Out of the Frying Pan...

[Corria Firegrass]

Tariq ran. He ran and ran and ran until he couldn't run anymore. The thick, thorny layer of bramble under his bare feet could hardly slow him down despite the rather nagging discomfort it caused by scratching against his ankles and piercing the soles of his feet, if anything it sped him up, which was good. The faster he ran the sooner he would be far, far away from his cell. The faster he ran the closer he got to freedom. The knives of nature were much less painful than the knives of the prison torturer. 

To Hell with that prison; it was bad enough that local law enforcement had the audacity to lock him up at all, sure he had most likely been trafficking stolen goods but the guards didn't have to know that, surely Tariq had been too clever for that. Oh well, he was free now, and all that mattered was staying free and getting back to his ship, everything else was just dust in the wind.

After what must have been a good few hours of running, the forest appeared to transform around him, the thick, green forest began to fade away into a huge mass of what could only have been cherry blossom trees. The thought made Tariq smile to himself, it reminded him of home, Rajah, the ship's cool kept bonsai trees, his most beautiful and prized one was a little Sakura tree, it was gorgeous. Tariq paused for a moment to take it all in, it was all very nostalgic. There for a few seconds, in his prison rags, bare feet and caked in dirt, he felt like a captain on the high seas again. He felt like he was home with his crew.

The forest around him did not allow such reminiscing however, Tariq made a slight, shocked yelp as he felt something grab him by the leg, it felt like a tendril of some kind, impossibly strong and yet impossibly cold, he looked down instinctively... But there was nothing there. But there was, and it pulled hard, making the young man fall to the floor with a small scream before dragging him away towards whatever fate awaited him.

[Anadwen]

Another spirit. It was nearby... Not a strong one. Just your ordinary garden variety evil ghost. It was no match for him...

The fallen petals of sakura blossoms were pressed onto the ground under his long steps, but those were so light they arose back again in the moment when his feet were lifted off the ground. He ran so swiftly it was closer to flight. It didn't matter how dangerous a spirit. In his eyes, all of them were equal amount of danger, and they had to be exorcised.

None of them, were, off course, a match for Seiki Naohiro Adachi. He was faster than a lightning... Most spirits never knew what hit them when his blade cleaved them in half.

And so he ran through the gardens. The spiritual presence of the ghost was drawing nearer, he could sense the direction in which to run... His black robes billowed in the wind as he leaped forth and forth, leaving just whirling petals in his wake. His keen eyes picked up a scream.

He saw it right after. It had the form of a snake, connected to a strong torso with a pair of clawed arms, and a fanged mask... And a young man in those claws. An intruder in the family gardens! But that didn't matter... In his eyes, that man was innocent.

Within a moment, he drew his Zanpakuto, and in a fast leap forth, sliced off what was dragging the man away. In the moment the acidic blood of the spirit burst out, he was already behind it, and Blood-red Blossom's blade sliced it in half, fast and clean. All in less than two seconds.

The spirit turned to ash, but before its catch could fall onto the ground, his other hand grabbed him by the shoulder. Seiki himself didn't even bother looking at the man.

[Corria Firegrass]

It took Tariq more than a few seconds to break out of shock, what the hell had just happened? It went by quicker and more bizarrely than Tariq thought possible. Something, whatever it was had grabbed him and pulled him to the ground, and then this tall, dark, samurai looking guy had just sliced his sword through thin air and suddenly that... well, thing, wasn't grabbing him anymore. It was weird. Tariq didn't get it.

When he did suddenly regain his composure he attempted to sit up and get a proper look at the man, he was impossibly tall, probably about five or six inches taller than Tariq himself which was quite something, his hair was dark, his face impossibly stern. He was quite handsome, maybe a few years older than Tariq himself, being an escort for the Nobility one develops quite high standards for beauty and this man met them.

Tariq gave the man a good natured grin, it brightened up his whole face, and his eyes seemed to sparkle. Even at times of confusion, and slight fear, Tariq still had his smile "Wow, I mean I knew these forests were dangerous but who would have thought even the air was vicious!"

He also still had his sense of humour.

[Anadwen]

Seiki's face changed. A little. Really only a little, but one careful enough could notice that his eyes narrowed, and his brows drew a bit closer to each other, but otherwise, very little of his cold, indifferent face has moved.

"It was a spirit, not air. I cannot blame you for not seeing an invisible opponent, but what you carry a blame for is being foolish enough not to count with it." he exclaimed in an ice-cold voice.
"Besides, you are on the grounds of the Adachi clan without permission."

His hands, free of the sword which now hung sheathed by his belt, picked the man up.
"That is an offense. If you will not oppose, you will make it easier for yourself. Do not waste your energy on trying to free yourself."
His hand arose, and he muttered something. A binding spell... Not a strong one, for one without a strong spiritual presence such as himself didn't need to be bound by complicated spells, but one that would keep him unable to move little more than his eyes and mouth and would prove practically impossible to break from without help from outside.

[Corria Firegrass]

Bindings! Fantastic! Tariq thought to himself, sarcasm dripping from his internal voice. Was he going to be thrown in prison again for something as ridiculous as tresspassing?! Tresspassing, into private property without walls? The irony was delicious. That said, he thought he saw a hint of annoyance on the man's face at his joke. Tough crowd, best to probably go with it. Still, he couldn't help but keep a lighthearted demeanour.

"Private property without walls? Seems a little bit silly, doesn't it? I'm not really from round these parts so I wasn't really fam-... Wait, a spirit?"

The words had only registered in Tariq's head and they hit him like a ton of bricks. Had Tariq's spiritual power weakened? Was it something to do with these spirits in particular? It was annoying, whatever it was. Tariq pushed the thought out of his mind and gave the man a smile

"Regardless, I'm sorry for imposing, sir, your gardens are gorgeous"

[Anadwen]

"I must agree with you at that," Seiki replied, "but there is little else we will agree on. It is generally known that at the beginning of the sakura gardens, the forests end, and what lies behind belongs to the Adachi clan." He still seemed surprisingly indifferent and unnamed, as if trespassers were an everyday matter he would have to resolve.

He changed a part of the binding spell to allow the man to walk, and gestured him to stand up. "Any possibility of damage being done to you could be eliminated by cooperating." he explained him. His voice was silent, but full of authority. All about him seemed to be so calmly powerful. It was apparent that Seiki was a strong person, but he obviously felt no need to demonstrate that with strong words or actions. 

[Corria Firegrass]

Tariq huffed "Awwwh, I thought you were going to carry me" he said, before flashing a cheeky grin at Seiki, to all outward appearances Tariq seemed little more than some cheeky kid but anyone with the slightest ounce of perceptiveness could likely tell that he possessed an incredible amount of confidence, what was probably also obvious is that he could back it up.

Still, he shrugged "I was never not going to go with you, I figure an invitation for dinner and to meet the parents is better than being devoured my invisible spirits. Doesn't sound fun"

[Anadwen]

Ignoring his words, Seiki guided him forwards. "The head of the house, Takuya Adachi, together with other elders, will judge you, and make sure you receive the rightful punishment. You are fortunate not to commit a great offense." he informed him.

This man was annoying... More than that. He was so undisciplined, saying one stupid thing after another, that it was infuriating. Still, he showed no emotions at all.

[Corria Firegrass]

"So those are the parents then, that's nice. I'm not really sure if I can be considered a crimminal if I trespass on property without any indication of whether it's private or not" This was completely sincere. It was irritating to Tariq that for the second time he was going to be judged for something he was completely unaware of. It really did feel like he was out of the frying pan and yet into the fire.

He could also tell that the straight laced, broom-up-the-ass Seiki was irritated with him, little things were enough to clue Tariq in, the eyes and the eyebrows, the corners of the mouth. It was possible, though not neccessarily the case, that the man already hated Tariq. It was an annoying thought.

[Anadwen]

Seiki didn't flick a brow, and guided Tariq towards the residence, maybe faster than the man would possibly be comfortable with. He just wanted to be done for with this annoying creature. It was so shameful to drop words of so little importance, and of so little use to him...

The house soon appeared before them, half of it built on a large rock, towering above the remaining landscape - acres upon acres of sakura gardens, planted on rolling hills.

[Corria Firegrass]

Tariq easily kept up with Seiki, despite not having the use of his arms, he could tell that this man thought he was some incapable idiot. He didn't quite know how he know, perhaps it said more about Tariq than Seiki, but there was certainly a sense of distaste from the man. It was intersting.

Regardless, Tariq had to gasp slightly when the house became visible. It was utterly gorgeous, he spoke to Seiki with sincerity, and slight awe "Your house is incredibly powerful"

[Anadwen]

"The Adachi clan is one of the biggest knight families." Seiki informed him silently, following the narrow path that led through the gardens towards the residence. It was becoming wider and wider, lined with flat stones, upon which were also scattered petals of flowers like little rose pebbles.

"I suppose it is only natural our residence is appropriate to that." he added after a while, with a very, very slight smile. In fact, it was just a moment when the corners of his mouth moved upwards.

[Corria Firegrass]

Tariq nodded "It's incredibly impressive" it truly was, all trace of irony or facetiousness  was gone from Tariq's voice. The fact that he was a prisoner still ticked him off make no mistake, but the sheer power and beauty of the place was something he hadn't felt since...

"The Sea Kaadir" he said under his breath, his voice dripping with nostalgia and loss

[Anadwen]

They passed over a narrow bridge, leading above the stream of a small river, and a door appeared before them. Someone, standing by, moved to open it, but before turned to Seiki with a question in his eyes.
"Intruder." he replied calmly. "He was found in the gardens. The spirit I have sensed attacked him."
"Very well..." the other man nodded, and pulled the door aside.
Seiki pushed Tariq inside.

He didn't bother mentioning that he noticed this man's spiritual presence...

[Corria Firegrass]

Being pushed inside by Seiki made Tariq stumble slightly, but he regained his balance. He walked beside Seiki and took in the house's beautiful interior, it was strange, he was sure that there was more power here than he was sensing. His powers must have weakened, which was something of a crisis considering his ship. Regardless, he shook off the unsettling feelings and turned to Seiki

"So, do I learn your name or are you just my captor? And what's going to happen to me from here?"

[Anadwen]

"My name is Seiki Naohiro Adachi, son of Takuya Adachi, and the heir of the head of the Adachi clan." Seiki introduced himself, and kept on walking, leading Tariq through the simple, but beautiful corridors. The dark wood hardly made any sounds underneath his feet, showing further how lightly he walked.

"You will be taken to the council of elders. My father, at the first the place. There, you will be judged. For trespassing, I expect two or three days in a cell. It is not a serious offence, but it is, after all, an offence. And you will be interrogated about your reasons to be on this ground." he informed him.

[Corria Firegrass]

"The Adachi clan, one of the largest knight families in Adela, sounds frightfully important" Tariq said "My name is Tariq Orwin Cap-... Well, former captain of the Sea Kaadir and heir to a whole lot of parental debt, I imagine." the younger man gave a smirk at this

Two or three days in a cell however was enough to completely destroy Tariq's good sense of humour, he sighed ever so slightly "I was running through the forest 'cause I was trying to get away from Ketran prison wardens, I don't know anything about Adela so I had no idea the Sakura gardens were private property. They're beautiful by the way, really somethin'"

[Anadwen]

"If you were jailed, you will be most likely escorted back." Seiki explained, calmly, as if he wouldn't even care - and he really didn't. "But it is not me who would be interrogating you. The warriors have other duties than caring about prisoners." He made something what could be a very subdued portrayal of disdain, and walked into a long corridor.

His hand pushed away another door, and a larger hall appeared before them. His father was inside behind a low desk, sitting on the floor, and writing something on a long scroll.

"Father." He pushed Tariq behind, and bowed deeply in the door.
"I have found an intruder in the gardens. As I felt obliged to, I have brought him here to be judged."

Takuya looked up from the scroll, and bowed his head, too, though not as deeply as his son. "Lead him inside, please." he instructed him.
Seiki stepped back, and softly pushed Tariq inside, guiding him through the hall towards the desk. The moment they before it, he put another binding spell onto him - one that would completely bare any movement except for his head.

[Corria Firegrass]

Escorted back to jail was not something that Tariq could deal with, no thank you. But right now he didn't have a choice. He was face to face with the big cheese, this massive hall was even more impressive than the last, rather fitting for the head of the family, but still slightly overkill. Being more accquainted with the cramped rooms and low ceilings of a ship, Tariq couldn't help but think back to the lavish palaces of all those Essyrni noblemen. The place seemed as big but much less... Garish, still, he felt no more welcome here than he did there.

More bindings were also not something Tariq could deal with "God damn it! Is this really neccessary or are you just messing with me?"

[Anadwen]

Seiki sat down beside him, by the corner of the table, and crossed his legs, laying his arms down onto his knees. "It is a necessity. It is only a different version of handcuffs - a far more effective one." he informed him. "Besides, on your place I would remain polite while in the presence of the head of the clan. It will only make your sentence longer if you offend someone else." By the 'someone else' he very softly indicated that he has already been offended.

Takuya waited for the hall to grow silent. The man was similar to his son, only his hair was shorter, and his eyes were a bright crimson. "My son is right. Seiki, inform me of the circumstances of finding this man."
Seiki bowed his head. "I have sensed a spirit in the southeastern part of the gardens. At the moment I felt its presence, I left the house to get rid of it. It attempted to devour his soul," he turned his head at Tariq, "when I cleansed it. That was when I found him. He was not aware this is our family's property, and I have thus escorted him inside."

The attention was then shifted to Tariq himself. "What were you doing on my clan's property? I suppose you did not have a permission to do so, nor were you aware where you are." The look of his eyes was piercing. Both those crimson orbs, and Seiki's midnight-blue mirrors, were aimed at Tariq.