02 [Action]

[drawnbythesword]

[Waking up in some strange room he didn't recognize was not on this young boy's agenda today. Whatever the place was, he wasn't too keen on staying in it for long. Thankfully, he found a note on the nearby desk that told him Richard was in "House #43". It looked similar to the boy's writing, and hey, would he really steer him wrong?

So today, you might find this younger Asbel in one of two places; First, you might find him wandering the village, looking quite confused as he searched for something. If he sees you, he may run up to you, saying if he can ask you a question.

...Alternatively, you may very well find him at his desired destination, House #43. It really is difficult to find a house when the numbering is all out of order. In the case of the latter scenario, you will see (and hear) him shouting at the top of his lungs at the house.]

Heeyyy, Richaaarrd! Are you in there?! [...Apparently someone's never heard of knocking on the door first.]

((ooc: Asbel's been reduced physically and mentally to the age of 11. Replies will come from seekscrosophie for the sake of icons.))

Comments

[denyingreasons.livejournal.com]

[Okay, Naoki just offers him a brief smile and leans against the doorframe, folding his arms over his chest.]

I'm Naoki. You came to see Richard, didn't you? He's here.

[seekscrosophie.livejournal.com]

[Some of the tension in Asbel's body relieves itself. He was worried he did all this searching for nothing, to just come to the house of this random guy. But Richard's here! He's really here! That's good. Yeah, good... He starts walking forward now. There's absolutely no way this could be a trap, after all.]

So Richard really is here?

[causeblocked.livejournal.com]

What about Richie?

[Popping over Naoki's shoulder now. Who's this kid?]

[denyingreasons.livejournal.com]

Yeah--Richard's really here. [Naoki glances over at Isamu and then nudges at him. He's giving him a just go along with it look. Please let the mind reading kick in about now.]

This is his friend. Yeah? [Addressing that to Asbel.]

[seekscrosophie.livejournal.com]

[Looking as Isamu now. Who are these guys?] ...Haha, Richie? That's a silly nickname for Richard! But I got a better one for him!

[...Ohhh, maybe they're Richard's bodyguards! That would make sense; he's supposed to be an important guy, after all. They sure do look out of place as bodyguards, though... Looking back at Naoki, now.] Yeah, that's right! Richard and I are best friends!

[causeblocked.livejournal.com]

[What. What. Why the nudging? Isamu totally fails at the mind reading thing, but at least he'll behave.]

What's your name then, kid, and we can tell him you're here?

[denyingreasons.livejournal.com]

[What kind of bff are you if you can't hivemind, Isamu. At least he's behaving... Naoki shifts back a little, still holding the door open a bit for Asbel to come in as he waits for him to answer Isamu. It'd be suspicious if he went answering.]

[seekscrosophie.livejournal.com]

[Coming in through the door now. It IS open, after all.]

Me? I'm Asbel. Asbel Lhant!

[causeblocked.livejournal.com]

[Asbel, Asbel... Where has he heard this name before? Yeah, Richard had said this was his friend, hadn't he? Some how he'd expected him to be older...

Oh. Right.

Well, this has the potential to be awkward.] Good to meet you. I'm Isamu. Naoki, you wanna grab his buddy for us?

[denyingreasons.livejournal.com]

[Indeed it does have that potential.]

Yeah, no problem. [Naoki turns, heading further into the house toward the first floor bedroom.]

[tiger-festival.livejournal.com]

[The first thing Naoki might notice when he enters the bedroom is the fact that the blanket lump on the bed is... much smaller than usual. There's still a familiar head of blond hair poking out of the top, at least...]

[denyingreasons.livejournal.com]

[...oh hell. That lump under the blankets is much smaller and he has to pinch between his eyebrows for a moment, getting a feeling he knows what's happened. Then he takes a deep breath and walks over to the bed, pausing at the edge.]

Richard? Hey, Richard...

[tiger-festival.livejournal.com]

[There's silence for a few moments, then a mumbled:]

What is it?

[Yeah, that voice? Much higher pitched than Richard's usually is, and decidedly less friendly.]

[denyingreasons.livejournal.com]

[Ahh. That's what he thought. Naoki resists the urge to sigh.]

It's morning--time to get up.

[A beat--]

And Asbel's here looking for you.

[tiger-festival.livejournal.com]

[Asbel, Asbel... it takes him a moment to process that name.

... and then he realizes that this isn't his bed, there's a strange person talking to him, and WTF has he been kidnapped? He bolts upright and scoots away from Naoki, fingers searching for a short sword that isn't there.]

Who are you, and what have you done with me?

[denyingreasons.livejournal.com]

[Oh boy. How to go about explaining this...well, first of all, he's not moving any closer, but he is standing in such a way between the bed and door that Richard doesn't have anywhere to bolt.]

My name's Naoki. You're in my house--and this village is called Luceti.

[He waves a hand toward the window at the village and the snow outside. It's about now he remembers Richard must be a prince at this age and what kind of conclusions royalty usually come to in a situation like this according to one of his many novels.]

...and I didn't kidnap you, if that's what you're thinking.

[tiger-festival.livejournal.com]

Are you a friend of Asbel's?

[The snow outside is only serving to make him more concerned-- it had been warm and sunny back in Windol. Had he been brought all the way to Fendel? But he doesn't remember a village in Fendel named Luceti...

His eyes narrow.]

What country is this?

[seekscrosophie.livejournal.com]

[He watches Naoki walk off. Then he decides to address Isamu.]

...So who're you two supposed to be? Are you Richard's bodyguards?

[causeblocked.livejournal.com]

[...Bodyguards. Right.] Yeah, something like that.

[seekscrosophie.livejournal.com]

Well, you two don't seem too bad! You're a lot friendlier than some of the other guys that were watching him, at least!

[causeblocked.livejournal.com]

Oh? Is that a fact?

What sort of guys usually watch him?

[seekscrosophie.livejournal.com]

He had these big jerks who made him stay inside and do his studies all the time! Until I came along, he never had a chance to have some fun!

[causeblocked.livejournal.com]

[Well, he WAS a prince and all...]

Sounds like you're a real lifesaver. He must be glad to have you around.

[seekscrosophie.livejournal.com]

[Psh, like Asbel understands what THAT means. He doesn't even understand his own position.]

Yeah, well... I couldn't just let him stay cooped up like that all the time. That's no way to be...

[causeblocked.livejournal.com]

You sound like the adventuresome type.

Here, we can sit down while we wait on our lazy friends to get back.