please help me: the catch-all

[messianic]

Comments

start;

[crudest]

[It's a sunny day.

Baren sits at the steps leading up to the entrance of the shrine, legs crossed easily as he lights another cigarette. An ash tray sits next to him as his fixation on cleanliness wins against his otherwise effortless bad boy demeanor. He taps the cigarette even as the wind rustles through the tree leaves, making even the bells in his hair jingle with the breeze.

It's quiet, and he likes that.

One might not guess, given the way that he chats up every visitor at the shrine as if biting at the opportunity for breaking the monotony of the quiet, but he prefers it like this. Peaceful and alone. His chest falls with an exhale of smoke, and he watches the cloud of it rise up until he hears footsteps approach.

When he catches sight of a familiar head of blue hair, he raises a brow and his greeting is immediate as he smirks.]

We're closed todaaaaay.

[little fuckin shit]

[messianic]

[Ah yes. What a little shit.

It doesn't bother Minato though, of course. It's a warm and pleasant day, Minato's hands tucked contentedly into his pockets as he strolls his way up to the shrine. Today, he's not interested in spending time with Maiko, and Akinari won't be there (rather, it's not that he's not interested, but rather that he has a different agenda--), and so when he sees Baren...

Well, that makes it easy.

Minato tugs a hand from his pocket, lifts it in greeting, and proceeds to ignore everything that just came out of Baren's mouth.]

Yo.

[WHAT UP.]

I came to say hello.

[Obviously.

(Baren is interesting, though, and Minato's barely scratched the surface of this Social Link. He still doesn't even know what the Devil link really means in the Arcana journey.)]

[crudest]

Then consider it mission accomplished?

["Yo" means the same thing as "Hello" right. Baren doesn't even move to get up, or put out his cigarette. Or in general be polite? Is this really his family's shrine. Is it.

He raises a hand, cigarette held between his fingers.]

Hello.

[He waves.]

Goodbye. ♪

[messianic]

[Yeah huh.

Minato just shrugs a little, and steps forward, and takes a seat on the shrine steps, one step down from Baren, but other than that next to him.]

I don't really want to leave yet, either, though.

[crudest]

Oi, don't just decide you're going to sit next to someone without an invitation...

[as if Baren doesn't do the same thing when it suits him... but also fine, he's not about to actually kick minato out of the shrine when he doesn't seem to be doing any damage. he takes another inhale of his cigarette and seems to consider blowing the smoke right in minato's face for a second

and then decides against it, turning away just a fraction to let the cloud puff into the air above them]

You're not even here to pray?

[messianic]

[So long as Baren doesn't seem inclined to kick him out, Minato can safely ignore most of the bluster.

(He appreciates that that cigarette smoke doesn't get blown his way, though, thanks, he wants to live a long, fulfilling life without lung cancer.)

Regardless:]

Not right now, no. I'm here to see you.

[WELL.

Nobody can accuse him of not being straightforward.]

[crudest]

If you're going to talk like that, you really ought to buy me dinner first.

[wow hey i only have regrets]

[messianic]

[Wow hey that took 7 comments.

Minato's response, in return, is placid.]

I don't really know enough about you to invite you to dinner, I think. [Oh.]

[crudest]

I'd hate to run out of things to talk about over dinner.

[that's a lie, baren can talk about anything for any length of time as long as the other party doesn't care when it turns into bullshit

but he'll reach the end of his cigarette then, putting it out in the ash tray and waving a hand]

Clearly I lead a very simple life. There's not much to tell.

[please,,]

[messianic]

[UH... HUH...]

I know basically nothing about you.

[SO.... so there's a lot still to tell.]

And I think that a lot of people have a lot to tell, no matter how simple their lives might be. [Baren, on the other hand, he finds hard to believe has a simple life by any means.]

[crudest]

Why mess up a good thing with something as ugly as knowing each other?

[baren's life motto summed up easily there, amazing]

In fact, I think I could stand to know a little less about you?

[is he joking? is he being an asshole? we just Don't Know]

[messianic]

[That's kind of a sad, lonely life motto, he can't help but think--not that he's in any position to judge.

Rather--]

That's fine. [O...h....] You don't have to get to know me if you don't want to.

But it doesn't change the fact that I'd like to get to know you.

[crudest]

I'm not interested in that either.

[wow okay, that's quick

but also baren sees an opportunity here and - ]

But all this talk about food's got me hungry... I guess if you do bring me something to eat, I can share something about myself.

[is this social link worth your lunch money, minato]

truth;

[crudest]

[Prayers are normal around the shrine - people ask for things from the gods, and hope they get blessed. Baren is used to hearing many of them. Prayers for love, for health, for wealth, for success, the occasional prayer from a desperate student who fell asleep in the middle of their studying the night before.

He doesn't pay them any mind, just wishes them well and continues about the rest of his day. Baren hardly ever expects anyone's prayers to pertain to him after all.

Today he's in the middle of cleaning, of maintaining the shrine, because at least his neat freak tendencies have a place to go here. A cat wanders by. Nothing's new.

But then again, he hasn't tried to tell a lie today. When he hears footsteps, he doesn't even turn, it's just an even toned - ]

Welcoooome.

[messianic]

[Minato's pretty good at undermining expectations in that sneaky little way of his, honestly. He prays to the shrine for assistance in getting to know Baren a bit better, because what could it hurt really, and it's not like he actually expects it to work either.

But. It was worth a try, since he was there anyway.

And now? Now here he is on another day, hands tucked in his pockets as he comes by to check on one of his more troublesome Social Links.]

...Hey. Good afternoon. [SUP.]

[crudest]

Ahh? You again?

[There's the tired expression on his face - because why does Minato keep trying to talk to him? He doesn't really get it. It's not like conversation is bad, but Baren doesn't really particularly like it when someone decides that they're his friend without his permission either.

A prickly, prickly peacock.]

Do you have nothing better to do again...

[messianic]

[Minato just kind of shrugs at that... Baren, he has 5000 hobbies but wandering around talking to people is his biggest one.]

Not really. [Oh.] This is more important. Is it okay if we talk today?

[crudest]

Sure, why not?

[ - is not what he meant to say.

He seems to blink at his own recognition of that, because what he wanted to say was "Nope, get lost" in his typical Baren fashion but.

A tilt of his head....?

What was up with that - ]

[messianic]

[... Whoa yeah that was entirely unexpected. In all the time Minato's known Baren, he has not once said anything like that.

Welcoming? Baren? Yeah right.

Uh...]

... Okay. Thanks, then.

[Yeah...!]

I wanted to come by and see how you're doing today.

[crudest]

Confused now.

[RUDE - but it's not untrue, so he doesn't seem to think twice about saying it or have any issues doing so. There's a slightly befuddled look on his face.

Because the thing is that his last statement wasn't untrue. Baren doesn't care who he talks to or who comes by to see him. Some people he likes more than others - kids, he likes kids more than adults all the time - but if someone wants to talk to him he normally doesn't mind until they say something he finds annoying.

That sentiment is just never meant to escape his mouth.]

Why do you care?

[messianic]

[... Confused, well. That makes both of them.

Though that blunt question at least gives Minato pause as he contemplates it. Hm...!!]

Well... Maiko-chan likes you. That's a good start. And you take very good care of this shrine, so it's obvious you care about it a lot.

[...A shrug.]

I think that's reason enough to want to get to know you and see how you're doing.

[crudest]

.... your standards for people are really low, aren't they?

[He shakes his head and pauses in his sweeping of leaves to balance his hands on top of his broom, looking at Minato because apparently they're having this conversation now.]

Since your reasons are pretty bare and all. I exist as a person, so you want to get to know me? That's pretty nosey, you know.

[messianic]

[??]

That's not what I said, though... Maiko-chan's a good judge of character. The fact that she likes you must mean that you take good care of her, and play with her. So you have that going for you.

And taking care of this shrine... I think a lot of people don't care about things like that anymore, but you're always diligent about it, no matter what you say.

[A tilt of his head.]

But you do try to push me away a lot, and I guess that just makes me even more curious about you.

[crudest]

[A wave of his hand and his response is almost immediate - ]

Anyone who's not nice to kids should probably get hit by a car? [that's nice] That's hardly a plus, it's more of a basic human decency thing.

And taking care of the shrine is my job, no matter how you look at it. Being insincere about what feeds you or slacking off on a responsibility is a shitty thing.

[So he cants his head to the side.]

Your standards are still low. "Ah, he's not actively setting shit on fire or being a dick to children, so I want to know him." And if you still talk to me, even knowing that I don't really want to engage with you.... That's kinda masochistic, then.

[what was that about pushing minato away,]

[messianic]

[Hm. Minato just blinks slowly, and...shrugs.]

Maybe.

[Minato no??]

But whether you think they're good reasons or not, I still want to get to know you as best I can.