a kirin stretching her legs

[gift_of_rui]

That art inspired you to dust me off, you say? Well, I suppose I can't rightly complain. I appreciate the icons, and the new journal... Well, there's something to be said for a fresh start, isn't there? You and I both know you'll likely never find a proper "home" for me, but that's fine. There's plenty for a homeless muse to do nowadays, and I'm sure having realistic expectations from the get go will benefit us both.

...Though I must admit, I think I'd prefer it if you had something more to say about me than that I inspire you to listen to erhu music. I know you have a certain affection for those of us who have little in the way of canon, but...

Comments

[musou_fuuin]

Nothing wrong with a little music...

[gift_of_rui]

No, there certainly isn't. [She smiles.] Was that a veiled request to hear me play, or simply an idle comment?

[musou_fuuin]

It was what it was, though I certainly wouldn't say no to a free performance.

[gift_of_rui]

Hm. Well, I suppose playing you a tune would be no trouble at all.

[It only takes her a second to decide on a melody, and then...]

[musou_fuuin]

-The song is relaxing, and makes the miko wish she had something to drink along with it.-

[gift_of_rui]

[But, of course, it also has to come to an end.]

Was my performance satisfactory?

[musou_fuuin]

You've an extraordinary talent, young lady. I am honored to have been your audience.

[gift_of_rui]

[...giggle] Thank you very much. I can't speak of any talent, but I've had a lot of practice.

[musou_fuuin]

Talent, experience, it's the same result in the end.

[gift_of_rui]

Mm, I suppose so. [She bows her head.] Either way, I'm glad you enjoyed my playing.

[musou_fuuin]

And you should count yourself lucky as far as canon materials go. At least you have a name and official appearance. I'm simply an amalgamation of theories and conjectures.

[gift_of_rui]

Hm... I suppose that's true. I didn't mean to complain, really.

[musou_fuuin]

And who knows... maybe he'll revisit you someday.

[gift_of_rui]

Maybe. Maybe not. For now, though, I'm content to make do with things as they are.

[musou_fuuin]

As am I. After all, they're in her hands now. And I think she's doing just fine without us.

[devil_groom]

Canon is for losers.

[gift_of_rui]

[There's a moment where she seems unsure how to respond to such a statement... And then, she laughs.]

My, my! I take it you have some strong feelings on the matter?

[devil_groom]

[During that moment, he stares with his mismatched eyes completely blankly, but when she replies he bursts into a big smile. He has so much optimistic energy it's unreal.]

I'm awesome and I've got like, fifteen lines and no backstory.

What about you? How awesome are you relevant to canon?

[gift_of_rui]

While I don't feel how "awesome" I am is really for me to decide... The truth is, I'm not relevant at all. I had been intended to be a playable character, but I was removed from my canon before I ever appeared.

[devil_groom]

Awww. That's okay, I got cancelled after the first issue!

[And because he has no boundaries at all, he will attempt to pat her on the head.]

So you can still be awesome.

[gift_of_rui]

That's unfortunate, but you seem to have made peace with the issue. It's good you're not allowing that to hold you back.

[She laughs again. The headpat doesn't bother her.]

Can I? That's good to hear.

[devil_groom]

[His crooked little smile returns. It licks on and off like a light switch all the time, because he's so hyper he can't pick an emotion to stick to for more than a sentence or two.]

Meh, meh, who'll let a little thing like that hold them back? Once you exist there's things you have to do and if you have to do them, then you do them.

So if you exist, you can be awesome. Unless you suck.

Then you can't be awesome.

[gift_of_rui]

Oh...? Is that how it works? I wonder, then — is it not possible for one who "sucks" to overcome that disadvantage?

[devil_groom]

I!

Don't know.

Probably, if they know what to do. I used to think life sucked but then it didn't, so maybe.

[gift_of_rui]

[...chuckle] I see. Well, at least you're wise enough to admit when you can't say for certain.

[devil_groom]

You can't know everything, because new things happen everyday.

...Although I guess you could know everything if you see the future too. I wonder if I can see the future. I don't know how this thing works.

[He aims to point at his freaky red and black eye, and actually pokes himself in it. Cue a brief scream of pain.]

[gift_of_rui]

Ah—! Careful, careful!

[Automatically, she move closer, gently taking his wrist in her hand and moving his hand well out of the way. At a glance, it doesn't seem like anything is actually damaged, but...]

Be a little more aware of what you're doing. The eye is one of the most delicate parts of the human body.

[devil_groom]

[It might look a bit worse than it is. Naturally when poked in the eye, it'll start to water a bit, but this particular eye doesn't cry tears, it cries blood. Thus, he has a droplet of blood forming in the corner of the eye.]

Ow-ow-ow...Yeah, I know. It really hurt when the old one got blown out of the back of my head.

[He doesn't struggle against her grip on his wrist, but uses the other hand to rub at the bloody eye.]

Ow-ow-ow.

[gift_of_rui]

Ah...! It's bleeding...!

[Her other hand takes his other wrist. Which means he can't rub at it, but she can't really do anything either. An impasse!]

You shouldn't rub at it, or you might end up losing that one too.

[She sounds a little sterner than she probably meant to, but...]

[devil_groom]

Wha!? I can't lose this thing, it's the only chance I have! Bleeding? It's not hurt is it?

[Suddenly he seems quite serious, not like his usual happy-go-lucky mannerism. He's just panicked enough that he doesn't think to inform her it cries blood, but not panicked enough to show any signs of struggle. On the downside, he's spread the small amount of blood all around his eye, so it looks even worse.]

[gift_of_rui]

[Luckily...! She's a nurse. Unluckily, she doesn't have much experience with people who cry blood, so she probably thinks the situation is worse than it is. She releases his wrists and fishes out a small cloth from from her dress and cleans up the blood surrounding his eye as gently as she can, doing her best not to put any pressure on it. How's it look now?]

[devil_groom]

[Once cleaned up, it looks exactly like it did before he poked himself. By which I mean, really freaking looking and surrounded by odd scars, but otherwise unharmed.

He does make a noise oddly like a whining puppy as he awaits her diagnosis though.]

[gift_of_rui]

[...Hm.]

Blood doesn't appear to be collecting inside the eye itself, so you should be fine. [She can't say she has ever seen someone's eye do that before, though, so she can only make an educated guess about how to deal with it.] You may want to flush the eye later and make sure nothing else irritates it, however. If there are any further complications, come ba— [Wait, he's not one of her patients.] See a doctor immediately.

[devil_groom]

Oh, blood is always in there. It cries blood.

[He says that totally casually, like it wouldn't have been useful to know five minutes ago.]

Cool, right?

[gift_of_rui]

...Does it, now? Perhaps the next time something like this happens, you should mention it sooner.

[THAT BEING SAID...]

There is a difference between crying blood and blood collecting within the eye itself. The latter may result in permanent damage to the eye if not properly treated.