[[ As a funny joke set up a blog and then vanish for six literal months.
Tentatively back, or will be son so i can get this asshole established properly. If anyone is curious, txkeyourheart made a post that covers the reason for absence. I didn’t have commissions to work on, but i did have other work as well.
I write much slower and more sporadically than he does, so I wont be for real back for probably a few more days, but!! i really wanna get this guy actually going finally hakjkjasdalks ]]
[[ so i’ll make a starter call once ive settled into this blog just a little more as a heads up!! i just didnt want to make one when i was still nervous hhggnghgkhl ]]
It's always there, steady, steady, steady in the back of every thought. Sometimes it's a comfort, a rhythm to help settle his own fluttering breaths - sometimes it just drags him down at the edges, a constant reminder that he is not who he thinks he is.
Tonight it's not really one or the other, it's just oppressive, forcing itself into the forefront of his mind instead of keeping up it's quiet drumming. A few times now Akechi has turned a corner only to realize he didn't know why he had gone that direction, or looked up to notice that the passage he meant to take has been passed by somewhere along the line. It has him on edge, keeping tack of where he is already proves difficult without this new layer of haze , hypervigillance is the only thing keeping him from staggering facefirst into a shadow at the moment.
Needless to say, when he hears Kuebiko's voice creep out of the darkness he nearly goes pealing off into the tunnels, skittering forward a few panicked steps before catching himself, turning on his heel to greet the other brightly - if he lays the cheer on thick enough maybe Kuebiko just wont acknowledge that.
"Still skulking around in the dark, hm? You know you don't have to creep up on me like that!"
And I would really rather you didn't.
"But old habits die hard, right?"
He's quick to close the distance, all but scampering up to the other - Kuebiko's company means he can let a little bit of his guard down, just enough to not have to rely on whip-snap nerves to keep him safe. His steps slow to a stop fairly close, only a few feet from the thief, Akechi's hands tucking behind his back less like he's greeting a friend and more like a curious child stopping to examine something of interest.
Eyes like wine peer upwards at Kuebiko like Akechi is scanning for something - for all his prey-like flightiness his mind is still predator sharp, ever the investigator at the edge of dragging a criminal to light. The other man's posture was as lax as ever, but he could sense something was off - no gift, it isn't noticed out of any selfish place in his heart, but a break in routine without reason? It doesn't take a skilled detective to put those pieces together.
"In a hurry tonight?"
He presses a bit closer, leaning forward and cocking his head in a show of his own curiosity. The usual media-smile is gone, he's keyed fully into the puzzle thats been presented to him now. Kuebiko is a careful being despite his flashy nature - he has to be, he's a thief - the idea that he slipped up somewhere, even in an inconsequential little social way, is beyond exciting.
He doesn't smell like coffee.
A step closer - it would be impolite, there's only a bit over a foot between them now, but an interrogation isn't the time for manners.
Very clean. Freshly bathed?
More pieces fall together - he was in a rush. Broke routine, bathed first - it's likely very late at night, what could have happened? Leaning there because he's injured, maybe?
No, why retreat to Mementos with an injury, treated or not? Why come here to him?
"Well, I'll hold you to that! But if you don't mind me asking..."
The thermos is warm, Akechi pulls it close immediately, almost tucking himself around it. Mementos isn’t freezing by any means - not unless the weather above is in turn - but things that truly radiate warmth are few and far between. The heat is as welcome as the smell, as the company the Kuebiko provides.
His own kind of electricity buzzes through him when the other draws near, he hasn’t blinked since the coffee had been passed to him, eyes picking up on then picking apart each one of the Phantom Thief’s movements. It’s not unpleasant, the tension that winds up in him every time Kuebiko draws a bit too close - cat and canary indeed, but who was really who?
Keep reading
You already spend most of your time here.
So he does. Every day, a little more. Slowly, but surely, he is spending more time in Mementos than he is in reality. Every day, Mementos sings a little louder. Every day, he becomes a little less reality and a little more idea.
Every day, like a dream. He slips.
“I keep enough time to help Sojiro and Morgana, I’m not all that concerned.”
He is unaware of the thoughts that creep through Akechi’s mind, if he were, maybe he would be slower, maybe he would really push Akechi’s limits.
He's failing miserably at pacing himself on the treats, half-emptied bag of cookies eventually poached from Kuebiko's lap and plopped into his own. He picks over them like one would popcorn at the movies, a nice snack with the evenings entertainment.
He does not laugh at the notion of being dead in yet another universe, but his smile tightens at the edges, tenses to keep the sound from forming. When he does relax it's to let out a wistful sigh, the kind more fitted to reminiscing better days with a friend, something meant for sunnier and softer times.
"The truth is more important than keeping him comfortable, don't you think?" his words are punctuated by another sip of coffee before he continues, head tilting back to polish off whatever's left, "Leaving him with the hope that I'll come back could easily be far more painful than hearing it from you."
He does that, He and I and If it were me - Akechi knows that technically he is not the others, across every different world there would be things that set every 'Akechi' apart. It would be the same here, or it would be for the real Goro Akechi - but this thing he is now is perception alone, nebulous and incorrect by nature and true to a point across almost any universe. He is as others see him, a little bit of everyone's own Akechi if eye to eye with them, quirks and traits scavenged from so many different lives.
So, as far as he's concerned, the grammar is correct.
The news of the Thieves within the other universe does pull that laugh from him, quick and woven with caramel and venom, echoing through mementos with a brightness unfitting for the stop that he and their ringleader were huddled in. "Well, it's constants and variables, right?" the thermos is swirled, blood-toned eyes watching the way the last trails of coffee creeps around it's edges, "I suppose that whether or not the thieves remain together after their game is a variable. It's interesting really, I wouldn't have guessed it!"
Another laugh begins to form, trips in the back of his throat. His chest is tight for some reason, the muscles in his face beginning to ache from holding that smile for so long now. This should make him happy, the thieves were his enemies in life, hearing that in this universe he's been granted the little victory over the other Akechi's should be satisfying, but...
A moment is taken to mull it over - or try to - to really focus on what he thinks about the situation, where his heart truly lies on the matter. It starts off fine, a straightforward trail of they were your enemies and then falters, digging deeper feels like wading through mud. What were the reasons? Justice? If so, in the name of what?
"I'm sorry."
It sounds genuine, at least he thinks it does - Akechi isn't sure where it came from, just knows that those are the words that people say when others have gotten hurt. Mementos pounds in his head, Joker is his rival, he knows, but he was never so disrespectful, was he? He could be polite on TV, humble when needed, so this could be true.
I mean it.
His head is full of static.
I really mean it.
He isn't sure.
"Ah, well, I can't say I'd mind the company!" The light has snapped back into Akechi's voice and immediately his head feels clearer, Mementos swirling down to a dull roar in the background of his being.
"Although, if you spend too much time down here you wont be able to refill this for me!", He taps his fingers on the empty thermos, leaning over to bump his shoulder against Kuebiko playfully. It's another test, it always is - he can't help but pull and pry at things that leave him curious, eyes now locked on the other's expectantly.
🌧- For a heavy, emotional secret He aint had those since the war get out of here.Akechi has some awareness of the greater ‘game’ that he was involved in and knows that it was rigged against the players. Because of this he has, in a way, taken on the idea that in this universe he was simply destined to lose and didn’t stand a chance. It’s a source of bitterness, but deeper down there’s just a kind of resignation surrounding it - there’s a lot of time spent dwelling on how he wished he could have won. It lowkey aggravates him that Kuebiko isn’t a little more pompous about it, if he gets to be a sore loser everyone else should at least do him the decency of being an annoying winner.🙃- For a lighter, slightly embarrassing secret Super lightweight when it comes to any mind altering substance [alcohol/drugs/shit even like regular cough medicine/etc] because look at this man and tell me anyone in life could have perceived him as anything other than a featherduster when it comes to booze. Cognitive Akechi is the friend who has half a flute of champagne and just goes rocketing off into space.
The watch on his wrist had quickly proven itself useless, between Mementos’ own intangible nature and his own tendencies to lose time without that added aggravation, there was little Akechi could do to keep track of time here.
So he paced, traced halls and passageways, examined and re-examined and re-examined things that should have felt different - the pillar that hadn’t been in this room before, the new subway tracks knotted together at the end of that hallways, all changing, all new, and yet
And yet they all felt familiar, his hands would know the every crack and crevice when his fingers traced across them, he would know what was waiting for him around corners, on the other side of doors. Mementos pulsed through his being like a heartbeat, a constant thrumming reminder with every knowing-weary step he took.
I am thou
Thump, thump, thump
Thou art I
Keep reading
Akechi smiles, and it’s sweet all at once like coming home, and like drinking antifreeze.
It’s rat poison in sugar; cyanide in tea. And as he is wont to do, he falls into it the way an insomniac falls into bed; hopeful, but expecting of little.
Still comfortable to bask in.
He has no misconceptions, no assumptions that anything that comes out of Akechi’s mouth in these next few moments will be truly kind. But he hangs from every word anyway, watches the detective with the sort of fondness one might expect more from someone watching a beloved pet attempt to retrieve a treat from a puzzle toy.
“How’d you know?” he adjusts the bag to fetch the pair of Thermos, nodding at Akechi’s offer to guide him to the nearest rest stop.
The thermos is warm, Akechi pulls it close immediately, almost tucking himself around it. Mementos isn't freezing by any means - not unless the weather above is in turn - but things that truly radiate warmth are few and far between. The heat is as welcome as the smell, as the company the Kuebiko provides.
His own kind of electricity buzzes through him when the other draws near, he hasn't blinked since the coffee had been passed to him, eyes picking up on then picking apart each one of the Phantom Thief's movements. It's not unpleasant, the tension that winds up in him every time Kuebiko draws a bit too close - cat and canary indeed, but who was really who?
"You're going to have to be careful with that!" there's a spring to his step the rest of the way to the rest area, voice still trussed up in lace and laughter, "It's a slippery slope - you already spend most of your time here. "
Not 'so much', be honest.
Most
"If you start bringing things with you I don't think you'll ever--"
'Hold still.'
Akechi locks up with the command, pulling his arms close and cocking his head to peer at the other. He is frozen not out of fear but out of curiosity, it's a welcome change of pace that happens around the Phantom Thief, lets him turn his focus toward Kuebiko as he leans in to trace something on the glass behind Akechi. His breathing slows nearly to a stop, eyes like drying blood flicking to the curve of the others throat then down to where Kuebiko's jacket falls forward on his hips
He keeps his knife there
It's a quick, sharp thought - out before Akechi really knows what dots he's connecting.
You're much faster, he wouldn't be able to block anything from this angle. Grab the blade now and drive it up behind ribs, reel back and swipe the blade under his chin. It was stupid of Joker to get this close, he should know better, leaving an opening like this. Take the knife. Take the knife, take the knife, TAKE TH--
And then, it's over. The other man leans away, drawing himself a crude pair of devil's horns. Akechi turns to see the wings that he's been adorned with, it pulls a wry smile onto his face.
Ahh, ironic. Your arcana suits you, Phantom.
The thermos in his hands is swirled idly while the other speaks, a smug nod is given when Kuebiko confirms the time, goes on to explain more. Akechi is content to let him speak despite what his own chattering may imply, takes careful note of each word as he pops the container of coffee open and lifts it to his nose before taking a seat alongside Kuebiko. Syrupy sweet even in it's aroma, rich with something more than just coffee alone - it's enough to lose yourself in if not careful, but careful he is.
'another version of myself', the words are turned over in Akechi's head, makes the flavor of the coffee a mere footnote in his mind - although, caramel, he's pretty sure he likes that. Still, this is interesting, it opens up whole new avenues of possibility for Mementos, for him.
"Would you say that they were, well, You? " He speaks between sips of coffee now, speaking is the only way to keep himself from guzzling the drink, "Or have their own circumstances left them, Ah, what would be the best way to put it..."
He takes a cookie, turning it over in his fingers.
"In better company, for lack of a fitting term?" the cookie is popped into his mouth, washed down with more coffee, Akechi does his best to not tear through the other's gifts, but society saw fit to leave him with a sweet tooth is not easy to sate. "I wonder if there's any universe where you're actually able to sleep."
Or if, maybe,
I'm out there somewhere.
Interesting.
"Both the coffee and cookies are delicious, and that's nothing but the truth."
Hey there! Mun, would you mind me asking, what are dd/ig dynamics? I don't think I've ever heard of that before.
[[ Daddy dom/little girl [/little boy]Not really the kind of thing you just slip and fall into without initiating it typically, but throwing ‘daddy’ around is also tragically a Big Meme on tumblr so now I have to slap disclaimers everywhere about it.
The time he spent with Blade lingers over him; it is surprisingly soft. Blanket-comforting.
He did not want to leave. He has anyway. He had to. Mementos does not like him to linger in the halls of others’ Mementos for long, even less so than it likes him to be in reality. The cloudiness around his head is fading at least.
He wants to go straight to his ghost Akechi, but part of him feels poorly for simply showing up with nothing but him, and besides, he’s been gone long enough that he wants to make sure the apartment is locked up. He’ll be quick.
And he is. It takes him no more than thirty minutes to return to his apartment, it’s late, Morgana is asleep. He pulls a pair of thermos from one of his cupboards, this routine is a comfortable one. He allows himself to be lost in the routine of making coffee. There is a small bundle waiting on the counter already. Plain little cookies meant to go with coffee. He made them that morning, and had wrapped them with the intention of bringing them with him next he visited.
The house smells nice. It always does, it is the same coffee scent that clings constantly to Kuebiko himself. He laces one thermos with caramel syrup and cream. The other he leaves black. He should start bringing a bag into Mementos, as he and Blade spoke about. So he takes a moment to dig one out of his closet, it’s perfect, and can be hidden under his coat.
He gently tucks everything within it, and heads back out. Locking the door behind him.
Mementos snarls in the back of his head. Pain blossoms across his skull, it disappears the moment he fades from his reality to the Metaverse. Mementos changes each time it is entered, yet he would know his way to Akechi if he were blind and deaf.
The deeper he goes, the better he feels. Which in its own way, does not feel good.
But the sight of Akechi does feel good. Makes his heart flutter like a fledgling bird into the perch of his throat.
He does not greet by name, does not make his presence known subtly, instead he simply approaches as though he were expected, stopping but a few feet away and reaching up to remove his mask, tucking it into his coat pocket before shrugging off the coat itself.
“I brought you something.” he speaks softly, there is a lingering melancholy in it. “Shall we sit?”
Well.
It’s not like Akechi has anything better to do than keep company with him.
The watch on his wrist had quickly proven itself useless, between Mementos' own intangible nature and his own tendencies to lose time without that added aggravation, there was little Akechi could do to keep track of time here.
So he paced, traced halls and passageways, examined and re-examined and re-examined things that should have felt different - the pillar that hadn't been in this room before, the new subway tracks knotted together at the end of that hallways, all changing, all new, and yet
And yet they all felt familiar, his hands would know the every crack and crevice when his fingers traced across them, he would know what was waiting for him around corners, on the other side of doors. Mementos pulsed through his being like a heartbeat, a constant thrumming reminder with every knowing-weary step he took.
I am thou
Thump, thump, thump
Thou art I
It was helpful in it's own ways, let him know when shadows were heading his way - he was as much a part of this place as they were, after all. Mayhaps even moreso? He often wondered if they could feel the drumming they way he did, none ever seemed to mention it...
But as much as the curiosity consumed him, sticking around to listen to their conversations was easier said and done. He couldn't help the his nerves, taking off down the twisting halls of Mementos like a frightened deer if a shadow so much as shifted towards him.
It was another day like that - or night, he wasn't sure - back pressed terror-flat against a wall while he tried to catch his breath, heart hammering away in his chest. It mixes with Mementos' own in an unpleasant, discordant way, makes it feel like somehow he's out of sync with the place.
Which do I focus on?
He tries to use his own, then quickly switches to Mementos when the rapid pat-pat-pat of the other just loops in on itself, begins to put him more on edge. Mementos' is steady, and so very constant, it doesn't take long for Akechi's heart to ebb down and 'sync' back up.
Inhale, exhale.
Safe, for now. He regains his composure and soon considers himself lucky, because
Just in time
There he is
Akechi hasn't seen him yet, but there's the distinct scent of coffee in the air. He is far from surprised when Kuebiko comes around the corner - ready, even, already beaming with that made-for-tv smile.
"Are you going to let me guess what it is?"
His tone is downright chipper, sugared over in a way that would be easy to call fake - and that's what it had been in life, hadn't it? All a show? His posture stays polite, bouncing on his feet just to emphasize the question. It's a joke, of course, he can't help but tease his rival. As much as Akechi had come to look forward to or even rely on the other's visits, it was difficult to see him as anything else - a rival, an enemy, a phantom thief against his greater justice.
"If I'm going to assume correctly, coffee?" he brings his thumb and forefinger to his chin in an exaggerated, playful thinking-posture, "And a new... bag? If I'm not mistaken. Do excuse the vague answer on that last one - you're just not clutching anything in your hands this time, you see!"
He shoots the other man a wink, all flourish, before letting his hand drop along with his tone. The cheeriness remains, but relaxes into something more subdued, less manic.
"There's a stop nearby, if you'd like some real seats. There aren't many options down here!"
He's turning to lead Kuebiko there before he even has a chance to answer. Akechi hadn't actually passed it, but he was confident in what he knew, there was going to be one just up here, around this corner...
"While you're here you can catch me up on why you're up so late."
You don't visit during the day, I notice.
