freedomliveson

Time never stands still(Freedom/Phaige)

Got the thread up, now for the post!

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

Boy do I KNOW what that feeling is like. When we bought our house, we were busy for weeks...still busy, actually, but not as much as when one moves in and/or has to deal with paperwork! xD
Happy to hear that everything is working out, though! Exciting times in terms of moving out, so yay for that, right?

Oh that was funny. I didn't think Aria had that kind of ability to distract her enemies, but it sure did come in handy that time. Also, thanks for the set up for Soto/spirits in the Nightmare lands. Cause you know that I'm going to HAVE to do something with that, right? ;)

The ties that bind (Serenia/Freedom)

He was surprised when Ellie got into the passenger seat of her own vehicle, but Kaz chalked it up to not only her attempting to let him be the gentleman, but also the shock of discovering such a morbid scene. Of course, that wasn't the only behavior that had surprised him; when she had laid her head on his chest while recounting the tale, his heart nearly stopped, then went into maximum overdrive for a perpetual eternity. He fought the urge to place his arms around her waist vehemently, but a compromise was reached subconsciously when his right arm slid loosely on her shoulders, holding her lavender scented presence (was it lavender? Did it smell at all like that or was he imagining things?) close to him. Neither one commented on the sudden intimacy, which suited the executive just fine. There would be more than enough time, hopefully, to discuss matters of the heart.

He snorted a chuckle when they had been on the road for a couple of minutes and heard Ellie's greeting to his older brother, responding:
"Juntao will be happy to hear that you still remember him. He always considered you a good friend when we still...well, when we were here." While his father was less than ecstatic about Kaz's relationship with Ellie, Juntao proved to be an ally along with his mother, sticking up for Kaz whenever the elder Ujohiri would attempt to dissuade the younger brother from forming attachments. Juntao had received the worst of the "not forming relationships" mantra according to him and quickly resorted to having discreet relationships with multiple women across his academic and professional career, none of which panned out. In a sense, it appeared that Juntao was happy that his younger brother could have one steady, happy relationship unlike himself. That enthusiasm was dashed when they left, of course and history was written.

"I'm sorry to hear about the divorce, but happy to know you have a roof over your head. Mortgages keep rising in cost exponentially and with the economic climate..." As the car came to a stop, he shook his head and gave her an apologetic glance.
"How much of nerd did I just sound like? Goodness." Kaz nodded in appreciation at the invitation, walking into the shared home as he responded to her question:
"Black is fine. Judging from the scent, I doubt it'll require anything else." Realizing he hadn't checked his phone for the inevitable conversation with Juntao, he withdrew his phone and checked his missed call notifications.
"Unknown?" He mumbled, the caller ID of both missed calls registering as unknown numbers. A voicemail was left, prompting Kaz to check the message. The first few seconds were silent, but then he thought he heard slow breathing, labored, almost forced. A handful of seconds passed before a warbled voice spoke:
"I see him. I see him right now. Hope you can see him too." The message ended there, hair on the back of his neck standing up on end, chill coursing slowly down his spine. Could it be...no. No it couldn't be linked to the body. Probably some moronic prank caller. Had to be. Right?

When Ellie returned with coffee, he pocketed his phone and gratefully took the mug, asking with a feigned smile:
"So what IS it like being a vet? I know it was something you were always interested in, but for you to accomplish that dream is special."

The ties that bind (Serenia/Freedom)

Glad it wasn’t that bad xD

I thought while I was reading: “Man, it seems like all of Ellie’s family doesn’t like Kaz.” And then I realized that he sort of, you know, broke her heart and smashed it into pieces seemingly without a second thought.

Looks like we have some very emotional conversations coming down the line!

The ties that bind (Serenia/Freedom)

Let me know if you'd like me to revise anything! :)

P.S.: Sorry if the post was a bit...meh. Felt like it was on my end. Will make up for it next time.

The ties that bind (Serenia/Freedom)

He gratefully nodded at her resolution to try, telling her:
"That's all I can ask for. Thank you." Kaz had wanted to talk to her a bit more in solitude, but apparently Tucker was having none of it. With a roll of her eyes and that dazzling(it had only grown brighter) smile, she went to attend to the noisemaker, Kaz mustering a smile of his own before rising and removing himself from the pole. He attempted to brush off some of the assumed dirt that had probably stained his once crisp white shirt, mumbling about having to remember not to wear white and something else about fashion that a stylist had told him about contrast-

A sharp, acute scream rang through the air, his eyes darting towards the source. It came from just beyond the edge of the forested area deeper into the abandoned property where Ellie had gone. Another yell, but this time he distinctly heard her calling for him.
"ELLIE!" He shouted as loudly as he could, sprinting in the direction that his former companion had taken. Dashing past foliage and trees, he clambered up the soft earth of the hill, arriving next to her.
"Wha-" His eyes widened at the gruesome sight that she had discovered. The man's body was pallid with the color of decay, limbs at contorted angles that were sickening to look at. No blood was visible around the grass where it(he!) laid, but there were stains across the t-shirt and pants that looked spattered and uneven. Maybe there were wounds underneath? Whatever the case, he would leave more qualified individuals to their work and get Ellie away from this decay. Before turning to her however, he took a quick scan of their surroundings, noting nothing but gently sloping hills with trees dotting the landscape in every direction. If the person who dropped the body off had JUST arrived, then they might have heard the commotion caused by the discovery. Would they be back? Would they trail off and hope that two random people stumbling onto the body would prove to be harmless? Or was this purposeful? Was-

Not important right now.

"I'll call the police when we're away from this. Come on. I'll get you to your car." He gently slid one of his hands into hers and attempted to lead her away, but he thought he felt some resistance. Not knowing if it was imagined on his part or Ellie actually trying to make them stay, he calmly told her:
"It's going to be ok, Ellie. We'll get out of here, call the people who know what to do with these things and we can just forget we ever saw this, ok?" With a small squeeze of her hand, he once again tried to steer her down the hill. This time, however, he was interrupted by his phone vibrating in his pocket.
"Who on earth?" He chose to ignore the call at this particular junction for obvious reasons, helping Ellie(or at least attempting to) navigate some of the softer parts of the hill that could have led to a nasty tumble and back towards the swing set.
"Where's your car? We'll call from there."

___

It took about twenty minutes before officers arrived on scene, all the while Kaz staying by Ellie's side, offering a shoulder to lean on in case she needed one(just like the old days...without the body, of course). After the duo had given brief statements of their discovery to one officer with an odd mole on his upper lip, they were told to "keep Macon PD informed of anything they might remember later about their surroundings" and were assured multiple times that things would be "resolved" in regard to the body. After the officer left their company, Kaz asked Ellie quietly:
"Would you like me to escort you home? I'd be glad to." His phone vibrated again, Kaz groaning in protest before attempting to lighten the mood:
"Might be Juntao asking why I haven't checked in. Older brothers can't stop being brothers, I suppose. He can wait." He reached down to scratch Tucker's ear once more as he added:
"I know you have a very loyal companion to protect you, but I wouldn't mind actually seeing you go through your front door safely and without being harmed...not that you would be harmed, but...you know what I mean."

The ties that bind (Serenia/Freedom)

Yeah, fair enough! It's a good reminder to our characters that there are other issues that are going to complicate things rather quickly xD

Get you a post tomorrow, seeing as I'm about to head out for the day

The ties that bind (Serenia/Freedom)

XD

Up to you if desired. I was going to work in some news reports/discussion from Kaz in a bit, but feel free to have Tucker stumble onto a body if you'd like to get the killer's work introduced.

The ties that bind (Serenia/Freedom)

No worries!

The ties that bind (Serenia/Freedom)

A half smile formed on his lips when she mentioned his father. It was hard not to miss the news reports about his death, but the fact that Ellie was willing to express sympathy was kind. Tanaka was never one for encouraging any of his three children to have relationships that would "deter them from the work of the future", but he didn't go out of his way to discourage them, which enabled his children to form social attachments. For some reason he seemed to frown upon Kaz's relationship with Ellie more so than anyone else he had formed an attachment to, going so far as to tell Kaz a few times during his senior year of high school that "the girl" wasn't "worth pursuing at your underdeveloped age". He didn't listen, which upset Tanaka visibly once or twice, but thankfully Kaz's mother served as an excellent buffer and pacifier; in fact, it was the much brighter in disposition Haruna Ujohiri that happily hosted Ellie and her family at Kaz's old family home a handful of times.
"Thank you for your sympathy. Father died very suddenly, but he had lived a full life, one that I believe he does not regret where he resides." Kaz placed himself next to the swing, suit jacket rubbing up against the pole of the swing set(note: dry clean this for later). He listened contentedly to Ellie's description of her new life as veterinarian and that she was indeed happy. Good. That's all he ever wanted for her.

It was her scrunching nose that deterred Kaz from attempting to discuss his feelings about where they had left things, laughing slightly as he told her:
"That EXACT face was the one you had when I showed you what I painted senior year of high school. Don't you remember? It was that very awkward portrait of a skeleton dangling off a cliff. For some reason I thought it was an ironic commentary on life and you..." He laughed more heartily this time.
"You had that same face! I don't remember what you said exactly, but the expression was enough to convince me that my rebellion aspirations of artistry were nothing but a pipe dream." Taking off his suit jacket and laying it gently on the ground(dry cleaning it anyway), he slumped against the pole, winding up in a seated position, legs out in front, hands on the ground.
"Maybe art would've been a better career choice." A sardonic snicker before changing subjects, wanting to get at least a small portion of his feelings on the subject off his chest:
"Right, yes, I wanted to find you. I needed to, really." Another clearing of the throat, a momentary pause, then:
"After Father passed, his will stated that Juntao was to be promoted to CEO in his stead, which left the position of CFO to me. Needless to say the board of directors wasn't thrilled with a 38 year old and a 32 year old taking the reigns of a multibillion dollar operation, but if you remember anything about my older brother, you'll recall that he has the ability to convince a stone barrier to melt if he needed to get through. He managed to convince enough of the board to allow the current familial structure to remain in place for the fiscal year and if growth wasn't evident under our reign, then we would vacate our positions. A lot rides on our success and..." He trailed off, chuckling.
"Sorry, there's a point to this background, I promise." He took a breath, then continued:
"When the responsibility of Father's company passed onto me, I was hit with a sudden realization that I had risen to the position that he had wanted me to attain...and that saddened me because I knew what I gave up to pursue this might have cheated me out of so many other better alternatives." He wanted to reach out for her hand, but suppressed the urge. Waaayyy too soon.
"I know my obligations are to my father's company, but that doesn't mean I can't repair some of the damage I caused. I want..." He swallowed a hard lump in his throat.
"I wanted to apologize. For everything. And to maybe, just maybe, ask to be a part of your life again." He quickly added:
"I'm not asking for your hand in marriage or anything and I know that even trying to be friends again might be too much to handle, but I know I'd love to try." There, he had said it.