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[fruitknife]

"Oh, what the fresh fuck is this."

Next to Shinji, Koromaru whines. He has no idea either, but it doesn't smell dangerous.

Shinji sighs. "Good to know, I guess..." He maneuvers his coat around in his hands until he can reach in the pocket - okay, keys are still there, he should be able to duck back out to Liminal Space whenever he wants. Cool.

Now to figure out what the fresh fuck this is.

He ignores Igor entirely, and almost does the same to the conspiracy board until the word 'Tartarus' jumps out at him. Well, shit, that's not a good sign. Oh well. At least he knows where he stands with the Dark Hour, and he's actually way better equipped to handle it than the last time he had to.

Anyway, that gets him to stop long enough to scan the information, and then he's off to Iwatodai. Reading can only tell you so much, after all. Actually seeing what's out there is going to work a hell of a lot better.

Comments

[fogboundcrow]

"You know, there's actually precedent for that." Taking his chin in hand, Raven eyeballs the board. Perhaps he should make a new note about it. "I met a version of Rise Kujikawa the other day who leads her world's version of the Investigation Team as a Wild Card, yet in my world, the Investigation Team's leader is Dojima-san's nephew, Yu Narukami."

[fruitknife]

"Sure isn't the Rise I met, in that case."

[fogboundcrow]

"Fascinating. Admittedly, I haven't seen enough of how things progress in Inaba due to my time spent here. I was told that Naoto Shirogane eventually arrives, and my older self is adamant that we'll get along swimmingly, but hearing about events isn't quite the same as living them."

A small sigh escapes him. There's so much he hasn't seen, and so much Crow won't tell him. "Then again, I've also learned that the events in one world may not always correspond to others. My presence in Inaba is far from the norm, and in most worlds I'm... well. Let's just say fortune hasn't favored my other selves."

[fruitknife]

Shinji shrugs. "I'm fucking lucky to be alive and I know it. It happens like that sometimes."

[fogboundcrow]

"It's just unfortunate when you learn how common other versions of yourself end up leading more tragic lives. I believe Crow's survivor's guilt, if you can call it that, is far more severe, though. Then again, Crow always seems to be the one people go to for their problems here, for one reason or another."

It's... hm. An uneasy look overtakes Raven at that.

[fruitknife]

"Probably because he's the closest to having his shit together, or at least lookin' like he does." Seems to be the Wild Card pattern, anyway. Shinji's met a couple.

[fogboundcrow]

"He's currently taking care of myself and two younger children with his boyfriend on top of providing a great deal of emotional support for those around him. It's absurd how little time he gives himself to breathe."

So, yes. Wild Card pattern, most certainly. And to think that's what Raven will grow up to be...

[fruitknife]

"I swear, none of you know how to fucking stop. I'm not against kickin' him out of the house for a break if I have to."

[fogboundcrow]

"Hmm... You may have better luck if you coerce his boyfriend into taking him on a conveniently timed vacation. The biggest hurdle is making sure the children are well cared for, and though Magpie is typically present, I'm not sure how he'd fare if another whipped cream incident were to ensue..."

[fruitknife]

"Oh, is that all?"

Okay, so it's not as simple as that, the kids need to trust whoever's filling in. But still. Shinji can do that, easy.

[fogboundcrow]

"You're acting awfully nonchalant about it." On the other hand... dog. Raven can't resist giving the good boy more pets. "Though I do think Koromaru-kun may help as well. The other children haven't gotten many opportunities to meet animals up close here, let alone real ones."

[fruitknife]

"I know part of it's makin' sure the kids are comfortable, but I can keep an eye on people if he needs a break that bad. But yeah, Koro-chan probably won't hurt."

Koromaru's a goodest boy like that.

[fogboundcrow]

"I suppose we'll have to run it by Crow and Ren first, but I'm personally not opposed. Though it may be worth telling you in advance that we've still yet to install a dishwasher."

Magpie keeps fussing about it. They really need to, but it keeps getting put off. For shame, really.

[fruitknife]

"Not the end of the world. I reserve the right to not wash 'em after I did all the cooking, though."

[fogboundcrow]

"I'd be concerned if we thrust such a heavy responsibility on you. Typically, I try to encourage the other children to rinse their own dishes after they eat." But that's interesting. He can cook, then? "Cooking is a good skill, though. We're fortunate that both Crow and his boyfriend cook regularly, so to a certain extent, they are used to home cooking."

[fruitknife]

"It is. Picked it up because I figured it couldn't be that hard to do better than what the orphanage did on the regular."

And, once he knew what the fuck he was doing, it wasn't.

[fogboundcrow]

Orphanage. That one word makes Raven's eyes draw wide. "...You lived in an orphanage?"

Even if Raven didn't stay in them, he remembers. So that's interesting. Very interesting.

[fruitknife]

"Most of my life. Don't remember my parents at all."

[fogboundcrow]

"My condolences. I, ah... spent a fair bit of time bouncing between orphanages and shitty foster homes, so I do understand."

Somewhat, anyway. Perhaps Shinjiro's experience in the orphanage was better.

[fruitknife]

Shinji shrugs. "Got my best friend out of it, so it didn't completely suck."

[fogboundcrow]

"That's good to hear, at least. Admittedly, I wasn't quite so lucky." He blows a little sigh. "Though I did eventually get noticed by someone whose actions got me removed from an abysmal foster home. I suppose to that end, it's not dissimilar."

[fruitknife]

"Good that you got the fuck out, but I can't say I'm surprised it was bad."

It usually is. People seem to think kids end up in the system because no one wants them, so why bother?

[fogboundcrow]

"I take it your situation wasn't all that rosy either, then?" Setting aside the friend. Obviously that was at least some form of silver lining.

child death cw

[fruitknife]

Shinji sighs. "Mostly it didn't suck, but... place caught fire the summer I turned eight. In the girls' dorms, and the roof collapsed before they could get everybody out. Aki's little sister was still in there."

[fogboundcrow]

Raven flinches at the mention. That's...

Well, to say it's startling is an understatement. This Aki must be his friend, then. But to have lost a loved one so suddenly...

"...My condolences. I know what it's like to lose a loved one all too well. I can't imagine your friend took it well, either."