1128/Strength Yet To Be Found

Strength Yet To Be Found
Date of Scene:	01 March 2016
Location:	Nephrite's Palace
Synopsis:	Makoto comes by to see how Nephrite's doing. You can't fix everything, but it turns out that homemade pizza goes a long way.
Cast of Characters:	Makoto Kino, Nephrite

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Makoto Kino has posed:
Truthfully, Makoto was not really expecting to be nervous about seeing Nephrite again - not now, surely. After everything that's already happened, she feels for some reason like she ought to be a bit past nerves.

This mistaken impression lasts right up until she's actually in Jadeite's palace, facing the doorway that stands between his domain and Nephrite's and feeling the breathless fluttering sensation low in her stomach. Not entirely unpleasant, but at the same time it's a bit dismaying.

She takes a deep breath and firmly tamps down the butterflies, adjusting her grip on the things that she's carrying. And steps through.

As it did the first time, the sheer rough beauty of the forest-palace strikes her the moment she's through the doorway, and for a moment Makoto stops just on the other side of the threshold to take in the sight of the massive old trees, the impossible natural grandeur of it all. It's really magnificent.

It's also huge. She has no idea how she's going to find Nephrite in all of this if he doesn't happen to be within sight of the door.

Nephrite has posed:
Nephrite, of course, sensed her presence the moment she stepped through the door. And so only a moment passes before suddenly he is there, on one of the raised platforms. He, too, cannot help but feel a bit nervous at this reunion. It has been just long enough since they last spoke that he has had time to fret about how every interaction he has had with Makoto has been disastrous on some level, and how she has seen him at his worst (though it is a toss-up whether he should define 'worst' as most evil or most disheveled).

But he does his best to grin, as he crosses the swinging rope bridge to meet her. "Mako-chan! Welcome back to my neck of the woods. Don't tell me you came all this way just for me?"

Makoto Kino has posed:
That's one problem solved, at least; despite the hint of a flush that lingering nerves bring to her face, Makoto answers Nephrite's greeting with a smile. "What, was there anybody else here I could've been visiting?"

She leaves the doorway as he comes to meet her, holding out the large, round tupperware container that's currently occupying both of her hands. "Pizza delivery," she explains cheerfully. "It's got to be inconvenient not to be able to leave here, no matter how beautiful it is. There's not a lot I can do, but I can at least help feed you guys for a while until everything's sorted out.

Judging by the canvas tote slung over her shoulder, that's not the only thing she's brought, but the rest can wait for now. "I have no idea what you like on it, though, so I had to guess. I won't be offended if you pick things off."

Nephrite has posed:
"PIzza? You brought me pizza?" Nephrite's voice raises a full octave as he speaks. Hopeful and boyish and amazed that such a thing could happen. Suddenly and without preamble he races the rest of the way up the bridge and scoops her up by her waist into a hug. It's awkward and can't last long, because she's carrying things and she wasn't expecting it, but for a moment he's lifted her feet up off the platform and holds her tight.

He sets her back down gently, beaming. "You are the greatest! I haven't had pizza since... you know. Before. Can I carry everything for you?"

Makoto Kino has posed:
"--Hey!" Makoto lets out a yelp of started laughter as she finds herself swept so suddenly off her feet. Somehow she manages to keep hold of the pizza box, though it gets a bit jostled before he sets her down again. "If I knew it had been that long, I'd have made it for you sooner."

She's blushing brightly as she pushes the plastic container at him, still laughing a little. The contents aren't long out of her oven and the warmth can be felt through the box. "You can carry your pizza. The rest is just some basic stuff, mostly." Once her hands are free of the pizza box she hitches the carry-strap of her bag on her shoulder but makes no move to hand it over.

Nephrite has posed:
Nephrite gratefully accepts the pizza with its warm box. Is there anything better than the heat of a fresh pizza?

He leads the way down the rope bridge, carelessly holding on with only one hand, but stepping lightly so that he does not swing it too much. "Well I'm afraid I'm a poor host who has little to offer you except trees and big intimidating totem statues, followed by more trees. Would you like to eat in a tree or under a tree? There is even, believe it or not, a building around here, which I think was used for gatherings. But trees are more fun."

Makoto Kino has posed:
"I can't argue with that." Not bothered much by the swaying of the bridge as she follows Nephrite along it, Makoto tips her head back a little too look up at the canopy of branches overhead, wondering and admiring. "Especially not when they're trees like this. Just - wow."

Catching herself before she can get too lost in admiration of the sights, Mako lets out another embarrassed little laugh and rubs a hand absently over the back of her neck. "In a tree sounds interesting," she says. "But please, you don't need to worry about playing host or anything."

Nephrite has posed:
"In a tree it is!" Nephrite proclaims. "And I love to play host. Especially to gorgeous women who bring me pizza."

He leads her across a network of bridges, to a platform situated on one of the highest trees. It's a sort of flat donut that wraps around the cedar's thick trunk, made from wood planks and wide enough all around to feel safe. There are railings made from thick beams. The red and black mural that covers both the plank floor and railings has faded, but one can still make out the stylized totems that dance across them. The thunderbird, the bear, the whale, the raven. Like everything else here, it is all caked with a healthy layer of moss.

"It's great of you to come," he says as he sets the box down on the floor of the platform and sits down beside it. "Not just because you brought me things. But you're probably really busy right now. And I missed you."

Makoto Kino has posed:
Mako has absolutely no idea how to even respond to being described as gorgeous, even if (so she assumes) it's an exaggeration brought on by enthusiasm for pizza. "That's - um--" she stammers for a moment, before she cuts herself off and focuses very intently on traversing the ancient rope bridges.

This keeps her pretty well occupied until they reach the high platform that is their destination, by which point she's recovered some of her self-possession. The worn images of the mural catch her attention; she unslings the bag she was carrying to set it down, but doesn't move to sit just yet. There's so much view to see.

"I'm sorry I didn't come a little sooner, really," she admits. "I thought you'd probably need some time, you know, to talk to Mamoru-san and... to think. I wasn't sure if--" He missed her. Suddenly she's tongue-tied again, pulling her hair forward over her shoulder to fidget with the curling ends of the ponytail.

Nephrite has posed:
Nephrite stands and moves beside her, leaning against the railing. Though moss and the faded paint mark its age, whatever magic resides in this place makes the beams still hold as steady as if they were freshly constructed. The sunlight filters down through the green canopy. "It is good that I got some time," he says. "I think I'll still be sorting things out for a long time, but I'm a lot more sure of myself than I was.

"But I did miss you." He's smiling a bit, not quite the flashy grin that he usually shows off. "Even though I know we haven't exactly had an easy time of it. It would be nice to have just one day together with you that doesn't involve any drama or evil energy."

Makoto Kino has posed:
A quiet breath goes out of Makoto, almost a laugh, and she looks over to meet Nephrite's eyes. "That would be a change, wouldn't it?" Her smile is self-conscious but pleased, eyes bright with warm humor.

The hand that isn't busy twisting her hair distractedly around her fingers comes to rest on the railing, feeling the texture of moss and age-worn wood under her palm. "It's fine if it takes time to figure things out," Mako says, looking out across the dizzying drop that stretches beyond the railing. "There's time. There'll be plenty of time. I'm glad you're starting to feel better."

Her fingers still; ducking her head a little bit, she looks toward Nephrite again. Blushes fresh. "I've wanted to see you, too."

Nephrite has posed:
"Time," he muses. "That will be nice." No more crushing fear of what each day will bring. No more hiding out. "I don't know what exactly things will look like at the end of all of this, but I hope it means we can see each other more. In more normal circumstances, perhaps."

He chuckles. "Of course, if anything were normal, I wouldn't get to show you this. So, take what we can get, right?"

Makoto Kino has posed:
"I'm not sure I know what 'normal' looks like any more," Makoto quips back with rueful cheer. "I'm starting to think it might not actually exist. Just something you hear about on TV."

Starting to relax now, she lets go of the end of her ponytail and reaches over to give his shoulder a companionable little nudge. "I know what you meant," she says, "but this is fine, too. Even if it meant taking the hard way, I wouldn't want to have missed this."

Nephrite has posed:
He smiles softly at her, touched by her appreciation of his place. "I guess normal's overrated anyway." He bonelessly accepts the nudge on his shoulder, rocking back on his heels. He leans forward against the railing, his hand close to hers but not quite touching. "But--I want to hear about you. Are you okay? After everything?"

Makoto Kino has posed:
"I'm--" 'Fine,' Makoto starts to say, but then she catches herself and bites down on the automatic reply, cracking a lopsided and faintly apologetic smile. Taking a moment to consider the question more seriously, she reaches up to tuck a stray lock of her hair behind her ear, then lets her hand rest on the railing again.

"--managing," she finishes at last. "I haven't really had it that bad, compared to most of the others. It's just been frustrating, not being able to do more when the people who are important to me are suffering. But things have finally started turning around, lately."

Nephrite has posed:
Nephrite breathes out a puff of air. "Yeah. I know exactly what you mean. It makes you feel helpless. And sort of guilty, that you don't have it as bad as they do." He gives her an understanding smile. "I guess we kind of fill a similar role for our teams, huh? We both try to be the support."

He lays his hand over hers, light enough that she could easily pull away if she wants to. "I'm glad things are turning around. We're so close to the end. I'm really starting to believe in what all of us can do now."

Makoto Kino has posed:
Making a small, inarticulate sound of agreement, Makoto looks down, gaze settling on Nephrite's hand where he's placed it over hers. Not pulling away. It ought to send her into another bout of flustering - and maybe it will, later, when she thinks back on it - but right now that light, warm contact is a welcome reassurance. "Yeah," she says.

There's still a smile lingering on her face, but something in this line of conversation's cast a hint of a shadow over it. It leaves her looking pensive. "Things got ugly for a while there. I don't think I've been doing all that good a job of being anyone's support. There's all this stuff nobody's really dealing with yet. But at least we've gotten you guys out - you, and Mamoru-san, and now Zoisite. We just have to get Kunzite out, too, and then we can finally, finally all be pulling in the same direction."

She shifts her weight from one foot to the other with a sudden restless energy. Draws in a long breath, focusing on the gentle anchoring pressure of his hand over hers. When she looks up to meet his eyes again, it's with an expression of wry humor. "I don't know about you," Mako says, "but I'm really looking forward to having a problem I can solve by hitting it."

Nephrite has posed:
"Ha!" His burst of laughter makes the leaves shudder. "I would love to hit something. That's the dream, isn't it? Only having problems that you can punch in the face."

But he looks at her a bit more seriously, his red-brown eyes bright. His hand closes a little more around hers, a reassuring press but still not a grip. "You supported me. When I needed it the most. And you probably don't realize how heartening just your presence is. You're like a pillar of strength. I'm sure that's what you are for them, too. You can't fix everything, but what you already do means so much."

He looks back out over the forest, leaning against the railing. "But yeah, things haven't been awesome. For anyone, really. But that's almost over. And then the real party can start."

Makoto Kino has posed:
"Party?" Mako's brows quirk upwards as she grins at him, equal parts amused and curious. "You've already got plans?"

She can't quite hold eye contact; looking down again, she lets out a soft laugh that hitches her shoulders a little. "...Thank you. For saying that." She turns her hand over beneath Nephrite's against the railing, so that she can curl her fingers around his. "Everybody's been fighting so hard to stay strong, and it's hard to know what to do to help and not make things worse... Just like you said, it really is a helpless feeling."

A moment passes, and then Makoto pulls an incredulous and faintly disgusted face and shakes her head. "And how is it I keep thinking I want to support you, and you end up supporting me instead? That seems kind of backwards." Turning away from the railing towards him, she searches his face with earnest eyes. "I haven't even asked - how are you really?"

Nephrite has posed:
He grins. "I've got like, eight plans. I've had a lot of time to think in here."

"Like I said. You've already been supporting me. You came all the way down here to keep me company and you brought me pizza." He smiles. "Just think of it as me returning the favor."

He takes a long breath at her question, turning back to watch the trees. "I'm better. Sort of. Being here helps, I think. Things seem to fit together more easily when I'm here. There are still a lot of blank spots in my memory. And a lot of things I'm unsure about. And as grateful as I am to have this time to heal, I also kind of feel stuck in limbo, you know? I'm out of the Dark Kingdom, but I'm not really filling the other role yet. And I'm trying to be there for the others but" he runs his hand through his long hair, pushing the brown waves back. "Like you say. It's hard to know what to do for them.

Makoto Kino has posed:
She nods slowly, acknowledging his words, but Makoto doesn't say anything right away. As the soft noise of the leaves from all around them fills the silence, she stands and watches him, thinking, trying to find the right words. If there are any.

In the end, she echoes his own words back to him: "You're probably doing more for them than you realize, just by being here. Don't you think?"

She knows all too well, though, the 'but' that wants to follow those words. Mako's hand squeezes Nephrite's gently, trying to communicate by touch the reassurance that doesn't come from words. "Some things won't be fixed until after we've burned Metalia off the face of the earth. But until then, if there's anything I can do to make it a little easier... even if it's just show up with food and listen for a while, I don't mind."

Nephrite has posed:
He returns the hand squeeze, feeling the warmth pass between them. "Thanks. I really do appreciate it." He lets the moment linger, reluctant to let go.

"Speaking of food!" He's practically bouncing on his toes. "I totally want to burn Metallia off the face of the earth, but in the meantime, can I please try the pizza yet?"

Makoto Kino has posed:
Momentary surprise flashes over Makoto's face, quickly followed by laughter. "What are you asking me for?" She lets go of his hand, reaching instead to give him a little push to the shoulder as though to steer him back towards where the pizza is still waiting, sealed up in its container. "It's your pizza, you don't need my permission. Go ahead and have some while it's still warm."

Nephrite has posed:
Nephrite eagerly scoops up the container and pries at the lid like a kid at Christmas. "I have to retain some social graces while I'm living out in the rainforest. I'll revert to a caveman in no time at all if I don't make an effort."

He pulls the lid back, and is met with the aroma of the still-warm pizza. His knees turn to jelly for a moment. "Oh, but--you have no idea how much I am struggling not to just put my face in the box and start chewing."

Makoto Kino has posed:
"You're welcome," Makoto tells him, all sincerity despite the fact that she's still laughing. It's impossible not to be gratified by his reactions - well worth the effort of both making a pizza and finding a way to get it here in order to give it to him.

Which wasn't that much of an effort, really. The pizza's been jostled about a bit, but it's nothing that makes it any less edible; it's still plenty warm, sliced and ready for eating, loaded with melted cheese and bacon and tomatos and colorful bell pepper and onion and fresh basil from Mako's minature windowsill herb garden.

"So what you're saying is," Mako teases while Nephrite's busy going into pizza raptures, "the next time I bring you food, it shouldn't be something you can conveniently eat with your hands? You know, in order to help keep you from turning into a caveman."

Nephrite has posed:
He grins at her. "See? So thoughtful!" He fishes a slice out and takes a bite immediately. A heavenly bite. And, after making such a big deal about social graces, fully chews and swallows it, if only not to undo what he said so soon. "Wow. Is that bacon? And basil? Is this made out of rainbows, as well?"

Makoto Kino has posed:
Mako waits until he's had a chance to actually try a bite before she dares to steal a slice for herself - both for the confirmation of her success and because she seems less likely to be at risk of losing a hand that way - and beams at him over it as she takes a bite, well pleased with herself.

"Bacon yes, and basil," she says once her mouth's no longer full. "No rainbows." A beat, and Makoto is making a valiant but mostly useless effort at keeping a straight face as she adds, "I had to save those for the brownies."

Nephrite has posed:
The boyish, hopeful look that Nephrite gives her is utterly undignified and entirely unlike the sort of thing that he would have done before he left the Dark Kingdom. "Brownies? Really? You are spoiling me!"

Makoto Kino has posed:
That face. That look on his face is new and unexpected, both familiar and unfamiliar and wholly endearing. Makoto doesn't quite know what to do with this, and suddenly she's turning pink again.

"You did ask for chocolate," she points out, looking away with a foolish little smile. "They're in the bag that I brought."

She's kind of regretting having grabbed that slice of pizza now, but shoving it into her mouth gives Mako an excuse to keep herself from saying something stupid, and hurrying away to rummage in the tote bag where she left it on the platform at least provides her with an opportunity to try to calm down a little. The butterflies are back in full force.