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Post by Your Mom~ on Jun 3, 2013 18:19:34 GMT -8
(OOC: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEeeee YES.)
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Olesya watched the man as casual as he liked, sipping herlemonade from her glass in her kitchen as if he belonged there! She listened to his words, her arm not lowering in the slightest even though he didn't appear the slightest bit threatened by her appearance. Olesya was tall for a woman, standing at five foot ten, but even she dwarfed to the giant in her kitchen. Still, she kept her guard up anyway.
Maddie pushed on Olesya's hand, cradling the glass to her chest and pushing a lemonade sticky hand at Olesya's to get past her. Olesya leaned slightly to look at catch her charge in her peripheral vision, still keeping the majority of the gaze on the stranger.
"Maddie, who is this man and how do you know him?"
She asked, her voice much less venomous than a moment before, but with the maternal authority in all its glory. Maddie stopped struggling and looked up at Les, still cradling her glass.
"I was mad, and I was running, and I ran into him. He caught me so I didn't fall and asked about David and um...Leon. I told him David was on a mission but that you could help him so I brought him here!"
"He didn't make any strange promises or threats?"
"No."
"Didn't make you do anything you didn't want to do?"
"No."
"Ask you for any information?"
"Just my name and about Leon and David."
"What about Leon and David?"
"Just where he could find them."
Olesya turned her attention back to the towering man, eyes narrowed in suspicion, though slightly less hellfire and brimstone. Kids were notoriously truthful, and even if he had threatened her not to tell Olesya anything, she hopes Maddie felt safe enough that she could break that threat with Olesya guarding her. Maddie seemed to trust this man, and he hadn't done anything remotely aggressive yet. Olesya had issues trusting people as it was, much more now that someone had already invaded her home once and tried to kill her in her sleep. She wasn't taking any chances.
"Yna oui dnicdat fedr dra Tnykuhc?"
She questioned, switching to Dragon-speak to test and see if he was one with the Dragons. That was how she learned that Kazuya was someone to trust, anyone within the inner circle of Dragons was to be trusted in Olesya's position. It appeared that the traitor was among the general rank of soldiers, and was still being sought out.
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Post by Katsuri Katashi on Jun 3, 2013 18:54:56 GMT -8
He continued to sip that lemonade by the way, that hand dwarfing the glass, much as he did the owner of this fine household. It seemed like he was holding a cup intent for a small child's tea set. A lick of his lips would have returned that smile to it. This was after all, very nice lemonade.
Once more the big man considered grabbing that knife and attempting to free it from its owner.. and once again he thought better of it as he glanced down and saw Maddie. Probably should wait and see if she will retract it herself.. or wait on Maddie to move a good distance away. Though.. I'd rather avoid trying to cripple her guardian altogether.. might scar the poor thing.
Brain had missed part of the exchange between Maddie and Olesya, but caught up as she inquired about Katsuri asking for information, and then what he wanted with David and Leon. It seemed the interrogation of the little one was over, however, as when the woman turned back to him her tongue took a distinct turn and he found himself listening to words he'd only heard out of Leon's mouth before.
Eh... Hmm. I think she was asking if I the dragon kin are friends.. been a few years since I've heard this nonsense though.. cant be sure. He shrugged and went with it, responding simply with, "Hu. Hu. Mauh Vneaht." He most likely sounded like some form of caveman and his dialect was god awful, but hearing was easier than speaking.
He wasn't friends per say with the Dragon kind as he had been in open conflict with several of them at one point, and was far from allied with them. Leon at least though, was still considered a friend by the large man.
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Post by Your Mom~ on Jun 4, 2013 2:24:07 GMT -8
No. No. Leon friend.
So, he knew enough to respond, albiet sounding like a caveman in the process. The corners of Olesya's lips turned upward involuntarily as a slight snort of amusement escaped her mouth. She didn't mean to make fun of the man, but it was kind of funny. She lowered her hands, casting a protective glance at Maddie, who only appeared to be irritated about the lemonade, not the least bit frightened or concerned about the man in her house.
"Go clean up, I'll take your glass. Sorry for spilling your lemonade, Maddie."
Maddie handed her the glass with a small 'that's okay,' before bounding off to her room to get new clothes. Olesya held the cup with the tips of her fingers, stepping over the puddle to the sink. She set the knife on the counter, grabbing a handtowl to wipe off the glass.
"My apologies, friend of Leon. I was attacked about a week ago, here, and my family threatened. So I'm sure you can understand my defensiveness."
She dropped the handtowel to the floor, stepping on it lightly and dragging it over the split lemonade to soak it up. She set the glass on the counter, giving the giant her full attention.
"My name is Olesya, as you already know. Might I ask yours?"
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Post by Katsuri Katashi on Jun 4, 2013 3:58:00 GMT -8
Fluent? No. He knew just enough to probably ask where the bathroom was, and the common words out of Leons mouth. Apart from that it was sketchy. The laugh though, only got the leviathan raising his brow, almost as if to say Well excuse me for not speaking fluid dragon talk.. Nothing rude left those lips though. He just stood there, listening as she told Maddie to run and get cleaned up, which was honestly probably a good idea. Lemonade, even homemade, was sticky, and a sticky mess left to sit would even make a child feel like bleck.
Once Maddie was out of the picture though, attention was left to the man and the stain. The stain was taken care of rather quickly by a towel, and then there was just him. An apology? For protecting her charge? Suppose that IS the polite thing to do... hmm. "Ah... no worries.. I understand completely and am quite used to this sort of reaction. Probably should not have just followed her in, rather she asked me to or not.. social norms rarely apply the same to me as they do most people.. for... obvious reasons. Makes it rather difficult sometimes to discern whats uncouth and whats not."
He could not bow in this house, far too small, but she would have at least seen a slight one, his body angling itself just a bit, head down all the same. Was it wrong, however, that the minute she put the knife down he had considered bad.. bad things? His brain did that sometimes when threatened, even when others had good intentions, had no idea why.
Mr. Bubbles would have smiled once more, as her name was uttered, and he was right, she was the other guardian the child had spoke of, "Olesya.", he allowed her name to leave his lips before he returned his own, "I am Katsuri. Katsuri Katashi. It is nice to meet you." His hand extended, offering itself to her, open palmed. It was immense, easily the size of a gorillas, each of her fingers could probably fit in two or three times into each of his own.
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Post by Your Mom~ on Jun 4, 2013 4:15:05 GMT -8
"I don't think it would matter if it was you or a little old lady. There was a masked assassin in my house, I don't really trust anyone just showing up, I'm afraid."
She knew that the territory wasn't as safe of a place as she had originally thought, though she didn't let any of this paranoia show to Maddie. Maddie thought the whole place was her playground and that the big strong gates could keep out all the badness in the world. Little did she know that some of that badness has slipped in and assumed identities among their ranks. No one was quite safe.
"Pleased to meet you, Katsuri. What brings you here? Leon I'm assuming, is he expecting you?"
Les had only crossed paths with Leon a couple times. He was a busy man, and their jobs kept them basically on opposite sides of the spectrum. Olesya mostly worked in public relations and negotiations as the Voice of the Storm Dragon. Ciplomacy was her specialty, which was kind of funny because a year ago she didn't talk to much of anyone, much less trying to charm strangers into allies.
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Post by Katsuri Katashi on Jun 4, 2013 8:16:09 GMT -8
Did she just compare me to a little old lady? The thought that ran through his head, can't say it was right, or even sane, but it was certainly the one present. Then of course, she spoke about assassins, which got a brow raise. He'd never had people try to assassinate him... at least... not in the truest sense of the word. His 'assassins' had shown up in numbers each time his life had been threatened, and they did it right in front of his face, so that he could KNOW he was close to death before it even happened. He was still standing thankfully.. or not so thankfully depending on point of view.
"Why would someone try to assassinate you?" Words left his mouth before his brain had even processed them. He of course realized this after the fact, but it made no difference in his body language. Then came the pleasantries he had been expecting, she was certainly polite now that he posed no threat. A mental shrug was given before he returned them, "Likewise, and no I do not imagine he is, been gone since shortly after Barkers bombs fell, just recently got back."
Which was the truth, house in order and all that, it was a requirement of him even if he had been the outcast of the family. Not that it mattered, Katsuri was smart, philosophical even, but he was not a diplomat, and god knows sometimes it would seem like instead of a over hundred-fifty IQ the man was the intellectual equivalent of a bulldozer with legs. He was that. Bulldozer with legs that is. He solved problems with those gorilla fists, and those gorilla fists served him well.
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Post by Your Mom~ on Jun 4, 2013 9:21:17 GMT -8
His question seemed genuine enough, either he was a great actor or he truly had no clue about the traitor running around Dragon Territory. According to David, he'd attacked someone else as well, and was still slipping right through their fingers. Olesya glanced to the girl's bedroom door to make sure she wasn't coming back out just then, before turning back to her guest.
"No idea. He came in and attacked me in my sleep. Luckily David and Maddie were at the doctor, she had a fever. I fought him off and he disappeared. He knew who I was, but never said anything about who sent him or why."
She shrugged, moving to pour herself a glass of lemonade. She pulled a glass from the cupoard much more easily than her ward, opening the fridge and taking out the lemonade pitcher. She listened to his words about Leon as she did so. She'd heard he was back recently, but all of them were in various states of in and out, David having gone South to look for allies with her old friend Mitsuki Park. Les would have loved to go with them, but someone had to look after Maddie. And she was acting in his stead as his Voice, so she was covering his duties here in his absence.
"What business do you have with him, if you don't mind my asking?"
Bringing the pitcher to the counter, she filled her glass and turned to the man.
"Refill?"
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Post by Katsuri Katashi on Jun 4, 2013 12:33:45 GMT -8
The sign of a coward.. Assassination was effective, cowardly in his opinion, but effective. Unfortunately, human beings tended to take the most effective, easy route. That would make him defective, not a fan of those sorts of things. Instead he'd rather face someone head on. Still. He did not comment on her misfortune, merely nodded his head to show he had listened to it and let her continue. Grabbing herself a glass of lemonade in the process.
"Leon? Well." A pause as he considered how to word what he was thinking, brow furrowed for a moment to signify as much before his smile returned, "Put simply I just want to reconnect. The more in depth I suppose would involve learning more about this place, how the dragons are operating. I know they are a thorn in Barkers side, that much comes from the rabble trouncing their way about my bar. " Not his bar by the way, just considered it as much given he worked the door like clockwork most nights. The long windedness was not done though, "Barkers territory is a shit hole. I want to see if this place is any better." Not that he planned on getting out of Barker territory, no, he had a nice little setup there.. and occasionally got to make Barker grunts disappear.
Comment on refilling his glass though got that smile back after that speech, his glass offered to her as he so slightly bowed his head for it, "That would be lovely. Thank you."
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Post by Your Mom~ on Jun 4, 2013 13:15:49 GMT -8
Despite his gargantuan size, the man had a rather gentle demeanor. It didn't mean he wasn't dangerous, not in the slightest. He just had a quality to him that many people lacked, a speck of human decency. He had manners. It seemed like when the bombs fell, all aspects of civility flew out the window. Looting, mugging, gangs, it was ridiculous. The Dragons had managed to pull together a semblance of civilization, but it was far from perfect. It was like they had jumped two hundred years into the past in a matter of months.
"'Course it is, Barker's a shit."
Olesya spat, multicolored hues darkening with suppressed rage. At the very core of her being was a very tightly pack burning white hot hatred for the man. Barker was the reason she'd gone crazy, he was the reason she'd lost her family, he was the reason they were all in this predicament in the first place.
Wait...did he live there? Had he lived there? Was he a spy? For which faction? He didn't appear to fit the profile of one of Barker's goons, but then again maybe Barker was getting smart (though it was unlikely). Olesya's defenses rose slightly, as could be seen in the slight rise in her shoulders.
"Where do your loyalties lie?"
She asked, her voice carefully even. She set the pitcher back down between them, not breaking his gaze. It was obvious she didn't trust him, she didn't trust much of anyone. She trusted him enough to not attack him outright, obviously. She trusted him enough to approach him with civil conversation and possibly offer him information on the whereabouts of Leon. She didn't trust him enough to give him any detailed information about herself, her family, or the Dragon's missions or movements. If Leon wanted to tell him, then fine. This man was civil but he was dangerous indeed, if traipsing around Barker Territory was any indicator. If she stepped anywhere near it, they'd try to capture her and take her back. She was a renegade experiment, the white hair was a dead giveaway. She had no intention of giving Barker any ammunition, she'd rather die than be bound in his clutches again.
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Post by Katsuri Katashi on Jun 4, 2013 13:40:38 GMT -8
| Katsuri Katashi | | | | "Im inclined to agree, just as much as any not licking his boot I imagine, probably even some that do." He saw the rage welling up in her, not that he minded it, he had once been as hot blooded as she, a true sight to behold. The berserker in the man, however, lay dormant, hidden deep within and locked away cage and key. No he was calm, non-nonchalant as they spoke of assassins and the worlds 'ruler', if you could call Barker such a thing. As to his profile? He hardly fit the profile of any ones goon, no, far too large for such a thing. Meat-shield perhaps, wrecking ball more likely given the sheer size of the man. Wrecking-balls were what Katashi's were.. you wanted finesse you did not call one, they were incapable of it.
Still. The next comment out of her mouth did get a brow raise, even though the rest of him did not seem to skip a blink. A dull, almost listless expression on his face as he drained half of another glass of that lemonade, what may as well have been a simple drink to a normal person. He pondered the question, standing there in this Dragons kitchen, Loyalties.. I suppose at some point I owed them to others... never truly.. Rolling those large shoulders he'd have smiled at her once again, consideration of that question complete, a mere inkling of a second after it had been asked.
"Power is my mistress. I owe no man or woman loyalties, only strength make of that what you will" Power ruled, that much he did have to admit, but that did not mean he worked for Barker, no, if there was any man he held disgust for it would have been him. ".. although I imagine that question would be to ask if my loyalties lay with the false king. I assure you. They do not." Barker was as far as one could get from a Lord, and Katsuri surely did not serve him.. it would stain his honor to even have such a thing considered a possibility, hence why he made sure to clarify such a thing. It helped the big man was not an imbecile, even if he did serve Barker he'd have told her the same.. middle of Dragon territory, he stuck out like a sore thumb, an eight foot tall sore thumb. All it took was for a guard to hear her cries and he'd have been swarmed.. provided all of the Dragon soldiers were not afraid of him. Morbid places his mind went. | |
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Post by Your Mom~ on Jun 4, 2013 18:37:14 GMT -8
Olesya had always been a passionate person, even before the experimental chemicals seared her veins and clouded her mind. her parents had raised their children to be creative and passionate, to embrace the world for all the wonders it held. In high school she had channeled that passion well, achieving greatness as the varsity captain in her junior year. When the side effects of the experimentation took route, her passion took an entirely self-centered turn, manipulating the world in any way to suit her. If someone crossed her, they got hurt. If she wanted something, there was no length she didn't go to in order to get it. But now? Now Olesya was rediscovering her passions and emotions and how they related to this new world. At first, there was complete and total numbness, and sadness. Then there was anger. Then mercy. Then love. One by one she reacquainted herself with her human emotions, and she was still getting a grip on them (though she was much better at it now than when she was first released from the halfway house).
TL;DR, Olesya was certainly a hot-blooded human being. But she wouldn't want the alternative.
The woman's kaleidoscope eyes widened ever so slightly when he mentioned that his loyalties lied nowhere but with power. Granted, Mitsuki didn't declare any specific loyalty, but she wasn't an eight foot tall behemoth that could crush you with her pinky. Olesya's alliance was with the Dragons, but her loyalty was with the resistance, the opposition to Barker's tyrannical vision. She would do anything in her mortal power to prevent him from succeeding. That was her vision.
Olesya's shoulders relaxed slightly when he stated that he did not side with Barker. It was an interesting name for him, the false king. Olesya imagined Barker fashioned himself as some sort of god, raining tyranny and destruction at his own whim. Barker was neither. He was a lunatic, a coward, and a fool.
"Good, you didn't fit the type. You're too smart."
She said simply, taking a sip of her lemonade.
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Post by Katsuri Katashi on Jun 5, 2013 8:30:59 GMT -8
| Katsuri Katashi | |  The Behemoth | | Katsuri had once been much more passionate than he was now, also more prone to violence unfortunately... probably would not have worked out well when she brandished that knife.. thankfully though he was more stable in current times. Her wide eyed response though, got a little big of a grin, one he did not even know had traced its way across his lips. "I fit the type just fine. For all you know I could be a Barker henchman."
He was not. She did not know that, however, and he wanted to make sure she knew this. "Make one thing certain of me, of anyone, you do not know their motives any more than you know rather they are admiring your assets." A nod given in her direction before he chuckled softly, finishing off that glass of lemonade he'd have set the glass down on the table and licked his lips clean of excess. His intention was not to put her back on guard, at least, not enough to aim that knife at him once more, merely to emphasis his point.
He backed power. Preferably his own power if at all possible. Fortunately, for at least the dragon in this room, he had no interest in backing Barker... not because Barker was not powerful, no, he held an immense amount of power. At least in terms of control of the world. He did not back Barker because the man was a coward.. and power or no, cowardice pretty much excluded his services...the same could not be said for all men, or women for that matter. That and Barker had made several of the few things the man took enjoyment in much harder to obtain. Music, good alcohol, food, and women. Simple man really. "I do not say these things to tell you I am dangerous. Simply to tell you that my loyalties are a free market. I will support who I feel like supporting, I have no sense of 'greater cause'. Barker just happens to be on my list. Enemy of my enemy and all that. Besides, striking women or children is not something I enjoy doing. " | |
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Post by Your Mom~ on Jun 5, 2013 10:10:28 GMT -8
"I fit the type just fine. For all you know I could be a Barker henchman."
The snow-haired woman quirked a skeptical eyebrow at him. Now he was just teasing her, that was teasing right? Les was still getting used to socializing with people she didn't know. She understood the basics, obviousl, but the more subtle nuances tended to evade her.
"Physically maybe. But if you were one of his you'd have just beat in my door and smashed my face in on sight. I'm a wanted woman by Barker's kin, a renegade experiment."
She figured she was stating the obvious here, with her white hair and kaleidoscope-looking eyes. She wore a bandana when outside of Dragon territory to deter any unwanted attention, but around here it was a distinguishing trait. Olesya listened to him explanation, nodding slightly in understanding. There was nothing wrong with being neutral, if Olesya didn't have her ties with David and the Dragons (and mostly, maddie), she'd be a free agent as well. He only enemy was Barker.
"'The enemy of my enemy is my friend.' Though I prefer 'the enemy of my enemy is not my enemy.'"
A mutual understanding of neutral alliance, Olesya could live with that. On that note, Maddie tottled back out to the kitchen in a fresh shirt and shorts, grabbing her glass of lemonade before hopping up on a stool next to the large man.
"Do you like the lemonade, Kat-surry?"
She asked, taking a large sip of her own with a toothy grin.
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Post by Katsuri Katashi on Jun 5, 2013 11:19:41 GMT -8
| EXAMPLE CAPTION YO | | katsuri katashi And I heard as it were... the noise of thunder... | | "Barker is a brute. I would not argue with the fact that most of his grunts and commanders are brutes. However, you yourself were assaulted by an assassin. One you presume was sent by Barker.. if that does not speak volumes for his need of underhanded techniques I do not know what does."
His tone was not condescending in the least, rather, trying to alert her to the fact that she could not, absolutely could not, take things at face value.. call it damsel saving syndrome.. or a child protecting one. Either one would have been accurate to a degree. The best assassins were often those that would get in close, under your cloak. They would fool you with friendship, non-threatening demeanor, and then, when vulnerable you'd get a knife in the neck.
You'd be alone. You'd be defenseless. You'd be dead or damn near dead. He had two of those across his chest thanks to a traitor in his younger life. He knew the lesson very well.
Maddie had entered the scene once more, which meant talk of such things was done for now, merely smiling as the child asked him about the lemonade. Reply? Another slight ruffle of her hair and, "It was delicious Maddie, I had to have two glasses it was so good. Thank you."
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One of the four beasts sang come and see... and I saw. |
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Post by Your Mom~ on Jun 6, 2013 3:03:48 GMT -8
"The fool knows nothing but underhanded techniques..."
Olesya shook her head. Barker had no honor, all he knew was greed and vanity. He fashioned himself as a god, someone to be feared and revered. It couldn't be farther from the truth. The bombs had caughtt he world by surprise, it was only a matter of time before they'd gained enough resources to take the bastard down.
Any talk of their common enemy halted as Maddie entered the room. Olesya did her best to shield her ward from any sort of 'war' talk. Maddie was still a child, and even though she was stronger than Olesya gave her credit for, the Voice wanted to preserve as much childhood fofr the girl as she could.
"We'll have to see if they have more lemons at the market, Boo. We can check today."
She said, calling the girl by her affectionate nickname. Maddie had been in love with Monsters Inc way back from her time at the orphanage. Olesya had managed to find a copy when she was scavenging, and brought it back for the girl. She watched it daily, without cable or sattelite, the only thing her little teeny tv was good for was movies.
"Okay! Can Kat-surry come too?"
Olesya blinked, looking to the large man.
"I'm pretty sure that Mister Katashi wants to go see his friend, Leon. Did you want us to direct you on our way out?"
It wasn't that she didn't want to invite him along, she didn't want to drag the man along on their family errands. Afterall, they were still mostly strangers, and Katsuri had come here with a purpose.
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