puppycrush2 | week two

[ Mark, meanwhile, is obliviously vibing. He turns from staring up at the top of the walls to Akechi when he speaks. ]

Uh... not this specifically, no. [ A beat. ] I bet I could do it without a rope or harness, though.

[ And he internally winces as soon as he says that, because the thing is, he could, but he is also not supposed to be advertising that. Where did this come from?? He doesn't know why Ryuji seems to hate Akechi so much, or what his deal is, but when they'd first talked Akechi had come across as really cool and sophisticated, and Mark maybe

wants to impress him, actually

Oh he's going to do something stupid here, isn't he. ]

Oh? Do you think you can?

[Now hold on. Boldering is nothing to sneeze at. It requires a great amount of strength. But Mark thinks he can do it without having done it before? How very... Joker of him.]

Huh... Alright. Let's do it then. A race to the top? It's a little unsporting considering I'm experienced so lets make it interesting.

[A challenge! A bet. And a truly physical one at that. He better limber up a bit as he's a touch out of practice. A few months off the rocks but he was in Mementos fairly recently, recently enough for him, so it should be fine.]

[ Crapcrapcrapcrapcrap...

A race to the top actually sounds pretty fun, Mark is just going to have to make sure he doesn't overdo it. Maybe his inexperience with rock climbing and bouldering both will come in handy here; sure, he can cheat, but can he cheat convincingly? ... Maybe he'll be in his own head enough that it won't be a problem.

Akechi probably wants an answer. ]

Yeah, let's do it! [ He grins, a little nervous, mostly energized. ] Interesting how? Though who knows — I might surprise you.

[ He's just trying to cover his bases, ]

Well, considering I'm very experienced and this is your first time... I'll climb blindfolded and race you to the top. What do you say?

[Then it's about touch and how secure you are on your rocks. Easy. He'll be forced to go a little slower but that seems like a fair trade off.]

And of course... nothing is interesting without stakes. So let's make a bet. If you win, I'll vote your way for the upcoming truth booth. And if I win you'll vote mine. How does that sound?

[ He raises his eyebrows, vaguely alarmed. ]

Are you sure? I mean, as long as you're sure you won't get hurt or anything...

[ since he's. not willing to totally discount the possibility, much more concerned than patronizing ]

Um, if you're cool with that then so am I. [ He nods, forcing himself to relax. ] And the terms, too. Do you already know how you want to vote in the truth booth?

I'll be fine. [He pulls his tie undone to use as a blindfold.] A wall like this is child's play, really.

[At the question he lets out a thoughtful hum.]

I have some thoughts. I'll know for sure when it gets a little closer. I think we should vote one of our pairs from last week. Which one...? That needs some more consideration.

[He lines up with his wall and begins tying his tie around his eyes.]

At your go.

[ Okay... Akechi's confident. Mark is going to have to probably take it easy to start, see what his skill level is at, how hard he should go accordingly. He's already running through the possibilities in his head that he has to force himself to pay attention again. ]

I'm... actually with you, on that. I feel like the first three matches are the most likely, but I can't vote for myself, so.

[ So that makes his job a little easier, even if he does kind of have a suspicion that he and Josuke are the correct pair. Which — of course he does, he's biased on that front, but still.

Mark steps up to his wall next to Akechi's, watching him tying the blindfold on. Ah. He's nervous suddenly, but at least the stakes don't feel too high...

And once he has the blindfold on: ] Okay, go.

[ And he'll find his grip and take a tentative first step up, but mostly his eyes are on Akechi, waiting to see just how quickly he can go. ]

[Aside from the fact that he climbs for fun he learned a lot in Mementos too where vision is limited and his mask does little to help with that. He had no hook-shot like Joker and so it was a lot of scaling and climbing and falling. But with falling came lessons.

At the go Akechi reaches out, dragging his hands along the wall until he finds a rock jutting out. He takes hold of it and seeks out another a little higher up, something he can begin pulling himself up with. Once he has the balls of his feet on the wall then he begins scaling. It's a little slower than he'd normally go as he has to feel for every rock but it's a little thrilling to do it like this.

A little danger and risk, low stakes but stakes all the same.]

[ Mark watches, taking in how Akechi feels his way up the wall with a confidence and grace he does not have. ... Not here, at least. If he had to, Mark might compare Akechi's climbing with his flying — something inherent to themselves; something fun and rewarding.

It's really nice to see someone in their element.

... And he should really start climbing himself, because it's not like flight counts for anything here.

So Mark looks up and reaches for the next hold he can find above him, and starts slowly hoisting himself up. He keeps an eye on Akechi the entire time — he does not want to end up too far ahead nor too far behind; the former wold pose more problems while the latter really is just a matter of pride — but that can also be a little distracting.

Case in point: the little yelp of surprise as his foot slips from the rock he'd been trying to set it on. He's only saved by his unnaturally strong grip on the rocks above, left to dangle there for a couple of seconds before he's able to find footing again. ]

Ah — I'm okay, I'm okay.

[ Does Akechi care or is he too in the zone... either way, Mark felt like saying it as he looks up, now needing to play a bit of catchup. ]

[He keeps climbing but he does slow a bit and then eventually he stops, canting his head at the sound. He didn't hear anything hit the floor. It was probably a slip of a foot. A poor grab? That moment when you loose your balance does make your heart do a flip. He's familiar. Climbing without a harness or ropes isn't for the faint of heart.

He can't see but... things seem to be fine?

Despite not knowing where Mark is on the wall Akechi can't do much to help him but he does hold out a hand. The stakes are low, after all. And it's not worth someone getting super hurt over. As the one of the few people here that still talks pleasantly to him he's not going to let Mark crash to his death. That would be inconvenient and annoying.]

If you need help getting steady...

[It's Mark's first time, after all.]

Edited 2024-11-20 20:40 (UTC)

[ ... It isn't like Akechi knew Mark would be totally fine, but it is nice that, even in the middle of a race, he would stop to at least listen.

And hold out his hand, which, Mark did not need... but reaches out to take it anyway. ]

Thanks, man. [ He does use it to pull himself a little further up, on par with Akechi now. ] I— That was really nice of you.

[ You're a good guy would feel a little too on the nose to say, so Mark holds his tongue there, but he sure is thinking it before he puffs out a little laugh, hoping to break any possible tension he might've brought upon them. ]

We should get back to it, huh?

[ But he'll still wait for Akechi to resume his climb before moving upwards himself. Maybe he will lose to him, after all — not only might Akechi beat him fair and square anyway, but it would feel wrong to try to show off that much after that particular display. ]

It's not much of a race if you fall. Really, it's the least I can do. You're doing something rather treacherous with this being your first climb and lack of harness.

[But with the insistence that they continue he doesn't argue, already feeling for a new rock to help pull him further up the wall. It is a race and he does want that win to secure someone voting his way when the time comes. (This turns out to not be a problem in the future.)

It's back to the thrill of scaling something. He feels like he's making good time despite his self induced impairment. It forces him to be more careful and make sure his every hold is secure. Slower but more caution than he usually shows to indoor rock walls.]

[ Mark just laughs a little nervously, because treacherous... right... yeah, that's what this is for him. ]

Still... thanks.

[ It's said warmly, as he waits a couple of seconds before looking to advance upwards himself. (Mark ended up voting exactly the way Akechi suggested, so he's going to win this one anyway.) Every now and then he takes the time to admire what Akechi is doing, the way it looks like he's right at home here doing something that's far more dangerous for him than it is for Mark — and it lets him lag behind, too. ]

Don't mention it.

[Akechi climbs like the little gremlin he is, scaling the wall and gaining momentum as he gets into a groove. Eventually his fingers graze the top of the wall and he has a triumph smile as he pulls himself up so he can sit on the edge, pulling the tie off from over his eyes to see if he sits alone or if Mark got to the top before him.

It's possible! He was so into it that he may have missed someone scaling up ahead of him.]

[ If only Mark could be that stealthy...

But no, he'd gotten lost enough looking up at Akechi in awe that he'd slowed down a bit more, not entirely of his own volition. By the time he realizes that Akechi is almost at the top it clicks for him that he should at least be closer, but he can't just fly up, so... ah...

By the time Akechi pulls his blindfold off Mark is maybe three or four moves away from the top himself. He reaches for his next rock to bring himself that much more within range, but then... ah. Akechi's looking down at him.

Mark gives him a little wave with his free hand. ]

So... you're really good at this. [ With awe in his voice. ] Blindfolded and everything...

[He preens, just a little, as he sits atop the wall with each leg kicking out slightly now and then.]

I do it fairly frequently. It really wasn't all that fair in the grand scheme of things but I enjoyed the challenge. You're something to be impressed by though. This is your first time, you said?

[He smiles as he scoots a little closer to where Mark is to offer his hand, once he's certain he's steady, just to help him to the top.]

It's rather dangerous what we're doing but you didn't bat an eye... That's pretty remarkable.

Ah... yeah, it's my first time doing this.

[ Did he go too fast? But Akechi seems happy, so—

Mark's just gonna accept his hand, joining him to sit atop the wall. He kicks his legs out, admiring the little view from up here before turning back to look at him. ]

I guess I'm just pretty active? I mean, I've gone hiking and stuff, [ if flying up mountains can be considered hiking, ] I just haven't done the indoor version. So I figured it'd translate, and I guess it did.

[ yeah that seems plausible.

A beat. Small smile. ]

It makes sense that I'd still lose to an expert, though.

[He lets out a laugh, a little harsher than the ones he forced out in week one but absolutely more genuine.]

I do enjoy the activity... I'm no expert. I appreciate the praise, however.

[Akechi continues to kick his legs and sighs contently.]

I enjoy those sorts of things... Though I think I'd prefer biking over actual hiking. [In a time where Markechi could have been real.] We should go sometime. [He holds up a finger.] Maybe we'll go on an excursion that allows us to do some of those things.

[ ... Akechi really does seem like he's in his element. It's nice. He's really fun to spend time with when he's like this... ]

Maybe! It feels like I haven't been on a bike in forever, but that'd be really fun. And biking would have us covering more distance than hiking, huh. [ A huff of a laugh, Mark idly kicking his legs out, too. ] Maybe we could ask... or, who knows. Maybe after all of this?

[ our markechis... i continue to manifest ]

week two | dates

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