hierophany | INBOX (jikan)

[The message comes in the afternoon, just after the dream where Kakyoin railed her so hard she woke up with a leg cramp. Kokoro wasn't sure how to feel about it, but she had made plans to have coffee with him. Payback for her gifts, or something. Kokoro bites her lip before she sends him a message.]

Hi!

Did you still want to have our coffee thing? I can be up there before you come back.

[ Oh god. Oh god, why today. ]

I'm closing alone, today. If you want to come to the cafe at closing time, it'll be nice and quiet. You can take your pick from the leftover food, too.

Really? Great! I'll see you then!

[Good job, Amamiya, you successfully made it seem like everything is fine.

A few hours later, Kokoro finds herself at the entry to the cafe. Inside, this close to closing, it looks dead, and she can see Kakyoin behind the counter. Swallowing nervously, she sets her shoulders back and enters the cafe as mostly-confident as usual.]

Hey, Kakyoin-kun.

[ He manages to have a relatively normal day, give or take a few comments. The collar of his clothes doesn't quite cover the big ugly red-purple bruise on one side of his neck, but most people don't ask.

Kokoro probably will, because she seems the nosy sort. But 'I don't know how it got there' is as honest an answer as any. If all else fails, he has a half-competent cover story about trying on a choker and catching his skin with the fastening. ]

You're in luck. I think we have a few of the vegetarian ones left.

[ He's wiping down tables when she comes in, preparing to close up for the evening. He gestures to a display of sandwiches and cakes. A lot of the shelves are empty, but there are a few things left. ]

You can't take any until after the hour's passed. But once we're officially closed, they'd just be thrown out anyway. Might as well go home with you, instead.

What, seriously? Excellent, I didn't want to have to make a complicated dinner tonight, anyway.

[It's a little weird, actually, the way her subconcious thinks it's weird that she's not getting a little kiss. But dream Kakyoin isn't reality, as weird as that is. Kokoro shakes her head some, but then notices the red mark on his neck.]

Did you... get in a fight with a vacuum cleaner?

Ah-

[ You know what? She's given him a story, he's just going to go with it. ]

-cleanup after the lunch rush is a dangerous time. I seem to have survived it for another day, at least. [ A pause, he checks his watch. It is now, officially, past closing time. ]

Hierophant made the macarons if you want to try them. He's been handing them out with coffee, but I'm trying to get the boss to let us sell them properly here. The purple ones are lavender and honey, we made them with the leftovers from the syrup. [ Speaking of. ] I'll handle the drinks once everything's clean.

Well, mind that vacuum, it would be bad if you got all marked up.

[She smiles, and her expression brightening at the mention of macarons.]

I actually don't eat too many sugary things, but I will make an exception since Hierophant worked hard on them.

[She hope the Stand wore a little hat.]

Edited 2021-10-04 14:49 (UTC)

I'll take care with it. I'm sure I have it under control now.

[ By which he means TIME TO NOT EVER SLEEP AGAIN. Most of Hierophant is busy in the back of the cafe, cleaning and putting away plates and cups, but a tentacle reaches out from the kitchen and picks up one of the purple macarons so it can place it in Kokoro's hands. It's a pale purple, with a light gold filling and a piece of dried lavender baked into the top cookie. ]

You don't have to, since you probably wouldn't buy them anyway, but if you signed the petition asking for them to be sold here it'd mean a lot to him.

Good, but let me know if it gets away from you again. I'll come and hold it down for you.

[Please, please let this be a vacuum related incident. But what if it wasn't... Kokoro's brow furrows in thought as she nibbled the macaron. Once she savored it, she nodded. ]

They're a good little cheat food, so I will definitely support you both.

I think- I think I'll be fine. I'll be careful.

[ Oh god, why is he still talking about this. ]

Thank you. Hierophant likes making things, and it'll mean he has something to share with people who can't see him.

Good, if you're not I'll yell at you.

[Because they've seen each other dream naked. Kokoro laughs, time for something dumb, funny and purposely vague.]

Did Jotaro tell you how dumb I was the other day? I woke up with a dumb leg cramp. Personally, I'm blaming it on a dream I had, because I was exhausted when I woke up. I must've been fighting someone or something.

["Fighting" that's what they're calling it now.]

Fighting? That sounds dreadful.

[ Oh. Oh no. There's no way that this is a coincidence, is there? She just happens to want to meet and to talk about dreams so soon after-

-He pulls out a chair at the table he's just finished cleaning off, offering it to Kokoro. ]

Out milk, steamed, single shot of espresso, lavender and honey syrup. Nothing I'm forgetting?

Yeah, it was weird. Not the worst dream I've had, but I can't remember most of it, [a lie, because she remembers all of it] so I'm willing to think that I was just flopping around a lot.

[She picks up the cup and smiles at him,] And you got the drink perfect.

Possibly. The alternative is low potassium, but I'm sure you'd have addressed that long before it became a problem.

[ It's very much A Fancy Drink. The oat milk doesn't lend itself to art as much as dairy milk would, but Hierophant's managed a half-decent tulip, with a blue-purple dust of crushed dried lavender flowers sprinkled over the top of it.

He pulls over a chair for himself as Hierophant brings a cup and a small teapot over to the table. ]

Your photography. It's all filmless- [ Wait, there's a more modern term that she uses, right. ] -digital, then? Or do you still use film sometimes?

Digital, yes. I don't mind using regular film, though. The scent of the chemicals makes my eyes water, though. We've got a darkroom at home, because my mom loves using film exclusively, and she showed me how to develop it.

But digital is fast, easier, and often way more crisp and detailed.

[She takes this opportunity to look at her drink.]

Waii, it's so cute. Thank you, Kakyoin-kun.

I was trying to find development chemicals a few weeks ago, during the fuss at the markets. I should check there again, now things have calmed down a little.

[ He smiles, pouring a deep purple tea from the pot. Cherry, naturally. ]

You're very welcome. I hope you enjoy it.

You're into photography?

[Kokoro's interest immediately took over any thought that might've been involving trying to figure out if Dream!Kakyoin was 1:1. (She was pretty sure not, but who knew?) Photography was God, after all, and she was a fervent devotee.]

Are you experienced, or a total newbie - no judgment if you are, everyone starts somewhere - how are you gonna get that past Jotaro? Oh! Did you find a studio?

[ Oh thank god, a distraction. ]

Not even a newbie, I'm afraid. I don't really have the knack for actually taking shots but I like working in the dark room, so I used to help out at the photography club.

[ Hierophant's tendril reaches up to curl comfortably around his cup, enjoying the warmth of it. ]

I wanted to learn about how photography is practiced here, I suppose. There are some fascinating applications of magic for it, but I think most cameras as we would recognise them were brought here be refugees.

That tracks with what I noticed!

Speaking of shots, though, I need to take new ones of you. While I liked the way they look, sometimes you need a redo.

[Considering he had a flesh bud at that time and was actively trying to kill Jotaro by using her. Not precisely the best memory. She sipped her steamer and sighed indulgently.]

[it's Jotaro's futon - or maybe it's Kakyoin's, but it doesn't really matter whose futon it is. Not when it's too cold to get out from underneath the blankets, and not when he's much more interested in the warm body next to him. He should probably be a little concerned about how he ended up there in the first place—

No. No, fuck it. He can be concerned about it later, because he's tired of being concerned.

And it's easy enough to push all those thoughts aside and instead pull Kakyoin closer, press his lips to the back of his neck and let himself be content for once. He can let himself want something, and at that moment there's nothing he wants more than getting Kakyoin as close as possible]

INBOX (jikan)

Coffee Definitely-Not-Date (after Dreamtime)

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kizuna dreams part II: the cuddling