awashlogs | Event Nine.

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Event Nine.

Thus, on Life’s gloomy sea,
Heareth the marinere
Voices sweet, from far and near,
Ever singing in his ear,
“Here is rest and peace for thee!”

t's a dark night, and the sounds of feet in the darkness are further dampened and hidden by even more magic, as they are lured away by the soft sounds of dreams that are too good to be true, leaving the Town much, much emptier than when it began.

On one side, an island, and a ticking clock to a gruesome death.

On the other, the slow realization that those bonds everyone has been forging might mean much, much more than they first thought.

Welcome to Awash's ninth event log, everyone! Further information on this event can be found here at the OOC post.

You are welcome to start your own posts or logs for this event as well. If there are any questions, please ask them here. Please be sure to very clearly mark where your characters are in your prompts, so people know which they can tag depending on which group they are in. Thank you!

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I think I should be asking you that. Only one of us got kidnapped by a bunch of sea monsters.

[ with a few quiet strides, Lupin's at the end of the dock, and he hunkers down to take a seat next to Akira. Maybe he doesn't want company, but Lupin thinks he might need it. (And if he doesn't, then maybe Lupin needs it.) He continues without missing a beat, eyes flicking over to look at the younger boy, checking his face briefly for any injuries in the meanwhile. ]

Are you okay?

Mm. I'm fine.

[Well, physically, he is mostly okay. He could definitely do with more rest, and the bags under his eyes attest to that, but it doesn't look like he's going to keel over into the harbor, at least.]

I know everyone left here was weak because of the kidnappings. [For some reason. His eyes bore into Lupin's; that means him too, right?]

[ it's miraculous that he got dragged off to an island by monsters that wanted to eat him and didn't get banged up, Lupin thinks, but it's a miracle he's glad for - especially after what happened when the werewolves came before. He nods his head once, meeting Akira's gaze without hesitation. ]

I won't deny that. I was feeling pretty terrible all week... But I still went into the woods with Guren to try and find you and the others.

[ he sighs, leaning back on his hands and glancing back out at the water. It might have been reckless, but even he has limits on how long he can stand by and watch without doing anything. Of course, they hadn't gotten hurt; they hadn't made any progress, either. After a second or two, he continues, voice more serious. ]

Sorry I didn't come save you sooner, Akira. [ a bitter smile. ] I'm not doing so well at this great-grandpa thing.

[ between this and his death from earlier... ]

[Akira's eyes widen, and he glances up at Lupin, mouth parting slightly. He knows Lupin has said many times that he doesn't really believe they're related, but he seems open to the idea; just outright saying something like that though is a bit of a step up. He feels that little pang of guilt, again, that it isn't quite what he thinks it is.

But he's still touched. And he doesn't want Lupin to feel bad.]

No, it's... I shouldn't have followed the voices out. It's not anyone else's fault.

[There's a pause, and a sigh as he looks down at his hands.]

I'm... sorry I'm such a reckless great-grandson.

[ it's his emotions getting the better of him; it happens once in a while even to a clever thief. Even without evidence of Akira's claims, his heart wants them to be true, and has gotten quite cozy with the idea. The idea of some part of his spirit going on into the future - the idea of part of himself existing in someone like Akira long after he's died - more than anything, the idea of, right now, having some family to call his own. He'd never cared much about being without parents or siblings; he grew out of that when he was young, and he'd surrounded himself with friends that kept him from ever feeling lonely. Yet there's something about the idea of having a descendant like this that lightens his heart. (Maybe he really is getting old.) ]

Well, you probably got that from me, [ he replies, a gentle smirk appearing on his face. ] I'd be a hypocrite to get mad at you for jumping into danger. You heard your friends crying out for you - of course you went to rescue them. I would have done the same thing.

[ a pause. ]

No apologies. A gentleman thief should be confident in his choices.

[Akira starts a bit, because while the words are considerably more gentle this time around, isn't that what Arsene said to him the first time? Do you regret it?

And at that, Akira can't help but smile a bit, just an upturn of his lips. They really are the same, and maybe he's right, both times: it might have led to a bad outcome, but it was still actions he took to help others. Even if bad things happened, isn't it better to try at all?]

...Yeah. Maybe I'm just thinking about it too hard.

[He's been doing a lot of that these days. He should really go back to trusting his instincts; they've helped him get this far.

Still...] But I should be more careful... I think I'm going to give Akechi a heart attack.

[ Lupin nods a bit. There's nothing wrong with thinking about things - but overthinking can make things too complicated when the right answer should be clear, in his opinion, at least. Not everyone agrees with him; that's why he clashes with the law. But he's fairly sure that Akira agrees with him.

It's the truth that even the best-laid plans sometimes fall apart; he doesn't hold that against him at all. He only wishes he'd been able to figure out where he was sooner. He's one of the few adults in town - he ought to be a little more responsible, even if he's not used to it. ]

Akechi and not me? I see how it is. [ he's teasing. ] You're right, though. He was going crazy when you disappeared. I didn't realize the two of you were so close.

[Akira grins, just a little, and shrugs.] And you too. [And possibly Guren. But that aside...]

Him and me... It's complicated. [He reaches up and plays with the fringe of his bangs.] We knew each other back home... He was investigating our group, but he would also come by the coffee shop sometimes just to talk to me. And then some things happened... and he joined us.

[He sighs.] It's only temporary. He wants us to disband after this last job is done. [The way Akira says it conveys how thrilled he was about that idea, even if it's a moot point now.] But since we came here... I think we're becoming friends.

[ he listens, nodding once or twice as Akira explains their circumstances. It casts light on a lot of things Lupin had found suspect, to be honest - namely, that Akechi had the Persona of Robin Hood despite being a detective, and that he'd made a point of saying that justice isn't always by-the-books. So he was sort of a double agent. That doesn't surprise him. He knew Akechi was clever. ]

Funny how that works, isn't it? You start a temporary alliance with someone for business, and before you know it, you end up friends. [ by the sounds of things, Lupin has experience with this, too. Possibly with his own detective... ] I think you're right, and I'm glad for that. He needs friends. I know how he acts, but if you ask me, he's actually pretty lonely.

[ as for disbanding the Phantom Thieves... he has his own thoughts on that, but he'll get to that later. ]

...Yeah.

[He's exceedingly lonely, and that was what led to his downfall, in the end. The emptiness drove him mad, the desire for approval made him easy to manipulate.

Akira hopes he has time to fix those things here.]

How much has he told you about himself?

[They live together, but Akira isn't going to assume Akechi has divulged anything he doesn't have to. He might be prone to oversharing, but he also keeps a lot buried deep inside.]

[ How much is he allowed to actually say? He's not big on divulging secrets, especially those told to him in confidence - or, at least, that he inferred in confidence. He eyes Akira for a moment or two, clearly weighing what to say in his mind, but in the end, he shrugs lightly, looking out at the water again. This kid knows a thing or two about keeping secrets, himself. Besides, for some reason, he feels very sure that Akira only has Akechi's best interests in mind; there's an instinct in his gut to trust him. ]

He hasn't told me much at all, but I've been able to put together some things. I know he doesn't have a family - probably never had one his whole life, or anyone close to support him. And I know he thinks a lot about right and wrong, even for a detective. If I had to guess, he's trying to find justice in a world that never gave him any.

[ a beat. ]

... Kinda like me. That's probably why he's pretty easy for me to read.

Edited 2018-08-23 03:33 (UTC)

[Lupin is very perceptive. Akira appreciates that about him; he hopes at least some of those skills passed on to him. Though he hardly knows everything about Akechi, about the darkness inside of him that he hides from the world, he knows enough. Akira nods.]

Yeah. His dad was never around, and he lost his mom. [Though Akira won't say how; that's too heavy a topic for him to divulge.] So I think... that's right. He's trying to fix what he feels is broken.

[Of course, the way he's going about it is... not great. But Akira keeps all that to himself.]

I want to help him.

[ he came here to talk to Akira about -- well, Akira, and here they are, discussing Akechi. Lupin can't help smiling wryly to himself. This demonstrates why Akechi was so torn up about him disappearing, at least - they're clearly better friends than he'd thought.

The revelation about Akechi's parents is less a revelation and more a confirmation of what Lupin had already surmised. ]

That makes two of us. [ he leans on one hand, glancing over at Akira. ] It seems like you're doing a good job of it already, considering the state you had him in. He usually likes to pretend he doesn't get attached.

[ Whatever it is Akira's doing, he should keep doing it - that's Lupin's stance. ]

...What kind of state?

[He knows Akechi was upset when he arrived at the island - or spitting mad, is maybe the more accurate description. But Akira is more used to Akechi showing displays like that to him; that he showed it to other people is a new development.

Of course, it wasn't just over him, he knows. Akechi was worried about Caramia, too. But it's still kind of... nice. In a way.]

Well... He was on edge. I think he was really worried about you - he just didn't know how to deal with that other than by getting angry. Oh, but he didn't do anything bad, so don't worry too much.

[ Lupin's here to keep him in check! Theoretically! He doesn't actually know how much of a danger Akechi is to himself and to others; it was easy to write off getting shot as nothing more than self-defense, and Lupin fully believes that's all it was. ]

I'm sure he's calmed down after talking to you and getting all this fishy business done with.

[Akira is glad to hear he didn't do anything "bad"; it's easy to imagine Akechi slipping, and possibly hurting himself of someone else, if pushed too far. He definitely seemed to be teetering on the edge when Akira met back up with him on the island.]

I hope so. He's avoiding me.

[Too be fair, Akira isn't exactly rushing to him, either. This seems to be an ongoing pattern with the two of them.]

He'll be okay, though. I think.

He will be. Just give him some time.

[ Akechi is high-strung. Lupin would bet he's just all wound up still - once he's gotten a minute to breathe and sort out all his feelings, he'll be back to his chipper self, no doubt.

There's a brief pause as he looks over at Akira; then, quietly, he reaches out and puts a hand on his shoulder. ]

You will be, too. You're doing good.

[Akira startles a little with that hand on his shoulder, but he doesn't pull away. It feels nice, warm. He appreciates it, he really does, and maybe the small smile on his face conveys that.]

Thanks, Lupin-san.

[But he's been talking all about himself, or at least until he was able to divert the attention to Akechi. But he still remembers that everyone else got sick. So.]

Are you doing okay though?

[ he only leaves it there for a few moments - much like Akira only leaves the conversation spotlight on himself for a few moments. One of those types who doesn't like talking about himself, perhaps? They really do have a lot of things in common. ]

My arms are killing me from carrying this big rock around earlier, [ he responds with a dramatic sigh. that rock was his friend but it's fine. ] And I still feel a bit like I'm having a terrible hangover. But it's nothing I can't handle.

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Event Nine.

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