6/24: Jae-ha

[randori]

[ Whatever had happened over the weekend felt like it'd taken years off Natsuo's life instead of just two or so days, and with words being thrown at him with no real understanding of it all, he extracts himself from the woods as soon as he can with the excuse that he needs a shower, so he can stalk back towards the castle, return to the fire dorm that doesn't have enough people to be angry at him if he bars the bathroom door for the next 4 hours.

He feels gross, really. Stiff and smelling like dirt, longing for those new baths that'd just opened up but he'll have to settle for a five minute cold shower instead. ]

Comments

[alttitude]

... I can whole-heartedly believe that.

[Considering the fact that this child just faced death and doesn't seem to care about it? Jae-ha laughs faintly as he starts to gather the ingredients, spices, tools that he needs in order to prepare a meal. But he's good at multi-tasking, and doesn't mind if Natsuo just stands off to the side.]

But you're right - we could probably do all that easily. What about the other parts? Treasure? Goals? What are your dreams anyway?

[randori]

[ This child faced death and tried to convince him to hide in the ballroom so he can protect it from the other potential death... He's not brave; he's just dumb. He also doesn't give Jae-ha any space when he cooks, standing right beside him and crowding his elbow as he goes around getting what he needs. This is what Sanji puts up with too. ]

We can polish up some stuff in the armory to make treasure! And for goals and dreams... mm... I dunno. I had a dream when I was a kid, but not anymore.

[alttitude]

[Jae-ha doesn't seem to mind though he laughs faintly - it's... a bit nostalgic, actually. To have someone so intently in his space.

He moves around Natsuo like a pro, but doesn't say anything to put space between them.]

What was your dream when you were a kid?

[randori]

[ Once he's allowed in somebody's space, he'll take that as permission to stick there like glue; good luck getting anything done. This is nice, but for Natsuo, it's the opposite of nostalgia- people not telling him to go away, you're being annoying, stop bothering me, etc etc. ]

I wanted to be a rabbit! What's your dream? [ MOVING ON ]

[alttitude]

.... a rabbit? That's the most feminine thing you've ever said.

[listen there's no one else in the kitchen it's fine]

I like it.

Mine - to see as many places as I could. That's what my old dream was.

[randori]

Rabbits are super manly okay! They bite and kick and everything!

[ They're also super cute, let Natsuo love rabbits ]

Did you finish your old dream and now you have a new one? 'cause you're a pirate, right? So you can sail around the world and see everything! It takes... eight... days to go all the way around?

[alttitude]

Maybe it does?

[jae-ha, correct him, for fuck's sake]

But as a pirate, I stayed with Captain Gi-gan. She had a place she needed to be, so I never needed to stray far. It didn't matter too much either - before I met her, I went to go see all the sights that the country had to offer on my own anyway.

[randori]

Was it fun!? You got to eat food from everywhere! And see all the different sorts of restaurants! And meet a lot of different cooks!

[alttitude]

... are Sanji and I the only pirates you've ever met?

[because that's so specific and food-related

so

sounds just like sanji]

[randori]

And Gi-gan!!

[ So... yes, just them and Sanji. Mostly just Sanji, because that's how he introduced himself from the very very beginning. ]

[alttitude]

Ah, of course, that's a fair number of good pirates to have experience with.

[But he's laughing anyway.]

My adventures were a bit less focused on food than Sanji's. I just wanted to see new things, meet new people - really experience the world.

[randori]

If you wanted to do all that, then you'd just have to be a sailor, right? Why pirate?

[alttitude]

Ah - that's an entirely different story. I did most of my traveling before I even met the Captain.

But if you want to hear it, I don't mind sharing.

[randori]

No! Tell me about when you met Gi-gan!!

[alttitude]

Well - it goes back a little bit before that. The story takes place in a port town called Awa, in the kingdom of Kouka. It was lively, full of trade, from what I understand. It's a beautiful place right by the sea, and the people in it are kind.

Likely too kind... as that's what drew the attention of an ugly, ugly man named Yang Kum-ji. He sunk his gross hands into the town, bribing the soldiers, and eventually gained the position as the lord of Awa. Nevermind that his presence made all the people cower.

Yang Kum-ji was the type of lowlife that also grew involved in other types of crime - in particular, kidnapping beautiful women to make them into slaves, then trade their lives to other disgusting brutes in far off countries via human trafficking.

[akayona is a happy shoujo manga

anyway]

The people of Awa grew displeased, but none more than a woman named Gi-gan.

[randori]

I'd be pissed too!! How dare anybody touch beautiful women and do all that to them— they should die for even thinking about it! Gi-gan had better had beat them all!

[alttitude]

Ah, then we're in agreement. The Captain would've liked that spirit, you know?

Her first intention was to get a ship - and once she had that, she needed men. And so she grabbed her pirates, though they began as no more than fisherman and traders. The one who had enough muscle to be able to swing around weapons, even if they weren't very good at it. But they wanted to protect their town more than anything. It was a start, she supposed...

Up until one day, a green-haired brat went and fell right out of the sky.

[randori]

Ion.

[alttitude]

[ . . . . ]

Hmmm.

It's not in my nature to question a lady's judgment but....

[randori]

[ No, please absolutely call him out on his bs ]

Am I wrong?!

[alttitude]

Incredibly.

If Ion fell out of the sky I don't know if he'd make it? I'm not trying to tell a sad story, Natsuo.

[randori]

He might make it! He's stronger than he looks, and Gi-gan would catch him! I know she would!

[alttitude]

She would but - no, it wasn't Ion.

[he's going to proceed in the story before natsuo gets too caught up in that]

It was a snot-nosed brat with a dirty face and a dragon leg. His name was Jae-ha.

[randori]

[ ...squints at Jae-ha. He can take this either of two ways:
1) It's Jae-ha
2) It's an Ion situation where another person conveniently has the same name. ]

...a twin...

[alttitude]

I think the world would explode from that?

No, Natsuo, it was just me. I don't have a brother.

[randori]

But you don't have a dirty face.....

[ He can't imagine a child Jae-ha with a dirty face and snot in his nose?? with all his fixation of beauty ]

[alttitude]

... I came from a place where it was hard to be clean.

[And that's all he'll say about that.]

But it was fine when I was with her - it was hard to convince her to let me stay, but the power of the dragon's leg is hard to ignore. Especially when you can use it as an asset, to save a town.

[randori]

[ Natsuo glances down at Jae-ha's leg, a very obvious stare before it returns to meet his gaze again ]

What can it do? And... it can't save us?

[alttitude]

Have you already forgotten the trip that we took into the air?

[though he also supposes he can't expect natsuo to like

use critical thinking]

It's useful for flying from boat to boat - considering how many we had to sink in order to make sure that Yang Kum-ji didn't succeed. As for whether or not it can save us here... I've tried to kick down a few walls, but it seems like the power gets sapped the second that I don't use it for mobility.

[otherwise he absolutely would've destroyed the castle by now!]

And my entire wish was to find a way to save everyone here.... I suppose they gave me a way - I just don't have an exit for us to take.

[randori]

[ He/I thought that was a new power the wishing well gave him haha... ]

Then- somebody just has to wish for that, right? "I wish for an exit." I promised my second wish for somebody already, but my third! I'll wish for that!

[ If he can finish any objectives without dying first ig ]

[alttitude]

[ . . . and Jae-ha just laughs faintly.]

It's a good idea.

If you do it, I'll have to make good use of it.