More Monster Adventures

[chalicejoker]

Who: Hajime, Tony, Shou, and L. Anyone else who may have been in Aikawa's at the time of the shootout; just contact me and I can probably work you in somewhere!
What: Monsters meeting for sushi and monstertalk, followed by a Yakuza shootout just outside the restaurant.
Where: Aikawa's
When: Evening of December 16
Warnings: Gang violence and giant bugs.


[A - Early Evening]
The worst of the dinner rush was over, and Hajime was taking a couple of moments to relax.

Ever since the big mafia fight that had seen Albero taken care of, he'd been thinking of letting his parents know that he was a Numbered. That he wasn't exactly a human anymore. Walking away from a fight you should have died from kind of tended to put things in perspective, and although he'd known for some time that he needed to let his family know (his sister in particular had been bugging him over it lately, seeing as how she'd already found out), figuring out the best way to tell them was a thing that continued to elude him.

He'd been getting into more and more trouble these days, and checking up on some of his fellow troublemakers seemed like a good idea. So he'd issued an invitation to the others who had been a part of that attempt to track down Tony's doppelganger--with the exception of Luca, who he still didn't trust any farther than he could throw...okay, not even that far. Come by that night, get a meal on the house, possibly help him break the fact that he was a Numbered to his parents. Good plan. Best plan. Nothing could go wrong.

[B - Late Evening]
After that scintillating discussion over udon, sushi, and whatever else Hajime brought out from the kitchen, the peaceful evening was interrupted by a sound Hajime had hoped never to hear so close to this place--gunfire. He barely had time to stand up from his chair and look towards the street, towards where he heard the sounds of gunfire. He'd known there was Yakuza--and Yakuza wannabes--in the area, and he knew that Albero's death had left a power vaccuum and that there was violence all over the city, but still, he'd never expected it here--

--Hajime's train of thought was interrupted as a hail of bullets shattered the front window. Collateral damage. The restaurant wasn't even a target, just the wrong spot at the wrong time. The gunfire outside was still coming fast and furious. Messing with Hajime himself was one thing, but it was a very unwise idea to go messing with his family. With the restaurant where they made their living. There was a lot of screaming and ushering people back towards the fire exit in the back, but Hajime didn't move. He wasn't going anywhere--except maybe out there to show the Yakuza wannabes outside that they'd picked the wrong bug's territory to have a little scuffle in. His other self was some kind of destroyer? Fine, then. He was going to destroy them. The silver transformation belt unconsciously appeared around Hajime's waist. He took a step out from behind the table he'd reflexively flipped over for cover, and he moved to go charging out of that shattered window only to be interrupted by something grabbing his arm.

"Hajime Aikawa!" Though his mother was not a terribly large woman, she had a firm grip on her idiot son's arm and was trying her hardest to drag him away. The gunfire would not deter her so long as he was there. "What do you think you're doing?! We've got to get out of here! This is not a fight on the playground!"

Comments

[chalicejoker]

"No way I'm cutting myself on that." Hajime snorts. "Last thing anyone needs to see around here is green blood." There was a reason he'd been obsessively carrying bandaids around and had been since this green blood thing started. "But blood's a hazard anyway and I'd have to sanitize everything; I'd rather not."

He moves to go to the kitchen. "I'm going to go get some udon, and when I get back, there had better not be blood everywhere."

Pff it is me holding everything up sob

[oncedevil]

Quietly Tony snickers at the pun, intended or not. He's quite fond of them himself, no matter how dumb people think they are. He's far too distracted by the neat old sword to get too interested in the food talk. Udon is good, he's put in his two cents there.

"Let's not go swinging swords around like idiots, yeah?"

You don't do that indoors come on, Shou.

[dead_black_eyes]

L doesn't make a comment about delicate stomachs or his relationship to that group; for all intents and purposes, it's completely true, and udon is the logical choice. He's delicate in other ways that his companions are not, as well, so he refrains from even touching the sword, let alone swinging it around.

"If there's something to see here, Shou... I think you'd better be the one to demonstrate it, for all our sakes."

[ursoreckless]

"I just figured that Tony's sword would feel all alone being stuck among us group of losers," Shou said, even as he finished drawing the blade out. He was careful with it, showing that he did have enough training with it to hold it properly - one hand on the hilt and another wrapped in a soft cloth he used to hold the blade with. He turned it slightly to the light, showing off the delicate hamon pattern of the cutting edge.

"Each sword is a work of art in one form or another. This is one of my favorite blades ever."

[chalicejoker]

It hadn't taken Hajime long to skip off and grab some more food for Shou, and when he returns, Shou's got the sword out. "Nice...heck of a lot better than what we've got here." And he nods towards the ornamental sword hanging on the wall nearby. It's definitely a wall-hanger as opposed to a useful blade.

[oncedevil]

He chuckles a little dryly at the quip, truth be told Shou probably wasn't too far off the mark. Though likely silent to the other three, Tony had a dull constant awareness of the weapon. Like a murmur far off over your shoulder. Strangely, once he got used to it, it wasn't frightening. Still a little weird and unnerving, but comforting in a strange way as well.

Nothing he could really articulate and wouldn't in a restaurant surrounded by people who didn't know they were Numbered.

Those thoughts were swept away as soon as Tony was distracted by Shou's demonstration. It really was a fantastic sword, and though Tony had no working knowledge of blades he definitely got the impression it wasn't a simple display piece. His other seemed to agree, as the familiar rush of an echo struck him. A soft hiss escapes him as he sucks air in through his teeth, steadying himself until the symptoms pass. A little shake and the symptoms have passed.

"Phew, that is a nice sword. You know how to use that thing?"

[dead_black_eyes]

L feels a little out of his element with all the sword-talk going on; he doesn't have one, nor any knowledge of how to use one or even what makes a high-quality one. It gives him a chance to sip at his soup in silence, listening to the others as they compare and contrast their respective weapons. Occasionally, he coughs, but the warm, steaming soup is absolutely helping him out.

"It seems like a useless thing to get back without a corresponding skill to go with it," he comments. "That being said, I honestly wouldn't be terribly surprised if someone like Shou has known for years how to use a sword..."

[ursoreckless]

"I wouldn't been able to buy this one if I didn't know how to use it," he said with a slight huff. He wasn't going to show off, not in a restaurant full of people, even if some of them looked interested. Shou let the others look at it a few more minutes and then slid it back into its sheath and re-wrapped it.

He glanced over at Tony and then went back to busying himself with his sword before he had it wrapped nicely. Then setting it aside, he took a seat and inhaled the warm steam from his bowl of udon.

"Your family's cooking is a treasure, Hajime."

[chalicejoker]

"Wish I got some sort of sword skills," Hajime mused. "That'd be kind of cool..." At least he could use that sweet bow he could pull out of thin air when he transformed with the Ace of Hearts. It was something.

But oh, there were compliments to be had. Hajime had to grin at that. "Thanks. Trying for seconds, are you?"

[oncedevil]

"You wouldn't?" That sounded like a lead in to an interesting story if he'd ever heard one. "Thanks for showing us," Tony thought the sword talk was pretty cool. Sure, he didn't understand a lot about the specifics of blades, but that echo seemed to imply Shou knew what he was talking about.

"You know, someone could probably teach you?" Not Tony, the skills he'd regained were strange at best. He also echoed agreement with Shou, Hajime's family's cooking really was amazing. Poor L seemed left out, but at least that gave him a chance to eat his soup in relative peace.

[dead_black_eyes]

They're certainly drawing a few curious glances from the other diners. The sword contributes, but in general, they're create an interesting dynamic and look like four drastically different individuals who wouldn't be caught dead together under other, more normal circumstances.

Maybe L still doesn't quite fit in or mesh, but he's used to that. While he's gifted at getting to the heart of nearly any issue when he's one-on-one with an individual, group dynamics are something else entirely, and tonight he simply doesn't have the energy for too much participation. He still suspects the major reason he's here is because Tony is afraid to leave him alone, but the soup is fantastic. He shrugs one shoulder noncommittally, showing disinterest in learning swordsmanship. The way he doesn't slow in his consumption of the soup speaks plainly enough about what he thinks of Hajime's family's cooking.

[ursoreckless]

"Traditional sword-makers are very particular about where their swords go to. The tourists get the shadow swords while people who know and respect the swords get the perfect ones."

Give his culture some credit. Swords were serious business, especially for those people who come from families who made swords for generations. Some of them still use the tools their forefathers used after all. But sword talk was over and Shou was busy with chopsticks and udon, spending a few quiet moments sampling the flavors and sighing to himself. Food was one of his biggest regrets concerning his change in lifestyle. He always was a bit of a night owl, and he really didn't sleep much, but he loved food, and he couldn't really eat like he use to.

"If I did that, you wouldn't have any for the rest of the night," he said, looking up at Hajime.

[chalicejoker]

Hajime was keeping an eye on L and his soup; he knew his mom would give him hell for not properly taking care of a sick friend. The group's strangeness was probably the only thing stopping her from aggressively mom-ing at him.

"That hungry, huh?" Hajime nodded a little bit. "You could still have some more, if you want."

[oncedevil]

Poor L, now he has two mother hens hovering over him. Hajime with his soup, and Tony just in general. He kept close, but felt safe enough focusing on the conversation at hand. With L right by his side he's unlikely to spontaneously expire, right?

"Huh, I never knew. That's petty cool though, makes it more special, important. Better than handing them out like ornaments."

Besides most people would just hurt themselves. Hey Tony thinks your culture is great, Shou, he just doesn't know anything about it. "So how d'you go about learning how to use it right? They offer classes or something, or more like an apprenticeship?"

No don't let swordtalk be over swordtalk is awesome. Although the soup is also awesome, Hajime is the best host.

[dead_black_eyes]

Picky, neurotic and frequently anxious, it's difficult for L to stop thinking about food long enough to enjoy it, and that's one of the major reasons he's so sick now. He's working on it, and Tony's helping him, but a lifetime of bad habits shaped unhealthily won't just unravel overnight, as convenient as that would ultimately be.

"I might take you up on that," he says, pausing between bites to say so. "Not that I want to inconvenience anyone..."

As usual, he's the one who seems the most inconvenienced by his own bothersome humanity. If Shou doesn't need to eat as often, or as much, L would trade with him in a heartbeat, though drinking blood is something he doubts he could easily grow accustomed to.

[ursoreckless]

"A little of both, Tony." Shou really couldn't get anything from the food he ate. It tasted good, and that was about it. In most cases he usually had to throw it up which is why he sighs sadly and glances over at Hajime's mother before turning his attention back to Hajime.

"Nah, that's okay. Just give my second portion to Tony or L. I'm pretty sure they need it more than me."

[chalicejoker]

"Alright, seconds for them, then." Hajime turns to go get the food. "Just no one try to do anything stupid with a sword before I get back, that's all I ask." He wants to be there to usher everyone outside if it does happen, after all.

[oncedevil]

"It's a good idea, how's the broth helping you?" Tony murmured more quietly to L. He knew, of course, that L was trying to overcome some long embedded bad habits, but that didn't stop him from mother hen hovering over him. At least he was getting up and around pretty well now.

He looked back up at Shou. "Can you teach me about some of it, sometime?" If that was allowed, he didn't know really.

And yeah Tony isn't going to pass up on the offer of seconds, he's a bottomless pit on his good days after all. He positively beams at the suggestion, quickest way to his heart is definitely through his stomach. "Thanks, Hajime. 'Course we won't don't worry." No one is going to be swinging around swords.

Unless it has to do with gunshots outside?

[dead_black_eyes]

While it's no small measure of embarrassing to have his bad health pointed out by Shou, even in a lightly teasing manner he's grown more used to in his time knowing the vampire, he can't exactly argue the point that he and Tony both chronically look like they need a little bit of feeding up.

"I support this," he says quietly at Tony's suggestion as Hajime stands to leave. "Anything to make you safer in the long run... it sounds like whatever you're echoing back ensues a lot of danger, and it's better to be prepared and capable in every possible way."