generalflirt | ~♥TWENTY-NINE♥~

~♥TWENTY-NINE♥~

[Masaomi has been dreadfully ill since, well... since about Nagisa's party and going to look for a starfish the night before. Since then, well... he passed out there, barely made it home, and had been nursed ever since. He was slightly delirious though all this, and he relied on Saki to get him through things while working on autopilot. He wasn't able to really move much himself until about the 29th or so. After that you might have seen him going in and out of the kitchen. But had he not seen Saki as much somehow...?

This pattern lasts until he wakes up about three PM on the 3rd. He's finally feeling better, and is able to pick up the journal, flip through things, and then go check on Saki and... she's not there. He searches the apartment, is it just him or is it more empty. Finally, he goes to make a filtered message to her to see if she's around...

And. She's not. The filter breaks.

She's gone.

Gone.

He got back his cell phone a while ago - he hasn't opened it, really, but after Fray gave it back to him the only thing he used it for was that thing with the texts and "Tanaka Taro." But. He flips it open to see Saki's picture in there. His grip tightens. They never even talked and she's gone.. completely gone. He begins to shake. The rage lasts a while and he tries to calm down enough to make a little post saying she's gone. and finally... two hours later, he thinks he is]

[Voice]

Everyone. Ah, I - I... [...No, he can't do it. He can't be calm]

Son of bitch! No! [And then he throws the cell phone clean across the room. It hits the wall with a loud sound - it's not broke, not quite, but the battery pops out of the back and the screen cracks. But who cares. Now, now? His voice is pained beyond anything people have heard in Luceti since about when Mikado was sent home, but this pain is different - Mikado's was cold fury, this one is erratic fury and sorrow and... well yeah]

Why now?! [Voice break] Why- dammit, [He grits his teeth] Dammit!

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[Shikamaru nods to Gold, then turns back to Masaomi with a bit of a shrug. He was going to wait until they were done to say as much, but yeah. He kinda agrees.]

You been sick?

[There's a faint and stale scent in the air to go with his unkempt appearance, like illness. At least he hopes that's all it is.]

I had to go get a starfish over Christmas.

[Flatly. This clearly explains everything. But he goes in further towards the interior of the barracks - he's actually looking for a sideroom, a corner... somewhere to meet]

[Right, that makes total sense. Completely.

Gold follows after Masaomi, just curious about what was so important that he wanted both he and Shikamaru here.]

So what's this all about?

[The further they go in, the clearer it is that Masaomi is looking for another level of privacy. He taps Masaomi on the shoulder and gestures for him to follow - there's a door that leads to a basement level here. It's probably the closest thing they'll get to whatever it is Masaomi is looking for.]

[It's dark in here though... he frowns as they enter it. The lack of light shows - maybe a torch or... he doesn't have a flashlight.]

You two got light?

That depends. [He pulls out a Pokéball.] You cool with a little outside help?

Beats my lighter.

Go for it.

[Well alright then, stand back, boys and girls, as we add a little fire to the show! Explotaro joins the stage!]

[It's still weird. But. Whatever, he sees the light, nods, and goes further into the basement. Everything is echoing oddly in here but... oh well. there's a bench. He sets on it]

So we're here.

[Shikamaru opts for standing, leaning against one of the basement walls with his arms crossed.]

I think we'd both like to know why.

[Because odd as Masaomi is, there has to be more reason than Saki (he had time to find that out over the journals while he was waiting) leaving Luceti. If there wasn't, he and Gold wouldn't be the only people here, he thinks.]

[Gold, meanwhile, opts to sit against his Pokémon, who is still providing light to the dark basement. He too knew there had to be some reason more than just Saki. Was it about those "Yellow Scarves" he mentioned?]

Yeah, come on, dude, don't just leave us in suspense.

[Okay. He folds his hands together now. His eyes are... well, in the dim light it might be hard to tell but there's rage in there. Hatred. Coldness. He was crying earlier, but now he's all business]

At one time, I was the General of the Yellow Scarves gang. I know it wouldn't seem like much to you two, but the Scarves... we got involved in a war - a violent gang war we didn't ask for against the Blue Squares. We only lasted because [Of Izaya, but he works in a different meaning here] I had comrades. Ones I trusted with anything.

Edited 2012-01-06 02:19 (UTC)

['I know it wouldn't seem like much to you...'

Even from a world where world war is the norm, Shikamaru's never cared for fighting on any scale, so that statement doesn't ring as true for him. One way or another, if people are getting hurt it's serious to him. And clearly, it's serious to Masaomi.

It's a little surprising that he calls himself the General of this gang... but at the same time he's using the past tense here. It gives Shikamaru an idea of the direction the story is getting, but he'll save his comments for when he has a clearer picture.]

[While Shikamaru may only be thinking it, Gold's going past that and bothering to say it.]

You said "was", so it's a thing of the past. Why're you bringin' it up?

Because Luceti's created a situation where I need that same level loyalty in comrades.

[Flatly. Looking straight at them without emotion]

That situation being...

[Took the words right out of his mouth, Shikamaru.]

This whole situation. Don't you see it? We can't control when people go home, or when they're in the drafts, or what happens between those. We control none of it and beyond that, people here are disorganized, messy. Lines of who to trust are blurry. It's bullshit. And I need something simple. Straight.

It should be simple.

I can understand how you feel, Masaomi. But even if you choose to depend on us, there's not much we're going to be able to do to change all that.

Alone, that's true. But I think I get what Kida here's drivin' at.

You said it yourself, Shikamaru. [As he has been for a while in this conversation, he's dropping the -kun] I need to do what I can.

[There's more that Shikamaru is still unsure about here, but Gold makes a good point. And Masaomi...

Shikamaru shifts his hands up behind his head with a nod. This is what he wanted to see out of Masaomi, after all. Or at least something like it.]

[At this point, Gold stands up now, proceeding to slowly circle around to the other side of Masaomi, hands folded behind his head.]

And right now, what can you do?

I can gather myself some comrades. ["nakama"] Ones who I can trust for anything, should it come to this or that.

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