[07] move along, move along just to make it through

[judicialassistant]

Who: Susato and anyone
Which: Open catch-all log for September + network option
Where: The Wild Harvest garden, but open to other locations.
What: Yujin Mikotoba has left Songerein.
Warnings: Will add if needed.

🌸 A. an apple a day keeps the doctor away.

Sender: Susato Mikotoba
To: Everyone
Subject: Reverein's clinic

[ It's short, and to the point. Susato doesn't use the journal often to broadcast like this, but now that she is, she feels it prudent to be as direct as possible. ]

To whom it may concern:

For the past couple weeks, the Reverein communal clinic has been without a proper doctor to run it. If you are in need of aid, please be patient, as the volunteers are doing the very best they can.

If you have medical experience and would like to help, please let me know. Thank you.

Regards,
Susato Mikotoba

🌸 B. move along, move along, like i know you do.

[ Within the garden of the Wild Harvest, among the faint hissing of snakes and the lull of the waterfalls, Susato closes her journal and tucks away her pen. She takes a deep breath as she moves to stand from her favorite bench, and she walks with purpose into an area littered with stars that look like stepping stones upon the ground.

For a moment, she stops and simply stares. There it is. A blank star, waiting for a name. Perhaps it appeared some time ago. Perhaps she simply ignored it, but after digesting recent events, she has no time to wallow in the remaining stages of grief. He's not even dead, but she wonders if that doesn't make things worse.

Either way, she doesn't even need a pen. She slowly bends down, spending another moment feeling the rough surface of the starfish with her hand before she commits with her pointer finger.

The strokes appear in a glow, and the end result looks engraved. ]

御琴羽 悠仁

🌸 C. wild card.

[ If neither of these fit! ]

(( ooc: Feel free to write your own prompt/starter, or if you'd like me to write a personalized starter for you, hit me up at yammdere or via PM!

Side note: I would love to incorporate Quest #902. Hug it out if you hit prompt B. uwu ))

Comments

[chefalier]

I'm only so happy that you remember my name~

[Sanji has at least stopped twirling around, mostly because he's now in front of Susato and offering his fried rice to her.]

I promise the real thing is just as good as the dream food you've had.

[judicialassistant]

[ She has a better memory than Ryunosuke does, luckily for him. Maybe it's surprising. As she takes the fried rice, however, little bits of that voyage on the sea come back to her.

She can still feel the distant pounding in her head that started it all off. ]

Thank you... I'm happy that you found me, though I am sad to say that I'm no longer a pirate.

[ She looked quite different then, didn't she...? She looks down at her kimono as she opens the container. ]

[chefalier]

You're as lovely as ever~ You don't have to be a pirate to earn this cook's devotion...!

[There may be a few more hearts that pop around his head, before Sanji actually becomes slightly more serious. He's sensed earlier that she's upset about something and that worries him. What could make the lovely Susato-chan upset?!

Still, there's a smile to him as he speaks to her.]

How are you?

[judicialassistant]

[ The hearts appear, even outside of his dream...? Some kind of dreamotion, perhaps? She finds it kind of fascinating, if not a tad unnecessary, but seeing his expression harden into something more serious, she will do the same.

She would rather not burden him with the whole truth of everything, but perhaps she can start at the surface. ]

I am... trying to keep busy. It's rather tiring, actually.

[ A pause. ]

What about you? You've not come to take my job, I hope.

[chefalier]

[It's almost near confirmation that something is on her mind, but she doesn't want to talk about it. That's okay, Sanji isn't going to push her, not until she's ready. Maybe that won't even happen, but he's going to keep her company anyway. He knows he can be a pretty good distraction.]

Course not, the Wild Harvest needs their lovely cook. I simply couldn't take that warmth and magic away, my dear.

[Maybe he'll start his own restaurant sometime, but.]

And I'm doing well, this place has been perfect for testing new ingredients. Really gives me reasons to experiment.

[judicialassistant]

[ She'd spoken in jest. By now, Kazuma would never replace her, but it's still good to hear. She laughs, though she's still baffled by how much more serious he seems suddenly.

A pair of chopsticks is always somewhere nearby, so it doesn't take her long before she's taking a few bites of that fried rice. ]

Oh? Have you tried a different recipe for the fried rice this time? [ Or maybe he means another dish entirely! ]

[chefalier]

The fried rice is mostly the same, but I cooked it with extra love just for you~~~

[It's probably a sight to see Sanji jump from complete dumbass to serious and back, but that's just him. His love for women just knows no bounds...! Or something like that. It's what the cook tells himself anyway.]

But I've been trying new ingredients, like the paopu fruit that's been mentioned. Gonna catch one of those hell chickens and try 'em out next.

[judicialassistant]

[ Hell chickens...... She can't say she's had the pleasure. Kazuma decidedly does not like chicken, but they're not talking about him. The mention of paopu, at least, seems to brighten her features.

She swallows, letting out a satisfied breath. It really is delicious. ]

So you've seen Sora's latest journal entry. He actually told me about it when we first went to the beach.

We've even made the fruit into a drink this month for couples to try. [ Too bad they missed Valentine's Day......by like half a year. ]

[chefalier]

Already testing new ingredients, as expected from the amazing Susato-chan~~

[It does sound very romantic; he definitely wants to try it out sometime. It'll be even better if he finds a lovely lady to share it with! There's few things that he'd want more...!]

I bet it's very popular~ Ah, don't tell me you tried your drink with someone.

[Who's the lucky bastard if so....]

[judicialassistant]

...Hehe. [ She doesn't kiss and tell, Sanji. Or maybe she does. Fuck it, she is a teenage girl. ] Well... I suppose we've spent so much time making them lately, we haven't really thought about it...

But I might have someone in mind.

[ A pause. ]

Truth be told, I'm not sure if a the drink counts. [ Sora seems to think the whole fruit is required. ]

[chefalier]

[Aw, so she does already have someone in mind... there truly is a lucky shithead out there. Sanji looks glum for just a second, but he perks up anyway.]

Huh? Why wouldn't it count? The fruit's still in there, yeah? Not like eating salmon by itself or mixed in with somethin' else doesn't erase the fact you're eating it.

[judicialassistant]

[ HEY DON'T CALL HER BOYFRIEND A SHITHEAD......

Wow, he really did look disappointed for a second there. It's gone in a flash, though she can kind of understand his confusion. ]

...I don't know, I didn't write the legend. But that was Sora's guess. He said... something about sharing a whole one, and "chomping down" on it together.

[chefalier]

[Hm, seeing that the starfruit originated from Sora's world, guess he'd know the most about it. There's definitely some cultural context going on here and he's not going to turn his nose on that.]

More like a myth surrounding the food... well, not here to debate somethin' like that, but nothin' wrong having the whole fruit and the drink to go along with it. Although, your boyfriend should've suggested that first.

[judicialassistant]

[ .......Still...not used to that label on their relationship. Doesn't feel wrong. Still makes her blush, though. ]

He... would likely think that we have no need for such legends. We are already a part of each others' lives, no matter what.

[ .........

He wouldn't say no either, though. ]

[chefalier]

[No need, eh? Sounds like a shitty excuse to him!! Sanji makes a face, showing how unimpressed he is with this new bout of information.]

A real man treats his lovely girlfriend to the best a place has to offer. Doesn't matter if he's been with you for two weeks or two years.

[judicialassistant]

H- He is a real man!

[ Susato protests, that outburst coming automatically in Kazuma's defense. ]

We have been through the best and the worst of what this world has to offer, I assure you. We do not need the paopu to tell us how intertwined our destinies are... but we will enjoy one together regardless, at our own leisure and no one else's.

Every day, if we so please!

1/2

[chefalier]

[He's slightly startled by Susato's outburst and Sanji finds himself growing quiet as he listens to her. She really cares about this lucky bastard, huh?]

[chefalier]

[As she finishes defending her unnamed boyfriend, Sanji looks quite apologetic, with the cook rubbing the back of his head. The last thing he'd ever want to do is upset a lady and he might've done so. While he still doesn't know much about this other guy, it's definitely clear that they've been through a lot together.

He offers a small smile, his tone taking on a softer voice.]

Ah, Susato-chan... I'm sorry. You must love him a lot.

1/2

[judicialassistant]

...!

[ Oops. That may have come off more strongly than she intended, though she will stand by those feelings regardless. She does clear her throat, however, shrinking slightly in turn. Somehow she's still holding that fried rice, and shockingly, it hasn't spilled any.

She takes a breath, and reels in those emotions. ]

For as long as I can remember.

[judicialassistant]

[ An awkward silence follows. She doesn't know how else she can follow up to that, so... So she just verbally turns things around. ]

Wh, What about you?

[chefalier]

[Sanji blames himself for the sudden shift in mood. He can see the slight discomfort in Susato and it's easy to see how she's doing her best to keep things from getting too awkward. She's so strong and kind...!

He wants to make the mood lighthearted once more, but also it's not hard for Sanji to be... Sanji.]

I don't have a girlfriend, but I'm a lover to all ladies. Whatever they want, they only need to ask this love cook~~ I live to serve...!

[judicialassistant]

[ He is... admittedly... very good at lightening the mood. She looks at him with playful suspicion. ]

Did you become a cook solely to win the hearts of women?

[chefalier]

[The bombastic behavior lightens at her question, but he's still relaxed and pleased, because cooking is truly the most important thing to him.]

While I love each and every lady, I didn't become a cook for them. [...] I always wanted to cook, since I was young. Just wanted to make something delicious with my own hands and have others enjoy it.

[judicialassistant]

[ She can definitely sense that importance by his demeanor and the way he speaks about it. Her playful teasing fades somewhat, replaced by a continued curiosity: ]

I see... Then, what was your first ever dish? Did it come easily to you?

[chefalier]

[Memories of his time at Germa prop up, but Sanji shoves them to the side, because he really only started to really cook when he found Zeff. Or Zeff found him. It's a lot easier talking about that shitty old man anyway.]

You're eating it, Susato-chan. [He says that softly.] I consider it the first successful dish I made... and I had a lot of training from a shit--grumpy old man. Of course, the ingredients and spices aren't 100% the same as back home, but it's close.