Something Begins, Something Ends

[Koschei the Deathless]

‘Neri’ walked alongside ‘Bianca’, instead of dematerializing this time: Koschei had little interest in remaining in his spirit form at the moment, as it wasn’t nearly as interesting, and additionally, somewhat required by what he had planned for the sword and armor for Elfrida. Shape was of course important – but the shape of the sword could simply mirror her current rapier if she desired that (he would have advised a sword that could easier capitalize on the amount of sheer force that he could imbue into the armor and his Master), as for the armor, it was a simpler case, as no matter the style of armor he had made, he could ensure she retained the same capability for motions she was already used to. Teaching her an entirely new style was not part of the plan and was a foolish enterprise to begin with. Currently, the reason why Koschei had walked around as ‘Neri’ wasn’t simply due to wishing to experience the world of the living once more, but specifically to seek the materials he required for the construction of the armor and weapon.

At the moment, he was not yet certain of what materials were required for either object. These sort of things came to him as he worked, usually. Baba Yaga had taught him to bring up the Purpose first, then shape the Form and allow the Symbols to flow through it to completion. Of course… that one had her own particular way of doing such tasks, ways he did not necessarily agree with, as it went against his methodical ways. She enjoyed extremes: adornments and jewelling her creations in unimaginably beautiful ways… or making them so unbearably ugly that one could not behold them without screaming. She relished in it, enjoyed it… He, on the other hand, preferred simple beauty, efficient simplicity – such as his iron crown, or... or a beauty twisted so far that one could not look upon it without terror. To twist something so far that in its perfection, it was incomprehensible and caused the completely opposite reaction, ah, such bliss.

Baba blamed it on that ‘rotten personality’ of his when he presented her with something, but her grumbling was a far greater honor than any praise she could have ever bestowed. For him to have touched the heart of a super-human being with something that he, a creature incomplete at the time, had created… Was truly an accomplishment, to him. It is also why, as she explained, his items had always carried a curse along with them. It was his brand, the mark of his personality, to darken all he had touched or interacted with. Yes – perhaps even her… No. ‘Neri’ shook her head vigorously, getting back into character of the young girl she was supposed to have been, and slapped her cheeks slightly, assuming a bit of a less rigid pace.

“Bianca~ I am going to need a few things. Lets see~”

The girl bent her white-gloved fingers as she spoke in a somewhat sing-song voice, moving her head slightly from side to side, almost as if in rhythm to a morbid nursery rhyme. “Spawn of Life, and Start of Death, Light’s Beginning, Journey’s End. Start of Darkness, Broken Promise, Final Curse, Innocence’ Last Breath.” She twirled on the spot before facing the girl walking behind her, and smiled in a way a normal child might: ”What do you think those can be? Where can we find them~?”

[Elfrida Schwarzwald]

The Piazza di Brancoli was as beautiful as she was led to believe. The city was abuzz with life as if there wasn't a centuries old shadow war being waged within it's nightly corridors. For once, Elfrida could feel herself at ease, even while her Servant walked along her side. "Neri" always had a chill about her, even in that childish form which belied the deathless beast within, but the light of day made it all seem... lesser. Perhaps that was simply the nature of the situation. Would anyone dare start a battle in the streets where all mundane humans could bare witness? The church would never allow it. Yes... "Bianca" was almost certain that should they ever overstep their bounds, the forces of the church would be their executors.

The white homonculus watched Neri walk about with reckless abandon in the streets of Lucca. To be quite honest, they both looked out of place in this bustling city. It was the Japanese to the east who popularized what was called "Cosplay" wasn't it? That's what it reminded her of as the two overly regal looking female forms walked down streets. "Neri" was speaking about something, but the thought of sticking out made Elfrida squirm too much to really pay attention. Not that she cared what the common human thought, but it if any other master saw them, they'd immediately be on a watch list. Perhaps that was Neri's intention? Well... since they were in town, perhaps it would be best to acquire more suitable clothes for the both of them.

It was at that moment that "Neri" had begun to directly address Elfri, snapping the Master out of her reverie. The subject matter was a little jarring for that though. Her servant spoke words that would only make sense in an old fantasy novella. The girl in white wasn't entirely sure how to respond to her Servant's request. Most of the things she was speaking of didn't exist as physical objects. They were concepts, emotions, metaphysical ideas. Was the modern world so different from "Neri's" that what once had a physical form no longer had such a presence in their world?

"Ah, forgive me "Neri" I'm not quite sure what those would even look like in this day and age." Elfrida wasn't sure where they would find "Innocence" in a place like this, or if it even existed. This did present an opportunity for them however. They were in the city after all, and what better place to locate ones desire than in a bustling mass of commerce. They could look for these items that "Neri" needed as well as some clothes to fit their surroundings. The girl in white smiled a bit at that. It would be her first time shopping for clothes, almost like an actual human girl.

"Would you be able to recognize what you need if we walked about more? We can run some errands while we search."

[Koschei the Deathless]

[Imitation – Bakemonogatari OST]

“Ahahaha~”

The creature now bearing the skin of a young girl laughed, mimicking the sound and pitch it would have had, sounding so genuine it was terrifying to those who were aware of the true face beneath the mask of flesh. ”Silly, silly, silly! Why are you so silly, Bianca? I didn’t just ask you where we can find them – I asked you what they could be!” ‘Neri’ twirled about once or twice, finally sighing, and leaning against a nearby wall, concealing half her face in her hands. As she did, a brief flash of a cold blue light shone, and a different sort of voice spoke, though filled with the same childlike tones, overlaying the voice of the girl with that of an old man.

”I asked you, woman, what YOU thought they were. I require YOUR definition of them, or else, this entire ritual is pointless~!” The last word had been once more said in a child’s voice, as the ancient one had faded from existence, no more chill nor cruelty in the girl’s words, just an inexplicable mirth one would expect from a child excited to do something different, something new. It was not particularly hard to play this part of the role, as this setting had been unfamiliar to Koschei, and he enjoyed learning new things. The familiarity of the night air, as well as the faint chill of winter had also been pleasing, welcoming almost, even if this had been an entirely different land and time.

”My magic, you see, Bianca, I want to do it the old-fashioned way for a bit~ Gather up all the stuff, mold it, shape it, and change it into something neat! But all of it depends on the significance the ingredients play to the would-be user… You!” She jabbed her index finger at ‘Bianca’. Witchcraft was not normally this ritualized, but Koschei quite enjoyed this sort of freedom to create if he could afford it – another of his ‘nasty habits’, as Yaga called them. It was far from efficient, but it was most certainly interesting. Doing things using the Old Ways was beneficial for other reasons as well, but ones he did not like to go into much. Nostalgia? How pointless… But It just might have been one of the human shards still remaining within him.

”So yeaaah, gonna be needing plenty of suggestions from you from now on.” ‘Neri’ glanced around, reading some of the street signs with assistance of borrowed knowledge, staring at one in particular for a short while, before grinning broadly, and turning to face Elfri with the biggest mischievous smile on her face, exactly like that of a kid who’d gotten a great idea for a prank. ”Looks like this may be easier than I thought~ I cant help you with answers, but I can give you a few hints!” She pointed upwards, at the white painted sign with a lion on it, and giving Bianca a smile that this time had been far from pure OR childlike. ”What say you, Bianca? Will we visit the zoo? Please~?”