[ The crab rave was the last place she expected to find Tomioka, and it would be incredibly endearing if the situation weren't so grim. He's always been something of a loner, but right now she doesn't want to leave him be. This is different from demon slaying. ]
[ look, the crab rave is for them to look at something while he says absolutely nothing for long stretches of time. that said, he'll acknowledge her when she greets him. it's a modest head nod at best. ]
that was unexpected. sure, he concluded that mitsuri may be one of the very few people that actually thinks of him as a friend but—well... never mind.
if she isn't sitting yet, he will gesture to a space near him if she wants to take a seat. it's not something he'd normally do by any means but something tells him this is okay. ]
I'm doing fine. [ ... ] Thank you for your concern.
[ if not a friend, he's a pillar in the demon slayer corps that she considers her family. he's family. and tomorrow, he'll be put to test in a way no one should have to be. she wants to weep for him.
when he gestures beside him, she blinks and goes wide-eyed. shinobu's words during trial rush back to her. with a small nod, mitsuri strides over to sit next to tomioka.
there's a difference between being alone and lonely. while she's much closer to shinobu, she doesn't want tomioka to feel lonely. ]
These crabs are very fond of dancing, aren't they?
[ when she takes a seat next to him he is honestly surprised that she does. yes, mitsuri isn't cagey like the rest of them and expresses herself freely, but it doesn't change that this small action proves something that he guessed at.
the conversion moving to the dancing crabs is all the more welcoming as well as he turns his attention at them. he's not good at talking but... that should be fine, right? ]
They are. Each night that I've come here they're always dancing without fail.
[ he comes here often, she realizes, while the crabs never stop dancing. will they be able to keep going without stopping, too? (when she watches them like this, she feels a little bad for eating so many of their brethren.) ]
Are you hungry? I can harvest a couple of coconuts for us to eat while we watch.
[ if it were possible, he'd prefer to go back to his camp to rest but he isn't sure if zoe would be there or not. the main reason he sits at the beach is to delay him going back as he should. ]
But you can still get some anyway.
[ because she must be hungry, right? given how they must scavenge for their own food, for the most part, she must be working double time. ]
[ leaving now to treat herself would be defeating the purpose of why she's here, though his kindness isn't lost on her. unfortunately, she doesn't know what else she can do for tomioka other than sit with him in silent company.
perhaps that's the best she can manage for now. ]
I have coconut water in my canteen. I'll drink that and grab something to eat on the way back.
[ when she decides to stay, again, he only nods. ]
Okay.
[ though with that said, he isn't too sure what these else that he can say. he came out here to watch the crabs dance and to meditate on what will be expected of him in the coming day, so the company is... well, it leaves him wondering if he should say something. the trial along with some other conversations have lead to him thinking about how he needs to behave.
...should behave? but he is...bad at all of this. ]
[ tomioka doesn't have to change a thing. mitsuri loves him just the way he is—though that's probably not obvious to him, is it? she did overhear everyone's discussion about his personality during the trial.
it's unfortunate, but they can't keep ignoring the elephant in the room. ]
[ to think that giyuu truly understands why others think of him is... hopefully he'll get a clue as to what he can interpret, or at least get someone to teach him. the elephant in the room did have to be addressed eventually but at least mitsuri isn't overbearing about it. ]
I am.
[ he lowers his gaze as a crab shuffles closer to them during its dance. ]
certainly, she can't imagine another outcome. they collected what evidence they could and questioned everyone accordingly. from an objective standpoint, there was plenty lacking; however, shinobu didn't arrive to her conclusion based on nothing, nor was tomioka forced into this position (putting aside that all of this has been forced onto them).
as terrible as all of this is, mitsuri wants to believe in the people who embody her home. ]
I didn't choose you to be our executioner . . . but you have my full support.
[ has a mental image of mitsuri kicking the hapless crab across the beach..... no, but the crab does scurry close enough for giyuu to move his foot at it for it scuttle further away.
it's enough of a distraction for giyuu to briefly mull over how he wasn't her choice of executioner, which he could guess might be because they're...friends. friends? yeah. ]
Who did you choose?
[ ogata was the other person who volunteered and he was part of her camp, right? was it him? ]
[ the easy reason is that ogata volunteered first. like many of the islanders, she doesn't agree with his callous way of speaking where lives are concerned, but she also knows that he isn't just a sum of those cruel words. ]
Despite everything he said, he's a soldier in the army. He must've trained years to handle a gun. When aimed right, a gun can take a life in an instant.
[ as a military man, ogata must boast some measure of discipline. he must've taken lives before, too. tomioka, while more familiar to mitsuri, is a demon slayer whose job is to slay demons. at the end of the day, ogata has more experience in this matter. selfishly, mitsuri wanted to spare tomioka the trauma of taking a non-demon life. ]
Some were worried that he might enjoy it, weren't they?
[ giyuu's opinion of ogata is rock bottom, but he doesn't include his feelings in that. sure he didn't make the best impression himself and the man did threaten him after just barely spending any time with him, but he won't speak for anyone else. giyuu hadn't caught on to everything everyone else was concerned about but... ]
...but I also voted for him.
[ if only because he volunteered for the position and his counter only existed because he wasn't sure if the man would be uncomfortable shooting a child. apparently, none of that mattered. ]
[ tomioka is kind. if ogata had qualms about shooting someone with the appearance and mentality of a child, he wouldn't have offered in the first place. today has been a strong example of why tomioka is a good person.
she questions if ogata would enjoy the act of executing a child, to say nothing of his willingness to even go there. maybe he wouldn't be shaken. he strikes her as rather blasé—and calculating—all around. ]
I'm sorry.
[ she says those words with gratitude. tomioka could've voted his fellow slayers who're capable of similar killing feats as him, but he didn't. ]
[ her apology takes giyuu by surprise as he wasn't expecting it and it comes seemingly out of nowhere. was there anything during their conversation that he said something that would cause her to apologize? he replays the conversation back in his mind but nothing stands out.
what's weirder is that she sounds more grateful than apologetic. was voting for ogata a bad thing or a good thing? ]
For what?
[ when in doubt, it doesn't hurt to vocalize the confusion. well, thought most of it was likely already written on his face before he thought to respond. ]
[ it would be overstepping to spill all of her thoughts and feelings here. regardless of tomioka's intentions, he's had a certain effect on mitsuri. for that, she'll be eternally grateful.
and for all that he plays the part of the loner, he cares deeply. she loves that most about him. ]
We're fortunate to have someone like you with us on this island.
[ if this was supposed to make more sense then it does not make any more sense than her apology. he has no idea why she's suddenly calling him kind. being considered kind is a weird one since that's not something he gets told often...or at all. (marie called him kind.)
though, he's not insensitive enough to brush off her words as nothing and instead finds something to say in response. however clumsy or weird sounding it might end up being. honestly what did he do? ]
It benefits from all of us.
[ that sounds like the right thing to say... ]
It's good that both Kocho and you're here, Kanroji.
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Week 1: Post-trial
Tomioka?
no subject
[ look, the crab rave is for them to look at something while he says absolutely nothing for long stretches of time. that said, he'll acknowledge her when she greets him. it's a modest head nod at best. ]
You're not going to go back to your camp?
[ sorry about your water............ ]
no subject
she folds her hands in front of her. ]
I wanted to see how you were doing first.
no subject
that was unexpected. sure, he concluded that mitsuri may be one of the very few people that actually thinks of him as a friend but—well... never mind.
if she isn't sitting yet, he will gesture to a space near him if she wants to take a seat. it's not something he'd normally do by any means but something tells him this is okay. ]
I'm doing fine. [ ... ] Thank you for your concern.
no subject
when he gestures beside him, she blinks and goes wide-eyed. shinobu's words during trial rush back to her. with a small nod, mitsuri strides over to sit next to tomioka.
there's a difference between being alone and lonely. while she's much closer to shinobu, she doesn't want tomioka to feel lonely. ]
These crabs are very fond of dancing, aren't they?
no subject
the conversion moving to the dancing crabs is all the more welcoming as well as he turns his attention at them. he's not good at talking but... that should be fine, right? ]
They are. Each night that I've come here they're always dancing without fail.
no subject
Are you hungry? I can harvest a couple of coconuts for us to eat while we watch.
no subject
[ if it were possible, he'd prefer to go back to his camp to rest but he isn't sure if zoe would be there or not. the main reason he sits at the beach is to delay him going back as he should. ]
But you can still get some anyway.
[ because she must be hungry, right? given how they must scavenge for their own food, for the most part, she must be working double time. ]
no subject
perhaps that's the best she can manage for now. ]
I have coconut water in my canteen. I'll drink that and grab something to eat on the way back.
no subject
Okay.
[ though with that said, he isn't too sure what these else that he can say. he came out here to watch the crabs dance and to meditate on what will be expected of him in the coming day, so the company is... well, it leaves him wondering if he should say something. the trial along with some other conversations have lead to him thinking about how he needs to behave.
...should behave? but he is...bad at all of this. ]
no subject
it's unfortunate, but they can't keep ignoring the elephant in the room. ]
Um, are you thinking about tomorrow?
no subject
I am.
[ he lowers his gaze as a crab shuffles closer to them during its dance. ]
This is the best outcome for the situation.
no subject
certainly, she can't imagine another outcome. they collected what evidence they could and questioned everyone accordingly. from an objective standpoint, there was plenty lacking; however, shinobu didn't arrive to her conclusion based on nothing, nor was tomioka forced into this position (putting aside that all of this has been forced onto them).
as terrible as all of this is, mitsuri wants to believe in the people who embody her home. ]
I didn't choose you to be our executioner . . . but you have my full support.
no subject
it's enough of a distraction for giyuu to briefly mull over how he wasn't her choice of executioner, which he could guess might be because they're...friends. friends? yeah. ]
Who did you choose?
[ ogata was the other person who volunteered and he was part of her camp, right? was it him? ]
no subject
[ the easy reason is that ogata volunteered first. like many of the islanders, she doesn't agree with his callous way of speaking where lives are concerned, but she also knows that he isn't just a sum of those cruel words. ]
Despite everything he said, he's a soldier in the army. He must've trained years to handle a gun. When aimed right, a gun can take a life in an instant.
[ as a military man, ogata must boast some measure of discipline. he must've taken lives before, too. tomioka, while more familiar to mitsuri, is a demon slayer whose job is to slay demons. at the end of the day, ogata has more experience in this matter. selfishly, mitsuri wanted to spare tomioka the trauma of taking a non-demon life. ]
no subject
Some were worried that he might enjoy it, weren't they?
[ giyuu's opinion of ogata is rock bottom, but he doesn't include his feelings in that. sure he didn't make the best impression himself and the man did threaten him after just barely spending any time with him, but he won't speak for anyone else. giyuu hadn't caught on to everything everyone else was concerned about but... ]
...but I also voted for him.
[ if only because he volunteered for the position and his counter only existed because he wasn't sure if the man would be uncomfortable shooting a child. apparently, none of that mattered. ]
no subject
she questions if ogata would enjoy the act of executing a child, to say nothing of his willingness to even go there. maybe he wouldn't be shaken. he strikes her as rather blasé—and calculating—all around. ]
I'm sorry.
[ she says those words with gratitude. tomioka could've voted his fellow slayers who're capable of similar killing feats as him, but he didn't. ]
no subject
what's weirder is that she sounds more grateful than apologetic. was voting for ogata a bad thing or a good thing? ]
For what?
[ when in doubt, it doesn't hurt to vocalize the confusion. well, thought most of it was likely already written on his face before he thought to respond. ]
no subject
[ it would be overstepping to spill all of her thoughts and feelings here. regardless of tomioka's intentions, he's had a certain effect on mitsuri. for that, she'll be eternally grateful.
and for all that he plays the part of the loner, he cares deeply. she loves that most about him. ]
We're fortunate to have someone like you with us on this island.
no subject
though, he's not insensitive enough to brush off her words as nothing and instead finds something to say in response. however clumsy or weird sounding it might end up being. honestly what did he do? ]
It benefits from all of us.
[ that sounds like the right thing to say... ]
It's good that both Kocho and you're here, Kanroji.