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Who: Oz & Friends: The Musical
When: Post-event
Where: Out and about in the city
What: Various nerd bonding moments
Warning: None!

elsa;
[After all the chaos of Fortune-Telling Week From Hell settles down, it's time to make good on that promise for tea! Elsa seems like a neat person to know, after all, and even if their topic at the time had been a little heavy, that's just all the more reason to get to know her a little better. That sort of burden is hard to carry alone.

So after giving the directions and setting a time, Oz can be found sitting outside of the cafe in question. He's got something folded on his lap and seems to be alternating between people-watching and checking his phone, buzzing with the quiet excitement of meeting someone new.]

mabel;
[GUESS WHERE MABEL AND OZ ARE. That's right, on the best friend date ever. Ever. It's only just started and Oz is already having a great time, pressing his face against the CyBuddy displays and being stupidly excited in general over all these weirdass animals. Ciel has his big fat owl, so maybe said owl needs a companion...!

He stops in front of one display in particular though, where a very small dog with very large ears sits at attention, ready and waiting for the next customer to come test its functions. Instead of doing that, Oz just points with GREAT VIGOR and calls over to wherever Mabel happens to be moseying about, clearly excited.]

Mabel! Come look at this one! Look at its ears—!!

[This dog must be stopped.]

taka;
[It's nerd time in the library, time for all library nerds to go perusing at their collective leisure...! SO OF COURSE OZ IS HERE, looking around the shelves for anything that's been added since the last time he'd visited. Nothing really catches his eye yet; even with all of the books here, he's already read his way through most of the fiction section that had struck immediate interest and has yet to find anything actually useful in the non-fiction section, outside of how-to manuals for technological devices. He's almost at the end of the row by the time he spots it-

The familiar spines all lined up in a neat row. Finally. FINALLY.]

They have it—!!

[Oops, were you trying to read in a peaceful corner or actually get some work done?? IT IS PEACEFUL NO MORE, since Oz doesn't know how to use volume control when he's excited.]

yoon;
[Now that Oz has taken up trying to cook some things on his own, it also means that he has to learn to shop for groceries on his own... And normally, he isn't too bad at that! He actually has a fairly good idea of what makes a balanced meal and knows what he likes, so it doesn't take long to finish up and he doesn't spend time lingering in the aisles.

Today is unfortunately not one of those days. Living in the House of Eternal Sweet-tooth means that candy is never in short supply, but with all of the crazy goings-on lately, it's been a little hard to remember to restock the candy jar. Today, the grocery store happens to be having a buy 1 get 1 free sale, too, which means that all of the soup stocks and vegetables and fruits in Oz's cart are buried under a literal mountain of candy.

A mountain that goes sLIDING RIGHT OVER IN AN AVALANCHE when Oz takes a turn too quickly, burying the feet of anyone who happens to be nearby. SO, YOU, YOON. You are the chosen one.]

Oh— sorry about that! I guess I put a little too much in here. [An Understatement™. Oz will immediately move to start picking various bags of M&Ms and jolly ranchers up, though, because he's not a rudeass who makes other people clean up for him.]

ciel;
[IT'S 10AM, DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR OZES ARE?

In the kitchen, tiredly stirring around his oatmeal in an absent-minded way. Horror of horrors, there aren't even any sprinkles in it today.

Even though he tried his best to get some sleep the night before, he couldn't manage it. He's been wound with anxious energy for hours now, and it's exhausting, but there's no reprieve in sight just yet and even if there was, he probably wouldn't take it. He's got a lot of things to think about, some clothing to throw away, and apologies to make - later, after the general insanity dies down. But that leaves him in a limbo of sorts for the time being, and it's why he's staring somewhat absently out the window whenever Ciel moseys out of his sleep coma for the day.

His attention still snaps over regardless, and Ciel gets the same cheery:]

Morning!

sheba;
["I'll be meeting you for tea once all of this is straightened out." WELL THINGS ARE STRAIGHTENED OUT NOW!! And Oz, who needs to check up on everyone that he's watching out for anyway, will take any reason to make the standard "so did you survive" conversation pass a little more smoothly. Good lord, he's going to become one of the cafe's most valued customers in less than a week at this rate...

But that's why he's standing out in the apartment hall at around noon a few days after things settle back down again, knocking on Sheba's door.]

Sheba? It's Oz! Are you here?

[Maybe he should have tried calling first?! What a moron.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Ah, that's bad luck... [This is the first he's heard of anyone else showing up from Ciel's world, after all, and it's some guy that he actually feels the need to warn Oz against. TRULY...

But at least he doesn't seem like he's going to argue, since he just nods once when Ciel's finished with his description.]

All right, I'll keep the name in mind. [AND AVOID because he's got enough problems without adding ones from different worlds to the list. And then, looping back around to Ciel's question.]

You might be seeing Break around sometimes! Actually, if you hear any noises coming from the cupboards, don't worry about it; it's probably just him. [PH...] He may tease you, but if you give him a candy he might leave you alone. [except not... It's hard to tell if Oz is giving people intentionally ineffective advice because it's funny or because he's trying so hard to help but there's only so much one can do to ward off Break.]

Leo's the other. He's from the same house as Lily and Levi, but I think you might get along if you met! [THEY'RE BOTH LIL BOOKISH SNARKY NERDSHITS. He pauses for a second after that though, since this isn't something he would have thought of if Ciel didn't prompt the topic with a warning first?! He's a moron...] Ah, but— even though he's been here for a while, you should take care around Gil's brother, Vincent. Levi, too. I don't think they'll give you any trouble, but they can both be a little unpredictable.

[Though honestly, if Oz didn't have "everyone around me is insane" blinders, he'd probably warn Ciel away from all of them... And a little less placidly than just "THEY'RE HARD TO PREDICT", even though that's where a lot of their respective danger comes from.]

[ Ciel listens to Oz's descriptions, but the further he goes, the more Ciel's expression falls. It starts at the idea of a man named Break being in cupboards, and really just continues full speed ahead until Oz ends with what Ciel can tell is a very underwhelming "unpredictable." He opens his mouth to respond, but the kettle starts to whistle, so he pauses that thought to pour the hot water into his tea. He'll let it steep while they talk, though, since he grabs the mug and walks over to take a seat at their table with Oz.

...Still. His actual commentary is brief, since he sits down with a sigh. ]

"A little unpredictable."

[ Ciel repeats that first, since he's thinking to himself that while that's technically true of Grell too, that's also not even the half of it. ]

Now I have to ask. What did helping this Levi person out entail, Oz?

[Welcome to the pseudovictorian rabbit hole, Ciel. Also known as AN INESCAPABLE HELL... this is it, this is the group of people you're being adopted into. There is no going back. There's only mercilessly moving forward...

When Ciel takes a seat, Oz shifts again so he's not sitting sideways in his own anymore. Facing forward properly now, he can cross his arms and let them rest against the table. ALL BREAKFAST-SIDE MANNERS ARE GOING OUT THE WINDOW no one can whack his arms and tell him to get his elbows off the table now. At the question, he shakes his head once, assuming he's given off a horribly wrong impression even though it's actually an accurate one.]

Oh— this time it wasn't really his fault, since he was definitely one of the people who started acting weird. [IMPLYING THAT MOST OF THE TIMES IT IS. Which is true. Everything is Levi's fault, or Jack's - they're interchangeable.

That said, even if he does have a tendency to dance around subjects, he's not an outright liar (most of the time), so:] He started to lose control of himself... I helped to stop him from hurting anyone.

[ Ciel sighs at first, though it at least lessens his frown if nothing else. That explains it, even though it's not exactly the explanation he was hoping for, and that feeling is only intensified as Oz continues. He stares at Oz critically, because he's at least getting used to seeing where Oz is dancing around a subject, so he confronts it a bit more directly. ]

Did you. [ Ciel does not sound impressed... ] And how did he take to that?

[The downside of living with one person for an extended period of time...

Oz seems to struggle a little with maintaining the casual air after a more direct question, that said. He's better than the average person and remaining buoyant even in dire situations, for better or for worse, but having to deal with this on top of everything else has left him worn down.]

...I don't really know. I almost think that that's what he wanted, but he's hard to understand.

[And if Oz of all people is saying that, then he must be really damn hard to understand.]

[ Ciel isn't nearly as observant with people's reactions as Oz is, but still, that struggle is visible enough that it causes Ciel to pause before he immediately responds. He opens his mouth, but then closes it again before he shakes his head, taking a moment to collect his thoughts a bit better. The way Oz phrases his response is confusing to Ciel, since it is hard to imagine someone that Oz wouldn't be able to understand, but...

Someone does immediately come to mind as an example.

So his actual response ends up being more careful than what he had originally intended, and despite himself, there's care in his words. ]

...What's that supposed to mean? What happened?

[Oz seems able to pick up on that care, at least, since his own expression softens a little in turn. Explaining what happened is going to be a little more difficult though, and he puts a little more of his weight on his arms, leaning forward.]

I just wanted to disarm him, but it wasn't that easy... [Levi is surprisingly resilient for a grandpa, especially when under the influence of weird tarot cards.]

So I had to hurt him to stop him.

[There's more to it than that, obviously, but that's the part that Oz is stuck on.]

[ Oz almost doesn't need to say it, because with what Oz is fixated on alone, he can guess what had happened easily enough. He taps his fingers briefly against the table, almost anxiously, but then turns to preparing his tea instead, since it's steeped properly now. It keeps him calm, if nothing else. ]

...He was trying to kill you, wasn't he?

[ It's obvious, actually. Because Oz hadn't so much as raised a hand against Ciel when he had killed him. Oz was a peaceful person by nature, and Ciel had seen it to the point that it had taken Oz's life. He might be mistaken, but to Ciel, for Oz to actually raise a hand to hurt someone, it had to be quite extreme. ]

[Even though that's not the part that bothers him - because of course it isn't, he's a moron without much self-preservation instinct - it's what gets the smile to ease into near-nonexistence. His shoulders tense a little and his gaze shifts to the window.]

I don't think even he understood why it happened, or why it was me. He asked me if I knew, but I didn't have an answer.

[Bad luck, probably. Maybe the connection that they shared once a long, long time ago, when he was still making a transition from observer to sentient being. He still hasn't really thought much about it, since his thoughts are frazzled and he can't unthread them yet.]

[ Ciel watches the shift in Oz's expression, but unlike Oz, he's not able to read as much from it. For him, it's something almost completely foreign to see, because Ciel's view of the world is so bitter and dark that it spurs him into a vicious ruthlessness. He almost speaks to that, since his first thought is that it doesn't matter. Oz is alive, so that's all that matters. It's how Ciel does think of the situation, because if it had been him, it's likely that one of them had died.

That was the difference between the two of them, when it came down to it. Ciel and Oz both clamoured to continue living, but where Oz's clamouring was warm and born out of a love of life, Ciel's was cold, a vicious survivalist's view. Oz had difficultly trampling on others to assure his own life, whereas Ciel would do it without hesitation.

...But it's a sign that Oz is helping Ciel, however small, because Ciel recognizes tat about himself. Where he may have harshly stated his viewpoint before, he can acknowledge now that he understands that view isn't for everyone. It makes him pause, consider his words more carefully, because without that viewpoint, Ciel doesn't know what to say. A silence lingers, except for the quiet clink of Ciel's spoon as he stirs in his sugar, but eventually, he manages something. ]

Why did you feel like you needed one?

[ There's an awkwardness to how Ciel says it, not that his words lack confidence, but more that he's making an effort to try and help. But with his usual viewpoint being to harsh in the face of Oz being disheartened, he's uncertain of how to express it. ]

Why did I feel like I needed an answer?

[He repeats back the question with an addendum for the sake of clarification, but it's enough to draw his attention away from the window. Maybe his stare is a little too close, a little too intent, but it's mostly coming from a place of soft surprise that shifts into fondness. Ciel always seems able to bowl ahead a little less elegantly when the words that he says genuinely come from the heart; that's definitely something that Oz has noticed. So the awkwardness here isn't missed, and Oz can interpret it fairly well.

The question itself is a little difficult, but it's enough to bring his smile back, if only by a little.]

If I understood that, maybe I could have been better help. Levi... he may be hard to understand, but he isn't the kind of person who would do that, I think.

[And on a more personal level, he did want to know why it was him. Not in a "woe is me" sort of way, but because there seems to be a very unfortunate trend indeed regarding the luck of people around him.]

[ Ciel nods to confirm, though it's a slow, thoughtful gesture. The intensity of Oz's gaze isn't missed, so Ciel wonders if it wasn't the right thing to say, but since it is Ciel, he doesn't mull that over long. He's still committed to the idea he wants to express either way. ]

You can't help everyone, Oz.

[ And he shouldn't, Ciel thinks, but he doesn't express that part. He knows Oz well enough by now to know that would be asking the impossible. He withdraws the spoon from his tea and sets it aside, but he doesn't take a drink of his tea right away. ]

There's not always an answer, and there's not always going to be a way to help. That's just the way things are. [ Even though the sentiment is cold, Ciel's tone isn't. There's a very careful warmth to it, because to him, this is meant to be comforting. ]

You can't carry the weight of everyone else's actions, even if you want to.

[The tone is warm, at least, so Oz understands what Ciel is trying to convey here. Rather - even if his tone hadn't been warm, the fact that he's saying things like this at all is enough for him to understand that Ciel is trying to voice comfort. It's something that he understands is true, too; it's impossible to bear every burden. It's impossible to help everyone. Sometimes, things need to be sacrificed. Priorities need to be made. Living like that is difficult, but that's what it is to be human, isn't it?

The intensity seems to bleed from his stare, at least, and he sits up a little straighter in his seat.]

...I know.

[And he does. He just wishes at times that he could change it - that he could do more, or reach out further without being spread too thin to help. His fingers tap against the edge of his spoon before picking it up again.]

That's why I didn't wait to look for an answer.

[At the time, anyway. He still wants to find one.]

Good.

[ Ciel says that more solidly and with a nod, because he is glad that Oz understands it, even though he's slightly concerned that Oz would do it anyways, but. That's Oz. At this point, he takes a drink of his tea, then stares levelly at him. ]

Just be careful. [ That's genuine and somewhat soft, but when he speaks again, it's much harder in tone. ] I can't pay rent on my own.

[ tsuns aggressively ]

[WELL IT'S NOT LIKE THAT CONCERN IS UNFOUNDED. It is, in fact, very well-founded... But of course Ciel would probably know that better than most.

At least the aggressive tsunning provides an opportunity to shake the heaviness of the topic, which Oz takes immediately.]

I know, I know. You'd probably starve to death on the side of the road without me... But you don't have to worry, I wouldn't be cruel enough to leave you to a fate like that!

[But is this fate really any better.]

You had better not. If I perish because of your stupidity, I'll make sure to haunt you and you alone.

[ hA SO THERE ]

[ Ciel does scoff, since maybe he's getting used to the 24/7 teasing too... He takes another drink of his tea, but the talk of the "affected people" makes Ciel remember someone else, and it's clear from his expression that he has something he wants to say too. But it takes a moment before he manages to say it, and even then, his tone is purposely distant, almost dismissive. ]

Did you meet Mabel, by any chance?

You can't haunt another ghost, Ciel.

[Said in the tone of someone explaining that the sky is blue to a first grader...

But then the topic tends toward a more serious note again. Oz is a little grateful for it, honestly, because outwardly-directed topics are always better for him to deal with and talk about than things that affect and bother him directly. While Mabel's memory loss was definitely upsetting in its own way, it's also something that Oz is much better-equipped to deal with than Ciel. He knows that much already, and the distant tone only reinforces that idea.]

Mmhm. Dipper and Peko, too... A lot of people showed up this time but none of them remember anything.

[ Ciel scoffs at first, since you can't tell ghost!him what to do, but he also lets the conversation shift to the more serious topic, since really, he had wanted to talk about this since she had arrived, but had difficulty bringing it up. It gives him conflicting feelings, after all, and if there's anything Ciel is truly terrible at, it's handling his own feelings.

Oz pointing out that Peko and Dipper had also arrived gets a dull nod, like an afterthought, and he nearly says "I don't care about them," but he thinks better of it. He had seen Peko, but had promptly run away from her. Oz confirming that she didn't remember anything only made Ciel feel better, but regardless, he wouldn't speak to her. At least his reasons there made much more sense. Ciel didn't like that so many people he knew from Dreamland were continuing to show up here, but for once, his concern here isn't paranoia. His expression is cold, business-like, because he doesn't want to betray the real reason he had brought it up so easily. ]

And what do you think of that? Is it a problem?

[HE JUST DID TELL GHOST!HIM WHAT TO DO, god.

But Oz studies Ciel's expression in silence for a few seconds, perhaps with a little more close scrutiny than is usual for him. He knows how close Ciel and Mabel had become over the course of the game, after all - to the point where he had negotiated to keep her hands as free of blood as possible.]

Is it a problem that she's here, or that she doesn't remember? [A gentle prod for clarification, though he'll answer both anyway.]

...It's probably better if they don't remember. Being here at all - I don't really know what it means. [Their number is definitely increasing... It's concerning.] But if they can leave that place behind, then it would be easier for them to move forward. The reason that they forgot, though - that might be a problem. Did it never happen to them, or do they just not remember? And if they don't remember, how long will that last?

[It's another reason why Oz has decided to befriend Mabel again. He's aware by now of people coming from different realities and worlds, but just in case that isn't so here, he doesn't want Mabel to feel alone on the off chance that she does remember.]

There's no scar, at least.

[ He answers that first, since he feels that's important, but more than that, it's also easier for him to answer. It's a simple, easy fact, and Ciel doesn't have to bring any emotion into it. Yet for the rest, that's more difficult. He takes another sip of his tea, then sets the mug down with a more difficult expression.

...It's still hard for him, after all. Ciel was resigned to his fate, and he had been ever since he left that cage, so it's hard for him to show emotion and let people in, because it made things all the worse. But he is at least learning, becoming willing to accept the sort of gentle understanding that Oz offers. ]

But you're right. It's definitely better if she doesn't remember.

[ Because in a way, that's what he had been fighting so had for. He hadn't wanted Mabel to bear the burden that such a place would impose on her, and so he had tried to take all the blood upon his hands instead. He knew he should be happy that she didn't remember, and he was, but at the same time, the fact that she didn't remember meant that she didn't remember Ciel either. Despite the fact that it's something he claimed to prefer and strive for, it was still painful to have it become reality, so there's another, careful pause. ]

...So I'll make sure of it. I'm sure you've already made friends with her again, but I won't. It's better if I stayed away.

[Oz doesn't at all look surprised to hear that, because it does fit right in with the mental picture of Ciel that he's collected over the last couple of months. He tries his best, but he's so clumsy in the realm of emotion that sometimes his best is still sharp and painful - both to the people he's trying to protect, and to himself.

Mabel, in this equation, is a non-issue. If she doesn't remember - if she doesn't even have a scar - then that's that. But Ciel? This sort of self-imposed restriction will only hurt him in the end, and since Mabel doesn't seem to be at risk, it probably won't help her either.

After a few seconds of silence, he decides to put that concern into words.]

I know that you want to protect her and keep her safe, but if she doesn't remember, is there really much of a risk?

[Even though he's equally aware of the fact that, protecting Mabel aside, Ciel is also trying to protect himself here. Facing someone who's forgotten you is a painful thing.]

Of course there is.

[ There's no hesitation in his words, and they come with a sort of weight that implies that this is something he's though of well in advance. It is, of course, but not in this context. He had struggled wit something similar when he had returned home and found Lizzie, the loving fiancee waiting for him. To him, it's the same struggle.

Is it selfish to push them away out of an idea of their safety, or is it selfish to still want them at his side? Lizzie he had to accept, since there was politics in that relationship too, but it was still a conflict he struggled with, so he had assured himself to make her life after he was gone as comfortable as possible.

For Mabel... That part wasn't the same. ]

It's not balanced. If I hadn't remembered the park at all, would you— [ He pauses, raising a hand with a flat expression, and he shakes his head. ] ...No, nevermind, that's a bad example. You would definitely still befriend me all the same.

[ oz is an outlier and should not be counted ]

But take that as an example anyways. You would know things about me that I would never share otherwise, but I wouldn't remember sharing them. There's a basis of a relationship in something that one person never experienced. That's just carrying on in a lie. It's deceptive.

[OZ SHOULD BE COUNTED EVERY TIME. He actually seems a little endeared that Ciel seems so sure that he'd get hit by the friendship express regardless... because he 100% would.....]

No one can be honest all of the time, about everything. [Which might sound strange coming from Oz, who is usually quite truthful and open about most things, but- naturally, even he understands when deception is "necessary". Even if it's not malicious, which it wouldn't be in Ciel's example; even if it's not the same as deception when wielded as a weapon in the way that people like Jack manage it. Self-protective deception is something that Oz understands well, in the moments when he says "it's fine" or makes a promise that he knows he can't keep.]

Besides, that inequality would exist even if I never talked to you again, right? Avoiding you wouldn't change the fact that I know more about you than you would willingly share in any other situation, and that you wouldn't know anything about me. Is there really an elevated risk that comes with contact? It would give me the chance to get to know you again, even if things wouldn't be the same.

[Which he says in a particularly insistent way, like he knows "things aren't the same" is essentially the crux of the problem here, beyond all of the fear of hurting or being hurt.]

[ It does sound odd, which gets Ciel's brow to knit together as he levels him an even, half-suspicious look. That's the sort of sentiment that Ciel expresses, so to hear it from Oz, he almost wants to focus on that more. It catches his attention out of paranoia, because no matter how long they're friends, there's still a part of Ciel that expects Oz to reveal one day that it was all a farce.

He pushes that notion away, though. Even if that were true, it's not the topic of their conversation now, so his gaze averts this his hands instead, and he lapses into a silence.

It's difficult for him to express, because what he wants to say is tangled up in so many emotions and traumas that they all get jumbled together. He doesn't want to speak to those, but it's hard to step around them. It takes him several, long moments, but what he ultimately says is simple. ]

She shouldn't know someone like me.

[ He says it coldly and resolutely, and though he doesn't elaborate on why that is, it's not hard to guess. It's the other side of the evil nobleman that Ciel presents himself as. Anyone that gets too close is likely to be destroyed, since that was his family's curse. Even though he doesn't have his status here or his demon, that feeling it something Ciel still feels as a deeply rooted truth. He would do anything to keep moving forward, and that didn't change here, after all.

It's a deep insecurity, and something very telling about how Ciel views himself, but that moment passes as he looks to his mug of tea instead. ]

If she doesn't remember, then I don't want her to. Not even a fraction of it under different circumstances.

[Since Oz is BLISSFULLY UNAWARE of the fact that Ciel's rudely misconstruing what he's said (he really will never learn), he doesn't linger on that at all. He doesn't want it to be lingered on anyway, since it's a soft topic to broach. Being open is still something that he struggles with, even if he seems like he has no problem with it at all.

He folds his hands together in front of his still-untouched oatmeal, head canting to the side a little.]

...I understand what you're trying to do. [And he does. Maybe if he were a different person with different circumstances surrounding him, he'd have taken similar actions.]

But is deciding whether she should or shouldn't know you for her really any better?

[Any better than a deceptive friendship, or an uneven one, or one where there's a small chance of one or both parties being hurt. It seems about even to Oz, who's giving Ciel another one of those looks that seems more observant than someone his age should be capable of.]

I'm not going to tell you what you should or shouldn't do, but I think you might be making a mistake.

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[muffled linkin park]

http://31.media.tumblr.com/db2251593dec6b0d57d9290e1090f4bb/tumblr_msvfurYr1V1qzprdwo1_500.jpg

at least he's not kaoru

LOOK....

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