I don't know. I was very young the first time I spotted it. Around 4 or 5? [Which might not have been when it first showed up; it was entirely possible that it had been there before Natori's sight was good enough to actually see it.] It's been there ever since. Well, not always right there. Like I said, it moves around.
[All of this he delivers in the same matter-of-fact tone, as though they're making small talk about the weather or where they grew up. It's a casualness born out of exposure and resignation. He's spent so long obsessing over what it was, what it meant, what it might be doing to him, and never once found an answer. So what was there to do but pretend it didn't bother him at all? A thing that was much harder here, where everyone could see it regardless of their preexisting familiarity with ayakashi.]
I've had a few people mistake it for a bug when they first see it, and I'd rather not get slapped in the face again. [Okay that was one guy and it was on his arm at the time, but whatever.] So, shall we?
[It's probably not kind of him to do it like this, to raise the topic and then move on, but he's always known that he's not kind.]
[Hmm... All that time and yet Natori seems to know so little about it, or maybe he just doesn't want to divulge too much upfront when they've only spoken through a handful of texts prior to this meeting. He can't really fault Natori for being cautious if that's what it is. Either way, although he has more questions, he can take a hint.]
Understood, I won't slap you if I see it moving. Let's go.
[He sets off into the gloom at a brisk stride. The damp brick walls and thick, twisting pipes stretching off into the distance appear the same as usual, but of course there may be something deeper in. One of the punishment doors might be open again.]
[Not one to push, then. That's always nice. Natori falls into step besides Nanami, sticking his hands into the pockets of his unhinged sweatshirt and looking around at the surroundings while they walk.]
Not much. I came down here on a dare when I first arrived. I just heard voices, that time. [He sounds completely untroubled by that; he's just reporting his experience to someone who's familiar with both the supernatural in general and what would be considered normal for this place.] Someone told me about a "punishment room" down here, but she didn't know anything more specific than that. She seems like a normal person, so I wouldn't want her poking around here anyway.
[And even if she did, she might not know what to look for, or even be able to perceive the same things that the two of them might when taking a look. Far better for the people who weren't used to this sort of thing to leave it alone.]
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paperpusher) wrote2025-06-08 09:26 am
no subject
[All of this he delivers in the same matter-of-fact tone, as though they're making small talk about the weather or where they grew up. It's a casualness born out of exposure and resignation. He's spent so long obsessing over what it was, what it meant, what it might be doing to him, and never once found an answer. So what was there to do but pretend it didn't bother him at all? A thing that was much harder here, where everyone could see it regardless of their preexisting familiarity with ayakashi.]
I've had a few people mistake it for a bug when they first see it, and I'd rather not get slapped in the face again. [Okay that was one guy and it was on his arm at the time, but whatever.] So, shall we?
[It's probably not kind of him to do it like this, to raise the topic and then move on, but he's always known that he's not kind.]
no subject
Understood, I won't slap you if I see it moving. Let's go.
[He sets off into the gloom at a brisk stride. The damp brick walls and thick, twisting pipes stretching off into the distance appear the same as usual, but of course there may be something deeper in. One of the punishment doors might be open again.]
Have you explored much down here?
no subject
Not much. I came down here on a dare when I first arrived. I just heard voices, that time. [He sounds completely untroubled by that; he's just reporting his experience to someone who's familiar with both the supernatural in general and what would be considered normal for this place.] Someone told me about a "punishment room" down here, but she didn't know anything more specific than that. She seems like a normal person, so I wouldn't want her poking around here anyway.
[And even if she did, she might not know what to look for, or even be able to perceive the same things that the two of them might when taking a look. Far better for the people who weren't used to this sort of thing to leave it alone.]