tabularasa_rp | November Prompts

Indigo came to Mt. Silver to look over her handiwork in the form of her contributions to its pathways. Now finished, she doesn't have a goal to strive for, a project to work on, anymore. As much as she needs a vacation, needs some peaceful free time... she doesn't know what to do with it. Perhaps her Novakid attention span is part of it, but she doesn't really know how to relax, how to simply be.

So now Indigo can be found sitting on a rock outside the entrance to the caves of Mt. Silver, playing her harmonica out of... boredom? Sure, let's call it boredom. (How she plays a harmonica without an apparent mouth is a mystery, but when she raises it to the part of her 'face' a mouth would be, it makes sound well enough.) In the process, she gains a bit of an audience, with Smeargles, Pidgey-creatures, and even one of those winged giraffes attracted by the sound and sticking around because she doesn't seem to be a threat. Indigo ends the song, lowering the harmonica and slowly reaching toward the closest Pidgey to pet it. Ignoring the outstretched hand, the Pidgey instead darts toward her other hand, the one holding the harmonica... and snatches the harmonica. Shiny rectangle!

"Wh -- hey! That's mine!" The Pidgey immediately darts off at her harsh words, running off while making random, dissonant sounds through the harmonica clutched in its beak. Indigo leaps to her feet in hot pursuit, yelling as she chases the thief.

While the music played, Sephiroth also watched though from a much greater distance. He's not sure why really. There's no real point in listening to music. At this point that is more of a human thing, something he's risen above.

But at the same time, the longer he's here, the more he's subjected to various human things which he hasn't had to deal with in years. Eating, sleep, being powerless in general.

Maybe that's why he stopped to listen.

When the creature takes off with the harmonica he moves to grab it -- and it wouldn't be the first time he's picked something like this up. And like before it does not appreciate his actions one bit.

While he makes no other real move to return the harmonica to her (or even get it from the animal) he has at least stopped it from escaping.

His eyes trail from the squirming creature to slowly fixate on her, "What were you playing?"

After giving the thief a good chase, Indigo stops in her tracks when she sees it's been caught. Looking between the fellow and the thief, she answers his question:

"That's my harmonica." While she doesn't exactly stress the 'my' part, it's still there, a simple statement of ownership. She cocks her head, the first sign of emotion she shows to the man:

"Or did ya mean the song?"

... He actually did not know the name of the instrument she had been previously playing. There might have been a time when he did (maybe), but that part of him is long gone along with most of those memories so who's to say really. He never really cared about such things back then and cares even less now.

But that's hardly the point.

To answer her question ...

"The song," he says while shifting to hold the squirming creature out towards her which is now probably trying to bite him instead.

Well, if it's trying to bite him, then it has to drop the harmonica. Indigo retrieves it and dusts it off, examining it to see if it's been damaged.

"You can let 'im go," she comments. "I never wanted to hurt the little feller. I just wanted my harmonica back." Polite enough to answer his question, she adds:

"It's called Moon River. It's an old Earth song." Satisfied that her harmonica isn't hurt, she tucks it away in a pocket before straightening her posture -- and beginning to sing.

"Moon River, wider than a mile,
I'm crossing you in style someday...."

Unless he stops her, she'll go through the entire song for him; it's not as if it's a very long one. And as she sings, her entire aura seems to change; from awkward but earnest cowgirl to classy dame, the likes of a lounge singer or classical musician. Her accent disappears, and the natural reverb to her voice lends the whole thing an otherworldly, almost ethereal, quality as well.

Earth? Not a place he's heard of, but that hardly means anything here with so many different people from various worlds. Even she is not something he's ever seen before. Clearly not human, but she's not acting any different than the regular people he's seen on Gaia.

He'll not-so-gently drop the creature as it no longer holds his interest. Right now she has his focus since she's something new and despite his general loss of humanity there's still a lingering hint of curiosity hidden somewhere.

Which is why Sephiroth will let her go through the whole song before asking, "Is Earth where you're from?"

His Mother is also from the stars and part of him wonders how many worlds she visited and what other places were like.

Good thing it's part cat, so it's able to sort out its landing on its own and run off.

Normally Indigo would be a lot more shy about just... singing like this, but there's only one person here and it's not like she's putting on a show, she's just showing him how the song goes. When she finishes the song, she shifts back to her normal self, a sharp but subtle change. In answer to his question:

"Kinda. I wasn't born there, but I was raised there." It was her first home, even if she didn't fit in. Too bad it's gone now.

Sephiroth himself almost completely lacks shame these days. There's barely little that can phase him or will even garner a reaction. Were she to act shy he probably wouldn't even comment about it.

He is, however, completely focused on where she comes from. That matters much more than her singing or the song itself.

"I was born on world caled Gaia, but my mother traveled there from somewhere far away. Does it bother you to be among so many humans here?"

He also has very little tact when it comes to communicating with other people.

While she can definitely be awkward and sometimes blurt things out without thinking, Indigo can spare a concern or two in how she's perceived socially. Probably because she cares about other people and what they think.

"Well, Earth was full o' humans, it's their homeworld.. So I'm used to havin' lots of humans around, I don't mind it anymore than I did on Earth."

Which isn't to say she's completely comfortable with it, just that she's used to it. Humans depend so much on facial expressions to communicate, and Indigo can't make those with her mask-like 'face', so on Earth she tended to be written off as 'creepy' before she could even say a word.

Not being able to make facial expressions must be difficult, though Sephiroth generally show anything beyond 'smug amusement' these days. Currently he might be written off as creepy, but before he was mostly seen as a stoic, rather intimidating, loner.

Another planet of humans is interesting and makes him wonder just how many worlds have 'human-like' people. And if they'd be better or worse than the ones on Gaia.

"Gaia is also full of humans ... who are slowly killing their own planet like a plague consuming everything it touches. Your Earth, what is it like there?"

"Oh, yeah, the humans of Earth were like that a few hundred years back. They've gotten better since then, though."

And she's sure the humans of Gaia will too, provided they live long enough to learn their lesson.

"Now Earth is a really nice place to live. Post-scarcity so nobody's livin' in poverty, all the races livin' together in harmony, civilization an' nature in perfect balance, stuff like that."

Was. Was a really nice place to live... before the Ruin got to it. She's not thinking about that right now, though.

"On Gaia they are literally stealing life from the planet in order to power their cities. The planet suffocates while humanity goes on mostly unaware with those on top thriving while ignoring the poor."

Not that Sephiroth really has any room to talk. He planned on wiping out everyone and taking over as a god-like being. But his goals have shifted since then ... not really for the better though.

"I would be interested in learning more about Earth in the future. I have wondered what other worlds are out there."

There are a few good reasons why it took Indigo so long to make use of the bathhouse. One is that she's simply not too keen on public bathing, both because she wasn't raised that way and because she's a bit shy about her 'body'. She's petite, you see, not only in stature but in feminine curves. Not to the point of looking like a child, but yes, there's not a lot going on there.

But not even she can resist the idea of relaxing in the hot water forever, so after looking around the Market to make sure no one else is around at the moment, she makes her way inside. Eventually she sinks into the hot water of the bath, curled up with her arms around her knees in her shyness, just in case someone does come in.

Perhaps it's boredom, perhaps from the relaxation of the hot bath, but after some time in the bath her head begins to bob. As the area around her darkens, though, the glow of her body does not, as her environment simply reflects it less; so now she stands out from her environment even more. Eventually, after a while of fighting off drowsiness, it claims her and she dozes off. Her 'face' is the same as ever, though, and the only sign of her being asleep is the darkness around her and her lack of movement.

Edited 2020-11-16 09:36 (UTC)

Indigo has found a new project, and heads for Takoba Beach for supplies. Digging through the trash for anything useful, she does manage to find a few things to make tools out of. What kind of tools? Well... the likes of sewing needles, seam rippers, knitting needles, spindles... crafting supplies. While she's rummaging through the trash again, something seems off, and she pauses, ears perked. There's a metallic clatter, like someone digging through the trash, but she isn't moving.

Turning around, she finds one of those big fluffy robots climbing out of a trash pile. Quickly she draws her sword, holding it firmly in front of her while she gets into a fighting stance. The iridescent blade might not have all its extra bells and whistles functioning at the moment, but it still works as a sword.

"Yer fur. Hand it over." Indigo states plainly; she's sure this creature isn't intelligent enough to negotiate with, but no one can say she didn't try to open communications. The creature responds with a distorted electronic roar as it clears the trash pile entirely, touching down on the beach only briefly before it charges. Indigo charges right back, blade in hand. Is she intimidated by the beast's size? Of course not -- she's faced creatures much more dangerous than this, and a larger size just means a larger target.

Somewhat ironically, Kaiba was on the lookout for precisely the same sort of materials, as he combed the beach looking for odd ends and various resources. Though he had no need for the sewing supplies himself, there had been a request for as much. It was a wonder that he had volunteered to try and locate the items without really asking for anything in return but that was another matter.

There was something else he was keen on locating too, something larger, fluffier, horned, and with a notoriously foul disposition. The as-yet-unnamed-creature would have suited one of his purposes nicely. Finding them wasn't always easy since despite their size they managed to blend into the environment stealthily.

He was distant enough when the altercation started that he was not within range to do much about it, but Indigo and the monster started making enough of a commotion that he could pick up on it clear down the beach. Though he rushed in the direction of the sounds, he slowed to a stop some paces back to observe the proceedings. It didn't look as if she needed assistance and he was sensing an opportunity. If the monster was weakened enough, it would be easier to capture.

Indigo indeed has it handled, though is on the defensive a little more due to the whole reason she's picking a fight with this thing. Injuries she's not so much worried about, she has medical supplies, but if her clothes get ripped, they can't be repaired with their current supplies. Not unless she wants to use medical sutures on clothing.

She uses the size difference to her advantage, quickly getting into spots that are difficult for the robot to see or reach, and while it wastes precious seconds turning to face her, she's free to wail away at it with her sword, probing for weak spots. Then once it's in a position to actually hurt her, she repeats the process and it starts all over again.

Still, considering how big and tough this thing is, fighting it this way might take a while. And Indigo isn't going to pull any 'high risk, high reward' maneuvers against it either; she's perfectly happy doing things the slower and safer way, thank you very much.

The strategy she selects is ideal for her stature, and capabilities. It's still a lengthy procedure that almost makes Seto feel guilty for watching. Still, she has a method that's working and an interference could not only jeopardize her pattern but also her safety. The beast for it's part seems not to be wising up, or if it realizes what's happening, it's unsure how to react to it. It's sharp metal claws digging large gashes into the soft sand.

When it looked more like the beast was tiring, Kaiba gave it another few passes to be sure before moving in and lobbing a purple pokeball at it.

The light that shot out struck the creature, converting it into light and sucking it into the ball. Then the ball began twitching as it struggled to free itself.

During a pause in the fight when Indigo is catching her breath, lowering her sword momentarily, the robot suddenly disappears.

"Wha -- ?" The surprise is clear in her voice, if not her mask-like face.

Then she spots the ball. It doesn't look exactly like a Capture Pod, but it's close enough for her to make the inference. Looking around for the source, she finds Kaiba. "You throw that?" She sounds more curious than upset, a sort of 'I don't know if I should be upset about this or not' mood.

"I sure did," Owning up to the fact easily. He didn't really know what had prompted Indigo into fighting the beast in the first place so he could argue that he'd been 'trying to help' if need be. He wasn't though, he'd just seen an opportunity and seized it. The metal monsters had been so resistant to capture.

Kaiba fixed his gaze on the ball, until it stopped moving with a satisfying clicking noise. Then he went to collect his prize.

"So.. what was that all about? Training? From the looks of it, he was wearing you down every bit as much as you were weakening him."

"I wanted the fur," she explains, looking down at the ball. "Look, you can keep it if ya want, but I get the fur. I did all the work fightin' it, so it's only fair." If he refuses, they're going to have a problem. Otherwise, this might work out even better than intended; if he keeps it, domesticates it, then the fur can be collected more than once, once it grows out again.

"And I was fine. I've taken down monsters bigger'n that before, it was no problem."

"The fur? Whatever for?" The answer not immediately apparent to him. Leaning over Kaiba scooped up the ball looking at it thoughtfully. " Well, I'm glad that I have your permission..," That he didn't ask for nor require but it was making this easier. Plus, out of all the people here Indigo was someone he'd prefer not to completely burn bridges with. "I didn't capture it for the fur, so knock yourself out." Honestly it seemed like a fair trade. The fur would be a renewable resource, and he didn't have to stick his neck out to fight the thing himself.

Thinking back briefly to the tentacled beasts, from Indigo's graduation, Kaiba somehow didn't doubt her words. " Then you didn't need my intrusion."

"'Cause the only spare clothes we got here are those uniforms down in that underground place. That's fine for cannibalizin' the fabric, but we need thread to sew with." Hence the fur. Not to mention there are other things they might want to make out of fabric, like tents. "If we had cotton or somethin', we could make thread outta that, but I ain't found any."

She shakes her head; he's right, she didn't need the help. She's pretty self-sufficient that way, but of course always appreciates others making her life easier.

"Naw, but it's fine. You made things easier on me, and we both get somethin' we want outta this. I'd call that a win."

"You're just full of surprises aren't you?" Kaiba hadn't figured the glowing purple alien for a seamstress, but he hadn't guessed she was into construction either. Indigo was resourceful which he could appreciate and respect. "It's a good thought. I wish there was more fabric available then all that plaid but at least the blazers provide a bit." Being able to produce their own textiles would be a useful skill with endless possibilities.

"Ha, and you aren't shy about affirming that fact," genuinely sounding amused.

Perfect. The matter was settled easily. He'd get a monster capable of combat and voice manipulation, and she'd get the fur,"It's a mutually beneficial situation, for sure." Once it was settled he debated letting the creature back out. "Do you have your equipment here for sheering it? The sooner it's cut the sooner it can grow back."

There's also the musical ability she demonstrated with the piano, don't forget about that. Novakid learn fast; if they could just get past their short attention span, they'd easily be the most intelligent race in the... galaxy? Universe? One of the two.

Indigo nods.

"I found some big ol' scissors in the trash here, and they still work. Got my sword if they don't." Both cases would result in a somewhat rough hack job, with the sword the rougher of the two, but the thing seems fluffy enough that they'll get something usable even if they don't get a perfect cut. And even if they do screw it up... well, they can try again once the fur grows back.

She glances down at the Pokeball. "Maybe we oughtta find a chain or somethin' to tie 'im down with, in case he's still got some fight left in 'im."

True, there was that as well but let's just say he didn't value musical talents as high in their current situation. Later perhaps, when he could pursue more creative activities. She wasn't alone in that aspect either. Kaiba was also a quick study and considered a genius in his dimension. He also came with laser focus when he set his mind to accomplishing something.

As one of his long fingers lingered over the activation button, he hesitated, then temporarily pocketed the ball.

"Mm, agreed. Even if he's resigned himself to the pokeball that doesn't mean he'll want to listen to either of us or submit willingly to this treatment." Ideally the fur trimming wouldn't look that terrible, bit some sacrifices had to be made.

"I'll search in this direction, you search in the other and we can meet back here."

In Indigo's view, there's more to life than just surviving, even in a place like this. Survival takes priority, absolutely, but you have to find activities you enjoy, too. Thankfully, she's also enjoying the useful things as well; she needs to be kept busy.

"Alrighty. I'll shout if I find somethin' suitable." It helps that she's taken Kaiba's orders during a project before, even if they're more equal here. She raises a hand to wave, then puts her sword away and turns around to start her search.

Surviving was always paramount to Kaiba, even in his own dimension. That's why sometimes his own desires had to be put on hold for the benefit of securing his company, or protecting his brother. When he did make time for himself... Well.. he took that seriously too. Kaiba didn't really know how to relax.

"Likewise," It was a good thing, or she might have been irritated as he took charge of what had been her operation. It was still a mutual endeavor since she hadn't really relinquished anything. Kaiba began to comb the beach for something they could use, trying not to touch anything unidentifiable along the way.

While Indigo is a little better off in that she can let her 'hair' down and have fun, she doesn't know how to relax in the more traditional way, how to just sit back and... do nothing. The only time she's still in that sense is when she's asleep. So while it's not exactly the same situation, they do have something in common there.

Indigo strolls along the beach until she finds a bit of chain sticking out of a trash pile. Eagerly, she goes up and gives what she can see a quick examination; it's dirty, but not too rusty, and definitely thick enough to hold something the size of that robot down. All that's left is to see if it's long enough, so she starts pulling.

She manages to get a few feet out, but the rest is stubborn, as if it's caught in something or stuck in a knot. She can feel it wiggle when she tugs on it; it'll come if given enough force, but that's more force than she can muster right now. Perhaps she and Kaiba together... she yells for his attention, as she said she would.

"Over here!"

Perhaps that was in part why they seemed to be able to get along decently well. Being inactive would be tedious for the pair of them. Still, he could learn a little more from Indigo about easing up once and a while and... well.. being a little more cordial to others.

Passing by a few toasters, and a sofa cushion neither of which seem to be hiding chains beside them, he goes a little further off. Finding what looks to be a crowbar, he debates taking it anyway even if it has no immediate use. That gets placed aside when he hears her calling out. Sparing it a glance, he left the object in order to go see just what it is Indigo has found.

Once he arrives at her location it isn't too difficult to see that she's in a bind. A minor one, but a bind nonetheless.

"Well- you did find a chain." He offered not so helpfully, before moving towards the end still somewhat concealed by the terrain. Although it was a little distasteful, he set to work removing some of the wet sand around the chain first, before they could try tugging on it again. Had it been dry it wouldn't been nearly as heavy.

"I don't think a rope would last long out here, so a chain's all there is to find." Or a cable, perhaps? Wire? Still, a chain is the closest metallic thing to a rope and the easiest thing to use for their purposes.

He's not squeamish about getting sand on that pretty white coat of his, is he? Especially since there's an ocean right there for washing it off. There's not much room around where's digging at the sand, so Indigo stands back until he starts pulling. Then she joins in, planting her feet and pulling on the chain with all her might.

To that portion, Kaiba didn't respond. It wasn't necessary, even though he hadn't been expecting her to find much else. It might have been possible however given the pristine quality the appliances usually sported. The less said about natural weathering processes the better in this instance.

A bit. Kaiba was careful not to fling the particles onto his fussy person. When it looks like enough has been cleared away, he rights himself and moves off a pace. Then he gets a grip on it and tugs. "It's really stuck in there...".

With her aide it does seem to start sliding free.

"Well, see it this way," Indigo gets out between tugs, slowly but steadily pulling the chain free. "If it ain't breakin' even with all this, I bet that fluffy critter won't be able to break out of it either." They've pulled enough out to know that it's definitely long enough for their purposes, at least; not that a shorter chain is useless, but just not what they're looking for right now.

"Mm, it should serve our purposes.." Briefly Kaiba found himself considered whether this was the most humane way to go about this, or not. The monster was literally made of metal, so this chain shouldn't, in theory, cause it too much discomfort. Geeze, what was he saying. The beast was trying to tear into Indigo a few minutes ago and would have taken a go at him if it had been given half a chance.

"We could leave the rest of it buried, that way it would have an anchor point. Then we'd just need something else to fasten it to." Realizing that if it wasn't secured tightly it wouldn't do any of them any good. He stopped pulling on the chain.

"Lemme see what I can find." Dropping the chain, Indigo makes her way back to the pile of trash and digs around in it again. Eventually she finds a huge nail, easily the size of a large dagger, thick enough to wrap your first around, the kind you'd find on a railroad. It's slightly bent, and in her other hand she holds another find: The head of a sledgehammer. No handle or anything, just the head.

"That oughtta do if you can get it buried in somethin' solid like what the chain was stuck in. You do that, and I'll go grab the scissors, alright?" She hands the nail and solid chunk of metal to Kaiba, then waves before running off again.

What she returns with isn't in the most pristine condition, but he will figure something out. He tries not to look down his nose too much at a bent railroad spike and a handle-less hammer. It's not like either one of them had the luxury of heading to a store for obtaining anything better. So he accepted the items graciously. “Alright... I'll... deal with this.” Without the scissors the rest was pointless besides. As Indigo darted off once more, he set to work on straightening the nail. He rested it against some metal siding, before trying to bend it with strikes from the hammer head.

It was awkward and unwieldy, so he scanned for something to fasten it to. Some pvc pipe ended up serving this purpose. He temporarily sacrificed the access belts from his attire to fasten the hammer to the rod.

Great. He always wanted to live like he was in Swiss Family Robinson....not. The most pressing issue was fastening the other end of the chain. It wouldn't be able to be as imbedded as the other end which was problematic. Still he found something that felt solid and set to work on it. He would likely have it in place before her return, depending on just how far these scissors were located.

After everything that happened down here, Indigo is a little reluctant to return to the tunnels. But she's not as off-put by the scenery as most folks here; she's been to flesh biomes before, this is nothing new (even if it does remind her of the Ruin a bit, and she has to quietly remind herself "It's just a flesh biome, not the Ruin" every so often).

But it does help that she has a project to focus on, to keep her mind off the creepiness of the surroundings... even it involves observing creepy surroundings very closely. With paper, pencil, and improvised clipboard in hand... she's making a map of Mementos. And since she serves as her own light source, she doesn't even have to monopolize a hand with a flashlight or lantern.

Every so often, she drops a random small piece of trash to serve as a marker of where she's already been; she wouldn't put it past this place to change its layout on her, and the markers will help prove that if it does, or find her way back if it doesn't and she somehow gets lost. Where there are tracks, she measures the relative lengths of the tunnels by counting the crossties; and after adjusting her stride to be the same length as between the ties, she uses her own footsteps where there are no tracks -- though of course, it's less accurate. If only she had some actual surveying equipment, so she could be assured of the accuracy of her map.

November Prompts

1. Something about Music and Savage Beasts (Mt. Silver)

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

2. Sleeping in the Bath (Wall Market Bathhouse, ladies only for this one for obvious reasons)

3. There's Got to be a Better Way (Takoba Beach)

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

4. Mapping the Heart (Mementos)