Fantasy Clear Crimson Mirror | Private

[Keylyn May]

{{ omg I am so sorry it has taken me forever to get back to this! Things have been crazy the last couple months for me. Anyways, happy New Year and I hope all is well with you! }}

Ayumi listened as Jun spoke of perhaps cleaning up the place of any debris that was laying around. Ayumi’s eyes took in the area, noticing that the immediate area surrounding Yumi did not appear horribly debris covered, but other places within the shack may tell a different story. She nodded slightly, setting her mind to the task she was given. Ayumi wanted to make sure that her friends had a comfortable place to sleep after their long journey. She also felt the need to do something for them in attempts to make for what transpired between them and Byakuren. While she knew it wasn’t her fault, he was her mate and she felt bad for the way the meeting had ended between them.

When Yumi spoke up, only to be shut down by Suki, Ayumi quickly shook her own head. “Yumi, you just need to take some time and rest,” she said gently, pulling her long hair back and away from her face. “Rest with Hiroshi a while. That will be good for you and cleaning will be good for me.” If she could keep her mind and hands busy, she would be okay. She had gotten out of the room in order not to think about the previous events or her mental collapse because of said events. She wasn’t ready to go back into a quiet room alone. She wasn’t exactly sure where Byakuren was at this time anyways. She wasn’t sure it would be wise to search for him yet either. Perhaps he needed time to cool down.

At Suki’s offer to help, Ayumi nodded gently. “Thank you, Suki,” she said before setting to work. The shack needed as much help as it could get, and Ayumi was determined to make at least one area suitable for sleep before night fell. It wouldn’t do for her to have a bed while her friends laid in a debris heap. She would feel too guilty for sleep.

 

[LONELYRAIN]

(You're all good! Really sorry that I haven't responded immediately myself, just got hit with a lot of things so far this year and it's been a mess! Haven't forgotten this thread though, I just need to remember where I was going with things here!)

Suki cast another glance toward Yumi, her little sister although appearing tired had a newfound fragility that disturbed her. If anything, the oni was relieved that Ayumi had agreed with her and as a result had seemed to make Yumi back down for now, the younger oni's blue eyes meeting Suki's own, only to drop to Hiroshi in her arms which she cuddled him close. The sight, though normally heartwarming did not put much confidence into Suki, it was obvious enough that Byakuren's rejection was... difficult for Yumi to accept. Very difficult indeed.

A sigh left her lips then as she turned away from her sister, expression tensing with discomfort herself. There was so much that needed to be dealt with, and that did not include her own burdens herself, but it wasn't as if she ever had the time to linger on the past. It would do her no good. The trailing thoughts were interrupted by Ayumi's appreciation, causing Suki's eyes to widen ever so slightly and then warm at the human across from her. That was right, there was other things she needed to tend to right now. She couldn't allow herself to be distracted by unimportant things.

The female oni's steps brought her to the small second floor, one in which seemed to be the worse. The broken glass from the window shown signs of the battle that maybe had taken place when the village that had now become a fort had been raided. A dilapidated bed over took the west side of the room, but even it was rotting away with the wood, though this did little to distract Suki from the brunt of the mess being stacks of abandoned paper that littered the floor. Some of it had obviously been trampled on underfoot by the rebel soldier's boots, others were far too battered to make out what they said anymore. A frown crossed her face then as she stepped closer to papers that littered the floor, mingling amongst the glass and some of the sand that accumulated. What a mess. It was indeed quite a disaster, though her curiosity burned through her as she had begun picking up what seemed to be old pamphlets intertwining with the messy sprawls that seemed to belong to an oni that had gone mad... or at least that was what she could assume.

Her eyebrows furrowed as she skimmed over the old pamphlets, though it seemed more or less some sort of propaganda in regards to the current Demon Lord Girou, in fact it was more obvious that it was due to the Demon Lord's face, although faded, being on the forefront of most of the papers. Was this prior to the current war? It certainly seemed so-

"Hey! I'm back- ah, sorry for waking you."
"N-no, it's fine really. I wasn't even asleep for too long."

The voices filtered up from the bottom floor, prompting Suki to poke her head in caution from around the corner, seeing Jun apologetically inclining his head to Yumi as there seemed to be more than enough blankets in his hands that he had procured, almost overflowing and nearly concealing the poor man's face from view. It was amusing almost to see, as Jun had raised his voice in a questioning tone, "I don't suppose there's been too much progress? I know it's rather dirty in here but.."

 

[Keylyn May]

(( Hey!!! Sorry for disappearing! I have juggled my master's degree work, teaching full-time, and a new relationship! It's been crazy!! ))

Ayumi watched as Suki headed upstairs to begin cleaning a bit there. Once Suki was up, Ayumi cleaned up more of her area. She covered her mouth and nose a few times as she shifted through the debris that was laying around, not wishing to breathe in the dust and sand that was ever-present. She let her mind wander for a bit as she kept her hands busy, thinking back to Byakuren once more. She wondered what he was currently doing, though had no doubt that he was probably keeping close somewhere nearby. Her mind went back to the episode with Hiroshi, how Byakuren seemed confused by the small oni when he reached out to him. She also remembered the waterskin that Byakuren had decided to hold onto. I probably should have brought that along with me, she thought, feeling slightly parched as she continued cleaning. She kept quiet, however. Suki and Yumi had been through it the last couple of days to get here and Yumi was still in pain. They needed a somewhat decent place to rest.

Of course, she was hardly 100% herself. She drew a deep breath as she paused only slightly, glancing over to see Yumi beginning to slip into sleep next to Hiroshi. She was happy to see her friend relaxing a bit. She leaned against the wall slightly, allowing herself just a few moments to rest. She knew better than to overwork herself too quickly, but she also didn't wish to return to the room just yet. She would feel guilty to have Jun's bed to rest in while Suki, Yumi, and Hiroshi lay among this wreck. Of course, having a roof over their heads was better than not.

At the sound of Jun's voice, however, Ayumi quickly pushed herself from the wall to continue cleaning. I'm fine, she thought. She looked over to Jun and took note of how many blankets the man had found, a gentle smile coming to her features. "We are making some progress," she said lightly as she looked to see Suki poking her head around the corner. "A little is better than none." She attempted to sound optimistic for her friends' sake. Besides, perhaps the blankets that Jun brought would add to the comfort.