InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "Super size me"

ofmanydevices (ofmanydevices) wrote in disappear_rpg,
@ 2009-12-09 11:03:00

Entry tags:

kozue, tom

Who: Tom and Kozue
What: The retrieval of Puppies
Where: Kozue's dorm.
When: They day after the dungeon
Why: Kozue has Tom's puppy, she must be thanked

Tom arrived at Kozue's door, the same day as when he got the message. He shifted nervously from one foot to the other. He was unsure of the protocol here. For a while he had contemplated picking the lock, and slipping in. If anyone saw him there now they could tie him to the puppy retrieval and that'd be a problem. To make things easier on himself, he decided to check and see if anyone was inside first. He reached up to the door and tapped on it lightly.

"There anybody here?"

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anthesphoria
2009-12-09 04:13 pm UTC (link)

"Hold on a minute!" Kozue's voice came out from the closed door. She hadn't expected him so soon—he hadn't sent a message back—she hadn't expected—

She tumbled off her bed, and padded over to the door; she was wearing pajamas, her generic lounge-around-the-dorm clothes, which consisted of loud, cute-baby-animal print flannel pants and a tank top. And of course, fluffy slippers. Her hair was still braided, and her contacts were out; days after she went to Paradise, she always felt kind of like crap, and kind of like staying home and watching old movies on her laptop. So, today, she was doing just that.

She opened the door. And something was visible, just behind her, a tiny gray furball on the floor and headed directly for the door. Who else, but…

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ofmanydevices
2009-12-09 04:38 pm UTC (link)

Tom dropped to his knee, and scooped Max up mid run. The small creature seemed to be trying to climb up Tom's torso to lick his face. Tom didn't break his stride though, standing up and moving forward into the dorm. The reasons for this were twofold. The first being that he didn't want Max openly out in the hallway.
The second though was so he could lean down and wrap his arms around Kozue. That's right, Tom was giving her a hug.

"Thank you... so much... for everything."

After a moment he stepped back, though not enough to be in the hallway again.

"You saved Max... you saved me.. and you were my friend. Thank you Kondo-san."

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anthesphoria
2009-12-09 04:53 pm UTC (link)

Kozue was not surprised by the first thing that Tom did—she knew, and had known for a long time, exactly how much he loved that dog. It was the second thing, however, that caught her off-guard.

Tom. Hug? She tensed, caught in the arms of a much larger and stronger person, and not sure where he was going with this at all. When he let her go a minute later without trying anything else, she was genuinely surprised. "I… It wasn't a big deal," she said, stepping back and regaining her balance. "Some girls were going to take him home, but I put a stop to that."

She had no idea how to address the 'friend' thing.

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ofmanydevices
2009-12-09 05:05 pm UTC (link)

Tom shook his head.

"It is a big deal. When I was... before... before I was trying so hard to push everyone away, and you were having none of it. You stuck by me, and actually tried to get to know me as a person. It means a lot."

Tom finally looked at Max, and gave him a pat on the head.

"I'm sure Max appreciates what you did for him too. He probably likes you as much as he likes me. Maybe more so depending on what you fed him."

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anthesphoria
2009-12-09 06:18 pm UTC (link)

"Well, hamburger?" She offered. She'd bought what looked like puppy chow, but Max had refused to eat it, so she'd been sharing her meals with him for most of the time that Tom had been in Paradise. "And some other things. He seemed to like it."

She swallowed. "For sticking by you…" She frowned slightly. Getting to know him as a person? Right. Like he wanted to 'get to know' her. "You're welcome, I guess. And Max-kun can be welcome too."

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	ofmanydevices 2009-12-09 07:00 pm UTC (link)
	Tom noted Kozue's frown, but he was still unsure how to handle things like feelings. He looked away, and his attention focused on Max, he pet the puppies head, and then put him down on the floor so he could wander. "I suppose Max would be sad to not see you as much. If I got him on a set walking schedule would you be willing to come with?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

anthesphoria
2009-12-09 07:13 pm UTC (link)

"Sure," Kozue agreed, after a moment or two. Then, "Would you really want me to come along?" She laced her fingers together in front of her, and studied them briefly. "I mean, I guess it depends on what you want from me." She glanced up: "Are we really friends? Are you really grateful because I got to know you as a person, or because you still aren't sure whether I'm willing to jump your bones or not?"

And if it hadn't been evident in parts of his dungeon that Kozue had taken his Shadow's comments to heart, well, it certainly was now.

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ofmanydevices
2009-12-09 07:21 pm UTC (link)

Tom's face blanked.

"I... uh... Kondo-san... I never thought that about you. You're..."

Tom suddenly remember.

"Oh... this is... I saw what he said you know. He showed me, I guess to see how much "better" he was making everything."

Tom shifted uncomfortably, and looked away, gathering his thoughts. Then he looked back at her.

"You were my friend, you are my friend. I never would have admited it before, but you were one of the first people in a long, long time that I got close to. What my shadow told you was a lie, just like almost everything it said to the group in Paradise. It was so afraid of me actually caring...
He needed to hurt you the most, because you wouldn't leave, because you cared and you tried to make me part of the group. He needed to hurt you so you would hate me, and he would have said or done anything to get at you.

I..."

Tom looked away.

"I'm sorry for what he said, I'm sorry for what I've said to you. You deserved... so much more from me. But if you want me to go... I understand."

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anthesphoria
2009-12-09 07:37 pm UTC (link)

"Ah."

Kozue was stuck, not sure what to say, when to say something, how to— none of it. "I thought you'd have seen all of that. That seems to be how it works. But if the other you was lying, and you really do think of me as a friend, instead of a piece of ass, what about the— the heroes?" She waved her hand in front of her face, a gesture meant to encompass the events of his dungeon. "You made us into superhero versions of the people you saw us as. And you see me as someone whose defining characteristic seems to be wearing next-to-nothing." She looked back at Tom: "I mean, you gave Satou-senpai super speed, and you made Ito and Ikeda and Shirai super-strong, and Ishinomori-san into a robot or whatever he was. And then there's me. How impressive. Am I that useless in your mind?"

Clearly, she was having something of a poor week.

She crossed her arms, more out of discomfort and a need to protect herself than out of anger. "Look, I'm— I don't mean to interrogate you, you've had a rough time and I'm glad you're back. I'm glad you're safe. I don't want you to leave, really, and I liked…"

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ofmanydevices
2009-12-09 07:49 pm UTC (link)

Tom held a hand up.

"Kondo-san, I always have a rough time."

He took a moment and let out a breath.

"I can't... I didn't really... decide on who would turn into... what in that place. But... you will recall I didn't give myself any powers. In addition, you will recall, Satou had fun running around the place like an idiot, and... I had no idea that Ito liked blowing things up so much, but no ones powers helped them get through that place. The only thing that would help in there is brains, and those... well...

Honestly, that's... why I like those comics so much in the first place. I always loved that without any abilities, Shadowknight could still stand up there with the best of them. It was because of how smart he was, how quick he came up with the right solution.

Kondo-san, I don't think I gave you any powers because... I don't think you needed them. You've always understood things, the things I don't at least, and I respect that."

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anthesphoria
2009-12-09 08:08 pm UTC (link)

Kozue furrowed her brow and then observed, "You're calling me Kondo-san."

Though she felt no need to elaborate, this apparently meant something to her; her posture eased, becoming less upset. "And… No, I hadn't thought about that. Is that why some other people didn't..." She had the grace not to mention Renju, but the other girl was certainly on her mind just then. "Didn't have powers, either? You… Thank you, Sagaki-senpai."

"That's actually probably the nicest thing somebody has said about me in a while."

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	ofmanydevices 2009-12-09 08:29 pm UTC (link)
	When Kozue pointed out that Tom was refering to her with the honorific, he nodded. "You asked me to before right?" When she thanked him and commented on what he said about her being nice, Tom simply smiled and nodded. "Of course. We're friends aren't we?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	anthesphoria 2009-12-10 02:27 am UTC (link)
	"We are," Kozue affirmed, still slightly surprised. Had Tom really changed this much, overnight? It was… Good? She supposed, at least, that it was good to see. That it was good that he was bouncing back from being in Paradise, and from Renju's rejection, and that whole mess. "So I'll help you walk Max-kun sometimes?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	ofmanydevices 2009-12-10 05:49 am UTC (link)
	Tom nodded. "It'll give us a chance to talk. I guess... I..." Tom bit his lip for a moment. "I guess I'd like someone to talk to. I'm still... trying to figure everything out, and you seem to... get people? Or at least get me." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	anthesphoria 2009-12-14 03:05 am UTC (link)
	Kozue nodded, if a bit hesitantly. "I guess, some things about people. Don't expect a great explanation of everybody, everywhere, but I'd be glad to talk now and then." How distant that sounded. Kozue fiddled with her hands slightly, and then amended: "Whenever you need it." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	ofmanydevices 2009-12-14 03:29 am UTC (link)
	Tom nodded. Then his eyes went wide. "Oh! I never got you anything... for your birthday I mean." Tom thought for a moment. "And... I was responsible for your party getting ruined, and you still saved Max after all of that... I guess I realy owe you." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

anthesphoria
2009-12-14 07:40 pm UTC (link)

For some reason, Kozue found this charming--and a bit funny. She laughed, at least. "Okay, so you totally owe me a present, then." It took her a moment to realize that laughing at his whole traumatic experience might have been in slightly bad taste, and she looked down. "Or whatever. I mean, my party wasn't ruined and people have mostly forgotten, I think, or they will pretty soon."

Most people, at least.

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	ofmanydevices 2009-12-14 07:42 pm UTC (link)
	Tom shook his head. "More then a present I think. I owe you... umm... hmmm" Tom frowned, he couldn't think of anything. "Uh I owe you anything you want. One favor no matter how big to be granted upon request." (Reply to this) (Parent)