A Boy's Icy Path: The Frigid Illusion [Req. Ikko]

[Suika]

--Prologue--

Set within a subzero cavern adorned with a sea of icicles sat a mythical creature of frost on its arctic throne. Its form was hidden by the tendrils of shadows that surrounded it as its dastardly aura repelled any living being that dared draw close. Icy veins ran alongside the cavern's walls as they glowed an icy blue. What resembled snow swirled violently inside the creature's frozen sanctuary. It was clear that this cavern was outside of this world, but it actually stood in-between the physical plain and the one beyond. Its presence was visible to certain creatures, but was only purposefully unveiled by its master. It's location was right outside of Kumogakure; it was strategically tucked away within the blizzards of its mountains.

Another creature manifested itself within the cave. Its appearance was also clouded, but its aura was significantly more subtle. It spoke in a whimpering sort of tone. Was it not accustomed to the frigid conditions of this zone? “M-m-master. Observation and analysis complete. We have found him.” With an elongated pause, another voice boomed within the room as a burst of chilly air flew out from the cavern's mouth. It's tone was indistinguishable, but it emitted a strong, icy presence. “I require my new vessel now. Fetch the boy.” </B><i></i>

“R-r-right away, Master!” replied the changeling as its form had begun to shift. With a few contortions and the sounds of bone popping, the image of a tan-skinned gypsy girl was now in the lesser creature's place. “I shall bring Ikko here at once.”<i></i>

--Present Day--

Within weeks following the sinister exchange, Ikko was to receive a letter addressed to him by one of his former classmates. The two didn't have an extensive history, but the scroll was clear with the instructions presented. It read:

Hey Panther Destroyer,

I hate to be a bother, but I need to meet with you soon, if you don't mind. Meet me at Dawnbringer's Plaza at the fountain tomorrow around evening. Sorry for keeping this vague, but I'll fill you in once you get there. Thanks so much, Ikko-san!

Signed,
Suika

If the Genin had ever seen the girl's writing, he would instantly recognize it as legible and hers. The bird that delivered the scroll fluttered off as any other did. The meeting was set and it was now up to the boy, at this point, to decide whether to show.

The following evening, Suika sat on the fountain's edge as sun set. It's waters reflected the orange-red of the sky as dusk approached. Her magenta eyes glowed with a faint beauty as the day's setting complimented its mystical shade almost perfectly. She was costumed in a more traditional gypsy-styled dress as she wore beads, golden bangles, and other trinkets. Her attire was relaxed, but it also added another layer of subtle allure to the petite girl. She trailed her hands along the brim of the fountain as she patiently awaited the boy. If he made his appearance, Suika was to greet him with a soft smile. <B>“Ikko-san, thanks for coming.” she followed with a small head bow. She continued. “How are you? I hate for this to be rushed, but I wanted to discuss with you a few important things, if you don't mind it.” She blushed slightly and turned her head away as to hide it. She composed herself and faced him again. Her eyes shimmered more than ever.

 

[Funai Ikko]

Re: A Boy's Icey Path: The Frigid Illusion [Req. Ikko]

Ikko combed his hair.

Early pubescent infatuation was a curious thing indeed. Ikko, who despite being allegedly rather cute and handsome, never really paid much attention to his appearance. It wasn't nearly as important as how long it took him to turn Eishi into a Popsicle or how exciting his next big adventure was going to be. He had never paid much mind to how he looked while doing it. Recently however, some of that had changed. Ikko began noticing things affected him in ways they most definitely did not previously, noticing things about other people that he had most definitely not noticed before. Hell, noticing people in general was something he had rarely done before a few months ago.

And as luck would have it, one of those people Ikko noticed had sent him a message via carrier bird. While an owl might have been more fitting given the context, the light that shone through in Ikko's face was nothing short of magical. They did not know each other very well, Ikko had no idea if this was even her hand writing, and the logical part of Ikko's brain immediately suspected this was some weird trick from Eishi. He was the only one, other than maybe Kiri, who had noticed Ikko's particular affection for the girl and it was definitely a stupid trick he would try to pull on Ikko...but the letter was written right handed, the angle of the handwriting and the fact that there were no smudges at all suggested as much and Eishi, well, Eishi was not going to be writing any right handed letters any time soon. So that left Kiri and as little regard as Ikko held for the man, this didn't seem like the kind of thing he would do. With all of the options for shenanigans seemingly eliminated, that left Ikko with the only obvious conclusion, this was legitimately from Suika.

And thus, the comb. Ikko, clearly not understanding how the comb was supposed to work, managed to leave his hair in as disheveled a state as it normally was, just in different places, before he dressed for the morning and made his way out the door. Ikko, clearly forgetting all the work he put in to not fixing his hair, took off at a sprint toward the point where the letter asked him to come, toward Dawnbringer Plaza. He mulled over the words in the letter. There weren't many and it was mysterious as all hell, but he liked mysteries, it was probably what drew him to Suika in the first place. Outside of her being obviously attractive, she was a rather unusual looking person. Nothing about her state of dress or the way she carried herself suggested that she was even capable of being ordinary. That and she called him Panther Destroyer, that tickled him.

Ikko arrived at the fountain where Suika was waiting for him in a huff and seemed, too late, to realize that he was arriving in as "uncool" a manner as possible and he scrambled to try and go in to a posture that must have registered as "cool" in his head but it just led to him standing awkwardly in the square like he had a wedgie. That didn't seem to deter Suika at all though. She thanked him for coming, asked him how he was doing, and then said something about important things, but the words weren't important. What was important was the red tinge that showed up on her cheeks as Ikko grinned at her, a tinge that Ikko vaguely understood, but stupefied him all the same. A similar red discoloring encroached upon Ikko's cheeks and he turned his eyes away, his brain stunned for a few moments that were held in silence. Then, all at once, it was like Ikko's brain did a forced reboot and everything spilled out of his mouth at once.

"HeySuikaI'mdoingfinethankswhatimportantthingsyoucomehereoften?"

Ikko...wasn't even one hundred percent sure what the hell he just said, but he tentatively turned his gaze back up to those shimmering eyes and he was rather quickly threatened with losing his train of thought once again. Clearly despite his agitating boundless confidence in most things, even flirting in a one sided fashion, he didn't seem to be especially equipped to receive it back. Mustering himself for some coherent speech, Ikko coughed and tried one more time.

"I don't mind, what is it?"

[WC: 737]

 

[Suika]

Re: A Boy's Icey Path: The Frigid Illusion [Req. Ikko]

As the boy grew flustered himself, the gypsy girl quietly giggled to herself. My, oh my, was he ripe for the picking. After he composed himself, she continued onto her request. “Thanks for that, Ikko-san. I knew you wouldn't mind...” the girl hopped off the fountain's ledge and landed expertly on her feet. She took a few steps closer to the boy as her voice grew soft. “Actually, can we talk while we go for a walk?” She was to let him respond, then walk alongside side him. Upon her initial stroll, she was to 'accidentally' brush her hand against his. Suika shyly pulled it away as she cleared her throat.

“Now that we're on the move, I'd like for you to keep an open mind. I know things have a habit of getting a bit wacky in this village.” She faced forward as her face slanted into a more serious expression. “I have been having this strange feeling lately, Ikko-san. In fact, it's all I have been able to think about as of late.” She then faced the cheery boy with calm, pleading eyes. “Will you help me resolve this feeling? I know it might be too much to ask, but I really need you for this. Only you.” The girl released a faint blush again, but she kept a specific certainty in her fiery eyes. It was clear she meant every word.

Regardless if he agreed, she continued. “I recently went on a mission outside the village and found this peculiar cave. There was no one around... it was completely desolate.” Her words were smooth and precise. She wanted him to understand. “Whatever it is that I've been feeling, I feel like it'll reach climax within that cave.” After a purposeful, prolonged pause, the girl smiled as she waved her hands, almost flustered. “Not that I mean anything weird by that! I'm sure it's nothing and I'm being paranoid, but I'd like to investigate anyway and need some muscle. I have a strange power that lets me sense...” the girl looked up as if in brief deep thought, “...phenomena. It's also the same extra-sensory perception that brought me here to you. I want to go back there and check things out, but I rather not go alone. Will you come with me, Ikko-san?”

It was then that she stopped moving and focused her determined gaze at the boy. An aura of truth and innocence surrounded the girl as she awaited his response.

 

[Funai Ikko]

Re: A Boy's Icey Path: The Frigid Illusion [Req. Ikko]

Ikko's neck might as well have been a particularly loose hinge. Ikko nodded in enthusiastic assent to take their conversation. Childish infatuation could corrupt event he sharpest minds...so it was absolutely playing havoc with Ikko's and for once in his life Ikko noticed everything. Even his rather unique affinity for selectively ignoring things he didn't want to see wasn't quite cooperating. He noticed how close she got to him, how soft and breathy her voice got, how her hand accidentally lingered across his. If Ikko's face got any redder it was threatening to completely pop. However, even Ikko would grow to have some hesitations.

It was not that Ikko necessarily distrusted the Suika before him, he wasn't in the state of mind to really completely go against anything she said, but even the boy's hormone addled senses were bound to harbor some hesitation as her story continued. He did have an open mind, it wasn't much of a challenge for him since his mind was perpetually open to anything and everything and she started off really strong by pointing out that Ikko and only Ikko would be able to assist her, his heart tried its best to leap right out of his chest, but the more and more she went on, the more and more hesitant Ikko started to become. There were holes in the story...leaps of logic that the Suika Ikko knew would not have made. Ignoring that despite the budding hormones, the climactic reference was bound to fly right over Ikko's head, coming straight to Ikko was a strange decision. Even if she trusted him and even if she had confidence in his abilities, there were considerably better candidates for "muscle" than he. At the very least, they should probably grab a few others...as much as the thought of passing up a chance to be alone with Suika pained him. Not to mention she never mentioned this extra-sensory capability, much less demonstrated it to him before and it had come completely out of nowhere. As she asked him to come alone, Ikko ground to a halt behind her, looking tentative.

"Suika...I want to go but it'd make more sense to come to me if it was really dangerous or you needed some amazing prank pulled. This sounds like a sciencey thing. Why did...your sensy thingy bring you to me? It doesn't make a whole lot of sen..."

Ikko paused as he looked to be deep in concentration, unsure really how to react to the situation at hand. He kept his uncertain gaze fixed on Suika, trying to rearrange her story into a form he was more comfortable with but wasn't having a lot of luck. His face was still a bit red but the normal color was slowly creeping back when he was given more time to think. She was losing him and better act quick.

[WC: 478]

 

[Suika]

Re: A Boy's Icey Path: The Frigid Illusion [Req. Ikko]

As the boy grew increasingly flustered, 'Suika's' inner self beamed with personal satisfaction. Hook, line, and sinker. Were the male species really that easy to toy with? As time went on, she noticed the boy's sense of hesitance creep in as he had begun to question the girl's story and reasoning for his involvement. His expression became less flushed and increased in focus; the girl had to act quickly to tackle this new threat.

As her expression shifted into a solemn one, she smiled faintly as her eyes flickered downward. “I see.”The girl's tone was a bit more down than her previous. Was she saddened? “It's okay, Ikko, it really is. But for the record, I wasn't lying to you...” she then lightly as she turned her head away from the boy, “...my senses did lead me to you. Besides that, and as embarrassing as it may sound, I don't really know much people around here.” Her shades of pink-and-red deepened. “I've been in this village for less than a year, and it's been pretty hard to adjust. I know we don't know each other well enough, but I also thought this would be a good opportunity to get to, yanno?” She then paused as the area stood silent. The girl shook her head and cracked a smile through her disappointment.

“But it's fine, Ikko-san! I don't mean to be a bother.” She gave the boy a subtle, respectful head bow. “If you don't want to come with, it's fine, really! I can go alone. I appreciate you meeting with me today, though. Perhaps we will cross paths again someday.” She then prepared herself for an exit. How would the boy respond to the damsel in distress?

 

[Funai Ikko]

Re: A Boy's Icey Path: The Frigid Illusion [Req. Ikko]

The tension in Ikko's brow was quite literally visible from space at this point as he watched Suika's expression turn heart wrenchingly crestfallen in a matter of mere moments and Ikko's heart once again threatened to leap out of his throat, except this time he was pretty sure it was trying to jump out to slap him across the face. The Suika before him certainly knew how to tug at his masculine sense of duty and his shame at not immediately jumping to assist her. For as clever as Ikko was capable of being, it seemed he was quite the idiot simultaneously. Then she brought it back to just wanting to get to know him better in the process...damn she was evil. Ikko fidgeted a bit on the spot, he was still visibly bothered by the situation and that rational, actually clever part was in the back of his head rampaging around telling him to stop being such an unbelievable tool, but it was quelled by much bigger, dumber monster that kept telling him "but she's cute though."

"Wait... wait, Suika."

Ikko hurried ahead, cutting her off before she could finish escaping. The guilt mingled with awkward excitement was clearly visible across his face as he seemed to fidget in place again, slowly winning the battle against the rational and suspicious part of his mind as he became steadily more and more resolved to jump into the unknown. The guilt ridden awkwardness slowly gave way to a big smile, finally fully resolved.

"If you're going to just go anyway I need to come along...who knows what trouble you would get in without me...or what fun trouble you wouldn't get in without me."

Ikko, flashing a now familiar, winning grin held his hand out for her to take before he began to make his way to the cave at her direction, feeling significantly more confident in his prospects than he had any right to. Though to be fair, at the outset this didn't really seem like it was going to be much of an issue, did it? She just found something weird in a cave. At their age that probably just meant she found a mushroom shaped like a turtle and, if he was lucky, maybe the turtleshroom could shoot fire. What Ikko was actually getting in to was so beyond his wildest dreams that he wouldn't begin to fathom it.

[WC: 400]

 

[Suika]

Re: A Boy's Icey Path: The Frigid Illusion [Req. Ikko]

“Are you certain?” The girl blank innocently at the boy as he finally embraced her request fully. Deep down, she cackled. The plan was a success! Its mission was easier than anticipated. “Master will be so pleased with me.” she coo'd in her devious head. Everything was set in place – Ikko, the boy chosen, was to meet the master and become his vessel. Everything fell into place perfectly.

Not showing her malevolent intent, the girl's curious expression shifted into a warm smile. She nodded her head. “Thanks so much, Ikko-san! I promise I won't be too much of a bore.”She giggled as she grabbed firm his offered hand. Eck... why were they so clammy? Humans. With that, they were off to the cave! The boy would fulfill his destiny.

MEANWHILE...

Alongside her dark-coated cat, Blackberry, Suika accomplished her usual routine in the marketplace. This almost wasn't possible; all odds seemed to be against the girl today. With a tired sigh, she reminisced about today's misfortunes. “Today was such a hassle. First, some kid broke the window outside my apartment. That took a while to clean up. Secondly, the tree in front of my house caught on fire. Lastly, as I made my way here, random strangers that I passed started randomly engaging me in hour-long conversations. What karma am I paying for?” Blackberry snickered in response. She slanted her expression and shot him a quick glare. The mischievous cat hushed.

“Anyway, time to go home, Blackberry! Such a tiresome da-” Like a jolt of lightning, the girl felt a malevolent presence in the plaza. It was weak and faded, but it was still there. The gypsy's spiritual senses were growing more refined day-by-day; this typically meant that such occurrences became more common. As much as she preferred to go home and ignore this, she knew she couldn't. Demon's had a good track record of messing with generally innocent souls. Suika sighed again and stealthily investigated the area.

As she neared the source of this evil aura, she spotted Ikko, the boy from her mission simulation, talking to some girl. Suika hid behind a tree and peered around it. With a more focused look, she instantly recognized the girl. It was herself! “Is this some type of prank?” she thought instantly. First reaction aside, it finally dawned on her. “No, I'm definitely sensing some type of dark presence from my doppleganger.” Before she could react, she heard the girl giggle playfully, take Ikko's hand, and skip off with him to god-knows-where. Suika shuddered. “Not only is she impersonating me, but she's doing it poorly. This is pretty cringy”.

While she had the power to confront them then and there, the kunoichi decided it was best to keep toward the shadows and silently observe the duo. Causing mass confusion and panic by battling a potential demon wasn't her cup of tea. Besides, if there's one of them, there had to be more. There was a good chance that demon would lead them to some sort of hideout. The gypsy girl glanced at her familiar and nodded. “Go home, Blackberry. I'll be back soon.” The cat meow'd loudly in protest. “...Fine, you can come with. But just don't get in the way and be careful.” Blackberry purred with satisfaction. The ghost girl and her strangely high-IQ'd cat were off!

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