expiationmeme | (meme) TELL THE TRUTH...

[Douman falls silent for a moment. Behind the mask his lips are pressed into an unhappy thin line, eyes narrowed and strained with barely contained emotions.

What he wants to do.

What he really wants to do is . . . . How does he even answer this truthfully?!]

If I have trust in you..., it's me I don't have any faith in. I'm perfectly fine with showing people who don't care about me my face, because I don't care about them either, but if... if......

[If one he cared about were to see and turn avail with disgust, it'd...... !!]

Look, there's nothing special under there. It's just a mouth, a nose, a pair or eyes, the usual youkai shit- I'll be a let-down.

It's not like I'm expecting to find Brad Pitt under the mask, y'know.

[As to what they are expecting... having some idea now of what youkai are like, they're well aware it could be anything. But they've seen enough glimpses to tell that Nura has a normal chin, at least.]

Take it from a shapeshifter, beauty's skin deep. I'm really curious about it, but you don't have to indulge me.

[He can't just tell Morph what the real problem is, he just can't. They lack the cultural context to even just begin scratching on the tip of the iceberg that is understanding what being Douman Ashiya in Japan is. Hells, there isn't even any usable comparison to make from their own culture that Douman can think of!]

Spare me the platitudes. Look, I's not saying that I'm ugly -- somebody once even called me a hunk, though I had to look up what that means -- but I'm also not... Look, would any sane person of your world date that Magneto of yours??

[That's not even close to comparing well, but hell, maybe if he can wing it from them considering that idea absurd to something that could remotely relate to the him-]

Oh, you're a hunk? Now I really wanna see!

[Sorry, that's just the truth, though Morph does sound awfully enthusiastic about it.]

Rogue had a fling with Magneto, so you oughta ask her. People are more complicated than 'good' or 'bad', y'know. Magneto actually lead our team for a while there. He was trying to be better.

But you're the guy with the entire youkai school, so it sounds to me like you are already better.

Hah! [he scoffs at the idea and the memory it brings with it] Ranmaru-san only called me that because he wanted to get something out of me again. He always plays games like that.

[So often that any he has shot any chances of Douman ever taking any of his playful passes or 'confessions' serious anymore. That stupid crow tengu will just rob your wallet the moment you start getting soft with him.

Anyway...]

What. So you guys not only wear underwear-shaped armor to battle, you even sleep with your enemy? And here I thought us youkai like to not make any sense. But seriously, is she into older men?

[Oops, he hadn't meant to say that out loud. Seems like afterthoughts and this truth nonsense don't mix well.]

Realizing Seimei's dream is my revenge to him. I never had any 'honorable' intentions, I just wanted to kick certain people right where it really hurt.

That doesn't mean he was lying about it.

[Morph can be patient, but now they want a peek more than ever. This isn't discouraging them in the slightest.]

Magneto wasn't our enemy at the time. Up until recently, I didn't even think he would seriously hurt anyone on the team. ... But yeah, that one is a given for her. [SORRY ROGUE...]

So what if your intentions weren't honorable? You still ended up helping a lot of youkai. That's impressive, and it's doing a lot of good no matter what your reasons were.

He's a conman through and through.

[That's neither a real dismissal nor admitting to anything. Mainly because Douman doesn't even know what he could admit to here. Does he like Ranmaru? Yes. Would he like it if the bastard decided to properly stay around for good? Yes. Does he regularly want to shoot him to the moon or sell him off as vulture bait because he's driving Douman up a wall? That's a yes too. Their whatever they have is just a case of needing to keep somebody a friend because they know you too well.

...But he knows that the tengu has his own plans.]

Uh? I guess you could say that's why so many eventually decided to follow me. Though I'm more than willing to bet that most act out of self-interest just as much as how they might like anything I do. I mean, I never wanted to form a Hyakki Yagyō, it just kind of happened....

Erm, so does that mean that he did hurt one of you eventually?

Just happened? ... I want to see the Xavier Institute be a real school, too. Right now we just train people to join the team. I'm pretty sure the Professor wants to go in that direction, it's just been hard to make it happen.

I'm envious of what you youkai have. It's hard not to be.

[There's a short pause, and then,]

He did. Logan stabbed him during a high-stakes fight, and Magneto damn near killed him in retaliation. I wasn't there to see it happen, but the aftermath wasn't pretty.

That sounds like there's a very complicated story.

[He shakes his head with a soft sight.]

I never tried to gather any fighters. That shit's just way more trouble than it's ever worth it.

[Douman's own power has always been more than enough. So rather than random people getting between the fronts, he'd rather have them hang back and protect themselves and their homes.]

Hyakki Yagyō isn't the name of my school. That's Hyakki Academy, the oldest and most prestigious school in the world of the youkai. I own it along with the island it's build on, including the city, mall, amusement park and all.

Yeah, it is. If you want to hear it sometime, I can fill you in.

[It does seem like Nura's taken a different approach on his world, so the idea that he hasn't tried to recruit a fighting force isn't all the strange, but as for the rest of it-]

Wait a sec! You own the entire island, too? When were you going to tell me you're rich?!

Never? It's not like it matters here either way.

[Douman shrugs his shoulders, not looking at all bothered or sorry for withholding info about him. There's a lot he doesn't tell people on the regular, after all.]

Maybe another time. I still need to get an idea of who's behind all those names you keep dropping before I could really appreciate such a story.

Doesn't matter?! I don't know if you're playing humble, or if you're just that dedicated to being a closed book. Anyone else in your position would be bragging about it!

[Morph knows that they're far chattier in general - hence all the stuff they've already shared to this point - but still!]

What's next, huh? Am I gonna find out you have two evil twins and you're a secretly a rock star in your spare time?

No. I think that there were some siblings at some point, but they have been as dead as the rest of my family for such a long time that I sincerely doubt that you'd even find dust leftover from them.

[Douman shrugs his shoulders again. It's no big deal, is it?]

Bragging would only attract gold diggers and thieves. So no thanks. Besides, I put nearly all the money I own into my school's upkeeping. Oh, and I can't keep a tone to save my life.

Okay, okay. I'll take you at your word that you don't have anything else that wild up your sleeve.

[He's not changing Morph's mind about his altruism, though, if most of the money's going right back into the school.]

There is plenty about me that'd surprise you. But sadly no big car or luxurious houses.

Good thing I like surprises. [Well, the mundane ones, anyway...]

Does this mean I should start buying you a more expensive brand of beer?

There are better ones than the stuff you get everywhere?

Oh sure. There's at least a couple of different varieties here.

........

[Being mildly poked fun at vs. getting a better brew for even less. What a devious choice to force unto him.]

I won't say no to being treated.

Good. We could keep trying out the brands here until we decide which one's the best.

...Fine. Then I shall consider it a deal.

[Somebody is trying very hard here to not let their elation show, and it isn't Morph.]

(meme) TELL THE TRUTH...

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