Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
enjoymyatelier) wrote2013-02-02 01:33 pm
enjoymyatelier) wrote2013-02-02 01:33 pm
009 [VIDEO]
[So Kayneth is in a rather unexpected situation this go around; that is to say he is currently in a kitchen that has various objects of cultural significance strewn about.
Judging by the ingredients, it appears as though he is attempting to make Mom's Favorite Chocolate-Covered Pretzels. One would think this was an accidental post, but... no.
That would probably be less of a clusterfuck, honestly.]
I am never really sure how many parallels there are between this world and my own, particularly in terms of holidays-even when it makes very little sense for them to be there for apparent historical reasons. With even recent news broadcasts by the natives dropping hints that Valentine's Day-or something like it-is around the corner, I'm finding myself rather curious about what sort of holidays naturally exist in this world.
I suppose that whatever the natives are celebrating could be some sort of equivalent that came about naturally... or it could be something that they picked up on from people from other worlds and decided to exploit in a fairly typical fashion. After all, why would the companies of this world miss out on an opportunity to use relationship-based guilt in their marketing strategies at some point in the year?
[you... you sound bitter, bro]
My general displeasure with the overcommercialization of this holiday aside, it is regrettably very effective in getting people to want copious amounts of sweets, but if I'm going to have anything like that this season it's going to be made by my own hands. Has anyone attempted the recipe that was brought up in Friday's news broadcast and found it to be less than satisfactory? If not... well, it should be obvious that I'm considering trying to make them.
Judging by the ingredients, it appears as though he is attempting to make Mom's Favorite Chocolate-Covered Pretzels. One would think this was an accidental post, but... no.
That would probably be less of a clusterfuck, honestly.]
I am never really sure how many parallels there are between this world and my own, particularly in terms of holidays-even when it makes very little sense for them to be there for apparent historical reasons. With even recent news broadcasts by the natives dropping hints that Valentine's Day-or something like it-is around the corner, I'm finding myself rather curious about what sort of holidays naturally exist in this world.
I suppose that whatever the natives are celebrating could be some sort of equivalent that came about naturally... or it could be something that they picked up on from people from other worlds and decided to exploit in a fairly typical fashion. After all, why would the companies of this world miss out on an opportunity to use relationship-based guilt in their marketing strategies at some point in the year?
[you... you sound bitter, bro]
My general displeasure with the overcommercialization of this holiday aside, it is regrettably very effective in getting people to want copious amounts of sweets, but if I'm going to have anything like that this season it's going to be made by my own hands. Has anyone attempted the recipe that was brought up in Friday's news broadcast and found it to be less than satisfactory? If not... well, it should be obvious that I'm considering trying to make them.
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...It took him a bit longer than it should have, but you know, details.]
That may be, but "relationship-based guilt" is a particularly cynical way to look at it, I think.
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[He shuts his Pokegear a little more harshly than intended and sets it aside so he can start doing some goddamn baking.]
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Is this regarding your fiancée?
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...then again, this is Tokiomi he's dealing with, but...
...
well...]
...that's part of it, yes.
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[He honestly suspects he should leave this alone; at the same time, as little as he likes to admit to it (as this simply isn't anything he acknowledges to Kayneth's face), this is kind of getting into "worrying him like hell" territory. If one were able to change one's fate upon returning home, he may have taken this differently; as it stands, it's still digging at him - the knowledge that what he's doing in getting to know Kayneth in this way is neither pragmatic nor particularly smart, and the thought that it's in his best interests to keep Kayneth at arm's distance at least does cross his mind. Besides, it would certainly be easier on both of them to leave this alone, to let his concern remain superficial.
But as far as things have gone here, Kayneth is his friend. And that complicates things.
He's hesitated perhaps longer than he should have.]
I understand why I would hardly be your first choice, when it comes to discussing things like this. But if something is troubling you, I would like to do what I can. I'll listen, if nothing else; I think you know that by now.
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[...the idea of actually admitting that he had some sort of problem was difficult enough, but actually being forward about it? particularly given that it's something that's practically unavoidably his fault? gosh we're mages, we don't talk about feelings.
...and yet... well, Tokiomi was surprisingly trustworthy (dear lord he'd be eaten alive if he didn't live off in Asia) and as far as Kayneth could tell he hadn't made a complete mess of his own marriage, which was either an absolute miracle or that was the one area in which he wasn't a complete social failure. Perhaps it would be worth talking over, as in the event that either Sola returned yet again or he managed to find some way to return while retaining his memories of this world...
...just... give him some time to composure his way through this, he's good at self-control]
...I'm sure it wasn't particularly difficult to see that we weren't exactly the happiest couple when you were last here. The night before she was returned to our world we... had a bit of an altercation.
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...although really? That doesn't sound so bad...a bit awkward, perhaps, but not completely terrible.]
Forgive me for asking so bluntly, but am I to assume that your relationship was one that was selected for the sake of familial reasons - either through convenience or necessity? That was the impression I received; if that is the case, then altercations are to be expected - it would be more abnormal if you didn't have any, really.
[tl;dr - mages.]
However, as this is troubling you so badly...what sort of altercation are we discussing?
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[...he pauses, looking a bit uncomfortable with that admission-he should have been more realistic about it from the start instead of falling for her like a goddamned schoolboy, but if he was happy with it, then-]
...she told me she wanted to leave and travel on her own, and proceeded to do so without really explaining why. I was too shocked to stop her, so I tried to call her the following morning-but as I previously said, she was gone that day.
[...a part of him had assumed that it was because he was missing a good portion of what had made him exceptional back in their world, which didn't really make him feel much better about his state here, but that's not an insecurity he feels that he can reveal to another mage. ...the fact that he has developed insecurities of all things in the first place is extremely bizarre and unfitting of him in the first place... even though he's on good terms with Tokiomi and he assumes he probably has the same feelings about the whole thing, it would certainly go even further against his pride to actually admit it.]
So I really didn't have the foggiest idea of what it was about until fairly recently...
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For the time being, however, Tokiomi is perfectly willing to remain patient; he shifts a bit, folding his hands behind his back and tipping his head slightly as he takes that in, though his expression remains largely unaffected one way or the other.]
At which point I assume something changed - "fairly recently", however...?
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[...okay he isn't going to go into all of it because this is difficult enough to talk about without bringing his worthless servant into it, but-]
She's apparently always been unhappy with the state of things. ...well, beyond unhappy, really... she's not the family heir so there really isn't any other way it could have gone for her, but I'm troubled by it nonetheless.
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However, there have been some...circumstances that have been made plain to him here, things he doesn't care to dwell on for any longer than he has to - things involving Sakura and Kariya and the Matou clan as a whole. His expression flickers a bit; he reins it in quickly.]
I assume you cared about her well beyond obligation, then.
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mages.]
...yes, I did. I had assumed the same of her, even if there wasn't much evidence for that... it was just wishful thinking, I suppose.
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...Did you never express that to her directly? After all, regardless of circumstances, she was to be your wife.
[And this is clearly a Very Important Thing, as far as he's concerned.]
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...not... directly, no... we've both always been fairly reserved, so it never really crossed my mind.
[are you kidding him tokiomi was less inept about feelings than him]
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It hardly matters what the initial circumstances were. If you care about the woman you intend to marry, courting her properly and not simply assuming that the way you see her comes across is important - if you don't treat her like a woman you love and want to marry, she's likely not going to know that you don't simply see her as an obligation.
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[WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL HIM THIS BEFOREHAND well he probably wouldn't have listened since he's used to always getting what he wants anyway
this is so fucking weird, not always getting what he wants]
I'm... well, I can't say I don't intend to attempt that if she ever arrives here again, but I'm really not sure how to go about it or if she'd even be receptive to the idea, given how poorly things have gone.
[honestly it would just be easier to start from scratch with this...]
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[...Kayneth, please tell him you see where this is going, because he and Armstrong have been wanting to do this for months.]
It's simply a matter of finding others for you to practice on, then.
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]
...are you sure that's something that will work...?
[...after that, his expression flickers a bit as he mulls it over. He has to admit that he's kind of uncomfortable with the idea on the basis that it feels like cheating even if... literally every time Sola has been here it ended in something that probably resembling a breakup (with the second one being explicitly on the basis that she was interested in someone else)...
...
...
yeah okay if she's going to go after that dead Irish asshole then he can date other people in the hopes that he'll figure out how to court her properly]
...well, I suppose it's worth a go.
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[...Tokiomi, that works a little better if your expression changes to match your wor-
No? Okay then. At the very least, he sounds somewhat relieved; he was concerned that he would have to argue with you about it, so this is surprisingly pleasant. After all, there's no way this logic can backfire; we just have to ignore the myriad ways in which it totally can.]
Major Armstrong and I have discussed this particular course of action already; we'll be sure to find women who are up to your standards, don't worry about that.
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[HE KNOWS IT WAS PRETTY OBVIOUS THAT HIS RELATIONSHIP WAS A GODDAMN MESS AND HE'S DOING THIS AT LEAST A LITTLE BIT OUT OF FRUSTRATION BUT REALLY YOU TWO]
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[a problem
is this one]
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Well, at least you didn't attempt to start anything without notifying me first.
[...he doesn't really think that would have been a problem with Tokiomi, but, well, Armstrong...]
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the way they're going about this was Tokiomi's idea
and the fact that they didn't just jump into it right off is because timing happened to suck]
...I imagine that wouldn't have ended very well, no...
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...Kayneth can definitely imagine Armstrong just springing something like this on him more easily than Tokiomi, so he would be his first suspect...
HELLO MISTER ARCHIBALD I HAVE FOUND A GIRL FOR YOU TO DATE, HAVE A NICE TIME! ALLOW ME TO WISH YOU LUCK BY ALLOWING YOU TO GAZE UPON MY BEAUTIFUL MUSCLES AS THEY SPARKLE FOR NO DISCERNIBLE REASON there's no getting out of any of these things by the way]
It most certainly would not have.