voidtreckerexpress | Make the Clock Reverse (Day 22 Jelly)

Entry tags:

Make the Clock Reverse (Day 22 Jelly)

Make the Clock Reverse,
Bring back what once was mine.

On the evening of Day 21, before it goes dark, any Voidtreckers who look out of the windows might see the void is a little more chaotic than usual. There's a little bit of turbulence. Nothing too bad, nowhere near how bad it got during the void storm, but noticeable all the same.

It doesn't last long, and the night continues. Those who are not early to bed may see the odd golden flicker out of the corner of their eyes, darting away and vanishing if pursued.

Strange...

Heal what has been hurt,
Change the fates' design.

"Good Morning passengers. Today is day twenty two of the month of Jelly." The morning announcement wakes everyone up as usual, and they awaken in their own beds.

Though, for some passengers, those beds may seem completely unfamiliar: a strange room full of people they don't recognise. For others the room and people are perfectly normal, just... bigger than they remember them being yesterday.

Or it might be that they feel healed, old scars faded. The changes might be small, sporting their embarrassing teenage hair cut; or drastic, their whole body younger.

Either way, it is clear that something very strange has happened on the train.

(OOC: All the information about this event is Here. All changes will reverse the next night and passengers will wake up normal on day 23.

Update: In early afternoon the dressing carriage cupboards will open and animal onesies will be available in child size.)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Absolutely. But let's be honest here, I think the moment the priests got a look at all this prettiness-" he waves his hand in front of his blue, fangy, red-eyed face "-they'd not even think to bring it up."

"...I mean, I've never seen someone who's blue before," Houmei admits quietly, trying very hard not to be rude. "But everything else isn't, um... odd? where I'm from? They'd just assume you're a youkai, probably."

Honestly, even with the blue skin he could pass as some sort of youkai or other.

If some demons can turn into house-sized spiders and shit like that, why not turn blue?

"S'alright, I know I'm the only blue-skinned guy around here. There ain't too many of my kind away from home anyway." He grins finally, though.

"Point still stands, you don't gotta worry about people here. I bet you if you mentioned the name of one of them priests to any one of these people they wouldn't know 'em from their left elbow. You're gonna be alright."

Houmei shakes his head at that, unfortunately. "Several people here know Sanzo-sama. He was here before me...? Or he's still here? I've heard different things from different people..."

All the more reason for him to keep an eye out for any distinctive off-white robes.

"I wouldn't know to be honest. I've only been here a few days. I ain't even heard of half the stuff you was talkin' about today. But I can say that I figured out people come from all kinds of worlds. I mean, some people come from places where they got nothin' but magic, no technology. Some people come from technology only.

"So I couldn't even tell ya if it was the Sanzo from your world. Could be another'n. There are Princesses here from places I ain't ever heard of."

"Sanzo-sama is from the same world, Devero... knew things about my world specifically, from knowing Sanzo-sama."

That little quip about electricity in Shangri-La...

"And he knew my name. He said the train told him, but he lied almost every time he opened his mouth so I don't..."

Houmei doesn't know what to believe, and he's back to staring down into the tea held between his little hands.

Oh that isn't good. Someone tried too hard and dug themselves a hole.

"Well, shit, that is a problem isn't it? I guess it is best you read quietlike or just hide in here. I promise, I won't tell no one where you're at."

He does look legitimately concerned as he rubs his goatee. That could go real bad. Someone just wanted to reach him and now he's scared as hell.

"R-right. I can't stay in here all the time, though."

Surely? Surely.

But hey, at least it's a room he knows about now where he's unlikely to cross paths with a Sanzo, who must be doing things far more important than examining the local plant life.

"Well, people have been letting on like this'll only happen for a day or two? So I say play it cool and just uh... You know. Lay low and be careful. Hopefully they're right."

He knows those worries aren't going to go away. He's been there.

"And then I'll just be back where I'm supposed to be?"

Honestly, Houmei's not sure that's a great thing either. But. At least it's familiar. At least he knows what to expect, at the temple, and with no one to try to tell him otherwise.

"Yeah, probably."

And Yondu does sound pretty disappointed by that. 'Cause 'going back to a memory' even feels worse. And whose to say that's what even happened here.

"Maybe you can learn yourself somethin' to help in the meantime."

"Maybe," Houmei doesn't sound too optimistic about it, but hey. It beats just anxiously bouncing off people in the hallway for the rest of the day, doesn't it?

"Something about how to act right, maybe."

Because Gods know he hasn't figured that out on his own.

"It does sound like someone acted up on your behalf, boy. From everythin' I'm lookin' at? Seen outa you? At least here, you've been actin' right."

He chuckles despite himself.

"My boy? He used to act up all the time. I was real proud of him for it in a way. Just 'cause I knew it meant he'd never feel how I felt." Sure Peter wasn't well adjusted, but he had beat out Yondu by a mile.

"Why would someone...?"

Houmei's such a Good Boy he doesn't even see the value in having a convenient little scapegoat around.

He takes in the bit about Yondu's boy with a slightly furrowed brow, visibly trying to process that. Proud of him for acting up? But that doesn't make sense.

"One of the easiest ways to get away with somethin' is put the blame on someone else. They don't even have to hate ya. They just got to wanna stay out of trouble and figure you'll do fine.

"In my experience, religious folks can be outright holy, or they can be holier than thou in the worst way. Sounds like y'all might have one of the latter."

He just muses idly as he considers.

"Most monks are not very... um..." this is getting awfully close to speaking ill of his elders, and Houmei tries too hard to be too good to do that. "I m-mean, they're very devout, but. But that doesn't mean they're..."

Seated on the floor like he is, Houmei sets the cooled tea aside and brings his knees up to wrap his arms around his legs, miserable.

"...T-that doesn't mean they're... good."

Unless they are, and he's the problem. Which is what he's been taught, thus far. So: "I-I know I'm not."

That makes Yondu chuckle a little though.

"See, you've seen it! It ain't judgment when it's plain fact in front of your eyes? You're good kid, believe me. I have been surrounded by real bad people for a long time. You are an angel compared to ever' one of 'em."

"Y-you don't know me," Houmei says so, so quietly, down into his bony knees.

If Yondu knew him, he'd know! Houmei hasn't stolen anything from Yondu, or lied to him, or been a nuisance -- yet.

Of course, he has no way to truly, honestly understand that even if he did all that stuff, it wouldn't really be a problem for the guy.

"I know a guy that pissed in his buddy's boots and waited for him to put 'em on and then laughed at 'im. And that's just them foolin' around! I guarantee your better than that.

"'Good' is subjective and to me you already leapt that bar wide and clear."

Yondu says this all with an earnest face, but in retrospect that actually was pretty funny. Even if he'd yelled at them at the time.

Houmei wrinkles his nose, against his knees. "That's so gross."

But also, yes.

Kind of funny.

He's trying not to show it, but there's a little shake of one scrawny shoulder.

Yondu lets himself crack a smile too.

"Hey, look at it this way. If there weren't people bein' a little bit bad, we'd be laughin' a whole lot less. So even if you wasn't all that good I don't think I'd mind all that much."

"No one's laughing!"

You're full of shit, Houmei. You're ten. Gross things are funny.

That actually makes Yondu laugh out loud.

"See, now I've caught you fibbin' boy. Maybe you're right, maybe you're my kinda company, huh?"

He lightly taps his knee with the back of his knuckles.

"Oh no!" Houmei is so painfully, absolutely earnest in his horror. He really did lie, and he really didn't even notice!

Yondu's still chuckling though.

"Don't worry, I ain't tellin' nobody, remember? Houmei who? I don't know him. Laugh all you want."

(no subject)

its_lil_sanzo - 2021-03-01 07:14 (UTC) - Expand

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only