2025-12-08: Rejection in the Rain
- Log: Rejection in the Rain
- Cast: Ryuzaki Kurama, Kazusa Motojima
- Where: Unnamed Arcade, Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo
- OOC Date: December 08, 2025
- IC Date: Wednesday, August 22, 2012 (Midday)
- Summary: Ryuzaki and Kazusa both take shelter from an unexpected squal. Kazusa mistakes Ryuzaki for Ruzica, and then puts together the truth. She is... not kind in her reaction.
- Content Warning: Bullying, transphobia
<Pose Tracker> Ryuzaki Kurama has posed.
A rather persistent squall has brought cloud and lightning over the skies of Kagurazaka and washing heavy over the terra of the city, dashing any hope that there'll be any chance of pleasant weather today.
Ryuzaki Kurama's found himself caught up in this as he hurries down the street and darts into cover, panting exhaustedly as he pulls up to the entranceway to a rather nice arcade with various shops and cafes -- perhaps one with a window view for someone to rather coincidentally peer in on him. He's dressed in his usual black denim jacket with stylised red wings on the back, which is rather soggy with moisture now, and the white shirt underneath is in an even worse state.
"I was too late..." he mumbles to himself, looking around quietly, before taking the baker's boy casquette off and letting his apparently long hair down as he unclips the clasps that keep it all in place underneath, tumbling down in a sequence that we can say is almost hair commercial-worthy.
It's not far to go home... maybe he should just sprint there...? No, his legs aren't feeling particularly good today... what a conondrum...
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
The squall is definitely inconvenient if you want to go out and do things. But it is nice if you want an excuse to just go somewhere and hole up for a while by yourself.
... Of course, you have to get there, first. And if you weren't lucky enough to get to that spot before the squall started... then you still gotta brave the elements.
It's also just a terrible time to get a phone call.
There's an annoyed grunt of "Ugggh" as Kazusa ducks into cover. She's wearing a pretty nice (and designer) black lether trenchcoat and boots, though aside from that she's got on comfty jeans and a dark pink hoodie. She quickly closes her umbrella and pulls out her phone from an inner pocket. "What!? What is so important you couldn't just leave a voicemail message!?"
She hasn't quite noticed Ryuzaki yet.
<Pose Tracker> Ryuzaki Kurama has posed.
Ryuzaki pauses as he hears someone grumbling about their phone. He's a little distracted with wringing excess moisture from the hat, but by the time he's done, he realises that -- oh, why is she here...? This isn't good luck at all. Perhaps he can fix his hair back up and-- it takes quite a bit of time... maybe he can just dart further into the arcade and tuck his way into a shop somewhere... yes, let's do that.
And so the boy in black starts to sneak away, perhaps hoping the important message will distract Kazusa long enough...
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
There is some conversation from the other line, and Kazusa just scowls. "I was in the rain you dolt. And this could have been a text! So if you're done--"
Kazusa's pacing, and as she turns around to pace the other way she spots Ryuzaki trying to duck into the arcade and pauses. Or, well, she spots someone. "Oh. Crvena-san?"
<Pose Tracker> Ryuzaki Kurama has posed.
Zounds!!!
Ryuzaki stops for a moment and doesn't turn around for about three seconds, but then does finally cop to being caught and slowly rotates on the spot, putting his hands behind his back. Ruzica's only really had her hair up in a ponytail in service before, so this is a new look... it certainly makes those cold golden eyes of his stand out more.
"Oh... Motojima-san," he quietly answers. "The rain isn't particularly pleasant today... is it...?"
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
Kazusa watches as Ryuzaki hesitates before turning around, looking him up and down. "Wow, you're drenched," is her rather astute observation. Into the phone she says, "No, I just ran into someone I know. Just send me a text." She hits the red button to end the call, and then mutes her ringer for good measure before putting her phone away.
"Yeah, it sucks. I was hoping to avoid it but I kept getting delayed. So annoying." She takes a few steps closer. "What happened to you?" she asks, looking Ryuzaki up and down. "You know if you dress that way people are going to... mistake you... for..."
Kazusa looks into those gold eyes, then looks Ryuzaki up and down again. A mix of confusion and incredulity crosses her face as she keeps staring.
"... Wait. Kurama!?"
<Pose Tracker> Ryuzaki Kurama has posed.
Ryuzaki isn't particularly familiar with the way people demand his attention over a phone. No, his phone is a rather peaceful sort, mostly tucked away in his jacket pocket. Those gold eyes stare rather observantly at the way she ends and mutes, like the mysterious rectangular object was causing her grievance and pain. This isn't the first time...
But... there's bigger worries right now. Kazusa starts pointing out that if Ruzica dresses this way people are going to mistake her for... for...
...
...
Oh...
Ryuzaki's hands particularly squeeze behind his back as he scuffs his sneakers gently against the ground, not making eye contact. "Um. It's me, yes, Ryuzaki Kurama..."
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
Kazusa's gotta keep up with the most up-to-date things, of course. Including phones. Even if sometimes they can be an annoyance...
If only she hadn't gotten that call and needed to duck in here to answer it.
But she stares at Ryuzaki, confusion slowly giving way to intense scrutiny as Ryuzaki confirms his name. At the very least she hasn't started shouting yet, her voice low and seething. "But you're also that girl Wakana-chan and I met, aren't you? You were dressed up as a girl at the Fleur de Lis. That's why you seemed so familiar!"
It's not a question this time, it's an accusation.
<Pose Tracker> Ryuzaki Kurama has posed.
Ryuzaki does kind of drown a little at the insistence and seething that Kazusa's levelling on him. "U-um..." Well, Ruzica was very handsomely dressed, in a red dress shirt and pinstripe pants, but definitely wasn't trying to hide in the way Ryuzaki is, his gold eyes seemingly a little less focused as Kazusa lays it out for him.
"That's not untrue... but I'm Ryuzaki today..." is the quiet response that comes out of him.
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
Kazusa arches and eyebrow and crosses her arms, looking (very slightly) down her nose at Ryuzaki, studying him some more. She actually thought that outfit was pretty sharp--and accepted it because it fit the restaurant's theming.
Her opinion on it might have soured, though.
"'Today'? What's that supposed to mean?" is the demanding response. "You can't just... go around pretending to be a girl because you feel like it, you know."
<Pose Tracker> Ryuzaki Kurama has posed.
Ryuzaki squirms a little, even if his face still unsettlingly doesn't convey any of the emotion seemingly tumbling through him. "Oh... as in... sometimes I want to be... Ryuzaki... but not every day," as if that clears anything up further. Ruzica was much more sharp and firm in the way she carried herself, but perhaps that's the demeanor of service talking as well. By contrast, Ryuzaki's very soft-spoken and gentle, even meek, one could say.
This is looking pretty awkward, fast, and Ryuzaki's looking like he's considering escape routes. ... maybe if he went to the boys' bathroom... no, he doesn't have the Guts for that either.
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
Kazusa's not really noticing that unsettlingly unemotional face. Or if she does, she's just ignoring it to focus on other issues. Sometimes... but not every day. "Are you kidding me? You can't just... go around doing that sort of thing! You know what people are going to say about you if they find out, right? What people at Shujin will think?"
She might also not be catching the difference in demeanor right now, either. But then again... she's wealthy and used to being in a position of power.
She puts a hand to her forehead. "You know, Wakana-chan and I were very nice to you, and I can't believe this is the thanks I get." Okay, it was mostly Wakana that was nice. Kazusa was... neutral, at best.
<Pose Tracker> Ryuzaki Kurama has posed.
Ryuzaki blinks a few times as Kazusa blurts out that he can't just go and do that. It's true that he has to keep his cover consistent... in a sense, this was easier a few years before when Ryuzaki was merely a cover. But now... hm. This is an instance where sentimentality became a weakness, Ruzica considers inside. It would be really inconvenient if gossip broke out in Shujin, though.
"It would be... inconvenient..." Ryuzaki agrees, still not with any tone that's more distressed than finding out his cheese is mouldy. (No, this is actually out of character. Ryuzaki would be devastated if he found out his cheese is mouldy.)
What Kazusa says next seems to greatly trouble him, though -- mostly conveyed with his eyes going half-lidded. He doesn't quite understand how one follows to another -- they were nice because they thought she was a girl, and now that he's a guy... is that it?
"I see... so you wouldn't have been that nice if you knew I was a boy...?" Ryuzaki inquires quietly.
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
Kazusa's worry is definitely not one of sentimentality. It's of image and appearance. ... Specifically hers, if it got out that she was associating with someone like Ryuzaki, but also just the general social norms she operates under.
"Yeah. That's putting it mildly," Kazusa snaps at 'inconvenient.' She could start a rumor. It wouldn't even be the first one. Some of the gossip about the new dud of the Rhythmic Gymnastics team, Kasumi Yoshizawa, came from her.
But she's not about to start a rumor over this. Not yet, anyway.
Kazusa takes a half-step closer into Ryuzaki's space. "No, I wouldn't have been so nice if I'd known what kind of weirdo you were. If you try pulling this nonsense at Shujin I'll make sure everyone knows about it, understnd me?"
<Pose Tracker> Ryuzaki Kurama has posed.
The light momentarily goes away from Ryuzaki's eyes as he thinks about what it is Joyous Lovelace said.
Bullies like that love their plausible deniability. They think they're invincible. My experience? You just gotta prove they're not. The second you draw blood, they back off with their tail between their legs, like the pissants they are.
... ... ...
It's good advice, but Ryuzaki looks really puzzled as he recalls this piece of advice how exactly he's supposed to go about this. Should he just-- draw a throwing knife and stab her?? No, wait, that's probably not what Joy's talking about...
"I see, then..." Ryuzaki quietly puts his baker's boy casquette back on. The chicken pin looks especially sad right now, for some reason. "But... it seems to me you'd be inconvenienced if someone found out you were talking to a 'weirdo' like me too..."
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
Honestly, if Ryuzaki were to take a swing--or better yet, pull a knife--it would probably get Kazusa to back down pretty quickly.
Probably.
On the other hand, it would probably also cause a lot more problems.
But when Ryuzaki makes his counter move, Kazusa tenses, and her eyes eyes narrow. Oh, careful, Ryuzaki. Whether you intended to or not, you definitely struck a blow. There's something cold and calculating in her eyes for a moment before she snorts. "This? This isn't talking." Except you did start off by casually greeting someone you thought you knew.
"What this is is a warning. Don't rock the boat. I can make things a lot harder for you than you can for me, capiche?"
<Pose Tracker> Ryuzaki Kurama has posed.
Where there's cold, hard calculation in Kazusa's eyes, there's still... nothing... seemingly... in Ryuzaki's gilded eyes, so big and bright like one could get lost in a realm of otherworldly gold. Does this guy ever really feel anything? It's unsettling, how inhuman it can be at times.
"... okay. But I am Ruzica too some days. That part... doesn't change," Ryuzaki quietly says, as if drawing some kind of line for themself, even if it isn't much. "... have a good day, Motojima-san."
And he walks past her at a slow clip, down the arcade and around a corner where... the Velvet Room door waits for him. That should've been his move in the first place.
<Pose Tracker> Kazusa Motojima has posed.
Kazusa, by contrast, seems to wear her emotions more on her sleeve. Some of them, at least. She's a bit too incensed to notice just how unnatural Ryuzaki's gaze is.
Ryuzaki draws a line, and Kazusa... doesn't have an immediate retort. If he's still willing to be stubborn, even after the heavy threat...
But threat or not the irritation of it all finally consumes her and she spins on her heel, stomping after Ryuzaki. "Grr, get back here, you--"
And suddenly, Ryuzaki isn't there. Kazusa blinks, looking around in confusion. She was sure she saw him come this way.
Where did he even go? I bet he went to the men's room or something. Kazusa scowls in annoyance. "Forget it," she declares to herself as she turns to walk out. "It's not worth it."
<Pose Tracker> Ryuzaki Kurama has posed.
BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_e7JkbJMK4
"... ... ..."
"Oh?" comes the deep, curious voice belonging to the one with the large nose. "Why, welcome, Master Kurama... how does your search fare?"
Ryuzaki stares behind him to the closed velvet door for a moment, then quietly steps forward, up the shallow steps of the circular, eponymous Velvet Room. "I think... I understand less now..." he quietly shares.
"My, but that is a shame."
"Only a few changes and... acceptance has gone to displeasure..." Ryuzaki whispers, closing his golden eyes. He's deep in contemplative thought for a moment, but then says, "I won't discover the heart that I'm searching for like this..."
And then he goes to trade a fat-ass pile of spare Tarot Cards at the demon artist cause you still gotta do your business.