♞ 1.

[sullenstallion]

Name: dylas
Date: June 2nd
Format: voice

Hey.

[That’s it. One word. Dylas’ voice is low, like usual, but there’s something unsteady about it. Maybe it’s nerves from using the pocketwatch, a device he’s still not used to, or...well.]

I know people have been...changing. It’s, uh. Not great. But...do the changes hurt for anyone else? There’s this spot on... my friend’s arm that’s all grey, and it hasn’t stopped hurting ever since it showed up. Does anyone else have that?

I’m asking for my friend.

[He’s not asking for a friend.]

[OOC; Dylas is infected by the Cwyld after an encounter with some Shades. He’s been hiding it under his clothes, but now his arm is hurting real bad.]

Comments

[sullenstallion]

They can...what?

[He blinks slowly. Crap. He still doesn't know how to use this thing well. That blonde girl, he should have paid more attention to her.]

I...I know that. I was only joking. My friend knows that, too.

[scaling]

Right...

[ He clearly isn't convinced, but he also gets the feeling that an explanation might not be appreciated.

New tactic: ] Did you touch anyone or anything with a spot like that?

[sullenstallion]

I, uh...hm. He says maybe something like that happened.

[He's not sure if he wants to be talking about that with a stranger, though. It's embarrassing. Besides, the fact he received a cut there a few weeks ago doesn't have anything to do with the greyness! He washed the wound out completely.]

It wasn't a someone. He's never seen anyone with a mark like this.

[Because Dylas hasn't been around the infected enough to notice, really.]

[scaling]

[ There's a moment of silence in which he wonders if this guy really could've gone far enough out to come into contact with one of those things without knowing about possibly getting infected. Akira hopes not. ]

... Was it a Shadow-like monster?

[sullenstallion]

[That's exactly how it happened. One day, Konoe wanted to do something, so he tagged along without thinking about it.]

Yeah. My friend hit 'em a hell of a lot harder than they hit him.

[Now's not the time to be bragging, but there he is.]

[scaling]

[ It's really not, but Akira is glad that this guy was at least able to give the creature hell in exchange for the infection. He breathes out an amused noise. ]

Good.

[ But back to business. ]

You need to go to the Coven. It's going to keep spreading. [ Another pause. ] If it's just a spot, they should be able to cure it. I met someone with their hands completely transformed and the Witches said it was still treatable.

[sullenstallion]

[Hell yeah. 'Good' feels nice to hear. Encourage violence! That's the way to win over this horse who gets a little too amped up about fighting.]

What? [No. He doesn't want it to spread. It's an ache that hurts every time he moves his arm, which is all the time.] It's on my upper arm, it's not on my hands. What kind of transformation even happens on the hands?

[Whoops. He forgot 'my friend said'.]

[scaling]

[ If Akira notices, he doesn't comment. ]

They'd turned black and were like claws. [ Probably like the hands of whatever creature he fought, and like those of the ones Akira encountered in a dream a while back. ]

[sullenstallion]

Yeah. Of course they did. That's...turnskin, right? Claws are normal around here.

[You know, just a little denial. It makes the pain in his arm a lot more worrisome, this new theory.]

[scaling]

It wasn't like that. [ Akira's been living in the city for a month now. He's seen plenty of turnskin, but none of them looked like that. ] It was the Cwyld.

[sullenstallion]

How can you be so sure?

[Oh. That's why he's supposed to the Coven and figure out for himself, Dylas figures a second too late.]

Shit. This is turning out to be a pain in my ass.

[And a pain in his shoulder. Smh.]

[scaling]

The Witches confirmed it.

[ The honesty of the complaint would be funny if not for the gravity of the situation. ]

... You should get it checked out at least. It might turn into a lot more than that if you leave it. [ Not to mention he'll probably start running the risk of infecting others. ]

[sullenstallion]

I haven't heard about anything like this.

[To say Dylas is uneducated when it comes to the world wouldn't be a lie. He's been keeping his head down. Working. That's what you do when you wake up in a world that's new to you—you contribute. You make connections. And he's not so great at the second one.]

Yeah. I get it. I think. I'll have to...get this taken care of before I lose my arm.

[scaling]

[ That's a thought. Would they take it off if they couldn't outright cure it?

There's a moment where he's quiet, weighing his words, trying to find the right way to phrase an offer so that it won't get brushed off purely out of pride. ]

I've been meaning to swing by there sometime, so let me know if you feel like having company.

[sullenstallion]

...No. My roommate was there when I was attacked. I should probably take him with me.

[He doesn't want Konoe to think it's his fault. He can't say for sure that's how Konoe would react, but. It still feels like the right thing to do.]

I was protecting him, so...I want him to know everything will be fine.

[scaling]

Alright.

[ That's good enough for Akira; he just knows how nerve-wracking it can be to do something like that alone. ]

Mm. It'll be fine.

[ For all that prickliness, he's really a good guy, isn't he? ]

[sullenstallion]

Yeah.

[Dylas sounds a little sure. Not completely sure. He's getting there.]

Hey. Who're you, anyways?

[scaling]

—Oh.

[ He did skip that part, huh? ]

Akira Kurusu.

[sullenstallion]

I'm Dylas.

[He chews on his lip for a second.]

You're pretty nosy, but thanks for the help.

[Look, there's nothing about this conversation that would suggest that Dylas is capable of giving a sincere thank you without muddling it with feigned annoyance.]

[scaling]

[ Akira just might've picked up on that, so he bites back his amusement at the comment in order to reply. ]

So I've been told. [ Only when he has the best intentions, of course. ] But no problem. Get well soon.

[sullenstallion]

I will. I'll see you around, I guess.

[Again, in Dylas speak, that means 'you're allowed to approach me on the street without getting yeeted into the bushes.' Sugoi, Akira.]