01 | Action

[chalicejoker]

For the most part, this is just another Wednesday for Hajime. Wake up, go into the restaurant, prepare for the day, spend the day there doing whatever needed to be done. Aikawa's is a small place, but the food's good. It's fast-casual Japanese, and orders are placed at the counter, where they'll be brought out to customers at their tables.

The cash register on the counter is brand new and bright and shiny, and every now and then, Hajime can be seen over there staring at it like he's expecting it to do something really weird at a moment's notice or poking at it with an obvious frown--not that he does this when he thinks anyone is looking.

Hajime may also be found anywhere else in the restaurant where a manager or some extra help might be needed. Maybe he's the one taking your order or bringing out your food. Maybe he's dealing with an unruly customer or two. Whatever the case, he's been overworking himself in an attempt to make himself forget about suddenly developing green blood, and he really looks like he could use a break.



[Locked to Lyall]

Once Hajime was sure classes would be out for the day, he went over to the high school. Best to do it early as he could in order to give himself the most time with the microscope Lyall would let him use...and to eliminate the chance that he'd chicken out altogether. Being back in those halls was a little surreal, and he got stopped by a few other old teachers before successfully making his way to Lyall's classroom.

He'll give the door a courtesy knock before sticking his head inside anyway. "Mr. Lyall?"

The weather's warm enough that he's walking around in short sleeves. Lyall might notice a bandage on Hajime's left forearm--he had to get his blood sample from somewhere. He's also holding a small glass jar containing an even smaller amount of some bright green liquid. There's no obvious sign of agitation in Hajime's facial expression, but his body language is rather tense. He's also got no idea Lyall might be able to smell the anxiety on him, and he's afraid of what he might see today even if he won't admit it to himself.

Comments

[chalicejoker]

"But what kind of threat could there possibly be? Aside from all the other crap that comes from living in a big city, crime and stuff..." Hajime grumpily rubbed at the spot on his bicep where he'd gotten grazed by a bullet during an attempting mugging. That had been the day his blood had turned green. "And why us? It's not like we have all that much in common."

Hajime was just getting frustrated with the entire situation. He couldn't explain it away, which was made worse by his sudden acquisition of green blood flat-out scaring him. Fear made him a bit more snappish than he might be ordinarily...although he'd never been a ray of sunshine to begin with.

[shiromadoushi]

"Monsters from another dimension? A great cataclysm that needs to be averted? A rival group that's being formed right now? Until it starts happening, I doubt we'll know what it is. Unless someone shows up to announce it, but if that were going to happen, I'd think it would have happened at the start!"

No matter how many times Bakura was told that this wasn't an anime, TV show, fantasy novel or comic book, it all just made so much more sense to think of it that way...

[chalicejoker]

Hajime, in contrast, didn't want to think of it as a TV show or anything like that. He was an adult. He had responsibilities. He didn't have time to screw around with green blood and weird networks and all of this mess. "That's assuming there was some sort of point to all of this."

He sighed. "You haven't noticed anything else besides the network becoming active? Nothing at all?" It was a vain hope; he was fairly certain he'd already spoken with Bakura through text given the kid's insistence on this all being some fantastic adventure story type of thing.

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura shook his head. "Nothing really much. Nothing more than anyone else saw."

One freakish cat, then that one bird that had been trying to fly away from the strange wisps... but hadn't been able to. And then...

[chalicejoker]

Hajime sighed. "I keep thinking there's going to be more to it. More than just little weird things here and there. It's like we're waiting for something, you know?" Not knowing what was going on was annoying. Not knowing what was going on when he was already quietly terrified of the physical changes he'd experienced?

[shiromadoushi]

"I'm sure there will be. Something like this... there's no way it would just happen on accident. And it'd be pretty ridiculous to have this exist and not have a need to use it."

[chalicejoker]

Hajime was quiet for a moment, kind of absentmindedly rubbing his upper arm in the spot where he first noticed himself bleeding green from a wound. He sighed. "I don't have time for this..."

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura's eyes automatically followed the movement, eyes narrowing just a touch. "Something happened?"

[chalicejoker]

Hajime quickly pulled his hand away from the area and mentally kicked himself for being so sloppy. If even the kid noticed that? "No. Nothing except this madness with the network."

[shiromadoushi]

Even reincarnated, the instincts of a thief rarely fade. "A lot of people had something happen, when they first started having that number. They keep asking after other people to see if they have as well."

[chalicejoker]

"The network's all I've noticed." That was a lie, of course. Hajime's going to try to cling to it for as long as he can. "It's been just visions and weird bits of knowledge popping up, as far as anyone else has said."

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura nodded. "And some other things. My friend's eyesight got better, when it happened to her."

[chalicejoker]

"So it was something physical, then?" There was absolutely no hiding Hajime's interest there. "At least it seems as though that would be useful..." His tone took a turn for the rueful there at the end.

[shiromadoushi]

"Got something that wasn't?"

[chalicejoker]

Hajime's face went hard. "And if I did?"

[shiromadoushi]

"Then you wouldn't be the first." Bakura held up his left hand, showing off the slightly faded mass of scars on the back where it looked as if something had been driven through his hand years ago.

To be honest, the scar was one of the few he had from the accident that had killed his parents. He had always assumed it had been from something in that wreck. But who knows, maybe it was something more. And if it got this person to tell him more... He'd say it was whatever seemed to fit.

[chalicejoker]

Hajime's gaze fell on the scars. Before he could stop himself, what he was thinking just came out in somewhat of a grumble. "Yeah, but those still look like they could be human."

[shiromadoushi]

"Un, that's true enough," Bakura admitted, letting his hand fall again. "Got stuck with something that looks worse?"

[chalicejoker]

Hajime considered this. Should he tell the kid? He'd been playing his cards close to his vest so far, but...maybe this would help the kid realize just how serious this was. That it wasn't some sort of game. Wordlessly, Hajime reached into his pocket and pulled out a small pocketknife. He looked around the area to make sure no one was watching, then jabbed himself in a finger before Bakura could do anything. Green blood seeped out as Hajime quickly closed the knife and slipped it back into his pocket.

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura stared, eyes wide in a cross between wonder and horror. "Something inside changed that much...?!"

[chalicejoker]

"Yeah. I don't know what else might have changed to go with it, but this happened a few weeks ago." Hajime pulled a bandaid out of another pocket; he'd taken to carrying them around just in case once he'd first realized his blood had changed. It never hurt to be prepared when you didn't want people to see you bleeding.

[shiromadoushi]

"Makes everything else seem pretty minor..." Bakura acknowledged, leaning back in his chair slightly before pausing to look down at his hand. "Or we all could have something like that and just not have noticed it yet."

[chalicejoker]

"I don't think anyone else I've spoken with has...but then again, I haven't exactly been going out and introducing myself as the guy with green blood." Hajime finished bandaging up his finger and grimaced. "If it does happen, it's...well, it's really disturbing the first time you realize it."

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura nodded, peering at his nails. They were still pinkish... that meant his blood was still read, right? That was a way you could tell that sort of thing, he was sure heard it said.

Never the less, when he got home, he'd double check.

"Hopefully you won't have to go to the doctor anytime soon..."

[chalicejoker]

Hajime gave a rueful chuckle. "My little sister's in pre-med. She's been wondering why I won't let her practice on me for anything anymore...I think my family believes I've developed an unnatural fear of needles."