[Open] When darkness is upon your door

[burntviolet]

Who: Hanako (burntviolet) and you!
What: Lilly is gone. Hanako doesn't take it very well, and tries to cope with the loss by going to the places she likes.
When: Day 137
Where: There will be two options: Library, and the park.
Rating: PG.



[ A - Gefion Park ]

[ It was nothing short of a horrible week for Hanako, just like it was probably for most people. But what hurt her the most was the notice that her best friend Lilly was missing from her room. One morning she headed there as usual to help her get ready for breakfast, and all her things, along with her own person, were nowhere to be found. The "Contact Not Found" sign on her bracelet was the ultimate confirmation that Lilly was no longer in Asgard. It hit Hanako harder than it should have, considering that now she's sure her friend was safe from the danger that lies here. Her company, although short-living, did help her emotionally during the Darkness attacks. She would have possibly broken down otherwise.

She's going to spend most of the morning in the park, sitting on the grass by the lake. Nashi's been left in the House. Hanako wanted to be alone while brooding. It doesn't look like she had a great sleep lately, either, looking at the clear bags under her eyes. ]

[ B - Great Library ]

[ Towards the afternoon, Hanako can be found at the library, sitting on her usual beanbag and mindlessly flipping through the pages of a random book she picked up. She's not reading it, though... her mind is wandering to other, unpleasant places where it shouldn't be. Not even her most favourite hobby is helping her. ]

Comments

[seventeenpills]

Hisao laid out the rice and soup next for her before plating the fish. It had been cooked with various spices and topped with chopped scallion. A little more advanced than his usual fare, but he'd gone back to one of the recipes he'd written down some time ago from one of the books he'd borrowed from the library.

"I'm glad to hear it - Enjoy."

He then went about setting up his own plates and bowls.

[burntviolet]

She wouldn't say yes or nod, but her answer was set through her actions as she didn't hesitate resuming her eating, picking at each other dish slightly before moving to eat them, still silently, but... with a sense of pleasure that lightened her up a bit.

[seventeenpills]

Finally, his own portions were plated up and ready to be eaten. He sat down and ate in silence too, as he preferred anyway. He had to admit, he'd kind of outdone himself on this one. It was all pretty tasty. He poured a little soy sauce over his rice and left the bottle for Hanako to use if she needed it.

...well, OK. Maybe the fish was sliiiightly over done. Next time he'd cut the pan time a few minutes. And add a little more ginger. And chop the scallion just a little finer and spread it more evenly. Oh god. Now he was kind of nervous that maybe she wasn't actually enjoying it that much. It was a little hard to read her, after all.

[burntviolet]

Those were all details Hanako wasn't concerned about. Perhaps, the fact the fish tasted a little crispier than usual was more of a nice touch than otherwise. Not like she'd say it out loud, though.

Using the sauce on the rice, she then proceeded to alternate it with the fish and the salad remains. All of that in religious silence of course.

[seventeenpills]

Soon enough he was finished and had laid his utensils down, finishing up with another drink from his tea cup.

"Are you full, Hanako?"

[burntviolet]

"... Hm." She made a little nod, very much filled up after she ate everything faster than she usually did. All that walking effectively made her hungry... she hadn't eaten so much in a couple weeks.

[seventeenpills]

"I'm glad." Hisao replied, starting to gather up the plates and bowls.

"I'll take care of the dishes too, if you want to go do other things."

[burntviolet]

"You don't need help?" This time she decided to ask, with a shrug; the food put her spirits a little higher, so to say.

[seventeenpills]

"I sure wouldn't MIND the help, but only if you want to." Hisao replied with a smile. "I'm fine either way."

He'd actually love for her to stay, but he didn't want her to feel pressured into it. It wouldn't mean anything if she was here out of a sense of obligation.

[burntviolet]

"..." Hanako wouldn't move an inch from her position, then. Because he didn't give her a clear answer, she was conflicted over whether she should or should not stay and help, after all.

Her insecurity would meet a half-end when she stood up, approaching the kitchen but not quite coming close to him.

[seventeenpills]

He looked over his shoulder at her approach and smiled, thinking it means she wanted to help. He reached over and grabbed a clean tea towel, offering it to her.

"Thanks for sticking around - did you want to dry?"

[burntviolet]

"... Sure." Not that she knew what to do there, but she... was mentally grateful to Hisao for giving her an option. She gently took the towel, and began taking on the dishes he cleaned to dry them carefully.

[seventeenpills]

It was mostly just bowls and a few pans, really not a great number of dishes. He was careful to make sure the water wasn't too hot so the items weren't overly warm when she got her hands on them.

"Did you like the fish?"

[burntviolet]

Not without some heavy hesitance, she would answer to that after she was done with most of the dishes.

"... Yes."

[seventeenpills]

"Ah - great. I'm glad. It wasn't perfect, but I tried pretty hard to make it good. I'm glad you enjoyed it."

He was still scrubbing at the fish pan, water turned up pretty hot by now to clean out the grease and help remove any fishy smell. Nothing worse than going to use a pan and having it smell like fish.

[burntviolet]

And the smell of fish wasn't the most appealing on a pan after it was cooked. By the time he was scrubbing it, Hanako's hands were free again, as now she was waiting for the biggest piece.

[seventeenpills]

Eventually, Hisao was satisfied enough to rinse the last of the soap off of it and hand it over carefully, making sure she had a good grip on it before releasing it to her.

"Alright - I think the kitchen is looking pretty good now." he said as he whiped the counter with some paper towel to clean away any errant water and soap suds.

[burntviolet]

Eventually holding the pan by its handle and letting the water drip onto the sink, Hanako proceeded to wipe it dry thoroughly. Of course it was an easier task than scrubbing it, and it was quicker to boot. She placed it along with the pile of clean dishes.

After doing everything that was needed, fatigue caught up with her. She found herself covering a yawn with her hand.

[seventeenpills]

Well, she was still being really quiet but she at least seemed content. That was a good start, at least.

"Thanks for helping with the dishes, Hanako. If you're tired and didn't want to do anything else, you can go and sleep?"

[burntviolet]

"... I'll go sleep." Hanako agreed curtly, casually dropping the towel by the counter. She was going to probably feel better once she at least got some hours of rest. Perhaps she'd stay asleep for a little amount of time because of her insomnia, but sleep was still sleep and she wanted to get as much as she needed.

[seventeenpills]

Hisao picked the towel up and hung it on the towel rack for her.

"Alright. I'll see you tomorrow, then. Goodnight, Hanako - rest well, alright?"

He wanted to say more. Ask if they were alright and if she was OK. But he didn't want to open wounds from earlier in the day. It was maybe better to leave things as they were and let those wounds heal naturally.

[burntviolet]

"Okay... goodnight Hisao." She uttered quietly, walking past Hisao to get to the door. Once there, she stopped for a moment, like she wanted to say something else, but eventually gave up. She had no energy or will to talk about that. Maybe tomorrow.

So then she turned to the stairs and disappeared, heading up to her room in the first floor. Maybe tomorrow...

[seventeenpills]

Hisao watched her leave and his eyes lingered on her as she stopped at the door - his breath caught in his chest. Was she going to say something else....?

No. Just like that she was out the door and gone.

"Goodnight, Hanako. Pleasant dreams." he said to himself quietly as he started to arrange things in the fridge so they were within easy reach for breakfast tomorrow.

~FIN~