clinic mingle

[beguiledcard]

FEATURING: Akira Kurusu, 9S, Goro Akechi, Noël Christenbell, Sora, Alexandre Tialys
WHAT'S HAPPENING? “office party” / clinic mingle! akira wants everyone to meet bc there are a lot of you now
DAY 054 ( 03/07 )
CONTENT WARNINGS: N/A
NOTES: this is open to cr of those listed above. please put the name(s) of the character(s) your toplevel is open to, otherwise this is a free-for-all mingle! feel free to note that you’re down with threadjacking if you want.

akira will be around, but i won’t be jumping into anything unless his name is in the subject line ( or you can pp / ping me at skiesonfire ).




[ At any point, people might spot this little guy. While it's always with Akira, there's a chance someone will get a shin tap or any other obvious show of affection, whenever Akira walks over.

Byakko cub just wants to say hi, really. ]

food (bc who doesn’t like it)

[ The clinic is currently closed to all non-emergency cases. But the treatment area itself is still closed off from anyone not in the process of treating patients, for the sake of keeping that area as sanitary as possible / available for said emergency cases.

---

Akira is perpetually grateful to have Noël, honestly… Thanks to him, he is now able to make curry - and he will be encouraging people to try this, in the event they ask about it. It’s not quite like what he could make at Leblanc, but it’s close enough that it may or may not taste like something straight out of a restaurant. But, for those who aren’t big on spicy (and… yes, it’s very spicy, which he will warn for), there are hotdogs, fruit, and various pastries.

Another blessing from Noël, is coffee beans. So there is plenty of coffee with proper sugar, creamer, etc. For anyone not big on coffee, however, there is tea, juice, and water.

Everyone is heavily encourage to chow down – Akira will be mentioning the food to people as they arrive, and everything is set up on a counter. There’s a dining area towards the back of the clinic, where everyone can sit down to chat and eat.

The entirety of the clinic is currently 100% soundproof, so some talking is allowed here. Akira will discourage high volume chatting, since there will occasionally be patients within the clinic (yes, the emergency area is on the opposite side, but y'know). ]

obligatory clean-up prompt

[ After everything that’s going to be eaten is eaten, he will begin putting everything away. If anyone offers to help, he’ll give them a job to tend to. It will be anything from putting food away to doing dishes.

There’s nothing particularly exciting about cleaning, but people are welcome to team up to complete or mess up at a task. Messes made while trying to clean up happens to the best of us. And breaking things is possible. ]



(( OOC: feel free to handwave characters being given a job to do, obviously. expect to find the medicine room locked ( except when in use ) during this particular gathering. ))

Comments

[lowkeycrazy]

[Something about Alex draws Akechi nearer.

On the trip, he'd gotten those same hints-- one of a gentle soul, so to speak. Despite his towering figure, he'd shown concern in Akechi and had tried to cheer him up. He hadn't been entirely successful, but he still offered an ear, should he ever need it.

But trust isn't something easily given by Akechi. It's fought for, tooth and nail, as painful and stressful as pulling teeth. Something urges him to lower his walls, but he is a paranoid and distrustful person by nature, too quick to assume others only want to use him...

... but at least at the moment, the veil of depression isn't nearly so heavy as it was on him before. He might not be ready to trust, but that doesn't mean he can't test the waters.

Once there's a pause in that humming, he speaks up:]

A fiery blade, the ability to animate objects and control over wind... that's quite a versatile set of skills you have.

[priwen]

[ Alex's mild manner doesn't change perceptibly, though there's a slight softening of his eyes as Akechi comes over. The youth still broods dark in his perception, though it isn't something he will mention outright. ]

I had to travel alone for a long time. I learned these out of necessity.

[ His voice is soft, perhaps a little surprising given the gaunt features of his species. ]

[lowkeycrazy]

Alone, hm?

[His voice is light and considering, and yet there's weight to the word. After all, "alone" is what he's known for most of his life. Sometimes, he thinks that he's been alone so long that the feeling of loneliness has been engraved in his heart, never to truly go away even if he were to be in trusted company.]

Were you searching for something?

[priwen]

[ The Elezen closes his eyes for a moment, a wistful smile touching his lips ]

I was.

[ A place to belong, the clues to his past, the knowledge of his past name. Admittedly, he never found the latter two. ]

I still am, even now.

[lowkeycrazy]

Even as we all fend for our lives? Well, I suppose you have to have something to do, in between the numbing silence, assigned tasks and silence maintenance.

[...he doesn't like how telling those words are. He's restless yet aimless, bored but unmotivated.

How pathetic. He quickly changes the topic.]

You said the skills you have, you've learned. Does it require some sort of innate ability?

[priwen]

[ If Alex had been pulled here a year or two earlier, he might have bristled at those words - the indignancy of having his own efforts brushed off. Yet, he's learned; that actions do not have to be recognized to have meaning, that one man's view is but a drop in the ocean.

Someone has to bear everyone else's pain. Each scar on his body marks a death that would have spelled someone else's end. This revelation lets him keep his calm, returning his expression to its usual thoughtfulness. ]

I have found it best to occupy oneself, even with mundane things. Work takes the edge of worry off.

[ Perhaps advice, but he isn't sure if Akechi will listen. ]

It depends on which skill. Are you referring specifically to magic?

[lowkeycrazy]

[He does need a way to occupy himself. Even though for much of his life he'd struggled with depression, he'd actively had his job and... other things to keep his mind occupied. He doesn't have that here, and it's taking his toll on him.

He gives a non-committal hum in response to the first part, then gives a light shrug.]

Let's use your animation of objects as an example.

[priwen]

[ So, a desire to learn. That, he can help fulfil, though it might be a little difficult in this instance. ]

By using certain reagents and imbuing them with elemental aether, you can give mammets and dolls a certain pattern of movement. This is a field covered under alchemy, in my home world.

[ The... elemental aether part might be a bit hard for Akechi to accomplish. ]

[lowkeycrazy]

[maybe he's just curious and definitely not looking to replace his social life with cute animated stuffed animals???]

Alchemy is mere science fiction in my world. [As are many things here.] What's aether?

[priwen]

[ To that, he merely tilts his head. Different worlds obey different worlds, he knows that. ]

Aether is the name for the life force of my homeworld. Some call it magical energy; mana. But mana and life energy are one and the same, back home. By imbuing objects with it, you can give them new properties.

[ Not really new life. Animated, yes - but there's always a difference between things that are born, and things that are made. ]

[lowkeycrazy]

Life energy... [He hums.] I do have... powers, but I'm not certain I would call it magical energy.

I'm not sure what I'm capable of would qualify.

[priwen]

[ Alex touches a hand to his chin in thought. ]

I could bring a crystal for you to test, if you like. I don't have any on me right now.

[lowkeycrazy]

Certainly. There's no harm in trying.

[He admires the cub in Alex's lap.]

You and Kurusu have grown close.

[Close enough for an exchange of gifts. And he might not have entirely meant to say that out loud, or for there to be maybe just a twinge of wistfulness to his voice. He blinks with realization, then shakes his head.]

Haku-chan has certainly done well in lifting his spirits. [And Akechi's, as well, judging by the fondness in his eyes for the plush.]

[priwen]

[ The two boys' relationship is very complicated, that much he can tell. Sometimes, he wonders if he is intruding - most people are not aware of his Echo unless he specifically tells it to them, and some things....

... there are some things that he wishes he never saw. ]

Would you like one, too?

[ He has a couple of other friends that he could make. Akechi seems like the sort to keep his problems to himself; in that case, then he might find a better confidant in something that did not judge.

Like, a plush. ]

[lowkeycrazy]

[He gives a start.]

M-me?

[Sorry, he's.. not used to being offered things like this? At least not from people other than shallow fangirls and boys, and Alexandre... didn't strike him as a particularly shallow person.]

You would do that?

[priwen]

[ if there be pain somewhere, then it should be rectified. if these humble hands can brighten even a single person's day, then it would be enough.

often, he is almost driven to question the mission that Hydaelyn pressed into his hands. but with such small things, he can still keep his faith.

so he nods, to affirm his words ]

I would. Do you have a preference?

[lowkeycrazy]

Hold on a moment. What would you have me give you in return?

[Certainly, this must be a deal of some sort?]

[priwen]

[ there's a beat before he replies, eyes clear and unclouded ]

I want you to be kinder to yourself. That's all.

[lowkeycrazy]

[He can't help it; almost every muscle in his body instinctively tenses, like he's ready for fight or flight. There's a slight edge to his tone that isn't entirely intentional. He's defensive.]

...what?

[priwen]

[ hah, it's hard to not show it, isn't it?

— but his gaze doesn't waver. his voice is firm, honest ]

I want you to be kinder to yourself. Everyone here is working hard, you included. I want to tell you, that I appreciate what you do. So, please, be kind to yourself. Only you know what you've been through.

[ because, that's what people need to hear, when they have no answer. even for himself, he too wants to hear it, but no one will say it to him.

that doesn't mean he won't tell it to others, though. ]

[lowkeycrazy]

[His eyes search Alex's, trying to figure out if he knows more than he lets on. It's a stark reminder that he doesn't truly know the capabilities of the people here. What if he were being manipulated, all completely without his know-how, just because he'd let his guard down?

Only he knows what he's been through, hm...

He responds, almost too serenely:]

And what gives you the impression I'm treating myself so poorly in the first place?

[priwen]

[ as much as he wishes, he can't hide from the eyes of the Echo.

still, alex is prepared. he motions to akechi's face, to his eyes. ]

You look tired. Everyone generally is, in a place like this. I'm not singling you out specifically.

[ that's not a lie. ]

[lowkeycrazy]

Hmmm.

[He somehow doubts that. It's a little... too on the nose, and his detective side can't dismiss it as coincidence. He doesn't suspect Alex is lying, but nor does he believe he is telling the whole truth.

But... if he insists...]

Perhaps a cheetah cub?

[... they make cute chirruping noises.]

[priwen]

[ the truth will come in time. for now, this acquiescence is enough. ]

I can do that. It may be a while, but I will deliver, rest assured.

[ a nod, to accentuate his statement. he hasn't seen a cheetah but he's been told they look like coeurls ]

[lowkeycrazy]

Do you intend to offer the same thing to others, then?

[He did say he wasn't singling him out, after all.]