august catch all | sentimental journey

[divinereaper]

🧙 WHO: Naoto Kurogane and You! (With one closed thread)
⚔️️ WHAT: Daily dealings for the month of August
🕒 WHEN: All throughout August
🗺️ WHERE: Camelot
⚠️ WARNINGS: blood, for the most part. Naoto’s very fond of using blood magic.

[ prompts are in the comments, as usual! ]

Comments

cafe things | a boy and his tired thoughts

[divinereaper]

[ he’s not having the best of days: first, his shirt gets caught on the door frame, making him bang his head. next, he’s sure he’s overworked his arm, given how much it hurts at his shoulder. now his mood was in the pits and he couldn’t do much to fix anything. to let himself relax, he decides to take some time away from the hectic cafe life, before any of his employees lovingly force him to do just that.. ]

Just my luck… [ he sighs, taking a bite of one of many madeleines that made up half of august’s special. catch him snacking away as he contemplates life. ]

[fooligans]

[ Akira's been here to witness Naoto's door frame accident which actually has happened to him once before, so he can relate. Knowing better than bother him while the cafe is busy, Akira joins him to contemplate life. ]

Happens to the best of us. Tomorrow will be better.

[ He musters up a smile, just like he wanted to believe in these words himself. ]

I saw everything, that door frame came after you. You had no chance of dodging.

[ Maybe cracking a joke will help a little. ]

[divinereaper]

God, I sure hope so.

[ he appreciates akira’s words, regardless, his own smile being genuine. until the comment about the door, which earns him a lighthearted nudge and a laugh. ]

Yeah, too fast for me to dodge. What an evil door.

[fooligans]

Don't let them off the hook so easily next time.

[ Akira knows Naoto has it in him. All in all, he's experienced it first hand during that one tournament. ]

What's up with you these days? You're a successful teashop owner now. You've grown up so fast.

[divinereaper]

… And break the door I spent money on? Akira, are you okay?

[ spending more money on avoidable repairs does not sound appealing. ]

Aside from running this place, not much. I do have a feeling the coffee machine hates me, though.

[fooligans]

Just joking around like usual.

[ Best coping method, period. ]

Maybe it's jealous of all the tea.

[ Maybe he's joking more than usual. ]

Do you need help with that? I used to help out at my guardian's cafe, so I know this and that.

[divinereaper]

[ naoto stares at him, almost scrutinizing him. hum. he didn’t need his eye to know something’s up, but he doesn’t say anything as he shoves another madeleine in his mouth.

he drops it for another day. besides, the offer to help him around the cafe made his eyebrows shoot way up. ]

I’m always in need of new help, but you sure? I don’t want to impose.

closed to makoto + darin | monster no more

[divinereaper]

[ naoto had a hard time living without a second hand. he thought himself spoiled back home now, given his power was strong enough to sustain having an arm. sure, he’s adapted to life without it, but something about not having his arm sends some really dark feelings within himself that even he’s unsure where they would go with time.

he tries not to think on how being in celliwig was the only place he could be normal. he tries not to think on any of that, given that he has people who care for him, who care despite having a very visible disability.

he just tries to ignore it all as he stays in his apartment, staring at literally nothing. just waiting out time before the cafe opens. ]

[roseeclair]

[Wow, that sure is a lot of brooding. It'd be a shame if it was interrupted by say... a rather sunny text from his girlfriend?]

Hey, babe~!
Mind meeting me at Forge Ahead before work?
I need your opinion on something! <3

[Oh darn, look at that.]

[forgeabettertomorrow]

[Meanwhile, Darin was having a hell of a time getting the forge ready for what was to come. He'd spent the last month working on this undertaking and while he'd made prosthetics before, he'd never tried anything so ambitious. Needles to say, more than a few all-nighters were spent putting this all together.]

[He'd even shut down the forge for the day so that he, Naoto, and Makoto had privacy to work.]

[He waits excitedly for the couple to make their appearance, fiddling with his tools impatiently.]

[divinereaper]

[ surprised by the sudden invite to forge ahead, naoto had an urge to ask why, but decided against it for the time being. if makoto’s being vague about it, then there was also no way she would divulge information that easily… with a shrug, he sends off a reply. ]

sure…?
if this is a surprise date that’s kinda a bad place… but i ain’t that picky
see you there, babe

[ he soon heads out, curious as to why forge ahead was the meet up spot. did she need his opinion on something for the cafe? it doesn’t take much time to get there, however. naoto knows the route, after all. ]

[roseeclair]

[Ahaha... ha... sure, Naoto, flatter your girlfriend by thinking she's anything but an open book.

[She sends Naoto a winky face blowing him a kiss before turning to Darin.]

Okay, Naoto-kun's on his way.

[forgeabettertomorrow]

[HEY! FORGE AHEAD IS A PERFECT SPOT FOR A DATE! THERE'S AMBIANCE! THINGS TO DO! THE NERVE OF—]

[Darin's in the process of finishing up the sterilization of his equipment.]

I really hope Naoto likes it. Not that I can't make changes, in fact, it's designed specifically to be upgraded but...

I dunno. The few times I've spoken with him I had a hard time getting a read on the guy.

post-operation | testing out the new you

[divinereaper]

[ naoto’s new arm was nothing short of a miracle.

did he tear up at every single thought and how loving his girlfriend was to commission darin for it? yes. naoto’s a very emotional boy right now and he’s trying his best to deal with everything. but instead of just sob happy tears, he decides to take a more proactive approach to the entire healing process.

catch him in the cafe, trying to grab the finer things such as spoons and other tea making utensils, or on the training grounds, trying to get his new arm used to more strenuous activity. ]

hrm let's try training grounds

[whirlwindthrust]

[ Xiao frequents the training grounds as is. Some might take to meditation to settle their mind, but for him? He needs more "strenuous activity." The Yaksha has spent at least 2000 years roaming the countryside and slaying various creatures and beings to maintain order in Liyue. Being here, despite the over all goal, is not particularly easy for him. Of course he is also being tasked to attempt new things. To develop things like hobbies and desires to follow through with.

It's confusing, since he's never given such things thought nor power before. So to alleviate this confusion, Xiao has his spear in hand, tearing down one practice dummy after another without giving much thought to how much he's probably sending shards and pieces flying. ]

[divinereaper]

[ and rogue shards of dummy do fly naoto’s way.

luckily, the first shard headed his way was one he managed to catch with his right hand, which earned a sigh of relief. the arm could hold up to his quick reflexes, which means a lot of good things were to come… that is, until a second piece came flying in and hit him straight on the face.

oh, there were questions to be asked. or maybe yelled. naoto’s anger was bubbling, and he didn’t know how long he could stay calm. ]

Oi, watch where you’re aiming!! Are you trying to hurt someone?! [ said as he’s waving the first piece he caught. ]

[whirlwindthrust]

[ Honestly it isn't his intention. Xiao simply doesn't know how to hold back. Pulling his blows isn't something that he really knows how to do. Doesn't desire to.

The yelling does, however, get his attention. It doesn't bother him. Doesn't get much of a reaction from him though either. ]

I was not. Perhaps these "training dummies" should be made with sturdier materials.

[divinereaper]

[ that lack of a reaction annoys him even more. it’s almost as if he was looking down at him— naoto has to stop himself before he loses control, indicated by a shake of his head. he may be quick to anger but he’s not an idiot.

and judging from the… rather blunt reply that he got, naoto’s starting to think he’s just got someone who’s lived a long time. he’s learned to identify them by the air of nonchalance people like them have. he huffs, throwing the dummy piece behind him to gods know where. ]

Yeah, yeah, I hear ya, but money’s probably tight for the people who run this place too. Give ‘em a break. But even so, learn how to not throw shreds everywhere. if you need a sparring partner or something, just say so… [ anything to avoid the stray dummy flying everywhere. ]

[whirlwindthrust]

[ Oh there's no looking down here. At least again, it isn't intentional. However that is pretty much what Xiao's tone would lead people to believe. And he doesn't see an issue with that either. Doesn't feel the need to necessarily change that. ]

Many can simply use magic just as we do. Could one blessed with Alchemy Magic conjure something with stone or steel without much effort.

[ Yet he catches the muttered words all the same. If one needs a sparring partner. ]

Do you think you could provide an appropriate challenge?

CAFE

[worldsokayestdad]

((ooc: this went up when I was in the middle of hospital stuff and I missed it SORRY 8())

[Kratos is one of those people that usually shows up early for work, either because he's a workaholic or because he's just bad at sleeping and wakes up too early. Who knows. Either way he's here, half awake, putting on a pot of coffee before he realizes that there's something very different about his boss today.]

...Where did that come from?

[If he was a little more awake, maybe he would have handled that a bit more tactfully. But he's not, so you get morning Kratos.]

[divinereaper]

[ (ooc: its okay!! i hope everything is okay!)

naoto knows that kratos was an early worker, which didn't bother him-- he always needed extra hands in the morning rush. of course, he needed the time to adjust, so what better way to do so than to be working on cafe things!

but when asked 'where', not 'when', naoto had to cover his mouth to stop the laughter threatening to spill. ]

Makoto had it commissioned from Forge Ahead! Isn't it nice?

[worldsokayestdad]

[ (ooc: Everything's cool, I'm doing much better now!)

He's not entirely sure what he'd said that Naoto found amusing, but he decides to not think too hard about it. It's too early for thinking anyway, and he hasn't had his coffee yet.

He actually looks a little surprised when Naoto tells him where the arm came from, and comes closer to inspect the limb for himself.]

I see. This is... remarkably detailed. I didn't realize that blacksmith was capable of something like this. May I see?

[As much as he wants to see how it's put together, he doesn't want to just start prodding at Naoto's cool arm without permission like a weirdo.

[divinereaper]

[ naoto didn't mind kratos looking-- in fact, he was used to the intrustive type of curiosity after experiencing the person known as relius clover. he nods, pulling off the sleeve he wore to show off the new work. ]

Yeah, neither did I! Makoto and Darin both told me it took a whole month to make this thing. It runs on magic, so I'm using water for sanitary's sake.

[worldsokayestdad]

[He wanted to at least ask first, he didn't want to be all rude.

Now that he can see the whole arm, he can see just how much care and detail Darin put into it. To say that Kratos is impressed would be an understatement, he is positively blown away by the craftsmanship. Look, he even has a smile on his face for once.]

So you're able to operate it with your elemental magic? That's brilliant, I never would have thought of implementing it in this sort of way.

event | telling a story...?

[divinereaper]

[ it was such a daunting task, being told to tell a story. naoto wondererd how he was going to do such a thing? he's only got so many happy memories... that didn't involve avalon.

so he sat at the fireplace, poking away at the ground with a foot as he thought about what story to tell. he doubted he'd even need to tell a story, but he stayed, even if he felt that his presence would ruin the mood. ]

... Maybe I could talk about Raquel...?