[ it's fortunate that nisaka sleeps with his phone on his person at all times. call it practicality, call it paranoia, but ever since he'd woken up to a stranger hovering over him, he's taken to having it close by just in case he needs to quickly contact someone... or use it as a weapon, to be honest.
but it's for this reason that he happens to wake up the moment it vibrates. blinking blearily, he only registers the time for a second before he's clicking unto the message. mind still muddy with sleep, he doesn't quite sense the urgency or the oddity of receiving a message like this so early in the morning, from asuna. ]
Senpai, if you're having trouble going to sleep, try counting sheep.
[ he blinks again, but this time more of the sleep has ebbed. slowly, he sits up, as if a different position might somehow take away some of the dread creeping up behind his neck. ]
We're not supposed to be out in the halls alone in the dark.
[ they'd been warned, after all. dangers, and all that. still, he's asking: ]
[She doesn't want to drag Nisaka into this since it was her choice to get involved. All she needs is to know she isn't actually the only one left in this place. The text helped a little.
She's grateful he didn't ignore her although she knew he was kind anyway.]
Don't lecture me
[Nisaka always brings out the fight in her. Although her fire is more subdued.]
[ each new text she sends out just makes him more and more worried...
he's on his feet within seconds, turning towards the door. ]
You didn't answer where you were.
[ he turns back towards his "roommate," watching the blond slumber peacefully for a moment while he waits for asuna's response. hastily, he goes to his bag and rips out a page from his notebook. in a hasty scrawl, he writes a quick note to emil explaining where he'd gone, just in case the other boy wakes up in the middle of the night and gets unnecessarily worried or something. this he tucks carefully under emil's hand before quietly making his way towards the door. ]
[No, she didn't. Maybe she would mention something about getting what you give since he hadn't answered her questions before but that time was gone. That time feels like years ago now. It felt like she's been in that building for a lifetime.
Asuna stops her shuffling in the halls and looks around, trying to make sense of her surroundings. Well, she knew one thing. It looks like she doesn't have a choice here either.]
I'm nearby the building that takes you to Hide and Seek
[ he pauses by the doorway, staring down at the yellow screen of the old cell phone. hide and seek. he only vaguely knew about that game, having kept out of it for the most part, but he definitely knew one thing — it wasn't anything good.
brows furrow, lips purse. a tiny surge of — anger? — and suddenly hastily typing back: ]
I don't know where that is. I'm pretty sure we aren't supposed to be anywhere near THAT either.
[ 3-D. hastily, nisaka glances at the placard mounted over the doorway, indicating the room he'd just come from as 2-D. he'll probably get there before her, but that doesn't stop him from moving as quickly as he can.
by the time he gets there, the halls are dark and quiet, and slightly eerie. he tries not to let it get to him, walking quickly to the doorway and pressing his back tight against it. he peers down either side of the hallway, trying to calm his racing heartbeat. ]
[Since he doesn't answer, the weight of what just happened in that building presses down on her again in the silence.
He definitely gets there before her, which might be better so he can take in the sight of her slowly instead of suddenly. Asuna probably looks like something right out of a horror movie once she comes out of the darkness. She's in this but shoeless. Blood soaks the navy coat, the red dress underneath, is splattered across her pale thighs and as she holds her sword to her side (that is clean), makes her hands crimson.
About ten feet away she stops when she notices someone at the door. Her body goes rigid but it's too tall to be a doll. Too solid to be a shadow. Her heart rate accelerates enough that she's gasping for breath again. She has to remind herself a few times that she's already won Hide and Seek.]
[ he's not sure what he expects. an overly-tired asuna, perhaps, stayed up too late cooking something for someone and now she can't fall asleep like she should. dark circles, maybe red, puffy eyes at best.
there's red alright. too much red. ]
S..Senpai?
[ she looks stunned, pale beneath all that blood and that perplexed expression on her face. he takes a step forward, but common sense has him pausing immediately after, a hand held out uncertainly.
At least her stunned expression relaxes once she hears his telltale senpai. The familiarity of it isn't annoying, she craves it. Relaxing might be a bad decision however since she feels like collapsing. What's keeping her up?
Stunned is probably better than the almost blank expression on her face now. Her eyes drop to his hand and she wonders if it's real.
Slowly, she reaches for it. Hers, crusted in the blood of her comrades, against his pale and clean one. Her breathing rattles a little in her chest.]
Thank you for answering, Nisaka-san. Thank you for coming...
[ instinct has him blanching at the contact. the blood is old and stiff, but it smears along his skin anyway, and for a moment he feels the rise of bile threaten to spill out of his throat.
when she speaks, though, his disgust is easily replaced by a flare of alarm. her voice is quiet, but shaky, and there is something — too empty about it to feel right. without thinking, his hand curls around hers, smearing that old blood further, but this time he doesn't hesitate to step even closer, to reach out and lay a steadying hand on her arm. ]
Don't be stupid, [ he whispers harshly, sharply. as if the tone itself might be enough to snap her out of whatever's happened. he can put it together now, after all. but as far as he recalls — no one's ever walked out of that hide and seek game until days after. ]
[There's gratitude, real gratitude on the lilt of those words, but it's automatic. Against his hand, she trembles a little. He's not incredibly warm but the contact is enough to jolt her, put some life back in her expression.
And it pinches in frustration and pain.]
I'm not stupid. [A weak protest and she grips his hand harder. It's real, she can feel it. A living person. Someone who's talking and not bleeding. Bleeding all over her.
Her head lifts marginally and she looks at him in confusion.]
[ he sighs briefly. he could explain it to her, but he has a feeling that words aren't really registering to well with her right now. not that he holds it against her — he thinks he can understand.
so instead he just shifts his hand around in hers, mimicking an action they'd once shared quite a while back. ]
Squeeze as hard as you want, [ he tells her quietly, meeting the gaze of her eyes meaningfully. ] I'm not going anywhere.
[That meaning causes her eyes to widen. Then the light makes her eyes ripple. Before any tears fall, she ducks her head so her bangs hang in front of her face.]
You don't owe me for that.
[Her voice cracks a little but the tears she won't show him go into how she grips his hand harder.]
[ the sound of the sword falling jolts him in his place, startling him enough that he very nearly loses his grip on her. but once he feels her weight against him, his hand tightens, arms coming up to wrap around her smaller frame and hold her close to his chest. ]
S-Senpai? Senpai!
[ he isn't weak, but he isn't particularly strong, either, and the unexpectedness of the sudden weight on him has his knees buckling a little, and soon he's lowering them both down to the ground, her head pillowed gently against his chest. ]
[No, not hurt. Just empty. So empty. She was running on fumes, her personal processor feels like it's been overclocked for the last...
How long was she in there? Actually, she doesn't care. She doesn't care about anything anymore. If she dies, that would be fine. She fought her hardest, she won Hide and Seek so it should be fine. Now that she's back home, in 3-D, this is where she would want to stop existing.
Nothing is ever easy, but she listens to Nisaka's heart beat like it will keep hers doing the same.]
I'm not hurt. [Physically. Oh, she gets it. Her clothes...
[ not physical pain then, he surmises, though his grip never fully releases her.
they're huddled on the floor now, but thankfully he's got a wall to his back, helping to ease some of the worries of vulnerability that position leaves them in. ]
Do — you want to talk about it...?
[ he doesn't know what else he can do, what else he can offer her. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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but it's for this reason that he happens to wake up the moment it vibrates. blinking blearily, he only registers the time for a second before he's clicking unto the message. mind still muddy with sleep, he doesn't quite sense the urgency or the oddity of receiving a message like this so early in the morning, from asuna. ]
Senpai, if you're having trouble going to sleep, try counting sheep.
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Counting. A chill runs through her.]
I know it's a strange request but can I see you
[The lack of any punctuation should be a little telling. A second later,]
Please
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We're not supposed to be out in the halls alone in the dark.
[ they'd been warned, after all. dangers, and all that. still, he's asking: ]
Where are you? What's going on?
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She's grateful he didn't ignore her although she knew he was kind anyway.]
Don't lecture me
[Nisaka always brings out the fight in her. Although her fire is more subdued.]
I just don't want to be alone right now
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he's on his feet within seconds, turning towards the door. ]
You didn't answer where you were.
[ he turns back towards his "roommate," watching the blond slumber peacefully for a moment while he waits for asuna's response. hastily, he goes to his bag and rips out a page from his notebook. in a hasty scrawl, he writes a quick note to emil explaining where he'd gone, just in case the other boy wakes up in the middle of the night and gets unnecessarily worried or something. this he tucks carefully under emil's hand before quietly making his way towards the door. ]
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Asuna stops her shuffling in the halls and looks around, trying to make sense of her surroundings. Well, she knew one thing. It looks like she doesn't have a choice here either.]
I'm nearby the building that takes you to Hide and Seek
[Hint #1]
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brows furrow, lips purse. a tiny surge of — anger? — and suddenly hastily typing back: ]
I don't know where that is.
I'm pretty sure we aren't supposed to be anywhere near THAT either.
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Tired, she presses her back to a wall in the hallway and slides down.]
I don't know where it is either and I don't have a map I can send you
[Asuna, what...]
I'm going to class 3-D
[She's moving again, picking herself up. Somehow, she's moving.]
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by the time he gets there, the halls are dark and quiet, and slightly eerie. he tries not to let it get to him, walking quickly to the doorway and pressing his back tight against it. he peers down either side of the hallway, trying to calm his racing heartbeat. ]
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He definitely gets there before her, which might be better so he can take in the sight of her slowly instead of suddenly. Asuna probably looks like something right out of a horror movie once she comes out of the darkness. She's in this but shoeless. Blood soaks the navy coat, the red dress underneath, is splattered across her pale thighs and as she holds her sword to her side (that is clean), makes her hands crimson.
About ten feet away she stops when she notices someone at the door. Her body goes rigid but it's too tall to be a doll. Too solid to be a shadow. Her heart rate accelerates enough that she's gasping for breath again. She has to remind herself a few times that she's already won Hide and Seek.]
Nisaka... san?
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there's red alright. too much red. ]
S..Senpai?
[ she looks stunned, pale beneath all that blood and that perplexed expression on her face. he takes a step forward, but common sense has him pausing immediately after, a hand held out uncertainly.
is it really her? ]
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At least her stunned expression relaxes once she hears his telltale senpai. The familiarity of it isn't annoying, she craves it. Relaxing might be a bad decision however since she feels like collapsing. What's keeping her up?
Stunned is probably better than the almost blank expression on her face now. Her eyes drop to his hand and she wonders if it's real.
Slowly, she reaches for it. Hers, crusted in the blood of her comrades, against his pale and clean one. Her breathing rattles a little in her chest.]
Thank you for answering, Nisaka-san. Thank you for coming...
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when she speaks, though, his disgust is easily replaced by a flare of alarm. her voice is quiet, but shaky, and there is something — too empty about it to feel right. without thinking, his hand curls around hers, smearing that old blood further, but this time he doesn't hesitate to step even closer, to reach out and lay a steadying hand on her arm. ]
Don't be stupid, [ he whispers harshly, sharply. as if the tone itself might be enough to snap her out of whatever's happened. he can put it together now, after all. but as far as he recalls — no one's ever walked out of that hide and seek game until days after. ]
I owe you, remember?
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And it pinches in frustration and pain.]
I'm not stupid. [A weak protest and she grips his hand harder. It's real, she can feel it. A living person. Someone who's talking and not bleeding. Bleeding all over her.
Her head lifts marginally and she looks at him in confusion.]
You owe me?
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so instead he just shifts his hand around in hers, mimicking an action they'd once shared quite a while back. ]
Squeeze as hard as you want, [ he tells her quietly, meeting the gaze of her eyes meaningfully. ] I'm not going anywhere.
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You don't owe me for that.
[Her voice cracks a little but the tears she won't show him go into how she grips his hand harder.]
Can we please go inside?
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Then consider it repayment for all the food you stuffed in me, [ he responds easily, trying not to think about how watery her voice sounds.
once they're inside, he starts to lead her towards a quiet corner they can tuck themselves into. ]
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You don't owe me for that either. [It's a murmur against his chest, stifled in his shirt.]
I'm senpai so I have to look out for you. [Even if she doesn't feel like much of anything right now.
Asuna follows, keeps her face in his chest. Once they're in the classroom, her sword clatters to the floor and she wilts, legs giving out.]
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S-Senpai? Senpai!
[ he isn't weak, but he isn't particularly strong, either, and the unexpectedness of the sudden weight on him has his knees buckling a little, and soon he's lowering them both down to the ground, her head pillowed gently against his chest. ]
Senpai — hang on — are you hurt—?
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How long was she in there? Actually, she doesn't care. She doesn't care about anything anymore. If she dies, that would be fine. She fought her hardest, she won Hide and Seek so it should be fine. Now that she's back home, in 3-D, this is where she would want to stop existing.
Nothing is ever easy, but she listens to Nisaka's heart beat like it will keep hers doing the same.]
I'm not hurt. [Physically. Oh, she gets it. Her clothes...
There's a small tremor that shakes her.]
It's not my blood.
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they're huddled on the floor now, but thankfully he's got a wall to his back, helping to ease some of the worries of vulnerability that position leaves them in. ]
Do — you want to talk about it...?
[ he doesn't know what else he can do, what else he can offer her. ]
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It's over, it's over. Nisaka is fine. He won't die, he won't die in front of her. He won't bleed.
Asuna trembles again and shakes her head.]
No. [That's a nightmare she doesn't want to relive so soon. And definitely not something she wants to drag Nisaka into any more than she already has.]
Just stay. I just need you to stay here...