[There's someone lying next to you, Eliot. Face down with their hair splayed all around and half covering their bare back. (It's a nice strong-looking back.) They don't seem to be showing any signs of wakefulness (which is odd for a person who's used to getting up at 4am.... Guess it must've been some night last night). Actually, at the moment, they look quite peaceful...]
[Eliot knew a good weapon when he saw one, and judging from the reverent but familiar way Kanda treated the blade, it was a more than a decorative piece to the man. His estimation of the other increased dramatically at the revelation.]
That. It's a beautiful piece. [There was respect in his tone this time and it was obvious that he meant the word for more than aesthetic appeal.]
Which is strange. No way I could've missed that last night. [He wasn't accusing Kanda of anything, but sounded genuinely confused over the situation. If he saw such a thing, he wouldn't have tried picking up the other, mistaking him for a her or not.] And no, haven't seen anyone with that description.
[Kanda looked obliquely at Eliot for several quiet seconds, his expression closed, as though he was taking measure of the man and deciding exactly what sort of proximity he was willing to accept from him.
Of course there was clearly a well-educated appreciation in the way he spoke about Mugen, but Kanda was equally certain that there was no way for the guy to know just how personal the sword was to him--he wouldn't have any reason to connect it with the stigmata scars on Kanda's forearms nor any way to know that he was complimenting not just a weapon but some part of Kanda's body, his own blood.
In truth, the swordsman couldn't quite decide if it made him a little uncomfortable--if he felt more exposed, ironically enough, than when he was naked. He was reading too much into it all, probably.
But still, this sort of shift in the sentiment and energy between them, its connection to something that felt so central to his being.... It wasn't a sensation that he could easily disregard.]
You haven't told me your name. [He said it
( ... )
If anything, this post reminds me I need to catch up on DGM.distinctive_guyDecember 13 2011, 05:11:45 UTC
[Sensing the diffusion of the tension between them, Eliot dared to grin in answer.]
I haven't, have I?
[He had first avoided giving his name because of the awkward situation, but now that that was somewhat settled, he saw no harm in surrendering it.] Eliot Spencer.
[When Kanda looked away, Eliot too moved to see what he could make of the location they were in. Thing was, he couldn't recall landing himself in the hotel either, and if he wasn't getting such a low buzz on his sense of danger, he would've suspected this was a kidnapping.]
DO EEEEEET! The latest chapter is the best in many months!kandescenceDecember 14 2011, 11:47:15 UTC
[Though Kanda gave no direct answer beyond a "Hn" of acknowledgment in response to Eliot's name, he did make note of it, something he didn't bother to do with people who struck him as less worth his attention.
As it happened, their current location was also the foremost topic in his mind too, particularly given the decor of the room, which was filled with strangely fashioned furniture and materials of seemingly foreign patterns and textures.
Now that he was dressed and could focus more properly on his surroundings, the room seemed even more peculiar. And there was something quite odd about the unusual clothes that Eliot wore as well. He couldn't quite place what felt so off, but Kanda was becoming increasingly aware of a dawning sense that everything around him was somehow...out of place.]
This is room is strange. Do you know where this place is? [And he started to head to the window to see if he couldn't spot some explanation for himself by looking outside.]
[That Eliot couldn't answer instantly made the hitter wary of his location. He looked around the room, instantly going to the order menus and hotel information that usually were placed by the table phone.]
Boston. [He announced with a mixture of annoyance and relief. What was he doing messing around close to home like this?
He turned back to Kanda by the window who must be staring down at the streets of downtown Boston.]
[Kanda didn't answer because suddenly the interior of the room was the absolute farthest thing from his mind. Even the name of the city that Eliot uttered only floated to him through a fog.
He was staring out the window transfixed and stunned, torn between abject confusion and inchoate horror at the landscape revealed there: buildings taller than anything he'd ever seen in his life, huge shining towers of steel and glass that seemed to reflect light off of every surface, and somewhere on the street far below, tiny multicolored boxes rolling around like mechanized bees.
Opening his mouth soundlessly, he placed a hand against the window pane as though trying to test that it was really there, as though touching the glass would somehow help him make sense of what he was seeing. It didn't.]
This...
What is this? [He wasn't directing the question at Eliot, or really at anyone. He just had no idea what to think of what he was seeing. North America or Europe or even inside the Ark, there was nowhere on or off the earth he knew that
( ... )
[Eliot couldn't understand Kanda's reaction and he watched the other man weirdly for a minute before he decided to speak up.]
Somethin' the matter?
[He rolled his eyes before walking to join Kanda by the window, arms crossed and peering over the other's shoulder. It was exactly as he expected, busy streets, roads lined with cars, like any other downtown of a major city.]
What's wrong with you? Quit actin' like you've never been in a city before.
[Kanda seemed at first to be speaking to himself, but his head whipped round and he turned to stare at Eliot over his shoulder as the man approached, his expression still a mixture of perplexity and alarm. He wasn't blaming the man he was with, but maybe only because he was still too shocked to try and place blame at all: no single person could be responsible for something so staggering and huge! It was like the whole world was different!]
I've been in cities from London to Edo. They don't look like this!!
[And Kanda's patience was getting progressively thinner to match. He turned to face Eliot fully, scowling at him.]
Tch. Not like that. It's different!
And where the hell is Tokyo? [Because, of course, the swordsman had never heard the city's modern name. In his own time it was still several years before it would become the capital and be given its new name...or before it would have been given its new name, if it hadn't been flattened by the Earl and his akuma.]
How can you not know where Tokyo is, man? [That was just too weird.]
You're Japanese, aren't you? [He looked the young man up and down with the same type of staring as when he first questioned his masculinity. Like all the pieces were there but something was still inherently missing that by looking long enough, he could figure it out.]
[Starting to get irritated in earnest. What was with that look he was getting? And that attitude, like there was something wrong with him.
Kanda wasn't even going to address the question about being Japanese. (That was actually kind of...complicated, given his past. It was also none of Eliot's business, as far as the swordsman was concerned.)]
What the hell does that have to do with anything?
That doesn't explain what's wrong with this place. [He gestured out the window.] And all the damn weird buildings and this room and...whatever the hell those things are moving around down there on the street!
[And that went beyond weird to virtually impossible. Kanda was actually not making sense with his inane questions. Not knowing what cars was? Even Parker knew that.]
What's wrong with you? [Eliot's brows drew together as he scowled at the other man for what appeared to him as obviously stupid questions.] Did I hit you too hard in the head and you lost your memory or somethin'?
Don't flatter yourself. [It would take a lot more than a little scuffle to disturb Kanda's memory. Besides, if it was disturbed at all it was only about the way he arrived here...right?]
I'd remember if I'd seen a...a bunch of damn carriages rolling around without horses attached. Are you going to try and tell me there's some way I could have traveled across the damn ocean in a night next? What the hell trick are you trying to pull?
[As each question came forth, Eliot's incredulity increased exponentially. It soon reached the point where he wasn't even scowling anymore, but just staring at Kanda like he was some extinct creature. The youth wasn't faking his surprise.]
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That. It's a beautiful piece. [There was respect in his tone this time and it was obvious that he meant the word for more than aesthetic appeal.]
Which is strange. No way I could've missed that last night. [He wasn't accusing Kanda of anything, but sounded genuinely confused over the situation. If he saw such a thing, he wouldn't have tried picking up the other, mistaking him for a her or not.] And no, haven't seen anyone with that description.
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Of course there was clearly a well-educated appreciation in the way he spoke about Mugen, but Kanda was equally certain that there was no way for the guy to know just how personal the sword was to him--he wouldn't have any reason to connect it with the stigmata scars on Kanda's forearms nor any way to know that he was complimenting not just a weapon but some part of Kanda's body, his own blood.
In truth, the swordsman couldn't quite decide if it made him a little uncomfortable--if he felt more exposed, ironically enough, than when he was naked. He was reading too much into it all, probably.
But still, this sort of shift in the sentiment and energy between them, its connection to something that felt so central to his being.... It wasn't a sensation that he could easily disregard.]
You haven't told me your name. [He said it ( ... )
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I haven't, have I?
[He had first avoided giving his name because of the awkward situation, but now that that was somewhat settled, he saw no harm in surrendering it.] Eliot Spencer.
[When Kanda looked away, Eliot too moved to see what he could make of the location they were in. Thing was, he couldn't recall landing himself in the hotel either, and if he wasn't getting such a low buzz on his sense of danger, he would've suspected this was a kidnapping.]
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As it happened, their current location was also the foremost topic in his mind too, particularly given the decor of the room, which was filled with strangely fashioned furniture and materials of seemingly foreign patterns and textures.
Now that he was dressed and could focus more properly on his surroundings, the room seemed even more peculiar. And there was something quite odd about the unusual clothes that Eliot wore as well. He couldn't quite place what felt so off, but Kanda was becoming increasingly aware of a dawning sense that everything around him was somehow...out of place.]
This is room is strange. Do you know where this place is? [And he started to head to the window to see if he couldn't spot some explanation for himself by looking outside.]
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Boston. [He announced with a mixture of annoyance and relief. What was he doing messing around close to home like this?
He turned back to Kanda by the window who must be staring down at the streets of downtown Boston.]
What'd ya mean strange?
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He was staring out the window transfixed and stunned, torn between abject confusion and inchoate horror at the landscape revealed there: buildings taller than anything he'd ever seen in his life, huge shining towers of steel and glass that seemed to reflect light off of every surface, and somewhere on the street far below, tiny multicolored boxes rolling around like mechanized bees.
Opening his mouth soundlessly, he placed a hand against the window pane as though trying to test that it was really there, as though touching the glass would somehow help him make sense of what he was seeing. It didn't.]
This...
What is this? [He wasn't directing the question at Eliot, or really at anyone. He just had no idea what to think of what he was seeing. North America or Europe or even inside the Ark, there was nowhere on or off the earth he knew that ( ... )
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Somethin' the matter?
[He rolled his eyes before walking to join Kanda by the window, arms crossed and peering over the other's shoulder. It was exactly as he expected, busy streets, roads lined with cars, like any other downtown of a major city.]
What's wrong with you? Quit actin' like you've never been in a city before.
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[Kanda seemed at first to be speaking to himself, but his head whipped round and he turned to stare at Eliot over his shoulder as the man approached, his expression still a mixture of perplexity and alarm. He wasn't blaming the man he was with, but maybe only because he was still too shocked to try and place blame at all: no single person could be responsible for something so staggering and huge! It was like the whole world was different!]
I've been in cities from London to Edo. They don't look like this!!
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[He leaned against the window frame and looked out of it over the side of his shoulder.]
London's got less skyscrapers, alright? It's history city, more brickwork. Not even gonna get into the differences with Japan's towns.
[Which got him to furrow his brows at the strangeness of that thought.] Never been to Tokyo? That has skyscrapers.
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Tch. Not like that. It's different!
And where the hell is Tokyo? [Because, of course, the swordsman had never heard the city's modern name. In his own time it was still several years before it would become the capital and be given its new name...or before it would have been given its new name, if it hadn't been flattened by the Earl and his akuma.]
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You're Japanese, aren't you? [He looked the young man up and down with the same type of staring as when he first questioned his masculinity. Like all the pieces were there but something was still inherently missing that by looking long enough, he could figure it out.]
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Kanda wasn't even going to address the question about being Japanese. (That was actually kind of...complicated, given his past. It was also none of Eliot's business, as far as the swordsman was concerned.)]
What the hell does that have to do with anything?
That doesn't explain what's wrong with this place. [He gestured out the window.] And all the damn weird buildings and this room and...whatever the hell those things are moving around down there on the street!
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What's wrong with you? [Eliot's brows drew together as he scowled at the other man for what appeared to him as obviously stupid questions.] Did I hit you too hard in the head and you lost your memory or somethin'?
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I'd remember if I'd seen a...a bunch of damn carriages rolling around without horses attached. Are you going to try and tell me there's some way I could have traveled across the damn ocean in a night next? What the hell trick are you trying to pull?
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Seriously? What era are you from?
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