Game 050 [Voice/Action]

[neverplaysfair]

[ While leaving out a mug of coffee, mostly-filled, might seem to be a weird thing to do in remembrance, regardless it's what Joshua does as he goes about cleaning the downstairs floor of his house, the space previously known as Kat's Kradle.

Without any real reason to keep more than the cooking area clean, he hadn't. Dust coats many of the tables and forms sometimes-impressive piles in the corners. Today, despite the rain, Joshua has the front door of House 38 wide open, and he can occasionally be seen sweeping piles of dirt outside.

It's rather cold, but Joshua doesn't seem to mind it. At least it's keeping him from working up a sweat. It's a bit late for a new year cleaning, but at least he's getting around to it at all, right?

Every so often he takes breaks to check on his journal, which he left the following question on earlier in the day: ]

How many of you learned things here that you're not looking forward to having to learn again when you go back to your own worlds? Your own death might be the obvious one, but I mean things like, say, some truth about your world, or friends, or family as well. Anything you'll need to find out again if you forget this place.

Comments

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

Four months.

[ He starts to pull his shirt back on. ]

July 17th. If I haven't gone back by then, it will happen again. Most likely, it'll be even worse.

[action]

[soundfrequency]

Did... that help any? When I was there.

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

...

[ Joshua finishes buttoning his shirt up, and stares off into space. ]

Yes.

[ 'If you hadn't helped, I probably would have died then.' ]

[action]

[soundfrequency]

If it comes to that again and you're not sent home, then... well. I'll do it again.

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

... It might kill you the next time.

[action]

[soundfrequency]

[Okay now he's not so sure about offering. But have a very awkward joke.]

Not like that's ever stopped you before.

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

True enough. [ Joshua? Isn't joking. ] But if it were between me dying and both of us dying, there's no point this time to your death.

Something changed last time before I got to the next point. At least this last one I knew was survivable in the first place.

I suppose it comes down to how much the two of us are willing to risk for the sake of hoping.

[action]

[soundfrequency]

...

[He... doesn't know. But he is still willing to help as much as he can. It's just... damnit.]

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

Are you satisfied now?

[action]

[soundfrequency]

...'scuse me?

[Please don't tell me you're going to be a dick right now.]

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

Does that answer your question?

[ Sorry, Neku. Joshua has a tendency to try to push people away when he feels vulnerable... and that was a couple very vulnerable pieces of information. ]

[action]

[soundfrequency]

Don't start.

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

Start what?

[action]

[soundfrequency]

Being an ass.

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

I'll act how I want, thank you.

[action]

[soundfrequency]

So you want to act like an ass. Yeah, no.

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

And why not?

[action]

[soundfrequency]

Because I'm your friend.

[And you can't just decide to be a jerk because you're feeling vulnerable. Or at least you can't get away with it.]

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

...

[ Joshua's gaze falls back to the coffee mug. He's not making any attempts to deny it. Not this time. ]

That doesn't change anything.

[ But it does. ]

[action]

[soundfrequency]

You expect me to buy that?

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

It doesn't matter.

[ He picks up his broom and slowly goes back to sweeping. ]

We both found out what we wanted to know.

[action]

[soundfrequency]

[Grr. Marching right over to Joshua to stand in front of him so he can't sweep.]

So? It still matters. You know damn well it does change things. Give me a break, Josh, if you being a snot was going to push me away you would have accomplished that a long time ago.

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

[ Fine. Sweep he won't. ]

Alright, Neku. If you're so sure about everything between us, then tell me: what now?

[action]

[soundfrequency]

...what now? How about I punch you.

[action]

[neverplaysfair]

... For telling you what you wanted to hear.