( IC INBOX / BUSINESS CARD )

[manuscripture]

WELCOME TO YOUR PRIVATE CHANNEL, ROHAN KISHIBE. FOR SECURE COMMUNICATION, USE 512.66.730.91 *** USER has joined 512.66.730.91 <AUTOMATED REPLY, DO NOT RETURN:> You have reached the inbox of Rohan Kishibe. I am currently away and unable to answer messages. Leave a BRIEF message with a subject line below. Messages will be replied to in order of importance and subject matter. Advertisements and junk mail will be ignored and blocked from this server.

[ Somewhere around town-- at the bookstore, the Tomoe-Kaname Bakery, attached to posts and notice boards --you find a small white notecard. On it is printed a little message and some numbers in ornate lettering. If you look closely, it reads the following: ]

Rohan Kishibe, Mangaka & Visual Artist
Owner Pro Tempore of Ebony Threads Tailor Shop
Highly Experienced.
Commissions & Advertising For Hire
Pay Negotiable.
Contact At: 512.66.730.91 for inquiries
Castle Lüvchaque - Directly North of Bavan per appointment ONLY.

(( feel free to use this as an action-based prompt too. any random interactions will MOST LIKELY take place in the form of walk-ins at the tailor shop unless it's pre-planned. just drop a starter in here! ))

Comments

[manuscripture]

I don't think I've even been there.

What is the address? I'll bring you some water and draw you pictures until your baby hangover wears.

[pomaded]

[Aaand he attaches an address in Bavan- it's not a particularly great neighbourhood but it's not the worst either.]

uh you can stll clibm st airs right jsut cheking coz ours are kinda steep

[manuscripture]

Fun fact, I can climb walls.

[pomaded]

bullshit

[that's the longest word he's typed right so far]

[manuscripture]

Wanna bet?

[pomaded]

lsst time we did thta ur house burnd down

wat if mines next

[manuscripture]

Karma would be a bitch.

[pomaded]

no kiding

spare keys tapped to th inside of lettter box

putting on a shirt is the equivalent of putting on pants tbh its a chore

[manuscripture]

Let me put a sweater on.

[ Once that sweater is on, Rohan has to slither his happy ass out to Josuke's to rescue him from whatever Issue he's gotten into this time. By the time he does get there, he's fumbling with the spare keys and slipping all of himself through the door.

Alright. Now where is he... ]

Hey Trashmouth, I'm here.

[pomaded]

[The building itself is a little bit of a dump but, now that he's through the door, Rohan will find himself in a small but cozy apartment that is, thankfully, free of cats for now. There are signs of their existence but no signs of life at all. That is, until a muffled groan comes from the doorway to the right.]

... in here.

[Huddled beneath a small mountain of blankets in the bedroom is Josuke himself- though the only sign that he's even there is the hand he pokes out of the side and waves at him. Strewn across the floor are a pair of ripped pants, the shredded remains of a shirt and, in bizarrely good condition, his gakuran.]

[manuscripture]

[ Oh, there he is. Rohan's lips drop into a somehow further unimpressed line when he slips off toward the voice and finds Josuke under a blanket mountain that rivals his own. He's worse for wear but he's alive. ]

Look at you... [ Yikes. The hand alone is enough to tell him what's been going on and the TASTE in his mouth and his sinuses has him trying not to let it wash over his tongue.

Gross!!!!!

Passing the clothes, he reeeeaches with his tail for the blankets as if he's expecting a spider to pop out of there to assess the damage. ]

This is the saddest thing I have ever seen.

[pomaded]

[The hand- whatever happened last night really wrought havoc on his manicure- attempts to weakly bat his tail away but gives up within a few seconds of impotent flailing. Whatever. This is fine. He doesn't care if Rohan sees him looking like death, he's feels like he's dying anyway. Though he doesn't so much as look up from where he's lying face-down on the pillow somehow the mournful quality to his voice manages to carry right through it, only amplified by how muffled it is.]

I smell like a dog.

[he's not even trying to deny it rohan that's how bad things are]

[manuscripture]

You taste like one too.

[ He shivers and tosses the blankets aside. His arms aren't doing a thing-- he's rather shaking his head with his cheek in one hand. He knows how to wake poor Josuke up but it ain't gonna be fun.

Please enjoy a chunk of COLD FROM CRAWLING AROUND OUTSIDE scaly tail being draped all over your person, Josuke. Any bare skin is going to feel like a bucket of ice was dumped on it. ]

Up-up. You wanted my help. You're getting it.

[pomaded]

[The reaction is instantaneous. With a startled yelp, Josuke jerks himself away from the cold, slippery mass of Rohan's tail- easier said than done when it's not exactly light and he's out of it- and slams his back to the wall, snatching up his pillow at the last moment for good measure. Now that he's upright, it's easier to see the raccoon-like blotches under his eyes and, weirdly enough, a purple ribbon tied loosely around his neck.

Oh, and he's growling. It's not quite as impressive without the claws and teeth.]

That wasn't funny...! [Sulkily, he rests his chin on the cushion.] I knew I should've called Jotaro...

[... which would have been literally no help since he's probably a giant, beefy rock right now but fine, okay.]

[manuscripture]

[ Yup, there he goes. Rohan pulls his tail away, thumping it on the floor benignly. What a survey this is. ]

Jotaro wouldn't treat you any different. He'd light a fire under your ass. [ He taps his mouth in a yawn. Being in the cold makes him sluggish but giving Josuke a hard time doesn't. ]

What's with the ribbon...? Did you stop by the Triple T before you crawled into a trash-heap's trash-heap?

[pomaded]

Shut up.

[Irritably, he attempts to tug the ribbon loose, succeeding only after he nearly chokes himself with his first few attempts and sore fingers. He'd completely forgotten it was still knotted around his throat, if he's honest, but he's not about to tell Rohan how it really got there. At least, not the details of it.]

Someone put it on me while I was a wolf. [It sounds considerably more impressive than wolf-sized poodle. He rubs his head, still a little groggy.] What time is it?

[manuscripture]

[ If Josuke thinks he isn't going to get pressed about it, he's wrong. ]

Mid-afternoon. [ He's slithering about, collecting the scraps of the poor, not-goblin's clothes like he's his mother or something. ]

I'm going to ask a question.

A horrible one that I don't know if I want the answer to because I might strangle you.

Are you okay with that?

[pomaded]

[Ugh. Of course he wouldn't just let it go.]

I don't think I've got a choice.

[Josuke stays exactly where he is, legs crossed and pillow clutched to his chest like it's going to actually do anything against a soon-to-be enraged naga looking to Old Yeller him for Suspicious Activities with a known psychopath. Sighing, he presses a hand to his forehead.]

Just do it and let's get it over with.

[manuscripture]

[ Listen, he doesn't WANT to do this. In fact, he's already rolling his eyes into the back of his head with the thought of having to taste what he has to ask. ]

Are you still running around with Kira?

[ Not to sound like A Mom or anything but: ]

Honest to Fog, Josuke. Are you really?

[ He's not mad. Just disappointed and mad. ]

[pomaded]

[Even without the ears and tail to do the heavy lifting, there's really no other way to describe Josuke right now but scolded puppy. He's not even going to fight you on this one, Rohan, you've caught him red- purple?- handed.]

It's not "running around", it's just we keep bumping into each other or some shit happens and I end up taking his cats or... or whatever. [He gives another short sigh.] Sorry. I'm not doing it on purpo-

[And then he freezes. No way. Did he just-]

Please tell me I heard you wrong and you didn't just say "honest to fog". Don't you think that's kind of- kind of messed up too?

[manuscripture]

[ MMMHMMMMMMM. ]

Bullshit--

[ BUT-- ]

Excuse me? What's more messed up?? [ Oooooh boy, that tail is ready to whip now. Josuke is also all too familiar with Rohan's teeth and his smell. ]

Me saying a word, or you saying that you're just running into someone you should be actively avoiding for obvious reasons?? Bash my alignment all you want but at least I know where my loyalties really lie when it comes to interpersonal connections! You have a new excuse every freaking time.

You end up taking his cats. [ Those clothing bits go flying because his hands are in the air. ] THAT'S what you have for me this month??

[pomaded]

[From scolded puppy to hangdog in one word. He's screwed up and he knows it, which is why he doesn't even attempt to bolster that last, weak argument or even meet Rohan's eyes.]

Look, I told you I'm sorry. It really does just keep happening and then when it does I can't leave it alone because he's fun to mess with and... and...

[He slumps a little further down in his bed and drags a hand through the tangled remains of his pompadour. Being anything but totally honest right now is only going to get him a face full of tail or, if he's particularly unlucky or Rohan angry, bile.]

... if it matters, that was the first time I've actually seen him in months and it was an accident. I was suddenly a goddamn dog, freaking out and recognised the cafe's smell so I went for it. [a pause] Fuck.

[manuscripture]

[ It really depends on which of the two he uses to take off Josuke's head first, honestly. Caustic exposure or blunt force trauma. He's trying-- He's trying to stay chill. Chill isn't one of Rohan's strong points and they are handling a permanently very, very delicate subject. ]

No, it doesn't matter! I don't know why you think that it would! [ He is at a loss here. ] There is nothing fun about that man. He's evil, he hasn't changed! [ Rohan hasn't seen him in months either but he isn't stupid. ]

Whatever pity you've decided to harbor and let grow on him is toxic as Hell and dangerous. You of all people should know that and I'm the one being the rational party here. I get dragged for following the Fog God but at least I can admit that the things I have done for Her have been questionable to flat-out wrong on an ethical scale.

HE doesn't have an excuse and neither do you. [ His fingers have instinctively started scratching at his sweater for the key underneath it on his chest. ] The things I do might be wrong but I can say it.

[pomaded]

You're right, he hasn't changed and he probably never will- but you have, Rohan, and it fucking scares me-!

[It comes out before he can stop it, a verbal landslide of frustration and fear and concern that he just can't seem to find footing in before it comes crashing down on whatever it was he wanted to say before and his voice cracks. Fuck. None of that was supposed to happen. He was going to do it calmly and sensibly, not when he's still half growls and aching all over and itchy, whiplashed senses.

If nothing else, he seems remorseful for his outburst. Unable to look at him, Josuke tugs his knees up to his chest again, letting his forehead fall against the pillow with a soft sigh.]

... can we have this conversation another time? I feel like shit. [His voice is muffled but, in a way, it's almost easier; emotion doesn't carry well through fabric and feathers.] You don't have to stay if you don't want to.

[manuscripture]

[ okay ow.

Rohan's lips press together. He stops. ]

Tell me how I have changed...