futurology | text; username: SHIKI

Offended me? [It tickled a smile out of him, at least. Shiki looked back to the line--not sure of what to say at a time like that. He didn't get teased often, but he still had a stomach for it.

Complaining, though--he was just an expert when it came to that.]

You didn't--trust me.

[Shiki shifted the rod between his calves--lifting both hands up to his face so he could blow warmth into them.]

There's tea here, I've heard--it's just really expensive.

Really?

[Now that he mentions it, there's probably all sorts of fancy, expensive tea she doesn't know about. Still, that can't be all they have.]

Nothing cheap for us broke high school kids?

From what I can tell--it's more of a luxury than a staple, which is a pain.

[For someone who loathed caffeine and decaf coffee wasn't at all available, tea would have to suffice.

In lieu of tea, there was water and he didn't trust anything he didn't boil and filter, himself.]

I don't even like drinking the water. I've heard beer is healthier than water in a place like this, just because they have to boil the water in the brewing process, but--I'm not even old enough to drink.

[He said all of that before really processing it in his mind.

Shiki stopped talking, simply staring out at the water and feeling like he just said the lamest thing he could have possibly come up with.]

[Max honestly hadn't considered the fact that the water might not even be safe. That she'd drink beer instead is a laughable thought, but . . . it does make her think of home. Looking amused at his expression now as he stares out at the water, she'll do the same and follow his gaze with her eyes.]

My friend likes the stuff. I'll pass, though.

[If if Chloe were actually there, that might be a different story.]

Have people gotten sick or something?

[Max pulled Shiki right back out of his shame.]

Oh, I don't know...? [He left it hanging, as if it were a question. Shiki generally preferred to avoid experimentation, so when posed with the suggestion that he might want to at least get proof of the danger of the water--he decided simply being biased towards scientific research would have trumped the risk.]

It's really an interesting thing to consider, isn't it? If we weren't living it ourselves, we could probably call this a space exploration story.

. . . Interesting is one word for it.

[Max looks up towards the dark sky. He has a point about space exploration, even if it just feels like another hell hole on earth. Casually, she wonders if she can put "astronaut" on her resume now.

She brushes the idea off, shaking her head, looking almost amused.]

ALASTAIR might turn out to be the villains.

[Barring the realization that he was technically an astronaut as well, Shiki was more concerned with what entailed 'adventures'. In history, adventurers weren't heroes or even good people. They took, burned and destroyed things in their wake, leaving little to nothing for the people originally there.

It worried him, being associated with a group like that.]

...We might be. You heard about it, right--that giant prison break?

[He felt his tone had to hush up, somewhat. The whole situation made him nervous as it was.]

[Max frowns, noting the way his voice became quiet and hard to hear. For good reason, she thinks.]

That was crazy. Were you there?

No.

[He was just as glad that he wasn't there during the fighting. Just meeting some of those people when they were doing something as simple as partying was too much for him to handle.

Supernatural people all around--he was remembering that painful headache all too well.]

I don't know if I'm being too paranoid, but there are tons of scary people in ALASTAIR's group. It seems important to be careful of them.

[. . . Max was. She spent most of her time trying to stay out of everyone's way, though, and helping the stranded and left behind.

She considers his words, remembering all the close calls.]

You can never be too careful.

[She's the one who accused him of wanting to rob her.]

Learning who you can trust . . . it's a process. [Her words seem bitter.]

Yeah. That's tough, isn't it?

[Even with family. Shiki had thought, as a child, that he did something wrong to make his father force him out of the house. He had no idea why he was banished from the household, the lack of an explanation making him feel seriously alienated.

He was the sort of young man who was made to feel distrust too easily, when he wanted to be more trusting, instead.]

But--I guess it's fine when you meet somebody you can really trust. I don't know how many people like that I can meet here, but it would be a relief if it was a good ratio, right?

[The hope in his voice was forced, but it somehow managed to at least make him smile a bit out of reflex.]

[His smile helps return Max's own. She's a positive person at the core, so it's easy to agree with him--though admittedly, she's also used to being a loner. In the end, she wonders how many people she could trust at Blackwell.]

It'd definitely make these missions less shitty.

[. . . And, because she has to ask.]

Think you could trust me?

Well, seeing as you had plenty of chances to shove me in the water...

[There wasn't any reason for him to not be friendly, but there were plenty of things on Shiki's mind that made him feel less inclined to extend himself.

It was nice not having to talk too much business, though. Only wanting to be happy put him aside from a number of the other soldiers. Shiki was told he'd be called a coward because of his attitude, but--

He could only imagine being a coward wasn't as bad as what he could have been.]

You seem pretty trustworthy. How about me, though? Do I leave a good impression--or, has my sour mood been problematic?

[Her lips curl. Given how cold it is, that would've been especially cruel. Besides, he'd never given him a reason to do such a thing, either. There's a pause as she considers how she feels in return.

The fact that she (almost) unquestioningly came out to meet him after just a few words on a screen said a lot.]

You're not too sour right now. [That's a plus!] Besides, I can think of things a lot more problematic than that in Chantes.

[Pleasant thinking did the trick, otherwise. Shiki fed Max a smile in return for that, opening his mouth to thank her for that much--before he felt the line jerk the fishing rod he set between his calves. His hands lunged forward to grab hold of it properly, before he found himself quickly pulling himself up onto his feet.]

Wait--hey-- This can't be right!

['There's no way in hell' was the one thought on his mind at that.]

[It's about time they got some excitement, though Max was just getting used to the peaceful, pleasant conversation. Max jerks suddenly, standing in shock when he does.]

Don't lose it! Can you reel it in?

[She seems ready to jump in and help any second . . .]

I think--

[Shiki seemed to forget about the reel. His first instinct was to lock the line in place, taking steps back to properly ground himself. He leaned back, feeling it was just as necessary to keep himself from falling forward.

Whatever he caught, it was snaking around in a number of directions, fighting him before moving in another direction.

When he got a sense for how erratically it was moving, Shiki didn't bother to reel it in--he just gave a sharp yank of the line that pulled the fish free from the water in one go.]

--Idiot! [He cursed himself, at least. As the fish flew through the air--Shiki grabbed the wooden bucket he had and thrust it forward--catching the fish before it landed right back in the water. He was on his stomach, fairly close to falling off of the pier at that point.]

...I should have reeled it in.

[At some point, Max held her breath. She acts fast, dashing for Shiki when she sees him lunge for the fish, though she stops just short of falling off the pier herself (and taking him with her). She hears the flop as the fish lands in the bucket and lets out a sigh.

Time flows on.]

That was close.

[She steps around him and leans down, peeking at his face.]

You okay?

[His chest hurt a little, but after he pulled himself up to seat, Shiki checked himself over and found there wasn't any snag from a shard of pier or a nail hat been out of place. Admittedly, he turned a bit red when Max leaned forward--Shiki feeling fortunate that light had been lessened in their particular section of the pier.

He looked from her to the bucket--still a bit numb over it.]

I'm fine--but, but... Not really. That looked pretty bad, didn't it?

[Max gives him some space, turning her attention instead to the fish in the bucket. She laughs a bit.]

Actually, it was kind of awesome. Not everyone's as determined as you.

[. . . but he really should have reeled it in.]

Look at your prize.

[Slowly, Shiki pulled himself up to his knees, all while making sure the fish in the bucket didn't squirm its way out. It was definitely trying to escape. He took a breather, looking it over as it struggled, somewhat pleased with the size of it.

He expected a tiny little goldfish--not something the size of a regular salmon.

Relieved, he looked to Max and admitted outright:]

Determined? No way. I'm definitely done with this for today.

[. . . Okay, okay. She peers into the bucket, too. She can't very well urge him to bask in the prize when she hasn't even peeked at it herself. Plus his reaction's got her interested.

She does frown, though.]

I kind of feel sorry for it. Maybe I'm not cut out for this sort of thing either.

Yeah.

[Once he thought about it, Shiki reached into his jacket to pull out his knife--flicking it open without more pomp and circumstance.

He knew how to gut a fish--that was just a necessary skill for cooking raw ingredients.]

It's a lot easier when the butcher has it ready for you. I guess this is why I'm usually a vegan...

[Except, he barely was. Shiki muttered an apology, pointedly gutting the fish inside of the bucket, so Max would have to intentionally go out of her way to see it.]

Even if it's an animal, killing is something wrong. At this level, unfortunately I don't think I can avoid pacifism if I don't want to starve in the worst case scenario.

[Max flinches at the initial blow. With the rest of the act unseen, her imagination takes over as she closes her eyes. She's not sure if it's better or worse this way, but at least his words give her something to focus on.

She recovers quickly, sighing.]

Hopefully not all of our missions will be like this.

[Can they have a mission on a nice relaxing beach? A resort? . . . A girl can dream.]

--but we'll worry about that when we get there.

If you're done for the night, I guess the next step would be cooking the thing.

text; username: SHIKI

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sounds good! we can end it here.