[CENTER][h1][color=B3ADAB][b]CATHERINE CORIANDER[/b][/color][/h1][/center][hr][b]Outskirts of Tune Town, Melody Island, East Blue[/b][hr]Habit fluttering against the rough wind, Coriander pushed her way through the gusty weather as she left the church. Bible clutched tightly in one arm, her other hand keeping her coif and veil pinned to her head, her struggle was upwind. Leaves brushing past her and shuffling against her face, she wondered from what divine mood these winds billowed. Were they angry? Mournful? Lonely? Desperate for change? She could only speak for herself, and she was rather annoyed, for the slight humidity they carried wasn’t enough to make up for the worrying lack of rain. And more importantly, she was going to be [i]tired[/i] by the time she got home, which would make it all the more annoying to do the reading Mother Basil had assigned. She was way more interested in finishing the last chapter of Journey to the Bottom of the World, frankly.

From dirt path to main road, Coriander found that the more open areas were a bit less windy compared to the tree strewn path to the old church. And out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a flash of pale green hair going off, and fast. [color=B3ADAB]“Pepper?”[/color] she muttered, wondering where she had been off to in such a hurry. And seeing that back, shrinking into the distance, she traced it backwards, seeing footsteps in the dirt made with force behind them, something abnormal for the considerate young girl. Sensing something wrong, she turned about, following the footsteps backwards. Passing through the treeline, as she went down a dirt path even more unused than the one to the church, her eyes widened and paced quickened as she realized where she’d come from.

“-then I’m not gonna hang out with you either!” Coriander heard Cassia as she approached. She was honestly shocked: he [i]never[/i] raised his voice.

“Eehhhhhh? Cassia likes Peppermint!” Rue laughed, pointing.

“You guys are being mean!” Cassia shouted.

“She should be used to it now,” Sorrel muttered, pinky in his nose.

“We cycle through everyone, and she’s being an extra annoying-” Verbena said, stopping dead when he saw the teen girl appear behind Cassia, Coriander’s expression ruinous.

[color=B3ADAB]“You shouldn’t be mean at all! And keep it down,”[/color] she hissed, eyes glancing to the nearby house, one well out of the way. The kids were parked near some brush and a nice sized tree: an obvious lookout spot, but they’d thrown caution and stealth to the side in their argument.

Cassia turned about, speaking in a raised whisper, “They wanted to spy on Mr. Ryu and Peppermint didn’t want to since it was bad, so they said they were never gonna be friends with Peppermint again.”

“Snitch,” Rue pouted, sticking her tongue out.

Coriander put a hand on Cassia’s head, rubbing his hair before turning on the other three. [color=B3ADAB]“You guys are the ones who are gonna lose out if Peppermint stops being your friend you know.”[/color]

“Nuh-uh, she’s always getting us in trouble, goody two-shoes Marine wannabe,” Verbena muttered.

“And she’s scary! You were there yesterday!” Sorrel added.

[color=B3ADAB]“She’s not scary she’s cool! People in the Grand Line do that kinda stuff all the time!”[/color]

“Yeah, but she’s a little girl, not a cool adventurer, it’s weird!” Sorrel grumbled.

“She can do whatever she wants and she wants to be [i]lame[/i]!” Rue sneered.

Coriander felt her face crinkle in her glare. [color=B3ADAB]“That why she’s good! Great even! I would have loved to be her friend at your age!”[/color]

“Huh, how is that good?” Verbena grunted.

Coriander puffed out her chest. [color=B3ADAB]“She’s great! She doesn’t even break stuff as much as you guys, or me, she doesn’t complain at all about living alone. Having the strength to do whatever you want and choosing to protect the people you care about is what makes a Marine! You guys-”[/color]

“WILL YOU PIPE DOWN ALREADY!” came a roar from the nearby house. The kids jump, scrambling behind Coriander as the door swung open, the teen girl clapping a hand over her mouth. Stepping out into the open, the door was swung shut by the wind behind him, as an old man with mid length dark gray hair from the back half of his otherwise bald head and a full goatee stared them down with blazing black eyes. A long tan overcoat coat trailing over a black shirt and jeans, Coriander had never seen Ryu Burnet [Village Hermit, Militia Captain] in a good mood.

“Coriander, right? You got a good reason for raising a ruckus outside of my front door?” Burnet asked coldly.

Bowing her head, Coriander explained, [color=B3ADAB]“I’m sorry! The kids were snooping and being little devils, so-”[/color] Coriander stopped, glancing down to see that Sorrel, Verbena, and Rue had slipped away, Cassia clutching her habit as he hid behind her. Turning about, she saw the trio skittering off. [color=B3ADAB]“Oh you little [b]brats[/b], you’re gonna get it!”[/color]

“They had the right idea. Get gone. I don’t want the religion you’re selling.” Coriander looked down at the bible in her hands, shifting it to behind her back with an awkward glance aside. “And don’t go filling that girl’s head with the cockamamie you were just spouting about the Marines. It’s not good for her.”

Coriander balked. [color=B3ADAB]“Huh? The Marines protect us! What do you know?”[/color]

Burnet glared, Coriander flinching back. Shaking his head, he muttered, “Never mind, let her do whatever she wants, just don’t come around here again unless you have a good reason. Tell that to the other kids too.” With a click of his tongue, he turned back, opening the door and slamming it shut behind him, leaving Coriander and Cassia to their lonesome.

Hand on her hip, Coriander muttered in derision at the crotchety old fart, [color=B3ADAB]“Well!”[/color][COLOR=8FBDF2][center][h2]A Windy Day of Melody:[/h2][h1]The Hermit and the Ogre Girl[/h1][/center][/color][hr]”What was that!?” came a muffled shout from the house. Without only a little panic, Coriander scrambled off, pulling Cassia along in her evacuation.