[ This much thinking requires snacking, which thankfully Ibuki had the foresight to bring—!
Shigaraki isn't head empty, not really, it's more that nowadays what he bothers to think about and what he actually has to think about isn't much. But he does listen even if a lot of the time it's just "storing that info away for later" than ever acknowledging that he's aware of it in the first place.
Which is all to say that he's been reminded of something he did do, since you know, video games. ]
Oh, yeah. [ He reaches over to the bag he brought; he had to bring the NES, controllers, and Paperboy since there's no way he's just leaving this with the group at large. But more importantly(?) he did bring two other things. ]
Hmm, yeah, should be doable then? Wouldn't hurt to have a good visual in your head to reference though.
[ For a bit, Ibuki continues to think on this subject, remembering the moving anatomy models he's seen in horror dramas. Shigaraki speaking up again quickly snaps him out of it. ]
[ Any thought to bring up moving anatomy models quickly disappears soon after. ]
Eh?
[ He wants to say more, but the words get stuck in his throat for a bit. Instead, he looks between the two containers and Shigaraki, eyes widening the same way they did when he opened the loot box on Monday. ]
[ After a pause, he brings the cupcake and goose a little closer, marveling at how cute both of them are. It's kind of amazing how much he adores them already, really. It seems almost a shame to eat the cupcake... Ibuki wants to take a picture before that. ]
Hahaha, thanks. You're pretty good at giving presents, huh?
[ He can't really help the big grin blooming on his face. An unexpected surprise this may be, but it's clear from his expression that he's having fun. ]
Raid bosses are supposed to give out the best loot. [ He looks kind of stupidly pleased about it for a few reasons, one of which is his luck being like This when it comes to gatcha. It's always satisfying to pull high no matter what it is. ]
But I figured why not game the weird dates and numbers here. And that old guy can't kill this goose.
Good to know. And yeah, you might as well take the chance. [ He can't help but laugh a little more before continuing. ] I'll be sure to take care of this little one.
[ But of course he can't ignore the other one, so he takes out his U-PINION to take a picture, one that won't be sent to the Toucan chat. ]
[ Keeping stuff from the toucans... Shigaraki tilts his head at the picture taking. He's seen this plenty before with Toga and Magne but it's still a ??? to him. Needless to say, he was not the one who created the selfie task it was obviously Overhaul. ]
[ After a moment he accepts that with a small "huh". Cute does not really exist in his vocabulary, but having lived with someone where cute runs in her bloodstream, he understands well enough. And that's kind of why he picked this cupcake because his intuition isn't terrible, somehow.
Anyway, he's finally grabbing some chips now. ]
Too bad there's not been any cool explosions here, or I could try to get a new wallpaper. [ Lobelia's explosions do not count, obviously. ]
Maybe one day. [ Yeah, not dwelling on the Lobelia situation. He'll finally open the cupcake container to start eating it, satisfied with the pictures he took. Even if the looks of food aren't really important, he does appreciate a good presentation. ]
Hmm, all the chaos and mayhem?
[ And while he's waiting for an answer, he partially unwraps part of the cupcake's side and takes a bite. Mm, sweet. He could definitely finish this in one sitting. ]
Though maybe it'll be like that on the island soon enough. Or maybe not, I didn't think skeletons were supposed to be that orderly. [ He was very obviously watching and disappointed by WWX's very polite army. ]
Yeah, those. [ He thinks on this for as long as it takes him to eat a chip, but ultimately it's not a hard decision to make at all. Actually, he had decided this Monday night, so really it's more just figuring out how to say it. ]
That whole thing was us, or rather someone who's working for us. We got some things we gotta test to make things real fun when we get back to our world.
Overhaul's real big on doing it the proper way with trials, but I don't really care as long as it works.
[ A beat. ]
Well, as long as they don't target you. Which I made sure they both understood 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡 𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙡.
[ He says this oh so casually, but there's a note in there that only tends to reverbate when they've talked world destruction. Because despite how he's been and how he's played nice relatively speaking, there's some things he's resolute on, to the Nth degree and then off the scale entirely. ]
[ With a small nod in acknowledgment, he continues to listen carefully, even as he takes a few more bites out of the cupcake. ]
Oh, is this the sidequest thing you were talking about back then?
[ Feels like a long time ago now, and yet he logically knows it's only been a little less than a month. But he digresses. And shouldn't be, considering the next part of the conversation. ]
I see... You could have left that as my birthday present and I would've still been happy, you know?
[ Logically, he realizes that probably paints a target on his back that he'll have to keep an eye on. Emotionally, he can't bring himself to over worry much. Especially when he can't help but feel a little joy about the other implications.
When he makes up his mind to lend a hand to someone, they constantly have carte blanche from his point of view, give or take a few buttons. Yukinami, Hyuga, Yuuki, and now Shigaraki. What kind of future will they make?
Huh? Your birthdays got nothin' to do with it. I'm not gonna let anyone mess with you unless you want 'em to.
[ He thinks back to that conversation earlier this week, the history of having a talk like this before, how that ended, how he's different now.
The past shifts in his mind as he shifts in the beanbag, searching for a word and finding none that he likes, but deciding that it doesn't matter. He knows what it's not and that's fine. ]
You said you'd lend me your hand, right? So I'm givin' you mine. Hands are meant to hold onto somethin', whatever that it is, or whoever that is.
I see. Then I won't let them mess with you either.
[ A funny thing to say to someone who can clearly take care of himself, but he's always been a bit of a worrier.
And right, he did say he'd lend a hand. For someone like him who constantly seeks answers, he wants to at least be someone who doesn't complicate a promise made. Maybe his offer was rather vague last time, but he doesn't intend on taking it back. He's never been one to turn back on his word anyway. ]
I don't think I've thought of it that way before, but...yeah. You might as well take hold of what you can and leave the what-ifs behind.
No one can really mess with me anymore. [ He means that in all the ways and it's largely true, at least as far as he can see.
And that's fine if he can't see that far, because he's not concerned with the future in the usual sense of the word. He's arrived at this conclusion because he's here now, something like realizing it's raining when the first drops fall rather than the scent of rain in the air or the extra pressure in your ears.
He didn't offer his hand last weekend, but he has now and that's that. ]
I said the other day I used to have a lot of hands right? My Master gave them to me to wear to remind me of my past, of my family that I killed. Of the hatred in my gut, of the sick, awful feeling I could never really get rid of.
Anyway, those just held me back in the past after a while. I needed 'em in the beginning, but I don't anymore. So yeah, take hold of what you can, of what you want but don't let that hold you back either, just like the maybes or what coulda happened.
You can hold things but still move forward and be who you wanna be, no matter what anyone else thinks.
[ He says it jokingly, even if it's the truth. But he lets that energy dissipate when Shigaraki continues talking, placing his hands on his lap. What little that remains of the cupcake can come later.
Reminders of the past, huh? That Master must've been quite the character, Ibuki thinks, not quite realizing how literal Shigaraki is being right now. Keeping sight of your goal is important, and Ibuki recognizes the need to remind yourself to stay on track...but then he hears "my family that I killed" and his thoughts swerve.
He doesn't have family. People he's fond of, sure, but family? He'd rather call them friends. He can't understand what it's like to lose what you never had. So many stories talk about their importance, but quantifying loss just from that is impossible. What should he say here?
Trying to clear his mind, he takes a small breath to fill his lungs and quietly exhales. Something about the movement calms him and gives him room to think of something.
Right, he doesn't have to understand. It's fine. He just needs to be himself and meet him where he's at. ]
A reminder you don't need anymore... I've never been to one, but maybe it's something like a graduation? How to put this... Like "Thanks for teaching me what I need to know, but I can take care of myself now."
[ Honestly, he doesn't even remember where that came from. Maybe a drama, maybe a movie, maybe a book? Somehow, it feels like what he learns about human society blends together after a while. ]
I think I see where you're coming from there? In the end, what happened happened, but at least we can choose where we end up after. So...I guess this was a lot of words to say we should just do what we want.
[ Maybe this is all simpler than he thinks in the end. ]
Yeah, that's all there is to it. I'm grateful for everything my Master taught me, but it's my turn now. And what happened with Hana and my parents is something that doesn't bother me anymore.
I still have one hand cuz it's kinda cool, but it's not enough to weigh me down.
No, if we're counting 'em like that it's four. Or five???
[ This would make so much more sense if he brought the stupid hand but neither him nor I anticipated Paperboy turning into this.
To emphasize his point, he holds up a finger on each of his hands, points in whatever direction the main island is on, that's three, and then pokes Ibuki's waving hands, there. Five. ]
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Shigaraki isn't head empty, not really, it's more that nowadays what he bothers to think about and what he actually has to think about isn't much. But he does listen even if a lot of the time it's just "storing that info away for later" than ever acknowledging that he's aware of it in the first place.
Which is all to say that he's been reminded of something he did do, since you know, video games. ]
Oh, yeah. [ He reaches over to the bag he brought; he had to bring the NES, controllers, and Paperboy since there's no way he's just leaving this with the group at large. But more importantly(?) he did bring two other things. ]
The last time was loot, so here. [ He hands over one tiny konbini bird cupcake in that exact container, and a gatchapon capsule containing this very tired goose, with string that can be attached to the u-pinion. ]
Happy Birthday.
1/2
[ For a bit, Ibuki continues to think on this subject, remembering the moving anatomy models he's seen in horror dramas. Shigaraki speaking up again quickly snaps him out of it. ]
2/3 i lied
Eh?
[ He wants to say more, but the words get stuck in his throat for a bit. Instead, he looks between the two containers and Shigaraki, eyes widening the same way they did when he opened the loot box on Monday. ]
3/3
Hahaha, thanks. You're pretty good at giving presents, huh?
[ He can't really help the big grin blooming on his face. An unexpected surprise this may be, but it's clear from his expression that he's having fun. ]
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But I figured why not game the weird dates and numbers here. And that old guy can't kill this goose.
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[ But of course he can't ignore the other one, so he takes out his U-PINION to take a picture, one that won't be sent to the Toucan chat. ]
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it was obviously Overhaul. ]What's that for?
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Taking a picture of the cupcake. I want to be able to see what it looks like even after I eat it.
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Like a cool explosion?
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[ Cute and cool are both wonderful in their own ways! ]
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Anyway, he's finally grabbing some chips now. ]
Too bad there's not been any cool explosions here, or I could try to get a new wallpaper. [ Lobelia's explosions do not count, obviously. ]
But this is remindin' me why Paperboy's fun too.
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Hmm, all the chaos and mayhem?
[ And while he's waiting for an answer, he partially unwraps part of the cupcake's side and takes a bite. Mm, sweet. He could definitely finish this in one sitting. ]
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Though maybe it'll be like that on the island soon enough. Or maybe not, I didn't think skeletons were supposed to be that orderly. [ He was very obviously watching and disappointed by WWX's very polite army. ]
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Skeletons...you mean the ones from earlier?
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That whole thing was us, or rather someone who's working for us. We got some things we gotta test to make things real fun when we get back to our world.
Overhaul's real big on doing it the proper way with trials, but I don't really care as long as it works.
[ A beat. ]
Well, as long as they don't target you. Which I made sure they both understood 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡 𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙡.
[ He says this oh so casually, but there's a note in there that only tends to reverbate when they've talked world destruction. Because despite how he's been and how he's played nice relatively speaking, there's some things he's resolute on, to the Nth degree and then off the scale entirely. ]
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Oh, is this the sidequest thing you were talking about back then?
[ Feels like a long time ago now, and yet he logically knows it's only been a little less than a month. But he digresses. And shouldn't be, considering the next part of the conversation. ]
I see... You could have left that as my birthday present and I would've still been happy, you know?
[ Logically, he realizes that probably paints a target on his back that he'll have to keep an eye on. Emotionally, he can't bring himself to over worry much. Especially when he can't help but feel a little joy about the other implications.
When he makes up his mind to lend a hand to someone, they constantly have carte blanche from his point of view, give or take a few buttons. Yukinami, Hyuga, Yuuki, and now Shigaraki. What kind of future will they make?
He wants to see where this goes. ]
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[ He thinks back to that conversation earlier this week, the history of having a talk like this before, how that ended, how he's different now.
The past shifts in his mind as he shifts in the beanbag, searching for a word and finding none that he likes, but deciding that it doesn't matter. He knows what it's not and that's fine. ]
You said you'd lend me your hand, right? So I'm givin' you mine. Hands are meant to hold onto somethin', whatever that it is, or whoever that is.
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[ A funny thing to say to someone who can clearly take care of himself, but he's always been a bit of a worrier.
And right, he did say he'd lend a hand. For someone like him who constantly seeks answers, he wants to at least be someone who doesn't complicate a promise made. Maybe his offer was rather vague last time, but he doesn't intend on taking it back. He's never been one to turn back on his word anyway. ]
I don't think I've thought of it that way before, but...yeah. You might as well take hold of what you can and leave the what-ifs behind.
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And that's fine if he can't see that far, because he's not concerned with the future in the usual sense of the word. He's arrived at this conclusion because he's here now, something like realizing it's raining when the first drops fall rather than the scent of rain in the air or the extra pressure in your ears.
He didn't offer his hand last weekend, but he has now and that's that. ]
I said the other day I used to have a lot of hands right? My Master gave them to me to wear to remind me of my past, of my family that I killed. Of the hatred in my gut, of the sick, awful feeling I could never really get rid of.
Anyway, those just held me back in the past after a while. I needed 'em in the beginning, but I don't anymore. So yeah, take hold of what you can, of what you want but don't let that hold you back either, just like the maybes or what coulda happened.
You can hold things but still move forward and be who you wanna be, no matter what anyone else thinks.
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[ He says it jokingly, even if it's the truth. But he lets that energy dissipate when Shigaraki continues talking, placing his hands on his lap. What little that remains of the cupcake can come later.
Reminders of the past, huh? That Master must've been quite the character, Ibuki thinks, not quite realizing how literal Shigaraki is being right now. Keeping sight of your goal is important, and Ibuki recognizes the need to remind yourself to stay on track...but then he hears "my family that I killed" and his thoughts swerve.
He doesn't have family. People he's fond of, sure, but family? He'd rather call them friends. He can't understand what it's like to lose what you never had. So many stories talk about their importance, but quantifying loss just from that is impossible. What should he say here?
Trying to clear his mind, he takes a small breath to fill his lungs and quietly exhales. Something about the movement calms him and gives him room to think of something.
Right, he doesn't have to understand. It's fine. He just needs to be himself and meet him where he's at. ]
A reminder you don't need anymore... I've never been to one, but maybe it's something like a graduation? How to put this... Like "Thanks for teaching me what I need to know, but I can take care of myself now."
[ Honestly, he doesn't even remember where that came from. Maybe a drama, maybe a movie, maybe a book? Somehow, it feels like what he learns about human society blends together after a while. ]
I think I see where you're coming from there? In the end, what happened happened, but at least we can choose where we end up after. So...I guess this was a lot of words to say we should just do what we want.
[ Maybe this is all simpler than he thinks in the end. ]
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I still have one hand cuz it's kinda cool, but it's not enough to weigh me down.
[ ...looks at Ibuki's hands stupidly. ]
Two???
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[ He nods at that, internally relieved he managed to think of something to say. This though? ]
Three???
[ Leaving the cupcake on his lap, he waves his hands back and forth like a pop idol greeting. (He does not know what a pop idol is.) ]
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[ This would make so much more sense if he brought the stupid hand but neither him nor I anticipated Paperboy turning into this.
To emphasize his point, he holds up a finger on each of his hands, points in whatever direction the main island is on, that's three, and then pokes Ibuki's waving hands, there. Five. ]
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[ Kind of confused, but he's just mentally shrugging and going with the spirit of it. It's fine, this is all fine. ]
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I'll show you next time. [ Next time what? Yes. ]
Ibuki, you can ask, you know? [ Ask what? Yes. ]
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