[LM 11] - Getting Mind off of Things for a Minute (Open)

[Nozomi]

Phi had promised to remain close and not stray so far that Shinjo couldn't find her in a pinch. So, she did just that. The ruins were, however, interesting enough to draw her attention even if, as she settled on one of the broken stone awnings, she couldn't really help but be pre-occupied. Aware of her surroundings she might be, but her mind was not on what was around her. A mere curiosity of some civilization now lost to the slow tide of hell, it wasn't important. She had more pressing things.

She wanted to punch the stone... but she thought better of it and settled for grunting and grumbling, giving it a half-hearted look around. She wanted to be gone already.

[Noriaki no Yamadono]

The father and daughter pair were out exploring for the day. Staying near the expedition, but ranging a bit. Matsu was the first to spot Phi, and ran up to her. The young girl's hair was tied back tightly, her gear strapped to her back.

The larger man was slower in his approach, almost lumbering. He stood tall, stoic.

"Want to talk?" Yamadono broke the silence.

[Nozomi]

Seeing her, it made Phi smile a little and she waved to the girl, patting the rock next to her as Yamadono came over. There were a few years between them, but this close it could be hard to tell sometimes. She looked up at the big man and frowned a little before remembering and reaching into her outfit and pulling out the finger of jade, offering it to each.

"We need to keep up on this, to be vigilant," she said first, letting her thumb touch the green stone visibly as she let the others hopefully do the same. "They've taken our form more than once. You need to be sure of me, and I you."

A sigh and she frowned. "There is something I want you to know, to make sure Reiko learns. But keep it quiet. I don't want a panic." Because... she was a little panicked and others might be too for different reasons.

[Noriaki no Yamadono]

"Of course." They each took a firm hold in turn. Secure in the knowledge that they were themselves. Matsu, after the test, sat onto the rock next to Phi. She leaned against her friend, resting her head on her shoulder.

"We can be very good at keeping things from being a panic. It would only doom us. What have you discovered?" Yamadono asked, looking to the woman.

[Nozomi]

She let the girl lean in, propping an arm over her shoulder. It was... actually kind of nice to see Matsu this way. For all her stubbornness she was still a young girl, and none of this situation was easy. Part of her was glad the girl probably hadn't seen the bog hags' corpses before they were burned though that couldn't be avoided forever.

"Discovered? Little new in the last few days, but learned... Shinsei left this morning." Her voice was low, one hand covering to make lip reading impossible. "He feared a specific threat and went off to deal with it... Shinjo and I are riding to find him soon hopefully. Nothing in this place should be faced alone. But... in case... you need to warn Reiko to be prepared should something very dangerous approach in the coming days."

[Noriaki no Yamadono]

Yamadono was silent, taking in the information. His lips pursed tight, as he digested the words. Matsu looked up to Phi.

"Then I'm going with you!" She declared, determination scrawled in her festures.

"Matsu!" His voice was sharp, the intimidating features and his sheer will breaking through in calling her name. "That is not your choice to make."

The large man stepped closer, regarding Phi.

"We will warn Reiko... but I won't lie to you and say my instinct isn't screaming what Matsu declared, either."

[Nozomi]

She smiled over at her under the veil and nodded up at him. "Matsu, I am about to be a terrible hypocrite right now," she said in as mild a tone as her gravelly voice could muster because oh fuck was she not letting a child ride on the back of the Ki-Rin to face mortal danger no matter how it sounded like a great story. She looked up at Yamadono and nodded.

"I firmly believe both of you can handle yourselves. But I am defying Shinsei's wishes, as is Shinjo, in coming after him. He... left before his warning reached me. He knew I would do what you're doing right now." Depending on how perceptive either of them were, there was a very obvious tinge of emotion. She'd had an hour to calm down, and she had... only barely. Only barely. "And right now, I'm not letting... ... I'm not letting that idiot do this alone." Yep, she was still calling Shinsei an idiot.

"Shinjo intends to become the Ki-Rin and take me on her back. I don't know if there is room for three to mount on such a creature. I've never seen it. I can scarcely believe that she can, but she swears it. We'll be moving extremely fast to catch up. I want... for you to be prepared because what he is fighting? It may follow us back, and we may need your help to fight it. But I do not know if we will be fighting it there, or dragging a certain fool of a man back here to get the help he needs because he cannot shoulder the world's burdens himself."

(OOC: I'm actually not quite sure if there's space on Shinjo's back for three, hah.)

[Noriaki no Yamadono]

Yamadono hesitated, as Matsu wrapped her arms tight around Phi. "But I can't let you get hurt, I can't let you fight alone!" Even in this hellish place, the youthfulness of the girl broke through the fierce bravado of the one day amazonian warrior.

The Last Noriaki was surprised by the unmasking of emotion from his daughter. He had gotten so used to seeing her fierceness, her determination, that he could forget she was a little girl still.

His little girl.

"You're disobeying what he said, what makes you think I won't disobey you!"

[Nozomi]

When the girl clung, she curled her arms around her and put a hand to the top of her head, a very nurturing, motherly, big sisterly gesture. It had an added bonus that she could look over the top of Matsu's head, unhooking her veil with her free hand and looking up at Yamadono's eyes. 'I cannot let her take this risk. I do not want this girl to die, and I'm afraid I can't protect her where I'm going.' She was terrified, but she was going. She was, however, more afraid of what would happen to Matsu if she came. There was a moment of fear there and she made a little low, half-hearted chuckle before leaning down to tip her chin up.

"You are going to lead the Spider to so many victories, Matsu. And I will be there to train you, so they will make my name famous because I was your tutor," she whispered. "But please let me do the rule breaking today. I have to save that little fool from himself, and Shinjo has to have enough room to drag him back if I knock him out. He'll be a sack of wet potatoes at that point. Wouldn't want to leave you behind would we? Trust me. I will be back. I have something I need to tell that fool, and I have things I want to do with the two of you. Your battles are coming girl. Be ready for them."

[Noriaki no Yamadono]

Tears welled up in the girls eyes. She looked up on Phi's face, already streams down her cheeks. "I'll hate you forever if you don't come back! I lost momma, poppa is getting old and will die one day, too! I can't lose my battle sister now! If you don't come back... I'll fight through Earth and Heaven to find your soul and kill you again, because... because I can't be alone..." the tears were ugly sobs, the words garbled as she choked on them, her grip tighter on Phi.

Yamadono bit his lip, stepped forward, a large hand placed on Matsu's heaving shoulder, the other on Phi.

"Matsu... you spoke of being the best Samurai. One of those tenets is Duty. What... what we want doesn't matter, if we counter what Bushido tells us..." his voice lowered, letting the girls emotions flow freely, without chastising her.

"Phi has tasked you to warn Reiko. To be ready to fight when this thing follows them. Phi cannot do her duty, I cannot do mine, if we have to worry about you shirking yours..."

[Nozomi]

She looked up gratefully at him and leaned in to kiss Matsu on the forehead. "You know... I wish I'd had a sister like you," she whispered to her, though it carried enough that he could hear. "I lost my parents a long time ago. I lost everyone I ever knew... I won't do that to you. You should not grow up alone. And you will not. But be strong for me today, for your father."

She leaned back some and pulled the veil. Fuck it. She was crying a little too right now. Damn the thing that man was doing to her head. All of them, really. "I have a sacred order for you. You have to get a message to Reiko, and I want your father to make sure you get it to her safely. I will be back with the little idiot soon enough, and when this is done I will be your tutor."

God, I'm going to need to sneak over to make sure she doesn't dare follow me. You're going to hate me for a bit, girl, but you're going to live.

[Noriaki no Yamadono]

Whatever her response was, it was a garbled mess of sobs and hiccups. All that was understandable was the nod of the girl. Yamadono squeezed the shoulders of his daughter and Phi. A silent witness to the bond between the two.

Matsu's tears dampened the cloth of Phi's shoulder and chest as the girl held on tight.

"I will make sure she passes along this message, Phi. She knows what has to be done." His voice was steady, but there was a sadness there, too.

Phi had become one he considered a true friend, but more than that, he was grateful for how she cared for Matsu.

[Nozomi]

"You've raised your daughter well," she said softly, reaching up to pat her on the head and smile down at her. "She is going to make a fine leader one day, and until then, it's been... a privilege to come down and meet the two of you. I'm glad I came down from the mountains. If I had stayed, we just would have faded into shadows. but right now, I get to stand in the light next to the two of you."

She wasn't in a hurry to leave. Shinjo had a meeting very soon, after all. They would not ride until then, and Matsu felt like she needed to get this off of her chest. "We don't cry very often in the mountains. I'm starting to wonder if that's such a good thing. I think maybe people need to get it out of their system or they go crazy... and there is a lot down here to get into your system."

[Noriaki no Yamadono]

"I am... we are... glad we had the opportunity to meet you too, Phi." Yamadono let his hands slowly move away from the two, offering a reassuring smile to the formerly masked woman. "She has always been a girl of strong emotion. Her rages, her joys, her sadness. Never really hidden them, and that may be her strength. To live in them and use them." He let the girl sob, seeing that it was like a great weight being unburdened from her shoulders.

"She has her mother's strength and spirit. I've done all I can to honor that memory."

[Nozomi]

I swear to the gods, you had better not be getting some fool idea of dying in here to protect her and rejoin your wife... she's not ready to be alone yet.

For all that she pretended not to pay attention, there was an element to his sadness that she could empathize with. "It was my parents... that night in the bog," she said softy, keeping her hand on the girl's hair as she let her hold on. "I barely remember their faces, it was so long ago. So much is lost from those days. I'm... I'm glad that you remember her face. You should never have to forget such a thing."

She laughed softly. "If you'd asked me if the Noriaki and Hikaru would break bread when they had hat tournament, I would have laughed in your face." She also would have been 13 at the time, so... stupid kids. "Our world really is changing isn't it?"

[Noriaki no Yamadono]

"Things have changed. And will continue to do so." He nodded, listening to her story about the bog, and the way things have changed since the Kami's tournament. "I was on the outside, looking in at the tournament. The nervousness of the others was ever present around me."

He then closed his eyes, to recount the story of the bog for himself.

"It was Hikarihime. My wife. She called to me. And for the first time, I was able to let go." Kneeling, he tenderly kissed Matsu on her crown. "Because I realized that I needed to be present here. For her. And for as long as I can. I miss her, but... I can move on."

[Nozomi]

"Good. To be able to move on, to live... I can understand. I've struggled for a long time." She sighed and let it sag a bit. "I was only a child, but it bothered me that I was the only one who survived my village burning. The Hikaru took me in afterwards. I have lived as a ghost for so long, I don't always know what it means to move on, to be someone. Seeing the Hikaru dwindle, was like watching the burning in slow motion all over again."

"I am glad you can find peace. I want the two of you to leave this place with your kami in tow. He'll need good workers beside him." She was definitely certain of that. his little rag-tag batch was going to need something to get them all in line.

[Noriaki no Yamadono]

"I want, and I know she needs, for you to come back, too. Lord Bayushi will need your cunning and skill." He spoke softly, as Matsu wiped her tears.

"You... *hic*... you're Phi-sensei. You're not a ghost." She spoke into Phi's shoulder. "You're *someone*." Matsu's eyes were lined red, as she looked up finally. Choking back the words again.

"I suppose, even across great distance, you can consider us family for yourself, Phi." Yamadono concluded Matsu's thoughts.

[Nozomi]

She chuckled softly and reached down to pat Matsu on the cheek. "I apologize... it's a dialect. From my village, lost so long ago. They don't use it here anymore. Phi, my name, isn't my birth name. I ... don't remember that. I lost a lot after the fires. I took the name when I was asked in the Hikaru," she said, trying to explain. "Phi means ghost. I was very sad when I took it. But I kind of like it now. Ghosts are sneaky and they aren't seen. Like me. But... it is good for this ghost to know that she has places she can lay her head, places that will be there in years to come."

Because she could not say the same of the Hikaru village if they did not change their ways. "But remember this little lesson, Matsu. Sometimes, the blind woman is right. Sometimes, it is good that your name isn't known. So nobody can ever take it away from you. That was something my mother once told me." An old wive's tale, she believed, but maybe it was true.

[Noriaki no Yamadono]

"So no one... can take it..." the girl replied, her sobs slowly beginning to slow and soften to just tears. Her lips tightened. "They'll die if they try to take my name!" She declared, clutching onto Phi again.

Yamadono wasn't without emotion himself. A raging storm of pride, sadness, concern, even a hint of fear. He worried what would happen if Phi did not return. How could he help Matsu not fall into the melancholy that had plagued him for so long...

"Wherever we reside, you are always welcome."