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[cigsandbeer]

"Too bad; I'm busy with some shit. I'm only calling you back if you're a pretty woman ♥"

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[reformedsinner]

"We couldn't allow that," Hakkai agrees immediately. "Imagine how superior he'd act!"

Considering how superior Sanzo acts under normal circumstances-- for now, Hakkai's choosing to skip the difficult conversation about where he's going to go once he finishes with the Barge, since it'll be years at least before he's ready to make that choice.

No need to borrow trouble.

"Sebastian is my first, yes. He, ah. He's made a lot of progress but I think he might have a long way to go," he muses diplomatically.

[cigsandbeer]

Gojyo nods very seriously! They absolutely can't let Sanzo win!

And luckily for everyone involved, Gojyo hasn't even thought so far ashead as 'what happens when we leave the Barge'. At the musings about Hakkai's inmate, though...

"Were they out of easy cases? Or did you ask for a difficult one?"

[reformedsinner]

"You don't get to ask for your inmate. The Admiral gives you one, and the both of you get to work it out from there. But..."

A half-smile; he glances over at Gojyo.

"Well, you've met him. I think we're a good match."

Being thrown out of the dining hall for smoking is a good introduction to Sebastian's control freak tendencies, after all.

[cigsandbeer]

...Hrm.

"I think either he and you work really well together in the kitchen, or you try to murder each other for interfering with your meal plans."

[reformedsinner]

"I try to make sure we're not both in the kitchen at the same time," Hakkai admits. Sometimes, it's dangerous to be too alike.

[cigsandbeer]

He huffs a laugh.

"It's sounds pretty damn annoying to be solely responsible for one person, but I figure it's nice to be done with the whole rotation carousel?"

[reformedsinner]

"I hated the rotation carousel. My first temporary inmate was an old man who didn't think I could possibly understand violence and discrimination, due to my youth...."

He flashes Gojyo a wry glance.

"Not to discourage you, of course. But some of the temporary pairings aren't good matches at all."

[cigsandbeer]

Pfft!

"Oh man. I bet Mr Veteran taught you aallll about the cruelties of the world?

It's cool: if I get someone like that, I'll just punch them in the face."

[reformedsinner]

"He was an old man! It seemed too rude to punch him."

Although Hakkai isn't about to discourage Gojyo from it. It sounds to him like a perfectly educational way to handle that sort of inmate.

"Still, I hope you manage to find someone you can work with. I think you'd do well with a lot of them, actually.

"...Because you're nicer than I am."

[cigsandbeer]

"--Oiiii, what's with the insults?" he complains in a slightly whiny tone.

"I'm cool, okay?"

He knows he's nicer than Hakkai, but there's no need to say it out loud!!

[reformedsinner]

Brightly, Hakkai asserts, "You can be cool and nice!"

He's using his very best preschool teacher tone of encouragement, but there's a glint of teasing in his eye.

[cigsandbeer]

"My excellent blend of coolness and charisma's gonna win the hearts of all the wayward inmates for sure."

[reformedsinner]

"It worked on me," Hakkai assures him.

Although-- he affects a slight arrested pause, one hand brushing his chin thoughtfully. "But I've been told that by inmate standards I was polite, earnest and thoughtful."

He definitely had gone to investigate his inmate ledger when he'd finally had the opportunity to do so. Poor Mr. Kiryu. He'd been the earnest one, really.

[cigsandbeer]

"Fuck off, it's not like you ever were my assigned inmate", he says, giving Hakkai a light kick under the table. "That's not even remotely the same."

Pfft.

"If I squint I could maybe see two of those traits."

[reformedsinner]

"Ah, there's more overlap than you might think," Hakkai murmurs, ducking his chin. Dragging a near-corpse from the mud, nursing him back to health and showing him how to keep going...

Well, Hakkai hadn't been assigned to him, unless the gods are worse meddlers than he's previously been led to believe. But he can certainly see the similarities with a warden's duties.

"It's politeness I'm missing, isn't it?" he says earnestly.

[cigsandbeer]

"Obviously it's the politeness."

Hakkai is only 'polite' if one only looks at the words that come out of his mouth on a purely surface-level. Dig a single inch deeper and he's an asshole (affectionate).

"Okay, so what's this great overlap, then?"

[reformedsinner]

"Well."

This is definitely moving into Talking About Feelings territory. Hakkai supposes he started it, though, and he has enough experience talking about feelings after months of guidance from Xie Lian.

"...Every inmate does come here from the moment of their death. And part of being a warden is showing them that they can keep going, and that it's-- worth it to try."

He can say it, but he's embarrassed enough that he has to look down at his hands on the table to do so.

[cigsandbeer]

...Oh no, not Feelings. Gojyo immediately has a Regret over asking.

Equally embarrassed, he awkwardly runs a hand through his hair, averting his eyes.

"--Come on, I just stitched you up and shoved food into your mouth."

He knows fully well that's not all he did, but. Feelings Talk.

[reformedsinner]

"Well, I didn't say it was exactly the same." Because they both know that's not all Gojyo did, and going into detail is just going to compound the embarrassment.

He clears his throat, and adds, "Well. In any case. I do think you'll be good at this."

[cigsandbeer]

Still embarrassed enough that he's not making eye contact, but at least the confidence returns to his tone:

"I mean, it's not like I would've taken the gig if I thought I'd be complete shit at it; that'd just be embarrassing," -- although of course he would have, if it meant keeping Hakkai and Goku safe -- "but thanks for the vote of confidence."

And he does at least mean that sincerely.

[reformedsinner]

Hakkai flashes him a quick, half-shy smile, ducks his chin and looks away.