nowyouseeit | [WEEK 5: Friday, post-investigation, somewhere; Hajime!]

[ look at these two injured fools.

hajime's pressing through a lot of pain, folding nine paper cranes in the lounge. number one is a vivid red with golden koi fish - surprisingly well done for someone recovering from being nailed to a wall. the second is black and there's a clear attempt but the head isnt quite the right shape. the third is white and in progress with slow, delicate movements. hajime knows kaito's voice so no, she doesn't look away but she smiles. ]

Need an ice pack? I'm a cute nurse!

[THESE INJURED FOOLS!! his shoulder is still injured and his arm is still in a sling, too]

You are a cute nurse. [he agrees, before his brain catches up with his mouth] -- I mean, where did you get an ice pack? The kitchen's kinda, y'know. Dead.

[also he's steering clear of the golden koi fish paper crane, very determinedly NOT looking at it]

I thought I was friendzoned.

[ can someone STOP them ] Nowhere! I could probably get cold water from a sink and... [ hajime looks down at the hem of her top. eh. ] I can get fabric, I don't mind. That looks pretty nasty, though!

[blinks]

I-- when did I-- [suddenly turns VERY red, he's only sorta good about this flirting thing when it's a) out of costume, and b) with a cute girl he is very much charmed by]

I mean! Y-you're arms still hurt, right? I can get a cold compress myself so you don't have to move too much.

[DEEP EXHALE]

It was a pretty deserved punch, so I dunno if I really should ice it, anyway.

[ she hums, thoughtful. it's not affirmative, but she's not disagreeing, either. she feels mostly neutral to the whole thing, for the most part. ]

You're really putting Dinky Dirk in a weird position, 'cus he cares a lot. Maybe he's not used to having so many people to care about...?

[ but she looks up at him, anyway. there's still no anger. ] If there's anyone who should punch you, I think it should be me, buuuuut I don't wanna. Thanks for at least doing it not in the morning.

[ phone calls, man. she wasn't joking. they all happen in the morning, and it's an awful alarm clock. they don't even let her leave her room to investigate until 8am strikes - probably there's some kind of condition about that. ]

They change the ringtone every time.

[ but as if to prove a point, she pushes away from the table and then walks closer to him. slowly, she reaches up to let her middle finger over his split lip. ] It makes you look rugged, but if it hurts, then we should take care of it.

[god, yeah. those phone calls. and with nine corpses. . .]

[he ducks his head, and opens his mouth to say something-- probably an I'm sorry or an did you at least sleep well the night before? but then she's standing up and crossing the room towards him and her finger is on his mouth and he turns even redder, holy shit this is not what he expected when he approached her]

S'fine! S'fine. It actually doesn't hurt that much. I mean. . . my shoulder's way worse.

[gives her a sort of lopsided smile, as though that'll convince her that he's okay]

Edited 2017-06-24 03:33 (UTC)

Duh!

[ and then she's just going to press a little harder, pulling away immediately to avoid causing too much pain. ] But that doesn't mean this doesn't hurt, either. Did you want to be stubborn at me or did you want to talk about something in particular?

[flinches and pulls back, pressing his own hand to his mouth once she frees it]

. . . well, I did come here to talk about something in particular, but apparently being stubborn is one of my strong points.

[haa. his hand falls to his side, and he searches her expression carefully, the blush fading]

You really aren't. . . mad?

[ that... catches her off guard, actually! hajime blinks once, twice, and then avoids his gaze for a moment. ]

You guys probably argued about it for a while, huh?

[ she gets it. the idea of being the "only one" actually able to do something. the only reason she survived that fight was because it was her. so kaito probably thinks to himself that this is exactly what he has to do, and hajime gets that. ] "You don't have to!" and "There's another way!" or something to that end... over and over.

[ and there she breaks away to spin on her heel. with her back to him, she clasps her hands and rolls on the balls of her feet. ] But you're stuck. And there's no other way, you think, so you think... this is best for people like me, 'cause you probably don't want me to get caught up in things like murder and killing.

[ she's looking over her shoulder, then, smiling like the cheshire cat. ] Am I close?

[he blinks again, eyes widening, because. . . well. she isn't too far off]

Something. . . kinda like that. Yeah.

[another deep breath]

We did look for other ways. Brought up all sorts of alternative solutions, only to have 'em all torn to pieces. This was. . . well. No one's happy about it, not even now. But we didn't. . .

[he shakes his head, brows furrowing, a frustrated noise slipping past his lips]

All three of us agreed that even if it hurt our friends, even if we had to turn ourselves into villains, then it'd all be worth it. It'd be worth it if we could make sure that at least forty-one souls make it home safely.

[lifts a hand and rakes his through his hair]

We didn't want anyone else here to carry that burden. We didn't want kids, like Dipper and Mabel, to feel like they had to kill. Or worse, potentially sell their soul to eternal servitude to a stupid god in order to save everyone.

. . . so you're close. I guess it was a matter of us just not trusting enough people. Though we really were going to tell people, before Andersen opened his mouth. Those we thought might agree with us and take the deal if the three of us didn't make it to the end.

[ it's a good amount of information. she listens, of course. she imagines kaito hasn't had a lot of people actually listening to him this entire time. maybe it's because she's in the unique position of being the one in a room full of people to say, "it's me, i can sacrifice myself for this," or maybe it's because she wants to understand where all this is coming from. it could be a combination of the two. ]

And then what happens after someone makes the deal?

The dead are revived, and everyone is sent home. Well. . . except for the person who made the deal.

And as for what happens to the person who accepts the deal, you only have to look at Craftly.

He participated in this ritual once, y'know? And he sacrificed himself to save those who had died in his session.

I knew all that! What about after that? You become the new Innkeeper. Then what? You watch this all happen again and a forty new people come here?

I-- [man they never asked about that specifically, but based on context clues. . .] -- right. The cycle will begin again.

There's no way to stop it, by the way. Even ending this ritual early and leaving the dead behind won't prevent another ritual from occurring.

Hmmm.... Kaito-kun, if a sink is running, how do you cut off the water?

Depends. A leaky sink, or a sink with the faucet turned on?

[HE KNOWS WHAT SHE'S SAYING]

[he's trying to interject a little humor]

[look at his attempt at a smile]

You'll split it more like that, silly goose!

[ but she gets it. she knows people like that. ]

I'm not mad at you, but I don't accept that they're using you.

It's fine, it's fine! I had to laugh a li'l bit at myself.

[he tried!! but. . .]

You want to find a way to kill "Mother," don't you?

[he can read between the lines. probably because he had thought the exact same thing, back when he had first learned the truth. he had even gone so far as to ask Craftly if his bullets would work on her]

Maybe not kill, but... [ contain? hajime has an idea, but she's not sure it'd work. she's not sure she can handle it, either, but. ]

That's why tomorrow's going to be important. Pretty much everyone knows but if we don't talk about it, we won't go forward.

[ but, hey. that's dreary and morbid and hajime's not angry. worried, really. absolutely wracked with nerves, but she'll live at least another week. ]

What's your favorite time of day?

But. . .?

[he can sense that idea, something teasing the frontal lobe of her brain. even if he and the other Hunters had decided their paths going forward, he's so open to other solutions. he doesn't wanna kill people even if it is temporary :(]

[he makes a noise of agreement when she says they need to talk about it tomorrow, because. . . yeah. they do. and he already has that part handled]

Midnight. . . why?

Don't worry yourself about my butt.

[ she's just gonna. flip it. ]

Mine's six am! It's the perfect time of day. I like to open the blinds in my apartment and watch the sunrise, and see how the whole world comes alive as people get up for work... and I like the golden rays from the sun. It makes me feel like life is really amazing and will always go on.

[ she can see him as the sort of dope who sits around till the grandfather clock chimes midnight, and then he slips into something mysterious and a little dastardly looking in a romantic sense of the word. and then the world is his, full moon at his back. like a kid playing pretend.

hajime looks for the sun and kaitou looks for the moon... that's probably why she keeps seeking him out, even if it's pick on him during the trials. it's like getting the full picture. can't have one without the other. ] That's why I like six am, and I kind of... miss it! No more calls and just the bright rays from the sun. You probably don't miss the moon much here, though, right? Well, either way, we should see the sunrise together tomorrow, maybe. I think you should try it.

[. . . HAJIME!1 he's a little dense sometimes though I'm sorry he's missing this one]

You can't just say "but" and then tell me not to worry about it!

[he says with a grump, but she's moving on before he can really press her about it. conversations with her always flow too quickly, like water in a river, and he can't help but let out an exasperated (but still fond) huff]

I'm not much of a morning person, and this place doesn't get much of a sunrise.

[he says with a lilt of wry amusement in his voice. despite his joking, he can feel it, somewhere deep underneath his breastbone, the looming threat that tomorrow might be his last day as a live man in this realm.]

. . . but even so, I'll take you up on your offer.

Oh no, you're dense so I'm going to have to say ass now.

[ every time she curses someone laughs and she hates it. ]

I loooove mornings. And I like the nighttime, too! But if you want, I'll watch the moon with you tomorrow night, after everything's done.

[ a pause, and then, she dips a little at the hip. it's hard to not talk with her hands... ] I don't really care if they try to keep you from seeing it with me.

[OH MY GOD]

[he has to press his hand against his mouth to keep from laughing, honestly]

. . . that wasn't the kinda "but" I mean! You really can take any serious conversation and turn it into something kinda ridiculous, huh?

[okay, a laugh escapes from his lips, and he rakes a hand through his hair again]

Pinkie promise. [he holds up said pinkie, stepping towards her with it extended] The sunrise tomorrow at 6 a.m., and-- well. . . there isn't much of a moon here, either. But we can look for it before midnight. No matter what happens.

[since midnight is curfew!]

But there's one thing I want in return from you for agreeing.

You did the same thing! It's a good tactic. I think I'm gonna use it again.

[ she'll take that pinkie promise, though. hajime's movement is a little clumsy, but she's clearly getting used to exerting more strength in her arms. exercise is apparently good, news at 11. ] I'll pick you up! 'Cause Heather would totes kill you and also me.

[ just... saying. ]

Hmmm... Sounds kind of exciting!!! Okay. Let me hear your terms, Splashy.

[an amused snort. he gives her hand a shake, before allowing his to fall away]

She's mad too, huh? [unsurprising; he saw how Heather went after Yukina at the trial where Ryou died]

My terms are. . . I want you to tell me what comes after "but."

[AND NOT THE ASS KINDA BUTT]

[THE BUT, BUT]

[ are you, uh, sure you want to know? well. sure. let's talk about gatchaman crowds, i guess. ]

'Kay.

Back home, my boobs can talk.

[. . . WELP. HOW DID WE GET HERE]

Eeeeeh?! What's that s'posed to mean! And how's that related to your idea on how to deal with Mother?!

[ there's a point!!! ]

It means that someone lives inside me. Their name is Katze. They came to Earth to have lots of fun, but their fun would have hurt people! So I handled them and now my body holds them. I guess when I die, they'll die, too. We're always together. It's fine!

Anyway, I was thinking Mother could just live in me, too. I bet she's nicer than Katze-san...?

[WOW]

[WOW]

I don't know Katze-san, but Mother is kind of a jerk. She gave me brain freeze for askin' too many questions.

[that's all he can say, because everything else, he has no idea how to react to. her life is definitely on the weirder side of things]

Edited 2017-06-24 05:58 (UTC)

Yeah! And Katze-san almost killed my teammate. They're really terrible. It took all of the whole world to stop them.

[ this is why anime was a mistake, kaitou. we won't tell him that he's also an anime. ]

It's okay. I'm used to it. I can control them and even use their powers for myself. If I kissed you, I'd be able to take your image!

And that's when you stuffed them into your boobs?

[how he manages to say that with a straight face is amazing. also yeah, don't tell him his life is also an anime, and that it's abnormal for teenagers to be phantom thieves gosh]

[also please ignore the way he's blushing again, god]

What does "take my image" mean? I'll have you know, I worked very hard to perfect it and make it unique.

We had a date, first.

[ katze never called it a date, hajime is just....hajime. kaitou probably might figure that out by now, though. ] And it was on livestream again, I bet if you look it up you can watch it!

Hmm, taking your image... it's like I become you? It was one of their abilities. They used it to turn people against each other. They framed a bunch of people for murders and crimes. It was totally anonymous and never traced back to them... But I can't do that now, obviously. That's just one of the things they could do.

People sure do love livestremaing your life, huh?

[but he can't help but laugh at how casually she puts it. she really takes everything in stride. . . in hindsight, maybe it was silly of him to be afraid of her anger]

[his smile fades, though]

That is pretty terrible of them. But I hope you were able to. . . I dunno. Stop them? Maybe make them see they can't do stuff like that anymore?

-- oooooh so the fact that they're in your chest is what gives you your superpowers! Right?

[he remembers the superhero thing. bless him]

Nope! What gives me my superpowers is the notebook another alien put my soul in!

[ good guess tho ]

[IT WAS A NICE TRY]

Why is. . . your soul in a notebook?

Hmm, I guess it's just convenient? He talks to all of us in riddles in there... and we can talk to each other... and I love notebooks, so I don't mind it at all!

[ that's a big answer for what amounts to "i don't know, actually" ??? ]

I think I'd prefer a notebook over something else! They're so useful and adorable.

[HE REALLY WANTS TO KNOW?? but if she doesn't have the answer to that, then. well]

If my soul were going to be shoved into something, I'd want it to be. . . actually--

[he stuffs his hand into his pocket, fingers closing around some sort of object. he pulls it out for her to see-- it's his monocle, glass glimmering in the light]

This, probably.

[ hajime's not the sort to hide her emotions, so seeing something like that - she's obviously intrigued. ]

Oh!!! That's so cute! It looks so distinguished.

[ more importantly... ]

Well? Are you gonna put it on?

Edited 2017-06-24 06:30 (UTC)

Cute? Not handsome?

[he says with a snort as he lifts it up to his face. he looks. . . maybe slightly less rugged now? only slightly]

It belonged to my dad, before he died. It was part of his costume, and now it's part of mine.

[ hmm. that certainly gives her an idea of the kind of childhood kaitou might have had. ]

What kind of costume? Superhero? I knewww it!

[taps the glass of his monocle and smiles at her]

Not exactly.

Phantom thief.

[oh no he's finally honest about the thief thing?? oh no!!]

Phantom thieves are more like the bad guys, right?

Depends! What are you stealing and why?

[ so that's what andersen meant. it'd been the wrong time but now they can't say he's going to live through the day. it's the only time they've got. ]

You do look handsome like that.

[a laugh]

Thanks.

[he plucks the monocle off of his face and twists it in his hand, looking thoughtful]

Jewels, mostly. I'm. . . looking for something. [closes his eyes] To help avenge my old man's death.

[WEEK 5: Friday, post-investigation, somewhere; Hajime!]

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