rekindleme | A Story and a Song...

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A Story and a Song...

Who: Diarmuid Ua Duibhne (

smallspot ) and anyone who wants to run into a cute little kid.
Where: An open grassy area near Building One.
When: 8-19, in the afternoon
Format: Starting in prose, but please use whatever you want to reply!
Summary: There are a lot of fun ways to spend a warm afternoon, though, for a bitty knight the best way to spend it is...training! Oh, and sometimes stopping to sing songs to his 'family.'
Warnings: Cuteness?

For once Diarmuid is using his cloak as something other than a blanket. Right now, he is carefully spreading it out on the grass so that he can set his new toys on it. With him are three small stuffed animals he got at the end of the festival--two adult swans and a baby one.

"Here is the father swan," Diarmuid carefully sets the first of the adult swans onto the cloak--the one he has picked to represent his foster father, Aengus. He then sets the other adult swan next to the first, this one representing his foster mother, Caer, "And here is the mother swan! And here is the baby swan who isn't lost anymore!" The boy sets the baby swan in front of the two adults and then jumps up and claps his hands happily.

"Now the whole family is together again! Watch me, Father! Watch me, Mother! I'll show you what everyone has been teaching me while I've been away!" The boy bows to the toys and then picks his practice sword up off the ground. He takes a few steps away before starting to practice the new sword moves he's been taught by Suzaku and some of the others who have offered to train him.

He knows that the toys aren't really his family, of course, but over the last few days he's been more homesick than usual and talking to them like they are helps for some reason. Once he's practiced for a while, Diarmuid will sit down by the toys for a rest and to sing some happy songs to his 'family.' After a few songs, he will jump up and start practicing again. Diarmuid isn't really paying attention to anything going on around him, but he will be happy to talk to anyone who approaches him and be even happier should anyone decide they want to train along with him.

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[Diarmuid's eyes grow wide when Kerry mentions going on the mission.]

What was it like? Did you get to save people? Were you scared?

[From how quickly his questions come, it's obvious Diarmuid is extremely curious about everything. In fact, for the moment he's completely forgotten about training and showing Kerry what he's learned.]

You and Natalia beat the bad guys, right? Because you guys are the good guys!

[He nods.] Uh huh. It was tense. There was a magus who was hurting people, and we had to stop him. We saved people--a lot of them, because a lot more could have been hurt if we didn't do anything. I wasn't scared when it was happening, but I was scared before.

[During the mission, he hadn't felt much of anything, as if his emotions didn't exist. But before and after, it had been different. He answers all Diarmuid's questions readily, although he does feel--weird.]

We beat them. We had to. Like you said, we're the good guys.

[He knows they're good. Natalia is a good person. He still doesn't feel right about killing people--yet he keeps killing more of them. He has to. It's the only way.]

Father says it's okay to be scared before or after as long as you are able to do what you have to when the time is right!

[Diarmuid nods confidently.]

You are very good and brave! You will be a good knight once you finish getting big.

[The boy pauses a moment to think about something that just popped into his head.]

Kerry, do you think you got sent home because they knew you needed to do something important? Do you think they will keep sending you back so you can keep helping people? That way you get to help people here and people at home!

That's what Natalia says, too. Sort of.

[Not in those words. But she says he's good at doing what they do, and that it's good that he doesn't feel anything during the missions.]

I hope I'll be good, but I'm not a knight. I'm a freelance mercenary. It's different.

[He considers what Diarmuid asks him.]

I don't know... Maybe? [But he looks doubtful.] It doesn't matter how long they keep me here, since they sent me back to the same time I left from. It was like I was never gone at all. I think they just messed up.

[Kerry doesn't want to attribute good motivations to their "hosts", aka kidnappers.]

Then Lady Natalia is smart! You are lucky she is teaching you!

[A curious look crosses Diarmuid's face.]

What is a mercenary? How is it different?

So time really stopped like Lady Irene said it did? Such strong magic. If they are so strong, I wonder what was stronger and able to take their energy away! I bet it's something scary...

[He really seems in awe about all this.]

Right, she's very smart. She's a great teacher. I am lucky.

[Kerry tries to think of how to describe the difference between knights and mercenaries. He's not the biggest expert on knights.]

A mercenary isn't like a knight, because we'll fight for different people. We don't owe any loyalty to anybody.

I'm not sure if it stopped, but they returned me to the right time. I don't know how they do it either, but it worked somehow.

Maybe it wasn't something scary that took their energy. I bet they did something wrong and made bad decisions, like they were too greedy, and so they ran out.

So you are your own lord?

[The concept is a little odd for him and after a moment of thought that doesn't really get him anywhere, Diarmuid shrugs it off and focuses instead on what Kerry continues to say.]

I didn't think of that!

[His eyes go wide.]

They are so nice to us, I never thought that maybe they did something wrong. They might have gotten greedy. Or maybe they made a mistake. A really bad one! Now they are trying to fix it and learn from it!

[He never thought of that because Diarmuid doesn't tend to look for the bad in people. Even if they did make a mistake, it's obvious the boy thinks they will try to better themselves from it instead of not learning anything at all.]

It's like that. [He nods. That sounds right.] I'm my own lord. I decide who I'm going to fight for and when. Or, Natalia does, but I will too, someday.

They're not nice. They kidnapped us.

[Kiritsugu sounds slightly grumpy at this.]

They're not being nice at all, they're only trying to help themselves.

[Diarmuid sighs. He really wishes that Kerry wouldn't be so suspicious and angry at them all the time. He is too innocent at the moment to see Kerry's point of view. He just wants everyone to be happy.]

But they are nice to us! They could just lock us all in a big room and make us hug until things are fixed, but they don't! They give us nice places to stay and money instead! And they are nice to us too! When people have questions, they try to answer them. Maybe they took us without asking, but it could be worse!

Just because it could be worse, that doesn't make it okay.

It probably has something to do with the fact that people have to want to hug, and forcing them to do it won't work. If we were sick and hungry and rebelling, I bet the energy wouldn't be as good. They want people to think like you do and do what they want.

[It's hard for Kerry to read anything good into their captors' motives. People who do thinks like this just aren't good. The world is full of bad people, he knows this, and sometimes they seem good. You have to be careful.]

They brought us here even though they know people get real sick and could die.

But....we could be hurt and die at home too.

[Diarmuid falls silent, thinking hard to try and find a way to explain what he feels to Kerry when it's obvious the other boy believes so differently from him.]

I know they brought us here without asking, but now that we are here we should just help. Won't they be more likely to give information to us if we help them? No one wants to help people who won't help back!

[He pauses again and then shakes his head.]

I don't think we are going to agree on this...

That's no excuse. You can be hurt and die anywhere, but they're taking us somewhere where they know it's more likely to happen to us, especially if we don't do what they want. It's like forcing us to do it.

I didn't say I wouldn't help people, and I don't want anyone innocent to get hurt, but I'm gonna help everyone get home.

I won't just do what they tell us to do. If we're doing what they say, they have no reason to help us, because they're already getting what they want.

[Diarmuid tilts his head curiously at Kerry.]

But isn't that what Lady Natalia is doing to you? She is helping you and training you so you have a better chance to survive, but she is still putting you into a place where it is more likely you will be hurt or killed.

What makes that different from what the people are doing here?

It's obvious why it's different. I chose to do it. I asked her to teach me. It's what I want to do.

[She had put the gun in his hand, but he had chosen everything that had come after that. Natalia was a good person. She had never forced him to do anything.]

I could leave Natalia any time I want.

Maybe some people have decided they want to help here too. It's their choice!

[Diarmuid stomps his foot to punctuate his words and then falls silent. When he speaks again, the upset is gone from his voice.]

I don't want to fight. Not when you just got back here. Lets do something else!

Maybe.

[But it's clear from Kerry's tone and his dubious expression that he is highly doubtful. It doesn't matter if a few people want to help--they can stay. What matters is all the people who are here against their wills.

But he doesn't want to argue with Diarmuid either, not really. Diarmuid's just a kid. He doesn't get it.]

Okay. I don't want to fight either. So what do you want to do?

[Despite the fact that Kerry's answer isn't a very convincing one, Diarmuid accepts it. It is as Kerry thinks. The boy doesn't know that much about the world and as such can't really understand where Kerry is coming from. He's just happy to avoid a fight.]

I would ask if you want to train with me, but your arm is hurt.

[Diarmuid frowns slightly, but does so for only a moment before his expression brightens.]

Do you want to watch what I have learned? You can tell me if I am doing something wrong if you want! I don't know what Lady Natalia is teaching you, but fighting is fighting right?

[~~Well, not really when you use a gun, but...]~~

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A Story and a Song...

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