mahoraga | IC INBOX (JIGOKUCHO)

[ Akira will barge in to Megumi in the middle of having his wounds dressed, without a shirt for a rare moment as a nurse finishes up with bandaging his chest and arm. He looks more exhausted than usual, and he has bandages wrapped up over the side of his face, and the left side of his chest and arms. There's an immediate frown, even if he did sense Akira coming. ]

Don't just barge in.

_{[ And what does he do? He barges in further, brushing past nurses that are on their way out and instantly is by the bed, leaning over it in Megumi's proximity. His hands settle on the bed's railing and he blinks a few times. There is a look of shock on his face as he analyzes the other boy. ]}

Megumi.. you look so hurt. That's a lot of bandages.

_{[ He looks around and pulls up the visitor's chair so that he's closer to the teenager's bedside. ]}

What happened?

[ With all the attention and concern directed toward him, he starts to feel somewhat awkward about it, while also appreciating that someone cared enough to visit him at all. There's a glance away, a bit shy. He probably should explain what happened, huh ... ]

Remember that girl I was looking for in the Wastelands? Her kidnappers targeted my boss this time.

[ 'Aerith' as he had mentioned before. ]

Burned the shop to the ground while we tried to stop them.

No..

_{[ His voice is soft when he speaks, but Megumi will see the honest interest and full attention he has in his eyes as he listens and his nose curls up in distaste. He wasn’t aware it was the same people. ]}

How did they do it?

By setting themselves on fire ... They're zealots. But I doubt we've heard the last of the Iron Bear.

[ That was probably just a small group of assailants sent to capture Aerith. They resorted to suicide when they couldn't defeat Aerith or the other employees at the store. Megumi says it all very matter-of-factly, like he's casually recounting something that happened to him. He takes notice of the quiet air around Akira now, even if he's still listening intently.

IT'S MAKING THINGS MORE AWKWARD. Reaching out, he knocks the other boy lightly on his fluffy head. ]

You -- What are you giving me that look for? You're making the mood so awkward.

_{[ Perhaps it was because Akira was so new to this whole “saving the world” business and his lack of exposure to everything horrible made it hard for him to accept and carry on with the notion that people are evil and will do evil things. He was a timid highschooler who cried for others when he would hear stories on the news or from classmates. He had grown out of that, evidently, but every now and then, he couldn’t help but get emotional.

Blowing themselves up. Hurting others. People he cares about. What kind of people would do something like that? Did they not value their existence at all? So much to sacrifice themselves and hurt the innocent? And in the name of what? Loyalty to their people? Honor somehow? It upset Akira.

The flick on his head gets his attention, and Megumi may see that his eyes have glassed over as he takes all of this in. ]}

I wish I could have been there to stop them. To protect you.

_{[ He blinks, and a few tears finally roll off. ]}

[ While he can't read Akira's mind, he can certainly piece together what he's thinking, given his understanding of the boy's character so far. He's shocked, reeling with the fact that people could hurt others and even themselves in the name of whatever cause they fight for. It's of no surprise to Megumi, who goes into every relationship expecting the worse of people, but Akira isn't quite like him at all. He's pure, optimistic and kind. He wants to protect everyone, even if it's impossible. ]

You can't be everywhere at once. Don't be stupid. And I'm not -- [ He isn't Akira's responsibility. Megumi stops, noticing that tear rolling down his cheek. ]

You're crying?!

_{[ This is it. The one thing he will deny. It’s because he has grown out of it— so he thought. Hastily, he turns away and wipes his eye with the heel of his palm. It’s fine.

But then he doesn’t say anything, falling quiet. ]}

[ He's definitely crying, and he can't seem to understand the reason for the outpour of emotion. Was it the realisation that humans could commit these sorts of horrid deeds? Or -- Was Akira actually crying on his behalf?

If so, he can't process that -- why anyone would have enough concern and empathy for what he had gone through to actually cry about it. It doesn't make any sense, because he doesn't have that same concern for himself.

Megumi looks at Akira, reaching out briefly like he wants to ask something. He eventually decides they're better off in silence, so he rests his hands on his lap, quietly waiting for the other boy to speak again. ]

_{[ It's both, actually. He's upset for the people who blew themselves up. He's upset they would do that to hurt other people and one of those people being someone Akira cares about. He wishes he could have been there. Now all he can do is help with the after math. His voice is quiet and gentle when he speaks; a tone Megumi has probably rarely heard from him. ]}

I wanted to keep you and Yuuji safe because of how kind and accepting you are to me and I even failed at that.

_{[ Akira, please. ]}

I care a lot for you both, so seeing you hurt makes me upset.

_{[ The soothing and quiet voice doesn't last long cause now he's suddenly standing again, his hand settling on Megumi's shoulder that isn't injured, voice filled with vigor once more. ]}

I will do everything I can to help you heal! And if there's anything I can do to prevent something like this from happening again, I want to take that risk!

Edited 2022-09-27 15:26 (UTC)

IC INBOX (JIGOKUCHO)

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