tabularasa_rp | open | i hit the bottom but I'm on the mend

Supposed to happen, how?

[because he's pretty sure, at least in his case, this absolutely wasn't supposed to happen. he was, he imagines, supposed to get killed by Aiden in the next half an hour or so. so, what the hell was Noct doing that this might have been a natural progression of events?]

More like the Wards, then, than the Mad Mile.

[there's a few good shops in the Wards, like Aiello's Bakery, still standing today -- a miracle, consider its sordid history with Capone in the 30s. but the Wards are also dangerous. lots of drive-bys, an astronomical chance of coming back to find your car on cinderblocks if you leave it unattended for too long, and so on. and then there's Rossi-Freemont at the heart of it -- a public housing project that's been taking over by one of the Club's affiliate gangs, the Black Viceroys -- and it, too, was outside Blume's influence, outside ctOS]

[the Mad Mile, on the other hand, is much nicer, but beyond that throwaway comment, he's not going to get into it. they definitely don't need another downer conversation, no, so instead, he's going to ask:] Something beef, maybe?

[a beat]

Chef's choice as to what kind.

[he trusts her discretion]

Probably not.

[he'd have to live another eighty-some years, to make it to 2100, and even if that were possible (unlikely, given that he's already almost fifty), it's not probable, given what was going on for him back home. he's probably not going to make it another eighty-some minutes, assuming everything's just as he left it, if and when he ever gets out of here]

[rather than point that out, however, instead he continues with:] I'm going to guess we're not exactly from the same reality. [since, again, she was wings for arms]

[Damien hums, and -- well, he's ask another question about Japanese etiquette, maybe if it bothers Ren that he doesn't use the honorifics, too, but now he's sort of hung up, thinking about Akechi. he frowns a little, that in mind, before:]

How is he, by the way? Akechi?

(At the question, there's just a tiny smile in Ren's lips. Damien really cares about Akechi, doesn't he?)

He's getting better. Thank you for helping him. (He offers Damien a short bow, in both respect and gratitude.) He's staying with me for the time being, you're welcome to visit.

(It's only a beat later that the subject reminds him - he actually meant to talk to Damien about something really important.)

I actually have something to ask you, speaking of.

[he's the one person who sees all of him, here -- who he doesn't have to watch himself around. Tifa's a close second, for all that she saw some of him and didn't flinch, but Akechi's ... ]

[yeah, anyway]

[he frowns a little, somewhat disappointed that Akechi's not just next door, anymore, even if he can figure out the reasoning behind it. a raised eyebrow follows, at the not-quite-question] Which is?

I know what you saw from him.

(A battered, badly injured Ren, a dead officer, a silencer and a bullet right in his forehead. Nothing.)

Can I trust you'll keep it a secret?

(Ren's gray eyes fix on the other's.)

I think you're right. Everyone I've talked to who is from some version Earth says they've never seen a Subspecies Human like me. I don't know if that is because the year isn't right, or they'll just never exist due to big differences between where we're from, but I think that's ok. Things are "complicated" back home.

[Really complicated actually but hey, at least Damien knew what Chicago was.]

[he and Akechi have developed a kind of litmus test, to figure out if his version of Earth lines up with someone else's, and Damien may come back to that, just for funsies. (he's already pretty sure their realities won't line up, but it can't hurt to know for sure.) for now, though, he just arches his eyebrows, then lowers them in rapid succession]

Complicated, how?

[he might also come back to the idea that he's never seen anything like her before, either, but -- well, one thing at a time, and 'complicated' is what he latched onto]

Ummm...[she stammered a bit, it was a lot going from just talking about where she lived to such a serious topic.]People have been well not nice to each other based on race, gender, sexuality and other things pretty much forever. But uh, from history classes I've taken I have heard back then it was pretty common to say "we're all human" as short hand to say those differences were less then skindeep.

[She took a deep breath before continuing.]

When Subspeices humans first showed up, absolutely no one knew what do with them and many people began to think that "We're all just human" didn't apply to us. Like scientists didn't know where they came from, let alone how to integrate them into society. For example, snake-like humans don't have legs and couldn't get into many public places, aquatic types have to be in water for hours a day or they will get sick, and harpys like me -we're lucky honestly- have hollow bones that break far easier then normal humans. It took decades for things to even reach an "acceptable" level of legal protection and societal integration.

That's what I mean by "complicated."

Edited 2020-10-12 16:50 (UTC)

[ he's noticed Damien's leg brace by now, and it makes him wish that he could call on Flygon more than ever. having a flying Pokémon would give him so much more freedom... he's starting to realize that he'd taken it for granted before this.

he smiles a little wider, mostly because while it sounds a little silly at first, it's not a bad question to ask. competitive Pokémon battling is definitely the most popular sport around by virtue of its unbeatable hype, but it's not like it was the only option for sporting entertainment. ]

Yeah, we have baseball. It's not really my region's thing, though - football is where it's at, as far as human sports go.

[ from his accent - which Damien will understand as unmistakably English - that actually might make sense. baseball was definitely more of a Unovan pastime, and Raihan finds it ridiculously dull. ] My stadium's not exactly in the best state for anything right now, but I reckon we could fit a diamond in there eventually.

[ he's speaking, of course, of Hammerlocke Stadium and its ruins. he'd already gone into talks with Tifa and Cloud about making it a multi-purpose space, so why not fit another sport into it? ]

Ugh, football.

[he's not a fan. though ... ] Though are we talking football where you touch the ball, or football where you use your feet? [because yes, he does sound British to him, so he's imagining soccer, as opposed to American football, now, and that's -- slightly better]

Ah.

[he shifts slightly in his seat, trying to cover a tension that came with the lead up to the question. he's not sure what he was expecting, but it wasn't something as comparatively innocuous as that]

[either way, after a beat, he hums, nods] Your secrets are safe with me. [assuming they don't give him reason to use them against them, anyway]

So, par for the course.

[because, yeah, while they don't have harpies, where or when he's from, discrimination is still a thing. there's a reason why his partner-turned-rival went to such great lengths to hide the fact that he was Irish. hell, he's faced some discrimination, back home, for just being fucking crippled]

Well, that's fun.

[he doesn't really look like he thinks any of this is a good time, however]

I'm guessing things are similiar where your from, minus all the animal people?

[Summery of the summery: People are a problem.]

Um, lets talk about something else...please?

(He's not sure, if he's completely honest. Damien did see him getting shot in the head, it's such a serious situation that even if it weren't real and Ren is right here, the murder part of it still stands.

Complicated.

Well. Akechi hadn't told Ren what he saw from Damien, if any, and Ren kept it for himself too. Too personal to just throw out there.)

Thank you. (Right now, he has no other choice but to trust, does he?)

[ Aerith nods in understanding, putting the pieces together one at a time. Bars are a great place to meet people, apparently, and Tifa had been at Heavenly Blanc for a while before taking a break from the place. She'd probably met a lot of the other 'residents' before her leave of absence. ]

Oh, yeah? [ There's a soft laugh at that, but certainly not a cruel one: it's just like Tifa to have assessed a stranger after knowing him a short time and deeming him well-suited for AVALANCHE (she assumes). Tifa's so personable, and so perceptive, and always has her mind back in the cause no matter where they are. ]

Well, that's certainly an endorsement! I hope you took it as a compliment. Tifa's one of the strongest people I know, and she really has a good sense of the people she meets!

[ Qualities that make her a good bartender, maybe? ]

[Noct makes a face.]

Okay, this is gonna sound weird, but. My magic comes from this huge crystal that's kind of a... royal heirloom or whatever? And it got taken by the empire that we've been at war with for, like... ever. When we got to where they were keeping it, I touched it and got, like... sucked into it. And then I was here.

[Yeah, his life is weird.]

[Tifa considers his many, many options for a moment, and she disappears behind the counter while she rummages through the wide variety of sauces this world has provided her with, the only indication of activity being the clinking of glass bottles. When she rises again, her hands are full with a different bottle held between each finger.]

What do we do when the chef can't pick?

[He gets to try all of them!

She makes quick work of slapping different cuts of beef onto the grill, and the pieces sizzle happily when she drizzles the different sauces on, while the powerful scent of cooking meat fills the stall again.]

Sorry I dragged you all the way back here. You looked like you were heading somewhere.

[he hums, then after a beat:] I don't suppose the name 'Blume' means anything to you?

[almost a hundred years in the future, maybe Blume doesn't exist anymore, but even if it doesn't, even if they're not at the forefront of technological advances because of him, surely they're in a history book, somewhere? surely, if she is somehow from his version of Chicago, she'll recognize the company name]

[that is, in fact, bizarre, but Damien's just going to take it in stride. it's not any crazier than anything else he's heard, seen around here, and Noct has no reason to lie, as far as he's aware]

Well, I'm pretty sure this wasn't supposed to happen, for me. [a beat] Some of us are mere mortals. There's no magic, where I come from. [and boy, is he bitter about that. he's the only person here without power, as far as he's aware. at least no one here can use theirs]

[he nods, the corners of his lips twitching upwards into a sort of smile. again, he's not sure that Tifa didn't read him completely wrong, but -- well, it's complicated. it's all so fucking complicated, and either way]

I did. [he absolutely took it as a compliment]

[the smile fades, in measures, before he continues, explains:] We have a company very similar to Shinra, back home, from what I understand. We call them Blume.

[isn't everything complicated?]

[but anyway]

You're welcome. [a beat] And for the record, I haven't run around screaming what I saw of yours from the rooftops, either. [and as with Akechi, he won't, unless he gives him reason to. he may not be looking to actively blackmail anyone here, yet, but he still very much operates on the principle of an eye for an eye. if anyone realizes the truth behind what they saw of his, if anyone starts passing it around -- well, he knows shit now, too]

I was running on the assumption that anything we discussed, that day, was in confidence.

Awkwardly enough, you wouldn't need to.

(Because surely a good chunk of his stolen memories was that one ins specific anyways. Still, he drops the intensity just a tad, long nails tapping on the table.)

Don't worry, it's really all I know. It is and it will continue being no matter what.(Ren wasn't told a thing about Damien's, and he surely won't tell anyone about what he saw, even with it being a strong bargain chip. He wouldn't really go through it.)

But I think you can understand why I'm asking you this.

Still.

[a beat]

And I absolutely understand. If what happened between the two of you got around -- well, it would put something of a scarlet letter on his chest, wouldn't it? [even if it wasn't real, the intent was still there. Akechi's still a murderer. he'd still read as dangerous, insane if anyone else knew]

I do have one question, though. [and there's another pause] Which me keeping my mouth shut isn't conditional on you answering. [just for the record] But well. Call me curious.

open | i hit the bottom but I'm on the mend

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