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soul_logs2012-09-18 08:48 am
dead_black_eyes) wrote in soul_logs2012-09-18 08:48 am
Entry tags:
Very Bad Things, Such Horrible Things, but it's Not Quite What it Seems [March 23]
Characters: L Lawliet, Light Yagami, and Mello
Location: Various locations in Death City, depending on the people and the thread.
Rating: PG-13 for mentions of violence, probably
Time: 23rd March, late afternoon (and potentially going quite late)
Description: L's been putting his life together, finding purpose outside of his obsession, and generally working on moving on from the case that killed him. But addicts have a discouragingly high relapse rate, and Light is back in the city.
Around 5:00 PM, after a long, tiring day working on his latest assignment, L was still restless and strangely dissatisfied. Maybe it was because Kadaj was more difficult than he'd ever given the man credit for. It wasn't like supervising a criminal so much as babysitting a petulant child or a beastly, pigheaded animal. But that shouldn't have been it. L had always rejoiced in challenges, even if meant that his weight dropped and his under eye circles started to look like he'd been punched in a bad bar fight. Physical deterioration was a small price to pay to keep his boredom and competitive hunger at bay, but that was just it.
L had been piling on especially punishing missions, company and assignments, but they only suppressed his hunger. They did nothing in the long term to sate it, and the irony was he was actually doing better for it. Bakura had seemingly stepped up as his caretaker by proxy, ensuring that L's sleeping schedule was relatively regular and he was fed daily. He had friends and even a partner. Despite L's hunger, it was a nonessential craving for something that was indisputably damaging, and he was well aware of it. A simple example of mind over matter, and the oft-repeated patient words that made him want to bite his own tongue in half, this too shall pass.
Location: Various locations in Death City, depending on the people and the thread.
Rating: PG-13 for mentions of violence, probably
Time: 23rd March, late afternoon (and potentially going quite late)
Description: L's been putting his life together, finding purpose outside of his obsession, and generally working on moving on from the case that killed him. But addicts have a discouragingly high relapse rate, and Light is back in the city.
Around 5:00 PM, after a long, tiring day working on his latest assignment, L was still restless and strangely dissatisfied. Maybe it was because Kadaj was more difficult than he'd ever given the man credit for. It wasn't like supervising a criminal so much as babysitting a petulant child or a beastly, pigheaded animal. But that shouldn't have been it. L had always rejoiced in challenges, even if meant that his weight dropped and his under eye circles started to look like he'd been punched in a bad bar fight. Physical deterioration was a small price to pay to keep his boredom and competitive hunger at bay, but that was just it.
L had been piling on especially punishing missions, company and assignments, but they only suppressed his hunger. They did nothing in the long term to sate it, and the irony was he was actually doing better for it. Bakura had seemingly stepped up as his caretaker by proxy, ensuring that L's sleeping schedule was relatively regular and he was fed daily. He had friends and even a partner. Despite L's hunger, it was a nonessential craving for something that was indisputably damaging, and he was well aware of it. A simple example of mind over matter, and the oft-repeated patient words that made him want to bite his own tongue in half, this too shall pass.
[Action]
He wheeled in the direction of the noise in time to see the retreating back of a tall, wiry male that moved too fluidly to have been L, even at his best attempt at pretending. It could, of course, have been a coincidence that someone had happened to be back here with him. A worker from one of the stores, or a resident of one of the apartments likewise hoping to avoid main street traffic were both perfectly plausible scenarios. Even someone who thought they might take a chance in mugging him was a possibility. But then, Light was not so stupid as to assume that ANY of those people would see the need to suddenly change their mind and avoid him. Not unless they were someone who knew what they were looking for and had seen too much.
"Hey...!" he barked after his would-be stalker.
[Action]
Except someone who wasn't stalking him would be startled, and possibly offended.
This was why Mello hated subterfuge. Why couldn't you just loathe someone right out loud?
He spun, and feigned his best version of surprise. If Yagami did know his face, it would be obvious soon enough. Mello had his gun, if it came to that; he didn't reach for it, but let his right arm rest at his side, where he could if he needed to.
"Me? What?"
[Action]
"....sorry." he said, running a hand back along his hairline in exasperation that didn't need to be feigned, and hopefully tipped him over from 'paranoid creep lurking in the alley' to 'wayward stranger in a strange land'. "I thought you were someone I knew. I guess it was just wishful thinking."
[Action]
Mello did his best impression of a stranger confused by an odd turn of phrase. He couldn't have been sure, but he didn't think Yagami recognized him. If he didn't, it was a golden opportunity to gather information.
"Are you looking for someone? I haven't been here very long myself."
[Action]
"Not particularly." he admitted. "Though, it would have been nice to see a familiar face."
As he spoke, he began to close the distance between the two of them to a more comfortable conversational point.
"I'm sure you can agree it's hard to find your bearings again in a place like this."
[Action]
Mello could do that, too.
Disingenuous wasn't in his emotional vocabulary, and would ring false if he tried it. Irritation, though? He had that down.
"Tell me about it," he said. "And getting dropped into the middle of this war... I'm a student. I don't know how to fight."
[Action]
He was satisfied, up close, he'd never seen this man before...though there was something about him that nagged. Something that was easily dismissed as residual wariness at having convinced himself the stranger was L just a moment ago.
"Have you been here long?" The question served two purposes - idle conversation and to hopefully fish for information. Maybe there was some sort of time frame those brought here were expected to serve before being sent back.
[Action]
There was a sidewise insult in that comment about BREW's choices, one Mello tried to keep from noticeably bristling at, before deciding the hell with it. The delayed reaction time worked in his favor, he thought, making it seem as if he had to think about it before detecting the offense.
"You don't look like much of a soldier yourself, you know."