[OPEN] All work and none of the play, ever.

[revolutionfalcon]

Who: Shun Kurosaki and you!
What: Various forms of not-recreation someone stop him
When: A: May 13th, B: May 14th, C: Night of May 14th
Where: A: Calico Cat Cafe, B: various Far Shore areas, C: Top of the overlarge hill that is Nekhbet's Temple.
Warnings: PTSD warning for prompt C.

[A]

[It's getting close to closing time at the cat cafe, and that means someone has to round up all the cats for the night. And that somone is generally Shun, being that looking after the cats is basically what he was hired for considering his absolute refusal to ever do customer service.

Given what cats are like, this isn't always an easy or straightforward task, and right now Shun's lying on the floor in one of the back corners of the cafe, reaching as far under a low-to-the-floor couch as he can to try and pull out a kitten that's crammed itself under there. Its three friends have decided to join the effort by way of sitting and lying on various areas of Shun's legs and back, and he looks decidedly unimpressed as he manages to get hold of the other cat and pull it out.]

Just because people pay for this for some reason don't mean I'm asking for it. [Still, he needs all four of these cats in, and if he knocks them off chances are it's going to take him another ten minutes to dig at least one of them out from something else. So looking over his shoulder and weighing up the placements of the three, he parts his legs so he can hold the cat lying there between them, then with both hands still on the first cat, he stretches back to loop his arms around the other two on his spine and then rolls sharply onto his back, pulling them onto his front as he does.

On one hand, he has all four cats, all of them looking somewhat bemusedly at the roof. On the other, now he can't get up, and if someone else approaches, he tenses visibly and gives them a wary look. He might've put himself in the situation, but he doesn't like not having the limbs to fight with. Not that he shows it beyond that, though, because his next remark is calm and curt as ever.]

Are you going to do something useful, or just stand there and stare?

--

[B]

[After what happened earlier in the month, with the vampire and that attack on the town coming one day after another, Shun's been determined to improve his endurance when it comes to extended use of his powers. So on his little patrols around the Far Shore, he's been checking for cut and broken trees, ones that are still a substantial size but not what he figures will be too much.

Still, "too much" is a loose term when it comes to him. A faint, but building hissing might catch the ear of people by various forested Far Shore areas, something almost like a massive snake - except closer inspection into the trees will likely reveal Shun, hands pressed to the shattered trunk of a tree that's still twice his size or more. The bark has gone grey-black and dead, and Shun's hands sink through it for a moment before the entire thing gives out and crumples into decayed dust. By this point, though, he's aware he has company, and turns to face whoever's found him. He looks a little worn from the exertion, but it's not like those tired lines and the flatness to his eyes aren't always there anyway.]

That hissing wasn't an ayakashi, if that's why you came out here.

--

[C]

[It's late. Really late. Shun knows from his own movements around the Far Shore at this hour that there are still people who move around at this time of night, which is why on this particular night, he's seated at the very top of the tall, oddly-shaped hill that is his temple. A few of the vultures have flocked around him, and he seems uncharacteristically unfocused as he feeds them scraps of rotted food.

Nightmares are nothing unusual for him, but usually it takes a little longer for them to wake him up like this. Tonight is just one of those nights, he supposes, where the laughter and screaming, the death in his eyes and ears that doesn't feel like it'll ever leave, drives him out of bed within the first hour and puts him out of sleep for the rest of the night. After a day like this, he knows he needs the rest, but he can still faintly hear the strains of sound from his nightmares and he knows they'll just come back in force as soon as he closes his eyes again.

As a few more of the vultures wake and seemingly realise the presence of food, the sharp sound of large wings breaks out over the area of the temple, and anyone passing by may very closely miss being run into in some manner by a vulture in flight. With all of them going to the top of the temple, the presence there is made obvious, and anyone bothering to make the trek up will be met by a cold stare from Shun, surrounded by a crowd of vultures.]

There's nothing for you up here, unless you like rotted scraps as much as these ones do.

Comments

A!

[shadowrevenger]

[Well, he isn't quite standing and staring...he's more standing over Shun and staring and trying not to laugh too much behind his hand. He'd decided to drop in on Shun and his work on his way home on a whim, and it looks like that whim was a fantastic idea.

(It's too bad Shun probably won't stand for having his picture taken because this would be a good one.)]

Sorry. You really have your hands full, huh?

[Okay, he'll be nice and lean down to take a couple of cats off Shun's hands.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[The fact that it's Ren at least takes the edge off Shun's wary glaring, though it's replaced with an annoyed frown at the obviousness of him trying that hard not to laugh. He hasn't actually had anyone he knows who doesn't also work at the cafe drop in on him at work before, and it's the kind of time they have so few customers he's not even sure why Ren's here to do it.

At the rather obvious remark, he gives a faint hiss through his teeth.]

Was that supposed to be a joke?

[Still, Shun at least manages to pull himself up into a seated position so Ren can more easily take the two cats in his arms. As he does, though, he gives the rest of the cafe a rather pointed look.]

I don't even know why you're here this late. We're closing.

[shadowrevenger]

[...If it was supposed to be a joke, it seems he won't be giving that away, because for a moment he looks genuinely baffled and then absolutely delighted.]

You're right, it was!

[But is it really if he had to be clued in on it...

Ren takes one cat and encourages it to climb up onto his shoulder, and then takes the other in his arms and slowly stands up straight again, careful not to jostle either cat too much.]

I was on my way home and I had to come by here, so I thought I'd come in and say hello.

[revolutionfalcon]

[Not that Shun's particularly clued in on comedy himself - on the exceptionally rare occasions he does make a joke, they're so utterly deadpan it's impossible to tell - but he's fairly certain most people don't look confused at having their jokes pointed out if they were actually intentional. So Ren's momentary confusion and joy get little more than an unconvinced, unimpressed look before Shun hands off the cats.

Now that he has his arm space free, Shun puts the first cat in the crook of his left arm, then uses his right to pull the second out from between his legs by the scruff and hold it under that arm. Getting up is a little harder than it needs to be when he has cats under his arms, but it only takes him a second or two to stand up, however awkward it might be.

And the first thing he does, of course, is give Ren a typically wary look for all of about a second before he shakes his head.]

That really is the only reason, huh. [Somehow, he doesn't seem particularly displeased about that.] These four were the last I needed to bring in for the night before I leave as well, but if we're both going back to the Far Shore and you went out of your way to talk to me, we might as well use the same shrine.

[shadowrevenger]

[Well, he can't exactly say that he couldn't in good faith pass up the chance to see Shun at work at a cat cafe, even if he was almost done for the day, so he just nods that of course he only came by to say hello. That was part of it, after all, and Shun doesn't seem to be unhappy about it, which is nice.

Wow, and he's even suggesting they head back together. Of course, it would be easier that way, but he's still pretty pleased to hear it.]

Okay. Where do they need to go? I'll help you.

[Probably stating the obvious, since he's already holding two of them, but if Shun's going to be considerate, he can be too.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[Unfortunately for the amusement potential of Shun working at a cat cafe, none of the staff are skilled enough to get either ears or tail onto him without him seeing them coming from a mile away. Which is something he's been looking out for in particular after Masaki warned him that some of the staff had been suggesting it.

Gesturing towards the door to the back behind the counter as much as he can with a cat in each hand, he leads Ren in that direction.]

I already sorted out food and water and everything else earlier. I just need to put them in for the night.

[As he reaches the door, he pushes through it shoulder-first. Behind it is a set-up rather similar to a cat boarding house - lots of reasonably-sized cat boxes with food, water and bedding. And, of course, lots of meowing. Even if things are comfortable, some cats just don't really like being shut in even if they don't have much of an other option in a place like this.]

[shadowrevenger]

[That Shun in cat ears is even a possibility is probably not something Ren should ever know or he'll try his damnedest to make it happen...

Ren follows along after him, careful not to move too abruptly so the cat lying on his shoulder won't slide off, and he makes sure he's holding on to that cat too as he slips inside the room, juuuust in case said cat realizes where they're going and decides it doesn't want to come along.

But it actually seems more comfortable on his shoulder than unhappy about being in here, so once they're in and the door is closed, hegoes back to hugging the one in his arms.]

There's so many! Hi, everyone! [He's just gonna. wave at some of the other cats now.] It must be really fun to work here with them. It's too bad they have to be locked up at night, but I guess there isn't much else you can do...

[revolutionfalcon]

[Crouching down to guide one of the cats into its space near the bottom of the wall, Shun gives a half-shrug with the shoulder that is now cat-free.]

It's a job. I don't have to work with people and someone bypassed the interview for me, so it was the best chance I had at actually getting work and keeping it.

[The reaction to Ren's enthusiasm from the cats is varied - one or two of them poke paws through gaps in his general direction, while some others roll over lazily to look at him before going back to sleep.

Shutting the first enclosure and standing up again to put the other cat in one slightly higher, he picks up from the brief pause.]

The owners come in ridiculously early, anyway, so it's not like they're shut in long.

[With his hands free, it's a lot easier to get the second cat put away, and Shun turns towards Ren with a pointed glance at two other open boxes.]

[shadowrevenger]

[Oh, yes, he has to actually put his cats away too...Ren dutifully heads over to the closest open box to carefully encourage the cat in his arms to climb inside.]

Oh, that's good. And I bet most of them just want to sleep after playing all day anyway.

[He pats the first cat goodbye and then moves on to the second open box. and this one is going to take a little more encouragement, since he doesn't have a good angle to just grab his shoulder cat.]

That's lucky that you had someone to help you. I've tried looking for a job and I haven't gotten very far.

[Now, to be fair, that isn't only because no one can remember him being there. it's also because he's, well, him.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[At that remark, Shun gives a rather dry, dismissive sound.]

Like most of them don't sleep all day as well when they can manage it.

[Not that he particularly dislikes cats, but a lot of the ones here are a bit on the lazy side. It's always a little strange to see them sleeping all day so they can go into their boxes and sleep all night as well.

"Lucky" is a bit of a relative term here, and as Shun steps forward to try and coax the cat off Ren's shoulder, he closes his eyes briefly in some kind of acknowledgement.]

He's gone now. I wouldn't call that "lucky". [And though this has the potential to backfire terribly on him, he feels he should at least make the suggestion.] This place would probably take you in some position. About all the owners want to know is that you won't steal or hurt the cats.

[shadowrevenger]

They do, don't they? Getting to play when they want and sleep as much as they want...I envy them a little.

[Not that he hasn't tried to adopt that philosophy himself before...

With their powers combined, they managed to get the cat to climb off his shoulder and into his little cat apartment. And speaking of envying the cats for their carefree, responsibility-free lifestyle...]

Do you think so? It does seem like fun...but I'm not very good at taking orders. And I'm not good at managing things either. I don't think anything would ever get done.

[revolutionfalcon]

That's not an existence that would be fulfulling to anyone other than a cat. Besides, it'd be a waste.

[It's not a compliment, it's merely a comment on the side of Ren he's particularly started seeing in their fighting lessons, and Shun's expression doesn't change an inch from neutral while saying it. It really would be a waste to lose that to laziness.

Closing the door behind the last cat as Ren continues, Shun gives him a slightly disbelieving look.]

Just find work you can focus on. You'd have no trouble getting things done if you could pay as much attention as you do when we fight.

[shadowrevenger]

[That kind of complimentary but still somewhat disapproving response is exactly the kind of response he would have gotten from Tetsu for a remark like that, and for a moment, Ren can't help but stare at him like a deer caught in a pair of headlights.

But Shun has no idea why it's so startling or how close to home he's hitting, so Ren is very quick to smile and turn away to stick his finger through the door of one of the cat boxes to try and play with the cat inside, like there was absolutely nothing in either of those statements that bothered him.]

Fighting is different. [Besides, after the first time, he's only been giving about 90% there too.] Anyway, I have been working on some things, so I haven't let my cats persuade me to join them just yet.

B

[sonofson]

[Just past the bench by his god's temple is a large forest area. It's part of the reason the beach feels so cut off but its no issue for Goten. He hasn't gotten out much since his run in with Schuldig but now he's slowly starting venture out again. It's hard to keep the half-saiyan inside for long and now that his wounds are healed.

Flying just above the tree line he comes to a halt as the hissing catches his attention. He blinks, looking down at the forest curiously before dropping down to the ground. It's not hard to follow the loud hissing and soon he's staring at Shun's back curiously. But what really catches his dark gaze is the tree. Blinking, Goten stares in awe as the tree goes through various stages of decay before becoming dust. He's never seen anything like that before! There's the faintest bit of concern that flickers in his eyes but its gone once the god turns around and he is able to recolonize him. He's met this god before, at the sakura festival a while back! Goten perks.]

Kurosaki!

[He smiles and moves closer now that its someone he knows or at least meet before.]

I heard the noise, it was really loud. What are you doing? How did you do that?

I didn't know what that sound was....

[revolutionfalcon]

[Oh, it's this kid. Despite his tiredness, Shun's expression settles into something on the more welcoming edges of neutral, and he crouches down - it's more so he can access the dust easily, but it puts him closer to Goten's level, so it works twofold here.]

It's nothing to worry about. Turns out decaying something that big so quickly isn't as quiet as it is with other things. [To demonstrate, he turns back towards the dust and rests his hands on it, focusing on what it had been before he'd decayed it. Slowly, and with a similar hissing to earlier, the dust begins to clump together and reform into a recognisable shape, piling upwards to shape out the tree trunk again. It always takes a little more effort to reverse his work, though, and Shun stops while the trunk is still blighted and black, despite being back to how it started in shape.

Goten doesn't need to know it's out of tiredness, though, and instead he gestures to the marks of rot on the bark.]

It's easier to just do something like this to it, but call this endurance training.

[sonofson]

Endurance training?

[He repeats the words, as if that will help him understand what Shun means. It's amazing to see a tree turn to dust and then be pulled upwards and make the shape of a tree again. He doesn't completely understand the power but the effect is really interesting. He moves closer and curiously reaches out with his right hand to touch the blackened reformed tree.]

Are you trying to get stronger, Kurosaki? I don't think I've ever seen anyone else do what you can!

[revolutionfalcon]

[The rotted bark is soft and a little rough, and tiny bits might crumble if the touch is too hard. Shun watches him inspect the trunk with a somewhat interested look, especially when the kid brings up the point of getting stronger.]

In a way. Something happened recently that made me realise I haven't been working as much as I can with my powers. I can rot and reconstruct things, but the bigger or more complex they are, the longer it takes. I'm trying to shorten that time as much as I can, because I can't go deeper than the surface unless I'm touching whatever I'm rotting. Not every battle is one where I'll have the chance to take hold and keep hold of something I might need to use it on.

[Breathing in softly enough to theoretically not be heard, Shun lays his hand on the trunk again and focuses himself. The roughness of the bark hardens into something smoother and stronger, and after a few more moments, the broken trunk returns to an obviously still dead, but unmarred state.]

[sonofson]

[It's an interesting texture. Goten brushes his fingers up and down the bark once more before pulling his hand away. He dusts his hand off on the side of his pants before looking back to Shun.]

Ohhhhh....that makes sense.

[It really does. Shun is good explaining it to where even Goten can understand what he means. He's right too, a small frown pulls at the corners of his mouth as he looks back to the tree thoughtfully.]

Yeah, even if you're super fast that doesn't mean you'll be able to catch everyone.

[There's a faintest bitterness to his words as if he's mulling over something, pouting about it. He learned that super speed and strength wouldn't take care of everything so what Shun is doing makes sense. He needs to figure out something for himself too. His attention is taken as Shun continues to manipulate the tree's state. Still dead but its much cleaner, smoother.]

What happens if you use it on Ayakashi?

[revolutionfalcon]

[The familiar, bitter note to that remark draws Shun's eye, but for the moment, he leaves it. If the kid is still figuring something out, it might be better for him to get there himself and develop on his own terms. At least, that's how he's seen it happen in his experience.

On the question about ayakashi, Shun clenches his hand briefly and grimaces. That's one particularly annoying thing about having a largely contact-based power.]

I can rot surfaces without having to touch them, so I can hurt and distract some of them by stripping away whatever their outside is made of. But it's not a hell of a lot of use when touching them to do anything further would probably hurt me more than it hurts them.

[He's seen the aftereffects of blight on at least one person, and he's really not interested in opening himself up to that kind of damage.]

A!

[dioception]

[Dio's shinki, Masaki, had recently gotten a job at this cat cafe, and Dio being nocturnal, he couldn't generally come in during normal business hours, but hey! He could change into a cat, and who would notice one unfamiliar cat face?

He took a form he'd grown to really like, a bengal cat, then taking to exploring before he came across the man attempting to wrestle kittens.

He didn't attempt to speak up when addressed, though the mam could probably tell he was a god, it was more fun to just pretend to play a clueless animal. Maybe he could keep it up this time, he thought as he sat down and just... watched.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[Shun would certainly notice one unfamiliar cat face: not only is he the usual maintainer of the cats, but he's the kind of person who likes to know in and out what he's working with. Adding to that how striking this particular cat that's joined them is, and Shun's at least reasonably certain that this is someone screwing with him. Still, he doesn't rise to the bait, and simply shrugs and sets about doing it himself, swinging into a seated position as if doing a sit-up.]

Trying to blend in with the other cats doesn't work if you choose something that stands out that much.

[The rather dry remark comes while attempting to rearrange the three in his grip so he can pick the fourth out from his legs and actually get somewhere. He has an eye on the other cat out of habit, but there's not much else he can do about it right now.]

[dioception]

[Rude. Dio would never try to blend in, though he did kind of wonder what it'd be like, meeting other cats. And right now other cats were all over the man. If Dio liked animals they'd be kind of cute, he thought.

He stared, amused at the guy. Why not just put the three where they need to go, and then grab the fourth? Cats were nearly liquids, they could get away if they wanted.]

I generally blend in quite well, thank you.

[Mostly because either he was a god and normal people didn't notice him, or because people were far too taken in by his looks to question it. They sure did enjoy picking him up like this, and Dio totally ate it up. Give him all of the attention, please.

And now, showing off his nature as more like an actual bengal than even he would know, Dio ran at Shun, mostly to see if it'd freak the other cats out. He liked freaking people(and cats, he guessed) out!]

[revolutionfalcon]

You must not meet other gods often, then. [During that exchange, Shun has the time to get the fourth of the young, still rather small cats into his arms. It's a slightly tight squeeze, but at least it makes it that much harder for any of them to decide they don't like where this is going and split.

Luckily, as the bengal decides to run at him, it transpires that Shun's managed to get about half and half in terms of temperament: only two of the cats flatten their ears back and only one starts clawing at him to try and get away, the other merely hissing and wriggling a bit. Holding the four of them a little tighter and fully aware he's probably going to get a chest full of claws for this, Shun dives to one side and into an evasive roll, coming up into a crouch on his feet before standing up fully. While the cats look a bit ruffled, Shun himself is seemingly unconcerned, sparing Dio a brief glance before he turns towards the cafe counter - still keeping the cat in his peripherals. Force of habit.]

So you're one of those kinds of people.

[dioception]

[The reactions, all five of them, have Dio's tail perking up in amusement. It's probably for the best to keep an eye on him. He was feeling extra impish right about now, and the man's serious face and attitude really just made him want to mess with him more.]

And you're one of those kinds.

[Clearly, this was not a wholly new interaction for him. He expected it to go about the same, too, so he was just going to continue to be a cat about things and stroll around as if he owned the place, giving the man a chance to figure out what to do with those kittens.

He ended up jumping up onto any surface he could find in order to be a little closer to the man's height before addressing him again.]

I wonder if I could get people to play with me.

[Really, he just wanted to bother the man, as well as musing to himself that it'd be a great way to keep an eye on Masaki. But boy, during the day he'd just be sleeping. Probably not terribly interesting for patrons.

Unless that's what they liked? Dio had no idea how an establishment like this worked.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[It's hardly uncommon for Shun to meet people who want to play around because of how serious he is, so he's fairly used to having to ignore it. He doesn't protest the bengal leaping up closer to his height as he passes the counter, though he doesn't pay any more attention to him because of it.]

Probably. The people here don't really seem to care much about how the cats act when they try to play with them, as long as they're not outright biting them.

[With that, he pushes through the door into the back, though given he's already sorted out the food and water for all the cats and changed their bedding earlier, all it takes is the brief time to slide each cat into their section and close it up before he comes out again and picks up the train of thought as if he'd never dropped it.]

Unless you've actually got a good reason for being here, I doubt it's that important to you anyway.