Starring:
Date: February 1, 2016
Summary:
When death comes rapping at your chamber door, you may try to ignore it, only to find that it has a key. In this case however, there is just enough time to set things straight and ensure that the world continues on without a hitch, so you would hope. Rain must answer for the strange circumstances of his disappearance and reappearance; his evasion of death. How he will answer, is yet unknown.
"Rain's Rebirth - Death Beckons"
Feudal Lord's Home, Suisei, Land of Rivers
An invitation was sent out to those individuals that the Lord of the Land of Rivers wanted to have as private company within his estate. And by those individuals, it is meant to be one individual at this time. Rain's home was a veritable fortress that even he rarely was within. He would recall that he was distant with her the last time they spoke, and while he had not sorted things out, Rain was very aware of appearances at the very least and making it up to Haruna did have some meaning to him even if the feeling was over all numb. The large home was not filled with servants and butlers and maids or anything of the like. It was more a fortress of solitude… which likely would eventually need a woman's touch. The interior was not as lavish as one might have thought it to be. It was certainly not drab and inelegant, but it lacked… personality and well.. accessorizing. It was not spartan, but it did not resemble the home of a Daimyo.
Rain would be waiting within a private room upstairs. There would be a seat there, a couch of sort big enough for a few people, as well as a table with some chairs and some choices of beverage, many of them from Haruna's stock but some of them from the days of her father and some other rare selections that hadn't been touched yet. It seemed to be a lounge room with the possibility of company accounted for, but little else. Her invitation would indicate where to go and how to get there, but otherwise when she entered… the mansion would be dark, dreary, and empty feeling.
She would arrive as scheduled, closing her parasol once inside and tucking it beneath an arm. The heiress glances briefly about the entry hall, her nose crinkling at the lack of upkeep. Everything smells dusty and old. It's unfortunately an insight for her into Rain's mental state. The woman inhales slightly and lets out the breath cooling, bracing herself for battle with the lord.
She ascends the steps, careful to not touch much since she doesn't want to coat her hands in dust or dirt from the lack of upkeep. Men can never keep a house well, or so she's been led to believe. She isn't sure why she expected Rain to be an exception. Perhaps she expected him to have a servant at least? It couldn't really do the man any harm…
Haruna enters the room she was instructed to go to without knocking or announcing herself. She's just there eventually in the room, setting her parasol on the table and pouring out drinks for the both of them. To pretend that his flippancy didn't offend her before would be a lie, so she comes off a bit cold with him, waiting for him to speak instead of giving him her usual warm greetings.
Rain appeared to be… almost emaciated. Dark circles were under his eyes, his skin was far more pale than usual, his gaze was half lidded, though steady. He was sitting rather straight on the couch but he seemed to be distant. "Welcome." he would say to Haruna in greeting as she moved to get drinks. "I apologize that things are… mismanaged at the moment. I have been busy with other things." A truth, but barely so. He had been visiting some places and considering and thinking on things, but one thing he had certainly not been doing was acting whatsoever.
Haruna moves to Rain and offers the drink she poured to him, a bit of one of the open sake bottles. She looks him over, noting his state. If there is any concern in her mind though for his appearance, she doesn't show it in her face. If anything, she seems as though she is being moved by puppet strings. Acting only because someone else is wishing it. Though when she moves to walk past him to take her own seat, she pauses and places a hand lightly on his arm. The touch is enough for her to send a faint pulse of chakra through him, one most can't even detect, but it would at the very least tell her of his well-being physically. The information is taken in and she moves to sit a few feet from him.
"Well, it is what it is. You've seemed very distracted. What's going on?" She sips from her cup and waits for him to speak about what's on his mind.
Nothing seemed to truly be physically wrong with him aside from a bit of fatigue. Nothing life threatening or even truly harmful, he just seemed a bit worn out energy level wise. "Not to sound like some impetuous, boresome child, but… nothing means anything any more. I cannot feel anything any more. It is as if I have grown numb. The most sensation that i've felt in the past few weeks is a bit of nausea and headaches from your… persuasion tactics near the river. Not even your touch stirrs me at all." Rain would try to explain, though he wasn't sure if it would make any sense. "I feel as though… my life is being drained away in an abstract sense. Perhaps it is best to say it is like… feeling as if your will is dying instead of your body. I cannot explain it… and I am losing the battle." Rain confessed to Haruna. Rain would reach to grasp his drink in his hand, it trembling just a bit before he would force it to stop with some effort. The mind was affecting the body it seemed.
Haruna watches Rain over her glass as he speaks. She notices the trembling of his hand and starts to become alarmed inwardly. She takes another sip of her sake once he's finished speaking and then sets her cup down. The woman rises and moves to him, taking the cup from his hand and setting it aside. Sake is the last thing he needs. She gently feels of his face to check for a fever and then brushes his hair away so she can better see his features.
She then takes his hand in a iron-like, no-arguments grip and tugs at him. "Come on. Let me fix you something to eat while we talk. I want you to tell me everything that's bothering you. You can trust me, Rain. You know that you can." She would offer him a light smile at that and bodily pick him up if he refused to attempt walking under his own power.
Rain doesn't know why she is taking away his Sake as he looked after it longingly. He may not be feeling much for anyone and anything else but Sake was the exception to the rule it seemed. As she would feel of his face and check him more, he would not understand and would eventually turn his face away from her which is not something he'd normally do. When she grasps him and tell him that she is going to make him a meal, his first reaction was to say that he was fine, but he insistent grip and mannerisms told him that would not be wise. "Very well." he would agree even if slightly begrudgingly. Something was obviously quite wrong with him. He'd always been a bit of a recluse and someone who held secrets, but he at least used to be a bit charming and capable of speaking to others. Now… he seemed to be a shut in with no aspirations to speak of. It was almost a miracle that he shared with her that he had troubles at all.
She leads him back down the stairs to where ever the kitchen is in the house, not letting go of his hand at all through the ordeal. Once they find it, she would let him go though so he can sit. If he tried to speak, she would hush him, not wanting him to speak until the food is ready. It would take some time, but her goal here is to let him get used to having her in his presence while he collects his thoughts. At some point, she would open the doors of the kitchen to let pale light stream in and to let the small space air out.
The eventual result is that she places a bowl of light, hot soup in front of him along with some fresh bread and hot tea. She sits across from him, settling herself to sip from the soup bowl and nibble at the bread. Her eyes lift to study him as though hinting that he can speak now if he wishes.
It seems that the Lord of the land had no control whatsoever. Instead, Haruna was the one calling the shots as Rain waited at the table and watched her move and work. He was a bit weary and he couldn't truly understand what he was feeling in the end or rather, why he was feeling so little. Even the sense of pride or happiness he got in watching her work for his benefit was numbed. He felt like he was being slowly erased. Eventually, he would have both food and company and he would start to eat in silence regardless of his ability to speak. For a time, he simply would try to enjoy his company, looking to her lightly between sips and bites. Eventually, he would say, "Thank you, Haruna." before finishing off his bread. "I am not sure how I can make it up to you."
When he thanks her, she bows her head to him, smiling very slightly. She eats slowly since she isn't actually hungry. It's more the sharing of a meal with him that she wants to do. Her attention is distracted for a moment as two ravens land outside in a flutter of wings, their silhouettes painted on the bleak landscape that is the kitchen garden. Her eyes squint slightly as she observes the deadness of the things outside. The ground needs to be overturned and fertilized. The dead plants need to be cleared away. She might come back later to tend to it or may send someone…
"Is it your son, Rain? I noticed that you haven't disposed of his remains." Her eyes lock onto him as she speaks, drawing upon the one thing that she thinks might be troubling him among all others. She sees no need to beat around the bush and wait for their friendship to heal. If she waits, he might fade away entirely.
"What are you talking about? His remains? He is just… sleeping. He is just waiting for me to wake him up. His body is fine. Unharmed… unchanged. It is my job as a father to make sure he gets home safe. He just needs his rest while I figure things out. I have resources and I know people and have studied it on my own. All we have to do is restore energy to his form." Rain explained… thoroughly that he did not consider his son to be dead. The ravens that had perched outside would rap at the kitchen chamber door lightly, though one of them shifted to a human appearance and merely opened it. Shie of course, not being one for ceremony. "Lord Rain, you have an appointment to keep." He would say in his bizarrely deep voice.
Haruna seems to grow saddened as she hears Rain deny his son's death and then begin to explain how he can come back to life. She seems about to say something when there's a tapping at the door and a man walks in. Haruna rises to her feet and stands between Rain and the man. He is unfamiliar to her so she seems a bit defensive at the intrusion. "He is unwell and needs rest. What appointment are you speaking of? Can't it wait until tomorrow." Her eyes would look up and down Shie as though she could judge him by his appearance alone.
The alabaster skinned, tall, lanky man dressed in black would bow with an eerie fluid grace as if his balance defied gravity. This would be his greeting though he would not linger on it. "Unfortunately, we have waited too long already. It is time that he answer for his crimes against nature. They are no longer willing to wait and he has much to answer for." Shie would grin ear to ear at that before cocking his head to the side at Rain's complexion. "It is unfortunate that he appears to be ill suited for the journey." Shie would add. Rain rose to his feet as he would stare at Shie. "I think this is the first time you have demanded anything of me. How much time do I have?" He looked to Haruna as Shie answered, "Another day, at the most to prepare."
Haruna watches Shie as he speaks to her with his weird mannerisms. The man unnerves her a bit. She didn't see him change into his human form and she's unfamiliar with him even though he seems to know Rain fairly well. The woman glances between the two of them, seeming to hold her breath for a moment.
"He needs longer than a day before he can travel. As his physician, I refuse to let him out of my care for at least a week." Her gaze turns to Shie, daring him. No one's going anywhere until she figures out what's going on. "What crimes do you speak of?"
Grinning deeply, Shie would retort, "My dear, sweet, gorgeous, talented, intelligent, worldly lady of Lord Rain. No one can escape death when it is their time." Shie would embellish before pointing a slender finger at Rain himself. "No one aside from that man and now it is time to answer for it. There is no choice in this matter. He has been summoned to answer for the crime of cheating death." Shie explained… sort of. Rain remained silent for a long moment as he considered what was meant by all of this before nodding. "Very well. We should take care not to waste this day then, Haruna."
Haruna's eyes narrow as Shie pays her compliments that seem somewhat like insults. When Rain says that they must not waste the day, she just looks at him with a somewhat blank expression. Then, she turns back to Shie. "Whose death? His or his son's? His son is dead, but he denies it. But if you mean to take Rain's life…" She reaches back to take up her cup of tea and takes a moment to tip it back, finishing off the rest of the contents. "Then, you must come through me. So tell me, is it also my time? That is the only way you will have him."
Shie would stare at Haruna for a moment after her bravado, however he would shrug lightly and lean backwards against nothing at all as he gazed down at her. "He is simply required to answer the call. That is, if he does not desire a more direct approach to the matter." The other raven would caw impatiently before taking flight once more. Rain would watch Akuen leave and consider Shie a moment. "Shie would not bother me with this if it was not important. I do not know why, but I can see that there isn't much choice either way Haruna." Shie would nod. "That's right. It is best to give answers now instead of leaving them to fill in the blanks themselves."
Haruna glances between Shie and Rain again, narrowing her eyes slightly at the latter. She huffs a bit of air when she looks back at Shie and then returns to her sitting position at the table. "Fine. But I'm coming with him." The woman takes up her bowl of soup and sips at its contents, her hunger seeming to come back now that she has something to be angry at. Her eyes close as she goes about finishing her meal, seeming as though any chance for argument has no place in the world that exists around her.
