not now kitten mommy's having an existential crysis

girl who is going to be "okay"

[cloudspierced]

"Thank you. Hopefully, this won't be too difficult."

Though Dan Heng was not afraid of a little vigilantism when necessary-- and when the commissions he'd taken up required it-- in cases like this it was better to get the authorities involved sooner, rather than later. That is, before they got themselves involved and everything became far more messy than it had to be.

With that task handed off, though, he took off down the alleyway.

There was the sound of a few blows being exchanged, and then silence.

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

Badou had called, very brief, and by the time he's done it's silent over there. Increasingly curious, he saunters over around the corner and down the alleyway.

"Hey. You alive?" He calls after Dan Heng.

[nemichen]

blep look who’s back

[lovelikeafuneral]

so true, ​jack callaghan

[dancingxflames]

"Ah! YAY!" She links her arm around her friend with the biggest grin on her face. "Then let's go! We will get all the stuff." She's always excited and happy. Not to mention, grateful for Badou's willingness to do anything fun with her, really.

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

He laughs softly and fondly again, delighting in even this menial little errand. As long as Tae's happy.

"Alright, alright. And all the sparkle stuff too, hmm?"

[howwlett]

🍻-- Logan stared back. What the actual fuck was 'dust'? His expression said as much. His nose wrinkled as his mind landed on what that could be.

"I'm not being a drug mule. Rather fight 'em." He took another drink to drain his glass. He didn't miss the way the guy coughed either. "Don't have'ta drink it if you can't handle it."

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

"Not drugs, dude, holy hell." Though he doesn't doubt there might be something magic related. Maybe something to ask about if that's something to worry about....

"That's-- the money's called that. You can do a normal job." He sniffs loudly. "I'm hard boiled, I can handle it."

[cloudspierced]

"Not mine, it was a client's," Dan Heng clarified. "I suspected she may have been scammed, but even I didn't expect him to so boldly run off with the money like that."

Come to think of it... this man was no stranger. They'd definitely met before-- though his memory was a little hazy. Nonetheless, from what Dan Heng did remember, he was the sort of person who could easily be dragged into a messy and chaotic situation like this one was becoming.

Still... Dan Heng wouldn't go too far.

"Which way did he go?" he asked. "I'm going to try to catch up to him. Would you mind calling the police?"

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

Hopefully he wouldn't get dragged in, though Badou's rather curious about the circumstances. Scamming? Here? Still? Who knew! (He knows).

"You think the cops will--oh wait, I forget we aren't at home. Yeah, I'll call. He went down that way--" pointing into an alleyway that forks to the left.

[epilvgue]

「𝔟𝔞𝔫𝔤 𝔟𝔞𝔫𝔤!」- Having been invited to stay with Badou had... been so much more than he'd expected. Certainly more than he deserved considering all he'd done to the man and people he cared about. Knives disappearing, Legato, the other him -- it had been and adjustment even after he'd been in the house for about a month.

But every day he felt like he was overstaying his welcome.

He couldn't just live here forever. Not when his own place was still there. Even if the villa was still a reminder in its own right. The last time he'd seen Jiaoqiu he'd overwhelmed the man. Then he'd nearly absorbed the other him.

It was early in the morning when Vash was packing his things up. He was planning on slipping away like usual.

@hypnoticallycaucasian // starter call

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

It's hilarious that Vash thinks he can subtly withdraw from the scene without saying a single thing, or being seen. An info broker's hours are strange, and probably Badou's even more so-- especially when he can sense Vash withdrawing day by day.

So he's sitting up waiting on the couch for Vash like a parent waiting for their kid to sneak in.

"Where the hell do you think you're going now?"

[windfavord]

"Heh. It'd hardly be a smooth collaboration, but you can bet it'll still cause a lot of problems for the rest of us," Harukaze replied with a shake of his head, crossing his arms.

He'd broken out of the Conductor's grasp once, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't looking forward to the chance for revenge... especially with the new memories swirling in the undercurrent of his mind.

His fingers curled into a fist.

"Don't get complacent," he muttered with a tsk of his tongue. "By now, you know this world isn't as peaceful as it might seem. With people like that, you can't let your guard down until they're dead."

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

"I'd rather they fought like dumbasses and kept each other busy. Let the rest of us watch with some popcorn."

At the slight chastising, Badou scowls defensively, brow furrowed.

"Obviously I fuckin' know that. My world wasn't what it seemed either, a lot of shit was stirring under the surface. Don't mean I can't have a little hope."

[windfavord]

At that, Harukaze actually laughed. It was a little bit bitter, but still a genuine laugh despite that. "You've got that right," he muttered, and the corners of his lips were getting dangerously close to an actual smile.

He definitely knew "those guys with names like that." After all, he'd been one of them, once. "You know, I wonder if those two are working together," he mused. "It would hardly surprise me."

He stretched out his arms over his head and sighed, the almost-smile disappearing as quickly as it had appeared. "I know for a fact it's not over... bastards like that, they're much too fond of their 'experiments' to just sit down and accept failure. I'm sure we'll have to deal with them again sooner or later."

Probably sooner, if the track record was any indication.

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

Badou sighs. He had the feeling it wasn't quite over, but he was hoping to pull the wool over his own eye, trick himself into thinking maybe it'd be okay. That's how you don't stay on your toes, however...

"Dammit. Can't imagine two egos like that working together....but who the hell knows. Was hoping it was over...."

[chenshixianyou]

"Perhaps it will convince them," Zhongli pointed out, "unless, that is, those imprisoned here are not transferred while conscious."

They didn't have any kind of stretcher, after all, and Zhongli wasn't particularly interested in playing unconscious either way. Besides, they needed only one more person to borrow a lab coat from... and though Zhongli was loathe to cause harm to mortals, perhaps these were extenuating circumstances.

Of course, securing an escape was the most important.

"We must take careful note of the path we take," he said, approaching the door at the end of the corridor. He couldn't hear anything beyond it, but...

He also knew very well that he could not trust these senses alone. Without the earth's resonance to guide him, he felt almost as though he were floating adrift upon the water... It was monumentally unpleasant.

Nothing to do, though, but open the door and hope they did not face a foe they couldn't take down.

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

"We'll figure it out. It'll be alright, man!"

Badou's all smiles and positivity, but truly his belly is roiling with anxiety. Can they get out of this? Zhongli has powers, but he's been holed up, same as Badou has. Can he move fast enough to save them?

"Let's go."

He opens the door, takes a peek around the corner. It's silent, still.

[brynden-rivers]

Badou Nails / Dogs: bullets and carnage 95

[chenshixianyou]

With a nod of his head, Zhongli glanced up and down the corridor. He supposed he ought to find a disguise of his own sooner rather than later... but this would be sufficient for now. Fortunately, though his access to his power was restricted, that would not preclude a few precise strikes to the acupoints...

"I suspect you are correct. It is merely a matter of finding them... and how to command them ourselves," he said, then gestured toward the end of the corridor. "First, let us leave this area. We must be cautious-- I doubt the security in this facility is light. Once we've secured an escape route, I shall return here to free the other captives."

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

"If anyone sees us, we'll just pretend I'm transferring you to another room or something."

That seems easy enough. Act menacing and creepy like the scientists here. Zhongli sure is a good guy, he's going to come back and not merely drink away this experience.

....Badou probably will help, dammit.

[arendeiie]

a city boy , huh ?? well , she was a . . . castle girl . so that meant that they were about as equally fish out of waters when it came to fishing as the other . anna huffed , relenting to the certainty of someone who held firm to his conviction . that is , until it dawns on her that something just seems overly complicated about all this :

" oh , i don't want to tackle the fish . i want to catch it . however , worms are a good idea , but let's just dig them up ourselves . "

anna tossed her thread to the ground in a limp pile . palms stuck to the ground to hoist herself up to her feet . there had to be a good dirt mound around here somewhere .

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

They were fish in cars crashing over and over, that's what they are with the knowledge they have.

He sighs again, softly chuckling.

"No, tackle as in, getting the worms and other stuff. Like bobbers. Wish they had beer but whatever."

[dancingxflames]

"Mm-mm. Those never interested me. However, being here has shown me so much! I enjoy them now." To dress cute and prettifully and with Lilith nonetheless? It was all times spent together with friends.

"I enjoy the bond it provides! It is like making flower crowns or taking a stroll in the forest, don't you think?"

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

Right. Since she came from the same place as Lilith, they didn't have any need to dress pretty or be cute.

It's probably impossible for Badou's smile to get any softer.

"Glad to hear it. Not much into getting acrylic nails, but you can do my toes if you want. And all the hair clips."

[mischiefmodig]

\ / . ❝ I know exactly what you meant. ❞ The words came sharp on his tongue. Cold and defiant against the mortal Loki, he continuously entertained the company of. It was rare that he felt the sting of his words, and thus came the bite to his tongue. He breathed deeply, sighing his frustration and dulling the edges.

❝ Apologies, Son of Nails. ❞ Loki murmured softly. His hand traces through the raven strands. The silence stretched between them while Loki searched for his words. He was never one to show his standing. Revealing too much was how one became a target for the swindlers and thieves. And yet, for all of Loki's growls and slashes, this one... this one still came back.

❝ For as long as I've existed, everyone has assumed the worst of me. ❞ Loki began quietly, his voice low and gravelly as he forced the truth through his lying lips.

❝ I was not born with great strength, nor do I care to partake in theatrics. I learned to use my sorcery to make up the difference. ❞ But it was never enough. ❝ As a prince of Asgard, I demand- no. Deserve respect. The same as Thor receives. ❞ Everyone loves him. No one noticed him. The second prince. The runt. The curse.

❝ I have tried... for centuries to earn that. And for what? ❞ He grunts, pausing to take a long drink of the beverage. ❝ At least I can be entertainment to you. I know you are not frightened of me. No one ever is, really. ❞

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

Now the snarling and biting, rendering flesh, that's familiar when it comes to what he knows of Loki. Even after being stuck here with a fraction of the power he boasted, that kind of instinct never quite left you. You don't just roll over and show your belly unless you've still got your fangs.

As he listens to Loki's tale, Badou listens with a grain of salt. He knows what colors Thor's words when he describes his brother. And now, some of what colors Loki's-- more like what might be beneath his words.

"Well, not sure if it comforts you, but that's human. Trying and trying and getting shit in return just to get someone to look at you. That's life for normal joes, dude. Can't even say this is rock bottom."

He sighs, again, because that's pathetic talk, Loki.

"You're still scary."

[arendeiie]

" fishing wire . " anna reiterated , as if slowly committing it to memory . wire was typically . . . sturdy , which lent itself well to catching something , sure . but the thread on the fishermen's poles had always seemed so . . . malleable . flexible . just like a string .

and close enough so , to the extent that anna continued to try and thread the string still .

" well , then . mr . fisherman , where is this fishing wire then ?? because all i can see is a big fat fish in my future . " she snickered , gleefully ignorant , " i promise . i got this . "

[hypnoticallycaucasian]

Badou watches her stubbornly string the string, and sighs.

"I'm not a fisherman, no, I'm a city boy. But I've seen enough people fishing to know that ain't gonna cut it. There are some shops around, where you can get tackle for the fish. Worms, y'know."

[gospelofmarco]

​​🇱eigh Whannel in SAW 0.5