deercountry | (closed) december catchall

Entry tags:

(closed) december catchall

Who: Ange (

entreats), Chizuru (

tealeafs), Daniel (

miyagimagic) and various others.
What: December shenanigans.
When: During all of December.
Where: Locations vary.

Content Warnings: Bullying, (mild) violence, will edit to add more later.

( starters in the comments! if you want to plot anything with me, feel free to either pm the journal or contact me at

queeningsquare, i'm always open to new ideas and threads! )

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Robby can never help but to look down when Mister LaRusso touches him like that, and it's moreso when there's other people around. Others who he barely glances at to wonder if they're looking, only to chicken out in an effort that shows him no more than a floor. He doesn't want to know because that would ruin it, and he doesn't want that full feeling in his chest to go anywhere. He likes this, actually, and he never thought he would again.

(He's trying his best to stop second-guessing, waiting for the other shoe to drop. It's getting easier each day.)

Affection comes with the playful joking, the first in which Robby offers him a dismissive reaction in his face; ruined by the fact he's smiling wide to the point of dimples. They hardly get to soften when Daniel goes on, and for his efforts, his continuing games, Robby holds up the parcel -- but not to Daniel.

"Well, I was going to give you this, but the day isn't over yet." His nose wrinkles, eyes squinting too, feeding that implication that's now canon, actually. Maybe I shouldn't give this to you, yet. Just in case.

Robby holds the act, but then breaks it with a light laugh and hands it over. Expression softening as he has to think before he says: "Merry Christmas."

There's a wry note in it, just to make sure it doesn't sound sincere, or anything.

Honestly, did Daniel need a present? Of course not. If anything, he feels the way Robby is acting right now is already enough of a present in and of itself. There's just so many little things about the other that he got to see from him before, and that he thought he'd never see again after things went downhill so quickly.

But here they are. Robby trying so hard to play dismissive, but failing. That little laugh. Just seeing the kid being so open is enough to fill Daniel's heart with warmth, but..

.. well, of course he accepts the gift too, taking the box in his hands.

"Merry Christmas to you too, Robby. The present, though.. you really didn't have to." The tone isn't dismissive as he says it though. If anything, it's still warm, perhaps even a touch flustered at the edges.

The statement doesn't stop him from unwrapping the gift all the same, a raised eyebrow when the box underneath comes into view, but that too is easily opened, revealing the watch within.

Apparently it's nothing like what Daniel expected, since a genuinely surprised look dawns on the man's face as he looks at it. Grabbing it out of the box and holding it in his hands, he actually looks.. kind of amazed by it, honestly. Maybe it's a little comical, considering Daniel had the money back home to buy way fancier watches, and yet he seems so genuinely happy with this one.

"For me?" he asks, perhaps a little too caught up by the surprise. He turns his head to look at Robby, a glee coming over his features that makes him look a touch younger. "It looks so nice."

Apparently Robby, even with his inexperience with this sort of thing, was entirely right on the money in thinking that any dorky dad out there appreciates a watch. (Especially when it's gifted to them by their kid.)

Of course Mister LaRusso would say that - You didn't have to - but Robby pays it no mind. He's more anxious in that eager way to see what the man will think about his gift, wishing he could change it over for something else but also hoping he hit a good mark. Mister LaRusso wore watches back in the Valley, right? It can't be that bad. Would he like one here?

(It's the first time in forever - maybe ever - where gift giving feels special. Where there isn't the drag of his mom's mood after a bender, or if she'll even be around. How long will she take to disappear if she is around, or will it be one of those good days this year?)

Watching Mister LaRusso take it out is a held breath, a good kind of bracing than the others that've existed between them in a while. But his face--Robby sees it even before it's directed at him, chest tightening before the smile that shines on him. His own smile is tight on his face, pinched in restraint. He feels proud, he feels silly, he feels way too into a dumb gift giving, and he waffles on if he should make a joke ('I know older men love watches, even if they've got the time on their omni'), but sincerity wins out with a small bob of his head.

"I noticed you missing one. I remembered you used to wear them."

At home and the dealership more often than the dojo, but we don't need to get into details here. He only says it just to say something, like he's sixteen again, and they're getting to know each other again.

Luckily, he knows how to shut his mouth than to start rambling for real.

"So perceptive," Daniel jokes, but the exact curl on his lips right now betrays the fact that he definitely also means it as a compliment at the same time. Especially since it's not like Robby was remembering something from just the other day back home. Daniel refuses to think about the time they spend apart back home, not today, but he knows that it's something Robby must have spotted quite a long time ago, and yet-- he remembered. Enough to go for this gift.

Daniel would have been happy enough with any gift, or even with just a watch, but the fact that Robby remembered and then gifted him this makes it extra special.

"Don't tell anyone else, but I've definitely looked at my wrist out of habit before in this place, only to realise I didn't actually have a watch."

There's something almost giddy about Daniel - in that dad sort of way - as he holds out the box it came in towards Robby, with a quick: "Can you hold this for a sec?"

It's mostly so he has both of his hands free a moment later, already moving to put the watch around his wrist, absolutely not wasting any time. If it's a gift from Robby, he's definitely going to wear it all the time. (Outside of karate time, anyway. Don't want this gift watch to get busted up right away.)

"You know, you're starting to get me real worried that the gift I got you might not match up."

Daniel isn't actually worried, since he knows his gift will have a lot of practical use to Robby, but he can't help but make the joke all the same. Maybe get him a little excited about his gift too.

The secret does get a small scoff out of Robby, hitting the right spot. Silly as it is, but it's charming, it sounds normal--a normal act for this place. Here they are where there's Christmas decorations, turkey, and they sound so completely themselves.

(Scorpia was right--it really is about finding the smiles between the hard times.)

He'll take the box when asked with a "Sure", and if he should've figured Mister LaRusso was going to put it on now, Robby misses the memo that possibility was on. Maybe he's just being humoured, but he'll take that without question, thank you very much. There's a delayed thought about the strap being the right fit, but--success.

And thank god for that.

He'll hold the box until Mister LaRusso will want to take it back (really, Robby isn't thinking about it anymore), but at mentioning his gift, Robby looks back towards the kitchen.

"If you told me the cookies you brought were the gift, I'd be fine just with them," Robby admits, and it's true. If his sensei wanted to tell him he didn't have one, he'd be cool about it. Even just this has been a good enough feeling, the two of them standing and joking here.

"But," he goes on, since there is a gift, and he wants to keep up this fun mood, "you'd have to be trying really hard to get me a gift I don't like."

It's a gift. Who doesn't like gifts?? He'll even accept a box of chocolates.

Daniel knows that Robby is being honest when he says that. That he truly wouldn't mind if there wasn't a gift - Daniel likes to think he knows the kid enough to be able to read just from his expression and gaze that he's being serious about it.

But even if that idea would've been okay with Robby, it certainly wouldn't have been okay with Daniel. What's Christmas without giving a gift to someone so important to him? He's been preparing this entire thing for months now, even if he's been pretty good at keeping it a secret for Robby so far.

"Okay, you know that I'm aiming at least above 'gift you don't dislike', right?" Another small joke as Daniel moves to grab something from the bag of presents he took along with him. Wrapped in more simple paper - he doesn't have a darkblood conjuring stuff up for him, okay! - but he can tell which one's Robby's just by the shape. "Above 'gift you're okay with,' too. I definitely want to go for 'gift you actually really like', if at all possible."

Having grabbed the right one, he returns to the boy's side, holding out the gift to him. It's really not all that different in shape from the one Robby handed him - also something that seems to have been put into a not-too-large box.

"There you go, Robby. Merry Christmas."

Inside of the wrapped box is a black bracelet. It's a little simple (~~and also without any branding on it~~, but it's mostly because Daniel figures Robby wouldn't want anything too fancy, or something that grabs too much attention. It doesn't seem to be made out of actual metal though, made even more obvious when Daniel clarifies: "That's coldblood. My first from a few months ago, actually, so it's got to be pretty potent. The person who made this told me that as long as you're wearing this, you should be able to use some of the same ice powers I have with it."

The man tilts his head slightly to the side, a smile on his face.

"You've been working so hard to get more tools in your belt in this place, I figured the least I could do is help out this way."

Robby's smile increases with the levels Mister LaRusso climbs from, from bad to decent to great. Even if he can't see it right away, here's a cheeky curve to it, like he's wondering if the man really has what it's take to reach that high?

The truth is: yes, easily. Robby has very little standards for gifts, disregarding the part where liking the guy comes into place. (But a very important factor, all things considered.)

But they exchange boxes, the expression he wears switching into curiosity as he turns the box in his hand. Something moves inside, something--small? And he's truly (accidentally) living the kid experience of guessing what's in a present before looking. The Merry Christmas does get him to give up on the brief wonder, a look at Mister LaRusso to read his face (to see if it's smiling, like it sounds like it is) before he peels off the paper to get into the gift inside, letting it fall out onto his hand.

It's a bracelet. A bracelet, not like any Robby's really seen before (and not up close) that he peers at with a more curious brow than he had the box. That gets tucked under his arm as he holds it with both hands to inspect. It's cold, but it doesn't seem to be metal. Fortunately, Mister LaRusso fills in the details.

Honestly, it was pretty cool before that part, but now the weight of it feels more fragile and heavy at once, more valuable. Confusion sweeps aside on his face for an astonishment, an open mouth that fails to immediately find words, but:

"--Are you sure?" Robby struggles for another beat. "You-- you could do anything with it."

Anything other than give it to him. What if Mister LaRusso needed it? What if he didn't get how much this stuff could be worth? You don't just give this away, do you?

Do people do that?

Daniel is staring at the other the entire time while Robby is opening up the present. It's not like he hasn't been in this position before - enough Christmasses with Sam and Anthony, to not even start about the sheer amount of birthdays and other gift-giving occasions - but this is his first time with Robby, technically. Opening the dojo here had kind of been a present to the other too, after all, but it also had been a present to Daniel himself, so he won't count that one.

It makes witnessing the other's reaction here all the more important though. Daniel savours it, the way the other's expression keeps changing with each step, just feeling grateful to be able to see Robby acting like the kid he's supposed to be. Just a teen trying to guess what's in a gift, before opening it up and seeing what's in there.

(At least he's not calling it lame, which is definitely an experience Daniel has had too. Sometimes you break daddy's heart, Anthony.)

Though the reaction Robby lands on seems to be the extreme opposite instead. There's almost a disbelief about it, one that Daniel would find cute, if not for the fact that he figures it's got to be born from the fact that Robby never could have much, that he isn't used to getting big things just for him.

Daniel tries to stick in the here and now though, in the moment where Robby can have exactly that.

"I am doing exactly what I want to do." He smiles fondly, moving his hand to give Robby a pat on his upper back. His tone straightforward, simple, like he's just stating a fact here. "And I can't think of anything I'd like to do more with it than giving it to you."

(Sometimes stating a fact means throwing an overwhelming amount of sap out there.)

They're in a house covered in accessories and utilities made from blood magic. It leaves them not wanting much in comforts, but it hasn't led to Robby dismissing the value of goods despite it. You don't forget that; you don't lose the knowledge that people aren't giving without a price.

He should know better with Mister LaRusso. But, it turns out the man can still find ways to catch him off-guard, as if he hasn't given him enough. Because it's more than a monetary value that Robby sees in the bracelet, held in his hands still as his gaze lingers on Mister LaRusso, and then down at the piece. It's the man's blood, literally.

It's personal, or it feels it, even if Robby gives away his own blood enough times on a regular. And does he deserve that? When it could go to his family, if or whenever they turn up.

--but it didn't. It hasn't. A smile finally starts to draw on his face as he lets himself accept the gesture, the certainty of Mister LaRusso's reassurance. There's a giddiness in his chest building, a gratitude threatening to become overwhelming; and Robby works around it as he takes the bracelet to start working it around his fingers, his lower hand. It's snug, but it reaches his wrist, where it sits chill against his skin.

(Like when Mister LaRusso touches him, but firmer.)

"--Thanks." It sounds lame in his ears as Robby looks back at Mister LaRusso, his smile small and shy, but growing wider with his lips pulling. He touches his hand over the bracelet, an urge to fiddle with it, but he keeps his fingers steady.

"You'll have to show me some moves. If you've got any."

He got a joke in there.

It's not like Robby has to say anything more than thanks. The things he didn't say, just the reactions on his face and in his tone, in his body language - those are things Daniel already heard loud and clear over here. He's just glad he could do something like this for Robby in the first place. Making him feel normal, or letting him feel the things he's supposed to feel as a regular teen. That he's appreciated, wanted - that there are people out there who want to give him the world.

Daniel would, if he could. This will have to suffice in its place for now.

"Of course. I'll show you everything I've figured out tomorrow, if you've got time," he says, with the air of a guy who definitely doesn't mind sharing that. Especially not with Robby of all people.

Why give him something potentially powerful and not show him how to use it, after all?

"Besides," Daniel adds, "I'll be counting on you too. You've proven to be a fast learner, and creative on top of it. I'm sure you'll be able to think of uses that I haven't thought of yet at all." (See, this is one of those little things he's figured out with Robby too. You give him little tasks like this, actual meaningful ones, stuff he can sink his teeth into and keep him going. It's not like Daniel hasn't noticed just how much stuff Robby is taking on in this place, after all.) "Teachers can learn a lot from their students too, you know."

He can't help but enjoy the cold chill coming off from the bracelet as he touches it, letting his fingers roll it against his wrist. It's familiar, attracting, stirring a fluttering in his chest with the glee already there. Robby's listening, of course, but he feels drunk to be standing there, and the only good kind of drunk: on a good thing, thinking about tomorrow, and thinking about this gift.

(It really is personal. You can't tell him this isn't personal, even if he knows--families won't have the same type of blood.

But doesn't it feel like that? Can't it?)

"Yeah?" It's difficult to pull himself away from looking at his wrist and the black-blue around it, but he does after a flit between it and Mister LaRusso. "I bet we could make some really cool lessons with all this too. Y'know, we should probably do more with magic, helping people have an edge in a fight or getting away. A monster can't chase you if it's slipping all over the place."

Now isn't that a funny thought? Nevermind what encounters can be, has been, even with the both of them present. There's no sign of that now on Robby, smiling with a cheeky grin.

"Well, I was thinking that if this gift turns out well for you, we can make versions of it for all the other kids." At the dojo he means, of course, but if Robby would have any other kids in mind that don't happen to take lessons there - it's not like Daniel would protest. He's seen how protective the other got so quickly over Mob, and there may be other kids he's taken under his wing that Daniel just doesn't know about.

And while his priority certainly is with taking care of his karate kids here, it's true that Daniel LaRusso wants better for all the kids in this place at all times.

(And sure - if he made other versions of these, it wouldn't be with his strongest blood anymore. But that's exactly why he saved this first one for Robby. Daniel can't think of a kid he wants to protect more in this place than the one that feels like his own son at this point.)

It feels like this gift hit its mark though. Seeing Robby smiling in such a carefree way is exactly what Daniel wanted to happen because of this.

".. and I really hope it turns out well for you," Daniel says, his tone taking on a bit of a more serious note. Not a bad one, just.. the tiniest bit more heavy than what he said just now, like there's something he wants to impart on Robby. "I know that you've already been through a lot here. And.. well, a lot will probably keep happening in this place."

Since it just seems to be how Trench is.

"But I promise to always be there to help you through it. That's what this is for."

He reaches out, tapping a finger against the bracelet - made easier by the fact that Robby is still playing with it, so it's easier to reach.

"This way I can help keep you safe even during the times when I'm not physically there." Because god knows this place just loves separating people. It still feels like a small miracle that he happened to be in the sleeper farm at the same time as Robby. But while he'll fight tooth and nail if necessary to be at Robby's side at all times, it at least gives him a tiny bit more peace of mind to know he can still help Robby in this way, even if the circumstances are bad and keep them apart during a real moment of danger.

Bracelets for all--not bad. Robby wonders if they'd need so much blood as this, and maybe there's other types that could be added for diversity, a good excuse to look at it and ponder the applications. But it's not a deep thought; he's already back to looking at Mister LaRusso when he speaks up again, the change of note not registering until he goes on. That makes Robby glance down, an unspoken shame--but a truth regardless, to the past's hardships and the future's, too.

But he does bring his gaze up again, facing Mister LaRusso and the comfort that he offers in his words. His lips a thin line, a small anxiety in his heart that always exists there, burrowed deep; about his place in this world and his chances, the fear of death that always lingers.

He has to live with it, as does everyone. Robby takes in Mister LaRusso's words for what they are, his gesture, all an amount that's hard to carry or swallow.

(A watch is a pretty shitty gift in the face of security, huh.)

"Thank you," he says again; because it's the easiest, and seems like the obvious choice for what's been said. "You've given me a lot already when it comes to protecting myself. I won't waste it--and maybe one day, I'll be able to help you the same back."

Even if that wouldn't usually something offered back home, from a student to a sensei... but this place is different from California, and there's plenty that Robby wants to offer one day in safety. To others, just like Mister LaRusso, but also--to the man himself.

Everyone has people they want to protect.

It's exactly that fact that makes it so hard to protest the words, even though a tiny part of Daniel wants to. After all, it's so ingrained into his mind at this point. He's not just the sensei here, but also the adult. (Also the parent.) He's supposed to take care of Robby, not the other way around.

But there's no luxury to think that here. Not when at any given moment Daniel could be the one put into trouble without him having the slightest say in it. They can't do anything here but all depend on each other regardless of age, even though Daniel wants to do nothing more than to protect these kids as much as he can.

He still shakes his head though. Not to protest about that, but to reassure the other.

"You've already helped me."

Objectively so. Sure, back in the sleeper farm maybe it went.. a little bit too far, but Daniel is able to recognize where all of that must have come from. The same desire to keep them safe that Daniel himself has, especially in a situation that was as dangerous as both of them as that one. Of course he doesn't mention it in words, not wanting to remind Robby too starkly of those moments, but he's sure the other will know what he means all the same.

There's a pause, Daniel pressing his lips together, and when they part, he smiles and adds: "And not just during physical combat, you know?"

Sure, that's the kind of protection that Robby seems to be angling at here, but Daniel doesn't think it's the most important way the kid has helped him here so far. There's a clearer understanding that Daniel may slowly be getting about why mister Miyagi needed him too when he was younger - because he can see it reflected in the way Robby's sheer company and presence and drive give Daniel the kind of peace of mind he wouldn't have had on his own. And that is something you need in this place as well, just in order to get by.

"Yeah, well--same for you, you know."

It's an intentional mimic, but for the fond edges around reply, it's not all untrue. Karate was never just about the physical combat for him, and it became more than a way to get back at his dad, even if it lingered longer into that territory than even he had meant it to. He lost his way, and then anger and frustrated had warped everything.

This--them, putting the pieces back together--was never meant to happen. But it did, and piece by piece, everything feels stronger than it was. It's made it easier to look back and beyond the rehab centre, and see what they used to have without the pain and frustration that used to cloud his thoughts when Robby tried. There's a peace returning--an acceptance, and a returning fondness for the past.

"I know I was angry at you when I showed up--and before that," he admits, though it's not really an addition that's necessary, "--but I appreciated what you did for me, giving me somewhere to say, Miyagi-do; even helping me get back into school. And..."

He looks down at the bracelet, briefly.

"--I know you were trying to help me. With juvie." His mouth twists, a pinched smile small and sad. "Even if everything went the way it did... it could've been worse. We can't change anything about it, but--thank you, Mister LaRusso."

Because he can accept that too, now: the intent, setting aside the pain and regret. The phonecalls he never took, the e-mails he never answered.

If only, if only. But they have what they have, and what they have is each other in the present.

That's good enough.

Daniel thought he could handle this. The gift giving, and Robby's sweet kindness, and the way the other seemed so surprised and excited about a gift that it made Daniel's heart ache with the idea that this is what Robby should have had all along, instead of only now.

And maybe he could handle that still. Stuff that makes his heart all warm, and stuff he'd ruminate on later, but it's all still below his limit. They're things he can embrace in the moment.

But this? Maybe the first part, even if Daniel doesn't feel like he deserves nearly as much credit as Robby is giving him here for the things Daniel did for him, finding it natural, but then Robby continues onto the juvie part, and that's the exact moment it feels like everything spills over.

The man swallows as he can sense the feeling rising in his chest.

Because he can see the same thing here as mister Miyagi gave him when Daniel came back to him after making those stupid, stupid mistakes that lead up to training under Silver. A sense of absolution, even though it doesn't feel like he deserved it back then, nor that he deserves it right now, not when he's the one who keeps messing up around the people most important to him.

Then again, maybe it's exactly like Robby is saying here. It's not like they can change the past. They can only ever shape the future, and while Daniel has been trying to do better by Robby, it never feels like quite enough to forgive himself for everything.

Daniel blinks a few times, trying to win a fight against oncoming tears.

And rapidly losing.

Maybe that's why he instead reaches out, his arms wrapping around Robby in a way that almost feels familiar now, and - most importantly - giving him the opportunity to hide his face from the rest of the party, even from Robby himself.

"Sorry," he mumbles, "but you have to help me for a moment to keep Shigeo from seeing his new sensei getting all emotional so quickly."

You know, like that's the biggest concern here. As opposed to Robby's-girlfriend-who-traumatized-his-daughter or Robby's-dad-who-has-an-awkward-karate-rivalry-with-him. Clearly not the more awkward options who could see Daniel cry over Robby. Obviously. (Even if he's not openly sobbing or anything, but-- even just his eyes watering up feels embarrassing enough around those people, okay? Forgive an old man his weakness over his boy.)

There's an instance where Robby sees the light catch in Mister LaRusso's eyes, briefly, before the man closes in and holds him in an embrace that soothes the heat from his clothes. Not immediately, but Robby knows the sensation, as his body cools with the cold press of his sensei's body, and how it contradicts in what it's doing.

Because sure, to anyone else, this might be cold. But to Robby? It's nothing like that at all. It's comforting, first and foremost, and that's where all care starts and ends. He brings his arms around the man in turn for what he mumbles close to his ear, letting his head rest against the shoulder there. A hum he means to sound not coming out, an acknowledgement he doesn't need to give.

He likes this. He likes this a whole lot, even if he knows where it's coming from.

"You could say the classic. Tell him you got something in your eye."

It's fun, not serious, because that's already been said, and is being spoken in their embrace. Robby might've thought about his dad or anyone else under these circumstances before, but this time round -- he'll face any looks when they come, and not worry about them a second before.

Because maybe his own heart feels a little tender too: thinking about the past they couldn't have had, but here they are, in the present and future that's more malleable than what's come and gone.

But he didn't have this either. Some things have been lost, but others -- they've been gained. He can see Mister LaRusso more honestly, and he doesn't mind this way of seeing him. Where some of the sparkle has been lost, but none of the parts deserved.

Or maybe just -- the feeling that he's more than just a sensei.

Maybe.

There's a bit of a low rumble of a laugh when Robby says those words. Maybe because both of them know that it wouldn't work - except for the fact where Mob would probably feel rude for disbelieving it and might believe it just because of that.

It's not the point of the words though. Maybe the words aren't the point at all. Maybe the point is still lingering on what Robby said before that, on the hold they share here in this moment. After everything, it truly feels like a privilege to be able to hold Robby like this, just like he would for Samantha or Anthony.

Maybe it's why Daniel lingers a moment or two longer than strictly necessary before he finally pulls back. His inhaled breath is still a little shaky, and he has to lift his hand to wipe the last remainders of water out of his eyes, but by the time he's looking at Robby again, he manages to mostly look presentable.

"I'm not sure whether I actually said this somewhere down the line."

Because maybe it got lost amidst.. well, let's be real, everything else. Opening the dojo, the way Robby really helped herd some of the kids in it, the awkward times they had at first, all the danger they've been through - it's easy for some things to slip through the cracks.

Even when they deserve to be said.

"But I'm so glad you're back." Even if it might not be 100% the same as before, it's close enough to it in its own way that it feels like 'back'. Back with Miyagi-do, back in a spot where Robby can laugh with Daniel, or confide in him. The most important parts of what they had all feel like they're back by now. "If Trench brought me anything good, it's that."

Maybe that's Daniel's true Christmas present, and this watch is just physical evidence of Robby's thoughtfulness being aimed at him once more.

As the hug ends, Mister LaRusso's face coming into view and the less shaky hold of it, Robby lets his eyes find the older man's, his own arm lingering around the side of him before it's sensible to let his limbs return to himself. But already, he misses the cool warmth that comes with Mister LaRusso's touch, the one Robby can pretend to feel in their still-close proximity. He doesn't get this often, and this isn't the same as when he holds Tory, or anyone else.

(It's really a shame this isn't Mister LaRusso's place--he might feel bolder, and be bolder.)

But, he's listening. A small lift of his gaze, a second where the words continue, and Robby needs a second to process what they mean. 'But I'm so glad you're back.' Like he was ever gone, but he was--gone from Miyagi-do, and gone from a few of their lives until he washed ashore like so many before him. It's bittersweet, wistful on the mind; calls up those wishes and regrets that live in their past, but are still close enough to come to mind when things like this are said.

Robby's head dips with the sentiment, letting that wistful angle soften, and a better thought than 'well, it's easier to visit when your daughter isn't my ex' to come to mind. But nothing so wildly different when he lifts his head again, a small huff preceding a somewhat joking remark:

"I think even with all the monsters and everything else around here, we've had an easier time than connecting than we would've back in the Valley. I didn't know what I was going to do about karate."

Because Cobra Kai wasn't an option, and Miyagi-do and Eagle Fang... well. That was what it was: a closed down sign.

Daniel huffs, before remarking dryly: "Well, that makes two of us."

The dryness isn't aimed at Robby at all though - it's mostly just aimed at the kind of situation they were dealing with back home, if anything. Sure, Daniel had a tad more of an idea what he was going to do back there, but it's not like the plan was entirely fleshed out beyond 'invite Chozen over and find some way to take Silver down.'

There's still kind of a middle step missing in that plan before that end result is achieved, after all.

"I never imagined that one day I'd be teaching kids how to avoid fights with monsters. Or how to defend themselves if they'd get in one." Daniel shakes his head. Sure, in theory it's nothing different than what he started out with - wanting kids to be able to protect themselves, to not let the bullies win - but it's on another level entirely when the bullies aren't just slightly mean teenagers. "Life sometimes takes a real turn when you least expect it."

Robby didn't flinch like he might've at the remark. His part in that reason why, though he hasn't forgotten it. But there's a distance, a kind of acceptance to it, where he ducks his head in a nod more towards their mutual situation.

...well, not entirely mutual. Mister LaRusso still had an entire life outside of karate, while he had let his bitterness stop him from examining his life outside of it. For the good that did. But he knows it's not that simple, either, for the man: who became a sensei to help others, who worried about in the seat across from him of hurting others by becoming a sensei again. If he could do it, if it wouldn't all lead to the same result.

Still, Robby tilts his head slightly, offers with a joking intent: "You could get into the transport business in town? Be a real innovator. Bet the people who travel between the farms and town wouldn't mind vehicles that got them through the woods easier."

Yes, Mister LaRusso's a car dealer, not a car...inventor. If only. Robby is surely on a winning business idea.

It's not quite a turn in the conversation he expected, no matter how joking, and it takes Daniel aback - just for the briefest moment.

Just enough that the sound he lets out this time definitely sounds more amused.

"Do you miss the dealership that much?" Yes, because that's clearly why Robby is making this joking suggestion, right. For his own sake, and not for Daniel's, clearly. Because he misses his nice name-printed shirt...

Though the idea of trying to convince the locals that cars are useful is kind of a funny one. Daniel can already imagine how they'd react.. Even his car selling powers of persuasion might not do much there.

".. though I do have a car that runs on blood magic now, so maybe I have found a hole in the market."

Never questioned what mister Miyagi's car was still driving on, huh, Robby. Maybe Daniel was the car inventor all along!! (No, he just got some help..)

Wow, yes, this is about Robby wanting a dealership around for a shirt. He'd have an honest answer (though, does he need one?) if the idea of a blood-powered car wasn't enough to distract him, his brows tugging close.

"What, like coldblood blood? Or one of those lunar balls?"

Do those count as blood magic? They're magic at least, and that's enough to throw them into the same category for a guy like Robby. And those orbs do work like electricity around here...somehow.

"Like coldblood blood," Daniel repeats, confirming it with a nod. "Instead of gas."

Because that was the main problem, really. Sure, the car still somehow - miraculously, Daniel would say - worked after showing up after him from the ocean, but it's not like they exactly have gas stations anywhere here in Trench. Daniel knew that he'd just run out of it after a while, even with how little he uses the car in the first place.

"I talked to someone about it, and apparently they had a few ideas about how to get it to run on that instead." Not that.. Daniel knows the full mechanics of it. Sure, he knows about car mechanics, but it's when blood magic gets involved that it starts getting a little too complicated for him. "So they helped me adjust it, so I can keep it running, even here."

This would have been such a weird conversation by their own world's standards, huh.

It's a strange thing, what you can get used to after being stuck in a place like this for a few months.

He huffs, before returning to the slightly lighter note, with: "Though I still don't think it's going to be a huge success among the locals here."

You know, this hypothetical LaRusso Autos: Trench edition. Clearly Daniel's side business next to LaRusso Pasta. All very real.

This is a very weird conversation, even by the standards of Trench. ...okay, more like Robby's standards in Trench, where it's weird, but the type of weird you accept with a shrug and acknowledgement because you know there's weirder shit out there than magic blood-fuelled cars.

"That's a shame," Robby remarks about the business venture failing before it begins. He might ask more about running cars off of blood magic, if he actually cared. Perhaps one day in the future, if he ever wants his own vehicle. But his thoughts are more with Mister LaRusso, a curiosity coming from the subject.

"You're happy staying a full time sensei? You don't mind it?"

He doesn't have an itch to be doing more? Which isn't really strange, but this is still a man who ran a dealership and took up being a sensei at the same time. Is it enough? Fulfilling?

But the questioning isn't that deep, it's casual, even if there's a sliver of another question there.

Are you as happy as you can be here?

(Excluding missing family members.)

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