thefoundation | WEEK 4 - VENUS FLYTRAP

[ That wink gets the stupidest grin out of Natsuno yet, his head tilting to the side, braids and flowers shifting in a kaleidoscope of colors. ]

Hmn, I think I'm taller than some bears already. [ He looks Anon over, a smile still playing at his lips. ] We might be good just as we are.

[ The answer to what they're doing is flirting. Or being dumb. Or both, actually. ]

[It's an image he's going to remember for a while: the grin and the flowers that resonate with something in him like a ringing bell struck just right. He can tell that even through the deliberate and unthinking way they're barreling forward with no destination, or every destination.

Anon lets it all settle, lets his own smile and momentum carry them forward. Truly the dumbest flirting is when no one involved knows what the hell is going on.]

I think I'd want to meet those bears sometime. [there's something sly there, whether it's actually teasing or whether he just wants to meet bears is up for debate] But I think I'd be fine with staying like this, too.

[It's true in a way that threads all through where they are now, even if he isn't trying for it. He isn't trying to hide it, either, because why would he?

They might be mostly out of flowery things to do, but there are other things that never run out.]

[ Nodding along, bears have been added to their agenda. It's getting pretty packed at this point. ]

That counts for how we are now, and the meeting later too. [ Stating for clarity because- ] I wonder if Nirrti will be upset with us ruining the whole mood of her pity party with bright flowers. As long as the goats don't try to eat the flowers out of my hair, I think it'll be fun.

[An itinerary is only packed when there's a finite end to it -- but he's always sort of vaguely considered the multiverse their oyster, for a few weeks now. It'll take just a little longer for the whole thing to percolate and coalesce into something he can put into words and start putting into action, because Anon is nothing if not a creature of action once he's actually figured out what he's about.

Maybe he should have spent a little more time thinking about just why the whole thing got so complicated and tangled up in everything outside of himself, but he's not going to, because that's how he rolls.

For now, Anon is going to happily slot bears into the whole shebang and snicker at the idea of trying to deal with Nirrti and the goats, running a mock-protective hand over his own braid.]

Mmhmm, it totally counts. I don't think Nirrti will notice, anyway, she's pretty good at not noticing things when she doesn't want to.

If the goats get too hungry, I'm pretty sure we can just feed them the tablecloths.

['Cause they'll probably end up in the ballroom again and that's clearly the way to goatherd.]

Yeah, that's true. I kinda wish it wasn't though, it'd be fun to make her scream. [ This is definitely his jinrou side shining through, but there's a distinct note of pride present. He's always been about doing whatever he wants, and not so silly braids aren't an exception. Neither is their growing list of things to do and see. If he stopped and thought he might catch himself, but they're flying along too fast for that. For now, it's likely a good thing. The payoff later will make that clear. ]

That'll work. We can just use these flower scraps too and throw them at them. [ Like a literal flower bomb. ]

Hmm, I guess it's pretty easy to make her scream about stuff, if you really want to.

[Truth to tell, most of the time Anon prefers her when she's happily murderous because that's how he rolls in this neck of the Witchy woods, and it's usually much, much more fun to see how much she can set the place on fire. Still, she's entertaining either way and if their fellow Pieces can get her riled enough to really stretch her vowels then it can't be too hard. He's just never bothered to make the effort on his end, and the funny shade in the book is still a bit of a confusing quantity.

That's not the most important thing here, though.

He gives a little hum as he looks around at the remaining petals that they haven't gotten to on the floor and the rest of the floral supplies.]

And if you've got nothing else to do with them! I think I can totally make them into proper bombs.

[Is this really going to be a thing. Just him actually fucking up flower crowns on purpose.]

[ Natsuno just finds her annoying. Between the two witches he probably prefers Watanuki more even if the difference is mainly negligible, but his real issue with Nirrti is her whole "feel sorry for me" schtick. That and how she veers int overly edgy even for him. But, that really isn't important when they're dealing with explosions, and he's fine enough with nodding and moving along.

Effort is only for important things, like flower bombs. ]

Mhmm, I think I'm done making them for everyone else. [ Which is to say he would make Anon another one if he wanted. ]

Show me. They're probably the next best thing compared to making a real bomb here.

[ ...he sounds really excited over this? Maybe he just likes blowing things up even if it's just in flowers, okay. ]

Edited 2019-06-10 01:35 (UTC)

[There's an amused curl to Anon's smile at the way Natsuno is just all in instantly the moment the talk of explosions comes up -- it's a known quantity by now but it never fails, there's something inappropriately soft to the expression, too, but luckily they're both distracted enough by the flower bombs that there's no need to dwell on it.

He's already started moving to gather more flowers, sizing them up for weaving and contemplating the state of the bomb design. Well, first of all, he brings his loot over closer by scooting in a little and then passes some flowers over to Natsuno again. They're apparently just going to hog the dining room and the rest of the flowers, the way they've been doing all along.]

Okay. Then we can experiment a little. You're still better than me at this, but...

[He starts putting together something that looks like the start of a flower crown, but there's a couple more layers to it. Flower crowns in 3D, is what they're doing here. There's something of a laughing quality to his voice, because this really is fun, pyromaniacal instincts aside.]

The more flowers there are, the more likely it is to explode, right? So if you can make it a flower ball instead of a crown...

[God help everybody else tonight.]

A flower ball...so are we going to throw it at people? [ The eagerness in his voice carries here, like a cat that's just spotted an unattended hair tie or the sound of a tuna can opening. His mother would weave baskets sometimes, so adapting that into a general ball shaped shouldn't be too hard even if he wasn't excited for this already.

He scoots his chair a bit closer just to get a clearer view of what Anon's doing. There's no other underlying reasons, surely. ]

What else would you do with a bomb?

[Well, there are bombs you can set, not that anyone has used a bomb here yet or will in the near future -- but with this particular element projectiles seem to be the way to go. That, and the memory of Natsuno cracking up when the boa landed on him is still fresh and spurring Anon on at the moment. Inspiration comes from anywhere, after all.

It's time to put their heads together for this, not-quite-literally but certainly close enough. Anon pokes a little at what he's got so far (it's pretty rickety, given that he's sort of improvising a layered flower crown) and then glances over at Natsuno with an inquiring grin, something necessarily conspiratorial in it.]

Do you think it's round enough like this?

[It probably is not round enough yet, especially since he has no idea how basket-weaving works.]

[ He laughs in agreement; that was true. Setting it was less fun, he would know. ]

No not yet, we want it to seriously explode so we have to stuff it to the limit. [ His pace slows when he catches Anon eye so the movements are easier to track—loop, loop, knot, loop, loop, knot. It's all rather silly and serious at the same time. ]

Edited 2019-06-11 01:27 (UTC)

Hmmm, so that's how this weaving works... like this, and this...

[Anon leans down a little just to eyeball the movements, his own slowing as he focuses -- there's concentration there and a little bit being mesmerized, because somehow seeing the weaving is a little bit different after getting a literal feel for it with his own hair. He's picking it up, though, loop by loop; knots are easy enough, but it's the patterns.]

Definitely, it needs enough flowers to really go off. I think this shape is going to be good. Are you sure you've never made flower bombs before?

[This is a ridiculous use of learning handicrafts but honestly: whatever works. Sometimes you just need to bomb the norms and traditions out of existence and weave something new.]

Me too. The flowers will go everywhere, just like the glitter did. [ Consider: glittered flowers. That might be a step too far, but he might just voice it anyway. ]

Never. I wouldn't be caught dead holding flowers in Sotoba, the obaasan club would have never shut up about me being a secret admirer for some lucky lady. [ His inflection changes at the end, high, musical and mocking. ]

Ahaha, these weird demon meetings never really go as planned, huh?

[The glitter was pretty fun, and so were all the other times they were running around like chickens with their heads cut off (sometimes literally, without the chicken factor) in the ballroom or outside of it. It leads to both varied demonic entertainment and lengthy conversations that somehow end in coat swaps and furries. He really would be up for anything at this point.

But they'll be totally prepared for this one (somehow). Anon laughs a little from where he's turned back to his own flower bomb-in-progress, especially at Natsuno's audible mocking.]

Ah, is that another one of Sotoba's rules? You can't have flowers without impressing a lady! That would be just terrible.

[He's totally trying to copy the tone but he's a little too busy being amused. Isn't it great that nobody's going to be caught dead holding flowers? It's great.]

That's probably the whole point by now. [ ... ] We could make it better, actually.

[ Or is that worse? The thought brings a fangy grin to his face, spurred on by his doubtless perfect mimicry of old grannies along with Anon's.. ]

Mmhmm, it's probably on page one of the rulebook even. I wonder how scandalous we'd look to them right now with all of these flowers. [ Pausing in weaving to flip his hair for emphasis, cause why not. ] I kinda wanna see it, but they might just all drop dead too.

[ That would be fun on it's own, actually. Either way all this flower talk is in good fun and they're just being ridiculous that's all. They'll be no romantic soliloquies with flowers, or marking the end of a relationship with them either.

That's just stupid. ]

Ah, that's true! [honestly it was probably always about messing up plans and introducing a wild card, which Anon is absolutely down for, but more importantly he perks up at that fanged grin like a reflex] Flower bombs is definitely better than the usual.

[Like, puzzles and the like are intriguing enough, sure -- but he much prefers more physical activity and challenges that let him move around more. In that sense, the trials are ideal, and last week's puzzle wasn't bad at all, and lobbing bombs all over the place and making more people than Nirrti scream is definitely a tempting menu item. It gets an easy, mischievous grin in return from him.]

Flowers really have all kinds of uses, huh? I really didn't know you could kill somebody with them (except for poison), but I'd really like to see that sometime. Shocking old people is almost as fun as exploding things.

[Clearly all of this is just for shock factor and there's nothing else involved here at all. The way his gaze still occasionally lingers on the way Natsuno is weaving is clearly just him picking up tricks and tips.]

Definitely. [ He's already looking forward to it. It shows in how his weaving grows more focused and more precise despite his excitement. He really wants to make a mess of things if he's going to be forced to endure one of these stupid story times every week. Maybe it's something they can build on, and next week they can be even more of chaos incarnate. ]

Maybe we can braid each other's hair after the game and try it. [ Ah, he did not mean for his voice to go all soft at the end there, it kinda just happened. Hopefully Anon won't notice. ]

[The excitement is infectious both ways, even though Anon is usually the loudest and the most frequent offender -- even he doesn't often see Natsuno get worked up like this, something that shows in all the little ways and mannerisms that also drive Anon himself further forward in his own weaving and imagination.

He's always up for making a mess, after all. The fact that they're weaving these moments as well as a great deal of chaos together is just the icing on this overly floral cake. His grin goes a little crooked and extra pleased.]

'Course we have to do more braiding later. And I want you to show me braiding other stuff, like charms and pizza.

[Pizza, bread. Same difference. Even if 'after the Game' is still supposedly an unknown quantity... it's become something they can talk about and picture in so many different ways that it feels real.

Even if half of it involves completely off-the-wall ideas for things he's never or almost never done before and they all keep bouncing off one person. It's fine. There's no way this could possibly go wrong.]

Edited 2019-06-14 20:07 (UTC)

...I'll look it up before our next pizza experiment. [ Sure, that's what they're calling the veritable disaster they made last week. He pauses a moment to look at Anon, head tilted, before he goes back to braiding again. Almost done! ]

I guess we can do charms, but I want to make better ones than what they gave us here. [ Competitive and dumb. ]

Ooh, it can be like another pizza experiment. I liked that last one.

[Of course he did. It was a complete disaster and only edible maybe for the goats or really determined teenagers (which they are, but the allure of feeding the goats and ordering in might have won out, who knows), but for an inaugural try at something he's never even seen in person before Anon considers it a success. After all, he got to mess something up with Natsuno and they both had fun.

So what if they probably had to be rescued from starvation by the goats eventually.

He's still watching Natsuno's braiding in between glancing at his own, able now to mostly navigate by touch and muscle memory. He wouldn't be himself if he didn't pick up these things fast -- he's a little behind in terms of pacing, because either way he's still learning, but they've got at least two flower bombs almost ready to go. And likely more spare flowers. Oh boy.]

The charms we got here are pretty ordinary other than their effects, right? So... [he pauses for a moment, one hand drifting automatically to the places where the charms are tucked into his braid] I bet it'll be pretty easy to make really good ones.

[The twists of the braid are still solid and chock-full of colors under his touch and he smiles down at his work before resuming it. He's definitely looking forward to seeing what Natsuno makes, and probably wearing it, because obviously he would? Why not.]

Edited 2019-06-17 02:41 (UTC)

Me too. [ And enjoyment is really all that matters here, because the actual goal wasn't appeasing their stomachs or tastebuds even if it might have started out that way. It's something he realizes just a week later, but he's still not ready to voice it yet. Surely they'll be more cooking escapades in the future when he's feeling ready. ]

Yeah, and I could make a better heart too if I wanted. [ The partner ones were nicer in that they had a more defined shape, but they didn't have any embellishments besides. And stuff like that matters according to his dad. (He's probably not going to make a heart charm for Anon though, so he's not really sure why he said that? Unless he wanted one, or something. )

It might be the memory of all the spiels he had to endure at the dinner table that gives Natsuno an idea he can utilize now. ]

Hmn, we're going to have some flowers left. We can either make a couple of smaller bombs or stuff the petals into the middle of these: to make an ultra flower bomb. [ They'll have to decide now before they seal these up, into a somewhat passable spherical shape. ]

[More cooking escapades are absolutely inevitable when Anon is involved, and even more so when it's Natsuno involved with him -- now that they're expanding his diet, anyway. Go big or go home. That really holds true for just about everything they've gotten their collective hands on.

There's a little quirk to Anon's smile as the charms still in his braid flash out of the corner of his eye; they're heavy for hair ornaments even if he wears those rarely enough anyway, but in a way that feels strangely good.]

You mentioned that you learned charms too, huh? I want to see that, and all kinds of shapes, too.

[Hearts and pizza and it's more than likely that there's going to end up being a dragon charm at some point. As established, they're nothing if not ambitious; a whole bunch of laughter bursts out when Natsuno goes full extra with his flower bomb, but Anon's already reaching for some of the scattered stray petals and smaller buds around them, remnants of various attempts at flower handicrafts from both them and others.]

I think that if we're gonna make these, though, it's gotta be super mega ultra! [does that even make sense] That way, they can really match up to us.

[Y'know. With their ridiculous amounts of worn flowers and everything else. There's a sparkle in his eye and a sudden swiftness to his hands -- he was already almost done but now he's done done and Anon doesn't even blink before hefting the rickety bomb he's constructed and--]

... Besides, we're going to have to test them first!

[--lobs it casually at Natsuno. Will he dodge, or will he face the florapocalypse head on??]

[ The only condition on a dragon charm would be that he'd like to see one in the flesh first. And eat it after, because that is apparently a thing they're doing now. ]

Is that what we are? [ There's no laughter but he's grinning, fangs flashing. ] I like it.

[ Somehow saying that feels really good. He's distracted by everything, the braids, the flowers, the charms, it's so much color and so much more stimulation than he's used to but he actually likes it. ]

Anon! [ As always, Natsuno meets everything head on, in this case literally. He was a little distracted with the whole doki he just had, so while he makes an attempt to catch the florapocalypse, it's not a clean effort and the bomb is kind of bursting at it's seams. The end result is that while he's not completely smothered in flowers, a good amount of them tumble out all over him, some into his mouth. Holding up the downsized flowerbomb he sputters in a rainbow of petals. ]

I'm hungry, but you didn't have to feed me again. At least not in flowers. [ Making fun of himself and flirting at the same time, Natsuno's reached a new peak. ]

WEEK 4 - VENUS FLYTRAP

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