35th Howl: Poorly Timed Vacationing [Closed]

[professorwolf]

Who: Randall Lyall, Hajime Aikawa, Nick Burkhardt
When: April 13 through April 17
Where: Leaving the city, then a small town with a nice little bed and breakfast
What: Lyall's escaping for the full moon and bringing some friends


[At the car, Sunday late morning]

Lyall is waiting outside by his car, his small suitcase and laptop case already packed after his earlier morning's network post-- his last for several days, looks like. He's wearing what looks like a vest-- for those in the know, it's actually a waistcoat-- and a scarf, and has his very first echo in hand: a blue, leather-bound journal.

As friends' cars and/or bikes pull up, he tucks it inside the waistcoat and waves.


[Crossing the border]

Seeing as it's his car, Lyall's the one behind the wheel. Anything else would wind up leaving him confused once he... well, forgets where he's going. He has a few notes taped up, just in case, but as they drive across the former border, he just blinks a few times, looks over those notes, and glances over at whoever managed to claim the front seat.

"Well. At least I still know who you are. And... sort of why you're coming."


[Being tourists]

Whether before or after the full moon, the plans during the daylight hours are to visit bookstores, antique shops, the lone gaming store in the little city just on the other side of the state border, and the pair of little wineries within half an hour's driving distance of the bed and breakfast Lyall picked out. It's a day for relaxing, maybe having a little fun, whoever decides to come along.


[Full moon]

Lyall is pacing around the hotel room. He's nervous, but he only has a vague idea of why. Something to do with a wolf. A werewolf. His notes say it's him, and some fuzzy memories suggest the same, but it's ridiculous. Changing into a wild animal, losing his mind, attacking people-- ridiculous. ... Isn't it?

So he's pacing, trying to keep from worrying too much, now that the sun's down, and thumbing through that journal again when he isn't too antsy.

Not much longer until the moon actually comes up, either.

Comments

[crossing the border]

[detectivetroll]

Nick'd come prepared as well, holding his phone open to the notes he'd written himself on why he's here and who these people are. Which is a really good thing, because once they cross the border... he doesn't completely forget, but he'd been going on this trip for a number of reasons, and there's one or two that are less network related than the others.

So he probably did need the underlined note that this is not that kind of vacation. Especially since he can also see one of the last text conversations he had with Yuji.

"...well apparently my partner thinks it's because I was trying for that kind of vacation but can't be trusted without a chaperone. Judging by how insistent I was that it was just the wolf thing, I'm not sure he was wrong."

He's teasing. Well, partially teasing, partially wondering if he should be going for flirting.

[professorwolf]

"You-- that kind of-- what?"

Hello, short-circuiting of Lyall's brain, because he actually is entirely getting what "that kind of vacation" means. He at least manages to keep driving, but he's definitely going a bit pink in the face. And trying to look sidelong at his passenger seat companion without being obvious about it.

[chalicejoker]

In the back seat, Hajime was just starting to go over his own notes, which were mostly a bunch of warnings to himself to keep whatever playing cards he might have on him with him at all times no matter what, when he heard that conversation. He made a bit of a startled choking noise. He thought he was going to have to...watch a dog? Something like that? Not...chaperone. Or third wheel. Maybe he was a third wheel.

[detectivetroll]

Both of their reactions make his grin widen, although Lyall's... is definitely something to think about. Nick still remembers that Karl had been trying to set him up with Lyall, much more clearly than the vague feeling that it wasn't technically true. It's enough to make him lean towards going for a little more obvious flirting. "Stammering is a much more encouraging response than immediate denial, I can work with stammering."

Without really pausing, he twists slightly to look back at Hajime. "Do you remember exactly why we're here?"

[professorwolf]

And here Lyall isn't even aware if the "cover" for the coffee over the time span of Nick's memory loss. He blushes a bit more, and focuses determinedly on the road. He's a grown man, for Christ's sakes, surely he can manage not to embarrass himself further with a friend who apparently has decided he needs to be "worked with".

God.

He'll let Hajime answer, there, while he tries to formulate some kind of response that isn't more stammering or a boyish, "You actually want to?" that is poking at the back of his brain.

[chalicejoker]

"Something about a big dog? I kind of remember chasing one..." Answering isn't really easy when Hajime is wondering how he'd gotten suckered into chaperoning here. He was pretty sure he would not be a particularly effective chaperone--if he came back to the hotel room after going out by himself for some reason and they'd left a sock on the doorknob, he'd be sleeping in the car and not minding a bit, thanks. "You're...sure you two want me here?" So awkward.

[detectivetroll]

"A wolf, I think," Nick agrees, frowning absently when Hajime's comment about chasing one brings up snippets of not-quite-there memory - he remembers chasing after a wolf in the park, but he's pretty sure the accompanying feeling had been fun.

Nick sneaks a glance over at Lyall at the question, raised eyebrow and a slight smirk, but he's a little more serious when he looks back at Hajime. "If I wasn't delusional when I wrote these notes to myself, then yeah."

[professorwolf]

"You were invited, so obviously you were welcome," Lyall adds, quite firmly, with his stammering at least mostly under control now. That may or may not wind up lasting if Nick keeps up the flirting, but at least he can reassure Hajime. There's definitely fondness there, too, if a slightly different sort.

"And definitely a wolf." His own memories of that, while hazy, are still a bit more extensive than either of theirs. " ... though it feels a bit like I might have dreamed it. I've got notes, as well, though, so once we're there, we'll see what they have to say for specifics."

The post-its on his dashboard only say "you are a werewolf", "full moon is dangerous", and "guardians: Nick and Hajime, can contain you".

[chalicejoker]

Hajime sort of nods at the reassurance that yes, they want him there. "My notes are pretty weird. Bunch of crap about playing cards...and bugs..." Even though the random cards he'd found himself carrying looked painfully normal, except for the weird blank one that just looked like a printing error. There was also a link to a video on YouTube to an interview given by some monster calling himself the "Lord of the Bugmen," and Hajime was half-remembering giving it as he watched it playing out on his phone without the sound, how odd.

[Full Moon]

[chalicejoker]

Hajime's sitting on one of the beds with a deck of cards, and he's playing solitaire. It's probably not the best choice of activities for him right now; he's trying to figure out why certain cards are giving him weird feelings and triggering strange memories. Or just why he got so uncomfortable when he had to remove the Joker from the deck.

But there's no missing Lyall's pacing. Not when he knows that the moon's about to come up and Lyall apparently has a reason to worry about it. "You still think something's going to happen?"

[detectivetroll]

Nick's sprawled out on his stomach on the other bed, frowning at his phone as he texts with Melissa, but he looks up at Hajime's question to watch Lyall pace. Nick is... not worried at all, which is partially because he only vaguely remembers why he should be worried, partially because he doesn't think anything's going to happen, and partially because he's back to being a little too cocky for his own good.

"Nothing's going to happen, man. And if it does, that means Hajime and I will still be able to handle it, right?"

[professorwolf]

"I suppose that's true. If I can turn into a wolf-- not saying I really think I can, but... if I can, then I suppose you can turn into a giant bug or manage to wrestle me back by sheer charismatic force of will, or whatever your superpower happens to be." That last is for Nick, of course. He doesn't quite give as good as he gets, from the man, but finding Nick at least receptive does make him a little more bold about such things.

"Though if I do go all fuzzy, make sure you get this somewhere out of the way?" He tosses the journal at Hajime, who seems the one with the freest hands. He's already tucked away his waistcoat, as being the only other thing from "before" that he doesn't think he could bear losing.

[chalicejoker]

Hajime catches the journal easily. His reflexes have been just a little better than normal, rather than entirely superhuman, but it's still an easy catch. "Yeah, I'm still trying to figure out how that bug thing works. Am I supposed to think creepy crawly?"

He's flipping through some notes he left for himself on his phone. But he'd seen the thing that was supposedly him; he'd linked himself to the Lord of the Bugmen interview on Youtube. It's more big and terrifying rather than creepy crawly.

[detectivetroll]

Nick's grin changes a little at Lyall's comment, from cocky to something quieter, almost pleased. He doesn't exactly remember all of why he's here, all of why he likes Lyall, but comments like that are starting to give him a few reasons of his own. ...or maybe they're the same reasons, either way, he likes it. "Sheer charismatic force of will, I like that. I'm going to use that now." Especially since he's not entirely sure what his supposed super power is.

He sets down his phone, pulling himself up into a sitting position as he looks thoughtfully over at Hajime. "Have you tried? Maybe we can figure it out now, see if you can change, so we'll know what to expect."

[professorwolf]

"Yes, do try, though exactly how one tries to change one's shape, I have no idea," Lyall agrees. While the British accent isn't exactly there, he does still speak a little more formally than he might have otherwise.

He shakes his head, and prowls to the window to peer out, looking for a moon. There's definitely a sliver of... something coming up. He shudders a little, staring hard at the horizon and trying to imagine what changing shape might be like.

[chalicejoker]

Hajime just starts shuffling the cards he was playing with and looking cross. "I'm thinking about it, but nothing's happening." How was that even supposed to work? "My notes seem to think that if he changes into the wolf, I'll change to fight him off anyway...not that I'd really want it to happen that way."

[detectivetroll]

"Like reactionary, instead of conscious? Yeah, I guess that makes sense." As much as any of this makes sense, anyway. Most of this still feels kind of unreal to him. Especially since the last time he'd forgotten the network, he hadn't exactly been on its side. Fortunately he still remembers enough to know where he really stands, but it feels strange. He's more sure of himself as a modified cop than he is as some weird superhero.

"If nothing else, I'm pretty sure I still have nine lives."

[Back home - Nick]

[professorwolf]

Though Lyall sees Hajime off with a smile and thanks, when Nick tries to do the same, his response is a bit different: "Oh no. You are staying put. Sit. I'll be right back." And he points almost sternly-- though there may be a bit of a smile there, too-- to the sturdy futon which has replaced his ruined-too-many-times couch, before going to put his suitcase in his room.

[detectivetroll]

Nick raises an eyebrow, grinning a little. "You're telling me to sit, isn't that a little backwards?" he teases, but he slides his car keys back in his pocket and heads over to plop down on the futon, waiting for Lyall to come back from his room.

[professorwolf]

"You and your dog jokes." Lyall has the ridiculous urge to throw something at Nick-- something light and not likely to actually hurt him if it hit, of course-- but since he doesn't actually have anything on hand besides his scarf, he lets it be. At least he's only a minute.

Part of that minute is spent silently asking himself if he really wants to confront the man. Even if he really is so obviously interested, do they really want to start a thing with... nothing at all settled, with the state of the world? Since he's spent most of the car drive back wrestling with that, he only dwells on it for that minute, before coming back out.

The scarf's still on, though wrapped loosely. It just feels more comfortable.

"Did you have a good time?" he opens with, coming to sit on the other end of the futon.

[detectivetroll]

"I can't help it if they write themselves. Besides, you know they're amusing," he calls after him, still grinning.

He leans back while he waits, comfortable despite wondering why Lyall'd wanted him to stay - and the feeling that he already knows. Nick hadn't exactly been subtle in his flirting on their trip, after all. He'd been doing a pretty good job of not acknowledging any feelings that weren't strictly platonic before, but, well, it's not like he can take any of that back. And he can't really bring himself to regret it.

When Lyall comes back, he sits up a little, turning to angle himself towards him. "Yeah, I did. It was actually a good vacation, and not just because it was the first one I've had in years."

[professorwolf]

"What is it with you people and not taking time off?" Lyall wonders, but it's rhetorical, and he shakes his head. "I did have to wonder, though... if you had some sort of ulterior motive. Or I did once we got there."

He eyes Nick, somewhere between amused, curious, and a little hopeful. "You were being a bit obvious, there, if even I started taking notice." And responding in kind, to some extent, but he'd get to that.

[detectivetroll]

"It's the curse of being a cop." He's going to answer it anyway, still teasing, but his smile turns a little sheepish at the comment about ulterior motives.

"I, uh. Yeah, I really was, wasn't I? I didn't exactly have an ulterior motive before we left, but when we got there... well, let's just say before the network, I didn't so much have friends, I had 'acquaintances' and 'people I was interested in.' Outside of other cops, anyway." Back then, he'd counted them as friends, but that was before he'd made friends over the network.

[professorwolf]

"And apparently, to your 'before' self, I count as the latter...." He mulls over that for a beat, looking down briefly before getting up the courage to ask the more important question here, which comes out quietly: "What about now that you remember again?" Because if it's just when he wasn't "himself", then he'll know not to actually press him about it.

[detectivetroll]

"...it is really weird having a 'before' self, my current self, and the other guy I'm getting memories from." Not the point, Nick.

He's quiet for a moment after the question, thinking over how to answer. "You're a friend. A really important one," he says finally, voice quiet as well. "You're... also someone I'm interested in, I'm not really used to that."