synflux | [ closed ] why don’t grains use social media?

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[ closed ] why don’t grains use social media?

WHO: Vash & Jinwoo.
WHAT: Sometimes you gotta make sure your new friend eats something nice and soothing.
WHERE: Some diner we made up.
WHEN: Backdated to January sometime.
WARNINGS: N/A.

( Just like he said he would be, Vash is waiting at 9am outside the nondescript entrance to Lilith's base. He's leaning on a wall currently, face tilted up into the dim winter sun as though to take in as much of its rays as humanly ( plantly? ) possible. But he seems to sense Jinwoo quickly enough, head tipping to the side while his glasses flash. It takes barely moments at all for the friendliness to seep back in, the stillness leaving as he lifts a hand to wave excitedly, pushing away from his perch. )

Jinwoo! Hey!

( Let him just dart forward to hold the door better, smile bright. )

How are you? You ready for pie?

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Really?

( Jinwoo seems to manage pretty fine to Vash, but then he doesn't think he's one to judge. He's met plenty of introverted people in his life who can hold a good conversation whenever you get them going. He's used to trying to figure out how, so to not here surprises him. )

Nobody talks to you after you help them? Buy you a drink even?

( Technically he gets it. More often than not he gets immediately run out of town, the blame for whatever has happened placed without a care on his shoulders. But he doesn't like to think of someone else getting the same treatment. )

I guess there's one or two that do, but majority try to get to know me just to see what I can do for them.

[ It's something he hasn't really thought about all that much, but now that he has the opportunity, it's almost... hilariously depressing how few friends he's actually made since becoming strong. Ah, well. He doesn't think it's that big of a deal in the end. ]

That's probably just how it is when you're strong.

Yeah.

( It's a little sad. Part of him can understand it though. Vash makes acquaintances easily, he blows too quickly through places for it to be anything but that. Before he came here he really only had the three - and the reporters had tracked him down for a very specific reason, even if Vash had won them over by the end. Wolfwood too is only by his side because of his brother. But he thinks, hopes, that the affection they share became real by the end. So Jinwoo's comment makes sense. )

It won't be like that here. ( Resolute. He'll be the man's friend. ) People are friendly. I think it helps that we're all from the same sort of background. We know what it's like?

[ The sincerity in Vash's words is difficult to miss. At least there are still good people in the world, just like this guy, that makes it easier for Jinwoo to believe again. A smile rests on his lips. ]

That's true. The ones I've met here haven't been so bad, so I guess we'll see.

[ A few beats later, their food finally arrives. It's a decent spread with a good mix of sweet and savoury. Jinwoo has no idea where to start at this point given the options. ]

... You know, I didn't think the portions were going to be this much.

They'll give you a takeout box if you can't eat it all!

( Immediately he starts to tuck in, the promise of good food enough to move him, metal fingers clicking against the cutlery. ) Sometimes I take a bunch of the pie back to the kids in the orphanage. They like a treat for good behaviour.

( He starts cutting up his pancakes, cheerful. )

Maybe I'll come to your café and see what sweets I can take them too. I have a sweet tooth, it might have rubbed off on them. ( Or they're kids. Vash might simply be too childlike too. ) They definitely deserve some kindness. And cake.

( ooc. sorry i've been so slow. ;; work is just a Mess this month cries )

That's one thing we have in common. You can say I have a sweet tooth too, so I can recommend a few things.

[ The cafe's menu isn't that extensive, since the appeal is that you're meant to hang out with the cats after having a small snack, but there are still some things he prefers to eat whenever he works there. He's pretty sure Vash will like them too, considering how the man tackles the pancakes first instead of the savoury options.

He follows his lead and bites into the pancakes first. ]

Is it a challenge to look after so many kids?

ooc: u r absolutely a-okay there's never a time limit with me, i'll backtag into the sun.

Not really.

( Maybe.

And possibly for someone who isn't so quick on the draw as Vash is. ) A lot of the time it's just being around. They like a familiar face. And I get to play a whole bunch of games with them, so it's hardly a hardship. I like kids. I didn't always get to hang around them back on No Man's Land, but I enjoy seeing what they get up to. They're so much more honest than adults. Easy to understand. Funny too. It feels good. Productive. I'm helping people.

( Making a difference without harming anyone. He's greedy for the ability to be kind, to encourage. The kids help when he wants to abscond away from LILITH's control. )

( ooc. wah thank u ;u; i will also backtag forever so!! )

[ Jinwoo hums in understanding, absently cutting into another bite of the pancake. The way Vash talks about the kids is nice. Honest. There's no hesitation in his words, just a quiet certainty. ]

Kids don't pretend the way adults do. If they like you, they like you. And if they don't, you'll know.

[ His lips curve up slightly, not quite a smile but something close. ]

Sounds like they're lucky to have you around.

[ He's said something along the same lines already, but he means it. Vash might not say it outright, but Jinwoo can hazard a guess: he needs this just as much as the kids do. Maybe more. ]

ooc: i did let the airplane one go bc i felt like that was a nice ending and they can find something new together soon! hope that was okay!!!

You should come by sometime! They'd for sure like to hear about your job. Both of them, actually. We have some ones that really like cats, and there's a gang of girls now who go everywhere with a magnifying glass trying to figure out "mysteries". It's cute. Although apparently I'm usually the culprit.

( He's going to talk with his mouth full, sorry. )

Yumori says I have a guilty face. ( Eyes wide 🥺 ) I mean she did catch me sneaking in a bunch of Christmas stuff and then lying about it, but what was I supposed to do? I'd only just learnt about Santa.

( ooc. yeah, i was thinking it was good for wrap up, so that works for me! 🥺💜 )

[ Vash reminds him a lot of someone, especially right now as the man continues to ramble on. It's a good kind of familiarity at least, his lips curving upwards in a small smile. ]

Sure. I wouldn't mind dropping by. You can let me know what time works, and I'll make room for it. [ His schedule is so erratic at this point, so it's probably better this way. ] It'll also give me a chance to get to know them and see what they like to eat.

[ Then he can ask the cafe staff to set things up. ]

But I can see why she'd say that. You're very expressive, so it's probably hard for you to lie.

[ No pokerface at all... ]

I can lie!

( He says, not very convincingly, so perhaps both Yumori and Jinwoo are right. He's much better at concealing very specific things, but overall there's not a lot of subterfuge going on with Vash the Stampede. )

I just panic, sometimes. She saw me with all the gifts and I told her I had to fight some guy for them! I couldn't think of anything better. Someone needs to like, teach a class about it. How to Fib. We have professors here, maybe I should ask one of them.

... You'd want to learn how to lie better?

[ What an odd desire. Then again, Jinwoo supposes he can see the merit when it comes to telling white lies to kids. A brief pause, and then he jokingly says: ]

Maybe you can ask Silco about it.

[ And then immediately after— ]

That wasn't serious advice, by the way.

( He's going to ask Silco!!! Watch this space!!! )

I mean, sometimes lying is fine, right? Like when Meryl asked me if her hair was sitting all right, only the sand had made it all stick up on one end and then she got mad at me for lying badly. Possibly also because I was the reason for all the sand, but that was extenuating circumstances!

( Bad luck, bounty hunters, take your pick. )

I do think the rest of the world should be a little more honest, but that's a tall order. So I try and tell the truth whenever I can. When Santa doesn't need a hand, anyway.

( But: )

Silco's Brimstone, right? He won an award once.

If you want to learn how to lie better to help Santa out, then I doubt Silco is the best choice for that, but...

[ Silco is going to kill them both, but Jinwoo doesn't feel like taking back what he said. Not entirely. (Maybe he just wants to see what would happen, if Vash is completely serious about this.) ]

It's worth asking him. See what he says.

[ A beat. ]

How did he win an award?

I think something to do with the kaiju? LILITH likes to reward people.

( Vash has never managed it, but then Vash pulls every single punch he makes in favour of disarming rather than outright killing. Kaiju included. )

I think there was some fun shampoo once. And toys! We had fake guns once. It's pretty neat. Hey, maybe you'll get an award. I wonder what they'd pick for you.

... I don't know if I'd want an award for something like that. It sounds like trouble.

[ He also just hates the attention in general, so he'll skip it. ]

Maybe I'll pass the award to someone else, if I get one. Do you want it?

( Vash snorts, shaking his head. )

Nah, I've never been a rewards kind of guy. Usually I try to skip town before any of that stuff, and that's not something I can do here. So I'll stay on the backburner for now. Besides, I think it's mostly for the really heavy-hitters.

( Which Vash could be, if he wasn't having a moral quandary over the elimination of kaiju. )

I mostly stick to protecting the civilians. There's plenty of other heroes.

That's true. It does seem like there are a lot of heavy-hitters around...

[ With ego, too. Or so he's gathered from how the Outsiders talk about each other. ]

I'm more bewildered by how Silco managed to get one.

[ But maybe it's best not to find out? ]

Maybe he's got more to him than meets the eye to him? ( Says Vash, who won't even recognise him when they do meet for the first time, but that's fine. ) And I guess LILITH needs all sorts of people, right? Those heavy-hitters and the wily ones. It probably takes more than you'd think to try and win a war.

( He's not used to thinking on that kind of grand scale. Even if there's an entire gang of bounty hunters after him, Vash is usually pretty fast in narrowing the numbers down. Here is different, cosmic instead of anything else. )

Either way I'm sure they have their reasons for everyone here.

[ It's not like he can deny the truth in Vash's words. After all, he can see the merit in having someone like Silco here too— especially given what they've worked on together before. But he doesn't have to like it.

He can only shrug his shoulders. ]

That's true. Everyone can contribute to the cause in their own way, even someone like Silco. Maybe his role is to teach you how to lie better.

[ He is joking. ]

Wait until I ask him!

( He probably won't. He's not stupid enough to actively insult someone, especially because it's a little cruel. )

And then no one will ever be able to tell when I'm fibbing! I'll get so much better at cards. I'll win so many hands! I'll be rich.

( He will not. )

So your first order of business after learning how to lie is to play cards?

[ To be fair, he can't even fault him for that... Knowing how to bluff is a useful skill while gambling. ]

Be sure to treat me when you win the big prize.

Yeah! See, Wolfwood always says I have a shit poker face, and if he ever comes back I need to be better at it. Then I can win his money and use it to buy him cigarettes, right? Bonus points.

( Fool proof plan. )

[ Jinwoo almost feels bad for this guy called Wolfwood, since Vash seems like the type to remain persistent once he's made up his mind. ]

You can practice with me sometime. I was told I have a pretty good poker face.

( Don't feel bad for him!!! He deserves it. )

Oh, do you play? Maybe we should. We could get a group together. Have a night of it!

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[ closed ] why don’t grains use social media?

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not me not even sure if vash was in the game when silco won the award, oops

it's okay... timelines are fuzzy :nodding:

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