hadriel_logs | Event Log: The Hope of a Child

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Event Log: The Hope of a Child

Who: All characters participating in the event
What: The event log for the The Hope of a Child event
Where: All over the city!
When: January 23rd-Feb 1st
Warnings: Youths

By now, the gods have probably done enough weird crap to you while you're asleep for you to be a little suspicious- but it's not like you can just not sleep, especially when there are a few supernatural forces making your eyes droopy and your body feel heavy.

And now, when you fall asleep, you'll wake up somewhere else and you'll likely have quite a different temperament- you'll be younger, maybe a little more naive and innocent, and you won't exactly remember all the wild stuff that's happened to your adult self. Maybe now you'll be a little more trusting and emotional, hm? The gods could definitely use a little boost in power, and what better way to do it than to harness the power of overemotional kiddos!

Or maybe you aren't affected at all and find yourself surrounded by youths. What are you going to do when your best friend doesn't know how to cook for themselves? Or your bitter rival is throwing a temper tantrum because they broke their favorite toy? Nobody asked for this kind of responsibility, but think about what would happen if nobody was around to take care of these babies...

► This log covers January 23rd-Feb 1st.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well!
► Please tag headers of threads with content warnings where they apply
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!
► If you trip over a kid and die, please let us know here.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

What day is it today? Not the day where new people are supposed to show up, that's for sure. Since it's become even more difficult to tell time with the twin suns than it was in that damned cave, discerning such things is just cumbersome. Whatever the case may be, some shit is going on. There weren't that many kids here before, were there?

Somewhere along her trek, Rey catches the sound of muffled sobs from down a nearby alleyway. She considers for a moment to just continue on, and hope that maybe someone else will come along and deal with it. But as she takes a few steps forward and hears the crying continue, her conscience niggles on the forefront.

She stops, grunting under her breath as she turns back and veers down the alley.

At some point, she is met not with a weeping child but a snarling wolf-girl.

"Oh, no, don't bite. Anything but that," Rey says flatly, oh-so intimidated by this small child. ~~Except not really.~~

To that, her fur bristles and she lets out the smolest of growls in frustration. She's scary, dammit. Any normal human would think so! This human doesn't smell normal though. She doesn't so much sniff as she does sniffle but Rose can still tell that there's something strange about Rey from her scent.

"Who are you?" she asks, still glaring and curled up carefully. It sounds somehow accusatory like Rey is the one who isn't supposed to be here.

Oh cute, she thinks she's fierce.

"Name's Rey. Was just passing by, but heard you..." She hesitates. "You hurt?"

She did hear crying coming from this area. At least, it sounded like crying. Who knows with kids.

It also might not help that it doesn't immediately register to Rey who this little furball child is. She's seen enough weird animal-people around that it isn't even questionable to her anymore, though.

She is fierce, alright. Just because Rey isn't scared of her doesn't mean that she isn't.

"No," she answers, sniffling harshly one last time before finally seeming to compose herself. "I'm fine." That might sound familiar, to someone who knows what they're looking at. As it is, Rey probably won't connect the dots just yet. "I just got scared was all, but it's alright. I'm not anymore."

She very carefully crawls out of her hiding spot. Her ears and tail are still tucked in tight - a way to tell that she's lying through her teeth - but despite herself comes a little closer to Rey.

That's better, at least. Rey has to suppress the urge to throw her hand over her mouth, and instead conceals her smirk by command of her own facial muscles. While she hasn't put the name to that little face yet, there's something particularly... fucking adorable about her wolfish features. Maybe it has something to do with Rey's own innate soft spot for animals, or even children, and this kid is both rolled into one.

"Good," Rey says after taking a few deep breaths. "What're you doing back there, anyway?"

'I was hiding,' sounds baby-ish. So does any other answer that she can think to come up with. Well. At least, any true answer.

"I got lost," she settles on. Her ears finally perk upright and tail unfurls to sweep idly behind her. "This... doesn't look like home and I. I'unno where anyone is." Anyone she knows, at least. It's unfathomable that any wolves would traverse this far. The only desert is in Tottori... and her pack wouldn't have made such a drastic move without her noticing.

Finally, progress. Rey can't say she's an expert with children, but there's something about them that she can't help but appreciate. A sort of it innocence and trust that an adult would usually know better than to offer.

So she crouches, bringing herself at the kid's level for the time being.

"Well, who is it you're looking for?"

It does a lot to reassure her, honestly, being at the same level. No longer does Rey seem so large and intimidating. Not that she had before, not really- Still, it does a lot to obviously relieve the little wolf girl.

"My parents," she offers. "Or, just. Anyone in my pack."

"Ah." She pauses. "Do any of these people have a name? Including yourself?"

Names are a good place to start, even though she had her doubts that any of them are here. Plus Rey is starting to have some suspicions... because those wolfish features are looking a little familiar.

"Hanako," she offers up. It's not a name familiar to Rey unless she's checked the network. While the woman had never wanted her true name to be registered, she didn't really have a choice in the matter. "My mom calls me Rose though," is the follow-up. Some people liked that name better, she thinks.

Having paid so little attention to the network, Rey barely places an identity to the first name.

The second one, though...

Wow. Wow, Rose wasn't kidding when she was talking about packs and wolves and all that.

"Oh." Rey knows the answer now, knows of course that she won't find her family or 'pack' here. But should she say that? "Well, can try to help you find them, so you don't have to be alone."

That she was not. When she spoke of wolves and packs, it's exactly what she meant. She was much different as a child; this is true both physically and mentally. One of her ears twitches idly, tail giving an impatient sort of flick behind her.

She considers Rey's words. While the yokai isn't actually sure she can trust her... She really doesn't have many other options, does she? "Okay," she finally settles on. "If they're here, they're probably complaining about the heat. It's awful."

When those animal habits are compliment by Rose's physical traits, not even Rey can deny the odd, instinctual urge to protect the child. How, she isn't sure. But she can't leave her, crying alone in an alleyway.

"The heat is pretty shitty," Rey agrees, though the climes haven't bothered her as much as others, no doubt. "Can help you find some better places if you're looking to cool down."

It's getting pretty hot this time of day.

Adult Rose will be grateful, honestly, that she was so taken care of. Also, mortified. Hanako isn't a persona she wants anyone to be aware; the scared, displaced little feral child from the northern wilds.

But that'll be later and this is now. "I like to go swimming!" Rey might not know Rose is afraid of water. So it might not seem strange how excited this child seems at the prospect. "I saw lots of big pools. I'm surprised they're not all dried out. There's not a lot of green, but... There's not a lot where I'm from either." A thought occurs to her, then.

"Where are you from?"

Too bad, adult Rose will just have to deal. Rey doesn't mind seeing this side of the other woman, either way. Most people were children at some point, and seeing that even Rose had once been is almost a little comforting.

"Who knows. Even in deserts there can be an oasis."

And Rey has seen her fair share of dry lands and stifling heat. It's never bothered her, though.

Funny how one wouldn't necessarily see Rose's question as a loaded one. But this is Rey, who falters when she tries to think of how to reply.

"Underground," she says at first. "But, have been to a lot of places after that -- all over the world. Got used to adjusting to the weather."

This is fair. It's not like she has any real kind of say in what happens while she's sleeping and her child self is running amok anyway. And it's not like this Rose has anything to truly hide, really. This was from a time before things began to truly unravel. Right now, there's only loose seams that are just begging to be torn free. Eventually, they will be. Eventually.

"Someone told me this place was undergroud, I think." A cave. She'd heard it. Hard to believe now, with two suns dangling in the sky. "I don't know. So you travel all over the human world? That's so cool! I've always wanted to go. Mom and dad say it's too dangerous though. I'm too young just yet. Maybe someday!"

She just nods at the cave part, confirmation that they've since gone above ground. With the twin suns glaring overhead, Rey almost misses the artificial light.

"It's not all it's cracked up to be, but I guess being cooped up isn't much better. Never did stay in one place for more than a few years."

Which almost makes Rey sound like a traveling nomad.

To Rose, that's one of the best things anyone can be. She can only dream of someday traveling the Makai, maybe even the Ningenkai. It's the epitome of the old adage 'be careful what you wish for' in her case, however. Rose will get everything she ever wanted eventually. But she can't fathom how steep the price will be, how it'll be nothing like she dreamed.

How it will shape the woman she's going to grow up to to be in ways even she doesn't yet understand. "That's neat! What was your favorite place?"

For a moment, Rey grimaces. It wasn't like she did a whole lot of sightseeing during her travels, considering that she was mostly sent to kill, or otherwise be used to collect data unknowingly. There wasn't much time for her to do what she wanted. And yet...

"Think it might've been Russia. People find it to be an unforgiving place to live, but I was always fond of their harsh winters."

It might also have something to do with the fact that the Russian woman was the last identity Rey can remotely recall, but Rey doesn't question it.

"Russia..." the girl repeats, it sounding like a foreign word on her tongue. That's because it is. She doesn't know of anything beyond her home country of Japan. The furthest she's ever traveled from her hometown, too, is Edo. Well. Where Edo connected to the Makai. There's where all the best matsuri were held; she always enjoyed them when they could attend. This heat makes her think of summer. But instead of fireworks and dango, she's so far from home and alone.

"My home's always winter," she says, trying to distract herself from the sudden resurgence of fear and worry being separated from her pack is causing. "But you probably wouldn't like it there. Wolves aren't very nice to people."

She sounds a little ashamed, maybe, when she says it. Almost as if she wishes that wasn't the case.

Judging from Rose's features and terminology she uses, plus the real name she had just given a moment ago, it's safe for Rey to take an educated guess as to what her home might be.

Always winter doesn't sound too bad, if you know how to survive it. Rey has seen some of the hardest people come from such places, including Safronov, despite those memories being somewhat jumbled for some reason.

She is quick to then shake that thought out of her head, though.

"I don't know. You seem pretty nice."

Oof. The chances that Rose is going to remember this conversation in a week is more likely now that Rey's just said shit like that, isn't it?

It isn't hard to piece together that puzzle, no. It's very possible though that Rey is thinking of the Japan with busy streets and claims to being one of the most technologically advanced societies of its time; for Hanako, that's hundreds of years away. The Japan she knows is one where Tokyo is still called Edo, where the lines between Makai and humanity are blurred just so slightly.

"I'm different," she admits. It's easier to say these things without her pack around. "Or that's what they say. I'm supposed to be mean to people, but- I don't like to be."

Not like other girls, she says. Well, that's what Rey got out of it, because it couldn't be any closer to the truth.

"And why is that?" Rey asks, genuinely curious. She recalls something Rose had told her before, about what her people did, and how she didn't seem to revel in the same traditions. Sometimes there's a root cause that's been nurtured, others is more innate and complicated. She has a feeling that maybe, with Rose, it's the latter.

"I dunno," she answers, sounding bit as unsure as she actually is. It's something that's perplexed everyone about Rose, including herself.

"I just like them. People. I think they're so interesting!"

People have always been beyond confusing to Rey, but she can see where (little) Rose is coming from. It's just such a vastly different perspective from the older, more troubled woman that Rey is familiar with.

"Sometimes people are just drawn to things that are new and unknown to them. Maybe that's why."

Come to think of it, that would explain a lot of things about Rey herself.

II.

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