Hatate Quest Kaksi

[Hello Purvis]

>"So, it's no problem?"

[Oldmansour]

>"So, it's no problem?"

>Honoka's smile becomes tinged bittersweet, as she turns her head to look at the golden-tressed Ranka. "Ranka is a child of the winds. I'm sure you can appreciate what that means even more than I. The freedom she has is more than just a feeling or desire, it is who she is. She flirts with whom she wishes, she loves whom she wishes. I would not change her, even if I could." The solemn youkai returns her gaze to you. "If she has caught your eye- and it is far from hard to see why she has- then you have no need to fear opposition or reprisal from me."
>Her smile shifts subtley, edging from wistful admiration to something approaching threatening. "Unless of course someone upsets or hurts her. Fear becomes very healthy then for that individual."

[Hello Purvis]

>"That goes without saying. Still, I just needed to be sure, you know? I'd hate to get between you and someone important, you know?"

[Oldmansour]

>"That goes without saying. Still, I just needed to be sure, you know? I'd hate to get between you and someone important, you know?"

>"Prudence and honor." Honoka says with a satisfied nod. "An admirable combination. As a token of respect for that, I shall offer a word of advice. Do not be off-put if Ranka seems flighty. It is not necassarily a sign of her lack of interest, it is merely her personality."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Oh, I'll keep that in mind. Thanks!"
>"Now, if you'll excuse me..."
>Approach Ranka, assess what she's up to before greeting her, if possible.

[Oldmansour]

>"Oh, I'll keep that in mind. Thanks!"
>"Now, if you'll excuse me..."
>Approach Ranka, assess what she's up to before greeting her, if possible.

>Honoka nods slowly. "Good luck." she says as you move away from her.
>You spy the youkai of wind giving Yuzuriha's yellow haired dog a pat on the heaad, before sending him back towards the Cobalt guard. She then turns her gaze to the cloudy sky, turning her right profile to you as she brushes a few strands of loose hair away from her eyes.

[Hello Purvis]

>Continue approach.
>"Hey there!"

[Oldmansour]

>Continue approach.
>"Hey there!"

>The quietly floating Ranka wiggles her fingers at you in an approximation of a wave.

[Hello Purvis]

>"That was a nice show you put on, there."

[Oldmansour]

>"That was a nice show you put on, there."

>"Thank you." she answers, in a tone rather more formal than you would have expected from her.

[Hello Purvis]

>"I was hoping to ask you some questions about your friend Honoka, if you have time?"

[Oldmansour]

>"I was hoping to ask you some questions about your friend Honoka, if you have time?"

>"Honoka, hm?" she says with a faint smile touching her full lips. "Sure."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Tell me about her. I figured it'd be easier to get the story out of you."

[Oldmansour]

>"Tell me about her. I figured it'd be easier to get the story out of you."

>The golden haired youkai giggles as she continues to examine the overcast sky. "You figured I was easier than Honoka?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"I think you'd know her better than she knows herself, actually. But I admit I'm curious about the both of you."

[Oldmansour]

>"I think you'd know her better than she knows herself, actually. But I admit I'm curious about the both of you."

>"I'm surprised to hear you say that." Ranka says, finally turning her head a bit to look at you. There's something a bit chilly in her pale green eye. "You tengu aren't the curious kind."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Some might not be,"
>Grin.
>"But we crows do have our moments. "

[Oldmansour]

>"Some might not be,"
>Grin.
>"But we crows do have our moments. "

>"Is that so. Is that why all of your people stay in that little cage of yours up on the mountain?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Because it's ours. Besides, I'm here, aren't I?"

[Oldmansour]

>"Because it's ours. Besides, I'm here, aren't I?"

>"And it's the first time you've been out for years, isn't it. I can tell." Ranka lowers her head and turns to face you. She seems remarkably different from the playful wind youkai you saw before. Her presence is almost accusing. "You're tied to the winds, like me. But the air around you feels stale, the kind of feeling from a house that hasn't been open in years."

[Hello Purvis]

>Heh, free spirit alright.
>"It's my first time out in awhile. But that's just the pace I take. It's not stale air you see, just a calm breeze contend to blow when it feels like, wouldn't you agree?"

[Oldmansour]

>Heh, free spirit alright.
>"It's my first time out in awhile. But that's just the pace I take. It's not stale air you see, just a calm breeze contend to blow when it feels like, wouldn't you agree?"

>"Maybe that's how you see yourself, but that doesn't make it true. You stand apart from the breeze, tengu. You don't truly flow with the air around you, you only carry your own air as you travel."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Go on?"

[Oldmansour]

>"Go on?"

>Ranka extends her slender arms out to her side, holding them out wide. "People like you and me, tengu, we're different from other kinds of beings. We do more than just breathe the air, we're a part of it. In ways that other people don't, can't understand. But you just move through the air, a swirl of stale wind. The breeze doesn't blow through you, tengu, it goes around you. Consciously or not, your push it aside. Just like all your kind do."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Please, elaborate on that. How do we push it aside?"

[Oldmansour]

>"Please, elaborate on that. How do we push it aside?"

>"The same way you've done for age.... Wait a minute." Ranka breaks off what was starting to sound like a tirade in the making, seeming momentarily confused. "You're asking me? Like honestly asking?"

[Hello Purvis]

>Nod.
>"Yeah. It's obviously an issue close to your heart, so I'm curious."

[Oldmansour]

>Nod.
>"Yeah. It's obviously an issue close to your heart, so I'm curious."

>"But, you're a Crow Tengu. What do you care about what I see?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Why shouldn't I care? Even if I don't agree in the end, it's still nice to know. Did you think that we don't even listen to other people?"

[Oldmansour]

>"Why shouldn't I care? Even if I don't agree in the end, it's still nice to know. Did you think that we don't even listen to other people?"

>"Not very often. Less than that when someone tries to tell you something about yourselves."