Turtle & Canary; Wednesday [04/06].

[sake_shinigami]

When Shunsui got to the store that Wednesday, there was already a sign in the window promoting one free box of Twinkies with each purchace today, and when he walked in, there was, sure enough, a very elaborate tower of Twinkie boxes on display near the Squishy machine. He looked from the boxes to Apu, who was steadily working on another one.

"These have pretty much been in the backroom since the first time I was running this store," Shunsui noted drolly, gingerly picking up a box to search for the Best-By date to prove his point, "haven't they, Apu-san ♥?"

Apu just smacked the box out of Shunsui's hand, which was even better evidence, he felt, than the actual dates on the box, and went into a long rant about how dare he assume such a thing, and on National Twinkie Day, of all days!

Shunsui was just going to pat Apu on the head in indulgent agreement, sweep down to pick that box right back up and carry it with him on over to the counter, where he would crack it open and help himself, because he figured even if they were nearly a decade old, stale Twinkies could still go down nicely with sake. Everything went down nicely with sake.

Today's Squishy Flavors
Caramel Popcorn
Tomato
Red

Turtle & Canary is open!

Comments

[okteiviakom]

Octavia had been living between the Samsara and the woods for a couple of days. But, there was only so much food on a little boat that hadn't been stocked for anyone actually living on it, so apparently it was time for her to de-cryptid herself a little. Enough to actually come to the store.

(Maybe it wasn't just for the food.)

She came in looking exhausted, and a little distant, somehow. Her right arm was still in a sling, though she didn't look injured beyond that.

"Hey," she said, a little hoarse, "Shunsui."

(No. It wasn't just for the food.)

[sake_shinigami]

"Konnichiwa," Shunsui's smile was lazy, crooked, familiar, but his eyes seemed to hold something a little more grateful, "Octavia-chan ♥."

And just a brief moment, to consider the sling, consider the exhaustion before asking, with a gesture toward the opened box on the counter and a slightly yellow-cake-crumbed sake cup, "I don't suppose I could interest you in partaking in the speciality du jour this fine afternoon, mmm ♥?"

[okteiviakom]

Octavia hadn't even noticed any of the signage or anything else about the day's theme until now. And even now, she just sort of... blinked at it.

And said, "Sure." Because she didn't have much of an opinion.

[sake_shinigami]

And Shunsui's head tilted, because he hadn't expect an acceptance there, and was now faced with the moral quandary of having to subject Octavia to something objectively terrible in her current state. But more importantly than that...

"Even the sake...Octavia-chan?"

[okteiviakom]

That question was much easier.

"Yes."

That probably said enough about a few things, actually.

[sake_shinigami]

And that was precisely why he'd asked.

"Mmmm." It was a deep, thoughtful, considering hum that seemed to drag out just a touch longer after it had finished, before Shunsui stated, "Well, then. Let's actually not ruin a perfectly good thing by trying to elaborate on it with subpar sponge cake, neh ♥? Sometimes, the best things in life are best kept...simple ♥."

His hand brushed a bit idly at the crumbs on the counter, pushing aside the box and the cup he'd been using to produce two new ones in one hand while his other reached not for the jug currently sitting there already, but under the counter, to produce a nicer bottle instead. Deftly managing to open it despite his preoccupied hands, he poured, set the bottle down beside the jug, and offered out the two cups balanced in his hand, one slightly more full than the other.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia went for the fuller cup, without any visible hesitation. It was the principle of the thing, really. The symbolic value.

Or something like that.

She had to use her left hand, so there wasn't as much precision in the way she picked the cup off his hand as there would have usually been. Fingertips bumped against his skin less deliberately.

[sake_shinigami]

Well, considering the current circumstances, perhaps that just meant that Shunsui would have to do his part to help ensure that the cup was safely making its way into Octavia's possession with his own agile, nimble fingers, with a smile that was far too soft to have any room to be crooked or lazy. And once that passage was secured, he drew his hand back enough to lift the remaining cup in deference.

"What do we toast to today, Octavia-chan?" he asked.

[okteiviakom]

Oh.

Should've seen that question coming, probably, but Octavia hadn't exactly been thinking straight for several days now.

The pause that followed was an obvious, heavy one.

Then, without second-guessing herself, she rasped, "Life."

[sake_shinigami]

The grin was going to go a bit crooked at that answer, yes.

"Always a good one, Octavia-chan ♥," he said, throwing in a wink before lifting the cup that much more. "To life, then, and the excellent company that comes put of it ♥."

With that, he ceremoniallh downed the contents of his cup with an appreciation for the particular quality of the bottle, and set to filling up the next for sipping.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia lifted her on cup, a little more grimly, and also downed the contents in one go.

And set the empty cup on the counter, not quite as carefully as she would have liked. The placement was kind of ambiguous, in relation the whether there was an invitation to fill it up again or not.

[sake_shinigami]

The ambiguity worked out well, because it could easily be reflected in the fact that Shunsui filled it up anyway, without missing a beat after filling up his own cup. And whether or not it was Octavia would would be drinking it now or Shunsui later, that could be the ambiguous part.

"Now," he stated, setting aside the bottle again, shifting his grip on his cup as if settling into it comfortably, "this may be overreaching my boundaries, Octavia-chan...but I have to say, I'm not sure I'm won over on this new fashion accessory of yours," a nod, perhaps unnecessarily, toward the sling, as he took a sip, "quite yet ♥."

[okteiviakom]

"It's fine," Octavia drawled, with a very brief glance down at her arm, "I'm not either." It was annoying and inconvenient (and a constant physical reminder of Haven and what she was currently running from). "But I got shot, so..."

She shrugged, on the opposite side.

[sake_shinigami]

"Mmmm." The hum around his sip was a sympathetic one, with just a faint edge of disgruntled disapproval of getting shot in general, as a principle. He himself didn't exactly have the best luck with that sort of thing, but, then again, he was still there, so perhaps his luck wasn't so bad after all.

"Always a nuisance," he mused, "getting shot. I trust you're doing everything you can to tend to it and not aggravate the injury any further, of course, Octavia-chan ♥."

[okteiviakom]

If only.

"I tore the first stitches within like... an hour of getting them," Octavia replied, mildly. She was looking down at the cup in front of her, but felt compelled to glance up towards her lashes as she added, "I haven't done it again."

[sake_shinigami]

"Did you at least tear them out the first time doing something worthwhile ♥?" Shunsui asked, because there was a considerable margin of acceptability down that road, he felt.

[okteiviakom]

A long pause followed.

And then, flatly, "I don't know."

It was obvious she knew how she'd done it. It was the worthwhile part that she wasn't clear on.

[sake_shinigami]

In that long pause, Shunsui held his cup close to his lips without sipping, then quirked a brow and took that small drink once the response finally came.

"If in doubt," he mused, "then I suspect the answer is probably an unfortunate no, but," another thoughtful sort of sip, "I could be wrong...♥."

[okteiviakom]

"I guess it remains to be seen," Octavia decided, slowly, after a little moment. "That's all."

[sake_shinigami]

"Well, then...." Shunsui allowed with a small duck of his head, "if that is the case, then I hope I am wrong, and that it will be a good, long while before tearing out stitches is a topic of conversation again ♥."

[okteiviakom]

"I'm not planning to get shot again any time soon."

That should maybe have been something like a joke, but this was Octavia at her mildest, so it was more matter-of-fact than anything.

"And I guess I'm... trying to be good about these ones, now," she amended after a little pause. "Even though it's annoying. I don't think my boat was designed for doing things with just one hand."

[sake_shinigami]

Mild and matter-of-fact or not, it was still going to make Shunsui smile.

"That....does sound exhausting, Octavia-chan," he sympathized. "Certainly worth a little bit of patience to escape sooner rather than later ♥."

[okteiviakom]

Of course, Octavia was conveniently leaving out that she could have had it easier if she hadn't exiled herself onto her own boat in the first place.

(Yes, she was being very Octavia about a lot of things, lately.)

"I haven't tried actually sailing," she said, finally picking up her cup again. Considering it. "Last thing I need is crashing the thing into something."

[sake_shinigami]

Well, then, how convenient that Shunsui's response to that very Octavia reply just so happened to start dancing a little closer to those selectively omitted details.

"Or sinking it," Shunsui drawled, "down to the bottom of the sea ♥. That really does sound like something that best not be attemted by one's lonesome, Octavia-chan...no matter how appealing I'm sure....some find it to be ♥."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia gave a little lopsided shrug again. "It's fine when I can use both hands."

[sake_shinigami]

"Or there are other hands to help ♥." It was a mild statement of his own, with a faint shrug and a dismissive wave of his hand to go along with it. "But, yes, waiting until you can use both of your own to greater effect does sound wise, Octavia-chan."

[okteiviakom]

"There aren't always other hands."

Because Octavia couldn't always be around them, but, you know. Still true.

"Anyway," she continued. "I should buy some things for the boat. Running low on rations." Perfectly acceptable way to call them.

[sake_shinigami]

"No," Shunsui agreed to that first part easily, "but..."

And then let that part just sort of vaguely drift off into the wind, as if to let it wind up laying where it may, and he gave Octavia another lopsided grin.

"Rations," he said, "of course ♥. And do you think that might be something you'd like the assistance of extra hands," he lifted the one not holding the sake cup, wiggling his fingers in the air as if waving to introduce Octavia to the fact that, look at that, he just so happened to have some of those, attached to his very own arms and everything!, "for ♥? Or, at the very least...a basket ♥?"

[okteiviakom]

Octavia didn't really need to take this sip before giving her answer, but she did.

"Would be... nice," she said. Softer, maybe. "Yeah."

[sake_shinigami]

"Then these hands," Shunsui said, with a duck of his head as if making a vow, while he set his cup down so that the other could be freed for the cause, "are entirely at your service, Octavia-chan ♥. Just please," he grinned over at her, more even and bright than usual, but still not lacking that particular tilt, "nothing too heavy ♥?"

Because he was just so weak and delicate and fragile for such strenuous manual labor, of course.