citylogs | ( semi-open ) though it may hurt today

It had this... old-timey pattern that you'd usually see on aging businessmen. Y'know what I mean? And I'm not that old, come on.

[ says the 33-year-old salaryman-lookin' ass. ]

Gray? Could be a good compromise, actually. But maybe it'd stick out too much if I pair with my usual suit, so maybe I should switch it around and get a gray suit instead and maybe a black tie...

[ he's hopeless, and he's unaware of it. poor guy. ]

You wore suits before, kid?

Isn't old a matter of perspective?

[ but, he doesn't presume to know his age or how that effects him.

but, with how stuck in his ways he is... yoshida wants to say that in of itself was an old-timer's thought process right there, but he decides it's too obvious to bring any attention to. instead, he follows it up with a very neutral: ] Well, either way, they say no one can win against old age.

[ words of comfort from someone who may or may not be a high school student... ]

Does a uniform count?

[ no. she's lifting the shirt of the third to hold it up to him, even though she's fairly certain she's got his size right. yeah. just looking. if he pulls something like he did before though, don might not be so grateful ]

The Nest in 11. Though not in the thick of it, his little hometown was surrounded by trees -- 'twas a most quaint sight, for certain.

[ less quaint with the fear on her seatmate's stricken face, the tremble of his body by hers, the smoke rising past the lush green... shirt goes down, laid to the side as she picks through the others. ]

I rather liked it! Seeing the place where he was raised, I could understand how he'd become the person he was. [ in a way. ] Um, that woman is also from there. Though they are not friends now, they were once classmates, from my understanding.

[ normally, roland would rebuke him for making such a promise. vergilius shouldn't need to assure him that he'll end iori's life with his own hands, and roland would like to think that he has nothing to do with his enmity with the purple tear. but now he does, because of tomerry and the library and -- ]

Mm. I know you will.

[ if it ever comes down to an actual fight between them down the line, so be it.

roland closes his eyes, mutters the poem under his breath, and opens them again. ]

...Okay. We still have to get out of here though, and apparently it has something to do with these. [ holds up angelica's gloves. ] You already know the story behind mine, so now it's your turn.

[ not his fault he has to pry vergilius's wounds open once again. not like they both have a choice at the moment. in the end, they never had the privilege to choose in the first place. ]

Those kids... Who are they, exactly?

Let's hope so. Doing stitches on someone without some kind of way to numb the area is wretched.

[daan: not helping!]

Interesting. I can see why you tried what you did. Still, I'm not sure how sharing this information really helps us.

[god damn it are they gonna have to go Deeper]

An architect... [ roland sounds awed for a moment there. he's talked to plenty of people in all walks of life in his City, but-- ] Never really met an architect who knows his way around fashion, honestly. Or in general, for that matter. I've always thought buildings and such just cropped up overnight like plants.

[ whether it's the ramshackle buildings in the backstreets where they keep piling on more floors as the population grew, or the normal-looking ones in the nests and the pristine skyscrapers backed up with billions of ahn from the wings. the stark difference in architecture is just something that roland has found himself idly thinking every now and then, especially now that he's face to face with someone who must know his stuff.

oh wait, before he forgets: ]

And I'm Roland, by the way.

[ whew!

still, this guy sure is a total nestie if he had his own tailor and stuff. people with money really can be anything they wanna be so long as they can afford it, huh. but no, he can't hold his resentment on this guy just because kaveh's dressed a lot fancier than him! especially when kaveh's going out of his way to present to roland a tie that actually suits his monochrome aesthetic. give roland a moment to take it off kaveh's hands to tie it around his neck like so... ]

Hm. [ he faces the nearby mirror, straightens up the tie a bit more. ] Oh, not bad. Really like the floral texture going on here, too. [ he turns to kaveh with a goofy grin. ] See, see? I'm still the same old guy with a fresh coat of the same color of pain. Or something.

[ ...

well, now this topic has taken quite the turn. one that hits homes, too. roland purses his lips together, thinking of how he should navigate this. ]

No, sorry, I still don't get it.

[ REALLY SMOOTH, ROLAND. this is exactly why he doesn't like fluffy dialogue like this at all. even binah was easier to talk to, but only because she already kinda knew who roland is. ]

But yeah, all those human lives going down the drain. Like, at sea? Did someone drown? Come on, you've got to throw me a bone here... [ help ]

[ at least being a detective is a lot more exciting than retail?? but it could be that junpei is that painfully normal in every way, who just wanted to live a normal life. damn. couldn't be him. ]

Sure, you can keep the old-man tie. But uhh.

[ hmm. what goes well with red? roland looks through the nearby racks for inspiration, pulling out a random black ensemble because of fucking course he chooses black like an emo weirdo. ]

Here, try this one. But you gotta go with either a red undershirt or a black one to make the tie stand out. [ he's just making shit up but what if...... ]

Mmm, I suppose. Age doesn't really matter in the grand scheme and yet we still celebrate birthdays. And that tie might not look old on somebody who can pull it off either.

[ whether junpei can pull it off though, is another matter. ]

But nah, I wouldn't say it's the same. Uniforms like the ones you wear for school and the one I'm wearing right now are for everyday use. I'm talkin' about the special kind of suits that you wear for formal parties and other special occasions. Maybe someone like you wanted to feel fancy and had tried asking a girl out in one, for example.

[ like most kids from normal worlds would've done in their formative years, roland muses. it's wild to think about sometimes. ]

[ they have to go Deeper, there's no other choice. roland gulps. ]

Me neither. But we're all out of options. I guess we have to share more than that.

[ SIGHS. okay. ]

Could you tell me more about her? Just her.

...Mm, we're seriously going to have to do this, aren't we.

[It isn't a question, and Daan is far from thrilled. At the same time, he also doesn't want to be stuck in this vault forever.

Oh boy.]

I-- fuck, I don't know. She... when I first saw her, I thought she was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen. I loved how she said "Daan", how she wasn't afraid to speak her opinion. She could have done anything she pleased, not just because her father was the baron, but because she was smart enough and determined enough. Her... way with a needle was immaculate. I used to think her stitches were elegant.

Tell me that's enough. [Is it? He doesn't know. He could say more, but it becomes so fucked up.]

[ he listens. it's all he can do. and he gets it, being flustered at having to talk about your dead wife again. it isn't like roland's eager to do it either, and in fact, he'd like to avoid the topic altogether if he can help it.

there's no telling of everyone's safety inside this vault if he dwells on this for far too long. ]

...Okay. If it isn't enough, then...

[ he takes a deep breath. now it's his turn. he can't regale his fellow companion the entire story either because it's just as fucked up. but for now: ]

Angelica... was a strong woman, one of the most powerful Fixers in the business. She showed me the way to cope from all the suffering we go through in the City on the daily basis, and helped me come out of my shell. She was the one who I'd gotten that poem from.

In other words, she was my entire world. And now she's gone.

[ Ah! I realize it: your beauty lies in the force of your being.

he lowers his head, as if hiding his tear-streaked face again.

then, a loud creak comes from the vault doors. it opens with a slight crack, narrow enough for most people to slip through. ]

Edited 2023-08-01 06:31 (UTC)

[It wrenches his heart, and he's sure that's no different for Roland. He's both relieved and horrified to relate to someone about this, but they cannot undo the past. There is no hope of that. Daan isn't even sure if he has the hope to get closure one day.

But the door opens, finally.]

Let's get the fuck out of here.

[Daan doesn't sound quite defeated, but definitely like he might do a party of one with the drinks he has holed up in his apartment.]

Wait.

[ just going to hand daan the sewing kit in exchange for angelica's gloves before they forget. he'll slip those on, flex his fingers to make sure it's nice and fit, and tries not to imagine her warmth enveloping his hands. ]

...Thanks, Doc. [ there's a small smile of gratitude, but his eyes remain dull as ever despite the leftover tears. ] I'll let you know once I'm down for a drink or two.

[ they both fucking need it so bad. ]

[wait shit that was almost bad. It's good that Roland caught him. Daan's steady hand takes the sewing kit, even if the rest of him isn't quite staving off the trembling.]

Yeah. Take your time, Roland.

[hell yeah they do]

[He wanted to have ambitions but it turns out those suck just as much as not having them, oops... Doesn't matter, he's going to wear this old man tie and look only kind of awkward in it.

He trusts Roland to do the rest of the actual choosing for him, since Roland is a suits guy, and so he simply shrugs about the shirt once he has the rest of this Black Suit. Not even blue or something, homie? Okay...]

Red, I guess, before I look too much like you.

[ why was that also such a painfully ... older thing to say. yoshida doesn't exactly think this, but when the other man speaks, he almost feels like he's talking to kishibe or something and that kind of sticks with him. maybe all old-timers had the same vibes? ] They say don't knock it til you try it.

[ he says this as if he's made some grand joke....

but, as quickly as it comes, he dissolves back to the next subject, whatever small inkling of humor he may have had in those words dying done just as quickly as it came. ] The last time I had dinner, I paid...

I would argue they were only there for the food. [ but, it's not like he's going to discount an attempt at advice, even if it felt far from applicable from the life he's inevitably led thus far. ] Are you going to suggest something for me?

District K? Now, that's odd. That's usually one of the safer Nests, as far as I know.

[ hahahaha. ha. ]

Now I get the animosity, somewhat. I'd hate it if my classmate turned out to be a complete psycho in the end. Then again, I'm not really one to talk. Never been to a decent school myself.

[ everything he had learned, he got it from his grandma. as far as he knows it's good enough for him, and the other stragglers in the backstreets are a lot more unfortunate than him. but then he's presented with one of those gaudy shirts and now he realizes that he's not made for the nest life at all. ]

Ugh, do I have to, Don? This is gonna make me stick out like a sore thumb. Not even the normie guys from more normal worlds dressed like this.

Edited 2023-08-03 01:49 (UTC)

[ hahahaha. ha. anyway, past should remain in the past, so on and so forth-- ]

Thou must! We are here to expand thy horizons, and I shall join thee. I will take...

[ ...

the second. this is going to be so eyebleeding, and also ill-fitting on her. but that's fine, because they're having fun. ]

This one! Consider that I have chosen for thee, Sir Roland, a style that is closer to thy own than the others -- it is dark, only patterned. I could have started thee with something much farther off.

[ like with the last shirt, or the outfit she's choosing now. now come on she's pushing him to the fitting rooms. ]

What's wrong with looking like me...?

[ like come on. he got immaculate drip, just admit it. anyway he easily finds a crisp red undershirt and pushes it into junpei's awaiting hands. ]

Now go. Lemme know if you need help in tying that tie.

[ please tell him junpei knows how to do it, ]

[hm...........

Well anyway, thanks for the shirt. Junpei doesn't think it's weird to not know how to tie a tie - what is he, a grandpa?? - so he'll just shuffle off to put on the shirt and pants in the nearest changing room.

And then, like a child, he will come back out in his socks with his tie piteously not tied. Unabashed.]

I need help with the tie.

[ Saw....it?

His eyes flick upwards, away from the fallen man and back towards the interior of the vault. Cold, unfeeling deposit boxes stare back at him, gleaming dully in the low light. If there's anything to see, it's the pale faces that reflect back at him, devoid of their usual good humor. An already less-than-pleasant scene, made worse by the tension that hangs thick in the air. ]

...No.

[ The word comes out reluctantly, as if pulled out against its will. If he had seen, maybe he could have understood better. Then again, if it was something so wretched to elicit a scream like that, maybe it's for the best he hadn't seen. It must have been deeply personal. Deeply painful.

It doesn't feel right to pry into something that must have been deeply personal, deeply painful, and yet neither does it feel right to let this man suffer by himself. ]

What is it that you say? [ Ah, but— ] If it's too painful to talk about though, there's no need to. Focus on catching your breath first.

[ he's only thirty-three, give him some slack... ]

For food? It'd better be worth it, either way.

[ roland likes food, so he can't blame yoshida's peers for being lured in for free stuff. it's the easiest bribe in the world. ]

And yeah, if you want. Since you're already here and all. You never know if you're gonna need to look formal someday. You got a name?

[ he's being pushed. girl... help. but the only girl here in this shop at the moment is don, and she sure is helping in her own way! so without further ado he gets hurled into the nearest fitting room and sighs.

fine... fine! he puts on the top as instructed and, after taking a couple of deep breaths, opens the door and steps out. ]

H-How do I look...?

[ why is he so embarrassed now ]

[ is it worse that she looks like she's sparkling with applause. it is, isn't it. one of those excited little seal-clapping applauses. ]

Fantástico, Sir Roland! It suits thee most wonderfully! It truly doth give thee a "fun" vibe, just as I had intended! Prithee, do at least keep that if no other today! I swear, none shall jest at thine expense, for if they do I shall smite them myself!

[ it's wrong!!! it's an injustice!!! a man should be able to dress as he pleases!!! also, roland is her................. ally. ]

( semi-open ) though it may hurt today

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take it easy.....i hear projmoon fandom is going thru it right now u_u

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