033 -- [Action]

[endgames]

[In anticipation of a witch hunt, Shikamaru left the village a solid week or more ago for a spot he could wait things out and do as he liked. After John's report to the village, he trained with Twila's powers some and checked out the barrier. He never forgot that looming detail - that a deadline was approaching - but it wasn't the loudest though to linger in his mind.

"I've let your new attitude and wings slide, because we're friends. But it's starting to make you do things you wouldn't normally in a bad way. You should get it together."

It's troublesome but not untrue, which means that comes before anything else. Control is the name of the game here. Twila catered to his apathy, and while there's something nice about not feeling sad or anxious anymore, until they split ways he's going to be the one calling the shots. And after that week... he is for the most part, and ready to take care of things.]

[Since it's hard telling over the journals how much things settled in the village, so on June 9th he makes his way back on his very best behavior. Best. Maybe. PROVOKE HIM AND FIND OUT. He's still possessed by the start of the day, but in general, Shikamaru can be found attempting to mind himself while doing any of the following:

1. Observing people from high up places and making weirdly realistic shadow puppets to pass the time
2. Exploring the new parts of the tunnels
3. Searching out anyone he might have been an ass to, because he should make up for that 8|

One way or another he's back to normal by the end of the day, so people might find him in CH1 too after the fact.]

Comments

[endgames]

[He heard it from the spirits himself, actually, but the point still stands.]

Yeah. That's what I was thinking could be the case - that it was locked in these tunnels, more specifically.

[strangelyliteral]

If we poke around here, we might find something.

[endgames]

Mm...

[Yeah, they could. But raising his head to regard the tunnels again, his feet don't want to move forward, as if Twila could root them there.]

You up for it?

[strangelyliteral]

... Kind of mixed feelings, but I'm thinking that if it's something Twila doesn't want, it might mean something. So I can at least try, right? Something to do with my time.

[endgames]

[He nods. Yeah, that's fair enough.]

All right. And as a man, it's not like I can let you go alone... [He breathes a stream of air through his nose.] Let's do it.

[strangelyliteral]

[She scrunches her nose up at that, but she'll follow if he takes the lead.] "As a man?" Were you going for chivalrous or insulting?

[endgames]

[THE WORLD MAY NEVER KNOW. He shrugs off a response, knowing anything he could say would just dig him deeper, and takes a few steps ahead.]

Since this is your first time down here, do you want to blaze the path yourself or get the tour?

[strangelyliteral]

If there's something to check out, you'd know more about it than me. I'd rather not blaze a trail in the wrong direction.

[endgames]

[He nods, and puts his hands in his pockets.]

The most interesting area of these tunnels is the hidden section we discovered over half a year ago. I don't know if I'd like to go that far yet.

[Though eventually he might work up the courage, when he runs into Masaomi there later.]

[strangelyliteral]

I'm fine with poking around the less-interesting parts. Nothing's gonna jump out at us, right? I didn't bring anything sharp.

[endgames]

Nah, it's pretty clean down here. Unless someone dumped a super criminal from their world while I was away, it'll be fine.

[strangelyliteral]

Not something that happens often, is it? [She glances down the rows of doors.] Seems almost clinical, for a tunnel.

[endgames]

I told you before that powers are nullified here. In a pinch, that makes it a good prison for those who would use their abilities to hurt others.

[He himself thought about throwing Hidan down here, once.]

[strangelyliteral]

Yeah, I get it. It just reminds me of - oh, never mind.

[endgames]

What?

[No he's curious.]

[strangelyliteral]

We had to deal with these... commando-scientist types a while back. It got messy.

[endgames]

Wow. That does sound familiar.

[strangelyliteral]

Let me guess. You know Buffy.

[endgames]

--I do, actually, though I was thinking of Malnosso goons over her.

[strangelyliteral]

[Oh, drat, was that her bitterness showing? Time to backtrack.] -- Well, yeah, it sounds like them too. What I've heard of them, anyway.

[endgames]

[Obvious correction is obvious. He raises his eyebrow, turning that over in his head. They're coming closer to more of those doors now and he slows his pace, turning his attention to those. This is exploring, after all.]

Commando scientists, for the record, sounds like a bad movie title.

[strangelyliteral]

I wouldn't watch it.

[endgames]

Oh c'mon. It could be the next Godzilla.

[strangelyliteral]

Depends on which Godzilla. Or so I've heard, anyway.

[endgames]

There's more than one?