sugarcube | psl || since the beginning of everything

[so he'd heard something about an app, and he'd heard something about changes, and - memories? he'd heard a lot of things about a lot of different things, but the issue at hand is that it's... all - how did they say? 'on the line'. and mikazuki munechika is many things. he's a very intelligent museum curator who is known for bring in some truly delightful artifacts from all over the world, he's the former head of the sanjou family though that's since been passed down to his sweet son, and he's everyone favorite grandfather figure who spends his day meandering the parks, gardens, and halls of the museum to share fun facts about the treasures and hands out roasted acorns.

he is not, uh, on the line. or tikking the toks, as the kids say.

hence why he'd spent the better part of the month minding his own business, thinking occasionally of how he missed the horses as these new feathered animals didn't seem as delicious to eat. but no one else paid it any mind, so mikazuki did not either aside from trying to decipher how all of his portraits depicting horses changed overnight. it became his personal project, but why would some little rectangular box be of help?

up until one morning when he awoke, and his face was not his own. he'd slid out of his unreasonably large bed, slid on his orthopedic slippers, and thought that today would be a good day, for his joints did not seem to be creaking all too angrily at him. when he awoke, he found himself face to face with a young man and thought that perhaps there was a new attendant who'd been hired who'd gotten lost.

until he realized this face was somewhat familiar.

moments later, he retrieves his intelligent phone from where it is diligently charging, and taps on the screen to try to reach an old friend - perhaps the only one in the city who would know this face as intimately as mikazuki did, and could tell him if he was seeing things.

this is how mikazuki munechika is trying to facetime, but he's pressing the phone to the side of his head, so there's nothing but blackness:]

Ah, Tsurumaru? My dearest Tsurumaru, this is Mikazuki Munechika speaking. I hope this call finds you in good health.

[he starts his phone call like a letter]

[ see, tsurumaru was asleep.

he misses his farm, but the bright side of being on a vacation means that he no longer has to wake up at an ungodly early hour to tend to his chickens, and can instead sleep in. it's because of this that he hasn't actually seen himself yet.

unlike mikazuki, tsuru knows a few things about the smart phones. one of the helpers on his farm, sadamune, has been very insistent on teaching him how the internet works. is tsuru particularly good at it? not really. but he has a vague understanding of what a meme is, and that it's popular with the kids. he's hip. but because of that, he has actually looked at the app. does he know how to actually work it? no. but he is aware it exists and that people are using it, and every now and then he will open it and make it to somewhere he is trying to go, and then think his phone broke when he can't figure out the touch screen.

still. knowing about the app doesn't really mean he fully knows what's going on, especially since he hasn't personally experienced anything too strange-- plus, he's only visiting for a month or two, and he hasn't lived here in years. all of the people involved seem relatively on the younger side, so he doesn't really have anyone to talk to. but still, it seems generally harmless. like a meme.

when he gets the phone call, tsuru does not pick up right away. but he'll lift his head to peak at the screen, and as soon as he sees the name on it, he'll answer. of course he does. ]

I was asleep, Mikazuki.

[ is this a... video chat? why is it dark??? is his phone broken. where's sadamune. please come fix his phone he doesn't know what to do here ]

Do you need help getting up again? I believe emergency services can help with that.

You are my emergency services for as long as you are in the city bounds, my dear. [he's joking, probably. but also, speaking with warmth that definitely isn't befitting his concerns] Good morning. I hope you slept well. Shall we have breakfast together?

[isn't this supposed to be an urgent call.

but there's not particularly anything rushed or urgent as mikazuki is already puttering around the spacious room of his chambers. he moves slowly, a shuffling in his slippers and there's only the slightest peeks of light when his phone shifts against the curve of his face. it's a beautiful face and while mikazuki still managed to age gracefully it seems like even from the glimpses that the crow's feet by his eyes have disappeared.

it's a bit of a tease though, as he still does not realize he started a facetime and not a normal call. this beautiful man is trying to decide if he still needs to take his vitamins???]

I wonder, how clearly might you remember our school days? When we were boyish and careless...

Ah? Aren't we still boyish and careless?

[ what i hate is that, tsuru's first thought is that mikazuki is looking into skincare. what's that one store he's heard about? sephiroth? he's walked by it while going shopping here, and it unfortunately checks out. so he accepts this.

still, he sets the phone down and sits up to stretch and-- hm. normally he can't stretch that far without aching. it makes him pause. ]

Do you want to reminisce over tea?

Always.

[what is he replying to?

yes.

in truth, given the two of them, they are always boyish and careless. and in addition to that, he would always like to reminisce over tea. he's waddled over to the bathroom by now, which is far more ornate than an old man could need, but just because you get older, that doesn't mean that you should be living more simply? (it kind of does.)

he admires his own reflection in the mirror, tilting his head as he adjusts his bangs given his new asymmetrical haircut. this is what the kay poppies look like these days, no? might people stanley for this?]

Do you remember our faces from our youth? Weren't we so lovely back then? I wonder what trouble we could have caused.... or might cause now if we looked the same.

[is that how he's leading into it]

[ there's another pause, this time longer. ]

Yes...?

[ he is all for thinking fondly back to old times, but now he is wondering if dementia has finally hit his old friend or something. this is such an odd choice of words. ]

I believe you would have many followers on the facebook.

[ not the right social media but close enough ]

Oh, why thank you. And you would be glowing upward as well.

[please stop this thread i hate every second of it

but tsurumaru probably has fair reason to be worried about that, given that they're uhhh ancient. they're officially elderly by now, and while mikazuki would still like to think that he's sharp as a tack - the more that he looks back at this strange person in the mirror who is so familiar and yet so far away from what he knows of himself... he feels more disconnected from reality.

it's a little concerning, but it still fails to leak into his tone.]

What do you think you would do, if you could be so young and fit again? Where would your legs carry you?

I would like to see my chickens. They wouldn't be able to outrun me anymore.

[ please have a real goal

but he will now try to actually ease his way off his bed. it usually takes some effort, where sometimes even sadamune or some of his other workers will have to come in and help him up, but he moves off immediately. it's a little startling, and he looks in confusion at his feet then to his bed. ]

But... I think I would just like to do anything fun. They say life is short, but it is actually rather long... it's just the amount of things your body lets you do gets short.

[ . . . and there is just a brief, almost faraway musing:]

We have lived a rather long time, haven't we...

[a wistful statement, said barely any louder than a sigh - and directly contrasting the youthful face in front of him. mikazuki pulls the sleeves of his robes, adjusting theme ever so slightly. tighter as they are now on his frame, which similarly does not feel quite so feeble or as though it is in a constant fight against gravity.

despite this, he turns and goes to leave his bedroom]

I will come fetch you from the guest room then, and I will borrow you to do something fun. Please await me.

[jiji, your nonsequiturs

but he will finally pull the phone away from his ear and should tsurumaru glance at his phone screen, he'll see that it then floods with light and an all too familiar face. mikazuki munechika, looking no older than his mid-20s. he stares down at his screen intently even as his hand moves slowly, going to tap on the red button to end the call with an amused mumble of 'oh, is it this one?'

and then it ends, and he shuffles slowly but surely out the door and down the hall. he is walking so slowly. it does not occur to him to move faster.]

Edited 2020-05-20 00:46 (UTC)

... maybe I'm the one with dementia.

[ hallucinations are a symptom. a trick of the light? he may understand technology slightly better than mikazuki thanks to the assistance of the youth, but that understanding is still at the most basic of levels. perhaps this is one of those... filters? did mikazuki use one on accident?

ah, well.

tsurumaru is still in his pajamas, but he won't have time to change; it takes too long, and even though this building is large, he'd rather not risk it. so he simply walks over to the door to poke his head out. ]

Maybe he wants to go find chickens. I guess there are those large ones around the city.

[ chocobos ]

[mikazuki is also in his pajamas? it's kind of a problem. because they're very fine pajamas, probably silk, and they are the pajamas belonging to the honored former head of the family. the estate that they live in is nice, tucked away in a part of the city, and the staff is a little bit more limited than it is in the main house where his son and the rest of their family lives. but the staff don't even seem to pay him any mind outside of the vaguely worried, 'You didn't wish to call for one of us to assist you, sir?']

Ah... no, all is well, all is well. Perhaps in time.

[it's okay, he's allowed to have a crazy old man tendency here or there. except no one is reacting to him like he's crazy for appearing younger... what is going on....

eventually he meanders far enough down the hall that he approaches the guest room and - pauses. for the face that he sees poking out of tsurumaru's room is one that is similarly distant and familiar to mikazuki's own reflection.

that is the face of the young man who enchanted him from the day they met.]

My, oh my. So perhaps it is not just my eyes playing tricks on this old soul...

[ tsurumaru is surprised.

it's almost like seeing a ghost, and he once again wonders if this is some sort of hallucination. he can't really help but to step forward, like he's about to reach out... but he stops. ]

Did I forget to take my pills...?

[ he turns around to pad back into the room. where are his meds. something is wrong. ]

Ha ha ha. Did you? You look better without them if you did.

[MIKAZUKI DON'T JUST TELL AN OLD MAN NOT TO TAKE HIS PILLS JUST BECAUSE HE'S A BISHOUNEN NOW

but he will also pad in after quietly, closing the door quietly behind him. every step he takes is still measured and slow, even as he putters around the guest room, searching for a hand mirror that's probably in here somewhere. eventually he is able to locate one and then wherever tsurumaru is, he turns to him]

Ah. Dear Kuninaga-kun [he's teasing], turn this way for a surprise.

[because he probably still loves surprises?

but mikazuki will just

hold up the mirror to face tsurumaru then, so he can get a look at his own face, just in case he hadn't made it yet since he just woke up,,]

[ he turns and-- ah.

... ]

How sweet. You keep a picture of me with you.

[ no.

but tsurumaru will abandon his search for his pills, and will walk back to mikazuki. he reaches out to grab the hand mirror, his fingers gently brushing against the other's as he takes it to look into it properly. ]

Are we dreaming? It's a nice one, then.

Why would I keep such a handsome picture of you? Even if it was one from this age, I like your first senior portrait image the most, when you threw a rubber snake at the photographer. Ah, I believe that is still in an album somewhere in the study....

[why is mikazuki so fucking terrible, why does no one know he's terrible. it's 'oh honorable mikazuki' this or 'oh honored grandfather' that when he never stopped being chaotic the second that someone took their eyes off of him.

but he will easily relinquish the mirror to tsurumaru, instead just watching his expression for a moment - and... also simply watching him.]

... it does feel like a dream. Like someone has deigned to give us a bit more time, though I wonder what consequences may come with it...

Or perhaps we will simply wake up in a few moments time.

If we do, I hope you remember that I'm in the mood for some eggs for breakfast.

[ that's important

but okay, if this isn't a dream, then...

there are some things to consider here. he goes to set the mirror down, and then turns back to mikazuki. ]

If this isn't a dream... do you have any ideas of what's going on? [ ah ] Perhaps that Receptor application?

[ that's not what it's called ]

Bless you?

[he didn't sneeze

but mikazuki will then go to sit on the bed, still dressed in his pajamas, and hum thoughtfully....]

How would you like your eggs?

[please go back to the important part of the conversation]

Oh! Scrambled would be nice, but with cheese? It's really delicious.

[ eggs are important

but he will go to look through his phone, fumbling as he tries to remember which one is the app...? strange, though, his his memory is better than it usually is. that doesn't help with not knowing how to work this, but it's something to note. ]

... here it is.

[ it takes a few taps, but eventually he opens retrospec and he holds it out. ]

Do you have this on your phone? It's apparently been causing quite a commotion.

Has it? I don't hear anything.

[not literally, he's expecting the phone to be screeching at him. though as tsurumaru shows him that, mikazuki will move to stand - slowly still, but more out of habit than out of ache. he wanders his way over to the doorway and opens it, peering out as he beckons over one of the staff that is meandering the halls. they approach him with a diligent and polite greeting, to which mikazuki only smiles]

Might we receive breakfast shortly? A plate of scrambled eggs with cheese, and for myself toast and jam is fine.

[to which the attendant just nods, and stutters out a response before looking away with flushed cheeks, which is.... new. mikazuki can't particularly remember that type of reaction before. but then he'll head back inside, closing the door behind him]

It would appear as though we two are the only ones who are finding the shift odd. [which is apparently why he was so willing to take tsuru's order] The staff are still responding to me as they would.... largely.

[the blushing was weird]

Now you said something about a raptor?

[no]

About a month ago, this application appeared on my phone. I thought that I may have caught a cold, which was very exciting.

[ virus. and don't be excited about that. ]

But when I was taking a walk a week later, I overheard some teenagers speaking about receiving it as well. It was very odd, so I asked them about it, and they said it was something many people suddenly received and that odd things were occurring.

City life is so surprising, isn't it? I must have forgotten in my age.

[ NO THIS ISN'T REGULAR CITY LIFE ]

Ah? You ought to take better of your health, and your intelligent phone's health.[smart phone.] If you are in the city, perhaps you ought to see a doctor....

[it's not so much outward fretting as it is the general worry from someone elderly, because their immune systems are weaker? he listens to what tsurumaru says, about what the kids are saying, and he just hums thoughtfully...... he hadn't really hard that much, but he supposes there have been a few strange occurrences. sparks of flame that no one else finds odd, the way that fruit now dances, things that might have once appeared in fiction....]

It is true that the city has always been... bustling, to say the least. Though I wonder if this is related. For what reason would our physical appearances be so altered?

[mystery....]

Perhaps it requires more research still.

There is a way to speak to others with it, but... I am not entirely certain how it works...

[ tsuru has 100% made a retrospec post before but it was on accident and just a series of keysmashes. terrible. ]

Is it just an illusion? But... I have to say, my aches are gone. I'm not sure if an illusion would do that.

[ so are they... genuinely just younger now? it's difficult to understand how this could work. ]

[grandpas say the darndest things]

Oh? Good for you.

[he says this - but mikazuki actually raises a hand at that, reaching past tsurumaru's phone and instead just letting his palm fit against the curve of tsurumaru's jaw, thumb brushing against his cheek. he tilts his head as he examines...]

This face... It is the one that broke someone's heart with an excuse of your apartment complex bursting into flames, no? You even requested I mimic a siren over the phone... [so placing it around their late college years, basically.] And the skin is smooth to touch - so at the very least, it is real in that sense.

[ is tsuru having a heart attack. what is this.

... ah, no, his heart skipped a beat at the contact. he chooses to ignore that. ]

You sounded just like it. I was very impressed.

[ don't focus on that

he should probably move away though. he doesn't. mikazuki initiated the contact so he can end it. ]

I almost forgot how beautiful you were. No offense to your wrinkles.

My wrinkles may wish to have a word with you upon their return.

[ - because they will return, won't they? this sort of thing couldn't last forever....

could it?]

... but to hear those words from you remains an honor. If anything, I am glad to have at least this moment - for you are even more lovely than what my memories held. No wonder you were so dangerous in our youth.

[this is so straight.

anyway, mikazuki will reclaim his hand then, pulling away before he moves to stand, peering out the window curiously to see if anything else about the word has changed. there's no weird hue in the sky, no strange monster on the horizon... only chirping birds and the stretch of the manicured gardens of the estate.]

Shall we make the most of this while we have it then?

regain one: i'm a bishounen now.

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