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[dollmaxing]

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Hiiii! You've reached Ichinose Kuon, head of AI research and development. Leave a message and I'll get back to you!

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[takutomaruki]

And yet, she coined her digital creations like family. Perhaps he misinterpreted the way she saw coding, but it was a passion she clung to. That was enough of an answer. Her struggling to connect, to open up and holding onto a definition that made sense since everyone preached it- it's unfair. It sounds suffocating.

He raised his glass to drink a big sip this time. Pulling away his hand to grab the bottle and fill his glass.

"I think I am starting to see where you are coming from. It's not easy trying to juggle or explain the feeling of grief, and it's definitely not just any of what you have described or spoken about." He shakes his head. "Every individual is different and unique. They have struggles that become invisible wounds. Traditional treatment can only take someone so far, since for that, they need to reach out if they ever want to let go of that sorrow that plagues them."

"What I can't grasp is...you say you are not attached to them when you always speak of them fondly. You recognise positive traits and patterns. I don't remember the last time I have spoken of my own in the same manner."

[dollmaxing]

"It's hard to dislike people that I only remember the positive traits of... though that's part of child psychology, isn't it? Our parental figures usually have to do something quite drastic before we hit that stage of developing our own independent thought before we can recognize problems and faults with them."

She held out her cup for a refill, since he had the bottle out already.

"I was just too young to really know my parents. That's all. How did your parents end up treating you?"

1/2

[takutomaruki]

The fact that she clings to their kindness, their choices, their legacies—the computer, the puzzles—suggests an emotional imprint. Maybe not love as she defines it, but connection all the same. Even nostalgia is a kind of mourning, just softer and slower.

Maybe she’s measuring attachment by extremes—crying, tantrums, longing—when really, grief isn’t just what’s felt; it’s what’s missing after they’re gone.

She says she wasn’t old enough to know them. But then, why defend them? Why preserve their memory so clearly, even fondly?

She has more than a memory. She has a narrative.

2/2

[takutomaruki]

He only smiles at her explanation, realising the pattern where she would bend inward and force herself into the same circular thought process. It's probably better to switch the topic to something else, but...that something else is a funny little topic.

He and his parents?

"Oh, sorry," he notices her gesture and pours more sake into her cup.

Once he sets the bottle down, he ponders, arms folded with his glass filled halfway with alcohol. "I mean...they weren't awful or anything. Ha- they didn't really treat me if you get what I mean."

"Both of my parents were respectable people. Over-achievers even- given my father was a corporate executive and my mother was a surgeon, but they were always busy."

He sighed. "They never really checked in unless you gave them results. And against my siblings, haha...I am not that special." He shook his head as he drank more of the sake and poured himself a fresh glass.

[dollmaxing]

"Really? That seems unreasonable," Ichinose hummed, sipping at sake fondly. "You're clever and emotionally intelligent. You're an extremely admirable man, their standards are absolutely unreasonable if they consider you unimpressive."

Silly, really. As she spoke, she started scribbling fingerless gloves on the doodle.

1/2

[takutomaruki]

The alcohol spun in his system as he finished his first glass and went for the second one.

So much so that with the alcohol all over and within, his eyebrows hike over behind his glasses as he looks at her in shock.

A blush blooms on his cheeks as he finds himself fidgeting with his glass. "Oh, that's-"

"That means a lot," he chuckles awkwardly while rubbing the back of his neck. "Especially coming from you, Kuon."

2/2

[takutomaruki]

"It's just...pyschology is still a growing field. Most of Japan still scoffs at the idea of mental health awareness and I am not so well off back home. I am just some small researcher who struggles to manage his own money and juggling priorities between counselling and researching."

"But, still. Thank you."

[dollmaxing]

"Just because you aren't a child prodigy doesn't mean you aren't able to achieve greatness. You're a brilliant man with a vision - however long it takes to get to that path, it's going to be a brilliant destination," she assured, saying it with full confidence.

She gently touched his arm, reassuringly.

"You'll make your world better than any psychologist could even dream of."

1/2

[takutomaruki]

You're a brilliant man with a vision - however long it takes to get to that path, it's going to be a brilliant destination.

If it wasn't possible already, Maruki felt even more aware of his heart's existence the more she talked. When she touched him, his skin jumped, almost like a skittish horse before stopping there. His smile collapsed as he watched her, wordless, suddenly feeling like he had given a part of himself the more he simply looked at her. The unique hue of green in her eyes, like olives confidently held out, was even more tempting with the alcohol he held.

He can make the world better.

He will make the world better.

No matter what anyone says, because if there is even a voice that fuels the torch with which he wants to guide humanity, then imagine the thousands who carry the same sentiment. People with pain in their hearts. People who don't have vigilantes to protect them. People who do wrong to others with them pain. People who never got to live the lives they dreamt of, just to satisfy someone else's.

He returned her touch, fingers clutching her hand as he set his glass down.

[takutomaruki]

"Heh...you know, this gives me a sense of deja vu," he gulps, expression sober. "I remember when I was in the same position as this with a university friend, telling him when my research was first defunded. Think I mentioned this before, didn't I?"

[dollmaxing]

"In passing," she calmly said back, mirroring his action to set her cup down as well, her fingers curling into his. "I've been very lucky because my science was an easy pitch, an easy sell - you were telling me about being defunded, not believed, all of the trials. Maybe your friend told you something similar before, but... don't get disheartened."

Lightly, she chuckled, just a breath of a laugh.

"After all, your field - possibly even some of your direct work - is what gives my EMMA the ability to save everyone, in my world. It can be done, and you will do it."

1/2

[takutomaruki]

"'Due to the lack of concrete evidence, all further research and funding in the field of cognitive pscience will cease.'" he quotes as he feels her squeeze against his. As if she remained here, those words would lose all meaning.

At the mention of the friend, he scoffed. He remembered all too well how that day went. Him and Shibusawa were friends, maybe somewhere he was his best friend but he vaguely remembered the night when he found himself alone in the izakaya. Shibusawa said he had asked him five times if he was okay with it, but really, was he okay? Or did he just run when he ended up scaring him away?

"I am glad I could be of any use to you and EMMA," he smiles lightly. "EMMA has a very noble goal. You and her want to save humanity from its own hubris by solving its problems. There's nothing more admirable than that, and I am grateful that we are getting to work together." He squeezes her hand and feels how soft it really is, a thumb dancing on her index.

[takutomaruki]

"As for my friend," he chuckles as he lets their linked hands settle comfortably and raises his glass to her. "You don't have to worry- it doesn't sound like him at all."

[dollmaxing]

"Well, then I'm glad to be a standout amongst your friend group," she smiled a bit more in reply, raising her cup and gently clinking it against his.

"To us, and our ways of giving our worlds a joyful existence."

[takutomaruki]

"To us," he gleefully follows. ...and saving our worlds.

"Kanpai-!"

Their glasses clink as he giggles and downs the whole glass in a single go. His head spikes with a familiar ache, but he simply ignores it while keeping their hands linked. He can pull away anytime when they prepare to write down more points for their little shared project.

"Huh...sorry, I completely forgot you threw me a question before. What was it about?" He shakes his head and grabs his chopsticks to do a little swirl gesture with the glass to the side. "I am afraid you are going to lose me in the next half a dozen few glasses."

[dollmaxing]

"Oooh, another drinking night! Fun~" she giggled, going in for a bottoms up! on her cup as well. His hand was warm, and he seemed to need a hand to hold. Poor sensitive heart.

"I was asking who else around here is any good with hacking and code! I'm curious how they measure up."

[takutomaruki]

He quickly went back to chomping on more of the sushi. He was not done yet and he was going to make full use of this opportunity- if possible.

"Oh right-! I was thinking about Wolf-kun, actually."

He pauses for a bit to chew before pointing out again with his chopsticks. "Not talking about Hasegawa-san here, or his daughter, Akane though both of them are also extremely proficient with technology. Ones to hack into systems without looking. "

"Wolf-kun isn't a persona user. Perhaps...have you heard of Digimon?"

[dollmaxing]

More sushi is laid out, and Kuon delights in the freshly sliced and sauced eel. SOOO good. Hopefully she could get some of the yellowtail that the big Wolf had stolen from her.

"Digimon... nope. Something like Dokemon, maybe? One of those monster collector games?"

[takutomaruki]

"Its similar to that, yes," he nods. "I was not as much of a fan of it either. I am more familiar with featherman if anything. "

He adjusts his glasses on his nose with his knuckles. "Digimon usually refers to creatures you find in a digital space. The boy here, who is an Akechi that goes by the codename Wolf recently had something going on with his dungeon, right?"

"Yeah, well- what I have read from public posts is that he might have intuitive knowledge about technology given he's familiar with it in a physical sense. Like Akane Hasegawa."

"Oh also, maybe I should have mentioned this before but he does have a version of EMMA on his phone. They deleted the files and attachments that were sent over the public network though so you could approach him personally."

That is if Hasegawa-san hasn't already thought of the same thing. He wouldn't underestimate his intelligence on the matter.

[dollmaxing]

"He has an EMMA?" Oh?

Another Ichinose... and another EMMA. Not hers, but...

There's a clear glimmer of excitement in the surprise of her expression.

"And he's familiar firsthand with the digital world, fascinating... I wonder what we could teach each other. I may have to talk with him - if he still uses EMMA, does that mean that his world's Kuon isn't a failure like the one in Hasegawa's world?"

[takutomaruki]

"Only the Hasegawas would probably know the detailed history behind it...I am not too sure since it's been so long. That Akechi didn’t seem to recognise there was anything off-putting about that EMMA in the first place." He finally allows himself to let go of her hand.

He reaches into his pocket to open up Flutter.

"From what I can discern, it's probably clean from anything that involves what they are searching for."

[dollmaxing]

"Heh heh, well, that does make sense... if his world isn't one where cognitive psience has been researched, the factor EMMA explored wouldn't be the same. Ohh, but I am curious how she might interface with a literal digital world and sapient digital entities..."

Fascinating!! Oh, that will be MUCH too fun.

"And who knows! Maybe I can bribe him with some of what I know about coding to boost his own skills, so he might let me peek..."

[takutomaruki]

"And snacks," he points out with an index, still clutching the phone before shaking his head. "You are naturally stepping forward to assist others and protecting yourself, it's a handy skill."

"If it weren't for what you said earlier, I might have considered a career change."

He stops, recognizing a familiar name in last year's network post. "Oh! There we go."

He turns the phone screen before setting it down before Kuon. "Their conversation should be in the comments. Think its locked after a certain point."

[OOC: i am guessing since falcon sees the text we can have it make it seem that their convo got locked after his reaction]