Just got to chase the pain away

[superordinary]

Who: Makoto Naegi (superordinary) and Kiyotaka Ishimaru (ardent)
Where: Ice Path (and Blackthorn later)
When: February 13th and onward
Summary: Two dangans and a bloober versus a cave full of ice. This will end in idiocy.
Rating: PG at the most. Also, spoilers for DR may come up.
Log:


[ When Mondo left Johto, Ishimaru couldn't stay there in the Dangan house anymore. He had to leave. So Naegi decided to go with him — letting him wander off on his own would be one hell of a bad idea and Naegi was quick to suggest that the two of them should go to Blackthorn City. He's heard many great things about the city's famed hot springs and getting the chance to soak and relax in the water would do them both good, he thinks. They've definitely earned it.

Now, what stands between them and their destination is the Ice Path and as the name implies, it's full of ice and snow. The inside of the cave is practically one giant thick sleet of ice with frosted stones on the ground and icicles adorning the ceiling, sparkling in the sunlight coming in from outside. It's actually rather beautiful, if you don't mind the perpetual chill.

The slimy little bloober that's been in their company for a total of thirty minutes seems to mind, however. The poor thing's freezing but for some bizarre reason it seems insistent on braving the cold instead of turning back. ]

...Hey, uh. That thing is still...following us, Ishimaru-kun.

Comments

[ardent]

...Do we have to call it anything?

[That's just asking to get attached to it. We are not getting attached to it; we're taking it to Blackthorn or...finding its herd or something, and then we are letting it go.

But since "slime thing" would, in fact, be pretty rude...hm.]

I don't know. Jutarou, maybe?

[superordinary]

[ Maybe it's because of the cold, but Naegi seems to tense up when Jutarou is suggested. ]

...I don't like that name.

[ardent]

[...Ah.]

Is there any particular reason?

[superordinary]

That's the name of a person I met who has a grudge against me.

[ Yes, such people do, in fact, exist. ]

[ardent]

I find that hard to imagine, Naegi-kun - but if you insist.

[He's not going to call you a liar or anything, but really, what could you possibly have done.]

[superordinary]

He got arrested because of me.

[ ...Might as well start telling the entire story behind that grudge. ]

[ardent]

[That would be apprecia- ...wait what]

...How so?

[Naegi-kun did you actually exact justice on someone]

[superordinary]

...Do you remember hearing anything about a hostage situation on a bus in Suginami? It was in the news.

[ardent]

[He has to think about it for a moment, but...]

I believe so, yes - that was some time ago, though, wasn't it?

[superordinary]

Yeah. It was before we entered Hope's Peak.

[ ... ]

I was the hostage.

[ardent]

R-Really? But...!

[Naegi, what did you do - ]

What happened, exactly?

[superordinary]

I went to return a cellphone to an old man who forgot it. But I ended up tripping and I grabbed onto a bag. It was torn open and a bunch of jewelry spilled out.

[ Naegi's life, everyone. ]

It was all stolen jewelry and he wasn't happy to be exposed like that.

[ardent]

...The more I hear about this sort of thing, the more I start questioning the odds of someone getting as ironic a title from Hope's Peak as you did.

[superordinary]

[ Ishimaru... ]

...It happened on the day I received the acceptance letter to Hope's Peak.

[ardent]

[but is he wrong, though]

I'm not normally one to believe in such things - that's more Hagakure-kun's specialty - but that's an omen if I've ever heard one.

Were you all right? After all of that...

[superordinary]

..Yeah. He threatened me with a knife and forced me into the driver's seat and forced the driver and the passengers to gather the jewelry. Then some things happened and... Well, he left the bus and I was told to go after him.

[ He's not even joking here. The passengers told the teenage boy who was just being held hostage five minutes earlier to go after a fully grown man. ]

[ardent]

...Did you?

[He sort of hates that he suspects he knows what the answer to that is.]

[superordinary]

It's not like I had much of a choice... [ Translation: where is that spine when he needs it. ]

I watched him speed away on a motorcycle but suddenly it flipped over and there was an explosion. Thankfully he wasn't hurt too badly, but it was enough to knock him out until the police came.

...What caused the motorcycle to do that was a can of soda I dropped earlier that day.

[ardent]

...Well, that's fortunate at least.

[You can practically hear the "But still..." in his voice here, though.]

Naegi-kun, you really need to not do things like that just because people tell you to!

[superordinary]

It's, um, hard to say no sometimes...

[ ... ]

D-do I give off that impression? Like...do I look like someone who's easily taken advantage of?

[ardent]

[Ishimaru falls quiet at that; he's definitely still there, he hasn't retreated off into his head again, but he's clearly not too sure how to answer it, and if anything the question is striking him strangely.

He's rather aware that there are some things that just...single people out like that, some sort of social mark that renders them different from others; he's just never really been good at identifying what they are or seeing them in others.]

Well, you do tend to give off the impression that you'll do what you're told without questioning it too much. Especially if the request is given forcefully enough.

[superordinary]

[ Naegi shifts the slimeball burrito in his arms to free a hand so he can retrieve some Pokémon food from his backpack. The bloober's been very docile thus far and content to stay still. It trusts you servants to carry it to its destination so it doesn't have to put in effort anymore. c: ]

That's... [ Painfully true, he thinks. ] ...You're right.

[ardent]

[...Oh my god. It's Togami in slimeball form.

Anyway. Ishimaru just kind of tips his head a bit at that agreement; clearly, he has thoughts, it's just...putting them in order. Easier said than done nowadays.]

You aren't always like that, though.

[ :|a ]

As terrible though the situation was, in the trials you were very confident; you weren't afraid to tell us no then, or point out when we were blatantly in the wrong.

[superordinary]

...I kind of had to be be, when our lives were at stake. I'm not sure how I managed to do it, but I forced myself not to back down and to keep going until the case was solved.

[ardent]

[Ishimaru folds his arms at that, though he doesn't seem to be feeling confrontational about it; it's more to give himself something to do than anything.]

Right. You have a good amount of inner fortitude, I think; you could stand to use some of that strength and tenacity for yourself as well.