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Okay, This is Awkward(OPEN)
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Post by ricochet6-Mandrake on Oct 14, 2020 4:08:57 GMT
Mandrake sat on the bench with Lothar in Miyashita Park. For reasons unknown to the disguised Wizardmon, his boyfriend had become more affectionate than he ever was in public. In Mandrake's opinion it was awkwardly so as Lothar was purring softly like a contented kitten while leaning on his shoulder snuggling. Good thing LJ was with Mandrake's father while the two decided to go out because how was Mandrake supposed to explain this behavior to an infant that wouldn't remotely understand what was happening. Mandrake was hopelessly lost himself but fortunately he wouldn't have to explain what was going on since all other minds nearby were not in the park. Good thing too because this was awkward enough as it was. A curious smell caught his attention as he looked at Lothar's shoulder. Reaching over he plucked the ground up plant off and smelled it again. 'Catnip? That explains Lothar's behavior since some cats become more affectionate when exposed to it. Just my luck that Lothar is one of those types too but how did it get on Lothar to begin with?' Mandrake thought. Then what he thought of what happened shortly before they arrived at the park.
Flashback
Mandrake and Lothar were walking side by side through Shibuya trying to figure out where they were going to go when a woman bumped into Lothar from behind. After helping her up the woman apologized and moved on. However it seemed she had catnip with her though it was unknown to Mandrake or Lothar at the time and some had landed on Lothar. As the two entered the park Lothar had begun walking a bit closer to Mandrake. It was not until the magician sat down that Lothar got cuddly.
Present
If one positive came of this awkward encounter was that Mandrake knew that catnip and public places made Lothar an awkward digimon to be around. All Mandrake could do was wait for the stuff to wear off as he brushed the catnip off Lothar. Would Mandrake's luck hold though?
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Post by Iona E. Mason and Ocellimon on Oct 14, 2020 7:02:58 GMT
Iona was happily staring at her brand-new phone. She couldn't believe how understanding her father had been about her "breaking" her old one. This one was an even better model than the one she'd brought over from the U.K.
Speaking of which, Iona wondered if she should text Mikayla. She hadn't in a while, since the last one broke that night at the club. And Mikayla had quit all her social media for the thirty-first time. She'd be back, of course.
--and speaking of social media...Iona decided to test out her new ultra-definition camera with a quick selfie that she uploaded to her Instagram with the click of a button. The colorful park formed a conspicuous backdrop for Iona's alternative appearance. Her ghoulish drowning-victim chic clashed horribly with all the sunny weather. Iona kind of liked it that way. Iona did not care a lick for the lolita fashion that was popular with Japanese goths.
(Nor did she care for their music for that matter. Darkwave all the way. Fuck that Visual Kei garbage.)
As she lowered her phone, however, Iona saw something even more peculiar for her surroundings than herself: On a park bench sat two very handsome men, seemingly cuddling and enjoying the beautiful weather. One of the men seemed to be grooming the other, gently brushing some debris off the other man's clothes and face.
Oh my god, Iona thought, They are so...cute!...Must...protect...
She knew she had to go over there before someone else did.
Now, Iona was not the friendliest of people. Her appearance, moreover, didn't do much to enhance her social graces any. Still, she smiled through her venous blood-colored lips as warmly as she could muster. Her eyes were painted in a way that suggested judgment or negativity, but the face she wore beneath portrayed only admiration.
"Hey," she said, "My name's Iona. I just wanted you guys to know that I think you're really brave..."
She bowed respectfully, something she usually only did out of reluctant obligation to observe her new home's custom. Here, she wanted to show she really meant all the respect the gesture afforded.
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Post by ricochet6-Mandrake on Oct 14, 2020 7:48:18 GMT
It would seem luck was not on Mandrake's side as he felt the presence of someone that was familiar in the park. Looking in the direction he sensed the presence he saw the other girl from the nightclub and she was staring right at them. Mandrake blushed as his current situation had gone from inconveniently awkward to embarrassing. She had only seen them in their digimon forms so it made sense.
When she spoke to them Lothar seemed oblivous cause apparently this catnip was affecting him longer than a Human World cat. Mandrake brain was in a rush trying to put together words to explain himself after she introduced herself. "Huh? Wha?" Mandrake futilely sputtered. It seemed he was so embarrassed that more comprehensible and complex words couldn't make it past the thought process. 'This couldn't get more embarrassing than it already is, could it? Curse that catnip.' Mandrake thought.
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Post by Iona E. Mason and Ocellimon on Jan 13, 2022 5:46:01 GMT
Iona smiled. She assumed this man was just in a state of affection-fueled delirium. It happens. How long had it been since it happened to her? How long would it be now?
Her smile dropped and she instead looked concerned and apologetic.
"I'm sorry," she said, "I didn't mean to bother the two of you." She bowed. "I hope I didn't offend you."
Iona felt a deep pit of anxiety burrow into her chest and stomach. Iona thought to herself that she shouldn't be bothering two people for the sake of her own distraction. After all, isn't that why her father had bought her the phone? It was the least he could do now that he could no longer protect her.
She gripped the conciliatory gift in her hand, pressing its beveled edges with her fingers--its geometry more comforting in that moment than its function.
Remembering where she was, she smiled again at the two men, softly, and turned away out of politeness.
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Post by ricochet6-Mandrake on Jan 13, 2022 6:02:48 GMT
Somewhat recovered from the shock, though still blushing a bit, Mandrake looked at Iona and said "You didn't offend me. It's just..how do I put this? My boyfriend here is normally not this overly affectionate." Mandrake was surprised that she hadn't recognized his voice from the nightclub. If she did this would be much simpler to explain. After all how does one explain how catnip was the cause of this whole awkward affair.
Then Mandrake noticed she was getting anxious and looking at her phone before she turned away. It was then Lothar's soft purrs had stopped and he was blinking in a confused state before seeing how he snuggling Mandrake before jolting up as he said "Mandrake, what happened?" Lothar looked at Mandrake in a confused state before he said "Last thing I remember was helping a woman up who had bumped into me before coming here."
Okay this was now more awkward as Mandrake realized that Lothar wasn't aware of what he had been like after the catnip took effect. Then Lothar noticed the girl from the nightclub and asked "Is that the girl from the nightclub?"
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Post by Iona E. Mason and Ocellimon on Jan 13, 2022 6:47:22 GMT
Iona cocked her head at the pair upon hearing that the overly-affectionate boyfriend was not usually this affectionate. She crossed her arms and leaned back a bit. Her lips pursed, then released before she spoke again.
"Well, we all have our moments," said Iona.
Then the affectionate boyfriend mentioned the nightclub.
Iona froze.
"N-nightclub?"
How the hell did these two know about that? Were they there? She didn't recognize them, and she'd only had significant interactions with...
Those digimon.
She stared at Mandrake's face intently, not sure what she was looking for, but determined to find it.
"Um...Hold on."
She reached into her pocket, and from it produced the white device with the black grip that had been produced from her broken phone that night--the one that had shot out that mysterious light that changed Ocellimon.
"Do you know what this is?" she asked, pointedly, eyeing the two for any sign of...anything.
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Post by ricochet6-Mandrake on Jan 13, 2022 7:05:35 GMT
Her reaction made sense to Mandrake and Lothar given the circumstances regarding how the group first met. Mandrake observed Iona as she stared at his face as if looking for something. He assumed it was most likely that she was trying to figure out where she had seen him before.
She then reached into her pocket pulling out a device all too familiar to both of them as they had seen digivices before before she asked if they knew what it was. "Indeed we do. That device in your hand is called a digivice. I understand why we wouldn't look familiar to you as you had come across us during a fight on that nightclub's dance floor. Lothar and I were the Wizardmon and Leomon you saw that night." Mandrake said figuring letting her in on the fact he and Lothar were disguised digimon was fine seeing as she was already familiar with digimon but to what extent was still unknown to the couple.
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Post by Iona E. Mason and Ocellimon on Jan 14, 2022 6:03:06 GMT
Iona's expression melted into disbelief.
"No way..."
She shook her head, reasoning that there's no way these two could be lying, or else how would they even know the details to put into the lie? She didn't really know what was going on--but ok. She'd go with that.
"Okay then. My name is Iona. Thank you so much for your help. That disco angel was a piece of work."
She looked down at her shoes. Now that the subject was the nightclub incident, Iona was uncomfortable.
"Did you guys get out of that okay?" she asked, probingly.
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Post by ricochet6-Mandrake on Jan 14, 2022 6:17:11 GMT
Iona's reaction to Mandrake's answer to her question was one of disbelief as she took time comprehending what was said to her. Then when she seemed to have recovered she introduced herself as Iona. "Nice to meet you, Iona. My name is Mandrake and my boyfriend here is Lothar. As for that night helping out was no big deal for us since that Piddomon was causing a lot of trouble that night. It is a shame how things ended for him though." Mandrake said sounding a bit sad at the memory as his thoughts briefly shifted to that night noticing that the subject of that incident seemed to be making her uncomfortable.
Then when Iona asked if they got out of the club okay, Mandrake said "It would seem Lothar and I managed to get out just in time to avoid issues with the police. How about you? How did you fare that night?"
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Post by Iona E. Mason and Ocellimon on Jan 14, 2022 21:51:44 GMT
"It's good to meet you, Mandrake. Lothar," she said, "I didn't know digimon could have their own names. Ocellimon has always just been Ocellimon--then again, I've never seen another Ocellimon."
She sat down on the bench beside the two digimon in disguise, though she did not look directly at them. She noted Mandrake's sadness from the tone of his voice. She could tell it pained him to have had to destroy that digimon.
"I also didn't know you guys could take human form," she said, speaking quickly, blowing past the question concerning her and the police "talk about convenient. And yeah...Ocellimon says digimon that die are reborn. So, he should come back, right?"
Iona turned to them and smiled the kind of smile that doesn't reach up to one's eyes. She observed the two and thought to herself that they seemed nice. Civilized, even. Not like Ocellimon. Ocellimon was more like an animal that could talk. Where was she, anyway? Probably slinking about in the darkness of empty alleyways, murdering any poor creature small enough to eat that was unfortunate enough to cross her path. Iona was going to miss her. Looking back at the disguised digimon couple, Iona felt that if she knew them better she might miss them as well.
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Post by ricochet6-Mandrake on Jan 15, 2022 0:12:43 GMT
"Some digimon have names. Others do not. Digimon used to just only go by the name of their species but I see the advantages of having ones' own name from to distinguish myself from other Wizardmon. I think names makes us seem less like robots in that respect." Mandrake said as Iona mentioned her partner. Where was Ocellimon? Didn't digimon usually stick near their tamers? Or was there something more going on here?
As Iona sat down next to the pair both Mandrake and Lothar noticed she didn't look directly at them but didn't say anything as there could of been various reasons why.
"We technically can't take human form. Lothar and I are using devices called holosuits to create our disguises so we can blend in amongst the humans. As you can imagine, with Lothar being a Leomon, there is no way he can pass as a human in a costume like I can." Mandrake said before the discussion led to digimon being reborn. "Ocellimon is right. Since Piddomon's data was not absorbed by anyone he can be reborn one day though there is no guarantee he'll retain his previous memories but I guess we can hope for the best with him."
"Speaking of Ocellimon, where is your partner anyway? Based on what we've seen so far, usually when a digimon is partnered with a human they tend to not be too far away." Lothar asked as he began contributing to the conversation after being quite for awhile since he returned to normal since the earlier incident.
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Post by Iona E. Mason and Ocellimon on Jan 17, 2022 4:59:44 GMT
"She uh...likes to be alone," said Iona, "That night she gave me the rundown on being a tamer and then slinked back into the shadows like she's effing Batman or something."
Iona looked over her shoulder to the nearest alleyway. She didn't see anything, but she had the vaguest inkling she was being watched. In fact, she'd felt that way since that night. Every time she went to take the trash out, or when she had to take a long walk to clear her head after a court hearing, and when the local news media caught on to her case, and especially when the tabloid rags did the same. It could have been one of the aforementioned tabloid hacks, but she felt that someone was following her, watching just over her shoulder. Whenever she turned her head, however, no one was there. Just like now.
No sign of her.
She turned back to Mandrake and Lothar.
"Your experience probably still holds true, though," said Iona, "I bet she's not far. I thought she might show up since we're discussing that night but--oh! That's right."
Iona felt around her neck for something that wasn't there.
"My necklace--the crucifix," she said, looking at Mandrak intently, "I gave it to him--to Piddomon. It disappeared with him! I wonder what happened to it. Do you think it...went back...with him?"
Iona may have been trying to distract herself, but her expression was still one of sincere interest and hopefulness. She didn't know why, but what happened really did affect her. Though why it was affecting her now, days later, than it did the very night wasn't hard for her to understand.
She could relate to desperately wanting another chance to learn from their mistakes--even if they had done bad things. Digimon were lucky in that respect.
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Post by ricochet6-Mandrake on Jan 17, 2022 7:36:43 GMT
Though Mandrake and Lothar had no idea on who this Batman was they did understand that some digimon liked to be alone even if they didn't like such a thing. "Unlike your partner, I myself never enjoyed being alone. During the time I was separated from Lothar and searching both the Digital and Human Worlds for him I felt as if I was somehow incomplete and we weren't even a couple at the time."
Lothar rested a hand on Mandrake's shoulder and said "I felt the same as you did, Mandrake." Mandrake smiled before the pair noticed Iona looking over her shoulder as if looking for something. "Is there something wrong, Iona?" Lothar asked. Meanwhile Mandrake didn't sense any digimon but in his holosuit the range for his telepathy wouldn't of reached that alley anyway so he said nothing.
Ah so she was looking for her partner but mentioned she wasn't far and thought Ocellimon might show up since they were discussing that night. Then she felt around her neck for something before mentioning the crucifix she was wearing that night that she gave to Piddomon. Mandrake looked Iona in the eye before he said "Perhaps it went with his data."
"If that is the case then a small part of you may end up part of him when he is reborn. Maybe he may even wear the crucifix when he is reborn. I hope in his next life he will be happy." Lothar said hoping for the best for that Piddomon.
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Post by Iona E. Mason and Ocellimon on Jan 29, 2022 22:19:36 GMT
Iona didn't shy away from Madrake's eye contact. It fascinated her. Before today, Iona's only interaction with digimon had been as either predatory threats, protectors, or both. That impish Dracmon that lead her around the mall in a wild good chase, for instance, had been her very first encounter with digimon and the experience had set an expectation for digimon to be mercurial and otherworldly. Ocellimon didn't help that assessment. And yet, here she was, having a conversation with two digimon (who were partners, no less) about the fate of a third digimon's soul.
And they were both showing genuine concern for Iona's well-being.
Possessed of a sudden sense of ease, Iona tilted her head to the side as she looked to Mandrake and Lothar. These two--was it appropriate to call them people? Sure. Whatever. These two people were somehow, by default, the most trustworthy people she knew in this whole digimon business. She supposed she had no choice but to entrust them with a request.
"Hey," she said, "May I ask a favor of the two of you? You don't owe me anything, of course. You both practically saved my life that night. I doubt Ocellimon could have taken Piddomon on her own, even digivolved. But you're also the only ones I can trust about this."
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Post by ricochet6-Mandrake on Jan 29, 2022 23:04:37 GMT
While some humans shied away from eye contact for a variety of reasons that was not the case for Iona. Sure neither Mandrake or Lothar were offended by those with such an issue as in many cases the person couldn't help having issues with looking people in the eye. However some people found not being able to maintain eye contact rude even if the other person couldn't help it.
Mandrake's gaze tended to carry both wisdom and gentleness which was incredible for a digimon as young as he and Lothar. By human standards the both of them were little more than young adults despite, at times, seeming older. Soon both Mandrake and Lothar noticed how at ease Iona began to look before she looked at the disguised Wizardmon and Leomon before she asked them for a favor.
After listening to her words Mandrake said "Don't worry too much, Iona. That Piddomon was endangering innocent people so Lothar and I couldn't stand by and do nothing. What is it that you need to ask?"
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