(OPEN) Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

[symmetrophile]

Who: Villa residents and all visitors.
When: December 25th
Where: The Villa
Style: Whatever you like!
Status: Open!


[Hey, guess what?

IT'S CHRISTMAS! Which means Villa residents will be trading gift-wrapped presents and enjoying a delicious holiday feast prepared by a very hard-working Rin Okumura, so be sure to thank him!

The threads below are meant for mingling, the exchanging of gifts and other holiday activities!]

Comments

[symmetrophile]

Your communicator should fit into that slot. The attached clip can attach it to your belt.

[Simple.

But emblazoned with a stylized skull as it is, seems more suited to a student of Shibusen like Maka and Soul than an exorcist of an organization from another version of Earth entirely.]

I can show you, if you'd like.

[keepsthefire]

Oh. Cool.

[Not something he was expecting, but it would be easier to put it there then have it awkwardly in his pocket, or even putting it in his apron and forgetting like he's wont to do sometimes.]

Yeah, sure.

[He moves over on the bed, handing the gift back and picking up his SFC where he'd left it on his nightstand.]

[symmetrophile]

[Taking that for a nonverbal invitation (whether it was meant to be or not), Kid seats himself on the recently vacated space on the edge of his bed. Skull-shaped belt-clip in hand, and reaching for Rin's SFC with the other, he demonstrates its insertion into its home slot three times.

A fingertip indicates the clip that would fit against his belt.]

And it fits here. Why not give it a try?

[keepsthefire]

Thanks...

[That was an actual smile, given after he watched Kid clip and unclip the SFC. He took it back, standing up so he could find a place to put it on his belt.]

Like that?

1/2

[symmetrophile]

[Squaring off his view with his fingers, Kid observes it for a moment, reaches as if he intended to make an adjustment, and--

Refrains, but not without great effort.]

2/2

[symmetrophile]

[In fact, there's a moment when his fingers twitch as if he was about to give in to the impulse to make some incredibly minute correction, but he ultimately nods.]

Yes, well done.

[More importantly:]

Do you like it?

[keepsthefire]

[The motion doesn't go unnoticed by Rin, and he almost lets him fix it, but a cursory glance shows him that whatever Kid wanted to fix, it couldn't have been much. Everything looks straight from where he's standing.]

Yeah! Wish I had somethin' this awesome lookin' for my cell phone back home.

[symmetrophile]

Silver suits you.

[He climbs to his feet, hands cradled in his pockets, satisfied with what he perceives is a job well done.]

Although it's one of your Christmas presents, please also consider it an apology.

[keepsthefire]

... oh.

[That.]

... nothin' to apologize for. I was gonna find out sooner or later, wasn't I?

[The shrug was an attempt at being nonchalant, but even Kid would have to call bullshit on any attempt Rin might have at behaving as if it were no big deal. Really, he couldn't make it any more obvious that he was dealing with painful emotions unless he wore a neon sign that spelled it out.]

[symmetrophile]

[The reaper calmly corrects him:] Maybe, but there are better ways.

[Although he puts on a tough act and tries to play things off like they don't affect him, Rin's the honest kind of person who nevertheless wears his heart on his sleeve; Kid could easily tell he had been out of sorts ever since he so thoughtlessly blurted it out.]

...

Are you worried others might think you weak for being moved?

[keepsthefire]

[That's not something that can really be argued with, but there is a half shrug at the correction.]

... what? N-no! I don't give a fuck what other people think of me anyway.

[That's a lie, but he continues before Kid can immediately call him out on it.]

I don't know what to think, okay? The whole damn situation is weird and fucked up.

1/2

[symmetrophile]

[Whatever you say, Rin.]

2/2

[symmetrophile]

Then don't think too much on it.

[Brooding in here is too lonely an activity for this time of year. Besides, it makes his friends worry.]

You have here the opportunity to connect with someone you could become close to. Is that a chance you really want to pass up?

[keepsthefire]

... no, but--

[But what happens when she goes back, when I go back? What if something happens to her and I can't stop it? What if she gets to know me and hates the kind of person I've become?

The 'but' lingered in the air for a moment before Rin snapped his mouth shut. He could blurt out a million questions and Kid would probably say the exact same thing. He knew better than to try to figure out answers to things he couldn't wrap his head around.

All he could do was move forward.]

... no. I don't wanna pass that up.

[symmetrophile]

Good. Although the chances that your longevity has increased because of your half-demonic heritage, the same hardly applies to most of those you meet everyday.

As their lives are comparatively short, the saying 'there's no time like the present' applies equally.

[Getting lectured by a grim reaper about taking opportunity before it passes you by, huh. Just what he needs.

Someone might think this isn't even Kid's place to correct him, but then, being the son of the god of a whole world, he obviously feels totally entitled.]

[keepsthefire]

... thanks, like I need to be reminded of that. Can I not think about morbid shit like that until I've passed fifty at least?

[Seriously, Kid. You may be okay with it but most people would rather not think about the eventual mortality of their friends. Or the fact that they might out live them by hundreds of years.]

[symmetrophile]

...

[Wow, that face.

Only Kid would have the gall to be put out by another fellow nearly-immortal giving him some push-back about some so-called morbid shit. Only Kid.]

[keepsthefire]

[You're getting the same exact expression back, Kid.]

... I'm sixteen and I only learned about this shit a year and a half ago. What'd you expect me to say?

[symmetrophile]

It's not important.

[And for a moment, it seems like Kid might just let this go.





Nah, his luck is total shit this week, remember?]

I merely thought you'd be able to understand, seeing as you're technically a prince.

[keepsthefire]

[Ooooof course.

Don't mind the twitching, Kid. He's just trying to restrain himself.]

What makes you say that? I never said I was a prince of anythin'.

[symmetrophile]

[Aaaaand all at once, there's the weight of a certain tome being placed against the top of Rin's head, produced out of thin air (with a crackle of black energy) and clutched in Kid's pale fingers.

He lifts it, and the title can be seen.

Demon Kings of Gehenna.]

I'm not stupid, Rin.

[keepsthefire]

[Rin lets out a grunt at the book attacking his head, one eye peeking open after the assault to see the title.

Damn.

He really screwed himself with that one.]

Never said you were! Don't mean I gotta admit to bein' one!

[symmetrophile]

It doesn't matter anyway.

I thought you, of all people, might have understood that, but it seems I was wrong.

[Not that it's that big a deal, Kid's used to keeping a lot of these sorts of things to himself. But really, a guy called Death the Kid sounding morbid? SAY IT ISN'T SO.]

[keepsthefire]

[He might be twitching a little, and his tail is certainly lashing around a lot more.]

What part of "raised human" don't you get? You were born in to your life, you got everything explained to you probably from the minute you could understand it. I got the truth hidden from me until the day before my dad died tryin' to protect me from it all.

I didn't choose this life, Kid. And you didn't choose yours but at least you have a birthright you can be proud of. I like you, I consider you a friend, but don't stand there on your grim reaper high horse and act like you understand a damn thing about what I've gone through in the past year.

[symmetrophile]

[Hey. Rin.

Hey.

You know the kind of steady, unwavering, piercing stare that gets more and more unsettling the longer it continues? Or how about how these sorts of looks, more often than not, result in making people feel increasingly self-conscious?

Kid is fucking great at these.]