http://prinzessinasuka.livejournal.com/ ([identity profile] prinzessinasuka.livejournal.com) wrote in [community profile] paixaorpg2006-04-23 01:50 pm

la Fée Verte [completed]

Character(s): Asuka and Howl.
Content: Asuka trying to find comfort in alcohol and Howl finding himself running away from the tavern's goons to Haja o Que Houver.
Setting: The Cheap Prayer (F5) and then over to Haja o Que Houver (F4)
Time: early Saturday morning, 2-3 AM-ish.
Warnings: Alcohol. And adorable-ness x)


Taking off her bandages turned out to be a mistake as Auron had taken off the arms of the plugsuit so that he could treat the wound. The outfit should be able to moderate the temperature of her body, but the designer probably did not think that she would be roaming the streets during snowfall in the wee hours of the morning. The snow hitting her still open wound is also very unpleasant as it leaves a piercing pain as if needles are puncturing the wound.

Part of her mind is telling her that she is mad and that she should go back to the hotel now as Auron and The Prince and Jenet would worry and they have been so so nice and Asuka really does not want to break their hearts after she has broken her mother's her foster parents' Misato's Hikari's hers. But her feet trudges on and when she finally looks up after seeing reflections of lights on the sludge pooling around her feet, she finds herself looking at a broken down sign saying "The Cheap Prayer."

The place seems to be quite lively still, despite the time, and not thinking about how she has absolutely no money on her, she walks into the dimly-lighted tavern. She sits herself on a seat as far from the entrance as possible and finds a table in far corner of the room which has no candle placed on it. She floats to the table and flops herself down on the hard wooden chair, feeling the fatigue of her muscles only then.

It is strange how the darkness of the tavern and the pitiful wailing of the female soloist performing on the stage near her table matches so perfectly with how she feels inside. She snorts at the thought and flips through the menu placed on the table. Realizing that the numbers placed in brackets right beside the name of the cocktails are the alcoholic concentration, she smirks at the first good thing to happen to her in quite some time. Seems that the owner is decent enough to let me know which is the most alcoholic, she thinks to herself.

Asuka gestures to the waiter who has fat deposited under his eyes and nowhere else. Asuka hides herself behind the menu to spare her eyes from such a view, muttering, "Absinthe," before handing the waiter the menu and turning her face to the stage. She realizes that she has no money to pay with, but she finds that she does not really care. The waiter did not seem to realize that she is only fourteen, and she is glad for it because maybe alcohol can help her feel better. Misato usually seems much more manageable when she has her Yebisu, after all.

[identity profile] thewizardhowl.livejournal.com 2006-04-23 08:00 am (UTC)(link)
Given that his sleeping patterns were now off, Howl had found that he could fall back to old habits -- such as wandering around at night to check out the variety of establishments that surrounded the Haja o Que Houver.

The wizard had wandered down south and had come across The Cheap Prayer. Admittedly it was the artwork drawn onto the walls that had caught his attention first, but after finally settling down inside the establishment itself, he had to admit that the music had it's points. As did the food.

Leaning back against the seat, Howl smiled and kept his eyes on the woman singing upfront. She was beautiful as well as talented with her voice. Twirling a coin in his hand he thoughtfully considered approaching her...

...after the performance.

Maybe.


[identity profile] thewizardhowl.livejournal.com 2006-04-26 12:18 am (UTC)(link)
He was forming a number of images in his head -- mostly memories from home, when he heard the distinct hiccuping sound that often accompanied a fit of crying. With a frown, Howl turned around and caught sight of what seemed to be a woman in the table behind him with her head buried in her folded arms.

He watches for awhile, keeping his silence and noting that some of the other guests in the establishment regard her with brief glances and then cold shoulders.

He catches sight of the bottle of Absinthe and dismisses the urge to shake his head. That, my dear, is what you get for drinking the strong stuff. He thinks, though he himself makes no move to console her. Howl leans back against the chair to return his attention once more to the performance, leaving the dark to be punctuated with the soft sounds of anguish.

[identity profile] thewizardhowl.livejournal.com 2006-04-28 06:07 am (UTC)(link)
Howl blinks at the girl, noting that she's a bit unstable on her feet. He straightens, caught a bit unawares, and lifts a light fist to his mouth as he clears his throat. When he looks up again, he offers her a somewhat sheepish smile. "I have no idea what you mean, my dear."

He keeps his gaze on hers, eyes unflinching, face revealing nothing.

[identity profile] thewizardhowl.livejournal.com 2006-04-28 02:29 pm (UTC)(link)
He is aware of her intention even before she does it -- he credits it to her body language as he can easily read the shift in the shoulder, the rise of the elbow.

He does not bother to make any move to block her, instead the wizard rises smoothly to his feet and sidesteps her easily given that the alcohol has done enough damage to the stability of her system.

Catching her wrist, his face remains neutral and he slips her hand through his arm as any gentleman would. "Let's go, my dear. I believe this place does not do you any good." He leans in close and whispers briefly in her ear. "Perhaps next time you would opt to choose something a little lighter than Absinthe." His voice is soft and low, "Let's get you some fresh air, shall we?"

[identity profile] thewizardhowl.livejournal.com 2006-04-29 01:19 am (UTC)(link)
He leads her outside, all the while considering that exposing her to the cold might not be the best of solutions. He isn't quite sure why he's bothered to help her. Perhaps it is because she had enough gall to try to take a swipe at him and that makes her interesting enough to approach in his book.

He opens the door with one hand, the other still keeping her close to his side as he maneuvers her out of The Cheap Prayer and near a wall. Turning, his face is a rather thoughtful mask as he holds her at arms length in case she decides to up-end whatever there is in her stomach onto him.

He has nothing afterall, save for the clothes off his back and some currency that he had estimated would likely keep him for a week, if not less.

"You look rather green, princess." He teases softly, one hand falling to her shoulder to steady her.


[identity profile] thewizardhowl.livejournal.com 2006-04-29 03:02 am (UTC)(link)
He watches her thoughtfully and kneels by her side, one hand coming to stroke her back gently as she continues to throw up. Poor thing... He thinks as he pulls back her hair from her face, the reddish strands limp and damp from the cold sweat that glistens on her forehead.

"Not too much," he murmurs, looping one arm around her waist to steady her. "You'll hurt yourself if you force it." Frowning he asks, his voice more placid than concerned: "Haven't you eaten anything?" He glances over, and hides his frown as he notes just how young she is.

"Good lord," he whispers, his voice still steady and calm. "You're just a girl -- what in hell's name were you doing in there?"

[identity profile] thewizardhowl.livejournal.com 2006-04-29 04:17 am (UTC)(link)
Her outburst surprises him more than anything else, and with the hopes of doing damage control, Howl reaches out, catching her hard in case she even considers running off. He pulls her towards him, slipping his jacket off in one smooth motion, consequently inverting the coat to reveal a different sort of pattern on the opposite side. He wraps the article of clothing around her shoulders and pulls her to his side, turning his eyes away from anything else except the direction of forward.

"Stop that." His voice is sharp and intentional in order to hopefully silence her cries and he pulls her along with him, his strides long and swift as he moves them away from The Cheap Prayer.

Over her head, while she'd been near hysterical, he'd glimpsed what appeared to be tavern's goons. He remembered that he'd paid his tab ahead of time -- but he had the inkling that this little one hadn't, so it was for the best that they hightail it out of there immediately.

"Where is your hotel? If you don't have one, I guess I'll have no choice except to take you with me." His feet may have picked up in pace, but his breath and pulse maintained the same steady rhythm.

[identity profile] thewizardhowl.livejournal.com 2006-04-29 05:45 am (UTC)(link)
Howl glances only briefly to her when he feels her grip tighten on his shirt and he shifts just slightly to cover that hand with his own. It was a good thing she was light – but then that was to be expected considering that she was (despite her earlier protests) just a girl.

She's probably no older than fifteen. Though my own estimate could be wrong. He turns his head, his eyes half-lidded as he looks down at her. "It’s either you’re quiet because I frighten you, or you’re quiet because you have nowhere to go." He looked up and away from her again, his feet just skimming the ground as he led them past the pawnshop, the streets, houses, and straight on towards the Haja o Que Houver.

"Or," he murmured, "you do have somewhere to go, but you don’t plan on telling me just yet." When the road came into view he slowed his pace, sure now that whoever had thought to follow them was well behind.

Halting, he set her down on the ground and faced her, one hand coming up to brush the bangs out of his eyes. "Which is it?" He tilted his head to one side. "Though you needn’t worry. I’m tired and too lazy to go any further than that hotel." He lifted a finger to point to the lights of where he'd spent the previous day. "So you’re welcome to stay with me if you like." He turned away then, fingers brushing lightly through the strands of pale blonde that fell to his shoulders.

He was tired.

[identity profile] thewizardhowl.livejournal.com 2006-04-29 09:13 am (UTC)(link)
He can’t help but smile at the words that leave her mouth. So formal, for a wee thing. He yawns, one hand falling over his mouth as if he could catch his breath between his fingers. With a slightly lazy amble to his step he begins to walk towards the entrance of the hotel, "It’s Howl." He yawns again and stretches a bit, one hand gesturing her over without even so much as a backwards glance.

She’s a child at the least. He thinks to himself, glimpsing her reflection in the glass of the door. And a young lady at the most. Unlike the man he’d met previously, this little one moved with a gait of a clumsy teenager.

And that vulnerability is something that he appreciates greatly. It rendered her just as helpless as he probably was, if he’d had any sense to consider himself helpless. And that helplessness was precisely why there was no need for the guises, or the giving of yet another false name.

"Come along, Scarlet." There is a teasing tone in his voice as he pins her with a nickname, and he shifts slightly, turning so that he is facing her. "Let’s get some food into that system of yours. And if you’re smart, you’ll pass out and sleep until noon tomorrow."

He holds out a hand, oddly enough remembering Markl and the first time he took he boy into his home. It is never pity, afterall, that prompts one to bring home strays. When she is strong enough, they will part ways.