“I’m not really interested in any surprises for my birthday,” he dismissed it more often due to getting older. Maybe also due to his ‘mother’ always trying to push things on him when he was younger. “But thank you. I appreciate the gesture.”
“It’s really not that much of a surprise,” Asuka says, pushing the box of expensive cologne and silver cufflinks towards him, “just a simple birthday gift.
“Although...I have to wonder what we’re doing here if you hate surprises so much.”
‘Here’ meaning the airport. She leans back in her seat, glancing at the planes outside the large windows.
“Asking me to pack, then to meet you here. What are you planning, Connor?”
"Hey, Con." She puts up a smile for him, hoping not to show how she feels. "You've probably heard about it by now, but here, the wedding invitation."
One that she wants no part in. Her insides twist, the buried rage seething in her guts at being forced to even do this in the first place. Asuka knows, logically that it's a bad idea to invite Connor there. A yakuza wedding is a risky affair, after all, not to mention the chaos that will undoubtedly occur there.
The invitation is typed on glossy paper, with cursive, fancy letters. She flips it over a few times, briefly contemplating the names written on it before handing it over. Her smile returns, though this time she can't quite make it as genuine as before.
Asuka accepts the strawberries with a murmur of thanks and a look of surprise. Red and inviting, she can't resist popping one in her mouth. Pleasant surprise overtakes her as sweetness burst in her mouth, followed by the mild tang of sour aftertaste. She swallows, and after making sure there aren't any mess on her face, she enters. The guard who has escorted her announced her presence as if she was in a banquet.
She isn't sure what to expect, but the Sun King in front of her, seated in a gold chair, is not as severe as she has imagined. Despite having only have arrived here this morning, she's heard of his exploits; of banishing the dreaded Snow King and taking the throne for himself.
She curtsies as best as she can, in her dancer's open-front skirt, holding the strawberries in one hand. Though gold accessories adorn her form she still feels out of place, odd to be present in his private audience.
"I thank you for inviting me, and for the strawberries, Your Majesty. They're really good."
Asuka tries to offer him her best smile despite the nervous thundering of her heartbeat.
"For my performance at the royal palace, do you have a particular dance in mind you would like to see me perform?"
Chakrams fly through the air, sharp steel cutting fake dummies as the music rises to a crescendo. Asika twirls, weaving her feather fans right before her chakrams return to her hands. Around her the audience cheers, and she grins, triumphant, finding joy in the blood rushing through her.
The capital city of the Sun Kingdom is a great change of scenery. Asuka and her troupe have only been here for a day and a half, and she already prefers this over the cold and harsh landscapes of the northern territories.
With a final saber dance the fake dummies burst to pieces, and the audience erupts into rapturous applause. Asuka bows alongside her dance partner and the rest of her troupe, and after the crowd around them disperse, someone approaches. A soldier, judging from the uniform, and he salutes before handing Asuka a letter stamped with the royal seal.
"An invitation from His Majesty," the soldier says. "for the lady Asuka to perform for him at the royal palace."
She raises her brows. She's performed for royalties of other nations, heads of states of far away territories, but never alone! Her face twisting into a nervous expression, she can only wish that her dance moves execute properly.
Slowly, Asuka blinks awake. She can hear muffled words from inside the private room Corvus is staying in. Straightening up, she winces, feeling stiff muscles on her neck from the prolonged position--which was on Connor's shoulder. Realizing this, she jolts up, hotness evident on her cheeks. She quickly stands up.
"Uh, um, I'm gonna uh, walk around a bit,"
The words stutter as they leave her lips, a familiar shyness to him, she's sure, and she bolts walks off after giving him a wave. Once a good distance away from the private room, she sighs, leaning against the wall. Her thoughts turn to a certain someone she knows, back in Japan. Can he reverse a stroke? Though if he can turn spaghetti sauce back into tomatoes, Asuka supposes it's possible.
She is about to pull out her phone when she spots a strangely-dressed hospital staff. The woman was wearing scrubs, but they were pink, when everybody else is wearing blue. Her hair is dyed and let down, and it's clear that she is not someone who works here. Asuka tilts her head, gaze curious, when the woman turns her head and meets her eyes. The woman offers her a smile, before walking off, out of sight.
Oh well, if the woman thinks she's blending in well let her, it's none of Asuka's business.
Asuka takes a deep breath, feeling her heart pounding as her nerves go into overdrive. Though not her first acting job, this would be her first work in Hollywood. After retiring as an idol in Japan, she set her eyes to new horizons, and it led her here.
"I can do this," she mutters to herself.
She enters the studio. Almost immediately she is greeted by the sight of a busy set, the crew working hard to set things up for today's filming. The familiar sight is comforting, and she finds her nervousness starting to abate.
'I guess some things are just the same,'
The realization comes as a relief, and she can feel her tense muscles relaxing. In the distance, she can see some of the cast members, chatting before they inevitably get dragged off to get ready for filming. Among them of course, is her old--and embarrassing--celeb crush, Callum. With a swallow, she approaches them.
Connor looked over the artifact impressed as he always is. She finds the most interesting 'souvenirs' but he knows they are more than that. They are too valuable at times. " You always bring back the most exciting things." Connor smiled, setting the sculpt aside. "When do you go next? Is it alright if I tag along?" (Human post college)
Asuka’s brows rise in surprise. The furrow of her brows show just how hesitant she is, and she folds her arms, leaning against his desk.
“Hmm, I don’t know, things might get a little too dangerous,”
She thinks back on what usually happens during her trips. Beautiful sights, discovering ancient ruins, gunfights, getting lost and injured with the possibility of dying out in the wilderness.
“You sure you wanna come? I do have some business coming up soon in Rome.”
"I love you like Eros loved Psyche. With a golden arrow and a need to make you a goddess."
“Honestly, Callum...”
Her face is burning, red like a tomato as she covered it with her hands. She peeks at him through her fingers, her eyes narrowed in an embarrassed glare.
“That’s so cheesy! Where did you get that line from, a poetry book?”
Despite her protests, she hides a grin behind her hands.
Asuka merely blinks at his retort, not even taking it to heart. She’s too concerned for him to even take offense, her gaze lingering to the obvious fatigue in his appearance. She shakes her head.
“Even if you wanna take it out on me, it’s okay. Better than just bottling it all up.”
She sits down next to him. Silently, she listens, and in the end her fists are clenched.
“What the hell? This is fucked! Why would she say such things?”
In all honesty, Asuka wants to simply find Gen and give her a piece of her mind, but she can’t leave Connor alone right now. So she stays put, placing her hand on his shoulder.
“I got your back, Con. If there’s anything else you need, just say the word. I’m here.”
“Hey, Connor...I heard what happened. How are you holding up?”
It’s probably a dumb question but she doesn’t know what else to say. It feels like there’s a chaotic, conflicting storm of emotions brewing inside her, and she’s ashamed to admit that there is relief and joy somewhere in there. Her friend is going through a break up and here she is, feeling happy about it.
Food? Beds? The twins immediately perk up, looking up at the strange man with hopeful eyes, but their hands have not let go of each other's. It all seems too good to be true, for him to only wish for them not to roam around in exchange for shelter.
This man is a stranger, and mother has always taught them to be careful, to be wary of them. But they don't miss the way the man's expression softens, ever so slightly. And so with a silent glance at each other, they come to an agreement.
"Deal," says Killian, his eyes sharp and watching close as Ciara takes the man's hand.
Her other hand grasps her brother's, and together, all three hand in hand, they walk further into the abandoned castle. A long time ago it might have been beautiful, but now it's well on its way to becoming ruins. Dust and spiderwebs clutter the corners, and there are stray pieces of rubble. Ciara even caught some burn marks here and there.
The dining room is thankfully a bit less cluttered than the rest of the castle--or at least what the twins have seen of it, anyway. The long table in the middle of the room is intact, though the same fate unfortunately isn't shared with some of the chairs, which are either entirely missing or in pieces, leaving only four.
Ciara and Killian take their seats, and they aren't sure when they had drifted off to a doze, but the delicious smell of food woke them up promptly. It's a simple dish of meat and cream stew, but it feels like a feast made for kings to them. And the taste--
"This..." Killian blinks as he chews and swallows.
"This tastes just like how Mom makes it," Ciara finishes the thought for him.
Yet Asuka can’t even feel it in herself to be angry. No, she’s too busy feeling secondhand embarrassment.
Honestly, this is a bit too much!
It’s obvious that this chuuni really believes every edgy word that comes out of her mouth. Asuka averts her gaze; even looking at her is making her want to cringe.
Good thing Caleb arrived.
The woman who thinks herself as Death gets dragged off by security for consistently harrassing the grieving family and not contributing at all to the matter at hand, despite everyone trying to explain their perspective.
What was the point? If she was an all-seeing, all knowing person like she claimed, how could she not understand the simple concepts of human emotion? No one wanted her there, and she clearly wasnt getting the hint.
Channeling one of her oldest friends, Asuka sighs, “Good fucking grief.”
