Day 46: Lunch

The mere fact that she'd been susceptible to whatever hold the Institute had had on her yesterday was sufficient to leave Ayumu both upset and angry - no, not angry, downright furious, both at herself and whoever was responsible for that. But there was also the fact that because of it, she'd lost out on an entire day of work, and in several ways had ruined some of what she'd done already. That little conversation with Himura the day before, for instance, was something she'd sincerely prefer not to remember if she'd had any choice in the matter.

Unless the man was a complete moron, which, unfortunately, was one thing she couldn't believe of him, he had to have realized just who her brother was. After all the effort to keep that fact quiet (not exactly a secret, but certainly not advertised; half the Shinsengumi probably never even realized it because there was no reason to) she'd gone and chatted about it with him. Told him all about it, practically painted a bright target around a weakness that shouldn't have existed in the first place.

She'd spent the shift in the Sun Room pretending to sleep, while in truth forcing herself into calm. After years of practice she could shunt away the useless and distracting emotions, focusing only on what was important and needed to be at the forefront of her mind, and by the time the intercom signaled the lunch period she was feeling considerably calmer. The time to silently observe others had, as well, alerted her to something she probably should have noticed earlier: Mello was back. Would her previous objective be reinstated now? He seemed to have far less of a bulletin presence this time, so perhaps not. Still, though, it bore investigating.

None of her thoughts were visible, of course, as she moved through the line, examining the lunch selection somewhat dubiously. Now with the benefit of Yuuko's memories she might recognize the food, but she certainly didn't share the enthusiasm for it that her imaginary self apparently had. Ayumu skipped past that part and settled for the salad bar and some bread, then positioned herself in a place where she could watch both the door and the rest of the room, setting her journal open in front of herself as though planning to write something. There was far too much that she'd missed, too much work to do now.

[for Okita]
scarefaux: ([observant])

[personal profile] scarefaux 2009-12-22 12:37 am (UTC)(link)
"Oh, I wish," the Scarecrow said, leaning on his hand. "If they did recognize me like this, it'd save me the trouble of explaining my name. I do an awful lot of that here. I suppose it is strange for a normal person to have a name like that." Worse was that some people hadn't the faintest idea of what a scarecrow was- boy, did that make things awkward, especially with robot folks. "Having a name like Peter Watson must be nice and uncomplicated."

He vigorously stabbed his fork into a piece of his now-cut pizza and stuffed it into his mouth, swallowing it before he continued. "I thought I might go by the name they call me here, since it might give people less--"

He stopped as he got a look at Peter's face. "Is something the matter?"

[personal profile] tightsofmight 2009-12-22 01:35 am (UTC)(link)
"No, no," Peter lied smoothly, lifting his pizza in explanation. "Just fighting off a stomach bug."

Phew. Lucky the guy wasn't like Ale- Terry, who seemed to sniff out fibs like a five year old after his Easter eggs. However, his complaint did catch Peter's attention, sparking an idea that may help the Scarecrow keep his fourth wall safe from the bulldozers.

"Well if you want a second name, why don't you make one up for yourself?" he suggested, pausing for a drink of his water. "It might be less confusing, and it'll be fun. Like a secret identity."

Because those were always a fun thing to have.

"We could make a game of it, even. Heck, I could make one for myself too if you want."
scarefaux: ([thinkin'])

[personal profile] scarefaux 2009-12-22 01:57 am (UTC)(link)
The Scarecrow finished off another bite as he considered the idea. "I never really thought about making a new name for myself. That does sound like it could be fun," he admitted with a smile, "Though I do worry people would feel I'm deceiving them in some way."

He took another bite to mull it over, weighing the good options against the bad. It wasn't like a name was a static thing- after all, his had changed to some degree when he became king of the Emerald City. He gave a nod to himself: no matter the titles or human body or whatever happened to him, he was still going to be the Scarecrow. A simpler name for folks to remember would benefit everyone.

"I suppose it couldn't hurt," he said, his smile returning. "The nurse keeps calling me Hunk, but I'm not entirely sure that name suits me."

[personal profile] tightsofmight 2009-12-22 05:37 am (UTC)(link)
[Why was this post so hard. I don't. SORRY FOR THE DELAY.]

"You can always tell your friends your real name, and even strangers once you get to know them better." Peter offered a kind smile. The edge of the shock had withered enough that he could be genuine about it, too. "Think of it this way: if anyone bad from home shows up, they'll have a tougher time finding you. I know a couple people who had that problem, so...yeah. It helps."

Wait, did that mean Hunk was an actual name? What was wrong with the world. Couldn't they at least toss a poor scarecrow some dignity?

"Maybe not," he agreed. "What kind of name would you like? Long, short, starts with an A, starts with a B. Clark, Derek, Eric, Frank, Gerome...?"
scarefaux: ([puzzling])

[personal profile] scarefaux 2009-12-22 06:16 am (UTC)(link)
[Pfft, like it matters to me how long you take to post. Don't fret over it. ♥]

Now there was one subject the Scarecrow had never thought about: if he could have any name at all, which would he choose? There were so many! How was he supposed to make an important decision like that without his brains?

He crossed his arms and put a finger to his temple, attempting to run through every name he'd ever heard of all at once. He didn't know very many good-sounding names to begin with- frankly, choosing a name common for the Ozites would probably make him stand out just as much as keeping his old name- so picking a name from the ones Peter listed sounded like a solid idea.

"I think Frank sounds like a good name," he settled, "Or maybe something short like it." Frank. Frank of Oz. His Royal Highness, Frank, the Scarecrow of Oz. Okay, maybe not that. "Would I need a last name, as well?"

[personal profile] tightsofmight 2009-12-22 10:34 pm (UTC)(link)
[*Doesn't post until next Christmas*]

And Frank it was. Peter blinked at that, wondering if the Scarecrow had picked it because he genuinely liked it or it was just the least sucky of the names that he had thrown out. Nonetheless, it suited him. Simple and classic. "That was quick. I guess it was a no brainer, huh?"

...He should really just stop talking forever.

"Last name is a good idea," he added quickly. "Did you want to keep it short too, or something with a little more 'oomph'? And you don't have pick something just because I said it either. It's your name, you can make up whatever you like."
scarefaux: ([pfft])

[personal profile] scarefaux 2009-12-23 12:47 am (UTC)(link)
"I've got to say that making up names apparently isn't a strength of mine," he said as he drew a blank on good last names. "I've never done it before, and most folks in Oz go by a single name."

A similar blank was drawn for any last name, good or bad. Dorothy had a last name, but using hers would just remind him of her and how much he missed his friends. The Tin Man had a last name, too, but it was more fitting of a man with an axe than a man without brains. He was certain the Wizard had a last name, but he wasn't sure what it was.

"You wouldn't happen to know any wizards with a good last name I could use, would you? Or a different name with more oomph? I have a funny sort of feeling that going by Frank Woggle-Bug would lead to more questions than I'd get with my own name."

[personal profile] tightsofmight 2009-12-23 08:39 pm (UTC)(link)
The word 'wizards' had him thinking of Harry Potter, and now he was mentally drawing on a pair of round glasses and a lightning shaped scar onto the other man's face. Yeah, no. Potter wasn't going to fly. Especially if one of those kids showed up. (Don't you dare turn around and look, Parker. DON'T DO IT.)

Though he'd have to think of something if Woggle-Bug was the best the guy could come up with. It was almost adorable in the way kittens got stuck in buckets. Cute but kind of sad at the same time.

"Probably. Props for originality, though." His hand pressed against his chin as he flipped through a virtual rolodex of everyone he'd ever met. "Ummm. Richards? Castle?" No! Not Castle! If he called himself Frank Castle people would mistake him for the frigging Punisher!

"Allen, Johnson, Jackson, Beauregard, Baum, um. Westerning? Murry, Palmer, Woods, Clooney - stop me when I hit something you like - Kiebler, Robinson, Reilly..."
Edited 2009-12-24 05:51 (UTC)
scarefaux: ([surprised])

[personal profile] scarefaux 2009-12-24 06:00 am (UTC)(link)
[Pffff I just now caught that I gave him Baum's name. /facepalm]

While Baum caught his attention for some reason he couldn't quite put his finger on, he decided to go with his second impulse and pick the name that sounded fancy. "I think Westerning sounds delightful!" he mused aloud, liking the sound of it as he ran it through his mind a few times, with and without titles.

"Dorothy Gale, Peter Watson, Frank Westerning," he listed, seeing how it sounded in comparison to other names. A joyous smile crossed his face as he heard it alongside the others: "Oh rapture! It's as if I've always had that name!" He looked forward to the next shift so he could find some complete stranger and introduce himself using his new moniker.

"Oh, how can I ever thank you?" he asked, honestly grateful for the seemingly simple solution to his a-scarecrow-in-name-only problem.

[personal profile] tightsofmight 2009-12-25 05:29 am (UTC)(link)
[I thought you were planning it that way?! *DREAMS. CRUSHED*]

Peter couldn't help himself. He matched the Scarecrow's grin from dimple to dimple. The guy was just so damn happy, it was impossible to sit across from him and keep the corner of your mouth from twitching up.

He held up hand in response, laughing a little to himself. "Don't worry about it, seriously. All I did was toss out names at you."

Although now he had to wonder if Dorothy was here too, the way he'd listed her like that. Or maybe that was just because he knew her full name? Peter hoped she wasn't here. Somehow a Dorothy would be even weirder to have around than a Scarecrow or a Batman. Well if he ever saw a girl off in some corner of the rec field singing to herself about rainbows and yellow brick roads, he'd know what he was dealing with.