[ really, she seemed liked a small, relatively quiet pip-squeak of a baby ghost, but in actuality, kei wonders if she's pretty talkative. there was a moment when she'd stared at him like he had seven heads and a horse tail, and he'd almost been afraid that she was going to start throwing up blood like in Shikoku, but it turns our she'd just been saving her breath. now that she's talking, he can't help but compare her to one of those small, colourful birds that had the attention spans of... well... small, colourful, birds. of course, there's the irony in that kei, of all people, is contemplating someone else's attention span, considering it took three seconds of thought to all but forget about the shock of having his BLT discovered.
still though, the way she said her name, like she's stating something irrefutably true and precious to her -- maybe she's used to people not calling her by name? maybe she was bullied before she became a ghost? wait, is she like hanako-chan? a quick glance around shows no toilets in the near vicinity, but kei's 3/10 for showing paranoia hasn't failed him yet. ]
Chihiro-chan, huh. [ might as well call her something, little girl ghost who says that she's not a ghost, ] You can call me Tachikawa. Ah, Tachikawa-san, or Tachikawa-kun if you happen to be a hundred years old. [ you never know. kei certainly doesn't. but before he can take another bite out of his sandwich in even more thought (tm), he hears, rather than sees, the approaching creak of another set of stairs, even before the little ghost girl starts flapping her hands and darting at him, and woah, woah-- ]
Oi, just saying, my brains aren't all that tast-- [ woooooah, she just grabbed his sleeve, didn't she?! so she's really not a ghost? kei has like half a second to process this amazing revelation before he's bodily dragged, or he lets himself be bodily dragged, across the belly-up staircase to the other approaching one.
look, kei isn't the most observant dude on a good day, but even he can see that that staricase is Bad News. it looks rotten! still rotting, even! can it hold his weight? both their weights? ] H-hang on, Chihiro-chan, can't we reth--
[ nope, says the staircase beneath them with finality. the traitorous thing goes bump, speeds up its rotation for half a second, and that's all it takes for them both to go head over heels over the side of the railings. it's only testimony to general manager shinoda's training that kei even has the wits about him to grab at the not-ghost girl (she's not a ghost so she's a civilian! protect the civilian!) and curl himself around her in the form of the world's most unreliable chuuni meatshield just before they hit the surface of the other staircase-- and very predictable, go right through the rotten wood. a veritable rainfall of splinters follow them on the way down, escorts to a fall that ends as predictably as any other.
the ensuing thump of kei's back hitting the ground is more for show than anything else, considering he's in an indestructible trion body rather than his own flesh-and-blood one, but he still very much feels that impact, thank you very much. as if a giant fuck you is in order, his rumination of where all this went wrong is cut short when the staircase above spits a plank at his face.
a groan. ]
Chihiro-chan, please tell me you didn't turn into a ghost just now. Being haunted by a little girl isn't going to do much for my reputation, you know.
[ at least he tried to cushion her fall??? kind of??? please don't be dead. ]
he's not known for his powerful ability to think
still though, the way she said her name, like she's stating something irrefutably true and precious to her -- maybe she's used to people not calling her by name? maybe she was bullied before she became a ghost? wait, is she like hanako-chan? a quick glance around shows no toilets in the near vicinity, but kei's 3/10 for showing paranoia hasn't failed him yet. ]
Chihiro-chan, huh. [ might as well call her something, little girl ghost who says that she's not a ghost, ] You can call me Tachikawa. Ah, Tachikawa-san, or Tachikawa-kun if you happen to be a hundred years old. [ you never know. kei certainly doesn't. but before he can take another bite out of his sandwich in even more thought (tm), he hears, rather than sees, the approaching creak of another set of stairs, even before the little ghost girl starts flapping her hands and darting at him, and woah, woah-- ]
Oi, just saying, my brains aren't all that tast-- [ woooooah, she just grabbed his sleeve, didn't she?! so she's really not a ghost? kei has like half a second to process this amazing revelation before he's bodily dragged, or he lets himself be bodily dragged, across the belly-up staircase to the other approaching one.
look, kei isn't the most observant dude on a good day, but even he can see that that staricase is Bad News. it looks rotten! still rotting, even! can it hold his weight? both their weights? ] H-hang on, Chihiro-chan, can't we reth--
[ nope, says the staircase beneath them with finality. the traitorous thing goes bump, speeds up its rotation for half a second, and that's all it takes for them both to go head over heels over the side of the railings. it's only testimony to general manager shinoda's training that kei even has the wits about him to grab at the not-ghost girl (she's not a ghost so she's a civilian! protect the civilian!) and curl himself around her in the form of the world's most unreliable chuuni meatshield just before they hit the surface of the other staircase-- and very predictable, go right through the rotten wood. a veritable rainfall of splinters follow them on the way down, escorts to a fall that ends as predictably as any other.
the ensuing thump of kei's back hitting the ground is more for show than anything else, considering he's in an indestructible trion body rather than his own flesh-and-blood one, but he still very much feels that impact, thank you very much. as if a giant fuck you is in order, his rumination of where all this went wrong is cut short when the staircase above spits a plank at his face.
a groan. ]
Chihiro-chan, please tell me you didn't turn into a ghost just now. Being haunted by a little girl isn't going to do much for my reputation, you know.
[ at least he tried to cushion her fall??? kind of??? please don't be dead. ]