[Shadow won't say anything else about the bird, though!!! HE REFUSES]
Hm... [he leans in, squinting at the crystal ball] Is this how you grant wishes? With weird useless items? I mean, what have we got here... nuts? Nasty old bandages? And a book...
It's not just offering him 'useless items'. It's about possibilities.
Those are marroni chestnuts. Many months ago, at a certain summer camp in Michigan, a young necromancer named Marona- [Pronounced the same as 'marroni', despite the spelling difference when written.] -was saved when she could have been left to die. The group about to stand trial is the same as the one which saved her. Someone with powers like hers would be useful for saving those 'John' wishes to save, as she could collect the souls of those on trial after they die and revive them later.
The bandages represent the man who will be running the trial. He is a cold, dangerous man, one whose blood runs mafia-black. If he is allowed to run this trial, those involved will perish. But if 'John' could take care of him, to cut off the threat at the source, the ones about to be put on trial could be spared.
The magic book represents his own innate skill. He has the power to save them all on his own, it's just a matter of getting creative. He might need a push to actually figure it out, but if he steps up and intervenes then those on trial will likely help him with the 'creative' part.
All three are valid options to solve this boy's problem. Now it's a matter of which one they will suggest to him.
[A necromancer? Kind of like the Shinigami, then, in a way. The man running the trial... well, he could be anyone in the Foundation, to be honest. Shadow certainly doesn't have rose-colored glasses on about the kind of people the Foundation employs and how they perceive those from 6350... even some of the 6350s themselves are cruel to their fellow offworlders.]
I see... so they're just... representations of differing solutions to this upcoming problem. [Shadow doesn't seem happy about the whole thing, though. He doesn't have many, if any, friends in the Foundation but he doesn't want to see them get executed for the crimes of... you know. Being kidnapped against their wills] ... Makes me glad I'm not going back. [....?]
[Watanuki had been ready to monologue on how choosing exactly the right solution and presenting it to the customer is a huge part of his job, and it took years to learn correctly, and how if he were the one doing it he would have given this item, and so on. But that last bit of what Shadow says catches him off-guard.]
Oh? Decided on going back to your world?
[Since he had offered to drop people off wherever they wanted to be, once the game was over. As a 'reward' for participating.]
[Shadow folds his arms and looks away, being as casual as ever, but pointedly not making eye contact]
I've decided I should probably stay with you. At your shop. Keep an eye on you, make sure you don't do anything completely moronic, remind you not to miss the forest for the trees... [Shadow shrugs] I'd need to go back to my world occasionally, and I'd need to raid the Foundation's storage for my things, but...
[he doesn't turn, but he does glance at Watanuki from the corner of his eye] Of course, you can refuse and just put me back where I came from after you've helped me get my effects back. [he shrugs and looks away again] Whatever.
[...okay give him a moment to actually process that, because he never expected anyone to actually want to stay with him. People visit, but they don't stay for more than a few days at a time. NOBODY has asked to stay permanently, or at least as 'permanent' as a mortal can get.
Give him a moment, he needs to collect his thoughts here.]
[That previous icon is accurate too, because a single tear does make it out before he reaches up to wipe it away.]
That- that is quite the offer. It's not easy, living at the shop. Customers come and go, the supernatural becomes an everyday occurrence, and sometimes it's downright dangerous. It's not for everyone, and I don't begrudge anyone who would find it too much to handle.
Dangerous? Why the hell do you think I'm offering to stay? Besides you being completely helpless without me, I have no interest in sitting around getting fat and lazy, with my skills growing ever more dull. My purpose is to help and protect people, to give them a chance to be happy. If Maria and the Professor knew I had the chance to make the people of hundreds of worlds happy, they would be overjoyed. Besides. You don't die. I don't die. You won't be alone.
[I won't be alone.]
... but I do need my shoes and my emerald back, first.
[Gosh why don't you just slay his emotions already??? And that sudden intake of breath isn't to cover up how hard he's fighting the urge to cry. He even has to look away as he blinks a few times.]
I think we can manage that, yes.
[Getting his shoes and emerald back, that is. Since apparently now Shadow is a resident of the wish shop and all, his tasks get priority.]
You'll have to get used to being woken up early. Maru and Moro are the worst for that. They'll jump on the bed and laugh and yell until you wake up. And Mokona is an absolute lush who drinks all the time. Mugetsu isn't so bad, but he can get over-protective.
[As he speaks, there's a fondness to his tone, like he's looking forward to this. This friendship means a lot to him, and it has helped him heal.]
I don't sleep much, anyway. I'm usually up with the sun. And I'm sure you've noticed, but I can certainly hold my liquor. I can drink that little rabbit creature under the table.
[That fondness isn't lost on Shadow. He really has been lonely, hasn't he?
But hell. Even Shadow would probably be craving some companionship after 100 years alone]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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[he trails off there, watching as the bodies suddenly appear. He doesn't look exasperated or anything, though. He's actually smiling.]
Well, look at that. They got him to pay the price after all.
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[Shadow also trails off as the bodies come tumbling through the door]
Those are.... the fake bodies we need to revive the dead! So the price for his wish was... bringing those?
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[He waves his hand over the ball, and a yellow cockatiel appears and starts interacting with the people there.]
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[Shadow won't say anything else about the bird, though!!! HE REFUSES]
Hm... [he leans in, squinting at the crystal ball] Is this how you grant wishes? With weird useless items? I mean, what have we got here... nuts? Nasty old bandages? And a book...
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It's not just offering him 'useless items'. It's about possibilities.
Those are marroni chestnuts. Many months ago, at a certain summer camp in Michigan, a young necromancer named Marona- [Pronounced the same as 'marroni', despite the spelling difference when written.] -was saved when she could have been left to die. The group about to stand trial is the same as the one which saved her. Someone with powers like hers would be useful for saving those 'John' wishes to save, as she could collect the souls of those on trial after they die and revive them later.
The bandages represent the man who will be running the trial. He is a cold, dangerous man, one whose blood runs mafia-black. If he is allowed to run this trial, those involved will perish. But if 'John' could take care of him, to cut off the threat at the source, the ones about to be put on trial could be spared.
The magic book represents his own innate skill. He has the power to save them all on his own, it's just a matter of getting creative. He might need a push to actually figure it out, but if he steps up and intervenes then those on trial will likely help him with the 'creative' part.
All three are valid options to solve this boy's problem. Now it's a matter of which one they will suggest to him.
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I see... so they're just... representations of differing solutions to this upcoming problem. [Shadow doesn't seem happy about the whole thing, though. He doesn't have many, if any, friends in the Foundation but he doesn't want to see them get executed for the crimes of... you know. Being kidnapped against their wills] ... Makes me glad I'm not going back. [....?]
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Oh? Decided on going back to your world?
[Since he had offered to drop people off wherever they wanted to be, once the game was over. As a 'reward' for participating.]
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[Shadow folds his arms and looks away, being as casual as ever, but pointedly not making eye contact]
I've decided I should probably stay with you. At your shop. Keep an eye on you, make sure you don't do anything completely moronic, remind you not to miss the forest for the trees... [Shadow shrugs] I'd need to go back to my world occasionally, and I'd need to raid the Foundation's storage for my things, but...
[he doesn't turn, but he does glance at Watanuki from the corner of his eye] Of course, you can refuse and just put me back where I came from after you've helped me get my effects back. [he shrugs and looks away again] Whatever.
1/2
Give him a moment, he needs to collect his thoughts here.]
2/3 I lied
That- that is quite the offer. It's not easy, living at the shop. Customers come and go, the supernatural becomes an everyday occurrence, and sometimes it's downright dangerous. It's not for everyone, and I don't begrudge anyone who would find it too much to handle.
3/3
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Shadow scoffs at the warning, though]
Dangerous? Why the hell do you think I'm offering to stay? Besides you being completely helpless without me, I have no interest in sitting around getting fat and lazy, with my skills growing ever more dull. My purpose is to help and protect people, to give them a chance to be happy. If Maria and the Professor knew I had the chance to make the people of hundreds of worlds happy, they would be overjoyed. Besides. You don't die. I don't die. You won't be alone.
[I won't be alone.]
... but I do need my shoes and my emerald back, first.
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I think we can manage that, yes.
[Getting his shoes and emerald back, that is. Since apparently now Shadow is a resident of the wish shop and all, his tasks get priority.]
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Good. Then it's settled.
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[As he speaks, there's a fondness to his tone, like he's looking forward to this. This friendship means a lot to him, and it has helped him heal.]
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[That fondness isn't lost on Shadow. He really has been lonely, hasn't he?
But hell. Even Shadow would probably be craving some companionship after 100 years alone]
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[But Watanuki is glad for this turn of events, and seems to actually have something positive to look forward to after this round is over.]
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[Shadow looks back to the crystal ball]
-- Oh. It seems like they've chosen. Hmph. Seems like they went with the somewhat obvious choice...
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[He's not fully seeing the future here, but he's seen enough to make an educated guess at what's going to happen.]
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