AN: 'Reaching for the Stars' is a story that focus's on our two OC's Zuga and Miya, beginning before Birth By Sleep. In our RP that is 8 years prior. Is this a major project? Nah... its just a fun thing SDL and I are doing. Im not going to give much of a plot to it... since it will cover ALL of the games and in between. There is going to be a huge array of characters and alot of the settings and characters are our own take on them.
Just so you know... Italics are SDL's posts and regular is IPQ's posts
Also... please don't flame... lots of work has been put into both our characters so they aren't Mary Sue... we love them dearly and we want you guys to love them too.
WARNING:FOR THOSE WHO KNOW NOTHING OF KINGDOM HEARTS BIRTH BY SLEEP THIS RP MAY CONTAIN FORMS OF SPOILERS FOR YOU! SO DON'T BLAME US FOR A SURPRISE... YOUR WARNED!
Zuga (c) SandDragonLanayru
Miya (c) IrishPirateQueen
Kingdom Hearts (c) Square Enix & Disney
Mud squished under her heels as she followed her new master through the fog. His stooped posture allowed her to see over his head, and as far as she knew, they were completely lost. Though, he appeared to know where he was going. Zuga wondered of the elderly man was mentally ill. This land was alien to him, was it not? How could he know which way to go so easily?
She was half-tempted to ask him where they were going, but she knew better. Eventually his motives would be revealed. Besides, if he had wanted to tell her, he would have. Trailing her eyes back to her feet, she trudged obediently at his heels, feeling dejected and forgotten. The magic-wielding man in front of her hadn't said much to her yet; only his name, which was Xehanort. "Master" Xehanort is how everyone addressed him.
He had come when the monsters attacked. With his powers, he dispelled them and saved her tribe from certain doom. Afterwards, he would come and go, observing their everyday life and culture and talked with the chieftain. Once he declared that this time he would not be returning, the tribe proposed he take back a gift of memory, in thanks for saving them. They all agreed to give up a tribe member to be a servant to his every whim. At that point, Zuga had known that it would've been her to go. She was the outcast of her lot.
Not like she complained about it or anything. Her only regret was that she couldn't save her younger brother from drowning in the ever so deadly bogs. Murdered, she corrected. The tribe had brainwashed her into thinking he had drowned on his own accord. Femeir had been smart. Someone would've had to drug him to the Boglands kicking and screaming for him to have gotten anywhere near them.
Looking up again, Zuga chewed on her lip, unease growing inside of her. Through the eye sockets of the skull-mask she bore of the mighty salamander Banshee, Zuga was able to see that the fog was beginning to thin out into a slight mist. Sulfuric gases made her nose wrinkle up in disgust, although she had grown up with the awful smell her whole life.
Master Xehanort stopped, nearly making her crash into him. He looked back at her, saying in a deep tone, "We are going to Radiant Gardens. It is a world much different than here and you must learn to adjust to it." He stopped, as if waiting for a reply. Getting none, he continued, "I will teach you how to use magic. It will take a few months before you're any good at it, but I know that past your stoic mask, you're quite bright. I have faith that you'll pick up on the skill quickly."
He looked away and took a few steps forward, adding as he went, "By the way, you're not going to be a slave where we're going. You are an accomplice, nothing less."
She stopped for a second, peering at him curiously before catching up again. How could she be something more than a slave? She had no true potential or anything of worth; especially not anything to be dabbling with magic. If anything, the rule her tribe had hammered into her was to shut up and obey. Zuga glanced over her shoulder, barely able to see the tendril of smoke that marked her village. Never again would she see its skeletal homes or hunt with her pack. No more Banshees, no more angry alligator Mutellas and no more bogs. She wasn't able to tell if she was happy about that or not.
A cough made her turn her head back to Master Xehanort. His hands were folded behind his back, still stooped in stature. Ready to be lectured about her delays, she bowed her head, preparing for a snippy comment. Nothing happened and she opened a light-blue eye to see what was going on.
The elder man had waved his hand, and a blot of darkness appeared on the ground. Its shadowy form stretched out like murky water. It grew until it was a giant hole, sitting there in space. Zuga studied the magnificent sight with awe, amazed by the abilities the man had. It would never cease to boggle her mind about what this power could do. Was this one of the many powers she would learn?
"Dark Corridor," he muttered, starting to step into the veil of black. "Follow me. It will take us to our destination."
She instantly obeyed, her long strides picking up pace until she was inside the portal.
As soon as she was in she wanted out. Inside, it was filled with swirling navy colors and it echoed with moans of the dead. Strange flashes of panic formed in her gut. Her eyes flew about wildly in alarm, emotions like fear and anger growing and flaring to life, boiling and gurgling until she felt nauseous. It rushed to her head and gave her a sudden, elaborate migraine. She clutched the forehead of the helm and groaned, stumbling in place. Master Xehanort's ivory gloved hand steadied her, and his voice assured, "It feeds on negative emotions. Don't let it get the best of you."
She nodded, tension growing inside of her. She kept her eyes skewed shut, following the sounds of her master's feet. It was a bit of time later before the weightless void around her returned to normal. Her sandals stepped onto something solid and the conflicting emotions inside of her settled into a small simmer, hissing angrily like that of a dying fire. Her breaths came out heavily in soft whooshes. Master Xehanort seemed to take no notice and stared about the room they had entered.
Zuga did the same, her mind taking in the variety of color that appeared as soon as she was able to think straight again. Bright purples and subtle grays lined the interior, and they seemed to have appeared in a type of hall. Bright orange plants sat in a vase on top of a shelf. Reflections people hung on the walls. Zuga waited for them to move, but they didn't even blink or breathe. She fought down her curiosity and stared ahead intently.
The mage lifted his bent head slightly and called out, "Braig, I'm back. Get over here."
There was a rustle from somewhere in the building, and before long, a person walked from around the corner, his arms thrown open in welcome. "Master! There you are! Where have you been for so long?"
Zuga tipped her head down to avoid eye contact, watching the raven-haired man approach out of the corner of her tapered gaze. He wore attire similar to that of his master, but with no trailing cloak. A scarlet piece of fabric was wrapped around his neck and his eyes shown to be a deep shade of amber. The barbarian mentally recited his name so she could not forget it and have to ask for it later. The less she talked the better.
Radiant Gardens, a world full of glorious gardens, plentiful forests, shimmering streams, quaint villages and kindly inhabitance. The majority of world of Radiant Garden was laid out as, well- one big garden. It was designed as a huge maze. Hedges served as walls. Road sides and barriers of irregular shapes lined the pedestrian walkways. Multi colored stones paved the roads and paths through the garden maze. A multitude of colorful plants decorated the garden, masses of trees were sprinkled everywhere, creating shade and shelters.
Radiant Gardens wasn't just one big maze though. It was spread out among many miles. Each maze was a town or village, the buildings built in cul-de-sacs of the mazes, and they fit together like a painting. The season's hardly changed at all.
The biggest maze was the maze of the Royal Estate. It could fit ten of the regular sized villages inside its huge pruned hedge walls. At the heart of the city was a grand castle, built in stones of a hue that changed color depending on how the sun would hit them. Around the castle was iron wrought fencing and four, large gates at each compass point.
The world was quite a sight to behold in of its own beauty, but such a magnificent garden does not keep itself. The inhabitants of Radiant Gardens were a calm, quiet folk, never attempting to go against the flow and do something out of the ordinary. The people were content with the simplistic, calm life they had been born into. All work circled around the garden: from trimming, planting, watering, beekeeping, and other conservation jobs to keep their lovely town's beautiful gardens clean and tidy.
There were more than a few among the whole world that weren't satisfied with just that, and perhaps as time would go on their paths would cross. But the ebb and flow of the river that passed through the Garden flows slow and steady, as does time and only time will reveal the fate of this world and its people.
One of these unique individuals had recently made the change in his young adult life from moving away from his quaint little hometown garden, to the Royal Estate. The young man was not surprised, nor daunted by the change in atmosphere. In fact, he seemed to flourish like a plant placed into a bigger pot, removed from its much too small pot from before.
Braig stretched out leisurely on a couch in his study, a newspaper in his hands and relaxed expression on his face. "Nothing better than finishing an acceptable days work and reading the newspaper at four o'clock." the raven haired man sighed.
Deep amber eyes looked intently from word to word as Braig read just about every part of the newspaper. The man had a desire to know every bit of news that was taking place in the town- no- city he now lived in. He was just about to kick his boots off and loosen the red kerchief around his neck and relax into his comfortable couch even more when a voice he hadn't heard for a long time echoed throughout his home.
"Braig, I'm back. Get over here."
'Ha! So the old man is back eh?' he bemused to himself as he stood up, set his paper down and walked out of the study.
He easily located his Master, and walked out into the hallway, arms raised in welcome "Master! There you are! Where have you been for so long? Since you've been gone I did as you requested, as you can tell. I found a suitable abode here in the Royal Estate. I did well, no?" Braig said with respectful nod of his head, a pleased expression on his sharp features.
"I only hope it's functional for our purposes," Master Xehanort muttered, eying the surroundings critically with a bright gold gaze. "-And big enough for three."
He watched his apprentice stare at him dumbly; completely clueless to the events he had endured back in the swamps. Moving aside a few steps, he revealed the barbarian behind him, saying the whole while, "I was in a swamp, experimenting. While I was there I found myself a souvenir." He glanced back at the woman behind him, her gaze hidden in the shadow of her fossil helm. She stood rigid, more than likely uncomfortable in such a strange place. "We need all the help we can get."
"…You brought back a dinosaur?" Braig said simply and in all seriousness, quirking up a brow.
Master Xehanort fought down a smirk. It was appropriate to call her such, as almost every piece of her attire had some sort of monstrous bone attached to it all the way down to the spinal scabbard on her back. He corrected, "A warrior. She's more domesticated than she appears, I assure. But," he sighed, "not enough to meet civilized standards, I'm afraid." Waving his hand around he ordered, "Your job now is to help do just that. Civilize her, show her how to live here until she is completely presentable. At the same time, she will learn culture and magic from me. You can do that, right?"
A doubtful look passed over the younger man and he craned his neck back to get a better look at the savage. " I suppose… Can the poor thing even talk?"
"I hope so."
"Hope!" Braig blurted. "You mean you don't know?"
He shook his head, rubbing at his silver-framed chin. "She hasn't said a word the whole way here." Master Xehanort turned around to face the tall woman. "Perhaps a simple nod will answer our question? Do you have a voice?"
Her head ducked so subtly and quickly it was hard to catch. Her feet shuffled timidly, fingers linking behind her back. He didn't miss his apprentice stiffening, ready for her to pull out some sort of archaic weapon to hit him over the head with.
Chuckling, the mage scolded lightly, "Don't be so hasty, Braig. She wouldn't snap at a fly, as far as I know."
"Yeah, as far as you know," the other growled. "Can't be too careful… I don't need the Swamp Monster bashing my new house down after I just bought it!"
"Now, she wouldn't do that," Master Xehanort clucked. "She's as tame as a lamb." Grinning at his new catch with assurance, he added to her, "Isn't that right?"
Another quick dip of her head agreed with him.
Braig still didn't look convinced. He gave the barbarian a withering stare, waiting for her to wilt under it. She stood tall, mouth pursed into a grim line. "So does the Swamp Monster have a name or what?"
The elder man replied, "Her people called her 'Zuga'. Whether that is her true name or not, she has yet to tell of."
"Why don't you ask?"
Master Xehanort glared at the young man. "Manners, Braig, manners. Don't pressure a creature into submission, or it will bite the hand that feeds it. When she is ready to talk, she will do such and then you can ask all the questions you want. Until then, she will live like us, dine with us, and participate in our agenda. Is that clear?"
Braig gave a unsure sigh through his teeth, his mouth turned into a perplexed frown, amber eyes looking from Master Xehanort to the 'woman' beside him. For some reason he couldn't picture a woman beneath all of those dinosaur bones. It was hard to believe, then to go further and believe that this person could actually learn to be civilized, or even put on the facade of being civilized for that matter.
The man was full of doubt, and a bit of uneasy with this whole idea of the Swamp Monster being a useful ally. All he could see were problems and Braig wasn't a man who wanted to encounter many problems. But, if his master felt that she would be useful who was he to go against a man like Master Xehanort? On more than one occasion the old man had proven his intelligence and common sense to be good and solid. He had no reason to doubt the elder man, so he wasn't going to do so now.
With a nod of his head he replied respectfully "Of course it is, Master. I merely was concerned in what way to approach such a... hmmm... delicate ...state of individual-being for our new comrade." he said searching for the right words which it was unlikely he had accomplished such.
Master Xehanort gave him a stern look and Braig immediately felt uncomfortable and tried to think of a change of subject. "Err... Master, you said you hoped my new home would fit three... well I assure you that it could fit six fairly comfortably. Perhaps you would like to see it for yourself? Choose your own quarters and our friend, Zuga, may do the same. I moved in only a few days ago so there are a few things out of place and a lot of things need to be acquired. I didn't bring much when I moved, so this place is a bit... err... bare." he said with an indifferent shrug, putting his attention to Master Xehanort and for the time being ignoring the woman.
The hunched-man nodded in approval. "Good, this is good... Zuga-" her head snapped away from the pictures on the wall instantly, "-behind these doors are rooms. Feel free to explore and pick whichever one you want to sleep in, but first," the old man let a twisted grin settle on his face as he examined his new accomplice's mud-caked feet, "before you do anything, get cleaned up. I'm sure Braig doesn't want to spend his days cleaning up dirt off his new floors." His gaze traveled over to his apprentice who had agreement laced into every bit of his features
She stared blankly at him for a few moments, Master Xehanort able to barely make out her pale eyes blinking. Her head tilted slightly and she tapped her helmet with a finger questioningly.
"Ah, yes, that is a problem, now isn't it?" Master Xehanort said. He looked at his right-hand man and ordered, "Braig, why don't you go find our guest some… appropriate outfits. I will be going to rest, for I am tired. That means you're in charge… Good luck." His voice was not assuring and his golden eyes were set into sympathy.
Zuga couldn't help a smirk passing over her stoic face. She didn't intend to give this strange man, Braig, hell, but something told her that possibly involuntarily she'd cause him some sort of trouble. Besides, she wasn't going to take kindly to becoming "civilized," that much she could already tell.
A tap to her side nearly made her jump and yelp, but she refrained to only gasp. Turning her head, she saw Xehanort looking up at her. "While I'm at it, you'll have to get rid of the bones. At least, the scabbard and helmet need to go, because it's just not normal here for people to be walking around clad head to toe in the skins of other animals. If anything it could be offensive, even." When he saw her eyes widen he added, "I know that they're a big part of your culture; currency as well and that your skull-mask is a sign of acceptance, which must be dear to you, but you know how it goes." He nodded solemnly, "It has to be like this."
A small sigh slid through her, and she looked down in compliance. The old man brushed past Braig, clapping his shoulder along the way and saying once more, "Good luck," before turning around the corner.
Her icy-blue eyes swerved from the corner to Braig. He didn't seem to know what to do and to prevent him from feeling as awkward as she was, she reached up and unhooked the jaw joints on her mask and slid the bottom row of teeth onto her collar while flipping the top half over her shoulders. The leather-hide hood fell off of her hair, letting its entire volume cascade over her shoulders.
Giving him a quick nod of what seemed to be acceptance; she turned towards the nearest door and looked at it from all angles strangely. After a quick analysis and having pushed its surface with a hand, she reverted to the knob and played with it until she realized what to do and turned it, making it open. Zuga took a few shocked steps backwards, staring at the opening with owlish eyes.
Braig chuckled quietly and shook his head, taking a step forward past her and through the door. Her display of confusion and bewilderment solidified his suspicions that she knew absolutely nothing about his way of living. It was going to be a long day...
'You weren't kidding when you wished me luck Master... I'm going to need quite a bit of it... and patience.' he thought to himself. The desire to sigh heavily was strong, but he refrained. He wasn't a rude man, even to someone as clueless as this woman.
Braig turned around and faced her, taking in her appearance a bit more in depth this time. It was true, her feet and near halfway up her shins was caked in mud. Her clothes were made of a rough fabric and she was absolutely, predominantly covered in various bones. But he was more taken by surprise, by not her rough appearance, but how gentle and delicate her features were.
Now that her mask, or helmet, was gone he could clearly see her face. Though it was covered with a few smudges of dirt, it was probably the cleanest part of her.
Her eyes were some of the palest blue he'd ever seen, and they were a bit distracting along with her extensive amount of brown hair. He had to admit, she wasn't hard on the eyes.
Braig soon realized he was starring and cleared his throat to break the silence. "Um... if you would like I have no problem explaining anything to you that you might find curious, confusing or interesting. I understand that you probably don't feel like talking as of right now, but pointing or indicating with your hands is just fine, I'll try to understand and explain."
He paused for a bit, waiting for her to respond in some way or just to absorb what he just said and then he continued. "Also... don't worry about the mud, it's just fine. And I'm Braig just so you know."
The man had a perplexed look on his face, attempting to figure out how to interact with this woman was intimidating. He'd rather face a tough competitor in an archery tournament than face this new and awkward responsibility.
She held her passive stance, the only visible movement being that of her head, which she twisted about to observe the area. Her gaze didn't waver away from him for a bit of time, brow lifting slightly in understanding. The room itself drew her hard eyes away from Braig eventually, causing them to soften up. Zuga's darting eyes bounced about, taking data in swiftly, creating basic estimations and assumptions about the function of things within the room. Soon enough though, her curiosity got the better of her and she couldn't help but move about, examining things over and prodding objects gently with pale hands.
For the most part, she tried to ignore Braig's stare as he followed her about with it, possibly making sure she didn't break anything or something. Mentally promising herself not to, she continued to go back and forth, pulling open doors that led to smaller storage spaces and sliding open dresser drawers. Her attention suddenly caught onto the mirror resting on top of a finely carved vanity. The reflection of her failed to spook her, but she did tap its metallic surface experimentally with her nails to see if it would ripple like water. When it produced nothing but a clear note, she couldn't stop her grin from spreading upon her face.
It faded suddenly as her next object of obsession met her: the window. She drew a curtain back and looked outside, amazed suddenly by the height at which she was at compared to that of the people below. It was like being a bird in the highest bough of a tree!
Outside there were people, women as well, to her astonishment, bustling about with bags in their arms and younglings at their sides. A strange contraption, gurgling the purest-blue water she had ever seen, sat in the middle of the concentration of buildings. Exotic flowers paved either side of it, and she saw two children eating a quaint lunch upon a bench that leaned between the two sights. It was beautiful, and she momentarily thought back to her swamp-home for the first time, it's views not even in the same league. A burning sensation formed in her gut from the memory and she bit her lip, backing away and letting the curtain fall out of her greedy hands.
Zuga let out a heavy sigh of wistfulness, allowing her expressionless face return as she turned back to Braig, who looked fairly entertained by her mute inquisitiveness. She had many questions she felt she needed to have answered, but did not make a move to voice them. She wasn't quite ready to let these men know what and who they were dealing with. She was a rebel, and had a notorious habit of breaking the rules. The corners of her mouth twitched to that as her eyes became quite smug, posture stiff, as usual. Her intimidating stance caused Braig to glance away, so she snorted and tossed her head, though her slight smirk remained. Fingering the small strand of beads embedded in her chestnut hair, she took one more sweeping gaze around the room before sinking onto the edge of what she assumed was what this world called a "bed," stretching out her cramped legs.
It made her notice her grimy, swamp muck-covered feet. She huffed slightly, reaching out and gripping a film of mud on the bottom of her toes. It cracked, making her wince as exposed air hit her soles. Soon, she was able to slide off a hidden sandal, its entirety covered in stiff dirt. She gave Braig a pointed look, half-tempted to chuck the article of clothing at him to see how fast his reflexes were. Quickly tossing the idea, deeming it "uncivilized," she opted to only dangle it in her hand, clearing her throat for even more clarification. First impressions were everything, so her chieftain had told her once, and starting off the day by throwing a shoe at him didn't seem like the best way to go about making herself amused.
Besides, like she knew where these strange inhabitants kept their stuff, never the less cleaned it. Something told her though, intuition maybe, that most of her swamp clothes would most likely be burned or tossed out, something or another so long as they were gone.
'If I can at least keep the bones, I don't care what they destroy.' It took every ounce of her resistance to not make a sour look towards the thought, for as Master Xehanort had said minutes prior, these bones were a very important symbol to her. It was now her only reminder that what had occurred back in her homelands had indeed been real, besides the memories themselves. Absentmindedly, her other hand came up to grip the wishbone necklace around her neck, stroking its polished ivory surface with a thumb. For only a mere moment her eyes clouded, but right after they lifted again to Braig, the murkiness completely gone as if it was never there to begin with.
Braig watched her curiously, as if he was the one that was out of place and not the barbarian woman. She was an odd thing for sure. He couldn't help but chuckle as he watched her inspect the mirror and yet again he was surprised by the small grin that spread across her face.
It wasn't a moment of bliss, nor of happiness, he didn't think that at all... but she seemed pleased or satisfied with her deduction of the object. But her attention didn't stay on the mirror long, and Braig leaned against the wall leisurely crossing his arms over his chest and watched her intently.
Her attention was drawn to the window, and she drew the curtain back and looked out. He didn't see her facial expressions, but by her posture he could tell she was a bit startled by whatever it was she saw outside.
'Hmmm... ' he drawled mentally, wistfully thinking about his newspaper on his comfy couch in the study.
Zuga turned from the window, and he noted that though she was choosing to remain mute, there was an in-depth thought going on inside her mind: all by the gleam in her eyes. Those blue eyes didn't look void, lost, or clueless, but smart, calculating and intelligent.
Such was confirmed with a change of posture that seemed rather random that it made him uncomfortable. The look in her eyes gleamed with a smugness, mouth shifting upwards and her stance becoming seemingly unmovable.
'That was odd.' he thought, looking away towards the door, hoping to find some reason for escape from this awkward setting.
Braig heard the bed in the room creak and he turned his attention back to the woman. She was stretching her legs out and inspecting the bed. It amused him when she caught site of her mud caked feet, looking at them more surprised by them than anything else she'd seen so far.
It was far more amusing watching her crumble away the mud and peel the sandal off. He was a bit taken off guard when she held it out towards him, a pointed look on her face.
"Yes, that is a shoe; very good, Zuga." Braig said with a smirk on his face.
She scowled at him and went about taking the other sandal off. He sighed and shook his head. The crumbled mud was making a mess on the floor. The man sighed and kicked a large oval basket over to her feet.
"Put your shoes in there, and anything else you want washed. See that chest over there?" he said pointing to a flat topped chest in the left hand corner of the room. "Put what you want to keep on top of it."
Braig then walked past her and opened a door, inside it was the bathroom with a toilet, bathtub with a shower rod, a sink and linen closest. "In here is the bathroom, like this room it is yours only. You have full privacy... as long as you keep that door closed," he said indicating to the door that led to the bed room. "Follow me," he said going into the bathroom. "I'll show you how to use this room."
Dropping her sandals inside the basket, she followed him, still slightly sour of his general, obvious statements to her about the said discarded item. She was not stupid, nor was she that simple-minded. Choosing to keep her mouth shut, for she was not about to start bickering with her new… new…
She stared at his back as he began manipulating an object from within the room as she hovered just outside of it. What was he to her anyway? In ranking standards, he was obviously higher than her, but he didn't seem to treat her any lower than him thus far.
'Then again it could be one of these people's strange customs,' she thought to herself matter-of-factly. 'I have still much to learn…'
He stepped back, and watched as the contraption started spewing rain. Zuga swiftly latched her attention to it, mouth parting slightly in awe. First houses in trees and now their own rain! What was next? People who could fly?
"This is a shower," Braig said slowly, clearly getting that this was a new object to her. "It's where we take baths and stuff." He hunched over it again, avoiding the sprinkling water and turned a few knobs. "You can mess with it until the temperature is how you want it and all, just make sure it doesn't overflow or anything…" When he looked behind him, she wasn't looking his way. Rather, she was staring at the closet, messing with the handle.
'Ugh, I hate these things… What's wrong with tarps in the first place anyway? They get the job done without being complicated!' It took only a moment later for her to pull it open. 'Ah, just as I suspected-'
"And that is where we keep the towels," the dark-haired man said in response to her action.
Zuga gave him a blank glance before letting her inquisitive hands grab one, surprised by its velvety feel. She rubbed the material between her fingers, slightly intrigued. It was a much more pleasant feel than that of her rugged clothes, made from a thin material of animal hides. She had sown it herself, and it was very durable, though it had its tears here and there from snagging bark and scratching beasts.
Snorting to herself, she gently placed the towel back inside its space, fingers tracing inside her palm, already missing the sweet touch.
Braig gave her a strange look, probably not understanding how dear she found such pleasantries. Of course he wouldn't. It's a female thing, she thought, mentally shrugging it off. Quality cloth was precious to a girl.
Braig went over to her and reached into the cabinet, taking out a towel and handing it to her. "You're going to need that after you get out of the shower... we use them to dry off." He said walking toward the door.
Zuga looked at him with a hard to read expression, he grinned, noticing how her hands caressed the material. It was probably safe to assume that the clothes she had worn for her life up till now were rough, hard, and uncomfortable. 'That's understandable, she likes how it feels... typical woman.' he thought amused.
It was true he thought she was a barbarian, and she was... but even in the past thirty minutes he'd come to realize she was pretty normal for a young woman. It wouldn't be too difficult to help her adjust.
"Well, I'm going to go... I wasn't expecting Master Xehanort bring you back with him, and so... yeah. You need some clothes...No need to leave you in your dirty ones."
He ducked out after that, not bothering to say anything more, nor check if he had overlooked something that needed explaining. She looked down at the towel he handed her, fingertips trying to feel the individual strands holding it together. But so expertly woven was this piece of cloth that she couldn't feel even that. Feeling very inferior in skill compared to whomever seamstress had woven such a fine work, she frowned, setting the towel on the counter next to a large bowl-like object similar to that thing called a shower.
Deciding to investigate that later, she walked back into 'her' room. It was so odd calling it that, for she hadn't even been in it for more than an hour, if even that. The box Braig had directed her to be where she was to put her precious items. She knelt in front of it and fumbled with the latch on it, cursing under her breath as it soon became obvious that these objects with handles were going to be the end of her in this world. It took a few tries and much tinkering before she could undo it and heft it open. It was completely empty and a bit dusty even. Not particularly caring, she went about sliding off her hooded helm over her head and gingerly set it off to the side, careful not to ruin the polished surface of the intimidating skull upon it. From there, she slid off the knuckle-bone armbands and the femur ringed shin guard upon her right calf. Lastly was the rib-cage made scabbard, which she unhooked from her shirt. Looking into the hollow if it, she pulled out a pair of daggers and set them beside her legs. Then, as she had with the other things, placed the ivory piece on top of everything and shoved the lid on the box back down.
Sighing heavily, Zuga felt as if she just shut away a portion of her soul. Those pieces of dead animals all held a personal meaning to her. She couldn't imagine being without them. Swallowing a lump in her throat, she stood up with the daggers in hand.
They were in good condition, no niches or anything yet. If anything she prided herself in keeping such good care of them. Pacing over to the bed, Zuga propped up a cushion and slid the weapons under it. She wasn't about to let her guard down just because these people were new. If anything, their hospitality meant nothing at the moment. What did matter to her was finding out whom and who could not be trusted.
'And so far, none of them meet those standards,' Zuga mused to herself. Yeah, they were kind... so far. Who knew how things would turn out once she actually started living here? For all she knew, they both could be the same as the males back home. Dominating, ungracious, idiotic morons... Snorting to herself, she went back into the raining-room and stared at the shower with a frustrated frown as she stared at those knobs. Whenever any type of handle popped up, it always seemed to give her trouble. Groping the wall behind her, she found the door and pulled it closed, following instructions as diligently as possible. Next were those stupid knobs.
Recalling how Braig had done it, she leaned over and began twisting the stupid devices, watching as the water began pouring out of the lower spout. Looking pleased, she then pulled up a switch, causing the rain to come out right onto her head. She jerked back, sputtering. And here she had thought she had been doing so well too... Glaring up at the contraption irritably, she blew a strand of wet hair out of her face, reaching up to yank the beads and feathers out of her hair and placed them on the towel from before.
Pulling her basically worthless shirt over her head and doing nearly the same to her skirt, she threw them in the corner before gingerly stepping into the basin and letting the water crash down on her. At first it was boiling hot, and she scrunched up in disdain before getting used to it and sitting down, scrubbing the clinging mud off her legs.
For the most part, she found it the same as bathing down in the river, except not as much room, and you didn't have to worry about snapping turtles clipping your toes off. They even had a type of object that made them smell better like back home, but this was a block and the stuff back at the swamps was a liquid made of grounded flowers and herbs. It wasn't hard to figure things out once used to it, and it even felt nice not to have dirt between her toes constantly. Even after she was done thoroughly scrubbing herself clean, she sat there, slumped up against the walls of the tub, content with just having the rain pelt her ashy skin.
Soon, though, Zuga found her hands becoming wrinkly, making her scowl and turn the shower off. A shiver passed through her as the colder air around took its toll. Scrambling for that ever-so-nice towel, she hugged it to her body, shoving her nose into it with a satisfied sigh. 'Maybe it's not so bad... Not having to worry about the muck and having to constantly fight your way through each day. A girl could get used to it. Heh, these people live cushier lives than the children back home.'
Smiling, she wrapped the towel tightly around herself. Her eyes became grave as she stared down at her scraps of clothes from earlier, now realizing how filthy she had been moments ago. Feeling a vile taste on her tongue, she scooped up her beads and feathers, using her other oh, so curious hand to twist the one bowl's knobs. A similar action happened as to that of the shower.
Note to self: knobs create water, Zuga stated in her head as she swerved around and cracked the door open slightly.
Items had been placed on the bed while she had been leisurely taking her sweet, old time. The hall-door was shut, so she shuffled out, shaking her plastered bangs out of her face. Ignoring her newest items for now, she paced over to the vanity and set down her hair stuff, tapping the reflecting slab on her way back to make sure it still did not ripple. She'd have to ask about how they froze water so solidly to form that pure substance.
On her bed was a pile of orange and scarlet clothes. She picked up each piece experimentally, holding it up to her chest and flaring out its fabric with a sweeping motion. It wasn't as soft as the towel, but it was nice either way. Better than the hides, at least.
Struggling to get her new attire on, Zuga hissed as her arms got stuck trying to get the sleeveless shirt on. She shifted about until sliding through, hoping that it wouldn't be a reoccurring problem in the future. The skirt was much easier to figure out, as it was made of two layers, each needing to be put on separately. The base one was a shade of violet and the top part was a deep shade of red, which made her thoroughly confused, seeing that violet, was the color of noble-status people. She was not that. Neither was she deserving of scarlet either, for that was also for higher-ranks.
Tying the skirt in place with a gold (yet another noble color) ribbon-like string, Zuga ran her fingers through her wet tresses. Her stomach was yowling with hunger, not having eaten anything since the night before; too distressed was she over leaving the swamps. Not like she expected where she was now. Besides, she was curious as to what these people had to eat on a daily basis. Her teeth were already gnawing down on an invisible piece of grub, happy with just pure imagination.
Getting up with a stiff moan, she walked into the raining-room and reached for the olive-green clothes in the corner and putting them in the same bin as her shoes. Shoving the bin towards the door, she followed after it, her gaze hardening as she locked in on the hall-door.
'Won't get the best of me now!' she taunted at the doorknob, able to successfully turn it this time. Poking her head out, she looked down either side of the hall, not catching sight of Braig. Recalling where Master Xehanort had walked off to earlier, she decided her best bet would be to retrace those steps. She trotted quietly down the corridor, her bare, hunter feet making no noise as she crossed around the corner, which opened up into a large space. A fancy looking bench-thing with cushions on it had its back to her. She was able to see Braig sitting on it, a piece of parchment in his grip.
He didn't seem to have noticed her, so Zuga walked behind him until she was almost hovering over him. Still, he did not take heed of her presence. Smirking to his obliviousness, she cocked her head and let her expression become a bit more subtle before clearing her throat softly.
When Braig had returned from town he scaled the staircase up to Zuga's bedroom, knocked on the door and waited. After a few minutes there was no reply and upon listening more intently he heard the shower running. The sound of the shower running and no answer to his knocking Braig deemed it safe to enter the room.
He first poked his head around the door before opening it all the way and walking in. Going over to the bed he set down the bag he'd been carrying. He set out a scarlet sleeveless top, and a two layered scarlet and violet skirt, along with a pair of leather sandals.
Upon finishing his task he left the room, paper bag folded under his arm. Closing the door behind him Braig headed back for his study in progress, anticipating his comfortable couch and newspaper.
'Life and its little pleasures!' he thought happily, kicking his boots off (finally), and reclining full length on the couch. Picking up the newspaper and opening it up to where he left off and began reading.
Half an hour passed by way too fast in Braig's opinion when he heard the sound of footsteps walking through the hall. And they were attempting to be very silent, which then he only presumed it to be Zuga. The creaking floor boards gave her footsteps away.
'She's probably just exploring around the house, getting to know the place.' he thought to himself, turning the page of his newspaper.
Braig did not notice the new member of the team behind him until she cleared her throat, making him flinch a little. Sitting up, putting his paper down and turning to look at her, Braig acknowledged her, also taking in her new, clean appearance. He had to admit, he'd judged her size quite perfectly, and he couldn't help but pride himself in the fact that he had done a fanatically good job!
The swamp monster was gone. Only two people knew her true heritage and if she was seen out on the street many would think she was just a normal, young woman. Zuga looked quite nice and Master Xehanort would be pleased.
"Well, I see you were successful in your endeavor," he said, standing. "Is there something I can help you with Zuga, or are you just exploring the house?"
Yet again, her teeth gnashed inside her mouth behind her pursed lips as his question stirred her appetite. Still, trying not to be a burden with coming out and just saying what was wanted, for she wasn't one to request anything from her higher-ups to disturb them, she settled with only looking around avidly for any physical clue to her stomach's desires. Seeing none, she sighed softly, the motion making her empty belly yowl in distress.
The hair on her neck rose from the volume of it and she shrunk down slightly in discomfiture. She hugged her sides whilst biting her lip, staring down at the floor as she felt her face flush with color.
"Ah, that's the issue," Braig stated with a grin. He twisted around and started heading for the hall. Zuga swiveled her head sheepishly, finally striding after him when she saw him leave the room. He led her to the other end of the house where they traveled down a ladder-like object connected to the floor, which Zuga had stared at for a few moments before descending slowly, and stepped into a shiny space, counters a metallic, granite color. Zuga clenched her hands to refrain from touching anything important, since this room was obviously not "hers."
To further distract herself from getting her attention swapped by an object within the room, she tentatively scooted herself on top of one of the flat counters, bracing herself by gripping the edge with her fingers. Legs swinging out in a bored manner, she stared up at the ceiling seemingly uninterested, though she was curious as to what Braig was doing to fix her stomach problem. From things so far, she was half shocked that their hunger didn't just disappear when they wanted it to!
'Bet they don't even know what hunting is,' she snorted to herself, sparing a glance at the raven-haired man. Her trailing eyes quickly reverted back to the ceiling. Whatever it was he was doing, she hoped she could at least sink and tear her teeth into something without being scolded, because seriously, she hadn't eaten for nearly a day.
'Feels like it's been a moon,' actually, Zuga mused. A vibrating rumble came from within her stomach once more, causing the woman to knead at it impatiently with her fingers.
Braig moved around the kitchen, pulling a plain white plate out of a cupboard, going to the refrigerator and taking out cheese, meat, and some bread and setting them all on the counter not far from where Zuga sat.
He went about cutting the bread, cheese and meat, placing the meat and cheese on the two slices of bread and thus creating a sandwich.
'I really need to go grocery shopping now that Master Xehanort and our friend from the swamp are here. Humph... I need to get a job ASAP... I'm running low on munny.' he thought to himself tiredly. The raven haired man wondered what he could do in this large city, surely there were plenty of opportunities. 'I should probably bring that up with Master Xehanort... he's got to have a reason for me moving here to the Royal Estate...'
Braig finished the sandwich and pulled a cup out of the same cupboard he'd gotten the plate out of, going to the sink and filling it with water. Grabbing the plate he went over to Zuga and set them beside her."There ya go Zuga. Eat up." he said with a grin before going about cleaning up his mess from making the food.
She stared at the objects with a curious gleam, reaching out and swiping the one that reeked of meat first. She turned it over nearly seven times, and picked at the bread. After inspecting it, she sunk her canines into it, not particularly liking the rough texture of the layered morsel. It scraped against her tongue and wasn't very warm and fleshy, but it was food none the less, and she ate it vigorously.
Afterwards, she rubbed her tongue on the roof of her mouth, feeling that doughy stuff clinging to it. Without even thinking, really, she grabbed the cup (Finally, a familiar object!) and drank the ever so clear liquid inside, which reminded her of the water back home, just more… well, clean.
She wasn't satisfied, but it was enough to keep her hunger at bay and she didn't dare ask for anything more. Pushing herself off the counter, she began looking around, but never did she reach out to grab something. It wasn't as fascinating as her room, but the sight of new things made her commit them to memory to ask about later.
Turning around, she saw Braig waiting for her plague of curiousness to die down. Almost sheepishly, she stopped. She had so much to ask, but as she found out when she got here, the natives had a different dialect than her own and her very first orders from Master Xehanort had been to adjust and blend in. Talking would make her stand out, and even though she was in the hands of these two men, she wasn't about to get accustomed to speaking to them in her foreign tongue.
'Gonna have to practice when I get back to my room…' she thought, inwardly sighing.
Her mulling hadn't lasted nearly ten seconds, and Braig said, "You don't have to follow me everywhere, Zuga. Feel free to go wherever, so long as you don't go outside."
Wherever, huh? She didn't know where she wanted to go. If anything, she just wanted to know why she was here and what her job was if it wasn't as a humble servant. Would Braig know? No, he had just found out about her nearly an hour ago, so there wouldn't be much knowledge to glean from him. Master Xehanort would know, but she didn't want to disturb him.
Sighing, Zuga looked between the ladder-thing that led back to her room and the archway that went into the unknown. Might as well get this place mapped out… Bowing her head respectively to Braig, which he seemed to take with much puzzlement, she paced out, poking her head into the new rooms. Most of the objects she was completely clueless to, such as the strange reflections of people on the walls. No matter how long she stared, they did not move. It frustrated her, but she didn't voice her concern and moved into the next room, the whole of it stacked with those rectangular objects filled with parchment. At the far end she saw Master Xehanort's back to her, hovered over an open one.
"Yes, Zuga, you can come in," he rumbled in his raspy voice when she hovered just outside. How he sensed her, she didn't know. Shuffling in, her finger reached out to rub the spine of the stacks of parchment. The markings made little to no sense to her, and she ignored it, turning back to the mage. He was staring at her, seeming impressed.
"I assume Braig got you fitted into those?"
She nodded.
He smirked and muttered, "Still mute I see. No matter." After a moment's pause he asked, "Are you faring well? Is everything accustomed to your liking?"
Yet again she nodded.
"This is good," he chuckled. "…Tell me, Zuga, can you read?"
She started to nod, but stopped and stared at the stacks on the shelves and shook her head.
He pursed his lips, but didn't ridicule her for it. Instead, he muttered, "When you find your voice, you're going to have to learn. Mostly everyone here is educated, unless some sort of disability enabled otherwise. And for what I'm planning you'll need to know how to read and write."
Braig returned to his study in progress and reclined back into his couch, pulling his paper up off the floor and began to read it yet again. It was around 1 o'clock when he had finally been able to go back to it and it was near 3 o'clock when he finally put it down. Finished.
'Amazing... a full three hours without being interrupted.' he thought to himself as he sat up and slipping his boots on and standing up.
He walked out into the hallway and began making his way towards the direction Master Xehanort had gone when he'd gone off to rest. Braig was hoping he was in this direction, he didn't feel like searching the whole house to find the guy. The man needed to discuss a few things with his master.
As he approached one of the doors he heard the man's raspy old voice, which seemed to be calling out words, titles and descriptions of things to someone in the room. The only person he could be talking to was Zuga.
'He must be familiarizing the girl with some words. What fun,' he thought as he knocked on the ajar door.
There was a pause inside before "Come in, Braig" came fairly abruptly to his ears. Braig opened the door and walked in, giving a respectful bow of his head to his master and then to Zuga.
"Yes Braig... what is it?" the elderly man
"Well Master I was just about to head out to the market place, and take a look around the town. After all... now that I'm an official member of the society here I need to find a job, so I can contribute, no? As well as make a living. I figured I'd come and see if there was anything you would like to request, and if it was alright if I showed our dear friend, Zuga, around town. But that is all up to your digression and if she wants to."
Zuga hadn't really been paying attention when Braig came in, nor did she catch what he said, for she was too busy looking at some text in the thing she now knew to be a "book" as Master Xehanort had told her. He had taught her a few letters, and even commented on how vowels in her homeland had a different sound than that of the people here. She was very tempted to compare herself but had no time to do such because it was then that she finally picked up on the conversation behind her.
Turning her head over her shoulder she stared wide-eyed at Braig, giving him the general Are-You-Crazy look while quickly shaking her head "no." Master Xehanort saw and grinned, saying to Braig, though he was looking at her, "Hm, I think she disagrees. Then again, we don't want to rush her into this place too fast. Let's wait on that one, Braig."
She let out a breath of relief. Going outside into the unknown world around was a frightening idea, but it was not for that reason that she refused to leave the building under any circumstance. It was the fact that she feared what may happen since she wasn't familiar with any sort of customs the people here might have. If anything, she'd like to observe from afar first, or get some sort of history lesson. Not to mention if someone started to talk to her. What then?
She returned her attention to the book but kept her ear open for the words spoken next.
"As for a job, it's a fine idea and I was going to propose it once we got everything together here. But, since you asked early, might as well tell you," Master Xehanort said with a sigh. His tone became serious as he explained promptly, "I made you move here because we're going to need the research facilities of the ruler. In order to gain control of it, I need you to infiltrate within its walls, are you catching my drift so far?"
"Yes sir."
"Now then, you're instructions are simple. Get a job within the castle. Gain the people's trust; make them see you in a trustworthy light. You'll be able to sway them easier that way. As for Zuga, she will accompany you here once I deem her ready. But you must make yourselves oblivious and inconspicuous."
So that was it. Infiltration. Was she to be a spy? What were they doing with a research place anyway? Zuga didn't know any of the answers, and it frustrated her that when she finally got her resolution to the biggest question she had so far, it only raised more questions! But she wouldn't object and she would follow orders like a good soldier does and go on with life as it was.
Braig nodded in understanding, before giving a respectful bow and walking out of the room. So his job was to gain the trust of Radiant Garden's ruler, eh? With having been raised in Radiant Gardens he knew the history of its ruler quite well. He was a man who had an empire passed down to him through being the heir to the royal bloodline. A man whom was reaching late 30's and had yet to really do much with his role except create inventions and other scientific experiments. Braig wondered what Master Xehanort was going to need with the resources of a scientist. But he wasn't going to question his Master's motives.
He gave a shrug as he walked out his front door, locking it behind him. There was no reason not to and it was just habit. The man doubted that either of the two inside were going to come out, nor did he think someone was going to try and go in, but Braig was just one of those kind of people.
As he walked down one of the many garden paths or roads he drifted into his own thoughts of how he was going to accomplish the task his Master wished for him to complete. Braig also pondered what uses Zuga could be to this plan as well.
There were many unanswered questions inside him, especially after what Master Xehanort had just told him. How this related back to "the goal" was beyond him. Did they need a bigger base of operation? He supposed that was it, but if he was planning to take Radiant Garden's castle just for the three of them, for whatever purpose Xehanort had in mind, it was kind of ridiculous. The place was huge! Shouldn't he downsize his expectations a little?
And just the thought of how the barbarian girl could help was beyond him. Master Xehanort had mentioned magic, but with her being illiterate (and completely unwilling to talk, not to mention), it would take forever to teach her. For Braig himself, it had taken many, many years to master what he could now do with every ounce of concentration needed in the process.
'I guess I shouldn't worry about it,' he thought to himself, trying to focus more on his destination. Master Xehanort had never erred before, so why should this be different? He just needed to relax and let the cards play out as they had been handed.
The scenic views of the city never ceased to amaze him, he observed as he blinked out of his ponderous state. Braig figured everyone here had taken such a pleasantry for granted at one point. Braig generally didn't because after carrying out missions from his master, he was always so relieved to get back to the comforts of the gardens. Something about the place just made you nostalgic or something, he swore it.
Heaving in a breath of fresh air, the man walked through the village square, making his way down to the Castle. He could glimpse it between buildings, and it truly was a magnificent sight to behold once you were able to see over the large stone walls that surrounded it. From the bottom of the path to the very entrance doors there were flowers and different types of exotic vegetation upon either side. The castle itself was of a great size, and harbored a whole load of scientific gizmos for the Ruler's tinkering.
The man had a strange obsession with science, as seen when he presented new inventions to the people. Sometimes it was just plain, day-to-day house items to better convenience everything. The possibilities were endless when it came to that strange man.
Braig turned the corner to find the gates towering just ahead. He hadn't really thought about how he was going to get in. He didn't even know if these people needed any extra hands around the place. But, Braig was not the man to remain worrisome, so he leisurely strolled up and pushed on the ebony metal, smirking as he found it completely unlocked. Of course it was. There was no crime here.
The leaves of the ancient trees brushed together creating a beautiful sound that floated throughout the village, some coming loose and flittering down to the garden floor. The evening breeze was falling upon the village, bringing the hint of the day's end with it. It carried the smells of the marketplace and the spring festival on its wings up to the castle, creating quite an everyday excitement for the few hands that worked inside its walls. The excitement that with the day's end came the end of the day's work and the ability to go and enjoy the festival lifted each person's spirit, from the ruler himself, down to the scullery maid.
If one thought the mazes and garden's outside the castle gates were wonderfully beautiful, then they would be blown away but the complexity and sheer magnificent beauty of those inside the gate surrounding the castle. The flowers were more exotic and numerous, and in an amazing variety of colors, shapes and sizes. The hedges were larger, fuller, and greener; the trees were the same. The castle garden was the crown jewel of everything that was Radiant Gardens.
And with complexity and size... came a great many of wonderful hiding places for the game of hide and see, quite a perplexing game, where one person is the seeker and must seek out one or more hiding individuals that had cleverly and wisely chosen their unique hiding spots.
Such was why the Ruler of Radiant Gardens was outside in the beautiful late afternoon weather, walking through the large garden at a less than relaxed pace.
The man was quite tall, built solidly in form, sure to have great strength of body, he wore black dress shoes and slacks with a white dress shirt, which he wore un-tucked, and unbuttoned at the wrists and collar. The man's skin was sun kissed, probably because of spending so much time out in the gardens doing the similar walk about he was doing now. He had chin length blonde hair, not slicked back, but nor was it untidy, and a mustache pronounced his features. He looked to be a gentle man, full of kindness and love, along with much curiosity and intelligence
The man's name was Ansem, Ruler and Protector of Radiant Gardens, Scientist and Father.
Ansem decided that after searching the circumference of the walkabout closest to the castle, that it was time to search further out into the maze. The maze wasn't a dangerous place to hide, the father in his mid-thirties wasn't worried about that, he was just anxious not having an eye on his young daughter at all times. But this was her favorite game, and she had begged him for days to play it with her, and he had promised. And now he knew why she liked it so much... she was probably the most expert leveled hide and seek player ever.
Shining amber brown eyes looked out of the thick, tall tulips in a flower bed right up against the castle's stone wall. A small purple haired head poked its head up above the purple, red, yellow and orange tulips and looked around the visible pathway beside it. A giggle escaped from the soft pink lips as the child saw the back of her seeker turn a corner leading out further into the castle garden. Now was the perfect opportunity for the child to follow behind the seeker and startle him.
A small child climbed out of the flower bed, brushing the dark black dirt of her small fair legs and spring grass green sundress. When the child was satisfied, she began to skip towards the garden gate, the gravel beneath her brown sandals grinding together making noise, but it stopped abruptly when the child stopped. Stopped and stared at the cute green frog in her path. Bending down the 6 year old poked her finger at it, and it hopped away. The child giggled and followed after the hoping frog toward the castle's only gate of entrance.
After a few minutes of this game the frog jumped into a nearby pansy bed and disappeared from site, the little girl sighing in frustration and kicking a piece of gravel with her foot. Now the little girl was on the other side of the castle, opposite the end of her father and she didn't seem much worried and proceeded to sit down by the pansy bed and look at the flowers.
Minutes passed and the girl turned her head after hearing a strange 'whooshing' sound, not five feet away a strange small black figure swayed back and forth. It's odd shape, color, appearance and movement were extremely unsettling to the child, but her eyes widened and glowed brightly in curiosity as she watched it.
The strange new figure and the child stared at each other, the child in curiosity... the weird figure swaying back and forth strangely. It jumped forward suddenly, only two steps away now, making the girl jump up in fright and scoot around it. Eyes no longer full of curiosity, but slight panic. It followed after her and the little girl began running a long peel of "EEEEEEEEEEEEE!" as she ran away from the thing which was following her.
He hadn't even made it to the first set of steps that led to the castle when the piercing scream hit his ears. Braig jerked his head up, looking about with a furrowed brow. His almond eyes surveyed the area quickly, and he saw nothing out of place, though someone clearly sounded distressed. Curious and seeing his chance to gain some trust around the joint, Braig slunk off towards the direction of the scream, ducking under some branches and bushes to get to it.
What he saw made him stare dumbfounded. After following a second screech, he was able to swerve around a hedge bush to find a little girl, no older than around eight, running about in wild circles with a small Shadow Heartless jumping at her heels.
Without thinking, he tucked his arm behind his back and opened his palm, letting a manifestation of magic summon his prized weapon. Pulling it out from behind, he didn't even need to pause to shoot a laser bolt from the lavender arrow gun and kill the Heartless. It exploded into dust, and the girl sat a yard or two away, cowering in fear. His gun vanished, and Braig stared at the place where his bolt struck with a faint frown.
'Must've been a straggler or something and got lost in a Corridor,' he hypothesized to himself. Switching his gaze over to the child, he smiled and said lightheartedly, "Don't worry, it's not coming back; I promise." Furrowing his brow, he added, "Are you lost? Who are you?"
The little girl unfolded her arms from around her head, turning her face to look at the figure that had so bravely saved her from the strange creature. She looked from the face of the man, down to the patch of darker gravel were the creature had been and then back at the man. She stood up slowly, tugging on her lower lip, honey brown eyes still clouded with worried fright. But the girl didn't stay that way for long; soon the memory of that strange creature was all but gone from her mind, with her little mind focused on the man which had saved her.
Taking a few timid steps forward the child gave a small polite, though unsteady, curtsey.
"Hello, my name is Miya." the purple haired girl greeted, hands reaching up to adjust her hair ribbon which had become askew.
"I am very grateful that you made that thing go away, it was quite scary."
The little girl, Miya, tucked on hand behind her back and the other fiddled with the hem of her dress as she began to rock back and forth on her heels watching the man.
"Who are you? I have never seen you before." she said looking up at him with her eyes glowing brightly.
"I'm Braig," he said simply, looking at the singed pavement where his laser had shot. "I came here to try and get a job and here I find a little kid being attacked by a monster. Not exactly what I was suspecting, but…" He looked up. "I suppose this isn't a daily thing, right?"
She shook her head and he smirked. His amber eyes traveled around, trying to figure out if the girl had anyone looking after her. Seeing no one around, he returned his attention to her and asked again, "Are you lost, Miya? Where are your parents?"
Miya turned around in a circle, looking in each direction, a finger resting on her small chin thoughtfully as she tried to remember which way she had seen her papa disappeared in.
"Ah-ha!" She shouted triumphantly, and suddenly.
The child grabbed his hand and pulled him in the opposite direction. "No, I'm not lost... Follow me, Mister. I know were my papa is. I'll take you to him. He can help you get a job." she said with a gleeful voice.
The two walked around the castle pathway, and turned on to the blue triangular stone walkway that Miya had seen her father go down earlier. At every intersection, turn off or corner Miya would poke her head around each head, eyes narrowed in concentration as she was on her hunt. The child was silent as she led Braig through the garden maze.
After five minutes of searching, Miya poked her head around another corner and squealed in delight, let go of Braig's hand and ran over to somebody obscured by the hedge.
"Papa! I found you!" the little child exclaimed happily.
"Oh my, Miya! And here I thought I was the seeker for this game!" said the surprised deep voice of Ansem the Wise.
Braig stopped dead when he followed the child around the hedge. The girl was now clasped in the tight hug of a fairly tall blond man that Braig knew all too well.
"Y-your Majesty?" he stammered as the man stood up. Braig averted his eyes and bowed his head down in a respectful manner.
The ruler stood up and Braig could feel his hardened stare going over him. "Yes… Who might you be?"
"He saved me from a monster thing!" Miya explained happily, tugging on her father's shirt.
Braig lifted his head and nodded, confirming, "I was on my way to see about getting a job around here when I heard a scream and saw this little kid being attacked by this strange, weird black cricket thing… So, I shot it."
Ansem looked at the man with a quirked eyebrow, a puzzled, surprised and a bit protective expression upon his face. The father set a protective hand on his daughters shoulder and cleared his throat.
"This is quite an interesting tale... tell me... Miya what happened?" he said looking down at his child, for a six year old, Miya was successful in giving very detailed descriptions of events, and things she saw.
"Well... we were playing hide and seek, I was hiding in the tulip bed and I watched come this way, I got out and saw a frog and followed it to the pansy bed, I sat down to look at the pansy's when all of a sudden this black strange thingy popped up and it and I stared at each other. It jumped at me... I ran away and it followed... then that guy-" she paused and pointed at Braig "-appeared from the gate and shot it! Then I came to find you, and brought him with me 'cause he needs a job... and he also saved my life!"
Ansem stood there looking at his daughter and then at Braig with a ponderous expression. When she was finished he sighed and held his hand out to the man.
"First off I want to thank you for getting rid of this creature, and secondly... you want a job. At the moment all staff positions are filled... perhaps you have something particular in mind?"
Braig scratched behind his neck with a nervous laugh. "Oh, it was nothing, really. But, uh, I'm kind of more suited for the position of a warrior, to be honest. Not so good with the boring, leisurely jobs and stuff. Plus, that's not the first time those things have popped up. I've seen them and they can get bigger. And it can be dangerous, especially for a kid." To this, he indicated Miya with a nod. "They come in packs but eventually leave after some time. If anything, until they go away and move on, would you might need a guard? If not for within the castle, but for the squirt…" He shrugged. "It's a suggestion. I know not a lot of mishaps have happened recently but who knows? Times could be a-changing."
His mind was blundering for words, even though they slid out as smoothly as they did from his mouth. It was still hard to wrap round the idea that the ruler had a child that no one knew about. Well, to say, Braig hadn't known about it at all, and he had been doing some espionage around here for quite some time.
And even more puzzling was how conveniently that Heartless had popped up when it did. He'd have to have a little chat with Master Xehanort when he got back; because making up stories on the spot wasn't really his greatest forte and his Master knew it. If anything he would've had like to at least know that this was going to happen so this story didn't sound like it came from the mouth of a madman as it did now.
'Hopefully the squirt is trustworthy and not liable for making up stories because it could be the determining factor of whether I get in or not.' He glanced down at Miya briefly before looking back up to Ansem.
The ruler of Radiant Gardens nodded his head, eyes clouded over in ponderous thought, one large hand cupping his chin and the other resting on top of Miya's little head. Through both of their descriptions the event was quite true. Miya was wonderful at describing reality, but at her young age he wasn't sure she grasped the whole of what an imagination was... or how to use it. He trusted his daughter and thus he could trust the man before him.
Ansem came out of his revere and appraised the man before him, taking in his appearance from head to toe. Noting hygiene, attire, posture, his mannerisms and how he spoke. In Ansem's mind he seemed able bodied enough, well kept enough, had an intriguing linguistic ability, proper manners and possibly a sense of humor. All in all, Braig was not a bad prospect for being the first of a Castle Guard.
'Miya is growing older, soon she'll want to explore places beyond the castle walls... and I won't deny her that joy. But of course, I can't be with her at all times; I will want to know that she is safe. Especially with these strange creatures, if one were to come after her. The possibility of it happening again is high and the possibility of it being more than one is just as high. She'll need someone to watch and protect her when I can't.'
"You make quite a good point, Braig. Give me some time to think about it some. I should have made my mind up tomorrow. Come to the town square at this same time tomorrow, and we can discuss this proposition in depth." Ansem said, addressing the other man.
As he said the words, it took every aspect of Braig's conscious being to not smile ecstatically. Though he hid his expression, he could not hide the joy in his voice as he bowed swiftly at the waist and said, "I thank you for your kindly consideration, sir." Looking up he nodded to them both and gazed in the direction of the gate. "I hope you two enjoy the festival as well. Heard that it's going to be the best one yet."
Ansem murmured in agreement and Braig took it as his indication to go. Giving a few parting words to Miya, he turned around and walked back into the brush from which the girl had led him until coming upon the path that he had strayed from in the beginning. Looking back at the large castle he felt his passive mouth begin to twitch into a devious smirk.
'Now to have that chat with Master...' he hissed in his mind. That whole event was sour in his mind, but luckily it all went according to plan, kind of. So long as Ansem's decision showed as much promise as that assessment did, then everything would pan out as they intended.
Miya gave a big wave to the parting man "Goodbye, Braig! See you tomorrow!" she said with a huge grin and turned to her father, eyes glowing brightly.
"Papa, are you going to give him a job?" Miya asked swinging on his pant leg, looking up at her father.
Ansem chuckled and picked his daughter up, holding her in his arms close to him. She leaned over and rested her head on his shoulder, placing one of her small hands on one cheek, running her fingers across its surface.
He smiled and nodded. "Probably, Miya. I would be very sad if anything was to happen to you and I think it's a good idea. Perhaps two more would be sufficient as well."
"What's sufficient, Papa?" she asked quietly.
"Well it means when something is enough for a situation, my dear." he said kissing her little forehead and walking towards the castle.
"Oh... I see." Miya responded with a smile and a giggle "Your mustache tickles!"
The two laughed joyously as Ansem made his way through the garden, when they arrived at one of the back entrances the sun was setting, the red colors contrasting the remaining blue hue's in the sky.
"What do you say about having some dinner, story time, and the bed, hmm Miya?" Ansem asked opening the door and walking in.
Miya gave a small nod and stifled a yawn, "Yes, Papa, tell me a pirate story tonight... Please?"
"Of course of course!" he said with a laugh. The sounds of voice faded as the door closed, the ending of a long day, full of excitement and new discoveries coming to a close with the setting sun.
AN: Well there's the first Day, please tell me what you guys think of it so far. Not everything is typo free, but we worked hard to make sure there weren't many. Please Review! We love Reviews!
