Open

[yokunaru]

WHO: Yuuri Katsuki & You
WHERE: All around the ship
WHEN: After his arrival (Dec. 29)
WHAT: Exploring the ISC ELUVIO
WARNINGS: None. (Both prose or brackets work for me! Will match.)


A. Closed to Viktor

By the time Yuuri's done with the orientation, his protests have stopped and an odd sort of numbness has taken over. He takes the duffel bag they hand him and lets the crew members usher him into the main promenade, where he's promptly left to his own devices. His stomach churns.

It was an anomaly, they'd said. As Yuuri takes in the passerby (all strangers), the unfamiliar technology, everything, it really starts to sink in: he's stuck on some ship in space with no way to get home. He's never going to see his family again, or his friends. Or Viktor. With that last thought, Yuuri's hit with the realization that he's going to miss the Grand Prix Finals. That after all the work he's put into getting there, he's let Viktor and everyone else who supported him down--

Yuuri chokes, duffel bag dropping to the ground to sit there, forgotten. He sinks down to the floor beside it, back to the wall, hands pressed to his temples. Caught up in his panicked thoughts, all Yuuri can do is struggle to keep his breathing steady and wait for this to pass.

B. Residence Lounge

"Fine" still isn't the word to describe him later, after a few hours have passed. Even knowing that Viktor's here with him doesn't entirely take away the sting in his chest, not when he's still missing the Finals, and everyone else they know is still back home.

So Yuuri does what he does best: distract himself. Without a rink or ballet studio to turn to, Yuuri latches onto the shelves of books instead, brown eyes scanning the titles with curiosity. Though he pulls out a few to flip through idly, he ends up putting them back quickly, apparently having no luck finding what he's looking for.

Finally, he stands back with a sigh. There's no helping it. Yuuri turns, biting his lip as he walks up to whoever's closest. "E-excuse me," he says hesitantly. "Do you know where I can find books on space travel? Something like an introduction, if it's possible."

C. Atrium

There's something soothing about the atrium, Yuuri thinks as he wanders among the flowers. It's not what he would have expected to find on a spaceship of all places, but he's not going to complain. Having Makkachin trotting along beside him is a familiar and welcome sight, too.

Or it would be, if Makkachin actually stayed there. When the poodle suddenly perks up and dashes off, Yuuri breaks into a run after him. "Makkachin, wait up!" In his haste to catch up with his wayward companion, Yuuri almost runs right into someone when he makes a sharp turn down the path.

Comments

[nodyinteam]

Nekomaru will be pleased even for that light impact. Every little bit helps.

"Good to meet you! As for me, my name is NEKOMARU NIDAI!!" He's just a little bit loud. "Heh... And don't sweat it. Helping out Makkachin is my pleasure! He's a good dog. I don't want him to go too far astray!"

[yokunaru]

Wow, he's like the very embodiment of enthusiasm. Yuuri tries not to wince as the volume suddenly gets turned way, way up.

"Makkachin's great. I'm glad he came here with Viktor, even if all of this isn't...what any of us were expecting." Yuuri keeps an eye on the path for any sign of Makkachin. "Did anyone you know end up here, as well, Nekomaru?"

[nodyinteam]

Yep, he's pretty much a big and bulky ball of sunshine.

But, his smile does fade into a more thoughtful expression at Yuuri's words, and he nods in response.

"A dog if a lifelong companion. It would be tragic if they were separated. As for people I know..." Then, he shakes his head as he thinks of the class that he left behind. "I haven't come across anyone yet. Not even anyone from my class. I hope that they're doing well back home without me..."

He does trust them to persevere, even if he's worried about them too. Hopefully Owari was able to learn from his example and won't be pulling any stupid stunts anytime soon.

[yokunaru]

"'Not even'...?" Yuuri looks at him questioningly. All things considered, Yuuri would've expected some emphasis on friends and family not being here, not classmates.

"Is there something going on with your class?"

[nodyinteam]

He's silent for a moment, and he takes a moment to pick at his ear, looking squarely ahead as he speaks.

"It's nothing to be concerned about." He says that just for the sake of not getting other guy worried about the killing game when there's nothing that can be done from here. "Before I came here, I was on an island with my classmates, and I'm surprised that I'm the only one out of them who ended up here. That's all!"

[yokunaru]

Well. That was a suspicious pause. If Nekomaru doesn't want to talk about it, though, Yuuri isn't going to pry.

"Do you want them to show up here?" he asks curiously.

[nodyinteam]

Now he looks more thoughtfully as ponders that one.

"To tell the truth, I go back and forth on that one. I need to know for sure if this place is truly safe or not before I know my final answer!"

[yokunaru]

"Oh...I guess that's a good point."

Then, realizing what that could imply, Yuuri frowns a little and feels a flood of concern. "You don't think this place is safe?"

He wonders if he missed something. Nekomaru's been here longer than he has, after all.

[nodyinteam]

"It's not that."

He then says quite frankly, "I don't know this place is safe."

In other words, he's still not sure that there won't be some sinister surprise waiting around a corner, especially considering - well, again, what he came here from.

"It seems peaceful so far, but we can't let that be an excuse to let our guard down!"

[yokunaru]

"I...I guess not."

While Yuuri doesn't want to think about how dangerous things could get, he's also aware that he knows next to nothing about space travel.

"What do you think we should look out for?"

[nodyinteam]

"Good question!"

He crosses his arms as he thinks it over.

"Anything that seems out of the ordinary or suspicious in some way... and you should especially be careful if you see a black-and-white bear trying to take charge!"

he has some concerns

[yokunaru]

"E-eh...?" Of all the things Yuuri might've expected to hear, he'd never have guessed that last part.

"Are black-and-white bears supposed to be common around the ship? I haven't seen any of those around."

as he should

[nodyinteam]

"Exactly! There's no trace of any on this ship at all, and that's a good thing! But if one shows up here? That would be a sign that everything's going down the drain!"

[yokunaru]

He's just going to take a moment to digest that.

"S-so then...these bears must be something from your world?" He's still tripping up on the different worlds part, but he's getting there. Slowly.

[nodyinteam]

"You could say that." He nods firmly. "Just one bear, thankfully. And his name's Monokuma... the less said about hi, the better!"

[yokunaru]

"Monokuma," Yuuri says, committing the name to memory. It's still an odd description, though.

"If you're warning me about him, he must be dangerous."

[nodyinteam]

Nekomaru looks off distantly.

"At the moment, he's the most dangerous being that I know of. Of course, it might be different if he's cut off from all of his resources... but if he ever gained control over this place, we'd be screwed."

[yokunaru]

So there is trouble back home. Yuuri doesn't push for more details, though, when he sees the look on Nekomaru's face. Maybe some other time, when they aren't virtually strangers.

"I'll keep an eye out for him," Yuuri says softly, meaning to do exactly that. Something that like definitely would mean trouble if they were around. "Thanks for warning me."

[nodyinteam]

He had wanted to hide the details of the situation back home from others, so that they didn't have to worry needlessly. But in this instance, it seemed prudent to at least warn someone about Monokuma.

"Don't mention it. It's for your own good." Then he looks ahead, and his expression softens. "But we're distracting ourselves. We can't let that cute dog get too much of a lead on us!"

[yokunaru]

"Oh, right!" Yuuri's eyes widen as he quickly returns to searching for Makkachin. He'd also been hoping that the poodle would return on his own.

"How big is this place...?" How far could Makkachin have gone?

[nodyinteam]

"Pretty darn big! He could have gone anywhere... But, if he's anywhere in the vicinity..."

He stops, cups his hands around his mouth, and then he bellows loudly,

"MAKKACHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN!!!!"

[yokunaru]

Yuuri barely gets his ears covered in time. When his ears stop ringing, he drops his hands, all too relieved he hadn't gotten the full brunt of it this time.

"Makkachinnnnnn!" Yuuri joins in a moment later, then pauses and tilts his head to the side when there's a familiar bark from somewhere nearby. "Did you hear that?"

[nodyinteam]

"Of course I did!" He turns to face Yuuri. "I'd know that adorable bark anywhere!! Let's go!"

He then tugs on Yuuri's hand and starts to barrel on ahead in the direction of the bark. "We're coming, Makkachin!!"

[yokunaru]

Yuuri doesn't even have time to protest before he's dragged along. At least the barks seem to be getting closer!

"Makkachin, over here!" Just as he gets the words out, there's a rustling in the nearby plants. And out comes Makkachin, barreling into the two of them with a happy bark.

[nodyinteam]

"There you are!" Nekomaru's face lights up as he leans over to scoop the dog up in his arms. "I bet you enjoyed leading us on a chase, you little rascal!"