IC OVERFLOW AND MISC.

[babermetrics]

For those little captcha occasions, or whatever other random IC stuff I want to do in a journal rather than elsewhere.

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JULY INTRO LOG, IC 2/8

[babermetrics]

Threads from here:

Super High School Level REJECTEDDDDDD

[babermetrics]

. . . You think that's gonna happen?

[He'd honestly not thought about that. In a way, having this shit happen was worse than just having some monster jump out and start swinging at him; he's already been through that here before, and while he's no warrior or anything, he can throw a punch, or at least run. And it might feel good to punch this asshole in the face. In fact, he'd tried, hence the blood on his hands.

He might've tried more than once.

He follows Pekoyama, also avoiding walking right through his doppelganger, even though it's probably possible. The idea doesn't sit well with him at all. Once he's managed to squeeze past, lip curling with distaste, he looks back at both of the apparitions. Of course they're following, still mumbling accusations. Creepy.]

. . . Pretty sure we could take 'em, though.

[I mean, look how tiny and adorable Pekoyama is.]

You dunno the way either, huh? Ah, whatever, we'll find it eventually! They can't keep us friggin' locked up down here forever.

[perfectstrike]

If there is a possibility for something to harm us, CERES tends to encourage it. Touching it was futile, though I have not yet tried my sword on it.

[It just seems a touch too scary to actually cut down a child version of herself before it displays any hostile action. Like... what if she somehow corrupts her own data by killing this thing? Or something worse?]

...

[They certainly could keep them locked up down here forever. But she isn't going to bother voicing it, because her silence in response to that question should be answer enough.]

At least it is only younger versions of ourselves, and not victims.

[babermetrics]

[Oh, he knows. As soon as he says they can't, he knows he's wrong; it's just wishful thinking. He's glad she doesn't point it out, at least, even if she does make it pretty obvious.

Having someone else with him, and not pointing out shitty things about the situation and the way he's acting, is soothing--but then she mentions victims. He hunches up his shoulders, muscles complaining with sudden tension. Of course she's got victims; she's a yakuza! She's the Kendo Queen! But how much had she heard of Leon's outburst earlier? Was she just assuming, or--

Shit.]

Look, I don't--I mean--

[But it's not like he can deny it. He could, but it'd be a pretty stupid move.]

--Whatever. Yeah. Good for us.

Super High School Level Hamhamnerd

[babermetrics]

It ain't an inner demon!

[He snaps that out, but then relents into sulking immediately. It's not like he wants to take this out on Tanaka.

And of course he'd thought it was an inner demon. What the hell else could it be? It wasn't until he saw Tanaka had one too that he started wondering if it were just a generic glitch, something that had nothing to do with him and was just embarrassing in how close it hit home. Maybe it doesn't even matter anymore. He'd made it into what it was. Shit, what a depressing thought . . . and Tanaka had seen it.

On the other hand, he realizes, if Tanaka's saying that too, what does that mean? Leon keeps walking, taking some solace in pretending to be confident in his strides down the creepy hallway, but he turns back to give Tanaka a look.]

. . . Is it? 's that really you back there?

[hamham]

Perhaps the illusions themselves are not, but they are accusing you of things you may or may not have to face as truth. This is the core logic behind facing inner demons.

[Accepting things you don't want to, moving past them...that's what's happening here. It's not easy, but there's no denying it's necessary.

At the question, he glances back at his meek follower as he continues to mumble his accusations. And then he faces forward again, ignoring his mini clone.]

...it is, yes.

[babermetrics]

[Nnnn. There's a lot to read into what Tanaka's saying. Leon doesn't say anything right away; he can't decide if it'd be welcome. Who is he kidding? Of course it's not. It's not like he wants to talk about it, either. But he has to admit that if they're both in the same boat, and both don't want to talk about it . . . that kind of makes it easier to talk about. How backwards.

He gives the little clone one last look, then turns again, going back to ignoring them.]

It ain't like . . .

How much did you hear, huh? All of it?

Super High School Level Hot Lawyer

[babermetrics]

Ain't you worried about those creepy nurses findin' you?

[Maybe she hadn't run into one yet. He'd thought she must be shaken up, to hug him like that, but she's acting pretty normal . . .

Maybe she's just really looking forward to their date tomorrow? It's not like he isn't. The thought's a beacon of light in this already-shitty day, in fact. Still, the smile he gives her is a little worried. Even if she hasn't been caught yet, he doesn't want it to happen now. To either of them.]

They stuck me with this, hic! Some kinda shot, and I've been like this ever since! If I get too, hic! loud they're gonna hear me and find me all over again!

[psycholawgy]

[ she gives him a pretty rough slap on the back. (sorry, leon!) ]

I'm fine! And they gave me a shot too!

[ must be why she's so cheery, but still! ]

[babermetrics]

[He hiccups again, sharply, though otherwise he doesn't mind the smack--even if he wouldn't normally expect it from a girl.

She's acting like she got a shot of tequila, not a shot from a doctor!]

Wait, they stuck you with somethin'? But you ain't hiccuping! Hic!

Super High School Level Buzzkill

[babermetrics]

[Great. Leon's not sure when he wanted to have this conversation--never, probably--but here they are, and it's not like he can even blame Togami for asking, now that they're alone and out of the way of any crazy happenings. (For now, anyway.) In a way it's comforting to not be treated like nothing's weird about this. He's grateful for that from the others, but there are times it weirds him out, too--especially in the beginning.

It still doesn't mean he wants to talk about it.

But he's not going to argue about it. It might as well be now, if not never. Leon slides down the wall to sit on the floor, leaning over on his knees and giving Togami a look.

Hic!]

Yeah, okay, whatever. Sit down, I guess. Hic! I hope you ain't expectin' some kinda scientific explanation I ain't got.

[succeeder]

[ He doesn't look thrilled at the invitation to sit down, but he manages to find a box worth sitting on. ...Well, "worth" sitting on relative to the floor. So he carefully sits on top of that, crossing his arms and literally looking down at Leon as he speaks. ]

I'm expecting the explanation that you have.

[babermetrics]

[WHATEVER MAN, THIS IS COMFORTABLE. It's a little weird now, because someone had to go and make it weird, but Leon just rolls his eyes and leans back against the wall casually.

All of this is peppered with hiccups, of course.]

. . . It ain't like I really get it either. I guess if we're really "code" CERES recovered, or whatever their story is, they must've got mine even after--all that. But if that's all bullshit, I dunno what to tell you. Yeah, okay, I remember it. I know what happened, it's not some weird timeline whatever, so you don't gotta sit there wonderin' if you need to break the news to me.

Super High School Level REJECTED, AGAIN

[babermetrics]

[He's in the middle of trying to decide whether to be offended he's being laughed at or be charmed by how cute Kirigiri's laugh is when she suddenly slams him against the wall. The hiccup that startles out of Leon's throat is especially loud; his hand claps over his mouth after it, eyes going wide. Shit, what if he'd given them away? He hadn't even noticed the footsteps until it was too late! His heart is going crazy in his chest. To his embarrassment, he realizes the moment of panic is only half the prospect of being found; the other half is having been grabbed and jerked like that, even by a slight girl like Kirigiri.

He breathes behind his hand, gradually relaxing, and shifts his gaze over to Kirigiri in the dark. The footsteps haven't walked away from the door yet--but no one's opening it, either.]

[fittedgloves]

[ Kyouko watches Leon for a moment, making sure he's quiet before shifting her gaze to the door, listening carefully for the footsteps.

After an agonizing silence, the footsteps go away and Kyouko relaxes for a moment... Only for the footsteps to come right back as someone opens the door. ]

[babermetrics]

[Dammit! He'd just been beginning to relax himself. This time he manages to stay quiet. He presses his back up hard against the wall, even though it doesn't do a lot of good; he's already as pushed up there as he can manage. And his arm automatically flies out in the dark in front of Kirigiri, as if to shield her from--what, a nurse? Whatever's opening the door. Of course, it's another pointless gesture, but it's an automatic one he doesn't even think about.

He's real busy thinking about please don't hiccup.]

Super High School Level Short Short Shorty

[babermetrics]

[Ah, shit. The fight goes out of Leon, his shoulders sagging. Part of him had wanted one; he's pissed off and has no one to take it out on. His bloody hands are evidence enough of how he'd tried and failed. Maybe, just maybe, he'd have felt better if he'd gotten into a real fight . . .

No, probably not.

He doesn't feel any lighter, exactly, but there's something better here, if kind of morbid. Misery loves company. Hearing his own frustrations voiced by someone else is a comfort. It at least redirects his anger from the situation, or himself, or Kuzuryuu, onto CERES, where it feels like it belongs.

He keeps walking, faster, but there's a purpose in it this time rather than just aimless skittering through the halls.]

Is that what this's about? 'Cuz they brought in Togami, and whoever else, this kinda thing happens every time? When's it stop, huh? When do we get a fuckin' break? I don't get it! They went to all this trouble to bring us here and it's just this crap again and again! You don't even get a moment to feel like you've got a life anymore!

[He's not even sure he still does, and this doesn't help.

Leon makes a face as sour as his mood.]

[impheired]

Togami's here now too?

[Wow the whole triad's here now. He wonders vaguely if Togami, like Kirigiri and Naegi, hasn't encountered his class yet. If they stay true to trend, the answer is probably yes. But that's not really important right now. He'll just have to find the other blond heir at some point and ask.]

Anyway, yeah, it happens every time they bring in a new batch for whatever fucking reason. At least this time it hasn't been particularly dangerous. I guess that's some consolation. [But judging by the way he says it, it's not a whole LOT of consolation. This is still obnoxious.] You'll have to ask them though, I don't have an answer for you. Nothing here seems to work the way they made it out to be in that stupid powerpoint. To be honest, I'm not sure I buy the whole "saving the universe" bit anymore. Maybe this is all some kind of fucked up alien social experiment. Who really knows.

[babermetrics]

There's no friggin' way it's what they say it is.

[Leon listens to all of that, and feels like he's looking into . . . okay, listening to a mirror, whatever. As shitty as the current situation is--embarrassed as he still is, and they haven't lost their doubles yet, so there in the background there's still that stupid bullshit murder talk going on, and this place is so creepy--

Despite all of that, he feels a little better, and his tension and blush both begin to fade. None of this is much consolation, but it's something. It's company. It makes him feel less like the rug got pulled out from under his life somewhere back there and he never managed to find the floor.

He goes to stick his hands in his pockets and smears blood all over his shirt--dammit.]

--Shit! I'm never gonna get that out!

[But you know what, the shirt's already ruined, so he just wipes his hands off on it at this point. Whatever!]

There just ain't no way--look, they put stuff inside us, right? Ain't that what Hinata said? And they didn't tell us? If it wasn't somethin' fucked up, they'd have told us! And all that shit about our worlds, it's like, I'm not fuckin' doing anything here except gettin' jerked around by them like once a week! There's no way I'm helpin' save the universe or anyone else like this!

[He waves behind them, violently, at the doubles. Like this!]

What good's this stupid shit, huh?!

Super High School Level Awwwwww.

[babermetrics]

Yeah, they, hic! They got me too--

[Wait. He cuts off as his eyes finally adjust--and then go wide in disbelief. Seriously?! He'd known Togami had shown up, but this--

Leon freezes, seized by nerves. Can Fujisaki see him yet? What's she going to think, running into him like this? Or is that why she's nervous? Did she think he was going to hurt her because of--everything?]

F, Fujisaki?!

[cutestprogrammer]

[Chihiro's eyes still haven't adjusted to the dark yet and the fact that they're rather blurred by his tears doesn't help, but he can kind of make out a familiar silhouette. Ah, and now he knows where he's heard that voice before.]

Eh? Ku-Kuwata-kun...? Is that you...? But aren't you supposed to be...? [Chihiro backed up more against the door as the last word 'dead' came out in a little terrified squeak.]

[babermetrics]

[In the dark, Leon's expression is hard to see--but his face falls immediately into something darkly wounded. Yeah. Maybe he is. He's been wondering that himself, in fact, since he got here, and he still can't quite convince himself this wasn't all a big mistake for everyone.

Feels bad, man.

Being reminded of it is like a quick crushing feeling in his chest that he can't easily shake off; it's not helped by Fujisaki obviously being terrified of him. He can think of more than one reason she might be, and none of them feel good. So he backs off, all the way to the other side of the closet (which is fairly large), and leans against the wall with his arms crossed. There's nothing aggressive in his posture--though he's tense enough to make his shoulders ache.]

. . . Yeah, probably.

You already got a cool title.

[babermetrics]

'Course I ain't hurt.

[Except for his pride, which is pretty thoroughly wounded, thanks.

He guesses he could have been hurt; he'd been jabbed with a needle earlier, and that had hurt at the time, along with everything else that had happened. But it hadn't once occurred to him that the freaky knife-wielding fake-him in the basement might actually take a swipe at him, or hurt him in any way. He'd been too stung with the emotional fuckery of it to even consider that. Now that he's removed from the situation and calming down . . .

Well, he still doesn't want to think about it, because it's just another level of working himself up over this stupid shit on top of the five levels he's already sitting on.

Leon starts wiping his hands off on his scrubs. He's already a mess, he probably looks like shit right now, and he's getting sick of not being able to touch things. It's also something to look at that isn't Heung Soo's face. Leon's not sure what to think of him right now; where's he get off acting so calm about all that? Maybe he hadn't heard or seen as much as Leon had thought? Still--being around it is both helping Leon relax himself, and starting to get under his skin a little.

He finally blurts out, without looking up:]

So--what? "It's a pain," that's all you've gotta say? 's that it?

sorry that we can't all be grandpa rumps!!!

[unathletic]

[ Well, this is only getting more and more awkward with the moment. Especially since something about Leon's last statement makes him seem a little bit more frustrated with the whole deal, and he looks away while clicking his tongue. ]

Then what am I supposed to say?

[ He won't deny the situation back there was weird, but he was trying not to pry?! You know, trying to be a good person? That sort of thing? He tried so hard and got so far, but in the end... ]

Am I supposed to ask about the person you killed? If you're some sort of psychopath?

[ It's not like it doesn't unnerve him, the idea that Leon probably killed someone with the way he was talking back there.. but on the other hand, Heung Soo's been beating people up for no reason at all until they had to be hospitalized. Maybe he doesn't really have much of a right to speak on that one. ]

It's your business. As long as you're not about to stab me or some other person in this place, I'm not going to pry. [ Because it's not like he'd want someone to pry into his own dirth laundry either, and Leon hasn't seemed weird or like a terrible person before. ]

seriously why would anyone want to be

[babermetrics]

'Course I ain't! 'Course I don't want you to ask, what the hell?! So . . . good! Let's keep it like that!

[He crosses his arms, now that his hands are at least kind of clean, and avoids eye contact.]

Who even gives a crap . . .

[But that's kind of the problem.

God, why's that a problem? What the hell's wrong with him that he keeps feeling this way every time he gets exactly what he wants? It's his business. No one cares. He doesn't have to think about it, or talk about it, or explain it. His classmates don't hate him for it. They don't even blame him for it. And they shouldn't, right? It's not like it was his fault. What had happened--it had just happened, and not because he'd started it, either, so . . .

So what's the matter with him?

Forget it, man. This is definitely what he wants, and he's going to take advantage of it if it's being handed to him like this. His shoulders are still tense, hunched up nearly to his cheeks, as if he could sulk so hard he might collapse in on himself or something--but then he lets them drop sharply, with a sigh. It's kind of like relaxing.]

The only people I wanna friggin' stab are CERES for shoving all this bullshit at us in the first place! What the hell was that, huh?! I didn't even try to log in today and here I am gettin' chased by doctors and nurses and jabbed with needles and then whatever the hell that was! Screw that! They deserve whatever's comin' to 'em!