Chasing the Moon (Noctis)

Damien spat on the ground angrily as he made his way through the dusky streets of Nadashiki. Nothing. Absolutely nothing after a week of searching. Akira had sent him to Nadashiki to find out where the missing Anya was, working under the assumption that at least some of the gangsters in the area had seen where she had gone. And while he was correct that gangbangers were a lot more willing to talk to a fellow punk than a cop, what he didn’t realize is how little that actually counted when the chips were down. If you weren’t one of them, you couldn’t get jack outta them.

And so Damien was walking around the Moonlit Plaza, throwing death glares at anyone who dared to look at him funny- hell, he felt like he was home already. Now all he needed was a knife in the back, to match the scar on his chest. However, it seemed like he was going to get his wish sooner than he had expected: no sooner than he had the thought, that he felt the skin crawl on the back of his neck. Changing directions into a nearby alley, and praying that it was a small group, Damien prepared himself for the upcoming conflict. After he had made his way into the darkness, where no other bangers in the plaza could help them.

Okay, let’s do this. Remember- keep ‘em off their toes. Spinning around, Damien pulled out the picture of Anya. “Oh, glad I ran into y’all. Hey, any of ya happen to see this girl recently? She was kidnapped from our school.[/i] Despite being cautious when Damien whipped his hand out of his hoodie, the group was understandably put off when they were staring down a picture instead of a glock. “The he- no, never seen that bitch before in my life. But more importantly, who the hell do you think you are?”

Damien shrugged, non-chalantly. “The name’s Damien Lier- not that it matters, but thank you for yo-” He cringed slightly when one of the gangsters cut him off, mid-sentence. “Damien Lier- holy shit, I know that name. You used to be big time, back in America. Don’t know why you’re here in Japan, but all the better for us. Care to join us, mate? We’ll make sure you’re taken care of- girls, drugs, money- name it, and it’s yours. So whaddya say?”

Waving his hand slightly, as well as subtly taking off his hoodie, Damien declined. “If you don’t mind, I think I’m gonna have to say no. School and all that, you know.” Damien smiled, but knew he was trapped. Snarling, one of the members stalked his way up to Damien, getting right in the giant’s face. “I don’t think you understand, moron- it wasn’t exactly a request. That was just us trying to be nice. You join us, or you join the cemetery early.” Damien nodded. “Clever. Think of that all by yourself, did you?” “Why, you ba-“ He began to reach for something in his pockets, but Damien didn’t care to find out what it was.

Throwing his jacket around the man’s head, obstructing his vision, Damien slammed his knee into the man’s groin, eliciting the slightest of groans as he fell to his knees.  Helping the man out on his descent, Damien dropped to one knee himself, bringing his elbow down on the criminal’s back with all the force of gravity behind it. Then, kneeling on the banger’s prostrate body, Damien reached down to his pocket and pulled out… a butterfly knife. “I really hate knives.” Damien remarked quietly. Flipping it open, he calmly lowered it to his captive’s neck. “Please leave. He wouldn’t be the first man I’ve killed, but bloodstains are difficult to get out of my jacket.”

Despite his show of force, it was just a bluff. Damien was injured from a previous fight, and even the two before him could cream him, if they gave the third man enough time to get up. He had cast a spell of fear- especially with his old gang’s tattoo on blatant display- but soon the spell would disappear. Just one person on my side. That’s all I would need to make them back off. Is that too much to ask for?

Who would have guessed one of the first nights, Noctis would find himself around the local gathering area with concessions. He pulled from his coat that he decided to wear, a lollipop, opening it and putting it into his mouth, his gold eyes fixated on the almost full moon that was out at night. "Moonlit Plaza certainly is...moonlit..." he would whisper to himself. He would have his small notepad with him attached to it, a pen for notes if necessary. Tonight was one night he intended to go out and possibly study human interaction. He would probably grab a bite or seven at the local restaurants before returning to the Velvet Room where he resided. He would chew a bit on a lollipop, being very focused on it, before being distracted by a strange man walk into a nearby alleyway. He was not one to particularly charge into danger, but he was curious what this would lead to.

He would walk down but stop seeing the man stop, showing....something to a nearby duo of strangers. He didn't know what it was specifically, but it was small, and he would listen in to try and study their reactions and listen in. A girl? Missing? And so much odd language.......he didn't know what the word "bitch" meant, but it was used to refer to her and confused him. It didn't take long for it to escalate and cause the lone man to toss his jacket up, and engage in a fight. He stood up, and noticed his lollipop was still in his mouth. He would chew and finish it, keeping the stick in his mouth, before looking back and seeing that one man had pulled out a sharp object, a knife at the man. 'This is what Shi meant by "unsavory humans"...!' he would think, feeling an eager smile almost spread to his face. But he didn't think about it now. He would take the first thing he could grab, which turned out to be his notepad, and hurl it at the man with a knife. If it hit, he would begin to walk to the lone man. "What are you guys doing?" he would say. His voice wouldn't be worried so much as curious. He would stay in one place if it didn't.

Damien knew this Mexican standoff couldn’t continue for much longer. Sooner or later, something was going to snap, and Damien would prefer if it wasn’t his neck. He grasped the knife tightly, accidentally drawing blood as he readjusted his grip. Shit…this is not gonna end well. He could feel the anger rising up inside him, roaring for violence. Hell, he might have been wrong- at this rate, he was definitely going to win. Unfortunately, the end result would be corpses on the sidewalks, and it’s a bit difficult to hold a job with a murder rap. “Ah ah- back off, or I’m making a Picasso with your friend’s life.” Damien snarled the moment one of the two thugs began to step towards him.

But lady luck proved she was looking after her favorite child once more, as someone appeared from behind Damien, and literally threw the book at him. Well, this is new. Damien remarked silently. Glancing back, he smiled, getting an evil idea. Turning back around with a look of fear on his face, he yelled that one word that would make any criminal scurry back into the night: “Cops!” Standing straight up, Damien put both his hands on top his head, obscuring the person behind him. “Hey now- I give. Just don’t shoot, alright?” The random stranger really sold it, too, walking up to Damien for whatever reason. It worked. The gangsters fled into the night, sparing not a second glance for the ‘comrade’ left behind.

Waiting a moment, so he was sure that the criminals were out of earshot, Damien turned around, laughing slightly from pure relief. “Oh man, am I glad you came. That was about to turn real ugly, real fast.” Bending down to the incapacitated man, Damien unwrapped his jacket from the man’s head, throwing it back over his own shoulders. “I’ll be taking back what’s mine- and I think I’ll be taking this with me as well, if you don’t mind.” Damien pocketed the butterfly knife, spinning it around his hand a few times as he did so.

Turning to the (seemingly clueless) stranger, Damien picked up the notebook that had struck him upside the head, and handed it back to its owner. “That, my newfound friend, was a shakedown. But more important is what we are doing now, and the answer is ‘getting the hell outta dodge before more people show up.’ So we should really get going.” Damien put his arm across the man’s shoulders, giving him a slight push to get them moving. Later, when the pair was an acceptable distance away, Damien stopped, nodding to himself. “Alright…that should be far enough. Sorry ‘bout that, mate, but you showed up at a bad time. Best to stay away from there- it’s full of nothing but bastards who’ll rob ya blind sooner than give ya the time of day. Anyways, the name’s Damien Lier. What’s yours?”

As Noctis was walking to the person, he saw the man look at him and look back at the duo. And when he heard the man shout the word "Cops", it caught him off guard. If he remembered, the cops were a sort of militant force that enforces the rules they have in the world they live in. Many people feared them, and for good reason. They gave punishment to those not abiding the law, and apparently the duo seemed to know this, as they fled quite quickly down the alleyway out of sight. He didn't really try to pursue them, as judging them was not his job. He was to help those who had potential. He would nod at the man when he got to him, checking his physical state. "You are well enough I imagine? I am glad I got to you in time," he said, his smile returning. Perhaps tonight was not a great night to study interactions, cause apart from violence, there were no real interactions of any kind.

He watched as he put back on his jacket. He was confused at first, as he was not wearing it, nor was it around him in a manner that would keep him warm. Surely he must be cold. "It is cold out. You sure you aren't gonna wear that?" he asked. He would watch as the knife practically entranced his eyes, as he spun it before putting it away. He gave a small clap. "Very impressive," he would say smiling. What an interesting talent it was to him. He took his notebook back nodding with a smile. "Thank you. I appreciate it sir," he would say. He would look at him confused at his speech. He didn't know how to get out of a "dodge". But he didn't particularly have time to question what he meant, as he seemed very eager to leave. He would follow him back into the open plaza, where it was far easier to see things before looking to the man. "I appreciate you looking after my safety Mr. Damien Lier. My name is Noctis," he said making sure to note his last name. He would have to do research on surnames at some point. "So what were you doing out there at such a time of night?"

Damien looked at his coat as he realized that Noctis had mentioned it. “What? Oh, yeah. Just in case I needed to blindside another bastard. I guess it’s just become a habit by now.” Now that the pair were well out of danger, Damien shrugged on his jacket, slowly feeding his arms though the sleeves, one at a time. “And yeah, please just call me Damien or something like that. Mr. Lier, or God forbid, sir, just seems weird. Ya shouldn’t show that much respect to a thug, ya know?” Damien laughed, blowing into his hands to keep them warm. He hadn’t felt winter’s chill until Noctis mentioned it.

“[color=blue}Noctis, huh? Pretty cool name ya got there- but no last name?[/color]” Damien waved off that idea immediately. “Actually, nevermind. If ya don’t want to tell me your family name after watching me hold a knife at another man’s throat, I won’t blame ya. Oh, and don’t think I saved you- hell, you saved my hide. I was either getting outta there with a beatdown, or a murder rap. Neither one of those would be pretty.” Shaking his head, Damien’s fingers twitched slightly, begging for a cigarette. He hadn’t smoked in so long, but then again, he had no reason to run for his life until five minutes ago, either.

Shaking his head like a dog, clearing himself of those desires, Damien turned his focus to Noctis’ next question. “I was over there looking for answers. There was this girl that disappeared from my school about a week before I arrived, and she’s been known to hang around here in Nadashiki. Since I used to run with a gang myself, the student council president assumed I would know the in’s and out’s on how to survive, and he’s right. I do. The problem is, I know that asking questions is the best way to end up a corpse here.” Damien reached into his pocket and pulled out the school picture of Anya Satoshi. “Buuuut, since I don’t think my luck’s completely out just yet, you wouldn’t happen to have seen her recently, would you? Her name’s Anya Satoshi. Parents run a restaurant or something.” Damien handed the picture over to Noctis for him to examine.

He tilted his head slightly. "Blindside?.....Oh, you mean catch him off guard yes?" he said smiling as he was sure he got the word correct. He knew some vocabulary that some humans would use to mean others. He smiled as he put on his jacket, seeing him take shelter against the cold. "Damien will work indeed. Easier to say," he said. He would look around taking a decent look at the plaza they were in. He was getting a bit distracted by the park in the plaza, as well as the local Ramen shop he had immediately focused his eyes on. He almost left to start walking to it, before the man would speak his name. He would reluctantly turn to him smiling. The man was certainly pleasant, and it brought a certain joy to his mind knowing that humanity had good people as well as good food. 'Gotta concentrate....' he would think.

He was about to explain he had no last name, though that may have been best that he didn't, as Damien waved his hand. He would smile nodding, with the knowledge that he helped a human being, as his role was surely to do. "Anytime Damien. I intend to stay in Ueitawa for a while, for I have certain research to do. I will be around," he would say. His expression grew to a more curious and confused look, crossed between a mature, and child-like confusion. A girl had went missing from where he went to school. He did recall the one school he knew was Kizuna Academy. He volunteered there to help out, and also for some extra locations to take notes, and study on. His thoughts went back to him when he learned she usually would reside in this very area. "She may have went missing from here...? That isn't good to hear at all..." he said. He did recall lately around this region people would be disappearing. Once more, part of the reason he came to this world to research was to learn about bonds between people, but specifically, those with the potential in them, to do fantastic things, both natural and supernatural. And it seemed this man had the very same potential. His train of thought was now focused on his hand, now holding a picture, of a young, pretty, albeit non-expressive looking girl, which he assumed was the girl in question. "I....I'm sorry. I don't know where she would be..." he said. He would take another look at the photo seeing if he may have seen her in the few times he had come to this world. It was a shame that people were disappearing, and it was hard to not hear of that around this area it had seemed for the past few weeks he had been here. He didn't know who Anya Satoshi was, but his eyes perked back up at him when he said the magic word. "Restaurant? Food you say?" he said, his mood now feeling better as a slight smile returned to his face, in the hopes of obtaining somehow delicious food from the restaurant she worked at. And come to think of it, he was a bit hungry, he would quickly reach in, pulling out a lollipop, unwrapping it, and popping it into his mouth focusing on the lovely lime taste that now was covering his tongue.

Damien sighed as Noctis denied any knowledge of Anya. “Damn. Ah well, it’s okay. Not like I was expecting you to know anything, anyways. Still, I had to try.” Damien chuckled, rubbing the shadows under his eyes. Jet lag was cutting into his concentration like a monster, and these late night scope outs were not helping him in the slightest. What he wanted to do, especially after having adrenaline flooding his system, was to lie down and have a nice, long nap. Shaking himself like a dog, Damien focused back on Noctis, who seemed to be having quite a few attention problems himself. His attention kept floating back to the nearby ramen shop.

Shaking his head slowly this time, chuckling, Damien shrugged. “Man, you think about nothing but food, huh?” Damien gently ribbed his newfound friend, laughing at his attention deficit. “Hey, as long as you save my ass from a shanking, I might as well reward ya for it. Let’s hit up that ramen restaurant, see if they’ve got anything good in there, shall we?” Damien grinned, knowing that he had the man’s full attention now. His sudden focus on Damien at the slightest mention of food only clenched it, proving to Damien that in this case, the fastest way to a man’s heart is indeed through his stomach.

As the pair walked into the store, Damien was immediately hit by the heat and the absolutely delicious scent of the cooking ramen. Though it was rather late tonight, the restaurant had a good crowd inside, so Damien and Noctis had to wait a bit before a waitress appeared at their table. “Hmm… I guess I’ll just get the specialty, whatever that is. Surprise me.” Damien smiled invitingly at the pretty waitress, before turning back to Noctis. Waiting patiently for the strange man to place his order, and then for the waitress to leave, Damien decided to voice a question that had been plaguing him for some time now. “Hey, Noctis, I gotta ask… but what were you doing in the Moonlit Plaza? Everyone knows that place is swarming with gansters and ‘bangers, and you don’t exactly look like a vandal to me. Hell, you look like some pickpocket’s rich mark. So what gives?”

Noctis would nod as Damien adjusted himself. He seemed very out of it, or tired. He didn't ask, partially because he didn't want to pry, and partially because the vision of noodles and scallions were starting to fill his mind. His attention would snap back to him when he mentioned the food. "I like the food around here. It was the reason I was here in the first place," he said. he would laugh and clap slightly when he offered to treat him. "Thanks!" he said. Spending his own money was not really an issue, but the thought of getting free food was something his stomach could not pass up. Ramen itself was something he had not really tried, and he was curious to know. That in mind, he would follow Damien to the local eatery to have a bite.

Walking into the restaurant was an experience all on its own. It was a bit warm in here, well, little is not descriptive enough. It was colder outside, so walking into a place like this was like jumping into a hot spring after leaving the lake. It was sudden, ad yet, very relaxing. Or maybe that was the smell that immediately entered his nose when he walked in? He would watch as the chef would make a bowl for another customer before sitting down. As they waited for someone to take their orders, he would turn to Damien sniffing the air slightly. "Nice scallions. Perfectly salted. Interesting how they are boiled in some bacon grease before salted. That I wouldn't expect to work," he said. Getting that from the smell alone was no challenge to Noctis. While he was not a great cook, he could decipher down ingredients quite easily from the smallest indication. Soon when the waitress came, the chef had been working on something else, and Noctis could tell very easily the smell of the room would change.

After Damien asked for the specialty, the waitress would turn to Noctis. He would then smile, that smell really got him eager for whatever that was. "I would like whatever the chef is cooking. With the soy broth, the spice.....and the egg," he caught at the end when the chef must have placed it in. He didn't really notice if the waitress had a reaction, but she did take his order and leave. He looked at the menu for a second trying to figure out what it was called. ".....Shoyu...." he said suddenly. "That was what I ordered." He would set his menu down when Damien asked him a question. He laughed a bit when he mentioned that he himself didn't look like a criminal. "I like these clothes. They are just nice to wear. As for why I am here..." he made a small pause giving him all the time he needed to think. This man did have the potential, he could clearly tell. But saying all of that specific information on his own may be a bit sudden. But then again, he didn't really need to lie anyway, so he ended up telling the truth. "I am here to do some research. I am studying human interaction. This place I am unfamiliar with so I wanted to see. The food is just a really, lovely bonus for me," he said licking his lips slightly sitting back against the chair. "But now I am curious. You probably go here more often than I do correct Damien? Was information on Anya your only reason for being here?"

Damien nodded at Noctis’ statement, chuckling slightly. “Oh no, they are nice clothes. Really nice clothes, and that’s the problem. Ratty or normal clothing like mine blends in around here. Nice clothes like yours say ‘my wallet is bleeding cash,’ and soon you’ll just be bleeding.” Despite this, Damien was shocked when Noctis was able to just rattle off the ingredients of the soup from smell alone. “Y-you can tell all that from smell alone. Seriously? Damn, remind me to take you onto a game show one of these days.” Damien shook his head in amazement. While such a trick might be useless in life- unless Noctis was planning on becoming a food taster for some king or something- it was amazing that someone’s senses could be that attuned. Damien was more than slightly jealous.

Still, Damien reasoned with himself, A skillset like that isn’t nearly worth the suicidal air-headedness. Human interactions? With bangers? Good luck with that. But Damien wasn’t one to hold back on criticism, and so he decided to voice his objections. “Why the hell would you be studying human interactions with a bunch of gangster bastards like those guys? At best, you go home without the shirt on your back. At worst, you never go home at all.” Shaking his head, Damien shrugged. “In this case, your ignorance should be cherished. There is nothing you can learn from those guys- unless you really need to boost a car or two.” Damien laughed slightly, moreso at himself with that last comment.

But then Noctis decided to switch the conversation- a move that Damien was just fine with. And this time, he had an excuse for the probing question. “Ah ah, innocent- this time. Akira, the student council president, has had me snooping all around Nadashiki for Anya, since she enjoyed the nightclub and all that. I completely sympathize with her, since I come down here all the time for the same reasons. Nadashiki is the home of gangsters, but it’s also the best place to enjoy the nightlife.” Their food arrived, and Damien offered a prayer over his before eating, muttering the words rapidly in the hopes that Noctis wouldn’t notice. “_Amen. And apparently, it’s the best place for food, too!” Damien praised as he took the first slurp of the soup. It really was quite amazing.

Noctis laughed a bit when he mentioned the 'bleeding' part. He wasn't bleeding at the moment, and he didn't intend to be bleeding later. Was that what he meant? 'I need to learn human slang some more....but I at least know he word slang...' he would think, the though alone bringing a smile to his face. He gave a wide grin when he seemed impressed by his skills. "I have grown quite fond of the food around here. And it is best to know every little thing that might be in it. You have no idea how I learned how to do this....come to think of it....I don't even know!" he said smiling once more. He was enjoying himself that night, and he was enjoying this man. If he was as nice on a usual basis as he was with Noctis right now, his potential may have the right place to go to in the future.

He nodded. He was probably right. The unsavory humans that fall prey to themselves and never realize their potential will probably not be the most fantastic variables to take notes on. "True enough. I will think of other places to go," he said. He wasn't particularly worried about his own safety, he always had the room to go back to. Though he would not mention that out loud. "I would much rather try to become knowledgeable. I don't want my research going poorly because I did not know a thing or two," he said. He wanted to learn much of this world, and the people in it. Maybe one day, he could finally unlock that secret to the ties people may share.

He nodded remembering why he met him in the first place. "Ah, so Anya was the only reason you were here. Maybe we should meet up at another area," he said smiling. It would be something nice to do. However, once his food came, his eyes snapped to the lovely soy bowl of ramen, with an egg, a thin slice of beef, and noodles. He wouldn't notice anything Damien would do in that span of time, and instead chose to take the entire bowl, and take a hearty gulp of the broth. Pure, salty, beefy goodness. It was fantastic. He practically had a new image in his eyes, though the image may take the shape of ramen. He would then take the chopsticks, and hold them properly, having to take several days to learn proper eating with chopsticks, and began to eat the noodles, one noodle in particular being far too long, and he didn't think to break off the noodle, so as he slurped, the noodles would already have a decent dent in it. Not empty, and certainly not wasted, as the noodle would make a fine addition to Noctis' palette.