Roses are Red and Pink

Once Niko confirmed that she didn't have to get closer, Oriana seemed slightly less anxious. Over the course of the mission, the long periods without conflict or anything of interest happening had softened her posture a bit even if that relaxation vanished with each challenge that came their way. Far less interested in the argument below now that she knew her intervention wasn't necessary, the genin moved along the perimeter of the rooftop she and Niko were on to look for any more signs of trouble. Finding none, she returned to the dispute.

The civilians seemed to settle it themselves, if the potential customer storming off could be considered that. Satisfied that nothing else threatened to disturb the peace, Oriana continued to lead the patrol. She occasionally glanced down when they passed food stands and restaurants, slowing a bit to see what was for sale. With not much else to do, the pink-haired genin entertained herself by imagining how different foods would taste.

One vendor shouted something about hot coals, drawing her attention once more. Perched atop a streetlamp--a feat only possible due to her painfully low body weight-- Oriana examined the man's business.

For a few ryo, customers could have a towel placed over their backs or legs and hot coals set atop to relax the muscles. It was like a spa, but far less... Oriana's head tilted to the side as she thought of how to describe the scene below. It wasn't quite as professional as the bathhouses she had been to with various clients before her kidnapping.

Not wanting to think on the past for much longer, the genin returned to the rooftops and continued the patrol until daylight weakened and the sun began casting reddish hues over the Market.

Turning her head to face Niko, the short teen observed, "I believe we have finished."

[13]

Niko noticed that the longer things went on, the more rapidly Oriana was able to relax after tensing up at a possible problem.  This was a good way for her to practice the ability to calm yourself once a situation was over, but maintaining that vigilance when something did arise was good as well.  It meant she was focused, eyes on the prize, and that would be valuable as long as it didn't become tunnel vision; if you were hyper-vigilant all the time, you would wind up wearing yourself out quickly, as your body couldn't maintain that over long periods without wearing yourself down as a detriment to your health.

Then there was the business about hot coals, and she could say confidently that this was something Niko knew a bit about; she knew all about what kind of stones could hold and radiate heat over a long period of time.  Soapstone was the best, but coal was cheaper and easier to acquire.  She would keep this as something in mind, perhaps something she could offer as something that interested Oriana outside of generic fighting, food and survival.  She didn't want their relationship to be purely about work, and wanted the skittish woman to be able to open up to her a bit more, and the longer she was able to observe her, the better she liked her chances of finding what would make the woman tick.

It was just about time for the changeover, and she nodded, gesturing Oriana to follow her, moving from rooftop to rooftop towards a particular building in the middle of the village.  Once on the roof, they waited only a few seconds before another pair of ninja showed up, a pair of Chuunins.  Moving in front of Oriana and acting as her shield from the interaction, she gave them her report, a description of the trouble-maker, and all other relevant information so they could know what to expect.  She would have to file the paperwork, but that wasn't something Oriana needed to be around for.  Once they had taken off, she turned back around and approached her student with a smile.  "Excellent work today Oriana-chan.  As promised, potatoe soup at my place... you just tell me which day you want it."  This would empower her with the choice, and the official indicator that she could leave now if she wanted to.

[14]

The changing of the guard was rather uneventful once Oriana realized Niko would do the talking when they met up with the next group. She felt a bit of relief and gratefulness that she wouldn't have to talk to the chunin pair.

The offer of food was easy enough to accept. Mako had also insisted on feeding her for assisting him on a mission. This was a bit different because Oriana has decided to do Niko's bidding to repay her for the woman's attempts to do things for her. Did the soup replace any debt she may have paid off by doing this mission? Rejecting the soup would likely upset the tall redhead if her reaction to Oriana's first attempts to avoid being fed were anything to go by. In this case, was eating food to satisfy Niko's whims one of her duties rather than something that incurred additional debt? Her pink brows furrowed at the thought. Niko was strange and difficult to understand, but accompanying her now might give her an opportunity to find ways of being useful.

As much as Niko was trying to unravel Oriana's inner-workings, the genin was trying just as hard to understand her jounin's mentality. Understanding someone's desires and fulfilling them had been her role for so long, it was a all to easy to slide into that with Niko.

How to indicate that she intended to go with Niko now rather than later? More frowning marked her thoughts.

Finally, Oriana found the words, a total of five minutes after Niko initially addressed her.

"Eat now?"

[14]

Niko waited patiently as Oriana seemed to be having some sort of internal discussion, trying to decide on something or another, and normally, the red-head might have gotten impatient. Always busy and working herself to the bone, there was no such thing as a moment that could be wasted, so she normally wasn't a big fan of standing around... but for Oriana, who had started to slowly, ever so slowly, open up to her, she would wait. This was, after all, not a waste of time, because the more Oriana was able to open up and trust her as her Jounin instructor and her friend, the more that she would be able to help her develop and grow. It had taken five minutes, but it was well worth it as she finally got an answer that not only the Jounin didn't expect, but also made her smile gently as it was quite a pleasant surprise.

"Now is fine, sure." It was finished with a gentle nod, and with no worries about where Oriana was headed, she turned and started jumping from rooftop to rooftop, working her way towards the market and towards her home. Already, her mind was buzzing with all the things she would need to do to make sure that this meal was a bit extra special as it was also the first time that Niko could recall where Oriana had been the one to take initiative. Normally, she would have jumped at the chance to postpone the red-head feeding her and worked any way she could to avoid her home all together, but here she was, following her home on a decision she herself had made. The step was not an overly huge one for most people, but for Oriana it was a big one in Niko's eyes.

[15]

//THREAD EXIT

Oriana followed Niko towards the jounin's home, pleased she had found at least one way to please her master. While they leapt across the rooftops, the pink-haired genin decided that she felt much more comfortable following Niko's lead than the other way around. Perhaps her decision to dedicate herself to the this woman was not a mistake after all. There had been moments when Oriana has questioned her decision to follow Niko.

Initially, Oriana has done it to ease the discomfort of Niko's insistence on feeding her. Being around Mako would necessitate getting along with the redhead. The only context in which someone gave her food, shelter, or anything else of that nature was if that person was her customer. Her customers typically wanted sex or other physical favors. Sometimes they would make her cook or clean. Niko, on the other hand, was shaping up to be the opposite in some respects. She insisted on giving Oriana gifts and wasn’t clear on what she wanted in return except that the pink-haired genin stay by her side.

Hopefully dinner would reveal more information so that the short teen could untangle her master’s puzzling behavior.

[15]

//Exit