sunfloras | OPEN POST II

[Wouldn’t it be something if he chose a flavor that was purposefully weird for the sake of spiting her? It would certainly lessen the chances of her calling upon him for more midnight outings, fetching superfluous items in the dairy section to suit her fancy. But Light can be disdainful, not necessarily antagonistic; besides, he would have long detached himself from this very odd, very tenuous friendship if these passing whims truly bothered him.]

Don’t worry. No cruel surprises tonight.

[He does, in fact, choose Rum Raisin after a bit of searching.]

I haven’t. I thought it would be more prudent to wait for you. How long until you arrive?

[It’s a simultaneous call-out as it is proof of knowing her personality. Her likelihood of bullying someone into performing a mundane task is about equal to her likelihood of showing up to a scene, a situation, the promise of information-gathering skewed to her interests.]

[Ah.

Well, of course, he would figure it out quickly enough. Light Yagami had a way of reducing and predicting a persons' movements. In that way, Shiki wasn't very complicated especially when it came to her basic habits. ]

10 minutes.

There's no one else around?

There isn’t.

[The night is quiet, marked by silence along a usually busy street, a usually busy sidewalk. Even the inside of the convenience store had felt next to barren, minus the stalwart night owl employee who had tended to his transaction.]

I’ll wait for you outside.

[And so he will. Light stands near the corner of the building’s exterior, keeping a keen eye out for a certain red jacket. A small plastic bag is hung at the crook of an elbow, his arms crossed as he waits as patiently as he can manage.]

[During their first encounter a year or two ago, Shiki Ryougi wore her red jacket paired with a yellow kimono and had a good-natured rapport with Light.

The Shiki of the present day is walking up to the convenience store now, red jacket, blue kimono, and her laced up boots. It's exceptionally rare to see her wear anything else. And she doesn't greet him with a smile (she is not a warm person) or a wave. Just a nod of acknowledgment and eyeing the bag hanging on his elbow.]

So you haven't disappeared yet. Fortune favors the bold as they say.

[Light’s like a chameleon, or a mirror — he’s used to transforming his countenance to reflect his company when necessary, putting on a polite grin or touting himself as benign. But Shiki never did care for such pleasantries or social expectations, and Light reflects that to a degree, too; or perhaps it’s a sliver of his sincere preferences, the mask not so much as slipped as never applied, and he doesn’t have more than an immediate reply as a greeting.]

Misfortune finds the bold just as often as fortune, too. Like I said, I haven’t started properly looking.

[Ah, but it’s very much like Light to correct, to be the one who’s right, quick to sweep aside useless cliches.

He holds out the bag to her, unwilling to bear the ice cream burden for her sake any longer than necessary.]

This is yours.

[She accepts the bag and it transfers onto her elbow.]

Thanks. Anyway...

[And now for the urban oddity of the night. Her expression is inscrutable as ever when looking towards the dark alleyway.

In fact, Shiki notes that it's super dark as she approaches it until she's a safe yard away.]

I can't even see the other end of this area. The lights on this side aren't illuminating anything.

[She’s right, of course. ‘Round that same corner is the alleyway in question, shrouded down its length by a darkness that can only be called unnatural. Some of the street lights should illuminate the path, if dimly — even the fluorescent wrap-around convenience store signage should offer a mote of lurid visibility, but there’s none to be found there, either.

Looking at it now, it’s a bit like an open maw of a creature beckoning them in. Thankfully, Light isn’t the sort to work on complete impulse — as long as his patience remains slotted in place, that is.]

You said that individuals would either disappear down this alley, or reset their path back to where they started. That would be here, where we’re standing, correct?

[The mouth of the alleyway.]

Correct.

[Shiki takes out her phone and taps on the flashlight function. When it activates, she points her phone directly in front of the alley.

The light still doesn't reach.]

Hm. Not entirely sure if we're dealing with something that's considered living.

This is your wheelhouse, not mine.

[In a different world, nestled down the length of an alternate timeline, Light would be no stranger to supernatural goings-on and their machinations. He would utilize them to his own advantage, shake the very foundations of the world in an attempt to wring out change — but here and now, standing at the mouth of a dark and ominous alleyway, such expertise lies with her. It’s an easy admittance, even for him; he cannot pretend to have dealt with the same entities that stalk the city, the nighttime hours, as Shiki. Rare is the time when Light allows someone to take the lead, but her suggestions are often weighted more heavily than most in circumstances such as these.

Even so, he’s apt to indulge in his own whims of experimentation. A hand dives into his pocket, pinches a coin of loose change between forefinger and thumb.]

I’ll follow your suggestions on how to proceed, but we shouldn’t throw ourselves in blindly.

[Not themselves, at least.

Without preamble, Light pulls his arm back and tosses the coin down the alleyway. It spins in the air, catching moonlight, before disappearing into the darkness. He listens for sound. And he listens for silence, which would be just as telling. Or will it come careening right back from behind them, caught in a loop?]

Edited 2020-10-03 19:39 (UTC)

[The person she was two years ago is so different from her in the present day and although they restarted their acquaintanceship, Shiki never fully divulged the nature of that drastic personality change. What she did make clear sooner than later to Light was that she was not normal and the things she sought or was sent after were out of the realm of that. He just inadvertently, such as right now, also gets a glimpse of that world due to her leading him to it.

The coin disappears into the inky black and soupy shadow. At first there's no reaction. But before Shiki can make a remark, the ground rumbles beneath their feet followed by the sound of gnashing teeth.

Shiki blinks and then looks back at Light.]

Well. Guess whatever's in there is hungry.

[She reaches for the knife sheathed and hidden in the back of her kimono, before deciding against it.]

I'll go in.

Edited 2020-10-04 01:18 (UTC)

[A shake beneath their feet, the sound of gnashing. It isn't a grand mental leap to assume that whatever lies in there, it won't be particularly friendly. He'll not be seeing his coin again, at any rate.

A pointed look at Shiki, frowning.]

Wait. And what about me? I can wait for a minute or two, but if you don't return, you can't expect me to remain idle or just walk away.

Well, I can expect you to make a phone call to Touko if I don't come out within the hour.

[She's texting him the number of the Garan no Dou office to him and hits "send" before pocketing her phone.]

Don't wait around for me that long though. I'm not gonna have any hard feelings if you left.

As though I’d leave.

[His phone blips with a text, but he leaves it unread. He knows she’s sent him contact information, but he chooses not to acknowledge it for now, like it’ll willfully force it to become unneeded.]

Is a second set of eyes by your side such a bad idea? It wouldn’t be the first time you’ve had me stumble face-first into the supernatural.

... Yagami. [There's a look of exasperation.]

It's dark as shit in there. [Shiki can only hope pointing out the obvious will dissuade him.]

Edited 2020-10-08 04:41 (UTC)

I won’t be experiencing anything you won’t, either.

[Stubborn.]

But not just eyes —- sound, awareness. Just... do you really believe going in alone is wise?

[Shiki weighs her options in her head. She could argue some more with Light and present him other options, but he always fought logic with logic and it becomes irritating the longer she draws it out. Yagami was kind of a pain in the ass that way.

So her answer isn't made with words, but with a swift turn and strides towards the alleyway and into the impenetrable darkness before he can even say a word.

After all, he's not gonna follow her recklessly, right? The shadow of the alleyway looks like a velvet cloak of darkened fog that swallows her up and leaves no trace of her own figure and shadow.]

[It's like her to do this; he should have known after all this time.

But it's no less frustrating to Light, just like any time someone doesn't bother to listen to his reasoning, deciding to barrel into the deep dark and hope the consequences aren't too dire. And this time, it seems that his concern is quite the literal one.]

Ryougi!

[He steps forward, making a grab for her arm, but she's already slipped past and into that veil of blackness, the darkness that light won't pierce through. A hiss of a curse beneath his breath-]

Damn it...

[What a pain.

She's right, though. He won't follow her in recklessly, as she's forced his hand to wait and see, his patience just enough to allow a few minutes pass to see if they're uneventful... or otherwise.]

Edited 2020-10-09 14:57 (UTC)

[It takes a good five minutes for anything notable to happen. The alleyway remains black, but the noise they had both heard before, the horrible gnashing of teeth becomes clearer as is the scuffling of Shiki's boots against the pavement and even on the walls as she jumps off of them. She couldn't have been more than five feet away from where Light was standing.

The sound of a knife stabbing flesh finally clears the dark mist. In front of Light is Shiki backing off from what appears to be a humanoid figure completely made up of shadow. While the ambient light from the buildings finally illuminate the alleyway, it does not pass through whatever this creature is. And what a creature it is; it had mouths all over its body, not just its face. Shiki's knife sticks out of where it's head should be and it thrashes from the intrusive weapon, hitting the sides of the walls and screeching.

Shiki is out of the alleyway and in front of Light grimacing.]

Ugh. I don't know what that is. Yagami, don't move any closer.

[also her ice cream is gone oops

[did the monster eat the ice cream, gosh

He should be used to such sights by now, but the reality is that he isn't. Every time he views something strange, courtesy of her presence and the situations that follow her like a shade, it's jarring, chilling. This monster is much the same: an entity made of shadow and too-many mouths, a knife glinting from its head, thrashing against the alleway.

He steps back, trying to tamp down the base, inconvenient instinct of fear and trepdiation, all of which can be felt in the way he grips her shoulder tightly as she nears.]

Ryougi, are you all right?!

[Eyes dart up to the creature again.]

What do we do, then? What is it?

[Long (and ridiculous) story short, the ice cream made a quick save.]

Tch.

[Is her reaction as Light grips her shoulder. She lightly slaps his hand away before turning her attention back to the creature. It almost moves too closely to the both of them; as a quick response she makes a fluid movement that puts some distance between them before she spins to kick the monster away. This causes it to stumble and for her knife to drop from its head.

She quickly retrieves her knife before answering Light.]

We're going to kill it. I don't care what 'it' is and you shouldn't care either. It's a disgusting existence.

[Shiki is already putting herself in an offensive position.]

Move away, Yagami.

OPEN POST II

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject