Difference between revisions of "The Ice Cream Of Fate"

Revision as of 09:11, 22 November 2012

Riku has posed:
Riku looks at the phone in his hand, his earlier smile having vanished. The ice cream is slowly melting as he holds it in his moith, half biting down on it as he fiddles with the controlsd. Sadly, Mercade's phone is one he has neglected to get around to bugging so he doesn't know if anything is actually wrong.

He decides not to worry about it unless Mercade doesn't show up. Then he'll call again and go from 'amused' to 'vaguely concerned'-- or at least that will be how he will sound. He bites down on the ice cream, drawing the salty sweetness into his mouth as he tucks away the phone and leans against a building.

He shades his stinging eyes, squinting as he tries to look for Mr. Narration Man, the crowd having thinned somewhat at this time of the day and with the blitzball game ended. The viewscreens have gone back to showing their intricate 'holding pattern' graphics and views of the surrounding ocean."

Mercade Alexander has posed:
The sun is bright on the white streets and thoroughfares of Luca, reflecting the light and creating shimmering waves of heat.

It takes longer than Riku expects, but Mercade shows up, the crowd parting to reveal the man slowly walking down the street.

The heatshimmer only hides the signs for moments. Mercade's skin is pale, his coat torn in several places. Wounds bearing the sign of healing by Potion can be faintly seen through the tears.

He actually manages to draw up to Riku and give a faint wave. "Sup." He says, with a ghost of that irrepressable grin before he collapses to the ground, flumping heavily. "Sorry, Riku. I'm kind of an idiot." He admits.

Riku has posed:
Riku looks at Mercade, looking at the coat, then at the wounds, then at the grin as Mercade collapses and admits the obvious. He tries to catch the detective as he falls, helping him to a bench nearby. To his credit, he doesn't go catastrophic-- even when something strikes him in the face, his senses slightly tweaked almost by being around a talking storyteller mouse. Darkness is something he is not expecting. Not clinging to Mercade like a shroud.

Riku shudders involuntarily, letting go of Mercade and backing away. He shudders for a moment as something in him whispers that the detective was weak. He'd be easy. Riku swallows hard, nearly choking on his ice cream for his pains of self control. The teenager turns away from him, walking over to the small stand that is being mobbed by children who are oddly being well behaved, even as a gaggle.

He buys and brings back another two packages of ice cream, oftering one to Mercade.. then taking it back, opening up the package and offering it to him again. "Spill it." he demands softly, looking around.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Riku helps Mercade get to a bench. He sits down, Riku able to easily tell that Mercade has basically no strength to do anything right now. Most of his vital force is gone, and the Darkness clings to him, making recovery clearly much slower than it would be if it were simple wounds. It's more impressive that he made it to Luca at all, really.

He takes the ice cream and begins sampling the sweetness, but the delicious experience doesn't reach the eyes. Riku knows that haunted look. "I met a girl when I was travelling. She was... hurt, somehow. She seemed confused, not all there."

He pauses, letting the smooth ice cream help relieve the pain of his throat. "She was... wrong in the head. Disconnected. I tried to get through to her, but I failed. It turned out... she was able to control the Heartless. And the Darkness."

Riku has posed:
"And you tried to help her anyways." Riku finishes, because he knows THAT part too. Maybe not specificly from Mercade, but it's something he has come to expect.

He shakes his head, taking another bite of the ice cream to prevent him from starting to chew out Mercade. The intent is clear on his face but he says nothing, even after he's swallowed and lapsed into a less than comfortable silence. "Look. I'm.. I'm going to try and help you, alright? Just--" he pauses, then decides he didn't have a choice. If he was feeling it, Mercade would be a juicy beacon of 'come and get it' to every wandering heartless from here to Manhattan and back.

One ambush would be one too many. Except-- if he lost his focus, he might.. save them the trouble. "Just, why did you have to be such an idiot? You can't trust anybody who does that. It might even have been a trap. Did you think of that? Oh-- poor me. I'm so broken and lost. Come closer and make all the hurt go away."

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade got those wounds for a reason. "You're right." Mercade says. He accepts Riku's words without comment, his expression sad. He eats some more ice cream. "I am an idiot, Riku. But I didn't want to think that it's impossible to help anyone who uses the Darkness like that. If I condemned them all without even trying... What would I be?" Mercade asks. "Sometimes trusting others means you get hurt. Is it really better to just... leave them?"

He frowns. "But trust only goes so far. Next time... I won't be so forgiving."

Riku has posed:
Riku is starting to get somewhat lightheaded, and he doesn't believe it's from the sugar. "Dead." he starts to close his fist slowly and a purplish sheen flickers across the air. Almost imperceptably the crowd seems to slow in their movements across the square and through the city.

"Do you not get this yet?! Do you know.. what that sort of thinking got my world.. got my friends?" he speaks a little louder now. "But hey--" his smile is coldly angry. " Next time you'll be ready."

Mercade Alexander has posed:
"No, I don't." Mercade says, his voice tired. "You never told me what happened in your world. All I have is inference."

He finishes his ice cream, cleaning off the stick and leaving it in his mouth like a toothpick. He looks over to Riku, his eyes steady. "Sometimes I feel like I understand you, Riku. And then things like this happen where I say something and you get so... so angry." He sighs. "You're a very complicated person, Riku." He doesn't even seem to have the energy to joke about it. "I'm sorry."

He turns his head away. "It feels like..." He pauses. "I might have other things to worry about besides the next time I see her." Mercade makes no moves, just sitting there looking out over the ocean.

Riku has posed:
Riku glares at Mercade, but then he takes a moment to examine his thoughts, which have started to revolve around reaching over and giving a visual demonstration of what happened to his family, to his home.

The purplish sheen dies, and the crowd continues on it's brisk pace. Riku takes in a very deep breath, and sits down hard as he lets it out. "It's gone." Riku says softly. "A storm came, and the heartless came with it.. and it's all gone. Look-- whatever she did, you.. you're lucky to have made it this far. I think-- I think I can take it away. Whatever's left. Part and parcel of who I am now." he says this with a tired sigh.

"Which sadly you were also privy too. You're always in the wrong place at the wrong time, aren't you. Just like Sora." he chuckles sadly. "Except you keep turning up, Mercade. I can't say the same for him.. no matter what powers he had that he didn't earn."

Mercade Alexander has posed:
"You mean the Keyblade, don't you." Mercade says, still looking out over the ocean.

"You were the one who was supposed to receive it, but somehow he got it instead. And you..." He looks to Riku.

"You were left without a whole heart, and the Darkness is a part of you now. And everything is gone and Sora is nowhere to be found." He nods. "You have a heavy burden, Riku. I'm sorry."

He pauses, and then leans back on the bench, looking down. "But you do realize... I think this way because of you, too. You're a good person, Riku. I know you are. And I can't condemn you, even if you seem to wish I would."

Riku has posed:
Riku opens his mouth slightly, and then shuts it. He closes his eyes tightly, head turning downwards. When he opens his eyes there is a flicker of hopelessness, a trapped look that comes and then is distuinguished. He doesn't wait anymore or he'll talk himself out of this.

He makes a gesture similar to the invisible string pulling that Will gets up to, wrenching the unfamiliar darkness away and shredding the remnants as he pulls it into himself. There is a moment of profound calm, as if all of his doubts and anger had frozen over.

Riku opens his mouth again and then closes it again, so instead he unwraps the second ice cream and consoles himself with that. "He's okay. He has to be okay. I can't kick his sorry ass if he's not." he sinks down into a chair, looking out at the ocean.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade feels Riku pull the lingering Darkness away from him. He inhales, some color finally returning to his skin as he finally begins to heal from the traumatic experience... But he stays focused on Riku. "He'll be okay, Riku. And you're going to see him. You'll be able to kick his ass, I'm sure."

But he looks away again. "Thank you, Riku. For everything."

Riku has posed:
Riku nods slowly but doesn't make eye contact with Mercade. He takes a Hipotion out of his pocket, setting it down on the bench nearby. "Don't get lost on your way back, huh? And don't take candy from strangers." he smirks at Mercade, pausing a moment too long before turning away and moving to join the rest of the crowd.