Kazuki
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You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class: 
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on May 8, 2023 1:08:33 GMT 9
A CRASH sounds, followed by a series of muffled footsteps, and then a door slamming open.
“Dude, seriously?”
Atsushi is sitting up in bed, his Dobermann whining by his side. His hands are curled in the sheets, shirt damp where it clings to his skin. A bead of sweat rolls down his temple, his chest rising and falling with heaving breaths. Wide green eyes are set on the heavy cast on his leg and the bandages wrapped over his body, as if trying to recall why they’re there. They move to the figure standing in the doorway.
Ren clicks their tongue as they enter. “At least you didn’t try getting out of bed again. But did you really have to take it out on the headset?” They stop at the foot of the bed, disappearing as they bend down to pick the headset off the floor.
“What’s- the game, some fucker had—”
“I don’t care, man. Mald over whatever internet asshole you want, but don’t break equipment!” They hold up the shattered headset to his face, shaking it. It looks crushed, flaked with dirt from the potted plant it had its unfortunate collision with. “You know how expensive this is? And the mess—”
Atsushi sneers. “I pay you to clean up messes.” He reaches over to scratch Sumi’s chin, the dobermann’s tail thumping, her concerns gone in an instant.
Ren smacks him over the head with the headset. “Watch your mouth.” Sumi, the traitor, does not tear off Ren's arm as she should.
“I will fucking fire you!”
“And then hire who?” Ren smirks, hand on their hip. “There’s only a handful of people in the world who can deal with your BS on a daily basis, buddy, and I am one of them. Be grateful. Your laundry alone is a workplace hazard.”
Atsushi makes a frustrated noise, turning his head away to stare at the window by his bed. He can feel Sumi curl up beside him, taking this as a sign to resume her nap. “I’m not taking this from the weirdo who always wears a helmet.”
“It’s a Custom Immersive VR Sim Racing Helmet,” they correct, and he can hear them knock their fist on the plastic. Atsushi shuts his eyes. He’s about to have a headache. He feels disgusting right now, but he can’t bring himself to do anything but sleep.
He thinks he hears Ren’s voice, muffled, telling him to just leave it to me.
——————————————————
“Ka-zu-ki!” Ren sings, throwing the door open. “Oh, for fuck’s sake.”
Atsushi pauses his hand from pressing again on the remote, but doesn’t take his eyes away from the screen. An interview is playing. The reporter is clad in a bright suit, talking animatedly to the fighter sitting beside her.
His hold on the remote tightens enough for his skin to turn white, for his veins to pop under the light complexion, between the harsh lines of ink and scars. Ren tries to catch his attention, but he only hears the interview continue. Lines and lines of frivolous talk, all of them designed to make the fighter look perfect for the sponsorships and fans.
Atsushi tenses, feeling something grip his hand. The remote is yanked out of his palm.
“Alright, cool it before you end up smashing the TV too. Quit watching your opponent’s interviews, you depressing bastard.” Ren shuts off the screen and places the remote on the bedside table beside the little vase. “I think you’ve been on hiatus long enough. Surprise!”
They pull out their other hand from behind their back, presenting a headset. The VR headset, somehow perfectly repaired.
Atsushi grimaces, pushing it out of the way. “I’m not playing that shit again.”
“Oh come on! You were practically addicted to this thing!” They shove it back in his face. “Plus, do you know how quiet you are when you don’t have something to bitch about? It is creepy, Kaz.”
“Get that out of my face!”
Ren sighs. “Okay, you know what? Fine. But I’m just gonna… Juuust…” They put the headset on the bedside table. They nudge it a little closer to him. “’Kay, that’s all! And if you need anything, wait like an hour and then call for me. I need to do ‘laundry’.”
“If you’re just going to play in the living room, then take the headset.”
Ren sniffs, turning up their nose. “I don’t play on EN servers.” Before leaving and shutting the door behind them.
Atsushi groans. He is fully aware of the sequence of events that led to him hiring such a—person. But he still finds himself wondering how the fuck he got here.
He stares at the headset, a familiar well of anxiety bubbling up inside him. His eyes feel heavy, and it hasn’t just been from watching the screen for so long. He hasn’t been sleeping. It’s his dreams.
But beside the headset is a little potted plant. He’s unsure where he got it- maybe his coach left it, or his parents, or Ren for whatever reason. It’s been repotted after his outburst more than a week ago, fitted in a little pink ceramic. Its leaves are small and fragile as they sway, lit by the light seeping through his window.
Atsushi sighs.
——————————————————
The Precipice Shrine is silent at this hour. It reminds him that he’s technically not in the server he’s supposed to be, as most of the players here are EN and are usually asleep when he’s awake.
It is eerie, how peaceful it is. As if nothing had happened.
The first thing he’d done upon waking was release Sprigatito, who had been all too happy to see him. He’s thankful that his pokemon don’t know when he’s gone; maybe their consciences are shut when he leaves the game.
Now he’s seated by the abyss, in the middle of the ring of flowers that circle the humming portal. Sprigatito is nestled on his crossed legs, already asleep. It’s a bit unusual; he’d expected the cat to be ready for adventure, but when he told him he wanted to take a minute to rest, the cat had been very obliging.
He knows he should move. He still hasn’t found Ver. He’s not really one for just idling in the game; always eager to train, to work on his weak team or to find strong opponents to practice on.
But his hand pets Sprigatito’s fur, smoothing it. The kitten sleeps soundly. He’ll remain stuck here for maybe a half hour more, which isn’t new. He has a dog who’s just as clingy. Bored, he reaches for one of the flowers nearby, looking off into the distance. It feels rough and dry in his hand as he plucks it from the ground.
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Verai
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You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 877
Trainer Class: 
Player Name: Miyagawa Tarou
OOC Username: spibe
Arena Points: 38
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Post by Verai on May 8, 2023 8:33:23 GMT 9
A soft chime. The simple logo of Nintendo, of Hydance.
Fear rose in him like a tide, something he had spent years trying to move past.
The world around him revealed itself to not be the strange area he had been in last, but in a quiet part of the weald. Memories flickered back- Mistra's torment, the horrors the mists had granted. Verai closed his eyes, a shudder wracking him. Those games had ended. This was here, was now. Despite all, he was still at home, in bed, safe. Out of their reach.
It did not seem to soothe the dread.
He moved- what else could he do? He could wait, and wish for things to fix themselves... or he could move, and work to fixing it himself. So, he moved. He kept Kitten in her pokeball, not keen to have her- or any of them- repeat what he had gone through prior.
The woods were quiet, even the spirits that lurked in the mists seeming to have fallen silent. His footsteps were loud, crass against the deadly-silent landscape, and he felt himself growing more and more alert, on edge for a predator that never appeared.
He crossed into another clearing- he was so tired of mist-cloaked clearings- but this one was familiar. The tiny pink blossoms, the yawning chasm, even the sense of unease was known, familiar.
And he was not alone- there qas a quite form, sitting off to the side of the chasm, darm of hair and holding, loosely, a slumbering sprigatito.
It was relief that washed, ice cold, through him.
"Kazuki!" He called, not hurrying in his pace, but simply walking towards them. They were both alright... |
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on May 8, 2023 10:02:13 GMT 9
The silence is broken by a familiar voice.
“Oh, so now he shows up,” Kazuki grumbles to himself. He raises his eyes to see Verai approaching, the man’s pace languid, white hair trailing behind him. On any other day, he’d be delighted by this. Would already be on his feet, moving to meet the man halfway, spewing things designed to earn his ire. Maybe he’d throw something at him.
He still kind of wants to.
But instead he just sits, his tattooed back hunched, his arms resting on his thighs like a shelter curled over Sprigatito’s sleeping form. He doesn’t say anything until Verai is close enough to hear him. He doesn’t have the energy to raise his voice.
“You know, I was looking for you,” he sneers, his hand grinding the dry flower in his palm. Sprigatito in his lap twitches, deep in his dreams. When he flips over, his sleeping face facing Verai, the little waffle-shaped tag of his pink collar clinks against Kazuki’s shoes.
“Where were you?” He demands. Maybe he hasn’t fully gotten over what happened, but he’s antsy. The closer Verai comes, the stronger the itch under his skin grows. The air around him is strange, even compared to the Precipice’s usual brand of disarm.
Obscured by his shadow, the flowers around him gradually turn colors. |
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Verai
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 877
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Miyagawa Tarou
OOC Username: spibe
Arena Points: 38
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Post by Verai on May 8, 2023 10:13:50 GMT 9
Kazuki looked over at him, but does not get up. There is no return shout, no sneer of disdain. That is concerning, and Verai slowed his pace further- not to a crawl, but to something more cautious.
I was looking for you. It was something Verai had known, and yet- the way Kazuki says it, with only a ghost of his usual vibrance, it rattles him. Verai's eyes flick from him, to the sleeping kitten- the collar still around his neck, as it had been when he'd returned Sprigatito- to the pieces of petal falling from Kaz's fingers.
Where were you?
"I was looking for you." Verai said, voice just as quiet, though far more even. "When I asked around for you, others said you had gone into Mistra, against the Professor's warning, with someone else." With another white-haired man, this one more quiet and demure. Those details do not matter. Surely.
"Are you alright?" It is a question Kazuki should hate- and Verai hated that he needs to ask it. But something pricked against his skin, hairs on his neck raising. It is not lightning or ozone, or shadows or predation, but something other- Something he knows, but cannot name. |
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
|
Post by Kazuki on May 9, 2023 2:03:54 GMT 9
He’s expecting something half-hearted, maybe snippy, like ‘avoiding you’—easy things to jab at, so when Verai says he’d been searching for him in a voice that betrays only sincerity, every quip Kazuki’s building up to fizzles and dies in his throat, leaving him dumbstruck.
Verai was looking for him; had asked around for him. Kazuki wants to ask why, but then Verai mentions that someone else and it shuts his mouth instantly. It dredges up memories of wide, piercing eyes, a breathy voice, and the sensation of fingers dragging across his skin. He shudders, hands returning to his lap where they cradle Sprigatito’s sleeping form. There’s comfort in the kitten’s warmth, his soft fur.
Verai asks him if he’s alright and of course, he hates it. He hates how the question is offered so readily to him, Verai and all his goddamn altruism, as if Kazuki hasn’t been the bane of his existence since they started playing.
“Just peachy,” he says through his teeth. His voice is low, to keep Sprigatito from waking, but his anger bubbles over his words. “That someone- that screwed up, two-faced piece of shit- If I ever see him again, I’ll—”
He takes a moment to breathe, to meet Verai’s eyes. “Ver. If you ever meet a player called Lacrimosa, stay the fuck away from him. And stay away from—"
His hands pause. His eyes search Verai’s face. “... You didn’t go, did you?”
How far had he followed him? |
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Verai
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 877
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Miyagawa Tarou
OOC Username: spibe
Arena Points: 38
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Post by Verai on May 9, 2023 2:10:52 GMT 9
Kazuki is mad, and that's a relief. But it fades when Kazuki stumbles over his words, scarcely able to get them out. Slowly, gently, Verai moved to sit near him. Lacrimosa. Was that the other player's name? The one Kazuki had-
Kazuki had gone off with him, and come back like this. This Lacrimosa had hurt him, somehow-
Verai should find him and kill him.
He rubbed at his head, also trying to breathe. He... no. No, Kazuki didn't need that.
Kazuki's question broke through. Verai looked at him, something settling over his face. For a while, he did not answer, just listening to the sounds of the weald, the rush of grass, Sprigatito's slow breathing.
"You weren't there." He said, neither resentful nor grateful. Just- how it was. |
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
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Post by Kazuki on May 9, 2023 2:56:44 GMT 9
The silence stretches between them after he asks his question. What he sees on Verai’s face only lends to his increasing discomfort. In his mind’s eye, he can see Verai’s silhouette marching confidently into the mists, accompanied by Kitten, who would trudge into the unknown so willingly for him, both oblivious to what awaited them.
Kazuki had been wrong. He had assumed he’d been chasing that silhouette when he entered Mistra, when in fact it was the other way around.
When Verai finally answers him, it’s with a statement so infuriatingly simple and him that Kazuki has to lean forward and press his face into his palm. This fucking guy. “Has anyone told you how you’re so—”
What even is the word? Willful? Indecipherable? Endearing? “Talking to you is like talking to a brick wall. Except the brick wall can’t decide if it wants to crush you or stay still.”
He takes his hand off his eyes, moving to rest his elbow on his knee, and his chin in his palm. “So, what is it?” And his former self returns a little, in how he snickers at him. “Do you want to crush me or to stay?” |
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Verai
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 877
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Miyagawa Tarou
OOC Username: spibe
Arena Points: 38
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Post by Verai on May 9, 2023 10:51:32 GMT 9
Kazuki had come back- maybe for a moment, maybe for a while, but he was there. Snarling and snapping at looking at him with a snide snicker. Daring Verai to-
To what, precisely, he isn't sure. Kazuki's simile is incomprehensible. Words strung together in the semblance of meaning. Talking to you is like talking to a brick wall was intelligible. Bria had often said the same, when she was growing up. But the rest?
Do you want to crush me or to stay?
Crush him.
Verai realized then he felt... awful. A malaise clung to him, and he got to his feet. "I-" His voice sounded odd to his ears, and even the thought of moving too quickly is dizzying. "I need to go. I'm sorry." |
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Kazuki
•
You Can't Take Me
The Creed
Posts: 883
Trainer Class:
Player Name: Himura Atsushi
OOC Username: Sleepy
Arena Points: 113
|
Post by Kazuki on May 9, 2023 13:25:32 GMT 9
His smile wavers for a second, but he keeps it tacked on and scrunches his nose as if Verai has just ruined his fun with a boring answer.
“Stop apologizing.” There is a simple question hidden in the string of nonsense he just spewed, but it doesn’t matter if Verai got it. It’s just annoying how he gives apologies he’s not asked for. “If you need to go, then just go.”
He continues tending to Sprigatito, leaving unanswered questions to hang in the air. He will not pry into what Verai has seen, because he doesn’t want to say what he’s seen either. And if the other man seems a little off— well. It’s not as if he’s sticking around.
The flowers around him have withered to an unsightly, crumbling brown. Later, when Sprigatito finally wakes from his deep slumber, they’ll get going, leaving only that patch of dead weeds as a sign of having been there at all. |
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