A fateful reunion?, IC: Tenjukai ~ ISO: Azalea

[Vanilla]

The soft sound of his feet against the sand seemed to vanish in the roar from the waves of the ocean. Tenjukai stopped momentarily and allowed his gaze to wander across the area, his arms folding against his chest. A small wind passed him by, causing the bottom of his crimson red long coat to sway forward slightly. His eyes settled upon a lone boy playing in the sand. The squeals of the child's laughter echoed through the beach, and Tenjukai's expression softened considerably. Such an innocent kid, untainted by the darkness and the shadows of the world.

"Better cherish it, kid..." Muttering this, Tenjukai unfolded his arms and allowed himself to plop down on the sand. He leaned to the side, using his right arm to support his weight so he wouldn't topple over and look like an idiot. When he thought about it, he supposed the reason he had come to the beach was because it was a place where he could find a sort of odd peace. The sound of the ocean, mixed with the children laughing, seemed to somehow calm him. And yet, there was no smile on his face. The stern look still appeared, but the expression in his eyes told a different story. They seemed...calm.

[x.vintage]

The soft swishing sound of the sand was almost muffled beneath the roars of the waves. Even though the sun was out now, only marred by the occasional scurrying cloud, on the horizon lingered heavy, bruise-colored clouds, the sign of an oncoming storm. It even seemed almost now that Lacey (she was once Azalea, but after deciding to finally move on from the past, she started using her middle name) could smell the rain tinting the briny breeze blowing off from the ocean. But yet, Lacey was calm. She wasn't scared by storms, like many women. In fact, she was almost lulled to sleep by the loud thunder and patter of rain. So with the knowledge that a storm was soon coming, a small grin played at the edges of her lips.

After pushing back a few loose tendrils of hair that had escaped from her bun, she clasped her hands behind her back, then turned her face towards the laughter of children. Her heart lurched, but only a little, it's beat knocked off by the aching for her own late child. With almost desperation, she wondered what he would have been like. It had been born with a dark-blonde hair, almost the same color as her own. In fact, there was a boy out playing now with the same colored hair. He was laughing gaily, chasing after his puppy who had a small yellow ball in it's mouth. Perhaps that could have been him, and perhaps she could've been the mother who was standing aside with a grin on her face, but still ready to jump into action if her beloved fell. A sigh involuntarily escaped Lacey's lips as she looked elsewhere.

In doing so, she caught sight of someone familiar. He looked almost like... No. It couldn't be Sajotae, could it? He had left seasons ago. Had he somehow came back? If so, his hair and eyes were different colors. Perhaps it had been that Sakon person he was talking about that did that to him... Only one way to find out... With slow, almost cautious steps, she walked up beside him, though kept a little distance in case she didn't really know him and it was only a trick of the imagination. "Children are wonderful, aren't they? A gift from the Goddess herself."

[Vanilla]

Hearing a familiar voice beside him, Tenjukai turned his head towards the source of the sound. A woman was standing there. He recognized her almost immediately. It was Azalea, one of the many friends of Sajotae from last years New year's eve festival - she had been the woman who finally convinced Sajotae to stop Tenjukai from almost killing them both. Back then, Tenjukai would have hated her for it. But now, he was thankful to her. If he had gone through with it, he wouldn't have been able to acquire his own body and start his own life. "Yeah, I guess so."

Saying this, Tenjukai turned his gaze away from Azalea. He was staring at the ocean again, simply watching the waves lap against the shoreline. One of the young children was building a sandcastle off to the side. Another was hanging with her friends as they played a small game of ball. All of these things seemed to overshadow the despair Tenjukai would usually have felt noticing the coming storm off the horizon.

"Your name's Azalea, isn't it?"

[x.vintage]

As he turned to speak to her, she found that she did recognize those facial features (and not to mention his height. Sajotae had been the only one Lacey had known to be so tall). However, now they seemed to be marred by pain, or depression. They were no longer in the perpetual grin of her old friend. Lacey's heart lurched once again. She wished that he hadn't had to go through that. Her small frown deepened as she looked towards the oncoming storm. Those memories were burned in her mind forever, just like the death of her baby and her late husband. She unclasped her hands and pushed back the contrary strands again.

Even though she was almost certain that it was Sajotae, she was still slightly surprised when he asked her name. However, she wasn't even sure herself if it was from either her being surprised about him remembering her at all, or having to ask her name. She nodded, before realizing that he couldn't see it. Lacey cleared her throat. "That is my first name, and I did go by it once. Now I go by Lacey, my middle name. Are you Sajotae? If not, I apologize. You just look strangely familiar, and it seems that you know me..." Her voice trailed off, almost lost in the wind and crashing of the waves.

[Vanilla]

A cold, distant chuckle escaped Tenjukai's lips when Aza- no, Lacy, asked if he was Sajotae. It wasn't the first time that had happened - the two looked so similar, that Tenjukai was often mistake for the other male. He had gotten used to it now, though it still irritated him. He cleared his throat and rose to his feet. "No, I'm not. My name's Tenjukai, but you once knew me as Sakon." He said this without bothering to look over to Lacy. He didn't want to - he wouldn't have been able to stand the expression she might be holding. Tenjukai understood the pain he had put her through, he had put everyone through and he regretted it. But he still wasn't ready to apologize.

He began to walk forward, away from Lacy, but he stopped. Tenjukai's gaze fixated on the ocean, and only that. The waves. The sound. The sight. It was all calming yes, but a part of him still felt confused. He wasn't sure what to believe anymore. Had all his memories simply been a facade - Sajotae's memories, and not his? He wanted to know, more than anything. However, the only person who had those answers were Sajotae himself, but Tenjukai hadn't been able to track him down yet. A small sigh escaped his lips, and he suddenly began to sing. It wasn't loud, more like a pained whispering.

"I will dedicate
And sacrifice my everything for just a seconds worth
Of how my story's ending
And I wish I could know if the directions that I take
And all the choices that I make wont end up all for nothing

Show me what its for
Make me understand it
I've been crawling in the dark looking for the answer
Is there something more than what I've been handed?..."

[x.vintage]

Her brow furrowed at his chuckle, then her expression hardened. "Sakon...? You...you...Did you take over Sajotae?" Her voice was just slightly louder than a whisper. Sakon...no, Tenjukai, seemed regretful for something. Still, what if he had? What if there was no more Sajotae? What if he was gone...forever? Her face broke, and she looked down, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes. Another person she had known, gone forever from her life. It wasn't fair... It simply wasn't fair.

Shaking her head, she hugged herself, suddenly cold despite the warmth and humidity. She almost felt like hitting something, though she didn't dare take on this extremely tall man, who was now whispering, or was it singing? Even though she didn't care, Lacey couldn't help but hear the pain intertwined with the whisper. His song sounded desperate, and Lacey looked up, a mixture of confusing and anger across her face. She bit back a yell that was poised on the edge of her lips and tongue. It was no use. If he was gone forever, then he was gone. No amount of yelling or screaming would help.

[Vanilla]

Hearing Lacey's desperate whisper, Tenjukai looked back to her. She seemed so broken, so fragile in that moment. Did she really care for Sajotae that much? It wasn't that surprising, considering the guy was pretty much loved by everyone he met. Unlike Tenjukai... A twinge of jealousy flickered through his eyes, but he shook his head slightly. He tried to smile, but it didn't work. His lips still bared no expression as he walked back over to where Lacey was. He knelt by her.

"Look, don't start crying. He's not dead, I didn't take over his body. We split. I'm me now, and Sajotae is Sajotae. He's here, in Mossleaf. Although..." Tenjukai's voice trailed off and he glanced away from Lacey. He stared at the ground. Should he tell her that Sajotae couldn't remember anything, or leave it for her to find out? He figured that it be best for her to see on her own, after all she might not believe him. "It's probably gonna be hard to locate him. I haven't even found him yet. Don't bother trying."

[x.vintage]

Lacey looked upwards through her eyelashes as the gentle swish of the sand alerted her to the coming of Tenjukai. She almost took a step backwards, but decided to stand her ground. Somehow, she knew that he wasn't going to hurt her. As he knelt in front of her, she made eye contact. With the news that Sajotae wasn't dead, her brows lifted and her mouth slacked slightly. The last of the tears fell, and whatever was going to come up next was suddenly abated. The grin almost, though not quite, returned with the news that he was in Mossleaf. So he had returned! But with the information that he couldn't be found, and that it was best not to look for him, her brow furrowed again, and her mouth snapped shut.

"Why? Why not? I've been here awhile... I could probably find him with out getting lost." Her voice wasn't angry, though, but there were undertones of desperation. She had never really met up with the others again, and she hadn't really stepped forwards to make friends with anyone else in Mossleaf. Sure, they were friendly and she was friendly back, but she (and they) never went that extra step. Actually, because of her inability to make any real friends, she moved from the Clinic to Pinkcat Blossom Lane. But she hadn't been there long enough to actually settle in completely and chat with the neighboring housewives.

[Vanilla]

"Pretty damn desperate, aren't you? Alright..." Tenjukai said in an irritated but also happy tone, a sighed escaped his lips. He stepped away from her and stood again. "I'll help you look for him then." He figured it would be better to help Lacey out than just ditch her completely. Perhaps it was the niceness he had gained from hanging around Sajotae too much in the past, or maybe it was because he just wanted to use her in order to figure out the other male's whereabouts. He secretly pleaded it wasn't the latter, but if asked he would probably lie and say it was; Tenjukai didn't want people to think he was going soft.

[x.vintage]

Lacey's eyes narrowed, her voice filled with ice. "Desperate? No. I'd just like to find one of the only people in Mossleaf who ever actually knew me and cared about me, at least a little bit. Not like you'd know anything about that..." Yet, she almost immediately regretted it as he said that he'd help her look for him. She stared to the side, biting her bottom lip rather hard. But she wasn't going to apologize. Not for what he did to Sajotae. She could never forget that, no matter how much he had changed and no matter how guilty he felt.

So instead, she cleared her throat and murmered a barely audible, "Thank you...".

[Vanilla]

A small 'heh' escaped Tenjukai's lips as a grin crossed his face. It wasn't a grin of happiness, more of a 'What have I gotten myself into?' type of look to it. He simply shrugged his shoulders. He was aware from her tone that she still hadn't forgiven him, probably never would. That was fine. Tenjukai wasn't looking for forgiveness, he wasn't doing this to repent for anything. They were both looking for the same person, that was it.

"Whatever you say." He scratched his cheek idly as he glanced around, trying to think. He had been apart of Sajotae, so he should know better than anyone where the guy might be. And yet, Tenjukai didn't really have a clue in that moment where to look. He suddenly felt kinda useless and he was about to ask Lacey where they should start looking, but his pride got the best of him and he stayed quiet. He hated asking questions, preferred to make it appear as though he had all the answers.

[x.vintage]

Her eyes narrowed once again at Tenjukai's grin. What was he smiling at? Was he planning on tricking her, getting her lost somewhere in the Abyss? Hmm... Still, he was her only link to one of the only people that she actually knew in this town. She would follow him, but she would immediately turn back if things started getting suspicous. After all, she still didn't know if he was telling the truth or not.

She then murmured, probably to herself, "Whatever I say, huh?" She glanced at his face quickly, then looked away. He looked so much like Sajotae. Clearing her throat once again she spoke up, beginning slowly, cautiously, like one treading water. "So... If what you say is true, and Sajotae is out there, where do you think he'd be?"

[Vanilla]

Tenjukai stayed silent for a moment or two, still doing his best to figure out where Sajotae may be. Eventually, he cleared his throat and looked over at Lacey. "Well, the guy does enjoy fields a lot, and laying on hills and whatnot. So, he's probably at the meadows. If not there, then it'd be good to come back to the beach. Sajo always did love gazing out at the ocean. Maybe that's where I get it from." A genuine smile crossed Tenjukai's lips for the first time. He owed so much to Sajotae, and yet he disliked him at the same time. It was funny how stuff like that worked out.

Suddenly realizing he had said the last part of his sentence out loud - he had been meaning to think it - Tenjukai coughed nervously. He scratched the back of his head, the smile vanishing as quickly as it had come. "Sound like a plan? Or do you have something better in mind?" He crossed his arms over his chest as he said this and cocked an eyebrow at Lacey. He really would like to see her come up with a better plan, but he doubted she'd be able to.

[x.vintage]

Lacey nodded, though she actually had met Sajotae in the midst of a forest, near a lake. At the sound of Tenjukai mentioning inheriting something from Sajotae, another quizzical look passed over her face. She supposed it wasn't impossible, after all, they had once lived together in the same body. And perhaps this was why he was no longer as evil as he had once been. Tenjukai must've been around Sajotae for quite a long time. She caught herself staring again, and quickly looked to the side, shaking her head.

"No, I'm sorry, I don't. It sounds fine. I can't think of anything." A little stab of realization hit her, she hardly knew anything about Sajotae at all, besides that his family had also died and that the once Sakon had inhabited his body. She barely knew the man that she was desperately searching for. Had she really become that needy?

[Vanilla]

"Alright then, let's get going. The longer we wait, the less chance there is of finding Sajotae." Nodding, Tenjukai brushed passed Lacey quickly and headed towards the exit of the beach. Thoughts filled his brain rapidly - questions as to whether Sajotae knew the answers he sought, why Lacey cared for him so much (could it be possible she had fallen for him?) and if they would be able to even find the guy. Another question surface; Were there any other people around who remembered Sajotae? Chances were that Tenjukai and Lacey alone may not be able to locate him, if that was the case then it'd be good to grab some extra help. But who could they turn to?

Noah. Hazel. Alain. Those three words echoed in Tenjukai's mind. The other significant people who had been there that fateful New year's ever and had assisted in sparing both Sajotae and Tenjukai. Now another question followed - Was it possible the three were even still in Mossleaf? It had been, after all, a whole year and a half since the event took place. They could have moved in that time. Let's hope not. Otherwise, our chances just dropped. Tenjukai's eyes narrowed and he grunted quietly under his breath. He hoped he was wrong.

[x.vintage]

She nodded silently, choosing to keep her mouth shut in case she should sound even more desperate. How had it come to this? She used to be so happy, even though she was nowhere near as popular as that Rose. She was content. Then her life started spiraling... First her baby's miscarriage, then the death of Smith. She had foolishly thought she could outrun her luck by coming to Mossleaf. But no, it had followed her. What if she was to blame for Sajotae's unfortunate incident? What if it was all her fault? Was she forever cursed? With this thought, a single tear escaped the corner of her eye as she looked down, following Tenjukai's footsteps through the windblown sand.

Wiping her cheek with the back of her hand, she looked up to the back of Tenjukai's head, almost having to crane her neck to look up. "T..Tenjukai? Have you... have you met or heard of the others? You know, Hazel, Alain, and that other man? I can't remember his name..." She mumbled this last bit to herself. She glanced down once again, then looked up quickly. "I...I haven't seen them. I haven't actually seen anyone from back then. It's almost as if everyone just...just left."

[Vanilla]

"Of course I know them. I was there during that festival, remember? It was me who caused all that crap." Tenjukai snapped, only because he had been mad at himself for what had happened. He sighed, shaking his head while shoving his hand into his pockets. "You haven't seen them? Well, I was thinking of getting them to tell us if they knew where Sajo was but... Guess that idea's out. If you can't find them, then there's no point in looking. You were their friend, hm?" Saying this, he glanced back over to Lacey.

Tenjukai raised an eyebrow, realizing that Lacey still looked depressed. He scowled under his breath, trying to think of something to say to make her happy again. Anything to make her smile, but nothing was coming to mind. "Don't blame yourself. What happened back then had nothing to do with you. It was my fault, no one else's."

[x.vintage]

With Tenjukai's mad reply, Lacey's head flew up, her brows furrowed with anger. Her voice was low as words flew out. "I know that you know them. I wasn't asking that. I was asking if you have seen them as of late." She then added, after he had sighed and continued, "Well, actually, they were more like aquaintances. That was the first time that I had met them." While averting her gaze back to the sand, she added an afterthought, almost too low for herself to hear it."I don't really have any friends here...." They're all back in Hazelwoode. Maybe I'll go back for a visit. Some recuperation time. That is, if we can't find Sajotae. I'm not going to abandon him... If he remembers me, that is.

Her gaze drifted back up with a shrug. It almost seemed as if this man could read her thoughts. Or was her face that easy to read? "Maybe, and maybe not. Perhaps I have done something vile in a past life, and this is just the repercussions. Or maybe it was all you. I really don't know anymore. I've been so confused as of late..." She sighed and clasped her hands in front of herself.

[Vanilla]

After Lacey's response, Tenjukai scoffed slightly and looked away from her, his gaze fixated ahead. "You're not the only one." He muttered, almost to himself. Saying this, he cleared his throat slightly and spoke no more. Tenjukai had nothing else to really say, that and he wasn't exactly thrilled about having a conversation with Lacey. Being around her still felt too awkward, considering what had happened between them in the past. And so, he walked on in silence, the only real sound was that of the laughing children and roaring waves behind them.

While moving forward, Tenjukai absentmindedly brushed a bang away from his eyes, the fact that it was there seemed to be irritating him. He always despised having bangs, but had been told before that it made him more attractive. Like that really mattered, though he couldn't stand the thought of not having any bangs. When he pictured it, Tenjukai figured it just looked too weird. Blinking, he suddenly wondered why it was he was thinking of such an irrelevant topic. Here Lacey and himself were, on a search for Sajotae, and he was busy pondering over his hair.

Damn can I seem selfish. A frown crossed his lips and his eyebrows furrowed in discontent with himself.

[x.vintage]

She looked up only slightly at his comment. She wasn't really surprised though. Afterall, up until recently he had been inhabiting someone's body and had seemed more than slightly evil. Now, he didn't seem too bad, only more like a selfish child as he brushed away his bangs. Still, Lacey wasn't going to forgive him so soon, even if she hadn't known the man that he had taken over and almost killed.

She glanced back at the sand, then up to the back of his head. A look of concentration crossed her face as she tried to read his thoughts, though of course to no avail. She wondered if he was planning on killing her, getting the job done now when he wasn't able to only a year and a half ago... Had it really been that short of a time? It seems so much longer.... But why hadn't he done it yet? The Sakon back then didn't seem to care much if people were watching. She shook her head. So confusing.... She sighed, cleared her throat. "Tenjukai... You seem... different. Are you? Or are you planning on killing me? If you are, don't lie. I probably won't run if you are. I have nothing to live for, and I'm not afraid of death."