LC

Bleach - Resonant Souls

Believe we were heading for the mechanic, to group up with the rest!

Bleach - Resonant Souls

No worries! Post by post it is xD

Bleach - Resonant Souls

Sounds like a plan

Bleach - Resonant Souls

Darius Stone

Sagamiyama
Saturday - Midday
Interactions: Mikazuki- @Letter Bee

In truth, to call Darius' early attempts at learning music was incredibly generous. While it was not quite so terrible as to say he was torturing that poor old guitar, it was certainly the flat, fumbling attempts of somebody entirely new to playing. Which was, of course, better than the outright caterwauling of his first week's attempts. Still, it was no doubt a great relief to the neighbors, and neighborhood cats, when Mikazuki's approach led Darius to set the instrument aside. Gravel crunched under the bicycle's wheels, still fresh laid and loose, and Mister Stone raised a hand in greeting, that always warm smile quick to draw over his features.

The gravel in the drive was not the only fresh addition around the home- before and after the incident, Darius and his Fiance had been hard at work bringing new life to the old home. Fresh paint, new shingles, new plants in the gardens. Bit by bit, the fixer upper was being restored. It was a wonder the soldier still found the time for teaching his classes and training, when the soon-to-be Mrs. wasn't home.

Darius waited for Mikazuki to climb off of his bike before speaking up, removing his laptop from the other rocking chair to make room for the youth on his porch, a clear enough invitation to join him on its own. His Japanese, while understandable, was still heavily accented- though his tone was always warm.

"Nakajima! What brings you over today- are the others all busy, or did you just feel like keeping an old man company?"

There was something almost comical about Darius referring to himself as old. He was the oldest of their little group, true, and technically retired, yet he was still shy of thirty himself... Even if his knees and back did insist on creaking and cracking at every opportunity. He beckoned again for Mikazuki to take a seat, in case moving his laptop hadn't been clear enough, and despite his apparent surprise, seemed quite pleased to have company.

"Did you want something to drink? Aiko left some tea on ice this morning, there should be plenty left."

Bleach - Resonant Souls

Wooph. Four days late, and I blame the holiday week. But there we are- placed Darius down, and opened the door for anybody to interact with him if they'd like to! Poor man's bored senseless. Too young for retirement.

Bleach - Resonant Souls

Retirement, Darius decided, was not at all what it was cracked up to be. Four months, since he had handed in his equipment and been left to run free. Two, since he had brushed hands with death, and come out the reaper. He'd been busy enough at first, filing all the paperwork, getting affairs in order, arranging the wedding. Now, with most of both done and settled, he found himself with an overabundance of free time that had gone from relaxing to mind numbing in short order. There were only so many games he could play, and only so much time he could spend sleeping in, before long standing habit and the simple realities of his personality demanded he make himself busy with something productive... At least, something other than the training that had been quietly undertaken, in that world nestled within their own, where spirits ran free of their bodies.

Exercise was an easy place to start, once the wounds across his midriff had sufficiently healed. It filled his mornings well enough- once his fiance went off to work. Weekends has been easy enough, too, once some encouraging words from his soon-to-be wife had nudged him into starting up a self defense class for the young adults and teens in the area. But, that left his afternoons during the week painfully empty, in the hours before she came home. Much to the polite suffering of his neighbors, he had taken up trying to learn guitar, in those hours, settled on his porch with a beat up old acoustic he'd bought in town across his lap, and instructional videos pulled up on his laptop, set in the vacant of the two rocking chairs.

It was there he could be found, fumbling his way through a lesson and gritting his teeth at every muted note or off key pluck, by the wandering youths as they went about their own lives. Darius had been a pleasant enough presence in their varied group training with the shinigami, always encouraging, if a touch loud. He'd made a point of inviting everybody to his little weekend classes, an effort to encourage comraderie and fitness among their growing group of misfit substitutes, as he put it. So too had he declared his door open to them all, whenever they needed it... Though perhaps there were better things to come across than his awful playing. Surely, he would improve with time.

Surely.

Still, if they did decide to make their presence known, he greeted them with a smile, quick to set the instrument aside- otherwise, it seemed unlikely he would notice them at all, so focused on his pained attempts to learn and fill the time.

Bleach - Resonant Souls

I'll have mine up by tonight! Works a bit busy today so I can't get in it until I'm home.

Bleach - Resonant Souls

Looking forward to it! I can bring Darius in however is most convenient. Team dad is here to be helpful.

Bleach - Resonant Souls

Roger that

Bleach - Resonant Souls

Ohhhh I like that system. Though it means we'll need to assign a Reiryoku value to all of our abilities and kido- will you be giving us a formula to do that ourselves, or will you be looking through them all and assigning them values on your judgement?