[PRP] The Surprise of the Keyboard Mash [Junko + Tomoko]

[demon_pachabel]

People had survived and come back from the strange beyond. It had been...so mysterious, if that would have been the right word for it. Tomoko hadn't been able to find Junko in the crowd she'd been looking through, getting more and more distressed over the idea the futakuchi-onna might have actually been dead.

That was until she got to her room and cracked open the computer to find Junko on the Groanspring. There had been a massive keyboard mash of relief in response.

Junko had gone into hiding in her room? Well, that had been an easy enough thing for the kitsune to handle, getting up once again (much to the whining of Desades, who earned a few pets for his sadness), before she practically booked it out of the Demon dorms to head over to the Monster's building.

So much travelling. Why couldn't they all have just lived in one place? She wouldn't have mind that, that was for sure. None the less, Tomoko had made a hasty retreat from her computer (which desades had laid on the keyboard of, apologies sent to whoever recieved the keyboard mash from him) in order to see her friend.

Albeit, she got lost in the halls a few times before finding the familiar door, knocking on it anxiously. Tomoko would pounce almost immediately when the door was opened.  

[Eight]

She was never coming out again. Junko had sworn this to herself over and over again at many different times throughout the year. Every time she left her room something bad happened. Or something good happened only to be trumped by something bad. It always happened, it didn't ever not happen. Her life right now was nothing but despair and darkness and she was more than okay with staying curled up in her bed in clean pajamas with her hair freed from any kind of restraint and her face buried in her pillows. Every now and then she'd get a text of some kind, a message about a question on groanspring or just a normal text in general, and she did her best to reply to it as warmly as she could...but right now it was rather hard to do that. It had cheered her up a bit when she'd seen Tomoko if only because she knew the poor kitsune ghoul had probably seen her d..de...accident. Tomoko knew she was okay, that was very important. What had been odd was that she was suddenly away from her computer and not responding. Junko frowned again and put her phone down again to bury her face into her pillows once more, hugging them tightly and curling up half on her side with the upper part of her body twisted to lie somewhat on her stomach. Kuro and Sayuri were cuddled up against their mommy, whimpering every now and then and nuzzling against her as if they sensed Junko's unhappiness. This wasn't like mommy! Why was mommy acting weird?

So what had happened...she'd had her hair cut off, she'd seen her boilfriend die, she'd died, and then after being given the second chance at life she had hoped for so much she'd nearly had it taken away again trying to stand up against Sarias. She was tired of being tread on like that. Ghouls like Sarias...they just...why couldn't they grow up? Why did they do things like that? Were they lonely? They must have been lonely, but that sounded more like a result than a cause. It wasn't fair. Why did she have to be such a cold, frigid b***h? The Mistress wasn't sure what to make of Junko's behavior. This was what She wanted; Junko was very clearly broken, and while it wasn't Her doing it was still something She wanted so She could control her...so then why didn't she feel joy? Was it because it wasn't Her that broke Junko? That must have been it. There couldn't be any other reason for it.

Suddenly there came a knock at the door and Junko frowned, hugging the pillows tighter and whimpering. Kuro, Sayuri and Aoi who had been lurking under a table perked up at the sound and all looked toward Junko. Was she going to answer? Answeransweranswer! Why wasn't she getting up? Upupupupup! Nooow! Get up, get up! The pygmy foxes jumped off Junko's bed to scurry to the door, jumping and pawing at it and scratching their little nails against the door with their happy yips and squeaks. Visitor! There was a visitor! Mommyyyyyyyyy! There's a visitor! "Stop it, guys." Came her muffled voice, trying to block out the sounds. They didn't let up, almost getting louder the longer it took her. Fine! Fine! She'd go! The ghoul sighed and sat up, sliding off her bed and treading across the room to open the door. Before she could even register who was at it she felt a force against her middle and found herself falling backwards onto the ground with a cry of surprise mingled with fear. Was it Sarias!? It must have been! Sarias came to finis--oh...it was Tomoko. Junko blinked and stared down at the little kitsune, petting her hair and pushing herself up to support herself with her other hand so she could sit up a bit.

"Tomo-chan, what are you doing here?" She asked quietly, sniffling a little. Junko looked a bit of a mess. Her hair was writhing and her eyes were red and puffy from all her crying..at least her clothes were clean? She'd thrown out her old pajamas; they were beyond repair.  

[demon_pachabel]

Tomoko had to hope she counted as being in the 'good' category in Junko's mind. Not that she knew there were categories. But if she'd known, she would have hoped it. None the less, the kitsune was capable of being a bulldozer when she needed to be.

Or rather didn't intend to be. Tomoko was just SO HAPPY TO SEE A JUNKO WITH A PULSE AND NOT SMASHED UNDER A ROCK ;A;. If she'd had the mindset to entertain the thought, there would have been an Enigma-of-Amigahara-Fault Junko image in her mind that would never get out. Ever. However, Tomoko wasn't exactly the kind to entertain that sort of bad notion for very long.

"i-I had to see you for myself!" Tomoko said, puffing her chest a bit and putting on her best 'happy' face that she could muster, though she still looked visibly upset at everything that had transpired as of late. Hell, Tomoko wouldn't sleep for a while, most likely. Or just pass out rather than sleep. It would take some time to see how it turned out, unfortunately.

Following that, however, the kitsune hugged Junko tighter, sniffling a bit, tails drooping between her legs.

"I never want to go on a field trip ever again." she said. "The end of it wasn't worth it. The detention that Arel gave us seems like nothing after how horrible everything else was!"  

[Eight]

Oh wow, poor Tomoko didn't look like she'd been sleeping. Was she okay? Junko frowned a little and pulled the girl up close to return the hug she was being given, burying her face between Tomoko's ears into her pretty blonde hair. She hugged the ghoul as tightly as she was being hugged, whimpering and trying not to cry. Little Tomo-chan was so sweet, she didn't deserve such good friends like her and Seiji and Yaya and Riley and Kasumi and..and...Bella and...Nuk and..it wasn't fair! She couldn't help but chuckle weakly at Tomoko's words, nodding in agreement.

"I don't want to either, even if they're supposedly mandatory." She sighed, squeezing Tomo-chan affectionately and lifting her face. Wait..they got detention?! Junko stared down at her in shock, her jaw dropped and her eyes wide. "O-oh, Tomo-chan...! I'm so sorry!" If she hated the field trip she'd definitely hate detention! Crapcrapcrap! Junko hugged her tightly again and bit her lip, trying not to cry again. "I'm never leaving my room again." She muttered, sounding completely sincere in her words.

What? She was! She was never leaving ever again! People could come to her if they needed to.  

[demon_pachabel]

Tomoko almost immediately made a serious face at Junko when she said she'd never leave her room ever again, frowning a bit. Well that just wouldn't do at all! Not at all.

"What would you do all day? Think about sad stuff all by yourself? Not get any of the fun things that come from being out in a group doing things at spur of the moment?" Tomoko seemed very bothered by this idea. As much as she liked her room and it was a safe place, there were certain things that one could only get from being out in a group of people. Besides....

"Then you wouldn't be able to spend as much time with everybody in the classes...being a recluse never helps out anybody. That's why I'm here. Isn't that why you're here too? Why are you going to be here if you're not going to experience it?"

Not that the last thing had been that good of an experience to say the least. However, it would also be really difficult for that to get much worse. At least she hoped it wasn't going to get worse. That would have been horrible.

None the less, she rubbed her head against the other girl's chest, not sure what else she could say on the matter.

"Besides...I'd get really lonely...."  

[Eight]

Junko blinked and looked quite surprised to see Tomoko's expression change so suddenly. She'd never seen the ghoul so serious! Oh, it was because of what she said. Right. But...but Tomoko didn't understand! She didn't see what had happened with Sarias! The terrible experience of trying to stand up for herself against a bully only to be nearly killed by her! She could still feel those cold hands around her neck, strong and icy cold like death. Junko rubbed at her neck and frowned deeper. What would she do? Probably exactly what Tomoko said...though she'd eventually move on to other things. She could do her projects, practice her sewing, play with her foxes and Aoi, there was also always texting and calling and the web and...and stuff. She'd be okay in theory.

"I was kind of a recluse before coming here..?" Junko muttered quietly, her argument as half-assed as her resolve was. It was why she'd come to the school, to stop being a recluse and to learn how to control Her. But honestly she'd rather go home than continue experiencing all these dangerous things! School was supposed to be safe! They should have been protected! As Tomoko nuzzled her she pet the ghoul's hair, looking off to the side in shame. She was disappointing Tomoko, she knew that, but..but it was hard!

Wait, what was that last part?

Junko paused a moment to look down at her friend again, blinking and replaying what she thought she'd heard in her head until it made sense. Tomoko..would get lonely? But why? Didn't she have friends by now? She was so sweet and adorable! How could anyone resist her? "Really?" She asked with another frown, sighing and flopping back on the floor to stare at the ceiling. She didn't want to upset Tomo-chan, or Seiji, or Riley...

Oh...if Riley found out how she was behaving she'd probably be extremely disappointed in Junko, wouldn't she? Riley was so strong, and confident, and she had a presence about her that just commanded respect. Why couldn't Junko be like that? "I don't want you to be lonely, Tomo-chan."  

[demon_pachabel]

"Not gonna say I wasn't a recluse before being sent here, but there's something to said about having company and a change of scenery, Junko-chan." Tomoko sat down beside Junko when she sat on the floor again, tucking her feet underneath her and taking a moment to make sure her tails didn't just take over every single available space ever on the floor. That would have been horrible.

Or something like it.

"I'd like you to be around instead of hiding in here. If you never leave your room, you can never come over and play in my room, or go see Seiji and then we'd have to bring new people we met over here to see you and then what if someone started making googley eyes at Seiji-kun? I wouldn't know. I don't notice those kinds of things."

It was sadly true. If Tomoko were ever to get into a relationship (RE: Impossible), she'd never notice someone trying to move in on 'her' territory. Maybe.

Possibly.

She really had no clue, to be honest.

"Plus I don't think I know enough about fabric to do that kind of shopping for you, Junko-chan." she added, her most serious face yet.  

[Eight]

Tomoko made very good points, and little by little Junko's resolve was being chipped away by logic. She couldn't stay in here. She didn't even have a private bathroom, she'd have to leave if she wanted to stay clean and stuff. And food, she didn't have a limitless supply of food. Were there any places that would deliver to the dorms? She had no idea. Maybe she could find out. Oh, right. She couldn't go see Seiji. But he and everyone else could come here, right? Right? Why did she always have to go to them? That was hardly fai--wait..what? Tomoko seemed to have struck a nerve in Junko as the ghoul's fists clenched the same way her heart did, staring ahead of her and feeling sick to her stomach at the very idea of anyone trying to take Seiji from her should she lock herself up like this. Sarias had said...

No. Nonono. That couldn't happen. No way.

Junko frowned and lifted a hand to bite down on the side of the knuckle of her index finger. She'd never had a boilfriend before, she couldn't just 'give him up' like that. No way, no how. She couldn't risk that especially after what they'd been through. It hurt to think about. She would have said more on the subject had Tomoko not just said the most adorable thing ever and accompanied it with such a serious face. Junko stared at her, surprised at first until she suddenly broke into a mild case of the giggles...followed shortly with full on laughter. "He..hehe...hahaha! Tomo-chan! You're so silly!" She giggled, wiping a tear from her eye and draping an arm across her middle. She hadn't laughed in days. Hell, she hadn't laughed since before Red's ship had sank! That was a really long time. She needed this.  

[demon_pachabel]

h-hey! Why was Junko laughing at her?? Tomoko made a slight face, mostly blush and cuteness, actually, ears drooping. "b-But that's the truth! I wouldn't know how to do any of that stuff for you." She seemed very bothered by the idea of Junko holing herself up and leaving her unable to help her out with the things she liked to do.

Besides...

"We could just get a stick and poke all the bad things with it so they'd go away!" Tomoko added, puffing her chest out a little bit, obviously proud of herself for coming up with such a big solution to the problem! She'd never even considered that whoever needed to be poked would be immune to sticks or something like that.

She was trying though!

"Or we can illusion up..uhh.... ILLUSION TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM!!" Again, she puffed her chest out, trying to look like she came up with good solutions to the problems in question. She did come up with them, right?? Right?? Probably not the most practical solutions, however.

Hrm...

Either way, she again gave Junko a really intense look.

"Besides, I think EyeScream would melt before I could get it here too. Which means we'd have to go to it." She paused, seeming to think for a moment. "Oh..EyeScream sounds good, actually."  

[Eight]

Haha! She just kept saying cute things! There was always the internet if Junko wanted to buy things though she really did prefer to buy her fabric in person. See? Junko had this all figured out down to the last detail. Or so she thought. In truth Junko wasn't actually thinking in the long term, she only thought she was. Her resolve was unraveling by the second with every argument Tomoko made against her decision, with every absolutely adorable little suggestion she made. A stick? Hahaha! Junko snorted which only made her laugh more at the fact that she'd just done that, clamping a hand over her mouth. She grinned up at Tomoko as she laughed. "I don't think a stick would work on Sarias, unfortunately." And she'd rather not go anywhere near that ghoul if she could help it. She was going to do whatever it took to stay away from her.. Anything it took.

"Illusion to solve the problem?" Junko asked with a smile, sighing deeply to calm herself and the holding out her arms toward Tomoko for a hug. She wanted one. HUGS PLEASE. HUGS NOW. "Thank you, Tomo-chan. You are so sweet." If Tomoko didn't comply to her quiet demand she would just tug her over herself, cuddling the ghoul against her and nestling her face into her pretty blonde hair.

...EyeScream sounded really good. "Want...want to go out and get some? We could go to the maul..." Yes, we. She'd go with little Tomo-chan to the maul for EyeScream.  

[demon_pachabel]

Tomoko's brows furrowed together in concern. Sarias..? She vaguely remembered such a person and for a moment she wondered if she should feel bad because she couldn't remember that ghoul as well as she could Junko, and Seiji, and Jove...and other people. She really would have felt bad too if the way Junko said that name made it sound like she really needed to stab someone with a stick.

Hmmmm.

"I'll punch her in the kneecaps then." the kitsune said, puffing her chest out before moving over and putting her own arms around the other ghoul's neck in a hug, all three of her tails perking up and rubbing one cheek against Junko's shoulder adoringly. "Or kick her. I'll do something mean to her kneecaps."

"Only if you think you're OK going out. I think it would be relaxing after that field trip though. That was a horrible trip." Tomoko frowned a bit. "But EyeScream would so be worth it." she continued, tapping her chin thoughtfully. Ooouuuuuu....  

[Eight]

Junko blinked and paused a moment to play that in her head again. Did Tomoko really just threaten violence? Her little Tomo-chan? Junko didn't even think she was capable of such things! It both made her heart swell with joy and love and plummet into her stomach with fear and worry. She didn't want to imagine Tomoko even in the same room as Sarias let alone hitting her! Junko held her tighter, her hug going from affectionate to more protective. No, she couldn't let Sarias near Tomo-chan. Tomo-chan was small, delicate, and no doubt if Sarias was able to scare the life out of Junko the things she could do to Tomoko...she shuddered at the very thought.

There was no way Junko could just let Tomoko face Sarias like that. Not for her. "I-it's okay, Tomo-chan. I appreciate the thought." She sniffled a bit and chuckled quietly at herself. She wanted to cry but not because she was sad. "I love you, Tomo-chan." Junko gave her an affectionate squeeze. She really did love her, she was like the adorable little sister Junko had never had. The closest thing to a sibling the ghoul had ever had until now was The Mistress and that definitely wasn't a healthy relationship. Tomo-chan made her want to protect someone other than herself, and she was the sweetest little thing. Whyyyyy, why was she so cuuuuuute?!

Junko sat up and wiped at her eyes when they returned to the topic of going out for EyeScream, giving a little nod. "I think I'm okay now...though I'd like to change out of my pajamas and into something I can wear out." She laughed, finally getting up off the floor and offering Tomoko help up as well.  

[demon_pachabel]

Tomoko's violence was probably as effective as having a feather thrown at somebody. Cute and fluffy, didn't really do much damage. Alas. Tomoko was too cute to be a threat, sadly. But she could try!! However, hugs made all violent thoughts flee from the kitsune who instead just snuggled further into Junko's shoulder, squeezing her a little bit tighter.

"I love you too, Junko-chan." Tomoko replied, beaming gleefully back at the other ghoul, grinning like an idiot. Little sister surrogate? She would have volunteered for the position if anybody had asked her about it, thinking nothing of it. Little siblings were fantastic, after all. At least Tomoko loved her own younger siblings (even if she was jealous of them sometimes...).

However, it seemed going out to get EyeScream was turning into an option, Tomoko's large eyes watching Junko as she got up, ears perked up alert-ly, smiling.

"Sure! Want me to wait outside?" she inquired, accepting the offerred up hand and pulling herself up by it, all three of her tails wagging slightly in excitement.  

[Eight]

Tomoko replied and she smiled, giggling helplessly as she felt her heart swell with pride. Little Tomo-chan loved her! "I'm glad~. I've never had a sibling before, but if I had a little sister I'd want her to be just like you." And she'd want a big brother too, she'd just never admit as to who she wanted him to be like. Nope. There was no one she knew whom she loved like an annoying big brother. No one at all. But a little sister? She definitely wanted her to be Tomo-chan. She finally walked away from Tomoko to open her wardrobe and look through the clothing options she had right now, some of them needed washing from when Red's boat sank with all their stuff still on it.

Sigh.

At Tomoko's inquiry Junko blinked and looked back at her, smiling again and giving a small nod. "Alright. I promise to come out~!" She was teasing, but if she could tease about her own issues it was okay, right? She would come out.

Junko waited for Tomoko to excuse herself to the hallway, leaving the door open just enough that it was clear she wasn't locking her friend out but no one would be able to see into her room. She even made an effort to change as quickly as she could, deciding to just wear the kimono she had worn on Scarentine's Day. She liked it, and she wasn't going to just wear it once. She left her hair down, a rare thing for her to do when planning to go out into public, and left the room. See? See? She left her room! Though a wary glance was cast toward every door and each end of the hallway, reaching for Tomoko's hand as a source of comfort. "I'm ready! Ummm..so is there any kind of EyeScream you like in particular?" She asked Tomoko as she began to lead her out of the monster dorms, across the campus and to the Maul.  

[demon_pachabel]

Tomoko puffed her chest out. "Then I'll be your little sister!" She decreed, not even an ounce of hesitance on the matter. If that's what Junko wanted, Junko was getting it! Or something like that. Never the less, the kitsune popped up when the futakuchi-onna went to change, placing her hands dramatically on her hips.

"OKAY. I'll be right outside." she beamed, ears standing right up in their best 'happy position', before she walked out to stand by the door. If it had been a manga, there would have been music notes and hearts all over...and possibly some sparkles. Then again, if Tomoko had been conscious of how much joy she was radiating, she would have been illusioning it into existence.

Tomoko was more than happy to accept the hand she was offered, squeezing it tightly and grinning up at Junko.

"I like that Kimono. It's pretty." she beamed, before pausing, ears twitching lightly as she thought about the question that had been posed to her. Hmmmm, EyeScream...well...

"I like all of the kinds! Though 母上(hahaue/'Honored Mother') says I should try to shy away from the ones that are too candy-like. Says they'll make me sick." Clearly, the idea of getting sick and disappointed her mother bothered Tomoko.