2168/About your brother

About your brother
Date of Scene:	15 December 2024
Location:	Cafe BAKE Neko
Synopsis:	Hinoiri has some concerns about Riventon after seeing him overload on Dark Energy. She and Mamoru won't agree on the nature of Dark Energy, and he's not going to debate her off the cuff - but he does have a good amount of knowledge about his brother.
Cast of Characters:	Hinoiri Kirara, Mamoru Chiba

---

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
It wasn't every day Hinoiri came to see Mamoru. In fact, this was the first time she'd come to the cafe. A... cat cafe. She'd heard of weirder concepts. So when she walked in, she'd taken a seat off to the side before pulling out her phone. How to even start this... 'Hey, I was in the neighborhood, thought I'd swing by, got a moment to chat?'

Was that too obvious? 'Hey, I was going to pick up some chocolates or something, wanna come on down and share them?' That might work if she had any... and he didn't like. Own a cat cafe. 'The buck is wrong with your brother? Come out and talk with me, loser, we need to chat.' Yeah, no. NOT doing that...

As she sat there, she idly pet one of the kitties that passed by, scritching it idly as she managed to hit alllll the right parts... sometimes, there were just scritches you could only get from someone who understood what it was like to be a four legged animal and not having hands to scritch.

Finally, she sent a text.

Hinoiri to Mamoru: Hey, was in the area, thought I'd check out your cafe. If you got a second, mind having a little chat? It's about your brother.

Of course, when one knows how to scritch just right, they can sometimes... gather a following. So by the time that Mamoru would likely get down... Hinoiri was very confused, and very, very buried under kitties. So many kitties. 'H-help... meeeee...' her eyes begged.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
'Was in the area' and 'it's about your brother' are a pair of statements that Mamoru is politely choosing to ignore the unlikelihood of both being true.

When he comes in he waves to whoever's at the counter and scans the place, then heads for the pile of cats with a Hinoiri buried in it, laughing. He comes over and starts gently scruffing cats and setting them down away from Hinoiri. Some of them decide to follow him instead, and then--

A very fluffy fairly big calico cat jumps down all the way from the cat run nearby, going THUD in the middle of the cats who are trying to come back to Hinoiri or trying to swarm Mamoru.

The cats don't scatter, but they all seem to have business elsewhere that they happened to already be sauntering towards.

Mamoru picks the calico cat up and flips her over so she's lying like a baby in his arms with her feet in the air. And she just fluffs there, purring. "Hi," Mamoru says, grinning. "This is Anko, I don't think you've met. I'm her human. The other cats do what she says. Do you want to hold her? My phone's buzzing."

Hinoiri gets a large fluffy cat dumped in her arms and Mamoru takes his phone out to glance at it, and his eyes widen.

"Uh-- it's my brother. You were saying?"

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara let out a sigh of relief as the cats scattered. It seemed she was saved... she supposed she could have shoved them off. But then she'd be a monster, who'd DO that?!

Of course, when she was offered anko, she almost said no... but then when the text came? "Sure."

She gently held the cat and began to scritch his belly and side, ifngers scritching all those hard to reach points for the poor things. She knew it. She felt it. There were tales in Kirakirafantastica that the quickest way to teach a unicorn telekinesis was for them to get an itch in any of a number of places. Four legs just could not compete with hands.

"Really? I wonder if he's having us watched... or just coincidence. I... happened to overhear one of his rants recently when he was fighting a sparkle. I heard some of her stuff, as Sunbreaker. But I'd never heard anything approaching the insanity that was his rant then. I always just assumed he didn't... you know. It was to make the sparkles scared, you know? I did it, too. But honestly, after last time? I'm not so sure. I figured if anyone could give me some insight, it'd be you."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
    <PHONE> A text from Takashi Agera: Hey let me know when you have a minute
    <PHONE> You text Takashi Agera: it might be a hot minute im meeting w hinoiri over sth or other

"A little to the left~" says a cute voice from the cat that Hinoiri is holding.

Mamoru finishes texting back and sets his phone on the table, then holds his arms out for Anko.

"This is what Dark Energy does," says Mamoru, "when there's enough of it and you're still somewhat related to the person you are without it. Or with a lot less of it. It's not good for anyone. It's corruption, and it corrupts."

He sighs. "Sunset of Sora said some pretty great shit that she believed wholeheartedly. I don't think I ever got that far as Hematite." The phone buzzes again, and Mamoru leans to look at it, and he laughs. "He says he's unblocking you. Nice."

"At any rate-- I heard what he was saying, yeah, and he's hit the point at which he needs an intervention. But he won't listen to me. He's had the same arguments since we were young, and now he's got a lot of Dark Energy and what's probably a piece of Beryl's jewelry. I saw what he did to that bus."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
"Yeah, great. Unblocking me. Absolutely *thrilled*," Hinoiri said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She did follow instructions from the cat... though she did give it a slightly confused look. Magic cat then. Okay. That was... a thing. Here. Hopefully he's not like Catra.

"He's... usually handled it better than me. Or, at least, I thought he did. But he sounded... delusional, there. Going off about how he was the only one who could save the world, how everything was his, how it was for the sparkles own goods... I know it corrupts and hurts and all that, but... he's also made partially of the stuff and seems like a pretty good guy most the time. But that? Now I'm wondering how much of it is an act, and how much he really believes."

She went silent, though, when he confirmed what they both saw. So, she'd apparently been near, at least... she had to be careful, though. She wasn't sure she wanted anyone to know exactly who she was... yet...

"Yeah, that was Beryl's alright. I'd recognize jewels like that, anywhere." Nevermind she helped him make it. Cough cough. "So... you think it is all the dark energy, then? Not really him?'

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Mamoru texts again, pursing his lips and holding a finger up for a second. "I'm telling him I'll text him back after. It's super rude to text while in a conversation with someone else!" A beat. Uncertain look. "Right?"

    <PHONE> A text from Takashi Agera: What does she want anyways
    <PHONE> You text Takashi Agera: platitudes probably. idk i'll tell you after we finish talking lol

Magic cat. They are definitely a thing around the Sailor Team and Chiyo, at least...

"He is delusional. I had constant checks on my sanity toward the end, there, people helping me be less of a jerk-- but I don't think my ego is as bad as his, so I don't even know if he'd listen to anyone. I voluntarily gave up power, and he never has."

Mamoru buries his face in Anko's belly for a second or two, then sits up and scritches under her chin as she tilts her head waaaay back. The prince actually goes 'hee hee hee' at her. Kids and cats...

Then he sighs, and Anko wrenches herself around to climb and/or stretch herself up to his shoulder, getting her tail in his face, and she launches off his other shoulder onto the cat shelf on the wall near them. "Ow," Mamoru complains.

Finally, he dusts off his hands and sits back, arms crossed. "I think he's probably at least something of a jerk with or without dark energy, but I think he's less of a jerk the less dark energy he has. And I think him actively using it is worse than him passively sitting with it, you know?"

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara gave a small shrug. "I don't know. Maybe? Multitasking has always seemed like a good idea to me, though I'm... maybe not the best person to ask about human social habits. Just... don't tell him what we talked about, okay? He's one of the few people there who hasn't tried to put my head on a platter and I'd like to keep it that way."

"... It's not easy to give up power," Hinoiri said. "Can take... quite a big shock to the system to make you willing to do it. Even then it's always tempting to take back."

As Anko crawled up her owner, Hinoiri couldn't help but grin. Cats really did have humans, not he other way around. "Especially when you've seen the things we have. Still... He really seems to think he and he alone can stand against the things in that tower, even I was never that bad. I always thought once I figured it out, I'd help you lot out a bit and then just... leave you too it. It's not like the sparkles don't have all the advantages as it is. If he's never had anything other than dark energy... well... I can't really blame him for not wanting to feel powerless..."

"... Surprised he thinks he can just take everyone else's power, though. Even I wasn't that bad until I... completely... lost it..."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"... yeah, I don't think he'll be losing it all at once, but I don't know how to stop it," Mamoru says after the very end of what Hinoiri says. "And he--

The phone actually sounds more insistent when it buzzes now, and Mamoru sits back up to eye his phone's screen, and sighs dramatically. He pushes up his glasses, then waves toward the barista over there and points at Hinoiri. "Okay, he's being an impatient baby man," he tells the red-and-gold-haired girl, "but I let them know to put you on my tab, have whatever you like. And I'm sorry."

He is texting for a good long while. Name of Text Scene Here

Surprisingly, he actually sniffles after that good long while, and pushes his glasses up to rub at his eyes with his sleeve, and then he laughs a little and shoots back a couple more, then puts it back down on the table and sighs. "Sorry," he says, "sorry."

Then he thinks for a second. "He's still him, but he's a him that believes lies. It's like... I think it wasn't actually wrong to think of Obsidian as a cult, that's a conversation it might be good for you to have with Kazuo, who had to deprogram me with Usagi."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara gave him a small snicker and nodded. "No worries, take your time. I know how... persistent he can be," she said. Well, as he was paying... she ordered a simple strawberry drink and a slice of chocolate cake. Why ruin the classics?

Of course, when he did arrive she cocked an eye, smirking slightly. "Sounds like you and he had quite the fun little chat. Anything I should worry about? And... really, it's no problem. You've saved me enough time at this point, I don't mind if you waste a bit of mine."

She took a small bite of the cake, thinking on it. She then shook her head. "I... guess. I mean... the fact he's composed partially of it, though. It can't be all bad. I know it's hard to control, but... he is different. Has a stronger will than me, at least..."

"I don't think Obsidian is really a cult, though. It's more... it's a place for those who have nowhere else to go. If not for them, I'd have likely died, or worse. Instead... I... caused you all a lot of headaches. But I'd also never seen him like that before. Do you... have you?"

"... Sorry. I guess I'm just concerned. Dark energy... it has... a tipping point, I think. You're safe with it... until you're not. And I'm worried he's getting closer to that edge."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Mamoru nods firmly. "You're right to be concerned. Even if we don't agree on how bad dark energy is at heart, you're right to be concerned, because he is going off the deep end." Then he picks up his phone again but it's just to spin it around in his hands. "But again: I don't know how to stop it. Not without depriving him of being able to talk to me about stuff, and right now I think that's more important than me personally trying to beat the evil out of him."

Then he waves a hand around. "It's useful to think of it as a cult when you're trying to break people out of it. Like the most successful methods of getting people out have a lot in common..." Mamoru trails off, frowning, thinking about dopamine--

He shakes his head. "At any rate, we're definitely not going to agree on dark energy, but we can agree that Takashi is better than anyone else we know at being overloaded with the stuff." Then Mamoru exhales. "Anyway, nah, he's trying to figure out how to come to our wedding. Which, don't worry, we're not even sending out save the date cards until like... this time next year. So you'll get yours at around the same time as he does."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara gave a small nod, a thoughtful look on her face. Eying him... and when he said she'd be invited, she actually looked surprised. "Really? You're letting me come? And here I thought you'd try to hide it from me or something. I haven't been to a 'royal' wedding in a long time, it'll be fun. I can't wait."

She took another small drink of her juice, before slowly swirling the straw a bit. Thinking... thinking... thinking thinking thinking.

Finally, she spoke up. "So... if you don't mind me asking... why do you assume that it's all evil? I mean, yes. I won't deny it's corrupting. It hurts. But lots of things hurt when they aren't used correctly. The fact that dark energy protects people from the fade also implies that it's the 'natural' magic of humanity, but it's just being used wrong. Other magics tend to fade out over time, but dark energy remains and can be used by anyone. In some ways, that could make the sparkle magic seem like the more damaging one. Dark energy hurts your bodies, but sparkle magic hurts your mind. I mean, theoretically. I, admittedly, don't believe it... but it could be seen that way and I'm not saying that it's outside the realms of possibilities. I am a student of magic, after all. Or... was. Once."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"I'm the wrong person to ask for that off the cuff," Mamoru says with a laugh, "but if you're interested, I'll do an essay and hand you a copy of the draft. I'm more reports and papers than debate club."

Then he leans across the table and pokes the edge of her plate with a finger. "The kind of magic I have, I've also always had. I'm positive I had it before I lost my parents and my memory, too-- I knew how to write, still, and I could talk and walk and use a touchscreen, you know, stuff most six year olds can do, and I also knew how to heal myself if I scraped my knee, and I knew how to stifle my empathy and psychometry so that if I had warning, I wouldn't-- people wouldn't feel like... that."

He makes a gesture, waving his hand around vaguely. "You know what I mean."

Then he shifts his weight in his chair, jams his phone in his pocket. "Anyway, you're still a student of magic. And you should teach us! I would go to classes."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
"Oh, I would absolutely love to hear your collective thoughts on it. I'm not much of a debater, either. I tended to win most of mine back home but... oh wow I broke a lot of windows," Hinoiri said with a soft sight. "Keeping my temper when people are just... willfully wrong is NOT my strongsuit."

"... But... on that note... Riventon has always had his, ever since he was a child. And yes, he's kind of a jerk. But he's still got some good in him. If dark energy was fully evil, all the way through, I don't think he'd have come out as... someone who's still kind of good. Also, I had my magic since I was a child... until I came here. Then I lost it all. So... if your magic is telling you his magic is bad? I'm not sure that's the best argument. Magic is... just that. And if it's being used wrong? That's a massively different beast from just being innately bad. Magic is a strange thing, especially in this world. Heck, back home we had like... twelve different schools for pyromancy. And here? It's even wilder."

She gave a soft sigh and wrapped her arms around herself. "I... couldn't handle dark energy. I was using it wrong and my grounding was... wrong. But... I don't think it makes it wrong, innately. No more than I think some medications that are dangerous if administered wrong are innately evil, or fuel sources. But... if there's one thing I know... it's that... labeling someone bad, just because of what they are... that will turn them bad quicker than anything else. And... I really can't think he's just evil..."

"... But if he's going too far, I'm not sure how to help him. I'm guessing you aren't, either. And uhhh... I actually do. I mean, just with a few people, those who want it. I've been giving Geode Girl Loyalty tips, since her magic is similiar to my own. I've also been helping Yellow Pearl Voice with the ins and outs of music magic. Then there's some things I've been doing for the school, helping them locate all the doors on campus..." Pause. "Don't mention any of this to Riventon. I don't want Obsidian finding out and getting more reasons to want me gone. If Riventon knew I was doing this, they'd probably come down on him for not tattling, if he didn't."