Triggered

#tw: Unwanted Reunion With Family

Karkat had been one-hundred percent ready to conk the fuck out, because he hadn’t been kidding when he told Kankri he’d been up fucking early. Like seriously, three in the goddamn morning, and that was after sleeping horribly the night before because of nerves. The fumes were kind of running the hell out, and Kankri was exhausting to deal with at the best of times.

But no, Kankri just couldn’t let things lie. Always had to get the last word in, because he was a jackass who thought he was always right. Karkat was a similar kind of jackass, but at least he didn’t do it passive-aggressively. He made it known that he didn’t want to drop the subject, didn’t try and placate people with “but sure, let’s drop it” after making some asinine remark.

The Latino groaned audibly, sitting up and looking over at Kankri with an irritated and tired expression. It was more the latter than the former, though. “Why do you always have to get the last word in, Kankri? I said ‘let’s drop it,’ not, ‘please provide a closing statement.’ I’m tired. I don’t want to deal with this. Don’t make me deal with this, you butthead. Now please, for once in your life, just…” Karkat flopped back down onto his pillow, holding his pointer finger against his mouth. “Shhhhhh.”

Wow, would you look at that. Would you look at all of that familial care just evaporate in one, quick moment. Throughout Karkat's little speech, one of Kankri's dark, thick eyebrows rose steadily until it was hidden beneath errant curls. The older Vantas took a deep breath, closed his eyes and counted softly to ten under his breath, trying to quell the indignation raging in his stomach. It didn't work.

He put his book down on the bed and stood up silently, walking until he was stood at the bottom of Karkat's bed. There was a huff of breath and when he spoke his voice was /alarmingly/ soft. "I didn't feel the need to have the last word. I was correcting you on a common and dangerous misconception about my illness that can /make/ it life threatening. Do you understand why I felt that was important?"

Another measured breath from the older of the two. "Now, Karkat. I am /so/ sorry you are tired. And I am /so/ sorry you don't want to deal with this. You know what I didn't want to deal with today? Some two-faced, obnoxious, patronising, entitled freshman moving into my room and pretending that he is /so/ hard done by because of my mere presence. Oh, I know I'm a jerk, Karkat, but you... Look at you, you pretend to be nice and sweet and like you're always the poor victim of circumstance and everyone is so hard to deal with, but if you listened, if you understood that that wasn't me trying to be an asshole, I was actually fucking concerned about you, because you are my cousin, well then maybe you'd understand how relationships between people actually work."

His voice stayed quiet, but it was clearly angry. A quiet, measured rage with sharp, bitter consonants and hollow vowels. "Understand that I don't want to be treated like a nuisance in my own room. That I am /trying/ here. Or I was, I was trying to be quiet when you asked, I know I was rude at first but has anything else I've said been that bad? Actually, you know what I don't care. Fuck you not wanting to speak with me, Karkat, I want nothing more to do with you and you've only been here for less than one hour." Kankri scoffed and looked away, grabbing his keys from beside the door and slipping his shoes on. "Now I remember why I was surprised you managed to get in, I thought you needed to be more mature than this to seriously study anything."

Without waiting for a reply, he was gone. Out the door, not even slamming it, but closing it silently as he left.

#karkat-vantas-skaiau

#tw: Unwanted Reunion With Family

Karkat really should’ve just told Kankri he’d tell the school. Would he have gone through with that? No, probably not. What Kankri didn’t know couldn’t hurt him. But no, it was too late for that. Karkat had protested and thus he had unleashed the beast that was Kankri’s Lecture Mode.

The Latino knew that’s what he’d done as soon as Kankri opened his mouth. He groaned, pulling his pillow out from under his head and pressing it against his face. He’d known this would happen and he’d still let it fucking happen. Fuck his life. This was what his school year was going to be like.

A beat after the onslaught of words had passed, then Karkat moved the pillow away from his face with an audible sigh. “…Fine, I’ll tell them if it’ll get you off my back about it. Could we drop it now? We’ve spent more time talking about my condition than yours when yours is the more severe of the two.” He returned the pillow to its place under his head. “Not that I’m suggesting we talk at length about that too. I’d rather we just drop the medical talk altogether, if it’s all the same to you. You can finish your Sabbath thing and I’ll take a nap or something. Been running around since the ass-crack of dawn and I’m tired and it’s not helping my mood whatso-fucking-ever.”

Kankri pouted, glancing over at his cousin with his arms folded across his chest for a moment. He was under the distinct impression that Karkat in fact still had no intentions whatsoever of going to tell the university about his condition. "It is hardly more severe, my joints get stiff and painful, it is rarely life threatening, unlike being unable to breathe." The elder Vantas let out the softest sigh. "But yes, of course, we can drop it. Get some rest, I'll just finish my book."

He leant back in his bed, taking up the book again and opening it where he was, contentedly quiet for now. A nap would do Karkat some good and hopefully improve his mood a little bit. That attitude could simply be grating where it went on too long, Kankri had always found them to be complete opposites. Karkat swore to hide being nice, Kankri used soft, complicated words to hide insults.

Still, he had a lot of questions on the tip of his tongue, curious about what his little cousin was studying and how his trip had been. For all his flaws, there was an inkling of familial care there.

#Karkat-vantas-skaiau

#tw: Unwanted Reunion With Family

Karkat watched where Kankri disposed of his supplies, taking note of it in the event that he was saddled with cleanup in addition to administration of the meds. In all honesty, he was surprised at how quickly the mood had changed from hostility to tentative civility. He’d done his part, sure, but Kankri still had to meet him halfway, accept his apology, and his older cousin had done just that. It was…kinda nice, honestly.

…Aaaaaand then Kankri had to ask if the school knew about the asthma thing. God. Dammit. Karkat sighed heavily, dragging his hands down his face. “Hijo de…No, Kankri, I haven’t, and I’m not going to. I didn’t have any accommodations growing up aside from being exempt from Phys Ed and my grades were plenty good enough for me to get accepted here. It only sounds disabling because I listed hypothetical worse-case scenarios. I don’t get sick that often because I stay the fuck on top of my health—I wash my hands all the time, I get my five a day, I don’t share food and beverages. Finals, I can’t do anything about, but I’ll do what I can to minimize the stress from them. The school doesn’t need to know.”

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly as he lay down on his back with his head on his pillow. “Not right now, anyway. If I feel like it’s getting to a point where I need accommodations, then I’ll tell them. My asthma’s really well-managed, though. Like I said, I’ve had it for years. I know my limitations.”

#Karkat-vantas-skaiau #cousintimes

Kankri raised a single eyebrow again, folding his arms across his chest. In his opinion, that was kind of an overreaction, he had only asked after all. "I merely meant that it might be good to tell them, they won't give you special consideration if you don't need it, but if hypothetically something happens during finals, or you catch a cold just before you need to hand a project or paper in... I mean, you don't have to tell them if you don't want to, but it is better they know in advance because otherwise they may turn it down as an extenuating circumstance because you should have told them. They ask that they are told about any problems that /could/ occur."

There was a soft huff from him, but his voice stayed soft and calm as he spoke. "I've had this since I was born, I manage it well, I take care of myself and I haven't had a serious attack in over two years, I /still/ told them, Karkat. Better safe than sorry, as they say. I'm quite sure you do manage it perfectly well and probably won't need the consideration, and of course if there was an unfortunate incident and you did, if you couldn't talk to them I'm sure something can be arranged where someone else could, but..." He shrugged, picking his book back up.

Excuse him for being snappy, but he was legitimately worried about his cousin. He wouldn't say it again because Karkat apparently took it the wrong way last time, but he knew how hard he'd worked to get here. He didn't want to see that ruined because he was too proud to tell the university that he might get sick.

#tw: Unwanted Reunion With Family

Karkat walked over to Kankri as the older of the two got his supplies out, watching Kankri’s demonstration as closely as Kankri had watched his. Hell, probably closer, since Kankri’s was a lot more involved. Check for bubbles, stick the needle in a very specific spot…yeah, it was tricky. He felt like he could do it though.

He nodded once Kankri was done, returning to his bed and climbing onto it. “Alright,” Karkat answered, “got it. I think I can handle that.” He paused, considering his own directions and deciding whether or not it’d be a good idea to tell Kankri when he should keep an extra close eye on him.

…Yeah, definitely was.

"…A little addendum to my directions, AKA when I’m most likely to suffer an attack bad enough that I need help taking my medication. Basically it’s worst if you combine any of the usual triggers. Those would be stress, strenuous physical activity, and the proximity of cigarette smoke or certain fumes like those found in hairspray. It’s also a lot more likely to happen if I have a cold, whether it’s a bad one or not, because my respiratory system is always compromised when I get sick. So yeah, keep an especially close eye on me during finals week or when I have a cold, because I’m gonna be more sensitive than I am normally.”

#Karkat-vantas-skaiau #cousintimes

Kankri packed his stuff away and discarded the needle along with the empty vial in a bin he had specially for them. Medical waste and all. He was holding his arm above his head, two fingers pressed down over the small bleeding pinprick where he'd injected himself.

"Finals week or when you have any form of virus that may compromise your respiratory system further. Got it." Kankri smiled over at him, this was going better than anticipated. If they were living together it was beneficial to them both to at least make some sort of attempt at civility, he supposed. "As for me, if I develop a fever suddenly or lose consciousness, assume I am bleeding into a joint and didn't notice any stiffness fast enough to do anything, just inject me and if you have the time, cool me down with a damp cloth. It should pass in a day or so."

There was a little hum, before he lowered his arm, bleeding stopped. "Don't take this as patronising, it isn't meant to be, it is merely a question - but have you told the school about your asthma? If it affects you to the level where it is disabling, which honestly it sounds like it does, then they can give special dispensation to the amount of time you have off so it doesn't negatively impact your grades."

#tw: Unwanted Reunion With Family

He’d attempt to do better. Ha, funny. Too bad “I’ll try,” coming from someone as insufferable as Karkat’s cousin, meant “I’ll pretend to try but frankly I think I’m perfect just how I am.” Seriously, Karkat wasn’t holding out hope for Kankri respecting him. Would he do his best to respect Kankri, though? Yes, he’d try to be civil, because Karkat actually had some damn social skills.

Karkat rolled his eyes at the suggested exception to leaving him be after class. No fucking duh, Kankri. The Latino had just promised he’d do his part to minimize the unpleasantness of the situation he’d been dumped into, else he would’ve said that particular thought out loud.

And then, at long last, something came out of Kankri’s mouth that was actually useful. His cousin was right; yes, when the attack was minor, Karkat had no trouble getting his inhaler out and self-administering, but the bad ones that had him dropping to his knees required outside help. The chance of Kankri being around when that happened was pretty low, considering that he was going to avoid him as much as possible, but Kankri might as well know.

"Yeah," Karkat replied to Kankri’s repeated offer to help him unpack, "I’m sure. I genuinely don’t feel comfortable with people touching my things. There’s not that much stuff to put away, anyway." That being said, Karkat had been moving around pretty aggressively when he was still pissed at Kankri. It was time for a break, and it was also a perfect time for showing Kankri how to administer his medication. Karkat was feeling short enough on breath to warrant it.

Karkat climbed onto his bed and leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes and taking a few breaths just to confirm that yes, it should be easier than that, before reaching into his backpack for his inhaler.

"Okay," he began, "administering my medication. This shit’s pretty simple, since it was designed to be possible for someone struggling for air to do." Karkat shook the canister a little. "Shake it up a bit first to get the meds mixed up properly. Then it’s cap off, in mouth, press down on the canister twice…" The last step was a bit unintelligible since the one before had Karkat actually sticking the inhaler in his mouth, but Karkat trusted Kankri would get it when he demonstrated. Two puffs as he took a deep breath, then he lowered the inhaler and replaced the cap. "…and I’ll know I need to breathe in when you do that. I’ve had asthma for years, the procedure is nothing new to me."

Karkat got up and set his inhaler on his desk, then stuffed his hands in his pockets and looked over at Kankri. “That easy enough for you? Yours involves injecting stuff into a vein, doesn’t it? I think I remember that from the time you got a spontaneous nosebleed.”

#Karkat-vantas-skaiau #cousintimes

Kankri had opened his book again at his cousin's insistence that he didn't need any help, but put it back down when it became apparent that Karkat was going to do a med demonstration right now. He watched with careful eyes, staying quiet for once in his life. Every step was taken in and carefully memorised before he nodded as the younger Vantas inhaled the medicine. "Okay, I can remember that. Mine can be a little more... Yeah, it is intravenous."

He wasn't due to take it for another hour or so, but honestly it wouldn't hurt to take it a few hours early. Walking over to the fridge, he got everything out - a fresh needle, a vial of the liquid and from his cupboard he pulled a tourniquet. "I keep the tourniquet on the second shelf if I'm in the room, if not then it will always be in my bag. You take the vial like this and slip it it the needle like this." He kept his hands out of the way, showing what he was doing to his cousin carefully.

"Check for air bubbles, but there shouldn't be any, see?" He held it up so Karkat could see, before putting the needle down on the side board and picking up the tourniquet. "This goes around my upper arm and needs to be pulled tight like this.... And then you just take the needle, line it up with this pin prick mark here, see?" He pointed the nick on his arm out before pressing the needle into it. "Then just press." He pressed down on it, injecting the fluid into his arm.

"If I'm bleeding into a joint or out or anything, I might not be able to do it myself, but I should most times be able to talk you through it, but I trust you regardless."

#tw: Unwanted Reunion With Family

Oh wasn’t that so very Kankri, downplaying his own rudeness and focusing solely on Karkat’s. It was a familiar quirk of his that Karkat hadn’t missed in the slightest, and per usual it got an audible groan from Karkat as he rolled his eyes.

"The bullshit isn’t the rules themselves, okay?" he responded, mentally cursing himself for not making that clear when he first objected. "The bullshit is in your timing. Literally the first thing out of your mouth was an insult to my family, then my intelligence. Then, after that, you went straight into the rules. It was fucking inconsiderate and it pissed me off.” Karkat huffed, dragging his hands through his hair. “…Granted, I wasn’t very nice when I first walked in, but I don’t think you can really blame me when my most recent memory of you is you talking my ear off about shit I didn’t care about at our last family reunion and blithely ignoring my obvious disinterest. But hey, you’re right, at nineteen years old I should be more mature. So I’m sorry.”

He couldn’t fucking believe he’d allowed Kankri to guilt him into apologizing, but there the fuck it was. Karkat had apologized even though his rudeness had been a knee-jerk reaction whereas Kankri’s was flat-out ignorance of what was socially acceptable.

"I’ll follow the rules, fine," Karkat went on, finishing his bed and going on to stock his desk, "but I have a couple of my own. First off, don’t tell anyone that my family’s poor. It’s unnecessary information and I’d rather not wind up getting made fun of by spoiled rich kids who got in no problem. Second, if I ask you to shut up, you do it. You might not remember, but I’m an asthmatic, and stress can set me off. If I ask you to shut up, it’s because you’re stressing me out and I’m worrying that breathing isn’t going to be a thing I can do. And on that same note, if you’re here when I get back from class, don’t talk to me for about an hour, because I’m gonna need to decompress.” He turned towards his cousin. “Alright? Sound fair?”

#karkat-vantas-skaiau #cousintimes

"Fine, apology accepted." Kankri was still quiet for a moment, an unusual moment of peace before a storm. His feathers had been ruffled and had he been ten years younger, that trigger whistle would have been blowing loud and clear.

"I'm sorry too, I never meant to offend you know I have that habit of phrasing things in an inconsiderate way, I'll attempt to do better in future." Curling one wispy strand of hair around a finger and tucking it out of the way, he smiled faintly. "I can work with those rules, though the not talking to you immediately after class rule may be broken if there is something pressing, such as a fire or you need to be warned of an impending RA inspection."

"The only other thing we might need to consider is teaching one another how to administer our medication in case of an emergency where we can't do so ourselves... Honestly, I know we don't get on astoundingly well, but I'd rather have someone familiar do it if needs be than a total stranger."

Kankri looked over at his younger cousin and then glanced away. "If you're not opposed I think it would be a good idea. Are you sure you don't want any help unpacking?" One thing that might be noticeable is that the older Vantas' accent was gone, trained out of his speech to hopefully stop any bias against him at university. There was normally a relatively strong lilt to his voice.

#tw: Unwanted Reunion With Family

Oh dear god, Kankri was even worse than Karkat remembered. His reaction to the onslaught of pretentious word vomit hadn’t changed in the slightest, though: slackened jaw, dropped shoulders, eyes widened in utter disbelief that there could ever be a person this stuck-up. Fucking shit, this was going to be a long year. So long. Karkat wanted it to end already. Karkat wanted it to end two minutes ago.

The thing that got to Karkat more than anything else were the jabs at his family’s financial standing and at his own intelligence. How anyone could fling insults like that and then expect the recipient to kowtow to any nonsense rules they imposed was fucking beyond him.

Karkat huffed once the words finally stopped, picking his box back up and carrying it over to the unmade bed. “So lemme get this straight: I only have to accept the rules if I want you to help me put my stuff away? Good fucking thing I don’t want you touching my shit, then, huh?” He snorted and shook his head, taking his backpack off before setting about getting his bed fixed up. “You can take those pretentious rules and shove them up your even more pretentious ass, Kankri. I’m nineteen, not five. I don’t have to put up with your bullshit. And don’t you dare bring up my background like that. Or at all, frankly. None of your goddamn business.” The only reason he hadn’t turned the light on to spite his cousin was the onset of a headache that promised to get worse.

#karkat-vantas-skaiau #cousintimes

That already arched eyebrow went higher and Kankri's tongue clicked against his teeth, eyes roaming up and down his cousin. "No, you are quite mistaken. The rules are entirely none negotiable, because not a single one of those rules are unreasonable. Unless of course you are /happy/ living in a den of filth like some of the students round here. Then by all means, feel free to let your side of the room become a rancid pit. I don't at all see how my asking you to respect that I practise a religion and not to mess with my meds is making you put up with bullshit."

He shook his head, glancing off to the side. "I merely meant that you'd done well and I apologise if the way I phrased it was triggering, but you know what, it is more upsetting to me that you lack any and all compassion, that you consider that me requesting you be clean, respectful of sleeping times, my religion and my medications is such /bullshit/ to you, Karkat."

Kankri sighed and settled back on his bed, honestly a little crestfallen. He'd known he'd been a bit out of order, but he always was, but he didn't at all understand why his requests were bullshit. "I know you're nineteen, by the way, but I would think you'd understand why both asking you not to damage my medication or my practices as a Jewish person were important." He fell quiet after that, picking his book back up, letting a pointedly awkward silence fill the room.

#tw: Unwanted Reunion With Family

Karkat was still in disbelief, to be honest. He couldn’t actually be enrolled at Skaia University, could he? Someone from a less-than-well-off family like his? Except he definitely was, and he was carrying his backpack and a small box of personal belongings to the dorm building. It had been a headache and a half to find, considering how many other buildings were littered across campus. Thing was practically its own town.

The small Latino boy dug into the pocket of his jeans, pulling out a small scrap of paper with his room number scrawled on it. 216. Okay. That meant going up one flight of stairs. Piece of cake. The tough part had definitely been finding the building itself.

He found the room without event and set his box on the floor so he could dig into his other pocket for the key. Karkat unlocked the door, opened it, and his eyes widened when he saw who was inside. He’d recognize that hair anywhere, even if he’d only seen it a handful of times in his life.

God. DAMMIT.

"…No," Karkat pleaded in a tone of disbelief as he shook his head, "no, this has to be some kind of sick joke. Freshman hazing, right? There’s no way the universe hates me enough to stick me with you, right?!”

Yeah, no, he wasn’t dreaming. He wished he was, but that was definitely his cousin, Kankri. Fuck his life.

#karkat-vantas-skaiau #Cousintimes

The room, once you were inside it, was dark and meticulously neat. The wardrobe was full of neatly folded clothes and underneath one of the two desks there was a mini fridge burbling away quietly. In all, it smelt faintly of incense. One of the two beds was unmade, the one further from the window.

Kankri was sat cross-legged on his bed, reading his book by lamplight and sipping at a green tea. His curly hair was pulled back just a tiny bit and held in place by a ribbon. Dark eyes glanced up as he heard the door open and close, a single eyebrow raising at both the face that crept into the dorm room and then at the tone of voice that followed.

“There is no need to be rude, Karkat. Please, I have to ask you not to turn the light on for another hour or so, but I can help you unpack. I have to say, I wasn’t expecting you either, I mean we always knew you wanted to try for college but I can’t exactly say we had a whole host of hope that you’d figure a way to fund it. Your grades must have been more inspiring than we believed, I suppose there is hope for everyone.” He cleared his throat, glancing back down at his book and noting the page number, before closing the book.

“A few rules before I help you. Firstly, I do observe Sabbath, hence not quite wanting you turn the light back on yet. Secondly, the mini fridge is not for drinks, it contains my medication I must ask that you don’t tamper with it. Thirdly, please do not leave a mess, I have to ask that you clear all plates that you use the same day you use them, do not leave anything that may attract animals, I’ll show you to the kitchen in a little while if you don’t know where it is already. I get up every morning at seven a.m, I am in and out of the shower by half past. I can be quiet, but I must ask you to be quiet in the evenings in return.” He finally shut up for a moment, setting his book down and standing up, smiling politely for his cousin. “You’ve grown, though I suppose neither of us will ever be tall, will we?”

IF YOU COULD CALL IT A PREFORMANCE

Suddenly his pathetic pout was gone, replaced by his signature grin. His sympathy only further boosted his ego, Cronus knew at this moment how to play him like a fiddle. Or a guitar, in this case. He jumped up, keeping a respectful distance, and shoved his guitar in its case. “Consider it forgotten, pal. I know you didn’t mean to be too insensitive ‘ta my feelings, and I’ve sorta gotten used to it, ‘yunno? Us sensitive types get out hearts stomped on all the time.” He shrugged, looking nonchalant despite his words. “No, no, my treat. I was the one oversteppin’ my boundaries. That’ll be my apology ‘ta you.”

#Greaseandmagic #well done on the puns I approve #Sorry Kankri isn't so much fun.

That grin actually made Kankri feel a little bit sleazy just looking at it, but he swallowed down his words for a second to force out a polite smile. Arms folded across his chest and leaning a little away from Cronus, particularly as he jumped up, his body language was /all/ defensive.

"I merely didn't realise you were /that/ sensitive, honestly. Human beings should be able to handle rejection, but perhaps the way I worded it could have been more cautious, I certainly wouldn't want to cause you any undue duress, though there is always going to be some disappointment and stress associated with being turned down in a romantic or sexual setting."

Clearing his throat, he watched him backing everything up. "I offered to pay and the offer stands if you change or mind. Else I would prefer to pay for my own, if it is all the same to you, I don't wish to lead you on or give you any assumptions that this is something other than a friendly drink. But thank you so much for the offer, it is appreciated."

Once Cronus seemed done with his packing, he smiled again, chewing the inside of his lower lip as he did. "Shall we then? There is a good little café about two blocks out of campus that has amazing bagels."

IF YOU COULD CALL IT A PREFORMANCE

Oh. Of all responses, usually a brisk slap to the face, sometimes a knee to the crotch, an outright beating in some cases (nothing a man like him couldn’t handle, of course), that definitely classified as the most drawn out. ”Dang, you sure know how to shut a guy down. I mean, sure, I was bein’ a little to forward, but don’t y’ think that was a little harsh? I’m feelin’ real hurt here.” His bottom lip shot out and his eyes began to shine with tears about to spill. Of course, it wasn’t as if he was really hurt, he had rehearsed this charade many times. Cronus knew all these ‘social justice’ types couldn’t resist a sorry soul down on his luck. If or if not it was to work was or not was a gamble. Luckily, Cronus Ampora knew how to play his cards.

#greaseandmagic #no one saw me put this on the wrong blog

Kankri just stared at him for a moment, dark brown eyes watching as tears crept into the stranger’s eyes and his lip quivered. His jaw tensed as he ground his teeth together, arms folding across his chest. After a moment of watching the pitiful display, he clicked his tongue against his front teeth and rolled his eyes.

"I apologise. I didn’t mean to upset, I just wished to make it completely clear what my position was on the—" He struggled for a word for a moment, a rare moment. "Invitation. I don’t think I was being harsh, I was simply stating my intentions so as not to ‘lead you on’ as they say."

Unfolding his arms and smoothing down his black blazer meticulously, Kankri cussed internally. What are you doing, Vantas? Looking back up at Cronus, he pouted a little. “I suppose, considering you appear to have nothing to be doing and I’m currently free, we could go and get coffee, I’ll pay. Consider it an apology and perhaps the extension of a branch of friendship though, nothing more. Okay?”

IF YOU COULD CALL IT A PREFORMANCE

Maybe he could take back the ‘decent person’ comment. He glared up at the man who seemed to better at lecturing than practically all of his teachers. He waited his tirade out, wondering if he had any need for air at all. What a useful talent… While his mind was in the gutter, Kankri seemed to have finished his speech, staring quite impatiently at him. “Man, can you ever talk. I ain’t forcing anythin’ on anyone, sweet cheeks, y’ coulda gotten up an’ left if you didn’t… Wait, not bad?” Well, that seemed to catch him off guard. His glare quickly changed into a Cheshire grin, smiling ever so sweetly up at him. “Seems you have a fine ear for music, then. ‘Cause there ‘ain’t nobody on campus better than me, baby.” Cronus could feel it, this guy was gonna fall for it hook line and sinker. He seemed like that kinda dope. With his final attempt at a seductive gaze, he cast out his signature line. “Since you seem like such a swell guy, how’s about you an’ me head up to my dorm room and I’ll give you a bit of a’ private session?”

#greaseandmagic #I would be sorry for the length #but he's Kankri I can't help it

"Actually I wasn't talking about me, I was in the process of leaving as you stopped playing. I was referring to the multitude of people from all walks of life who /must/ listen to you for a brief few seconds of their day merely by their misfortune of having to walk through this particular courtyard on their way about their business. They have no choice, you have not requested their permission, they may have no other way to walk or may not realise you are playing before they in fact, arrive here. These people are being forced to consume your frankly offensive songs."

Again, Kankri paused, mulling something over. He was actually taking in the rest of what Cronus had said and suddenly, the Vantas was staring at the guitar player in the way one might stare at a piece of dog shit stuck to your shoe.

"I have a terrible ear for music, in fact my father has assured me on several occasions that I am completely tone deaf. Furthermore, you don't know me so I fail to see how you can have even the vaguest concept of whether or not I am a 'swell guy' or not." Those quotation marks had the honour of being both clear in the tone of his voice and physically marked my his fingers.

"Lastly, I have no intention of heading up to your dorm room for a 'private session' because whatever that means I am perfectly certain it is not actually about listening to music and I have no desire whatsoever to participate in /anything/ that might involve the swapping of bodily fluids with you. Thank you very much."

IF YOU COULD CALL IT A PREFORMANCE

Cronus was NOT the douchebag playing Wonderwall on his guitar in the courtyard of the campus. He was the douchebag playing Linkin Park on his guitar in the courtyard of the campus. To anyone else, it seemed like a task only done on a particularly bad dare, but Cronus thought it was a splendid way to spend his weekend. Though his voice was fine and clear and his guitar skills were slightly above average, girls and boys alike seemed to avoid him and his slightly piteous attempt at bedroom eyes he made at nearly everyone that crossed. After a good hour (a great task when considering how quickly his patience flared out), he gave up with a sigh and propped his guitar up against the ledge he had occupied. Seemed nobody found a charming, handsome guy with a musical talent good enough anymore. How times had changed, if only he could somehow go back to the 70’s when people appreciated a pal like him… His daydreaming ended when he heard the plink of a coin falling into his guitar case. Finally, a decent person in this sea of ignorant fools.