[BitP:R] Mortal World 3

[Kuroimaken]

Further sliding would eventually prove necessary. Good ol' Hasunaga was apparently smart enough to shield them from view as Sora approached, though subtly enough.

And ohgodit'shimoratleastsomeonewhoreallylookedlikehim .

Oh, Photoshape. What would I do without you.

[Terry576]

Sora's eyes bulged out. Those photos would wreak havoc with his reputation. He could never claim to be the 'apathetic bastard of Phoenix high' with something like that floating around.

"Alright, Ha....suna...ga-sen...sei. I... I think I can... talk about what Yui has been teaching me."

He shudders.

"In return... I want those pictures. Immediately."

[Kuroimaken]

"Not so fast. What kind of a blackmailer would I be if I gave away my leverage without you telling me what I wanted to know first?

Have a seat. Let's order you a decent cup this time. My treat."

[Terry576]

Sora sits down.

Reluctantly. Those pictures had to be burned immediately.

"And never spoken of ever again."

[Kuroimaken]

He called a waitress over.

"Double mocha cream latte. Extra cocoa."

And then, he turned to Sora.

"Let's start with the basics. Where do you know Yui from and why does she seem so interested in you?"

[Terry576]

Sora shifts nervously in his seat. He's still distracted by the fact that Hasunaga somehow has a picture of him in a bunny outfit.

"I met Yui a while back, with another... friend, of mine."

He stares at the man quizzically.

"Interested in me? Yui's just... nice. She's been teaching me some stuff."

Like hell he was going to tell Hasunaga what Yui was teaching him.

[Kuroimaken]

"Oh look, my SyPhone happens to have digital copies! Now how did I upload these again?"

Hasunaga looked genuinely amused, though not because of Sora's discomfort. Old Snake had his way of making people uncomfortable, didn't he?

"What kinds of things?"

PLEASE say it ain't the birds and the bees. PLEASE.

[Terry576]

Sora shifts in his seat, incredibly awkward.

"She's teaching me howtobemorenormal."

The last part is said very quietly and quickly.

[Kuroimaken]

So it's a different kind of birds and bees.

"What else does she know about you, or you about her?"

Oh look, it's Sora's double mocha cream latte.

"Savor it. Slowly."

[Terry576]

Sora takes a sip, and falls into a kind of heaven. Mountains collapse. Worlds collide. Explosions everywhere.

"She knows about my... abilities. And I know that she finds life amusing."

[Kuroimaken]

"So let me get this straight - you're taking life lessons from a woman you know next to nothing about, whom would apparently love to see you in a bunny costume?"

Emotional responses. They're good to extract.

And easier to go with that amazing coffee.

[Terry576]

Sora nods, drinking more of that godly coffee.

It was truly the most delicious of treats.

[Kuroimaken]

The coffee must be kicking in pretty good. He didn't even blink at my mentioning the bunny costume again.

"Well, you really should pick your friendships more carefully, but I am not about to intrude on your love life."

With that, he put the pictures on the table. As well as money to pay for that coffee.

"Hope you learned what I meant with that coffee. Also, if you EVER give me the third degree again, you'll be lucky if the next picture is of you and Yui recreating a My Shotaro Pony movie on Wetube."

[Terry576]

Sora nearly chokes on the delicious, godlike coffee, as he grabs the pictures and bolts out of his seat.

Seriously. There's like a trail of smoke where he was sitting before.

"And now to burn these pictures to cinders! I think I left a lighter in the graveyard..."

Sora heads to the graveyard, shuddering as he sips the coffee. It's that good.

[Kuroimaken]

Such a silly boy. Did he really think I gave him originals?

[tgva8889]

Spoiler

Show

Kaito slowed his walking pace, but did not stop entirely. His expression was one of frustration, and almost exhaustion.

"I'm not mad at you, Kina. I think you had some good points. This whole thing is just a mess. She had not right to make demands like that, out of the blue.

You're right, though. There's a lot to think about. You've got my cell number, and Val's, and some of the others. Feel free to call any of us. Take care, Kina."

Barring further individuals attempting to slow him, he'll head for the exit and soon meet up with his mother, who will then drive him home for the evening.

Kina Yoshimoto - Stopping Kaito

"Okay! I will!" She smiles and nods, almost bowing slightly to Kaito. "We shall...speak later, Kaito!" Kina watches him go before she decides to take her own path out. She probably spends enough time waiting that Ken and Sayaka could run into her just standing there.

[Kasanip]

Sayaka
[School]

Sayaka sighed and bowed to Kaito's response to her.
She wanted to talk to Michiko, but the senior went away quickly.
So she turned to follow Ken and meet with Kina. For now, she is silent as she thinks.

If nothing happens, then it will be like before. But Sayaka couldn't pretend to be normal now. They knew. There would still be danger.
She tried to smile when they came to Kina.

Chiyoko smiles. "Well, she said she was coming here... but we could always meet her along the way."

Kazari

"Oh I see. Ok, maybe another time." Kazari agrees. Of course it is understanding Kazari thinks to meet older sister in such a way.

[horngeek]

"It would be nice to walk home together, though... I'll talk to my parents and see if they'll let me, okay?"

[Frozen_Feet]

[Hayashi Izumi, on her way to pick up her little sister]

Some distance from Chiyoko's school, a woman walks through the crowd towards Izumi. She's dressed in a suit and tie, and carries what seems to be folded-up newspaper of the day in her right hand. While the features of her face are quite youthful, her short dark hair is already graying, her skin is pale and thin as paper, and black veins surround her dark eyes. Either she's terminally ill, or wearing a tasteless amount of make-up.

Curiously enough, even though the streets are quite full of students going home and other residents of the good town, everyone keeps their distance to her. She doesn't look particularly threatening, yet other people have come to the conclusion she's better left undisturbed. She doesn't seem to mind, and casually flips the pages of her paper, smiling faintly all the while.

"Hayashi Izumi, I presume?", she asks, stopping and bowing slightly to her. "I'm Õta Yui. Would you mind if we talked for a bit?"

[horngeek]

[Hayashi Izumi]

Izumi's face is smooth, but if she wasn't controlling her expression, she'd be frowning. Not in annoyance, but in thought. "All right, Õta-san."

What does she want to talk about?

[Frozen_Feet]

"I take it you're a friend of Namikaze Sora?", the woman continues, seemingly pleased that the girl decided to stop for a while. "He's been staying with me and a friend of mine for a while now, and he's talked about you quite much. I wonder if you've kept a close eye on him for the past few weeks?"

[horngeek]

"When I've been able to, yes."

[Frozen_Feet]

The woman bobs her head slightly, dark eyes glinting as she eyes the girl curiously. "Is that so?", she says quizzically. "Then you know he's not had anyone else to look after himself for a good while now? He's been living in a graveyard, of all places. Has that not made you worried?"

[horngeek]

"...That... I was not aware of. It seems I misinterpreted what you meant by 'close eye'.

Sora has never told me of his living arrangements, and I did not pry into them- unless I received information that they weren't satisfactory, it's his own business.

This qualifies. Do you know how long this has been going on for?"

[Frozen_Feet]

"Months, at least", Yui replies. She then glances over her shoulder, down the street and towards the school. "You know, we can keep on walking if you're in a hurry. I wouldn't want to make anyone wait for you." She then turns to look back at the girl.

Oh hoh. She's quite pretty. I can see why Sora-kun might have taken a liking to her, Yui muses as she glances over her supple, young body, flowing black hair and... blue eyes? Curious from otherwise pretty normal japanese girl.

"He doesn't... like to talk about it, but I've gotten the impression that he has no parents or family to watch over him", she continues. "He hasn't eaten properly in ages either. Surely you have noticed how sickly he looks? I've been trying to set him on the right track, but I don't have time to police him. I'd like for someone to do that for me to see that it sticks."

"Has he been keeping less contact to you lately than usual? You haven't done... anything to give him a bad impression, have you? Like rejected him when he asked you out for a date?"

[horngeek]

Izumi nods, and keeps walking. "No, he hasn't asked me out. To be honest, if he had, that might be it... I don't see him in that way... but he hasn't, so that couldn't be it.

Listen, I'll try talking to him. Maybe about why he's looking so sick."

[Frozen_Feet]

Yui nods and smiles. "That sounds good." She then adopts a slightly more solemn look and voice. "Though I feel you already know what is wrong with him. You are this town's representative Shinigami, are you not?"

[horngeek]

"What's a Shinigami?"

...impressively, she manages to keep a straight face.

[Frozen_Feet]

"Exactly how it sounds. Are you saying Namikaze-kun lied to me?", the older woman asks non-chalantly. "I'd rather you not play ignorant, Hayashi-kun. But if you honestly don't know, I'll use words I'm sure you'll understand:"

"You are sole friend Namikaze-kun has. I said it already, but it bears repeating. Even if you don't care for him as much as he does for you, it's your duty to watch that he stays on the straight and narrow." There's a stern undercurrent to the otherwise soft tone of the woman.

"He is not a balanced invidual. I'm sure you have noticed it before. You're his last remaining connection to life, and the only thing keeping him from falling off the deep end. If you are not there for him, he'll fall - and it would be typical from someone like him to try and drag you down as well."

Yui watches Izumi's reaction as they approach the school yard. "From what I've gathered, you've been rather undemanding of him. I take that's the reason why he likes you so much. But know that there's a point at which allowance becomes avoidance of responsibility."

[horngeek]

"...fine. Yes, I'm a substitute Shinigami.

I will do what I can, but if I press too hard, he'll just close off entirely and go down even further. Thank you for bringing this to my attention, Yui-san."

"Given that he trusted you enough to tell you that about me, it might be a good thing if we went to him together on this. Not right now, though."

Izumi's route seems to be approaching the middle school.