[Open] Come In From The Cold...

[inlikethebrume]

Who: House Darkness Residents and OPEN
When: All of February
Where: House Darkness in the Haven
What: It's an open log!
Warnings: Shadowbringers Spoilers in some threads possible, possible talk of the Snatched Event

[If anyone knows the residents of the house, it might seem strange that such a group have selected a cozy abode for their home in the city. However, it is not to be said that they are unwelcoming (depending on who) and usually when someone comes to visit, there's always a warm cup of tea ready for them...and maybe some food to go along with it. Feels like a crime if someone doesn't get fed. And despite the hardships of the previous month, the house does welcome guests for any particular reasons whether a visit for the soul, a chat to catch up on events, or even maybe go a few rounds with the poor striking dummy in the backyard.

When you live with sword users and have stress, it gets used, ok?

It might be chilly outside but strange enough, the house itself is pretty warm. Just mind the gaelkitten and Flood running around from time to time.]


((OOC: Feel free to make a top level if you wish! Open to all!))

Comments

E M O T I O N S

[kivatteru]

[ Wataru never expected such a sight to welcome his eyes while he was taking a leisure walk after studying hard at the Coven for the day. The laugh, he didn't recognize, but the moment he turned his gaze curiously to see who was having such a good time, he froze on the spot.

Vanitas... or someone who looks like him, perhaps? No, it's definitely Vanitas. He just seems unrecognizable because he's actually smiling, so gently, and Wataru is thrown off the loop instantly.

The grouchy, angry, tenseful boy with issues about missing his half and all those things Wataru didn't really understand... is so devoid of darkness now it almost seems wrong. ]

...

[ Blinking a few times, he then recollects himself and tries to act normal while greeting the boy. Despite the weirdness, that's... definitely a good thing to see. ]

Hello, Vanitas. It's been a while.

[darkcharge]

[ Hearing someone, you know, address him actually pulls Vanitas away from whatever emotion that it had been to make him grin in the first place. Now he is trying not to be embarrassed. Trying not to immediately snap at whoever it is that might have seen him. ...But no one actually did, right?

Right? ]

Wataru. [ Hey look, he remembers. Vanitas is also trying to, uh, be neutral. ] I guess it has been a little while.

[ Lie since the Ball-thing, right? ]

[kivatteru]

Yeah.

[ Everything is 300% more awkward after seeing that smile. He almost wishes he didn't.

But he also wishes to see it again, because this guy really needs to look happy more often. ]

How have you been...? You look alright.

[ More than alright since he heard the laugh, but... vague is better... ]

[darkcharge]

I'm alive and capable of standing on two feet, if that's what you mean.

[ He... Still isn't sleeping well. But there are potions and remedies for that. Anything to knock him out so that his mind doesn't race in the middle of the night.

Wataru does look awkward, huh? Grappling for something to say are we? ]

[kivatteru]

That, too, but...

[ He can't lie. He's a really bad liar. Though he can smooth the truth over, or try to, and maybe fail. But he goes ahead and does it anyway. ]

You seem in a good mood, as well.

[ THERE. It's out there and he's not sure how Vanitas will interpret it. ]

[darkcharge]

[ Good mood? That sure catches his attention. Vanitas should tell him to mind his own business. Tell him to go away and maybe bite off his head. ]

That's not... Really me.

[ But that comes out instead. After all that's more his Bondmate than him, right? ]

[kivatteru]

[ ... Oh. It makes sense just because he's also Bonded and he learned some new things about how invasive Bonds can be for everyone involved. ]

I heard you laugh, and you were smiling just a minute ago.

[ Might as well come clear with it entirely. ]

Is your Bondmate prone to that behavior?

[darkcharge]

[ Yeah so that does make Vanitas flinch. So he had been seen... Lovely. ]

...Yeah.

[ Van groans and rubs at his face. He's actually not going to chew Wataru out for it. ]

He is prone to stupid stuff like that.

[kivatteru]

[ He? Now he's a bit curious about who this mysterious guy is. But more importantly... ]

Sorry for overhearing. I'm relieved to see you got yourself a Bond eventually, however.

[ It was... difficult to convince him, back then, that Bonding with someone was a wise move despite the hangups. ]

[darkcharge]

[ Thankfully... Vanitas is a little more mellow these days. So he won't snap. ]

It's annoying. Unbelievably so, but it was bound to happen sooner or later. Brat's unpredictable like that.

[ He rolls his eyes. ]

As for Bonding? It was kind of life or explosion.

[kivatteru]

[ He recalled, months back, Vanitas having a different idea about Bonds and the risks of not having one. Something must have changed in the timeframe between their past talks...

Should he bring it up? No, he's not bringing it up. ]

Can I ask who are you Bonded with? I might know him.

[darkcharge]

Honestly? I doubt that you have. He's very hard to miss. The fact you haven't made a comment about him already says a lot as well.

[ Because usually that's a topic that people bring up: Sora and Vanitas look the same more or less. There are differences in demeanor, eye color, and hair color. However they do get mistaken for one another at first glance.

Needless to say, if Wataru had met Sora - and he might have - then he probably would have mentioned the coincidence to Vanitas by now. ]

[kivatteru]

[ Wataru must have been one of the very few who hadn't met the designated Bond, which only says something about how he still doesn't frequent many social circles. ]

Probably...?

[ He's left pondering about what that phrasing implies. Well, if Vanitas eventually caved in, it must have been someone he'd been knowing for a while. ]

If he's someone from your world, then in all likeliness I didn't meet him.

[ Not really. He talked with a certain turnskin a couple times. ]

[darkcharge]

Yes, he would be from my "world." In a matter of speaking. Again, just one look and you'll know it.

[ It will be so obvious. Hard to miss someone who shares a face, right? ]

Anyway, you'll probably run into him one or another. He is a sociable sort.

[kivatteru]

[ If Vanitas says so... Wataru should have little reason to take the guy's word for it because he might as well be lying to his face, but he's trustful of people! To a fault, but just sometimes. He's not falling for dumb mistakes of the sort again.

Instead of going with the obvious "if you say so" and kill the conversation there, he carries on with a smile. ]

He sounds pretty trustworthy if you agreed to Bond with him. I'm almost curious to meet him.

[ No, not almost, he's kind of, pretty much, a bit but also very curious now. ]

[darkcharge]

[ Honestly Wataru can trust Vanitas to at least not lie. He isn't the sort that does that. Distort the truth, yes, but not outright lie. ]

Time will tell how trustworthy. He seemed to be pretty convinced of his own reasoning and ability to follow through a least.

[ EVeryone is curious about who it could be that Vanitas would actually bond with. ]

[kivatteru]

[ He's not alone in this world... ]

That's a good sign, isn't it? He sounds like he knows what he's doing and wants to keep you safe.

[ The only downside: those smiles now seem eerie to him now that he knows it's not Vanitas doing them... ]

[darkcharge]

Huh? Keep me safe? HA! That brat can barely keep himself safe let alone anyone else!

[ Sora is so reckless. Self-sacrificial. Keep Vanitas safe? That's laughable, really. ]

[kivatteru]

[ wataru can relate

It's so much harder to talk about someone you don't know if all you can make is assumptions. He winces at himself. ]

I'm hoping he didn't cause you too much trouble? [ Yet? ]

[darkcharge]

No more trouble than the rest of you do.

[ With all your positive attitudes and encouragements, that is. It's the influence that is more "trouble" than anything else. ]