hasitsthorns | ed/rosie; (i'll think of a ship name eventually)

ed/rosie; (i'll think of a ship name eventually)

❝

The best relationships are the ones you never saw coming.

❞

[ "Home" had never been a word that Rose had known. She had been cast out of the only one that had come close at a young age. Then, she was caged. After that, she roamed. While nomadic life suited her in ways she didn't expect, it was hard for the wolf in her and the instincts that said to find a pack.

Of course, she'd never listened to them once she started her human life. They were stupid. Humans were social creatures too, of course, but not to the same degree or depth as wolves. Not really. Or so she'd always thought. Being a roadie made it easy to tune out the pieces of her that cried out for somewhere to belong. They were all constantly moving, constantly running from things they didn't want to face.

She'd come to learn that was true of more people than she realized. Maybe not of her kind, but- She never related to them much anyway.

Being displaced was an understatement. As someone who didn't want to be yokai but also would never be human, she was stuck in a nebulous in-between. At least, she was until she was called to a world with nothing but people like her. An entire pocket dimension of others who had no place to call home, who didn't feel like they belonged, and who were just trying to find their place in the multiverse. ]

Dude, [ she says, lounging on the couch lazily. As she does. As she has been for the past however long. What had started as 'let me crash at your place after a barbeque' turned into 'guess I'm never leaving apparently.' Really, it was to be expected after she squealed in excitement about the Pokemon room. Also, this place had plenty of room and she'd never been made to feel like she was imposing in any way. So she stayed. ]

What are you doing? Whatever it is, we should do something more fun instead.

Edited 2018-11-27 11:05 (UTC)

[For Ed, Purg had changed things. Someone who had spent nearly half his life thinking it was just his brother and him against the world and Purgatorium had challenged that, made community a necessity. New arrivals relied on the generosity of those already settled in, the boarding house existed for the sake of giving somewhere to go. As stubbornly as he'd clung to "we're all we've got" as a kid, that unwavering devotion had extended to their entire society and no matter where Ed landed, the mentality stuck.

It was hard for Al to adjust to, he'd never really gotten over it in the months that he had stayed in the Quarantine, which only added to the elder Elric's relief when he finally went home. The guilt and mental leaps he took to justify things turning out as they did had a tendency to linger, disrupting any semblance of peace he found for himself since his brother's departure.

The combination of things just made him all the more determined to extend his space to others - he certainly didn't need this much for one person - and throw himself recklessly into any distraction he could get his hands on. Distractions like pleasing the people left in his life that he did still have around because Edward Elric had spent his entire life obsessed with making the people that mattered to him happy.]

Nothing important.

[He doesn't even look up from the notes he's taking as he speaks, trying to figure this place out despite reassurances from the other residents that there was no great mystery here - it just seemed too good to be true, especially with all the mysterious things that happened and the moon's history alone. He does pause long enough to give her his attention, though.]

Did you have something in mind?

I'unno, dude, [ she says.

Rose never knows what she wants. That's part of her problem, isn't it? Wandering from place to place, trying to find where she fits in. No wonder this reality had labeled her as 'displaced.' She tries not to think about it too much (but she does). ]

They've got some celebration going on this month. Sampremi, or something? That seems like fun. [ It always seems like there's a party going on in Riverview. ] It's supposed to be sexy but I don't know about all that. It's definitely more exciting than last month's stuff.

We could check that out or just- Go out! Do something. I'm getting stir crazy.

[ It's been like twelve hours since she last left the house. A record. It's maddening. ]

[Ed had stopped thinking about it months ago. A wise man once said thinking on too large a scale was only going to drive him insane, and he wasn't wrong. He tries not to make a face when she says it's supposed to be sexy as he finally glances up, but she had a point that they really did need to get out more.]

I guess we could look into it. It's not like there isn't plenty to do here if it's...

[Not as fun as she expects it to be? He's not sure what she expects it to be.]

boring.

[He doesn't exactly sound enthused about the prospect, but he does wrap up what he's doing and set the notes aside to give her his full attention, finally.]

This place never has a shortage of parties, that's for sure. We didn't really have anything like this where I came from so I'm still not really used to it...

[How many months had he been there? Nearly a year and still the idea of browsing the mall for the sake of it or going to the movies - whatever this place offered for entertainment outside of the non-stop festivals - had never caught his interest.]

[ He tries not to make a face but she can sense that subtle shift. Part of being hunted was having to look out for little tells- Rose is a lot more observant than people give her credit for. Of course, while she acts the fool more than she doesn't, that isn't to say she can't also just be a fool as well. Staying at a guy's place just because he hasn't told her to leave yet might not have been the brightest of ideas on a brand new world but... Hey, it seems to be working out alright. She has no reason yet to think that Edward isn't just a really nice dude who wanted more company even if he didn't outright say so. ]

That's true. There's a whole city to figure out something to do with. I asked some space ranger about, like, exploring outside the dome but he seems super busy. [ That was captain Jim Kirk, you uncultured pleb. ]

I keep forgetting people are from, like, the dark ages. [ Wait. ] Not that you are, I mean, just- It's wild to me! I'd die without trashy daytime TV. [ She wouldn't. Up until only a couple decades ago, life was as primitive and simplistic as could be. Just the way yokai liked it, living in tune with nature and solitary...

Snore. ]

What's your idea of fun, then, if not sexy festivals or going to the movies?

Edited (you keep pointing out my typos in chat this is your own fault) 2019-01-26 11:36 (UTC)

[He's easy to read, painfully so, even if she wasn't as hyper-aware as she is. As for her staying here? Ed has plenty of space and no one to share it with, of course, he doesn't mind the company. Purgatorium instilled a very specific mindset into those trapped there. Community was important, helping others and relying on other was the only way to survive there and it still went hand-in-hand with how Edward operated today. He was well enough off to afford a place that could house as many people as possible, because he thought about luxuries they couldn't have back then, he thought about possibilities beyond their wildest dreams in that place and he thought about the number of people that would need a shelter if there was ever another emergency like that fire in August.

He was ready for anything, even if 'anything' only really ever amounted to 'new arrival that doesn't want to live in the communal building.' Really, he couldn't blame anyone for it either, there was absolutely no privacy in that place.]

Space Ranger.

[Ed says that so flatly it's as if she said she had spoken to Santa. Nevermind that, the important thing here was the rest of what she had just said. He kind of stares when she asks what his idea of fun is, subtle as a brick through a window. Sparring wasn't actually a widely accepted hobby to most people, he'd learned. TV was a foreign concept to him, none of his modern friends had exactly sat him down in front of the television and made a point of showing him how one went about enjoying the damn thing, he hadn't bothered to look into it himself.]

Oh, you know. Sitting on the roof, watching the stars. Cooking, reading, making fun of my best friend's taste in music...

[Fuck that asshole, he was busy lately and Ed didn't hold grudges, wouldn't ever dream of turning Jason away, but he's still going to dig into that irritation just a little bit.]

Exploring outside the wall. I am a member of the Guard.

[She said fun not 'work', too bad Ed has no work/life separation. Sorry, Rosie. Part of the reason he does the work he does is that it goes hand-in-hand with his sense of enjoyment.]

Where I was before we stayed in a lot. There just wasn't much to do except survive, staying in was the best way to do that.

[He's being intentionally vague there and she might pick up on it. In Purg there were monsters to avoid, staying in meant staying alive a lot of the time. The shelter was protection. In Attollo 'staying in to survive' had a whole different meaning. It was avoiding curses, staying out of the eye of the natives, remaining close to people that could be trusted when you did need a partner. Fucking was surviving. Here, having the luxury of the option of going outside, of going past the wall, whenever he wanted? That was his idea of enjoying himself.]

[ It's funny, in a way, that the communal building was more like what Rose was used to than this. Yet, here is where she seemed to have settled in best so far. The whole notion of 'settling' in general is new. But it's no doubt aimlessly wandering from sharehouse to motel to whatever she could find a space to lay for the evening contributed to the displacement that had pulled her through the portal to this moon in the fist place.

Maybe she really was trying to change, to find somewhere she was able to fit how she'd never allowed herself to before. Or maybe she's a huge lazy mooch who just really likes having a roof over head and food that isn't instant meals or has so many ingredients on the label that it can't possibly be safe for consumption. (Spoilers: It's probably the second one.) ]

Ah, yes, Lord Edgington- I remember. [ He did have deplorable taste in music. She'd have to show him the light sometime. The Good Word of Music. She liked to think she was an authority (and could be considered on, in some regards) but also knew music really was subjective. What sound someone liked going in their earholes didn't make them any less respectable than her.

Which is, like, far easier thought than actually said but it's fine. Most people pick up on that she's not seriously judging them for anything.

When he starts to talk about 'staying in,' there's something familiar there. After a couple of centuries of trying to survive the Makai alone, Rose understands how just being able to walk without worry might seem like a luxury. Even when she was living among humans, she was always on the move; she was always looking over her shoulder just in case. It never felt like she'd had a moment to just breathe for a long, long while she does understand.

But she's also a product of her environment. After so long of moving, despite the fact that it was out of necessity, it's still something she got used to. Something that feels comfortable, normal. Rose doesn't do well with restlessness and stagnation. She needs to keep moving in some way or another. ]

What's it like outside the wall? City life is all well and good but I'unno. I just miss- [ Adventure? Excitement? Danger? There's no edge to anything here and shouldn't that be a good thing? Hm. ] -feeling like there was always something to do back home, sometimes. Like I work here and do stuff but it's not the same.

[ It's honestly hard to place why it all feels so nihilistic but it does. Has she really only been here a couple of months and is already stir crazy? ]

Is it more like where you were before out there?

[Displacement was a funny thing. Ed had never felt like he had a home, ever since they were kids they said they had no home to go back to and Purgatorium was never supposed to feel like one, but there it was anyway. Attollo was the worst offender though and it was for that reason it actually made the most sense he was pulled from there. They had that in common, the wandering drifter life - although for much different reasons - so it almost seemed inevitable that they'd wind up instantly connecting in a way. It was almost as if fate had assigned Rosie to Ed's bed because their meeting was inevitable. They were both mostly alone, she liked having meals and he liked to cook, clearly the perfect set up.]

What do you do for work?

['I work here' she says. It's almost as if he wasn't going to tell her what it was like outside the wall, but he knew Orientation tried to line people up with jobs that reflected their abilities. If she wasn't on a job that required she go beyond the wall chances were she wasn't considered able to take care of herself out there, not that it would stop him from taking her if she wanted to go. It just gave him an idea of how likely she was to be able to defend herself, probably. Maybe.

As for that question? He actually stills, kind of tenses, and doesn't respond right away.]

The first place, a little. Nothing really to protect you but abandoned buildings and wildlife that'll try to kill you as fast as look at you? Yeah, it's kind of like that out there.

[ Rose isn't actually sure she believes in things like fate. At least, not the common notion of it that it was this uncontrollable force that just guided you where you were meant to be. Most of her people, yokai and Japanese, believed in the idea of taking control of their own fates.
Giving thanks for what you have in life supposedly brings good fortune.

Maybe that's why Rose, who never once was grateful for the mold she was born into that she never fit in the first place, has had such a tragic life. Maybe she deserves it. And maybe that's why she has such a hard time believing that anything good that comes her way is actually earned and not just misplaced luck. ]

I'm a DJ. Made sense, I guess, I was a roadie back home. Liked music, liked to travel. But that's where the adventurous part comes in! Seeing new places is always exciting. [ It doesn't sound like she's anyone capable of taking care of herself in dangerous situations. That was the point though. That had been the point for the last thirty or so years of her life. Normalcy. She wanted to seem "normal," but her true desires could definitely be at odds with that image of herself she was trying to convey.

How long will it take for the mask she'd carefully craft to actually crack? ]

I'm fast. On my feet and thinking, when it comes to danger. I don't think you'll have to worry too much about me if we're out there. [ She shifts a little. Contemplates. ] Sorry you had to deal with that though. Must be kind of nice, getting some time to just... relax here, I guess.

Edited 2019-02-26 03:01 (UTC)

[Anyone that knew Edward Elric would say he didn't believe in things like fate, but then he goes and contradicts them by saying he does so who the fuck really knows what he thinks. What he does think is that this portal dragging him away from Attollo when it did makes way more sense than he wants to put much consideration into.

She says she's a DJ and Ed's thoughts are immediately brought back to Otabek, nearly making him sigh. That guy didn't know how to have fun, invite him to a party and he assumed he was supposed to be in charge of the music. Somehow, he doubts she has the same problem, though. All of Ed's time in Purgatorium had taught him not to judge a book by the cover, the general store's security was a bunch of children, dangerous and bloodthirsty enough to kill any monsters that approached too close for the safety of others. Which meant he was used to giving people the benefit of the doubt even when they didn't seem like they'd be capable, and that was a risk that had yet to come back to bite him.

When she says he doesn't have to worry he fixes her with a look that suggests he doubts that, but he wasn't going to argue it. He'd find out sooner or later if she was embellishing her abilities. He's more focused on the last thing she says, anyway. The laugh escapes his throat in a scoff, shaking his head.]

Would you believe I'm so used to it that this place drives me stir crazy?

[ Rose definitely knows how to party. She doesn't necessarily draw attention to herself but she can have a decently good time regardless. While she might judge the fuck out of whatever music is playing if not under her control, she wouldn't feel the need to be in charge of it. ]

Nah, I- I get that? [ She sounds a little unsure. That's because she kind of is. ] I'm worried about that here, actually.

I'm so used to go, go, go back home that here feels kind of... slow. [ Already. She wonders if she's just, after so long, almost conditioned to keep moving. To keep doing something. That's why she has such a strong desire to go outside the walls because it's new, it's an adventure.

But she worries. After that becomes routine, then what next? What's going to happen when what she can see of this planet isn't enough anymore? ]

[He falls silent at her response, watches her quietly as she explains her situation. Something tells him that she really won't have any trouble beyond the wall after an explanation like that. Really, it could mean anything, but there's just something about the way she says it that sounds like more than just having a busy life.]

You get used to the slow... Not sure that's a good thing. That's why some of us spend our time beyond the wall. I guess we're looking for something else.

[There's a bit of bitterness to the rest, even if the scoff that comes with it sounds amused.]

Those of us that don't know how to relax, at least. When living in rundown abandoned buildings and fending off the wildlife is your norm, you start to actually find comfort it.

[ He'd be right. She didn't just go, go, go because she had a lot happening; she did it out of necessity. She always had to keep moving, always had to have her guard up. It's been freeing in a way to not have to worry about that here but also strange. ]

Yeah, that makes sense. So maybe it'll be, like, cathartic or whatever for me too to get out there.

[ A beat. ]

Thanks, by the way. I know it's probably kind of a hassle to take someone else out there. [ It seemed like it, anyway. ]

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