recolle | Intermezzo [Open]

WHO: Luke Triton and OPEN
WHERE: Throughout Recolle
WHEN: March!
WHAT: Ruffians, interviews, and other things.
WARNINGS: Reckless violin endangerment

News at 7;
[ Luke Triton had a tape recorder in his breast pocket, and a notepad and pen in hand as he wandered the city streets: a short British boy in shorts and a little blue cap. He had the air of someone trying to be as close to a professional journalist as possible. ]

Pardon me, do you have a spare moment? I'm looking for an interview subject.

Plucking great;
[ Luke was walking home carefully, looking both ways before entering the intersection. It was a bit of a bother to walk home, truth be told; the instrument case at his side made negotiating crowds a bit difficult. But at least he didn't play the bass.

Just then, a small crowd of boys ran by and jostled him; the case fell from his hands and onto the sidewalk with a sickening skidding noise. ]

Oh no, my violin!

[ Before he could get to it, however, one of the taller boys grabbed its handle and hoisted it over his head. ]

Give that back, you!

Wildcard;
(A placeholder for whatever and whenever!)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Damn, okay that didn't go as smoothly as he'd hoped and now Ritsu owed Luke a serious apology later. Meanwhile though, he had to keep riling them up to make sure he's their number one target now! So he gives a brief split-second apology nod to the other kid, thinking audibly acknowledging him would bring their attention back, and high-tailed it to where he hoped he could find a thick crowd. He paid attention to the clattering of steps behind him... he needed to round a guess if any one of the jerks stayed behind with Luke. ]

[ Luke hauled himself up and ran, though not in the same direction -- he was carried by the flow of traffic up a pedestrian walkway crossing over the same street that Ritsu had reached.

A man was carrying a great box of surplus party beads, likely leftover from the Founders' Day celebration; in a trice, Luke had snatched a large handful and hurled them down at Ritsu's pursuers, some of whom slipped on the necklaces. But he couldn't stop for long, not with his pursuers after him. ]

[ Ritsu hears the groans of some of the teens as their rumps collided with the floor, serves them right, but that's still not enough justice served. He tries to steal a glance up at his savior, feeling that it's still Luke, but he really doesn't have the time to further look when the first attempt doesn't let their eyes meet. ]

Excuse me! I'm sorry! Out of the way!

[ His natural accent slips out in the hurried way he says it, and it's really more of a formality, given Ritsu's reflexes and present lack of height make it convenient enough to go under a poor, shocked lady's armful of groceries. Gotta live life on the edge! Ritsu's initial plan is a getaway over some sort of fence, but an authority like any sort of officer would also be a welcome sight about now. Or maybe he has to play up the ruckus to get attention...? Acting's never been his strong point. ]

[ There was, in fact, a meter maid with a chocobo making her way down a line of cars not far down the road. Luke bolted for her, taking the steps down two or three at a time. ]

Miss! Miss!

[ The officer looked startled. "What? What's wrong?" ]

[ Good thing Ritsu didn't see that Luke, he would have lectured you on proper stair safety even if this situation in itself wasn't safe at all. ]

Ack!

[ Speaking of which--Ritsu just got grabbed by the collar of his shirt when an inconvenient cross way made him stop from colliding into someone, and his legs dangled as he struggled to break free. The crew could relish their short-term victory while gasping for their breath, Ritsu quickly scanned for the safest direction to toss his phone; never mind if it chips a little with an unceremonious clatter to the floor, justice is more important. ]

Th-there's a fight down that way! A whole bunch of older boys!

[ The officer hustled out in Ritsu's direction, walkie-talkie in hand. "Hey, you there! What's going on?"

Well, blast. Most of the crowd hesitated; it looked like there was only one cop, but who knew if there were more around the corner... ]

Edited 2017-03-07 00:56 (UTC)

[ Seeing the officer come to his rescue, Ritsu doesn't suppress a smug smirk. He doesn't look them in the eye, but his addressing is clear. ]

Game over for you, huh?

[ Yeah, he's as much a cheeky brat underneath that wannabe-adult exterior. ]

[ At this point, the bulk of them simply bolted, though one briefly lingered behind the others -- this was the boy who had taken Luke's violin earlier.

"That's what you think, you little emo. You'd better watch out for next time," he spat, before joining the others.

Luke arrived a few steps behind the officer. ]

Are you all right?

[ Ritsu actualy takes a moment, before responding, uncharacteristically dazed compared to the confident boy earlier. ]

Yes, I've... dealt with more dangerous, before. [ He doesn't know why, but he feels sure of it. Why doesn't he remember entirely what happened and who it was, though? ]

Thank you. [ In all that ruckus, he never did catch Luke's name. ] And... here, Miss Officer. [ He draws out his phone and opens the picture, thankful he didn't have to go and throw it in the tense moment. ] I imagine it'd be easier for reports them to their schools to be by you instead of me. I'll send it to you.

[ The officer raised an eyebrow. "You might as well text it to the official police reporting number, then. Here, I'll give it to you. What's your name? What exactly happened here?" ]

Me? I'm Luke Triton. And I was just going home from school when those hooligans snatched my violin!

[ Luke still sounded a bit indignant about it, actually. ]

Then, er... this fellow showed up.

[ Ritsu would have to introduce himself. ]

Ritsu Kageyama. I moved here a few months ago; to be frank, I hate bullies.

[ He goes ahead and sends the picture, not looking up. ]

I basically threatened them with photographic evidence in exchange for surrendering the violin, but they didn't comply peacefully, and I overestimated myself.

[ Though, to be frank, he had no intention of really deleting it after witnessing the mess. Ritsu sheepishly turns to Luke. ]

Um... sorry for the violin clatter, you didn't get bruised catching it, did you?

Oh... to be honest, I hadn't noticed.

[ Luke had been way too busy trying to ensure the safety of his instrument to be much concerned with himself. But now that he had a moment, he took stock of himself.

Though he wasn't bruised, his shirtsleeve was a bit torn, and some skin had been scraped off the side of his hand by one of the metal clasps on the case. ]

I'm all right. Just a little scratch.

[ This all seemed not too out of the ordinary to the officer, who took notes but didn't seem overly surprised by the description of what had happened. Some of the older teenagers every year got out of hand; it looked like this season was none too different.

"All right. Luke, you can come down to the station to make a full report. I'm assuming you want to get it on record?" ]

Well... erm...

[ Hmm, would this get him in more or less hot water ]

[ In a way, it saddened Ritsu how the woman's reaction showed that bullying was as common here as it was anywhere else in the world. What a sad state it is when people abuse their power... ]

You know, I could go for you instead. My memory is sharp, Miss.

[ Ritsu's offer to Luke is straightforward, the idea doesn't seem to trouble him at all. He'd be satisfied getting the ruffians penalties, but even better would be if it reached the level of expulsion. Directing his gaze back to Luke he does a small, apologetic bow. ]

It... could also be considered my paying you back for the scrape.

Actually, ma'am, I'd rather that my parents not know I was involved. You'd have to contact them, wouldn't you?

[ The officer also didn't seem surprised that Luke didn't want to file a report, but she did seem a bit resigned. "Are you sure? They could have really done some damage."

Luke hesitated. ]

Yes, I'm sure. They've got enough to worry about at the moment. I don't want to get anyone else involved, either, if I can help it.

[ Ritsu catches the subtle hint, and complies with some faint disappointment. He wanted to see this through, but if the original victim didn't care so much, then the police could handle the rest. Looking at Luke for a second, then back to the officer, he nods. ]

If that's how it is, then that is fine with me. Keep up the good work Miss; we shouldn't let bigheaded kids pushing smaller ones around being the norm.

Intermezzo [Open]

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whoops sorry

it's alright!

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