#duiri

(the orginal creator for Duiri here. I wanted to share a short drabble based on her past, before she was abducted. I’m so sorry for the delay! 🙏 My English is a bit horrid). She had never been made to feel different. Her childhood before that had been based around snooping around her father’s study, or tending to greenhouse garden with her mother. “This here sweetie, is where your matuo and matua lives. They will travel all the way from here when summer comes around.” “… And this my little bloom, is the flower both me and your papa bonded over when we first met. It’s cute as button, just like you.” Some days her as usual stand offish but fair morfar(maternal grandpa) would let her join in looking after the reindeers. He would let her roam around under a watchful eye, and be extra careful with teaching her how to correctly pet one. “ They are capable of harsh weather, and tough conditions… But they spook easily, Duiri, so be cautious.” Her mormor(maternal granny) would quietly joik in her living room, while the small old lady worked on the nissongákti(tradisional clothes) for the coming-of-age girls in the small village. “When your confirmation day arrives, the gákti of your own would be the most stunning of them all.” “…Why do you think that mormor?” “Because you will show everyone what beauty yours, by being made of your very own hands. But I will help you, but only for the most difficult parts.” “… But why?” Her grandmother would only look at her with a ghost of a smile. Handing the girl some sketches she had seen her mother collab with her father, she watched on as the girl recognized the mixed patterns. “ Because you will show them just how beautiful a piece of art can be, when the weavers from two different worlds. She was never made to feel different… Until her first day at school. Any attempt at making friends went miserably wrong,as her classmates just stared with uncertain suspicion. She had never cried… Or made much out of it. But her parents knew, since their daughters usual curious gaze seemed listless and dull. The caring parental duo had feared this would happen. Her father felt lost and frustrated, while her mother felt a strong anger. They had remembered the glued stares they too had gotten in the streets of the small town. And even if Duiris father felt it would’ve been better to stay back in the multicultural haven of Oslo, he had felt a scientifical pull towards northen mountains. But at the cost of his daughters happiness? They had been on the brink of moving, until her presumed distant morfar had stepped in. Still dressed in his gear for herding, boots soaked with dirt and who knows what, he had solemnly walked to the school building. When he came back, he had told her surprised father only a few calm words. "They’ll ought to fix it by now.” His wife had been patting her stressed husbands back, both concerned over their child. So this left them both perplexed. Beside them, her mormor only hummed. “Those bats and their brood should’ve known better. In this community, we take care of one another. No matter if we are half or not.” But her new homeroom teacher had shown a bit concern. Duiri seemed to always have these walls around her, which “scared” the other kids presumably. But they soon found out that there were a softness in it too. A girl had fallen from one of the tall trees at the school grounds. Without a word, Duiri had helped her back inside; seemingly unaware of the starry eyed look she had gotten from the girl. Same girls mother had gone several kilometers to personally thank the parents. “Your daughter is a wonderful girl! She’s already the only thing little Marianne want to talk about.” From behind her legs peaked the said girl out to stare shyly at Duiri. And even if she didn’t outwardly smile, her eyes crinkled with a certain wetness. Sticking out a small hand, the stoic girl had asked. “… Do you want to pick some flowers?” Little Marianne had brightened, a giddy ‘yesyesyes!’ filling the small entrance of the equally small home. And as the two girls sat hunched and giggled amongst the patch of buttercups and dandelions, their parents watched on over some coffee and tea. … These peaceful moments are what stand out the most for little Duiri, as her and several unfamiliar faces drifted along space. Amongst her were scared wet faces, trembling voices calling for who knows. She would’ve too… But it was as if her voice wouldn’t let her. Beside her, a small bespecaled girl was crying. Carefully she pat the girls back… Fear dwelling in her deeply.

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Monay would wield a kusari-fundo, simply because I think she’d be like ROTTMNT’s Mikey when she gets a little older! Her ability would be blinding flashes of light that she uses to stun people, Sunlight.

Marie would use a harpoon gun (RWBY’s version of Whirl insisted she get some kind of gun). Her semblance, Courage, would allow her to let go of fear when pushed to her limit so that she can continue fighting. 

An’s weapon would be a naginata, as he prefers to fight people at a distance. His semblance is Silence, and it is as the name suggests. This lets him move without being heard. He doesn’t just use this during battle.

Emilia prefers big swords, and her weapon is a claymore! Her semblance is Growth, allowing her to temporarily take control of plants near her, but flowers favor her. She can use this to trap, strangle, or otherwise hinder her foes.

Izzy would have a gun that shoots burst of dust, like a laser canon, which can pact a powerful punch. Her semblance, Focus, allows her to slow her own time for a bit to get information on the battle and aim.

Brook has a shield that doubles in size so that he can protect lots of people at once. His semblance, Fortify, can heal a mass of people at once, but he can only do it so often without exhausting himself.

Duiri’s weapon is a massive wahaika that, like Nora’s, she can use to launch herself into the air. Her semblance is Absorb, where for a time she takes damage than lashes it back at her foes.

Sunan uses daab son mue, twin short swords. His Semblance is Trace, where he can “trace” things in the air with his swords to create obstacles and other things for a short amount of time.

Sanoh uses blade gauntlets, as she prefers to fight quick and dirty. Her semblance is Comedian, that works like laughing gas, and, despite the laughter, are often joined by tears. She uses this to stun her enemies or allow them to be found.

Sumaira uses a bo staff that doubles as a long crossbow. Her Semblance would be Whispers, where she makes her enemies hear things that aren’t there, this can be used to mislead or scare.

Friendly Rivals:

Brook and Izzy are friendly rivals! They try to outdo each other on space knowledge all the time! They even try to make better sci fi planets than each other, but it’s all in good fun and often ends with them complimenting each other and being awed because that’s so cool! I didn’t know that!!

Surpsingly, Jedah and Sanoh have a friendly rivalry going on, but it’s not as fun as others… Sanoh tries to get Jedah to relax, which usually means goofy times and pranks, which makes him think she needs to grow up, which makes her want to make relax even more but with a vengeance, which ends up stressing him out, and the circle goes on and on. It’s a rivalry built on a “you are my friend but god help me you are trying my patience” relationship.

Emilia, Duiri, and Brook also have a friendly rivalry, but of the best kind! Each of them try to outdo each other on how happy/how many smiles they can make an amount of people do. It started out with Brook and Emilia one day, and Duiri unknowingly got caught in it when she was being her wonderful helpful self. Sometimes, this also includes making each other smile, too.

Sunan also has a (rather onesided) friendly rivalry going on with Sumaira. No one… really knows what it’s about? It changes, sometimes it’s about drawing, or how much ASL he can learn in one day, but mostly its about stories of their older siblings. “Here’s a story about how how my brother, Javed, did this.“ “Oh, well here’s a story about how Sunan did this.” “Cool, I have a story about how my sister, Mariam, did this thing, too.” “WELL, I HAVE A STORY ABOUT HOW SANOH DID - “ Sumaira plays along for the most part.

Distanced/Tense Relationships

The most notable is Emilia’s relationship with the twins. She can’t help but feel sad everytime she see’s them together, remembering what she had lost. One on one is a little better, but for the most part, she distances herself from them. They’re still friends, but they all know what happened, and it’s hard for Sanoh not to feel somewhat responsible, since it was she who saved Emilia but failed Ivan. They used to be rather close, the four of them, while captive.

I’m going to have to make this a couple different posts so hold on for the ride, y’all.

Best Friends:

The unspoken truth is that Jedah and Sumaira are best friends. They never met before the abduction, but they immediately clicked. Jedah is one of the few who understood sign language, even if can’t sign well on his own (yet). Sumaira helps Jedah open up around others, she’s the one who firmly believes that people have the capacity to be kind, while he’s jaded and suspicious of most people he first meets. Meanwhile, Jedah not only becomes her interpreter, but close confidant. They have a mutual understanding of each other, they can cry and laugh together when they feel like they can’t in front of the others.

Brook and Izzy are also best friends, though it’s not a mix someone would picture at first glance. Brook is bubbly and happy, Izzy is quiet and someone timid, but maybe that’s why they’re best friends. Brook noticed how much Izzy was hurting and does everything he can to help her smile and love space again (he shares the very same passion). Though their relationship started out tense, Brook being a bit too much for her, now they could gush on and on about stories about space when they get into it, from sci fi adventures to NASA. After they open up to each other, Brook feel’s comfortable to let his facade fall a little.

Duiri and Sumaira are best friends, almost sisters. Duiri’s plight with being a selective mute is rather recent, and Sumaira… she got it. She still remembers when she lost her hearing when she was a child and had to learn how to use ASL. It can be frustrating, having a point, a voice, but struggling to get it across. Besides, it’s nice to be the big sis for a change, and she and Duiri quickly warm to one another. But, they make each other sick with worry. Duiri worries about Sumaira shouldering so much responsibility, and Sumaira worries about Duiri being hyper empathetic but hardly showing her own pain. They both want the other to lean on them, they want to support each other.

It comes as no surprise that Sunan and Sanoh are each other’s bestie. They’re inseparable, and they know they’re lucky that that still rings true. After their harrowing experience, they seem to cling to each other that much more. Though their relationship seems to be of boss and lackey, their trust and love for each other is apparent to anyone who bothers to look. Any secret exchanged will never be told to another soul, and no one will know about the bad dreams they shared.

The trio of youngest children have somehow pack bonded to each other. If someone were to ask, no one would be able to pick one best friend out of them all. Marie, An, and Emilia have tightly knit friendship that will prove to stand the test of time, as friendships during those years seldom do. They each teach each other their language, in the end, they’re fluent in more languages than any other of the children. Knowing a grand total of four, American English, Japanese, French, and Spanish. They’re the ones often found playing with each other the most.

You don’t even know how they all got in. Maybe they somehow snuck in while you were planet side? But then, how did Earth Cats somehow get into deep space? 

Monay is just an itty bitty Selkirk Rex kitten. She still needs to be bottle fed, and Minimus is a saint with her. She’s often found lounging on laps and being coddled by the whole crew, but she’ll only eat if Minimus feeds her.

Marie is a sweet little Ragdol kitten. She’s generally unafraid and approaches people easily. She’s easy to care for and play with and Whirl loves how she just flops when he picks her up. 

An is small and timid Japanese Bobtail kitten. He likes to hide and often can’t be found unless he wants to be. He’s hard to handle, but once you gain his trust he’ won’t have a problem coming to you and sitting on your lap in the quiet. He’s often found in the movie room with Swerve.

Emilia is a pretty Turkish Angora. She likes making “biscuits” on people’s bellies when she’s relaxed and playing when she’s not. She’s sort of a loner but is always eager to come back and mow at Drift until he perches her on his shoulder.

Izzy is a gentle Birman. She’s calm and not a fan of surprises, which is why she’s often found with Rung where she helps with patients. She likes hanging out on window sills most, which often freaks out someone when they think the cat somehow got outside until they get a second look.

Brook is a happy LaPerm. He’s often running around playfully and trying to climb pantslegs. His favorite spot is in Rodimus’s jacket hood, where he either plays with his hair or naps when he finally gets all tuckered out.

Duiri is a stoic Norwegian Forest Cat. She’s often on her own, finding a perch high up and watching the room with her kind eyes. She never meows, but it’s never hard to tell what she wants. She often gives her kitty kisses from above to Lug in the workshop.

Sunan and Sanoh are both mischievous Bengals. Sunan is quieter than his sister, but both can often be found running through the halls like bats out of hell, surprising passers by with attacks to their ankles. They’ve certainly made a name for themselves, especially with Whirl who indulges their playing.

Sumaira is an Abyssian. She often watches the other kittens play, and if provoked will join in the fun herself. Despite looking aloof and noble, she’ll start play fighting and even jump on people like Velocity. But when it’s time to calm down, there’s no better cuddler. 

Duiri was watching the video raptly, listening to the drum, a small smile on her face. She was usually so stoic, expression so muted, to see her light up like this… God, she actually looked her age; like a happy little girl.

Lug and Anode sit behind her, their eyes go from the woman onscreen, but drift longer and longer on Duiri. They’re smiling, optics soft, but sad. They’ll likely never say why, that they know that one day their little girl will go back home, and they’ll be lucky if they ever see her again. They feel for her, too. She’s so far from home, from the woman on the screen that looks like her, wizened and beautiful. 

Lug’s hand hugs Duiri from behind, and the girl immediately curls into her palm, still watching the screen. Anode brushes her braids with her thumb, gentle, like a whisper.