turn out the lights; wake up in your dreams

//backdated to 10.07.2011
occurs after this post

[when the video feed flickers on, it appears to be rocking.

there’s a chuckle, here. and without the rocking, one can hear the subtle sounds of running water in the background. slowly, the video feed turns from an invigorating view of the drywall down towards the floor.

spread along the hallway are seventy-six cacti in all of their prickly glory, ribbons connecting them in a distinct pattern. when you connect the pots, they spell thus:

happy birthday

… of course he wouldn’t be conventional about it. there’s another lull as the operator allows for the viewer to enjoy (dubiously) his art, before the video feed turns to his smiling face. Fuji looks amiable. he is wearing a party hat. he puts his finger to his lips conspiratorially. a single word, hush--]

Listen.

[the video feed then turns dubiously to what appears to be the door to the washroom. the gentle sounds of running water intensifies, a mild murmur. however, if you take the time to quiet yourselves down and listen closely, there seems to be a hum intermixed with the sound of running water. melodic and shy, it sounds almost as if…

someone’s singing in the shower?

( can you imagine Fuji’s amused grin ) there’s a few moments of this, before both water and music stop in one fell swoop. the operator then takes the time to point the camera’s angle upwards, towards the upper-half of the door. a few brief moments of shuffling—Fuji’s quiet voice brimming with amusement.]

Ah, any moment now. It's time for the show. Are we all ready?

[with that rhetorical question, the door to the bathroom suddenly swings open.

>> first comes the steam from the shower.

>> next comes Tezuka Kunimitsu, his glasses fogged and misty.

the moment the older boy turns his general field of vision down towards the camera, there’s a loud pop, followed by a shower of streamers. his eyebrow shoots up above the hairline, just as the last bits of confetti settle in his wet hair.

Fuji’s grin is palpable, even behind the screen.]

Happy Birthday, Tezuka.

[and before Tezuka's reaction is properly recorded, the feed ends-- just like that]

[voice // unfiltered]

[just voice, this time. whimsical.]

Have you ever tried slamming a revolving door?








[action/video, accidental?]

[for those of you early birds in Goldenrod, downtown, the video screen flickers to show--

the main street has been covered with sidewalk chalk drawings of dubious nature. there are several buckets of chalk scattered down the street, broken and whittled-down chalk pieces dotting the landscape amongst chalk drawings big and small, childish and masterful. there are cartoonish doodles of cacti, drawings of eyes, large, unwieldy birds and open books with fanciful, mythical creatures popping out of its pages. general outlines of gowns, chalk sketches of hands, shaded in, abstract pieces of shapes and lines that stretch as far as the eye can see.

it's only nine in the morning, and the streets are already filled with drawings. on a fairly blank patch of concrete, surrounded by the city proper, the culprit is hunkered down diligently, doodling small, cartoon kittens with large eyes and whiskers that end in flowers.

on your approach, his chalk breaks, little pieces glancing off the sidewalk.]




( text: filter -- Yuuta )

( text: filter -- Ryoma )

[It starts with Fuji eying a pokeball contemplatively. He gets up from his seat, apparently entirely unaware that the feed is running, and turns to the side as though addressing someone else in the room just beyond the scope of the video feed --]

-- say, could I borrow a screwdriver?

[The feed abruptly ends.

The next time the feed turns on, it's deliberate. Fuji is smiling into the screen with all the innocence found only on naked baby birds and seasoned salesmen.

He holds up a pokeball ruefully.]

All right, I give. Does anyone know what's going on inside the pokeball when the pokemon goes in?

I tried prying it open, but it seems like it didn't like that very much. I think having a pokeball short-circuit on me once is enough for the day.

[A beat, and he throws a meaningful look at the black smear on the hotel wall behind him. Plastered against the wall next to the black smear is a ditto the shape of a black smear -- one can easily tell that it's a ditto because this particular ditto was too lazy to even mimic the texture of the burn. He pays it no mind, turning back to the screen.]

And out of curiosity, has anyone tried to catch anything that's not a pokemon with the pokeball? [Wryly--] If you go with the theory that the pokeball is actually a gateway to an alternate dimension, maybe whoever that gets shoved inside will end up going home -- or end up in someone else's 'home'. You'd never know. Space-time works in mysterious, mysterious ways. [He's joking. ... maybe. A theatrical sigh--]

Sadly, I don't think there's a way to know for sure unless we give it a test run, though. [A grin.] Any volunteers?

( Filtered to Watanuki )

( Filtered to 'Mister Blackbird' )

( Filtered to Yukimura )

[He's sitting at the counter, chin propped and smiling lightly in a way that implies he's bored out of his skull. Of course, the fact that he's broadcasting at all sort of hints at his boredom -- he only ever turns to the pokegear when he's feeling blasé.]

So, Johtotites. [A pause.] Or is it more of a 'Johtoians'? 'Johtoeses'? It's too bad that 'Johto' doesn't translate well into some sort of a national calling. 'Denizens of Johto' is a little too wordy, though. If anyone has a better suggestion, I wouldn't mind hearing it.

[A chuckle.] But anyway. Some of us have been here for a while now -- so I think it's safe to say that a lot of us have seen many different kinds of pokémon. So just a quick survey -- what pokémon that you've met so far would you, in your opinion, consider to be the strongest? Cutest? Or maybe even the rarest, the fastest, the smallest, the largest -- that sort of thing. [He hums, thoughtful.] I'm sure all of you can think up some nice examples for each category. Now, it's just a matter of sharing it.

[A glint in his eyes, and he leans into the screen, conspiratorial--] I'd like to share the one that I consider to be the 'most elusive'. I know, it's not exactly an -est word, but I think it fits in the spirit of things.

Some of you would agree, actually -- 'Kanra', not exactly a pokémon, but he or she is one of the more intangible things in Johto. I wonder if they're the sort of thing that would come if I call out their name to the wind -- but that's too much of an impossibility, isn't it?

[Rue.] Too bad. I think I have something for them.

At any rate, I'd like to hear some of your opinions. Wouldn't it be interesting, to see if we could reach some sort of consensus?

[A chuckle.] Something like that, at any rate.

[He smiles, delighted, and the feed ends.]

[action.]

[He's now standing by the entrance to the Goldenrod Radio Tower, handing out pamphlets with a cheerful smile. Bug him y/n/dango?]