[ It is, isn't it? Someone ought to tell the guy who bought it that he's on the same level as a castle owner now. Maybe even worse!
Maruki's not far behind, all too cognizant of someone new arriving on the farm when he isn't there to intercept, and he calls out to Oda from where he's depositing the bag of curry and drinks on one of the picnic tables, which, well–
As soon as Oda's close enough, he'll see that Maruki is a textbook overachiever. Not only is there a bowl of curry rice for Oda, there's also extra containers for him to take back to wherever the hell he's staying and save for later! (The lack of power being an issue did not occur to Maruki!) ]
Ah, I hope it's to your liking! If it's not, please be honest. I'm far from a professional chef and always want feedback to improve my cooking.
[ Have a seat! Have a curry! Have a beer! OH YEAH HE BROUGHT ASAHI. Where'd he get that? Don't worry about it. ]
[Ah. Oda turns when he's called out to, raising a brief hand in greeting, then walking over to the picnic tables. Who the Hell owns this place? It looks like a private park or something.
[The curry looks good. How is he gonna heat it up once he takes it back to that cottage...?]
It feels a little rude to give feedback on a free meal. [He's grateful is all. He starts to go a little insane after too long without his comfort meal - gets thirsty, restless. It's probably what drugs feel like for most people, he thinks.
[He takes a bite. No heat whatsoever...but it's still good. He can't keep the satisfied look from his face, subdued as it is.]
I can't begin to complain. I didn't realize how much I'd missed this. [It's only been a few days...
[Asahi too. He's not normally a beer guy, but the idea that there's something here from home is oddly comforting. Still...
[He holds up the can.]
I wasn't expecting to see this here. How can that be?
Ah, I thought you might like another taste of home! It's kind of a funny story...
[ His own beer cracked open, Maruki knocks his can against Oda's, even if he didn't mean to cheers. It's good manners! ]
I'm not sure if anyone has told you yet, but there's a crystal you can make wishes at, for all manner of things– including electricity, which you should probably do sooner rather than later! But I decided one day to make a vague request of "food from home" [ air quotes and everything, fucking dork ] just to see what happened.
[ A forkful of curry held up for emphasis. ]
It paid off in dividends. I've had a steady supply of ingredients to cook more familiar food with, and the occasional selection of convenience store goods. Isn't that something?
[It's something, alright. Oda eyes the beer can. Drinking and eating things from a magic crystal. It's not the sort of suspicion he's used to confronting...
[Well, Oda really has no reason to trust this guy, but it's just beer and curry, and he's already dead. Despite being cautious (largely due to the nature of his job), he's not a particularly paranoid person.
[So, he opens up the Asahi and takes a sip. It tastes just like home. He looks satisfied.]
It's weird. No offense, but I've never been much into beer. Still, it tastes just like I remember - like I'm sitting in my apartment.
That's more than a little amazing.
[Another thoughtful sip; then:] I've noticed that, by the way. You could probably say that about most places - people being too trusting. I learned an awful lot right away just by reading what people post online. They're awfully forthcoming.
[ A couple spoonfuls of curry, a sip of beer, and then that wildly astute observation that makes Maruki laugh, not entirely kind. ]
You're correct, they are. Especially on a public network of dubious origin. Most people are surprisingly cavalier about what they say, and who they say it to– although, just as you said, that's probably true of most realities.
[ He props an elbow up on the table, rests the cold can of beer against his cheek in the summer evening heat. ]
My reality? [World? Maruki says "reality". That seems more likely, actually. Surely there's an ability user somewhere out there responsible for all this, but, of course, Oda doesn't say anything about that.]
Hm. [How does one describe something second nature?]
That's a difficult question. All I want to say is that it's normal. For me, that's true, but from everything I know, our realities could be entirely different. Maybe yours has giant sea monsters or something. [Not a joke, just an imagination.]
I've been to Tokyo. It's crowded and noisy, but it's nicer than Yokohama, I think. I wake up, make coffee, and go to work. It's not glamarous - mostly errands and favors for the higher-ups. More coffee.
[He sips his beer; holds up the can. Now doesn't feel like the time to confess he's dead.]
And Asahi. Just like this. Who's to say we're not from the same reality?
[ Maruki's already devised half a dozen tests to see if others from Japan are from the same reality. Do you recall any news stories about psychotic breaks? Who was running for Prime Minister? Have you heard of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts? It's quick and easy to weed out.
But with Oda, he only shrugs. ]
I suppose it's possible that we could be. Mine felt fairly normal too. I only ask because there are others here who say they're from Japan, then turn around and tell you, "ah, you know when the demons overran and shut down Tokyo? I was there!"
[ KAZUYA.
He grins, laughs, shrugs. ]
So it's worth asking, to try to catch oddities like that. Some of the stories you'll hear here are unbelievable.
[Demons, huh? In a situation like this, someone else might put on a show to try and cover that the idea of something being called a “demon” really isn’t that out of the ordinary, but Odasaku really isn’t a liar, and he’s definitely not a performer; aside from that, his tone and expression barely change no matter what he’s told anyway. All he really has to do is not say anything he doesn’t want to. He could ask if Maruki has ever heard of the Dragon’s Head Conflict or “rumors” of skill users, but he doesn’t know this guy.
[So he takes that information in thoughtful silence for a moment, demeanor providing no clue as to what he’s thinking. He eats a few more bites of curry, sips his beer, then looks up.]
You’ve been to Shibuya, I’m guessing. Sendagaya Station?
If you take the East exit out of Sendagaya Station, then walk just about two minutes down the road, there’s an old granny that’s been selling rabbit-shaped mochi at a stand for over thirty years. Akabane-san, but, she does ask you to call her Granny once she recognizes you.
If you’re from my reality, and you’ve spent any time at all at Sendagaya Station, you’ve seen Akabane-san.
[ Maruki laughs at that, surprised and a little delighted. It's nothing significant, and that's why it strikes him. To hear those minute, mundane details of someone else's Japan– oh, he loves it.
Unfortunately, though, he has to shake his head. ]
I can't say that I've seen Akabane-san, no. Which sounds like my loss! I've gladly buy bunny mochi from her.
[ He takes a long drink of beer and then smiles at Oda. ]
Different realities, then. I can't say I'm surprised. Still, we're both here now. That's what matters, isn't it?
[Glancing down at his curry, Oda smiles just a tiny bit. It hurts. He didn't buy those bunny mochis for himself. He tries not to think about it. It's impossible not to. He's quite for a long moment, then glances up.]
Maruki gives it long, considerate thought. Oda doesn't seem to mind silences, so he lets one settle for as long as his mind pleases. Then, eventually: ]
Yes and no. Which... well, if you continue to get to know me, you'll find that's my answer to most things.
[ A self-effacing little chuckle. The curry is abandoned for the moment as he props both elbows up on the table to fold his hands together and rest his chin on top of them. ]
Being here has changed me in ways that I simply don't think would have been possible back home. Some of the people I've met... I have a difficult time imagining my life without them now, in any reality. And that includes someone who is from my same Tokyo! We never would have had reason to meet there, but here he's become so important to me that I can't imagine how we'll ever go back to our separate lives.
[ He tips his head to one side then, as if conceding to the opposite viewpoint. ]
That said, we will. We must. I value the bonds I've forged here, but no, I'm not glad that I was brought to a volatile reality to have my memories and dreams manipulated by an unseen force. I resent anything done to me against my will, and I very much include being contracted by a wish in that.
[ A beat, and then she shrugs. ]
My apologies for rambling on. It's an interesting question.
[Oda might consider himself to be a "yes and no" person too, though he doesn't say so. He gets it, though. They've been trapped in a shitty situation, and, quite frankly, even someone trapped in a less shitty situation would still be trapped, right?
[Yeah. He gets it.]
I get it. Your reasoning makes sense on both sides. Considering everyone here is trapped...
I'd say something like that would make those bonds even more remarkable, in ways. Like inmates in a prison.
Still. Eventually, the people who serve their sentence will leave that prison. Anyone who stays remains living in another world entirely. That's just how it is.
[ Inmates in a prison. That's a new one. An apt description, too, especially when it comes to those who choose to remain. Everyone is allowed to make their own decisions, live with those consequences, but Maruki cannot ever imagine willingly subjecting himself to a reality as manipulative as this one. Even for those to whom the alternative is death...
He hums thoughtfully as he digs back into the curry. ]
That is just how it is. Of course, we have no way of knowing when our sentence is up, so to speak...
[ His eyes lift then, watching Oda carefully. ]
What about you? I know that it's all still new, but are you glad to be here?
Hm. [Oda takes another bite, thoughtful as he chews.]
I guess that's a bit of a complicated question. Both parts of my answer feel selfish.
[Asahi break. He eventually sets the beer and the utensil down and looks eye-to-eye at Maruki. There's really no point in being dishonest. Oda isn't used to talking about such significant things - not with friends, and not with near-strangers - but he doesn't mind it, really. It's not like any of what he's saying is particularly privileged, it's just...not normally what someone would bother asking him.
[Aside from that, they're all in the same (supposedly shitty) situation. Everyone here could probably afford a confidant or two.]
There's a person in this world whom I thought I would never see again. I'm happy to be with my friend. I can't deny that at all, and I wouldn't want to.
That being said, I've heard about the sort of things that can happen in this place, and I'm not particularly happy about being an "inmate," so to speak. [Air quotes.]
Captivity isn't the life I want, but I can't deny the benefits, either. It's complex.
You've hit on another one of those complicating factors. Friends and loved ones are reunited all the time here. For some, returning to their original reality means returning to a life without that person... or to their own death, knowing that the other will be left without them.
[ He makes a vague weighty gesture with his free hand. ]
Is it better to be captive with people you've missed, or to be free and alone or worse? The answer varies for each person, and even when they choose one, there are bits of the other that are still appealing. Generally, I think it's best to make the most of the time afforded to us here, even for those of us who are trying to leave.
[ Another spoonful of curry and he quickly waves that hand through the air, apologetic. ]
But I digress. There's someone else from your reality here? And a friend, too – that's a huge help!
[None of this is anything that Oda hasn't already privately confronted a thousand times. He has a soul that yearns for freedom. That's probably always been true. It hasn't been enough, though, and Oda never truly fought for the freedom he wanted - not until he was pushed past the point of no return, and the freedom he found there, well...
[False, naturally. Why would he start fighting a war now that he never did before? It feels hypocritical.
[That being said, some things have changed since he left the world he was born into. He's traded one enslavement for another, but that isn't insignificant. He is not in the Port Mafia anymore.
[And he doesn't want to be an inmate again. More than that...
[He nods once.]
There is. And I'd like for him not to be an inmate either, I think. [Would Dazai hate Odasaku for, in this, selecting the path that separates them?
[Maybe. He doesn't know. It doesn't change how he feels.]
It's a good answer, in my opinion. If he's half as thoughtful as you, I hope I'm able to meet him soon.
[ A bit of pleasant silence as they both eat and drink, comfortable for a time before Maruki, ever the talker, has to break it. ]
Can I ask you about that story you told Venat? About the curry shop owner and the children he looked after. Is that where your fondness for the dish comes from?
[Ah. He might have expected the consequences of sharing that story, but the wave rises up and swallows, regardless.
[It's worse than drowning, actually - a drowning person can still try to swim, still choke down water in vain. Oda is suspended; roots and thorns and clawed hands and teeth and barbed razor wire weaving through his body, crawling out of open wounds and anchoring themselves to invisible hooks - he cannot move. He could never move.
[He pictures himself tearing out every hook, every line, ripping his body open from every angle until it's clear there's nothing, nothing...
[What filled that terrible void? There is no story left to write. He was never human to begin with.
[So, his fingers curl around his spoon slightly as he lifts more curry into his mouth - and that's all. There's not a flicker in his expression - just a passing breeze that makes him twitch his nose. The only delay is the time it takes to chew.]
It's not, but I've been eating at that curry restaurant for years now. Curry rice has always been my favorite, but Uncle's is the best in Yokohama. I really believe that.
He sounds like more than a good man. A saint, almost.
[ Maruki's very nearly done with his meal, but he's enjoying Oda's company, so he stops to roll the half-full beer can between his palms and offer him a kindly smile, a piece of his own home. ]
It's funny, actually. There was a café back in my Tokyo with the best coffee you could imagine, and the only food they sold was curry. It was just as good as their drinks! And the man who ran the place...
[ Sakura glaring at him, telling him to get out. Being placated by the young girl with Akira's cat. He thinks they came to some sort of understanding, in the end. He would have liked to have gotten to know him better... ]
He didn't take in orphans like that, but he did house and feed a young friend of mine who had nowhere else to go. Maybe there's something to curry shop owners, eh?
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no subject
Maruki's not far behind, all too cognizant of someone new arriving on the farm when he isn't there to intercept, and he calls out to Oda from where he's depositing the bag of curry and drinks on one of the picnic tables, which, well–
As soon as Oda's close enough, he'll see that Maruki is a textbook overachiever. Not only is there a bowl of curry rice for Oda, there's also extra containers for him to take back to wherever the hell he's staying and save for later! (The lack of power being an issue did not occur to Maruki!) ]
Ah, I hope it's to your liking! If it's not, please be honest. I'm far from a professional chef and always want feedback to improve my cooking.
[ Have a seat! Have a curry! Have a beer! OH YEAH HE BROUGHT ASAHI. Where'd he get that? Don't worry about it. ]
no subject
[The curry looks good. How is he gonna heat it up once he takes it back to that cottage...?]
It feels a little rude to give feedback on a free meal. [He's grateful is all. He starts to go a little insane after too long without his comfort meal - gets thirsty, restless. It's probably what drugs feel like for most people, he thinks.
[He takes a bite. No heat whatsoever...but it's still good. He can't keep the satisfied look from his face, subdued as it is.]
I can't begin to complain. I didn't realize how much I'd missed this. [It's only been a few days...
[Asahi too. He's not normally a beer guy, but the idea that there's something here from home is oddly comforting. Still...
[He holds up the can.]
I wasn't expecting to see this here. How can that be?
no subject
[ His own beer cracked open, Maruki knocks his can against Oda's, even if he didn't mean to cheers. It's good manners! ]
I'm not sure if anyone has told you yet, but there's a crystal you can make wishes at, for all manner of things– including electricity, which you should probably do sooner rather than later! But I decided one day to make a vague request of "food from home" [ air quotes and everything, fucking dork ] just to see what happened.
[ A forkful of curry held up for emphasis. ]
It paid off in dividends. I've had a steady supply of ingredients to cook more familiar food with, and the occasional selection of convenience store goods. Isn't that something?
no subject
[He looks to Maruki.]
No side effects? Don't mind the strange question.
no subject
[ Did he extensively test all his snacks and ingredients before he unleashed them on Akechi? You betcha. ]
But no, no side effects to speak of. I can promise you that I did my due diligence.
no subject
[So, he opens up the Asahi and takes a sip. It tastes just like home. He looks satisfied.]
It's weird. No offense, but I've never been much into beer. Still, it tastes just like I remember - like I'm sitting in my apartment.
That's more than a little amazing.
[Another thoughtful sip; then:] I've noticed that, by the way. You could probably say that about most places - people being too trusting. I learned an awful lot right away just by reading what people post online. They're awfully forthcoming.
no subject
You're correct, they are. Especially on a public network of dubious origin. Most people are surprisingly cavalier about what they say, and who they say it to– although, just as you said, that's probably true of most realities.
[ He props an elbow up on the table, rests the cold can of beer against his cheek in the summer evening heat. ]
What was yours like, if you don't mind me asking?
no subject
Hm. [How does one describe something second nature?]
That's a difficult question. All I want to say is that it's normal. For me, that's true, but from everything I know, our realities could be entirely different. Maybe yours has giant sea monsters or something. [Not a joke, just an imagination.]
I've been to Tokyo. It's crowded and noisy, but it's nicer than Yokohama, I think. I wake up, make coffee, and go to work. It's not glamarous - mostly errands and favors for the higher-ups. More coffee.
[He sips his beer; holds up the can. Now doesn't feel like the time to confess he's dead.]
And Asahi. Just like this. Who's to say we're not from the same reality?
no subject
But with Oda, he only shrugs. ]
I suppose it's possible that we could be. Mine felt fairly normal too. I only ask because there are others here who say they're from Japan, then turn around and tell you, "ah, you know when the demons overran and shut down Tokyo? I was there!"
[ KAZUYA.
He grins, laughs, shrugs. ]
So it's worth asking, to try to catch oddities like that. Some of the stories you'll hear here are unbelievable.
no subject
[So he takes that information in thoughtful silence for a moment, demeanor providing no clue as to what he’s thinking. He eats a few more bites of curry, sips his beer, then looks up.]
You’ve been to Shibuya, I’m guessing. Sendagaya Station?
no subject
Maruki nods through his next spoonful of curry, gestures for Oda to go on. He could walk through Shibuya with his eyes closed. ]
this is all just headcanon made up bullshit enjoy
If you take the East exit out of Sendagaya Station, then walk just about two minutes down the road, there’s an old granny that’s been selling rabbit-shaped mochi at a stand for over thirty years. Akabane-san, but, she does ask you to call her Granny once she recognizes you.
If you’re from my reality, and you’ve spent any time at all at Sendagaya Station, you’ve seen Akabane-san.
[Curry break.]
She’s pretty pushy. An old flirt, too.
no subject
Unfortunately, though, he has to shake his head. ]
I can't say that I've seen Akabane-san, no. Which sounds like my loss! I've gladly buy bunny mochi from her.
[ He takes a long drink of beer and then smiles at Oda. ]
Different realities, then. I can't say I'm surprised. Still, we're both here now. That's what matters, isn't it?
no subject
Are you glad to be here?
no subject
Maruki gives it long, considerate thought. Oda doesn't seem to mind silences, so he lets one settle for as long as his mind pleases. Then, eventually: ]
Yes and no. Which... well, if you continue to get to know me, you'll find that's my answer to most things.
[ A self-effacing little chuckle. The curry is abandoned for the moment as he props both elbows up on the table to fold his hands together and rest his chin on top of them. ]
Being here has changed me in ways that I simply don't think would have been possible back home. Some of the people I've met... I have a difficult time imagining my life without them now, in any reality. And that includes someone who is from my same Tokyo! We never would have had reason to meet there, but here he's become so important to me that I can't imagine how we'll ever go back to our separate lives.
[ He tips his head to one side then, as if conceding to the opposite viewpoint. ]
That said, we will. We must. I value the bonds I've forged here, but no, I'm not glad that I was brought to a volatile reality to have my memories and dreams manipulated by an unseen force. I resent anything done to me against my will, and I very much include being contracted by a wish in that.
[ A beat, and then she shrugs. ]
My apologies for rambling on. It's an interesting question.
no subject
It's an interesting answer.
[Oda might consider himself to be a "yes and no" person too, though he doesn't say so. He gets it, though. They've been trapped in a shitty situation, and, quite frankly, even someone trapped in a less shitty situation would still be trapped, right?
[Yeah. He gets it.]
I get it. Your reasoning makes sense on both sides. Considering everyone here is trapped...
I'd say something like that would make those bonds even more remarkable, in ways. Like inmates in a prison.
Still. Eventually, the people who serve their sentence will leave that prison. Anyone who stays remains living in another world entirely. That's just how it is.
no subject
He hums thoughtfully as he digs back into the curry. ]
That is just how it is. Of course, we have no way of knowing when our sentence is up, so to speak...
[ His eyes lift then, watching Oda carefully. ]
What about you? I know that it's all still new, but are you glad to be here?
no subject
I guess that's a bit of a complicated question. Both parts of my answer feel selfish.
[Asahi break. He eventually sets the beer and the utensil down and looks eye-to-eye at Maruki. There's really no point in being dishonest. Oda isn't used to talking about such significant things - not with friends, and not with near-strangers - but he doesn't mind it, really. It's not like any of what he's saying is particularly privileged, it's just...not normally what someone would bother asking him.
[Aside from that, they're all in the same (supposedly shitty) situation. Everyone here could probably afford a confidant or two.]
There's a person in this world whom I thought I would never see again. I'm happy to be with my friend. I can't deny that at all, and I wouldn't want to.
That being said, I've heard about the sort of things that can happen in this place, and I'm not particularly happy about being an "inmate," so to speak. [Air quotes.]
Captivity isn't the life I want, but I can't deny the benefits, either. It's complex.
no subject
You've hit on another one of those complicating factors. Friends and loved ones are reunited all the time here. For some, returning to their original reality means returning to a life without that person... or to their own death, knowing that the other will be left without them.
[ He makes a vague weighty gesture with his free hand. ]
Is it better to be captive with people you've missed, or to be free and alone or worse? The answer varies for each person, and even when they choose one, there are bits of the other that are still appealing. Generally, I think it's best to make the most of the time afforded to us here, even for those of us who are trying to leave.
[ Another spoonful of curry and he quickly waves that hand through the air, apologetic. ]
But I digress. There's someone else from your reality here? And a friend, too – that's a huge help!
no subject
[False, naturally. Why would he start fighting a war now that he never did before? It feels hypocritical.
[That being said, some things have changed since he left the world he was born into. He's traded one enslavement for another, but that isn't insignificant. He is not in the Port Mafia anymore.
[And he doesn't want to be an inmate again. More than that...
[He nods once.]
There is. And I'd like for him not to be an inmate either, I think. [Would Dazai hate Odasaku for, in this, selecting the path that separates them?
[Maybe. He doesn't know. It doesn't change how he feels.]
There's my answer, then.
no subject
[ A bit of pleasant silence as they both eat and drink, comfortable for a time before Maruki, ever the talker, has to break it. ]
Can I ask you about that story you told Venat? About the curry shop owner and the children he looked after. Is that where your fondness for the dish comes from?
cw: body horror, grief (ue ue ue)
[It's worse than drowning, actually - a drowning person can still try to swim, still choke down water in vain. Oda is suspended; roots and thorns and clawed hands and teeth and barbed razor wire weaving through his body, crawling out of open wounds and anchoring themselves to invisible hooks - he cannot move. He could never move.
[He pictures himself tearing out every hook, every line, ripping his body open from every angle until it's clear there's nothing, nothing...
[What filled that terrible void? There is no story left to write. He was never human to begin with.
[So, his fingers curl around his spoon slightly as he lifts more curry into his mouth - and that's all. There's not a flicker in his expression - just a passing breeze that makes him twitch his nose. The only delay is the time it takes to chew.]
It's not, but I've been eating at that curry restaurant for years now. Curry rice has always been my favorite, but Uncle's is the best in Yokohama. I really believe that.
And he's a good man.
no subject
[ Maruki's very nearly done with his meal, but he's enjoying Oda's company, so he stops to roll the half-full beer can between his palms and offer him a kindly smile, a piece of his own home. ]
It's funny, actually. There was a café back in my Tokyo with the best coffee you could imagine, and the only food they sold was curry. It was just as good as their drinks! And the man who ran the place...
[ Sakura glaring at him, telling him to get out. Being placated by the young girl with Akira's cat. He thinks they came to some sort of understanding, in the end. He would have liked to have gotten to know him better... ]
He didn't take in orphans like that, but he did house and feed a young friend of mine who had nowhere else to go. Maybe there's something to curry shop owners, eh?
we can move toward a lil wrap if u wanna
[Oda couldn't smile if he tried, but, luckily, he rarely does anyway. Funny, that.]
That makes two. That's pretty compelling evidence.
hehe i had the same thought - take us home king
It's a small data set, but not a totally irrelevant one.
[ He pushes the leftover containers closer to Oda, insistent. ]
We ought to meet up like this again, I've really enjoyed our chat. Once you're settled somewhere, I'd be happy to come cook for you.
it was a pleasure threading with you this evening - sasagey - and I cannot stress this enough - yo