Redhead Brodate :|

[headfons]

WHO: Luke fon Fabre (headfons) and Gaara of the Desert (no_dreams_for_you).
WHAT: Luke asked to meet with Gaara to explore the city, and then maybe grab a bite to eat, later.
WHEN: After this thread.
WHERE: Garden Park- at the pond.
STATUS: Closed.



Guess who's running a little late, at first?

After parting ways with Ryuuji, Luke had immediately headed for the park...only to find himself on, apparently...the opposite side of town. Crap, how had that even happened?? Well, luckily, Luke had started towards the park a little earlier than he'd expected.

Okay, so...

...that saved him from being no more than five minutes behind schedule in heading that way. Yeeeah...hopefully, Gaara hadn't been waiting too long. Because, if he was going to be late, even a small blessing would have been a blessing. Sporting a frustrated expression, the replica outright ran the entire way to the pond. Thank goodness, he was in good shape. According to the clock that he caught glimpse of, on the way, he was actually making up for the whole...being late thing. By the time he arrived, in spite of the fact that his face was coated in sweat, there was a bit of a grin on his face. Why? Because he'd actually managed to make it there on time. Thank Lorelei, because how rude would it have been to invite someone out, then have them waiting on you. And, it was someone he was trying to make friends with. Even better.

When he spotted the other redhead, the grin didn't fade one bit. Giving a wave of his hand, calling out the other teen's name, he rushed up. Panting a bit, he stopped just a couple of feet away, hands dropping to his knees. He had to catch his breath a moment, before he was able to straighten out and speak, "Man, I was a little worried I'd be late. I got turned around on the way here."

Yeeeeah, he could have messaged Gaara, instead of running the entire way. Details, though (in other words, he didn't think of that...)

Comments

[no_dreams_for_you]

Old habits die hard.

Rather than spend time mingling with other people in the park, Gaara immediately found a large branch to sit upon, after arriving. From there, he watched them, walking, interacting, running around, playing games. A pang of longing reverberated inside his chest, hollow and condemning. Here, he could hide who he was, what he was, and yet… he didn’t want to live a lie. If anyone had the courage to ask him about the large gourd hanging on his back, he would answer truthfully.

He wasn’t required to reveal everything.

This world was so different, compared to the environment at the facility. No monsters, no impending danger, no tense speculations about the upcoming experiments. Was this how it felt to live in peace, absent of conflict and war? Even in Suna, most of the civilians weren’t very… free, with expressing their thoughts and emotions.

He had a clear view of the pond, and easily caught sight of Luke running toward it. His face was red, and he was panting with the extent of his efforts. The Suna ninja frowned slightly, out of mild concern. Was someone… chasing after him?

Leaping down from the tree branch, Gaara looked behind the other, anticipating some kind of confrontation to suddenly appear. “Luke. Are you all right?”

Even after hearing his explanation, he still thought something was wrong. He wouldn’t think that someone wanted to keep a promise to him so badly, to this extent. He was quite accustomed to broken promises, to not believe in a claim until it was proven.

[headfons]

For starters, Luke had been raised as a noble. Sure, he'd been more than just a slight brat--but, he'd been shown from several sources that people didn't just say they'd do stuff, only to turn around and not do it. Guy and his other friends, too, had shown him the value of a person doing what they said they'd do. Not to mention, small promises seemed pretty easy to keep, after him keeping the one he'd made to change. That had been like climbing the tallest mountain without proper equipment- a challenge he never wanted to have to repeat, honestly. It was ingrained, by that point. Because, if there was anything he wanted to be known as, it was as a person of his word. Someone people could rely on. It made him feel useful, after all...

Heh. Maybe it was that bit of selfishness that Jade had been talking about, back when they'd all been in Baticul. Jade had said something about how all acts of kindness, start with even the tiniest bit of selfish intentions. Well, then, so be it. In the end, everyone was better off, after all. Anything was better than him being like he was back before Azkeriuth. Whatever it took, Luke would never go back to that. It would require hard work, a little suffering, and a lot of determination. That was something he'd never come to mind, though. He'd gladly give up a bit of his own happiness, to ensure everyone else's. Because, when he looked at the cost versus the reward, it was something he'd gladly pay. The smiles on people's faces, the lighting up of their eyes, the knowing they were happy even if for just a moment...

Luke wiped the back of his forehead with his hand, and then straightened out his posture. There was a sheepish smile still resting on his lips as he shook his head. The sheepish smile turned to a grin, "Hey, I said I'd be here in three hours, didn't I?"

Folding his arms behind his head, he tilted his head to the side and shrugged. He seriously didn't see anything weird about working so hard to keep a small promise like that. Then, Luke's face lit up with curiosity. So, he'd spent the past three hours trying to come up with ideas of what Gaara could have possibly meant about the aerial transportation thing. So, far, he hadn't been able to come up with, well...anything? He wasn't a stranger to magical abilities, either. He'd seen some amazing things back at that hotel, after all. Pretty much nobody had been without some kind of ability, whether big...or small. So, Luke's imagination had been wondering, but he couldn't imagine anything that would make flying a possibility, without the use of some kind of technology. Or machine.

"So, about this ability to 'provide aerial transportation' thing you mentioned, Gaara..." He let out a soft laugh, "You've seriously got me curious to see what you meant."

[no_dreams_for_you]

“......”

Had Luke exerted so much efforts simply to…? Gaara frowned, and put a premature end to that train of thought. It was too hopeful, and he still felt suspicious and untrusting of this world, after what little he had experienced thus far. He couldn’t possibly be the reason for Luke’s haste.

His curiosity, on the other hand, was completely justified. With a slight nod of understanding, Gaara replied in a quiet tone, “I will show you.”

Once again, there was just a brief instance of hesitation on his part. Normally, he wouldn’t worry about revealing his abilities, even out in the open public. So what was the source of this trepidation? He was a ninja. He would never think to pose as a civilian, save the sake of a mission.

With a light popping noise, the cap of the gourd sprung up, and dangled in midair as sand slithered out. He conjured just enough to create a medium-sized platform, designed to hold two individuals. The cork immediately returned to his gourd, keeping the rest of the sand inside. His expression ever-so-calm, he stepped onto the sand platform, and crossed his arms over his chest. The demeanor that he gave off was one of cool authority, as though uncaring of how the bystanders would react to this development.

“Come,” he invited the other redhead, making a mild gesture at the platform.

Luke would… most likely expect an explanation, after what he just witnessed. Normal humans didn’t have the ability to create objects out of sand. Even if Luke had been classified as a “replica” in his world, Gaara saw no distinct differences between him and an ordinary human.

[headfons]

Yes, Gaara, he totally did. It wouldn't be the last time, either.

Luke watched with genuine curiosity as the sand spilled out. Luke had never been one to hide his emotions or feelings very well. Put simply, his feelings remained on his sleeve. When the sand began forming into a platform, the redhead instantly dropped into a crouch and watched with open surprise. That was definitely not what he'd expected Gaara to have meant by providing aerial transportation...

Well, that answered one of his questions! He'd planned on asking what was with the giant...thing on Gaara's back, at some point. Rising to an upright position, he watched Gaara step onto the sand. Luke heard a couple of hushed whispers behind him, but ignored them. Well, he was actually...used to regular civilians whispering around him, by that point. It wasn't as though he and his party members hadn't done some things to draw attention, before.

That thought caused a faint look of sadness- man, he really missed them...even Natalia. The invitation to get on had Luke blinking out of thought. Oh, right...uh...

He leaned over just a bit to study the sand. It...seemed sturdy enough. Tilting his head he lifted a foot and stepped down onto the sand. After testing that tiny bit of weight, he was practically jumping onto it with a light grin, both feet planting firmly. The grin was turned to Gaara, and he spoke in a voice that made it clear he didn't find any of it strange.

"Well, I can definitely call this a first! So how's it work? Is it like...magic, or something?"

[no_dreams_for_you]

As Luke was watching his sand, Gaara was watching him in return. For some reason, people outside of his village were much more understanding and accepting of his abilities. Even though his reputation preceded him, they didn’t seem to think he should be feared or hated. It felt strange and almost unnerving, to receive so much trust from people that held no obligations toward him.

Maybe that was why it carried more significance. His own villagers, whom he was designated to protect and give his life for, shied away from him. Or perhaps it was simple ignorance. People that didn’t live in Suna weren’t given the opportunity to witness his wrath, all those instances where he had lost control and killed others. Their lack of knowledge and firsthand experience protected them, in a sense.

And yet, in the case of Ishtar, she knew what he was capable of, but refused to abandon him…

From observing Luke carefully, Gaara was able to catch that flicker of sadness. For a fleeting moment, he wondered if his sand had perturbed him, somehow. Then he watched Luke bouncing on the platform with boisterous enthusiasm, and the Suna ninja had to hide a slight smile. Luke exhibited a few childish qualities, but they were a bit endearing to witness. Most shinobi were serious and somber, dedicated to their profession. Few of them acted as carefree and uninhibited as ordinary civilians.

As the platform began to rise up in the air, Gaara answered his questions. “No, it isn’t a magical ability. I control the sand with my mind. It’s second nature to me.” Well, there was also the crucial factor of his emotions, but he didn’t like disclosing that tidbit of information. He couldn’t always control his emotions anywhere nearly as well as his mind.

"Magic is customary in your world, correct? Powered by... fonons." If he recalled correctly.

[headfons]

After everything Luke had seen, something such as sand being controlled mentally, by a guy he met in a world he was spirited away to (from some hotel that wanted him dead every two weeks, on top of it all)? Didn't faze him in the slightest. Luke had undoubtedly been desensitized by many of the things he'd seen in his surprisingly short lifetime. Not to mention, he's become considerably more open-minded, since cutting his head. Luke had felt those eyes on him, however, but didn't think to look up.

Once he was comfortably standing on the platform, Luke crouched down and watched the distance between them and the ground increase. In spite of the minor distraction, he listened intently. Oh, so...it was almost like a form of...telekinesis? Maybe? He'd read a book on something like that, out of boredom and curiosity. On Auldrant, something like that was just a fictional thing, but Luke had learned that other worlds allowed him to witness unique and previously unheard of abilities.

"Second nature, huh?" He mused, then stood grinning a little at the other teen, "This...definitely makes you one of the most powerful people I've ever met!" Something told him making a joke about 'needing to stay on Gaara's good side' would be in bad taste- especially considering some of the things he'd heard, "Well, instead of magic, we called our abilities Artes. But, yeah, everything's powered by fonons, there. Honestly, if you ever want to learn about stuff like that, your best bet would be to talk to Jade."

His expression very briefly fell, face turning back towards the ground; and, in that instant, he appeared to remember something, "...If he were here, that is. Well, either way, he's a bit of a genius."

He said the last sentence with a laugh. The laugh wasn't as genuine as he'd hoped, however. It had been like a chain reaction. Thinking of Jade, made him think of the rest of his traveling party back on Auldrant. Sure, Tear was there. Sure, he had his friend Takasu. Still, he...wanted to know that they were alright. He wanted to see them. Brow tensing as he held true to his smile, his tone lowered for the next sentence, "Man, you'd think it'd be easier to talk about any of them, by now."

Stop thinking. Just smile. Be strong.

He sighed, giving a very light shrug. His expression firmed and he summoned up every ounce of willpower. It was a surprisingly successful attempt as shaking off the negative emotions- ones that came with missing his friends. Or maybe he was just getting better at lying to himself. Nonetheless, after a matter of seconds, it was like a switch had unknowingly flipped. Glancing over at Gaara, he reinforced his unconsciously-formed facade, with a smile, "So, anyway. How long did it take you to get so good at controlling it?"

[no_dreams_for_you]

Hearing that bold statement spoken so candidly, Gaara almost chuckled, out of pure amusement. He had confidence in his abilities, but if Luke ever met either Naruto or Sasuke, he would change his mind very quickly. Not to mention, there were a number of other shinobi much more powerful than himself, spread throughout the ninja world.

“One should always seek to improve his abilities,” he answered vaguely, neither confirming nor denying his skill level. He usually displayed arrogance in battle, as a tactic of intimidation toward his opponents. With this type of scenario, he had no reason to speak in that manner to Luke.

“Jade is one of your friends, from your home world.” A rather obvious conclusion to draw, based on the information presented. And then, when Luke fell quiet, Gaara’s gaze grew more intent. He recognized signs of nostalgia. Quite a few residents from the facility had shown similar symptoms before. He certainly wouldn’t deny missing Suna, his villagers, and even his council, at (rare) times. It had been a struggle, at first, to find a new purpose for living, when he knew little else, apart from his occupation as a ninja.

His voice softened with sympathy and understanding, when he replied, “Not necessarily. You are far away from those you care for, and from your home, as well. There is no certainty, with regards to the duration of your stay in this world.”

…But he won’t linger on the unsettling topic for long. It would be best if Luke tried to move forward and adjust to his new life in this city. At least, for the time being, until he could return to his home world.

“Honing ninja techniques requires a great deal of training. Some abilities took years to master, while others, a much shorter period of time.” Gaara paused as his look suddenly turned curious. “And yourself? What types of techniques… rather, Artes, have you acquired?”