InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "haha ur mom did it"

Cuthbert Allgood (kaswhippingboy) wrote in chaosunraveled,
@ 2009-10-20 11:14:00

Entry tags:

cuthbert, l, rating: pg-13, setting: emptiness

Who: Cuthbert and L
When: Shortly after L gives Bert the map of Emptiness
Where: Emptiness
Rating: PG-13?
Warnings: Potentials for Bert's mouth
Summary: Bert is eager to find out if L is telling the truth about the amazing things that can be found in Emptiness.

Bert was having a difficult time wrapping his mind around the fact that sugar-based sweets were a common thing for most people. Even in Gilead, the wealthiest of cities, sugar was scarce and chocolate was only a myth.

And yet according to Ryuzaki - who Bert had decided was peculiarly paranoid - all manner of sweets could be obtained in the town that separated Asgard and Niflheim. It was a concept so foreign to him that he almost couldn't believe it. It was like being told there was a city where the streets were paved with gold and the windows made from diamonds.

But what reason did anyone have to lie to him about something like that? Ryuzaki was weird, sure, but no weirder than anyone else Bert supposed he'd ever met. Besides, he had a history of befriending folks who were considered strange or bizarre. Certainly Alain had been weird, and he knew damn well what most people thought of Sheemie. But so what? Weird people were neat.

And that brought him back to missing home again. He followed the streets outlined on the map and found himself wishing Al and Roland were with him. Wouldn't they love this? What would they think? It brought a nostalgic smile to his face. He could remember Reaping's long past, when they were still boys, before their trial of fire and hell. Walking along the streets of Gilead, sucking sweet candies made from nuts and honey, no cares in the world save how they would spend their Reap Day coins.

Oh, Reaping Day in Gilead. Was there ever anything so wonderful? A break from lessons, from beatings, from being sent to bed without supper! Day after day of leisure and cool air and fresh cider. And the three of them, arm in arm, scurrying all over city and woods, laughing as they played. The world had been golden, then.

By the time Bert had reached the candy store, he was lost in daydreams of the past. He set his hand on the door handle and paused, not wanting to let go of the sweet memories to have to face reality. Even if reality wasn't so bad these days, it wasn't home and the brothers of his heart weren't here.

"Aw, fuck me," he muttered, hating how easily and quickly he fell to sentimental megrims. He turned the door handle with more force than was needed and tried to bring his attention back to the apparent treasure trove he'd come to see.

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readsyournotes
2009-10-20 11:06 pm UTC (link)

L hadn’t been entirely honest with Cuthbert. The map did lead to a candy shop he had visited, but he had been here only once before. It was small, and currently a too out of his way to stop by without good reason. And today was a good enough reason as any as the detective had planned to run into Cuthbert here.

He wanted to get a feel for the man in person as well as test him a little. When the two of them eventually did part ways today, L would come back and set up a camera and a silent alarm that would go off if the store was entered. He simply wanted to make sure the man would stay true to his word and see what he would do now that he knew where to find the place.

The candy store at least had a wide variety to sweets to choose from. The two of them could find anything from chocolate to pop rocks here. It was all cheap candy, but heavy in sugar and brightly colored which L was sure would only appeal to Cuthbert more. If sugar and sweets were as rare as Cuthbert claimed, then it would be unlikely that the people from his world spent too much time make the candy look more appealing.

The detective was just trying to decide what he wanted off the shelves when he heard the entrance’s door swing forcefully open, making bell used to alert the store of customers clattered loudly. This started L, and gave him a jump. He quickly turned to face the door, eyes wide and studying. “You scared me.”

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kaswhippingboy
2009-10-20 11:14 pm UTC (link)

And the shop wasn't empty. Interesting, that. Ryuzaki had said he hung out there a lot, and didn't like being bothered unless he wanted to be bothered. Apparently, he wanted to be bothered. That didn't stop Bert from immediately tensing, his free hand dropping to his hip near his guns.

"Aye? Sorry 'bout that. Wasna expecting anybody to be here."

So this was the ever-secretive Ryuzaki - or so Bert assumed. Certainly the man's appearance fit the persona. He looked, in Bert's opinion, like something the bumbler dragged in from the rain. A scrawny, scraggly sort indeed, with eyes like a weed-eater. Not the most trust-worthy looking personage, even if he was an ally.

Bert didn't bother offering any explanation for why he'd so loudly entered the shop. He was a loud person, after all. No indication whatsoever that he'd been out there having an angry go at himself. He hooked his thumbs in the pockets of his jeans, his hands always staying near his guns. It was a trick he'd learned, never being quite as fast on the draw as the rest of his class.

"This is a candy shop, yeah?" He hadn't yet let his eyes go to the shelves and wares. Not until he was perfectly assured that this fellow here was friend and not foe.

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readsyournotes
2009-10-21 12:40 am UTC (link)

L tried to force himself to relax, even as he saw the man’s hands remained near his guns. Perhaps meeting Cuthbert here was a bad idea. “Considering all the candy here, I would certainly be surprised if it wasn’t.” He managed to answer, relived that his voice found much more composure than he thought he had right now.

By the speech pattern alone L could tell that this man was Cuthbert. Looking at him for the fist time though, he was a bit surprised. His build certainly did not meet the standard idea of what a soldier’s would look like. And his features were slim as well as a little feminine. The man was probably was not the strongest of people, but it would be a mistake to call him weak.

L was also aware that Cuthbert was studying him as well. “Are you just going to stand there and gawk at my magnificent attractiveness, or are you going to come in.” He asked, never taking his gaze away for a moment.

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kaswhippingboy
2009-10-21 06:44 pm UTC (link)

Bert wasn't sure what to make of the man. The sudden thought occurred to him that Ryuzaki might not even be human. What did Bert actually know about the guy? Next to nothing when it came right down to it.

But then things moved in a direction that Bert was well familiar with. Teasing. He grinned and leaned back on his heels, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

"Well, cry your pardon if I've been struck a bit dumb by your glorious visage! Forgive my weak nature, handsome sai." He swept a courtly bow, feet crossed and arm at his waist. Poor bloke, there's nothing glorious about'im. And I thought I was cursed with attributes not pleasing to the ladies. Or gents, for that matter. Maybe I've got a big stupid mouth, but at least I'm pretty.

"So, ah...what's all this?" He stepped fully inside, and let his gaze move from the man to the wares. He wasn't even sure what he was looking at. 'Candy' was nothing more than little squares of nut paste with honey, and every cookie Bert had ever seen had looked the same. Nothing he saw in his perusal of the candy shop offerings was at all familiar to him.

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readsyournotes
2009-10-21 08:56 pm UTC (link)

“You are forgiven, but don’t let it happen again.” L answered, keeping his expression as serious as ever despite his amusement. He was relieved that Cuthbert seemed to relax… a little. It didn’t seem likely that he would bring the man’s guard down entirely, but at least L had established that he wasn’t much of a threat.

“As I have said, this is candy. The selection here is not so different from the displays you can find from my world. I imagine it is a little different from what you would find in yours considering what you described.” L turned to the shelves and pulled down a box of chocolates that looked to be the most expensive. If the detective was going to introduce the man to such delights, he thought he might as well choose the one with the highest percentage of cocoa. And this box appeared to have a nice variety to choose from.

“You said you never tried chocolate?” He asked, offering the box to Bert.

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kaswhippingboy
2009-10-21 09:36 pm UTC (link)

"Nah, no chocolate where I come from," Bert admitted. "I mean, I've heard of it. Apparently sometimes they had it in Southern towns, traded from islands in the Clean Sea. If they did, it never made it to Gilead. Or even New Canaan. And I'm not entirely sure there are people still living on islands out there." It was a rare and almost legendary sort of thing, a rich sweet made from something even more flavorful than fruits. From exotic lands, of course, that no one Bert knew had actually visited. It was always 'a friend of a friend's uncle' or someone's great grandda or something like that.

"You can't buy candies like this in stores," he went on, once more struck at how different his world seemed to be from all the others. "There's sweets but they're made from nuts and honey and berries. And they're not in boxes or anything like that. I mean, they'll put'em in boxes if you get enough..." But usually they came in little cloth bags, or were wrapped in wax if it was for something special.

"This is chocolate, then? What's it made out of? Is there sugar in?" As he was asking, Bert was carefully lifting the cover of the box to see what was inside.

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readsyournotes
2009-10-21 10:34 pm UTC (link)

“Sugar makes the chocolate even sweeter. So yes, each of those chocolates should have sugar in them. You can find the ingredients used for these particular chocolates listed on the box.” L pulled down a few boxes from the shelves, feeling that now would be a good chance as any to stock up for himself.

“I have had candy from all around my world as I was prone to travel a lot. They came in a variety of forms and flavors, and sampling them was something I found a lot of enjoyment in.” L smiled a little at the thought of sweets he had not yet tried, his index finder running along his lower lip in wonder, “I’ll admit, I think maybe one day I would like to try these sweets from your world as well.”

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kaswhippingboy
2009-10-22 11:53 pm UTC (link)

Most of what Ryuzaki was saying didn't make a lick of sense to Bert, and he only skimmed the Low Speech letters on the box. He wasn't sure what he was expecting, really. Inside, the little squares of candy sat individually separated from one another. They were smoother than he was used to, and they all looked different. And were varying shades of brown.

"Probably wouldn't be anything impressive, all things considered." Why would anybody want to eat nuts and berries when they had real food available?

Well, this was it. Here he was, and here was chocolate. He took one of the pieces at random. It was soft. That was a surprise. It smudged in his slightly damp fingers. He could smell it now. Good god, he couldn't even think of anything to compare it to. He held the little square to his nose, inhaling. His mouth started to water and he didn't even realize. If it tasted anything like what it smelled like....

Without further ado, Bert bit into the chocolate.

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readsyournotes
2009-10-23 12:26 am UTC (link)

“It couldn’t hurt to try.” Berries and honey were certainly things L enjoyed, so it was hard to imagine the sweets of Cuthbert’s world as something he would disapprove of.

When Bert selected a piece from the box, the detective’s eyes flicked down at the lid in his hands, trying to determine what kind the man chosen. If the small brown print was correct, it appeared to be a milk chocolate square filled with a chocolate cream. This sounded positively delicious to the detective.

Maybe after Cuthbert finished sampling the sweets here L help himself to some snacks. For now, he watched the man bite down into the piece of chocolate and waited, curious to see what he would think.

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kaswhippingboy
2009-10-24 06:44 pm UTC (link)

Whatever Ryuzaki was saying, Bert was no longer listening. He didn't even know what he was doing. He had no basis of comparison whatsoever for the flavors that were now flooding his mouth. How could anything be so sweet? This was...well, this was like food of the gods!

He didn't even chew at first. He just stood there, eyes closed, mouth slightly open. By Gan and all the Beams, he had never even imagined anything could taste like this! Honey and berries? Ha! Those weren't sweet!

Once the bite of chocolate was nearly melted, he finally properly ate the thing.

"Sweet, ever-loving Man Jesus!" he exclaimed, staring at Ryuzaki with wide, awe-struck eyes.

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readsyournotes
2009-10-27 06:04 pm UTC (link)

Cuthbert didn’t spit the chocolate out, which would have been a tragedy as far as L was concerned. Good chocolate was a terrible thing to waste. And by the exclamation that followed, it seemed that the man enjoyed it a lot.

Feeling a little playful, the detective gave Cuthbert a small smile, “Don’t like it? What a pity. I guess you will not have to have another then.”

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