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Post by taylor on Oct 9, 2011 23:07:42 GMT -5
'Well this was somewhat embarrassing', thought Taylor as he stood outside the building that matched the address scribbled on a small bit of paper that had been left for him by his mother that morning. Taylor knew that he had been long overdue for some sort of tending to his hair, and had only just been directly addressed about it last night upon actually seeing his mother for longer than a few minutes. Her immediate response to it was to book an appointment at a nearby place to “tidy it up a bit”. Of course Taylor himself would have been perfectly satisfied with doing it on his own but she would have none of that, and since he really had nothing better to do, and it gave him an excuse to go somewhere, he accepted with minimal protest. What she hadn’t told him was that this local place was a salon, which in his experience was not usually a place too many individuals of the masculine gender frequented.
Well, there went his reputation right out the door. He had already been teased about not being particularly manly, but this here would take the cake. Plus he now realized he would have to explain why his hair looked the way it did...all white and somewhat dry thanks to the bleach he used (not something he was looking forward to at all). All he could hope for was that no one he knew was hanging about, which honestly shouldn’t be too hard. He still didn’t know all that many people here yet; something he did intend to change soon. But not now. Now he was fine with being alone. Well almost alone. He never really was anymore, what with Bakumon once more settled in his bag. Taylor had wanted to leave him in his room today, seeing as this could not have been the most fascinating outing ever, but today the cleaner was going to be digging around the place and he couldn’t risk unwanted discoveries. And so, now here they were, loitering outside the salon, with Taylor furtively shooting looks around the street to ensure no one he knew was about.
It was a lovely morning, a gentle warm breeze wafting about him, the sky near cloudless and air at just the right comfort level. A few people were already out and about, getting their morning started early, or just enjoying the warm weather that was becoming increasingly uncommon for this time of year. Despite the warmth, Taylor himself still wore one of his many sweaters under a light trenchcoat style jacket. If Taylor was hot, he didn’t show it, and instead took a couple more steps toward the door, seemingly looming before them.
“For goodness sake, please stop it. You’re looking far worse doing that then just going in.” Bakumon’s voice wafted out from his bag, sounding somewhat irritable. The boy had been at it for five minutes now, and frankly he thought it was getting somewhat absurd. True, he understood the desire for a good impression, but this would no doubt attract more attention than if they had just gone in right off.
“I can’t help it..I..-“The boy trailed off, trying to find the proper words for what he was feeling. He really didn't know to be honest, never having to, or even trying to dwell on his true emotions beyond what he thought others wanted. He shifted a bit, looking uncomfortable, though immediately tried to wipe the expression off his face, even though he knew it didn't matter here anymore. Bakumon was thus far the only living being that right from the beginning had not been fooled by him, and it was still unnerving to be challenged and told off; something he hadn't ever really had before.
“You what?” interrupted the voice, “You’re embarrassed? Just get it over with. No one in there cares you know. In fact, I bet they’d be glad to see you.” At that, the corners of Taylor’s mouth twitched, as though about to smile but a smile that didn’t quite make it.
“Sure they'd be...” He said, softly, doubtfully, almost bitterly, but despite this did show signs of further movement as he reached out for the door to push it open. Why did he care so much anyway? He could be done with it straight off, plus it would make his mother happy. If it made her notice him, even for a fraction of a moment, then he would. It would be worth it.
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Post by stormecho on Oct 11, 2011 12:05:20 GMT -5
One of the few things Avari couldn't do alone was cut her hair, and was thus the only reason she was even here. She would have been perfectly happy to hole up in her apartment otherwise, but no, if she even tried to trim it she would end up far worse than its initial appearance.
At least there would be no partner-related trouble. BlackGabumon - or well, Tsunomon now - had no problems with acting like a toy and being stuck inside her backpack, as long as there was a large gap for him to see her through. She had also gone to the trouble of clarifying that people coming at her head with sharp things was on purpose and safe and nothing to worry about, so he probably wouldn't even stir from his spot. No one would expect anything, and it was less inconvenient than she would have expected. For once, the inclusion of her partner did not make a mess of everything, and it was almost a relief.
"There is someone else here," her backpack whispered, and she was about to inform him that other people in cities was normal when she looked up. The boy in front of her, about to enter the salon, was indeed familiar - the half-blind one she had the misfortune to meet in the forest. Seeing him here was an unwelcome surprise. Presumably he also lived in Odaiba, which meant she had a good chance of running into him yet again.
Well, there was no way to avoid it, and if she stood there much longer he would probably notice her anyways.
"Hey! Woah, I didn't expect to meet someone else here. Do you live in the area?" she asked, waving cheerfully. There were no protests from her bag, but that wasn't surprising - sometimes, her partner could have been mistaken as completely mute.
"Are you getting a haircut too?" What... irony. |
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Post by taylor on Oct 12, 2011 11:49:54 GMT -5
He had been on the very verge of pushing open the door and finally stepping through, when a voice rang out from right behind him. Instantly he pulled back, trying to make said action appear as causal as possibly despite the fact he was now not feeling anything of the sort. Gone was the minuscule amount of confidence he had built up, ruptured as easily as tissue paper. "Um, yeah...but I wasn't sure if this was the right place..." Hopefully that was reasonable enough to explain why he had been standing there if the person had seen all that.
Turning slowly to face the person, not wanting to appear anxious to see who it was, he very nearly froze in shock. Taylor had always prided himself for having a good memory and remembering faces well, and this girl was no different; perhaps even more memorable considering the manner and location in which they had last met. Forcing himself to look pleased to see her and not mortified and wishing she would just leave, like he was feeling, he responded, not wishing to ignore. While his expression and voice were eager, his hands told another story, as they fiddled continuously, tugging at the corners of his jacket and adjusting the strap of the bag on his shoulder unnecessarily, causing poor Bakumon to fall over from excess jostling.
“Woah...I didn’t ever think I’d see you anywhere else! Well, aside from maybe back there again... What are the odds?” he nodded, honestly meaning it for once. What were? Out of the whole entirety of the world they happened to meet in the same city, on the same morning seemingly headed in to the same building. Really now, winning the lottery had to be more likely than this. Motioning with his hand in the general direction of his (probably temporary) residence, he saw no harm in answering her question. If there was one thing he didn’t mind talking about, it was when he was discussing his past homes. It was what he knew best, and frankly, it seemed to interest people. “Yeah, just over there actually. We just moved from Russia believe it or not, so I’m still getting used to the area. How about you then?” He pulled his bag up again, which had once more started to slide, and Bakumon who had just finally gotten comfortable again lost his position once more, this time crashing into the side of the bag and letting out a noise of surprise mixed with contempt.
Bakumon hadn’t even tried to be quiet there. He knew the girl knew about him, and knew her partner was there as well. He had sensed him throughout the time she stood there having what felt like a forced conversation. Despite being people wary, he found he disliked being ignored once they were in a group, even if he was, like not supposed to be remaining clandestine. Discreetly peering over the hem of his bag, he spoke softly, though hopefully at least loudly enough for her to hear,
“Good morning, madam, and sir.” he said, addressing both her and her partner, “Fancy seeing you here.” Unlike his partner he meant it. He hadn’t minded the girl back then and still didn’t. He was fairly certain she was one of the ones that had been meant to be there (though who could be totally certain?), and for that he held nothing against her, yet at least. Not wishing to sink out of sight again, he remained where he was, just barely visible below the top hem of the bag, enjoying the fact that he could actually see his surroundings as opposed to the cloth interior of the bag, especially now that the potential friend was back. This couldn’t have been any more perfect on his end. Taylor never minded this thankfully, so long as he didn’t get caught something he was perfectly okay with.
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Post by stormecho on Oct 14, 2011 7:43:06 GMT -5
"From Russia? Wow!" And she meant it, even - out of the ridiculous places one could move from to Japan... his was the most out of the blue one. "I just moved here from Canada, actually. Funny thing, huh?"
His partner poked out, probably trying not to remain seen by civilians, and after a moment of shifting around, Tsunomon's horn and red eyes came into view. Sadly, he would always be rather conspicuous, but there didn't seem to be all too many people on the street at the moment - maybe he could get away with this.
"Hello," he murmured, equally quiet.
She smiled indulgently, as if Tsunomon was just shy. She was fairly certain he was always that quiet, really, and unwilling to talk to anyone other than her except when necessary. Even with her, he barely spoke except when he had to, and though he was terse, she found it almost a relief that he didn't bother asking her anything. She would have preferred he didn't stare at her, though - that was somewhat unnerving.
"This is the salon I go to most of the time. I just find it easier than cutting my own hair - it's hard to get at the back and stuff." She had to be careful, because this was true - dangerous, even if it was an inane comment.
It was rather unlikely that they both went to the same salon, in the same city in the same country after having met in the Digital World. And with that...
She stared at him for a moment, head tilted, and then giggled. "Hey, I think we have the same hairstyle too!"
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Post by taylor on Oct 17, 2011 12:19:18 GMT -5
As soon as Bakumon and the girls digimon spoke, Taylor instantly glanced around nervously, pleading no one had been within eye or earshot at that moment. Thank goodness it was still early; this area usually got rather busy during the day, but as of now they were still more or less those few that had already pulled themselves out of the house. He sighed in relief, reaching down to poke at the bag containing his companion.
“Careful guys...what if someone had seen...?” he said softly, not even wanting to think of the consequences. Bakumon was his...he was his...and yet someone would probably end up trying to take him away. Or...maybe someone else would want him and Bakumon would rather go with them inste- his fists clenched ever so slightly at the thought. No, of course he wouldn’t do that. The digimon had made a promise to him that nothing like that would ever happen. He’d have to trust him on that. Taylor turned his attention back to the girl just as she mentioned something about hair again. Or not just something. It actually caught him by surprise to be honest.
What was that? Really? Absently Taylor reached up and tugged at one of the longer strands of hair, and wondered if this now meant that she thought he had a girls style. It seemed to amuse her enough so he supposed it was alright. Taylor shot her a small smile as he let go of his hair, letting his hands rest causally at his sides again, for once not fiddling with anything in particular. The telltale blush was back however, he could feel it, and he desperately hoped it went unnoticed. Why did he do this? Of all things, this was an impossible reaction to hide, and he, for whatever reason seemed to do it on a regular basis. Curse the genes that granted the ability to blush. Hoping to keep himself from getting too flustered, he merely went along with the conversation, deciding that he’d just agree, even if it was a little embarrassing.
“You know, I think you’re right!” he responded finally, mirroring her smile exactly and trying to sound cheerful, “Funny thing, huh?” Taylor pretended to check the handwritten note again as an excuse to look away again, even though he knew for a fact the address was correct a long time ago. It was an odd thing he was feeling right now. On the one side he was at least happy that someone he knew was here and willing to talk, and for that he wanted her to stay, but on the other hand, he just hadn’t been ready for her appearance, and thus he also wanted to part ways right here and now. Granted that might be hard if she was going in the building too. After a moment of awkward silence involving him continuing to stare at the note and Bakumon more or less staring at the pair opposite them, Taylor finally spoke up, as always hating any sort of silence. “So um, yeah I think this is where I’m going..” he added, shoving the note in the pocket of his coat, then pausing as something dawned on him, something he should have asked far sooner. “I uh...I don’t think I ever really got your name...” As much as he wanted her to leave (for he wasn’t about to ask that..that was rude) he felt this was kind of an important thing to know lest they meet again and he was more prepared for it.
Meanwhile, Bakumon was continuing to stare at the pair, somehow having drifted off into a thought involving hair (as that was the current topic) and if it would even be possible to do anything with the wee little bit of fuzz on his head and back. Then he wondered how that might even look and if that would make digimon like the one opposite him jealous. Which of course he wouldn’t want, and without realizing it finished his musing aloud, which seemed to happen every so often, much to his displeasure
“..no..I that would look ridiculous....” he said softly, having just pictured his brown fuzz tied in tiny little pigtails, then oddly enough a fluffy mane of hair on Tsunomon. The words however snapped him out of it, and he realized he hadn’t been aware of anything that had been done or said in the past few minutes. He looked apologetically at Avari and Tsunomon (mostly at Tsunomon due to the mental images of him he’d acquired but would never admit), and murmured a soft “I apologize for that,” and hoped no further comments would be posed.
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Post by stormecho on Oct 18, 2011 8:33:33 GMT -5
"Oh, my name? I'm Shion! Shion Crai. I guess saying it's nice to meet you is a little late in these circumstances..."
He was blushing, probably at her earlier remark. That was interesting, but perhaps he thought she had been subtly insulting his hairstyle or something of the sort. It had just been an idle observation suited to her lie, but he wouldn't know that. "Oh, I've been meaning to ask - uh... Bakumon, right? What kind of stuff do you normally eat when you're here? Tsunomon's too nice to say if he doesn't like the stuff I give him, and I know it's not data or whatever you normally eat, so..."
Her bag shifted as Tsunomon chose to poke himself up a bit more - a risky choice, of course, but she was trusting that he would sense if someone was approaching. "I am fine with what you give me," he interjected, and she laughed softly. Was it cruel, to treat him like this when she was lying and then not really care otherwise? She couldn't keep it a secret from him, or act as Shion all the time around him - she would have tripped up at some point. He had never really shown any true discomfort but then, he rarely expressed anything.
"See what I mean? I can tell he's just being nice - my cooking is pretty horrible!"
Bakumon's soft, out of the blue remark was too erratic for her to grasp, so she just smiled at him. Tsunomon blinked slowly, and then slid back down into the depths of the bag, just the tip of his horn sticking out.
"I hope no one thinks I have a knife in my bag or something... sorry Tsunomon, I know it's not your fault. It just looks kind of suspicious." She tugged on a strand of hair, and then smiled once more at Taylor. "Guess we should go in soon or something, huh?"
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Post by taylor on Oct 21, 2011 12:59:31 GMT -5
It did feel a tad bit awkward to be making introductions after having already met upon a previous circumstance, but it was better late than never...right? It seemed she thought so too, but at the very least he hadn’t tripped up. It wouldn’t have looked good if she, whom he could now happily refer to as Shion, had already introduced herself and he had forgotten. He nodded, responding with a small laugh,
“I suppose we were all too distracted last time, huh? For the record though, I’m Taylor.” Hoping he hadn’t already mentioned that before, he turned his attention instead to Bakumon, who had just spoken. There it was again, one of Bakumon’s many random remarks. Half the time Taylor didn’t even know what he was on about, this being one of them, and though he didn’t normally care, this time he smiled and prodded the bag gently, not wanting to seem like he was indifferent to Bakumon, “What was that then? Was your mind elsewhere again?”
Bakumon fought back the urge to frown. What was that? Since when did the boy ever care? And why did he choose now to address these things rather than when they didn’t have two pairs of eyes watching them? Surely once more it was just to make himself look good in front of the company. As much as he could brood on this, he decided it was hardly productive, and instead focused his attention on the girl who had posed him a question. Sometimes in these circumstances he wished that he could revert to his smaller, in training form, but that form was basically a hazard to everything not stone or metal, so he remained as he was. He nodded, keeping his voice low, eyes still just barely visible over the hem of the bag.
“Yes madam, that is me. To answer your question, I do eat whatever I am given, much like Tsunomon there said.” Which was, quite honestly terrible, though last night he had managed to get off easy with some fruits. Taylor had no cooking experience and last time he had managed to burn some stuff he had called macaroni. At least when the housekeeper came there was at least some stuff that he didn’t fear to even touch, lest it came alive due to sheer mutilation. He smiled, which was concealed by the bag at her next words however, though the amused tone was not hard to decipher from his voice. “Ah, when compared to this one here, I doubt it’s that horrible.” Taylor would not like that revelation, but it was true nonetheless.
True enough, Taylor did not like it. His hand tensed into a semi-fist, thankfully hidden beneath the long sleeve of his coat. It was not so much the subject, for that was fairly innocent to be honest, but he did not like it at all when someone told another person something about himself. In his mind, this was impolite and could potentially result in negative attention. Thankfully the girl had admitted to a similar problem, so this time he was certain there was no harm done. This didn’t stop him from feeling that small wave of irritation, one that he did his best to push down behind the still present friendly expression from before. So now, he thought it was just best to go along with it rather than deny it.
“Uh... yeah..it’s a curse or something. Nothing ever comes out of the oven looking like it should. Bakumon seems to put up with it too though.” Leaving it at that, he glanced back at the door behind him at her next words, certain now that he was late for whatever appointment that had been made for him. Well it was now or never. Tardiness was another thing that he did like trying to avoid. “I suppose we should. Can’t hang out here forever huh?” He motioned for her to go first. At the very least now, he supposed it would be less awkward then going in alone.
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Post by stormecho on Oct 30, 2011 11:24:51 GMT -5
Had she introduced herself in the jungle? She probably had, but she had met two others there, and really, it wasn't difficult to lose track, especially since Taylor's arrival at the time had been somewhat unexpected.
Besides, the Digital World and BlackGabumon had been far more important revelations to dwell on, and she had not expected to see him again. That she had... well, if she handled this well, then there would be no problems.
His Digimon revealed that Taylor was an awful cook, and she giggled. "I guess we're doomed to give them food poisoning or something, then! Maybe I'll just order take-out today so you don't have to suffer, Tsunomon..."
"I truly do not mind your cooking."
"But it's... unethical, right? But as long as you're really sure..." She was teasing him, and either he didn't know or simply could not respond to her lies easily. That could be a problem, if she planned to actually keep up this farce as partners. True, she wanted to return to the Digital World, but having Tsunomon with her at all times felt like imprisonment, not protection.
As he gestured for her to enter first, she smiled and opened the door, stepping in and looking around for a moment. She was known here by her fake name, and she found coming here good practise - answering the questions of the one cutting her hair was just a step below ensuring she could deal with regular conversation at all times. That, and well...
She really did need a haircut.
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