![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Entry tags:
ɪɴʙᴏx [ᴇxᴘɪᴀᴛɪᴏɴ]
inbox
voice ✦ video ✦ text ✦ action
Didn't I tell you?
[Oh. Must not have. She blinks at him a few times, lowering her hand and pillowing her head back down comfortably on her arm.]
Yeah. The researchers said that summoning a Persona needed... intense psychological trauma, I think? The Evoker simulates that.
[Said like that's a normal thing. Honestly, to her? It is. If you can't access your own traumas at will, store-bought is fine.]
[Oh. Must not have. She blinks at him a few times, lowering her hand and pillowing her head back down comfortably on her arm.]
Yeah. The researchers said that summoning a Persona needed... intense psychological trauma, I think? The Evoker simulates that.
[Said like that's a normal thing. Honestly, to her? It is. If you can't access your own traumas at will, store-bought is fine.]
[It's truly a rare treat, for both of them, to have Goro bare and vulnerable without any of his defenses or shields. Again, he places his trust on Akira. The lips briefly visits his and Akechi tries to kiss him back, but is a few seconds too late, leaving him mouthing at the air.
Yeah, he's slowing down here, not being able to keep up with Akira. He hums softly and buries his face in the other's shoulder. It doesn't take too long until the sleep finally claims him. He's so out of it that he'll definitely be unconscious until the late afternoon or something.
That coffee still better be good when he wakes up!]
Yeah, he's slowing down here, not being able to keep up with Akira. He hums softly and buries his face in the other's shoulder. It doesn't take too long until the sleep finally claims him. He's so out of it that he'll definitely be unconscious until the late afternoon or something.
That coffee still better be good when he wakes up!]
[Akechi mouthing sleepily at the air is unreasonably cute, and also extremely silly. Akira carefully rearranges himself and just takes to smoothing his hair and keeping a constant soothing amount of contact with him, only slowing and finally stopping once he's gone still and his breathing has leveled out for a while.]
[He doses, just a little, but doesn't sleep overmuch, worried about moving and disrupting Goro. Dumb asshole that he was sometimes, he deserved a good night's rest after the day he'd had. Akira, honestly, did as well, but he'd worry about that later.]
[It's a good handful of hours later that he finally extracts himself from Akechi's sleeping cocoon, once he was sure his fever was on the way to breaking. For one, he has to fucking pee, thanks, and for two, Akechi might appreciate something to eat when he wakes up. So he slinks off and comes back with some basic breakfast. He keeps everything mild-- a clear soup as opposed to miso, very gently-seasoned fish, and of course, rice. He's been out of his bed about two hours by the time he moves back to it, settling to sit and carefully brush Akechi's hair out of his face again.]
[His thermos of coffee is in his hand, still warm, to appease him for waking him up.] Hey, swat me off if you think you need to sleep more, but I think your fever's broken.
[He doses, just a little, but doesn't sleep overmuch, worried about moving and disrupting Goro. Dumb asshole that he was sometimes, he deserved a good night's rest after the day he'd had. Akira, honestly, did as well, but he'd worry about that later.]
[It's a good handful of hours later that he finally extracts himself from Akechi's sleeping cocoon, once he was sure his fever was on the way to breaking. For one, he has to fucking pee, thanks, and for two, Akechi might appreciate something to eat when he wakes up. So he slinks off and comes back with some basic breakfast. He keeps everything mild-- a clear soup as opposed to miso, very gently-seasoned fish, and of course, rice. He's been out of his bed about two hours by the time he moves back to it, settling to sit and carefully brush Akechi's hair out of his face again.]
[His thermos of coffee is in his hand, still warm, to appease him for waking him up.] Hey, swat me off if you think you need to sleep more, but I think your fever's broken.
[If Akechi has any dreams he doesn't remember them. Honestly, he'd almost pass for a dead if it wasn't for his slowly rising chest and quiet breathing. So, he doesn't even do as much as stir when Akira eventually untangles himself and gets up. Then again, it's not a wonder considering how high his fever had been. His body was focused on breaking the fever and patching itself back together after the events of the previous day.
And when he eventually does wake up, it's a slow process. The fever is gone but he still feels a little disoriented and groggy, last night's events being nothing but a hazy memory in his mind. He does remember Dazai, calling Akira, fighting him and then coming back to his place together. But the details still escaped from him. ]
Mmmm... [Akechi moans quietly into the pillow, shifting under the blankets.] Akira?
And when he eventually does wake up, it's a slow process. The fever is gone but he still feels a little disoriented and groggy, last night's events being nothing but a hazy memory in his mind. He does remember Dazai, calling Akira, fighting him and then coming back to his place together. But the details still escaped from him. ]
Mmmm... [Akechi moans quietly into the pillow, shifting under the blankets.] Akira?
You should let them. [She pokes at his ribs a little for emphasis.] We want to take care of you too, you know. You care about us, but we all care about you too! It goes both ways!
[What the fuck, Goro Akechi has absolutely no business being this adorable. Excuse the fuck out of him. This is unfair, and has to be illegal, somewhere, somehow. Akira bluescreens just enough to look stupid staring blankly for about fifteen seconds before he reboots enough to grin shortly and find Goro's hand. He presses the thermos into it.]
Coffee. [Oh he is down bad.]
Coffee. [Oh he is down bad.]
Oof, [He folds a little farther than necessary at the poke, either to really show he hears her or possibly due to a latent ticklish spot. He puffs his cheeks out a little.] I know..., It's not that I don't think you all do, it's. I've always been bad at it.
If you did it was at the party, and please remember how drunk I was, [He's staring at her in an alarmed, owlish sort of way, trying to process the whole "Yeah I shoot myself in the head to summon my Persona(s), neat huh?" mood happening right now.]
[His brain catches back up with her second statement, and his heart skips several beats, less leaping and more bodily yeeting itself into the back of his throat in a way that squashes his voice.] Res-- what sort of researchers? [Adam Kamon is on the backs of his eyelids when he blinks, Takuto Maruki's sweet, disarming smile and as he hands his team boxes of off-brand apple juice--]
[His brain catches back up with her second statement, and his heart skips several beats, less leaping and more bodily yeeting itself into the back of his throat in a way that squashes his voice.] Res-- what sort of researchers? [Adam Kamon is on the backs of his eyelids when he blinks, Takuto Maruki's sweet, disarming smile and as he hands his team boxes of off-brand apple juice--]
[Akira Kurusu is so lucky that Akechi isn't quite awake enough yet to judge his brain malfunction there. But eventually the mention of coffee does stir him awake enough. He opens his eyes and sits up, hissing sharply as he puts weight on his injured hand. It's enough to jolt him to this reality from his hal-asleep world, events from yesterday rushing back to him.
Oh shit.
He takes the offered coffee, feeling his ears heat up from embarrassement.]
You know you didn't have to stay. ['Don't you dare to leave ', words echo in his mind, making him to press his gaze down.]
Oh shit.
He takes the offered coffee, feeling his ears heat up from embarrassement.]
You know you didn't have to stay. ['Don't you dare to leave ', words echo in his mind, making him to press his gaze down.]
[Akira mentally scolds himself for not preempting the motion that shocks Akechi awake with pain, but it's done and knowing Akechi, he'll do it every morning until it heals. This is why he wants it set by an actual nurse of some form. He smiles, despite himself, breathing out a faint chuckle.]
I wasn't just going to leave. Start slowly, with that, [He gestures to the coffee.] Until I can finish breakfast. [He moves off the bed and back toward the kitchen.]
I wasn't just going to leave. Start slowly, with that, [He gestures to the coffee.] Until I can finish breakfast. [He moves off the bed and back toward the kitchen.]
[He looks so bewildered. It kind of reminds her of Junpei a little? But none of the others had really seemed to have difficulty comprehending it. Yukari had difficulty doing it at first, but it wasn't so strange. Why would summoning a Persona be easy?
As for the researchers... she shrugs.]
All that stuff was before I joined. It's a really long story about what they were working on... [She makes a bit of a face, rolling back over to stare up at the clouds. Please don't make her talk about it.] Just trust me when I say they're not really around anymore.
[For the most part, anyway. The people who'd been involved in the initial experiments had died in the explosion, but the Kirijo Group presumably still had staff on hand? Eugh, where's Mitsuru when she needs her...]
As for the researchers... she shrugs.]
All that stuff was before I joined. It's a really long story about what they were working on... [She makes a bit of a face, rolling back over to stare up at the clouds. Please don't make her talk about it.] Just trust me when I say they're not really around anymore.
[For the most part, anyway. The people who'd been involved in the initial experiments had died in the explosion, but the Kirijo Group presumably still had staff on hand? Eugh, where's Mitsuru when she needs her...]
[He purses his lips together into a thin line, giving Akira no answer. The thermos is awkward turned around in his hands until his rival leaves the bed. Only after he's gone back to the kitchen corner does Akechi open the lid and take small sips of the warm beverage.
It's not the best that Akira's done. The quality definitely suffered from sitting overnight on his night stand but strangely enough Akechi doesn't complain. In fact, he can feel regaining some of his strength after each sip, color slowly returning back to his face.
He doesn't say anything for a while, allowing an awkward silence to fall between them as Akira busies himself in the kitchen.
Then, after what feels like an eternity, Akechi clears his throat.]
I'm sorry about last night.
It's not the best that Akira's done. The quality definitely suffered from sitting overnight on his night stand but strangely enough Akechi doesn't complain. In fact, he can feel regaining some of his strength after each sip, color slowly returning back to his face.
He doesn't say anything for a while, allowing an awkward silence to fall between them as Akira busies himself in the kitchen.
Then, after what feels like an eternity, Akechi clears his throat.]
I'm sorry about last night.
[Akira is happy to immerse himself in breakfast, pan-frying some sort of fish in oil and mild seasoning-- who knows where he got any of it, though the fish is probably one he caught. He's almost forgotten about how down bad he is when Akechi speaks again, and he startles so badly he nearly drops his spatula.]
[Laughing nervously, he shakes his head and scoops the fish out of the pan onto two plates.] Hey, I'm not doing a walk of shame, it can't be that bad.
[Laughing nervously, he shakes his head and scoops the fish out of the pan onto two plates.] Hey, I'm not doing a walk of shame, it can't be that bad.
[Trust Akira to make a joke of everything. Akechi let's out a silent groan and drops his head down a bit, feeling truly defeated.]
That wasn't very far from happening. [he mumbles the joke back at him, carefully running his hand through his hair.]
That wasn't very far from happening. [he mumbles the joke back at him, carefully running his hand through his hair.]
[he really doesn't need to bother looking at Akira's direction to know that he's just as flushed and red as he is.
Another pause, followed by another attempt to clear his throat and find his voice ]
I probably should thank you. For having enough brains for once to stop before we did something we both truly would have regretted. Don't worry, I promise to do better in future.
Another pause, followed by another attempt to clear his throat and find his voice ]
I probably should thank you. For having enough brains for once to stop before we did something we both truly would have regretted. Don't worry, I promise to do better in future.
Edited 2023-05-13 02:22 (UTC)
[Cognitive.... what? She's pretty sure she's never heard that word before in her life, but it's pretty easy to guess the meaning from context. Hmm... yeah, probably best not to mention the Kirijo Group, just in case Mitsuru shows up. That'll then be Mitsuru's problem to deal with.]
Yeah? [is all she says instead with another shrug against the rooftop before repeating,] All that stuff was before I joined... for me, it was just cleaning up the mess they made. Killing the Shadows, saving the world. All in a day's work, right?
[Her wry smile doesn't come anywhere near her eyes, but hey, at least she makes the effort.]
Yeah? [is all she says instead with another shrug against the rooftop before repeating,] All that stuff was before I joined... for me, it was just cleaning up the mess they made. Killing the Shadows, saving the world. All in a day's work, right?
[Her wry smile doesn't come anywhere near her eyes, but hey, at least she makes the effort.]
[He is starkly silent, outside of a few rigid motions, then-- he flicks off the burner, scoops the fish out onto two plates, and sets his spatula down all in rapid succession, pivoting quickly and marching over to Akechi. He stands over him, a severity to his expression that is somehow entirely ambiguous. Is he angry? Upset? Who knows, but there's a set to his jaw and a crease to his eyebrows that makes him very focused in whatever unreadable expression it is.]
Did you mean it?
Did you mean it?
[The idea of coming into something already destroyed and being made to clean it up is... Unsettling, to say the least. He considers her a while.]
...I think I was basically the black chess piece in a really bad game of 5D chess played by Gods, or things that considered themselves Gods. So I guess we can both take solace in the fact that neither of us had a good time.
...I think I was basically the black chess piece in a really bad game of 5D chess played by Gods, or things that considered themselves Gods. So I guess we can both take solace in the fact that neither of us had a good time.
Mmm...
[She hums, turning her head sideways to turn that half-smile on him.]
It's nice to know I'm not alone, but it doesn't really make me feel better to know that you had a hard time, too.
[Regarding him a moment, she beckons him closer. Come here, you're too far away, she'd have to sit up to get within arm's reach and that's just too far away and too much effort right now.]
[She hums, turning her head sideways to turn that half-smile on him.]
It's nice to know I'm not alone, but it doesn't really make me feel better to know that you had a hard time, too.
[Regarding him a moment, she beckons him closer. Come here, you're too far away, she'd have to sit up to get within arm's reach and that's just too far away and too much effort right now.]
[He chuckles, smiling at the roof between them until she beckons him. He glances back up, then, almost meek about her beckoning, but scoots into her bubble with his shoulders bunched up around his ears.]
...yeah, I don't enjoy mutual wound-licking much.
...yeah, I don't enjoy mutual wound-licking much.
[Akechi's head sinks in lower. The tension from yesterday is suddenly rushed back to his body, making his shoulders stiff and spine feel prickly and heavy.
No luck with Akira just laugh and letting it go. He curses his own tongue. He should just have stayed quiet and pretend not to remember a thing from his feverish mind.
He inhales deep, filling his lungs with air before speaking up.]
I don't know. [He hates the way feeling of defeat creeps to his voice. At the moment he had meant it, acted on an instinct rather than reason and logic. But now, in the light of a new day, they're once again standing in a crossroads.]
Did you?
No luck with Akira just laugh and letting it go. He curses his own tongue. He should just have stayed quiet and pretend not to remember a thing from his feverish mind.
He inhales deep, filling his lungs with air before speaking up.]
I don't know. [He hates the way feeling of defeat creeps to his voice. At the moment he had meant it, acted on an instinct rather than reason and logic. But now, in the light of a new day, they're once again standing in a crossroads.]
Did you?
[As soon as he scoots close enough, she just rolls over and wraps her arms around his waist, smushing her face into his stomach for a hug.]
...Thanks, Akira. [It's a mumble against his shirt as she squeezes him with once again perhaps surprising strength.] Talking with you... helps. I hope it's the same for you.
...Thanks, Akira. [It's a mumble against his shirt as she squeezes him with once again perhaps surprising strength.] Talking with you... helps. I hope it's the same for you.
--oh, [He starts to kind of shrink, less so away from her and more in a startled almost ticklish response, reflexively coiling until he forces himself to relax against her. His hand moves to her hair as soon as he's lax.]
...mmn. Having someone to talk to that... gets the parts of this that even my teammates didn't is something I never knew I really needed.
...mmn. Having someone to talk to that... gets the parts of this that even my teammates didn't is something I never knew I really needed.
Page 16 of 60