Third Time's a Charm (Private: Ravana and Iori)

Sat May 26, 2012 5:13 pm

A pristine land of eastern charm, an untouched beauty of Asian culture. For the few outsiders privileged enough to step foot within the eastern territory of the Sugiura Lands, the sights that greeted them would have seemed almost otherworldly; a perfect picture of the dignified classical culture frozen in time. Though the residents may have thought nothing of it, many visitors in the past had confused these beautiful lands with travel back in time. Of course, because of how closely guarded into these lands was, very few would ever know of their beauty or culture; and of this small group, many would only be able to experience it once in a lifetime. Today however, on a day graced with radiantly glowing sun and both fauna and flora in full bloom, these lands would be receiving a familiar visitor; one who had been graced by the land's beauty not once nor even twice, but thrice in his lifetime. For one not of Sugiura blood, such a familiarity with the lands was almost unheard of, but this man had been privileged enough to receive the blessings of Misaiko Sugiura. However, for a visitor, this man was nowhere near any of the towns in the eastern domain; instead choosing to spend his time in the unmolested wilderness.

As stated, this familiar visitor was male, his build rather distinctive as he stood tall at six foot three inches and slim at only one hundred and fifty pounds. However, what truly defined this man, as well as his identity, was his face. With dark brown, medium length hair, amber eyes, and a look of both youth and experience, any who had met this man could tell you his identity from this face alone; Ravana Ichiro. Former Captain of the Gotei 13's squad three when he had first met Misaiko, and current Colonel of the Vizard Corps' Special Operations, this man had quite a name for himself. However, neither rank nor name were the reason behind Ravana's visit to this divine land this day. Then again, even his original purpose for today's journey had not been fulfilled, as it was Misaiko he had come to see. Over the years, the Queen of the Sugiura had become a sort of surrogate mother to this Vizard, at least in his mind, and was one of the people he trusted with his secretes, but today, he just wasn't sure.

Ravana had originally traveled to the Sugiura Dimension to meet with Misaiko today, having planned to discuss a few issues with her about the current state of affairs. However, as he had arrived at the royal palace, Ravana had just found himself unable to enter. No, he was not physically kept from entering, as Misaiko had given him permission ahead of time to enter. In fact, just entering the realm had begun to weigh heavily on his mind; a mixture of doubt and memories of his past visits circling in his thoughts. It wasn't as if he had caused any trouble when he was last here, nor had there been any great attacks, but... there was one difference, one change since he had last set foot there. In the grand scheme of things, it was not a change most would feel, save for those directly affected, but for Ravana, it was his entire mind could focus on. Last time he was here, hundreds of years ago, a woman was still alive... Iori Sugiura was still alive.

"Damnit! Why is she on my mind!?" Ravana shouted, though to himself. For as long as he had know Iori, dating back to his days before even becoming a Captain when she had attacked the Seireitei, she had done nothing but tease and torment him; not to mention utterly kicking his ass the first time they met. Hell, there was almost nothing she wouldn't have done just to annoy him, even using her alluring body to tease him. "W-wait, no, not sexy" he said out loud to himself, stuttering a bit at having thought of Iori as attractive. Well, despite his denial and how much she annoyed him, Ravana could not honestly deny that Iori was definitely attractive, but... there was something more. Ever since she had first beaten him so thoroughly, Ravana had seen Iori as a rival... no, not just a rival; a goal for how strong he wanted to become, an inspiration to get stronger. Hell, part of the reason he had even been so determined to get Misaiko to train him all those hundreds of years ago was so that he could get strong enough to show Iori that he wasn't just some weakling.

"But... she's always been so annoying..." Ravana said, again to himself, though in a softer tone now. Despite what Iori may have done to torment him, Ravana never actually hated her; hell, if he were to actually stop and think about it, putting his pride away, he'd be able to see that she was one of his closer friends. In fact, he probably owed Iori quite a bit for how far he had come; her taunts and strength a motivating force driving him to go beyond his limits. Sure, she wasn't the only one responsible for this drive, but she definitely played a big part in it. Hell, even when she teased him with her body, deep down he secretly enjoyed the chance to be that close to someone so beautiful. Letting out a sigh at all of these conflicting emotions, Ravana turned his gaze towards the sky, watching the sparse clouds roll lazily along. Still, the worst part was not that he had no real clue how he felt about her, but the fact that, love or hate, it was all pointless now. Iori had long since died, and as he stood there, gazing at the sky, a single tear escaped from his eye. The one question that had haunted him since the beginning of his story "Would I have made a difference?" flooded his mind. If he had only been able to discover just what it was that he felt towards Iori... would such a confession have made any difference in her fate?

Mon Jun 04, 2012 1:08 am

The beaming sunlight reveals in every detail, two individuals who have reunited by the coincidence of fate. At one side, a woman with crimson red hair is gazing amusingly at a flustered rival. At the other side, the rival or – the brave, some may call idiotic, Ravana is giving his best efforts to hide his embarrassment. Since the beginning, there has always been tension between these two, but not of the sort you would expect from enemies. Rather, what they feel between each other is something that could properly be called a “heated rivalry”, a clashing of defiant spirits with neither willing to back down from the other. The crimson haired maiden, Iori, takes the opportunity to give him a long once-over, curious to see where his growth had taken him over the years as a warrior and as a man. While she didn’t intend to see him here of all places, she was nevertheless intrigued to see how well he had grown over the years. Still of medium height and build, in the corner of her eye she could see the lines of muscle tone through his uniform. His hair was slightly longer, but that was about it.

No extreme changes in appearance. What she was truly curious to learn ever since their last meeting was, had he improved as she told him over the years? Couldn’t hurt to ask, she thought with a distinctly visible smile that clearly exemplified her entertainment at this confrontation. Why had Ravana invited her laughter? The answer too that would undoubtedly be his being here. In this place, at this time, he has decided to train under the tutelage of her mother, a woman who was both warrior and ruler at heart, a sovereign queen who followed the way of the bushido – and a mother that loved her children more than anything the universe could possibly offer. She commended him for his choice, but could not kick the irresistible urge to poke fun at him nonetheless.

“I thought I told you to get stronger. Who told you to get babied up by my mother? “

Her hollow insults did little to lessen his growing frustration. Ever since this woman, she had not ever once regarded him as strong. Always disrespecting, always insulting, she had served as both an obstacle and inspiration to this young man ever since they met. He gritted his teeth as he yelled; releasing the bent up frustration he had since the outset of their verbal clash.

“I-I have! W-who said their’s a crime against learning from someone to get stronger!? Huh!? And…the jokes on you! My training with Misaiko has been anything but easy!! God, out of all the places why did I have to meet you here!? “

“Because that was what fate had intended, of course… “

“I—huh? What the hell are you talking about?”

“Why else would we meet here before I go to the battlefield where I will face the mightiest opponent I’ve ever battled in my entire life? Why else would I meet you before I face my impending doom?”

—Impending doom? What did she mean by that exactly? Was there a disease she acquired? A condition that would ultimately spell about her end? What, or better yet, how could he react to those ominous words, spoken like a premonition? Of all the things she said, it was not only so frightening as to be terrifying, but caused him to take on a far different mood than the one he possessed at the outset of this conversation. The thought of losing someone like her….he couldn’t fathom such things. As much as she annoyed him, and as much as he couldn’t stand her insulting tone or arrogant smile, she was a friend. No…wait more than a friend—no she was just a friend. What was he thinking? First of all, would she even like someone like him? Naturally, Ravana had pride in himself but when it came to her—he didn’t know what to do. He didn’t want to think that he was attracted to this overbearing woman, but at the very least, he felt that there was something between them, though it is a small friendship.

His feelings were probably unrequited so there was no point to give voice to them. He could do one thing, however. Encourage her, be there for her, and help her gain enough willpower needed to make it out alive. He knows that soon, she will go to battle, that she will face an opponent whose power was nearly unrivaled. Still, he had to be strong. He had to be resolute. There was no other, more efficient way. As he took a long deep sigh, he straightforwardly wrapped his hand around her arm, pulling her towards the edge of a stream that flowed with pristine blue water. Iori didn’t frown or pull back at this. As far as she had been concerned, there relationship was one that needed no restraints. The only thing on her mind was the curiosity of what he planned to do next. And, as though it was the most surprising thing in the world, the man simply guided her towards the edge of the river and sat beside her. In the next instant, after taking the time and gathering the right words, he spoke.

“…Don’t be an idiot, Iori. You can’t die. There’s no one stronger than you except me. “

“Oh…?”

“Yeah, I’m the strongest opponent you’ll ever face. Whoever that guy you’re going to battle now is second-rate at best, heh. “

“…Hehehe,” Iori chuckled ever so slightly in response to his words.

At this, Ravana smiled. He knew that in some way, he had dashed her worry. There was no need for inspirational praise, no need for verbosity he knew full well she had no intention of hearing. In order to encourage her, one had to be a bit forceful. And lo, has that smile that has always been the bane of his existence not returned to her face? In order to be there for her, this was the best way and he knew that well. But still, there was more he wanted to say. There was something else his mouth and even his mind had wanted to speak.

That’s not all…Iori I also want to say I also want to say I— He what? He loved her? No, maybe there was nothing else that needed to be said. If so, then fate was truly cruel. Though his words were able to bolster her ever strong confidence, predictions would not allow him to know that this would be last time the two would ever speak, the last time they would ever exchange words between one another. Just as fate had brought these two together, it would doubtless tear them apart. But, of course, Iori was reassured that victory was at hand. Ravana was right. How could she lose to someone like Kin? She was the goddess of victory, a virago of war and battle. Kin was merely an obstacle in her path. Her resolve bolstered, her courage resolute, she was now ready to begin her training and grasp another victory. As she turned her head towards Ravana, she smiled, smiled and kissed him on the cheek.

“…E-Eh!? W-W-What was that for?!”

“Don’t get too flustered, Baka. I-it’s simply something I felt you deserved for giving me the mental strength to go to battle…”

“A-Ah…I...I see. “

“Well, It’s time for us to train. Prepare yourself. You may have flattered pretty ole’ me with your words, but that doesn’t mean a goddamn thing in a spar, got it!?”

“—Wha—whatever. I’ll take everything you’ve got!”

And with that, the two stood mightily as they brought both their fists together, and smiled to one another. Though they could never see eye to eye, their warrior spirits were not so discordant. With one last smile, Iori ran off towards where her mother can be perceived waiting by the training grounds. Ravana couldn’t help blushing after her departure. The last and remaining question, or rather regret, is that he did not confess to the woman he truly loved…

※※※※※

“………..”

The canopy above seemed to glitter dazzling, as each ray of sunlight basked the entire land in its seemingly ethereal glow. The weather was never disappointing here, one rarely if ever had to worry about extreme climates whenever this city was a concern. The influences of east were clear; it was as though this entire land was a rebirth of ancient Japan and China. Add to that, the peaceful and honorable mindset of the residents, and dojos and temples scattered in almost every town, and it was clear to see why the many people who visited this safe haven compared it to a travel back in time to an era where sovereignty and prosperity were the underpins of those eastern nations. Of course, for one woman in particular, it had been 400 years since she experienced the beauty of her homeland.

Resolving to live in seclusion, not once had she left unless her identity was manipulated into a form most suitable and, needless to say, discreet. She was not upset by this, as truth is told, it would only serve as a greater tool in her newfound goals. Here and there, however, the feeling of seeing her family and friends did encroach upon her every once and a while. The ever serene smile of her mother, the jubilant heroism of her sister, and the praise and adoration of her students from that large dojo—it would be no lie to say that she misses all of this with every iota of her soul. But she couldn’t go back. Not now, at least. Her training was still yet incomplete; Iori was not at a level where she felt she could match her ultimate rival. Never mind the individual who killed her, the man known as Kin iramasha was the sole warrior in all of creation that truly made her heart boil. Two battles have gone undecided, but now, there will be nothing to stop her from coming after him. Even if she has to avoid her friends and family, she will face Kin with no outsiders or onlookers to interrupt their battle. While such thinking usually filled her mind during training, her thoughts have now taken a different course. She had lost herself in deep slumber, earning a well needed rest – only to experience a peculiar dream just now.

Why was she thinking of him? Ravana ichiro…. As she recalls this name, more memories of their time spent together started to invade her thoughts like a powerful tsunami. The two were always competitive rivals, evident by how they bickered every time they crossed paths with one another. Iori had always poked fun at the man, wasting not a single second to insult and berate him. Some considered it ill-humor on her part, of course, but Iori didn’t have such perception. Instead of discouraging him, had her insults not turned him into a great warrior? There was never, not once, a single ounce of contempt or disdain in her heart for the man, so there was no true hate between these two. In fact, it would be more likely to say they fought like an old married couple. Never faltering or leaving ground before one another, they trained strenuously to surpass the other. And in that regard, he truly was a strong fighter. To her, he exemplified what one could acquire through willpower and training your body beyond limits it never thought was possible to reach. He was a good guy, she mused solemnly as she continued to stare into the bright sky. Little did she know—little did she know that just as it had been many times before, the gods of fate would once again see to it that they be reunited yet again. Rising from her supine position by a large oak tree, Iori stretched her arms out lazily as she started to formulate ten or so many plans of how today should go. If she were hungry, she could of course assume her child form and request a lovely meal from the shop owners.

If she wanted to train, she could seek dry, clear land in hopes of honing her physical and spiritual skills. Perhaps she could even return to her sleep, but something about that dream caused her to exclude that possibility from her mind. Anyway, there was no more reason to stay here pondering on the unknown, maybe she should—wait, were those footsteps? Thump. Thump.
Closely, closely, ever so closely, she could hear the footsteps becoming more pronounced. The conspicuous footfalls caused the crimson haired woman to become cautious, as she took unannounced steps towards the stranger. Thump. Thump. Thump. She had to tread carefully, who knows what could be coming near her? The steps were becoming ever closer, and Iori had to steel herself in order to remain inconspicuous to whoever it was coming here. She planted her feet quietly, stealthily and then—

“Hah!”

She leaped from the bushes and right into the chest of our hero of this tale, Ravana Ichiro. She had extended her knees until her body reached the maximum length, and used her lower body to push him down, using her slender, lanky arms to pin him to the ground. Only a few moments passed, but once she brought her head up to confirm the identity of who this man was her eyes shot open like saucers—
“…..What!?”

Spoiler:

Fri Jun 15, 2012 11:25 am

Had he been paying more attention to the world around himself, or any attention for that matter, perhaps Ravana would have been able to foresee the events that were about to transpire; but alas, his gaze remained fixed upon the sky and his thoughts upon the deceased Iori Sugiura. Of course, what puzzled him most about this current train of thought was not so much the fact that Iori had died, as that was something he had known for many years now. No, what caused the most confusion within Ravana's mind was the thoughts themselves, or more accurately; where they were headed. Sure, some of these thoughts were natural, albeit prolonged feelings of grief and regret, not helped any by the fact that Ravana still felt that perhaps there had been something he could have said or done all those years ago that might have changed her fate. What had him so deep in thought, however, were the rest of his thoughts revolving around Iori; thoughts tied to deep emotions and led to a certain destination he still denied. "No... I don't..." he muttered to himself under his breath, a stubborn, verbal denial of his thoughts. With how she treated him, all she put him through, and not to mention how many times she had handed his ass to him on a silver platter, it was impossible for him to have such feelings for such a woman... right?

Without giving it full, conscious thought, Ravana had begun to pace around the spot he had been standing, before beginning to actually walk away from the location and further away from his initial destination; still fighting with his thoughts. Ironically, the only fact about his situation that could offer Ravana any respite from the confusing jumble of emotions and denial was that, no matter how he felt about Iori, any conclusion he could reach was completely and utterly pointless. Gotta hand it to irony; she is one cruel bitch isn't she? Well, despite the futility, this mental dilemma was enough to dull his senses and cloud his sights. While this made it a miracle that Ravana had yet to run into that infamous "misplaced" tree, it set up the perfect situation for the newest event fate had in store for him. And so, it was through these circumstances that, as he approached a rather large grouping of bushes, Ravana was completely unaware of the presence laying in wait so close to himself; a fact that should no doubt shame the Special Operations Colonel.

Suddenly and without warning, or at least enough warning for his far off consciousness; Ravana found himself laying flat on his back with the odd inability to breathe properly. Although this was quite the effective wake-up call to his consciousness, it took Ravana several seconds before he could even realize what had just happened. Hell, his brain hadn't even processed the rustling bushes or sudden battle shout until after he felt an odd weight upon his chest and arms. "W-what the hell!" he said, exclaiming the first thought that had crossed his mind before blinking numerous times to readjust his sight. "Who the hell are-" he began, his intentions being to ask just who in the hell had ambushed him; at least before he got a look at them. As the female form finally registered to his brain, Ravana's very first thought was, undoubtedly "wait... that red hair". Well, ok, that was only one of his many "initial thoughts" one the physical appearance and identity of the female currently pinning him to the ground. To be honest, he thought his head was playing tricks on him from his yet unresolved mental dilemma and had, well, caused him to see the woman he had been so conflicted over...

But no, something was different. As Ravana took a closer look at the woman on top of him, many subtle differences in appearance began to make themselves evident, whereas they had initially been glossed over. Upon realizing said differences, Ravana actually let out a sigh that this woman was not Iori, though not consciously. Damn, maybe he wouldn't have gotten so confused if it weren't for the fact that he could still hear Iori's voice in his head... wait a second. As Ravana began to look between the hands pinning him and the face above him, her realized that the voice he had just heard, albeit brief, had not been just some figment of his imagination. "But... how could... her voice..." he thought to himself, a little dumbfounded at this discovery. "...Wait... wait a minute" he said, his tone confused and soft in response to what he desperately wanted to believe. Finally, as all of these signs finally began to click in his mind, the final piece of the puzzle fell into place as he realized that this woman had such a familiar energy, a reiatsu that had been ingrained into his memory since the first time his ass had been kicked by the owner.

"I-Iori!" As he almost shouted out the name, Ravana was simply unable to contain himself, the mental dilemma wiped from his mind for a few brief moments. Acting now purely on impulse and perhaps a tad bit of subconscious desire, Ravana quickly freed his arms from the woman; only to wrap them firmly around her waist. "Is... is that actually you... Iori?" he asked, though soon after both the situation and his earlier conflicting emotions returned to his mind. "I mean, uh, you were dead, I thought... er, and well... I-I still owe you for that kiss" he managed to blurt out as a faint, nervous blush began to cross his cheeks. Well, despite his excuse, Ravana did not fully let go of Iori after it; though he did loosen the hold on her waist to that of a common, friendly hug. "I, uh... how the hell can you be here right now?" he asked, both genuinely curious and drawing attention away from the fact that he was still unwilling to let go of her. "Er, but first, do you think you could get off of me? No offense, but that little ambush made it kinda hard to breathe" he said, an almost comical look to his face. Well, whatever happened from this point onwards, one thing was sure for Ravana... he was gonna get teased. A lot.

Thu Jan 31, 2013 7:38 am

Artist: N/A - Song: N/A - Word Count: N/A

Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Out of all the people i could have run into today, why did it have to be you!?

As that question dominated Iori’s thoughts, she too now found herself unable to register the reality staring her dead in the face like a deer in headlights. She would've been fine if it were a stranger she had encountered today… but out of all of the fucking people she could have reunited with… it just had to be Ravana Ichiro! They say that fate always has a penchant for ripping people apart as much as it does for bringing them together. No matter hard we humans try to escape the inevitable, the anti-hero known as Fate always sees fit to give us the most unexpected of outcomes; case in point, the current reunion between these two stubborn rivals. She could grit and grimace all she wanted, but one thing was undeniably true, she was sitting on top of the Ravana Ichiro.

More than that, before she could even speak, Ravana freed his arms of her grip – only to wrap them around her waist in a single, uninterrupted moment. Normally, no one would've been able to successfully touch her like this without so much as surprising her, but that was exactly what Ravana had done. He had caught this mischievous prankster of a girl off guard. Although she took much pride in her body, she wasn't a fan of people touching her either, unless it was family or someone she could be completely intimate with. And yet… she still hadn't grabbed Ravana by the neck, nor did she slap him across the face. She wanted to, of course! But this idiot caught her off guard! How could she react without being rude!? Considering the fact that these two were also in a rather precarious – needless to say, suspicious – position right now, Iori was beyond embarrassed. If his goal was to fluster Iori, then that objective had been met in full. “W-who t-the h-hell d-do y-you think y-you are, grabbing me like this, Baka!? “ Showcasing her special brand of Tsundere, Iori pushed her face inside his chest.

“Who fucking else would it be, Baka? I thought i'd never see you again! “

Indeed, when the two crossed fists for what she thought would be their very last time together, Iori never would've expected to see him here of all places. Alas, there was no reason to curse him for arriving at this domain. If it was destined to happen, then who was she to complain about what fate had intended? “I will say this, though. You really suck at being subtle.” She said coquettishly, kissing his nose before suddenly slipping away from his grasp—only to appear over his head with the same teasing grin he had become accustomed to by now. It was time for payback, she mused. But first, explanations were in order.

“Hum… I’ll tell you everything you need to know, provided you keep it a secret. First, though, I really need something to eat. And with that get up you're in now, i'm sure you're packing quite the wallet,” Said the goddess of victory in an utterly humorous tone, referring to his current article of clothing. She had always enjoyed teasing him, because he made it so easy, almost to a point where she could exploit his feelings at her own leisure.

Of course, this also served as a symbol of their friendship. These two forged a bond that would seem unusual to most, but genuine to each other. In her heart, she admired Ravana’s work ethic, yet she’d never admit such a thing in fear of stroking his ego. Then again, he wasn't really an arrogant guy. She was just too insecure to convey her emotions. Either way, for these two star-crossed individuals, this day would be one they won’t soon forget.

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Third Time's a Charm (Private: Ravana and Iori)

Third Time's a Charm (Private: Ravana and Iori)

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