Kiss of Life

[auditions]

Who: Aira, Amami & anyone who hits me up
What: Catch-all
When: November
Where: Around
Warnings: TBA

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A place for everything Aira and Amami over the course of November! If you want to set something up, I can be reached by PM or at kagehira

Comments

10/20, helena

[auditions]

( it's not the first time it's happened, and it's unlikely to be the last. the sound of footsteps approaching the door of star one, the door pushed open, and after only a moment's pause it closes again. the footsteps disappear once again down the hall.

they return about ten minutes later. this time, when the door is pushed open, the quiet sound of glass against glass can be heard as two mugs are held in one hand, the other used to carefully (carefully) shut the door as aira makes his way in. his voice is cheery and bright as he greets his roommate, smile habitually stretched across his features, and he'll make his way over towards their side of the room. )

Hi, Helena-san! I brought some hot cocoa again.

( and, as if to illustrate, there's a gentle clink as the two cups are set side-by-side on the sill of the window. they really need to steal a table from the staff room or something. )

Are you busy today?

[decrypter]

Ah, Aira! That's so kind of you.

[what she's been studying is pushed to the side so that she can pick up a cup, blowing gently on the surface so she can sip safely. he's rewarded with a beaming smile, and she shrugs.]

Busy? Not really...I'm just finishing up my homework. What have you been doing?

[privately, she would agree - they do need to somehow get furniture. maybe the classmate who liked woodworking would be able to work out another trade for a nightstand...]

[auditions]

You sure are diligent, Helena-san.

( said a little bit wistfully, but also a little bit like he's admitting to defeat. )

I was gonna ask if you'd be willing to help me with mine again, but I feel kinda bad if you don't catch a break. I mean, I'm not the only one who's asking you, right?

( he's caught wind of those tutoring services; knows he's getting off real easy in terms of price here, and also, that nobody wants to be caught working all day every day. well, for now at least, he can pick up the glass that's been left on the sill. he brings it up to his lips so he can have a taste too — it's cinnamon-flavoured, his favourite lately, since the cup natsume had shared with him that time. )

[decrypter]

Don't worry about it, it's why I only have myself scheduled to certain days. And anyway, if there's no big tests coming up, people tend to ask for it less.

[which is to say, this week she's had no customers, but it's fine. technically she doesn't even need to offer the tutoring services for pocket cash, but by now she's invested in making sure a few of her regulars get past their exams.]

You don't have to feel bad about asking, ever. If I was too busy, I'd just say so.

10/31, silent hours, meng yao

[sisters]

( he decides pretty early in that he won't be getting any sleep tonight.

well, to be fair, he could have easily gone to bed earlier — he didn't, though. invited out of the room to actually hang around for the holiday, and by the time he finally laid down to get some rest, it was only a few more minutes before the nightly wind decided to kick in. except that tonight, it doesn't sound so much like wind, and between the volume and the desperation of the voices that ring through the air, he... he's restless. a glass of water, maybe, or if he's feeling particularly bold, he can go outside to investigate (again). anything is better than just laying here and listening, so he gets up.

the jar in his hand gives off a faint glow, a dim light cast through the darkness of the hallway as he steps outside of his room. while he does have the advantage of being able to hear another set of footsteps approaching from down the hall, when it comes to where they're coming from and how close they are? that's another story. he'll make his way down to the end of the sun rooms, and it's a failed coin flip when he decides which direction to look first; whichever side of the main hallway meng yao happens to be approaching from, he'll be greeted with the sight of amami cautiously facing away from him, squinting into the darkness like he's looking for something. )

[filialdeception]

[ Meng Yao has definitely done his best to ensure that he's getting a good night's rest, or something close to it. The fact of the matter is, however, that he is human.

So in the middle of the night when he needs to take care of bathroom business, he finds himself back in the hallway, half-asleep still, and it takes him longer than it usually does to acknowledge that there's a person there. Luckily, he doesn't bump into Rantarou or anything like that, but he comes to a sudden stop, almost tripping on his own feet still a safe distance away.

He just ensures his hand lands against a wall so he doesn't fall down. Meng Yao also just blinks blearily, and rubs at his eyes...so give him a moment...

Then he'll do a little bit of waving at Amami if his moment earlier doesn't exactly catch his attention. ]

[sisters]

( he hears something, he's not sure what — a stumble? the footsteps pause and, alarmed, amami realizes he picked wrong, spins around to find—

that meng yao is only a couple feet away. the serious, cautious expression on his face flickers to surprise before relaxing into something that more closely resembles relief. because it is relief. jeez, wandering around at night feels risky without that directional hearing, huh... he'll have to keep that in mind. either way, he breathes out a little huff before smiling in the other's direction. )

Phew, it's just you, A-Yao... You should've said something.

( he speaks normally, like he's forgetting the rules of these hours for everyone else, but to his credit, at least he speaks with his hands — one pressed against his chest to express that feeling of catching his breath after being startled. he'll offer a little wave back too in a moment here, once he feels like his heart isn't gonna beat out of that chest. 'cause it's then that things will click enough to realize that, hey, maybe things happen for a reason. to motion absently in the direction of the hall he'd just been looking down, eyes expectant with a spark of interest in them. )

Do you have a minute? ( he'd kind of feel better having someone else with him after dark here, especially when he can still hear the faint sound of that "wind" outside. )

11/02, komaeda

[sisters]

( so, anyway, they do still share a club. which amami does still attend, sometimes. not all the time, but when he can make it. it's lucky too, because today's one of those rare days where nagito komaeda has decided to grace them with his presence, so amami offers a smile in his direction once the meeting wraps up, with anyone who happened to show today beginning to split up for their own daily projects. he has a project in mind too, when he calls out to komaeda. )

Right, Komaeda-kun, there was actually something I was planning to do today. You don't mind grabbing me some of that cord from the closet, right?

( it should already be open — not like there's any reason to keep it locked for a club meeting, right? and amami will worry about locking up in a minute, but he needs komaeda to grab this for him first, looking expectant as he glances over to the other. )

[commences]

( komaeda doesn't mind actually, but he didn't expect to be the one called out &mash; despite being the only one here at the moment with amami, and it seems that they're the two who came early. he knows that helena and hinata still attend, he thinks, and komaeda did decide to grace them with his presence. unlike last time, he has his organic hand raised, wrapped around the arm of his left, squeezing tightly as if that'll slow the pain. it hurts sometimes, not all the time, but his nerves connected to nasod technology is new to him, and so he can't help but mess around with it. his claws click together as he nods at amami, but it's still odd for him to keep his mouth shut —

natsume told him not to discuss anything with amami, and so he can't help but stare at him, before turning around and walking towards the closet. with his organic hand, he slowly opens the door, walking inside of it as he pushes a few things out the way to look for the cords. )

Cords... Where are the... aha! Ah, no... how unlucky...

( he says, mostly to himself as he takes another step further in... )

[sisters]

Thanks, I appreciate it.

( and he does, 'cause it really is nice of komaeda to help him out like this. he almost feels kind of bad, actually — maybe he really does feel bad. either way, it doesn't stop him from waiting until komaeda's suitably distracted to make his way up to the closet himself, steps quiet as he closes the distance.

and just like that, the door shuts behind komaeda. he can hear the click of a key turning in the lock, and a sheepish voice through the door. )

Ah, sorry — can you hang on a minute?

( it'll only take a minute, he thinks, 'cause he sorted this all out beforehand. there's a desk just to his side, see, that's perfect for giving him the boost he needs to get into the crawl space. well, if he puts an extra chair on it, it is — he needs to be mindful of his rib after all. it's fine though, doesn't take long before amami's able to remove one of those ceiling tiles in the closet, slowly lowering himself so that he can use the shelf as a step-ladder to get back down onto the floor. )

11/03, rikachan

[sisters]

( at first, he thinks he's hallucinating.

he must be, right? after all, he knows, in theory at least, where spirits here are supposed to go when they die. he knows how the wisteria tree's branches sag with the weight of the blood on all of their hands, and he knows better than to believe his eyes when the exhaustion is — must be catching up with him by now. so when he first sees the pale, translucent ghost of elizabeth on his way to class, he writes it off as that very sleeplessness. saihara, on his way up the stairs to 1-A at lunch the next day, is his guilt. they see through him, continue around him, and it makes it easy for him to do the same.

it's something he can only keep up for so long however, when he checks the compass at his locker after class on the next. the dial spins in a way that it really shouldn't, and hesitates before it points to the dorms instead of the student store, the only place it's been indicating for some time now. amami hesitates too, before he decides to follow it. naturally, his assumption is that this can only mean something bad but, as long as he investigates, he's hopeful that it can be some kind of mundane-bad instead of the kind that's so very prone to happening in this school.

what he doesn't expect, turning the handle to sun two with compass in hand, is that it could be the opposite.

he finds himself greeted with the thin, see-through image of rika kawai when he opens the door, and his common sense begins to give under the weight of his hope, something tender that seeps through the cracks and into his voice. )

... Rika-chan?

[contrarily]

( she feels a little like she's been hit by a brick; like she'd suddenly woken up, phantom headache, phantom chest pain, unsure what to do and where to go. for a while, she roams, unseen, but her feet lead her to the place she knows best — the room she'd once shared with amami, passing by students in the halls, some of them seemingly aware of her but most simply ignoring her presence.

and there, she waits. it's surprisingly easy to zone out when you're a ghost; zone out, and hours pass, the sunlight intensifying as noon rolls by, a single-minded want on her mind.

to see him — that's it. after that, she thinks she can disappear in peace, but until then, her form holds, stubborn and patient, turning towards the door as soon as it opens. )

Amiami!! ( and then she snaps out of it, as if enchanted, phantom-body lunging towards him, unsure whether she can touch him or not. will it be fine? is she too cold? will she pass through him as if a gho —

wait. )

[sisters]

( it shouldn't feel as foreign as it does, but her lips part and no sound comes out, and he can't help but feel disappointed. frustrated, really. if there was one thing he would have traded half his hearing for, it would have definitely been the ability to hear rika when she spoke now. the ability to feel anything at all when she closes the distance, and his hands habitually find their way to her waist.

or they would, but he quickly realizes there's nothing solid under their touch. his lips press into a thin line, keeping his expression steady until he can manage something better — a weak, apologetic smile a few moments later. )

Hold on, I'll...

( dig in his pocket to search for something familiar, 'cause he thinks he knows how this works. and when he lifts the adderstone up to his eye, just like that, she becomes real. he can feel the soft fabric of her jacket beneath his fingers, which want so badly to pull the rest of her against him — to feel her warm and solid and breathing in his arms again. it takes every ounce of his willpower to speak instead, still tentative and unsure. )

Is it... really you, Rika-chan?

( please don't work like the gorintos, he's praying. please let him hear her voice again. )

11/04, noah

[sisters]

( you ever just... reach the point where reaching up is an ordeal in and of itself.

'cause amami has. not even once, but twice now in yogen alone. probably what he gets for trying to get too ambitious though — reaching up to grab something just a little bit too high, and now he's stuck with his arms loosely wrapped around his chest as he bites back some curses because holy shit does moving the wrong way ever hurt when your rib is fucked up. even just breathing feels like pushing needles into his lungs, though he knows full-well that it should "only" be a fracture.

anyway, he's too busy gritting his teeth as he surrenders to the fact that he does, in fact, need to breathe, to pay all too much attention when someone else winds up in the same room. give him a minute though and he'll notice — forcing himself straight and dropping at least one arm down to shove a hand in his pocket. he's still making a face though. kind of hard not to wince right about now, but it's fine. this is normal. he's doing totally normal and painless right now. )

Hey, Noah. You need something in here?

( please say you happened to need something on the tall shelf you'd probably have to stand on a chair to reach... amami does. )

i need you to know i hit reply and was like "why am I logged in as lucifer"

[silentabyss]

[Amami's a tall dude, and when a tall dude can't reach a high-up thing, there's a problem. That's how Noah sees it. He's sorry for watching Amami like a little weirdo from the door for a second, trying to deduce what Amami's trying to get. Then, of course, Amami winces, and Noah can't help but think something's wrong.]

...y-yeah, I was just poking around. [The vaguest possible response.] Are you... are you alright? You're wincing.

to put the fear of god into amami

[sisters]

Oh, yeah, gotcha. I'm fine — wasn't being too careful for a minute, and ended up straining that injury from before.

( which he's just going to assume noah can put two and two together here, since he's still got one arm lingering over the spot on his ribs that's causing him such trouble, and he was definitely there when amami got the injury to begin with. speaking of which: )

Thanks again for helping me out back there though. Not sure if I ever said so properly, but seriously, it could've been a lot worse.

11/05, shin

[sisters]

( it's around five to midnight, and while the study hall itself is lit up, the windows leading out reflect only what's inside with the darkness past them too deep to make anything out with light-adjusted eyes. it's quiet too, almost eerily so. most people, they wouldn't want to be up during silent hours — at its best it tends to be uncomfortable, and it's moderately terrifying at its worst. when it comes down to it, the general consensus seems to be that if you don't have a murder to commit, it's better off getting to bed or somewhere private before the clock hits. not that amami has to worry about anything like that anymore.

so anyway, here he is, sitting backwards in one of the room's chairs so he can face the doorway. with one arm draped over the backrest, he taps absently through his re-acquired phone with a troubled look to him. seriously, it's one thing if he's got pictures of the cat, that's fair, but it feels like a good sixty per cent of the pictures he'd taken before getting here are just up and gone...

well, that's a problem for another time though. when he hears the click of the door opening, his attention snaps back up to shin, interest sparkling in his eyes. good, good — he actually showed. a smile spreads across his face, and he'll lift up the hand with the phone in it to offer a wave, locking the screen once he does. )

Hey there, almost thought you weren't gonna come.

[notsosou]

Well... I'm here now, aren't I?

[He's a little on edge, evident in the turn of his head, because the soundless time really is Shin Paranoia Hours although being able to be in a locked room that has someone else there if needed has mitigated that somewhat from the days where it was 'pick a classroom'.

There's also his own returning uncertainty around Rantaro adding into the bargain; the whole 'threw someone out a window'... well, in context it makes more sense but that doesn't mitigate that 'oh yeah, he's dangerous' feeling. Still, he... well Keiji was like that too. It's... not unexpected... As long as he knows what he's dealing with...

He notes Rantaro's phone with a glance and takes out his own to check the time... worryingly close but if they're quick enough...]

We should swap numbers before it starts... just in case.

[Rantaro was weirdly unfamiliar with what they're about to do, so if it doesn't work even with Shin's prior demonstration, it'll be good to be able to text each other. That, and it's useful for the future as well...]

[sisters]

( oh wow, sharp reply, huh? amami's smile shifts into something a bit sheepish, but none too bothered by shin's short response. )

C'mon, you know I didn't mean anything by it. It's not a bad thing around here, being cautious.

( and meeting some guy a known murderer in the middle of the night when nobody else can hear you call for help? yeah, amami can see how that kind of thing might make someone tense. he's putting himself in a position that only feels a step or so behind that though, so assuming this goes well, maybe it'll build some a better foundation for something resembling trust. he's not hoping for too much, but—

well, that's getting a little bit ahead of himself, isn't it? for now, he'll rest his chin against the palm of his hand. )

But yeah, I can give you mine. You ready?

( because if he is, amami will list his off, tapping through his own menus to pull up a new contact listing for shin's. )

11/02-ish, THIS GUy

[moraloutrage]

[Recently, shadows have descended upon the school. And not just any shadows... familiar ones. Ones of those they've lost. Once Ishimaru's started to recognize them, he's become fixated on them. A whirlwind of emotions tear through him. Whey can't he communicate with them? Is this even real, or a cruel joke? His heart swells at some of the sights, and the possible inkling of hope that those lost still live on in some way.

Of course, Ishimaru seeks out some specific people. Because he's desperate to try to reach them, to see if he can get any comfort or relief from encountering them. One of the most vital ones proves to be illusive. Every now and then, he catches the flicker of the familiar skirt turning around a corner. He will not run through the halls of a school even in these circumstances, but he is power-walking like no tomorrow! And in doing so with his eyes trained on the shadow of one Chihiro Fujisaki, it's only a matter of time until he collides into someone or something. In this case, it happens to be a fellow student. He feels like he's snapped out of a trance with that impact.]

Ah! I... I apologize, Amami-kun. I should pay attention to where I am going!

!!!

[sisters]

( oh, yeah, definitely that impact could honestly have been better for him, but he figures it's his own fault — coming up on him from his left side like that is bound not to end well. either way, he grits his teeth for only a moment, lips pressed in a thin line so he can suppress that wince of his as best he can, and with a short huff, he'll plaster his best attempt at a smile over top of it instead. )

Ha, no worries. It's my bad too — guess I wasn't paying the best attention to where I was going either.

( takes two to tango — or, crash into each other, in this case. it's fine. still, it was some momentum ishimaru had there, so amami's almost tempted to step back a little to make way now. he'll gesture back down the hall in the direction ishimaru was headed either way. )

Sorry, were you in a hurry to get somewhere?

[moraloutrage]

[Ishimaru is less winded by it, and he backs away almost robotically as he surveys Amami and makes sure he's okay. He accepts his account with a stern nod. There's no sign of the shadow anymore, and Ishimaru makes no attempt to press on. He may as well give up at this point He frowns and looks downward.]

...I... I suppose that I was, but I do not think that it matters anymore. I saw... a shadow of someone I knew, and I was trying to find that person, but I may as well give up. This must be another trick. [It must be like what he saw through the elevator months back! A disturbing farce.] Please remain vigilant, Amami-kun! This school is toying with our most precious emotions once again!

11/16ish - Yukio & Amami

[emptyembers]

[Yukio had really contemplated what to do in this situation. He was still curious as to what the key might be too, though after that first month of being here he hadn't bothered to try to investigate where it might lead to, nor had he spoken to anyone about it since then.

It never left his side, though, and now that someone else had brought it up, he couldn't help but feel just a little paranoid. He didn't think anyone else knew about the key, though that wouldn't make sense. He's only been here for a few months and even then he didn't know anything about this school.

Nothing substantial, anyway. It was a mystery for the most part.

It's why he never bothered to reply out publicly, and instead had been looking for the person behind it. He didn't think he's ever interacted with them before, but after a while of looking, he managed to spot Amami in the distance.]

Are you Amami?

[sisters]

( there's a flicker of recognition that lights up in amami's eyes when he turns, if only vaguely, noting the other as his name is spoken. the two share a class after all, and though they've really spoken on one occasion, yukio had struck him as a guarded sort; not unusually so, mind you. it's kind of fair to be when you show up in a place like this.

but that aside, but there is still a small spark of interest as to what could have him approaching amami at a time like this. considering the proximity, he does have a hunch, but he won't jump into any conclusions quite yet. instead, he offers up a smile and a wave when yukio catches his attention, amicable and friendly. )

That's me. And you're Okumura-kun, right?

( if they've got a nice, conversational distance between them though, amami will take the opportunity to lean against the nearest surface somewhat, folding his arms over his chest. )

What's up, you need something?

[emptyembers]

[He made his way over to Amami, though stopping about five or so feet away from him. He figured he had the right person, recalling seeing him in class.

Still, it was probably strange to have someone you haven't really spoken to much before hunt you down.

Should he smile?

No, Rin said he looked weird doing that.]

Yes, it's good to formally talk to you all things considering. Do you have a moment to talk?