Interlude #3: Dollars Internet Chat

Shizuo has never used the Dollars membership to join the chat before. He wonders what it will be like, or if he will have anything to say. Could his nickname be more obvious? Adrenaline...who would guess that...

Tanaka Tarou: Typhoons happen in the summer, right?

Saika: From June to November.

Tanaka Tarou: Bakyura...

Bakyura: Yeah, nothing happens in Ikebukuro during the winter.

—You have a point there.

Saika: Is this "sarcasm"?

Bakyura: It might be?

Saika: Huh?

Adorenarin: Look, Ike's never normal.

Tanaka Tarou: As in, you mean,

—"I Like Ike?"

It followed that if Saika (Anri) was here, then the other two on the chat were probably Masaomi and Mikado...

How did Mikado manage to misunderstand me? Oh well.

Adorenarin: No, I meant Ike short for Ikebukuro. Where did that misunderstanding come from?

Tanaka Tarou: I don't know, I saw it on a sign somewhere...?

Bakyura: Where in the world did you come from? China?

—Massaka, can't be

—China tried to shut off Google too many times.

Tanaka Tarou: *Groans* That's not funny, Bakyura. I haven't watched the news on the issue myself, but you've got to have misunderstood something...

These kids. That's Masaomi, he's even more impertinent online than in person.

Tanaka Tarou: Actually, what does "I Like Ike" even refer to?

Adorenarin: An American president.

—Dwight Eisenhower, but they called him Ike.

Saika: ...

Bakyura: The bomb-dropper?

—I NEVER KNEW!

Tanaka Tarou: *headdesk* O/=|_

Adorenarin: No, he was the president after Truman

—Ike is the one who ordered the bombs as deterrents, while he was still a general. The presidents though — Rosie built 'em, Truman sent 'em, our man Ike mopped it up.

Shizuo had once thought up that ditty to help him remember while studying US History via the History channel while he had been in the States. It played in his head at odd times. Which was weird, he usually didn't dwell on WWII subjects much, although it was quite relevant to Japan's more recent history.

Tanaka Tarou: What you learn in America...

Adorenarin: Doesn't stay in America. Or it shouldn't, anyway.

Saika: An American saying?

Adorenarin: After a fashion. "What you do in Vegas, stays in Vegas," but it means something a bit more sinister.

—I had an internship in America once, you know. Courtesy of my brother's connections and an English test.

Saika: How was it?

Adorenarin: Boring. No, not really.

Saika: Uh-huh

Adorenarin: I'm not sure how to describe it...it was very different.

And nice. It was an interesting experience to awe people with my intellect rather than my strength...

Saika: Where's Vegas?

Bakyura: Go use Google, Chiney.

Adorenarin: Nevada, United States.

Tanaka Tarou: Please, Bakyura, no slurs on the chats or message boards...

—I mean, I know you don't know anything really about the issue and you just want to be funny, but just stop, all right?

—Speaking of which, to be perfectly fair, I should have reprimanded you for threatening Kanra last week *sweatdrop* I have to get more serious about this!

Shizuo felt a bit sorry for the kid. Mikado was a naturally precocious as a leader, but he was curiously quite timid around his friends and yet completely loyal. It was tough, but you had to learn how to negotiate society sometime.

Bakyura: Sorry, Tanaka. Forgot the manager was here ;-)

Saika: It's alright. You're still new, aren't you?

Adorenarin: And you'll still be new if you keep breaking rules, newbie! *shows teeth*

At least here he could back up Mikado.

Shizuo always found it easy to show his teeth to Masaomi. Perhaps it was because Masaomi never showed fear. He took threats in stride, adjusted his behavior slightly, and carried right on, testing the envelope. Shizuo had been rather amused and honored when he learned that Masaomi had warned Mikado so very strongly against pissing Shizuo off at the beginning of his stay in Ikebukuro. The level of serious respect had surprised him.

Bakyura: Gomennasai, gomennasai!

Tanaka Tarou: Thanks, Adorenarin.

"Thanks." No problem, thought Shizuo, amused again. The signs of a leader. He noticed.

Mikado always sounded so sweet, humble, and grateful. He didn't need to be. Mikado's lack of self-consciousness in that regard was charming. He actually recognized it when people helped him, and never failed to communicate that he had received a gift when others might think the matter was too simple or small and forget. The funny thing was, it reminded others of the good in themselves (they forgot, too), and instinctively they trusted Mikado.

Because people trusted Mikado, Mikado rarely distrusted anyone else. People usually tried to reciprocate what they got, but there had to have been rotten apples, too. Sometimes Shizuo wondered whether Mikado could keep on like that, or if he had already met his match, and yet managed to salvage the persona... The act wouldn't necessarily be fake, but perhaps young Mikado had a different inner face. That would certainly explain what drew Izaya to him. Izaya was drawn to darkness and cynicism, not light and innocence, but Mikado had always appeared a figure of light — their apparent mutual (albeit cautious) respect had always baffled Shizuo. Usually Izaya would have mocked that level of naivety, not actively seek out to mentor it. Mind you, Izaya always had a tendency to play with his food...

Tracing back the steps of his thoughts, Shizuo realized that Mikado's style of leadership sounded a lot like Lory Takarada's LoveMe ideals.

Shizuo missed a half-page of comments while thinking.

Tanaka Tarou (cont.): I hope we all learned something today? (:-/) Didn't we?