[ She won't be able to hear the light exhale given their distance, but performer huh. It brings to mind several people, but he won't rebuke the statement—it's true enough depending on his mood, and his mood tonight is—
He jumps down in a fluid motion, much like a cat, the fall giving him less pause than the makeshift tea ceremony that awaits him as he walks closer. His dress is probably about what she (and everyone else) expects, but she'll be able to tell quickly that he doesn't have the gait or poor posture of a NEET. Rather he stands tall at 175cm, even with his head quirked to the side at this peculiar scene. The aura she felt before disperses, but doesn't disappear entirely at this proximity. ]
Oh, you can forget about that handle now. O-that guy is big on secrecy and makin' people walk for an hour in circles just to get to his office, and I felt like humoring him. And now I don't.
I'm Shigaraki, Shigaraki Tomura, the new king of this era.
[ He's imposing up close as well, in a different way from before. When he was up there, it felt like being stalked by a predator - something inhuman closing in. From here in front of her, Rapt0r... Tomura Shigaraki is certainly a person and not a concept. But danger oozes off him all the same. Lacus can believe that he killed Merlin and will kill many more. It's unfortunate, truly truly unfortunate. ]
Mr. Tomura then?
[ Lacus is not from a culture where last names are the standard form of address and she does see him as a same age peer, despite it all. ]
I'm glad that you came. I've been awfully curious. I could only guess for your food and drink preferences, but I hope I hit the mark at least a little.
[ Haro, ever-present, jumps up to add his own greeting: ] Hello hello! Are you feeling fine?
Mr.? I know my face is like this, but I'm not even close to thirty yet. [ At least he doesn't sound insulted, though there is an uptick of energy in his voice. ]
I guess Tomura works. [ There's a few people who call him that, so he doesn't spare much further thought, turning then to poke Haro with a single finger from a hand (his right) that's blotched with a long scar. ]
Did you bring doritos? [ Shigaraki Tomura is indeed a person, a villain, a mass murderer, but still a nerd. ]
[ The intimidation factor drops by a good five points at that. ]
... doritos to tea?
[ No more pokerface smile, she's frowning at this!! Also that's a no. ]
I suppose we have senbei? I've also brought some sushi, since you indicated you'd like that. And there's some mousse au chocolat and... ah, right, croissants! That's the extend of my haphazard packing here.
[ Lacus is not actually apalled by the sitting position, at least. She doesn't actually sit in seiza either, her legs are going to the left side instead.
Doritos and tea though...... No, she's not convinced. ANYWAY.
She feels far less tense now, though she knows better than to let herself stop treading carefully. ]
It's not? I think sharing some tea is a good way to get to know one another, so I'd at least call it a key component.
That sounds like scouting, and I sure didn't have tea with any of the Vanguard before I recruited 'em. [ He won't explain, but she can probably infer well enough. ]
But this isn't like you're trying to get on my good side, right?
[ This makes just enough sense that she's not inclined to ask about it. On the other hand, the word 'scouting' makes her think about the talk on idol groups she had with Haruka... Scouting Tomura... It's an amusing thing to imagine.
To the question, she tilts her head with a smile. ]
Do you think you seem like the type of person who'd be bribed by food?
[ Lacus sure thinks he doesn't. She leaves it as a rethoric question only. ]
I don't think I can make myself useful enough to you to warrant pulling me out of the killing game. And even if I could, I wouldn't want to doom the others to save myself.
So what use does your good side have to me? I'd like for us to get along, yes. I expect no favors beyond that.
It doesn't do you any good. People who are like that I don't bother with either. The salaryman who's sponsoring my vision sucks up to me but I don't care. I'm just using him for his money and his cult of followers. Not that I really care about money, but it buys sushi and my allies like that.
[ Like most of his words, the low thrum in his tone is constant. It does soften, if you can call it that, at the last sentence, the extra pep in energy obviously noticeable when his baseline is so even and deep. ]
So yeah, if you were like that I'd have not bothered to show up in the first place. But what does getting along even mean to you anyway? Me not killing you?
[ Lacus is starting to get the impression that 'allies' is an emotionally constipated keyword for 'friends', but far be it from her to call that out at this juncture. ]
Not being killed is certainly a good start.
[ She fills up the two cups of tea and picks up her own to inhale the aroma. In the middle of the picnic-zone, Mr. Pink is rolling over the floor going Thank you! Thank you! because this kind of thing is just what he does. ]
But aren't we already getting along? Sharing a meal, talking about everything and nothing... These are the kinds of daily pleasures that I enjoy sharing with people the most.
Even with guys who are mass murderers? [ Just a reminder, though it's dropped casually, as he tries to sift through her words. He picks up the teacup with one hand after another moment, with more care than he looks capable of. His pinky is out. ]
[ Lacus wishes this was as easy to forget as he implies it to be. ]
I don't often get the chance to do so.
[ Mass murderers in her world are her enemies. It's a rare opportunity to exist in a small bubble where none of their homeworld's circumstances can quite reach them.
And even if the Patrick Zalas, Muruta Azraels or Lord Djibrils of her world deigned to sit down for tea with her, none of them would actually meet her head-on and discuss on equal terms. Hm. Maybe she should verbalize that? ]
Though please don't imagine me to be indiscriminate about this. You've caught my interest.
Fine, fine. I'm just curious. If someone wants to buddy up to me it's cuz they want my name or my power. Everyone else has already made up their mind 'bout me from the start.
[ He shrugs, but is still careful not to spill the tea. ]
If you put it like that, we really have a good few things in common.
[ And that's another reason she is fascinated by him, though she's aware that all similarities are likely only skin deep and would not hold up to any kind of scrutiny. ]
Some of the more well-established council members certainly feel that way - though I have the benefit of having distinguished myself in the last two wars.
[ Is it really a benefit, though? Only time will tell. ]
But what I was thinking about was my being a Coordinator. Even now, there are a lot of people who want my kind dead.
Cuz you're different from 'em, right? But they're weaker, yeah? So shouldn't it be the other way 'round? If it's not now it'll be that way eventually. That's how it was in my world. The first quirk users were shunned but now it's the quirkless who are at the bottom of society.
Quirk is the name of special abilities in your world, yes?
[ It seems pretty clear from context, but like... just to make sure. ]
The situation between Naturals and Coordinators remains.. complex, to say the least. Initially, Naturals reacted violently to the first generation of Coordinators. Many were killed in the resulting panic. Our immune systems might be better, but we are not immune to simple and plain violence.
Coordinators formed their own space colony country to escape the violence and prejudice. That's the PLANTs, my home. Tensions were high, but it was a terrorist attack on a peace conference that set off hostilities. Believing Coordinators to be responsible, the Naturals eradicated one of our colonies. 243,721 civilians died as a consequence.
The resulting wave of anti-Natural sentiment brought Patrick Zala into power, a man who believed Coordinators to be a separate, advanced and inherently superior race. Such foolish thought... How can he call us a species when we can't even keep reproducing on our own?
[ Lacus shakes her head, and takes another sip of tea. ]
I apologize, I do not mean to bore you. The fact is that yes, there are genocide advocates on both sides.
Sounds more like an evolution to me. And yeah, though they used to be called meta abilities too.
[ Crazy though, bc all of this sounds familiar but also not. ]
With my world, it's more that society is built around heroes who do things for the "greater good", but also profit, fame, and all of that. Which is whatever, but they cling to the belief that things are better for everyone this way. They ignore the stuff like people marrying to produce "perfect" off spring, or shunning those with "unattractive" quirks like mutants who have reptilian traits and all that. Not to mention people like me who just can't and won't play nice.
My quirk lets me decay anything I touch. [ Rather than explain more, he downs the rest of his tea, and without changing his grip on the cup at all, makes it disintegrate into non-descript gray ash. ]
[ Well, this explains a lot about the sentiments he'd voiced before. What a world, what a society... And while things like the prevalence of 'heroes' sound completely made up and alien to Lacus, there's still a lot in here that she can understand painfully well.
And theeeen he disintegrates a tea cup. For a second, Lacus is the perfect image of the :o face. ]
Oh? Too bad! [ says Mr. Pink. ]
[ Lacus leans forward to look at the ash, hovering her finger over it with a questioning look. Is that safe to touch? ]
I can see how that would scare others. Looks like we are both from worlds ruled by genetics even though they shouldn't be.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not against quirk research or experiments either. [ A particularly knowing smile and a nod to her look. ]
My beef is way more personal, but that's a story I don't feel like tellin' now.
[ There's a lot wrong with current society regardless. ]
But yeah, they do. The first quirk was a baby born in China who could glow. A pretty useless quirk, but they popped up in more kids born after that, and the more they mix the more powerful they get. First gen might have had somethin' like the ability to create a spark of fire if they clapped their hands together real hard. Current gen can create an inferno with the same amount of effort.
[ At the nod, she does run her index finger through the ash pile. She's not sure what she's expecting from the experience, it's just that... Moments ago there was a solid object here and now it is not, she feels like she needs to feel that to actually internalize it. It's a terrifying power. ]
Then you're the complete opposite of Coordinators, after all.
[ And that is fascinating in its own right. Lacus leans back again, expression now deeply thoughtful. ]
The first generation of Coordinators was created artificially. "Designer babies", often made to their parents' specific aesthetic specifications. When Coordinators have children, they naturally pass on their enhanced traits, but the more generations of Coordinators there are, the lower the fertility rate. Left to our own devices, isolated and only reproducing among ourselves, we would simply die out.
I'm beginning to understand why we seem to talk about so much of the same, and yet such different things.
[ The ash is fairly fine and smooth and it's almost pleasant to touch, which is ironic in itself. ]
Huh. We have designer babies too, but it's more 'bout pairing off "complimentary" quirks. The current number one hero married his wife so he could have kids with both fire and ice quirks. He had three kids before the last one finally came out "right".
So yeah, yeah, that makes sense. Do you have any mutations among Coordinators? Kids who get a power that's not related to either of their parents.
[ Glowing, decaying... Fire and ice... Quirks really do sound like they come straight out of a superhero story, something the kids at the beach house might have liked to read. It's disturbing to think about them in such realistic terms. ]
Hmm.. not really. Second and third generation abilities kind of even out into more general 'advancements' like better health, higher physical performance, better memorization... Things of that nature.
But in the days of the first generation being made, there were often incidents where children didn't come out the way parents had specified. Natural birth isn't as forward as entering data on a computer screen after all. People blamed the mothers for it.
Man the current number one would fit right into your world! I'd offer to send him there if I wasn't gonna just kill him first. People will blame whoever they can that isn't themselves, no matter the world I guess.
[ ...eugenics smh. Though again, his issues aren't so cut and dry as that. ]
I asked cuz that's what I am. A rare mutation or whatever, neither of my parents quirks were related at all. That's why my hair and eyes are like this too.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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He jumps down in a fluid motion, much like a cat, the fall giving him less pause than the makeshift tea ceremony that awaits him as he walks closer. His dress is probably about what she (and everyone else) expects, but she'll be able to tell quickly that he doesn't have the gait or poor posture of a NEET. Rather he stands tall at 175cm, even with his head quirked to the side at this peculiar scene. The aura she felt before disperses, but doesn't disappear entirely at this proximity. ]
Oh, you can forget about that handle now. O-that guy is big on secrecy and makin' people walk for an hour in circles just to get to his office, and I felt like humoring him. And now I don't.
I'm Shigaraki, Shigaraki Tomura, the new king of this era.
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Mr. Tomura then?
[ Lacus is not from a culture where last names are the standard form of address and she does see him as a same age peer, despite it all. ]
I'm glad that you came. I've been awfully curious. I could only guess for your food and drink preferences, but I hope I hit the mark at least a little.
[ Haro, ever-present, jumps up to add his own greeting: ] Hello hello! Are you feeling fine?
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I guess Tomura works. [ There's a few people who call him that, so he doesn't spare much further thought, turning then to poke Haro with a single finger from a hand (his right) that's blotched with a long scar. ]
Did you bring doritos? [ Shigaraki Tomura is indeed a person, a villain, a mass murderer, but still a nerd. ]
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... doritos to tea?
[ No more pokerface smile, she's frowning at this!! Also that's a no. ]
I suppose we have senbei? I've also brought some sushi, since you indicated you'd like that. And there's some mousse au chocolat and... ah, right, croissants! That's the extend of my haphazard packing here.
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[ If he says this like a man of no culture it's because he is. ]
Sushi is good with company, it's not 'bout the food itself. Just like this meeting ain't 'bout the tea.
[ Still he sits, one knee drawn up in a comfortable sprawl. Seiza is also for people with culture. ]
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Doritos and tea though...... No, she's not convinced. ANYWAY.
She feels far less tense now, though she knows better than to let herself stop treading carefully. ]
It's not? I think sharing some tea is a good way to get to know one another, so I'd at least call it a key component.
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But this isn't like you're trying to get on my good side, right?
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To the question, she tilts her head with a smile. ]
Do you think you seem like the type of person who'd be bribed by food?
[ Lacus sure thinks he doesn't. She leaves it as a rethoric question only. ]
I don't think I can make myself useful enough to you to warrant pulling me out of the killing game. And even if I could, I wouldn't want to doom the others to save myself.
So what use does your good side have to me? I'd like for us to get along, yes. I expect no favors beyond that.
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[ Like most of his words, the low thrum in his tone is constant. It does soften, if you can call it that, at the last sentence, the extra pep in energy obviously noticeable when his baseline is so even and deep. ]
So yeah, if you were like that I'd have not bothered to show up in the first place. But what does getting along even mean to you anyway? Me not killing you?
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Not being killed is certainly a good start.
[ She fills up the two cups of tea and picks up her own to inhale the aroma. In the middle of the picnic-zone, Mr. Pink is rolling over the floor going Thank you! Thank you! because this kind of thing is just what he does. ]
But aren't we already getting along? Sharing a meal, talking about everything and nothing... These are the kinds of daily pleasures that I enjoy sharing with people the most.
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Even with guys who are mass murderers? [ Just a reminder, though it's dropped casually, as he tries to sift through her words. He picks up the teacup with one hand after another moment, with more care than he looks capable of. His pinky is out. ]
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I don't often get the chance to do so.
[ Mass murderers in her world are her enemies. It's a rare opportunity to exist in a small bubble where none of their homeworld's circumstances can quite reach them.
And even if the Patrick Zalas, Muruta Azraels or Lord Djibrils of her world deigned to sit down for tea with her, none of them would actually meet her head-on and discuss on equal terms. Hm. Maybe she should verbalize that? ]
Though please don't imagine me to be indiscriminate about this. You've caught my interest.
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[ He shrugs, but is still careful not to spill the tea. ]
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[ And that's another reason she is fascinated by him, though she's aware that all similarities are likely only skin deep and would not hold up to any kind of scrutiny. ]
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[ He's on the same thought as her, but it still is interesting. ]
Lemme guess they discount you because of your age too?
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Some of the more well-established council members certainly feel that way - though I have the benefit of having distinguished myself in the last two wars.
[ Is it really a benefit, though? Only time will tell. ]
But what I was thinking about was my being a Coordinator. Even now, there are a lot of people who want my kind dead.
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[ Finally he takes the smallest sip of tea. ]
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[ It seems pretty clear from context, but like... just to make sure. ]
The situation between Naturals and Coordinators remains.. complex, to say the least. Initially, Naturals reacted violently to the first generation of Coordinators. Many were killed in the resulting panic. Our immune systems might be better, but we are not immune to simple and plain violence.
Coordinators formed their own space colony country to escape the violence and prejudice. That's the PLANTs, my home. Tensions were high, but it was a terrorist attack on a peace conference that set off hostilities. Believing Coordinators to be responsible, the Naturals eradicated one of our colonies. 243,721 civilians died as a consequence.
The resulting wave of anti-Natural sentiment brought Patrick Zala into power, a man who believed Coordinators to be a separate, advanced and inherently superior race. Such foolish thought... How can he call us a species when we can't even keep reproducing on our own?
[ Lacus shakes her head, and takes another sip of tea. ]
I apologize, I do not mean to bore you. The fact is that yes, there are genocide advocates on both sides.
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[ Crazy though, bc all of this sounds familiar but also not. ]
With my world, it's more that society is built around heroes who do things for the "greater good", but also profit, fame, and all of that. Which is whatever, but they cling to the belief that things are better for everyone this way. They ignore the stuff like people marrying to produce "perfect" off spring, or shunning those with "unattractive" quirks like mutants who have reptilian traits and all that. Not to mention people like me who just can't and won't play nice.
My quirk lets me decay anything I touch. [ Rather than explain more, he downs the rest of his tea, and without changing his grip on the cup at all, makes it disintegrate into non-descript gray ash. ]
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And theeeen he disintegrates a tea cup. For a second, Lacus is the perfect image of the :o face. ]
Oh? Too bad! [ says Mr. Pink. ]
[ Lacus leans forward to look at the ash, hovering her finger over it with a questioning look. Is that safe to touch? ]
I can see how that would scare others. Looks like we are both from worlds ruled by genetics even though they shouldn't be.
Did 'quirks' occur naturally?
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My beef is way more personal, but that's a story I don't feel like tellin' now.
[ There's a lot wrong with current society regardless. ]
But yeah, they do. The first quirk was a baby born in China who could glow. A pretty useless quirk, but they popped up in more kids born after that, and the more they mix the more powerful they get. First gen might have had somethin' like the ability to create a spark of fire if they clapped their hands together real hard. Current gen can create an inferno with the same amount of effort.
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Then you're the complete opposite of Coordinators, after all.
[ And that is fascinating in its own right. Lacus leans back again, expression now deeply thoughtful. ]
The first generation of Coordinators was created artificially. "Designer babies", often made to their parents' specific aesthetic specifications. When Coordinators have children, they naturally pass on their enhanced traits, but the more generations of Coordinators there are, the lower the fertility rate. Left to our own devices, isolated and only reproducing among ourselves, we would simply die out.
I'm beginning to understand why we seem to talk about so much of the same, and yet such different things.
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Huh. We have designer babies too, but it's more 'bout pairing off "complimentary" quirks. The current number one hero married his wife so he could have kids with both fire and ice quirks. He had three kids before the last one finally came out "right".
So yeah, yeah, that makes sense. Do you have any mutations among Coordinators? Kids who get a power that's not related to either of their parents.
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Hmm.. not really. Second and third generation abilities kind of even out into more general 'advancements' like better health, higher physical performance, better memorization... Things of that nature.
But in the days of the first generation being made, there were often incidents where children didn't come out the way parents had specified. Natural birth isn't as forward as entering data on a computer screen after all. People blamed the mothers for it.
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[ ...eugenics smh. Though again, his issues aren't so cut and dry as that. ]
I asked cuz that's what I am. A rare mutation or whatever, neither of my parents quirks were related at all. That's why my hair and eyes are like this too.
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