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[irritated]

✮✮ un; tenjikubotan ✮✮ text ; audio; video;

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[rediscovering]

can we go do something instead
i want to be distracted
the apartment feels empty

[irritated]

[Crap. What would help Zuko? Playing games or anything wouldn't work. Actually, all he can imagine is him losing and then losing his temper.]

want to go for a walk?

[Hikaru does not but he will make this sacrifice for Zuko.]

[rediscovering]

i guess

[rediscovering]

actually
do you want to go shopping

[irritated]

[Thank you, Zuko, because a walk with Hikaru would have been awful.]

clothes shopping? is zuko going to let me dress him up all cute?

[Zuko said he wanted to be distracted, right? So Hikaru's going to tease him until Zuko snaps at him and Hikaru knows Zuko's been teased enough for one day.]

[rediscovering]

>:|
dont make me take it back………

[irritated]

you trust me with your hair but not your clothes?

[rediscovering]

yes

[ Ouch, rude. Even if he's joking. Hikaru bought him clothes he really liked in Lunatia; he actually kind of misses them. But "cute" is definitely not the look he's going for, and that opening joke worries him... ]

[irritated]

rude. i wouldn't make you look bad. looks bad on me, after all~

joking.

but seriously, i won't make you look bad. i dressed you up before remember? and we can buy you an outfit for something to do with aurora

[rediscovering]

im joking too

[ Zuko, stick to swords. You just sound mean when you joke. ]

I liked the clothes you got me in lunatia
id wear clothes like that again

[irritated]

then that's what we'll get.
besides, my goal is to impress you for aurora. not have her laugh at you.

[rediscovering]

you have more goals for me to impress aurora than i have i think…

meet in an hour at your place and then we’ll go from there?

[irritated]

yeah and we're changing that. opening your mind up to the potential possibilities!

give me an hour and a half. i spent the night at taichi's. but we can meet at my place.

[And he has a lot of his stuff at Taichi's but if he's going out shopping, he has to look nice.]

[rediscovering]

is taichi still at the same apartment he got a while ago
ive been there
i could meet you there

[ Wait, when the fuck did Zuko go to Taichi's apartment alone...?! ]

[irritated]

if you mean the loft then no he moved because he lives with some guy now ['Some guy' AKA a good friend from his world. Hikaru just doesn't like sharing and hasn't even talked to poor Juzu yet.]

i'll give you the directions

[He sends them over and he is now very, very curious about why Zuko was at Taichi's alone.]

text -> action;

[rediscovering]

ok I’ll see you soon

[ And with that, qa planned, he arrives right on time at the address Hikaru gave. Zuko’s looking a bit worse for wear, tired eyes, resting scowl, poor posture. He looks a lot more like Zuko looked in Prismatica, frankly. He’s even wearing a plain deep red hoodie and dark grey slacks and black boots again, not so different from his basic dress code back then. It all just screams “feeling low,” for someone who’s seen now a year’s worth of progress in Zuko… He’s too comfortable with misery. He just shoulders it, sits in it. He even went to school today even though he only realized yesterday Uncle and Azula had disappeared. Did not even take the day off to rest and mourn. So he’s extra tired by this afternoon, mentally burnt out.

But above all, he wants distractions… He wallowed in it the first day, talked it out with Gokudera last night. Today, he just really didn’t want to go home from school to his empty, half-packed inn room. So shopping with Hikaru it is. He can count on that to be fairly lighthearted and leave little room for getting over-emotional about things he can’t change. So in addition to his lazy clothes and obvious exhaustion, mentally and physically, he’s wearing a face that shows somehow all that is on his mind, expressive as always even without words. He knocks at the door but also texts Hikaru for good measure, since Taichi and apparently “some guy” live here, too. ]

here

[irritated]

[Hikaru gets it. He's pretty much feeling very similar, even though it's been over a month since he lost Kaoru. He's had Zuko and Taichi but it doesn't mean he doesn't feel the grief from losing somebody so important.

But he is dressing better now. Much more chic with his well-loved layers, shirt under a shirt. He's putting more effort in than he was a month ago.]

Hey. [He's going out of his way not to make a comment about his appearance.] So, ready to go? Did you eat or anything?

[rediscovering]

[ Zuko knows Hikaru's biting his tongue about his appearance. And appreciates that. He just nods and sets off in stride with the other. ]

Yeah. I ate at school.

[ Good thing that he's at least feeling well enough to go to school, maybe? But it is a welcome distraction. Better than moping around at home. ]

You lead the way. I don't go shopping much.

[ He doesn't strictly need new clothes... but it's another welcome distraction. And he figures if they see some houseware shops along the way — beddings, kitchenware, electronics, decor, and such — they can stop off for a peek if something catches Zuko's eye. He's not even sure if he's told Hikaru yet he's moving. It'll come up. Which reminds him— ]

...So who's Taichi living with? "Some guy?"

[irritated]

I'll never understand the school thing. [On one hand he does understand why Zuko goes to school but Hikaru is happy to be able to just miss school. And he definitely doesn't understand it when Zuko's going through this.

But Hikaru starts to lead them to some nice department stores. They could use the magic carpet but Hikaru, for once, is having them walk. He thinks Zuko would appreciate that, being able to move and offer my distraction.]

A guy from his world. Name's Juza. He reminds me of someone from my world but I don't talk to him. [Hikaru has no interest even if he really should because this is Taichi's friend. Oops.]

But more importantly...why did you go to Taichi's place before?

[rediscovering]

[ hrjksfnd think fast, kid ]

Oh—! Uh... J-Just to visit. He invited me over for, um. What are those weird snacks in packs he had me find... In little plastic boxes... Didn't even look like real food. I had to go to three stores until someone knew what the hell I was talking about! Lunch—something.

[ He is absolutely dodging this question and it's not obvious at all, nope. ]

A-Anyways, why don't you talk to his friend? You should talk to his friend!

[ This was a completely normal and not suspicious at all reaction. Yes. Nailed it. ]

[irritated]

Oh, those lunchable things. It's like a fake, processed charcuterie board. No idea what his obsession with fake cheese is. [Hikaru will never understand Taichi's food and he doesn't want to. Tamaki was into the commoner food and Hikaru liked the novelty of it but at the end of the day, he's a priss and wants his fine foods. The novelty has long worn off.

But what Hikaru cares about more is Zuko's reaction. He's being defensive and Zuko is awful at lying.]

Yeah, yeah, I'll talk to Juza. [No he won't.] But did Taichi really make you just come over to eat food? Nothing else? At all? [By now, Hikaru trusts Zuko and Taichi enough to not jump to something like cheating. So then whatever happened? Well, it's probably hilarious.]

[rediscovering]

Oh, uh— I didn't eat it, actually... I wouldn't. It looked fake. I let him have them, he'd just asked me to bring them over when we, um— hung out.

[ His eyes dart away awkwardly, transparent as always even in his lack of transparency. He's definitely hiding something uncomfortable and trying to make it seem normal. Shit-talking Lunchables will only distract Hikaru for so long, though, and he knows it... He doesn't want to tell this story, fjknsd surely Taichi wouldn't want him to, either. It's— not an easy story to tell. He didn't even want to have this story in his repertoire at all, but well, y'know, life is full of surprises. ]

[irritated]

So what did you do? He ate and you just watched him?

[He needs to rile Zuko up into telling the truth.] Did you two have an affair or something?

[Hikaru knows that this would absolutely not happen. They both would never do that. But he knows how Zuko works and he's hoping he'll blurt it out. ]

[rediscovering]

Wh-What! No! O-Of course not! What?!

[ Two emphatic "what?!"s...? Something's up. He absolutely bumbles, almost stopping in his tracks, barely containing himself from flailing as his face falls, before moving forward with his head held too high and quickening his speed. ]

No, Hikaru, we were just hanging out, that's it! C'mon!

[ Funnily enough, though, come to think of it... Has Zuko or Taichi ever mentioned hanging out alone before or since whenever this happened...? Something's definitely up. ]

[irritated]

[Hikaru is not so quick to drop this.]

So then what did you two do? Kind of weird that you're not telling me details? I'm gonna keep questioning you, you know~

[Hikaru can be very annoying.]