Normal Club Activities [Closed RP Kurama/Mello]

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

"Care to spar sometime?"

It was the first outright challenge he had received in this place, and Kurama was obliged to accept. If it had been anyone else, even the other Youkai, he might have refused out of propriety, but this Mello kid seemed like he could more than handle himself.

For a human, anyway.

Someone had off-handedly mentioned there was a room set aside for sparring and the like, and after a little searching he had found the right door on the right story. He grinned as he opened the door, noticing that, by luck or purpose, Mello was there waiting for him.

"Hello, darling. Did I keep you waiting?"

Comments

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

"If I didn't know any better," he said, standing quite still, "I'd say that was almost a threat." He smiled serenely, tilting his head to the side just a bit.

"You are observant, intelligent, and even with your tongue as sharp as it is, you seem quite able to back up your talk. Compared to the rest of the people I've met here, you're the least boring and cowish. But I warn you," his hand lashed out and he snatched the Bo from its resting place, swinging the heavy wood and metal until it was centimeters from Mello's head. "If you threaten me, I will not take it kindly at all."

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

I don't flinch. I don't move at all. That one move has told me that if he got serious, I'd lose. It also confirms he's not human, regardless of his continued denials. "As I've been trained to be," I reply to the first. I smirk, "Except for the smartass part. That I had to learn the hard way."

I roll back enough to get out from under the staff, keeping both hands where he can see them. I stand and bow, keeping my eyes on him, and deep enough that I don't have to actually admit verbally I lost.

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

"You're a good learner, then," He settled the Bo back onto his shoulder, and returned the bow. "But, there is a difference between training and truly being intelligent. I don't think you needed the training." He set the Bo back on its stand, and dusted off his hands. Mello was surely smart enough to put all the pieces together, and hopefully smart enough to keep his mouth shut about it.

He might have even been a fox, in a past life. I like him.

"I'd rather have you at my back than against it," he offered. If there was anyone here it would be smart to make an alliance with, Mello would be at the top of the list, second to Kusuriyuri.

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

He doesn't sound condescending, so I can accept the compliment as it is. "Thanks."

I reach into my vest and pull out a bar of dark chocolate. "Want some?" I ask. He doesn't know me well enough to know that I've only ever offered my chocolate to two other people. But, I'm also relatively sure he's smart enough to figure it out.

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

Interesting truce tradition, but Mello was filled with interesting new concepts, it seemed. He nodded solemnly. "Yes, thank you."

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

I hand him the bar. He still hasn't answered my question about what he is. I figure if I give him some information, he'll give me some,"That I've met, there are ten of us from the same timeline here. Three of them are murderers." I think a minute more. "Two of those will deny it. The third," I pause, trying to think of how to describe B. "The third is a rapist as well as a murderer. He's been recently denied his favorite target and his second choice. We're watching him, but he's unstable and there are other problems invovled with that." That's as vague as I can explain B and still cover it. "The other two are mass murderers, though the exact method they used took quite some time to fully understand and expose." Give me some, I'll give you more.

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

"They sound like a walking party," he commented, snapping off a bite and handing the bar back to Mello. He grimaced as Mello described the rapist/murderer, chewing the bitter chocolate and thinking. What to tell without giving too much...
"I told you I had a little training in Muy Thai and standard kick boxing, I didn't lie. My work, however, requires that I be faster and stronger than the many, many people who want to kill me as much as I want to bring them to heel. A lot of what I know I had to learn by doing."

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

I take back my bar and take a bite. "Ryuzaki, in our timeline at least, is the top three detectives in the world. Five of us were trained to replace him. Two, myself being one of them, were being tapped to replace him at the time he died. Two of the others, including the murderer, were prior attempts that went awry." That's such a nice way of saying it.

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

That explains the 'He's not my friend' comment. He thought. He wisely didn't ask if Mello had been chosen as the replacement or not. "So the remaining two, I suspect, were the ones you were all pursuing."

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

"Not exactly. One was, he was also the one Ryuzaki was going after, but as I said, method of murder was difficult to pin down and prove. The other," I pause, "the best word to use would be 'convert.' We were closing in on the first so to continue to operate, he had to recruit one of his 'followers' to do his work for him." This would be easier with names, but if I share one, I have to share them all and I'm not entirely sure Near would be happy with that, much less Ryuzaki, but it's a little late for that one, and I really don't care that much if he's mad at me.

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

Convert? If Mello meant who he thought... "So he looked on the first murderer as a kind of godlike figure?"

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

"I wasn't there when the whole thing wrapped, but I was told he addressed the primary as 'kami,'" I say. We'll skip the fact I was dead at the time. He doesn't need to know that yet.

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

He snickered, partially sure he knew who Mello was talking about. "That's a complicated sequence of events, and I'm sure that isn't even the tip of the iceberg."

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

"Not quite. There is a lot that I've left out." Given his expression, I'm going with he's met Mikami. "The whole story is rather complicated. All together, it was seven and a half years to close."

((sorry, my HTR is at home ;) ))

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

((Your what?))
He held up his hand, still laughing just a little. "Beyond that, I don't think I need to know." The rest was probably very personal, and there was no reason to pry just yet. Now he supposed it was officially his turn, but he would wait for Mello to ask.

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

((my "How to Read"...the cheat sheet for DN))

I shrug. "If a guy with both index fingers missing takes an interest in you, let me know."

I examine him carefully. "You didn't tell me what you are. I know you're not human, so what are you?" Once I know that, I can figure out what else I need to know, just how careful I need to be.

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind," he said, recalling that the angry woman had mentioned the same person. Then he smiled and put a finger to his lips.

"I'm older than I look," he said, ducking his head a little, "but I am human." My body is, anyway. I'm not even lying.

((Oooooh, okay. I thought it was like... that one indie band from NYC or something.))

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

I frown. "Let's not play this game again. We've established you don't think I'm stupid."

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

Kurama nodded and crossed his arms.

"Tell me your name, and I'll tell you what I am."

Mikami had been clear enough that Mello was a pseudonym. If they were going to trust each other, secrets would have to take a sidestep.

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

I was right. He had met Mikami. "Before I do, I'll tell you why I don't use it. There are three reasons."

I cross my arms. "First, I was raised in an orphanage. My name was the name used on the records, but the name I use was the one they gave me when I was chosen for training. Second, no one knows, or is supposed to know, our real names. Since we're being trained to step into Ryuzaki's place, having our own identity is cumbersome."

I frown. "The final has to do with the case. 'The human who's name is written in this notebook will die.'" I pause, watching him. "The weapon was a Death Note, the notebook of the shinigami. All that was needed was a person's name and face and they could be killed. It defaulted to heart attack forty seconds after writing to the person's actions being controlled upto twenty-three days."

I take a deep breath. This isn't easy, but secrets won't help. "I faced someone with that notebook twice. The first had made a deal with a shinigami that allowed him to see everyone's real name. He was writing my name down when I blew up the building we were in. The murder got my name then, but he didn't have a face to go with it." I frown. "Heart attacks are painful. I found out three months later when I faced the second. I had kidnapped the murderer's spokesperson in order to give my rival an opportunity. I knew what I was walking into and at that point, finishing the case was more important than beating him." I lifted my chin defiantly, daring him to make a smart remark about that. "It worked. We won."

Another pause. I've only ever given my name to Near. It feels weird to give it to someone else. "Mihael Keehl."

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

He kept his features schooled and calm, filing all the information away. To be killed by your own name, that has a nice, traditional ring to it. Mello's world must have been interesting indeed. Though how a Shinigami - in any reality - could be so careless as to leave a "Death Note" in easy reach of a human. Though, the potential for fun would be too good to pass up.

So, a genius human who has touched death, who's word was as solid as any. A very good ally to have.

"I will trust that what I tell you does not leave this room, Mihael Keehl, just as you can trust I will never call you by that name again," he began, giving Mello a meaningful look.

"I have several jobs back home, if you can call them that. In my world, the walls that separate the human world and the world where demons and monsters dwell have been broken down. One of my jobs - actually, it's more like community service than anything else - is to regulate demon activity in the human world. Some demons still feed on humans, or like to terrorize them, and I - along with several others - am charged with bringing them to heel should they get out of hand."

He ducked his head a little, this part was still kind of embarrassing. "My second job has me as the Major General and Strategist of a powerful demon lord, a former student of mine who has spent the last thousand years or so building a kingdom for himself"

"I have not lied to you, at all. My body is human, technically, was born as a human and lives as one. However, it is a shell, a very useful one. Before I possessed this body, I was a fox - a kitsune. Also a thief and a bandit," he smiled at that, he'd been a damn good thief "with aspirations towards sovereignty. However, two decades ago, I got careless and my body was destroyed. So, rather than have all my hard work go to waste, I found a vessel that was suitable enough to hold me, and was reborn to continue my work." He chuckled a little.

"I have since been distracted." He inclined his head, uncrossing his arms.
"I don't know how humans or otherwise here react to demons, or how careful I need to be around the others. There is one other person here who has a vague idea of what I am, and I'd like to keep it that way."

"My name is Youko Kurama. I'll allow anyone I consider friendly to call me Kurama, it's almost like a nickname. Youko, however, is off-limits."

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

"If you want, I'll give my word, Youko Kurama." I almost winced when he used my name. I smirk. "Or, you could trust we have enough on each other to keep each other quiet." But, that explains why I had to concede to him, though he doesn't look like he should be able to beat me. I need to look into mythology more. I know I've heard of kitsune, but I can't remember the details off hand.

I tilt my head to the side. "One other person... I'm fairly certain the person you're speaking of isn't quite human, either."

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

He smiled. He had meant Vanyel's vague knowledge, Kusuriyuri had known him the second he arrived. But Mello didn't need to know his revelation had been already discovered by an emotionally challenged suicidal child.

"Whether he is or isn't is not for me to say," he acknowledged. "I won't use what I know against you, Mello, as long as you don't make me."

[mello-n-choco.livejournal.com]

So, Kusu and someone else, maybe?

"There are three people at this school I give a shit about. As long as none of them are harmed, I have no reason to use anything I've learned against you." I meet his eyes squarely. "You have my word on that."

[serrulata.livejournal.com]

Kurama returned his gaze honestly. "I don't give much of a damn about anyone here, but I will respect you and yours, you have my word." He held out his hand to Mello, to seal the deal.