chippedsoul | The Journal [Inbox]

[ When Kazuma returns home and goes to open his front door, he will find the knob bound tight with a familiar pink packaging, hanging innocently against the wood. It is not labeled on the outside; he may even struggle to free the thing, but when it’s untied, he will find small box inside, with a note:

To Kazuma-sama:
I didn't know what I could do for you while you were gone, but I did want you to know that you were missed. Mostly, I hope it makes you think of me, but there might just be a small remnant of someone else too...
Either way, I hope you find it to your liking.

Praying for your safe return,
- Susato Mikotoba

Inside the box... is a ring.

At its very center is a bright and sparkling red jewel, surrounded by metallic feather-like shapes that come together to form a diamond. The matching silver band running beneath it is thin, but elegant, ready to expand or shrink to fit its new owner... or so she was told.

She can only hope that it fits him as well as she was promised when she bargained for it. ]

[Kazuma will finally make his return to town near the beginning of December, with little fanfare as he rather avoid getting attention. He was no longer a giant snake monster, but there are traces that still linger on him. The most obvious is a snake tail hidden under the cloak he's started to wear to hide that fact. There are spots on his skin that still have scales as well, but for the most part, back to a person that no longer constantly craves for a nightmare snack.

He spends a bit of time in the empty room downstairs to drop a few things, plants mostly, before he actually goes upstairs and enters his home proper for the first time in several weeks. Of course, before he could even go inside, he sees the gift on the doorknob left by Susato.

After reading her letter, he opens the box to discover the ring. His brow furrows, picking the ring up to examine it. An amuse hum escapes him, completely recognizing what Susato was going for.] Of course.

[Rather than head inside, he takes a seat on the porch, taking out his journal to send a short message.]

I've returned.

[ Life moves forward, and just like when he "died," Susato finds herself having to move with it, which is probably the best thing she can do for him. She doesn't have 76's strength; and she no longer wishes to burden, asking to be led to him again when he doesn't want to risk it, or even asking how he's doing, or if he's lost himself and attacked today.

Nope! She doesn't need to know! She is fine, not knowing! Moving on is definitely facing those two 8-foot tall women and bargaining with them for the ring, without knowing when he'd ever see it.

Of course, as soon as she sees his one simple message, her face lights up like the sun and it all goes sideways. ]

Kazuma-sama, welcome back! Where are you...? Do you require assistance?

[ Her hand continues moving, she probably thinks of five more questions in that instant but CALM DOWN, SUSATO, let a man breathe. ]

[He still gets the sense she wanted to ask more questions than what she wrote.]

My home, where I found the gift you left me. He's fumbling with the ring in his free hand, thinking about what to say next.]

I'm on the porch, if you want to see me.

[ HE SAW IT???

Wait, no--he was supposed to see it. That is why she left it. Don't be stupid, Susato, this is why you tied it up all nice and tight rather than waiting to give it to him in person, isn't it? Coward.

...... ]

Of course I do! [ Get out of here with that 'if' nonsense. ] Um... I will be there in a moment, but you must promise not to laugh.

[ Does she have to do this in an ugly Christmas sweater? Does she? Either way, if Kazuma is still contemplating what to say, it seems like he'll have a little more time. ]

[That last part had him puzzling, until he recall what he had seen and heard on his way home.]

You've been forced to wear something unsightly, haven't you?

Maybe. Quite possibly. Perhaps.

[ To their credit, the little gremlins at least learned to color-coordinate. It is still not something she would usually wear though, so she is once again considering an isolated life as a hermit--

For about five seconds. Then she decides she must be on her way, through the snow, before she can change her mind. ]

I assure you, I am not looking much better. So I can promise you, I will not laugh.

[It is rather chilly outside isn't it? Maybe there's a bit of the snake still in him that makes him a little more susceptible to the cold, even with the warm breeze that follows him. He lights one of the lanterns on the porch just to warm up the area a little while he waits for Susato's arrival. He still contemplates what to do with the ring. Wear it obviously, but...he can't help but wonder once more what his father would think of all this.

...Maybe, just like the friends he's made here and from home, their eagerness to still support him is enough for him to believe his father would feel the same.

The ring will already be on his right index finger when Susato arrives to his home. He tugs on his cloak, mostly due to the cold, and to make sure it hasn't gotten caught by his tail. That "ugly sweater" she had on is immediately the first thing he notices, but rather than laugh, he's just looks surprised, amuse. It doesn't look that terrible on her. Maybe one size too big perhaps.]

[ It's certainly an improvement over the other day, so she's got that going for her. She's close now, but even so, she takes one last look at his final message before taking a breath and tucking the notebook away. Bracing herself, all while knowing Kazuma is a man of his word, she climbs the steps to his place, the quiet clacking of her boots leaving footprints in the snow.

Right away, the subtle, warm breeze emanating from him is comforting, not at all suffocating like before. She smiles, quickly bowing in greeting. ]

Hello. [ It's hard to see the dark snake scale patches on his skin in the dark and in the snow, but she can definitely see... something. Funnily enough, she misses the obvious at first glance, which means the cloak was doing a good job. ] I quite like your cloak.

[ And then steals a glance at the ring, just barely shining red in the moonlight. It suits him even better than she imagined. ]

Oh? [He tilts his head.] I suppose, but I don't think it keeps the cold away as well as that sweater.

[It is a bit chilly to be staying on the porch, so he'll proceed to open the front door, so they could both come inside. It's oddly colder inside than out, probably from lack of use while Kazuma was away.] I'll start a fire. Please, take a seat in the main room. [With his back to her, the tail is more obvious while he puts some wood into the fireplace. Just a simple touch and a small fire sparks, spreading to the rest of the wood pile. His features become more visible, and now that they're inside, he removes his cloak. He look just like himself, though there were scales creeping up the back of his neck, and some on the back of his hands. In the darkness, his eyes seem to turn yellow for a moment, otherwise he was mostly human.]

[ Susato looks down at herself, clearly self-conscious, with a small blush to her cheeks that is thankfully difficult to see as they are. When he ushers them inside, she is thankful--mostly for the change in subject, but also to get out of the snow. ]

O, Okay.

[ Of course it's even colder inside. Susato can see her breath as she watches him light the fire--something to aspire to, for sure--and she's taking a good look at him for the first time in a while. ]

Does it hurt? [ She frowns, a worried expression suddenly written all over her face. ] You have patches on your skin... and a tail still.

[His fingers brushes over the scales on his other hand. He had expected the questions, but he still ends up feeling self conscious about his appearance.] Just the occasional irritable itch, nothing more. This too will eventually pass.

[He lifts the bag that he been carrying, looking through it's contents. He'll take out a jar and a small vial, setting them on the table. The vial had some of his white scales, the jar carried that familiar rainbow honey.] I thought your father would like to take a look at those scales, and some more of that honey for you.

[ Her shoulders fall slightly, feeling relieved; though she does still feel bad for calling out his appearance, if her face is anything to go by. Still, she is grateful for the reassurance, even though she doesn't know how permanent it is.

When he goes through the bag, she peers over him curiously, but does not expect anything. Her face lights bright, examining the jar of honey and the vial of scales one after the other. ]

I'm certain he would. I will give it to him straight away. [ Not literally, of course, but he knows what she means. And the honey... to be honest, she still wanted to pour some into a small decorative jar, for a necklace. ] ...Thank you. I wasn't expecting anything in return.

...Well, I didn't want to come back empty handed, after being away for all that time. [He gestures to her to take a seat. He'll join her once she's seated.]

Besides, I'd say same about this. [He raises the hand with the ring she had gifted him.]

[ Susato moves to sit as she's directed, rubbing her hands together and exhaling onto them for warmth as she does so. Compared to her nervousness initially, she wears an easy smile on her face when he shows it off. ]

Ah! And it suits you so well. [ It's a bit of a relief that it fits him too, if she's honest, though she had no reason to worry--and even though the answer is perhaps one she can guess, she can't helping getting a lump in her throat as she asks: ] Do you like it?

...It's beautiful. [He has to take a moment to make sure he doesn't sit on his own tail as he joins her on the sofa.]

I hope it wasn't too much trouble for you to procure this. [He gingerly fumbles with the ring, like he wasn't sure what to feel with the foreign object on his finger.]

...No. I simply had to work it off for a day.

[ Still smiling, Susato watches him, and--honestly she would rather Kazuma not worry about that at all. She talks it down, though she did learn a few things from working with those two unnaturally tall women, which she happily shares. ]

Apparently the ring is fashioned after a kind of currency in their world, the rupee. It comes in a variety of different colors, starting with green, blue, yellow, and...

Well. Red, of course. [ She waves a hand in his general direction. ] ...But you didn't call me over to hear me go on about that, so...

[ Anyways! ]

... H, How are you feeling?

[What do you mean that's not why he called her over-] I see...I'll take good care of it. [He folds his hands over his lap, thinking about how to answer her question.]

Like I've woken up from a nightmare, like a fog has lifted. I didn't have much sense of time while I was out there, so...have I missed much while I was away?

[ Look, she was starting to feel self-conscious, hearing herself go off, okay. She is far more interested in making sure he is okay--though of course, hearing his answer only makes her wince with guilt.

Well, no, she is glad that the fog has lifted. She only wishes she could have lifted it two weeks ago. ]

I'm sorry. But...no, aside from being forced into these sweaters, it has been rather quiet as of late. [ That, and it has started snowing, but Kazuma probably noticed that before she did, out in the cold forest. ] Ah--but father and I did start constructing a greenhouse, so we could have a place to keep those flowers I brought back.

[ Yujin has been doing the heavy lifting, but Susato has helped. It makes her feel useful. ]

[He shakes his head] That's nothing to apologize for. Honestly, it's good that things have been relatively calm.

[He tilts his head.] Is he now? Maybe I'll come by to give it a look. [He does have some plant tending experience thanks to his time in the Realm of Stories. He leans back, arms crossed as his tail lightly pats the sofa.] Speaking of constructing...I'm thinking I'll be able to open that pub next month. You said you wanted to help, right?

[ That's not what she was apologizing f...... you know what, never mind. She and Yujin would be happy to have his opinion on their progress, but anything else she might have told him regarding that or certain species of flying slugs causing trouble gets put temporarily on hold. ]

Oh! Yes, of course. Anything you need. Wh, where do we start?

Ah, well...the room and the area around it on the bottom floor needs to get cleaned up first. [He had a look and it could definitely use a dusting.]

Not tonight, but tomorrow perhaps. And...if you like, would you be interested in cooking for the customers?

[ She nods; he'd almost taken the words out of her thoughts. ]

I was about to suggest you taking some time to recover... You deserve some nights in an actual bed, for starters. [ But tomorrow is fine, at least. One night. ]

...I, I would be honored to cook for you, also. Are you certain 76 wouldn't mind?

[ She would not want to step on his toes. ]

[...That's right, he hasn't really "rested" for a while. He's been so set on moving forward that he hadn't really thought about stopping really. It's not it was the first time he's slept somewhere lacking the usual comforts afterall.]

Not at all. In fact...I think he would appreciate company. [He wears a worried expression on his face.] You saw the state of his hands, didn't you?

...Yes. [ Though he hadn't meant for her to see them. Susato expression falls just a bit; she had asked about it, of course, though she thought she was being respectful by not pressing the issue. ] I was more concerned about you at the time... Although, to his credit, he doesn't appear to let it hold him back.

Either way, I hope you'll both allow me to do what I can.

[ They don't have access to any recipe books or the like here, so... that's just another personal project she'll need more notebooks for. How many recipes can she remember, she wonders? From her time in Britain with Iris, all the way back to her childhood with her grandmother... ]

Early December, post-noctaere adventures

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