ukimiya | Beginning

Beginning

One moment you were elsewhere, surely speaking to your friends, fighting in a battle of your life, dying, or even in a state of non-existence in its entirety. It doesn't matter now, since when you open your eyes it’s become clear that not only is everything around you foreign and unfamiliar, so is everyone. And there seems to be a fair lot of you, at that.

It's easy to discern a few things upon a cursory glance, once you pick yourself up from the field of grass you're resting on. The place you've awoken in seems to be fairly tranquil, for the first few moments at least, and the view of a newly budded sakura tree is among the first that will greet you. In the distance, is a towering castle that manages to look all at once both imposing and welcoming at the same time. There's also an odd pendant around your neck, which you'll find won't come off despite your best attempts. In your pocket you'll find a room key, engraved with a number.

The weather is currently cool, with the sun brightly shining in the sky, though there are a few too many clouds to make it a completely clear day. While most of them appear rather normal, every so often you might spot one that looks just a bit off— like a storm cloud that's completely lost it's way. Lucky for you, it doesn't seem like you're going to have to worry about any inclement weather anytime soon, as they'll vanish from your vision as quickly as they came.

A large stone wall surrounds the entirety of the castle, though it's anyone guess why that is— maybe it's for your safety, maybe it's to keep you trapped, or maybe it's for another reason entirely. The only breach in the wall is a single gate that looks like it certainly led to the outside at one point, but that too has been cordoned off by solid stone.

Fortunately, there's nothing to stop you from entering the castle itself, where you'll find it's pretty grand all things considered. The lighting inside is provided not by electricity, but by magical flame that adjusts to the time of day or night. Actually, if you're looking for anything electronic anywhere, or even a simple power outlet, you'll be sorely out of luck.

For now, it might be best to explore and make some sense of where you are and why you're here— maybe one of your fellow travelers might know something? There are some plaques in the Great Hall that might catch your interest given their focus, in addition to one ridiculously large golden one that seems to bear rules.

Welcome, fellow warriors, to your very long stay.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Tch. Damn shame.

[ Nishitani checked his pockets earlier and came up empty too. But he just thought being dead had to do with that. ]

Guess it ain't just me.

[ Do they even have anything to throw in...? Well, it doesn't really work if it's not five yen, does it? ]

[ majima rocks back on his heels, considering ]

Couldn't care less about the money. I want my knife back, though.

I hear ya, pal.

[ Nishitani grabs his own lapels, lamenting the loss of his ever-present Kijin Clan pin. ]

Even took my phone an' my fuckin' pin! Might as well've taken the shirt off my back.

[ he looks down at his lapel too ]

Mine too.

[ guess who is back in the yakuza?? ]

[ Oh, hey!! Nishitani grins at that! ]

Ohhhh, yeah? What family ya in, huh? Ya take over for that fucker Shimano-san or what?

Yeah.

[ yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah ]

Chairman of the Shimano Family, huh? Shit, look at ya. All grown up an' everythin'.

[ He grins. That tone surely means nothing bad!! ]

Knew ya'd make a fuckin' great yakuza, Majima.

[ majima laughs as he stands. it's dark and bitter and nothing like the normal way he laughs now, like he doesn't have a care in the world.

(who are you even fooling tho) ]

Shimano's dead, it ain't his family anymore. It's the Majima family now.

[ signed with a fuck you to the guy who tortured him i guess ]

[ Yikes, that's a dark sound, buddy. ]

Well, damn. Serves that fucker right.

[ Obviously, Nishitani couldn't give two fucks about Shimano. ]

Ya started yer own family? That's pretty fuckin' sweet! Should I be callin' ya Patriarch Majima now?

[ if nishitani knew the literal hell shimano had put him through this would probably make a lot more sense to him. but majima isn't about to explain, so. ]

Ya can if ya want. I'm guessin' it ain't gonna mean a damn thing here, though.

[ he seems to be satisfied with their visit to the pond for now so it's off to the laundry hut ]

Nah, I'll stick ta Majima, makes it sound like we're pals.

[ oh, fun. laundry! Actually, this reminds Nishitani of his younger days... he wasn't always head of the Kijin Clan, after all. ]

Guessin' it's been a while since I bit the big one, eh?

[ majima actually smiles at nishitani's suggestion but it fades immediately when he mentions his death. ]

It's been twenty-two years.

Damn...

[ He's no pro at math, but if Majima was in his twenties back then... ]

Shit, yer livin' the life, makin' it this long, pal! I'm proud of ya!

[ Late 40s is nothing to shake a stick at. Plenty of yakuza die much, much younger. ]

[ it does warm majima to hear it. he owed so much to nishitani, his pride really is meaningful. he smiles softly, almost trying to hide it. ]

Guess I'm just a stubborn asshole they can't get rid of.

Damn right!

[ Nishitani reaches over in an attempt to throw his arm over Majima's shoulder. ]

Makes me real happy ta hear that, y'know? I knew ya were destined for big things, Majima.

[ majima doesn't shrug him off - if anything, he just leans into it once nishitani's arm is around him. the physical affection is easy. it's the words that are hard to swallow. ]

Ah, Nishitani...[ what does he even say ] Thank you.

[ If there is any truer sign to the fact that Majima's changed, it's this. The way Majima actually takes the physical affection, where he was once completely averse to it almost exclusively, is a pretty big surprise. ]

You've grown up, haven't ya? I musta missed all the good stuff.

[ If only they'd met sooner, in another life... etc. ]

Dunno about good stuff.

[ most of his story was pretty sad - a fact he'd only share with a select few. nishitani gets to be one of them. ]

Gettin' sentimental ain't like ya. Don't go outta your way for my sake.

Dyin' ain't like me either, but I still went an' did that.

[ His response is pretty blank, but he can see where Majima's coming from. He's got twenty-two years of catching up to do, he doesn't have to do it all in one night. He perks up, setting the sentimentality aside for now. ]

Anyway, what the hell's up with this place? They got sponges but they ain't got washin' machines? Can't make up their damn minds, can they?

[every time nishitani mentions his death it's like another punch to the gut. it's something he's tried not to think about in so long, tried to put all of the horrible experiences of what happened in sotenbori behind him. but nishitani just keeps mentioning it like it doesn't matter. he gets it, on some level, he does. it's the way he talks about his eye, the way he talks about almost everything about himself.

but this was different. nishitani was important to him. and his death was a wound that reopened a little more every time he says anything about it.

he wants to tell him to stop. he wants move past it and talk about laundry and sponges and lack of technology. he wants to stop hurting. finally after a long moment: ]

Fuck the laundry. [ he shrugs out of nishitani's arm but grabs his hand to drag him back outside the laundry hut ] Fight me, old man.

[ it'll be good for them both - he knows it's something nishtani wants, and maybe physical pain will put the emotional pain aside for a while longer. ]

[ Nishitani goes. He's always been an insensitive asshole, so it's only natural that every word out of his mouth hits Majima, but not in the fun way. He smiles as soon as Majima grabs him. ]

Now you're talkin' my language, pal!

[ He doesn't even wait till they're settled outside, he throws a punch at Majima's jaw, in his blind side. Rude, but then that's Nishitani. He'd rather play dirty than talk about how much dying sucks. ]

[ the punch hits him hard, nishitani was behind him and in his blind spot and so he really doesn't see it coming and his instant reaction is to turn to hit him as hard as he can. he's been fighting for twenty-five years having to deal with his blindside he's learned how to react and not take people's shit for trying to get him like that. ]

That's a cheap fuckin' shot, Nishitani.

[ Nishitani grins against Majima's punch, the sheer force of it knocking him back a bit. It's absolutely a cheap shot. He might not know what's changed in Majima's life besides him becoming head of his own family, but he's gotta make sure Majima has the same fire in his eye as he used to. Even when he was so clearly done with everything, Nishitani had seen that fire in their first fight and their second. ]

Wouldn't want ya goin' easy on me, pal. Old age mighta made ya sentimental!

[ In other words, yeah, he's being an asshole on purpose, sorry. One punch isn't going to slow him down, though. He throws another punch aimed right at his face this time, a hit he knows Majima can counter or block. Truth is, after being dead, a little pain feels really nice. ]

[ "after being dead" whatever dude we know you find pain more than a little nice always. but majima does block the punch - he catches it with his left hand and goes for a count with his right, still plenty strong but not quite with the same caged animal lashing out drive the first one had, this one is definitely more fun. ]

Wouldn't dream of it.

[ He hasn't rubbed one out since he died that seems like a good excuse as any to get Majima to punch him super hard, ok. Nishitani chuckles as Majima's fist connects again. It's so wonderfully familiar, how could he not enjoy it? ]

That's what I like ya hear.

[ Nishitani twists around Majima's hold and goes to knee him in that nice, bare chest of his. A+ clothing choice tbh. Nishitani's a little disappoitned he didn't think of it himself. ]

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