PCs for room 11!

[shortforever]

Because there's going to be a lot of these lol

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[shortforever]

[Hey, at least it's successfully distracting Chuuya from the trauma he just experienced? Until he goes to sleep next, at least.

Speaking of which...]

We've got a whole day until the trial. C'mon, Fort Asshole beckons.

[survivaltricks]

[oh my god]

It has a name now?

[but he draws back and stifles a yawn as he makes his way to the fort]

I've never been so happy to see Fort Asshole in my life.

[shortforever]

Of course it does. It needs an address for when you invite people over, or else they won't know where to go.

[Chuuya himself could use a nap, so he'll climb in on his side and curl up under his blankets.]

[survivaltricks]

1234 Fort Asshole Street, Room 11 Lane?

[that address doesn't make sense but it's okay AKIRA'S SUPER SPENT. so he's just gonna crawl inside as well and not even bother to curl underneath the blankets before he buries his face into the pillow]

[. . .]

. . . you'll be okay. Right?

[shortforever]

Exactly.

[That second bit, though. With the worst of the morning past him now, he actually feels a little silly for reacting so strongly. He's tougher than that, damnit! He's the one who should be looking out for others.]

Yeah, I'll be fine. I've been doing the 'on my own, taking care of myself' thing since I was seven, so I'm pretty good at it by now.

But are you gonna be okay? No offense, but you're a huge softie.

[survivaltricks]

I'm fine.

[he feels. . . a bit disheartened. a bit helpless. guilty and frustrated and grieving just a little bit, but. . .]

I might be a huge softie, but I'll never stop moving forward.

[shortforever]

Good.

[He actually wants Akira to be okay. Is this progress?]

...hey. Tell me something about yourself. Something I don't know yet.

[survivaltricks]

Hm. . .?

[props his head up in his hand, blinking at Chuuya]

Something you don't know?

[what can he share, what can he share. . . ah. he knows]

I had special abilities back home too, actually.

[shortforever]

[Oho, now this sounds interesting. He props his head up too, watching Akira.]

Yeah? Something to help you with your life as a criminal?

[He's teasing, but.]

[survivaltricks]

Yeah, actually.

[flops onto his back, but not before wagging his fingers at Chuuya]

For my life as a thief of hearts.

[shortforever]

...that sounds really gay, Akira.

[survivaltricks]

[HE IS GAY? KIND OF???]

[JUST SNORTS]

I'm serious. What I steal back home is hearts. Not in the romantic or literal sense, either.

I steal the hearts of corrupt criminals and make them confess their crimes to the public.

[shortforever]

[Chuuya thinks it's a metaphor and that Akira is a therapist or something.]

Right. So how do you steal their hearts, exactly? Therapy sessions?

[survivaltricks]

Hell no.

[THAT SOUNDS MISERABLE??]

We enter a world called the Metaverse, see out their Palaces, and steal the Treasure from within.

[that's not gonna make any sense to Chuuya at all]

[shortforever]

One time No Longer Human and For The Tainted Sorrow were used together to stop Illuminations.

[Yeah he totally did that to illustrate how lost he is by what Akira just said.]

[survivaltricks]

[JUST. . . LAUGHS. but he totally gets it]

The Metaverse is a world made up of human cognition. Palaces are castles created by a person's extremely distorted thoughts and desires.

Say you have a mafia boss who sees the entirety of a city as his personal bank. In the Metaverse, that city would appear to be a part of his bank world, the bank world being his Palace.

And at the center of that bank is the mafia boss's Treasure. The core of his own personal bank world. Remove it, and the entire distortion falls apart.

[shortforever]

That sounds needlessly complicated, but cool at the same time. I never would've guessed that you were a thief that steals anything like that.

Does Akechi know? Or is it one of those "you are my greatest rivals but I don't know your secret identity" kinda things?

[survivaltricks]

[. . . BOY. HOW TO ADDRESS AKECHI WITHOUT GIVING AWAY HIS SECRETS. . .]

Heeeee definitely knows.

[how about he just answers affirmatively and then says nothing else]

[shortforever]

[Ah. More secrets.

That's fine, Chuuya can dance around those secrets. He'll flop over onto his back and stare up at the 'ceiling' of the tent.]

I guess I should share something new about me, huh?

I was asleep for a very, very long time. I don't know exactly how long, it was hard keeping track of time during it all. But 'sleep' is all that existed before the moment when I woke up.

It was like a bomb had gone off in the slums, destroying everything around for several city blocks. They said everyone in the blast area died, but there I was, sitting right in the middle of it. The first thing I remember seeing was the moon, hanging low in the sky on the abnormally bright night while buildings burnt around me.

I was seven then. I think. It's hard to know for sure when you don't remember your real birthday, or anything else from your life before. For me, it's just 'sleep' and then 'the life after sleep'.

[survivaltricks]

[it isn't so much a "secret" as it is. . . Akira isn't sure how to talk about it. but he flashes Chuuya a smile, a clear indication that he appreciates him not pushing the topic right now]

[but the smile fades quickly when Chuuya starts talking about his life before the mansion. as he continues, his brows furrow, and once Chuuya is finished. . .]

. . . you must've been terrified after you "woke up."

[he can't imagine it, honestly. he can't imagine not knowing anything until the moment consciousness bursts into being with him lying in the middle of a large crater caused by an explosion]

[shortforever]

You'd think that, but it was actually more peaceful than anything. It was so quiet. And 'quiet' isn't something you normally hear in a busy city like Yokohama. It was sort of like..."oh hey, I'm awake now, cool," I guess.

[But that's only half the story, and that's probably why Akira doesn't quite get it.

...

Chuuya tucks his arms under the back of his head before he continues talking.]

Where that crater is, there used to be a research facility. Top secret and all that. See, having abilities like mine is really rare where I'm from, and they wanted to find a way to give people abilities. So those dumbasses thought it'd be a good idea to try and take powers away from spirits and gods and stuff and give them to humans instead. That's so stupid, right?

[survivaltricks]

[that is definitely why Akira doesn't get it, but he'll take Chuuya's word for it anyway. even if he can't quite understand]

So. . .

[his mind is clicking together, gears turning as he works to put together the pieces]

So your powers were forced upon you by researchers in a facility?

[wow, saying it aloud really does make his gaze narrow and his jaw tighten, doesn't it?]

[shortforever]

[Hearing it said like that makes it sound pretty bad, he realizes. So he just shrugs.]

I wouldn't know. Like I said, I don't remember any of that. But if it's true it's pretty fucked up, huh?

[survivaltricks]

It's extremely fucked up.

[Akira says honestly and bluntly. IT'S SUPER FUCKED UP. CHUUYA DIDN'T DESERVE TO BE A RESEARCH RAT!!!]

[but he thinks of something else, and he can't help but ask. . .]

Where did you go after you woke up?

[shortforever]

[HE SURE DOESN'T but it's actually refreshing to see someone agree with that sentiment. So much so that he actually pauses for a moment and gives Akira a thoughtful look before answering.]

I stayed there for a while, just watching the moon. Then I ended up behind some store, looking for a way to sneak in and steal some food. Or something like that. It's been like eight years, it's hard to remember that far back. But I do remember the moon that night.