video + text

[spiritually]

[ This video is legitimately just of Natsume sitting on the a bare, dirt floor with his knees up to his chest. Nyanko-sensei is rolling back and forth on the floor, obviously bored. There's a strange pot with an eyeball. Behind him is a window with bars on it above his bag, hung on the wall. In front of him is an entire wall of thick wood bars, much like a dungeon cell, covered in ofuda. Not just one or two, a lot.

They just sit there for a while until Natsume glances up and realizes that the community seems to be giving him access through a piece of paper that fell out of his bag. His eyes widen, then he quickly dives for it and switches to text, cutting off the feed. It takes him a few seconds to get a pen out of his bag, then... ]

Can someone worldhop here, no questions asked? I need to be back before tomorrow night, I promised I'd go watch the meteor shower with some friends.

[ No, no he's not quite commenting on why he's stuck in what looks like a prison cell built to keep really powerful youkai in it.

..And yes, worldhops are cut off at this point. Consider it interference from the massive numbers of traps set up in the surrounding forest, not all of which solely affect youkai.

At least he's not tied up anymore. ]

Comments

Voice;

[makewayforroze]

Natsume, I'll do my best to find a way out of there but I want to know who has you.

[Her voice is stern. Even if Natsume doesn't want anyone to worry, those people who have him can't think it's okay to just kidnap people.]

Voice;

[spiritually]

Matoba.

[ It's not like that's going to be anything to go off of. ]

It's.. he's not someone I want you to mess with. I just need to get out of here for now.

Voice;

[makewayforroze]

Don't worry, I'll get you out before anything else. Do you know where you are?

voice;

[spiritually]

Nothing else, Roze.

[ Natsume actually sounds firm about that. He doesn't want anyone he cares about getting involved in this, especially not with Matoba. ]

The Matoba Estate in the forest east of Yatsuhara. Back side, there's a small barred window. If you find someone with a worldhop, come exactly here and don't go into the forest no matter what.

voice;

[makewayforroze]

[The rest of it isn't worth arguing about now so she won't be back for a bit.]

...Natusme, it didn't work. I tried to come to you and nothing happened. Are you sure that's where you are?

[If he is, she knows what this means and she won't accept it. She won't.]

video;

[selfished]

[ Kyouko doesn't have a worldhop, so she couldn't help with that either way other than ordering someone else around to get him out of there.. but there's more important matters first. Or rather, her emotions kick in first when she sees Natsume like that. What is... ]

N.. Natsume.. what the heck do ya think you're doing?!

video;

[spiritually]

I was getting something of mine back and I got caught and refused to cooperate.

[selfished]

Moron, that's not what I mean! [ For once Kyouko actually sounds aggressive in front of him. It's not even aggressive anymore, this is bordering on sheer bloodlust, her expression is almost crazed. ]

Who did this to you?! Tell me, I'll kill them..!

[spiritually]

[ He can see that. It's kind of.. scary. But he's seen this before, with someone who cared about him. Maybe not in the same way Kyouko does, but.. ]

Don't get involved, Kyouko.

[ Natsume's voice sounds calm, oddly serious. Kyouko can't rush off without a worldhop, so she's not exactly the kind of danger that Kai was when he tried to kill Natori because Natsume accidentally fell into a trap. He doesn't have to panic, and besides.. ]

Even if no one can come, I'll find a way out of here. It's not like this is the first time I've run into him.

[selfished]

That doesn't matter! [ It's pure instinct now. Even if he says he'll find a way out, that doesn't matter that it happened. And he says it's not the first time, so it's going to happen again. There's someone doing this stuff to Natsume and as long as they're not stopped, they're going to keep doing it -- like she'll just let that happen! ]

How can you tell me to not get involved?! Just tell me who did this!

[friendcontracts]

Takashi. Who put you in that? It wasn't a youkai.

[A youkai wouldn't use ofuda.]

locked;

[spiritually]

[ Grandma don't bring up youkai if you're not gonna lock it!! ]

It's an exorcist. This isn't the first time I've run into him. Last time he shot Nyanko-sensei and it took him weeks to recover. That was after I met him because he had no problem slaughtering and sacrificing servants under the Matoba Clan. He said I was dangerous.

[ All he did was accidentally bust a few seals in the forest, get caught by one of Matoba's servants, break out, get caught, then refuse to side with exorcists all while having really really powerful youkai help him out who aren't even his servants.

No big grandma. ]

locked;

[friendcontracts]

[The look on Reiko's face couldn't be more displeased. She crosses her arms. Matoba has the sight but he isn't like Takashi or her. He sees youkai as toys. Exorcism and sealing youkai away were only for stubborn or evil youkai. Making a weak youkai who only wants to live its life your follower only to sacrifice or kill it?

Unforgivable.]

He and his entire clan are disgusting. They have this power but they're no better than a family of criminals that shoots other humans. If he thinks you're dangerous than his family isn't prepared for someone like me.

[There's a growl entering h er voice.]

I don't know how old this man is, he might not even be born yet but I'll tell you one thing, Takashi. The Matoba clan isn't going go free.

locked;

[spiritually]

He's not born yet. Don't do anything drastic, I don't..

Don't get yourself into trouble, Reiko-san. He doesn't know about the Book of Friends. At least I don't think he does. Even the youkai who found my bag earlier didn't tell him it was in there and he didn't look through it, so even his own servants know not to breathe a word about it. So just be careful okay? For your sake too. I won't argue against doing something against them as long as no one gets hurts.

[ A pause. Natsume figures he might as well mention it to her. ]

Despite all that, the primary reason I'm locked in here is probably because I refused to join the Matoba Clan then wouldn't let him hurt Sensei to make a point about what he claimed we were "supposed" to treat them like.

locked;

[friendcontracts]

I'm not like them. It'd be easy to summon all the youkai in the Book to send after them but that'd cause more trouble than punishing them is worth.

I can do things like keeping an ear out for things that an exorcist might get hired for. Seal away evil youkai before they can. I can distract youkai away from them if I know they're around. I don't know if I can but I could even try to take the name of the youkai they've enslaved--let them live their lives.

[She glares at the camera. This is the first time that she's allowing herself to be angry in front of him.]

"How we're supposed to treat them"?! He doesn't know anything at all!

[voice]

[shadow_spread]

I'm coming.

[voice; locked]

[spiritually]

Thanks.

[ A pause. Since... Masamori's the one coming for him, he feels the need to actually fill him in here. ]

Be careful. Matoba's a powerful exorcist, he's managed to get Nyanko-sensei twice now and that isn't something a lot of people can do. Sensei's not injured this time, but he still sealed his abilities for the moment. Matoba's interested in me though, so as long as I protect him he can't hurt Sensei but I don't think he'd have a problem going after you. If you sneak around the back there's a window, but be cautious there too. There's a tribe of youkai trying to find me and I don't think they care much if I'm dead or alive either.

[ Despite all this, Natsume sounds... oddly calm. Like ridiculously calm. Like he's completely used to it and very much not saying why. ]

[voice; locked]

[shadow_spread]

[A voice that calm in a situation like this...that's concerning.

Still, what Masamori needs to focus on right now is the information.]

I'll be careful. I'd rather get in and get you out quietly. [Though he'd also like to teach "Matoba" a lesson.]

[voice; locked]

[spiritually]

Thank you. Be careful of the forest too. Matoba set up a lot of traps, seals, and spells in the forest and Sensei said it could be that not all of them only affect spirits. I probably released a few just running through it without realizing it but..

[ Ahaha Natsume knows because he accidentally screws really powerful seals up all the time. ]

It's still better to be careful. There were way more than what I ran by.

[voice; locked]

[shadow_spread]

...I can't get there. You're sealed off somehow. I'm sorry.

Is there someone I could call for you, or something like that?

Text

[smokepraylove]

Since I'm not offering a worldhop, that leaves me free to ask questions?

text

[spiritually]

[ Changing the topic right away here ]

How have you been?

text

[smokepraylove]

I see.

text

[spiritually]

It's a complex situation I'd rather not talk about. Sorry.

text

[smokepraylove]

[It must be; he wants back in even if he can get out for a party. The community being what it is, he shouldn't be surprised by anything, but this kid seems to be a normal enough kid. It doesn't look like a very modern prison, but some to think of it, he was from Japan. No, still, the pot and a cat there make it clear he's not institutionalized in any traditional, legal sense.

Can't save them all. Can't kick himself over that forever. Just let it go.]



Take care.

[Edited 15 minutes later, prior message penciled out.]

Are your parents going to worry?