Matou Kariya (AU) (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
canofworms) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
towerofanimus2013-03-09 04:08 pm
canofworms) wrote in towerofanimus2013-03-09 04:08 pm
[OPEN] Well, look what the cat dragged in.
Characters: Kariya Matou [AU4] & ALL THE PEOPLE
Setting: Dorms, Various Floors, Choose Your Own Adventure
Format: Any!
Summary: +1 flailing bug magus. Does it count if 'he' is already here?
Warnings: Fate/BUGS
This man, wherever you meet him, may look just the littlest bit familiar. Maybe it's in the hair, or the slightly gloomy look on his face, or even the rumpled turtleneck he's wearing.
Not many will recognize him as the Matou he is, though, unless he has his insect familiars out. His hair and eye (the working one) are a deep purple, and the prana rolling off him in warning waves is no longer a hallmark of the clan.
Now who could this be?
[Dormitory Floor: Room 1-16]
[Hey, folks, you may or may not have an extra body in here. Don't worry, it's wiggling and quite lively.
Click.
If not for the minor commotion of him going through his trunk, you probably wouldn't notice he's here; his clothes and hair are dark enough that he gets lost in the shadows quite easily. The slant of his shoulders is wary. There's a metallic glint in his hands.
Nothing to see here: just a magus loading a handgun.
(Unless that's a nice bulky camera in his hands, but in that case he's just taking a picture of the wall. So productive!)]
[F1: Cafeteria]
[New arrivals season! There are like a million of them here making faces at their oatmeal. You could probably fill an album with the variety. Maybe decorate each floor of the Tower with a different expression of disgust.
This guy would make a pretty boring picture, though, since he's sitting there with absolutely no trace of feeling on his face as he mechanically brings the spoon to his mouth. In fact, his eyes are closed.
Is he sleep-eating or just trying to find a safe space away from the mush??]
[F20: Outside]
[It's fairly chilly out here, but the thin shadow of a man standing about halfway up the ramp, carelessly at the very edge, doesn't seem to notice. He's strangely silhouetted, staring expressionlessly over the edge.
If you come in close enough, you'll realize that those strange irregularities and bumps in his figure are actually countless large, skeletal, demon-eyed insects perched on his shoulders and arms, crawling clumsily in their attempt to keep their foothold in the wind.
Every now and then, he'll raise a hand, and one or two of them will obediently go walking off into the air. They go plummeting downwards until not a trace is left, and leave him looking a little more frustrated each time.
In the meantime, that shadow in the fog behind him may or may not be something sneaking up on him. Or your eyes are just playing tricks on you.]
[F??: Choose Your Own Adventure]
[Any floor, any time, anybug flavor!
There's a rather surly-looking guy pacing up and down the place, muttering angrily to himself and occasionally raising a hand to swat at the two Blade Wing Worms buzzing along behind him whenever they hover in too close.
It's a little hard to tell whether the familiars are actually worried about their master or just trying to get close enough to chomp on his hair.]
If you're not going to make yourselves useful, go chew on each other or something. I don't care.
Setting: Dorms, Various Floors, Choose Your Own Adventure
Format: Any!
Summary: +1 flailing bug magus. Does it count if 'he' is already here?
Warnings: Fate/BUGS
This man, wherever you meet him, may look just the littlest bit familiar. Maybe it's in the hair, or the slightly gloomy look on his face, or even the rumpled turtleneck he's wearing.
Not many will recognize him as the Matou he is, though, unless he has his insect familiars out. His hair and eye (the working one) are a deep purple, and the prana rolling off him in warning waves is no longer a hallmark of the clan.
Now who could this be?
[Dormitory Floor: Room 1-16]
[Hey, folks, you may or may not have an extra body in here. Don't worry, it's wiggling and quite lively.
Click.
If not for the minor commotion of him going through his trunk, you probably wouldn't notice he's here; his clothes and hair are dark enough that he gets lost in the shadows quite easily. The slant of his shoulders is wary. There's a metallic glint in his hands.
Nothing to see here: just a magus loading a handgun.
(Unless that's a nice bulky camera in his hands, but in that case he's just taking a picture of the wall. So productive!)]
[F1: Cafeteria]
[New arrivals season! There are like a million of them here making faces at their oatmeal. You could probably fill an album with the variety. Maybe decorate each floor of the Tower with a different expression of disgust.
This guy would make a pretty boring picture, though, since he's sitting there with absolutely no trace of feeling on his face as he mechanically brings the spoon to his mouth. In fact, his eyes are closed.
Is he sleep-eating or just trying to find a safe space away from the mush??]
[F20: Outside]
[It's fairly chilly out here, but the thin shadow of a man standing about halfway up the ramp, carelessly at the very edge, doesn't seem to notice. He's strangely silhouetted, staring expressionlessly over the edge.
If you come in close enough, you'll realize that those strange irregularities and bumps in his figure are actually countless large, skeletal, demon-eyed insects perched on his shoulders and arms, crawling clumsily in their attempt to keep their foothold in the wind.
Every now and then, he'll raise a hand, and one or two of them will obediently go walking off into the air. They go plummeting downwards until not a trace is left, and leave him looking a little more frustrated each time.
In the meantime, that shadow in the fog behind him may or may not be something sneaking up on him. Or your eyes are just playing tricks on you.]
[F??: Choose Your Own Adventure]
[Any floor, any time, any
There's a rather surly-looking guy pacing up and down the place, muttering angrily to himself and occasionally raising a hand to swat at the two Blade Wing Worms buzzing along behind him whenever they hover in too close.
It's a little hard to tell whether the familiars are actually worried about their master or just trying to get close enough to chomp on his hair.]
If you're not going to make yourselves useful, go chew on each other or something. I don't care.
no subject
Rin, but not Rin. Maybe it's a trick of the light, but the coloring is off, like looking at a photo negative. Tohsaka flame and Matou trappings; he's not sure he knows what to think anymore. Just what is this? What can he do about it?
... That's the thing. He can't do anything.
The answer is simple enough to make a mockery of all his doubts at once. If this is a shadow of Rin, it's a well-crafted one; and he doesn't want to fight her, regardless of what she turns out to be. He makes a quiet gesture, and his Worms descend to his side, folding themselves nearly to the floor.
Maybe his resolve's weakened after ten years.]
We could both be tricks. [He might prefer that option.] I don't know what this is, Rin.
[It's very nearly a plea, bare honesty held out in an open palm to a place he doesn't yet have the means to understand.]
no subject
Hm. [ She has to think and for the first time that day she's able to. If he's unable to recall why she comes here (why she has to run away in the first place) and his body is just about healed, then doesn't that mean this is another variation of her uncle? ] I think I understand now.
[ Just as quick as the flame came, it's gone. ] Monsters are attracted to that sort of thing, so don't do what I did. It'll likely not end as well for you.
You're Kariya Matou, aren't you? Older, but not decrepit. Something is the matter here.
no subject
I'm Kariya Matou, yes. [Slowly, more than a little uncertain.] Older, but maybe not that much wiser.
[At least, not in the ways of magic, and definitely not in the ways of this Tower.]
You're talking about the other one, aren't you?
no subject
[ Rin speaks as though she's experienced in the matter. Then again, she's the one who actively enjoys the thrill of the hunt and it shows in the laid back manner she addresses it. Casually. As though the risk of a monster coming for her on this floor is nothing. ]
The other one. [ So it's confirmed. ] Yes, he's been here for a while and is familiar enough for my reasons for coming here. It's... unfortunate you found me here.
[ Disappointing really. ] So you've been brought up to speed with the news everyone is crying bitter tears over, have you?
no subject
I didn't mean to. [There are too many things wrong with her being here for him to even begin to respond to that. His tone can't decide between dry and dismal -- it just slips into open confusion again.] The news... Do you mean the Tower and its problems?
no subject
[ Rin wastes little time with unimportant details. ] It was a recent discovery, but it was enough to ruin the morale of those who used to fight.
no subject
['Harsh', he wants to say, but Rin knows more of the Tower than he does -- he just isn't sure how many details she considers unimportant and therefore carelessly leaves out. It was a feature of her letters, too: he would always have to dig.
He'd enjoyed it, sometimes, but sometimes the unimportant details actually were important.]
no subject
[ She's still fairly dismissive over the thought. ] Why do you care about this place? Shouldn't you be crying over Sakura or something?
no subject
[It's better than giving up, but maybe he's being too blasé about the 'revelations' she's brought up. Maybe it's because, to him, they come not as a revelation but simply as a given fact of the place. They're still rather incredible, but the blunt force trauma is dulled in the wake of everything else.
Or he's just too blasé about it. It's hard to tell at times.
Rin's offhand question gets a confused look, even if it's probably pretty hard to see through the darkness; it's in his voice, too.]
Of course I care that you're here, Rin. This floor... [wait, what?] Why would I--
[Oh. Oh. He needs to start carrying a primer: How To Deal With A Timeslipped Other Self. He's letting too many things slip by in the general confusion. Important things.]
I come from the Fifth Holy Grail War, Rin. If I were to cry over Sakura, I'd have to tear my hair out over you. [A little ruefully.] You've gotten much better at worrying me than she has.
[Not that he doesn't worry over them both. However, Rin's the one actively participating in the War.]
no subject
[ Her demeanor shifts into a more pleasant one when he talks about a future with her. After all, Rin's quite selfish these days and it's nice to hear that there may be an inkling to another life where Sakura and her lived alongside him. ]
Could you tell me more? Er, not here. We should probably leave here.
no subject
It's somewhat painful to hear, but it does tell him a few things -- a few possibilities. He's the one who wants to ask her to tell him more, about what would make her say such a thing, what his other self has been doing to make her think anything like that. What's happened to her, for them to meet like this.
It's probably not the moment, though.]
I don't mind. And I'd like that.
[He's not sure she'll like everything he has to tell, but, well. Anything to get them both off this floor.]
no subject
[ Rin doesn't waste anymore time lingering on this floor before motioning with her hand for him to follow after her. When she moves, she does look back to ensure he's still capable of keeping up and that nothing's taken him by surprise. ]
no subject
He doesn't speak again until they're on the stairs.]
... After the Fourth War, we wrote a lot of letters. [He and Sakura and Rin; he remembers that time, torn between worry over the sisters getting used to each other again and the haze of everything after the War. There was a lot of rebuilding to be done.] You were busy with your training, and I, ah, had to train, too. We didn't have much time to play like before.
[If he's repeating some rather more childish notions he's penned, it's because he's distracted -- memories, and the strange aura around this Rin. It had been shrouded by the insects on the floor, but now...]
no subject
[ She repeats once they're in the stairwell, turning to see him better in the light. It was growing more difficult to see between all of her senses being strained, but the color of his hair was enough to confirm her suspicions. He was her uncle, but he wasn't the one she knew. ]
Where were you? Fuyuki City or somewhere else?
no subject
I was sometimes in Fuyuki, but I also traveled quite a bit. Letters were the easiest way to keep in touch.
[Little white lies.
He never wanted to become good at lying to Rin, or Sakura, or Aoi. He wants to blame that on Kirei, too, but it's a choice he himself made. He's always quietly and freely taken to the beds he's made for himself. Here, though...
He doesn't want to lie. He just wants them both to have a little more time to get used to each other. Their meeting has been rocky enough as it is, and it might not get very much better.
He calls up a smile.]
Ah, I still dropped off presents in person, of course. [When he could. He did his best.] We made enough work for the postmasters as is.