tampered | Log; Ongoing

Log; Ongoing

When; Evening, Sept. 9th
Rating; PG-13 for language, subject to change
Characters; Tayuya {

so_very_greedy}
Summary; After taking some jabs at Kabuto's sex life during her dinner with him and Shizune earlier in the week, Kabuto decides to put Tayuya in an awkward situation in return.
Log;

Tayuya slammed the door to her room, running her hands through her hair in a vain attempt to calm the red tresses down. She was led to the kitchen by the smells of dinner cooking, admitting despite herself that it did smell damn good, as usual with Kabuto's cooking. She had abandoned her usual uniform for another outfit she'd picked up in her quest for femininity, despite her feeling that she'd never hear the end of it from Kabuto. But this was him trying to get back at her anyway, and she'd be damned if she'd let him get to her.

She didn't know how he'd gotten Orochimaru and Kimimaro out of the apartment, but she didn't want to know what he'd told them. She'd probably already be in trouble enough for breaking that chair when she'd gotten home on Wednesday anyway.

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"..." Tayuya looked him over appraisingly.

"Yours is scarier than mine..." She sounded a little miffed. No one had ever found her second form 'cute'. Mostly they screamed. Or ran away. Or died. Stuff like that.

This City just had weirdos in it.

"I don't LIKE bein' scary, though. Scares chicks away."

He pushed a hand through a chimney.

"But it's got advantages. This skin is harder than diamond, but as pliable as real flesh. Nothing can beat this defense."

One eyebrow raised as she scratched idly at the side of one horn. The damn things sometimes itched.

"Impressive." She noted. "I can't do that, though this form ups my power considerably. More than doubles it." She crossed her arms. "There's supposedly another form beyond this, but no one's done it."

"Still think it's cute, though."

He shifted back and sat on the edge of the roof.

"So, how have things been?"

"Pssh." She plopped down into a seating position on the roof floor, leaning back against the edge and putting her hands behind her head.

"Same old, same old. Avoiding Orochimaru, Kimimaro, jibing Kabuto, making fun of Shizune, hanging out with you. And... that's about it."

"Tell me somethin', Tayuya. How DO ya' feel about me, anyway?"

"HUH?!"

She spun about, the horns on her head coming quite close to his knees. She averted her gaze, however, staring off somewhere near his head.

"You're, uh,... fun. Lotsa fun."

He cocked his head to the side, studying her.

"...You seem a bit evasive."

"AM NOT."

She protested loudly, a stubborn expression coming to her face.

Greed considered raising his voice in return, but opted out of starting an argument.

"...Fine, you're not."

An awkward silence passed between them.

What the hell am I supposed to do? I can't touch her, I can't get her to answer a question without getting pissed, and she's paranoid. I need an idea quick...

"Do you have anything that actually gives you joy? Something that helps you pass the time?"

"You're right I'm not." Tayuya muttered, arching her shoulders defiantly.

She idly ran her fingers through a flute melody, trying not to shift in the awkward silence. When she listened to his question she averted her face again.

"My flute. I like my flute."

"Could you perhaps...play for me?"

"... sure."

She didn't usually play in front of people, unless she was attacking them. For pleasure she usually played by herself. But, she didn't know why, she took her flute out from its place at her hip and put it to her lips.

The melody was soft and quiet, almost inaudible unless you listened closely. But it slowly built in volume, climbing to crescendo and then fading away as quickly as it rose. Her eyes were closed as she played, almost in her own world. As the last note of the song faded away she opened them, giving a small, almost content sigh.

"I like that one." She murmured.

Greed opened his eyes and nodded.

"Hm. I like it. Flawless, from beginning to end. And believe me, I've had a lot of time to listen to people."

He moved from his seat, to plop down next to her.

"I want ya' to know, I really like you. Girls like you are a rare breed, so don't let anyone give you shit. It's hard to find girls who are tough as nails."

"It had better be perfect." She muttered, looking to the side. She resisted the urge to sidle away, staying put.

"... I am tough as nails." She reiterated, nodding. She didn't know how to respond, other than that. She had no experience in any sort of thing he did, let alone in... being hit on or flirting. She was a bit unexperienced in that respect.

Just talking wasn't going to get him anywhere. It seemed like she was shutting down in the conversation. He'd decided to it was now or never.

"Hey, Tayuya, do you see that tree with the two birds, right there?"

He pointed out to the front of the building across the way.

Tayuya glanced over in that direction, eyes focusing on the pair of bluebirds he was pointing at.

"... yeah, why?" She had no idea where he was going with this.

Greed moved forward and put his arms around her, drawing her against his chest.

"They're nice, huh? Ya' know, Tayuya, most creatures can't thrive if they stay distant from others. You can't push them away forever."

"I probably should have prayed before attempting this..." he thought.

Muscles stiffened immediately upon contact, and she had to fight down her first instinct, to shove away and smash in the jaw, the violence rising in her throat, the protests on her lips. She should have figured. Should have assumed he was just trying to catch her off guard. She steadied her breathing almost immediately, not wanting to seem scared. Tayuya did not get scared, of course. Even though the only thought running through her head was run run run run run.

"Greed..." She finally spat out words, a hint of warning in there, but not as much as she had intended.

"I'm not letting go until you calm down."

He looked down at her, not mad, but steadfast.

"..." Tayuya tried to settle her nerves. Her pulse. Her... well, she didn't really have a beating heart. For once, she was grateful. Her attempts at deep, even, breaths failed miserably, so she settled for giving a huff, as if she did this such things every day.

"I'm perfectly calm." She muttered.

He quickly released her and sat back, running a hand idly through his hair.

"Ya' can't just spend your life pushin' other people away and freakin' every time someone gets near you."

She stood standing there for a minute, as if confused. But she promptly dropped back to a seating position, because Tayuya did not get confused. Nor flustered.

"..." She looked for words, not knowing why it was so hard. She was usually quick with answers, quick with retorts. But she didn't have smart comment for this one.

"... why not?"

"Because life, or in your case death, ain't much fun that way. Ya' gotta expand your web of connections to others. Nobody's an island, ya' know?"

He cracked his neck and crossed his legs, enjoying a nice breeze that was rolling in.

"There's too much out there. Now me? I'm a talker. A connector. I can't stand lettin' people get by without at least trying to make a new connection. Sure there are assholes, but the vast majority of people aren't like that. I never let that taint my opinion. As far as I'm concerned, everyone is my potential compatriot until they prove otherwise."

"The majority of people are assholes." She protested weakly, hunching her shoulders so that it looked as if she were folding in on herself. She let the curse seal dissipate, the horns returning to her skull, her skin lightening, hair shortening, and her eyes returning to their normal color.

"... and connections hold you down."

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