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| Eat Your Hamburgers, Apollo; Midnight Dinner at Wild Duck Burger [OPEN] | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Jul 16 2016, 03:28 AM (365 Views) | |
| Icarael | Jul 16 2016, 03:28 AM Post #1 |
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Robespierre Did Nothing Wrong
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The endless stream of rumors flowing through Nagashima had many tributaries, reaching as far as the lowliest delinquents in town. Occasionally, when Itsuki Kondo ran into them at the arcade or the Justman convenience store outside Reitaku, they'd talk about the ones that made it all the way to their end. Each week brought a new, wild story; half-remembered facts and garbled truths, worn into nonsense by having washed around the river so many times. One week, the rumor that came up was that if you looked into your television screen at midnight, you could see an entirely new world behind the dead screen. The next, the rumor was about the radio towers in Nagashima: they formed an occult mantra written "in the High Speech of Old Atlantis", and the NHK was funding it for some sinister purpose. The week after that, a wild-eyed kid in a tattered faux-leather jacket burst into the Justman and babbled about how someone was kidnapping teenagers from Taiyoutono and placing them in the abandoned ruins as some sort of experiment. (Itsuki had winced at that one: it was way too close to home.) They'd had to calm him down before leaving, clearly shaken. But those were all in the past. Right now, at midnight, the most relevant rumor was the one about the 24/7 Wild Duck Burger at Matechi and its special secret midnight menu. He'd gone on a photo spree for half the day, took a jaunt into the first level of the Ruins for the other half, collapsed into bed at seven in the evening and then woke up three minutes to midnight with his stomach grumbling like a stalled engine. It was that sound, Itsuki decided, which made the old man behind him glare at his back with eyes sharp enough to cut cloth. Or maybe he just didn't like bleached hair. He failed to consider that maybe, just maybe, people generally looked down on scruffy, unwashed fellows in torn, dirty clothes holding up the line for two minutes while repeatedly asking for a Tri-Stack Nocturne Burger with extra red sauce. "Mr. Kondo, I am very sorry, but that is not part of our menu." "But... I, I'm pretty certain-- well-- that can't be right." Itsuki fidgeted, turned around. Still there. Still glaring. "I heard someone else--" It had to be true. Someone reliable at the local Justman store said the Nocturne was on one of Wild Duck's fliers; something a friend of a friend of his had picked up the other day. "It's on your fliers! Someone I know saw it once--" "I am sorry, sir, but if you have no order, please be courteous and give way for the others in line." Itsuki stared at the cashier, then at the now angrily muttering line behind him. Goddammit, why didn't they see? "Your Midnight Menu! I'm ordering from the Midnight Me--" The muttering was getting pretty loud now. He heard at least a couple of curses muttered under breath. "Sorry. I don't know what that is." The cashier stared back at Itsuki with eyes rimmed black from lack of sleep. "Please step aside." Something poked into Itsuki's back; once, twice. Kick his ass, Itsuki, Garm said. Are... are you fuckin' serious, mate? Itsuki said. You want me to beat up an old man!? I am and I ain't joking, bud. Sharp white teeth flashed through Itsuki's vision. Pushing down the impulse to lash out, he craned his head around. The old man had his cane up and was jabbing it into his spine, all the while giving him that razor-like glare. Their eyes met, and for the briefest moment Itsuki pondered if it was worth fighting the old geezer for a hamburger. Edited by Icarael, Sep 10 2016, 09:42 AM.
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| Yes | Jul 22 2016, 09:59 PM Post #2 |
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Yes, it was midnight. Yes, he craved burgers. And in triplicate, yes, he was willing to brave the backstreets for that burger. He might get an earful about being out that late, but being nigh-invincible had its perks, and gave him a newfound sense of boldness. And so, Minoru Sekigahara was third in line, behind a crotchety old man and some snaggle-haired bleach blond. Was that kid yankii? He spoke with his usual endearing social grace. "Hey, so are you going to order? Or what?" Edited by Yes, Jul 22 2016, 10:00 PM.
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| Icarael | Jul 23 2016, 11:49 AM Post #3 |
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Robespierre Did Nothing Wrong
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As Itsuki and the old man had their staredown, the muttering behind him started boiling into scrambled cries of impatience and annoyance. He couldn't make out the words but the rage was distinct enough. One of them had a voice loud and obnoxious enough to cut through the rest. "Hey, so are you going to order? Or what?" Said voice had its face right behind the old man: a pasty kid with his hair dyed white, in a scruffy T-shirt and jeans. You could probably take him, Garm said. Itsuki would have balked at that once, but the shouts and his grumbling stomach and the dull ache in his limbs were grinding his already worn patience to nothing. Itsuki left his place in the line and strode towards Minoru, fixing him with the same rheumy stare he'd been using on the old man. "I was ordering," he said. "From the midnight menu." |
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| Yes | Jul 24 2016, 11:07 AM Post #4 |
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" 'Midnight Menu?' Maybe if it were some kind of local burger joint. You're dealing with a soulless national burger chain that serves soggy fries, man. Pretty sure someone's just yanking your chain." He smirked. "Can't believe everything you hear on the internet. Plus, it looked more like you were going to beat up an old man than anything else, buddy. Free advice." In fact, from this scraggly, angry, deluded burger-goer's glazed-over eyes, Minoru was starting to get the feeling that he was next in Big Muscle's line of fire. He couldn't really call this the best first impression, but glancing back at the two people in the line behind him, the people working the graveyard shift wanted their midnight sustenance. Really, it'd be more of a surprise if people let the bleach-haired disaster have his way and stall up the line. As the old man placed his order and the sleepless cashier turned his gaze expectantly to Minoru, he moved up, blithe to whatever bluster Itsuki might have for him. "Hi. I'll take a Wild Duck burger. ...Hm." He paused to deliberate, giving a colorless look to Itsuki. "Make that two." |
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| Icarael | Jul 31 2016, 07:36 AM Post #5 |
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Robespierre Did Nothing Wrong
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Itsuki goggled at Minoru for several seconds, his brain grappling with the new information and the pangs coming from his hollow stomach. The part of his gut not grumbling had told him the "Midnight Menu" was fake, but the descriptions of tender meat patties slathered in savory red sauce had him holding on for that one chance he'd found the branch that served those burgers. "I must be sleepier than I thought," he said under his breath. Rubbing the bridge of his nose, he headed for the back of the line. Behind him, Minoru spoke up, ordering two burgers. Must be as hungry as I am, Itsuki thought. Then he realized Minoru was looking at him. "Wait... you seriously ordering for me?" Itsuki met Minoru's gaze. "You know you didn't have to do that, right?" |
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| Yes | Jul 31 2016, 09:08 PM Post #6 |
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"If you pay me back, we'll be square. it saves us both some trouble." Minoru shrugged as he stepped out of line. As he got his order, he looked inside the bag and got a big whiff of beef and glorious grease. He nodded, satisfied with the order. "Yep. Sure are two burgers. Despite the late-night patrons, the restaurant wasn't neared packed, and Minoru had no reservations in walking over to a stall and sliding in, unpacking the burgers and seeing if his new-found acquaintance was taking him up on the second burger. If he didn't plan on it, he'd at least have a lunch for tomorrow, albeit a soggy one. |
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| Icarael | Aug 13 2016, 09:59 AM Post #7 |
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Robespierre Did Nothing Wrong
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"Thanks," Itsuki said, "but I'm not interested in a pity lu--" Yet as the bags crinkled open and the smell of grease-fried beef reached his nose, he had to swallow down the drool that flooded his mouth. "You know what? Screw it. I'll take one." He sidled up to the stall Minoru was in and took the seat opposite him. The smell grew stronger as he popped open the waxy red carton and took a bite. Red sauce trickled down one knuckle but he ignored it and took another, savoring the way the meat mingled with the crisp onions, tomatoes and lettuce. "Goddamn, I needed that." he said, when he could speak again. He put down his burger, already one-thirds finished. The air conditioner hummed overhead, muffling the generic pop song being piped through the speakers. The few eating here were two kinds of people: one dressed in slacks and polos bearing the logos of other companies, the other clad in a riot of color, bands and brands on their T-shirts and jackets. Both the wage workers and the teenagers from cram school had their bags piled up beside them or shoved under their seats. Itsuki recognized some of the logos: quite a few of the polos bore the blue-and-white scales of Justman on their lapels. One of them he recognized from the other day: a big fellow with a shaven head and keg-like belly. He'd helped manage the guy ranting about crazy experiments. "This the only joint in Nagashima that's open twenty four-seven?" he said, just to start a conversation. Edited by Icarael, Sep 10 2016, 09:48 AM.
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| Yes | Aug 20 2016, 02:09 AM Post #8 |
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"I mean, no. If you roam around, you'll find a lot of joints everywhere that are open into the wee hours of the night. But Wild Duck is one of those places that actually has staff at odd hours like this. So there's that." Minoru chewed more methodically than his starved acquaintance, pausing between bites to chew and savor his cheap acquisition. He shrugged. "Convenience stores and fast food joints like this, mostly. You're probably not going to bump into something classy this time of night." |
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| Icarael | Aug 27 2016, 12:22 PM Post #9 |
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Robespierre Did Nothing Wrong
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Itsuki let his brain chew on Minoru's words as he bit into his burger. Most of the places he'd gone to in the dead of night were cheap ramen shops and coffeehouses, places where he could fill up on something hot without too much hassle or cost. That much matched up with what his fellow diner was saying. "Do I look like the kinda guy who goes for fancy?" he said. "Too much frou-frou crap makes me sick. No fucking thanks, man." He made a face, sticking his tongue out. Edited by Icarael, Aug 27 2016, 09:55 PM.
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| Yes | Sep 24 2016, 09:39 PM Post #10 |
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"Never said anything about what you look like, man. Just the kind of stuff you're going to find in the graveyard hours is going to be this. So if you ever found yourself in a situation where you're craving, well, sucks." Minoru shrugged. "So do you usually rove around midnight, or is this a special occasion?" |
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