route_1065 | We are anything but unremarkable

Entry tags:

We are anything but unremarkable

Who: Johan and Kay
Where: Goldenrod City
When: Thursday, September 30
Summary: Revenge of the Date.
Rating: PG-13, but since it's these two, who even knows if it'll get that high.
Log:

It was cold, and she was without her muffler, because Kay was now certain that one didn't wear mufflers on dates. And this wasn't a practice date, according to Johan-- which was something she'd been trying to understand ever since he'd asked her. Sure, they'd had fun on the first one, but that had been practice for 777 (and she was beginning to wonder if that would even happen), so what was this for?

Kay didn't know, but she didn't make a habit of dwelling on things that she didn't need to dwell on, and she wasn't about to start now. Fun with her friend was fun with her friend, and if fun meant letting her hair down (as Kaito had recommended) and actually finding a decent non-white dress (she'd learned) and potentially freezing, then she'd do it! This was but a minor trial of adversity!

... No, Kay, it was a date, not a challenge. She could picture Mr. Edgeworth shaking his head at his assistant's competitive mindset already.

Once again she stood outside, though the urge to return inside where it was at least twenty degrees warmer was growing stronger by the moment. Maybe she should have at least grabbed a jacket... not that this was going to bother Johan, having attended school in Glacier Central (darn him).

"Round Two, huh?" she muttered to herself, and stretched up on her toes. "This should be fun!"

And she meant it.

Leaving her man-hating Crobat behind in the inn would probably be of some help, too.

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Johan really had to wonder if Kay had been on to something - this was the second time in a row that he'd been offered clothes and to be dressed up by a Nurse Joy, but... This time Johan chose to decline. Perhaps it wasn't the best idea, given when he (finally) found himself in the clothing store the day before he was relatively clueless. Luckily, the clerk was more than willing to give him a hand to help him find the navy outfit he wore now as he approached the outside of the inn, lazily stretching his arms behind his hair, which he had... attempted to tame this morning. Failed, for the most part, but he got an A for effort.

Ahead of him, he caught sight of a girl, and he blinked a few times. First, he caught notice of her hair, down from its usual ponytail and splayed out behind her. It was nice, not that it wasn't normally nice, but it was... Hm. If Johan had to put it into words, it was like dueling someone you dueled all the time and finding out they'd snuck a brand new, super powerful card in their deck just to surprise you with.

... Or something like that.

The next thing he noticed was her change of clothes (was that like sneaking in an super special field spell? ... maybe he should stop this analogy before it got to far) that, truth be told, made her look... really different. In a lot of ways, anyway. Not... bad ways, by any means, because Johan certainly find himself thinking anything bad about that - just the opposite, in fact - but it being different from the usual glove wearing, "Look at me and my attitude!" outfit that she normally wore. ... Not that that was bad either, it was just more... familiar, maybe?

... He was confusing himself again, wasn't he?

As he felt his hair move in the wind, he crossed his arms and tilted his head, idly wondering if she was cold, the main point of appoaching her, as any normal person would have done a good two minutes ago, temporarily forgotten.

She didn't know how long she'd been standing there (or, for that matter, how long he'd been standing there when she saw a flash of blue from the corner of her eye), but Kay finally turned her head to see Johan.

The wind was doing a great job of dramatic blowing, her hair taking the place of her muffler and moving softly from behind her back to over her shoulders. Anyone seeing the two of them facing each other, illuminated by the sun, might have thought some magical moment was about to transpire between the teenagers.

And then the girl gave her head a shake to settle her hair (as if that would work), propped a hand on her hip, and said cheerfully, "Yes, I'm Kay Faraday, so you can stop staring at me like I'm not."

"Eh--" Now that wasn't fair! She'd... caught him off guard was all-- That was it, who could not know what their partner looked like, after all! Mustering the most indignant look he could, magical mood be damned, Johan promptly closed the distance between the two of them.

"I knew it was you the entire time!" he informed her upon getting close enough to look her in the eye. And, for all intents and purposes, that was the truth. This time, anyway. On that note, he remembered something... Someone had said. Had anyone said it? It didn't matter, but he offered his friend a grin and gave her a pat on the shoulder. Whoever said it aside, he wasn't going to let her be the one to strike first today. He might not be able to top dapper, but... "You look really nice, Kay."

Much like how Kaito's comment concerning her hair had caught her off-guard, Johan's did much the same, carrying an additional impact, because it was Johan, who still didn't notice when the nurses in the Centers flirted with him. She hated to think that Mr. Edgeworth was more aware than a teenage boy (which was just plain sad), but she supposed that when you had someone coming at you as strongly as the Oldbag lady did, you'd have to be deaf and blind not to realize what she was after.

She didn't blush, though. Kay was too determined not to, even if she dropped her eyes for an instant to keep from meeting his, because looking at him would have made it that much harder.

Somehow, though, the compliment made her forget about how cold she was going to be by the time this ended or that her hair was bound to get in her face multiple times. It was just beginning, after all.

"Thanks," she replied lightly, grinning up at him. "You don't look so bad yourself!" And it didn't look as though another Joy had crammed him into a suit this time.

"Hehe, thanks! Pretty dapper, if I do say so myself," he added, teasingly at her. Luckily for Johan, with all the comments she threw his way about his "animal magnetism", he'd at least grown somewhat accustomed to this sort of thing. At the very least, though, he was probably more pleased to hear that Kay thought he looked good than he should have been - most certainly moreso than if a Nurse Joy had said it, that was for sure.

Now that that was out of the way... Stepping forward and almost completely closing the distance between them now, still wearing a grin, Johan removed his arm from Kay's shoulder (which was bare, he noted absentmindedly) and dropped his hands to his sides.

"So, ah..." Raising a hand to run it through his hair, he realized he might have gotten too close and stepped back just a bit. No sense in rushing things, right? ... Whatever it was he was rushing. Maybe he'd been thinking about what Rise and Kaito had told him too much now. "Do you want to get started?"

Kay didn't so much as blink when Johan suddenly invaded her personal space, nor was she surprised when he stepped back. She was too busy trying to figure out what they were doing. They'd done things on a whim last time, and it had worked out reasonably well, so were they going that route?

"I'm up for it," she assured him now, and would have adjusted her gloves... had she been wearing them. She took on her usual determined expression, though.

"In that case..." Johan stepped back again, though this time so he had room to move next to her and face the entire city, a curious, excited sparkle entering his eyes as he looked over the buildings, reaching higher and higher towards the sky, though never quite catching their goal of the sun. It was like they were like Johan and Kay, a little, with their own goal (or promise) to fly really high someday.

... With that train of thought, the first thing they should do seemed more than just a little obvious to him, and as it became clearer and he started scanning for a good spot, he unconsciously locked his arm with Kay's, shot her a grin, and started moving. "I think I've got an idea!"

She glanced first at him, noting that look in his eye with interest, and then followed his gaze to look out across Goldenrod. The buildings and the bustle reminded her of home more than any of the other (considerably smaller) cities so far. Sure, it wasn't anything like Los Angeles - which would always be home, regardless of where she'd been raised after her father's death - but it had that same spark of energy to it. It stirred up Kay's spirit every time she stood in it.

At the small tug to her arm and, realizing that Johan now had it captive, she laughed and easily adjusted her pace to keep up with him. She had no idea what his idea was, but months spent with Johan meant it was going to be a good one. He looked more optimistic than mischievous at the moment, anyway. "I'd say lead the way, but you're already on it! Keep going, then!"

"Hehehe, I plan to!" Johan informed her jovially, though truthfully, he probably would have kept going regardless of whether or not he had been told to. He was now, after all, a man on a mission, so to speak. A mission to head towards the tallest building in Goldenrod and take his date to the very, very top.

Hopefully she wouldn't catch on to his brilliant plan before they got there. In fact, Johan hoped this so much that, his grin widening just a bit, he started taking a completely different path. Let her think he got lost (perfectly possible) or that they were going somewhere else (also just as possible) for all he knew - that would make getting to the goal all the more worth it.

... Where was he going? It wasn't that Kay didn't trust him, because she did.

It was just that Johan taking point could only ever end in finding themselves in the exact opposite direction he'd meant to go. That had, in part, been what had spurred her to take off from Violet City almost immediately in hot pursuit of her missing friend; she'd been half-worried that he was going to end up under the sea instead of anywhere closer to his friends.

And she remembered the trouble he had getting out of Goldenrod the first time.

... Well, if it looked like they were leaving the city, she'd say something. For now, she just kept her arm linked in his, her normal bounce in every step, and kept her eyes open to see if she could figure out what he was up to before it took place.

He shot a glance at her every so often, just to make sure she hadn't picked up on where they were going. Of course, with him heading in nearly the opposite direction of his goal (just enough to keep it in the corner of his eye, growing ever closer to it with each turn), there was little chance of her picking up on it... So for now, deciding he had a little time until he could spring his surprise on her, he turned to her and smiled.

"Do you think we should stay here for a while? It seems like there's lots and lots of stuff to do here. And it's a nice place, too," he said thoughtfully. All plans seemed to, for the most part, go through either one of or both of them, but it seemed like they'd settled down here for now and he was curious as to what Kay's plans were. He knew he wanted to get a few more TMs before he left, but that was another story...

"That's what I was thinking." Kay smiled at him, already thinking about the things there were to do in this city. Like thoroughly peruse the department store, lament all of the shiny valuables that she could have stolen, had she not been a truth kind of thief, check out the casino that she'd always been too young to go into anywhere else, beat the Gym Leader, practice rooftop escape maneuvers-- the possibilities were endless.

There was also the chance that her kidnapper had gone this way, too. She didn't know whether he'd choose to linger in Goldenrod or not, but as long as there was the chance, she wasn't going to give up until she'd searched everywhere for him. She frowned a little at that, knowing it was more than likely that he'd continue to evade her, but sooner or later, she'd find him and make him pay for what he'd done.

"We didn't stay in Azalea for too long..." Understandably. "So why not spend some time here, right? The whole group could use it, and Kaito could do his shows here for a bigger crowd! And I want to get a better look at those evolution stones they've got for sale. They're so rare-looking..."

Was she sparkling? Perhaps.

Had Johan not been a more polite person, and had he not been paying attention to her, he might have looked around to see if Kay's sparkles were reflecting off of anything else around them, and if anyone else could see it. He hadn't gotten to see this side of Kay often, but when it came out, it was as plain as day to see what was going on in her head.

... Mental note. Get Kay an evolution stone if there was any money left over from the TMs and whatnot.

"Yeah, staying here sounds like a good idea," Johan finally replied, a knowing grin on his face in response to the bright sparkles still, well, sparkling around them. It was so... Kay, and it was rather warming to know he was there to see it. Warming? Whatever that meant. "So let's stay here for as long as we want then!"

The sparkles (nonexistent or not) faded in favor of a warmer grin. She liked traveling as much as anybody, but sometimes it was nice to just take your time and enjoy all of the sights (and treasures) that a city like Goldenrod had to offer.

And if it wasn't twenty degrees colder than she was used to, that would have been nice, too. Why did this always happen? Why couldn't the weather cooperate with warm temperatures when she decided to wear something other than her usual outfit? At least she still had her muffler then, even if wearing a skirt never helped her legs.

"Sounds like a plan to me, too." It was belated, but there nonetheless, and she pressed herself a little closer against him. Hey, if Johan was there, he might as well share the warmth.

"Eh?" He couldn't help but swivel around just a bit to look at her as she pressed herself against him. It wasn't that, and perhaps this statement should just go without saying at this point in their relationship, he wasn't used to Kay being close to him, quite the contrary as it happened.

Was it the dress? But he knew he'd seen her in a dress before - their first date was more than enough testament to that. Even so, having Kay in a dress (as opposed to Kay) pressed against him was a pleasant feeling. Pleasant enough that his "doofy" grin, one that to Kay might just be starting to grow infamous, started to form as he returned her pushing to completely close the distance between them by wrapping his arm around her and tugging her closer.

"How about this plan?" he asked teasingly, nodding towards her shoulders, now under his arm.

That was the nice thing about having a partner, Kay decided. They were there to follow-up on things without having to be prompted. She'd done Mr. Edgeworth the same favor by finishing his lines for him, but he'd never seemed to appreciate it. On the contrary, he seemed offended that she was "stealing" them, which only served to amuse her.

But unlike the prosecutor, she appreciated Johan's timely response quite a bit. Not only had she gotten warmer just by moving closer, but with his arm there, she was guaranteed to stay warm! That, and it was just... nice. Very nice.

... She was going to lose her train of thought if she got derailed by how nice this was.

"Weeeeeell..." Kay purposely dragged out the word, matching the playful tone of his voice with her own. "I like this one, too. You really do make a great heater!"

"A great heater?" He raised an eyebrow at that, and in the back of his mind, noted that his earlier suspicion had now been confirmed by her desire to have a heater of some kind. That aside, however, he was more concerned with the fact that she had laid out something such as that, and now it was his turn to lay down his own hand and take the prize. Whatever the prize in this case was, anyway - victory most likely.

... When had he switched from Duel Monster analogies to poker ones? Lack of dueling was really getting to his head, wasn't it?

"Is that all I am?" Johan continued, waggling his eyebrows and pushing out his just a lip, to offer the best teasing-slash-hurt expression he could muster. Blinking a little, as if trying to fight off tears, he shook his head and looked away - of course, looking away as he was, he made no move to separate from her. Now that would be just silly. "At least... I have some use to you...!!"

"Hey--!" Kay's automatic response died in her throat when she got a better look at his face (even though he'd turned away). He was teasing her again by pulling that Kicked Puppy face! Well, not this time. She wasn't going to be fooled by that face!

With a determined expression, she worked a hand free and used that to grasp his chin and turn it back in her direction. If he was going to tease her, she was going to retaliate!

She conveniently forgot that she had teased him first. Trivial details, really.

"You're Johan," she said simply, lips lifted in her usual smile. "The best partner, heater, and you make a good pillow when you sit still long enough. Oh, but I guess you're a good nurse, too. And lady magnet. And directionally-impaired."

... Was that how she was going to play? Well, two could play at that game, and Johan was confident in that fact. For now though, he planned on playing her game for just a little bit and see where it got him - she was certainly dressed the part for it, he couldn't help but note.

"Speaking of lady magnets..." Johan dropped the look and, now that she had brought him back towards her again, grinned widely at her and pulled her as close as humanly possible with his arm - her arm on his chin be damned. "You know, I'm not sure if you've noticed, Kay, but you're dressed like a lady today. And I've got you stuck to me like a magnet, now don't I?"

... Exactly where he was going with that, Johan wasn't sure, but he hadn't thought that far ahead. He would act first, then ask questions later.

Dressed like a lady, huh? So was he saying she wasn't a lady normally? Kay's more feminine side protested this wholeheartedly, even if it was true. Kind of. So maybe she was a tomboy, but still!

She would have said something, but discovering that there was practically no space between them was making it hard to focus on being as indignant as she should have been. She did release his chin, which... she hoped counted for something.

Well. First things first, she wasn't going to back down now, and she lifted her head to stare into Johan's eyes. "The clothes don't make the girl," she reminded him. "And I'm immune, remember? Sorry, Johan, you're out of luck."

While Johan hadn't meant what Kay was thinking at all, he was far from being knowledgable or experienced in this area, as just about anyone could tell you; so intentions aside, he remained mostly oblivious to the great offense he had bestowed upon Kay just then. That was probably for the best, in any case.

He tilted his head just slightly as she let his chin go, and some part of him... somewhere that many would think didn't even exist, protested that, but otherwise Johan didn't mind - Kay clearly had something to say, and who was he to interrupt his partner when it was her turn?

"Hehe, I know..." He shook his head, managing to break from Kay's determined gaze, and glanced ahead. Realizing they weren't too far from their destination, started walking again and continued with a tone that, while just as teasing as always, spoke of mystery. "But maybe it's not me that's out of luck, eh?"

Who said he didn't have his moments of insight?

... If only he knew whether or not he was actually being insightful.

"No," she informed him solemnly, though her pace hadn't faltered in keeping up with his slightly longer strides. "I'm pretty sure it's you." She was immune to his charms-- to any charms used on her, and not just his. If Johan without a shirt had surprised her, it was because he just looked scrawny the rest of the time! Anyone would have been surprised to see their friend like that! And so what if sometimes it was hard to think when he was close to her? That could have meant anything. Practically snuggling could be platonic. And if ever did fall for someone, she would...

Kay's eyebrows furrowed just slightly. She'd support him, of course, but there was some part of her just didn't like the idea. But why? They were friends, and if Kaito hadn't gone suggesting some weird things about the two of them--

I guess I'm not as immune as I thought...

Where had she... had she said that at some point? She didn't think she had, but the thought itself gave her a sense of deja vu.

She'd since fallen silent, just thinking. Before Kaito had said something, she'd probably realized it back in Azalea. If it really was true, anyway. Just how long had she been fighting against it?

And what was she going to do about it?

"Is that so...?" Kay's change from tease to serious didn't go unnoticed, and with that in mind, Johan decided to let the subject drop. Her expression, now that of a frown, was something else he noticed, and it was clear that his comment had put her through the ringer to... some extent. It was rare she simmered down to get so thoughtful like that - it would take an inconsiderate monster to not notice that. ... Or at least someone other than Johan.

... Well, in any case. some might want to press the topic, seeing as it was an important one, and one that potentially affected and, at the very least, concerned both of them - Johan, however, had a much bigger concern: Kay's current lack of smile, and he knew that he was ever within a mile of a Kay without a smile, it was up to him to fix the situation. He could think about this later, once she was smiling and laughing and telling him about the nurses (the nurses that surely weren't half as bad as she claimed) again. There was time, and to that end, the less time she spent with that expression, the better.

Some might say he needed to get his priorities in order, but Johan thought he had them lined up just right.

"Hey, Kay," Johan started quietly, looking down at her tentatively, making sure to get her attention before going headlong into breaking her train of thought. He nodded ahead of them, towards the building they had been steadily approaching from the start - the tallest one in all of Goldenrod, no less - and turned back to her. "Look."

"Huh?" Abruptly jarred from her thoughts - probably a good thing - Kay shook her head to clear it completely and looked up.

... And up.

... ... And up.

If anyone knew Kay, it was that it took very little to make her happy, or get her enthusiasm up to almost dangerous levels. And right now, gazing up at what had to be the tallest building in the city (which meant a whole lot of stairs to ascend without a decent rope ladder), she was thrilled and enthusiastic-- and looking at Johan as if Christmas had just arrived early.

"Johan," she breathed, tugging at his sleeve. "Can you imagine what kind of entrance you could make from that?? Even the Jammin' Ninja never had something that high!!"

As soon as Johan saw Kay's expression, he knew that this had been the right choice for their first stop. She lit up like a candle, and he was almost tempted to wrap himself around her just to keep her from bolting away from him - though he didn't think she would really do that.

... Probably.

"Hehehe, I can! And better yet-- Maybe you'll be able to show me sometime..." he paused, a wide grin coming to him, then began leading her towards the building. "But the only way to really figure it out is to get up there, isn't it?"

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