markofthebrave | [ Action, Voice ] .019

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[ Action, Voice ] .019

[The past few days have been good for Katara. The happy from mending her rift with Sanji hasn't faded, rather it has turned into a sort of muted contentment and being outside and with good company was good for the soul.

Of course, not everyone was having such a good time... but she couldn't really blame Caesar for that, considering the way he'd shown up. Everyone else seemed to be... mostly getting along. And it was so nice to be doing that which felt a little bit more familiar.

Not to mention the fact that she's been able to spend so much time in and around the water. Just now, she was taking a swim after dinner. It was so good to be so close to so much water again - just feel it on her senses, tugging at her awareness. It was almost like home, but in a way that made her happy instead of sad - because she refused to be sad as long as she had a choice about it.

Getting up, she wrings the water out of her hair and bends the rest off before making her way towards her journal.

If you are out there camping, feel free to bump into her at the lake, or on her way back to the campsite!]

[ Voice, filtered from Yuber, Kefka, Aku, Mercury and Azula - 60 percent ]

I hope everyone's doing all right back at the village! It's beautiful out here.

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[He raises an eyebrow at her. That wasn't going to help him get dry.]

Why would I do that?

[She shrugs.] It would be fun?

[Pause.] You can swim, right?

Of course I can swim. It's just... been a while. [He looks over toward the lake. He was ready to say that he hadn't gone swimming since he got here, but that wasn't true. ...he's not going to mention that, though.]

So? Then now's the perfect time to take it up again. [A grin.] Besides - the water's right here. Your clothes are all the way back at camp.

[And she plays dirty.] You know. Where the rest of the people are.

[Well, it wasn't like he hadn't thought about that. It was part of the reason he hadn't tried to leave yet - there were too many people around. If Sokka or Hugo caught him, they'd definitely bug him about staying, and he didn't feel like putting up with people at all right now.

Caesar doesn't bother telling her what he's thinking, though. Instead, he'll just go ahead and start taking off his soaked jacket and shirt.]

I guess I have some time to kill.

[...and she figures that's the closest thing to an 'OK, Katara, I'd love to' that she is going to get. But she can't quite let it go, either.]

I guess so, considering you're here.

That's not why I'm here. [...he says as he tries to pull that shirt off over his head. Once that's done, he starts untying the laces on his boots.] And I meant time to kill before I'm outta here.

[Katara blinks - he's so skinny and scrawny! The only other time she'd seen people like this, they'd been in a fishing village surrounded by polluted water. But Caesar ate, she knew he did, so why--]

Um - you know if you really want to go back, I'll take you, right?

[That is definitely the sight of a boy who has spent his entire life studying and not doing enough physical activity.]

You don't have to do that. [It was probably a terrible idea to leave by himself, especially when it was getting dark out, but he didn't care.] Besides, it's cooler to disappear without saying a word.

[...cooler?] Uh. No. Not unless you think it's 'cool' to have everyone in camp panicking and looking all over for you.

[C'mon, Caesar, you're a stratagist - you should see where that would be bad, right?]

I know, I know, everyone will be terribly worried, but that's a risk I'm willing to take. [Only not really. Everyone knows he doesn't want to be there, so he doesn't think it'll be surprising to anyone who actually, you know. Thinks about it. But he's almost ready to go in the water!]

[...She didn't think you were that much of a jerk, Caesar. Then again, your actions are contradicting your words, so she's not exactly sure what to make of you right now.]

That wouldn't be all there was to it - the woods are dangerous by yourself, especially at night. [She meets his gaze.] If you're miserable out here, I really wouldn't mind taking you back early. But you shouldn't risk yourself just because you want to get back at Sokka and Hugo. You'd be putting them in danger too, making everyone spread out to look for you like that...

[She just wanted to invite him to come and have fun, but hearing him talk about endangering everyone so carelessly really just bothers her - she'd thought better of him than that.]

You misunderstand. It's not about "getting back" at anyone. I don't believe in that. [He'd be more offended that she'd jump to such a conclusion, but, well. This isn't war. He's going to go ahead and slip into the water next to her since he's already ready for that.] And I'm not risking anything. The odds of me actually running into trouble? Not very high.

...So in other words... [And she splashes at him lightly, not using any bending.] You just have no idea what you're up against out here. I mean, sure, it's not the artic - but nature doesn't care if you live or die. Say you start back to town, following the river - and twist your ankle, because it's dark and you can't see where you're going. You fall into the river. It's freezing, but you manage to drag yourself out of it. Now you're soaked, frozen, and crippled - you can't move anywhere or do anything. Then what do you do? I mean, after all - it's not much risk. It's just a twisted ankle. But out in the woods, alone...

You are such a city boy, aren't you.

[He flinches at the splash.] That wouldn't happen. [And he doesn't bother to justify that last part. Not just a city boy, but a nobleman at that, even if you'd never guess it. Instead, he just takes a breath and dunks his head under the water. He's probably just going to... stay down, holding his breath for a few seconds before coming back up.]

[...he really has no idea what he's talking about. And that's okay - she'll be watching now, anyway. If he has to go, she'll follow along. She'll wait for him to surface before asking:] So what's it about, then?

[When he does, he takes another breath and brushes the wet hair out of his face (it was good that he got it trimmed, or it would have been much more messy). He's quiet as he considers how to answer her question.]

How do I put this...? I suppose it's a matter of respect. Or lack thereof.

[She is following you, but... only so far.] What do you mean?

Exactly what it sounds like. No one takes me very seriously. I suppose it's not an issue right now, but... [He sinks a little into the water. Though his brother pointed it out, not even he knew that this actually bothered Caesar.]

[Well. She wasn't expecting that at all. Her brows furrow in concern.] Takes you seriously how?

[He tilts his head. Since it's the first time he's actually had to voice this concern to anyone, he's struggling to find the words.] Uh... Well, there may come a time when I need to act professionally, understand? But if my own roommates can't take me seriously, how can I except the rest of the village to when I have to give them orders?

Edited 2010-06-10 04:17 (UTC)

Oh. [She studies him.] This has been bothering you for a while, huh? What makes you think your roommates can't take you seriously?

Something like that. [read: Yes. These were the kinds of things he'd tell Apple about, but without his tutor, there were very few he could talk to. That, and talking to his brother was still weird.] Um... That's a long story. But if those people don't listen to me when I say no, I don't want to go on this stupid camping trip, are they going to listen to me when I tell them what they need to do to protect this place?

[Heh.] I think that you're overthinking it. They were wrong to drag you out here when you didn't want to go - but they didn't drag you out here because they didn't respect you. They dragged you out here because they wanted you to have fun, and so you could be with them.

Just because they did that doesn't mean that they won't listen to you on the battlefield. They're not the same thing, Caesar. I mean, you see me with Sokka, right?

[He shakes his head. That wasn't it.] It might not mean they won't listen, but it can still have a negative effect on how they view the things I say. Will they follow my orders to the point, or will they decide to do as they please, simply because I'm the one telling them? That's the kind of risk I can't take.

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