Water, please? Thanks [P, NK]

Once Matsuri stated she was going to call for Hikage, which was apparently the giant cat's name, he couldn't fight the smile that returned to his face. It was strange, he could not recall much people capable of making him do so, at least not twice in one day. The only ones he knew of were his friend Lazuru and his little sister, Emi...wait. Emi. Shit. Although in his mind, he was going completely mad, his outwards appearance remained calm and slightly cheerful. What kind of older brother simply forgot about their precious little sister? How could he let his rainbow after a rainy day slip his mind?

I suppose you truly are a piece of crap.

Mugen nodded in response to the comment before hanging his head downwards, surprisingly agreeing with what was being said. As he did so, the white bangs from his hair cast a shadow over his eyes, gifting the boy with a bittersweet look due to the smile still plastered onto his face. Luckily, he was brought out of his small trance mere seconds after hearing Matsuri begin to mumble. It seemed as if she was...

"What...? Are you...cursing out a cat? Who the hell does that? ...And what the fuck is a Jashin?" he questioned, quickly whispering the last sentence. Of course, he meant no harm in what he said, and was very much curious. As stated before, this girl was indeed confusing to Mugen. However, she was interesting at the same time. He wanted to know more about this new phenomenon. The same phenomenon who made his face red, and made him smile. The same one who revealed reactions he had never seen before.

...Today was really weird, wasn't it?

The next group of words that managed to escape Matsuri's mouth had his head snap upwards to stare directly at the fellow adolescent. Without even realizing it, a large grin found its way to his lips. Friends...yes, they were friends. They really were.

"Yeah...yeah! Me too, Matsuri," he practically chirped, his sapphire orbs sparkling after saying his new friend's name.

That smile, again... There it was, that real smile that Matsuri knew wasn't a common sight. Her face still was set in her glower as she prodded Hikage, but inside there was a little more warmth mixed in with the usual cold bleakness that often engulfed her chest, so often she hardly noticed it by then. It was... It was nice. Mats was smiling inside and it was nice, and all because she made this near stranger smile too.

As Matsuri turned away from Hikage and back to Mugen, muttering as she had, the girl caught a glimpse of the boy's expression. He seemed... troubled, to say the least, but she hadn't said anything to set it off, right? Maybe it had to do with Suna? Maybe.... Maybe something happened, or he was dreading returning(?) to Suna? Then again, he did seem eager to go. This was definitely a subject to ponder - but, at a later time. Suri was careful not to show her thoughts as her actions continued.

Oh, but, it appeared that he heard her.

Wonderful.

Matsuri gaped for a moment, mouth opening and closing once, twice, three times to figure out what to say as a pink tint lit her cheeks. (What was up with the blushing?? She never did that!) Instead, Suri settled for narrowing her eyes slightly. "...Yeeesss.....Yes I am..." she replied slowly. "He knows what it meant..." This part was added in a harsher tone as he glanced once more at the sleeping lion, who was now flipping his tail in exaggerated annoyance. However, she turned back as the last part of his statement hit her.

Jashin-sama?? Oh hell! Ooh, hell! She hadn't meant to say that! Quick, she needed a cover! But, she couldn't...disrespect Jashin-sama... Would she have to be honest? There was no choice! With a surprised air about her and a fierce glint in her eyes, she exclaimed vigorously, "Jashin-sama is a merciful, just, and peaceful being! And violent! He is peaceful yet so violent! Jashin-sama is wonderful and amazing! He is kind to everyone who is kind to him! He kills the nonbelievers though... But it's okay! Jashin-sama is power! Jashin-sama is almighty! Jashin-sama is love! Jashin-sama is life! I, Matsuri Yukishima, am proud to call Jashin-sama my G-" But she couldn't do it. With hardly a second of hesitence, she finished with a less boisterous, "-olden retriever! He's a wonderful dog, really! Well, he was mine until he bit Hikage.....and Hikage bit him...and... he ran away...I miss my Jashin-sama..." Matsuri ended up trailing off, looking for-lone as her superb acting skills came into play. Superb indeed.

Nailed it.

So totally nailed it.

Right on the head.

Yep.

Maybe she didnt actually nail it so well... But at least she could keep a friend and not be punished by Jashin-sama! Jashin-sama!

Jashin-samaaaa!

Maybe she could tell the truth someday!

...Someday...

Anyhow, after all that weirdness, they were back to a blushing matsuri and a smiling Mugen. His smile brought a wide one to her own lips, one that reached her eyes and showed her teeth just barely, and she responded cheerily, "Good, Muu-kun!" Oh, but there it was again.

Matsuri covered her mouth with one hand, eyes wide. Nicknames? No! That wasn't normal! Right? Mats didn't know. "I-I mean...I meant..." she muttered through her fingers, before dropping her hand in defeat and looking off to the side. Air filled her cheeks, making her look like a chipmunk, before she puffed it out.

One thing after another, she swore.

"So you worship a dog?" he asked, raising a single brow in confusion, something he has been doing quite often. With the way she described this "Jashin-sama", it certainly seemed that she did. He had no right to decide what someone was and was to not worship. But...it was a dog, of all things. At the moment, he was slightly worried. Maybe he was wrong, though, and she didn't exalt a mutt. Perhaps it was simply a misinterpretation. That was a possibility considering how slow his brain could be at times. Or, most of the time.

He saw her smile, one only he must have caused, and the way her cheeks still retained a deep shade of red. It was a nice look on her, in Mugen's opinion. He wanted that look to stay. The moment she spoke, and the little nicknamed slipped out, the boy could feel his ears starting to burn instead of his cheeks. How strange.

"Muu-kun..." he breathed, as if trying it out himself. To say the least he...liked it. No one ever called him that before. All these new things were refreshing in his eyes...

The stupid grin on his face simply grew larger, the largest he had ever given to someone other than Emi in his entire lifetime, "Well, Matsu-chan, we better start heading out now." There, he returned the favor. Giving back what you owe was always the right course of action to take, was it not?

"But...do you need help with your pet, uh...Hikage was his name? Yeah, should I help you out with him?"

Matsuri just sort of....stared, at Mugen, for a second or two. Did...did he really buy that? He really bought that... Sure, it was good that her secret was safe, but now she had probably come off as ridiculous... What weighed more? Him potentially thinking of her as a freak, or keeping her horrible religion a secret? Matsuri proudly worshiped her Jashin-sama, but she also knew that it was an....uncommon religion to have. Yet, at the same time, this person was her...friend... So, she could at least tell a partial truth, right? Besides,

Matsuri sighed, frowning a little. "No... Jashin-sama isn't a dog, he's a god.... I'm a Jashinist, a follower of Jashin-sama..." she began quietly, but a bit of exasperated energy found it's way into her voice as she added, "Maah, it's just not a common religion is all...haha!" She looked at the floor as she spoke, scuffing the ground with her boot. A faraway look entered her eyes as she ended her words and for a few moments thereafter, Matsuri finding images of her past running ramped in her mind, but she quickly shook her head and dissipated them. A spark re-entered her darkened gems, but it was a little duller than before.

Mugen looked so embarrassed, yet so positively delighted, as he mumbled the name she gave to him. And it thrilled her. He had a big, dopey grin on his face, and Matsuri was simply thrilled.

Her glittering smile stretched nearly from ear to ear when he gave her a nickname as well. Matsu-chan! Ahiko had only ever used Suri-chan and Mats... It was nice. Matsuri could only nod when she said it was time to start heading out, shuffling where she stood. Ah, but then he mentioned Hikage.

Still beaming, she shook her head in an amused manner. "Nah... He'll get up when it's time. Speaking of..." Matsuri began, but trailed off near the end. Her gaze hardened for a moment as she stared at the lion passed out at her feet, before suddenly- "Hikage! Get the hell up, damnit!" Swearing was fun.


The lion groaned as if in pain, making a show of the way he rolled to his feet. However, when he finally stood, his stature was shocking. The top of Hikage's shoulder was but an inch below the top of the 5'1"Matsuri's head, the feline being nearly double the size of the average lion and extremely intimidating. Muscles ripped beneath his skin and overall, with the right expression, he would have been terrifying. But, he wasn't.

Instead, the lion looked bored ou of his wits and exhausted, though in truth he was simply lazy as all else. His electric blue eyes were half rolled back, his shoulders slumped and his lips so lax and loose he could have been a dog.

Matsuri just glared at him harder, having to strain to meet his mighty gaze. "Cut the shit, drama queen. A slug would be jealous of you," the girl proudly snapped. Hikage simply met the tiny lady's sights and tried to burn her to the ground with his stare....which was pretty unsuccessful.

Blowing the dramatic, ridiculous and lazy lion off, Matsuri turned back to Mugen and asked a question that had been burning in the bak of her mind for too long...

"Wanna ride?"

(Just gonna exit this post, so you can start the other topic at the gates.)

Ah, so she didn't actually worship an animal. That was a good thing, it meant his assumption of it all being a misinterpretation wasn't too far off...right? Well, he certainly hoped so, but hoping could only get someone so far. He then lightly tapped his chin while humming in thought. She was right in the sense of it not being common, he had never heard of any "Jashin-sama" up until now. The only problem was the frown on Matsuri's face, and the way she looked towards the ground. What was so bad about having a religion?

"Hey, don't give me that look..." he said while slightly furrowing his eyebrows, "Just because it's uncommon doesn't mean you have to look so upset. Stay happy for me, alright?"

Of course, those words came out without him knowing of all the things Matsuri went through. He simply wanted her to be cheerful, similar to how she was during most of this meeting. However, when his new friend dismissed his offer of assistance, and called for her pet, those thoughts soon slipped away from his mind. They completely disappeared once Hikage fully rose to his feet, forcing Mugen to sweat drop and his eyes to widen. It...it was as tall as him. How the hell...

Suddenly, he felt very short for his age.

Luckily, the slug comment brought him back to his senses, and he lightly laughed. Who knew she was so funny.

Then, Matsuri asked if he wanted to ride on the lion...who had the same height as him. He hummed again, a little habit of his that happened from time to time.

"Sure, why not?" he replied before flashing her a smile, "I just need to find a way to get...on..." Mere moments after he spoke, Mugen began to walk towards Hikage before climbing his way onto the lion's back, one who hopefully wouldn't throw him off. He left room for Matsuri to sit in the front.

"Ready when you are."

[Exit whenever Matsuri leads us out of the cave.]

Matsuri blinked in shock as Mugen spoke, her eyes wide and glittering. Stay happy? ...For him? The strangeness of the whole situation hit the girl like a ton of bricks at that moment, thought she didn't show it. She was actually getting along with someone, and not only that, but it seemed that her friend genuinely liked her.... And only after a few minutes of conversing at that. It was such a strange sensation, the one that came about her, yet it was also lovely in a way. He didn't care that her religion was strange, didn't know the horrible aspects of what the clichés Jashin aspired to be. He didn't mind her awkwardness and didn't ask about the scars she knew he must have had noticed at least once by then... He was different and accepting; he didn't judge her and Jashin damn, it was nice.

Matsuri snapped her mouth closed only moments after he stopped speaking, swallowing thickly. "Okay," she said, her voice small. Mats took a breath, a little more life filling her being. "Okay, I'll stay happy!" she added. A bright smile lit her features again.

Matsuri liked the small laugh that spilled from his lips. She wanted to make him laugh again... But she wasn't quite sure how, at the moment.

Matsuri nodded, turning to face Hikage's back as Mugen headed towards him. An amused snort, one she did nothing to hide, escaped her as he struggled to get on the lion. This snort became a blatant laugh as the lion not only did nothing to help him, but tried his hardest to make himself taller. Finally, he ended up getting on, and Matsuri moved to climb atop her valiant steed as well.

However, Matsuri quickly grew intimidating as Hikage lowered his ears back. The beast's eyes narrowed viciously, the tufts on fur on his haunches beginning to rise, and growled a low growl in the back of his throat threatened to become a yodeling roar... She had forgotten momentarily about his complications in trusting his riders. The only two permitted onto his back without a fight were Ahiko and Matsuri, and if the girl didn't hurry to quell the monstrous being, her new friend was to be headless...

Suri's calming hand was upon his nose the moment he beared his sharp teeth. "Shh..." the girl whispered, not wanting to startle Mugen if she hadn't already. "It's okay." And with that, Hikage relaxed, and Matsuri began to climb the mountain that was his height. Twisting her hands in his wiry yet soft mane and using her arms for leverage, the girl easily slid herself onto his back, just behind his haunches, and settled into her usual riding position. As she had exerted effort into pulling herself up and onto the feline's back, her control over her skill had slipped completely for but a split second, and every blemish not covered would have been obvious if they had been in the light. Matsuri gained it back in less than a second, though, and felt slight tension leave her as the skill finally settled over her. Flawless. Perfect.

With the conflict taken care of and Hikage finally accepting the extra rider - for now - Matsuri turned and shot him a bright smile, her teeth even poking through her lips. Riding was something the girl enjoys to no end, whether it be anything from a horse to an elephant... But Hikage, by far, was her favorite. Riding her lion, the breeze caressing her face, was nearly unexplainable to her. It only helped that, aside from Ahiko, Hikage was her only true friend (animal or not)... This smile was merely a drop of the true joy she held in this, and now being able to share the activity with a friend. "Okay!" she said, before taking his arms and sliding them around her waist. Ignoring the slight pink dusting her cheeks, she mumbled a small, "Don't fall off," before turning around again.

A smile still threatening to break her face in two and her fingers entwined in Hikage's mane, she exclaimed happily, "Onwards, towards adventure!" And thus, they set off.

...Honestly, Matsuri really overused this line.

(2k/2k 'finding' Hikage, 2k/2k earning my skill, Bodily Adjustment and Modification.)
[Exit]

approved i guess