week two | mingle

[showhost]

Welcome to week two, Teens Who Are Definitely Searching for Love!

Hopefully everyone got a lot of rest over the weekend, and are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for the upcoming week, because there are a few things of interest this week.

But first, some changes of note in the house!

First: there is a giant rectangular box on the living room table, addressed to Lessing. It is a care package. The only thing in it is his sword.

There is some Bauernbrot bread on the counter. Ask Lessing about that too.

There is now a hot tub near the pool. It’s large enough to seat about six teens comfortably, but you can get more in there if you really try for some reason.

Okay I think that’s everything. Additionally, Tsukasa is here early this week! He’s looking pretty perky, seemingly recovered from the Match Ceremony, and he’s got some interesting info to share with everyone.

Embrace Space | Property Damage, etc | Dates | Mini-Event
Truth Booth Voting | Match Ceremony Submissions

Comments

[haircared]

We sure did. It was easy.

[ He laughs good-naturedly, very proud of their little scam. They rig the games so much at carnivals that he feels totally vindicated. Anyway, for Kat's gift, he leans down to rustle around in the sack before he produces— kitty ear headband!! It's a perfect match to her hair and has a little black bow on it, too. It looks very plush and comfortable. ]

[willandaway]

[. . . !]

What did you get?

[singurarity]

Thanks! They were all rigged, so it was kinda like a "steal from the rich" sort of situation.

... We didn't steal, though. Come over here, already!

[ Come get your very expensive prize-- ]

[haircared]

For you? Lemme see, it's probably at the bottom...

[ Josuke laughs, digging through the bag's contents for Will's present. He uses sleight of hand and his superior height to hide it from him while he goes to give it to him — rather, to place it on his head.

It's a crown! It's got some jewels on it and is nicely shiny. Josuke smirks, thoroughly amused by he and Ritsuka's gift planning. ]

Fit for a king, you know?

[singurarity]

It's kind of just a hunch, and I've been wrong before. [ With a little rueful shrug. But could you call her wrong to her face, Sanji? Could you hurt her feelings? ]

But from how he talks about you and the way you guys were during the Spin the Bottle, it kind of made me... wonder.

[hgeegh]

[How he what?]

"How he talks"?

[This is too much at once. He needs to take it one at a time, and he'll choke himself to death on shortbread if he hurts Ritsuka in the process.]

[singurarity]

Like he actually has a pretty solid understanding of you. And likes you for it.

[ Ritsuka is here for all of her friends to be raised up. ]

But you haven't answered me yet, you know.

[haircared]

Just think about it. We'll lose 'em all if we can't solve this in the time limit.

[ Haaahh... he plucks his comb out of his coat pocket, smoothing out the sides of his hair. Bluntly: ]

If someone loses their wish that needs it, they can have mine, anyway.

[hgeegh]

[Despite himself, he flushes and averts his gaze.]

I . . .

[Answer her! Figure something out! Say something!]

[haircared]

[ returns to this post mark straightgate ]

It could be, yeah. I don't wanna say it's for certain or anything... and to be honest, there's still a lot I don't know about him.

[ He doesn't mind elaborating to Sanji... he unlocked his cannibalism trauma, they have a bond. ]

But we get along great, and we have the same principles. That's as good a sign as I can ask for, at this point in the competition.

[singurarity]

[ It's fine. She'll wait.

I mean, unless this takes an hour. ]

[hgeegh]

[It takes an hour.

That's what it feels like, anyway. He snaps back to Ritsuka after an agonizingly long silence.]

D-does it really matter? We get along fine. [That matters.]

[singurarity]

It matters to me.

[ It's really so nice when she doesn't have to mince her words. ]

[flaweddetective]

[He’s just going to side step whatever the hell is going on here as he makes his way to the kitchen for coffee.

Carnival gifts? Cheap toys for kids? Yeah he’s just walking past.]


(Aka: I got him in the room which was the best I could do.)

[hgeegh]

[Ritsuka used heartfelt appeal! It's super effective!

Sanji hunches in his seat. His shoulders sag and his head bows, hands balling into fists on the counter. His back curls, then curls some more like he's mimicking an armadillo until . . . ]

M . . . [His voice lowers to an airy whisper:] May . . . be.

[singurarity]

[ This is the most tormented "maybe" she has ever seen.

Ritsuka hesitates, then reaches out, cupping one hand over his fist. ]

Is that bad?

[singurarity]

[ Too late, she's already trotting towards him to offer him one of those Sherlock Holmes pipes. It has bubbles, of course. Sanji is the only smoker here. ]

Don't throw it immediately away and I promise to tell you about working with the actual Sherlock Holmes?

[hgeegh]

[Oh, the tragedy.

Getting along is always good.]

Makes sense. If the rest of the matches are anything like Wednesday and Ryuji, both parties should complement each other. It wouldn't make sense for one to overwhelm the other.

[hgeegh]

[Well, now that her hand is on his, he's grea—yes, it's bad! (Still, that doesn't stop his hand from tingling at the contact.)

His head snaps up.]

Of course it is! [He tucks in his chin, sheepish.] Ah . . . not because it's him, but . . .

[ . . . because it's him. That makes sense, right?]

[singurarity]

...? Because it's a guy?

[ We'll figure this out, Sanji. You and your unhelpful words. ]

[flaweddetective]

[He is deeply and sincerely not impressed with this. And it shows. He also notes tweedle dum and tweedle dee got matching crowns to perpetuate the fantasy. Everyone in this house is a disaster.

But. The promise of being told real stories about Sherlock Holmes? Normally he'd be skeptical of a tale like that. But what she's told him so far about her work is wild enough to believe. Sort of like personas. So impossible that someone couldn't possibly make it up and be serious about it. That and with she how she waited and even hesitated to even talk about it and the genuine exhaustion she expressed while going into it. She's telling the truth about this.]

Sherlock Holmes, huh? [You've got him interested.] You have Arsène Lupin and James Moriarty in your bag of famous people too?

[flaweddetective]

I don't have the anymore. I lost them after...

[You know. Death didn't help. Also whatever the Thieves did to the metaverse. He never asked and they never told.]

But I can still fight. Being good at swordplay wasn't some magical ability. It was something I honed on my own.

[hgeegh]

[It's a most tragic sacrifice, but he pulls his fist away from Ritsuka to tangle his hands in his hair around the crown of his head.]

What am I gonna do? I wish I'd gotten the hint. Then I wouldn't have to wonder like this . . . !

thursday........

[makeine]

[ sorry about your above biacceptance or whatever sanji anna's satisfied with last week's mission... carefully sneaking around the bedroom very early before barely anyone's up to wake her favorite chef.

with some hard jabs. ]

[singurarity]

[ She sure is. ]

James Moriarty, older and younger. I never got the chance to meet Lupin, though. I keep wondering if that'll happen one day.

[ One never knows. ]