Video | un: thenecromancer

[keterclass]

WHO: Nephrite Curtiss and anyone
WHERE: Libra network
WHEN: Now
WHAT: Asch's dad has showed up to check on his kid
WARNINGS: None yet

[There are many ways Neph could go about this. It would probably be more proper if he reached out directly to his son, or to other Black Order members in town, letting everyone know that he's arrived and is setting up to be based here for a while. But he honestly does want to know how Asch has really been doing, and he isn't going to find that out just by asking people who know both of them already, or giving people time to prepare stories.

And maybe he also wants to jumpscare everyone who might recognize him. A man's got to find his fun somewhere.

So instead, you're getting a smiling, cheerful man with red eyes showing up on the network in a video feed. His demeanor oozes insincerity.]

Hello, Kaisou!

I do hope you all might indulge a concerned father for a moment. You see, some months back, my son Asch moved to this city. Now, he's a wonderful young man, but very independent, and he doesn't always come to me when he has problems. So if anyone can tell me honestly how he's been doing in his time here, I'd very much appreciate hearing it! Now that my work has transferred me here as well, I hope that we can all get along more closely.

[Is he threatening Asch? Anyone who might have been mean to Asch? All of the above? ...Let them guess, and let's see what comes of it.]

Comments

[sacredashes]

Y-You don't need to know every little thing I'm doing. I'm an adult!

[He sounds so much like Luke right now, please don't point it out.]

For one thing, he's a person, not just a tiger. Plus, plenty of people live there now. I didn't think anyone would move into the Fortress of Meropide willingly, but I guess I was wrong. Anyway, I was down there to retrieve something Luke lost. One of his friends had apparently picked it up and the tiger guy returned it.

Someone mentioned something about my uniform, but that's it. [... Because he walked into Meropide wearing a Black Order uniform. Please help him connect the dots.]

Tch—! It's only because the security on that place is lacking. Once I figure out how to download sword techniques into that Bangboo, I'll move on.

[no he won't]

[keterclass]

[He won't, but only because teasing about Luke is a topic for at home rather than on the network.

As Asch connects the dots for him about the tiger incident, his expression slowly shifts from curiosity and understanding to exasperation.]

Oh, I'm sure that made a good impression. A uniformed agent of the Black Order walking into the old prison facility to make demands of the residents? I can't think of any way that could have gone badly for you. And don't try to claim you were asking politely.

[sacredashes]

[... dots.... lining up... slowly...]

That's the reason? The old Order is gone. It's in the past. Not to mention, isn't one of the new council members in charge of the Fortress in the first place? They don't have anything to be afraid of.

—And of course I asked politely. I wasn't raised in a barn. [... Hard to say where he was raised, but a barn wasn't it.]

[keterclass]

[How does he explain that people have trauma and not everyone is as good at repressing as they are]

A year's time might be an eternity to your youthful mind, but I'm quite confident the people here haven't forgotten the damage the Order did as quickly as you have. When you approach them in uniform, they see a representative of their antagonists, which rather robs you of good faith in your attempts at negotiation.

[A quiet snort] I certainly didn't raise a bull in a china shop, either, but here we are nonetheless.

[sacredashes]

[He sighs, but he doesn't argue that point. Not everyone has been trained as a soldier and Asch does realize this on some level... He probably should have secured some alternate clothes, but.]

... Fine. If it's that much of a problem, I'll look into wearing something else next time.

[What a pain.]

[keterclass]

That's all I'm asking.

[Asch isn't winning debates against him just yet.

As for the rest...well. Asch says a friend of Luke's found his wallet. Harumasa says a fox stole the wallet. Asch says the tiger was a person, so it's reasonable to guess that the fox was also a person, or acting on a person's behalf. Asch would have been much more upset had the wallet not been returned intact.

So why, exactly, was a friend of Luke's stealing his wallet only to later return it? How interesting.]

[sacredashes]

[He clears his throat after a minute.]

Go see Belle. I'll make dinner for us and bring it over.

[keterclass]

I suppose I'll see you there, then.

[sacredashes]

Of course.

[Dinner is IMPORTANT and he's pretty sure Belle would haul him out of his hole if he tried to leave early.]