Transfer Mission: The Blackbird's Dilemma

Suki couldn't help but smile when he accepted, but it faded a bit at his wager, accompanied with some blush as well. "F-fine," she said with a nod. What should she put up for her wager? "If I win...hm. I'll think of something," she said with a shrug. She looked at the clock that was in the cafe. It read 11:34. She pointed to it without raising her hand to much. "The bet starts now. And we're playing this down to the last minute." She still had that wide smile on her face, and it almost seemed to state that she expected an assured victory. "Which means if you can last until 12:34, you win. Unlikely," she giggled. When he said by the way, she tilted her head curiously. At his continuation, she giggled again. "You're the one who said that you could prove it. I just wanted to see if you really could," she said with a smile and a nod. She looked to the side. "And I don't think that evil is the accurate word here..." she said with a smile, peering at him from the corner of her eye before giving a light laugh and taking a drink of her coffee.

Felix looked at the clock. One hours. Okay. He could do this. "You'll think of your part later? Combined with that look you're giving me, I'm thinking I should cut my loses. Evil may not be the word for this after all. How about malicious and devious and maybe even impish." He crossed his arms over his chest. Yes, he liked Suki. But he didn't think they would ever make it if given the chance. She was too innocent and possibly fragile. He wouldn't want to hurt her and Felix tended to hurt everyone he became associated with in a deeper sense of meaning. That didn't sit well on his conscious either.

(Innocent and fragile, bah. If only he knew. If only you knew. Smh.)

Suki smiled when he said that he thought he should cut his losses. She wouldn't let him get out of it that easily. If there was one thing she knew for certain about Felix, it was that he was a man of pride. If he tried to back out, she'd use that little tidbit of info against him. She raised an eyebrow at his comment. "Me? Impish?" she almost wanted to give him an innocent look for that one, and claim that she was not at all what he was making her out to be. She was sure that this had to be the only person besides Tara and her brother who could actually make her talk this much. Maybe it was just because, despite all his teasing, he was one of the only people she actually felt comfortable talking to. After a moment, she spoke again after having taken a sip of her coffee, which was finally cooling off so that no steam rose from the cup. "You, Felix, are overexaggerating," she said with a nod. "I am none of those things." She planned on changing the subject soon, in the hopes of getting his mind off the bet. "Just be happy that my wager isn't you spending a day with Tara," she said with a light giggle.

(Aaanndd, because I have time....)

Kana sat in the training grounds as the ANBU started off with stealth training in the surrounding area. She was looking at a piece of paper in her hand. It had written on it, the riddle that strange man had told to her. All sorts of things were running through her mind at that moment. For one thing, who walked around dressed in such garments as his? They looked much like...like the clothes of a priest, or an exorcist of some kind even. And that staff he carried...there was something about it that struck Kana as odd. Even in the daylight, it looked to her like it...like it might have been glowing. And those eyes...there was something that was purely entrancing about his eyes...

How did he just disappear like that...? The man was no ninja, Kana knew that. She didn't care how he was dressed, or how he spoke or how odd his eyes and staff were, he was no ninja. So, then, how did he disappear like that? Kana had only been seconds behind him in turning that corner. There was no way he could have disappeared like that, and she would not accept the explanation that he was a ghost. Ghosts, did not exist. There was no such thing. Kana found a shiver passing over her at the mere thought. Okay, so maybe she had two fears...the fear of Death, and of ghosts. Not that she'd ever admit it. Not even in her mind.

Kana's eyes scanned over the riddle. Only the first parts came as obvious to her, though she did not know who the Golden Wind was supposed to be. She assumed that 'Silence's breath' referred to the Lord of the Unknown. Either that, or it could be an odd metaphor. But seeing as how two out of the four names on there were of people...Herself and Felix...so what would Silence have to do with them? She'd never even been to the Unknown, not to say she didn't want to go, but she'd never had the time. She didn't know if Felix had been to the Unknown, but even so...The Unknown was leagues away from the Rock Village, by the Valley's. It would be a six or so day walk from where they were now. Or, maybe five. She wasn't entirely sure. And who was this Golden Wind person then? Kana wanted to throw her hands up in frustration, but managed to restrain herself from doing so. "Ugh, what a waste of time! I have better things to do than sit around racking my brains over some stupid riddle!" she muttered aloud to herself, pushing herself to her feet. "Time to go see just how good those ANBU of mine are at hiding," she said, a small grin spreading over her face as she stuffed the note in a pocket and started towards the trees that surrounded the training grounds.

Felix looked at Suki with an odd look that turned annoyed. "If you were ever to make me spend a day with that....her I would completely forget that we were friends," he said. No grin or smirk crossed his face. He had a true hatred for that gossiping woman. She was forever annoying in all sense. She was the definition, the sentence, and the example. Felix would rather rot in hell than spend a day with her. He gave a sigh. "Anything but that."

Suki's playful smile faded at his reaction. She knew that Tara annoyed him, hell, she annoyed damn near everyone, but that wasn't annoyance that Felix was showing. It seemed more like actual hate. "Wow, sorry I brought that up," she said, regaining a light smile. "Don't worry, I wasn't actually going to make that my wager. I know that you don't like her," she said, almost sounding a bit resigned. She sat back in her chair and gave a shrug. "Anyways, when I think of a real wager, I'll let ya know," she said with a smile.

Felix felt bad for his behavior. "No, I'm sorry," he said. "She's your friend and that was rude of me." Even that apology sounded weird to him. Suki may have been someone that could keep him behaved in the worst of times. He found himself wondering if he would have lashed out at her if she had tried to stop him when he was out of control a few weeks back. Shaking his head slightly he let the memory fade. Some things were better left unknown. "It has to be reasonable. A date is reasonable."

(You know, that's a good question...)

Suki looked at Felix when he apologized, giving a small smile. "Don't worry about it, trust me, I've heard worse." What she failed to say was that most other people who said worse ended up getting an earful from Suki about it. "I knew you didn't like her, I just didn't realize how much," she said with a light laugh. "Don't worry, I'll make it something reasonable," she told him with a nod. Her smile came back a bit when he said that a date was reasonable. "Say you do win, and you get your date. Do I hafta wear a dress and everything?" she asked with a light laugh. Though she'd laughed, she was actually being serious about it. The thing was, if he won and she had to dress up, the teasing might have ended up being ten times worse in payback for her little bet. The thought almost made her a bit nervous. A change in subject would be best if she wanted to win this...but, what would she bet? She was almost starting to think that, maybe she'd just wait until the end of the bet, and regardless of who won, give him his date anyways. Really, what would be the harm in it?

Felix wasn't sure if she was trying to make him feel better for his sudden guiltiness or if that was just her giving some information on Tara. Felix wished that she would change the subject and just as if she had heard his thoughts she asked about the dress. "You don't have to, but I think you'd look more than nice in one," he said. It wasn't a tease, it was the truth. He had to keep himself from teasing her. Via saying, like your hair, I don't see you with it down, you should do that more often. You look cute. Maybe that was more of a compliment than a tease, but he had no intentions of voicing that thought.

Suki was actually surprised he'd managed to avoid a teasing comment on that one. Regardless though, she gave a smile, only a bit of blush crawling onto her face. Would she wear a dress for him? "Thanks." The way she saw it, that had been a compliment. And like that, she was out of things to talk about. She almost wanted to ask about what had happened with the whole hospital thing, but thought better of it, and took a sip of her coffee, which was starting to get a bit cold. "How long are you staying in the Rock?" she asked, her head tilted a bit.

Felix gave a small nod as she thanked him. The question of how long he was staying here was out of the blue. An odd subject when they were talking about a date. "Originally it was only suppose to be a year, now we're here for four years." Felix wondered how things had come to this. "How long are you and Tara here?" He asked. It was easy talking to Suki. She wasn't one to make rude comments and cut you off or one to get overly emotion. Felix didn't know her well, but from what he did know, she was okay.

Suki gave a puzzled look when he said originally it was going to be a year, but now it was four. "I take it something went wrong with the mission?" A pause, then she waved her hand dismissively. "I know, I know. Don't answer that," she said with a smile. She knew all about the whole deal with missions. No matter how much she tried to get her brother to tell her details on all the stories he told her, he wouldn't budge. She shrugged at his question. "As long as we feel like. Maybe another week, maybe another month. Though I was hoping to convince Tara to go back the the Village of Gears with me for a little bit," she said.

Felix wasn't sure why they were still her to be honest. It had happened after Kana had got put in the hospital do to Aidelia's attack. Other than that, he didn't know. Maybe something had gone wrong. He looked up when she said never mind. "Thanks." She'd just made his life easier. Felix turned his head slightly when she mentioned the Gears. "It's been forever since I went there," he said. "So much more advanced that the other villages. It's amazing over there."

Suki had only realized her mistake after she'd said it. 'Back to the Village of Gears.' She was glad Felix hadn't caught it. She nodded at his thanks, smiling as he said it had been forever since he'd been there. Part of her wanted to tell him that it had been ten years, but the other wanted to keep quiet. The part of her that wanted to keep quiet won over. "It really is. The festivals are brillant, I make sure that when we perform there, it's at a festival. It really makes our performances a lot better, because we can set up shadow performances there as well," she told him with a bright smile. She loved the Gear, she really did. If she could, she would settle down there, but she was still young. And there was more of the world she hadn't seen yet.

(the real reason she does it during festivals is because maybe she might find her brother in the crowd.)

Felix hadn't bothered with the 'again' part. He figured that she just liked the place and had wanted to go back for her own amusement. He'd go back there one day as well if he ever got the chance. He'd maybe take his kids there. After he got home he did plan to momentarily retire as a ninja. It would allow him freedom and a chance to watch his two children grow into precious little ladies. Felix smirked at the thought. "Tell me the next time you plan on going there. I haven't see you guys preform in a while and I think it'd be a good vacation spot."

(....Never thought of that actually....)

Suki smiled and nodded at his request. "Like I said, whenever I can convince Tara. She doesn't particularly like going there, because the only way is through the trader's pass through the mountains, and you know how dangerous that can be with all the surrounding forest. I told her I know shortcuts, but she doesn't wanna risk it she says, and she doesn't want to hire anyone to protect us on our way through," she said with a light sigh, shaking her head. Tara was just so damn difficult sometimes.

Felix paused momentarily as she explained. He almost looked like he'd frozen in place. Ten years ago, a girl had told him something similar. She'd told him her brother was a ninja and that the trade path to the Gears was dangerous after he'd said the Crested had joined the Valley's for trade. He looked at Suki for a moment, blankly starring at her, almost past her as if he were trapped in a genjutsu. What was the girl's name?

When Suki finished explaining, she'd kind of expected Felix to answer, to continue on with their conversation, but he never did. She looked at him and tilted her head curiously. "Felix? Are...you okay?" A pause and she took one of her hands from her cup to wave it in front of his face. "Feliiixx....Hellooo..." She dropped her hand after a few seconds. What the hell was going on with him? Maybe he'd just remembered something important about the mission. She'd heard of people sometimes blanking out in the middle of conversations and coming back with some kind of revelation. Was that what was happening here? If that was the case, maybe his mission wouldn't last all four years, whatever the mission was.

Felix hadn't heard her the first time, but the second time he snapped out of it. "Huh? I'm sorry. I just...remembered something." A pause. "You're Suki." Okay, that sounded stupid even to him. He shook his head and tried again. "I meant, you're Little Suki. The girl from the Gears. You were there ten years ago." Felix was talking as if he'd just come out of a daze, which he kind of did. "You had berries." Felix hadn't noticed it until now. She'd been much more outgoing back then. Now she was so shy.

(If only he knew why)(And lol, Little Suki)

When he snapped out of his trance, she sat back in her chair. When he said he remembered something, she raised an eyebrow curiously. "Um...yeah?" she answered when he'd said that she was Suki. She froze a bit when he explained what he meant though, and after a moment, her eyes seemed to light up and a bright smile crossed her face. "And here I was thinking you'd never remember," she said happily. So, at least he hadn't forgotten her completely. That would have just been upsetting. Now that he remembered, she wondered what he'd do with the knowledge. "So what exactly was it that sparked the memory, huh?" she asked, her spirits clearly lifted even more than they'd already been.

Felix couldn't wrap his mind around this. It was Suki. She was Suki! And she had known who he was all this time and had not said a word. Guilt was the last thing on his mind right now though. "I guess you didn't find those berries. You're old now." A grin spread across his face. This was by far one of his best days since he'd arrived here in the village. "You said you knew shortcuts and that the trade was dangerous. Just like when you were younger." Felix gave a nod. "And the name." He paused. "How's your brother?" Felix had never met the guy but he knew they lived near the Gears. That must have been why she always tried to go there. To visit him.

Suki wasn't sure if that had been a teasing comment or not, but considering the little revelation he'd just been through, she'd let it slide. She couldn't help but laugh when he called her old though. "Well look at that, I guess I am. I'll find those berries yet. Only now, I know that you don't need them afterall," she joked. She nodded when he answered her question. She'd actually unintentionally made a lot of references to that meeting of theirs. Oh well. Her smile faded a little when he mentioned her brother. "Remember how I told you that I was looking for someone?" She'd let him fill in the blank himself. He was smart. He'd figure it out.

Felix gave her a smirk on her berry comment. "You still won't those berries?" He said shaking his head. "Aren't you determined." Felix's joking demeanor disappeared as she gave him the little information he needed to know about her brother. He had been a ninja, so if she had been looking for him, that meant....he was either death or...there was no or....he wouldn't just up and leave Suki would he? Felix was momentarily left without words of encouragement or advice. "If you need anything, just ask." It was all he could give her. He didn't want to tell her that the chances of her brother showing up were slim to none. She was smart enough to know that. He'd look into it, but Suki had been so secretive back then that he wasn't sure if her brother really was a ninja. What if he'd been involved with some kind of organization like the Akatsuki? Felix pondered the question in his mind. It was possible. He could have done it to support his sister, but something went bad and either Deidara killed him or maybe he was captured disposed of after he'd spilled the information that his captures required of him.

"Yep. It'll be like finding the Fountain of Youth, only instead it will be berries," she said with a smile. Her small smile returned when he said to ask if she needed anything. "Thanks. Really, thank you. I got a feeling I'll find him soon though," she told him. She had her theories about what happened, and she was sticking to them. He was probably just in hiding after having been found out during an assassination, and he hadn't wanted to return until he was assumed dead. That was the best explanation for what happened. At least, in Suki's mind. She would never admit that he might be dead. Never.

Felix didn't smirk or grin. A smile was more suited for the last part, but he wasn't capable of smiling. He let it pass. "No problem." He leaned back in his chair. "The Fountain of Youth. I think that shall be added to my list of things to do." He gave a grin. "By the way, how much time do I have left?" He asked. His blue eyes wandered up to the clock. He wasn't sure how much time had passed between the bet and their talking. He'd kept to a strict subject to keep from teasing her. His progress was so far good.

Suki smiled when he said that he'd add the fountain of youth to his to-do list. "Now why on earth would you need that?" she asked with a laugh. She blinked when he asked how much time he had left. She'd forgotten. She'd been trying to make him slip up, and she'd forgotten. She looked at the clock. How had a half hour already passed? "Thirty two minutes..." she said, then looked at him. "You're not doing too badly..."