tabularasa_rp | Does Anybody Really Know What Time it Is? (Open)

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Does Anybody Really Know What Time it Is? (Open)

Who: Parsee Mizuhashi

bridge_princess and You!
What: Parsee Builds a Clock and tries to keep time
Where: Near the Bridge to Nowhere and Parsee's Shrine
When: A pretty lady looked at me and said her diamond watch had stopped cold dead....
Content Warnings: None other than Parsee's usual surly behavior is expected. Will update if necessary

(OOC: Note - Because the flow of time is not stable or normal, any attempt to measure time is doomed to failure. She's experimenting with that fact here.)

1) Do I look like a Horologist?
Parsee was standing there with a pile of what was quite literally just trash in front of her. Among these were a piece of long bamboo that she was adding a weight to and using one half of a pair of scissors to cut to a wedge on the other side. It kind of looked to anyone who might be paying attention like she was getting a small miniature aqueduct of running water ready to come from the stream, though what the point of this entire exercise might be was probably not immediately apparent.

Unless you were from Japan. The bamboo piece was sort of telling there. She was trying to make one of those Deer chaser fountains some people used as water clocks of a sort.

2) It ain't pretty, but...
The Shishi Odoshi was complete. Ok, the truth was that it looked awful. The bamboo piece, even cleaned up, clearly had seen better days but there wasn't any fresh bamboo. The whole construction was made with pieces that were not really designed from it. Old half rotten wood and rusted metal culverts did the job of coaxing water from the creek into position, and it was just kind of ugly to look at. But as the water started to flow down, trickling at a steady pace over the tip of the bamboo, the whole process began to work.

The water that filled the bamboo gradually changed its center of gravity until it pivoted, dumped the water into a channel leading back to the river and then fell back into position with a 'tonk' sound that scared a nug chicken in the distance away with a sqwuack. She put her hands on her hips and nodded in satisfaction. Only... about an hour later, if it was an hour later, she was staring at the thing with a look of mounting consternation.

"That's... That's not right."

3) The Doctor is In
Frustrated with the whole affair but unwilling to get the water clock to stop working, Parsee sat down with a thump beside her shrine, cleaning the scissors she'd used to help slice the bamboo and putting them back together before setting them in the shrine where they'd been offered originally. She squatted down next to the shrine and rubbed her forehead, the irritation apparent in her features. It wasn't adding up, and she didn't like how it was adding up.

But sitting beside the shrine, ostensibly doing her 'job' of waiting for prayers that would never come or people crossing her bridge was soothing in a way, so that was what she was going to do. And hey, these people were crazy enough that she could believe they might actually come to her looking for advice. One or two had already, god help them all. So, yeah... she'd wait and see.

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You've been quiet.

(What exactly was she up to? Ren took a quick scan of the place, eyes catching the pieces of broken and cut bamboo on the floor.

What is she up to...)

[the sounds of trickling water from outside flowed while she looked him over. She supposed that probably took her a while to make didn't it? It would have meant she wasn't over at the cafe, bothering him and staring at him like he was a puzzle she was trying to figure out, or being stared at in turn. She lifted a leg up, curling her arm around it and resting it there, watching him as he stared at the various remnants of her work around the little shrine. Pegs. Nuts. Bolts. She'd have to clean up.

Eventually.]

Did you miss me or something?

[Tonk.]

(All very interesting pieces of tool-making that would be great in the right hands, so of course, he's already picking them to inspect closer. Of course, he wouldn't take it - they probably came from the trash and he could find his own. He gently returned it to the floor, almost in a little pile to make it easier for her to collect later.)

I did. It was too quiet.

(Finally, it's the rhythmically strange 'tonks' that bring his attention towards the Shishi-odoshi outside. Did she just miss having a sound around?)

Why?

(No judgement, just a question.)

[Was he... cleaning up around the shrine now? She almost wanted to dress him in white and red right there and shove a broom in his hand. But he'd probably find a way to poke fun about that.]

Ah, so I'm background noise for you am I?

[Tonk.]

I'm trying to [Tonk.] keep [Tonk Tonk Tonk.] ...

[She walked past him and looked out. The water was moving faster. It was hitting quicker... and then suddenly it froze for a second. Stayed still... and started again normally.]

Ngh. I was trying to tell time, but apparently time doesn't work properly either. [Tch.] Annoying, but informative.

Of course not.

(Come on, Parsee. You know better.

Ren's shoulders rise with each tonk, almost a reaction to the unexpected nature compared to how the sound should be. It feels very wrong.)

... Yes. Nothing does.

(He could have told her that himself - he spends so much of his time in Heavenly Blanc that of course he had tried to count and see if it makes much sense in terms of seconds. It felt like an hour.

So basically, he spends days at a time behind the bar without even noticing! Fun for the whole family.)

[She shot him a triumphant look when he said that, like she'd gotten him to admit something. It was a cheap shot, but she was grinning a little.]

Well. I can at least study it.

[She went back in as the 'tonk' sounded, settling across from him again. Watching him. She had her fingers threaded together and was resting her chin on her knuckles. Trying to figure something out. Wait for it... wait for it...]

You're lonely.

[It wasn't a question.]

(He nods a few times, a "fair enough" written in between the lines of his expression.

The question, though... Is this an experiment?)

Eh?

(Ren blinks a few times, confused with the overall set-up. Yes and... No? He has many friends here, a good number that come to see him and spend time with him. On top of that, he has Akechi, with whom he spends quite a lot of time.

He misses home, though. His friends. How are they? Ren has obnoxiously trying to find them when he wasn't at the bar, with no success.)

I am not.

You know, you're not actually fooling anyone by denying it.

[She leaned forward and gave him the smuggest grin when she did. She was well aware of the fact that he had plenty of people hanging out with her. It was the sort of thing that would make her bristle at times in dealing with people, but she was keeping it under control.

Chuckling a little, she let her smirk rise. 'Tonk.']

You could be at the bar, serving someone right now, but you're here. At the breakup hotel. Talking to me. There's nobody at the bar. Your bored, and a little lonely.

(He's not reacting to it, simply because he doesn't think that's the case.)

Me and Tifa take turns every once and a while, is all.

(So that the other can explore. On top of Parsee's project being a disappearing act of her in the bar, he also realized he hadn't been here yet. Should he not intrude her space next time...)

Fine. Insist. I'll let you pretend if you want.

[Tifa... nope. She was focusing on him. He's the one who came tromping in here and poking around for some reason. Fine, what was it? Sniff. Sniff.

Tonk.]

So...

[She ran her fingers on one hand over the set of shears inside of the shrine, brushing digits over them. He had gotten so diffident and churlish about little secrets since that party. But now she decided to see just how much on edge she could get him. And besides, he knew what this place was. Maybe he really was here for ... doubtful.

Still. The thought made her grin wickedly a little bit and she leaned forward further, eyes locking on his.]

You here for my help breaking you up with your boyfriend?

[Tonk.]

(He tilts his head in the most confused look he could possibly muster?

Who is she even talking about? The void consists of men, for the most part, and Ren doesn't quite remember wooing anyone. There has been instances where he was wooed instead, like with Leo (but they cleared out that misunderstanding, it's fine) and Blue, who he thinks now has moved on upon hearing Ren is merely 17.

She could be talking about Akechi, too, but really, what part of trying to shiv him behind Heavenly Blanc screams boyfriend to her?)

One would need to have a boyfriend for that to be the case.

You cannot possibly be in denial about this. That's rich.

[She laughed a little, setting into a spot opposite him and resting her chin up on a propped up knee. There was actual mirth in her features while she talked about Akechi, mostly because she did find the situation kind of funny. And no, shiving your boyfriend wasn't healthy boyfriend behavior but that sort of thing was why people came to her.

Of course, by the time someone was pulling out a knife, she was usually not necessary. But, if Mister Denial here was going to play dumb, there was still something going on. At least in her mind.]

Akechi was only hovering behind your back over and over every time some guy tried to get your attention at the bar. [Tonk] And you, snapping at him when he didn't appreciate what you'd given him or whatever that was?

How long have you two been "Not Boyfriends" sniping at each other?

[....Tonk.]

I think you're misreading things.

(That was just everyday Akechi. A tendency to make himself known? It couldn't possibly mean something else from his part.

After all, he hovered behind Ren even when the Phantom Thieves were gathered for meetings, a hand on the chair behind him. At the end of the day, Ren's snapping wasn't over something that could be easily detected - it was simply over him not accepting the fake pleasantry when it comes to Akechi.)

That's normal.

So are relationships going sour, and people getting into lover's quarrels or getting jealous about the attention someone's giving a favorite person.

[She rested her chin on the palm of her hands. No sound coming from outside. Time must have stopped again. Ugh. This was proving to be a real futile exercise. That was going to drive her insane.

She wasn't tearing it down, though. She lived for irritations.]

You've never actually been 'in' a relationship that you recognized as one, have you?

[She was starting to bet Akechi was more aware of what was going on than Ren was.]

No. I was always busy with other concerns.

(You know, societal reform and trying to manage several other things on top of that.

It wasn't for lack of option, though.)

That explains it a little. You might not even realize it's happening.

[She was pretty sure Akechi was more ... aware. He'd seemed a lot clearer in his intentions that night.]

You realize those concerns aren't here, right? Other than escaping and getting back to them, none of that's here. You aren't half as busy as you would be back home, hero boy. You can't use that to put these things off forever.

You're going to have to figure out and address your feelings. Lucky you.

[Tonk]

The concerns don't disappear just because I can't see them.

(They have to go back home, that's a fact. Ren is working harder into the recon missions they've been pulling, into finding the Phantom Thieves and into coming up with the possibilities as of to what this place actually is.

Different concerns. Still busy.)

[Tonk tonk tonk tonk]

You're upsetting mister Water clock.

[She held back a little laugh and leaned forward. This must be so frustrating for him. He looked like he was so used to having the mission there before his eyes and this world just didn't play that game. He came to her looking because she'd been too quiet. Was his daily life a never ending build up of getting stronger, finding allies, fighting the darkness, changing the world?]

You're not wrong. The concerns are probably still there. But that's the thing. Time doesn't work right, Ren. You can play hero, pretend Akechi's not hovering over your shoulder like a nagging lover, avoid your feelings as you plunge into trying to get home as soon as you can or puzzle it all out. But this place?

[Tonk.]

You and me? We're stuck on its watch. Its time. And you're not going to get anywhere on yours. This is only going to get worse for you if you don't learn to accept that.

Your concerns are there, but you're going to have to deal with them on this place's schedule, or you're going to go nuts.

(YOU'RE upsetting Mr. Water Clock!!

It was surely frustrating, but he's not giving Parsee the satisfaction of knowing she is getting a reaction from him, so he continues with his calm, collected stance. He listens, though, because what is there to do but that?

Honestly, though? He's pretty sure he'd rather go nuts. He needs the mission. This world tames him and he doesn't like it. Shiving-practice with Akechi was probably the highlight of the past few... Whatever time.)

... Why do you even care?

(Deflecting the subject to pick on her? Absolutely.)

[She had to hold the laughter back. Here she was, leaned in way too close to him for anyone's comfort, and he was still deflecting, trying to avoid the fact that he was so mission focused he probably never even dealt with his feelings. And now he was trying desperately to deflect them onto her?

She leaned back, winking once as she settled against the back wall of the shrine.]

You're the one who came to me.

[Silence... Her eyebrow twitched. Play along water clock. If you're not going to tell time then at least give emphasis to the moment so it was properly dramatic.]

You clearly care about something that isn't saving the world, or you wouldn't be here. Unless you think I'm part of your heroics. Do you think I am? [Her smirk widened.] Am I an ally you have to earn the trust of? Get close to? Help save?

I wonder how Akechi would feel about that.

[Tonk. Better, Water Clock.]

I came because I enjoy your company.

(Not for unrequested and unrequired romantic advice.

If his presence here made her imagine something else, he might as well not be back next time and allow her to go visit him at her own leisure.

After all, it's not like dealing with his feelings would bring anything good. It would probably just worsen an already rather layered and complicated relationship that definitely doesn't need any worsening. He's more than happy to focus on literally any.thing. else.)

You're my friend. I care about those.

[Tonk.]

...

[She looked away. Someone had, intentionally, or unintentionally struck one of those nerves with her. Her body language curled up and she rested her chin back on her knee, not making eye contact. Damnit, why did he keep calling her that? She wasn't anyone's friend. She was an angry, bitter little troll who dealt with other people's problems or made them have problems when they were having too good of a time as they crossed her bridge.]

You are some kind of masochist, trying to make a friend out of me. Especially when you know what I am.

[She did actually kind of mean that. She'd told him before that she was going to hurt him. Why he enjoyed her company, she struggled to figure out. She fidgeted. As she thought about the fact that he considered her a friend, she thought about all the people that hung around him at the party. Everyone who revolved around him like swirling eddies in a whirlpool with him as the Charybdis at its center.

She kind of hated them. But that was the jealousy talking, and she knew it.]

Why do you enjoy spending time with me? I'm not a pleasant person.

(At times, he feels like a broken record talking to Parsee.

He has already made it explicitly clear that he cared very little about what she is, how old she is and those aspects that she keeps pushing forward to dodge their friendship. He doesn't quite like repeating himself, so he doesn't.

Instead, Ren focuses on how nervous the conversation has made her, and while he's happy to not have to deal with the whole Talking-About-His-Feelings-On-Something-Irrelevant-And-Impossible vibe that was going on, he's treading carefully on how this conversation can develop. Last time, she did snap on him, after all.)

You're honest and you tell me things that I don't expect to hear.

(One could argue Ren is not a pleasant company either - an onesided conversation at times.)

[At times, it was like being a broken record dealing with herself. She faced the same problem multiple times before she started to believe that things were going to be different from her assumptions. She didn't expect a response, though, not to that. He hadn't the last time. He wouldn't this time. He was just... so ... stubborn.

She cocked her head and looked over at him, more out of the corner of her eye. She... supposed she could understand that. She was different, wasn't she? And he was insatiably curious.]

What do... [Tonk.] No, never mind. you won't answer that.

['What do you want from me?' Probably for her to be herself. Her fingers clenched at the hemof her skirt. He was not going to give up, was he?]

You care too easily, Ren. I'm pretty sure some people think it's an admirable trait, but it leaves you vulnerable. But fine. I'm done trying to stop you. I don't think I really could without my powers.

...

Just... remember. I'm the jealous type.

(OOC: Joker gains +1 Kindness!)

(Hm?

An eyebrow raised at the giving up a question, but he doesn't push it. He's pretty much done trying to explain things to Parsee, specially when it came to how he saw her and their dynamics.

What was it that he had said? Think what you want? Applies here as well.

This time, she isn't really saying anything new - Akechi has said the same, with different words. People take advantage of your kindness. He doesn't quite mind that part, though, and he disagrees that it makes him vulnerable. There are sure advantages to being close to people, aside from the fact that he just likes to be. Unfortunately for all involved, Ren is a tough one to convince or change, so he just shrugs in response.)

Finally. Can we talk about something else?

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