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As they chatted, the sake arrived and a plate of nigiri was laid out for them. Ichinose went ahead and poured their cups first, setting her pen down, chatting as she passed Takuto's cup to his side.

"True! I could give my girl something cute like that, maybe one that's holding up a little halo," Ichinose giggled at the thought - if she was considered some god, that might be one hell of a gap moe addition. Or if her helpful AI was seen as the world's most dutiful servant, maybe she had maid qualities? Bah, she wants to take a peek! Oh well.

"I bet she has wings, though. Somehow I always pictured her with them. Reaching new heights, and all that!" she chuckled, contemplating their doodle and picking her pen back up. Hmmm... "I think wings would be cute but a bit much for this one, especially if cognitive association with 'robots' makes them heavier. But something fun and heroic... maybe a cloak!"

The warmth from the sake, the soft clink of sushi plates, and the buzz of conversation around them created a strange sort of calm — like a lull in the middle of something impossible.

"A cloak, huh…" he murmured, tone light, thoughtful. "I think I like the image."

He leaned a little closer over the table, pen tapping beside her lines like punctuation. "Y’know, there’s something kind of… comforting about it. Like when you were little, and you’d hide under a blanket and pretend it was a shield, or a cape that could carry you off somewhere better. Maybe it’s not even just symbolic—maybe it’s a way to make people feel safe just by being near them."

His gaze flicked up toward her then, eyes meeting hers with a small spark of amusement. "And if this one’s meant to feel approachable, like someone others could lean on... a cloak would help with that, I think. To assist. To help others."

Then he paused, tapping the side of his pen against the little doodle they'd been working on, eyes narrowing thoughtfully at the head.

"As for wings... yes, they’re a bit much, cognitively speaking. Too many strong associations—angelic, divine, overwhelming. But a feather…"

A small smile tugged at his lips, something caught between appreciation and intrigue. He drew a curved line just off the side of the antennae, stylizing it into a fine, wispy feather.

"...Now that could work. Symbolically softer. Less imposing, but still aspirational—freedom, lightness, grace. If it were tuned subtly, it could serve as the hidden antennae, disguised as an accessory but still highly sensitive to shifts in cognitive pressure. A kind of... passive danger sense, perhaps even a mood detector depending on proximity."

He jotted another note. Feather = aesthetic + sensor integration. Possible EM frequency detection? Heartbeat resonance? Investigate.

"Oooh, I love that, both making it a feather and incorporating sensory inputs to detect people's moods - or at least their levels of excitement or stress. Those can be indicators of an action before the action is taken, and then they can be oh so helpful with people otherwise."

Mmm, the nigiri is so fresh... a gorgeous roll of sushi is laid out for them too, and she'll happily help herself to some eel. SO good.

"Maybe give them a shield to hold... eh, but if we're using something modeled after Persona abilities, then that isn't necessary, is it? But projecting the idea of 'protective' is good..."

Takuto helped himself to some of the sushi and nigiri as well, though he kept most of it safe for Ichinose.

Really, it was the sake that was more enticing. The way it burned in his throat or grasped his senses for just a split second before he found himself leaning back, happy and satisfied for the most part.

"I am not sure," he chuckles with a quick shake of head. "The feather and the cloak already are quite loud elements. A shield...oh that reminds me-! Kneepads. Elbowpads. Armour. Those are good options too."

"Naaah, no kneepads, that's a little too young I think. But maybe some leathers... and tall boots. Actually, some cute tall boots..."

Giggling, Ichinose used her pen to mark off 'boots' that would go tall and over the knee, adding a couple of ovals... with a little label and arrow, she adds the word 'buttons'.

"Something like this - very cool and classy. Maybe a leather vest on top... leather tunic? Something leather! Light and 'fast' looking. Cute... oh, definitely combining browns and blue-teals and copper accents for armor, that's cute, like a turquoise jewelry piece."

Edited 2025-06-17 23:33 (UTC)

Hey,he didn't like the shield idea, she didn't like the kneepads. "Fair enough. If it has a tendency to fall though- given cognitive structures can be quite unstable, I might sneak in a kneepad in their boot anyway." He shrugs and picks up the sake bottle, pouring the alcohol out for her.

"Better write those colours down...cause we will forget otherwise," he jots some letters on the paper.

"I would like some gold there as well," he smiles softly as he shades at areas. "Nothing too fancy but polished. A wonder within its own kind..."

He sighs, leaning back in his seat- closing his eyes for a moment as he sets the glass of sake down.

"Mmm, maybe a bronze, nice middle ground between coppers and golds. Hmm... if you don't like a literal shield, maybe projected shields. And a breastplate over the leather..."

She drew something vaguely shield-shaped for the breastplate on the chest.

"Symbols are good cognitive reinforcers, most likely, so I think every bit of theming is worth testing to see how much it helps or hinders."

"We can collect all those items from the shop and the cognitive areas," he explains. "Once I learnt from Hamuko-san just how important they are, I have been...hoarding them at this point. I don't usually store things, given there isn't much use clinging to the past."

He pulls out his journal this time- opening the fourth page to the last as he starts writing up points.

"Say...should we have an emergency mechanism? So that the project can sustain itself?"

"Do you mean a mechanism for defense, or escape? I figure we can come up with quite a few ideas for both," Kuon asked, setting her pen down to sip at her cup and indulge in a few more pieces of sushi. Delicious...

"To attack I mean."

Maruki leans back in his seat, chopsticks now reaching out for some of the eel nigiri.

"We need...ambiguity. We can't declare everything but- we shouldn't be stopped because of it, should we? It's not like the Hasegawas are a unique case of people persecuting cognitive pscience researchers."

His expression sobered. "Point is- one can only respect boundaries when we fear the unforeseen consequences. It's how the human mind is built to never really reach out for someone else in a moment of weakness."

He holds up the sake bottle again and refills their glasses.

"Not to mention there are computer geniuses here. Hackers who actually hack like the movies. With many other technologically advanced individuals."

"It's charming that you think anything of mine could be hacked, even by someone talented by Futaba-chan," Ichinose chuckled a bit proudly, leaning her cheek on her hand.

"But I have protocols in mind, yes. And I always use my voice and face as a backdoor key for my AI for emergencies. First and foremost, a shield can defend... but a solid heavy object, with enough applied kinetic force?"

She shrugs!

"Easily enough to handle shadows. Easily enough to break a few legs so the AI and I can run."

"It's not just Futaba-san I am worried about," he points out with his chopsticks- sushi held between them as his mind wanders. He remembers Wolf, not the older one, but the Akechi who controls a Digimon. He didn't seem like he wanted to be in the loop of the matters in the same way as the Hasegawas were, but as long as the AI and Kuon can protect themselves, that's all that matters. He has Azathoth himself whom he can count on, now that he can control it.

The cognitions next to them flicker their gaze back at them, looking between each other confusedly as both Takuto and Kuon only kept talking.

"Sorry," he waves the sushi, still not eating it, while his mind wanders. "I didn't mean to offend you. It's a good thing that you are confident in your capabilities; it's enough for me to know that my trust and collaboration with you are in good hands."

"Who is it, then? If there's someone else proficient with codding, I want to meet them anyway," Kuon pried a bit. "Just to talk shop - it's rare I get to chat about that sort of thing with anyone on my skill level. Getting to talk to Futaba-chan was the most refreshing part of working with the Thieves, and all."

Maruki's eyes widen in recognition. "Oh right-! You must have talked to Futaba-san!" It hadn't even clicked for him until now, more fixated on Akira-kun when he figured that the phantom thieves were Kuon's benefactors.

For a moment he doesn't even remember the previous question as he is deep in thought. "She is quite bright and sharp, isn't she? Honestly, you two are very awfully similar so I am not surprised that you two got along well."

He proceeds to chew away at the sushi, nostalgia flashing over his eyes. "I remember Futaba-san speaking to her cat the time when I came to Leblanc. I genuinely thought it was neat but really we just ended up striking conversation when she realised that I had a book on cognitive pscience." He covered his mouth for a moment, finishing on the last gulps. "Her father...Well, I believe he was her guardian at least, and got quite defensive. Turns out her mother also agreed that it was a lovely division of science, which can help many people."

He looks away. "From what I have heard from here and otherwise, tragedy had followed her mother. In some worlds, I was involved too...Still, I am sure Futaba-san will be able to make her mom proud someday. If she hasn't already, considering how you speak of her."

Edited 2025-06-21 20:38 (UTC)

"Mm. I remember reading about that when I was poking through source documents fed to EMMA about cognitive psience. I'd thought to contact some of the authors of those papers and get their thoughts on what might be going on, but found out that way," Ichinose hummed thoughtfully.

She let the thought settle, taking a slow sip of sake.

"...So that was Futaba-chan's mother. ...I'm glad she has another caretaker, at least. One that bothers to fuss over her."

Maruki took notice of her sobering up as he grabs his own glass, letting the alcohol swirl a little with a gentle lilt of his wrist.

"It's a shame I never got to speak with her myself," he sighs as he looks ahead at Kuon. Eyebrows knitted together. Smile weakening. "Actually...I hate to bring your spirit down but I have been wanting to ask you something for a while."

"Bring my spirit down...?" Kuon asked, curious what he meant. She couldn't be sad, not truly. She didn't have the heart for it.

"May as well ask - go ahead."

He smiled sympathetically at her question.

"...it's about your relatives, I mean," he sighs. "Others you know who have given you the label- heartless. I have been thinking about what it means in your context and how you seek its true meaning."

"Truth be told, I find that label quite absurd," he leans forward as he takes a proper sip of his sake. "It's not something you can just say to someone and get away with it."

Lowering his glass, his gaze followed its rim. "Which makes me wonder when it all really began. Would you be comfortable sharing that with me?"

Edited 2025-06-21 21:32 (UTC)

"Oh, that's simple enough," Kuon replied softly, watching the sake swirl in her cup as she gently tipped it.

"When my parents passed, I didn't grieve. No crying, no tantrums, no mourning or asking for them back," she explained. "My grandparents, my aunts and uncles, cousins, all of them... they kept asking me about it, asking who I wanted to live with, all of those things. Apparently I was very unsettling and uncanny, even back then - I mostly remember sort of shrugging because I wasn't sure of how to navigate anything. By the time the funeral rolled around, I still didn't feel anything or have anything to say... that's about when I started hearing them call me a heartless doll for the first time."

Maruki listened intently. Making note of her words in his mental journal, one that was only slightly blurry with the alcohol in his system.

"I-what?!" he blinks when she finishes her explanation. "..why would they-? Sorry," he cuts himself off, waving his hand. "I am really sorry to hear that, Kuon. Genuinely, that's- I suppose I can see where they are coming from, given the priority tatemae takes over in any social event."

"How did you feel when you heard those words for the first time?"

"Certainly not as strongly as you just now," Kuon replied, smiling in some amusement.

There was a pleasant warmth in her chest...

Must be from the nice quality sake.

"I can't remember exactly what I was thinking. I was thinking about a lot of things around then, like who I would be living with after that, what school I'd be transferred to, whether I would be allowed to keep my things..."

She paused to take another sip of her drink so she could more easily fidget with the cup without spilling.

"I ended up getting taken in by my mother's cousin and her husband. They saw that I never cried over my parents, after all of that. They'd be frustrated with me for asking to leave the room. Took me to a few different therapists, trying to see what was going on with me."

"Oh, er-" he catches himself, shrinking as he shakes his head. He knows how mean relatives and family can get, especially considering where he comes from. "I just don't..."

He doesn't really finish his sentence because what can he say? Understand? He understands why the world is known to push down a grieving individual rather than try to support them. Don't see it? She remembers the situation so well, she remembers and lists the things she hasn't done to please her relatives.

He was glad that she had only one set of guardians who looked after her anyway. Even tried to get her help, though he's not sure if it was more for her sake or to prove themselves right.

"Leave your room?" He asks, catching that little hint while she fidgeted with her cup. He had the rhythm, and he could tell she might be getting nervous. "Why did they tell you to leave it?"

"They wanted me to 'come out of my cave', and would say 'stop staring at your computer', things like that. I'd been learning how to code even back then, since it was something my father indulged me in - he got tired of me taking apart things like the TV remote or whatnot and got me a computer to do puzzles and other games, and I ended up getting sucked into coding pretty early on."

Nervous? No, not really. It might be a shame if he ended up getting unsettled by her, knowing the truth, though. She was having fun.

"They'd fight so hard to get me to spend time outside of my room out with them, but then I'd hear them talk behind closed doors about how much my lack of expression scared them."

Takuto's hand lingered nearby, curled up close to his glass of sake, but free.

"Hence, you chose to stay in your room." The free hand relaxed, tapping against the table before his pinky brushed against Kuon's hand. Brown eyes remained focused on the table, trying to contain his own reaction. "Your father sounds like a wonderful man, though, allowing your interests to grow in a steady environment."

"Do you like...connect with him perhaps? When you code? When you solve a problem?" He asks with a bright smile on his face. "Or well, even if you didn't- there must be a sense of comfort, right? Away from the prying eyes and living in the comfort of what your parents left behind?"

Kuon's gaze lowered to the touch to her hand, not shirking away from it, just... curious. Did his heart hurt for her, even though hers never did?

And did she feel as though the computer connected her to her parents...?

"No, I think I was always aware that they were gone. It was just annoying, sitting and doing nothing instead of working on something. Hours of silence and trying to have conversations with people I hardly knew when I hadn't learned how to talk to strangers, yet, not really. Expected to get attached when I wasn't even attached to my parents."

Not enough to cry for them or mourn them, at least. Not enough to feel anything but empty.

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