The Halloween store better not be waiting until then to actually open. [ but he concedes to the point about cats. ] ...do you want to go in and look? We can find something for you to take back to the dorm.
I guess. [ this may be to both statements. but he slowly follows her in, his usual demon crawling up out of his hood and onto his shoulder. ]
It's not so much that I'm looking forward to Halloween itself, but Halloween stores have some good stuff. I like browsing. [ sometimes you are just a goth. ] But it's not the worst holiday.
[ shame chirps happily at tama and bonks into her hand. hello friend. ]
Yeah, pretty much. I haven't really done the trick or treating thing. Sometimes camp has a party or traditions for Halloween but you can kind of imagine it's a little different than how mortals celebrate.
[ shame is the best baby. nico is just having to live with her fussing over his little cocoa puff spirit animal while he waxes poetic about halloween. ]
If it is close to Halloween, maybe we should do something like that. It’d be kinda fun to have like… costumes and snacks. Tokyo has huge dress up parties in the streets for Halloween, but I don’t think I’ve heard of trick or treat being much of thing outside of the west…? It’s a pretty new thing overall.
[ huh. ]
Like… Cornucopias, and wine or something like that? [ just assigns all of camp half-blood dionysus i guess. [
[ honestly she's valid i too would dote over shame and make nico live with his choices. ]
...you think maybe the city throws a party themselves? [ this is a thought. ] Even if they don't, there's nothing stopping us from doing something for ourselves. There are plenty of people from worlds who've never heard of something like that.
[ but he grins at that. ]
Wine's not allowed on camp grounds so long as Mr. D's working there. But it's more like we face monsters every day, so it's not like there's anything really scary about it. Unless my father feels like unleashing a few things. [ or nico himself, but he's pretending he's a good child who would never do anything irresponsible despite the fact there are definitely instances of him raising the dead for his own amusement. ]
[ she’s doing it. shame is getting all the baby fusses. ]
Cities do that, yeah. Or, they just provide the means for local businesses to help run the party. Might as well make a tidy profit selling snacks at the edge of the street party, right? Everyone’s gotta eat.
[ hmmm. ]
So, if we want to spook you on Halloween, we’ve gotta try really hard then. [ …. taxes. ]
[ that's fine, shame is trying to crawl out of nico's hood and into tama's arms. fwend?
nico is warily watching this. ]
Considering the party they threw to introduce us to the city, maybe I won't be surprised if something like that happens. I also wouldn't be surprised if it was a costume party, again.
[ but there's a sharp grin. ]
Nothing scares me, Tama. But I welcome you to try. [ this is patently false but the things that scare him are very sane and rational things such as losing everyone he loves, being trapped in small places and forgotten, his mind shattering to thousands of pieces, etc. ]
[ fwend. oh my god she’s just like. sparkle eyes at this. shame is here for cuddles. they literally came to a pet store and tama was like no i want snuggle the one i already know ]
Maybe it’ll be a little less… formal. And a bit more fun?
[ she can only hope. it wasn’t a bad party but it felt very showy. ]
Everyone has something that scares them. I just hope you don’t have to deal with those things. [ the sane and rational things are the hardest. but also from my end i would never give britt the luxury of death, so. ]
[ tama your dorm pet??? it's fine shame will cuddle and nico just sort of shakes his head. okay. that's fine. ]
I would definitely like less formal. [ he truly hated every minute of being perceived by the whole town. ] Parties are meant to be fun in the first place, aren't they?
...we'll see. [ because he is getting the point that tama can cut through his bs, so. ] Only time will tell, right?
I don't think a lot of people would disagree on doing one ourselves. We have enough money to buy everything. So why not? [ shrug. also, it's better than thinking about the inevitability of some of them dying.
speaking of...tama says that and he goes quiet. he thinks maybe he shouldn't ask, but he also thinks maybe she'll kind of understand if he does. ]
...Tama. If something happened to Ryuki, what would you do?
It could be fun to plan too. Everyone dresses up, we get food from somewhere, maybe order drinks from the cafe...
[ oooooh. ooh.
the joy doesn't really last though. ]
... I don't think that's the best example, Nico. There is no me without Ryuki. [ literally. she's programmed to be ryuki's partner. she doesn't even want to think about him not being there, having to adjust to a new psyncer. it makes her feel ill deep down to her stomach in ways she has never experienced or understood before. like her program has glitched and refuses to reboot. ] If he didn't make it home, I'd wipe my data and Tama wouldn't exist anymore.
[ yeah, he has that effect on people. he doesn't argue that it's not the best example, but he listens and seems to sort things out in his head in a way that makes sense to him.
without ryuki, there's no tama. but is there a ryuki without a tama to begin with, too? ]
...you were made for each other then, in a very literal sense. That's why you're always watching him. [ gods. ] This is just another reason we have to find a way for multiple teams to win.
He’s important to me. Not just because I’m meant to be his partner, but because he’s Ryuki, you know? I want to keep him safe, because he does the same for me.
[ … ] He’s a idiot who takes on too much and doesn’t accept help easily, but he deserves more than he gets from most people. And more than he lets himself have.
[ he isn't sure he's allowed to say he understands given tama just said it's not the best example, but he feels like he can understand that, at least. also. that sounds familiar. for reasons. weird.
so he nods to show he's listening, and he's quiet for a moment to draw up the appropriate words. ]
...all the more reason it's a good thing you have each other. So you can remind him of those things, and be around when he doesn't think about it. It makes sense. It's both a lucky and probably scary thing to have.
[ weird! i think the funniest thing anyone could do this game is kill tama/ryuki and will/nico and leave the surviving person to just lose it. also lowe for endgame. ]
If he listens. He’s pretty stubborn, although you wouldn’t think it from how easy he is to push around. [ she really just went from this man is my life to And he’s sooooo Bulliable in 0.5 seconds. ]
And… other things. Battling with yourself is pretty hard.
[ please let lowe live to an endgame, begging. anyway, shame is still vibing with tama and it means it gives nico a prime time to look away from her and pretend he's wandering around the pet shop so he doesn't have to acknowledge that he knows exactly what she's talking about. ]
The man gave me his jacket just because I complained about my pikachu costume. Stubborn isn't the word I'd think of, but you'd know better. [ heh. ] ...but, knowing you, you don't often let him fight that battle by himself. Do you?
[ please. let lowe live. i mean it would be cruel if someone blesses me with the graveyard and tama is just gone, honestly. but let lowe endgame. ]
He told me about that. You’ve not seen everything about him — when he’s determined to do something, he’ll pick himself up and keep going. [ that’s not always a good thing. ] But… everyone gets overwhelmed.
[ even then, she spent six years in his head watching him battle with himself and refusing to let himself stop, just because he felt he didn’t deserve it. like a relief and a fear all at once. like he’s going to just push himself too far one day and she won’t be able to stop him — either because she’s trapped in her AI form, or because it happens here and she can’t be there all the time. ]
I don’t have a choice here. That’s been a pain to adjust to.
[ stop don't fucking kill tama. he seems surprised that ryuki said anything, but also not because it would probably have to be explained because he figures tama probably noticed and asked. he is starting to pick up the sense that tama pays very close attention to ryuki, especially here. ]
Of course everyone gets overwhelmed. That's nature. [ he's about to say human nature but. you know. ] It's different here when you can't always see or understand the things that are happening to the people you've spent so much time looking after. And that kind of adds to the overwhelming nature of it all because you never know if someone's going to push themselves too far in an attempt to keep moving when we are having our hands kind of forced.
[ it’s been over two years, ty. the irony is he did tell her because she was like if you hate this kigu so much why are you in it and he was like well ]
Something like that. Among other things, but none of that’s mine to talk about.
doubly fair, actually, and he raises an eyebrow like "point taken." ]
Sure, understandable. But you get that this applies to you as well, don't you? [ nico: a strong believer in "literally can someone also take care of the caretaker." ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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I think people are assuming near Halloween? I'm not sure why though, we don't get dates in the paper.
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The Halloween store better not be waiting until then to actually open. [ but he concedes to the point about cats. ] ...do you want to go in and look? We can find something for you to take back to the dorm.
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[ ... ] Are you looking forward to Halloween, Nico?
[ she's already going in dude, there's pets to snuggle. ]
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It's not so much that I'm looking forward to Halloween itself, but Halloween stores have some good stuff. I like browsing. [ sometimes you are just a goth. ] But it's not the worst holiday.
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Oh, so it's the style you want rather than the partying and the trick or treating.
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Yeah, pretty much. I haven't really done the trick or treating thing. Sometimes camp has a party or traditions for Halloween but you can kind of imagine it's a little different than how mortals celebrate.
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If it is close to Halloween, maybe we should do something like that. It’d be kinda fun to have like… costumes and snacks. Tokyo has huge dress up parties in the streets for Halloween, but I don’t think I’ve heard of trick or treat being much of thing outside of the west…? It’s a pretty new thing overall.
[ huh. ]
Like… Cornucopias, and wine or something like that? [ just assigns all of camp half-blood dionysus i guess. [
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...you think maybe the city throws a party themselves? [ this is a thought. ] Even if they don't, there's nothing stopping us from doing something for ourselves. There are plenty of people from worlds who've never heard of something like that.
[ but he grins at that. ]
Wine's not allowed on camp grounds so long as Mr. D's working there. But it's more like we face monsters every day, so it's not like there's anything really scary about it. Unless my father feels like unleashing a few things. [ or nico himself, but he's pretending he's a good child who would never do anything irresponsible despite the fact there are definitely instances of him raising the dead for his own amusement. ]
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Cities do that, yeah. Or, they just provide the means for local businesses to help run the party. Might as well make a tidy profit selling snacks at the edge of the street party, right? Everyone’s gotta eat.
[ hmmm. ]
So, if we want to spook you on Halloween, we’ve gotta try really hard then. [ …. taxes. ]
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nico is warily watching this. ]
Considering the party they threw to introduce us to the city, maybe I won't be surprised if something like that happens. I also wouldn't be surprised if it was a costume party, again.
[ but there's a sharp grin. ]
Nothing scares me, Tama. But I welcome you to try. [ this is patently false but the things that scare him are very sane and rational things such as losing everyone he loves, being trapped in small places and forgotten, his mind shattering to thousands of pieces, etc. ]
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Maybe it’ll be a little less… formal. And a bit more fun?
[ she can only hope. it wasn’t a bad party but it felt very showy. ]
Everyone has something that scares them. I just hope you don’t have to deal with those things. [ the sane and rational things are the hardest. but also from my end i would never give britt the luxury of death, so. ]
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I would definitely like less formal. [ he truly hated every minute of being perceived by the whole town. ] Parties are meant to be fun in the first place, aren't they?
...we'll see. [ because he is getting the point that tama can cut through his bs, so. ] Only time will tell, right?
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Right? We should have more games and stuff. Not necessarily the drinking-- [ haha ]-- but something a little less formal would be nice.
Maybe we should do one ourselves, to be sure.
[ ... ] Right. Only time and... I guess luck. Not that it feels particularly lucky either way.
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speaking of...tama says that and he goes quiet. he thinks maybe he shouldn't ask, but he also thinks maybe she'll kind of understand if he does. ]
...Tama. If something happened to Ryuki, what would you do?
cw: is... is this like suicide talk????
[ oooooh. ooh.
the joy doesn't really last though. ]
... I don't think that's the best example, Nico. There is no me without Ryuki. [ literally. she's programmed to be ryuki's partner. she doesn't even want to think about him not being there, having to adjust to a new psyncer. it makes her feel ill deep down to her stomach in ways she has never experienced or understood before. like her program has glitched and refuses to reboot. ] If he didn't make it home, I'd wipe my data and Tama wouldn't exist anymore.
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without ryuki, there's no tama. but is there a ryuki without a tama to begin with, too? ]
...you were made for each other then, in a very literal sense. That's why you're always watching him. [ gods. ] This is just another reason we have to find a way for multiple teams to win.
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[ … ] He’s a idiot who takes on too much and doesn’t accept help easily, but he deserves more than he gets from most people. And more than he lets himself have.
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so he nods to show he's listening, and he's quiet for a moment to draw up the appropriate words. ]
...all the more reason it's a good thing you have each other. So you can remind him of those things, and be around when he doesn't think about it. It makes sense. It's both a lucky and probably scary thing to have.
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If he listens. He’s pretty stubborn, although you wouldn’t think it from how easy he is to push around. [ she really just went from this man is my life to And he’s sooooo Bulliable in 0.5 seconds. ]
And… other things. Battling with yourself is pretty hard.
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The man gave me his jacket just because I complained about my pikachu costume. Stubborn isn't the word I'd think of, but you'd know better. [ heh. ] ...but, knowing you, you don't often let him fight that battle by himself. Do you?
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He told me about that. You’ve not seen everything about him — when he’s determined to do something, he’ll pick himself up and keep going. [ that’s not always a good thing. ] But… everyone gets overwhelmed.
[ even then, she spent six years in his head watching him battle with himself and refusing to let himself stop, just because he felt he didn’t deserve it. like a relief and a fear all at once. like he’s going to just push himself too far one day and she won’t be able to stop him — either because she’s trapped in her AI form, or because it happens here and she can’t be there all the time. ]
I don’t have a choice here. That’s been a pain to adjust to.
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Of course everyone gets overwhelmed. That's nature. [ he's about to say human nature but. you know. ] It's different here when you can't always see or understand the things that are happening to the people you've spent so much time looking after. And that kind of adds to the overwhelming nature of it all because you never know if someone's going to push themselves too far in an attempt to keep moving when we are having our hands kind of forced.
[ hm. ]
Something like that?
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Something like that. Among other things, but none of that’s mine to talk about.
[ tama: adhering to HIPPA like a boss. ]
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doubly fair, actually, and he raises an eyebrow like "point taken." ]
Sure, understandable. But you get that this applies to you as well, don't you? [ nico: a strong believer in "literally can someone also take care of the caretaker." ]
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Not so much back home, but— it’s not too bad taking care of myself like this.
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