high_seas | Like Clockwork

[1]

Yasaburo's got himself invited to a ball on a great steam-yacht. He's among groups of opera-glassed, top-hat wearing neo-aristocrats and is having the greatest time for several reasons, not least of which is that these bouergoise are right now being charmed by a canid. It'll launch from port soon. Spotting you looking at it, he disengages from his conversation and grabs you by the sleeve.

"Come on, I can get you on!"

[2]

"But where do you go when you're...down and out? Or looking for a good time you can't find in polite society?"

He's grilling one of the hapless locals. He's puzzled by the complete lack of slums and is investigating it to his fullest.

A
[Kodachi hadn't had a bout of homesickness for a while, but it all came rushing back when she saw the hot springs. Granted, they didn't look anything like Japan's onsen or even the natural hot spring that the Kuno ancestors had managed to build their estate upon, but it was the idea of it that mad her suddenly long for home.]

[Thus, it was with a little hint of melancholy that she visited the springs, fully intent on taking a long, hot soak.]

B
[The Black Rose hadn't been lovesick in a while either, and she fully didn't expect to be anytime soon. However, one of the locals - a pretty, rich boy - had fallen in love with her at first sight and had taken to bestowing gifts upon her.]

[As such, Kodachi could now be found on deck, pondering what to do with the intricate steel roses that she'd been given. They'd been shaped dexterously from sheets of metal, and they were honestly a work of art. However, she didn't care for them much.]

Kodachi couldn't help but overhear Yasaburo's inquiries from where she was perched at a rooftop.

She leapt down effortlessly, scaring off the person that he'd been interrogating.

"Yasaburo-san, you're not going to the brothels, are you?" she asked loudly, making everyone around them either turn to them in surprise or hurry away.

[A]

[This island is heaven for Motochika. He can be found getting in lively arguments with local artisans, carrying huge armloads of dangerous looking materials back to the ship and, most importantly, constructing what looks like a giant mechanical spider on the beach with the aid of some local craftsmen. Ah, his beautiful Rising Sun. He's missed it so! Ideally, he wants to build it, break it down into portable parts, and store in on the Katabami in case he needs it later. Someone might want to discuss that with him.]

[B]

[Motochika did indeed promise that he would build a power source for Kodachi's jukebox. Somehow, that became "build a jukebox from scratch" in his head. While the ship is in port, the deck of the Katabami will be strewn with blueprints, tools, pieces of metal and woods, and countless little bits and bobs. There may also be the occasional explosion, but that's to be expected when the captain is at work.]

[C]

[All of that construction work tires a body out! When he's not busy building clockwork monstrosities, Motochika can be found drunk off his ass somewhere adjacent to the hot springs. Possibly drunk and in the hot springs at the same time. This is really the best island ever.]

Those are a pretty bit of work!

[Roses weren't exactly what Motochika would choose to make, but he could appreciate craftsmanship when he saw it. He leaned down to get a better look at the little bouquet, but the closer proximity only made him aware of the less-than-pleased expression on Kodachi's face.]

What? Not to your liking?

[Kodachi glanced back at her captain before shaking her head. She could certainly appreciate the beautiful craftsmanship, but that was about it.]

The man who gave these to me can't even hold his own in a fight.

[All of this was said with disdain. The day that Kodachi would fall in love with someone who couldn't save her, knight-in-shining-armor style, was far and away.]

Yasaburo yelped and stumbled back so quickly that he ended up somersaulting backwards. His tail popped out for a second, an embarrassing mistake and one he was quite beyond making back home. But back home there wasn't anyone who had Kodachi's talent for sudden entrances. He picked himself up, stuffed his tail in.

"...Well not specifically. I just think it's kindof weird that this place doesn't have any...well, slums, red light districts, things like that."

Wait. Would Kodachi even know that that kindof thing is normal? She was from old money, after all.

Kodachi didn't even ask - she just assumed that he was carrying part of his Halloween costume around for some reason. Hey, Mousse had odder things in his clothes, and she herself managed to fit in an unspecified number of clubs in the folds of her kimono. Some people just had voluminous sleeves.

She eyed him skeptically.

"Why are you looking for such places?" she asked haughtily. "Are you a pervert?"

Or perhaps he fell in the spring of drowned raccoon-dog.

"No, no-" Well, yes, but not in the way she was thinking of. A guy can like to crossdress, can't he? "I'm a..." Quick, think of something more noble sounding. "Investigator! And I'm trying to figure out what makes this society tick." Which, he was realizing, was a bad pun. Heh.

If Ranma could turn into a half-girl at will, a lot of people's perverted dreams might've come true.

The disbelief in her eyes remained there as she eyed him critically. Kodachi was now convinced that he was up to something.

"I'm watching you," she warned him, lifting her nose into the air. "I will reveal to everyone on the ship how depraved you are should I discover that you are hiding a nefarious secret." Perhaps he was a porn addict. Who knew?

The supreme irony was that he'd already told her his big secret and she simply hadn't believed him. But she had taken a shining to his natural form. Which meant...

He poofed into it.

"Come on, is this the face of a pervert?"

The locals didn't pay much attention. Talking automatons in the shape of animals was a relatively normal thing for them.

"Your disguise won't fool me," she told him decidedly, although she had to admit - she was itching to scratch him.

What she did instead was picked him up and held him so that she was looking at him eye-to-eye. The laws of physics didn't apply, obviously, when one was wearing a costume, so it didn't matter that he was suddenly much smaller and lighter than he would be if he were human.

"For all I know, you're looking for a lady dressed as a tanuki in the red light district," Kodachi said with a sniff.

Well this was a little uncomfortable. Not physically, but being interrogated by her. He almost wanted to confess to crimes he hadn't committed. But he was also fairly sure what she was accusing him of was impossible, as there were no tanuki prostitutes. Being able to make leaves appear as money meant you were rarely hurting for cash, after all.

"Come on, Kodachi. Doesn't this place seem a little strange to you? Aren't you wondering why they're so developed and everyone else is still using wooden sailing ships?"

She arched a brow.

"Of course it strikes me as odd. But would you really find the answer in the shadier places of this town?"

And then - her eyes widened, and she let out a loud gasp, pressing her face closer to his.

"Did you just call me by my name? Without a honorific?"

This was clearly A Big Deal.

Oh crap. Oh balls and crap and so many other mildly dirty things.

"Kodachi-sama I mean! Sorry, being around all these foreigners has made me forget my manners a bit."

Please, Yasaburo. You can't forget what you never knew in the first place.

"But that's the thing. There aren't any shady places. It's this island that must be hiding some kind of nefarious secret!"

He whispered that last sentence, in case he was right. Being chased by secret police might have been an adventure but political prison wasn't.

She relaxed somewhat, loosening her hold on him when she realized she'd been squeezing him. Losing the honorific meant one of three things: one, they were sworn rivals, so there was no respect lost between them; two, they were best friends, so they could be very casual with one another; third and last, they were lovers, so they could be intimate. She thought for a moment he was either advancing their friendship or making a love confession.

"I accept your apology," Kodachi said primly instead, looking every inch the composed maiden.

Once again, his theory made her arch a brow. "Why do places need to have questionable places?"

A.

[How Ragna managed to stumble from the sleeping quarters where he woke up all the way up to the deck is anyone's guess, though if one was curious enough to trace back the route he went they wouldn't have trouble with that thanks to the trail of blood he's left behind. It's only when he reaches the main deck that he stops to think about why it felt like he knew which way he was going─ and where he even is in the first place.]

... Sea...?

[Not Ikaruga, then, that's for sure. The man presses his hand against his chest in an attempt to stop the blood that's still seeping from his wounds, though frankly, he finds the pounding in his skull even more annoying. He lets out an irritated groan, desperately trying to sort the thoughts and images in his head. Nu's swords stabbing him, Terumi's laugh... the feeling of the entire world becoming distorted, as if reality itself was being bent out of shape and─

Katabami.

With that single word, everything clicks in place. Where he is, why... and perhaps most importantly, who else should be around here.]

Don't tell me... this is the effect of phenomena intervention, too...?

[He'd like to say it's not possible, but after witnessing the scale of the Imperator's intervention from just a moment ago, he's not really sure about that anymore. Though even if it was plausible, then why? Why would his little sister want to send him back here...? These and tons of other questions run through his mind, resulting in nothing but a headache. It's way too confusing to consider all of this, especially with the pain in his chest and stomach becoming more and more unbearable.]

... Shit. This ain't... good...

[That's all he manages to mumble before his body finally gives in; with his legs no longer being able to support his weight, Ragna falls to the floor with a thud.

A little help here?]

B.

[It's probably not a surprise that with injuries like these, Ragna simply passed out shortly after being placed in bed/hospital/inn/wherever you guys decided to drop him so that he doesn't bleed all over the captain's hard work. A few hours later, he wakes up, though thankfully he doesn't seem in the condition to throw a shitstorm just yet; instead, he remains where he is for the time being, staring at the ceiling and trying to put his thoughts in order. With everything that's happened back in his world that's not an easy task at all, and the fact he somehow ended up here once again only makes things more confusing... What the hell was even the point of him going to his world like that? To find out he might as well be chasing his own tail, or worse yet, playing into Terumi's hands? And now he's back to square one with collecting that shitty gem while waiting for another miracle to happen? In the end, he only manages to grow more frustrated.

Feel free to visit him, though don't except it to be appreciated.]

C.

[Saying Ragna the Bloodedge is a difficult patient would be an understatement. It hasn't even been a full day since his reappearance on the deck of the Katabami and he's already up, exploring the island. Well, "exploring" is a bit too much; he's just walking around the town without any goal in mind. One would think that after over a year spent in this world it would be fairly easy for him to get used to it all over again, but frankly, he finds it near impossible to focus on anything, still caught up in the events of the past few weeks─ or what was weeks for him, anyway. The fact it'll probably be who knows how long before he gets the chance to go back to his world again, along with not even knowing where or when that would lead him to, given the large scale phenomena intervention that was underway when he left─ all of those leave Ragna incredibly pissed off, even by his standards. In fact, it causes him to act even more hostile to people than usual, as the unlucky residents of Aeolipile Isle are quick to find out.]

... You wanna pick a fight, asshole?

[Those words are directed at one shopkeeper, who just invited the Grim Reaper to take a look at his fine selection of steel ornaments and jewelery. Please don't let him hack the poor man apart.]

D.

[It's hard to imagine an SS-class criminal known as the Grim Reaper visiting a tourist attraction, much less one like hot springs. Surely enough, under normal circumstances he wouldn't bother checking them out─ but given the injuries he sustained during his short trip back to his world he's willing to give it a shot, especially given his experience with the Kaka Hot Springs. If these can help him recover faster, then he doesn't really mind a trip to the mountains. It's a rather popular location, so it takes the ever-antisocial Ragna some time to find a remote place for himself, but all in all, it was worth it. Having any company would only invoke weird stares and questions about why his right arm along with shoulder and side are pitch black, so he's rather pleased with being alone.

Not that he can really prevent you from either joining him or asking about that.]

He wouldn't mind being the latter two (and perhaps with a dash of the first) but he was still a little scared of her, scritch-artist or no. The lady she most resembles back home ate his dad in a stew, after all.

"Because it has so many clean places." Alright, time to get her off this. "...But if I can't find out by taking the low road, I'll try the high. I've got an invite to an exclusive party. Maybe there'll be clues there. Interested?"

Ah, so that's what it is. It's a shame Sayaka left before you arrived. The two of you would have much to speak of, I believe.

[Sayaka's standards, if anything, were even higher. Actually, it would probably be better overall if the two of them never met. Sayaka was a good friend, but he could do without knowing she was around somewhere disapproving of him.]

I suppose it's not so much to ask for a young lady such as yourself.

[Motochika knows when a man needs his space and generally when a man shows up bleeding all over your boat, it's a sign to give him some time to himself. However, Motochika also is incapable of keeping his nose out of other people's business for long. He's given Ragna some time to recover in peace, but now that he's out and about, he's fair game.

He's quite fond of these hot springs and he's been spending a good amount of time around them, but it's still a total stroke of luck that he manages to catch sight of Ragna disappearing to one of the more remote spots. To his credit, he decides to leave him alone. Until his curiosity gets the better of him.]

Feeling a bit better?

[He'll just invite himself in. Pirates don't ask permission.]

It was a good thing, then, that Kodachi had no desire to have tanuki hot pot anytime soon. There were far better things to eat, as far as she was concerned.

She still couldn't see the point that he was making, and unless the party was filled with families that had been on the island for a while, he wouldn't get any more data out of the occasion either. Kodachi may not have cared about what he was trying to research, but a party, on the other hand, sounded like fun . . .

"I suppose I could join you," she finally said.

Who is this person?

[She smiled at the captain's last remark. He, at least, knew what was necessary for someone to be a valid suitor on her part. With skills like hers, she simply couldn't settle for someone who couldn't put up with her or her brother. Said fictional suitor wouldn't survive a day in her presence.]

Would you like to have them?

[She thrust the steel roses into Motochika's hands.]

[Motochika looked like he was up to a lot of things, and Kodachi peered at his blueprints curiously as he tinkered about.]

Is the jukebox going to be spider-shaped?

[It was an honest question.]

[Kodachi had been one of the ones to find him - the presence of his life force suddenly on the Katabami woke her from her sleep, and she simply had to follow the trail of blood to find him collapsed on the deck. She'd screamed, cried, and thrown a fit, of course, but in the end she'd cleaned his wounds and bandaged him up.]

[If he woke up to find her staring at him, he shouldn't have been surprised.]

Where have you been?

[Her voice was a deathly whisper.]

[For better or worse, it seems his body and mind were far too tired to treat him to his usual nightmares─ this time, there's no Terumi, no church burning, no Sister's dead body. In fact, the image that appears in his head is much calmer: there's a large, sunny meadow and he's lying on the soft grass under a big, old tree, listening to the sound of cicadas. A girl leans over him, but while he can see her lips moving, he can't really make out what she's saying, like she's being drawn away...

Ragna blinks slowly, no longer asleep but not quite awake yet, either; noticing a figure at his bedside, a part of him assumes it's still his imagination, and before he realizes it, he murmurs the word that's been lingering on his mind within the dream.]

... Sa... ya...?

[As his vision focuses and his brain catches up on why that wouldn't be possible, the man startles, immediately springing up. Which is not a great idea when you've got slash wounds all over the place, let me tell you. He clutches his chest, letting out a grunt of pain and cursing under his breath. After a short moment, he finally looks back at the girl in front of him.]

... Kodachi.

[It's more of a confirmation to himself than anything. This would mean it wasn't some weird hallucination as a nasty side-effect of the phenomena intervention, but rather that he really came to this world once again. For what reason, he cannot imagine, but for now he tries to organize his thoughts in a way that would at least let him make some sense out of it.

... It might take a while.]

How 'bout we start with where I am now?

[You know, just to make things absolutely clear.]

Like Clockwork

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B

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Kodachi did you just call him a furry

she sure just did. it wouldn't be the oddest thing that happened in the Ranmaverse...

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D

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combination of A + B!

B

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