Show my best friend K31 to everyone in town...(SEMI-OPEN)

[d33tached]

WHO: D33, K31, and various others.
WHERE: Various (mostly Nonah)
WHEN: 01/09 - 01/12
WHAT: D33 (begrudgingly and sometimes accidentally) introducing his BFF to everyone he knows.
WARNINGS: Will add as needed.
[x]

Comments

Kaneki

[d33tached]

[After patching himself up a bit following his less-than-ideal reunion with K31 (his face looks positively horrific - two black eyes, one already swelled shut, a busted lip, possibly broken nose, etc.), D33 elects to take the woman back with him to he and Kaneki's farmhouse in Nonah. The ghoul might reasonably be wondering why D33 didn't show up for his shift at the Café this afternoon, especially given that he'd offered no explanation aside from a short text message that simply read: I won't be coming in today. It's late - around three or four in the morning - when the pair finally make it home (they've had some talking to do). When the man enters, K31 in tow behind him, he greets Kaneki stiffly:] Good evening.

[Even Tommy is denied D33's usual affection when he approaches, wagging and whimpering - D33 doesn't even reach down to pat his head. Instead, he just stands there, stiff as a board, half blocking the woman behind him from entering the home.]

I'll be needing to speak with you. ["We", he should be saying, but he's still made no effort to introduce her.

[Where to begin...]

[ghoulking]

[ Kaneki hasn't gone to bed, as usual he has a hard time falling asleep and this would be one of the nights Kaneki simply would let D33 sleep on his own before he heads outside. He is currently reading on the sofa, all three cats pretty much on top of him for warmth (and because that's what cats do), and when kaneki hears Dee coming in, he rises his head curiously.

it's when he finally spots D33 that his eyes go wide with surprise ] Dee- what-

What happened? [ he is quick to drop his book and get up, reaching towards the man ] Who did this?! [ what did Dee do, that's also a question that crosses his mind, in all honesty ]

K31 will start tagging in after this.

[d33tached]

Never mind it.

[D33 answers quickly, taking a step back from Kaneki as he reaches - which probably seems strange, considering the fact that usually he'd already have him in a kiss by now. Not tonight. He turns to glance back at K31 for a moment, then clears his throat.]

A minor altercation. [You oughta see the other guy.] Kaneki, I must speak with you.

There's someone you must meet.

[k31rfree]

[K31 remains quiet behind her companion in the doorway. Though she had never been one to readily accept the blame for her actions, in this case she would not want to immediately confess she had done it. Already struck with the shame of the mess she had made of D33's face. This was a first impression for the books.

No K31 he really did deserve it. But I digress.

She watches them both carefully from her back seat. Taking in the man, the animals, the room itself in as she tries to size up the situation she had walked into.]

[ghoulking]

[ nevermind? It's a bit hard to ignore it when your face looks like that. And it doesn't look so minor either. ]

Er- well, sure but- [ kaneki glances behind D33, spotting the woman. Confusiong takes over Kaneki; he remembers speaking to her on the network but has no idea why would she'd be there ]

Uhm- you are Kei, right? [ that's how she introduced herself ]

Father Maxwell

[d33tached]

[Seeing K31's face on the network had no doubt been a shock to D33's system (seeing her in person had been a shock to his face which is currently sustaining two black eyes and an assortment of other bruises in various fall colors). But, despite his urging for her to be discrete the past couple of days, D33 has found (due largely to his own paranoia) that leaving her alone at all seems riskier than simply taking her with him wherever he goes - and that includes work. He's seated her in the most secluded corner of the :Re Café that he could find, regularly supplying her with (non-caffeinated, dear God) drinks, reading materials, and trinkets to keep her interested (not unlike a toddler) until it was time for his shift to end. It is at this point that he joins her, looking entirely displeased if not a bit anxious as he takes a seat across from her and sets yet another mug - this time of hot chocolate - in front of her. He has one for himself too and he stares at her as he sips it.]

I've finished now. Have you spoken to anyone?

[Not that that's exactly disallowed or anything, but it certainly serves to make him nervous (and irritated and jealous and all around moody because don't forget who we're talking about, here).]

[hellrisen02]

[Duo had some things in mind this week, and some of them may or may not have involved Deedee. One of them is the young lady he spoke to on the network a day or two ago, with a familiar sense of directionlessness to her.]

[Maybe it was just coincidence. Either way, the visit was overdue, and so, he was off to the predictable bothering spot.]

[Duo always flits in those late tail-ends of Dee's shift with fewer customers around- by this time of night most customers are other imPorts anyway. Lord knows every one of them was an insomniac. So when Duo slips in cloaked past another exiting customer and spots the young lady's face in the corner of the store, he merely chuckles to himself and sits a table away, waiting for some interaction between the two of them.]

[It doesn't take too long.] Nope, she's been behaving. [Duo answers over his comm, absent-mindedly flipping through and quite suddenly appearing from beside them.] I had a feeling I'd find you here.

[When he looks up, his gaze is directed not at D33, but the girl across from him.]

[k31rfree]

[K31 greets the man's cold words with a warm, but equally sheepish smile as he takes a seat across from her. Now, merely days after they had first reunited, she was feeling a bit guilty about her breakdown outside her home.]

[But before she can speak, she stiffens at the sound of an unfamiliar voice filling the space around them. And then, before she can soothe a familiar uneasiness twisting in her gut, a man appearing, like magic before them, quite literally out of thin air. She's surprised that he could have done that at all. And that's the thought that escapes her lips in the same beat.]

How did you...

[She narrows her eyes slightly, keeping her gaze fixed with the man's. Her fingers, curling around the warm mug in front of her.]

[d33tached]

[D33 would like to say that Shinigami doesn't even startle him anymore when he does this, but, well. That would be a lie. He jumps just like he always does, whipping around to face his mentor with a glare blazing beneath his swollen eyes.]

How long have you been standing there--

Sitting. I realize you have likely been sitting for the majority of your...your...[He waves his hand in Duo's direction, clearly frustrated (or is it flustered? It's been a weird couple of days).

[Eventually, he just gives up on whatever it is he was trying to say.]

What do you want?

[hellrisen02]

[Duo opens his mouth to correct D33, then just closes it as the boy corrects himself, smile widening. Good, he's learning.]

[He can see the shock in K31's eyes, the way he does from anyone the first time he does this to them, but there's just a sparkle of mischief in his eyes instead of an answer forthcoming. He crosses his arms and leans against the next table over, parking himself there.]

[The priest gestures with a nod of his head towards K31, still holding her suspicious glare, then switches it to D33. Winces a little at his face.] So, gonna introduce me to your girl, Deedee? I knew you had it in ya!

[Looks like she's got more in her, though. Yowch.]

Haen

[d33tached]

[Considering the state of D33's face (as well as the state of his attitude), he had attempted foolishly to cancel a previously planned lunch date with one Miss Haen Hithiel. In response to the attempted cancellation, Haen had told him that should he not arrive for their meeting, she would simply track him down wherever he was instead. So, here he is, face battered and bruised, one eye swelled shut and a sour look on his face, with K31 following behind him. A date is a date, but he's not about to leave her alone for a second.

[Luckily for the two women, he has the sinking inclination that he will be the third wheel anyway.]

Jesse / Archie / Major / various

[d33tached]

[Should one choose to stop by the Café this evening (as he has been known to do), they will find D33 standing by the counter, looking overall more displeased than usual and positively battered. Both of his eyes are black, one still swelled most of the way shut. His nose is bent in a direction that it usually isn't and has sustained a pretty nasty split, not unlike the one on his lip. He looks a mess, honestly, and he doesn't really want to talk about it. Off to the side, K31 sits patiently (?) at one of the Café's tables while she waits for D33 to finish his shift. She's only arrived a couple of days ago, and D33 has positively refused to let her out of his sight ever since.]

1/3 sry

[h2no]

Yo!

[archie is a semi-frequent visitor to the café; there's certainly no schedule behind his visits. sometimes he likes to chat to kaneki or dee or andrew, sometimes he just gets a coffee and doesn't talk to anyone. he does visit at the very least once a week, though. they do damn good coffee, if nothing else.

he waves at d33, standing where he is, as he comes through the door.]

Dee--

[h2no]

eeeeEEEAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!

[d-d33 is never beat up like that!! what the fuck!! archie hurries over, not noticing k31 for now and looks him over, a little panicked.]

Wh--what!! What happened?? Did you kill someone?!

[h2no]

I--I'll help you hide the body!! Muk can dissolve it, even if he doesn't like to... I could probably trick Camerupt into blasting a hole in the ground to skip on digging time...

[he shakes his head, interrupting his train of thought.]

--Do you need healing?

[heisenbitch]

Jesus... The hell'd you piss off this time, yo?

[ Jesse had shouldered the door of the cafe open, smelling of fresh cigarette smoke, stamping snow off his shoes at the doorway while the night is dark and late... and is now coming to a slow stop at the counter in reaction to the state of Dee's face. ]

[d33tached]

[He glances wordlessly to the woman, still sitting at her table. Then his eyes go back to Jesse in a flat glare. And to think you two had gotten past that point.]

I suppose you'll have to meet her eventually. [Since we're friends.] Everyone else seems to have.

[He doesn't sound bitter or anything.]

[k31rfree]

[It takes a bit of effort for K31 not to roll her eyes at him. She leans her chin in her palm over the table, calling out from her seat.]

Had I'd known I would have run into you, I might have been more cautious.

[She knows that isn't entirely truthful either. With the bit of freedom she had been gifted, any inch, she'd happily take a mile. She smiles a bit at him from her seat.]

[am_i_a_monster]

[Abigail is curious about the woman who's captured D33's attention lately. There is both potential for a new friend for herself after all, she gets along with Kaneki, as well as twinge of concern that this woman could replace her as a friend for D33.

She is worried about his bruises too. She never wants him to feel pain. And who had the nerve to hurt D33? There's no suspicion that the woman inflicted the bruises. He wouldn't be hanging around with her if she had. She thinks D33 isn't like in her that way; in her eyes, he's too strong to bond with the people who hurt him - at least in this new life.

She relies on her old skills as a lure, subtly following them from a distance, observing their behaviour and waiting for the right moment to approach them. When they enter the café, she takes out her phone, tapping it with her thumbs to look like she's texting. She's actually watching the clock, waiting for enough time to pass for them to have ordered drinks or for D33 to have started working. She then walks inside and gives D33 a nod.]

Hey.

[She takes a good look at the bruises, especially the black eyes. It looks even worse when she's close up and she looses her neutral expression, her eyes filling with concern.

Are you okay? Do you want me to get you some ice?

There must be some in the cafe for cold drinks. And she's sure Kaneki wouldn't mind her going behind the counter to get it.

What happened?

[She asks, feeling a sudden urge to gut whoever is responsible. ]

[d33tached]

[What Abigail doesn't know is that, normally, K31 wouldn't think to touch D33. And just as D33 would do anything in his power to protect Abigail, he'd spent his entire life doing so for K31 - prior to coming here, at least, and prior to having abandoned her back in his own world.

[What Abigail doesn't know, really, is that D33 deserves the bruises that K31 had left on him and that, despite several offers to have them healed, he's rejected every one.

[It's just a couple of black eyes. He's had much worse. And he would have let K31 cut his throat if that's what she'd wanted to do.

[He waves off her concern with a simple shake of his head.] Never mind it, Abigail. It is nothing to concern yourself over.

[Now...]

I was beginning to wonder when you might think to approach me.

You've been keeping your eye from a distance, I've noticed.

[k31rfree]

[Seeing the woman approach him now in the shop confirmed what she had been wondering these past couple of days. When she had brought it to D33's attention he had shrugged her off. Dismissed her presence entirely. And while that seemed to be fine for him, her instincts to stay alert kept her from allowing herself not to notice her regular appearance in their daily life.

Now it seemed that the two of them did in fact know each other. And that they seemed to be casual enough to be friends.

An uneasy feeling twists in her stomach then. One she was not familiar with, and she tries to push it down. K31 sits up in her seat, lifting the cup to her lips to sip. To feign her ignorance as she listens to the conversation unravel.

Keeping her eye on the girl across the counter.]

Maxie

[d33tached]

[It takes a couple of days for D33 to become comfortable enough to take K31 anywhere, but as soon as his face has healed a bit (it still looks like a total mess, what with the two black eyes and likely broken nose, but at least it's recognizable), the first place D33 does venture to take her (aside from the Café) is the Maurtia Falls library.

[Growing up, D33 had always been more fond of reading than K31 had been - he'd also had a great deal more access to the books that R01 allowed him to read within his quarters. But it was those same fairy tales that he would later retell to her at night. She'd always longed - at least, he thought - for the opportunity to read more herself. Seeing a library for the first time had been a nearly spiritual experience for D33 - he hoped that bringing her here would be the same.

[Once the shock has worn of a bit, he takes to showing her around the various sections, picking up different titles and flipping through them, explaining the plots of different movies he's seen from the media section, etc.. At some point, though, he happens to notice a familiar face among the aisles.]

Ah. Maxie.

[Would you look at that? D33 willingly approaching another human being in what appears to be a cordial manner.

[Only Maxie.

[K31 follows in tow.]

I might have thought I'd run into you here.

[He momentarily forgets that his face looks like it's been flattened by a steam-roller.]

[magmamia]

[for once maxie is also a human being, who glances up and... smiles??? amazing.] Ah, D33, I was-

[ ............. ]

What on earth happened to you?!

[k31rfree]

[K31 shrinks a bit at the reaction, but not enough to notice. Clutching the book that she had been carrying just a little tighter. They had already run into a few people, all of which had similar reactions to his state. It wasn't getting any easier to deal with the guilt of having been the one responsible. She clears her throat a bit, waiting for the conversation to move on, as D33 had always attempted.]

[d33tached]

[Right. This again. D33 sucks in a deep, less-than-patient breath and merely steps aside, holding out an arm in gesture to K31.]

I suppose that there is someone I might like you to meet. She is called K31 [Seriously, he's not dropping the "K31" thing.], a woman from my own world.

K31, this is Maxie. He's from the Pokémon world as some of the others you have met.