Asura

Heiseina: Memories Long Forgotten

SEIMEI KEIKO

_{tags - @Hero}

---

"Of course there's always work to be done. The only other smith in the village is a lush." Keiko responded in her usual matter-of-factly manner, regardless of how uncouth it was to insult a man while dallying on his property. It wasn't like the old man was around to defend himself if he could even manage it at such an early, hangover-laden hour. As she greedily deposited the last few wedges of her orange into her mouth, the girl dismounted from the workbench she had claimed as a seat, making her way over to the table Tsubasa had just finished before her unexpected arrival. She poked at it with a toe, as if to test the strength of the structure with such a minimal use of force.

"Wonder what the old man is doing that requires such a sturdy table. Or who, I guess. Never know with old lechers," She mused conspiratorially as she chewed, although she couldn't quite follow the train of thought too far. Instead, her musings were interrupted by Tsubasa inflicting a wound of his own upon her pride. An unknowing redress for her teasing, perhaps. She swallowed down the remnants of her carefully cultivated treat before peering up at the taller male.

"Nope. I never do. I never have anyone to go with, so I usually spend most of the festival back at the tower, waiting for it to end so everything goes back to normal," Despite the sorrowful tale she told, she remained indifferent as ever in tone and expression, "I'm not even sure what people get up to for most of it if I'm honest. I guess it must be pretty enjoyable... but I wouldn't know."

She made just a few steps forward, pushing herself up onto her very tiptoes to get more on level with Tsubasa. Only then did the slightest glimpse of mischief start to shine through her big brown eyes.

"Unless that was your way of asking whether or not I'd be interested in going to the festival with you. Is that why you ask? Did you want to take me? Huh? Did you? Did you really?"

Heiseina: Memories Long Forgotten

SEIMEI KEIKO

_{tags - @Hero}

---

"You're welcome."

Keiko couldn't help but grin just a little devilishly as she watched Tsubasa try and shift the subject from her would-be seduction to the fruit before the two of them. It was almost kind of cute, how flustered a little bit of teasing had gotten him. She had expected him to be more resistant to such things—half the village's girls gave him doe eyes, after all—but it seemed she had been wrong in her assessment. She hefted up the other orange as he peeled away at his own, digging her fingers into the smooth flesh to peel away the rind until the soft flesh within was revealed.

"Bold of you to assume people would want to buy from me. I'm pretty sure half the village still thinks I'm some kind of yokai. Certainly wish I was, maybe I'd start getting offerings instead of rude gossip," She retorted, pulling a wedge from the fruit and popping it into her mouth, "Still, maybe I'll give it a try. It would piss old man Moriyama off something severe if people started buying their fruit from me instead of him."

The impish apprentice kicked her legs back and forth with just a little more force, chewing the juicy piece of citrus thoughtfully as her eyes danced from here to there, taking in the sights of the forge. It seemed Tsubasa had been rather busy despite the earliness of the morning. She was almost jealous of that, as absolutely bizarre as it sounded. He had plenty of matters to attend to, so he didn't have to deal with such consuming boredom all day as she did. Of course, he probably had an actual life to lead outside the forge, so maybe it was unfair to compare their situations, but acknowledging that didn't make her doldrums any easier to deal with.

"You get an awful lot of work during festival season, huh?" Keiko asked, making little more than idle conversation while she enjoyed her treat, "I would think people have better things to worry about than... fencing? During a time of celebration."

Heiseina: Memories Long Forgotten

SEIMEI KEIKO

_{tags - @Hero}

---

Keiko couldn't help but grin a little deviously as she watched Tsubasa jump at her little prank. It was a good reminder of why she bothered to come out this way as often as she did. He was as gullible as any of the yokels laboring out in the rice paddies, but a heck of a lot nicer when he found out he was being had. Despite her antics, she had been as well received as she ever was at the blacksmith's forge. There was the matter of that obnoxious nickname Tsubasa had always used for her as if she were some kind of child, but she had never managed to get him to stop for more than a day or two at a time. Another reason for her to continue picking on him whenever she had the opportunity.

"That makes one of us." She answered his pleasantries nonchalantly, dangling her feet off the side of his workshop as she did. For all his politeness, the blacksmith's apprentice seemed usually vigilant in his appraisal of her. She couldn't understand why, of course, and that only proved to vex her. She dressed more or less the same way every time they saw each other, and it wasn't like she prettied herself up before leaving home like a lot of the girls in town. Her natural curiosity caused her to trace the line of his eyes, just a few moments before he hastily looked away. Her eyebrows rose as she glanced down and found the source of his fascination.

It seemed as though there had been a misunderstanding. One which was wonderfully exploitable. Would that she could force a flush into her cheeks.

"I was wondering when you'd notice, honestly. It's kind of flattering that you did. Not many people pay that much attention to me..." Like flicking a switch, the smug little grin that constantly adorned her features had been replaced with something more... flirtatious.

She fluttered her eyelashes just a little like half the village girls did when they talked to Tsubasa. In truth, she didn't think he would so much as notice it. He always seemed a little oblivious to their gazes and flirtations, but that didn't matter. He would surely pay attention to the finger she trailed along the hem of her kimono, tugging enticingly on it as she continued.

"They just came in this spring. Bigger than I could have ever hoped, although I guess you've already noticed that," A giggle followed that one, airy and soft as she could make it, "Would you like to see them? I'd let you if you wanted. I'd even let you taste them before anyone else has the chance to."

She bit her lower lip at that point, excitement burning in her eyes as the incessant tugging she had been doing on her garment bore fruit. It began to pull away, the outer layer giving way to the cold air outside. She pulled and pulled until it all came spilling out for him, what Tsubasa's gaze had been on since he first laid eyes on her: a couple of oranges, which proceeded to roll down her chest and into her lap. Her expression returned to its vague disinterest just as they did, abandoning all pretense of seduction as slid her kimono back into its proper position. With her other hand, she seized one of the fruits and tossed it toward him.

"Itadakimasu."

Heiseina: Memories Long Forgotten

SEIMEI KEIKO

_{tags - @Hero}

---

The trip from the tower to the village proper wasn't long, but it was just scenic enough that Keiko sometimes wished it was, ignoring that she didn't tend to enjoy her time in town to begin with. Even from her place on the outskirts, she could see folks bustling back and forth, partaking in the aforementioned lantern hanging and bean scattering and all manner of festivity. She tried her best not to look sour about it, as if any of them particularly cared. After all, it was a bright, crisp morning. She had enough fruit to sate her all through the afternoon, and she had all the time in the world to do as she wished. It was just finding what she wanted to do with all of it that was the problem. Luckily enough, as she wandered the streets and pondered the issue, a distinct sound managed to snap her out of her contemplation.

Ting! Ting! Ting!

It was one relatively familiar to her. To everyone, in truth, as few in the valley knew how to work their metal. They all inevitably ended up at the town's smithy for all their needs, although ironwork was scarcely what brought Keiko to the humble little forge. The proprietor's nephew, Tsubasa, was something of an acquaintance of hers. She had been picking on him since his folks sent him waddling up the hill to learn how to Sign, and long after his time at the tower ended after an especially amusing incident involving an old tome and her mother's enduring wrath. To the lad's credit, if she even had the right to call him a lad, he had always taken her teasing in stride. An unfortunate thing, as it only encouraged her to keep doing it.

Before she knew it her feet had taken her towards the market square, and ever closer to the source of the sound. As she caught sight of the young man hard at work, she grinned wickedly. She had always prided herself on her light-footed nature, but it was so rare she even needed to sneak up on him. He always got so absorbed in his craft that she probably could have walked right on into the work area and he'd be none the wiser. It still didn't stop her from meticulously toeing her way towards the forge, careful to avoid his peripheral vision as approached from behind.

Only once she was within striking distance did she make her move. A quick pair of fingers reached up high to tap him on his right shoulder, just enough to get his attention. Then, nimble as could be, Keiko ducked to his left and hopped up onto the table beside his workspace, careful not to land her behind on any of the cooling works in the process.

"You lookin' for someone, pretty boy?" She asked cheekily as she kicked her legs back and forth, nonchalant as could be.

Heiseina: Memories Long Forgotten

SEIMEI KEIKO

_{tags - nobody}

---

Warm, comforting water. Thick, billowing clouds of fragrant steam. Soaking away one's woes on a chilly spring morning was something most of Heiseina's residents would probably relish. Most of the working sorts didn't have the luxury of bathing in the comforts of their own homes. Most probably preferred to do it in public anyway, where they could unwind and discuss all the little happenings of their sleepy village among friends and peers. Maybe that was why, even steeping with the smell of sweet citrus in her private tub, Keiko could not find solace from her melancholy. The Dance of the Serpent was upon them, a time of merriment and new beginnings when the villagers would be gathering together to celebrate Miorochi's return. For Keiko, it was nothing to look forward to. Every year, the festival only saw her sink into a black mood in the days leading up to and during. Witnessing friends and family line the streets, joking and playing, enjoying each others' company—it all served as a poignant reminder. A reminder that such things were absent from her life. She wouldn't have anybody to hang lanterns or exchange gifts with. If she was lucky, maybe her mother would accompany her to the shrine to leave an offering.

That would be the extent of her celebration. It always was.

The sullen thoughts swirling through her mind were far more bitter than any stray orange blossom floating about the bath water, and it didn't seem like a prolonged stay in the tub would help clear them. It was a foolish idea in the first place. Keiko knew herself. She was the type to get stir-crazy without things to do, and while she liked to busy herself whenever she slumped into dejection, the festival week had left her with no matters to attend to. Her mother had insisted she take the week off to celebrate the holiday and enjoy herself, either a cruel joke or a vain attempt to force the mending of bridges long since burnt. There was always studying, but she couldn't bring herself to retain the bounty of old tomes and scrolls in her current state.

A sigh, half of which came out of bubbling water, announced her rise from the bath. She couldn't just mope around home all day and expect it to lighten her mood. At least getting outside would provide a distraction, something for her to hone her mind in on aside from the gloom that had overtaken her. The splattering of water on smooth, cold stone filled an otherwise silent chamber as she stepped out of the wooden tub. The air was chilly despite the hot moisture that hung heavy in it, but that was trivial enough for her to overcome. She extended a thin finger and traced familiar symbols before her, a pale glow at its tip as she marked the space before her with two kanji. The glow brightened, then faded, and in its place, a gentle stream of hot air flowed from her digits. A flow she wasted no time turning on herself, sending droplets and wild strands of damp hair every which way.

If only it was as easy to Sign away her other problems.

___________________________________

As cold as it was inside, it somehow managed to be even colder when Keiko stepped outside. There had been some vague hope that the sun would have banished some of the chill in its benevolence, but that hope was quickly dashed. It would surely warm up as the day went on, but that was of little comfort to the Signkeeper's apprentice as she descended the stairs of the tower and made her way around the side of the landmark she called home. There was one small treat waiting there for her—the fruits of her labor in seasons past, in the most literal sense. She had managed to convince her mother to plant a garden behind their illustrious home, ostensibly so that the many young farmers who came to practice their Growth signs had something to practice on. In truth, she simply wanted to have fresh fruit on hand to sate her sweet tooth whenever she wanted.

She had set about raising six trees in the year or two prior, and raise them she had. They were already taller than her, and producing fruit despite the unseasonably cold weather, a result of her daily tending as much as it was the valley's fertile soil. Even as she approached the largest of the bunch she could see fat, ocher fruits hanging from its many limbs. Big enough to be her breakfast, for sure. Maybe even big enough to be taken into the village on market day. She wanted for relatively little, but there was usually something interesting to bargain for, and if nothing else, she could always gloat at those sour-faced Moriyama about how much more productive her fledgling grove was compared to their own.

They would also make thoughtful gifts, she couldn't help but think as she plucked one, then another from its branches. Not that she had anybody, in particular, to hand them out to. But the matriarch of her little clan had been stressing in the months prior about turning over a new leaf. She wasn't a little girl anymore, she said. It was time to start making connections. To turn set down some real roots. She would be the village's Signkeeper eventually. Heiseina was her home.

"Tch."

Keiko couldn't contain her cynicism at the thought. An armful of oranges wasn't going to undo a lifetime of ostracism. If the villagers wanted to make friends with their would-be Signkeeper, they could do it on their own. Maybe if they were lucky she would forgive them.

Maybe.

Satisfied she had picked the ripest of the bunch, the girl tucked what extras she had into the folds of her kimono for safekeeping, holding the finest of their lot held between slim fingers. She tore into its unblemished exterior with them, peeling back the outside with just a deal more aggression than she had intended. The catharsis it provided, however mild, was enough to pull her from the downward spiral of her thoughts, and she feasted upon the pulpy flesh within, one wedge at a time, as she set off in the direction of the village. Perhaps the walk there would clear her head, and if not, well, at least she was in good company for the journey.

Heiseina: Memories Long Forgotten

Seimei Keiko

SEIMEI KEIKO
晴明 恵子

_______________________________________________ // INFO Name Seimei Keiko Age Eighteen Gender Female Occupation Apprentice Signkeeper // PERSONALITY Mischievous Keiko is most defined by her impish nature. She is playful, sharp-tongued, and always looking for ways to amuse herself. Her mischief rarely reaches the level of malice, but she takes great joy in teasing her peers and cracking jokes at their expense. Her puckish nature has earned her few friends, but she insists it doesn't bother her, as those who can't handle a little naughtiness probably wouldn't be fun to spend time around anyway. Or so she tells herself. Impulsive Despite her best efforts, Keiko is something of a wild child. Chock full of bravado, she is foolhardy and rash, often letting her temper and impetuousness get the better of her. Her uninhibited character often leads her to act or speak without thinking through the consequences, then use her quick wit to justify her behavior after the fact and talk her way out of those consequences. Cynical For all bluster and glee she exudes, Keiko is a deeply suspicious person. She has, for as long as she can remember, been ostracized by her community in some form or another, and she has taken that distrust to heart. She jests and she ridicules as easily as she breathes, but she does not let others close enough to see her true feelings in a manner. She has a hard time trusting the intentions of others, and will almost always assume the worst of a person's actions if not given adequate evidence in short order—a dangerous combination when paired with her hot temper. // SKILLSET Clever While her demeanor wouldn't lead one to believe so, Keiko possesses a sharp mind and an equally quick wit. It makes her a fast learner and a gifted student, able to pick up new skills and tricks quicker than others her age. The acuity of her mind also allows her to come up with solutions to problems on the fly, or remember minuscule details that could be of help long after the fact. Sign Adept Possessing both talent and the privilege to learn at her mother's knee since she was small, Keiko is quite skilled with the usage of Signs. As the future Signkeeper of the valley, her repertoire is quite deep when compared to most inhabitants of the village, and she makes good use of what she knows, even going as far as to use multiple Signs in tandem to achieve more complex effects. Lightfooted As to be expected of someone with a trickster's nature, Keiko is especially light on her feet. She is swift, dexterous, and most of all stealthy. She has little trouble going unnoticed on the rare occasions that she wants to be and tends to slink off during (occasionally manufactured) distractions to avoid the duties she would rather not handle.

Physical Description Despite the larger-than-life persona she tries to project, Keiko is quite the opposite. Standing at only five feet in height, she is shorter than most girls in the valley and fittingly lithe. Her features are soft and child-like, accentuated by her large, chestnut-colored eyes that twinkle with usually playful mirth. Framing her curiously innocent profile is an untidy mane of dark, lustrous brown hair, always sticking up this way and that, just as wild as the girl who bears it. The thick locks help highlight the relative paleness of her skin by comparison, smooth and unblemished despite the dirt beneath her fingernails or the devil-may-care manner she carries herself. Her complexion is an indication of her scholarly background and one of the few she bears. Despite her potential for beauty, Keiko does not consider herself to be especially feminine and does not dress as such. Her wardrobe is typically comprised of loose, comfortable kimono of a subdued color paired with the typical, tucked hakama of the village's laborers. Knee-length black tabi and accompanying straw sandals clad her delicate feet, and she usually dawns a long, sleeveless haori when out and about in the village, the mon of her adoptive family painstakingly sewn into its back. Character Conceptualization Keiko's story is one of an outsider. Having been born beyond the idyllic peace of the village, in a hamlet that as far as anyone knows, or will ever know, befell some sad fate or another, Keiko was dealt the black mark of a stranger despite having only ever known the lake and fields of Heiseina. She was but a toddler when she arrived, brought home by the village's Signkeeper one chilly fall day and taken in as a daughter despite their lack of relation. In all ways, she was raised as a Seimei, a respected family of lore keepers who had for generations carefully cataloged and disseminated the Signs that kept life in Heiseina running smoothly. Yet she was never quite afforded the respect of her mother or late grandfather. In a community so small and traditional, any external entity was met with suspicion. Suspicion which colored the young girl's view of the utopia she called home from the earliest years. It made raising an already difficult little girl all the harder. Precocious from the get-go, Keiko proved herself to be a bright, willful child. One who was aware enough to recognize the scorn that was leveled her way and respond in kind. She quickly developed the reputation of a troublesome little nuisance, despite her mother's best attempts to keep her in line while simultaneously fulfilling her duties as Signkeeper. Acting out was all the young Keiko could do to rebel against the injustices she felt. Heiseina was a picturesque settlement, after all, where everybody knew everybody and everyone got along. But nobody seemed to want to get along with her. Just as they rejected her, she rejected them, and her developmental years were marked by an ever-growing divide as her actions worked to further ostracized her from her peers and their families. It wasn't until she was eight or nine years old when she began her Sign training that things began to change, however slightly. Rambunctious as she was, her mother had deemed that she should begin putting her excess energy into learning the family's trade, an excellent decision in hindsight. Inquisitive as she was wont to be, Keiko took to Signcraft like a duck to water. It occupied her keen mind and provided her an avenue for praise in place of the scolding she had become accustomed to. More importantly, it also sent a message to the community; she would be a useful contributor to the village as a whole, and would one day succeed her mother in her capacity of Signkeeper. As she grew from troublesome girl to quarrelsome young woman, Signcraft became her outlet and haven, something she excelled at that gave her worth, and made others acknowledge her even if they had misgivings in accepting her. But no longer is she a girl. Now a woman grown, Keiko must contend with a fast-approaching future. One of responsibility and dignity, of finding acceptance and belonging among those she had subtly railed against her entire life. If only she knew just how important finding that acceptance would be, in the trials to come. Other Information Cooler than you.

Heiseina: Memories Long Forgotten

Pokémon Showdown! [Invite Only]

Sirius Leverant

_{Interacting with: @Lemons — Location: School Hallways}

---

There was a brief moment, a small, fleeting few seconds where Sirius was almost worried. The wide, stupid grin that plastered itself across the face of the girl—or obstacle, really—that he had crashed into might've indicated the impact had knocked all sense out of her head. The words which came pouring out of her mouth soothed those near-worries: there surely hadn't been any sense rattling around in her skull even before she found herself bowled over like so many pins. Like most of his 'peers', he hadn't bothered to learn her name. Not until she all but foisted it onto him in her hurried little introduction, so over eager that she hadn't even deigned to wait for a response in kind before firing off more inane banter. Perhaps that was what qualified as manners in the backwater that was forsaken Mistralton.

He watched her with cool, disinterested eyes as she hurriedly backpedaled down the hall, content enough to disdain her from afar as she went back to whatever business such an... excitable girl managed to get up to. But his contentment was short lived. So caught up in his own contempt, it only donned on him after she insisted he hurry along that they hadn't been going in opposite directions when they collided, but rather the same direction. His disinterest turned to alarm, and then just as quickly to indignation.

"Oh, no no no. Do not tell me you are on this year's battle team," He could practically feel the scorn rolling off his tongue as he was finally moved to speak, "You can't even dodge a passerby! I'd hate to see how your Pokemon fare against actual moves."

Final Fantasy: Lightseekers

Just to be clear, the Mystral live in matriarchal tribes, right? Because the OOC says patriarchal but the men are all chased off.

Final Fantasy: Lightseekers

Had a doctor's appointment to settle today, will have something out tomorrow.