Ichimaru Gin is a fox-faced bastard (fox_face) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2013-11-18 00:29:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, gin ichimaru, motoko kusanagi |
Who: Motoko Kusanagi, Gin Ichimaru
What: ...‘accountants’ making deals with cops, over noodle bowls. Omnomnoms!
When: After this text message and a day or so after this log. Gin probably snuck out again. Eeesh.
Status: Lowish
Status: Complete!
Who could go wrong with pho? It was the epitome of comfort food. Gin had no complaints about meeting Motoko there, since he could use some comfort food, and she paid for the tea last time. It only seemed fair. And if it was a busy place, as well as someplace she picked out, then she would make sure it was secure to her standards, and wouldn't feel like it was some kind of a set up that she was walking into.
He sat down at a table, wearing nothing more than a loose grey sweater and jeans, looking pretty average, despite the silver color of his hair. Not wanting to order just yet, he took a menu and ordered some tea from the waitress, and didn't look like he was keeping an eye on much of anything. In fact, he took out his phone and started playing fruit ninja on it.
That is how worried Gin is about things.
Fruit ninja.
Not much could go wrong with pho. Except everything. Motoko had been joking, but she wanted to see if he got that. It was just pho, after all.
The restaurant had been one she’d been to before. It was secure, and the food was good. She sat down in front of him, wearing something just as casual, despite her purple hair. “Try the beef stuff.”
"It's all beef stuff." His smile turned into a big grin as he peeked up at her for a second or two, then looked back down as he swept a fingertip across the screen. "Hiya, Motoko. Make sure ya order a giant-sized bowl, so ya got some leftovers to take home to Canaan-chan."
He finally gave up and tapped his fingers on the bombs so the game ended. So there weren't any interruptions, he went to turn his phone entirely off. And yes, he made sure to delete and scrub off the text messages before that. Smart phones were awesome, especially with all the apps and widgets available for security.
"...you really shoot things for fun?" he asked her, turning sideways so he could drape one arm over the back of the chair. "Random bad guys, targets, or beer cans?"
To Gin? That's a legitimate question.
“It’s been a few weeks,” she retorted with a smile. She was actually in a fairly good mood, despite the likely tone of their conversation. She still wanted to find proof of Gin’s wrong doings but now it was mostly so she could confirm what she already knew about his accounting - she was in too deep with him to ever risk trying to take him in now.
“Targets. Bad guys, lately. I’ve been keeping late nights.” And trying to keep Canaan seperate from them for her own good.
He meant to talk to her about Canaan too, but really, it was for his own curiosity and because he didn't want to be at odds with someone he had so much in common with, work-wise. There was also Yachiru to think about, and no way was he going to rat out Pinky. They might butt heads sometimes, but he still liked the kid...who wasn't a kid anymore. Oh well.
"Aww, your work slowed down too. Must be the time of the year." Motoko didn't seem like she was cranky or anything, so he went ahead and asked, "I betcha have. Probably had some company with a certain jeweller too, ne? Can't blame ya. She's nice...and I think the waitress is wandering back at us. Hope you know what you want."
Soup, soup, or soup. With noodles. And beef in it.
“Ah...yes. First time I’ve really had a chance to be in a stable place during the holidays,” She admitted, not willing to go into more detail than that. “I’ll have the soup with noodles and beef.” She eyed him wryly.
“What about you? Any company?”
"We want two soups with noodles and beef," Gin said, holding up two fingers and smiling, before he waved to the waitress and cheerily whispered 'byebye' to her. Hint was taken, because the waitress hightailed it.
"Oh, I've gotta roommate. Ya know, entanglements. They get kinda tricky. Especially around the holidays."
He had two roommates but why ruin the fun of letting people know that or an opportunity to leave them guessing which one it might be? Not that it wasn't obvious from a metric ton of kamoji on the network anyway. And the fact that he was kind of doing this since he didn't want to foul up all over again.
"Actually, that's kinda why I'm here? I know ya couldn't prove anything about my accounting practice. And I've kinda run into a dead end, especially since I was sent to crunch numbers here and not in Osaka or Tokyo. I think someone might've suspected I was a risk or somethin'." He shrugged, unsure. "Dunno. I just wanna finish what I set out to do in the first place and get done with it, before things get screwed up even more."
“They’re really horrible entanglements, most of the time,” Motoko groused, but her heart wasn’t in it. She couldn’t deny that she’d been happier than she had been in a long time. Just realizing the world didn’t have to be lonely.
She leaned forward as he talked. “You want to tie up your loose ends?”
"Yeah," Gin sighed out, the smile fading away as he nodded, shoulders slumped down a little. It was a real career ender, once an assassin started to develop a conscience, or had people or things to worry about.
"Don't get me wrong? I like the entanglements,” he explained. “Even if I can't tell the roommate what it is that I'm doin', or will be doin'. But I need ta tie up one loose end before I can move on. And those dreams...I fouled up and if I keep goin' down the same path like I am now? I'm gonna foul it up, all over again. Problem is...I ain't any closer to knowing where that loose end is. And then, if ya want, I'd like to keep workin' for you somehow or other. I'd feel better about it. I mean, if there's some regular pay involved. If that's ok with you, and if ya think you can work somethin' out."
He really hoped that she could. Somehow or other.
Motoko’s eyebrows disappeared into her bangs. Was he really suggesting working together on a more permanent basis? He was an assassin. What kind of good work did he actually want to do? She thought about that for a moment. “You want to do...not accounting, but other things? A career move?”
"Well?" He made a face, albeit a squinty-eyed one, since that was a given. It made it seem like a wince. "That's the problem. I can work under the table for ya, since I do like accounting. A lot. But I kinda want to do it for the good guys rather than the bad guys, if ya catch my meaning. I won't use a gun, don't like 'em. Too easy ta be traced. I have other methods. So...I dunno, I guess I'm askin' you for ideas and...I never done this before, but...help with the..."
He drew in a breath and rolled his eyes behind all the squinty, exhaling so his cheeks went chipmunk puffy. Asking for backup was a foreign concept to him.
"...help with the loose end. Some rat bastard in there hurt a family member of mine and I want 'em. It's a personal thing."
These things usually were personal. Even a ‘businessman’ like Gin could have something get personal. It made the world feel less crazy, for some reason. Something human to latch on to. “Give me a name and a date and I’ll see what I can find. Chances are it’s someone we want taken out anyway.”
She smiled at Gin. “And I’d rather have less enemies, anyway.”
When the waitress came back with their bowls of pho, Gin asked her for a pen and scribbled in Japanese on a napkin, giving the waitress the pen back afterward. He slid it over to Motoko with a fingertip, pretty much giving her all the names and dates, as well as the one he knocked out already, when he was still a teenager.
"Who said we were ever enemies?" he asked, picking up some chopsticks in one hand to go at the noodles, first. "I didn't like our dates, that was all. Ya never took me anywhere nice or bought me a real drink. Things could've gone so differently between us. And, ya know, givin' you that...would make me a dead man once they found out. If I wasn't pretty much dead already."
He started eating those noodles like a pro. He was shoveling it in but he wasn't messy or slovenly, at least. Not a drop got on him. Maybe that's why he was thin as a reed. He was being somewhat mindful about it all.
She memorized the information with a single glance, then ground the paper up into mulch between two fingers. “I thought you liked it a little rough, Gin. What man doesn’t like a strong woman handcuffing him to a bed?”
Motoko ate too, though she didn’t need to. It was mostly to make people feel at ease around her and because she enjoyed the taste. It was something that she hadn’t needed in her dreams, but maybe living as a human longer made her miss some things.
Honestly, Gin couldn't imagine not eating, since he was used to doing that while he was alive, and it was necessary even when he was a shinigami, because they were the only sort of dead that required the act, in order to keep enough energy going to use their powers. Unless he wanted to pass out (and he wasn't even sure what kept him tangible or being seen by others either), he had to keep eating. Captain Kurotsuchi probably knew, after using himself as a test dummy...but it probably would take a catastrophe for anyone to dare go ask him about it. Because...creepy, much? When Gin thinks something is creepy, considering others found him to be creepy and highly suspect in dream-land? You know it’s bad.
Nevertheless, he did love a good joke. That was why he almost choked on his noodles when she mentioned beds and handcuffs. It was hard to eat and laugh at the same time, but after the coughing stopped and he managed not to spit everything back into the bowl, he did snerk a few times.
He quickly grabbed a napkin and swiped it over his mouth, when he was able to speak without a mouth full of nomnoms.
"...oh now ya go teasin' me with that. When it's too damn late ta do anythin' about it," he teased right back at her, with a huge grin. "Can-chan would be pissed off and my roommate would try to punch us both inta pieces. You're so complicated. Now I can't tell if you're a good cop or a bad cop."
“Roommate,” she replied, making air quotes. “Like Canaan is my “roommate” too, right? And I can’t tell if I’m a good cop or bad cop either. But whatever gets the job done and protects the most people, as far as I’m concerned. But I’ll be sure to tell your roommate your preferences.”
"Yep, that kinda roommate. If ya wanna tell her, go ahead? But I don't think she needs the help," he said with a laugh, smiling at her. It wasn't even the sneaky sort of smile he usually wore, but one like he was delighted by the banter and the air quotes. "Now I know what you were thinkin' when you tried interrogating me. I feel kinda dirty."
He wasn't smiling like he felt dirty at all, nope. He idly stirred the noodles around in the broth with the chopsticks, as he spoke, "And see? That. Whatever gets the job done. I think I'm kinda the same way. I've done some bad number crunching in my time, but it was always people that had it comin' to 'em. I mean bad people, no kids or anythin' like that. Gotta draw some lines, somewhere."
Now she had ideas about what to do to Canaan. Poor, poor Canaan. Really. “That was something I noticed while I was hunting you. Your MO was always pretty specific, but I was also more hardline back then. I understand the need for nuance now.”
That's not a 'poor Canaan' moment. That's a big old 'thanks Gin for helping out!' moment.
"It had ta be specific. I don't like fuzzy math, when it came to that sorta thing," confessed Gin, with a grin that could rival the cheshire cat. “I also ain't no rat. I'm not about ta rat out my contacts here, cuz I like some of 'em. I don't want 'em getting hurt and I'll have 'nuff trouble if I'm flippin' sides and the bosses find out. Speakin' of contacts..."
He leaned forward, putting one elbow on the table and his chin in the other hand. The other hand was still slowly twirling the noodles around in the bowl, using the chopsticks.
"...why'd ya never tell Canaan about me, when ya already knew that we knew each other?"
That was a curiosity to him. Just as much as it seemed to be a curiosity to Canaan.
She frowned. Really, she hadn’t given that much thought. “I don’t know. I guess I was keeping business and personal separate. You’re business. She’s personal. I didn’t want those worlds mixing, and I wanted plausible deniability for both of us.”
"Ahh yeah, but...she and I know each other," he said, drumming his own fingertips against his chin as he watched Motoko frowning. “Ya knew that from the tea meeting. You're 'bout as bad as I am with my roommate. At least I warned her that if anyone busted in, ta get the pets and the other roomie out, and try not ta bust up the house."
He snerked at that, because he was pretty damn sure that Rangiku would level the place if she got pissed enough, and anyone who tried messing with her was going to regret it. She'd probably kick their head clean off.
"It's nice you're worried about her," he said, letting his hand drop away so he could eat. Hopefully without her making him nearly choke on noodles again. "We all know it gets to be a real pain in the rear, when worrying about someone else starts gettin' in the way of the business end of things. It's why I'm askin' you if I can flip sides. Even if it makes it more dangerous and even if I'd never be able to tell my roomie what it is I'm doing, exactly."
He peeked up at her while he started to nom on noodles again.
“Canaan is pretty capable, so I was never worried about that. Either of us could bring our work home.” She leaned forward, steepling her fingers together. “That’s noble of you. Of course I have to ask myself if I can trust you, but we wouldn’t be here right now if I was really concerned about that. I believe you have an honor code, of sorts.”
Gin winced a little, his eyes going much more squintier for a moment, before he shrugged a shoulder.
"I's kinna a shibby 'onor cobe," he admitted (yes, it is a shitty one), while holding one hand in front of his mouth to hide that he was in mid-chew. He swallowed and reached over for the tea, taking one sip so he could speak clearly. "Sorry 'bout that. I mean, I got one, yeah. If we go by the dreams and everyone I know from 'em? They'd probably say I ain't trustworthy at all. But I don't really wanna end up that way again. And that's where I'm headin' if I try to keep workin' alone on this."
No one had his back, so he was going to end up a dead traitor, all over again. He also really hated admitting that he was wrong, but he decided to hold the remaining part of their discussion with his eyes wide open. Enough that she could see the color of them and that he wasn't hiding anything behind a squint anymore.
"I was a dumb kid both times,” he said, “that made a dumb decision ta go kill someone that deserved gettin' killed...because they hurt people I cared about. Here me made that call when I was nine and they knocked off my dad. Dream me ended up wasting over a hundred years for the right moment, failed, and ended up dead. Now, long story short....I got the girl back, here. If I end up dead this time, she will probably kill herself, hunt my ass down, and give me hell for an eternity. I'd kinda like to not go down that path. But I'm also thinking...I really can't finish what I wanted to do, not all by myself. It's not like the dream thing, where I could get in close to the guy who called the shots. Not this time. I have zero idea who it is."
“So we find out who it is first. Then...we find out where he is, and lay a trap and spring it.” While she had no doubt that Gin could handle literally anything the regular Yakuza could throw at him, there was merit in taking something on the right way. Distractions, traps. “Both Canaan and I can provide you with cover.”
Because, after all, she couldn’t very well take the revenge from him.
Oh no, that killing blow was his. And although he usually looked like he was relaxed and laid back all of the time, it seemed as though he slumped down just a little more than usual, like hearing that was a relief. He had enough to think about, so this would be one less thing on an already overloaded plate.
"Sounds good ta me," he agreed. "So what do I have to do in return? Just help ya with your cases or sneaking into places or what? I can't really stay with the Yakuza after I kill one of the big guys. I ain't real worried about how many they send after me, but I'd like to have something more legal lined up for a job, in return. Even if it's slightly legal. What is it you think I'd be able to do? And don't ya dare say actual accounting. That's boring and we both know it."
“Some more of the same, to start with. Cleaning up some places. But I’d like to have you work some genuine cases. A man like you, very sneaky and very good at finding information that you shouldn’t be finding.”
"I know someone who's sneakier, but I don't think they'll leave the Yakuza. They've got someone they really care about that's wrapped up in it."
That someone was a killer with a greater bloodlust than Gin ever had. At least Gin was selective. Kenpachi Zaraki, on the other hand, was always looking for a fight. His only prerequisite was they had to look like they were a strong opponent. And if they looked like they were? Well, they were going to die. End of story.
"Sounds good ta me," he agreed. He already felt a bit better about things. "Domo arigato, Motoko. I still think maybe ya better talk at Canaan-chan? But I don't wanna butt into your important roommate thing you two got goin' on."
“I’ll talk to her,” she replied, a little exasperated. She had a feeling she was rebuilding section 9 in this world, with a new group of unusual and skilled individuals. After all, several of the section 9 team had been on opposite sides before! “I’m already running a search.”
Gin would be onboard with section 9, like you would not believe. The formal 'stick to the rulebook' stuff was not his style and never would be.
"That’d be good." He quirked an eyebrow. "Ehhh? Already? You work fast."
Maybe she’ll even call it Section 9. Because she’s vain like that. “You’d be surprised.” She smiled at him, tilting her head. She had some suspects already, but she wanted to review her data first before she shared it with Canaan and Gin. “But it’ll take me a few days to narrow it down.”
Honestly? She could call it the Fuzzy Bunny Rompin’ Stompin’ Bandwagon and he'd still join it. Section 9? That’s much, much better.
"I don't mind. A few days is nothing," he said with a smile of his own. "I've been waitin' for this for years, so I can wait a while longer. Just wanna make sure it's the right one. You got my number. Send me a message if you come up with anything."
He sat back, thinking he would take the rest of his soup home with him. Most of the noodles and some of the meat was already gone out of it, but he didn't want it to go to waste.
He sounded really amused when he stated, "I'm gonna miss you threatening to put me in jail, and our not-so-hot dates, when you had one of my hands handcuffed to the chair. Lukewarm tea, kinda stale vending machine sesame crackers...."
Ahhh, the good ol' days.
“Take your roommate out on one of those and show her the kind of time I used to show you,” Motoko replied. She pushed her bowl towards him, like offering him to have the leftovers. She didn’t need to finish it and it was perfectly good food that shouldn’t go to waste.
"If I tried that, she'd punch my face in and accuse me of bein' a cheapskate," he said, with a ear-to-ear grin. He pointed at her bowl and asked, "Ya sure you don't wanna take that back for your roommate? Aww. You are a cheap date. I knew it. Handcuffs an' crackers? Ya bum."
“I’m a cheap date,” she admitted, getting to her feet. “But a fun one!”