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Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/23/2015 2:25 AM

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From afar, the mountain hadn't looked like much. No, that wasn't being quite fair to it; it was a nice enough mountain as far as mountains went. In fact, it was quite beautiful. Not tall enough to boast its own year-round cap of snow, it might have been called a mere foothill elsewhere, but the region had only these such mountains, and nothing taller; past the coast it was all lazy rolling grasslands, and then flat prairie.

“There's a lesson to be learned here, Merc,” said Li.

The Riopath cocked her head. “What's that?” she asked.

Li grinned. “Mountains are relative,” he declared. Mercury rolled her eyes. “What, you don't think it's funny? I think it's funny.”
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/23/2015 2:29 AM

“Only you would find that funny, Li.” With a sigh, she began plodding toward the mountain again, while Li admired the view. It had been quiet these last few days as they followed the winding roads through the mountains, only stopping every now and again to purchase supplies at some little village here and there. It was a nice change of scene from the sprawling cities he had left behind. It did get a bit lonely sometimes, but at least he had Mercury for company, even if she didn't exactly appreciate his jokes. He would probably like this a lot less if he'd had no one to talk to at all, considering how much time they spent on the road. The scenery was, well, scenic, but all the trees started to look the same if you stared at them for too long.
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/23/2015 2:30 AM

Where were they going? Ah, well, that was the question, wasn't it? Truthfully speaking, he had no idea. That was how it had been for a while now. There wasn't much rhyme or reason for it, they just followed the road wherever it led, and if there was a fork in the path, they'd play little games to decide which way to go. That was the other thing about cities--- navigating the roads took a lot of rock-paper-scissors. It was probably for the best that they'd gone somewhere rural this time around.

He'd been enjoying the nights they spent out camped under the stars--- it was summer, so sleeping out was still enjoyable, and preferable to the heat of the day. Still, it was high time they found a settlement again.
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/23/2015 2:31 AM

Foraging in the mountains wasn't bad, so they were fine for a while when it came to food and water, but lately more and more of his traps were being sabotaged and something was stealing things from their camp during the night. Whatever it was, it was clever enough to elude all of Li's attempts to catch it, but Li suspected it was just a wild animal. There was no real pattern to the things it took--- pots, rope, an old shirt, some coins. It didn't go after his valuables specifically, which he supposed was a relief. Then again though, it had taken some pretty useful things too, and he wasn't sure he'd be able to replace all of it in a backwoods village.

More importantly though, maybe he could ask some of the locals about whatever it was that was robbing him blind. He hoped they had some advice for him about how to stave it off. It would be a hassle if this kept going for the entire trip, since they had a lot more mountain to get through.
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/24/2015 7:34 PM

They'd been walking for the better part of a day--- or as Mercury liked to point out, she had been walking and he had been sitting on her back--- when they finally crested a small overlook and spotted a village down below. It wasn't a big one, but most settlements here weren't. A few rice paddies spread out from the central cluster of buildings, most of which were one-storey thatched things with a simple look to them. There was no real way to tell at such a distance what the locals were going to be like, but so far it looked promising.

“This time maybe you should let me handle the talking,” Li said.

“What, and let some ham-handed farmer treat me like a cow?” Mercury retorted.
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/24/2015 7:34 PM

Li frowned. “Well, you don't want a repeat of what happened last time, right? Or the time we went to that town with the windmills?” Mercury winced at that, looking away guiltily.

“The time I got worshipped wasn't so bad,” she muttered under her breath, but the argument was lost. People usually didn't take well to a talking Riopath, and she didn't want to make any more trouble. “But don't blame me if I kick someone.”

“Don't worry, I'll tell them you have a bad temper and fart a lot,” Li said cheerfully. “That should keep them away pretty well.”

“Hey! I do not fart,” Mercury protested indignantly, turning her head back to glare at Li, who burst out laughing. “I'll buck you if you keep that up. See if I won't!”

Li grinned. “See? Bad-tempered.”
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/24/2015 7:40 PM

As they drew close to the village, Li caught sight of an elderly woman tending to a rice paddy. “Ho there, elder!” he said, raising his hand in greeting and tipping back his wide straw hat. She looked up at the sound of his voice and Li smiled at her hopefully. She squinted at him for a long moment before the corners of her mouth pulled down into a frown.

“Now see here,” she said, “we told you last time that don't want none of your medicine! We were fine on our own for sixty-five years, ain't nobody got sick til you and your witchy quack friends showed up! You ain't welcome here, so turn around and go now, before I call the headman on you!” She waved the weeds in her hand at him for emphasis.
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/24/2015 7:44 PM

“Er...” Li blinked in confusion, stunned into silence for a moment at her reaction. “Ma'am, I  think you have me confused with someone else. I've never been here,” he said.

The old lady scowled. “Don't you try to get anything past me, you no good son of a con! You think I wouldn't remember you and your flashy Riopath?! Why, I've got forty-odd grandkids and I remember every last one of 'em!” She spat on the ground in his direction for emphasis, though thankfully it fell far short of them.

Li and Mercury exchanged glances. Dismounting, Li took a few steps closer to the old lady, who seemed none too pleased at this turn of events. “I said you ain't welcome here,” she began, making as if to slap him with the weeds, but something, at last, gave her pause.
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/24/2015 7:51 PM

“Yuuto... Is that you?” she said incredulously. “C'mere, let gran get a better look at you! Ahhh, you were so small last time I saw you! Why, I could still---”

“Ma'am, said Li, who was now being tugged down by his collar so the old woman could pinch his cheeks, “I really think you've got it wrong... I've never been here before. Agh!” He yelped as the old woman gave him a sharp rap on the head.

“What kinda nonsense is that to say to your ol' gran, eh? Your ma didn't teach you no manners,” she said. Somewhere in the background, Li could hear Mercury snickering. Some help she was, he thought despondently.
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/24/2015 7:58 PM

Li tried in vain to convince the old woman that he was, in fact, a stranger, but in the end he found himself being dragged by his ear into the village. Mercury, curse her, only followed docilely behind while he was forced to listen to the woman lecture him about proper respect for one's elders. It was only when a burly-looking man caught sight of them that he was offered some relief. The man stepped up to the old grandmother and said, “Who've you got there, Mrs Nakamura?”

The old woman snorted. “Would you believe what Yuuto said to me? Staying away for so long, and then pretending he doesn't recognize his ol' gran. The nerve.” Li said nothing, for fear of inciting the grandmother's anger, but he looked up beseechingly at the older man.
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/25/2015 4:43 PM

Fortunately for poor Li, the man was a compassionate fellow, and soon he was freed from the old woman's death grip on his ear and sitting at a little table, drinking tea. The man, who had introduced himself as Hiroshi Sano, laughed a little awkwardly as he poured a cup for himself. “I'm sorry about that. Mrs Nakamura's eyesight isn't what it used to be, you see.”

No kidding, Li thought. It had taken a photo of the real Yuuto and a lot of squinting on her part to convince the old woman that Li was not, in fact, her grandchild. Yuuto hadn't looked the least bit like him, excepting the fact that they did look similar in age.
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/25/2015 4:44 PM

He only laughed it off, however, and took another sip of the tea. “No hard feelings, though I sure am glad you came along when you did! I don't think my ear would've stayed on for much longer,” he said, raising a hand to cup the side of his head. He didn't even dare touch it, for fear of worsening the pain. “She sure is a fierce one!”

Hiroshi chuckled, this time with less discomfort. “She didn't regale you with her stories of the war, then?” Li paused mid-sip, eyes widening. “Ah, I guess not. Well, you've got the right of it, anyway. She's a tough old bird, living by herself at her age. All her kids left for the cities, but she's decided to stay on here.”
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/25/2015 4:46 PM

“Ahhh,” said Li. There was nothing more he could add, and the mood between them took a sober turn at that. Li had seen a great deal of abandoned things on his travels, from crumbling ruins to sacks of kittens thrown on the roadside. Living things were always the saddest. At least the buildings couldn't grieve.

“Well, don't look so glum,” Hiroshi said. “It's not as if we don't look after her. Don't tell her I said that though; I'll never hear the end of her lectures.” His smile was fond as he spoke, taking the bite out of his words. It had been clear from their earlier exchange that the two got on well, so that was some comfort. Li wondered at the history between them, but it wasn't his place to ask.
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/25/2015 4:47 PM

Hiroshi had a wide, pleasant face, already set deep with laugh lines at the corners of his eyes. His skin was dark from a lifetime of work outdoors, and his hands were large with callouses from his tools. He looked as if he led an honest life here. They all did, as far as Li could tell. They certainly didn't seem the type to be stealing from lone travellers under the cover of night.

Which, again, begged the question of who did. That was part of why he had been looking for a village to begin with, after all, and now seemed as good a time to ask as any. “Say,” he said, “you haven't been having any trouble with bandits lately, have you?” Hiroshi looked up at Li's words, frowning slightly.
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Re: Friends in Strange Places [self]

Postby crow » 06/25/2015 4:48 PM

“No, we haven't had bandits in quite some time. We're too far out into the mountains for that, and we don't have much to steal anyway. Why? Did you run into trouble on the way here?” He looked so genuinely concerned and alarmed that Li felt almost guilty for bringing it up.

Still, he had to get to the bottom of it, and in case it was bandits, it was better that the villagers had some kind of warning about it. “Well, I'm not sure myself,” he said slowly. “A lot of my things have gone missing while I was on the road, but I've half a mind it's an animal of some sort. I still have my purse on me, for one.” He held it up for proof, shaking it so the coins jingled inside. It wasn't a fat purse, but it wasn't as if he had nothing to steal either.
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