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WHO: EVERYONE
WHERE: a park by the beach, Heropa
WHEN: All day Saturday the 31st
WHAT: A big imPort charity fair!
WARNINGS: Everyone's traumatic past and all that entails. No really. Everyone's. Please use your own discretion.

There's an imPort charity fair going on down at a park by the beach in fair Heropa, today! You've probably seen it advertised for a couple of weeks, now. In the newspaper, on the network, flyers on street posts-- so on and so forth. All proceeds go towards the safety net fund for unsettled imPorts! Their aim as stated is to ensure all imPorts who come here-- especially children-- don't feel pressured in to registering just because they're worried they won't be able to get a job or have anywhere to live otherwise. They've been around for a while. Perhaps you've received help from them already, or heard of them in passing.

Perhaps you're just lured by the promise of food and drink.

Or perhaps you'd like to try to try your hand at some of the amateur game stalls set up?

Maybe you were just walking past and came to see what all the commotion was about.

Or maybe you're genuinely interested in the charity and wished to put a donation straight in the box, or wanted to suss out the man in charge. (Mandrake's around, talking to potential donors.)

Maybe you've come because you're interested in the advertisement of the charity's free resume building help and networking services for imPorts.

Or perhaps, like any seasoned imPort, you just don't trust large gatherings of imPorts in one place to not go wrong, and you're here on guard in case the worst should happen.

Whatever the case, the weather is fine and the fair seems to be bustling. Plenty of imPort-sympathetic locals are here as well, mingling and generally having a good time. What are you doing in the crowd?

[You may officially begin your memory sharing shenanigans! As per the OOC post, characters don't have to participate in this log to participate in the plot, but the purpose of the log is to help facilitate as much memory sharing in one place as possible to avoid flooding. Side-effects should wear off on imPorts by Sunday night!]

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[ They're both a mess, huh. Hiro swipes his arm across his eyes and takes a deep breath, trying to get ahold of himself. How to approach it, indeed. It looked a whole lot like Shinjiro died just then, for some reason... ]

... I think we should go find a place to sit down.

[ Because if he stands here much longer, his legs are going to give out from under him. ]

[That definitely seems like the best course of action- so he nods. And perhaps if Shinjiro were a more empathetic person, he'd put a hand to Hiro's shoulder, or offer some vague sort of comfort... but he isn't, so he won't. Those hands remain tucked in his coat pockets, picking at a small ball of lint attached to the seam's thread. But he does glance to the side, searching for a less-populated area, before gesturing towards the edge of the crowd.]

...Yeah. Over here.

[It's not a lot of reprieve, but there's some chairs and people are sparse, giving them a bit more isolation than closer to the crowds looking for new food or drink or entertainment. It helps to walk, and not have to stare awkwardly at the kid while the gears in his mind are twisting and knotting up. When he sits, it's tense, one leg crossing over the other-- completely unsure as to what just happened or why, and why Hiro seems in such rough shape.]

So-- you get caught up in that too? [He'll assume Hiro saw the same thing he did: the apparent death of his brother in that explosion.]

[ He settles himself down slowly, sort of folding in on himself so he's taking as little space on the bench as he can. He doesn't want to chance any more memory transfers by accidentally touching Shinjiro. And ... he's a little nervous too about the context of that memory. He recognized that kid's anger. Whether Shinjiro was apologetic and helping or not, something still happened, didn't it?

Hiro takes in a deep breath. ]

Yeah. I did. That jolt and then - you were with that kid.

[ So ... not the same memory. He's made the same assumption that Shinjiro did, however. ]

-Kid? [That catches him off guard. Thinking back-- No, the sort of... vision definitely hadn't come from his own mind, had definitely been a glimpse at someone's (Hiro's obviously-) and it was more... the fire, the older brother, the classmates... but no one he would describe as a 'kid'.

And after all- he certain hadn't gone anywhere.]

...No, I got-- I think I was in your head there for a second? [If that makes sense. He pauses, before deciding to just-- be blunt about it. A slightly softer tone than usual, sure, but still direct and to the point.]

It was the fire. When he ran in without you and the place came down.

[Though... if he'd seen into Hiro's mind, did that mean the kid had seen back into his own?]

[ He opens his mouth to disagree with Shinji - but then what he says next stops Hiro cold. There's only one fire he's ever been close to in his life, and that's ... Swallowing suddenly, he finds himself blinking back tears. This wasn't a subject he ever thought someone else would just bring up. Whispering: ]

How ... how do you know that? Did you see--

[Sorry, Hiro. As always, Shinjiro's empathy is a bit... stilted or lacking. He can see the distress it's caused, sure-- But has no idea what to do about that. So he just nods again in response to that half-question.]

...I can't say 'it's alright'- [He admits awkwardly, rolling a shoulder- but also actually looking over to Hiro. See, he does feel bad about that invasion of the guy's privacy and past, dredging up something like this. Hiro's a good kid. He's not never been that good on comforting being he couldn't punch in the shoulder- or, rather, those he hadn't known his entire life.]

But- I know how it feels. [And it's true: not quite as much as Akihiko would, of course. But damn if he hadn't been close to the both of the Sanada siblings, hadn't had to steel himself practically overnight to make sure Akihiko had some sort of support, hadn't lost himself after Miki's death, after the guy felt worthless and weak for not being able to save his sister.]

When me and Aki were kids, the orphanage we lived at burned down one night- [And- a shake of the head.] There ain't anything you can do against something like that.

[ Of course there would be other people who lost people to fires. It's a common enough way to lose someone as far as these things go, especially for teenagers like them. But the reality of it sinking in almost makes Hiro wince. He'd never had anyone else to talk to about this kind of thing who hadn't also lost Tadashi.

His voice is still soft and hesitant when he speaks again. ]

You lost someone? [ Of course he did. Hiro can guess that much. ] Who?

[A shake of the head.]

...Not as close as I guess you guys were. But she was kinda like a little sister. [To avoid getting into specifics. After all, this isn't his story to tell, and he doesn't want to give out more than Akihiko would be comfortable with. The leg crossed over the other shifts, slightly, as though trying to get a bit more comfortable in this conversation.]

So just- It sucks. [It's hard to tell in the memory, but-- He couldn't imagine it being that long ago for Hiro. The guy isn't that old, after all.] But you just gotta keep going like you have been.

[ Hiro can respect that. He hardly wants to dig into details about Tadashi himself, so he won't make someone else do the same thing. The wound is still fresh for him. ]

Like they didn't just leave a big hole in your life that'll never be filled.

Or, like that big hole won't wreck you.

[Awkward, but-- At least he's addressed the memory thing. It's a huge step of progress for him, rather than just ignoring everything.]

[ Too bad Hro doesn't know what a huge stride this is for Shinji. Still, he can appreciate the conversation all the same. It's hard knowing what to say or how to react. ]

Yeah. Yeah ...

Is that kid connected to that?

...Depends. If she had pretty pale hair up in pigtails, probably.

[He's- not sure what 'kid' Hiro is talking about. Miki, maybe-- or any of the other kids as the orphanage. The only other 'kid' in his life back home is Ken, but-- there's also anything here. After all, he worked at the Youth Center, there's a lot of kids he can think of.]

So you got one've mine in return, then?

[ He nods a bit. It can't have been one of his, so it must have come from Shinjiro. Same as the one he actually showed Shinji. ]

Yeah. At least, I think so.

... He had a spear. And you were trying to convince him that killing you wouldn't help.

[ That's phrased very specifically for someone just seeing that memory for the first time. Because Hiro's been the Ken in that situation before, just not being talked down by the killer himself. ]

Edited 2015-02-07 15:28 (UTC)

[The reaction is subtle, but immediate- Eyes widening slightly, muscles tensing up, stiffening despite his typically-relaxed posture. His lips press together, as though finding an absence of words to fill in this gap, mind catching and hitching before struggling to find-- any way to respond to this.

Because he knows exactly what Hiro had just seen. And his initial want is to counter that his death would have helped-- just that Ken would eventually fester and ruin, just as he had. His stomach feels knotted as he looks down to the ground between them, eyebrows furrowing and eyes scanning, as though it would give him any sort of answer.]

....Right.

[Not the most eloquent of answers- but the resigned breath fills the space between them, makes him remember to breath, remain cognizant that there's someone else here, likely watching him.]

No. It wasn't related.

[A simple answer to the question, and offering nothing more.]

[ He can tell there's more than that. Heck, he saw more than that. But he's not blind to Shinjiro's distress either, nor the way he clams the hell up as soon as the topic is breached. He's felt that way himself about Tadashi's death, especially right in the immediate wake of it. He'll have to pick through this carefully. ]

And ... then you got shot.

[ Okay, so maybe "carefully" isn't actually what's happening here. ]

[A fact he won't deny, at least. And so he nods, finally able to find a nice, neutral tone and expression for this.]

Yeah. I died back home.

[he doesn't seem apprehensive of the fact, at least. It's hardly a secret that he passed away, he doesn't exactly hide the fact that he'd been shot...but this is a shitty way for anyone to find out.]

Sorry you had to see that. [It's a bit distant, as though simple compartmentalizing it all for now, focusing on just-- keeping this simple and hopefully not-to-close to home..] Or-- feel it, I guess.

[ That catches his attention for an entirely different reason. ]

How? How'd you end up here then?

[At the first instance of 'how?' he's tempted to answer dryly: By being shot. But Hiro clarifies before he can be a smart ass, and instead Shinjiro just rolls a shoulder.]

...Dunno. Probably just 'cause this place has a shitty sense've humor. Besides, ain't like me being here changes what happened back home.

[ Thanks, Shinjiro. Thanks for holding that back. ]

But you're alive. You could go back.

[Sorry, Hiro. He doesn't share your optimism. Nor does he want to go back.]

I doubt it. If I get ported back to when I came from, I'm back to being a corpse on the asphalt.

[He can sort of pick up on those fringes of hope-- and unfortunately, doesn't want for Hiro to let them mature, just to be crushed and disappointed.] It ain't some kinda portal we hop through and come out on the other side've. Ask anyone who's gone home and come back-- if they even remember being here at all.

This dimensional bullshit is more screwed up than that.

[ No no no. He won't believe that. He can't. All he needs to do is find the right angle and he'll find a way to bring his brother back... ]

Then - then go somewhere else. Or adjust the Porter's settings so it doesn't do that.

Go someplace else-- and do what? [A shake of the head.] Any place similar to where we come from's gonna want some sort of ID, and one from another timeline ain't gonna cut it. There'd be no records, and claiming I hopped off some transdimensional bus'd just get me committed someplace.

As for the Porter... they can't control it to begin with. How're you gonna adjust any settings?

You still wouldn't be dead. You could get fakes, you could - you could find other ways. Other people could go with you.

I'm a technopath. I could make it listen.

[ The more he grasps at straws here, the more desperate he sounds. ]

[There's another brief silent and short frown at that. Because dang, that blind hope and optimistic belief that there has to be away would be so nice to be able to actually believe. That they could all just pack up and go someplace where it was alright and they wouldn't have to worry about disappearing any day. So he closes his eyes for a moment and lets his head dip, sighing in resignation.]

Maybe that can be a project've yours. Try and get some access to the porter and talk to it.

[He keeps his own mixedup-fuckedup thoughts and unsure feelings on the situation to himself. Because-- Akihiko has to go back home. He has a fight to finish there. But Shinjiro doesn't expressly want him to have to go back home, especially when he has no interest in it himself, even were it a possibility.

So he'll just... keep quiet about that all.]

It's only the one in Canaveral that pulls people in.

[ Probably for the best right now. Trying to talk him out of it would just make him more upset - better to get in his way if it looks like he'll do something dangerous later. ]

That one, huh. I can focus there.

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hoboagogo - 2015-02-07 19:20 (UTC) - Expand

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microbrobotics - 2015-02-07 19:28 (UTC) - Expand

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