composer.

give up on yourself, and you give up on the world.

[cityhymn]

OH, NOW YOU WANT TO TALK TO GOD?

ind. sel. priv. joshua kiryu of the world ends with you. penned by ren. oc + crossover friendly. verse maker extraordinaire. 

primarily set post-ntwewy but happy to write at pretty much any point in the timeline. ntwewy spoilers are untagged, sorry!

DOC.

[hackereaped]

“  if it hurts,  good.  it means you’re still going.  now just hold on a little longer.  ”

@cityhymn​ ➜ submitted!

          There’s a flash in their vision which forces them to snap free from their current thoughts ringing throughout their mind. Could they take another step? Could they continue to go the way they were? How long it took them to no longer be the shell they once were after their first run about with the long game. There’s a painful reminder which makes them work at the mental puzzle again for the first time in what felt like ages. The ache they’ve tried to push down. So long with working to get to where they were only for a single piece of new information to create a mental snap that they cannot even place to begin with. 

They knew assisting would come with consequences. They were aware of how the game worked and prices which typically would come and go alongside them. Even years later. Despite minor tears pricking at their eyes, slow streaming down their cheeks, they press on. They need to. There’s hope in not giving up and there’s so much more needed to be accomplished. Not just for themselves    ━━━━━━━  but for others as well. It’s no longer simply their battle. It hasn’t been for a long while. Rhyme knows, understands what’s being said. 

“ I’ll do my best! “

As if snapping from an almost trance they were being placed within, Rhyme gets back to work. Refusing to give up! No matter what the cost. If it meant they’d save others, if it meant giving people another chance. No matter what the price, Rhyme is willing to pay it. 

[cityhymn]

i took a few days off to do other things and man. feels good feels organic. but lookin forward to writing here again :]

[cityhymn]

feeling pretty tired today so i don’t think anything will happen across any of my blogs! just need a day to hang out by myself i think :]

[violareap]

                   ＭＩＳＳＩＯＮ:  STOP THE N̵҉̾͟͞͡O̷̵҉̢̭͚̜̠ͫͣ͐͢͟͢͠͞͝I҉̡̯̺̜̅́͋̃͢͜Ṡ̷̢̫̞̻͈͋͛̓̅͜͜͜͠͠͠E҉̰̰͎̆͞    !

[cityhymn]

spaces as “living” entities is such a fun idea and i eat up everything that ever deals with it. i do wish twewy played with that more. the concept of shibuya itself existing as its own entity separate of the people that inhabit it. and sure it’s impacted by joshua by virtue of him being composer and whatnot but even then thinking about shibuya itself having its own wishes separate from all of that is....so fun

[tiktaalic]

Passages that make you go Hm.

[cityhymn]

it was a matter of time before i slipped up and called joshua ‘josh’ in my replies

[cityhymn]

particeps​:

                   “ Wha – ” Going up and treading air had been one feeling but it was an entirely different one being transported in an arc back down toward earth. He presses his face into the available cloth of Joshua’s shirt and clinging to him as if he is a scared child. He is not experiencing fear but the effects of a human body being whipped about like a doll in the air. Internally, he damned this strange combination of forces for not giving him the form and resilience he had in the UG. 

But damn, if he wasn’t going to miss seeing those wings one last time before they landed and Joshua put them away. Who knew if he was going to get a chance to see them again. Tilting his head up, it was mostly Joshua’s face and the white wings in his vision. Strange, how those things made him feel – it made him feel even more human than he already did, in the worst damn way possible as thoughts begin crashing down on Neku. 

What am I supposed to do if I don’t have my powers. I can’t just leave this all on him.

Thankfully, they are on the ground again within a few seconds and those wings that keep drawing his attention (no matter the utterly mixed feelings they gave him) are folded away in a plume of feathers. Surprisingly, Joshua shows signs of ware and Neku hurries forward with his arms out to catch him if need be. 

“ Yeah, seriously… ” He bites his bottom lip, knowing that he and Joshua needed to discuss his current uselessness in all of this, “ Listen, Josh… I can’t– ”

A sound rings out from behind him, one which turns his stomach and activates a response in his head to MOVE – DUCK – NOT AGAIN – NOT AGAIN. His breath is a struggling whisper, but he feels nothing in his lower abandonment and chest. Not another bullet through his body – not another death that leaves him turned up on the pavement in a pool of his own warm blood.

Neku turns his head to look over his toward the alley behind them ( right under that Grim Reaper art, how dramatic ) it is himself and Joshua at fifteen, his body pushed back toward to the ground by the force of a gunshot and Joshua standing before him with the smoking gun pointed out where he had once been sitting up. 

It plays like a hologram, the two images translucent enough to still see the alley behind them, like someone had filmed the whole incident from behind and chose to sickly play it for the two of them. 

“ H-Hey… ” Neku is fully turned the incident, unable to look away when the young Joshua fist bumps the air now that his goal was complete, “ W-What the fuck is this. ”

Neku’s grip on him is a welcome one / for once / Josh’s fingers grabbing at his forearm, head keening into his chest to try and alleviate the pain with the pressure, face buried by soft blond locks. But before he can thank him or say something about it, the crack makes him wince, eliciting a similar response from Joshua, his head snapping up, arms and wings shooting up to protect, brilliant white on both sides extending out and out and out and his head is KILLING him. Spare sigil-riddled feathers fall on either side of them.

And even the pain is forgotten upon seeing this scene play out in front of them. “...What...”  Other-Joshua turns and smiles at them or maybe at the mural behind them, the blood underneath Neku pooling crimson and extending until it lapped at the side of the mural -- then, oddly, keeps MOVING, becoming lengthy vines of red beginning to sap away at Hanekoma’s artwork, staining the entire wall red and red and more red. Every warning bell in Joshua’s mind is sounding off and screaming RUN, but this is so unprecedented that even he is rendered agape, unable to do much else than stare, his grip on Neku’s arms tightening.  “I...I don’t know. I--,”

Other-Joshua keeps acting out that day. Behind him, Other-Neku’s corpse keeps bleeding out far too much blood than any human should have, his blood seeming to corrupt Shibuya itself. Hanekoma’s mural begins to crumble around the mirage. Joshua stops watching, skull returning to Neku’s sternum. His head is pounding but the guilt is WORSE.

“Do something,”  he half-begs, not wanting to see this play out anymore / wasn’t once enough / wasn’t him deciding not to Erase Shibuya apology enough / the vice-grip on his head becomes acidic.  “I’m veritably useless right now, so--”  He feels oddly human right now, with his head turned away from the macabre nature of it all, still refusing to let go of Neku’s arms. DON’T MAKE ME SAY PLEASE. please.

[venacoeurva]

Just guys being Funky angelic dudes

-Please do not reupload, edit, or use without proper credit or linking back. Ask first please.-

[cityhymn]

every theatre kid i write ends up just looping back to lel//ou//ch formative media indeed

[cityhymn]

@hackereaped​ said: " I'm still looking more into it - but I think I might have made a discovery in the code that's worth looking into, " gestures to their screen flooded with text of numbers, symbols, and random letters, it's scrolling at a rapid pace and yet their eyes seem capable to keep up. Despite the other's expression perfectly tamed, Rhyme gives a knowing nod. " We got this, I just need a little more time. "

There’s something about the translation of soul to code that renders Joshua mildly useless and he can’t QUITE keep up, so it’s good he didn’t have to look far for help. Where Joshua struggles Rhyme excels, and with a little help from the powers bestowed upon him, this -- the core of Shibuya’s Soul, or whatever they wanted to call it -- was child’s play.

A few bits of code here and there on the screen are familiar to Joshua, residual pieces of leftover individuality here, bits of the UG’s influence on the RG there, the occasional blip from the hivemind, the code constantly reworking itself into new fashion as the two worlds collided.  “Don’t worry about that. I have faith in your capabilities. I wouldn’t have come to you if I didn’t.”  His eyes fixate on a point overhead behind Rhyme’s head at that stream of symbols.

Could it really be that easy -- addressing the Impurity by simply going into the code and excising it like debris from a waterlogged dam? There was the possibility of nasty side effects in the RG and certain residents after all; but then again, that would be where Joshua came in. To mitigate that impact. And besides...you couldn’t make an omelet without cracking a few eggs. Funny--it’s getting harder and harder for him to do that these days. He worries on the inside of his cheek, debating bringing this up to Rhyme.

But he needs their talents more than he needs their morals. 

It would be impossible to get the Higher Plane off his back without making a few sacrifices, and while he wanted to avoid that if he could, such a big change was unlikely to happen without something unfortunate happening to someone somewhere.

If he could just get rid of this nasty little blight on his city, then Rhyme and her brother and friends could all truly live freeing lives and Joshua could go back to his throne. JUST THE WAY IT SHOULD BE. Shibuya was already a mountain built off of corpses, what was one more to add to the list? What was one more body to drag to the base of that mountain for the sake of protecting the people he cared about? Now that he had people he cared about? That was justifiable, right? RIGHT?

“I can get you time.”  Grip tightens just slightly on the top of Rhyme’s chair.  “Stalling is one of my specialties. What a team we make!”  

[cityhymn]

haven’t even looked yet but this is so scary being the first thing i’m seeing upon opening tumblr @particeps​ 

[cityhymn]

MAN

[cityhymn]

haven’t even looked yet but this is so scary being the first thing i’m seeing upon opening tumblr @particeps​ 

[newtgati]

[cityhymn]

particeps​:

                    A roll of his eyes, but it is one of those affection rolls that Joshua manages out of him. Being friends with Joshua is complicated.

[ to : josh ] you don’t even wear a coat

That would be the last text he sends before he gets right back to work on the meal. Once Joshua reached his place he would just need to scramble the eggs and put the meal together. Neku’s head turns up when he hears the doorbell, quickly washing and drying his hands he makes his way over. Opening the door up for Joshua and stepping out of the way to let him in he gestures to come within, “ Is holding the door making me a good host ? ”

“Hmm...”  he feigns thinking about it, shoulders hunching up as he does so, eyes rolling to the left to fixate on nothing in particular,  “I think you get a 7 out of 10 for that one. Slightly above average. Congratulations, Neku.”  The smile breaks onto his face. Something a little more genuine than usual. Then he steps into the entryway, being sure to remove his shoes as he steps onto the soft flooring.

The aroma is pleasant and homely and Joshua’s stomach growls. He’s always liked simpler meals; no need to dig out the bells and whistles when something as easy as oyakodon could make him hungry. “Smells nice. You get another point. 8 out of 10.”  Joshua’s already moving towards the kitchen to place the eggs on the counter.  “Maybe I should keep track throughout the night. Someone has to keep you on your toes.”  And who would be a better candidate than Joshua Kiryu?  He places the carton down and turns to face Neku, hands poised behind him on the countertop.

“Wow, you even have the apron. Heehee...ready for domestic life, are you?”

[cityhymn]

groovepawn​:

He almost seemed satisfied affirming her suspicions. Ah yes, of course I, Joshua Kiryu, am considered an all-knowing God among men, thank you for asking. She had to wonder just how omniscient he was and what all that entailed, but she shuttered at the thought, brushing off her fears for better or worse. She can’t look him in the eye, feeling pressured under his gaze, so she casually takes a step to the side to begin walking behind him. Please don’t notice, please don’t notice.

“Angels?” She’s shocked when he makes mention of the fact that only higher beings are able to do what she did. “Like… Mr. Hanekoma?” She reaches up to fiddle with her fringe, still avoidant in her posture. “I didn’t do anything special. I just sewed him back together, and she was set free,” she speaks truthfully, “are you sure you’re not confused?” Yeah, he may have been omniscient—but him having the facts wrong still seemed more likely than dull little Shiki pulling off the feat of an Angel.

help the banner broke again

Her confusion confuses him / some latent power not bestowed by the pins, hiding right here under their noses, and she didn’t even know it?  “No, I’m not.”  At least he’s not confused about HER being the one to set Tsugumi free.  “It was you.”  Brows furrow.  “You really didn’t know how special that kind of power is?”

Turning on a heel so he fully faces Shiki again, Joshua’s arms cross in front of him. He takes a moment to appraise her, or rather her Soul, in all its glory. Lots of Imagination here. She would have been a worthy proxy if Neku hadn’t come along. So how --  “You really don’t like attention, huh? It’s hard for even me to decipher just what’s going on up there.”  A finger taps his temple, the space where brain meets skull.

“To be honest, this is new for me too. I thought you would have done something...”  he gestures in a vague, noncommittal way.  “I don’t know. More. Maybe it was a fluke. Or you just got lucky.”  Definitely neither of those. There’s something more at play here, and Joshua wants to know WHAT -- but how to go about this without endangering Shiki or anyone (again), he doesn’t know.