[Tokyo Ghoul: Devour or Perish]Another Work Day

[BirdFeathers]

Takeda Kaori


Location: Kurai Kokoro || Date and Time: September 29th, 2:30 pm

It was getting cold out already, but no colder than for one to need a light sweater or jacket during the later hours of the day. It was pretty sunny out, only a few clouds dotting the Tokyo sky. It was dull today since most minors were in school and most adults were at work, but regardless the 12th ward was bumping and getting ready for a little celebration to honor a local hero, who had recently pulled a few people from a fire on 13th street. Kaori had already serviced a few people at the register looking for some new clothes for both the coming fall and winter seasons and the event. Even though the event wouldn't be a big thing, lots of people were inspired and basically wanted an excuse to get drunk at one of the local parks.


Mostly uneventful, Kaori had not had much to do all day so she set to managing some of the displays at the front of the store with an associate named Daniel who's mother was an English teacher at one of the high schools and had met his father here. For the most part they laughed about their week and cracked jokes about how strange some of the fashion trends in Tokyo were but weren't great friends of any kind. Kaori would be on her own after 3, when Daniel's shift ended, and therefore would be closing the store by herself tonight at nine and spending an hour finishing up paperwork.


When the door chime rang, Kaori and Daniel turned and smiled, speaking in unison "Kon'nichiwa!" and Daniel went back to his duties. K moved over to make a slightly more formal greeting. "Welcome to Kurai Kokoro, is there anything I can help you find today?"

​

 

[NethanielShade]

????

Last night, Ukyo had killed another CCG agent. When his kagune burst out of his shirt, the back of his shirt and his hoodie ripped open. This happens almost every time he kills a CCG agent or a ghoul. This became a sort of routine, as he would kill some random weak ghoul who thought it was fun to kill humans for no reason, or he'd kill a CCG member he had been stalking, at least four times a week. Clothing stores tended to not be open in the middle of the night, so he had to wait for the day to go shopping. Ukyo usually slept during the day, and when he was out shopping for new clothes was all the sunlight he ever received. He sighed, walking along a street in the 12th Ward, keeping his gaze cast downwards and his hood over his head. Long ago, he had considered going shirtless when he hunted, but that itself brought a myriad of problems, and he figured the lesser of the two options would be to buy new clothes every few days when his old ones were ruined. On the bright side, it meant he never had to wash his clothes. Not that he could anyways, he didn't own a washing machine, and he didn't care for washing them by hand.


Suddenly, his whole body was jarred as he bumped into someone, or they bumped into him, as he was walking. The someone in question had been a loud blonde guy a few inches taller than him, who had been being rowdy with his friend, not looking forwards as he was walking. Since Ukyo was looking downwards, neither of them saw each other. "Hey, you. Apologize." The blonde guy ordered. Ukyo squinted his eyes, still looking down, and moved to walk around the two boys. The blonde one grabbed his sleeve and turned Ukyo around. "I'm talking to you, punk." He said threateningly. This time, Ukyo looked up at him, and the guy flinched back. Ukyo was a killer, every week for the past decade and a half, Ukyo had spent hunting down and killing CCG members. Because of this, Ukyo had earned himself a SS ranking as a ghoul. Without even really glaring, Ukyo could convey enough emotion to startle a human, and if he had been angry enough to glare, Ukyo could probably get the guy to piss his pants. Ukyo slowly opened his mouth, testing his voice. He rarely spoke. "Suuu. Miiii. Maaaaa. Ssssssen." He said, deliberately drawing out each syllable in the word as well as tilting his head to either side with each syllable, his eyes wide and trained on the blonde male. Without waiting an extra second, Ukyo turned around and kept walking. The other guy was too afraid to say anything to him after that.


Despite this, Ukyo was in an unusually good mood. Ukyo spent most of his time stalking around at night, being depressed, angry, spending a lot of time crying, and thinking about his dead family. Truth be told, his family practically haunted him, how much he dwelled on their deaths. When he was alone or unoccupied, he spent his time just being depressed. Depressed was a really good word to use to describe Ukyo. But not today, for some reason he kept his mind clearer than usual. It was probably the sun, he never seemed to cry when he was out and about during the day time. It could be partly because he didn't want people to see him like that, and it could partly be because the light just made the mood less gloomy. Still, if one were to ever look into his eyes, they would see the hurt and pain that was with him at all times.


Eventually after walking for a while, one shop in particular caught his attention. The shop's name was Kurai Kokoro. Kurai Kokoro? Dark Heart? Probably closer Somber Mind. Weird thing to name a store. He thought silently to himself, but he also liked the name, and so he decided to enter it. As he opened the door, a door chime rang, giving away his presence. Instantly, a guy and a girl turned around and spoke in unison, "Kon'nichiwa!" and then the guy returned to his work. The female, however, stayed near Ukyo and continued talking. "Welcome to Kurai Kokoro, is there anything I can help you find today?" She questioned, and Ukyo scrunched his face ever so slightly, a little put off by her friendly demeanor.


"H-hai..." He said, pulling down his hood, and getting a better look at the female. She was shorter than him, and had a smaller frame, and her hair was unusual, being black with silver and blue highlights, and falling to her shoulders. She also had dark brown eyes, like him. Something was unusual about this girl, almost alluring to him in a way. Then he realized, by her smell, that she was also a ghoul. Great, that meant she'd know he was a ghoul too. He scowled slightly, suddenly self conscious. He was a rather well known ghoul, not by face, but by attire. He always wore the same style of dark hoodie, dark jeans, and a dark undershirt. Of course, lots of ghouls wore hoodies, but not a lot of ghouls were infamous as he was. He sighed to himself, either way he'd be gone from this place in the next twenty minutes. "I'm just looking to get some new clothes. A black shirt and a black hoodie. Nothing special." He muttered.

 

[BirdFeathers]

[ooc: you need to teach me to make bb code boxes. I'm fluent in html, but not bb.]

Takeda Kaori

Location: Kurai Kokoro || Date and Time: September 29th, 2:37 pm
​

When Kaori had greeted the guest to her store, she knew she didn't recognize him from anywhere around this ward specifically, but knew his scent from miles away - it was ghoul. Of course with Daniel so close by, she wouldn't say anything about it, but she just gave the guest a knowing look before smiling. A shirt and hoodie? K wondered why, really, but understood it could be from the blood smell wafting from his too-dark-to-tell clothing, and the way a little piece in the back fluttered as the door closed behind him completely. "Shirts and Hoodies for men are over to the left of our store and we are having a buy two, get one up to sixty percent off on short sleeves. Would you like me to help you any more, sir?"

Kaori stood at a very easy statuesque stillness as she watched this bloody male inspect her and kind of look taken aback a little.


Kaori fiddled with her fingers a little behind her back, wondering why he was in the 12th ward which was relatively peaceful and free of ghouls who were as strong as this one. Kaori herself could easily be over powered by this guy is he decided he wasn't satisfied and tried to go after her or Danny, and that scared her, threw he back into the early years of her life without her mother and sister. Scared and anxious, Kaori had lasting scars from the fear of being targeted by the older and much more powerful ghouls. Of course, she was well not to show that much in her face to him, someone she definitely didn't know a lick about. "Maybe you'd like to look at our new line of all proofed items? They can reflect almost anything, including water and other liquids," Kaori blinked a few times, hoping that statement didn't tip anyone off too harshly.


The young female, almost twenty-four, couldn't tell with the shaggy black hair is he was younger than her, especially since he was taller and probably more muscled than she was. Kaori couldn't help but to continue to wonder about this guy, if he was okay or if he was possibly about to kill everyone in the general vicinity. Kao bit her lip, wondering if she'd make it home tonight was troubling, but not much she could do when she wasn't top dog in most situations.

 

[NethanielShade]

????

"Shirts and Hoodies for men are over to the left of our store and we are having a buy two, get one up to sixty percent off on short sleeves. Would you like me to help you any more, sir?" The woman replied, and Ukyo shook his head. He went over to the part of the shop that had the aforementioned clothing items, but instead of inspecting the clothing items, he found himself inspecting the woman who worked here instead. She was scared of him, or at least weary, and that was plain as day to him. He'd seen enough scared people in his lifetime to read the signs as if they were written right there in front of his face. The way she stood, how she blinked, and even how she bit her lip, they were all signs of her unease.


"Maybe you'd like to look at our new line of all proofed items? They can reflect almost anything, including water and other liquids," Ukyo looked at her, interested. Most ghoul's kagune didn't destroy their clothing because the liquid RC cells would perforate through clothing easily, but Ukyo had always been a different story. The outer part of his kagune always had a thin crust that wasn't quite crystallized, nor quite liquid, when it would come out of his back for some reason. Enough that it was flexible, movable, and he could harden and soften it at will, the same as all other kagune pretty much, with the exception that it wasn't enough to perforate through normal clothing. Ukyo suspected it was due to him having a higher RC count than other ghouls, and thus his Ukaku kagune was bigger than the average Ukaku kagune, so when it first comes out, it's a lot more concentrated, dense, and thicker, until it has time to spread out behind him in it's angel wings shape. He wondered how his kagune would react with clothing like that... Then he realized she was talking about clothing that didn't soak in liquids, and he felt stupid for a moment. Here he had been wondering about clothing that would let his kagune go through it, when she was talking about clothing made for keeping liquids out of the clothing, and therefore clothing that would keep his kagune inside even more than usual. It'd just rip, like always.


He let out an audible sigh, albeit by accident, before turning back around to continue looking for clothes. He didn't want anything special, he'd probably be buying new clothes in a day or two anyways, so he picked out a jet black zip-up hoodie, and a short sleeved grey shirt for underneath. He walked back to her, carrying the hoodie and shirt, then opened his mouth, closed it, cleared his throat, then spoke. "I'd like to buy these." He said simply, grudging what he was about to do next. Lowering his voice, he spoke so she, and only she, could hear. Ghouls had enhanced hearing, some able to discern individual footsteps from a distance. So he whispered below his breath, knowing that even if she didn't have the hearing of an average ghoul, her hearing would be better than a humans and she would hear him. It was also the first thing he'd said to her that didn't sound formal and robotic. Even as he opened his mouth, he seethed with loathing at himself for what he was about to ask.


"What time do you get off of work?"

 

[killerlung]

​

Katoro "Kat" Kawashima

The 12th Ward
​

"Let's see here, clothes....clothes....clothes?" The child minded man muttered as he walked through the busy streets of the market. "Rin wanted me to look for clothes..." he'd mutter again out loud, glancing down at what he was wearing and staring at it for a time as he walked. What was wrong with what he was wearing? Well there was his black hoodie covered in holes, and a little more than dirty, but otherwise okay. No that couldn't be it, it was perfectly fine. Maybe it was the shirt that more or less said, ''F*ck the police'' in bright loud Kanji? Though Katoro wasn't quite sure what a f*ck was, it sounded nice, he liked saying the word, it was funny even though it made big sister Rin angry and red in the face when he did.


As for the police, those were those guys he was supposed to stay away from right? They were different than the CCG, for one they didn't smell like ghoul blood and they weren't always attacking him, still Rin said they were bad and that they might recognize him and tell the CCG. They didn't all seem bad though, after all one helped him find the right train earlier, whatever a 'f*cking' was, Kat was sure the police would probably appreciate it, after all a word that sounded that funny couldn't possibly be too bad.


As Katoro got lost in the thought he'd bump into an individual, shaking him back to reality and causing him to stumble into another person in the crowded street. Katoro would bump into a few individuals more, apologizing as he shuffled his way toward a break in the sudden crowd. He'd fall to his knees, after an especially rude teenager playing hooky shoved him down, he'd look around as the punk made off his heart skipping a beat as he saw the paper bag mask from his pocket fallen on the street. His arm would shoot out unnaturally fast, scooping the bag up and folding it before shoving it back in his hoodie pocket. His head would dart around making sure nobody saw before picking himself up and getting his bearings once again.


It wouldn't take him long to focus in on the store right in front of him, Kurai Kokoro huh? Kat would think to himself suddenly beaming from ear to ear at what luck he'd happened upon. Without another thought Katoro would march into the shop, smiling as the bell chimed behind him and a young lady and man came into view.


One was at the register, the other buying clothes, they seemed like ordinary enough folks but no, something wasn't right. It was at that moment that Katoro's heart sank into the pit of his gut, as the door slammed shut behind him, as the eyes of the people inside the store turned to face him. The smell, it was overpowering and terrifying, it was not what he was expecting and even less what he bargained for, it was undeniably the unmistakable scent of ghouls.


Katoro took a deep breath, a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead, if he could smell them, then they could smell him, an-and that meant th-they knew, knew he wasn't all the way like them. No, in all the ways that counted sure, the hunger, being hunted, but no to them he was different, he was an outsider. The kind that couldn't fit in by his very scent, by his very presence. Katoro had seen it, been attacked over these last few weeks, over and over again, the CCG, the ghouls, they both had hunted him in one way or another.


Katoro gulped down another breath, suddenly realizing he'd frozen in the door and only drawn more attention to himself. With no small amount of courage he took a step forward, trying his best to avoid suspicion. The words of Rin echoed in his mind offering a small amount of comfort, and he'd repeat them in his head over and over again as if to reassure himself. You can't judge a book by it's cover, you can't judge a book by it's cover, you can't judg- OW Kat would walk right into a clothing rack, popping himself in the head absentmindedly. He'd do his best to cover it up, shaking it off and hiding behind some clothes on display, but there was no denying it, it seems like he'd already made a terrible case for himself as a member of the ghoul community...

 

[BirdFeathers]

Takeda Kaori

Location: Kurai Kokoro || Date and Time: September 29th at 2:40pm

Kaori kind of hovered around until this really dreary, scary guy had made his selection. She walked behind the counter and started ringing him up, curious about how he was acting. Was he always like this or was he having a bad day? K knew she could be really scary and cloudy when it came to bad days. Honestly, it was obvious that this ghoul was troubled and conflicted with at least emotions, but K tried not to dwell on it as she really didn't know him at all. When she had scanned his items, she looked up to tell him the total, but was cut short both by him asking when she got off of work and a guy walking is as the door chimed. The female got a little flustered, blinking as Daniel greeted the now apparently clumsy male who proceeded to run into a rack of clothes and try to hide behind it directly from Kaori and the hooded wonder.


With a slow blink and a blush, Kaori turned back to the customer she was currently ringing up. "Oh, uh... I will probably get out of here at ten tonight... your total is ¥3,724, uhm... by the way." Kaori busily pushed his items into a bag and struggled with it in her slightly flustered state. Even through the confusion, Kaori managed to keep her face pretty neutral, as it usually stayed. Any indication of her emotions usually shone through her dark eyes. "I uh... I'm kind of the manager, so I close the store pretty often," she said, almost half to herself. She peeked up at the other guy who'd come in and finally got that her was a ghoul but something was off about him and she couldn't put her finger on it, really. She'd never smelled something so delicate and quiet before, but somehow, he was just that and a bag of skittles. Something in that moment made her smile and work to finish ringing hoodie guy up and get him out of the door with no more flutter and flush to bother her work ethic. "Kon'nichiwa, kiddo!" Kaori said to the boy who hid.


And in that moment Kaori knew today was going to be a little odd for her, but still hopefully a good day with no useless fighting if hoodie didn't plan to eat her after work. The female had never had a ghoul try to hit on her, much less anyone else really and had only ever had one boyfriend, so maybe a late night date would do her a little good - she just hoped this most powerful ghoul wasn't also an ukaku like herself, otherwise the whole midnight dining would definitely end with her splattered all over some alley.
​

 

[killerlung]

​

Katoro "Kat" Kawashima

The 12th Ward
​

Katoro stumbled back bumping into a rack, and sending a few shirts tumbling onto him as he fell back, busting his rump on the floor as he looked up, startled at the sight of Kaori.


Wait kiddo? She called him a kid? Katoro glanced down wincing as Kaori looked down at him. By all appearances he was by no means a child, his body was by no fully grown and yet his mind, his expression it read childish.


Ha-had he really been that transparent? He'd look up, again a bit caught off guard by the look the girl gave him, it was like she saw through him, like Rin looked at him. Could she tell, that he wasn't exactly sure on a lot, that he was more than a bit ignorant to the ways of the world, and a touch less than competent when it came to regarding his now fellow ghouls? Could she see him for what he was or only look at him with that same confusion that everyone seemed to throw his way?


Katoro's mind raced, his feelings suddenly going from confusion to shame as he once again brought his racing mind back towards reality's stifling grasp. He had knocked over the clothes, and what's more he had become the epicenter of yet more attention. "I-I-I..." Katoro would pause, "H-Hai?" he'd mutter letting his head sink in obvious defeat. What was he supposed to do in this situation!? Wh-who was he supposed to be!? He'd wonder, trying desperately in vain to sound more adult in his mind, "S-Sorry" he'd mutter, wincing as he made an effort to stand, grabbing a few of the hanging clothes off of himself and placing them on the rack next to Kaori nervously. He'd hoped he hadn't offended the ghoul, he didn't want to be hunted again, not yet, not ever.

 

[Dr Nyx]

Shokuhou Shizuri



​

Shokuhou hummed as she blew a Bright pink bubble from the gum in her Mouth, the Two fellow Investigators beside her chattering about their day whilst she casually strolled about. Well, technically Investigators anyway. One of them was a Bureau Investigator so she mainly did office work rather than hunting Ghouls all day, but eh...Still. The only similarity between the three of them was that they all had the Marks of CCG On them; The Youngest out of the two, Same age as Shokuhou was known as Amaya. She wore a grey suit and a matching skirt that just went past her knee's, with raven black hair swaying as she walked. The oldest of the Two was a Stern yet admirable woman in her Forties known as Eri. She wore the usual coat of the Ghoul Investigators and swinging by her side was the Trademark Silver suitcase that glistened. She sported short Blonde hair and had a prominent scar streaking across the entirety of her face. In the middle of the two was the Youngest yet highest ranking; Shokuhou Shizuri. Dressed in a short Skirt & Thigh highs with a Pink hoodies and Pinker hair tied in a sort of Bun. The glasses she wore was shaded on one eye, concealing the eyepatch beneath. She also carried along her Suitcase with her Hard earned and much loved Quinque..


Amaya had suggested back at the Office to ease some tension about the recent Jack announcement and Go clothes shopping; Which was a good idea actually. Despite her relatively Laid back and Childish personality Shokuhou wasn't one for too much socialization and friends, but her other hoodies had begun to get worn out and lose their pink sheen...Which obviously wouldn't do at all. So she had taken up the offer and here they were.


"Oh I think that's a Good one, It looks nice!" Amaya shouted in glee, Pointing towards the Shop known as Kurai Kokoro. "Doesn't look all that great Amaya." Eri had stated, Giving a skeptical look towards the store. She was ever so fussy according to Amaya, Whilst Amaya was all Optimistic and kind of like that happy kid who was always bubbly. "Eh It's good enough for me, I need some new Hoodies anyway." Shokuhou stated in a casual manner, examining the store front..Seemed like a few people were already in there but overall it seemed quite empty. "Hoodies?..Tut You'd look so much better in a dress!" Amaya teased, Shokuhou just sighing and giving a steady shake as she gave a light grin.


The three entered the store in Union, The chime of the door going off as they walked into a scene. There seemed to be a fairly adorable looking kid on the ground who had tripped up or something and what seemed to be a Shop assistant..Though what caught Shokuhou's eye was a Man dressed in rather macabre, dark clothing that seemed to drain the happiness of just about everything around him. He seemed to fit the description of a Ghoul in CCG Databases, Shokuhou usually spent her extra time doing research on current ghouls and there was a rather infamous one at the moment going by the name of Dark angel. He seemed to just fit the height & body description..But she had no solid evidence, No point in chasing ghosts. He certainly did look odd though. "Keep an eye on that one, will you?" She whispered to Eri; though if he were a Ghoul he should definitely hear it. Eri nodded stiffly, her grip on the suitcase tightening. It was usually unheard of for a Ghoul to strike at this time but If this guy was targeting the Guy or girl...Well, This could get messy.


Amaya meanwhile seemed totally oblivious and greeted just about everyone in vision loudly with a gleeful "Hello!" Quickly running through to find a dress that would match with her glimmering hair. Eri followed Shokuhou whilst keeping an eerie eye on the dark dressed boy, Shokuhou approaching the Assistant casually whilst swinging her suitcase. "Excuse me but do you have any Hoodies, Male or female whatever with a Pink coloration perhaps?" Her voice was friendly and seemingly care free; but If one listened closely it had a sharp and unnerving edge to it. Now she noticed something else, This guy standing here..With a Fuck the Police shirt looked...Familiar and something was definitely up with it, Something about Brothers caught in her mind as she stared at him coldly with her remaining eye before moving it back to the Store girl. Waiting for a response.

 

[NethanielShade]

明仁右京

"Oh, uh... I will probably get out of here at ten tonight... your total is ¥3,724, uhm... by the way." She seemed to fumble her words out, as if she were flustered. "Oh. Mmm." Ukyo nodded and gave her a ¥5,000 bill, and taking the bag from her hands. "I uh... I'm kind of the manager, so I close the store pretty often," Ukyo realized the way this girl was acting was probably because she was nervous around him. Whether it was because she knew he was a strong ghoul, or because of the way he whispered in her ear, he wasn't sure. He hadn't originally done that because he found her attractive, but on second look, she was actually rather attractive to him. She suited his style. If circumstances were different for him, and he wasn't the way he was, then maybe... He shook away the thought, as she said kon'nichiwa to the other male customer, whom he had been generally ignoring. "Right... I'll be back at nine thirty, the-" He froze and spun around, watching the door. He had heard a voice he never expected to hear. Two seconds later, a group of three Doves walked into the store. Ukyo kept his face neutral and betrayed no emotions whatsoever, but inside...


KUSO! He practically screamed. IIE, iie, iie, no! Doushite? He knew this girl. He'd never met her face to face, but he'd stalked her before. He'd seen her kill some powerful ghouls. Associate Special Class Shizuri-san. I've never fought a investigator above a First Class, though it's said Associate Special Class investigators are comparable to S rated ghouls. I'm an SS. Statistically speaking, I'm comparable to a Special Class investigator, ne? He calmed himself down, though he had not shown any signs of his panic on the outside. He turned around, loooking away from the doves, but he heard what he assumed to be Shizuri-san whisper, "Keep an eye on that one, will you?" So that's how this game is. You suspect me so fast, but you don't know for sure that it's me.


He contemplated his options. He could whisper to the girl to tell her the situation. That was probably a bad idea, though. Leaving would probably put her at the least risk... But what if the other ghoul, the kid, did something stupid while he was gone? Ukyo realized his best chances were to act, so act he would. He was facing away from the investigators, and he whispered to Kaori, so quietly that even if the humans were standing right next to him they'd have though it was just a small sigh, "Play along."





"Excuse me but do you have any Hoodies, Male or female whatever with a Pink coloration perhaps?" Shizuri asked Kaori. Ukyo smiled, and though it was his first time doing it in years, he had an air of confidence around him and the smile shone brightly. Luckily he was still facing towards Kaori and away from the investigators, so if it looked awkward at first, it wouldn't by the time he turned around. Just because he was dressed like a depressed goth kid doesn't mean he is, as far as Shizuri is concerned. "I see you're still busy with work. Arigato ne, I'll be by to pick you up for our date later tonight. Jaa ne." Then he turned around, and shock filled his face. "You guys are Ghoul Investigators, right? That's so metal." He then looked around the shop with shifty eyes. "There aren't any here are there?" He wrapped an arm protectively around Kaori, "If you find any keep them away from here. I don't want her to get hurt, okay Investigator-san?" He said, with another close-eyed smile. He leaned over, putting the side of his face against Kaori's, pretending to kiss her on the cheek. Instead, he again quickly whispered into her ear, "I'll be outside the shop, on the roof, listening. If anyone attacks anyone, break a window." And with that he let go of her, faking a goofy smile, and headed towards the door. "Shitsurei shimasu." He said as he opened the shop door.

 

[BirdFeathers]

Takeda Kaori

Location: Kurai Kokoro || Date and Time: September 29th at 2:49pm

It was really obvious that the young man who'd purposefully hid from her and the other male was childish in nature, bless his little heart. She was confused by him, but knew that in her proffession, singling someone out made for a bad reputation. He seemed sweet and she stifled a giggle when he knocked over some shirts. He apologized and stumbled over his words a little, but Kaori knew he was just about as nervous as she was. K was only a B ranked ghoul, not very active and usually getting her food from the ghouls running the coffee shop where her room mate worked. The two ghouls she knew were in the shop now were much different from her. One was strong and unpredictable and the other was small and unreadable - she didn't know what was worse for her. "Maaa, it's okay, Daniel can get them!" she said to the nervous boy about the shirts. "Just go have a look around, we have a few specials going on today."




Kaori turned to get change for hoodie when three women came in, one immediately running to the dresses and another whispering to watch hoodie. Great. Kaori got a look at their suitcases and she wanted to vomit - why today? Daniel was picking up the rest of the fallen shirts, dusting them off and putting them away, greeting the newcomers in turn and telling them about the specials and where the clearance racks were. Hoodie said he'd be back at nine thirty, which she guessed was reasonable if he was wanting to hang out. The doors would be locked at the time but she could always end her shift a little early, it's not like it mattered since she was dragging in so many hours a week. She just wanted to escape these investigators and be safe for another day. When one of the females asked about hoodies, Kaori smiled at her and nodded. "Our hoodies are in the back corner, we recently got some in with some bright pink kanji on them, which you might like, but we do mostly black clothing here."




Then, before she had time to hand hoodie his money, he started talking to her like they were dating! What nerve did this guy have? For what she assumed was a split second, she hadn't realized that maybe it was because he was a recognized ghoul, probably S at the lowest, and needed an alibi to throw these doves off of him. Kaori preferred ghouls to humans, so she played along as best she could, smiling and nodding and responding with "Maa, Akachan, you're always so sweet to me," and handed him the change from his purchase, pushing the clothes forward a little. When he spoke directly to the investigator, Kaori did her best too look concerned like a human would, facial expressions not always a common thing for ghouls. "Hai, my boss would have my head if something were to happen to the store," and she was pulled in for a little hug and kiss and the male told her he would be on the roof and she smiled, acting flustered. "Say?nara, Akachan~"




Kaori fiddled with the printer for a second before stepping out from behind the counter, smiling at the woman who asked about hoodies before moving to Daniel and helping with putting some shirts back properly, making sure that boy was doing okay and not being nervous and clumsy all over her store.
​

 

[killerlung]

​

Katoro "Kat" Kawashima

The 12th Ward

​

Katoro looked at Kaori with eyes winced with equal parts pain and embarrassment, to be honest the pain was more psychological at this point, his body really feeling next to nothing from his short fall to the floor. He'd look at Kaori, the voices in the shop muffled as his gaze traced the words she uttered intently, what was she saying? he'd think to himself in the midst of his daze before he snapped out of it, his thoughts shifting back to reality just as Kaori finished telling him about the specials.


"O-Oh okay cool" Katoro managed to reply as Kaori's attentions were pulled elsewhere, with a resounding chime and all too familiar clang the door to the establishment would close behind the forms of three eccentric strangers. Katoro would note that while they did seem to be of the eccentric sort all the same the didn't seem like "bad" people if anything they seemed nice enough. Katoro sighed turning away right as Kaori made for the front of the store, turning her back on him just as he froze, his eyes growing wide as he eyed the girls with new regard.


Three girls shopping together, to most that in and of itself wouldn't draw so much as a second glance, but unfortunately Katoro wasn't most people. He was a ghoul, and at this moment he was the hunted, made prey for these nice enough seeming girls. The smell in the air was unmistakable, these were humans alright, but there was traces of ghoul blood in there too. Katoro took another sniff noting the difference between living and dead ghoul blood, the stale smell making him almost sick as he made his way back behind a rack.


He'd look to his side to note an especially vibrant mannequin before he crumpled to his knees in an effort to better hide and get his bearings. As he did he'd note a vibration his his back pocket, and frantically make for it, pulling it out of his pocket with shaking hands.

Nee-San

them

Remember to be careful! Look out for Doves okay?

me

ok

them

Did you find a store?

Katoro wasn't sure what to think, the appropriateness of their previous conversation now seemed like a sick joke the gods had decided to play on him, like some cruel foreshadowing for his current predicament. Katoro frantically typed at the buttons until a new word graced the screen, a word that simply read "help" in all caps.


Katoro put the phone away desperately hoping his sister would find a way to help him, that she'd find a way to come to his rescue. After all she had too, these guys were no joke it didn't take a rocket scientist to see that from the way they walked, or how they honed in their gaze on the ghoul at the counter. Katoro wasn't sure why but they seemed familiar and not in the good way, and he'd trust his instincts on this one, shaking away beads of sweat as he tried to think of a suitable plan.


If he stood now they might get a better look at him, heck his face was on TV these days, and while it may have worked in public he seriously doubted simply wearing his hood would do much to foil these girls on his way out. Katoro was backed into a corner, was he going to have to fight!? He hated the notion, he didn't want to hurt anyone, much less three young girls.


Kat would pull his hand up to his hood and pull it over his head sighing as he felt he'd have no choice but to make a break for it, despite the rather slim chance of success. He'd shiver the fear of falling, of leaving Nee-San alone, of making her worry weighing heavy on his mind. He'd take a deep breath of air before a loud declaration broke the relative silence, Kat would peek over from his position at the end of the rack, staring intently as the hooded figure made his move, embracing, doting, and kissing on the nice store clerk seemingly out of nowhere.


Katoro would think it was strange, if he had time to do so, but unfortunately such luxuries were beyond him and without a second thought he'd make a break for a changing room. After sliding a curtain closed, Katoro would pant, his ears perking up at the sounds of the conversation dying down. Though he wasn't sure who that other hooded figure was, nor whether his distraction was purposeful or unintentional, Katoro was thankful all the same. Through nervous breaths he'd hang his head low just in time to feel the familiar buzz of his phone's vibrating ring. Glancing down he'd pull the phone out and read the message on the screen intently.

Nee-San

them

remember to be careful! Look out for Doves okay?

me

ok

them

Did you find a store?

me

HELP

them

What's wrong!!? Where are you???

Katoro would phone back the location of the store, and try to reaffirm that he was safe for the time being, still hidden in the changing room. Of course he knew his current spot wouldn't shield him from notice forever, and he knew Nee-San was probably already on her way. After all she was the worrying sort, it was one of the things he loved about her, always careful to note the things he hadn't even thought about, but now it was he who was worrying, for her safety if she should arrive to see this store a battleground. Katoro took a deep breath,how had shopping turned into such a mess!? He'd wonder as he sat there stewing in his worry, a little too self absorbed to notice Kaori moving towards his current spot in the store...