2025-09-28: Bludgeon
- Log: Bludgeon
- Cast: Myunghon Yeo, So-young Park, Shinjiro Aragaki, Mio Kazama
- Where: Cardboard Dragon, Hirasaka Ward
- OOC Date: September 28, 2025
- IC Date: July 17, 2012
- Summary: The Cardboard Dragon team returns after their successful dive into Taro Nakata's Atelier, but tension disrupts their victory celebration...
<Pose Tracker> Myunghon Yeo has posed.
The run through Taro Nakata's Atelier is a success -- and Myunghon Yeo is back at the Cardboard Dragon, letting out an exhausted sigh as they loosen their shirt collar and tie and recline on the couch, wincing a little at how sore their body is after going on full tilt for the last few hours. They've stopped at the konbini for everyone, with more water, some soda and snacks, and even some Chick-tan fried chicken and other hotlamp cabinet goodies for people (other than themself) to devour as wanted.
They've pulled up into their favourite position, once more revealing that their god-knees haven't given out, as they idly start stacking Koalas. They've been very distracted and reticient since the morning about *something*, and they're very tight-lipped about it.
<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.
Bam--!
--is how So-young typically enters the Cardboard Dragon. Not literally, of course, not after nearly bashing the fire escape door off its hinges in her excitement, but there's an undeniable sudden corona of personality and verve filling the space. The conductor is trying to mediate herself just a little bit, given what she can assume of Myunghon's current mental state, but... ... well, she's always been a slave to adrenaline, and she's still new enough to this that nothing can take the edge off a successful Atelier run.
"Aah..." she crosses to the living area, flopping down in the couch as she always does. For someone so impulsive, she does seem to have some habits, and one of them is the convenience store bag of her own on one arm, from which she extracts a small glass jar of sake. It's far, far from the good stuff, but it's enough for her in the moment.
"... well, that went better as expected. I didn't even get any phlegmatic on me." So-young that's _still_ not what that word means.
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Carnivals are fun. Except that one. That one was really surreal. Shinjiro's not musing on that, though, but on what happened with Myunghon...
And so, when he steps in a bit after So-young arrives, having run to grab something he packed before the trip into the Atelier...
He's stepping inside the Cardboard Dragon with a tupperware container. He sets it on the counter with the rest of the food - it's labeled FOR MYUNGHON.
"Hey. Good work, both of you." A pause. "Did we get actual clownskin or do you think it's the fake shit?"
He wants to ask Myunghon his questions, but he'll start by diffusing the mood.
<Pose Tracker> Mio Kazama has posed.
[NOT MUCH EARLIER THAN THIS]
[FAMIMART AOBA]
One problem with paranormal investigations, dark hour freelancing, and Palace spelunking, is that it doesn't pay the bills entirely unless you're a clever cookie like Myunghon is. For less entrepreneurial individuals, such as Mio Kazama, the enervation of pushing through the bizarre phantasmal carnival from earlier is only rewarded with more work. With dark circles under her eyes, the pink-haired wielder of Samson is... ...wearing a white polo with blue and green stripes as she stands behind a cash register in the corner of the 24/7 convenience store, stifling another yawn. "A--afuuu~" her mouth is opening too wide to cover with her palm. It feels like this shift will never end!
"Kazama, there's a delivery coming in the back. Can you sort it out?"
"Y--yes, chief!"
The ponytailed pugilist skedaddles into the loading dock, pulling the door open only to be nearly drowned in an avalanche of Beef Burger Donburis spilling out from the back of a delivery truck. "U--ugyaaaaaa~!"
HANG IN THERE MIO-SHA
[CARDBOARD DRAGON]
[HERE AND NOW]
Mio is already seated in the corner of the Cardboard Dragon, still in her work clothes, but wearing her black Sumaru City Devils ball cap and motorcycle boots, instead of her indoor-shoes. "A--afoooo~" she yawns again into a hand, unstacking all the extra cast-off bentos and iced teas and stuff she took from work before they got thrown out. "I dunno what real clownskin looks like, but just touching it gives me the heebie-jeebies..."
<Pose Tracker> Myunghon Yeo has posed.
"Nihonshu... at this hour?" Myunghon remarks curiously to So-young. "You're a much heavier drinker than I am... well, that is to say, you drink at all. Is that really that good?" They sound like they're idly curious, but perhaps not enough to try. But So-young's remarking on how her run went well, and Myunghon looks up to where Shinjiro arrives and the mask's come back on from that fisheyed look they reserve only for the Koalas.
"You too, Shinjiro-ssi. ... I took this one," Myunghon holds out the supernaturally charged piece of Pyrite, which they've placed inside a round beaker-like container. "Yanagi might appreciate it... I might give it to her. I'm too intimidated to touch the clownskin."
And that's okay, Mio, Myunghon might be in one way a clever entrepreneurial individual, but on the other hand, they're paying like 20 people at the expensive of sleeping in a caved-in commercial building that Katsuya's complained about.
Shinjiro spots something new since his last visit -- a toaster oven on the kitchenette. Oho... and... Myunghon rises to take a tupperware container in turn, noticing his, and then brings it to the rest of the food. "Well done, Mio-ssi. Sorry you had to do a delivery right after we finished. Please..."
They realise it's hard to open a tupperware container with only one hand, but they're very skilled with their hand. It's...
Cookies!!!
"... I baked these." THEY DID????
"Suou-san already taste-tested them and said it was good, so. As a thank-you present."
<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.
"If you think I am even going to touch that... skin... you have a whole other thing coming," So-young says with open displeasure towards Shinjiro's comment about the spoils of their trip. She does pause, noticing the tupperware container - putting it together with what she knows of Myunghon's inability to enjoy any of the food she's seen so far, she is left extremely curious.
There's a good chance that So-young, with her ability to scout people out, has already seen Mio at work. Either way, the conductor smirks at the sight of the crashed out young woman, waving her hand easily. "Good job. Wow, this is kind of a spread," she adds with surprise, her eyebrows going up.
So-young takes a long sip of her drink, humming happily. "Well, sometimes you just want to punctuate the end of the day, you know? Besides, I think I deserve this, after running through a creepy haunted amusement park in someone's head. She lifts the glass to consider it, then shrugs and offers it in Myunghon's direction. "The best sake - not that this is that - tends to be fairly clear and crisp. It might be a subtle enough flavour?" She hasn't worked out anything about Myunghon's tastes yet, and this is just her best guess.
"Oh, good job," she hums brightly, reaching forwards immediately without reservation to sneak one. Hopefully they weren't just for Shinjiro...!
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
The food container, if opened or peered at closely, contains... COOKED UNSEASONED CHICKEN, COLD. It's got a good texture (for a Myunghon) and is honestly probably his best take on it yet for their specific needs.
Myunghon lifts up the pyrite, and Shinjiro nods. Everyone has distaste for the clownskin... "Really? I was thinking of retexturing my coat," he jokes.
But when it comes to the toaster oven, he's peering at it. And then, there's a tupperware of cookies! Even if it *was* only for him he wouldn't mind, and no part of him thinks it is. As So-young snatches one, he's peering at them curiously. What do they look like? What do they smell like, as he lifts one?
What do they taste like, as he eats it?
He refrains from comment immediately, instead leaning on... "I made the food I mentioned I would the other day. Sorry I took so long to get it to you..."
And then, a glance to Mio. "You also ate cursed carnival food, but you can suffice on pocky or some shit. I don't think you'd like this much anyways."
<Pose Tracker> Mio Kazama has posed.
Mio's eyes light up at the sight of home-baked cookies, full of stars. It's been a long time since she's seen such a thing! "Ooooooh. I didn't know you were into baking, Myunghon! What kinda cookies are they?" she gingerly takes one on offer, looking at it almost reverently. A gift from a friend is something to stop and admire, you know?
She cracks open a bottle of barley tea in celebration, being too young to drink booze. An odd adherence to the rules. "Hey, what's the -ssi honorific mean? The only other language I had in school was English..." her question is to Myunghon and So-Young both, earnest and curious.
Also: Mio peers over at the other gift for Myunghon. Shinjiro's package of plain chicken. "Huh. Loading up on protein?" she asks, cluelessly. She blinks a couple times in response to the (accurate) accusation of having pigged out grossly on carnival food. "Oh. Yeah, I was almost late to my part-time job 'cause of that." she does not elaborate on this further, but sticks her tongue out in disgust.
<Pose Tracker> Myunghon Yeo has posed.
The cookie is an incredibly standard homemade cookie, chocolate chip -- but the chips are irregular and overly sweet, suggesting that it was a chocolate bar that as chopped up with... ... more knifeskill than Myunghon has -- Katsuya did it? with that nice kind of soft chew. A cookie that has been followed to exact precision from a recipe found online, using the bare minimum of tools, like that toaster oven he saw.
"Ah, um... chocolate chip cookies, but I could not find chocolate chip, so I bought a chocolate bar, and Suou-san helped chop them up for me," Myunghon explains. "Otherwise, everything else was measured with the scale I have... though I had a lot of difficulty mixing with one hand. He explained to me the tools I lacked, such as a mixing spoon and whisk..." Oh, they only have a fork in the drawers...
The toaster oven is, well, a toaster oven. A proper baker would be sad, but, I mean, it's a hot box that can go up to 160 celsius. It's a beat-up, ratty old thing Myunghon probably asked Auntie to borrow, extremely well-loved. Ovens aren't common in Japan anyway, though there are certainly nicer models.
Myunghon does take the time to open the FOR MYUNGHON container, eye widening as they look towards So-young. "... how drunk will it make me? I have more appointments tonight, nuna."
... WHEN?
They do reach for one of the bland unseasoned chicken strips and holds it up in that style that they're trying to touch it with as few of their digits as possible, then lifts it up above their eye like they're trying to squint into the light for it. Then... they lower it into their mouth gently--
There's a flinch at first, but then their eyebrows raise and their eye goggles out considerably. "Mm-- mrrph--" chew, chew, chew. There's a lot of chewing. "... that was passable," they sound encouraging. "I didn't gag... if we cool this further, I think it can work. Do I need a knife to prepare this?
They've identified knifework as a large barrier to kitchen sustainability.
To Mio, however, they do answer additionally: "This is my first time. But I wanted to make something you all would enjoy..." that genuine smile is back for a moment, without them even realising.
What's the -ssi honorific mean?
"Oh... I should have asked. When you say Mio-ssi, it means I'm pretty close and respect you... when I'm more comfortable with it, I might even say Mio-ya." A pause. "Maybe I will. Shinji-ya."
<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.
So-young blinks slowly at the tupperware; she's not close enough to see what it is, but she can make an educated guess from what she can make out, and besides it's not exactly her business. "You are completely free to, but you won't see me anywhere close to it. Brr," she shudders vividly.
The only thing that makes her pause is that she finds out that Mio ate food in the carnival in someone's head, and the logistics of that make her eyes almost cross. "Hold on, how does that even work-- did you get full? Did you get sick?" she blurts in raw confusion, the cookie momentarily forgotten as she ponders that. Mio's question knocks her out of it, though, and she breaks into a smile. "Oh, it's like a '-san', but not quite a '-sama' - that would be -nim. Though I get the feeling that Myunghon even choosing to use it for you in the first place is kind of important."
The cookie vanishes almost immediately, and So-young's hum is a pleasant one that suggests that the cookies are a winner. "--very good! I'm kind of impressed," she admits with wide eyes. "Being able to cook without really enjoying your own taste tests seems like a pretty high bar to clear." With a frown, she raises an eyebrow towards Myunghon as more appointments are mentioned. "... have you considered, you know, just flopping around at home for an evening. It does me wonders sometimes."
Myunghon's other question makes her blink. "Oh, a sip will be fine. Even the lightest of drinkers can handle that much." Some innate sense is informing her that this might be a terrible idea, but the other ninety percent of her brain sadly belongs to So-young Park and So-young Park things this might be very, very funny.
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Shinjiro, as he finishes his cookie, decides on... "It's good. A little too sweet for how I'd imagine it, but I enjoyed it."
Shinjiro seems to deftly glide over Mio's mention of protein, though, as it's not his place to speak, instead looking at the cookies again. But honorifics... "Shinji-ya... it's an interesting language, huh? Only Aki really calls me Shinji, but..." He trails off. *Does* he want to offer that nickname, even if it's not -ya time?
First, before he can even dwell on it...
Shinjiro watches them eat some chicken. "Colder... I'll chill it in the freezer beforehand, then. Don't leave it out at room temperature and it should be fine." A pause, though... "No, I considered that. The strips should be thin enough to just eat, but I can figure out how to cut them finer if you need."
He does worry about his death, though. At some point in the next year... he won't be able to cook for them anymore...
And it's that thought that gets him to speak up.
"...Myunghon, I... have you been okay? You told me you were scared when I texted you the other day and then dismissed it immediately. I probably got too pushy, though, so sorry."
A breath, and already on his mind, something slips even as it's vague enough that it's not a real slip. "I won't be able to help you forever, so... please let me know if I can do anything in the meantime."
"I don't want us to push each other away."
<Pose Tracker> Mio Kazama has posed.
Myunghon is explaining exactly how this cookie came to be, and Mio's smile only widens. "Oooh, that's really trendy right now! The choco-bar thing, I mean. I watch these vids on BicoBico where people are using that kinda thing in their backing and racking up the likes." she takes a victorious bite. If any part of it is too sweet, that just seems to please her further. "It's good! Nobody's made me something like this since I was really little... I think I'm gonna tear up a little!"
The explanation about Korean honorifics also seems pretty easy to understand. "Oh, okay! I just wanted to make sure, y'know? Hehe... I'm learning!" the vibe in here tonight is good. Mio seems very perked up, in a very warm and cheerful manner that seems natural. Helps highlight how she's forcing it, sometimes. "I'll try it sometime... but Merry-san rolls off the tongue so well, it's hard to not just go with that..."
Also, alas, we must revisit the logistics of the carnival cuisine. This is fair. "I dunno how it works," is Mio's disclaimer. "But--yeah, when we were in that place, we had to do this kinda festival-style eating challenge... so I ate like this big ol' stack of--urp--I dunno. Pancake katsu? It was really nasty. I don't think I imagined all that stuff in my guts."
Well, you can take some physical objects out of there with you, right? Maybe this works the same way... like a booby prize.
Mio bites the rest of her cookie quietly as the mood turns somewhat heavy, or at least, Shinjiro has a very serious question that needs asking. She isn't clued in to his situation, and has no idea how precious time must be to the young man.
"I don't think anyone's pushing anyone away in this group, no matter how tough stuff looks...?" she seems hesitant to pipe up, but heck, isn't the staying-silent type.
<Pose Tracker> Myunghon Yeo has posed.
"It was elephant ears. As in, the fried dough snack. Mio and I did become sick, but I believe that was probably more from the cognitive levels of sugar involved. Or rather, my coat became violently ill," Myunghon explains to So-young as if this were a perfectly normal and rational course of action and consequence. "There was medicine we had on-hand thanks to... Shinjiro-ssi..." Shinjiro seems hesitant, so of course they're wheeling right back to comfortable territory.
They all enjoyed it! "Mmm... I see, so even a substitute that is still 'chocolate' affects it. Suou-san said the same thing. He also had to use the butter knife and complained that it wasn't appropriate... but I offered him a box cutter, and he sulked even harder at me." You can just imagine the comedy of errors that is Katsuya and Myunghon baking. "Perhaps I will have to invest in a knife......"
Myunghon looks to one side like they don't like that idea one bit, but then So-young lectures them on their habits. "... there is still much research to be done during the Dark Hour. I sleep between now and then, that is my typical schedule. Then there are Demons I typically visit to obtain additional information after the Dark Hour ends, that is typically the hours they operate in."
Mio's gonna tear up a little! "Well... that does encourage me to bake more. I will need to ask for your aid too, Shinjiro-ssi, though Suou-san seems rather eager as well." There's a faint smile as they say, "Mio-ssi and Merry-san both have the same kind of pleasing tone, does it not?"
Shinjiro brings up his question, though, and their eyes widen immediately, and they start looking around the room uncomfortably -- then they snatch So-young's booze to sip away at it.
There's two seconds where their face is even level, then they are aghast. "Mff-- oh, nnuh--" they cup their mouth. "Even alcohol tastes like ash, I suppose."
But Shinjiro savages them with 'I won't be able to help you forever', and that brings his time limit right back to the front of their mind, and they lower their head. "There... there isn't much to discuss. I am safe. It was just a... very bad..." Their mind is shortcircuiting at the choice of words. "After I parted with So-young and Mio in Shibuya, I returned home late and--" A pause. "I just had... a visitor..."
You can kind of see their brain tangle in real time. "I just had a... lapse in judgement." They're REALLY digging that hole deeper and they're clearly observing that they're not getting into a better position. They're also thinking that the Cardboard Dragon is a supernatural space and they have the Meta-Nav app and the rest of them DON'T and Mementos is preferrable to an awkward conversation.
<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.
"Shinjiro-gun," So-young states after Myunghon speaks, though the shit-eating grin on her face suggests that this is not an honorific you should consider using in polite society, especially when she follows it up with 'Mio-seongha'," accompanied by a low bow of her head. When she straightens, her smile is still just as vivid. "Definitely don't use that last one, even if you are a nun."
Her face falls immediately at the words 'pancake katsu', then clears a little as Myunghon specifies. "Oh, those. Erf. I mean, I'll stuff one in my face in I'm hungry and there's nothing else around, but only one. Anything more than that and it'd just be too much, too heavy. It sits in your stomach like a lump, right?" says the voice of experience.
She does frown a little at Myunghon's habits, but then So-young is one of those lucky people who always seems to be able to get a satisfied night's sleep. Truly, this is a fantasy game. "Well, just take care not to feed those vampire rumours any more. The last thing we need is you actually going around chewing on people's necks."
Without complaint, she takes her sake back. She's frowning, but it's a frown of 'oh well', and she nods in recognition of Myunghon having tried it anyway. "It might be a bit of an--" 'acquired taste' is what she was going to say, but this is the first time she's heard Myunghon so vividly describe her situation, and the plain chicken suddenly seems that much more obvious, as does the lack of eating at the fancy restaurant. Even the agedashi tofu was too much? Damn, is as far as her brain gets in sympathy.
She blinks in surprise as Shinjiro breaks a certain topic - assuming that it's to do with their mother, and having been assuming they were going to leave that until she could contact more people. She glances at Mio with her eyebrows slightly raised, an expression of 'uh-- uh was that _now_ or' clear as day on her face, and then puffs out a breath when it's not. It's something else instead.
"How do things just keep happening to you?!" she blurts. This is not the most sympathetic option available, but it is what it is.
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Shinjiro has no idea what Shinjiro-gun means, but he frowns as he can tell it's not polite.
But So-young thinks Shinjiro's gonna talk about Mom, and it crossed his mind, but he's willing to wait on that. Mio says no one's pushing anyone away... "I don't know that that's true." Shinjiro says, though his expression softens as he settles on, "I've... pushed people away for a long time. I still am. And I feel like..." He can't say much right now. It might freak Myunghon out, and he doesn't know if he wants to burden the other two with that.
But as Myunghon drinks, he trails off. This does not soothe his worry... and he's going to make that clear.
"...Myunghon. The more you dance around whatever happened, the harder it is. If you want me to just go home, I can. If you want me to leave you alone, I can."
He's going to do something a little rude. And it might damage their relationship. But...
"So tell me. Am I being a burden by caring?" If they can indicate that, he'll go. No strings attached.
It's clearly the seventeen year old in him that gets him to worry this much to the point of BEING MELODRAMATIC, though.
<Pose Tracker> Mio Kazama has posed.
You can see the question marks popping up over Mio's head at the exchange, and at Myunghon's description of the night's events. There's a lot that happened afterwards that she has no idea about. "H--hey, it's okay." if there's one thing Mio won't shy away from, it's hurt-comfort time. In matters of relationships, she's very innocent! "It sounds like you had something personal come up... that's all, right? You don't have to tell us, it's okay." she's scooted closer to be more a physical presence than just a social one, all calming tones as Myunghon sounds increasingly stressed out.
Even Shinjiro dwelling on his shortcomings, his insistence on pushing people away, doesn't seem to rankle the young lady. "Hey... Aragaki-san, you know... I don't know your situation. There's a lot I dunno about everyone's situation. But..." she sits up next to Myunghon, looking more determined than annoyed, or anything. "We're tied together by more than just our access to the weird world that not everyone can see, you know? We've all took hits and bled for each other--not 'cause we're coworkers, but 'cause that's what real friends do." to her, the power of friendship is more than a cringe stereotype: it's real, you can grasp it.
She glances at So-Young, at the same moment as the other glances to her. "Am I wrong, minnafolks? I feel like something's really weighing on you... but you don't have to run away 'cause you think it's dragging us down... that'd just make us feel worse! It's fine! Get pissed off or upset or whatever, but don't disappear or call yourself a burden!" she puffs her cheeks out, frustrated but in a cute way and not a nasty way. You should be an anime girl: it's EASY to do these things.
<Pose Tracker> Myunghon Yeo has posed.
Myunghon's definitely the kind of person who does think the grass is greener on the other side, and So-young just seems like one of those people, like mom, Tsumugi, or Yanagi -- anyone with confidence, really -- who just seem to be able to navigate life with an ease that they can't figure out, that makes them continually wonder what secret social code they're lacking, because no hypothesis or equation that they can figure out will grant it to them in the way they can feel in supernatural spaces.
Someone who can be acted upon without consequence...
"I have been craving blood a bit lately..." Myunghon does admit to So-young, which does NOT help the situation.
Acquired taste is certainly a way to put it, and Myunghon doesn't seem to have figured out what they've explained without realising it -- of food tasting like ashes. Their attention's drawn to Shinjiro being more forceful with them -- and when he says he can juts go home if they'd like to be left alone, their expression dies a little within.
Is he being a burden by caring?
"No, Shinjiro-ssi, why..." Myunghon looks betrayed for a moment, scared, even, their expression contorting uncomfortably.
Suddenly they wish they had more of So-young's nihonshu. It's Mio's cheer that cuts through some of the tension, and they look towards the younger woman and idly has to calculate for a moment then realise that yes, Mio is nineteen bordering on twenty if they aren't mistaken, and they speak of the camaraderie that they've had from fighting in the sueprnatural world.
"... I can see I shouldn't avoid this," Myunghon does sound defeated, shoulders slumping as they pull up from the couch and walk towards the windows, like perhaps they're hoping that one Baengnyong sniper is there and will put them out of their misery before they have to explain-- damnit, he's not there.
"I went home rather late on that day, and... well... Tsumugi was there to check on me. I was exhausted, but I really didn't want to turn them down. We spoke about the books here, about ourselves..." They're drifting off a little towards that day, which feels like it's caked in so much uncertainty and hesitation in hindsight when it was so intoxicating, with an inescapable gravity before. "I was still feeling very fragile from the last time we met at the hospital... how they draped that coat around me and we danced..."
... and then they jumped out the hospital window??
"... one thing led to another. We spoke about... things big and small... and... um--" They hesitate further, and the emotional gravity is coming and slapping them in the face and they're feeling tears come up again. Why can't they go to an hour ago when they were at the absolute pinnacle of confidence in the Atelier? "Well, I fell ontop of them where they were sitting on the card-playing tables, which really can't hold anyone's weight. I didn't push them away either, and... ..."
A deeper frown, as they sob once.
"... do I need to keep going? Shinobu found me the next morning and it was the worst experience of my life."
<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.
The moment Shinjiro speaks, So-young does the most So-young thing, and there's a not-so-quite 'oooooh' from her side of the living space, followed by a rustle of plastic as she snatches up one of the snacks on display and holds it in front of her like she's eating popcorn at a movie. Her grin is wry, but it is still a bright and pleasant grin as she raises her eyebrows.
Despite her acting, she takes the situation entirely in stride, leaning back as she crosses her legs. "... for what it's worth, from where I'm sitting, I think you're overreacting a little," she notes towards Shinjiro. "I mean, I can understand. It's been one hell of a busy week-- fortnight-- month? But from my viewpoint, it more seems like you're one of the _most_ trusted people around here."
"You, on the other hand." Oh no! Myunghon isn't getting spared either, and So-young raises her glass to stare over the top of it. "I know I'm new to this side of Sumaru and life and probably a thousand other things, but don't feel like I'm some damsel who needs saving. I made the choice to show up here, I made the choice to stay here. I'm just saying, I would like to think I can be trusted with a bit more-- well, no, you probably can't trust me to stay quiet about things." She's allowed a little self-awareness. "But I'm good at the vengeful anger thing."
She blinks slowly as Myunghon relates the tale. She's missing the context of exactly how much has gone down between Myunghon and Shinobu, so her frame of reference here is perhaps a little off and a little lacking as to what exactly the problem is. "Oh." What, that's it? Not quite, because So-young's sniggering a little under her breath, but she does shrug. "So you had a moment when you were emotionally keyed up and needed a bit of physical comfort. That's--"
Myunghon's sob puts a hard pause on however light So-young was about to make it, and she quickly frowns and backtracks - but only a little. "--it can be pretty embarrassing, yeah, but it's not the end of the world. Sometimes you just need it."
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Mio tells Shinjiro about the POWER OF FRIENDSHIP and also that he doesn't have to run away because of a burden, that they're tied together. This causes him to breath a little heavy, and it's accentuated by So-young telling him he's overreacting, that he's one of the most trusted.
Before he can get words out, however, that betrayed look is there, and then Myunghon reveals about their intimate encounter.
The intimacy doesn't bug him. Good for them, he'd think. But his brain latches onto part of it...and while he comes off angry, he's not angry at Myunghon.
"...this is why I'm frustrated. This person took advantage of you... they were the one who mentioned 'show him your power', didn't they? You jumped out a goddamn window and tried to commit murder-suicide. But you're trusting them to that point. Yet... after I told you about my condition..." He's not even thinking about the fact he's being heard.
He's in his grief, the emotions of a seventeen-year-old writ large, as if every new emotion is the worst one he's felt yet. "...it feels like I fucked up. Like I am burdening you with everything I share. I'm not mad at you, I just..." He trails off. He's fumbling his words. His emotions. This has been building up for a bit over the last few weeks, maybe even longer, maybe even the reason he has troubles with forming bonds like this, and now...
He turns for the door. "Nevermind. I'll head back to the dorms. Sorry."
<Pose Tracker> Mio Kazama has posed.
Being an emotional creature, Mio chews on her lip for a moment as Myunghon collapses inwardly into a stress-singularity and starts recounting what, exactly, has them acting so scattered this evening. She is not a particularly savvy person when it comes to matters of the heart! By the time they start actually crying, Mio has since gotten up and walked over to Myunghon to put her hands on their shoulders gently. "It's okay, it's okay..." she repeats softly to them, since this is what she'd want someone to do to her in moments in panic.
She looks over her shoulder to So-Young, perhaps as if seeking help, or some kind of reassurance in what to do here! "I--I think everyone has their own way of thinking about these kinds of things, but I can understand if they're embarrassed about what happened..." Mio is missing crucial context here that other people in the room have. She still thinks this is just some normal romance that everyone's tip-toeing around, but has no idea about the weird power dynamics at play.
Another bite of the lip. That's a bad habit, Mio. Shinjiro is really laying it on himself thick, but what was it like to be 17 and convinced the world was gonna end with every breath drawn? Not easy, even if it wasn't that long ago. "H--hey, hey, Shinjiro, it's okay. Maybe just take a walk and we can come back another time--you guys are all making each other worked up, but nobody's angry, right...?" that sounds like a desperate plea more than a confident vote of solidarity.
Mio squeezes Myunghon's shoulders very gently again. All her besties are fighting and it's all going to fall apart! Aaaaa!!!
<Pose Tracker> Myunghon Yeo has posed.
Myunghon does distractedly glance at So-young for a moment with some manner of mute terror and shame within them as they make their popcorn-motion, something cold flowing in their blood as they look back towards Shinjiro. Their breathing's become pretty shallow at this point.
"I don't think of you as a damsel in need of saving, nuna." Their face is honest for a moment as they point out: "... I am a little disappointed you still think that way after we asked you to fight with us in the Atelier without question." They look like they've swerved from whatever more vicious thing was in their head first, like 'no, I think of you as possessing whatever it is mother finds lacking in me'.
Mio starts to look nervous and conflict-averse, however, putting her hands on her shoulders, and the shopkeeper instinct to make the Cardboard Dragon safe for its customers is ultimately winning out. "... thank you, Mio-ssi," they gently say, as they're rapidly iterating and tactically thinking of how to navigate through this--
But Shinjiro points out the raw truth of the matter: Tsumugi manipulated them into jumping out a window and trying to commit murder-suicide. "That's... that was all my doing, Shinjiro-ssi," they stammer weakly, seemingly refusing to cast any blame still. Why are they still refusing to cast any blame on them? Even they still need to search deep within. But they tie that back into his condition.
"... please ... don't start using your condition as a bludgeon," Myunghon finds it in them to return. "I'm..."
So-young's very light reaction to the intimate night seems to push them too far, though, as they snigger and shrug -- and Myunghon's head starts to ring with that sense of shame of being in class and everyone's laughing again because you missed a cue that everyone has learnt long ago. "Nuna..." they want to fire back with as vicious a blow as they can manage, but they're still hanging on by a thread. "I--"
Myunghon withdraws into themself tightly, even as Mio squeezes her shoulder, letting out another sob. "I do sincerely believe I understand Demons and Shadows better than you sometimes, nuna."
They quietly rise from their seat, extremely dissatisfied with how ugly they're being, but then say, "I need to use the bathroom." Myunghon walks inside and closes the door before them, and they really can't utter mementosmementosmementosmementosmementos fast enough because that's their chosen course of stress relief at present???
You can't just run away from everything to go to Mementos, Myunghon!!!
<Pose Tracker> So-young Park has posed.
"--alright, alright. Don't make me get all properly big-sister on anyone, because literally no-one needs that to happen and I'd be terrible at it," So-young says.
As Mio handles Myunghon, she's suddenly next to Shinjiro, managing to somehow cross the intervening space in the blink of an eye to place her hand on his shoulder. He's one of the few people around here who are taller even than she is, but she reaches up anyway with more of that boundless confidence, meeting his gaze to try to hold it even if he squirms. "Hold on for a moment. Storming off is not going to help anyone, least of all the two of you. Stop. Slow down," she states in a firm tone, brooking no argument, and then nods. "Take a long breath in--" she mimics the gesture. "--then a long breath out."
It might be a bit of a surprise to see So-young actually handling someone in this way, but this is one of the few habits she's really had to pick up in the last couple of years as she works with the Tokyo Philharmonic. She's seen plenty of conductors who are divas in the worst sense - demanding, quick to anger, absolute perfectionists - and plenty of younger musicians who have so expected her to be the same way that they end up tensing up to the point of feeling sick the moment they step up onto the stage. One of the first things she does now is try to ensure her orchestra feels at ease.
So-young could deploy the Mother card here, because it would truly be a devastating counter to Myunghon's point, but she has the sense and self-awareness not to, you know, fuck everything utterly up to score a point. Instead, she just smiles quietly, nodding her head as if in recognition of what Myunghon says. "That's just how family is at times, I think," she admits, but tilts her head. "I'm not trying to make light of it, but sometimes you just need some contact. I don't see anything wrong with that."
She pauses, just before Myunghon starts to flee. "... sorry, that was kind of low. You did ask me for help, that is true. I was happy about that," she adds, the admission coming easily to her lips. "It's something that was-- on my mind recently, is all."
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Myunghon says something that wounds Shinjiro so badly, that he thinks he fucked up beyond all repair... using his condition as a bludgeon was never his intent. Whatever Mio and So-Young say don't get to him. He feels like he could cry.
Luckily, So-young physically stops him. That's enough that he freezes up, follows her breathing cues, and then just stands there without a word, ruminating. If Mio wants to follow it up with advice... he might listen, though he'll leave soon enough either way, at least to give Myunghon space.
<Pose Tracker> Mio Kazama has posed.
Mio exhales into her cheeks again, making them bigger and rounder. Myunghon has since disappeared into the bathroom and may have rapid-fire spellchanted themselves off to Mementos, which--well, maybe being in the cognitive realm is actually a healthier place right now? She then slaps her own cheeks, forcing the air out. And blowing a raspberry in the process. She then karate-chops one hand into the other--hiyaahh!
Mio has formed a T, as in, Time-Out, with her hands.
"Alright, stoppu, stoppu. That's gonna have to do it for tonight." she confidently declares, after So-Young has coaxed Shinjiro out of fleeing the scene and doing God-knows-what. She's on her feet again and digging into her pocket, and there's the telltale jangling of keys. "Shinji-kun, let's get you home. C'mon. You'll feel better if you don't run out on us. I can take you to the train station."
Sure enough, there's car keys looped around a finger as Mio takes it out of her pocket and grins, tiredly. "You don't get to run out on us that easy. Now c'mon, there's nothing like venting in a comfy seat under the streetlights. 'sides, I'm gonna go home anyway, so you don't get to turn it down to save me the effort."
5-D Chess... with friends like these, who needs enemies? Frenemies? Ene...friends? Gah.