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[He is still being frowny, because... well, he is.]

Right... Here it goes then!

[And off the stone goes, sailing through the air, touching water and bouncing, bouncing... bouncing again, and-- falling just short of the shore]

Tch. Almost... But yeah, it was better.

It still takes practice, [Ramza says, as he grabs a rock of his own, and throws it - and, yes, it does skip all the way,] but anybody can get better at it.
[His training brought him here, after all. A pause, and,] What's your name?

Whoa! You're too good at that.. Mine almost made it though, I mean-- the shore moved away!
[Yes, it totally did.]

Madara.

[A bit of a smile.]
My name is Ramza, Madara. And I've been... well, not trained in skipping stones. But they make for good weapons, if you're trapped far from your own.
[He is best squire.]
Though, in that case, you want to find harsher rocks. [Wait, should he be giving this advice to a child? His expression suddenly turns to slight worry.]

Weapons? yeah, they would. [He nods, because really, in his hands he can make anything a weapon.]

You can also take those and watch em skip on foreheads. [Yes. Weapons indeed. Also, he is far from a child, it may seem, even though he may appear to be eight or nine years old at best.]

Y-yes. [Okay, that does catch Ramza off-guard. But he gives a bit of a nod of the head.]
Of course, it wouldn't injure somebody too badly - only enough to retrieve your weapons. [He wants to change the subject, but, uh... well. Young people do sometimes turn to a life of crime, is this one of them? Somebody of the lower classes, who would hate him?]

Nah, a hit on the temple might do 'em away with enough force behind it, and a blunt stone. [Yes, he is sort of scary, that Madara, but he does still seem relatively pleasant still, yes?]

Not that it looks like we've got any weapons. [There is a shrug. It seems he is confident enough without any either way.]

Edited 2013-08-06 06:04 (UTC)

[Uh. Sort of. Ramza can't help but feel guilty, though. Because of home angst.]
We don't - they were stripped, yes. But have you heard of Skarmory? [He wants to know if he's the only one planning on harvesting his metal bird for a sword.]

Huh? [Incredulous blink.]

...uh, armory? Where? [He tilts his head, not having picked up the whole thing and unfamiliar with all these critters still.]

No - a bird, like this one.
[He says, calling over his saddled Skarmory.]

[Have him jaw-dropping and backpedaling as he stares at the metallic bird-like thing, because not only is it impressive, it is also bigger than him. Not that opponents bigger than him scare him out of his wits, but he is impressed.]

Are you serious!?

[All he saw so far were a few pokemon in town and his charmander.]

[Oh no, is it scary? Ramza shakes his head.]
This one isn't dangerous - I've been raising it from an egg given by kind strangers. But stories tell of their feathers becoming swords, in the right hands.

[Swords. This catches his attention.]

You want to see if those 'right hands' are yours, huh? [He carefully advances towards the bird, seeming overly cautious even if told the pokemon was no threat.]

I do. But first, I must make sure it is carefully trained. If not, it might--
[...!! The bird suddenly lets out a screech, and... lays down. It is tired and crying.]
Actually, I've been waiting for her to drop some feathers. [Her, huh? Yes, he's got a female metal bird.] It's no use to hurt her, for my own gain.

[The screech surprises him, and his body tenses in a defensive posture, guarding himself flawlessly.]

...her?

[He is not quite sure how metallic birds have a gender, but he soon enough loosens himself again.]
Ramza, right? Once you get a sword, what are you going to do with that? I didn't find any weapons of mine when I... woke up. [Still sounds strange, that.] What if it's just taken away?

[...What is he going to do with it?]
I wish to discover the truth of this land. [If he is dead, if he has been taken - if this land is related to Ivalice at all.] If I must defend myself, I shall need more then rocks. These creatures - like Skarmory, and Stunfisk - they are my allies, but it is unfair to expect them to defend me.
[A pause - Ramza's voice has raised a little.]
That is no way to live, forcing others to do your every bidding! So I must be able to keep my weapons, even if it my secret, hidden from others.
[...]
What would you raise weapons for, Madara?

[There is the same thoughtful expression as he takes in the others' cries and demands, his heated passionate speech.]

Your allies... they might defend you even if you don't expect or demand them to. This is what allies are for. If you can trust them, they can trust you and vice-versa.
[The tone earns respect from him, and his expression grows steely as he listens to him telling him he would keep the word even though it may have consequences. Then after the pause, he is asked a question he wastes no time in answering, dark gaze as piercing as a cold night.]

I raise weapons for my Clan, I raise them to protect my brother... and I raise them so one day we find peace. [Which certainly would be different from anyone would expect having met any older version of him.]

[He nods.]
That trust is something I must build, by treating them as equals.
[But at his answer? Ramza gives a smile. Of course, clans are different in his world - but he gets the general gist of it.]
You wish for peace, as well? My land was in a dangerous time - even though a war had ended, there were still many who called for blood.
[And his brother had - those traitors had... no, he cannot tell him the true story.]
I wish to protect my sister, as well. She is the only one of our family without proper training. We seem to have quite a bit in common. But I suppose you do not hail from Ivalice.
[Ramza has picked up a new smooth rock now, and is skipping it.]

Iva--who? [A blink. No, he does not.]

I hail from, uh... Hn. [He still has much difficulty stating things such as this, since it was uncommon to speak your clan's name to strangers.] I hail from the Uchiha's dwellings. [Which were pretty much all over the place. Clans were nomadic mercenaries fighting for whoever paid them the most to protect their lands.]

My world was- is always at war... [He states belatedly, looking at the stone as it skips to the shore. He too, picks one up and flings it at the water's surface.] I was going to try and find a way to make everyone understand.

Ivalice. It is the name of the country I came from.
[But he gives a nod - a man who just lives on the road? Well, a young one. He understands...] I don't stay still, even within the country. I am but a sellsword - a mercenary.
[...But his eyes narrow. A war-torn land, his hands tighten.] That is no way to live, people fighting for their own selfish reasons - using the many soldiers as pawns. There must be a way.
[...]
Perhaps that is why you came here. This land seems calm, but it may carry answers for both of us from our worlds.

Answers. [He echoes with a nod, picking up another stone and tossing it it over to the waters.]

That would be pretty nice, if it did... but I'm not really going to hold my breath. Adults govern the world, and we won't have weight, not unless we're strong and hold onto our ideals.

[Ramza nods again, skipping another rocks.]
And even if we could get answers - the truth may be distorted, blurred by their own twisted ideals. Or, perhaps, we would not listen to the truth because of our own.
[...This person... he thinks he can tell him. Something tells him he can trust him.]
That is what happened to me, just before I came to this land.

[The next rock is a huge miss, because what he head... it sounds so much like--]
You can't become allies with anyone... cause there's no way to even know what they're thinking deep inside. All they have is lies and deceit.

[So then, this person, Ramza...]
So you got betrayed? [He asks, eyes narrowing, because betrayal was disgusting to think of.]

I was a noble... but my brother, alongside a man I assisted both betrayed me...
[A bit of a sigh, as Ramza grabs... a blade of grass? He remembers when him and Delita last played a grasswhistle... when they were going to save Tietra.]
And my best friend, alongside his sister, both ended up dead. I don't know why, still. Sure, they were both commoners, but they were like family to me.
[His voice is quiet, his hands have gripped to themselves so tightly. He hates it.]
They spoke as if our friendship was but a ploy for my own gain - nobles and commoners couldn't be like that. But because of them, both Delita and Tietra are dead!

[Madara listens, perhaps looking impassive as he does, though attentive.]

Nobles... betrayal... commoners.
[Those are not alien concepts to him, since the feudal lords are this way as well, so he can imagine a similar situation.]

Being unable to do anything is bad, but being accused of that... it's sure gotta be worse. [There is a pause, and he gives a shake of head.] You remind me a lot of a friend I had, but... you're only less easily depressed. [In the last few minutes, he had been reminded of Hashirama a great deal.]

Adults are all the same. They only see what they want to see. [His own eyes narrowed in anger.]