#the-composer

[catncore]

⚪ IN BALANCE ⚫ / @the-composer

[dawnled]

hello again, angel / @the-composer !

"Hi, pretty boy. Long time — still out there adventuring?"

'adventuring' ; it feels like such a small word for the things he's - no, they've all - said, done & seen. they've explored worlds, fought wars, de-throned villains, won, lost, laughed, cried, suffered grief, heartache, loss----

then again - what other word was there, for all the things they'd done? perhaps 'adventuring' was the most all - encompassing term that could be used for all of the weight on their shoulders.

he smiles, a small, half - mouthed thing, more a quirk of his lips from the question than anything, though the noise that rises from his chest threatens to sound bitter ; it escapes, but only after he's softened it, steeled himself to look up from his muddied reflection in his coffee cup to the somewhat-familiar youth before him.

he's not sure what he expected - it's been some time since they've last met, that he knows, but joshua still looks older than he thought he would ; or maybe it's a mixture of growing older and changing his style, which altogether makes him look more mature ( as if he didn't already anyway ).

either way, it's new - a welcome sight, riku thinks, for it's something familiar in this time of uncertainty, a warm sight for riku's sorry, sore eyes. riku can only wonder how he looks, in turn.

"something like that,"

he responds, and even to himself, now, he sounds tired,

"it's---- been a rough time. but i'm glad to see you. how about you? what have you been up to?"

[deacomposer]

it was strange for mikagi to be in a position where he didn't have a plan. there was a time where every step he took was calculated and he could predict certain outcomes with ease; but when it came to the higher plane- they were always whole sections ahead. if he made a move, there were times it was met with push back. his producer had grown tired of lecturing him about it; so at this point- they didn't.

having declined the higher planes notice of education, and there was silence- it left mikagi uneasy in a way he hadn't been able to place. he'd grown closer to joshua in a way he hadn't anticipated and joshua had shown him a kindness he didn't have to; acting as a shield against the higher ups in return for company and a sort of comradery. perhaps, something more- if he really examined it (but he didn't want to right now. he'd press that down as deep as he could.)

❝ i suspect there was, too. my statements were taken, and that was it. there wasn't a follow up. ❞ which couldn't have been good, not that mikagi cared. at least.... not as much as he used to. ❝ i don't know what to do. i've never.... ❞ his voice trails for a moment, his eyes searching forward before glancing over to joshua subconsicously looking for a sort of comfort.

❝ i've never told them no, explicitly before. i don't know what to do now. i assumed they would have forced me to return, but they haven't. ❞ ★ @the-composer

[hopeful-hugz]

@catncore replied: " you can't catch these paws. I'm telling you. j an' ean can vouch for it. " --- @the-composer replied: "What strain of catnip are you on to be able to keep up this endurance?" --- @catncore replied: " its called the house blend. it's real good. you should try it sometime. "

Silence for a moment... before she's reaching up to Boop Joshua gently too. Just a little one on the nose.

Before she's going after Api once more. Looks like Aetherlings have a little bit of a play instinct too.

[pureposer]

@the-composer replied:

"Happy spawning day, chicken."

"Oh my, thank you. You are the first one to wish me a happy day. You know, I've always been intrigued. After all, I truly never understood how I came to be. But that adds onto the mystery of I."

[baphometed]

❝  you flatter me, symphonist. ❞ his laugh is slow, but warmer than his previous tone. he wasn't worried about breaking the ice. he knew that he'd be welcomed here and that wasn't an issue at all. usually he spent his time in L.A but he was looking for a bit of a change of scenery. see his fledglings and perhaps check on abel if he was back in town yet. it would be easy to track the pup down either way.

❝  either of them will do. i need to see both of them individually at some point. ❞ he'd start with the cafe if that was where eanas was. it was easier to handle him first. apichisi always got understandably tense when they were alone. ❝  i should also like to borrow you for dinner soon when you are free one day. i'll be visiting for a few days for personal matters before i return to my city. ❞ and he needed to purchase Soleil some different energy drink types since their usual staple drink was going out of production. shibuya was ripe with potential with things to try.

❝ though, i should ask. have my boys been treating you well? they haven't done anything i should have to reprimand them for, should i?  ❞ not that he was looking for a reason to do that, but he could make a teaching moment out of anything and know that they would listen. their composer was a primary focus next to the city; given their chosen position. he was keen to see that they were kept on track.

@the-composer / continued.

[yamuenai]

@the-composer : "You look fun." He's all unctuous smiles as he sidles up to his new target, looking him up and down. "You belong to the Shinjuku flock, right?" Joshua had only paid minimal attention to the Reapers, so it makes sense he would have overlooked him initially. "Who are you?"

the intruding voice breaks the still face of hishima's thoughts . perched at this remote zenith , the recursive loop of an exterior staircase hung above udagawa's knotted snare of roads & telephone wires , THERE EXISTS NO SUCH THING AS A CHANCE MEETING : he has sought hishima out with a purpose . 

there is no sharp gasp , nor snap-like pivot towards him --- deliberately , hishima straightens & rotates to face the stranger fully , like a stone monolith pivoting about its axis with earth-scraping slowness . " has my reputation spread even among the shibuyan natives ? " he asks evenly , schooling his features into an impassive mask with ease. " I AM HISHIMA SAKAZUKI . & you ... "

now it's hishima who looks with scrutiny , extended gaze scanning over his unassuming figure , finding no trace of malice except for the cloying way his mouth sinks around fun --- but hishima had been quick to learn of the outward antagonism present among the shibuyan reapers , the cat-like pawing at their mark until they can wring no more amusement from it . it's a sentiment that has ceased to trigger his guard .

" ... are unfamiliar to me , " comes his judgement , given flat . " WHO MIGHT YOU BE ? "

[abstractreign]

I am bride and groom in a darkened room Marrying anguish with one last wish Will you and I make a breakthrough?( Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh )

I have visited factories to see The best way to put together me Will you and I ever feel brand new?

[valorxdrive]

"You island boys and your obnoxious natural beach hair. Has anyone ever told you it's very..." Scheming violet eyes narrow, bordering on leering. "Ruffleable?" Joshua's willing to risk getting his hand stuck in pomade to confirm if Sora actually does use any or if it's some otherworldy magic to maintain... whatever calamity this is he calls a hairstyle.

Now this was a topic that he found himself heavily well versed in. Trips that flipped upon natural boundaries, across endless seas of stars onto each particular world that hosts that universe's heart, one constant always succeeded in just being a thing that defied the world order.

Sora's quickly comes to learn how his hair and its mannerism of screaming away physics could draw attention. In truth, he's become completely adjusted, which is why an amused snort rises from him as his lips quirk to the hints of a smile. "Wouldn't be the first, far from it, that's for sure.

Thus, he gives full credence in letting Joshua study this 'anomaly' to his heart's content. It was now another hand that managed to dive into the wild liveliness of this spiky crown of auburn, letting the study be performed as the delicacy of their movements becomes Sora's best recorded note on the matter. The way they draw their experience through the ruffling, a single eye edges shut as he crosses his arms.

"If anything, I think I'm getting the idea how it feels to be a certain mouse king in one regard."

"Better watch out, the gravitational pull from a good ruffling makes it hard for a lotta people to pull away. Some folks even doubted it was real at one point."

Whether that was jealously or the rule denial of hair having 'life' of it's own can settle at the chopping block of questions.

@the-composer

[the-grim-heaper]

"He integral on my limit till I derivative."

"THAT'S THE WRONG TERMINOLOGY AND YOU KNOW IT."

[kingsmedley]

"Oh, excellent news."

[catncore]

🏙️ ( Feat. @the-composer )

[deacomposer]

❝ Jesus chr— ❞ Speak of the devil. After the comical jolt, he shrugs the nervous energy off and gives him a deadpan stare. ❝ That's a nice way to put it. Have you just been hanging around spectating instead of saying hi? Or is this your way of saying hi. ❞ / @the-composer / resume.

❝ if only we were so lucky.  ❞ his tone, for hazuki, is surprisingly lackluster and somewhat off. ❝  i just recently got back from a meeting from the great beyond with the supervisors and my producer about shinjuku. it went longer than intended. you can thank kubo. ❞

he was still learning to control his composer abilities and being in the higher plane for a longer than alotted time made his head feel fuzzy. maybe half under imprint given the fact he was still so human.

❝  you have my sincerest apologies for the heatwave. ❞

[hopeful-hugz]

💡🧲 both maybe to see the progress?

💡First Impressions vs Current Impressions 🧲 || Accepting

🤍:

💡 Hope had honestly found Joshua as fascinating at first, as well as lowkey someone to look up to. He’s someone who has a makeup very similar to her (minus the whole being dead thing) and seeing how he kept his city stable got the idea in her head that maybe she was capable of more too. Already know how volatile Josh Alts can be though, she was also incredibly wary.

🧲 Currently? Joshua is one of, if not her only best friend. She’s finally got her silly crush in the back of her mind and has come to prefer what they have now. Preferring that love in a fuzzy but mostly platonic sense. She thinks Joshua is absolutely phenomenal and truly admires his perseverance. She has nothing but respect for the Composer and is more than honored to call him one of her Composers. At the moment there’s very few that come close to how safe he makes her feel. When she’s around him? Hope feels like nothing can hurt them and for once she can’t hurt anyone as well.

Bonus: 🖤 Pre-Book:

💡 Chamyle didn’t know too much about Joshua when she started coming around Shibuya in her late teens. Given her position as both The Archivist and as Api’s friend however, she knows about him. She personally tries to keep her interactions with the UG minimal unless someone comes to her or it involves work so… As far as she’s concerned Shibuya’s Composer is just that. The Composer and “Most Likely Api’s Boyfriend.”

🧲 Not much has changed on her opinion, other than “absolutely Api’s life partner” being her analysis. She’s noticed little things that have changed on the rare occasions he’s spotted, but still keeps her distance.

Honestly, she’s a little scared of how he would react to a soul like hers that is literally rotting and being eaten away at nowadays. Especially since it wasn’t like that when she first started to come by to visit Api. So she doesn’t want to potentially provoke him.

[pureposer]

@the-composer Replied:

"Will you kick my ass so I can hear that. For confirmation's sake."

"..."

"Actually what do you mean by that?"