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[Since wiping out the last of the Heartless that had been roaming the island, Kai had for all intents and purposes ceased to exist. He'd holed himself up in the room he shared with Tenar and spent as much time sleeping as he could get away with. The younger boy had managed to drag him out of bed a few times so Kai would shower and eat, but he kept to himself otherwise. What he'd done...it was inexcusable. How could he have let himself slip so far? 'In control of it', sure. More like it had taken control of him. He hadn't given a thought to Ryou or Karasu-

In fact, not giving a thought to either of them right now is the best comfort he can give himself. Instead he's curled up on the couch in a blanket, sketching away, intent on losing himself in the lines of the drawing he's trying to replicate. Tenar had taken Surge out earlier, and Kai has a feeling if the kid comes back to find him in bed again, he's going to get dumped right out of it.]

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Not those ridiculous things with the miniature gingerbread men all over them, I haven't seen you in anything like that. [Ha, thank goodness for small favors.]

I know that now. But I was seven and it seemed like a really good idea at the time.

[Kai leans his sword against the side of the couch and takes a seat again, giving Ryou a hopeful grin.] You could help me plan them out, maybe?

[Not the best idea, all things considered, but it wasn't as if he wanted to put in anything deadly. It was just a tree house.]

...those don't sound all that bad.

[Ryou has no fashion sense.

He gives a firm nod. Considering the spirit, it's not the best plan, but even so... it sounds like a lot of fun. He sets his sword on his knee, running a hand over it to check for abrasions. Nobody wants splinters while playing with toy swords...]

Un! I'm good with traps, so I'll help for sure!

[No kidding. That response just gets a stare out of Kai before he snickers to himself, grabbing his soda. Okay, now he's actually going to see if he can find one of those in people size.]

Not at Christmas. Most sane people wouldn't be caught dead in them otherwise.

[He watches Ryou check the sword, almost pouting.]

They're not my best work, but I don't think it'll kill you. I really should do them over, those took about fifteen minutes. I was trying to teach Piko to sword fight. [The memory of the younger boy saddens him for a moment. He'd been the second person Kai'd gotten close to in the early days who'd just vanished.]

I guess I'm not exactly sane then~!

[Ryou grins, not offended at the least.]

I didn't think it would kill anyone. I was just wondering if it needed filing or anything.

[...Kai's change in expression concerns him and he reaches out to pat him on the shoulder.]

Piko-san? Another of your friends from home?

You're probably the sanest person I've met! Then again, I think my basis for comparison is warped to begin with.

[Ah, family. Always good for the head-scratching moments.]

Huh, maybe. I really just dismantled the first easel I saw, didn't check it or anything. [Kai smiles at the touch, shaking his head.] Naw, I met him here. He's younger than us, a Vocaloid like Rin.

[Kai has a nickname for her - Screwdriver Girl. Really, she was going to chuck that through a random portal? He's glad she tried the paper airplane first.]

He's really friendly, and kind of reminds me of you, now that I think about it. But I haven't seen him for months now.

Rin...? I don't know anyone by that name. What's a Vocaloid?

[Ryou blinks at him with wide, curious eyes. Drawing up his legs - ow ow ow - he hugs them to his chest and leans on his knees, looking over at Kai.]

At least he's probably happy at home, right? That's something to be grateful for.

[Augh Ryou, stop being cute. Kai wants to muss his hair again; he looks like the kid brother all ready for story time. Valiantly resisting the urge, Kai sets his soda back down instead and shifts a bit to face him.]

Blond girl that likes throwing things into strange portals without knowing what- or who is on the other side. She has this roadroller thing- [And he thought he was weird.] But Vocaloids are androids built to sing and stuff.

[There was that, wasn't there? Better to hope he was home than to think of anything else.] Yeah, you're right. Wonder if he's still got that crush on Miku. ...Now I miss teasing him.

[Singing androids...? Like robots? The thought is kind of bizarre. Who builds an android solely for the purpose of singing when there's so many real singers out there?

...well, at least Kai's technically preparing him for if he ever meets them, because the last thing he wants to do is blurt that question out.]

A singing android that uses a roadroller and randomly throws things into strange portals?

[She sounds kind of... crazy. Come to think of it...]

I think Shoutei lives with her... He mentioned a girl named Rin before.

[Though he didn't mention the robot part. Now he doesn't have to feel sorry for him living with a girl at least!]

It's really sad when friends are separated, but I'm sure he's thinking of you fondly.

Shoutei? [C'mon Ryou, his Japanese sucks. Okay, it's nearly non-existent, but somehow he doesn't think that's a proper name. Maybe he's wrong.]

That must be fun. [Kai flushes suddenly as he realizes how that can be taken.] I mean- Not like that, and she's a robot anyway and-

[He's starting to think of Karasu again, and for once the blush fades instead of worsening. Okay, changing the subject, or trying to...]

Yeah, well, I'm not that memorable. [Before Ryou has a chance to protest, Kai smirks.] Though maybe the Creeper couldn't forget me if he tried. [He's only half-kidding. Being forgotten by him wouldn't be that bad.]

Ah... Shoutei's what I call the other me. Uhm. The other Ryou, not... the spirit. There's another one of me running around here, from some sort of parallel dimension.

Neither of us... are really good with girls at the best of times, so I was worried about him rooming with one. He probably spends most of his time pretty on edge, since he never mentioned she was a robot or anything. He probably doesn't know.

[He rubs the back of his head again, awkwardly. Normal girls are really annoying... Almost carelessly, a voice rises up in the back of his mind, a bare hiss of coldness.

Hehe... who knows? I've forgotten more important things than an annoying brat...

Ryou's fingers tense against his hair.

Be a good boy and tell him that, won't you, Master?]

Uhm. He says... he's forgotten more important things than you.

[What, you can't repeat things properly?
Don't be mean...
Heheh...]

I don't think you're that forgettable.

Edited 2014-03-01 22:48 (UTC)

Yeah, you mentioned there was a while back, I just didn't know you knew him well enough to call him something besides 'the other you'. ...Kind of glad there's not another of me here, geeze.

[Having a twin would be neat, but not if they acted like him.] Hey, awkward around girls, join the club. Although back in school, I was never that bad around them, they were just girls that liked video games. Never gave them much thought otherwise.

[Kai goes still at the message before shrugging, a half-grin sliding into place. Oh boy, he's so insulted.] Not like I'd mind.

We had to think of something. It's kind of weird trying to address someone who's basically you. That's why I call him 'shoutei'. It means little brother. He calls me Aniki.

[Ryou laughs a little, shaking his head.]

I... don't really like girls all that much. They're always really pushy and annoying. Girls like Anzu-chan are alright, but Shoutei and I aren't the biggest fans of normal girls.

...

[Oh god Anzu would kill him if she heard that!]

Ah, sorry-! I shouldn't have said that in such a demeaning way! Anzu-chan is totally normal! Just not... girlish...

[Sigh.]

I'm kind of lucky she wasn't here to hear that...

I can imagine. So Aniki is something like 'big brother' then? [Yep, adding 'learning new languages' to the list. Or bits of them.]

Hey, my mom was pushy and annoying, but nothing close to normal! [Does he sound like he's pretending to be offended? Maybe, but the laughter in his voice is blowing that one.]

Most of the ones I knew would hurt you for implying they were girlish...

[Ha ha, poor Ryou. Kai cackles for a second before clearing his throat and trying to appear serious.] Very lucky, if you're that worried what she'd think. Though...maybe we should find you a boyfriend!

[Kai's definitely teasing now, even though he's managing to keep the serious expression in place. Revenge.]

Un, that's right! But it's only really used if you're pretty close to them.

[He can't help but be amused at the comments on the girls, shaking his head.]

Most of the girls I know from Domino High are super girly. I used to have a little cheerleader squad made up of some of them. They kept following me around and fussing over me. I never knew how to react, so I just tried to ignore them, but it's kind of hard to ignore girls who won't take a hint and leave you alone.

Anzu-chan can be really scary!

[The last part, however... that makes him jump and go beet red.]

Ehhh, no, it's fine! I'm happy being on my own! Besides, it'd probably just cause a whole lot of trouble for people!

R-really... There's no need to make jokes like that!

A cheerleader squad? [Oh Light, bad memories there. Okay, not bad, exactly, but when he'd first taken 'Jem in it was almost hero worship, and that had driven him up a wall. Talk about not deserving it.]

...Heh, 'Jem was like that once, sort of...She outgrew it. Or finally listened to my protests, I'm not sure which.

[Awe, puppy brother's turning the color of some of his best red paint. Perfect. Resisting the urge to laugh, Kai leans forward, fixing Ryou with a brilliant smile.]

Who said I was joking? You could give it a shot. I could even put up a wanted poster on the bulletin board! Or maybe in the nurse's office, more people would see it that way.

Yeah... with the pompoms and everything. It was like that from the moment I came to school. I still remember being dragged around by them to show me where everything was...

[Ryou shudders. But the other part... Augh, if Kai did that, Malik would kill him. He knows Malik is really attached to the spirit, and because he thinks of Ryou and the spirit as being the 'same' thanks to their body... He'd probably get really jealous if Ryou did anything like that. Their little discussion the other night had pointed that out too.

...and if he didn't get mad, he'd tease like crazy. That'd be almost worse.]

Please, don't! I don't want anything like that. Besides... the kind of people that would answer something like that are probably really scary people.

Ugh, I could barely stand 'Jem's hero worship, something like that would've killed me. You're a stronger man than me.

[He should leave the poor kid alone now, right?

In a second.]

I could always try and weed out the lunatics! Well, I might not catch all of them. [Kai frowns and sits back, seeming to give the subject serious thought.] Maybe they can fill out a questionnaire- naw, no one tells the truth on those things...

[A long moment of silence passes before he shrugs and smirks at Ryou.]

I guess we're even for the 'crushing on the Creeper' joke, huh?

I just tried to keep my head low and put up with it...

[Ryou gives him the most deadpan look he can manage.]

You're lucky you were joking. If you ever did that, I'd have to kill you in your sleep.

[...it's probably the least threatening death threat Kai's ever gotten.]

I guess we're even.

Still, maybe you deserve an award. [He'd make him one, but naw. Better to leave him alone about it. Oh, that look! Kai's really, really...on the verge of snickering. Nope, be mature.]

Who said I'd be sleeping where you could find me?

[It's actually only his second. Well, from a different person. Still, definitely the least threatening one ever.]

Good!

[With that exclamation and a happy grin, Kai grabs for more cookies.]

I can find you anywhere you go~! This Ring responds to me too, you know!

[Ryou laughs playfully, unaware of whether or not Kai actually knows how the Ring works, but telling him anyway.]

[Since his mouth's full, all Ryou gets is a raised eyebrow at that. Until he finishes the first cookie, anyway.]

Maybe not anywhere. I still have secrets of my own, you know.

[Kai may or may not be bullshitting with that.]

Anything else I should know? Besides not underestimating fluffy puppy brother. [Hey, now that reminds him...Kai reaches over and taps Ryou on the shoulder with the other cookie.]

I dub thee Short Stuff.

Ehhh, but I'm not all that short!

[He's 5'7! That's nowhere near tiny! Especially when he hangs around with people like Yugi and Anzu.]

Uhm... I've never tried to do anything with it but find people. Supposedly I can do whatever 'he' can, if I'm willing to learn it. That's what Sibyll-san told me 'he' said to her anyway. But it's not like I know what it can do anyway...

I'm what, half an inch taller, I think? Therefore, you're officially Short Stuff! [Sorry Ryou, better accept it before he thinks of something worse (and that possibly makes no sense at all).]

Ugh, how much of your soul would you have to give to do that? [Making a face, Kai takes a bite of the dubbing cookie and swallows.] I know I'm not one to talk, especially now, but I wouldn't recommend it.

[Definitely not one to talk.]

Ehe... He can't get rid of my soul, or he'd have done it by now.

But... [Sigh.] It's not like I have enough darkness in my soul to use dark magic like that anyway.

[Kai is such a hypocrite... But he's polite enough not to comment on it, though he can hear the spirit laughing in the back of his head.]

I'm nowhere near short... Nor a puppy.

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