chikattafuri

[chikattafuri]

thebiggerlittlebrother:

Cold, hungry, and alone, Alphonse sat outside the pristine white room that smelled of chemicals and was as barren as it was cold; balled up with his knees hugged tightly to his little chest, and eyes red from crying when he’d woken up in that lonely, sterile room with no sign of his brother or the Rockbells. He sniffled and buried his face into his knees as he still tried to piece together everything in his mind, which he soon found to be a bit overwhelming. It was too much; the scientists; this social experiment, they said?; and where was his brother?

  A small whimper escaped the boy as he tried harder to curl in on himself and escape from this reality that didn’t, quite yet, feel real. When his effort proved fruitless a few moments later, realizing he was still there and hadn’t woken up from this nightmare, he slowly uncurled himself and rose to his feet. This was going to be tough, but he had to find a way to make it through. He didn’t go through everything he’s been through and endured all that training to lay down and try to fade away when things got rough.

  With renewed sense of motivation, he clenched his little fists, looked forward, and started to move away from the building and that awful blank room. He moved toward the main street to begin searching. Surely ther would be others there like him what would want to get home, too? If he planned at all to find his brother or a way home, he wouldn’t get anywhere by sitting there. Time to look for some kind of lead.

“Excuse me? Hello? Could anybody help me?”

Leave the worst role modeling to a boy that could scarcely differentiate between a shrewd inclination when he hears call for help. Rarely is it his idea of a good time to draw near someone without a clear sense of direction,--if they were his kind? this could be different.

He looks friendly. Kano’s always friendly, that’s his gimmick.

He’s seen this scene a billion, gajillion times. The lost connection to their past, promises and wishes thrown asunder -curling into their person as if that would make this all go away. It’s no wonder he can work up a few tears for the foreshadowing that overshadows --everything. Even his understanding smile.

“Help’s on the way if you let it!” The uncharacteristic grin carves an unforgiving acceptance of the boy’s unspeakable grief from one ear to the other, eyes glossing over with sympathy: as if to say, ‘You’re not the first, -- but? Let it all out.’ Of course he wasn’t.

What would that make the rest of them, anyway?

He reaches out a hand, stumbling upon the boy as he gathers to his feet. “I’m certain this is a huge shock to you, but -- This? Right here?” He gestures wildly with his hands, “It’ll all catch up to you.” Kano squeezes the boy’s hand, warm, and more human than the rest.

“What’s it the learnt ones keep saying to break in the new ones?...” He mumbles to himself, as if unheard to anyone but himself. “Let it happen!” He puts a fist in his open palm, hooking elbows with Alphonse.

“Isn’t there somebody that said something like that to you before? Like. Stick up for yourself!” Kano twirls a lanyard in the air, smacking it into the little brother complex’s chest. From it he slides out a, Hello, my name is “” tag, complete with an uncorked sharpie.

“What we do first here is introduce ourselves! Let me show you how this --” He nudges the kid’s attention to the skyscrapers above, at the city, “----whole thing is done!”

@thebiggerlittlebrother

[chikattafuri]

lifefiberlolita:

“Kitties are just so cute!!” Nui gushed out of nowhere, “Are there kitties in this city? Are they city kitties? I wonder if the scientists have done things to them too…?”.

--- ‘ Unlikable’, he lets his mouth take the shape of the words, baring a gentle refrain aloud instead. “Aren’t they?” He chimes in, ” Only one way to find out,--” The boy that’s reserved [not.] shirks up his hood to frame the distinguishable peaks of his face, 

“I think the question that begs answering most is,” Kano makes way for a laugh, covering his mouth. “Do you really like them?” He coughs into his shoulder, “That much? I mean.”

“If you can ask something like that, isn’t it time you asked yours truly --if you just think they’re cute. ...Because aaanyone can do that.” 

"Haven’t you heard? It’s the unluckiest month of the year. The toll of subject cats sparking and going unloved, nobody really bothers to follow up --do they?” 

“Can you guess how many that makes to haunt the people that have wronged them? Just this month! It’s ...almost only fair, that they have nine lives.”

[chikattafuri]

Convincing as his sincere try-hard, workhard, pull teeth nature was -- Never put it past Kano not to squint at the fine print! It had stalled him on the streets to resist plucking the flawless mask from the grinning man’s face, -- as many things in this city weren’t what they seemed at first.

 Anyone that had a mask on had a good reason! They could succumb to hostility, (Kano would know), in seconds burst of your life flashing quickly. Had he gone through with his childish suspicion, - he might be in a sticky place. 

An even stickier place still, when he paused to feign interest in the salesman’s product. 

In the spirit of all things truly fearsome? “Becoming” if you’re a fan of putting your safety in the hands of the new denizens of this city! Oh, no, no.

Kano wanted to keep all his teeth, nails, all things considered he preferred his sight. 

 “That’s?” ---Shady, as much expected, incomprehensive that no one had bailed this man out of the market -- This was rright up there with donating other people’s vitalities! 

“Inviting,” He grates out, flecking a crumb off his face and drops the rest of the pastry, packaged neatly in crinkled wax-paper into the overtly welcoming boy’s lap. 

“You can’t forget to eat, as hard you work!” Kano reaches into his pocket to liter the table in stress balls, assorted squeeze toys and unsharpened pencils. Useless to the vendor, but? -- Now it looks a lot more like a table that screams ‘opening today’!

Now that’s how to catch people’s attention, not some wimpy sign. He unceremoniously slams the table with both hands, leaving all props to rattle in its wake. “So.” He lowers his volume to a whispering level, “Can you actually eat through that?” 

Better heard as, what are you? 

He jests, elbow shuffling around everything on the display table. “What do you need peoples’ sight for? Aren’t you supposed to have impeccable vision in the first place if it’s --a direct parallel to your skill?” Kano snickers, snapping in front of Zacharie’s face three different times. 

200 Credits; Picture of You

Being trapped in a different game hardly made any difference. Zacharie was a merchant by design–he simply had to sell something. But with no inventory left for his shop, he had to get creative. Naturally, this meant that he should take advantage of his Puppeteer’s competences. Surely, she wouldn’t mind. And so, he pushed along a small desk that he procured from a disclosed location; a sleeve of thin plastic hung from one edge, creating a crude sign with a short message written over it. 

          Pɪᴄᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴏғ Yᴏᴜ: 100 ᴄʀᴇᴅɪᴛs                A ᴍᴀsᴛᴇʀғᴜʟʟʏ ᴄʀᴀғᴛᴇᴅ ᴘɪᴄᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴏғ ʏᴏᴜ.

In a much smaller text read: ᴄᴜʀʀᴇɴᴄʏ ᴇxᴄʜᴀɴɢᴇ ʀᴀᴛᴇ: ᴘʀɪᴄᴇ ᴇǫᴜɪᴠᴀʟᴇɴᴛ ᴛᴏ 5 ᴇʏᴇs.

Once he found a busy enough place on the street, Zacharie settled down and idly brushed over the surface of his “storefront”. He stood behind the desk with his hands folded in front of him.

[Good day to you. Can I interest you in a portrait? I can assure you that it’s been slavishly worked on.]

[chikattafuri]

[chikattafuri]

On the contrary, staring through a peephole only to discover what's on the other side counts as something you really adore. 

Not Kano’s type of demise, but he’s had worse knowing nothing from a person that’s seethrough to everyone but him. 

She’s been staring that way for a straight minute now, bearing a sigh that doesn’t sound weary. It’s music to his ears, but just like everything else he trips up on the last few notes. 

Like a cat getting away. 

With a secret, a lead, a hint, a bag of tricks to just get her to laugh.

“...Something with a stinger landed on your shoulder, hold very still.” He raises his hand slowly to draw close to her ear, skimming the lobe by a voucher card with two punches put through it. 

“Wait.” He anticipates her firmly in a low voice, replicating the way she’s told him that’s the only thing to do at times. “I got this, don’t move.”

goodroutes

[chikattafuri]

Positive is one of the many words used to describe Kano, and right now he’s positively sure something’s wrong with that strut, shoulders of a neet pulled back and an unforgivable sheen that’s supposed. To be replaced with chafing skin of a pale loser that never goes out, 

not this unmistakable glow where all is right in the world where his walk even reflects like he’s got some life purpose. 

Like, it looks bad. Like really, really bad. 

With sleep officially not on his side anymore, everything else looks ten times more daunting, especially making this sucker’s life a joke. 

With the fresh paint of a smile that rivals the living hell out of his pasty out of character afterglow, Kano marches forth and does what every dutiful brother should do. 

Check the waters. “What’s up?” Starting by a smack to the back.

timelostmemories

[chikattafuri]

Trying times call for the trying tides of summer, and the Mekakushi crowd is easy to pick out even in a packed place like this. Dotting the beach with their heavy hoods and dotted uniforms up to code, Kano shirks off his hood as soon as he slams chest first into Kido’s back. 

Time it takes to make contact: o.5 seconds. 

The first thing he does is lift Kido’s bangs over her left ear and let drip one of the many treats he wields around, “You made it! I thought for sure you would ditch me.” 

“You know, swim wear in gear just gets riskier each year.” Kano points with the soda flavored treat at the star of the beach, clad in swimwear that dresses the idol down, outdates the both of them by ...three seasons. It’s all pretty obvious what kind of flick this is.

“You should go give this to her.” He slaps the iced treat into her palm to shock her and an ice cube into the back of her hoodie, wielding the rest like lightsabers, nunchucks - You name it. “Capitan’s honor.”

“Momo! Come over here and help danchou pick out what flavor she wants.” He waves them at the idol to hail her in their direction, “Help us beat the summer heat!”

magnetem dancapa

She really hated how it was tough to not give on sometimes and what a deadly combination Momo and Kano could be. She could punch the latter at least, unleash her wrath but it was much more difficult to handle the idol. If Kido had known it was going to come down to the three of them visiting the beach together, shen she might have declined right from the get go, knowing very well it was just a matter of time until she’d get embarrassed, teased.

Kido let out a huge sigh once they arrived, while her companions dashed forward to check everything out. It was nice, really, the sea was beautiful, the sand soft and almost sparkling in the sunlight. However, it was too hot and crowded, too and if her powers weren’t limited she’d just hide herself somewhere and wait until Momo and Kano were done playing, but…

   “You go ahead, I’ll, uhm, I’ll just wait here”, she said, pointing at some palmtrees that offered welcomed shade to sit in. When someone like Kido who was prone to getting cold quick died in heat, it was a sign to immediately act upon. “I can watch out bags.” 

chikattafuri -> magnetem

[chikattafuri]

Read it and weep. That’s the pain of taking collectively three hours to get ready in the morning -- waterproof eyeliner, lashes that peel when a certain comment touches them. 

Embarrassing secrets, that roll off glossy magazine pages, wedged beneath pillows, bent at the edges, bindings abused for “righteous” beatings to an inevitable temper -- by his tomboy-ish sister, when somebody pushes her buttons and rubs her the wrong way. 

He’s used to them.

But they’re a hidden artifact rarely found unless you pry and pry. It’s easy when that’s your specialty. That’s the one-trick that resonates with his audience, and that’s all he’s been good at. 

What can he say, he likes making people angry. 

There’s that connection, with weak hearts that flutter -- at headlines, at lost and found pets, at tear jerking cues in films -- Even when they don’t feel a thing. 

That’s, at least, the tone that directs by the firm hand of everybody in this city that cares. 

It’s appropriate to react that way.

It’s also appropriate to react when something happens to you. 

It doesn’t some cataclysmic scaled event that ties you altogether, devastates a whole community, where you stick to the justified type.

-- just to keep your dress clean. 

But if it happens to just you, what then?

it’s enough to ruin your whole day. 

It’s basically your job that you’re heard, and that it never happens to you again. 

A kid with too much time on his hands - curious that every strand of hair is on place on your head. Found a side entrance with smocks hanging directly near the door, -- and with a stolen hairpin that’s definitely not his sheathed in his hair to add more character, - decides to ring up orders and bring you the most bright, easily stainable fruity red that you ordered. 

He decides it’s time someone saw what you look like without your hands perfectly folded, every crease on your dress natural, - every muscle that could frown holds a smile taut in place. He counts his strides, - his step of a newly hired worker, that he clocked in for someone else - one mistake that could cut his “job”. 

that wasn’t his to take. 

preciousdollie

A snag in his step, that makes him trip. That’s all it takes.

[chikattafuri]

kano plans his returns in that window gap where everybody has cleared out... everybody had left that morning, at separate times. 

somewhere in the backroom the hatch closed, loudly with no one in the house. curious enough, if everyone had set out like they planned ...that would mean a thief be in the house. 

like any smart upstanding no. 3 holding down the house - kano takes a bat with him, trudging quietly down the hall. worst comes to worst, he can ask someone to do the reprimanding of the whole household for him. he doesn’t make those kinds of speeches, and no one will listen because it’s kano. 

--he can always explain later.

tapping the bat on his shoulder, kano gives it a test swing, landing without a sound in his open hand. another thump, another crash. kano taps at the door’s frame impatiently, ready to jump the burglar in mind when --adding to the racket, a sweep of what sounds like immediate downpour,

hundreds of ...beads?...  rolling across the floor, passing his feet. 

kano peeks in. sure enough, the craft department pillaged, china cabinet ravished, and... from the telltale corner comes a peep, two ...distinct brown boots... waving in the air, huge, full skirts wedged inside a storage chest of what would have otherwise been a spotless getaway.

just --what is she doing?-- 

...kano sighs, dragging the wooden bat along on the floor, tracing his path to her. she’s almost got her way out of it, and he lets her because it’s ...it’s a common, marry thing, but - kind of a rare sight for him to see. 

it takes forever, but she manages to wriggle herself out the hatch. kano gives her time to sit up, --and not much more. the instant she gathers her bearings, “boo.” 

he sprinkles invisible “dust” in her face, --sending her back, showing off all fingers as he’s got nothing to hide from her. 

“how long’ve you been in there?” he jeers at her, and he would continue to if he could, --but the surprise sent her tipping back. “-- n- now, now. don’t have such a scare.” 

“it looks like? --just you and me.”

captivelines ✧

“what’cha up to, marry? something more exciting me.” 

[chikattafuri]

They did just get here.

Her request gets heard, it takes karma a split second to respond.It’s laughter. Brilliant, untouched laughter.

Keep reading

最終話

[chikattafuri]

She’s the best thing to happen to him.

That’s what he tells himself to make everything easier. 

‘Don’t you ...think it’s a little late in the day to sit?’ Kano can hardly believe that’s his voice complaining, - when everything that can be is right in the world. 

‘It’s getting dark pretty fast. Not that I’m...’ He is complaining. He finds himself doubting her, but not because it feels wrong.

He loves being singled out by her, after all. He has to remind himself how great it feels, not having to battle for her attention, leave scathing marks in her wake to anyone involved that aren’t meant for her. 

But it really, really shows.

“...we can take a minute, I just came out to find this.” He gestures at the deepening red of the sky, blankly taking in the destruction far away.

She’s pretty easy to convince him he has to move with her, though it’s not her fight at all. To put up with her antics, you have to spot what she’s doing first. She’s buying time, but ...not nearly as much as he is. 

He does want this, rare attachment to danger and the togetherness that makes their encounter unforgettable. 

To him, anyway. She’s been through something like this a countless amount of times, someone needing her, following closely to her side.

Because she asked them. 

Because ...she doesn’t have a way with words, at least - not all the time she doesn’t. She has something that everybody else wishes they had. 

It’s the power of asking, not conviction that raises questions that were always there. 

She’s always right. 

‘You’re right, you’re the first person I’ve seen today.’

‘I guess it’s habit!’ Kano bites his cheek, kicking up dust next to her as he swings. Hopefully she doesn’t breathe that in. He lets the swing creak underneath his weight. 

’Kind of. awe and, surreal how that works out. We really better get a move on, huh?’ 

“Here I thought I was missing out.” He lets out a defeated laugh -- as his shoulders heave, he pauses. "Are you okay?”

He reaches for her as he swings towards her with half the momentum, wedging himself to a stop.

‘...It’s pretty scary out there.’ A quieter part of him says his sister isn’t afraid of anything. ‘I’m sure the strongest ones have paired up with the endangered ones, family after all.’ He bets she was scared.

‘But I bet they’re scared.’ He whispers back at her in a hush, ‘We should go.’

最終話

[chikattafuri]

It’s exactly what he wants to hear. Because it’s his sister, she trumps him with the visible smear that leaves a wretched sanction styled, in her wake. 

He just has to go along with it. 

To admit her, he doesn’t know if but the thin-lipped smile that sits serenely on her face means, disregarding who the finder is they aren’t keepers. 

“Don’t tell me no one told you where they were going, next?” He sounds exasperated, shoulders sinking. 

And she’ll never tell him within an inch of his life, - He knows, far removed from himself is on her mind. - That something, 

   His heart lurches, never once batting an eye once she closes hers. 

She changes the topic before he gets a chance to grab for her wrist, always there tucked behind her ear and just well out of reach. It looks perfect on her, this renewed, demure look on her. 

“I know you wouldn’t.” 

He loves her, the best someone like him can, which is why this is hard.

As if no one would believe that they were related. The spinster is the best at making excuses - matched by, no one known.

She’s an escape artist with the way she forms her words, putting enough force where it matters, and the best thing of it all is, “Why a walk.” 

she’s not tricky. It’s worse. 

   “All the way out here?”

She’s sincere, simple, she’s true. stops him dead in his tracks from saying anything more even if he knows she’s wrong. “Isn’t it great I was the one that found you. Can you imagine how cross any of the others would have been with you.” 

He leans away from her, “You hate trouble, right?” ...Not that any of them had that spine to begin with, above it all there’s him. The one who can’t say no to her by far, is him. 

He likes to keep things that way. Reaching over to where the salt to injury lay, he clicks his tongue while inspecting her puffy eyelids.  

“I’m with you on that.”  

  She makes sense. Despite everything committed to doubt that’s thrown itself into the air, to him she’s the only redeeming save this city has for him. 

Chewing his lip, he continues. Snatching her up by the palm he wrestles her in a abrupt fashion towards him, quirking his brow up in the bemused way he truly only offers the ones that ‘don’t know and wring him’. 

“Let’s go look for the rest, huh? It’s about time,” somebody else yelled at her. “They had you back, already.” 

But nothing comes out perfect, and he has a hard time believing her. 

Like always. 

She stares at him for the longest time.

Maybe because she didn’t expect to be found here. The train station, it’s all but abandoned, terminals empty and benches dying to be filled. It’s like a ghost town on the underground, and there’s an unlikely comfort to it all; scary as it is, it offers security. She doesn’t expect to be found here.

Or maybe it’s because it’s him. Though he always trails behind her, never letting her get away for long, he disappears just as quickly. Finding her brother when she wants him is the trickiest thing, and she’s the one who has it easy; it has to be impossible for anyone else. He can’t be summoned with a look or a call – you just have to get lucky. It’s because it’s him.

Or maybe… maybe it’s just because he came. He came for her, and that’s –

Ayano, she rises to her feet, wiping at her eyes. She doesn’t take his hand but she surges forward, wrapping her arms around her little brother with a squeeze.

He’s the one who remembered her in all of this, and that’s amazing.

‘… nothing,’ she says eventually, when the moment’s burnt itself out and they’re just standing there, her wrapped around him in an empty train station. She lets him go, reluctant – and it shows in how her fingers smooth down his shoulders, slow. ‘Nothing. I, um… I just wanted to go for a walk – I…’

I’ve got a lot of thinking to do, she wants to say, but the words choke her.

She smiles instead.

‘… happy birthday, Shuuya.’

‘You didn’t think I forgot, did you?’

[chikattafuri]

He just wants to make things work.

When the scrape of the neighbor yard reminds him that. He’s not alone, but wherever she is she most certainly is. She’s always been this way. Longer than him. Kano’s palm upturns to heave the quietest of his prayers to her, and when the motion’s finished it lifts a thin sheet he wasn’t aware was there. 

To begin with, starts with her. That’s how he knows it’s her, hands crossed over her lap and catching up with her gatherings and regaing her breath -- as the passenger roars across the tracks, he’s not sure if i’s okay to go near at all. 

She really is alone.

Kano waits for the red blinking bar signaling it’s ‘okay’ to pass through to go up, the mess he remembers he left with her on that roof. Every time her hand catches with someone else’s, he’d left that behind.

He stands, before she can, making his way over to her and reaches out, -- cautious, - making sure her wilt was just as real as she seemed. The sister he knew was ...Well, she got tired. He’d never seen it himself, but -- 

Even the most unlikely heroes get burnt out.

“Did they lose you?” His smile gives, “Or did they tell you to wait here?” A tinge of worriedness washes away as he makes a recovery, baffled by the unlikeliness of the situation. 

She would wait for them until the end of the world, but she just wouldn’t stay put. 

   goodroutes

"What happened here?”  

[chikattafuri]

Ayano and Kano. 

[chikattafuri]

gemstone asks

amethyst: do you think age is needed for maturity?

aquamarine: do you believe the future is predetermined?

bloodstone: what words are most comforting to you?

diamond: how important is money to you?

emerald: is there anything you want to last forever?

garnet: list three of your passions

jasper: if you could revive a spirit, who would it be?

moonstone: what family do you want in the future?

opal: do you keep secrets forever?

pearl: are you stereotypically feminine?

peridot: how old do you want to live to?

ruby: what kind of love do you value the most?

sapphire: if you could control one element, what would it be?

topaz: are your current relationships with others healthy?

tourmaline: do you like the idea of having a guardian angel?

turquoise: how often do you lie?

[chikattafuri]

tarot card asks

fool: what's the biggest risk you've ever taken?

magician: list 3 of your talents

high priestess: do you pay more attention to your heart or your mind?

empress: how dependent are you on others?

emperor: describe your relationship with your father

hierophant: do you value tradition?

lovers: does someone need to share your values for you to pursue a relationship?

chariot: in what situations are you most assertive?

strength: how impulsive are you?

hermit: what are you like when you're alone?

wheel of fortune: how's your luck?

justice: do you value fairness over mercy?

hanged man: how do you feel about martyrs?

death: do you like change?

temperance: do you tend to focus on the past, present, or future?

devil: is there anything you're addicted to?

tower: what do you most want to change about yourself?

star: what religious beliefs do you have?

moon: do you have any recurrent dreams?

sun: do you believe optimism is always good?

judgement: how confident are you in yourself?

world: what do you hope to accomplish before you die?

[chikattafuri]

tarot card asks

fool: what's the biggest risk you've ever taken?

magician: list 3 of your talents

high priestess: do you pay more attention to your heart or your mind?

empress: how dependent are you on others?

emperor: describe your relationship with your father

hierophant: do you value tradition?

lovers: does someone need to share your values for you to pursue a relationship?

chariot: in what situations are you most assertive?

strength: how impulsive are you?

hermit: what are you like when you're alone?

wheel of fortune: how's your luck?

justice: do you value fairness over mercy?

hanged man: how do you feel about martyrs?

death: do you like change?

temperance: do you tend to focus on the past, present, or future?

devil: is there anything you're addicted to?

tower: what do you most want to change about yourself?

star: what religious beliefs do you have?

moon: do you have any recurrent dreams?

sun: do you believe optimism is always good?

judgement: how confident are you in yourself?

world: what do you hope to accomplish before you die?