thenearshore | [Closed] The only thing that's black and white / Is that you don't have to walk alone this time

Entry tags:

yoon | akatsuki no yona

[Closed] The only thing that's black and white / Is that you don't have to walk alone this time

Who: Yoon and friends
When: Various
Where: Various
What: Two prayers and a lunch chat

----
Prayer #53 with Hitsugaya and Alibaba:

I used to dream of being up in the clouds, high above everything... not anymore, since my accident.
-- Drive off or defeat the flying ayakashi that is causing accidents in dreamers
-- 20 comments

Prayer #43 with Keith:

They say that nora are like stray animals - cats, dogs, monkeys, etc. I'm going away for a few days and I don't know if these poor stray cats will get fed while I'm gone. I'd feel better knowing someone was watching over them...
-- Care for some stray animals in a metro area
-- 10 comments

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[ The loss of Izumo is going far deeper than the mere silence of the connection she'd held with him since Naming him. They'd been friends long before she'd given him a Name to claim his as her shinki and Yona was mourning both, although doing her best to keep her spirits up.

At the moment, she's out in the orchards, tending to the herd of horses who press around her, as if sensing her mood, begging for treats and pets as she seeks solace among them for the time being. She knows Shizuo is still somewhere nearby in the temple but otherwise assumes the place is quiet and empty for now. ]

[Yoon finishes the running around that he'd done in preparation for the party. He'd told Yona that much on the BBS. Now, though... he's put all of those purchases away and come to find her.

He stands behind her with his hands flat at his side, a mix of nerves and respect for her sadness.]

I'm here to fulfill my promise.

[ It's the nervous shifting of the mare she'd been tending that alerts her that she's no longer alone, and she glances up to see Yoon approaching. It's not hard to miss the fact that he seems nervous, far more familiar with his moods than he might be aware of. But at his serious words, she pats the mare farewell and turns to give him her full attention, her expression equally serious.

Tipping her head, she regards him in curiosity. ]

Which promise, Yoon?

That... [His hands twitch but he resists balling them into fists.]

That if you ever lost Izumo, I wanted you to name me - so that you might not be without a weapon.

[By now, he's already been named by Hitsugaya, so he's not 100% convinced that he even CAN turn into a weapon for her.]

And if not a weapon, then maybe something easier to Rend with than Shizuo's vessel form.

[ That has her stepping away from the mare, giving her a gentle nudge to send her back to the rest of the herd. Coming to stand in front of of Yoon, she reaches out to take his hand, dipping her head so she can catch and hold his gaze, giving him a gentle smile. ]

Is that what you'd like?

[ No, he really doesn't want to do this. He doesn't want to open her up to another potential for getting blighted by one of her shinki, or worrying about him when he gets riled up, but given the alternative is Yona without the kind of support that she needs...? ]

Yes. This is what I've decided.

[ She tips her head to the side as she studies his face for a moment, her own expression serious. ]

You're worried about something. Aren't you? What is it, Yoon?

That...

[ He clenches his fists. ]

That even if you name me, I won't be any use to you at all.

[ Since the impetus behind this was her losing Izumo as a shinki after all - one she could use to attack with, rather than the defensive force of Shizuo. ]

Yoon.

[ Her voice is soft as she studies him a moment before reaching out. Her hands find his own, clasping them lightly as she brings them up between them, uncurling them from the fists he'd curled them into. ]

You are my friend. One of my very dearest friends. That you would offer this to me to help protect me... Yoon. It means more to me than I can even say. Having you by my side will be more than enough, no matter what you become when I name you. I know you will help keep me safe, that no matter what we face, your strength will help me not be afraid. That is more precious than any mere weapon.

[He holds her hands in response, trying not to look as upset and frustrated as he feels and... failing miserably. He's almost glad that she can't feel his emotions yet, because he's just so torn. He doesn't want her to HAVE to fight, true pacifist that he is, but he also knows by now that ayakashi will come for the gods and shinki regardless of his personal feelings. They will make her fight. There's no shinki vessel form that can prevent that.]

Of course you wouldn't be afraid. You're much braver than I am. That's why I trust someone like you not to think of my shinki form as some thing that can be used in a fight regardless of my feelings about fighting.

[He shakes some of the redness out of his cheeks.]

I still wish there was some way to control what we changed into, but since we can't... I have to just take a chance like this when you pick a name. I'm not even sure that matters. He picked 'heal' and I turned into nothing but a scarf, no healing powers at all.

[ She cocks her head to the side and studies him for a moment, looking thoughtful. ] 'He'? Do you mean Hitsugaya?

[ They'd spoken about this. Briefly.

She gives his hands another gentle squeeze and shakes her head with a quiet laugh. ]

Oh, trust me. I am still plenty afraid, Yoon. Shinki or not, going up against ayakashi.... these are like nothing I've ever faced before. And they feed on fear, on sadness, on despair, on anger. [ Even she hasn't been immune from some of it. ] On one hand, it makes them easier to fight, because you cannot look at them and think anything but 'monster' - something vastly different than if our enemy had been other humans. [ Which she now also has more experience with than she'd ever have wanted. ] But that doesn't make it any less frightening. Even for a god.

But my shinki or not, you would never be just some thing to be used. I know your feelings about fighting. I understand them - I even share them. But I also know there are times we need to fight. Maybe it's to protect ourselves or those important to us, or to protect someone who can't protect themselves. If there is an option to get around fighting, I'm certain we'll spot it if we work together. But I know that if we have to fight... Yoon, you are very high on a short list of people I would unquestioningly trust at my back. Or wherever else your shinki form happens to put you.

[ Yoon nods, yes he did mean Hitsugaya. Then he listens to the rest of what she's saying.

She has a point, of course... that might be part of his hang-up. Little does he realize that in his old life, he'd never thought about fending off attackers except for knowing they were real human beings serving as soldiers. His pacifist streak depended on his assumption that those were the only kinds of lethal fights that could break out - between humans.

They ayakashi though... there was still the risk, the danger of Yona receiving some wound out of the fight, but there wasn't the added complexity of doing harm to another human being in defense of oneself. And that mattered to him - a lot.

That didn't change the possibility he would turn into something completely useless to her, but at least he had hope that his involvement in ayakashi attacks wouldn't be so frustrating as he'd originally felt it could be. And she understands his concerns. So he can trust her to act in a way that he'll be comfortable with. Yoon hasn't had to experience the kind of enforced moral guidance by way of Blight that other shinki have, so he's thinking this all hinges on Yona's understanding of wishes.

So Yoon nods with a still-nervous smile on his face. His nerves are purely focused on what he might change into now, and neither of them can control that. It's a roll of the dice. ]

Then go ahead and say the words. I'm ready.

[ He still looks a little uncertain, so before she starts to speak, she reaches out to give him a reassuring hug, warm and tight and impulsive. ]

It'll be okay, Yoon. I promise.

[ But pulling back with a warm smile, she keeps a hold on his hands as she takes a deep breath and starts the incantation. ]

Grasping thy true name, I bind thee here. With borrowed name, I dub thee my servant. The name answers, the vessel to sound. I call thee as my divine instrument. The name, Yoon. The vessel, Ba. Come, Baki!

[He appreciates the hug more than he can say, and so he simply returns it as tight as he can for a brief period of time. Then comes her part...

He doesn't close his eyes, willing himself to watch as the white light engulfs him - and realizes this time that the light doesn't hurt or cause him discomfort. It's more like wearing a different set of clothes. There's no denying how it feels noticeably changed, but not in a necessarily bad way.

He notices he doesn't really change height though... his thin body thins out though, and eventually curves a little, settling into her hands as... a bow. Only after that does a quiver appear on her back with a popping sound.]

'Ah...? HEEEE?!'

[He's in shock.]

[ She waits with baited breath as he changes, hands outstretched instinctively as his form shifts. And then there's a familiar weight settling in her palms, against her back, and when the flare of light fades and she glances down at his vessel form, she gives a soft cry of delight, fingers smoothing over the familiar wooden surface. ]

It's.... Yoon, you're my bow.

[ Her bow, the one that felt so familiar and right in her grip, the one she'd practiced with, night after night. While Hak had also taken a similar form when he'd been here as her shinki, the bow he'd become had been much larger and heavier and much harder for her to wield. But this one.... This one she knew, just as she knew that new familiar presence in the back of her mind was her new shinki. It felt like Yoon, in a way she'd never thought about before. it was familiar in its own way, even if the link between them was brand new. ]

[He hadn't recalled seeing Yona specifically wield a bow in any of his memories, but now that he thought back to them, he realized she did have a bow on her person in the latter moment with Hak. So he'd... become something she actually recognized? How did that even happen...]

'I... shouldn't ask how good you think you are.'

[That part he can feel deep in his gut, that part of him that never wants to feel that level of blight again.]

'So maybe if you just shoot a couple of practice arrows so I can see it for myself, that will make things easier.'

[ 'On me' he wants to add, but he's struggling to stay focused. Don't think about what might be. Don't think about her being skilled or even unskilled, just let her shoot a couple of times and prove it to him. She had a bow before. That's all he has to think about.]

[ She gives a quiet laugh at that, warm fondness in her tone. ]

Yoon. You can ask anything you like. Always. Consider this blanket permission to inquire about anything you might be wondering about. But we can practice a little, to see how this goes. And to give you a chance to get used to this. Here, I have targets set up just past the edge of the orchard here.

[ And she heads in that direction, still carefully clutching him and mentally exploring what this new connection with him feels like. ]

Is it... weird? Becoming a vessel?

[He mentally shakes his head, projecting nervousness and a lot of it.]

'No I can't, Yona! I can't ask things because it might be about my past life with you and you know what happens if I hear something I'm not supposed to!'

[For his part, he'll likely never forget it.]

'It's less weird becoming a vessel now, though. Becoming several things is weirder - like I suddenly grew another hand and foot and got taller, so now there's just more of me to feel what's going on. That's definitely why practice would be a good idea.

[ She picks up on that nervousness - bordering on outright fear, from the feel of it, actually - and her grip tightens on the bow for a moment. ]

Yoon. You can still ask. If it is something that is dangerous for you to hear, I don't have to answer. Or I can find a way to phrase it that it won't be a danger for you to hear. The question itself isn't harmful, and we will just be very careful of the answers we share, alright?

But we can still practice a bit. To be honest, I could probably use it anyway. Here, this is where I usually train with my archery. Shall we try?

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[Closed] The only thing that's black and white / Is that you don't have to walk alone this time

Naming, September 20th

Re: Naming, September 20th

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