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jigokufever2022-06-24 11:00 am
jigokumods) wrote in jigokufever2022-06-24 11:00 am
Entry tags:
June 2022 Test Drive
MAIN NAVIGATION
1. CLEAN UP
The curse has broken, finally banishing the oppressive air around the city and the many sightless eyes of the accursed haniwa. Life will have to return to normal now but first there is lingering clean-up that must be attended to:SHUTEN CLAN
The Shuten Clan is out in force to rebuild damaged storefronts. Eager oni appear in their festival happi, singing oni working tunes. You can pick up the words easily enough, join in and help out. The mood starts bright, but after a number of unlucky accidents there is less singing and more grumbling. The cursed energy left behind has made all of you much more prone to workplace accidents but the storefronts need to be scrubbed, broken glass needs sweeping, new furniture needs construction. There are any number of thumbs smashed by hammers, hands cut on saws, heads hit with falling debris or that board of wood you didn’t see someone carrying towards you. It’s a cursed day to be out on the job.
Rewards will come in the form of free drinks for a week from specific bars and a generous amount of chips for the casinos. If you aren’t of age to drink or gamble? Well… they’ll look the other way this time. Have fun.
It should be noted that the uniform -- a happi, a hachimaki, and fundoshi -- is required. The Shuten Clan is very traditional, after all.TAMAMO CLAN
The bathhouses in Tamamo clan territory remain full of bloodied water. They need to be drained and scrubbed to make them new again. However, reaching the drains is a tricky business. You can’t simply reach in to pull out the plug, you will have to wade into the water to twist it free. Easy enough, right?
Unfortunately, residual curse energy has made this a very dangerous task. Phantasmal hands will reach out and try to drag you under as you get too close to the drain. The phantasms can be distracted, so you’ll need some teamwork to succeed. Your reward is a significant amount of free bath coupons. Some of the advertised baths even have “special” properties. Take the chance to relax, you probably need it.
Those that are rejuvenated in the newly purified baths will find themselves with seemingly limitless vigor. That vigor may sometimes manifest in the form of desperately needing to fuck the first thing willing to do so. Which might turn out somewhat embarrassing...SUTOKU CLAN
The residual cursed energy in the Sutoku Alliance territory has congregated in their many arcades. The prizes in the UFO catcher machines seem off and they keep shifting around. If you happen to win a prize, the prize slot snaps shut on your hand with amazing force: the machine out for blood. To clear the curse, the prizes need to be removed from the machines and purified with the help of a local shrine maiden. Unfortunately, the key ring to open the machines has been stolen by some of the unruly prizes. You will need to use your UFO catcher skills to fish it back out.
Try not to lose any fingers.
Other machines are shooting tokens out of their coin slots at astonishingly painful speeds. A strange phenomenon, as even the machines that take swipe cards are doing it. Where are those tokens even coming from? You will have to get the machines open and give them a deep cleaning to get all the residual blood off the coins and mechanisms. You need the same keys that are stuck inside the UFO catcher…. Better hope you can fish out the one you need.
For your troubles, you will be given unlimited free plays for a month. Perfect for winning a totally-not-cursed prize for your sweetie.ENMA DEPARTMENT
It’s the Department of the Enma’s turn to go begging for good will. They are considered to be mostly responsible for the way the cursed haniwa were handled in the first place. Enma souls should get out on the streets and see what the people need: Food, clean water, housing repairs and maintenance, as well as exorcisms. They’re all high on people’s priority lists and most people want it done pronto. Try not to get snappy with the angry people, the department’s reputation is on the line.
The Enma is slated to give a press conference at some point. It's up to the rest of the Department to assure that there will be reception to his words. They are likely to be of grave importance to the rest of the city.
A hard day’s work is its own reward, but you’ll also get a day pass to a theme park on the edge of the city – in the name of community outreach, of course.
2. GHOST SHARKS
The very streets themselves are treacherous with residual curses. The isonades may have been intimidated out of town for the moment but the anger of their ancestors lingers in the bloody puddles that still glisten in the streets. Come too close to these puddles and spectral sharks will lunge from beneath the surface: Blood for blood! Lives for lives!
While spectral in nature, the teeth on these sharks can still do real harm to anyone they lash out at. They don’t seem to take damage in kind, but will pop and disperse for a moment when struck. The ghostly sharks are being populated by a magic totem that has been partially buried in the dirt of a local park. Destroy it and the sharks will disappear.
Unfortunately, a pack of snotty local children have taken a shine to this magic totem. They are not keen to let you take it from them, nor break it. It’s theirs. It’s special. If you’re feeling brutish or cruel, you can fight the children or deceive them, but your boss would probably suggest you try to bargain with them for appearance’s sake. They’re entirely unreasonable though, as children can be, and it will be quite a chore to get them to agree to your terms.
3. CURSED CORNERS
There are certain corners and alleyways which are simply predisposed to gather cursed energy. These areas are still haunted enough to affect the reality around you. You may experience hallucinations or visions of lost loved ones, past regrets, personal failings. These visions are played out in the area for all to see. You will remain frozen in place until your moment is done, or someone brave comes to pull you out.
Now that the worst of it is over, some of the more morbid and voyeuristic members of the public may be lurking around these haunted areas, waiting to see what horrors will be unveiled. They have out their phones and their cameras to record the show.
The cruelest of the spectators provide commentary to their social media followings as they observe. Anything for that monetization!
The biggest of the streams is a kerakera onna who goes by her channel name: Lipsticki. She leans in over the rooftops to cackle loudly at people’s misfortunes and give petty, scathing commentary about their misdeeds and failings.
4. THE ENMA SPEAKS (PLOT RELEVANT)
Outside the hospital where the Enma was being treated, there is a huge press gathering. The judge arbiter has been deemed fit enough to release. Hungry for word, journalists from every publication swarm the area. Most press-outlets in the city are controlled by the Sutoku Alliance, who have a vested interested in interrogating the Enma.
A number of other onlookers have tacked on as well, including Lost Souls both old and new. Lost Souls may even find themselves ordered to attend the statement by their faction.
It is assumed that the Enma must have something of grave importance to say, after all.
The Enma approaches the podium. He is dressed in his usual suit, his crown, and his stern expression; it puts a hush over the crowd through its tremendous pressure alone. No questions have been asked, yet, but a statement has been prepared. He clears his throat:
"The cause of the curse, the enemy of Jigokucho, is... Haniyasu. The Department's focus will be shifting to determining our next action in regards to this entity. That is all."
Just like, the Enma's secretary and a retinue of armored shinigami move to flank the Enma and guide them to a waiting limo down the steps. The press yells their questions over one another, but are pushed back. The Enma doesn't even seem to perceive them, simply focusing on getting into the car.
Unfortunately, if you're a representative for one of the factions -- especially the Department of the Enma -- that makes you fair game to hound for questioning too. Do you stand your ground or try to run away?
[[banner art by s-tokimura]]
Welcome to the test drive meme!
- Threads here can be considered game canon.
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- NEWBIE TOP LEVELS
that's like nine chicken i think, which at that point you could just order a plate of wings
Kawase looks down at the sword at his feet-- that dingy, cheap, scrap of metal that he'd been handed to end a man's life. He's impressed Tamamori's hallucinations can imitate it so easily... but well, he was a writer for a reason. He stoops down for a moment to pick up the katana, shockingly unperturbed by having to pick something up off the ground.]
That old man shopkeep that wanted you to die... That's how I know. [He wasn't sure if that man had ever figured it out from himself; but seeing that night's events as they were through his eyes, not just stuck on the bridge until he was shivering in the rain... it made the sequence of events pretty clear.
He looked at the sword, though he didn't really remember it enough to remember the details. But still, instead of even pretending to swing or behead either of them, Kawase turns the blade around in his hands without hesitation, and held it to the side of his own neck. It wasn't like it could do anything, and there was clearly no intent behind the gesture; it was like it was just a statement of fact.]
Don't flatter yourself... without you, Tamamori'd be dead. That was the point, wasn't it? [His voice is already softer, like he's already flickered out. It wasn't even petty, just stated; as far as Kawase could tell, it'd all worked out.] But you must have some delusion of your own if you think you owe me anything. As if I'd want you dead for no reason...
[He switches his glance to Tamamori, and it's enough to finally let the barest hints of strain appear in the corner of his eye, like a child accepting they're being scolded.] ...I'm not someone that can change reality like you.
well the good news is looking at the doubledown hot dog has made me never hungry again
[He darts past Tamamori, in a smooth motion drawing the wakizashi one-handed at his belt. He can't disarm Kawase like this, not without risking driving the blade into his neck himself, but he can close the distance, jostling Kawase enough to throw him off-balance and lock their swords together.]
[He stops there for a beat, almost eye to eye with Kawase.]
...then he didn't tell you everything. Tamamori wasn't the only one who would have died. [He's not out of breath, but he speaks in a whisper anyway.] I've let you think you would have been a murderer for fifteen years.
[There. If he'd wanted either Kawase's or his own defenses to crack, when he'd first tried to talk to him -- there it was.]
i'm still upset about that
W-What...? [What was that for? Why would he...? It's not... like he was really going to do anything. The sudden action, as if Minakami was a samurai right out of the war, was leagues easier to understand than the news that he should've died in that time loop.
He swallows thick, catching his breath.] ...But it's true, isn't it? [He can hardly remember what he'd been thinking at the time, let alone in another timeline. But he'd been desperate, and scared, and he knew here, in this timeline, he'd set off back home knowing he could handle it alone, knowing how much he had to keep it a secret.]
It's not like I'm innocent now, anyway. What's the difference between thinking I was for fifteen years, and knowing I am for ten...? It makes no difference to me.
go sixteen years in the past to erase the double down dog
[Regardless, he doesn't do so. Part of it is that something in Kawase's shaken expression makes it hard for him to back down, even though he's aware they're having this standoff in broad daylight with Tamamori behind him; Tamamori who must have been hoping for a simpler resolution than watching the two of them in freefall. And part of it is -- after hearing weeks ago what Kawase had been planning... maybe it's too naive, but maybe Minakami would like to see him lower the sword himself, without being forced to.]
[Minakami shakes his head, helplessly.]
It's not murder if you're saving someone. [He falters, but carries on.] The difference is... in the other loops, he followed you. I think... he thought you were going to run away.
[He stops before he can finish that sentence as 'run away too' -- even for Mina, Kawase's mother is barely more than a blurred face seen from afar, but she was still someone not to be talked about -- but the abrupt silence hangs in the air.]
i mean you joke but i would
So it was... [So it was his fault. So it had been his father... He'd never had any idea what had really happened that night, but-- he'd never thought it was because... because his father had followed him there, in the downpour. That sneaking out that night had meant putting both of his friends in danger, risking Tamamori's life, and forcing Minakami to go through time again, and again, and again.
He can't help but laugh a little. An involuntary and unsettling sort of thing, as he kept looking at Minakami without really looking at him. Every part of him tensed up, and he held the sword until his knuckles turned white, and his hand started to shake.]
How funny... [There's the usual faked-casualness forced into his words, but it's a pretty pathetic attempt.] All I wanted to do... was tell Tamamori-kun not to tell anyone what he saw. [He'd thought that would make sure Tama would be safe from him, but it turned out he was wrong again. He felt sick to his stomach.]
...When I killed him, all I wanted was to make it up to Hanazawa. I wasn't protecting either of you. [Not like he should've. He hadn't even known he should've at the time.] If I was I never would've gone to the bridge that night. Isn't that right...?
no subject
Why...do you think I can change reality? When I'm not even enough to change someone's mind...?
[ The the gulf he'd viewed that 'other him' across- it didn't feel so wide anymore. He couldn't stop either of them. He couldn't make them live. So, if they couldn't live, refused to, then the least they owed it to him was to die how he chose, in exchange for all the bullshit they'd put him through. His legs buckled from the thought, but he barely even registered the usual worries about getting his uniform dirty, or the possibility that his boss and coworkers were watching through the too-wide windows like this was some theater drama. ]
Maybe that's fine. Nobody can change my mind, either. [ He wanted to get up, more because he didn't want to be touched than anything, but his legs weren't working, and he was still staring ahead, uselessly fragile in his delivery. ] Even if you love your guilt more than me, I came to my conclusion already. I'm not settling for anything less than both. That's...final.
no subject
[A blink, and it's over -- Kawase's in the university uniform, he's in the last shirt he has that's not ruined by blood or worse; instead of swords, their forearms are awkwardly locked over each other, almost as if each of them was reaching for the other's throat. When Minakami jerks his head back at the soft sound of Tama falling onto the pavement, Tamamori's back to normal, too. "Normal" in the way that he didn't want to become normal, but every time, every time...]
...
[More than anything, he wants to go to Tama, pick him off the ground, smooth this over, like he wasn't the one who'd been pushing Tama to this point. At the same time... if he lets go of Kawase now, he's not sure if he'll ever be in reach again, a severed kite string whipping away over the horizon. (At that, a dangerous new thought creeps into his head, too outlandish to put into words yet, surely not--)]
[He starts to reach for one of Kawase's hands and checks himself at the last second, taking his wrist instead. Even then he's afraid that contact through the fabric is too much, but Kawase had grabbed him out of the crowds, so maybe, maybe it's fine.]
...Tamamori said it to me, only I wouldn't listen. We were just... kids. [Minakami wants to look down, look away, but he's done that too much already.] ...If you want the truth... I asked you to look after Tamamori, because... I need you here, too. [He curls his fingers around Kawase's sleeve cuff; it seems like the next thing he says should be a dark joke, but there's an odd, confused tone to his voice:] I don't think we have a choice.
no subject
Then there's a tug on his arm, and he can feel the shape of a hand around his wrist; for the second time that day, he looked up at Minakami with wide-eyed surprise, his mouth slightly parted. Just... Just, kids.
The truth isn't what he expected. And suddenly... it takes the number of people who could've wanted him around up to two. He was so... certain, that Minakami was too strong, too good and steady of a person to not be disgusted with him by now. Some part of him had even hoped that Minakami would see through the pathetic lie he'd used to cover up Ikeda's death, and maybe it'd be Mina who would finally stop him... and maybe Hanazawa, too. Never in his wildest dreams could he imagine...
His heart jumps in his throat, and for a moment his hand shakes again, unsure of what to do as he stares at Minakami's hand. Every nerve inside him wanted to recoil even at the suggestion of the touch. But he-- hated, that that was always what he wanted to do.
From the outside it probably seemed silly that there was so much mental effort just turning his hand, sliding it out from under Minakami's grip so he could try and hold the end of Mina's fingers in a way that just turned out like an awkward, intertwined mess. Kawase's grip is too tight for the gesture, but it was the only way he could keep himself held on.]
...Sorry. I was lying before. [His voice was quiet, still sounding hushed and vacant-- but for now, it was just the way he sounded.] I just wanted to see Tamamori-kun get flustered, trying to explain a 'dasiy-chain'... [That last part was clearly a lie; but the first part was true. He didn't really have hopes and dreams, but he supposed he had one.
But it's about all he stand, before he releases his own tepid grip and brought his own hand gripped tightly back to his space.] Mm... I guess not. [He sounded weary over Minakami's question, but his tone was lighter than before, as he turns to look at Tamamori, seemingly unperturbed by Tama's current state, though it was far from the truth.] Don't you think you're not giving us enough credit? I don't think we ever said anything about leaving you alone.
the tag that took three days and 27 planets worth of energy to finish, i hope you're both ready
Was he interpreting things wrong? The sword- no. It hadn't been a sword. It was a scepter, it was never a sword. He'd overreacted? He must have. Tama did all the time. He messed up a lot. What else was he overreacting about? The entire past month? The past two-?
He had to stand up. It was clumsy and pathetic, the multiple attempts it clearly took to get his legs under him, but it was a pressing need- he didn't want to be touched, still. He wanted to stand on his own, reach in to his pocket on his own, and...throw his poor, cutesey phone hard enough at the ground that it bounced, jangling all the while, in to the side of the cafe's front window. Despite how angry the gesture was, it took him a moment to look up at his best friends, or approximately where they were, at least. There was a pregnant pause worth a few breaths, before Tama finally erupted. ]
You're going to act like you didn't mean it, and then say that, say I'm not giving you enough credit...?! You're going to- to- to do all that, say all of that, then say none of it was about wanting to leave?! I'm the irrational one?! After what you said on the shore- on the train- did- [ The fury didn't last long, creaking in to a much more earnest, and anxious response. Something terrified was building, stronger than even his fears about his friends' tenuous connections to life. ] -did any of it...any of the rain...
[ His mouth twitched, struggling to say it. ] ...did even actually happen...?
[ He'd forgotten so many things, plastered over the cracks with convenient or colorful or dramatic ideas, that maybe...none of the rain had ever happened. Maybe he'd made up the hashihime, the deaths and murders and impossible future, maybe it was just a story he'd let go on for too long- the shame of that was worse than anything anyone could do to him. He didn't wait for a response, was afraid of the pity or annoyance or awareness or any reaction like that- it was still stumbling, but he threw the front doors of la sonnerie open, rushing back in to the business rather than take his chances booking it down the street. Even in the pit of confusion he was in, Tama still knew to (rudely) use his environment to his advantage; he had a much better shot of getting away if he abused his employee status to go out through the back of the building, whereas someone more polite (Minakami) or new to the area (Kawase) wouldn't have had as much luck trying to follow him. anyway seeya suckers! ]
presses hands together, looks at sky
[Oh hells.]
Tamamori, wait--!
[By then the only answer is the slam of the cafe entrance, and then the more muffled bang of the Employees Only doors. Through the glass windows, he can see Melody-san hurriedly tucking her phone in her apron and trying to look casual.]
[He doesn't catch Kawase's elbow, sensing he's already pushed his luck too far on that front. But if this moment is somehow an echo of their conversation in the alleyway half an hour ago, it couldn't be more different: Instead of the tightly-controlled lid on his emotions that had bubbled to the surface as anger, Minakami looks ready to bolt, pale both from fear and something like recognition:] There isn't time to explain. He locked himself up for a week. He didn't want me to see... [Minakami trails off.] I-- We can't let him do it again.
[gestures at a burning planet] i think i did pretty well
Though, towards the end... it's like Minakami was thinking-- he hadn't heard that panicked, unsure tone of voice since they were children. The line between reality and fantasy was always blurred with him, but Kawase, at least, had never heard it quite so uncertain, and his expression immediately becomes serious again.
He's... not sure if he was really in any position to chase after him. But Minakami-- well, he's never seen Minakami look so scared before, either. He's not sure which is more unsettling at this point.]
Locked himself up...? [An almost comical thought, given how much trouble Kawase had gone through to keep him from breaking into things. But he'd been trying to hide something...?] Did he lock you out of your own house on your little honeymoon..?
[Well, he doesn't wait for an answer to that at least, so at least Minakami doesn't have to deal with that. But his panic is enough to at least spur Kawase to action; he grabs Minakami's sleeve to pull him along, seemingly grumpy as he pulls open the cafe's doors (ugh, he hoped the tsukumogami around at least washed it). Eventually he's at least, uh, kind(??) enough to release Minakami, mostly because he didn't really have the strength to push Minakami of all people around; but he continues his way straight past the employee doors into the kitchen, heedless of the little creatures' surprise and objections as he catches Tamamori at the employee door in the back, grabbing the back ties of his uniform's apron before Tama could bolt again.] Wait.
THE PLANET'S DYING KAWASE
Maybe she'd been so willing to let the pair back in to the kitchen because she knew the door was lock- sure as could be, Tama was stopped dead by the back door, still faintly jiggling the handle even if his panicked energy was already leaving him. Embarrassment was settling in, thick and heavy, which at least kept him from tearing up the kitchen trying to find a key- he'd not want to wake the row of slumbering employees anyway, he was at least that thoughtful after working here for more than a month. Give or take the bloodrain's obvious alteration of the city's schedule.
The hand on his apron ties is enough to have him freeze up again, shrugging his shoulders forward in a hunch and not jostling the knob anymore. He wanted to disappear. Crawl in somewhere dark and small and tight and disappear. Not even his illusions were helping, though there was a half-visible Frog Man clinging to Tama's pant leg as if trying to assist in what little way he could. ]
S...sorry. [ He only apologized for his mental health outbursts because he was expected to, never because he wanted to. It'd never been a very well-hidden thing, like most stuff with Tamamori. ] I missed you so much...too much, I guess. [ Frog Man was fully visible at that admission, though the frog seemed more concerned with looking sadly up at Tama than doing anything else. ] ...you can lie, or tell the truth, or say anything you want about any of it, and I'll accept it...but. Don't take that back. Don't say it didn't happen. Please.
[barrett voice]
[He halts a few steps behind Kawase, not wanting to crowd either him or Tama. Or jostle the sleepy tsukumogami on their shelves, for that matter. Though, between the exhaustion after the high-running emotions and spike of panic, or the unwanted reminder of the "price", or the mingled relief and dismay at Tama's failed escape route. Even if they were alone in the backroom, Minakami's voice would still be quiet. Quieter than usual.]
Tamamori... you don't have anything to say sorry for. [Minakami doesn't want to speak ill of the dead, not even in the privacy of his own head; the gods know that the man had his own reasons, but Tamamori apologizing in that tone makes it hard to be generous to his grandfather's departed spirit.] I should apologize, for... all this.
[Maybe these things are easier to say, with both Kawase and Tama's backs to him.] I-I don't know everything that happened, but if we're all here-- [which is to say, all alive] --it's a kind of proof, right? No matter what?
no subject
There was-- no part of him that could even comprehend being missed like that. That was still true from the first moment of Tama's enthusiasm, but it was even harder to understand now. But Kawase released his hold on Tama's apron, almost dismissively, as he crossed his arms, a tense look on his face. All of them here... alive. And together. Well, it was certainly true that no one could've made that up after everything that happened.]
...I'm not taking it back. [It was a bit quieter than he would usually speak, but... saying something like this felt embarrassing, in front of Minakami. At least it was easier when he couldn't see him.] I don't want to leave. But I thought with Minakami around, you'd finally come to your senses. Both of you.
[He doesn't like the thought... that it was because of him that Tamamori was like this now; freaking out so quickly, apparently locking himself away, all because... he hadn't been able to help himself, and tainted that bright light.
But his tone was still casual, and instead of allowing any time for his words to settle, he reaches out and plucks Frog Man off Tama's leg, squishing him a bit between his hands to make it clear what he was talking about.]
Minakami's right. And the fact that he's here is proof enough of everything that happened, isn't it? You made him up from that story... and he remembers everything that happened. Isn't that right?
no subject
Meanwhile, the poor frog croak-squeaked, but didn't seem to really mind being handled so roughly- his voice warbled like an accordion when he went to speak, but it was still bright and hopeful. ]
Kawase-san is right! We're all here to help you!!
[ ...being cheered on by his imaginary creation was actually a little cringe, even to Tama. Even if this wasn't the first time. His cheeks colored, and he looked even more pointedly away. ] You should know I don't have any senses to come back to...Kawase's the one who always says so. [ More petulance, and a pout, but he wanted to help bring levity, maybe. Even if he'd started this whole thing. ] And I wasn't the only one who missed you. We didn't celebrate Minakami's birthday because it didn't feel right, without all of us together. So...if we're all here, if it all happened...then I want to keep sticking together. I...want that daisy-chain, and to be our obnoxious selves, that nobody else can stand...okay?
no subject
[He falls silent after that. "Come to your senses"... something about that settles in his mind, next to the odd twist of emotion on seeing Tamamori exuberantly greet Kawase at first, or his own immediate feeling of freefall when Kawase had dragged him out of the crowds that had nothing to do with being physically off-balance, or Kawase's stunned look during that "duel". There's something...]
[He breaks out of his reverie for a second, sounding puzzled:] Story? [He'd remember if any of Tama's writings had a little frog yokai, right? Unless it was one of the ones Kawase had "reviewed" first. Come to think, that was the most likely answer. Oi.] Eh, you made your point, put him down.
[that word again... why are you two like this..... Somehow, somewhere, across the underworld, Minakami can tell Tama's dragon friend has their ears pricked up. He clears his throat, feeling the colour rise in his face again, trying not to rouse the tsukumogami around them as he does so.]
It's true, you know. It's one of the first things he said, when we ran into each other here. [The first part of that, he... also can't deny it, said out loud like that. This is mortifying, all of it, everything being said; more than anything he wishes this could all be understood somehow without saying so. Ah, and yet that's how they all got into this mess to begin with, isn't it?] ...why do you think I followed you two to the capital? Even though you know I-I wasn't... I only... wanted to see you all succeed, and be a part of it.
no subject
He can remember, those few years ago, when he'd announced his plans. At the time, he hadn't known what would happen, if he would just move on to the capital alone, and his two dearest friends would stay in a village that still felt like home. Even in his loneliness, he hadn't expected both of them to come with him; and he's not sure, after everything, if it was a blessing or a curse.
But even hearing... all of this... He could still remember that day a month or so ago, when they'd originally celebrated Minakami's birthday. For some reason it had always felt like it would be the last time, maybe in no small part because of his effort to hide the truth about Hanazawa and Ikeda. In the end, it had been that man from the future's fault, but... Being together again, like they'd always been (like they always should've been), wanting to stay together, and being missed... He's overjoyed, honestly, like that flushed sort of tingling after a fit of vertigo. It was something he couldn't have even dreamed about. But he still can't help but feel like that happiness and gratitude and relief was festering inside him, like what he'd desperately tried to dig out on the train back to Aizu. Especially with something so fragile.
He ends up forgetting Minakami's chastisement, squeezing the Frog Man between his hands a little too tightly... but he comes back to attention when he realizes it, and quickly places the poor frog back on the ground.]
...Okay.
[Quiet, almost a whisper; though probably not for the sake of the poor, sleeping tsukumogami. But it's soft, without any of the bite he can never seem to remove. He takes a small, careful step out of the way, so he could turn and actually look at both of them despite the lack of eye contact; or at least so it doesn't feel like he's the one being looked at.]
As long as it's the two of you, I'd be happy. Even if I'm not good enough, if it's still what you want... Then I can't say no. [Maybe he does actually sound a little happy, in spite of himself.]