inordertobelieve

[Well, with the purple toilet paper now soon to be an imminent reality of their daily lives for a short while, Light merely looks at the roll in Teru's hand and mentally shakes his head.]

Is that a change you'd like to see for the future? No more ridiculous toilet paper?

[His tone isn't serious, though he doesn't sound overtly amused either.]

[ Teru stares down at the rolls himself, gloomily. ]

... good people won't design these.

[ He's probably not serious, but he sure sounds it. Apparently in the new world, people simply will have better taste than this automatically.

With a final effort of determination, he finally puts the toilet paper into their basket and accepts their fate. ]

[That actually gets Light to chuckle somewhat.]

Would you wholly embrace it if it were books instead of lips then?

[It's hard not to see the contents of the basket and immediately play a mental game of 'which item doesn't belong' though and seeing the toilet paper nestled next to the salt like the flamboyant cousin that nobody invited to the family reunion only intensifies the desire to shake his head as they finally move away from that aisle.]

[ .......... ]

Tell me one good reason why I would want books associated with this particular activity.

[ They belong nowhere near his butt, thank you very much. ]

I don't have one. But when you're given two choices, neither of which are particularly appealing....

[He frowns and trails off.]

Ah.. we're forgetting the cheese.

Right. I wouldn't want to miss it for breakfast tomorrow.

[ Teru is all too happy to just quit talking about toilet paper and head over to the correct cooled shelf to get his favourite brand of cheese. Luckily, that is actually in stock. ]

That's it then, yes?

[Light glances down at the basket another time just to see if anything seems missing, but nothing particular comes to mind. He starts walking towards the cashier, knowing full well Teru would stop him if they were in fact leaving things out.]

[ Mikami raises an eyebrow. ]

For our mundane needs, yes, but I would recommend getting the eel as well.

[A pause.]

Why don't you find the eel and we'll meet at the cash register?

I'll be quick about it.

[ It's a completely unnecessary promise that he'll do well, but he does indeed quickly head over to the frozen goods now. ]

[Having been spared from the prolongation of an awkward moment, Light merely heads over to the register, dignity intact. He exchanges platitudes with the cashier, but it's obvious enough when someone feels uncomfortable around him and the small talk dies sooner than decorum typically demands. Teru returns to the cashier just as the second to last item is being scanned.]

Fast indeed.

[After all the items are scanned and put into plastic bags, it's worthy of note that the cashier looks at Teru rather than Light when he informs them of the total amount owed.]

[ Teru is getting used to these kinds of reactions by now, but he can't help his anger every time. He wants to speak up, he wants to correct the cashier on how much of a fool he's being to disregard the very person who will grant him salvation, to be so superficial, so....

But he can't, so all he does is take out his wallet and quietly hand over the amount demanded of him. He would have paid either way, given the nature of the day, but now it leaves a bitter aftertaste. The most goodbye the cashier gets from him is a nod with a cold look.

Teru grabs one of the bags and turns his attention to Light. ]

That went smoothly, we'll have plenty of time at home now.

[Light opens his mouth to say that he'd pay for their groceries, but decides aganst it and walks to the end of the register in silence. The cashier's reaction is entirely to be expected, and even though Light can't quite blame him for it, it's still pathognomonic of a greater societal ill that Light has grown to loathe. He picks up the other plastic bag wordlessly, pride intact.]

For the most part, yes. [He begins walking outside, and the store greeter from before bows them out.] We can't let Sayu in the apartment until after the purple nightmare is over.

[He's half joking, probably.]

[ Teru takes that comment more seriously than any human being should, but that's because he knows how Sayu will not let some things go when it comes to her brother. Imagining an eternity of God being taunted over toilet paper.........

Thankfully this package is smaller than standard size. ]

That might be up to a month..... maybe we need to invite her out for lunch to appease her in the meantime.

[Light raises an eyebrow. He shouldn't be surprised Teru has an actual estimate of how long that might be.]

You make it sound as though Sayu is a deity in the fashion of the ancient Greek ones that we need to bring offerings and tributes to.

[Though he's more clearly joking with that comment.] She's been wanting to go to one of those new live-music cafés in Aoyama. As that's a step up Ryuga Hideki concerts, I suppose that'll do in the interim.

[ ... live music cafés sound like a layer of hell, but he has to agree that they should be a step above converts, if nothing else. ]

That's worth a thought then.

[ Not a thought that he wanted to have, but ah well. ]

If you'd believe public opinion the whimsical nature of teenage girls can be compared to Greek Gods anyway. Though I'd accredit her with more sanity, actually.

I told her that going to those kind of trendy places with your older brother and his boyfriend instead of your friends isn't 'cool' but she told me to stop being self deprecating.

[A pause. In the past, she'd have told him to stop making up dumb excuses, but as he reflects on this, he supposes the reason for the change is obvious enough, and after internally sighing he makes a mental note not to make offhandedly bitter comments around Sayu.]

In any case, that's my kid sister you're coming dangerously close to slandering there, Teru. Even a toddler is less capricious than Zeus.

Most teenagers are capricious to a degree. Saying as much isn't slander. She handles it very well after all.

[ The weeks after the big reveal, he'd never have been able to handle his backpedaling so casually and now there is a special kind of joy in having these conversation despite Light being God, with God. How strange to think that something he used to enjoy for so long already had now turned into privilege nobody else can dream of. ]

[Light raises an eyebrow here.]

Here's your obligatory reminder that we're both teenagers as well.... though you'll be considered an adult soon enough.

[There's a half smile on his lips here:] I suppose this means I ought to enjoy every moment of capriciousness on your part before that comes to a tragic end, huh.

[ Teru stopped feeling like a teenager years ago, but legally Light has the right of it of course. Troubling. ]

Considering that I have tried to minimize any such thing, I am sure you'll hardly notice a difference.

Probably not.

[He looks back at the street.]

You're more steadfast now than I suspect Matsuda has been in his lifetime.

.... maybe that's one silver lining. You didn't have to deal with him while he was an adolescent.

[ He says this with doubt in his voice - the kind of behavior is doubtlessly worse on a supposed adult after all. ]

Either way, he's not worth our breath today.

You have a point, but I doubt he'd have been much worse than Yamamoto.

[Light frowns. Yamamoto isn't someone he's thought about for a long time. That only makes sense, considering how many twists and turns his life has taken since high school graduation, it's strange to think that Yamamoto had arguably been his best friend a year ago. A part of Light wonders briefly what the guy is up to, but an even larger part of him is up to his neck in indifference. It takes two people to maintain a friendship, and the resulting message is clear: they both have better things to do with their time now. And rather harshly, Light thinks to himself it's for the best. Naturally, the same goes for Suzuhara.]

But let's talk about something else like you said.

[Nostalgia is annoying and i hate it.]

[ Then why were you even friends with Yamamoto? is a thought that crosses Teru's mind, but that's a question he'll never ask. In the end, maybe he's happier not knowing. ]

Is Hagiwara-sensei doing the required class this year again? I was hoping he wouldn't so we could exchange information on different professor biases...

[He shakes his head.]

It's Uchino-sensei this year. From what I've heard, he's allegedly a closet Marxist. Considering this is Intoduction to Psychology, I doubt he'll deviate much from the textbook, but if he starts praising the proletariat, you'll be the first to know.

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