undergrounds | I'm pickin up good vibrations (OPEN)

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I'm pickin up good vibrations (OPEN)

It was a fairly bright night, the full moon of the second waning at a slow pace and the remaining glow casting about the city streets. All things considered, it was a fairly pleasant evening and the sounds of late night pub activities wafted through the air as if to pointedly suggest that nothing was amiss. Ringer didn't believe in that false serenity and the sight a couple strolling arm-in-arm somewhere down the road annoyed her a little. It was that ignorance that she was trying to protect. Still, she couldn't help the slight envy at having her own normality stripped away from her years ago.

She wandered Lewisham and Greenwich mainly, knowing the areas were hot spots for activity and wanting to stretch her muscles. There were silver bullets in the magazine of her Sig Sauer, tucked safely away in its shoulder holster beneath her jacket. There were a couple wooden bolts in her back pocket, a knife in her combat boots, and a roll of gauze in the inside pocket of her coat. She liked to be prepared.

Ringer was distracted by the soft glow of a lantern outside a picturesque home as she rounded onto the next street, nearly - or literally - running smack into whoever might be coming the other way. She immediately withdrew and scrambled to regain her bearings, offering an apologetic expression in the hopes it might be some simple Londoner who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. "Sorry, I wasn't paying attention. Are you okay?"

There was a noise not far away, the next street over, and Ringer wasted no time in seeking it out. Perhaps it was simply a cat jumping on a trash can, but it was as likely some asshole monster causing trouble. Or maybe that was wishful thinking. Whatever the case, she drew her 9mmm and held it down at her side, mostly concealing it to the casual observer as she came up on the area. One wrong move and the source of the noise might find the barrel facing in their direction.

[Anything else! Feel free to write a prompt or message me with ideas.]

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Ringer's brain immediately caught up with what was going and she began collecting the runaway food. She was both embarrassed at having crashed into him and frustrated with herself for being so careless. At least he seemed to be taking it well, for which she was remarkably grateful at this particular moment.

"I can give you money to replace what I ruined," she offered lightly. Except that she wasn't sure she actually had the notes on her. "Or buy you more, if you want to walk back to the store.. Assuming they're still open."

She offered over the things she'd collected and glanced at her watch before moving to grab a couple stray pieces.

"Well, we could check, but it's a bit late. Not sure they're still gonna be open, yeah?" He did appreciate the help, but he didn't really have a bag any more to put the stray items in. So he simply shoved a small item or two in his jacket pockets and started piling the rest up on the side.

Say, wasn't this the same girl he'd run into earlier? If only he still had those tissues, he could at least wipe at some of the mess...

The ingredients weren't just things you could pick up at any corner store, either. Heiji, homesick, had been planning on a few dishes from home. He picked a broken package of miso up off the pavement and looked mildly depressed. "I shoulda been lookin' out a little more myself. You okay?"

"I'm fine," she confirmed, holding a small bundle of items under her left arm. "I can help you carry these home and replace the broken items tomorrow."

He looked roughly around her age and Ringer vaguely considered the possibility of her offer sounding like flirting, but she quickly dismissed it. She was just trying to set things right with a guy who seemed friendly and most likely human and knew that not everyone was as set financially as she was. He was more than welcome to decline and save her the trouble.

"Yeah? That'd actually help a lot. Could you just pick up the ones that're still dry? I'm gooey already, anyway, so I'll get the rest." And indeed, once he dropped the mess that was the former egg carton into a wastebasket, he did his best to shove the rest in his arms.

"I'm headin' a couple blocks down, if that's okay. Oh yeah, I'm Heiji."

She nodded and picked up the remainder of the items, managing to heap them all into her left arm. It enabled her to keep her right hand free, just in case. Ringer glanced at his outfit, also not in the best of shape, and frowned at the sight. She could offer to dry clean the outfit too, but that seemed excessive somehow. Instead, she nodded again to acknowledge the distance.

At his name, she hesitated a split second as to whether to return with her own normal, student name or the nickname she'd been given by the Hillingdon Clan. The latter won out. "Ringer. I'm sorry about your clothes too."

"Aww, don't worry about it," said Heiji. He would have waved a hand if he had one free. "It's every other day someone spills somethin' on me at the cafe. At least this time it wasn't hot coffee."

And also at least he didn't have to try and clean it out of his fur. He started off in the direction of his destination. "I got a friend really likes food; that's why I was plannin' on making him a couple dishes. You could always go to a restaurant, but it ain't the same as something you make yourself."

"You work at a cafe?" Was that an after-school job? Had she misjudged his age? It was possible he'd left academia. He didn't exactly seem the type to pass on university though, so she really had no idea. Ringer tried to remind herself not to over think everything. It rarely worked.

At the latter, she looked vaguely sheepish and cast her gaze elsewhere. "I can't cook much. I taught myself and I was never very good."

"Yeah, part-time! It's nice; I get to meet all kinds of people there. Actually, we got a new waiter the other day and he's a total riot."

Heiji blinked in surprise for a moment before his expression turned to one of mild dismay. "Really? That ain't good. I mean, I guess you can still get along without knowing how to cook that much, 'specially with all the convenience stores. But everyone should know some."

He resumed looking forward, smiling to himself as if he was remembering something that was not walking home covered with egg whites. "That's one of the things I miss about home. My mom's a great cook, way better than me. Plus we always used to have friends over or visit other folks. Here's not bad, either, though."

"That sounds great." Ringer was half-tempted to ask him its name and where to find it. She was equally concerned about how it might seem. Back in primary, she'd never had much reason to interact with people and spent of her time taking care of her father. As a result, she never learned to properly socialize and had difficulty interacting naturally with others. It was easier for her to fight than hold a normal conversation.

"Maybe I'll take a cooking class." She shrugged. She'd been fending for herself for so long that it rarely occurred to her that it could be better. Her eyes slid sideways to glance at him and then returned to the street. "Where are you from?"

"It is! 'Fact, you should drop by sometime. Though it's a bit of a ways from here. Cafe Poirot, in Barnet. Or you could just ask around for the one with the detective theme." Heiji was sort of getting that impression from Ringer. Or rather, it had already been gotten. But at least she didn't actively insult people?

"Yeah, try it out; it's real fun when ya get into it." He shifted his things in his arms. "I'm from Osaka! You?"

"Barnet?" Ringer couldn't help herself. She knew that the territory was neutral right now and being eyed by certain factions. It was obviously a coincidence, but her mind couldn't help but focus on it. Luckily, it was quickly distracted by the rest. "Detective theme? It.. sounds cool. I'll try to visit."

Good save, Ringer. Smooth.

"Are you good at cooking?" It seemed like a relevant question. Things that people excelled in were always more enjoyable than those that were a struggle, their willingness to perseverance through the challenge aside. "Osaka.. Western Japan, right? Why did you come to England? I'm from Oxfordshire, about an hour northwest of here."

Heiji gave her a bit of a quizzical look, then smiled. "Please do! The food is pretty good, and the coffee's better."

"Yeah, it's in the Kansai area, along with Kyoto. As for why I'm here... I guess you could say it's a bit of a vacation? Lived in Osaka all my life." Which was weird, since he talked with an American accent.

"But I might end up stayin' longer than I planned. Uh, and yeah. I'm a pretty good cook. Haven't had any complaints, anyway!"

"Do you make it? The food and coffee at the cafe." He mentioned having things spilled on him, which sounded more like a waiter, then was praising food and his cooking skills in nigh the same breath. If he could achieve so much at such a young age- Except apparently this was a vacation? Ringer had heard that working visas were difficult to receive in the UK.

"Oh. You still live there? When do you go home?" If this was what normal conversations were like, it was no wonder Ringer avoided them. She mostly found him confusing.

He waved a hand. "Nah, it's all sandwiches and cakes and stuff. Not my specialty. I can make a mean cup of coffee, though."

"I was thinkin' I'll go and visit my folks in the next month, but... like I said, I'm not quite sure when I'm goin' back. So why all the questions, anyway? I ain't that unusual, am I?"

"I'll stop by." Generally Ringer wasn't the kind to promise, not after how many promises were broken throughout her life and how unwilling she was to break her own, but visiting a coffee place seemed doable. Besides, he was a nice guy, in spite of how contradictory and confusing he could be.

"Kind of," she admitted. "Most people I know are local. The rest are students. I've never thought about moving to another country. That must be hard."

Heiji rubbed at his cheek briefly with one finger before deciding that this was a bit precarious while he was still holding things.

"It's definitely different. But I dunno... I guess it's good for ya. Broadening your horizons and so forth. It's pretty common for Japanese citizens to travel abroad." Thus the stereotype of the Japanese tourist...

"It's impressive," she replied with mild finality. It was meant to be the kind of compliment he couldn't argue, seeing as the man was quick to dismiss his situation in a lot of ways. She glanced around at the cool evening and shifted his food at her side, repositioning the items. At least it was a nice night for a walk.

Welp, it was hard to argue with that tone. Heiji turned up the street toward a small apartment building. "And this is me," he said, climbing a few steps up to the door and opening the front door.

"Thanks for helpin' out. Not everyone would, y'know."

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I'm pickin up good vibrations (OPEN)

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OMG I LOST THIS TAG I'M SO SORRY - feel free to poke/bother me in future

no worries, I assumed they just got to where they were going :)

would you like to wrap up in your reply maybe? c:

sure!