around my head (gaara&karin)

[perla kinsella]

birds chirping, twigs snapping, and frogs croaking. the loveliest sounds of nature all found in one place! however, the auburn-haired lady was the most focused on the last in that list. today, perla was on the hunt. for frogs. big frogs, little frogs. hell, she'd even go for a toad. for some odd reason, she had woken up this morning with a very strong desire to catch one. it wasn't like she wanted to hurt it or kill it, or anything of that sort. and she definitely did not want to eat it; they were just too slimy, lovely, and cute. she just wanted the satisfaction of finding one, though she wasn't sure if she'd even be able to. after all, this was an island. she didn't know if there were any streams or ponds with fresh water on such a piece of land, but she figured that she would have fun either way.

perla grinned dumbly, sighting an area that was squishy and muddy. she could even see a few puddles, which reflected the green of the canopy of trees that was above the path the girl was on. she was glad that she had decided to wear shorts on such a day. it was terribly hot, even though it was probably near sunset by now. she made a mental note to get out of the forest before darkness fell - since that's what all the locals were saying and she, herself, did not particularly care for the blackness of night. she put it out of her mind as she hopped over the strip of grass on the side of the hiking trail. and that was all that stood between her and a potential frog-filled paradise.

"ick!" she cried as she sunk in the mud. it was already up to her ankles. she could still move, though, so she didn't think it was much of a problem. it seemed that people didn't take this trail very often, luckily for her. it would be a bit embarrassing to explain such a situation to a passerby. the girl grinned giddily and scanned the area for any of the amphibious hoppers that she so desired.

[/justify][/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[kazuyuki sato]

Kazu was on his way home as he passed through the dense forest. Why he was there in the first place was a mystery to even himself. All he could remember was leaving school a little past dusk and as he was headed towards the library, his memory went blank. The next thing he knew was that he was staring into the deep tangling green mess of Kien. He knew what had happened. Yuki was taken over by one of his random impulses again and had forcibly taken over the body. What he did after that was anyone's guess, he thought anxiously. The blue-eyed boy let out a drawn out sigh as he padded through the forest.

It wasn't like Kazu didn't like Yuki. He loved him; he just didn't like the things he did sometimes. While Kazu was more of a docile and cheerful child, Yuki was aggressive and short-tempered. He did things that Kazu wasn't too fond of all the time, and the boy couldn't keep tabs on the other personality 24/7. Most of the time, he only got glimpses of Yuki's activities, and that was only when his will to lead the body flickered. Kazu, on the other hand, allowed him to always see what he was doing. This seemed a bit unfair, but there wasn't much he could do about it.

As the boy pulled his school backpack closer, he realized there was a bit of a blood splotch on the sleeve of his uniform. Perhaps he didn't want to know what the violent alter-ego had been up to today, he thought to himself as he quickly looked away. Kazu focused his eyes on the road, almost completely missing the girl as he passed. Luckily, he heard the splash and her voice, forcing him to direct his attention to the nearby marshy area. There, a strangely red-haired woman stood.. playing in the mud? She seemed a little too old for that. Maybe she's stuck? The brunette contemplated just ignoring her and moving on, but he knew it would probably bother him for the rest of the day if he didn't see. Laying his school bag on a dry patch near a tree, he began to make his way to the girl, not enjoying the dampness of the dirt at all. It was going to ruin his uniform, he knew it. Once he was close enough, he called out in his usual soft tone.

"Um.. hello? Are you okay?"

[miyako kizuna]

Miyako weaved fluidly through the trees, sprinting about the forest in her quick, glorious true form. The sun's burning rays shone on the kitsune's almost-white fur, nearly making her coat seem truly white as she dreamed it would be one day. The golden highlights in her fur also shone under the sun's brilliance, glinting like genuine gold. Her long legs stretched out and dug into the ground, pushing Miyako into the air in a moment of wondrous flight. How wonderful it felt to be free of all disguises for once!

Here in the forest, with next to no civilians to hide from, Miyako could let her hair down, so to speak, and drop her human facade. While she did enjoy deceiving humans with the disguise, it felt good to be so utterly free for once in her life. It felt good to stretch out her legs, running with wild abandon, not having to worry about anyone seeing her. It felt good to let the wind whistle through her fur. It felt good to be who she truly was.

Caught up in the moment of true freedom and ecstasy, Miyako let loose some of her magic—just a quick burst of magical flame released into the air. The lavender kitsune flames cast gentle shades across Miyako's fur, shimmering and dancing in the air before fading into nothing. Miyako let out a huff of exhilaration. The best thing about being in her true form: She could use magic freely, without limits. In her weakened human form, she required mediums for her kitsune magic, which usually frustrated her to no end. It felt all the more freeing to use even that small bit of magic, that little purple flame, without any sort of medium.

Then her moment of joyous freedom ended when she heard human voices. Miyako immediately transformed into her human self with another burst of kitsune flame engulfing her monster form. Casually brushing off the last bit of kitsune fire, Miyako approached the two people she'd heard. The sight of the two was rather amusing. A girl was stuck in the mud—or perhaps playing in there; human habits were still somewhat of a mystery to her—and a boy was standing there looking a little confused and possibly slightly concerned. With an amused smile, she asked the two, "Pardon my asking, but... What is going on here?"

[perla kinsella]

the long-haired girl frowned. there were no frogs here, it seemed. and that was truly unfortunate, as it would have made getting dirty quite worth it. she had quickly begun sinking into the mud. it was up to her knees now, in only a minute or so! she cringed and struggled to get her right foot out, but to no avail. it just so happened that she hadn't told anyone that she was going on such an adventure today. would she end up being the next person whose face was plastered up around the city!? she imagined the posters filled with her information. her height, her weight, and where she was last seen. if she sunk in this pool of black mud and suffocated, she probably wouldn't be found for years. citizens, like herself, rarely frequented this forest. when, or rather, if she was found, a skeleton would be all that was left of her!!

a few red rays of sun hit perla's eyes. she turned around to avoid the blinding light. and when she did, there stood a boy! a savior! a gift from god! her expression was quite tragic as she searched her mind for the words to use. "i'm not," she said lightly. this young man, who looked to be around her age, seemed to be quite mild-mannered. "i can't seem to move my legs. could you help me get out of here?" she asked, motioning to the mud that now reached over her knee. her face was beginning to flush with embarrassment. she hoped that she wouldn't be asked what she'd been doing - after all, everybody was told not to go gallivanting off of the trail in kien forest.

perla looked up as another person approached. a woman, this time. she seemed to appear out of nowhere. "um, um. i've gotten stuck," she explained, though that was really quite obvious by her stance. her body was still slowly sinking into the muck and she was beginning to feel panicky. her blue eyes were wide with alarm and brimming with tears. the tears were that of both fright and mortification.

[/justify][/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[kazuyuki sato]

Kazu stared down at the red-haired girl, his worries now confirmed. He supposed it was a good thing he was too nice for his own good, else this girl probably would've been stuck for ages! But what was she doing here anyways? There wasn't much of a reason for anyone let alone a young women to be in the marshes of Kien. Kazu had lived on the island most of his life, and it was common knowledge that the place was too dangerous for just play. While most of it was just built on the old legends surrounding the town, one could easily get lost and sink into the water if they weren't careful. As the blue-eyed boy began to lean down to help her, he noticed that yet another girl had showed up.

"Um... What are you two even doing here?" Kazu couldn't help but let the words slip out. The only people who would really visit the forest would be researchers looking into wildlife or the insane. It wasn't exactly the top of the list for a tourist spot. "Perhaps they're here to enjoy the scenery like us?" A light laugh echoed through his head, but he brushed it off and continued to stretch down to help the girl. However, as he grabbed her hand and pulled, he realized she was more deeply stuck in the damp mud than he thought. He tugged a few more times, trying to summon inner strength to drag her to safety. However, it didn't seem like he was going to be able to help her himself. With a sigh, he glanced back up to the strange new visitor, his eyes pleading for assistance.

"Could you lend a hand...?" He asked softly, not sure if she would actually come down to them. She seemed pretty.. uppity, in a way, Kazu thought. Her long, straight ebony hair and intellectual features reminded him of a stuck-up teacher, and while he was sure she probably wasn't like that at all, it was hard to get the idea of it out of his head. As he imagined it, he could feel the hand slipping, and he quickly grasped it more tightly again as he prayed that the woman was kinder than she looked.

[miyako kizuna]

Miyako listened quietly, yet with an amused air about her as the girl explained how she was stuck in the mud. So it was as Miyako had first assumed. Well, one could never be too sure. She had no sympathy for the girl, though, even when the girl's eyes welled with tears. Miyako didn't have much patience or sympathy for humans, especially upset, crying ones. For all she cared, that girl could have remained stuck in the mud indefinitely.

Then the boy asked what the two girls were doing here in the forest. Time to put on the innocent act. Miyako put a nervous and slightly abashed expression on her face as she answered him. "Well...I really don't know how I even got here," she said, making her tone innocent but not too innocent—she didn't want to seem the least bit suspicious. "Y-You see, I have this awful sense of direction. I was just trying to get home, but next thing I knew, I was here. It's...unsettling, to say the least." She then looked around anxiously, as if expecting something to leap out of the shadows that were rapidly growing around them.

Miyako noticed that the boy was having trouble helping the girl out of the mud. In fact, it looked like he might not get her out at all. He looked to Miyako and asked for help, eyes pleading. She looked at him, then the girl, deliberating on it. She couldn't care less what happened to that girl... Then she looked into the girl's blue, teary, fear-filled eyes. For some strange reason, those eyes stuck a chord in Miyako's heart. She tried to ignore the feeling, but now it was too late. She couldn't turn away from the girl. She had to help. "...Fine, I'll help," Miyako finally said.

But she wasn't going to get in that mud to help the girl, no matter how much she actually wanted to help. There was another way...but did she really want to reveal herself? The other way she was thinking about required her kitsune magic, and revealing herself as a demon in front of two civilians. Miyako growled softly to herself in frustration. This was easily the hardest decision she'd ever had to make. She looked at the two humans again. Both seemed nice enough, too nice to be one of those nasty hunters. As long as she could convince them not to tell anyone...

Miyako made her way down to the two humans, taking care to avoid the mud. She removed her red hairband and bent down, leaning and reaching towards the girl. If someone had looked, they could have seen up her skirt as she leaned toward the girl, but she didn't particularly care at the moment. Miyako reached a little further and placed the headband on the girl's head. She hated doing this, but there had to be a medium for her to use magic, as always. With that task accomplished, she leaned back and began working her kitsune magic. Slowly, the girl began rising up out of the mud, levitating her way out thanks to Miyako's magic. She lifted the girl out of the mud—though not without some resistance from the mud; it seemed to keep sucking her in—and placed her on the ground, a safe distance away from the mud pit.

"There. Are you okay?" Miyako asked the girl, both out of genuine concern and the fact that if she acted nicely, maybe the humans wouldn't freak out so much once they figured out what she was.

Note: I think Miyako may be falling for Perla. Just so you know.

[/size]
[/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[perla kinsella]

perla tried to escape the mud one more time by wrenching her leg as hard as she could. the thick muck stayed in place, although she wriggled and yanked her lower limbs. the girl grabbed onto the young, soft-spoken man's hand and felt herself being pulled. she hoped that any moment now, her legs would miraculously come free and she'd be able to escape. she let out a nervous laugh, as her thin legs wouldn't budge. she felt bad about inconveniencing these two, as they had probably been looking forward to a relaxing walk or something. it appeared to her that the boy was on his way home from school, since he was wearing a uniform and had a backpack slung around his shoulder. its a bit late to still be walking around, isn't it? she thought, peering at him with prying eyes as he asked what they'd been doing here.

"eh, i thought i was going to be on an adventure or something.." she mumbled. she probably sounded so stupid, but nothing could be worse than saying that she was looking for frogs. what kind of grown lady would admit to that kind of childish behavior? she wasn't about to. this situation was proving to be far more serious than she'd initially thought. the guy couldn't get her out on his own, so would the mysterious woman be able to assist? perla turned to her. the raven-haired stranger was thinking about her answer very deeply, and the girl found herself feeling worried. she could very well say no. why that would be the case, she wasn't sure.

thankfully, her reply was the opposite. for some reason or another, the woman took her headband off and placed on perla's head. she looked at her and tipped her head in confusion. she wasn't sure how, but it seemed that she was rising out from the probably bottomless pit of mud. then she was pulled out by the curious lady. the girl felt odd. it didn't feel like she was brought out upon the stranger's strength alone. and if she had been, then either this woman was freakishly strong or that was one weakly man.

glad to be on solid ground again, she cried "thank you, thank you! i thought i was a goner," she said through an unabashed smile. she could have hugged them both very easily, but figured that that wouldn't be the best course of action. her lower body was covered in black mud up to her thighs. she was probably covered in sweat, too. she had been terrified. "i'm absolutely fine. um, if you don't mind me asking, what are your names?" she asked quickly. she knew that it was possible that she was being too forward, yet she wanted to know the names of her rescuers.

[/justify][/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[kazuyuki sato]

As the girl walked carefully down to the two, the brunette let out a sigh of relief. He didn't know what he was going to do if she didn't feel like assisting. He moved out of the way to let her pass, thinking she was going to grab the strange woman's other hand. However, she began to tie something around her head. A red headband of some sorts? While Kazu had no idea what she was up to, he supposed he should let her continue. The boy took a few steps back, allowing the straight-laced girl to have more room for whatever it seemed she was planning. However, he certainly wasn't expecting the next even to occur.

Without even touching the red-head, she seemed to lift her out of the mud. Kazu just watched on with shock filling his features as her body floated out, only being set down once she was touching solid land. "Whaaat? Did you see that, Kazu!? I want to do that, too! Why can't we do that?" What the hell...? Could the teacher be a psychic of some sorts? Well, even if she was one, he didn't think they had powers like that. It was completely ridiculous. There was no logical answer for what the woman just did. Well, except... He thought a moment about the legends that were spread around town, about the demons and mysterious hunters. He was sure they were all just rumors made up to scare the children into staying home, but what if there was truth behind it? "Don't be stupid. The only thing behind those are people, humans. She's probably one of those circus people, with the mirrors and wires, y'know."

To his surprise, the strange red-head didn't even question the means of her escape. Maybe Kazu was just seeing things? Probably, but he didn't want to get too close to the ebony haired woman. He kept a few steps distance from her, not particularly wanting to find if the legends were really true or not. His attention flickered back to the swamp woman for a moment, smiling at first in reply to her question. "I'm Kazuyuki Sato," "I'm Yuki! Tell her my name, Kazu, too." "but you can just call me Kazu--" "C'mon! Kazu, tell her." "It's a pleasure to meet you... um... What did you say your name was?" "God dammit! Tell her, Kazu. Stop ignoring me. I won't quit calling you until you reply!" "Ah, but I didn't do too much. You should thank her more." He motioned towards the ebony woman, blatantly ignoring the calls echoing through his head. "Kazu, Kazu, Kazu, Kazu, Kazu." Aggravation began to boil in him, the noise obviously getting to him no matter how much he ignored it. "Kazuuuuu! Kazu! Kazu, Kazu, Ka--"

"Shut the fuck up!" He yelled out, begging for silence from the other persona. At that point, he hadn't realized he had said it out loud. Only moments after did a blush of embarrassment spread across his features from the outburst, well-knowing that they had no idea about his actions. "Ah, sorry! Ignore that. I sometimes have.. rage.. moments." He certainly wasn't the good liar among the two. He could just hear Yuki's light chuckling, causing an even heavier shade to flash across his features.

[miyako kizuna]

Miyako found herself smiling down at the girl as she tilted her head in confusion. It was rather cute. Wait, cute? Miyako wanted to beat that thought out of her head. She couldn't afford to let herself think of this girl as cute or attractive in any way lest she—heaven forbid—fall in love with her. The woman shook her head, dark hair swishing behind her, and continued on as if she hadn't just let those kinds of thoughts into her head.

Once the girl was saved, she was immediately grateful, not even thinking twice about her means of escape. Miyako normally would have frowned upon the girl's stupidity, but she for some reason couldn't let herself hate the young girl. In fact, that word had popped into her head again—"cute." Miyako almost tore at her hair to tear that thought out of her head, but she didn't. She did not want to look like a crazy woman, especially since neither human had seemed to figure out what she was yet. Or at least, no one was running away from her screaming "demon!"

Miyako smiled at the girl's question—goddamn it, why was she smiling so much?—and answered kindly. "My name is Miyako Kizuna. You can call me Miya if you like." Wait, why the hell did she just say that? She wasn't supposed to say that! Damn it all, it had just slipped out of her mouth. "Nice to meet you. What's your name, miss?" God, why was she being so nice? It went against her entire nature, especially when around a human that wasn't smart like her.

To drag her attention away from the girl, Miyako looked over at the man who introduced himself as Kazu. At least he seemed a little smarter than the girl; he stayed a little distance away, as if wary of Miyako. She smiled charmingly at Kazu. "What are you doing all the way over there, Kazu?" she said, her voice sardonically sweet. "Come over here, Kazu. I won't bite..." Her smile grew at the irony of that statement—she very well could bite if he did something she didn't like.

She cringed at Kazu's sudden outburst, his yell hurting her sensitive ears. Fighting the urge to rub her now ringing ears, she listened as he awkwardly explained his little outburst. She'd heard of something called "bipolar disorder"—perhaps Kazu was bipolar? It certainly seemed like it, with the boy being nice one moment and yelling at everyone the next. "Uh...That's alright, I guess," she said to him, accepting his explanation without much thought—her thoughts had been pretty scrambled after that yelling he did.

Miyako nearly facepalmed when she remembered something: She had to get that hairband of hers back from the girl. She went back to the girl, and gently brushed her bangs back to get the red hairband. Miyako had to almost bite her lip to stave off the feelings rising within her. This girl's hair was lovely, a dark auburn color that Miyako found beautiful. Not to mention, that pretty red hair was so soft, Miyako had to stop herself from running her hand all through it. She wanted to pound her chest to get her heart to stop beating so fast. Thankfully, she got the hairband back from the girl and backed away, trying her best to forget these feelings.

[/size]
[/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[perla kinsella]

the petite girl tossed her head back and let cool air rush against her neck. it had been delightfully chilly in the shade all day, but as the sun sank lower and lower into the horizon the temperatures plummeted. it was the sort of weather that she loved - terribly hot during the day and comfortably cool at night. she was especially grateful for the cold air at this very moment. it must have been some primitive reaction - when she thought that she was undoubtedly facing her demise, her blood boiled and she sweat like crazy. it was as if she had a terrible fever. she scuffed her bare feet in the dirt tail she she stood on, as if making sure that it was solid or that there were no hidden sink holes. in reality, she was simply reveling in the relief that she was feeling. it was like a calmness was washing over her and erasing the all of her worries. perla was so grateful to the two that although she was devoid of riches and powers, she candidly hoped she would be able to repay them someday.

"kazu, miya," she said, repeating their names as one might to remember terms and definitions for an exam. she looked at them with admiration filling her blue eyes. "i'm perla kinsella. its nice to meet the both of you, though i wish that it'd been under better circumstances.." the girl said, letting out a snicker of embarrassment. indeed, she would have preferred to get to know them at a time when she wasn't in the need of saving. even so, she considered herself lucky.

she jumped the slightest bit when the boy, apparently named kazuyuki, yelled. who was that at? me? she wondered. his outburst had been quite unexpected, since she had thought him to be the soft-spoken type. rage moments, her mind echoed. couldn't it have been worded a bit better? the way he said it made it unconvincing. when he was done explaining himself, she noticed a dark expression fall upon his face. it warded her off from questioning him further. "eh, okay.." she said quietly, looking at him curiously.

it occurred to her that she hadn't given the dark-haired lady's headband back. she had been caught up in thanking and introducing that she hadn't even thought of it. right when she remembered, miyako was already close to her and in the process of removing it. perla looked at her. the way that she took it off felt strangely endearing. while most would just carelessly pull the band off, she pushed her bangs back so as to not mess her hair up more than it already was, or so she thought. the way that the ebony-haired woman looked at her almost made the young girl want to blush. and blush, she did. her eyes darted away from miya and back to the odd boy, who she grinned at weakly. "say, why are you out here, kazu?" she asked. it was her attempt at a conversation. since he was the only one who hadn't been asked, she figured it would be alright.

[/justify][/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[kazuyuki sato]

He didn't trust the fox-like woman one bit. She seemed all to ready to approach him, and as an awkward teenager, he didn't like that too much in general. Also, she seemed a bit... strange. There was something a bit other-wordly and eager about her. Thankfully, his outburst at Yuki's constant whining seemed to make her back off. Well, at least I got something to thank him for. He thought with a drawn out sigh. As he slowly slipped back into silence, he observed the girls with as little interest as he could. And then he began to notice something. For a long moment, Kazu just stared at the two, noting their rather amorous looks to each other. While he was honestly glad they had (somewhat) bought his excuse, he couldn't help but think something was going on under his nose. As Perla, the red-head, began to give her back the strange headband, the stern woman just went ahead and took it off herself, and the look she gave her managed to make a red blush appear on her features. "What is this? The beginning to a lesbian romance flick? Hah, and you're just a third wheel!" He didn't pay too much attention to Yuki's harsh words, focusing more on the new questions the girls directed at him.

"Oh... um... just.. hanging around after school." His excuse was followed by a light hollow laugh. Honestly, he wasn't quite sure why Yuki had forced their body to go here today. He thought about asking, but that would probably just begin the taunting and teasing that would continue for ages until he could get an actual clear answer. He brushed his hair back lightly in an attempt to think up a better excuse, hurriedly spouting out the next words."It's.. a nice place, isn't it? With... birds... and nature!" Kazu's eyes flickered across the brush, searching for anything that could count as wildlife. While there were plenty of flies, there wasn't really any type of aviary type of animals as he had hoped.

"Ah, so, Ms. Kizuna! What was that trick you did earlier? It was pretty interesting." He said in an attempt to change the subject. While it was mainly just to get the awkward question and answer off of him, he was at the very least curious about it. Without even touching Perla, she had used some sort of magic to rescue her from the sinking mud. That was something he could call amazing, yet also a bit scary. If it wasn't just smoke and mirrors, then he wasn't sure if the woman was even human. It seemed silly to Kazu to even think this, but so many strange things were occurring through out the town he didn't even know what to expect. It was just legend after legend, rumor after rumor building up in the town's name. It could be just fantasy, as most say, but what if there was something much larger going on? Kazu and Yuki weren't sure what to think anymore.

[miyako kizuna]

The blush that appeared on Perla's face made Miyako want to blush as well—like a damn chain reaction or something, Miyako thought to herself. But of course she resisted the urge, at the same time trying to resist her own emotions, and kept her complexion from turning red as it wanted to. For half a second, she thought about just running away, get as far away as possible from Perla to hopefully rid herself of these feelings. But her heart quickly banished the thought with a tight squeeze of pain, and again Miyako cursed the weak little thing.

She looked over at Kazu again, and had to keep herself from smirking; he seemed so wary of her, it was comical. Her lips twitched, her poker face slipping for a moment as Kazu awkwardly explained what he was doing here in the forest. Silver eyes quickly darted around the forest, sparkling with amusement, seeing no sign of birds or much any other wildlife as Kazu had mentioned.

Then he asked about her "trick," the one that got Perla out of the mud. Her slight smile faded, but she didn't betray the dismayed surprise she felt. So the human was onto her! She honestly should have known better—there was no way that both humans go without questioning her little stunt. She sighed silently. She'd just gotten her hopes up after neither human had figured out what she was straightaway. Her calculating mind began to assemble a good explanation that would put an end to Kazu's apparent doubt.

"Well..." she began casually, not a hint of nervousness in her voice. "I...am a magician." Miyako grimaced mentally at how cheesy that sounded, her actual expression unchanging. A magician? Please! Her magic was more than a match for that of those humans that think they can recreate kitsune magic and the like. She then put on a smile. "What you saw was one of my tricks. Amazing, was it not?"

[/size]
[/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[perla kinsella]

perla sporadically glanced in the direction of the two, as if she didn't want to miss one second of conversation. she grinned at kazu's answer to her question. another nature-lover! how lucky for her! she had ventured out here with the callow want of capturing a frog, so how could she not love the outdoors? of course, she hadn't said the real reason that she'd come out here, so she refrained from exclaiming her love for the small animal. forests calmed her. the sound of wind whooshing through the grisly branches of trees had a rather sedating quality, as did the chattering of birds. "it really is a beautiful forest!" she said giddily. she could stay outside from dawn to dusk, but never dared to be in the open after darkness fell. she feared what she couldn't see and what she couldn't understand.

at the mention of her strange rescue, she grimaced. the petite girl had somehow forgotten about the odd way she had been lifted from the depths of mud. it had surprised her so much that she had unknowingly decided that it wasn't so weird; that it was normal. could it be that miyako was one of the fabled demons of the island? she didn't seem to be as bloodthirsty as they were rumoured to be. perla hadn't been on the island for long, but she had heard many stories about the monsters that made it their home. she often put things like that out of her mind.

a magician? she wondered. it seemed like a poorly-constructed lie, even to her. "so that's how it is.." the girl muttered skeptically. why incorporate a trick into saving her? it wasn't really necessary and it didn't make sense to her at all. magicians' tricks were illusions, or so she thought. she stared at the dark-haired woman questioningly.

[/justify][/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[kazuyuki sato]

The blue-eyed boy gave a small smile to Perla as she agreed with him enthusiastically. He was glad that at east one of them believed his excuse, seeing as the fox woman wasn't quite convinced. Her eyes danced with laughter at his words, well-knowing that the forest was mostly devoid of animals. He guessed there were probably a large amount of lizards and nasty insects judging by the swampy feeling of some parts, though. His sight flickered across the brush once more, only slightly aware of actually searching for life. While there was the occasional rustling, no bird songs could be heard or mammal bodies seen. It was practically deserted except for the overgrown plants.

Kazu's attention reverted back to Miyako, listening to her words with little belief. Magicians? Were those even still around? He knew there were some on television, Yuki liked to watch it a lot when they were at home. While Kazu was no real fan of electronics himself, the alternate persona was practically obsessed with them. He enjoyed it too much, the boy thought, and the the time he wasn't doing his school work (or was supposed to be.), Yuki would force his own way into control just for the tv or video games they had around. Kazu wasn't sure what was so interesting about them, but apparently other people thought differently.

"Oh, I.. see, I think." He tried to keep the doubt off of his face, but it didn't seem to be working too well. He lifted his pupils to the sky for a moment and took in the darkening view. He guessed that the sun was going to go down any moment, judging by the heavy dusk that was setting in. Pretty soon Yuki would start up the whining and moaning about being bored and wanting to go home. Plus, he didn't think he wanted to stick around these people too much more. They were both keeping secrets, perhaps one more than the other, and he didn't want to particularly find out. 'Pfft. Like you're one to talk.' "Well... if you're okay now, I think I'm going to go home. It's getting dark and I hear scary things come out after the sun sets." He let out a light laugh before heading slightly up hill to shoulder his school bag. He was glad he hadn't taken it down with him. He could feel the dampness of the mud on the bottom of his pant legs.

ooc; changed yuki's font color to something less ugly. aw yeah.

[miyako kizuna]

Miyako's silver eyes darted back and forth between Perla and Kazu, gauging how well they believed her lie. What she saw wasn't good. Neither human seemed to believe her, skepticism etched into their faces and doubt imprinted on their voices. She suppressed a grimace. She'd panicked, and in her panic put together a lie that was less than believable.There was no point in taking it back now—that would only increase their suspicion. It seemed that the only viable option now was to leave, and hope the humans would soon forget this whole thing. It was getting dark, anyway, and she could tell the humans were ready to leave as well.

"It is getting quite dark," Miyako said quietly, struggling harder than ever to keep the building anxiety within her out of her voice. "I think I shall be heading home now, as well. Farewell Kazu, Perla." She then left the small clearing as calmly as possible.

As soon as she was out of sight from the humans, Miyako reverted back to her true form with a burst of kitsune flame. Keeping up human pretenses around suspicious humans was more than a little stressful, even for the experienced trickster; she couldn't stay human any longer after that. She needed release from that stress, and only the freedom that came with her true kitsune form could do that for her.

The kitsune let out a long sigh, relieved to finally be back in her true form. It was as if she'd just pulled off a costume that was two sizes too tight, it felt so releasing to be back in true form. But the sigh turned to a long stream of kitsune fire—she'd been so relieved to return to her regular kitsune self, she forgot to keep a check on her powers. Much to her dismay, the purple flame shot past a gap between the trees, into the line of sight of both humans in the clearing. Miyako froze, stiff with tension, hoping that neither human saw it, or came to investigate.

[/size]
[/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]