attention or regard; Whip ignoring him stings worse even than NESTS's indifference. Some days, he'd be able to just play it off; but not, apparently, today.
He doesn't bother trying to force Whip to listen to him. Not today. Either people will take him as he is, or he'll just accept however they behave towards him as how things must stand. He doesn't want to have to -make- people pay attention to him, he wants to be worth attention all on his own.
Instead, unpredictable and fickle as ever, he just shrugs angrily to himself and slouches even further in his seat, offering no explanation or hints as to why he's acting so strangely. Whip's incendiary comment barely even stokes him to stir; he's already in A Mood. "Nice you actually TOLD ME THIS TIME," is all he finally says, his voice raising in volume near the end if only because Whip is now too distant for easy speech.
"I was going to tell you!" Whip's disembodied voice calls back from around the corner. "I was only debriefed earlier this afternoon!"
But that accusation out of her brother doesn't seem to put the Ikari out. She's whistling as she returns half a minute later, carrying a handful of rolled-up bedclothes, no doubt in the process of stripping and exchanging her bed of its linens. It's surprising that it even occurred to Whip to do so; maybe Ikari warriors are trained for Bed & Breakfasts. Or maybe it's just a subconscious Cartel conditioning to eliminate all traces of yourself when vacating any sort of close quarters. Either way, the compulsion goes unignored.
Unlike K', who Whip isn't really looking at through her busy-beeing. "Won't be much to adapt to while staying here," she interjects cheerily to Shurui on her way to the linen closet. (K' has had a linen closet ever since Whip moved in. Also a clothes hamper.) "We're both easy to live with. Bonus points if you can cook. I think K''s getting bored of my scrambled egg tabasco surprise. And, hey, if you get bored, I'll give you some ballistics training! How about that?"
Whip: ex-assassin, mercenary soldier, gracious hostess.
On her way back towards her bedroom -- or as she mentally reassesses, Shurui's bedroom -- her dark eyes slip K' the sliver of a glance. Whip pauses a little as she finally gets a look at his face, used to it darkened with anger, impatient rage, but not commonly something this burdensome. Of course, the realist in her wonders if it has to do with Shurui being here. Did he run into something? Did something happen to either of them, or both? Does he know something new about NESTS that he feels reticent to say?
Either way, with her twinly intuition guiding her, Whip makes a quick detour from bedmaking. Placing the folded linens aside, she joins K' on the couch, giving no respect to his prickly personal space as she slumps down right beside him. Thinking his bad mood is furnished from that rampant paranoia of his, Whip conventiently intones, "This'll all work out great. See, I want more than sleeping on the couch. I want the living room here. You two haven't even asked what I was doing. I'm going to turn ground zero into our war room, build us the ability to pick up whatever intel your heart desires." Conviction is couched in her gentle voice as she promises, "I'll be making this place safe for you two, trust me."
With the way they react to one another, Shurui idly wonders in dark humor if the idea of them finding one another was a good one. And yet... she's not sure she's ever seen K' get so worked up over such small details- to see him actually *care* out loud, rather than subtle gestures. Hands find the cushion of a sofa chair, which she plops into. It sounds like she's stripping the bed. Wow. This girl's a happy homebody, as opposed to the complusive grumbling cook Shurui is. Speaking of cooking? "...?!" .... Scrambled eeg tabasco surprise?! Where's the nutruition in that? Sure you have eggs, but where's the greens, the meats, the fruits, the PROTEIN?!
Nevermind this was the same girl who downed three noodle cups in a row. YOU ADJUST TO WHAT YOU HAVE AVAILABLE. Steadying her visible cues to a slight wince, Shurui replies, ".... My dad taught me how to cook Chinese." More like 'stood by her like she was training for the cooking olympics".
.... And yet, his satisfied silence after his first bite turned out to be one of Shurui's most cherished memories. ".... Wasn't able to see what was in there; I'll might have to stop by the mark- W-what? A war room?" Clearly, this isn't something Shurui's used to. The idea of security beyond a well-placed boxcutter, bat, or knife is utterly foreign to her; for one, it's expensive. Two, she's just not used to the idea of someone coming after her that's more interested in something other than her wallet or a cheap thrill at her expense.
Shurui might wonder whether them finding one another was a good thing. And, knowing K' for the volatile and dangerous individual he is, she might wince a little when Whip invites herself happily straight into his personal space; perhaps expecting him to become angry, or even lash out.
But soon enough, it becomes clear Whip occupies an unusual soft spot in K''s regard that no one else does (and very likely, no one else ever will). The girl slumps up right against her brother, and instead of snapping and pushing her away, K' just flicks a sidelong glance at her with a tolerant irritability. He regards her unreadably a few moments, and then he looks away. This is something that can be allowed.
Indulgently, seeming to have forgiven his sister as quickly and mysteriously as he got angry with her, K' grumbles a low note in his chest, but doesn't try to escape the event horizon of Whip's sudden affections. "Is -that- what you're doing," is all he says, some-- but not all-- of that scathing tone left in his voice. His eyes turn back to the window, where he's been studying the masses of cabling this entire time. "What're you installing?"
Maybe it's just the mention of proper food that mollified him.
"What am I not installing?" Whip counters wryly, that crooked grin reanimating across her mouth. She bumps her shoulder against K''s playfully. "I'm still sorting out the specs and trying to hawk whatever I can without drawing too much suspicion, but I hope to be online within the week. If all goes well, then we'll be able to track whoever or whatever even passes gas within a mile of this apartment. At the very least, there will be constant audio and video surveillance; at the most, we'll be able to use friendlies up there as our very eyes." To accentuate the point, Whip points a thumb straight up at the ceiling. But she means farther that that. She's taking about satellite technology. "With any luck, it'll all be able to be manned through a couple little computers.
"First priority is to make sure no one can get in. Second is, if they can, we've got enough to hunt them down and return the favour." At the very least, Whip seems to have convinced herself. There's little she loves more than technology: not to mention militarized technology, and the potential of having their home swimming in it leaves her a little giddy. Absently, chummily, she drapes an arm over her brother's shoulders, attempting almost thoughtlessly, mechanically to rouse him out of the rest of that mood, even if she has to annoy him back to status quo.
That's when Whip pauses a moment, one dark eye slitting on Shurui, peering at the girl suspiciously. That's when the soldier takes a full three sixty, and exactly five minutes from discussing tactical arms, she's asking, "...can you make those little dumplings? With the shrimp in them?"
She's got hopeful stars in her eyes.
It's.... almost endearing how the two siblings bond, each in their own awkward way. Perhaps.... it wasn't such a bad idea after all, seeing how the two auras interact in a somewhat more positive fashion.
Then the conversation turns to security. "... I'll.... just deal with things my way," Shurui quietly replies to the conversation. Computers, wires, satellites, SMALL SCREENS. The girl just nudges her shades over her eyes and frowns exhaustively. Maybe K''ll deal with that stuff. Then again, come to think of it, does he have much expertise with computers? It's not like she's seen him pwnhack into someone's database. Or, well, actually *deal* with computers.
Only now, Whip's moved on to the promising prospect of food, and proceeds to knock Shurui back out of her comfortable, if surly mood. "..... H-har Gow...? I suppose I could try...." She nervously looks to the side, rubbing the side of her head. Dumplings are so *hard* to get right- god, all she has to do is make the dough lumpy or burnt and they'll all think she was lying! ".... Dumplings are hit and miss. Don't expect perfection," she says, her lips curved in a sharp frown akin to a parent giving in to an insistant child. "I need the right ingredients."
K' tips slightly when bumped. He doesn't readjust afterwards, and in fact leans even further in the direction he was nudged in order to rest an elbow on the armrest of the couch. Leaning his jaw against his knuckles, he muses moodily at the array that's already starting to spiderweb into a coherent form down through the window. He hasn't the faintest idea what she's doing, but he certainly seems to know how to -fake- perfect understanding well enough.
He hears out her explanation in silence, absorbing it for all the world like an irascible general (though one a couple decades too young). This grave attitude persists even when Whip threatens to undermine it with her affectionate arm about his shoulders. He looks as if he's become accustomed to this treatment, at least. His tense at the sudden contact is barely perceptible, and doesn't last much longer than two seconds.
"Good," he decides. Straightening up slightly, the arm that'd braced his chin slipping down to dangle off the armrest, he adds, "Should keep things like Ryouhara from happening again." Would he even know how to handle the system, how to man the computers? Oh, you'd be surprised what K' knows; though admittedly, he -does- tend to react completely as one would expect to bluescreens and other inexplicable computer errors.
K' finally seems to notice Shurui again when Whip starts grilling her about what she can do. He glances over at her, a brow lifting: his usual gruff, cold demeanor looking rather incongruous juxtaposed next to his affectionate sister. The conversation must have somehow touched off another one of those hidden explosives in the minefield that is K''s array of issues, because the gaze he angles at her is faintly sharp. Almost admonishing, if one could picture such an emotion from K'. "Nobody expects perfection. Me least of all." And with that he pulls away from Whip, untangling from her, pushing to a moody stand and walking over to inspect the mess of cables at the window.
At the short, offhanded mention of Ryouhara, Whip's expression dulls around the edges. That name and topic are obviously a sore spot for her, and entirely the transparent reason behind the apartment's technological makeover. She's still angry, but she has a way of mutating anger into usefulness. In lieu of impotent outrage, the Ikari soldier has plans to make their home a veritable fortress.
Whether fortunately or unfortunately, her brother's russian roulette mood spun to a new chamber, and it's the world's guess whether that one is going to be loaded. As he detaches, moving as though she's more than used to itI all, Whip slumps immediately onto the place he occupied, drawn to it like a tabby cat seeking out a warm window sill. There's an advantage to having a housemate who's perpetually warmer than a furnace. He leaves warm spots on the furniture.
Propping her head up with one arm, Whip follows up K''s sharp rebuke with the most gentle and patient of smiles aimed Shurui's way. There's no way those two are related. "Don't worry none. I want you to take it easy while you're here. If you need anything, Shurui, write it down and either of us will get it for you."
Sitting back up a little reluctantly, it's at that point Whip angles a look back at K', watching him watch her mess of wires. "Watch out," she nags, in a kindly, sisterly way, "there's fibre optics in there. Handle them wrong and you'll get a handful of glass." Says the girl who hoisted them in the window with her teeth.
But Whip knows how to outstep hypocrisy. It's called standing back up, hefting up her pile of bedsheets, and striding back toward the bedroom to continue preparations for their new guest.
"Ryouhara? I thought you told me no one's been after you, K'." Shurui cranes her neck to peer at the ex-agent, though, the annoyance on her face seems put on for show. She took K' at his word, yes, but it wasn't with the stipulation that she'd be adverse to the idea of him leaving out information that she thought was revelant. .... As opposed to what K' thought was needed. Either way, this was something she wanted to know about. "Who or what is Ryouhara?" she clarifies then, folding her arms.
Again, K' surprises her with how he reacts to her words- something that was meant as a light admonishment of Whip getting her hopes too high became something far more serious, leaving Shurui to look at K', thunderstruck mouth slightly open. It's not that K''s being any meaner or apathatic than usual- in fact, he's seemed a lot easier to deal with once his similarities to her were discovered.
She's just discovering far more subtle sides of him, alongside Whip's own quirks. "... Er, uh, thanks," Shurui says to Whip's enthusiastic offer, nodding dumbly. "... I might go out myself, though- I'll probably drop by my place for any ingredients. Also. The market's better price-wise." So just how does someone with horrible vision like Shurui cook? ..... Very easily, actually. Taste, sound, touch, and smell are in full force, and her eye sight isn't completely out of commission. For the last sense, however, she needs to make things easier, and that means organizing things, whether by marking them with colors or arranging by memory. She clears her throat, regaining her confidence. "Besides. They're not after me full force anymore, right? It's not going to matter."
"No one's after me -anymore-," K' clarifies helpfully from his new position near the window. At her further question, he angles a brief glance over his shoulder, weighing whether there is anything to say about Ryouhara. Whether there's anything he -wants- to say. Finally, he continues, "Seishirou Ryouhara was only after me for information about NESTS. My guess is he has a problem with them." A pause. K' regards Shurui keenly a moment. "...I don't consider him an ally." And he leaves it at that.
Returning to his inspection of the setup, he makes no reply or appreciable response to Whip's warning. He's using his gloved hand, anyway. Neither does he react much when Whip assures Shurui the two of them will care for her. It's likely the only reason he doesn't respond is because the idea of caring for a houseguest in such a manner is so foreign to him he doesn't even register it as something he might have to do. He just figures Shurui will be independent and take care of herself. He and Whip are like that, after all.
And soon, Shurui insists on doing just that, anyway. K' shrugs eloquently. "It matters. There will never be a point where they're "less" after you," he replies coldly, the weight of experience and utter pessimism heavy in his words. "All you can do is learn to be careful and to survive."
While the two of them talk, Whip keeps herself busy in the next room. One would hardly think that military training could translate into domesticity, but a desire to be useful is universal. With her hands on her hips, the girl soldier purses her mouth and surveys the perimeter of the bedroom. However clean and efficient, it's almost as spartan as the rest of the apartment, and definitely lacks a feminine touch. But she's sure it will be OK.
Unfurling the clean bedclothes to dress the small twin bed, Whip smoothes them down absently, working along to the half-muffled voices in the next room. The strange, but somehow pleasant sound of activity in the apartment is a thrilling thing for her to hear, and only doubles the girl's resolve to ensure the home is protected. She still can't forgive herself for how easily that Seishirou Ryouhara strolled into their apartment, and how he, despite all her training, all her preparation, all her caution, made her feel so at ease--
Whip comes to when she hears fabric ripping. Not too conscious of her own strength -- as well as her own anger -- she looks vaguely apologetic at the torn pillow she was previously, mindlessly fluffing. Biting her lip, Whip guiltily puts it back down. She pauses. She reaches back to flip it over. All better.
She rubs sheepishly at the back of her neck, still not at complete ease with her emotions. It's so much simpler to be a brave soldier and react to nothing. At least work will keep her mind off it. She reaches under the same bed, pulling out her battered canvas duffel bag that she always keeps half-packed. Busily, she starts adding to it, slowly clearing the room of her things. As little of them there are.
The voiced clarification makes Shurui smile slightly, if only to hide a slight notion to giggle, thankfully before K' has a chance to further explain the situation. "... Alright." If Whip and K' are wary about this man, it'd make sense for Shurui to do the same. .... This man must be plenty suspucious for these two to reject a possible ally.
An ally that seems all the more needed when K' brings up the fact that Shurui, like he and Whip, may never see NESTS completely give up on taking her back. "I got it, I got it," Shurui says irritably, albiet with her voice held soft. "... But I'm not going to let it keep me from mundane life. Or I'll go insane." The thought of constantly having to be *that* level of paranoid, the thought of her being in a dark room, with something not-Marise but horrible all the same, the smell of dead flesh and bad memories roughly shoved back- Shurui wavers physically, then shakes her head. "I'll be careful. Can't let that happen to me again, whether it's NESTS or someone else."
The sound of ripping cloth tears Shurui from her thoughts to something possibly going awry in Whip's preperation. Not wanting to return back to the idea of possibly eternally being chases, she opts to instead check on the happy homemaker. Passing carefully towards Whip's room, attempting her best not to bump into any furniture in her path, she sticks her head in the room. "Hey, Whip, something happen?"
K' finally gives up on his inspection. Shurui's words filter slowly into his awareness, and-- sobered by them-- he straightens and turns around. He regards her quietly, and for once-- in Shurui's presence, anyway-- he just seems tired. Something almost seems to gentle about his demeanor; or at the least, it becomes gentler than usual, relatively speaking, which means it just looks less distantly cold.
This time, the mine Shurui's stumbled onto apparently triggered a softer response. Possibly because she's expressed a want he shares. "Nobody here wants it to keep them from a normal life," he replies flatly, but not entirely unkindly. And then, still with that odd and thoughtful gravity about him, he steps past her, heading towards Whip's room. He heard the rip as well.
Shurui's already asking the question of the moment, aloud. K' just peers suspiciously into the room, possibly expecting some sort of minor disaster.
And, almost on cue, they both find Whip standing in the centre of the bedroom. At her feet is a half-stuffed duffel bag, carelessly stuffed with the sparse items she keeps in her bedroom -- most of them articles of clothing or old weapons. In her hands hangs a torn, slumping pillow that looks a little emaciated. It's thrown up all over the bedsheets, as well as her; tiny goose down pinfeathers are poking out of Whip's dark hair.
A few of them flutter free when she jerks her head to face the doorway, looking surprised to find it full of the rest of the apartment's occupants. Standing there more than a little awkwardly, shuffling her feet a little, Whip's cheeks flush red. She smiles quickly, too quickly, and lets her eyes drop to the floor.
Something happen? "I... need to go out. And buy... new pillow."
Shurui just can't get over the weird closeness she feels being here- like she'd stepped into a play between people so anxious about their characters that they play around her intrusion into their world. .... Well, 'intrusion' is a harsh word, considering they're making a space for her. It's not an intrusion for them at all, but for Shurui... it's awkward and reassuring all at once.
Things are.... floating in the air. White things. Downy th- pillow. Ah. ".... You ripped a pillow open?" The girl's next thought is to re-stuff it and sew it shut, thus avoiding the prospect of spending money; however, for better or worse, this is a suggestion she keeps to herself for the good of all. ....... Only she'd be nuts enough to do that; looks like they have a bit of money to spare for a pillow.
Shurui falls silent as a feather floats aimlessly towards her nose. Then, in an opposite to the frown and heavy words that were uttered seconds before, Shurui pauses to blow against it, flipping the feather in a circular motion. "...fuuf...."
.... She could like this, maybe.
Log created on 01:52:02 08/22/2008 by K', and last modified on 16:26:52 08/26/2008.