2742/Absolutely Haunted

Absolutely Haunted
Date of Scene:	21 August 2025
Location:	KFC - Karaage Fried Chicken
Synopsis:	It's Mamoru and Masato's birthday month, and they're out enjoying the last day of some limited edition chicken wings together and hanging out. But the real gift is that Masato is apparently in possession of a Haunted House. Again.
Cast of Characters:	Nephrite, Mamoru Chiba

---

Nephrite has posed:
It was a joy that had been lost in all the New Moon and Wicked Lady business, forfeited to youma fights and chicken-shaped spoils for the rooftop garden, but at last, Masato had wings.

Chicken wings, that is. It is the last day of their limited time Nagoya-style Tebasaki wings, and Masato has ordered seven boxes, and already gotten half way through one of them.

Sitting, enjoying the view of the Testarossa from the window, ignoring the fact that the stone hen from last time is absent due to being on their roof, at home, with all her new stone chicks. It's air conditioned. It's quiet. Everything seems to be fine.

Which is probably why Masato keeps looking back over his shoulder and generally keeping his wits about him. He almost doesn't trust it.

He looks to Mamoru. "I don't know what it is," Sauce is licked off of a thumb, "But after that run of food youma, I just can't relax in restaurants, anymore."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Mamoru slouches a little in his chair, glancing from the missing stone chicken's spot to Masato and looking incredibly sheepish. "Food youma are truly the funniest. Then bird youma. I mean obviously not to the people who get coated in ick and feathers but like..." he gestures with his free hand. The other is literally holding a chicken wing with chopsticks and an iron grip.

"I'd rather food youma than Koan, you know? And, now we've got some more people with food attacks on our side, I hear. It's-- I mean, this feeling? That you're having?"

He leans in. "That's the feeling of being on a date with Chiba Mamoru," he says, dead serious, and then he straightens up with a shiteating grin. "Seriously though! My dates get interrupted more often than not, no matter who they're with."

Nephrite has posed:
Masato stares at Mamoru for a long moment, and then his eyes shift slightly sidewards. This feeling... is being on a date with Chiba Mamoru. A slow nod takes him as understanding blooms. "That... makes a lot of sense, actually."

Another quick scan of their surrounds for good measure, before he takes another bit of delicious wingy goodness. "It's a crime this is the last day to get this flavour." He turns the wing around some. "I'm going to get Mako-chan to make sauce like this... I don't think I'd mind fighting a youma that tasted like this. That's just free food." ANother bite.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"Mmmnnnnah, I don't think I'd be into eating food youma," the boy with the red-tipped hair says, fully considering it. "Not when I know where they've been. It's like they say about eating at WcDonald's after you've worked there." That said, he puts the wing on Masato's plate and picks up a piece of popcorn karaage with his hashi and *omf*.

He tries some of the sauce on the next bite, sticking the popcorn chicken into the wings and their goop. But he also says, "Make sure you save some for Mako-chan then. Can't eat it all and ask her to match the flavor."

Nomf nomnom. His eyes settle on the Testarossa, glasses glinting on the way but not retaining the glare, and then he blinks. "Shit, did I miss your birthday?"

Nephrite has posed:
"If it's made fresh in front of me, and it's particularly delicious..." Masato also considered it more fully, tilting his head to and fro. "If you came at a food youma with a fork and a wild look in your eyes, that might intimidate them into giving an opening."

In quick succession he's polished off another wing. But the talk of his birthday gives him pause, lifting a brow. "Not yet," Masato clicks his tongue, rolling his eyes as if Mamoru will understand-- he won't-- "And it's a new moon in Virgo."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Of course he won't. And because Masato knows he won't, Mamoru keeps eye contact with him while he takes out his phone. "Hey Siri," he says conversationally.

"What's up?" comes from his phone.

"What's a new moon in Virgo?" he asks.

"A new moon in Virgo," comes out of his phone pleasantly, "is a new moon that occurs when the sun and moon align in the zodiac sign Virgo. It marks the beginning of the monthly lunar cycle and is associated with a period of renewal. As Virgo is associated with health and wellness, a new moon in this sign emphasizes taking care of our bodies and minds."

"Ah. Thanks," he tells his phone, then shuts it off and pockets it. He looks at Neph with his eyebrows up. "So you're finally getting your period?"

Nephrite has posed:
Masato's eyes glaze over while Mamoru has Siri do this. He continues to stare at Mamoru, in a mixture of both exceptional patience and mild exasperation, knowing that it is both a genuine attempt to understand while also taking the piss.

"And all the associated cramping." He returns to a wing, chewing it with a small shake of his head. "This new moon is unique. Squared with Uranus and transiting Gemini."

Masato, in a bid to avoid more delegation to the phone, gestures the wing. "It's a bit... unpredictable," He grimaced, "This is the time where a lot of my visions should assert themselves and I'll need to address them while the energy is high and with a positive outlook, if I want things to turn out for the better."

Harder to do, with the Fade rumbling about in the back of their heads, but more pointedly, this was about his father and future.

"My choices now will make an impact and I see that I'm being pushed to take the road less travelled. Innovation, progress... transformation." Masato cleared his throat, "But in the shadow of it, irritibility, quick temper, knowing when to walk away."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Even odds whether Mamoru's actually parsing or retaining any of this, but he's got a look of endless affection on his face as he listens to Masato's voice, at least. And eats more chicken. And shifts in his seat.

But then he puts his food down and crosses his arms on the table, leaning over them a little. A lazily stable configuration. "Your choices always make an impact," he says, though. "Would it make things easier or harder for your thoughts about the future if I like... created a job for you? I mean, you already have one but you can't tell your dad you're one of the elite four knights of the crown prince of Earth."

Nephrite has posed:
"I don't know if anything will get his approval, at this point." Masato says honestly, because he has thought about it-- over and under and backwards, he has thought about it. "I have an idea for what I want to do. Mako-chan seems to approve, as well. It suits us. But I realise it would be the final straw for him. He didn't contact me during Obon,. I'm not really expecting a call for my birthday, either."

He reaches for his drink, chilled tea, and takes a long sip to cleanse his mouth. Sapphires eyes turn to his friend.

"The Setagaya House is still in limbo... I half-lied and told him there was an infestation that needed cleaning out, first. It's gotten worse." If it sounds ominously worded, that's because it is. "I was wondering if he'd sell it to me, but then I would have no way to explain the money. He would refuse to take anything he knew I got dishonestly."

After a long moment, he chances, "Do you think you could buy my house?"

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Mamoru brightens at the last, then stops mid-brightening and frowns, looking thoughtful. "Honestly I'm not sure I can get enough liquid asset in one place in a hurry right now. In another six months to a year, maybe. If you need it bought now, is it all right if I split it with someone? Coco-chan, maybe, or the Outers? Just until we can pay them back."

He pulls his pineapple-lychee soda pop closer and drinks some -- there's still too much to be able to slurp it obnoxiously yet. "And like... if you want me to set shit up for you, I'm positive I can charm your dad. Don't worry, I'd dye my hair back to black first."

Nephrite has posed:
"Splitting it with me, or anyone else is fine. I've still got my offshore to lean on, I can match you if nobody else does. But I have to do something about it soon, or he'll take it out of my hands."

Masato shook his head, sighing a little. "The irony is, I could probably sell off the old mansion for the land value. I was thinking of doing that later, using the funds to start my venture-- I want to get into the wedding business." He ifted his tea again, hovering before his mouth. "I don't know what it is, everytime I think about it, something stops me. Nostalgia, secrets, Remnant possible dangers... Whatever it is, something tells me not to let it go."

All this unfinished business with property. It needed to be sorted. Masato makes a face, and drinks, setting cup down to pluck up another wing.

"Either way. I know the old bastard isn't going to sell it to me, or anyone he thinks is an involved criminal connected to me. You'd need to be very charming, and have very black hair."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"Places are important," Mamoru says simply, and he leans back to lift one hand, then place it carefully on the tabletop, fingertips touching-- and he makes a deliberate show of using his power, and a faint line of glowing gold light pulses out from each fingertip, making topographical holographic ripples above the tabletop, down its legs.

And then he whips his hand back and looks in alarm at the table, then moves himself and his tray of food ... over one. He points at where he was sitting a second ago and explains, "Cursed seat. Don't sit there. Anyway, we can sort out who pays what later. For now, let me touch your house and tell you why you can't let it go, or, why it's okay to. You have unfinished business there, like a ghost, and getting rid of it won't fix that, it'll only unmoor you."

Then he smiles and it's thin. "Oh my hair can be very black. And I mean, I'm Endymion, how charming can I be?"

Nephrite has posed:
Masato gave a curious look to the cursed seat. Hesitantly, he reached for his tea again and poured a little bit on it until there was a small, suspicious puddle. Nobody would be sitting in that, now.

"I did give the mansion a thorough combing over, but you should check it out to be sure. I wasn't in the best state of mind the first time... and it's a lot more delapidated than I was propping it up to be." Being hopped up on Dark Energy and bombastic with his magic and illusions had, at the time, produced a fullness to the entire affair that was quasi-materialised. "Even the pines around it, and the mist. All fake."

Masato took down another bite, though he frowned as he chewed. "The Setagaya Property, though..." Sapphire eyes turned to Mamoru. "That place is absolutely haunted. I thought I was just feeling a way at first, because of the memory issues and the sentiments. And I know it sounds exactly like me, to say my house is haunted, but--"

He waved his hand in a rolling fashion, and shrugged. "There's a power there, and it's growing, and nothing I've been doing seems to be working. I think I might be making it worse. I've had to start being in henshin just to work on the upper floor."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Mamoru's eyes positively gleam like Masato has just given him an absolutely delightful birthday present of a bunch of his favorite sweets and he doesn't have to share them. "Hauuuunted?" he asks, and his fingers are steepled. "Like really haunted or like Pyrite has come back? Some kind of yokai? Can we go? Can we go now?" He starts packing up his chicken and wiping his hands on napkins and drinking more of his soda. "Is it a dark power, does it need purification, do we need Wako-san again?"

Nephrite has posed:
"Very haunted." Masato assures him, with a another sigh. "You're loving this. I was meant to get you to look at things months ago, but then everything else..."

Masato shouldn't be surprised. He's not, actually, he knows this is exactly Mamoru's bread and butter. Even so. "I'm leaning yokai, but it could be... something I did and forgot about, since I left. Maybe both. It could be connected to my mother-- knock wood. It's dangerous, for sure... But the specifics are hard to pin down."

He starts to finish of his last wing, he'll take the other boxes to go. "Purification might be on the cards. It's resistant to most other things I've tried, and at this point, I think I'm inadvertantly feeding it. I can't work it out. I've been away for a bit, but I gave Izou this bonzai to treat a while back... it's in the Shed, in isolation." He offered him a look. "It's gotten worse. The more the activity in the house ramps up, the sicker the tree."