catch-all.

[centi]

Who: Ritsu Kageyama + various.
What: Karate feelings. Lead up to and fallout from Mob going ???%. Maybe some event shenanigans. If you want something let me know!
When: Throughout March.
Where: His shared house in Crenshaw; the dojo; other people's places; maybe some other places!

Content Warnings: Bad month for Ritsu and his imposter syndrome; threads may contain violence directed at him (a kid), discussion of his mental health and sense of identity, and sibling issues. Individual threads will have CW at the top of thread, and/or in comment subject lines.

My plotting post / Mob plot outline / Info & Permissions

Comments

[centi]

WHO: Robby.
WHERE: Outside the dojo.
WHEN: Approx 3/10.

[ Every time he comes to karate class he feels more and more like he sucks at this, and Ritsu isn't used to sucking at anything - except being an esper, of course. It's just, the concentration aspect isn't his thing, he's in his head too much. Right now more than ever; Shigeo's decision to do a brotherly bond with some other guy really hurt, and he can't even say anything about it lest his brother becomes too volatile again. It's like his old fear, but worse because it's not just psychic stuff now but blood corruption, literally poisoning the land and others.

Honestly, he's lucky that he hasn't started corrupting over this. He's surly, at least, his usual smooth and friendly demeanour a little shorter-tempered, less likely to stay later and be social. Anyway, he has a lot of stuff to do, being an independent minor is hard, and the stress of that is building too.

So he skips a class. Probably tells Sensei he isn't feeling well, but Robby can easily catch him after, not even in his gi, just chilling plainclothes as he writes in one of the books he carries with him, homework or a diary. He doesn't seem pleased to look up and see the other guy, the last person he wants to see right now. ]

Oh, hey.

[strongroots]

[ Robby's been wanting to chat to the younger brother. Give him some time to get settled in (whatever that means), then see how he's doing after that. There's stuff he wants to talk to him about dojo and powers-related things too--he's been getting to know his brother's powers, it might be good to chat with Ritsu about that too--and, well--

So he wants to talk. Nothing that has to be heavy, and certainly not when he hears Ritsu's left class early. He's dressed out of his gi too, a warm smile when he sees the younger guy despite the less pleased looked on him. He could read into it. He's not going to, right now. ]

Hey, sup. Wanted to catch up--you got time?

[centi]

[ Ritsu seriously considers brushing him off politely, and probably the pause when he does so is fairly loaded in and of itself. But then his curiosity and friendliness both get the better of him and he nods. ]

Yeah, I'm not doing anything important.

[ Just trying to keep his mind sharp with a problem set — he's in the habit of studying every free minute he gets, even here where school is just blatantly not as important and exam scores even less so. A world just made for people like Shigeo. And Robby, probably. ]

How can I help, Robby-san?

[strongroots]

[ Robby leans against something, hands in his pockets, giving a small nod at Ritsu. ]

How you been getting used to being here? Know it isn't exactly like home, though I hear you guys have a lot of ghosts and all sorts there. [ A pinch of a grin. ] But, I mean, 'side from the esper stuff, I know I felt pretty out of place coming here. Even with family around.

You feel you're getting a hang of things? Or still finding your feet? [ Admitting, a small tug of his mouth: ] It has been just a month.

[ Basically that long, so yeah, probably the latter, right? ]

[centi]

[ Oh, he's being checked up on? Ritsu blinks, looking briefly surprised that Robby would even care, before looking up at him. ]

Yeah, it really hasn't been that long, huh? Time passes fast here, but you're right that it was a real shock when I first washed up.

[ Just stalling a little, saying aimlessly agreeable things where he considers how careful he wants to be. Didn't this guy have a bond with Shigeo now? As much as that pisses him off, it means if they get into a fight it could end up affecting Shigeo's powers... ]

I do live a pretty normal life in Miss Makima's house. Actually, I feel like I have even more chores now than I used to. But I can just use telekinesis for most of them.

[ Unlike his brother, Ritsu uses his powers for normal stuff to make his life easier all the time. ]

[centi]

WHO: Chozen
WHERE: In the mean Trench streets.
WHEN: 3/14
Content Warning: Bloodthirsty sentient plants, that do mild injury to a teen.

[ Ritsu's new blood powers are sporadic and kind of make him feel light-headed, and his ESP is weak lately too, so he should really just call his brother to come help him out with the plants that have got him cornered. Especially since his sad little bursts of ice are about as effective as throwing a snow ball.

His Omen has put herself in between Ritsu and the main serpent-like plant that seems out for blood. Not your normal Wooper, she's grown in size protectively, but the extent of her abilities is to spit a little water. Together they can freeze the plant... but there's more tendrils coming, an absolute shibboleth dragging itself out of the alley and murmuring about Ritsu's delicious blood. ]

Uh, no thank you!

[ Ritsu shields, but the vines that whip out smash through his telekinesis and wrap thorned vines around him, digging into his skin deep enough to scratch and tear. Ritsu cries out, high and shocked. His Omen darts around the vines, scampering down the street to try and find an adult or someone with powers: ]

"Somebody, help!!"

[toguchi]

[ It is about time that Ritsu and his Omen's luck had a turn, and it starts with the rapid darting shape of a round bodied little bird honing in on her fellow Omen's cries - and proceeding past the frightened creature like a shot, her Sleeper close behind her. Unlike his Omen, Chozen casts the Wooper a swift, reassuring smile as he passes, although it sits tightly beneath his sharpened eyes.

He wastes no time in engaging with the plant-monstrosity. He frees the single edged, squared off machete from his belt and strikes at a knotted cord of tendrils with a forceful cry, cleaving through them neatly.

(He did not expect a gardening tool to become so valuable in combat here. Under other, less urgent circumstances, it has filled him with a certain historical nostalgia for the brave peasant warriors of past, but those thoughts are not with him now.) ]

There is hardly any blood in a boy that size! [ He calls out, voice incongruously bright. ] Come, try to take mine!

[ With his next slash, he attempts to send a ripple of sparking energy down the blade's edge, but if he succeeds, he cannot tell. Ah, well - the machete still does its work. ]

[centi]

[ Okay, so Ritsu kinda remembers this guy as a kindly grandpa. Having him burst onto the scene in the coolest possible way, with the coolest possible line, is certainly turning that idea on its head.

For a moment he stops struggling and stares. Then another vine tries to get him by the ankle and — throw him? Tear his leg from his body? Who knows. It's enough that he remembers himself, and while he hasn't really made strides in karate he at least is bleeding enough that he really can tell the plant to get lost with a jolt of cold.

He can be pleased about apparently getting blood powers after all later, right now he's going to try and hobble out of range of these plants so the guy with the actual blade can get some hits in. Though not too far: the vegetation might turn its sights to Chozen (metaphorical sights) and Ritsu feels kind of responsible for making sure he doesn't get devoured by a big man eating plant out of nowhere. He can have Chozen's back, calling out for any sneak attacks! ]

so late, feel free to drop for handwaving

[toguchi]

[ If Chozen only knew that Ritsu thought he was cool it would lift his spirits immensely, but perhaps the coolest thing a person can be is so earnest and unaware of their coolness they simply do not think of it. Chozen only did what anyone ought to do in this situation - if anyone happened to be a well-trained master sensei armed with a plant slashing weapon, of course.

Chozen's Omen darts and weaves at his feet, harrying the plant with her interference. Ritsu' called out warnings prove helpful in the battle more than once, a second set of eyes never going amiss.

For all Chozen's certainty in his course of action, the truth is not he is not certain of its outcome. He is only a man, and he is used to only fighting men, not green horrors with dripping maws. What he must secure before any personal victory is the much more important objective he attempts to keep well behind him, his body the modest obstacle between the monster and the boy. ]

Fall back! [ He would tell the boy to flee, but what if he only ran across something else troublesome, a second creature or its kin? That would not do. ] Find a high place - ah, ah!

[ Is he...scolding the plant like a disobedient lawnmower as he slashes at it again? So much for the 'cool sensei' persona. ]

[centi]

WHO: Shigeo.
WHERE: Makima's Crenshaw house.
WHEN: 14/3.

It's late when Ritsu limps into the house, late enough he probably already had to send an im fine. A lie that now becomes absolutely clear given the state of him, his arms covered in bandages from where the thorns had scratched him up, another gash on his temple, limping to keep his weight off a swollen anger.

Shigeo's usually athletic little brother looks like a mess, and he's picked most of the leaves from his hair and picked the dirt out of his scraped knees but he still needs a shower and some clean clothes before he looks presentable. He's kind of hoping he can get on top of that before Shigeo sees he's home, slinking through the dark house with just his Omen's lamplike eyes to light the way.

[centile]

Ritsu's text didn't really make Mob feel better. At first it did, hearing he was okay, just then time when on and he started to worry a little. He wants to text just to ask where he was, who he was with, to assuage his worries. He doesn't, but he thinks about it, then scrolls the network and talks to people on his omni to try and distract himself.

It's just a learning experience, getting used to his brother being in such a dangerous place like this. Ritsu is capable, can take care of himself usually. He knows he needs to learn to be a little less worried about everything. It isn't good for him, for corruption.

Mob touches the pendant Robby gave him a while ago, the one that helps calm him, and that helps. They have a bond now so he needs to make sure not to worry Robby with his own pointless worries anyway.

And then Ritsu comes home.

Of course Mob comes downstairs when he feels Ritsu's aura, ready to ask if he wanted something hot to drink. They could sit down and talk about their day or something, but-

"Ritsu?" Mob's tone is typical, though there's a faint hint of concern as he goes down the stairs. That walk becomes hurried the moment he starts to see better, a rare showing of using his powers mundanely to flip on the lights and get a better look. "Ritsu! What happened to you?"

last tag should have said "ankle" not "anger" omg.

[centi]

Caught! Ritsu freezes when the lights come on, like a teen caught sneaking home from a party. Except worse, because he clearly hasn't been off having a good time. He grimaces awkwardly, then tries to cover the expression, stay calm and cheerful. It's important than Shigeo doesn't start worrying about him, and he also doesn't want him to lose control and go burn the city down trying to stop the plants.

"Ah, yeah," he says, keeping his tone casual, trying to put weight on his bad ankle so it isn't obvious. "I must look like I got dragged through the bushes, right? Ran into some weird plants on my way home."

[centile]

(58%)

"Plants?" That made sense. He's seen them, avoided them. They gave him a bad feeling, apparently with good reason. "Are you okay? Let me get the first aid kit."

He turns to do that, the faintest hint of tension around his eyes from worry. There's one in the kitchen so that's where he goes, trying to keep quiet. Sunny and Makima were probably asleep if they were home after all.

[centi]

But Ritsu will stop him; "No, it's okay, I already got bandages on everything." He did all his first aid before coming home, apparently. "It's fine, I'll just get ready for bed." Everything is fine, Mob! No need to help in any way.

[centi]

WHO: Vi.
WHERE: The Entertainment Feed.
WHEN: 3/14

The adrenaline of fighting with his brother carries him out of the Crenshaw house and down the streets of Trench. It's late, and stupid for him to be running around when he's already hurt, but Ritsu can't stay in that house a moment longer.

He still isn't totally familiar with the city, and he knows the school will be closed, so he goes to the next best place he can think of: The Entertainment Feed, which he'd visited with Jun earlier that week. At the time he had just wanted to make use of it as a community centre, but now it seems like a haven, somewhere he can go watch a film or listen to music and drown out all his thoughts.

So there's a young teenager coming through the doors, the hood of his orange hoodie pulled up, limping a little as the initial adrenaline starts to wear off and he realizes, oh right, he has a twisted ankle. All his scratches from the plants are aching again too, the cut on his temple is bleeding again, and worst of all he's been crying, is still sniffling embarrassingly as he heads towards the place where you collect earphones for the silent disco.

Dancing probably isn't a good idea right now, but he needs to get it out somehow, picking the loudest, thrashiest, most emo playlists to put on. Maybe he'll be lucky and it will be late enough the only person to notice him will be the proprietor?

No, there's someone else there, a girl with pink hair. Ritsu wipes his face frantically on his sleeve, smearing blood and snot - he cannot let an older girl see he's been crying like a little baby.

[faceblocks]

[she's at a pause between songs as the kid slouches in - the hoodie up is both a familiar sight and a nostalgic callback. now that she's casually observing, she can't help but notice that his steps are uneven and favor one - yeah, that's also familiar.

and then, fucked ankle and all, the kid starts to move - she'll be it's the loud shit, though there's always a chance he's listening to something mellow and it's just not working.

vi tries to be chill about it, not looking like she's looking, doing a once over of the whole place like she's supposed to be doing just that, catching that sleeve wipe and frowning, but turning her face downward first - she's not about to make it worse with eye conta---

---oh, oops. There's the eye contact. well, fuck. now she has to make her way over. she can't just let some injured kid wipe his bloody nose while she dances, even if he might prefer that. (she would have, at his age.)

trying to make this as light on the awkward as she is on her feet, she taps her own headphones, slips them off her ears and nods for him to maybe do the same.]

[centi]

[ Ritsu slips his own headphones off, a little nervous (did he do something wrong? Is it adults only right now, or is he out after curfew or something?) and looks at the lady approaching him.

Whoa, she has a tattoo on her face like a criminal. He'd better be polite. ]

Hi.

[ A sniff, trying to will all blood and tears back inside his body. (Is it the blood? Is he doing a corruption somehow?)

Now that his headphones are off and Vi is closer she can probably hear the tinny sounds of, yes, the loud stuff. Maybe even something she contributed in the first place. ]

[faceblocks]

Hey. Got anything good in there? I'm kinda between songs at the moment.

[a nod toward the phones, because she's honestly curious - she likes all kinds of music, but the loud stuff's great for training, for inking, for fighting. she may well have contributed it. or at least listened to it.]

You don't have to tell me what happened, but I gotta take a look at that ankle. It is the ankle, yeah? [...and the nose, maybe?] It'd be a real dick move if I just looked the other way while you danced. You could twist the other one and then where would we be?

[a soft smile and an easy shrug as she waits. whatever's coming from the headphones - tinny as it is - has her nodding a little to it.]

[centi]

[ Ritsu blinks, and then nods, starting to limp over to the couches at the side of the dance floor. It is the ankle, and he has a few scratches and bruises - some are even already bandaged. But the only thing dripping from his nose is the clear snot of emotions. ]

Some band called "Destroy Lonely"? Music isn't really my thing, I just picked a playlist that looked ...

[ Like it matched his mood. Which was bad. Though he's too polite to let any of that leak onto a stranger. ]

Um, looked good? I guess?

[centi]

WHO: Miss Makima.
WHERE: Crenshaw house.
WHEN 3/15.
Content Warnings: Makima.

[ Ritsu is in better spirits by the time he gets home the next day, and much more bandaged up and taken care of than he was, the wounds from the plants already healing up. If Shigeo was home he might even have tried to have a different kind of conversation, a more somber one. But unbeknownst to him, his brother is elsewhere, causing problems for the city and their friends. Sunny isn't in his room either, when Ritsu glances in.

(If the earth trembles and there's sounds in the distance... well, isn't that just life in Trench? There are Beasts and nightmares and other things all the time, he's only been here a month and he's learned to mind his own business.)

Finding himself home alone for the time being, Ritsu limps into the kitchen to fix himself some leftovers or another easy snack, thinking he'll probably just take it to his room, get out his futon early, and read one of the books he downloaded a copy of at the Entertainment Feed. He still feels a little bad about everything, but resolving it can wait. Right now it's Ritsu time!

Oh, or maybe — Ritsu and Makima time? He thinks he can hear the dogs arriving at the front of the house, and emerges from the kitchen to come welcome them, and her, home. He really likes Miss Makima (not quite a crush, but definitely an embarrassingly starry-eyed appreciation in the way the pre-pubescent can get for adult celebrities and the like) so he's happy to get to spend some time with her. ]

Welcome home!

[overlies]

[ the dogs are unleashed once makima opens the door and cleans their paws from the walk she takes them on. even with her dogs with her, she still gets a unique greeting returning home that makes her feel just as elated as she would be with her furry pups. her non-furry pups are just as happy to see her, yes!. only one, in fact, but she was expecting just one anyway.

ritsu receives a pat over the head that evolves into a single stroke of his hair once makima makes her way over to him, rewarding his shimmering eyes of adoration with attention and physical affection. in her free hand, she holds her omni, and a bag of corn. it would be hilarious to say that she has already planned this, but . . .

she has. there are no errors and no accidents. ritsu and mob had a heated argument. mob suffers from it, and so does a chunk of the town, sunny— but ritsu is oblivious. let mob cook. she is watching from elsewhere, she always is, through the eyes of her elusive omen, so elusive no one has actually seen it. makima sets him up to think the same thing of her.

that she’s just coming back from another walk. ]

It’s good to see you, Ritsu. I brought a treat. [ and, curiously said with her steps toward the kitchen: ] Where is everyone?

[centi]

[ Having his hair ruffled makes Ritsu blush slightly, clearly very pleased even if he's trying to be cool and mature about it. A treat too? Miss Makima~ is the best~!

His enthusiasm stutters for a moment at the mention of the empty house. ]

Oh, um, I don't know.

[ Normally he would message Shigeo. They text a lot, just boring little things when they're coming or going, do you want something from the store, can I borrow your sneakers... mundane stuff. But the chat has been silent since last night. ]

Nii-san is probably working. Or at the dojo.

[ It's class time, right? He has stopped attending anyway. ]

I think it's just us. Can I carry that for you?

[overlies]

You can.

[ and in his hands, the bag of corn and such goes. pleased as is, independent and searching for self beyond his brother— a little extra pampering would make him feel unique to the moment. special, even. time for just the two of them to spend, much like when she invited denji on “dates”.

because it was certainly a thing makima noticed. “I don’t know”. he usually does know. had it gotten so much to him that they’ve ceased contact for a bit? if so, it’s always so fascinating to see her mental notes being enacted.

makima hums for just a moment as she leads them to the kitchen. ]

It’s a shame if they’re not here, [ oh, what’s she grabbing for in the fridge—? that’s butter. and a pan. and some oil. and a big bowl. and two mugs— and she’s smiling at him even if it’s “a shame”, ] that leaves my surprise movie marathon for just the two of us this time.

[centi]

Yeah.

[ It is kind of a shame, even if it means it's just the two of them. He wouldn't want Shigeo or Sunny to miss out, and... he does feel a little bad about just running off on Shigeo like that. It was irresponsible.

Oh, but it's hard to stay looking too gloomy when Miss Makima is getting ingredients like that. Fresh popcorn, and a movie marathon? He brightens immediately, the way a dog does when you get the leash - or pull out a bag of treats. He puts the corn on the counter and starts to shuck it into the sink without being asked. ]

Is that so? What are we gonna watch?

[centi]

WHO: Sansa.
WHERE: The Sanctuary, maybe other places.
WHEN: April, I'm just reusing this post.

[ March came in like a lamb but went out like a lion, and Ritsu wore himself out talking politely with people about his brother. So in April he takes time for himself by taking Sansa Stark up on her offer, to help expand he and Shigeo's wardrobe some, and to explain a little more about bloodstone work.

He's been doing his own research, speaking with the masters about his interest in apprenticeship, though he's also made it clear he isn't willing to commit to making anything more important than school until he knows that's what he wants to do with his life. He's young: expanding skills is important and fun, but he doesn't want to box himself in when this place has need of professions he'd never even imagined back home. So far he can rule out anything that requires fighting, but what that leaves?

Well, Sansa-san seems like the right person to discuss that with.

So that's what brings him to the Sanctuary this weekend, though he does remember to write and let her know he's coming, make sure it's a good time for her. He has his comforting orange hoodie on and his single pair of black trousers, a backpack with his diary and his other Trench items slung over one shoulder, looking incredibly out of place, a normal Japanese teen in a totally different world. Someone gives him directions to find Sansa, and he'll knock lightly on whatever passes for her door, and bow immediately when he sees her. ]