middaeg | cries in yachi

[ capture his essence with nary a flaw. yachi wouldn't consider herself a master in design, not by a terrible long shot, but she knew something? she supposes it's a way for her to keep her skills honed for college come the next year. that is, if she's home by next year. the information received upon arrival is enough to overload just about anybody, and even with knowledge that they'd go back the same time and place they left, if they do go home, it . . . doesn't quell her anxiety all that much. this is yachi.

so here she was, trying to design a portrait of a man in town; she's got all the details he wanted, surely, and her magic (god she can use magic whaaaaaaaat) wasn't exactly up to par, but she truly wanted to try! if not to get her mind focused on something else other than internally screaming around the clock. before working on the final draft, yachi looks to getting some examples and rough plans inspired by other people.

that's not going too well, as everyone seems to be having a busy day. yachi's small and easy to go unnoticed as she gradually loses confidence from one passerby to the next. maybe this one? would this one stop for her? ]

E-excuse me, if I could have a minute of your time, my name's . . . [ they hold a hand up and continue to walk off. ] Oh, um, excuse me—? [ that one immediately says "i don't got a dime with me, lass". she wilts. ] It's not for . . .

[ yachi hangs her head and sighs. one more, just one more, a male that's more or less at her eye level, yes—! once more! if hinata were here he'd be at mutant energy levels (though lbr he is a mutant and yachi is but a mere yachi). ]

If I could have just a minute of your time for a design project, young man—!

[ she could only see the back of his head, and in about 1,3 seconds she'll have regrets. ]

Edited 2020-10-19 13:22 (UTC)

[ it's completely plausible that this girl is talking to someone else. he's not a young man, after all. so it'd be fine to just keep on walking, really, but... well. it wouldn't be the first time he's been mistaken for a teenager, and it undoubtedly won't be the last.

so he stops. closes his eyes. sighs inwardly, and then turns around. here we fucking go. ]

What?

[ that. is not a young man.

yachi's heart drops. she stares. ]

[ and turns completely red. oh, my god that's not a young man. and now that she's made eye contact and waited this long—! she can't pretend she's looking somewhere else, can she? it'll be way too obvious and even worse! just look at that gaze! he looks like he could kill someone and for a split second, yachi's brain considers him to be a drug kingpin. why, brain. why. that's so mean.

she stumbles with her words. croaks and chokes on them and wishes she could just dig a hole and jump in it. deep breaths! deep breaths. it's not like he's going to kill her right here!

(dark yachi: an empty street in the middle of the night is fair game) ]

I'm . . . So sorry . . . Sir. [ she considers saying i don't have my glasses but what if he finds out she doesn't wear glasses????? just going to have to truck through it. ] Can I . . . Get you a drink—?

[ oh my god she's not asking him out why did she say that. ]

T-tea, tea! For the trouble and, a design project I'm working on.

[ she swallows thickly and wants to evaporate. ]

[ yes, it's very mean. sure, he is a former (reformed?) criminal, but drugs? no way. he's clean. very, very clean.

and he doesn't seem very fazed, but he does squint a bit at her. she seems... weirdly agitated for such a mostly-innocuous encounter. is she on drugs? ]

What trouble? Calm down. Nothing happened.

[ wait, did she say 'tea'? ]

[ the question of the century ]

I thought— [ this warrants honesty. she bows her head and half of her waist in apology. ] I thought you were much younger, Sir.

[ so, again! sorry. very sorry. please accept, as she tries to recover from it. ]

[ much younger, she says. some people might find offense in a statement like that, but when you're so often mistaken for an actual child, it's actually a little refreshing.

not that he'll emote as such. but he doesn't look angry, at the very least. ]

It's fine. [ it happens. a lot. ] What were you looking for?

[ hopefully we can get by this! of course. a green light. she's telling this to herself as she clears her throat and tries to press away the tremble in it. ]

I'm working on a project— A design protect, for a gentleman here, and I wanted to get some examples of my work. [ yachi has a folder of sorts in her hand, and she holds it out, in case he'd like to take a look. nothing too exciting beyond notes and rough drafts of other passerbys— she's quite the artist, and natural organized with the papers. they're meticulously tabbed, color coded and not a single paper seems out of line. ] I'd need you for a few minutes, so in the mean time, [ she gestures, ] I don't have enough money to truly pay you, [ this, actually, is really coming out of her own pocket, ] but if I could get you a cup of tea if it interests you, Mister . . . ?

[ i need his name. ]

Levi. No 'mister' needed.

[ Mister Levi is his father. ha ha, just kidding. he has no idea who his father is. ]

It does interest me. I think I can spare a few minutes.

[ normally, this would be an immediate 'no', but a) tea, and b) he respects how she has all her shit super organized. props. ]

[ oh . . . ! ]

—Thank you! [ she's so surprised after so many nos that it takes her a few beats to get it back together, taking her folder and bowing her head. ] I've been hearing about a place called "Diplomatea", have you been there before?

I have.

[ psh. of course he has. good tea is hard to come by back home. he's gonna take advantage of the selection here as much as he can. ]

I take it you haven't?

Oh, no, I'm . . . Not from around here.

[ nervous internal laughter— it wasn't as if she knew levi had also been spirited away. ]

You can lead the way, then?

No? Me neither. Lots of people here aren't.

[ aww, a newbie. brings back memories of when he was new here. back when he still thought this was all just a big stupid joke. now he's a witch with a fat woodland creature familiar and he's showing a new person around. time sure flies when you're having fun, huh.

he motions for her to follow. ]

Hopefully it isn't busy.

[ other people.... lord forbid. ]

I can imagine— It must be really popular . . .

[ but she doesn't want him to feel uncomfortable! maybe he's shy and isn't fond of crowds. does he think he's going to get lost? ah, yachi's brain must cease. ]

If anything, we can try and look for more secluded seats, would that be okay?

[ ...yeah, he's shy. that's a nice way of putting it. let's go with that. ]

That's the plan.

[ that's always the plan. ]

[ okay, so they're off— and probably close at this point. when they get through the door and into the establishment, yachi can't help but to tip her head back to watch the illusion magic run around the decorative plants. a little rabbit made of whispy light weaving through vines and petals . . . how cute. she almost forgets that she's with company, and look at that! a secluded spot! ]

Oh, perfect . . . Is this one alright?

[ he hums an affirmative and plops down in one of the chairs. he comes here quite a bit, but he never sticks around. this probably looks suspicious, actually. since when does this guy sit down with someone? shit, he's probably planning on killing her later.

(he's not going to kill her.) ]

So. What do you need from me, exactly?

Well, then . . .

[ time to get to business. menus and such are sent to their table, and while yachi politely thanks their waitress for hers, she quietly sets it by her opposite side, neatly next to her folders. opening that up and pulling out a larger paper, yachi prepares a pencil. ]

You just need to do what you would always do here— I'm going to sketch it out and give you the rough draft in a few minutes. I'm going to try and capture your essence and emotion, so if you can act as naturally as possible, that'll be all.

[ ...well. what he would always do here is acquire tea and then immediately leave, but that's obviously not gonna fly. shit. ]

—Right. Okay.

[ fuck. what is he going to do. just... sit here? normally?? after a moment of awkward contemplation, he just leans an elbow on the table, chin resting on his hand. after that he doesn't move, with the small exception of his eyes, which occasionally dart around because he doesn't know what to look at.

smooth, as always. ]

[ she'll work fast, mister ackerman. she promises. internally. her pencil begins to jot wildly as her focus tunneled into the sheet in front of her, occasionally looking up then darting back down, watching levi for a little longer and then continuing.

maybe i should say something . . . she considers. it won't be so quiet that way. and i guess i need to make some contacts? oh, that's a peculiar way to hold tea. ]

Do you come from a place where tea is popular, Levi?

Edited 2020-12-02 18:08 (UTC)

[ so this . . . was a problem. or maybe it wasn't? she's asked for advice to and fro, she realizes that mikasa is. nice? that's so bland a descriptor. mikasa was different, but she was strong. her quiet stoniness almost reminded her of the shelter she took beneath kiyoko's mentoring before the other girl graduated. they've been living under the same roof for a few months and a trigger was all she needed to feel . . . nervous.

maybe she shouldn't feel so nervous. and maybe she should give something so inherently good-feeling a chance. oh, what was she thinking? she still had to ask. here goes nothing, though. she's been practicing in her room, quietly, all morning. it's time. the witch comes out with a smile that looks somewhat dopey, but with cheeks already spreading a toner pinker. she's got this! ]

Good morning, Mikasa— [ out of the hallway-! ] Are you here?

[Mikasa thought Yachi was nice too. Though she was happily oblivious. Tilting her head and patiently waiting whenever Yachi seemed to struggle.

With the weather changing, the fae was staying in the house more in the mornings. Only going to check the chickens, it wasn't as though she could grow much. So she'd just settle on the sofa knitting away. Ears giving a twitch at the question. Craning her neck to look.

Mouth opening, then biting her tongue to stop herself from saying 'no'. Even if she did silently blink for a moment as she fought the urge.]

...Is something wrong?

[Couldn't fight it, just skipping the question.]

[ okay, well, this is... kind of awkward, but is it really so much to ask of him to just sit and try not to fidget too much? he doesn't even have to talk for the most part. soon this will be over and he'll have done a good deed or whatever. that's how it works, right?

he glances back at the menu. without moving, of course. ]

I guess? There's nothing like this. We'd be lucky to get anything even half as nice as what they have in here.

[ he's used to having to settle with shit-tier tea. it's very sad. ]

[ there she is, ah. yes, her chest skips some. at least she's not doing, like, sit ups or something. that would've sniped her on the spot, haha. hah. ]

Oh, no! It's nothing! I mean, [ it isn't nothing, stupid. ] what're you making this time?

[ it's easier to talk about this than immediately jump to the actual question at hand. ]

[ this is awkward, yachi is aware, but— oh, staying quiet felt even worse. like he'd be staring into her soul. burning lasers into her body . . . or thinking how easy hiding a body like hers would be if she found out about the drug dealing? preposterous!

she does think that it sounds like something of a low bar, especially compared to her times. ]

It's readily available, where I'm from . . . Some machines even dispense them if you're in a hurry. What's your favorite?

[ the pencil strokes, and she keeps working. ]

[If it was any consolation, while Mikasa did do push-ups and like in the large open room at the center of the cottage. She had started hanging out in the basement. Moving around the old boxes and cleaning. Not because she'd noticed Yachi's near-deaths, but because of Tater.

She loved Tater, he was her boy. But it was hard to do sit-ups when a small dog decided it was the perfect time for kisses. And Mikasa was too much of a sap to scold him for it. So Yachi may have seen several of the work-outs turned puppy playdates.

But for now she was beyond the pup's reach and knitting... a thing that she just holds up. It was just a square though. It had a long way to go before it'd be a blanket.]

I'm making blankets... [For a moment she looks at her block, eyebrows knitting together(haHA) then looking back at the witch.] Did you think I'd gone out?

[Was she just checking if the fae had left??]

[ girl, soon enough you'll realize he'd be an absolutely terrible drug dealer. ]

Black. It was pointless to be any pickier than that.

[ ...wait. he glances back at her, squinting. ]

Machines?

[ no...... you'll destroy her heart like this. mikasa always works so diligently; yachi walks over to sit down and join her. her hands reach out only to brush at the growing square— how lovely. ]

I was hoping not, [ —ahem! ] we could have breakfast together? [ and maybe later . . . is at the tip of her tongue, but the burning in her chest forces her to keep it in, for now. ] This is really cute.

Oh— Yes! Vending Machines!

[ she's not overly enthusiastic about the machines, but chipper in being able to hold this conversation in the first place. excellent. double-tasking was at least her thing, so she easily continues her work as she spoke. ]

They're street-side units. If you put the right amount of money in, it gives you canned coffee, on the run! Perfect if you're running busy to work or back. There's coffee, tea, juice, toys . . . Almost anything that can be packaged.

[ the only clue that he thinks that this is in fact quite wack is one slightly-raised brow. ]

Toys.

[ kids sure do have it easy in the future, don't they? ]

[Mikasa just held her in-progress work, still on it's needles. The skein in her lap. A few finished blocks made of other leftover pieces of yarn to one side. Once she was done with the blocks, they'd all need to be joined together. The slow part.

But for now it had it's nice zigzags. But after letting Yachi touch it, she put it down. Didn't want to risk any holes. Especially not because her brain was whirling, head tilting to the side.]

Yeah? You didn't have to ask that... [Though it did depend on what time they'd each decided to eat. But Mikasa really couldn't think of any reason why they couldn't. It sounded more ominous than anything, like something was waiting for her at breakfast.

Though the mention of the squares makes her look at them again.] I guess there is something nice about them. [Something personal about the lightly enchanted fabric.]

Y-yeah, toys . . . Key chains or collectibles.

[ she isn't much of a fanatic, so it's easily wavable. she also has the sketch down, for the most part, puts down her pencil, gives it a look before handing it across the table. it's surprisingly pretty spot on. she didn't even make his face weird, like some people and their wanted posters! ]

This is the rough draft. What do you think?

Edited 2020-12-17 14:20 (UTC)

[ breakfast........ right. don't make it seem too forced. nodnod, instead, but her cheeks are already a little red! ]

My mom always said there was something special about design. I understood that better after I started designing myself.

[ on the way into college and all! yachi gets up to move into the kitchen and prepare her cooking. she's going to make them something. ]

...Huh.

[ it's a resigned sort of 'huh.' no further questions will make this make sense to him. which is fine, considering she seems to have finished anyway. he's not positive that he's free to move yet, so for the moment, he just peers down at the drawing.

this time, he raises both eyebrows. ]

Wow. That's not bad at all.

[ (this is actually high praise coming from him.) ]

[Oh well, if they're going to have breakfast then... The fae was going to bundle up her yarn so it didn't unravel. Giving a small look over her shoulder to stare at the not-cat. Good they're not near it. Then she rose, bones popping as she gave a little stretchy-stretch.

And a little sigh. She liked making things, especially when they'd help. But she really wasn't used to being so sedentary. Though she did give a small hum once she'd finished that. Meandering over.]

Yeah, there's a lot to think about. Like if I have enough fabric that's the same weight before I start. I have to think about that stuff a lot more here.

[Well, she didn't have to. It was more like back home she'd had to make do. If the fabrics or yarn were different weights then tough shit, here she had the choice.]

[ don't throw a party yet hitoka, yachi tells herself as she feels a bubble in her chest wanting to pop but swallows it down. she was expecting just a (grunt) or something—! ahem! professionalism! ]

Do you think anything needs to be changed—? Would you like to change anything, pose and such?

Y-yeah, I remember you mentioning . . . Your life back home is, [ she's careful with her wording here, since— she knows from context that it's something of a heavy topic, ] eventful.

[ maybe chaotic? nah, that word would just bring out the bad in it. eventful was alright. yachi seems to be separating eggs, bread, and some fruit. maybe some peppers. she steps to the side to show what she's working with as she puts on an apron. ]

You're okay with these, right?

[ as far as she remembered, mikasa ate all of these, but she just wanted to make sure. ]

[It's fine Yachi, you can say it's a shithole. Mikasa had kinda come to that conclusion awhile back. It only took mentioning a titan to make most people pale, without anything else. So her response to that was just to give a small hum, not really commenting.

'Eventful' that was accurate enough.

But she nods watching her prep veggies.] Yeah. I'm fine with anything. [Except beans. She wasn't too keen on them, but no one would know. Though she did poke a pepper, rolling it slightly.]

What are you making? [What a mixture of ingredients this seemed like.]

I was thinking of trying Onigiri and some bento for later, [ apron on! house wife mode activated?! yachi inhales and begins with putting rice to cook. once that's out of the way, time to wash the veggies! ] do you want to try, Mikasa?

[ it was a sudden thought, but— why not, right? ]

Onigiri... [Did the blank stare fill Yachi with confidence? While Yachi got to work Mikasa shuffled, pressing against the cabinets slightly so she wasn't in the way. It really was a whirlwind of activity. At least compared to Mikasa's cooking. She just tended to put it all together and hope for the best, there was some knowledge of what she was doing, but it wasn't planned out like this.]

Um... What do I do? [She was holding up her hands slightly, like she was about to be passed something... And the mantis arms were a little, not that they'd help here. What do?

~~Probably wash her hands.~~ For now the fae was just awkwardly stood there.]

We'll have to cook the rice first . . .

[ she shows that, beginning to boil. not much to it besides rice cooking in steam, seasoned with a bit of salt. ]

You can wash your hands, please, [ hah ] and we'll start with the fillings. I got some fish ready from the market. Onigiri are rice balls from my home. You can put all kinds of things inside.

[ hey, he does more than just grunt. actually, he's not much of a grunter at all. that's a stereotype. geez. ]

Nope. You did a good job.

[ thanks for not making him look like a sleep-deprived goblin, even though that's what he is. ]

[Well that got a slight nod. Yes, she knew that part. Though she didn't eat rice often she'd tried it here, she was just more used to oats. Porridge with a bit of honey was nice, okay? Maybe she did just like to eat a spoonful of honey, will not confirm or deny.

But she'd gone to the sink to wash up. Please ignore the fae dust that came off her hands... And don't think too hard about that she'd always leave a sparkly trail.]

So it's like... A rice sandwich?

That's— [ words!! ] excellent! Thank you!

[ oh she needs to get this ready right away. taking the draft back, yachi's smile brims. she gets up from her seat and bows her head, neatly picking her folders and such back to her and pushing her chair in. ]

I can get you a copy later, if you'd like?

—Something like that!

[ she shouldn't complicate things. she really shouldn't! with veggies out of the way, now came the fish, thankfully cleaned out already and in fillet form. ]

And we can eat it anytime! It's a great snack.

[Mikasa will remember this when she tells someone else about the rice sandwiches later. But for now, she just gave another nod. Drying her hands...And that towel, is also covered in fae dust. Terrible. It never ends.

At least it non-toxic and safe to eat?]

So you just cook the rice and put stuff in it? ...That's a lot easier than having to grind flour...

cries in yachi

OCTOBER ☀️ 2020

FOR LEVI

no subject

(1/2)

(2/2)

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

DECEMBER ☀️ 2020

@mikasa

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject