[Open] Can you play me a memory?

[bakudan_shounen]

Who: Gokudera bakudan_shounen and you!
When: 5/6 around 5 pm
Where: Passing by The Patrol Headquarters, heading back to the outlander's community block
Format: Prose to start, but either is fine by me!
What: Gokudera regrets his choice of profession and WANTS SO BADLY to join, but doubts he'd be wanted.
Warnings: Foul language.

Comments

[charmprince]

After dragging herself out of bed-- even at almost fully-recovered it felt like a chore to actually move, though that had died down once she was fully up and mobile--, Asellus had resolved herself to doing something outside, to getting some fresh air. First on that list is getting her pay so she can pay the landlord the rent due and get some food. Because she wasn't actually on patrol today, and because she was going to have to deal with the natives, she shows up dressed... well, like a lady, rather than her boyish style. Even so, she hadn't had to dress up in long enough that the skirts had her tripping a little; by the time she reaches the headquarters, she's already dusty and in a bit of a Mood.

But that mood fades when she realizes that no matter how dusty she is, there is someone who's worse off. It's a vague sort of schadenfreude, but it passes clear by when she pipes up from behind him.

"You going to go in?"

[charmprince]

Once upon a time-- no, actually, she'd always been a social butterfly, even in the days she'd been full-blood human. Social ineptitude was never an issue with her; being too pushy, though, sometimes was. But civility is something that, like experience, is learned eventually, and considering her closest friends in Anatole are all pretty questionable characters, she's remarkably patient to a point. "In battle, out of battle. I don't need help often, but when I do need it, I know I can count on the people I work with." She pulls open the door, holding it for him. "There are things you can't do alone. Sometimes that's a fight, and sometimes it's something else. Either way, teamwork's important."

[bakudan_shounen]

He remembers reading about that. That members of the Patrol would look out for each other to some degree. Gokudera just hopes that no one gets in his way and that calling for help won't be a regular occurrence.

The teen mutters an awkward sort of 'thank you' when she opens the door, careful to take in everything as he passes it. This building had been recently renovated. He remembered that, and can smell it, but most of all, wonders what it was like before the changes. Had it been destroyed by some monsters, or maybe even by members? Gokudera is mulling all this over while she talks of teamwork. It's not that he doesn't consider it important, he just doesn't easily trust, and so he listens without being completely open. "How many people are part of this Patrol?"

[charmprince]

"Not really sure, exactly. More than a few teams, though, that's for sure. If I had to guess... Thirty or so?" She sucks in a breath, thinking. "Somewhere around there. But it never feels like enough, when there's something going on, you know?" The renovations had completed shortly after she'd stumbled blinking and worried through the Door, and she'd never really asked exactly what had happened, but the place looks nice; subdued and elegant, even if it is imposing. Exactly to her tastes, if she were to really think about it.

"But generally you work with a partner. I hardly ever see other teams on the job, since we're all assigned times and locations. Off-duty, finding other people is more likely, and occasionally when I'm out in the ruins, hunting, I'll see them, too."

[bakudan_shounen]

Honestly, he's a bit surprised by that number. It doesn't seem like enough. He's met fewer in their family, and they're a force to be reckoned with, but the largest combat group in the city really could be summed up in such a small number?

"Does the partner change?" Because -and he won't admit it out loud- he does NOT cooperate well, or tolerate certain kinds of people. Maybe he could work with his boss? Or... at least recommend him. Gokudera looks back at the dress she's wearing, figuring that they must have some kind of uniform. She had to be off the clock, since combat would probably be tricky in something like that.

[charmprince]

"Not really. Not unless someone... goes too far into the Mist, or quits. As far as I know, anyway. I've only had one." He was a cranky old man, and kind of a jerk, but...

She catches him looking at her dress and grins. "I haven't been out for a bit, though. Been recovering from the latest debacle, you know? I've a few days left before I'm back out there. This isn't my normal choice of outerwear, but it's the best way to keep the natives off of my back." The more you stand out, the more trouble you could get into-- and she stood out well enough on her own without dressing like a boy.

[bakudan_shounen]

"And have you been here for very long, Asellus?" He doesn't mean to be rude, leaving out the honorific from her name, but he's not really the type of person to respect someone so soon.

"Recovering?" Gokudera hadn't noticed anything about her that might suggest she'd been injured. Maybe she was almost better? It worries him a bit to think of what he might face out beyond Anatole.

The silver-haired teen nods as she talks about her clothing. He was lucky that current circumstances had him dressed like a resident, and that the coal was thick enough in his hair, it wasn't that strange of a color.

[charmprince]

She's not one for honorifics, anyway-- the '-san' she hears from a chunk of the population isn't something she's really all that familiar with, though she's figured out its purpose. It seems to her like the "Lord", sometimes "Lady" she escaped back home, and it feels a little too formal for her-- but she hasn't felt the need to correct anyone, and she's not about to start

[bakudan_shounen]

"Five months?!" Gokudera slumps a little, feeling terribly foreign. He's only been there little under a week!

"The Queen..." The teen falls silent as Asellus starts to retell her story. His mouth hangs open a little, expression one of nearly pure disbelief. He nods, but it's a bit dull, as though he's not even sure how he feels about the matter. Maybe that last part was an understatement... he certainly wouldn't be out and about.

"I wouldn't either." It's not entirely true. He scratches the back of his neck and looks a little uneasy. The boy had swung by this place often enough, he'd probably run into her at some point.

[charmprince]

"It's not as long as it sounds. There are people here who've been here much, much longer. And it's not like there's a way to escape, so we're all likely to stay for years, unless despair gets to be too much." She's intent on not letting that happen to her or hers-- even if hers don't know they've been claimed--, but that's a long time off, and she knows it.

"It's hard to believe, I know, but there's really no reason for any of the people who tell us what's what to lie, I don't think. We don't work for other people, we aren't being cozened or coddled... I think it's honest, even if it's strange." She shrugs, tossing her head. "Anyway, it's not a bad life. We might be stuck in this place, but we're still mostly free. No one telling us what to do, or who to associate with, or where to be and when. We could have it a lot worse-- we could be the ones in the glass coffins, instead of being able to be out and about, thinking of approaching this place or getting paid and running into one another by chance, right?"

[bakudan_shounen]

"Still..." Gokudera is pretty sure he doesn't even want to stay for one month. He can't imagine five, and spending it in a city with people who discriminate against him over something he couldn't even choose...

It's not like he isn't used to that part, but it doesn't feel right. Especially since he knows his boss has to go through that same poor treatment. He doesn't deserve it. Gokudera had been born into a life like that, so it was at least something he could deal with.

"It could be worse..." He agrees.

[charmprince]

"So chin up!" Negativity is nothing to be shared, and even if Asellus has her own doubts about this place-- and oh, does she have her own doubts about this place--, she's not about to go sharing that with anyone. "We have one another-- all of us. Until we figure out how to get out, we have to make the best of things."

She'd left a home that had been about as different from this place as night and day-- she'd been treated with a mixture of toadying reverence for the bloodline she carried and contempt for her human nature. Here, at least the natives were honest, even if it was frustrating. She'd sooner deal with this place than go home to that backhanded hypocrisy.

"And it's not like you can't work your way up to something nicer than what you've got now. Especially when you join the Patrol." She won't say 'if'; she doesn't have any doubt he'll be fine, after all. "Might take some scrinching and saving, but it's not a hard life at all, compared to some."

[bakudan_shounen]

Gokudera looks down at his his dirty hands, at his clothing marked in black from working with the coal and he knows that even working at the bottom with the Patrol would be better than what he has now. At least it would be fair, and he could put his skills to good use.

"I'm sure that my boss would approve!" More than anything, he just wants to prove himself. If he can be given a chance, he'll be happy. He's almost saved enough to afford his boss a filter, and beyond that, he doesn't need much else.

"I don't think it would be very hard, either." Compared to the state he's in now, Gokudera fits the "some" category of her last statement.

sorry I've been so slow :C Real life is eating me.

[charmprince]

"Then don't hesitate. You have to grab what you want while you can, you know." There's only so long a person lives, normally. Here, that might not be the case, but... "No use waffling about it. I'm sure things'll work out." A grin. "I can introduce you to Pris, if you want. She's probably in her office."

He's a good kid, she thinks. He'd probably fit in fine, even if he's a little rough-edged. Rough-edged is good, anyway. It's not like being a social dynamo is a requirement. Just look at the old man. "She'd be the first person to talk to, anyway."

Real life does that a lot! No worries~

[bakudan_shounen]

There's a determined spark in his eyes and his fists grip at his sides, setting his resolution as much outwardly as he is in his mind. He'll speak with Priscilla, and appeal to her, Arthur, and Riza as well! He'd definitely prove himself worthy of their trust to ensure a brighter future for his family for as long as they are in Anatole!

"Really?!" Gokudera appears a bit surprised, and even a little flustered. This was... a lot faster than he'd expected, and he tries to brush some of the dirt from his clothing idly while walking beside Asellus. "You don't have to, but..." He's not used to people being this kind to him, and for little reason. The teen scratches the back of his neck, "I would appreciate it."