003. and in every raindrop... // open post.

[icarusalsoflew]

Take a prompt, take some time, drop in as you like. If you're from Eudio, though, mosey on down here.

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Waking the Dead 2.0 | Timeskip Shenanigans. Sometime in late April/early May?

[larue]

[ Have a rather cryptic text in your inbox, Mr. Shinta. ]

SENT: 09:54 PM
are they supposed to do that?

We shall sort this out according to ze convo!

[icarusalsoflew]

[Huh.]

SENT: 9:55 PM
Who is doing what now?

kidoki! '^'

[larue]

SENT: 10:01 PM
the gauntlets

henry lim showed me how they could turn into gloves
but they've decided to turn into something else

[ And back in his room, this is Josh setting his phone down on his bed as he falls to his knees to try to hunt up the twin of the ring that had slipped out of his grasp to roll under his bed.

He'd been looking at the gauntlets when the thought of taking them along to Gideon Reyes' class crossed his mind--

( Leather gloves were significantly less conspicuous in comparison to full on battle gauntlets, but he doubted that the Minstrel would let him keep them on at all times -- besides, while the the climate in Falner was more forgiving than the rest of the Philippines, it would still look weird wearing them in class. )

--and suddenly the gauntlets weren't gauntlets anymore.

He manages to finally find it close to the wall, the metal cool beneath his fingers as he exhales a sigh that is all relief. That's followed closely by a wince as he bumps his head on the underside of his bed. ]

[icarusalsoflew]

[The first line of that message is enough to make him pause mid-drag. No, he hadn't really been expecting a conversation about those things.]

SENT: 10:02 PM
They decided to, huh? Somehow, I'm not surprised.

[No, it's not really an answer.]

[larue]

[ Two sentences, and not much to go on.

Josh settles down on his bed and slips the other ring into the other pinky finger and types back a response-- ]

SENT: 10:04 PM
so you figure this is normal?

[ --he hasn't forgotten the weight in Hikaru's voice, a promise ringing in the words I will kill you if you don’t do justice to this. Understand?

He sends off the message: ]

sorry. i know it's a sore subject.
but i figured you were the best person
to ask.

[icarusalsoflew]

SENT: 10:07 PM
It's all right. I get why.

[And it really is all right. If for anything, he DOES have to learn how to deal with it.]

Kuzunoha always made it a point to fit whatever container suited the moment... he liked to keep people guessing. So that's why it kind of makes sense that those gauntlets shift the way they do.

[That is, randomly, and into forms of Makoto's choosing, not Josh's. Was it a test? It seemed like it. He could confirm, but...]

[larue]

[ Oh. ]

SENT: 10:09 PM
it's handy. was just thinking about how
it'd be hard to keep them with me all the time
if they were gauntlets or gloves.

[ The offer of information is, what he hopes, an avenue to get a better idea of the geist behind the gauntlets. Especially since the man he's texting at the moment had known him personally. ]

they're rings now. one for each hand.

[icarusalsoflew]

SENT: 10:12 PM
He probably chose that because it's incredibly different from the last shift it took. Either that, or he was trying to troll you.

[It's a Makoto thing to do.]

The next shift is going to be different for certain. If you want a little more consistency, you might want to try and talk it over with him.

[Good luck with that, kid.]

[larue]

[ This is Josh looking at the rings for a full minute and quietly contemplating the idea of a sit-down with his new... companion. ]

SENT: 10:15 PM
thanks. i think i'll do that.

[ Will probably need to purchase some really good sake for it, too. ]

you're welcome to drop in when it happens, just saying.

[ He hadn't missed the look on the Blade King's face when the geist materialized back at the Abubot. And while he knows this is treacherous ground to tread upon, it feels right to offer. ]

SENT: 10:17 PM
provided that you're free, of course.

[icarusalsoflew]

[...And he has to think about that one. He can almost hear Makoto Kuzunoha's half-joking, half-reproachful quips bubbling up from the past on those occasions when the Sin-Eater had caught him doing 'that' again.

I never took you to be a runner, Hikaru.]

SENT: 10:23 PM
Sure, I can do that.

[And then:]

SENT: 10:24 PM
Let's not make it a regular thing, though. It's important that the two of you have your time.

[Because it's true, and because Hikaru still isn't sure how much he can take just yet.]

[larue]

[ It takes him a bit to reply back, mostly because he reads the two messages four times over to formulate his response. ]

SENT: 10:33 PM
of course.

[ And because who better to ask than someone who knew his new geist best-- ]

SENT: 10:34 PM
rethe taught me that ghosts appreciate even just the gesture of gifts.
any recommendations on his preference of drink?

[icarusalsoflew]

SENT: 10:37 PM
Kokuryu Sake. If you can't get a hold of that, Kamoizumi or any other sake that's a bit on the earthy, deep side when it comes to taste.

Barring all of that, Japanese beer. He's always liked Sapporo Label.

[It's a little disconcerting how he still remembers exactly what Makoto likes.]

[larue]

[ Josh is smiling as he reads the response, extensive as Hikaru's reply is to a simple enough question.

It's telling, really, of the kind of man that Hikaru is: attentive, discerning, considerate -- whatever else anyone else might say.

It also speaks of the value the Blade King puts into his friendships, and having seen the man interact with peers, with comrades-at-arms, with people he clearly viewed as family -- and so Josh's smile turns a little sad right before he breathes the thought away. ]

SENT: 10:39 PM
thanks, man. duly noted.

[ He catches himself yawning at that; frowns, because it's relatively early but he's surprisingly tired.

He adds a last line before he sends off the text: ]

won't keep you. see you around, hikaru.
have a good night. get some rest.

[icarusalsoflew]

SENT: 10:40 PM
No problem. Good night, Josh.

[...And. Well.]

SENT: 10:41 PM
And thanks.