voidtreckerexpress | Symphony

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esteban drake [ou]

Symphony - Day 19

Who: Esteban, Xion
Where: Greenhouse Carriage
When: Symphony, Day 19
What: Esteban can make a good second-first impression, right? Right?!?
Warnings: None atm.

There's a few spots in the greenhouse that Esteban had noticed weren't... well, cared for anymore. He'd heard that there'd been a few who'd left; people who had taken the little squares of dirt to sprout pretty green leaves and large sunflowers on occasion. Maybe it'd been an extension of spending time with Inigo, or maybe it was just the thoughts of his own father that had hovered over him, fussing over the slowly browning leaves and the drooping stems.

So, he'd taken to pruning the leaves, and watering the roots. Hardly much, but it keeps him busy once in a while, and there's something soothing about working in the dirt. Something just a bit natural in this strange train.

He likes it better in the evening hours, when most others are eating and taking the last few moments of the day to rest in their own fashion. Today's a bit more complex, as he's rustling the soil, loosening it from its tight weave that lingers when there's nothing to keep the beds from drying out.

Ithil would have set shredded leaves mulch with a cover of round pebbles and left benign worms and insects in the beds, to keep the soil healthy. He misses him, even if a grin weaves about his thoughts when he realizes that his father would be much too appalled at the state of the gardens to even notice he would be around. It's endearing in its own way.

He's so lost in thought that he doesn't glance immediately when someone enters the carriage, breaking a clump of tightly packed dirt with his fingers before he glances up and at the shadow moving through furtively, as if they were afraid to be spotted. A black hood, a small-ish stature. He blinks in wonder before placing the name with the being in front of him, perking up and rising from his crouch just as she's passing by.

"Phantom!~" Comes the easy greeting, bright and loud enough to be heard.

He really wasn't trying to scare her-- honest! She'd just surprised him, and he hadn't thought to keep his voice down when he'd called out, beaming brightly at the shadow as he pats his hands relatively clean, and gets a little closer.

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She jumped back at the sudden shout, accompanied as it was by sudden motion. Her Keybalde was out before she processed what she had heard and saw and... who he was. She lowered the Keyblade, but didn't vanish it. Which might have been progress, except that she was also walking backwards - slowly and carefully - towards the exit.

Is Esteban noticing how she's slinking away, edging for the doors? It sure doesn't seem that way, as he steps out from between the boxes, his grin as bright and delighted as a summer sun.

"It's been a bit! How've you been!" Actually, now that he thinks about it, he hasn't seen her at all since the scare in the dressing car. It's... he's still a bit upset over it, sort of. The fright that he had given her. His wings hadn't even been out and she'd backed away as if threatened.

It's okay! He just-- startled her. This time would be better! He was sure of it!

"D'you like the flowers here?" he asks easily enough, glancing at the boxes of greenery that surrounds them. There's a grin with his words as he turns, prattling easily. Maybe it'll smooth her nerves if she doesn't have to say too much? He hopes so.

"My father's a sort of alchemist; he works a lot with plants. I kinda miss him, so, I started takin' care of the beds that didn't get cared for. W'ld you like to help me out? Or y' can just stay near an' we'll chatter 's I work? I still gotta loosen the dirt on these two over there!" he mentions easily enough, pointing out at the beds in question with the cracked and packed dirt.

The trowel he's found is back in his hand, as well as the garden fork. He'll take care of the watering afterwards, seeing as he has company now. He's already moving towards the trunks filled with dirt and leaves, all the while adding little light-hearted notes as he goes on.

"I've always liked sunflowers best. In flowers, I mean. Probably just because they're so easy to rec'gnize," he admits readily, the curve of his lips showing toothy mischief. "How 'bout you?" He asks, without waiting too long for her answer.

"Father pr'ferred grasses, funny 'nough, but there's somethin' really resilient 'bout them. Can't even get rid of them, really, hence we call 'em weeds. But he worked with anythin' that had function; flowers, trees or grasses. Could make the best potions an' the best poisons both, but he didn't deal with the latter 'nymore. Too much of a hassle. An' I was a very grabby kid."

Which... explained much now that he thinks about it.

"Sit here?" he offers, pointing out to the small patch on the edge of the garden bed he's about to work on. Blessedly, it's not within his immediate range, and Esteban is already down on his knees and breaking clumps of dirt while he lets her settle; if she dares.

Her eyes had just gone wider and wider as he spoke. Did he ever stop speaking? The only relief was that he hardly waited for answers, so she didn't have to give any. But she'd never met any Somebody who could talk like him. Except maybe Webby. Even Xigbar didn't talk this much! Maybe Xemnas did when he started giving a speech, but she was rarely expected to do anything but stand there and listen. She was less than nothing to Xemnas, and just one of many when he went on like that. As he started to move towards the plants she started backing towards the door again. But as soon as he told her where to sit, she froze, unsure if that was an order or not. Would she be in trouble if she refused? Could she fight him if he attacked? If she didn't then she was afraid Roxas and Axel would, and then they'd be in trouble. And she was determined to protect them. But he had specifically said sit and chatter, and she wasn't sure what chattering was... but she was pretty sure she couldn't do it. She just wanted to leave. But she was afraid of getting in trouble or getting attacked...

She wished she knew what had made Webby finally stop trying to talk to her. Weird as it was she almost missed Webby now, but at the time? Pure terror. But somehow something she had done had worked. She'd do it now, if she only knew what it was...

His work in the garden is steady, and the words pour out of him like a creek; something fast enough to sweep someone away, but shallow enough that it doesn't matter, bubbling along without care nor worries. A bit of sunshine peeks though his thoughts when he glances back at his friend-- both to see if she's still there, and to send her an encouraging smile.

"I didn't see him all that much, growin' up-- I was raised by my mom more-- but he had such a pretty house. The back was a huge, huge greenhouse-- kinda narrow like this one--" Oh! He hadn't even realized! It's no wonder he likes it here; it feels, just a bit, just a bit like his father's. He goes on.

"It was way taller though-- his Guardian Saplin' was planted near the back, an' it had grown lots." Oh, he's probably confusing with this, now that he thinks about it. Oh well. "There was even a lil' tree-- 'bout this high, with droopin' branches, where I used t' hide when I was a little sproutling." Another grin is sent her way, before he goes on.

"The rest had all sortsa plants growin' between pots an' boxes, bright berries an' pretty flowers an' tall grasses an' flowers that liked t' eat insects. Have you ever seen one?" he asks, his smile bubbly as he turns towards his companion. There's a snicker on his lips as he goes on with his tale.

"Ithil grew them 'cause they were good 'gainst coughs. Made some teas outta them, but I'm not much 'f a tea-person. He'd have a tea for anythin' really, an' most of them didn't taste all that great." He shrugs an easy shoulder, turning back to the slow progress of breaking apart the dirt, granting air to the roots and wishing, once more, that he had worms to toss in there.

"Teas for headaches an' teas for coughs, teas to sleep an' teas to wake up. I just like water, pref'rably. How 'bout you?" Another question, another easy nudge to get her to open up, even just a bit. Even just a few words; he'd take that win.

Oh he was long past confusing her. She didn't understand most of the words out of his mouth. But there were so many of them that even if she wanted to ask. And she was too terrified of him to want to ask. It took her a long moment after he stopped to process that he had asked her a question and was actually waiting for an answer. The problem was she didn't understand what he was asking. Well, that was one of the problems, anyway. she didn't understand what a tea was or what it had to do with headaches. Did it cause them? Maybe? Teas to wake up and to sleep? Were teas an attack? Teas were probably an attack. Okay, she could understand an attack. So he preferred water attacks? Was that what he was saying? She mostly used Thundaga these days for attacks, but was it safe to tell him? She wasn't sure. She hesitated more then finally just said, in the smallest quietest voice ever, "Thundaga".

Most people would probably have missed it, so faint the whisper was.

Well, most people would probably have learned their lesson, too.

Esteban is not most people.

Murmur-soft, it still gets him beaming-- though he keeps his eyes meticulously onto the clump of dirt he was breaking into bits, resisting the temptation to look back at her as absolutely best he can.

It's progress! He has no idea what Thundaga is-- a drink, he guesses?-- but there is tremedous delight at the sheer attempt from his new friend to respond! He beams at the roots he's working around instead of turning to gift her this smile personally.

"Really? What's it taste like?" He asks lightly, pausing for a moment. And then a moment more because he doesn't want to scare her into growing quiet again. He can be patient! On occasion! Maybe?

She was so confused. What... did magic... taste like? She wished Axel was there so he could talk to this Someone for her and then explain him later... She hesitated, shifting position slightly in her unease.

There's a quick glance behind his shoulder, a raised eyebrow, but if Phantom is not about to respond, then Esteban won't pressure her into it. He turns back to his self-appointed task easily enough, letting one more moment of silence linger as he picks his next subject to prattle on aimlessly about.

Let's see. Teas, herbs, trees.

Water. Go for water.

"Oh! Didja know that there's a pool now? D'you like swimmin'?" he asks lightly, his chatter constant as ever, rambling on and on from the smallest of things. "I always loved swimmin', but it's not the same without the saltgrass an' the fish that used t' tickle whenever we swam. I learned from my aunts when I was just a sproutling, an' they used t' take me deep b'tween the cities, where there was nothin' but the ocean 's far 's you could see."

Earth shifting underneath his hands, the light dance of his voice throughout the small area. It's soothing in some ways, even though Esteban's not even used to chatter this much all by himself. Usually, usually he'd be asking questions of his own, asking about her world, and her ways and her life before now. But Phantom has not been very chatty, and so he's the one to prattle, to fill the silence with mundanes nothing-much that he hopes she enjoys.

"We used t' make a game out'f it! Find the orange fish, or the octopus hidd'n in the grass. My aunts were way better at it, but they did live near the sea all the time, so I think they cheated," he adds, and the lilt of his voice grows higher, before a light snicker indicates that he's kidding.

"For me, the seas came an' went with the floods. It's very pretty. How many moons d'you have?" he asks gleefully; the topic related in his mind, but not so obviously when he asks her so suddenly.

Swimming? That was what Axel and Roxas had done when they finally got to beach. She didn't know what a pool was, but swimming was a beach thing, right? They had a beach now? How? Where? As usual almost everything else he said confused her, but she was now so fixated on the thought of a beach that she almost forgot to be afraid.

His question jolted her, but her brain was still mostly focused on trying to figure out how to find the beach that she answered quietly, too distracted for just a moment to see his question as something terrifying. Just confusing. "Moon?" she asked, one gloved hand going into her pocket to touch one of her shells. A beach? Here? She could spend all her time when she wasn't in the room... on a beach? Would it have sunsets?

"Yeah! Moons!" A response? An actual response that he is drawing out? He dares hope that she'll keep up with this one, at least. Every little step helps; and Phantom has already answered him twice now, which-- he thinks-- is better than last time! If he can keep this up, maybe he'll manage to get an actual conversation with her? He certainly hopes so.

"Hmm-- they're in the sky. Usually round an' take up a good bit of space. The moons and the sun!" He pauses, hoping not to confuse her with his words. "The sun's much brighter, an' you can't look at it. It's what gives us light! Eriat's the mirror moon for us; she's big as a dinner plate, an' glows in the night, 'cause she's almost all made 'f water an' ice. Then there's Iiyeta, the hidden moon; her sister. She's dark an' almost pitch black; you see her durin' the day, but not the nights. Just darkness in the darkness."

"Last is Khaari, the new song. Eriat called her after Umrakiel hatched." He pauses, before unscrambling it in his mind. "Sorry-- Eriat an' Iiyeta are the third an' fourth moons. Umrakiel was the first; then Khaari, then Eriat an' Iiyeta." This was-- a lot more complicated than he'd thought, oops.

"It's just that Eriat's hangin' over the Moon Mountains-- so she's the one I see most. Then her sister comes by every fifty nights, but they're sisters, so they're a pair, y'know? An' Khaari comes 'bout every twenty-five days, so." They are... still all out of order, but he hopes his companion has followed even just a portion of that, to be honest.

She was... so very confused. Because there was one big thing in the sky over the Castle That Never was, but she didn't think it was round. Unless she misunderstood what round meant. But she didn't think so this once, because the thing in the sky was Kingdom Hearts. Unless that was a lie. She needed to ask Axel...

As for sun.... "Like... sunset?" she wasn't sure. Her voice so very very confused.

"Yes! A sunset!" He's not sure why her voice lingers like a question on this, but there is so much pride, so much delight that Phantom is trying at least. "I guess you do get to look at the sun when it's settin'. It doesn't hurt the eyes as much. An' the sky turns such pretty colours--"

He pauses, words stalling for a bit as he rises out of his crouch, to go around the box and start onto the task from his new point. There is still a grin in his words, and now she can see it while he works around the roots to free them from their too-tight confines.

"Well, the sky's always such pretty colours; but sunset's when they're at their brightest. Like the sky catches fire?" A moment to linger, before he shakes his head-- never raising it to see Xion, but still clearly running through emotions as he speaks.

"There's dawn too; when the colours are so pale, an' watery, but everythin' feels so soft. I don't get to see it oft'n so I think dawn's my favourite. But the blue of the sky durin' the day is really great too! This big splash of colour, an' you'd think it's all the one shade, but 'f you look closely, there's so many more th'n just one? Then there's sunset, when the sky's bleedin' fire-- my grandfather had a pretty nifty story 'bout that-- an' 'f course, the night, when everythin' so dark, an' there's only the moons, an' the stars overhead. Where the few lights 're brighter, for how much darkness there is 'round them.

So much of this confused her. Most worlds she had been to the sky was static. Whenever they went for ice cream and sunset, even if they were early or late, it was sunset. No matter when she looked out her window in the World That Never Was, the sky was dark with Kingdom Hearts shining down on her. A few worlds, like Diatu, the sky changed, and there was a set time when she had to be there for sunset and ice cream. But she didn't really understand on an intellectual level why. She just got used to how things changed enough to know when to drop everything and get to the ice crematorium.

But one thing he said cut through all the other confusion to steal her focus. "Lights... are brighter... in the Darkness?" That seemed... important. very important. But she couldn't understand how or why. She needed to talk to Axel...

"Yeah!" At least he's always found it to be true. It's a more awkward subject for him to try and find ways to say this though, so he lets it drop for the moment, taking a second to scrape some dirt back and away from the suitcases that comprise the raised beds.

Really, his best example would be the moon and the stars, completely enraptured by them when he was nothing more than a child. But nothing else comes to mind-- oh! Oh. Now he feels silly. His face splits into an easy grin again.

"Like fire!" There! That should be clear, right? "'F you have a fire-- torch, candle, somethin' like that-- an' you light it durin' the day. It's really pale, right?" A short pause. A little moment for his companion to catch onto where he was going with that.

"But 'f you light it durin' the night; it's the only thin' you see. It's so bright, because it's the only light." He should have thought about it earlier, for shame. He, a fire dancer, who hadn't thought of fire.

He needs to get his hands on some flammable fuel. Maybe a wick or two. Recall the feel of fire under his hand.

He misses it terribly.

She... was so confused again. "Fire...? Axel...?" She tilted her head, absolutely lost.

"What's-- axle? Like the axle of a wheel?" She's confusing him. Or rather, her confusion is causing his confusion. Esteban lingers longer this time, waiting to see if she might provide anything on her end without his restless probing.

"Wheel....?" She was so very confused.

Yeah, they, uh. Aren't going anywhere fast with this, are they? Esteban is only too glad to snicker the conversation away, brushing it off and leaving it be. The last of the dirt in this box is properly broken up, and he stands, stretching lightly to get his sore muscles to behave before he moves on to the next one.

"C'mon!" He invites again. "Y' can sit closer? I don't bite." He assures her, a light glimmer of mischief in his eyes as he continues his work. He's managed to draw a handful of sentences between them since they started; isn't that amazing? He's getting the impression it's more than most have every heard her say on this train after all.

Chatter is easy enough, thankfully on Esteban's side. He doesn't mind if she only answers in single words and confused shifts of her shoulders-- as long as Phantom is there willingly, sitting down and listening to his bumbling words, he'll keep going. Even if he has to swim along shallow waters to get her to speak. It's alright. He's getting to know her!

"D'you like food? I like anythin' spicy, personally. Soups an' stews an' stuff that burns the tongue." He snickers again; he rarely, rarely ever burns his tongue. But he does tend to prefer pipping-hot food, and there's nothing more heartbreaking in his mind than having to wait for a pie to cool down before he splits it into slices.

"How 'bout you?" There. A definite pause. Hopefully this works.

Yeah, she wasn't going to sit. Or move closer. Not yet, anyway. She didn't understand why he kept talking to her. But at least he hadn't attacked her. Yet. This time.

Spicy....? Was that what Axel said he liked? She thought so. Maybe Axel could understand this Somebody? She wished she could go get him.

She hesitated, torn about answering. Because when she had told Webby, Webby had tried to invite herself along. And this Somebody reminded her so much of Webby. So if she told him she only eats ice cream... would he invite himself to join them for ice cream? Or would he yell at her like Vexen does? Or lecture her about it like Axel does?

Why do none of them understand how much the ice cream means to her? At least Axel understands why it means so much to her that they eat it together. Just her and Axel and Roxas. They... did say something to Taiki and she was still unsure about that, despite Taiki actually... being a friend.

But when Webby found out about Xion's spot on the clock tower it had taken ages for Webby to stop showing up. What if this Somebody started showing up for ice cream?

She... She didn't want that. She turned on her heel, and if not stopped, will try to run away.

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Symphony - Day 19

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Giving her a chance to react before he goes on

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