wildlinks | OPEN POST

Yeah. We actually sold Kamoshida's treasure to pay for it. It was his Olympic gold medal.

[Considering that the next night the gang would have to reach the treasure room to secure a route for infiltration, spending tonight eating dinner and relaxing is probably the most normal thing that he could do. Akira finds the seat near the island bar and sits down, watching him grab various sundries from the kitchen.

Sojiro was slowly teaching him how to make a good cup of coffee, and maybe he'd even let him in on his secret curry recipe one day. Apparently, he had said at one point that the entire combination of the two was scientifically worked out to maximize the flavor complements. Akira didn't know if he believed that, word for word, but generally speaking, he never would've thought curry and coffee should go together.

Which reminds him...]

Pepper's fine. If this might be my last meal, at least it'll be flavorful.

[He scratches the back of his head. Where did all that confidence go?]

Do you like coffee? I live above a cafe... Maybe you could come sometime and try a cup.

[After putting the sauce to slowly cook, Yu joins him at the island and leans on it.]

Really? I was curious what kind of treasure are you stealing. Nothing like that happened in Inaba.

[Yu feels like Akira opened a lot to him without Yu actually saying anything about what happened in Inaba. It wasn't a pleasant thing to remember, but it is something that shaped him into what he is today.]

The, uh, killer, had a power to shove people through the TV. Once there, there is no way out unless there's someone with that world's power to let you out. The victims were left there by themselves and, after some time, their shadow would appear. And without any powers to fight back the shadow... [Well, Akira can fill in the blank. When Yu first found out about it, he felt sick. He was glad he could help out later when his friends got in danger.]

Coffee? Yeah! I like it. I'm not expert to tell the difference, but I like having a cup, especially when studying. [...that's...too cute. And Yu shouldn't be thinking that.]

I will definitively drop by. Where's the cafe?

[He puts two and two together from an earlier conversation he had with Yu about shadows. Those with the ability to accept their inner self don't appear on the Metaverse app. That much is true about himself and his friends, and... Yu. So those strings of murders back in Inaba all over the news last year were actually people who were thrown into their own version of the Metaverse and were killed by their own, repressed selves.

That was dark, and this is coming from someone who goes inside peoples' hearts to reveal how wicked they really were. Akira's eyes wander to the TV. Wait- he actually went through a television? That shouldn't be so weird, considering theirs is just some version of Google Maps on steroids, but still.

For a second, he's not entirely listening to Yu, instead, standing up to walk over to his TV set and knock on it. Nope. Glass. Then he realizes he's being weird, and stops, turning to Yu.]

I'll uh... make you some. I'm just learning blends, so it might not be perfect yet. I'll put extra effort in it, for you. [He reaches over to a piece of paper and a pen from the living room, returns to the island, and writes down Leblanc's address.]

Sojiro won't let me behind the counter until after it's closed though. You can come any time though, of course.

[Yu watches with curiosity when Akira walks over to the TV and knocks on the screen. It must sound so bizarre, entering another world through the TV.]

I'm sure it'll be great. [Yu takes a look where the cafe is. Yongen huh. He knows where it is. One train away from here actually. He'll definitively stop by.]

I'll send you a message before dropping by. In case it's a bad time. [With all the stealing stuff. He doesn't want to interrupt anything important. Finding time to do sneaky stuff like that must be extremely difficult. Especially in huge city like this, where there are so many people.]

Come. [Yu smiles and brings Akira back to the TV. He places his palm against the screen and looks at Akira, wanting to see his reaction. The ripples around his hand already appeared and after a second, his palm sinks past the screen, making whole TV screen ripple like water.]

[Akira has a calendar on his desk- he's marked all the days down that he knows people are usually free. There's a reporter who hangs out at a bar, a fortune teller that reads tarot cards in the red light district, a politician who gives speeches at the subway station, a shogi player who practices at a church... so many different people that he's met and became interested in knowing more about. And yet, he'd probably end up canceling seeing any of them if Yu texted. That's a new kind of way of thinking for Akira.

Following the other, he watches him walk up to the TV and place his hands on it. When it starts becoming less like a solid structure and far more wavy, Akira pushes his glasses up on his face. That... is definitely something he's never seen before in his entire life.]

That must get annoying. Trying to change the channel.

[He smiles, coming closer and testing the waters himself, now that the screen has a liquid quality to it. Akira presses his hand into it to see what it would feel like. This is so absurd, crazy, unbelievable. He wonders what it looks like inside there, but there's no way in hell he's going to stick his head in.]

[It really must look odd and completely insane. The kind of wavy feeling like you're underwater but not really wet. Their hands are completely dry inside.

Yu laughs-] Imagine trying it out for the first time and your body getting stuck in the screen because the TV is too small for you to go through. [He pulls out his hand-] That's why I use TV remote ever since.

[In fact, his now best friends didn't believe him either when he told them. But the looks on their faces when they saw it was priceless. Yu still has a fond smile on his face as he goes back to the kitchen to finish up the cooking. He gets out two bowls and fills them with ravioli and sauce and places them on the island, along with two tall glasses of juice.]

Dinner's ready!

Or, you could always get someone who can do it for you.

[It's the lightest amount of flirting ever, but Akira feels pretty self contented with pulling it off, turning his attention to the fact that Yu is pulling out- and he's terrified of the prospect that maybe if his hand isn't in there when Akira's is, that it'll get stuck and he'll be attached to the screen, or have his arm chopped off or something. He pulls it back quickly. Just in case.

It's not that long after that dinner is being readied and plated, and Akira can't help but love the smell that the sauce is giving off into the kitchen around them. He didn't really have to explain, because Yu probably already knew this about him, but relations between him and his parents had become incredibly strained ever since the charges were filed against him. There wasn't much in the way of a homecooked meal in ages, so... he appreciates it and the aromas it's giving off.]

This... looks really good.

[He remembers that when he gets to make that cup of coffee, he's really going to go all out. Drip the boiling water on the pour over device as slow as he can so it takes in all the flavor of the roasted beans. Cull the acidity through straining. Really, it's the least he can do. And dishes. He could probably do the dishes afterward.]

Troublemaker, bookworm, TV world conqueror, and chef, huh? I'm beginning to think there's nothing you're not good at.

[There he goes again. Light flirting- but he hides his cocky smirk by sitting down and savoring that first bite. It's as amazing as it smells.]

Is that an offer?

[Ah, he's getting those vibes. Yu has to check himself several times from just staring at Akira's face. There's just something that draws Yu's eyes back at it and he can't help himself. Thankfully, he's hungry as well so the staring isn't consistent.

And ravioli seem to have turned out just fine. Sauce too. He clasps his hands together-] Dig in!

[It's been a while since he had a guest over. Having Akira stay for dinner is making Yu so incredibly happy that he can't find words to express it. After the whole incident with the cut, the "thief" disappearing, the discussion out of shadows, Yu feels more close to him than ever. They are... almost the same. In regards to their obligations towards the shadow world. It's hard to go through it alone, so Yu is really happy he can help him out.]

There are things I'm not good at! [Yu laughs, cheeks slightly red from the compliment.] I can't sew for the life of me. I know nothing about cars- I can drive a scooter, probably a car. But I wouldn't know a thing to repair them if they broke down.

And elevators. [Yu makes a dramatic pause.] Elevators are a true enigma for me.

Elevators? Those are your weakness... hm...

[He thinks about that for a second. He knows some basic things about them, like how a motor typically pushes traction against cables and hoists to pulley the carriage up through the shaft.]

It's like a see-saw. Except instead of your body weight moving either side, there's an engine that does it for you.

[Akira is fully committed to solving the mysteries of the Yu-kind... even if the joking around went a little over his head- and as he shovels half a ravioli in his mouth, he looks up at the other and thinks that he was probably trying to seem humble and admit to not being good at something. Oh well, missed opportunity.]

What? Have I rocked your world already?

Oh-!

[Yu definitively didn't expect his question to be answered. He was aiming it to be a joke but the way it flew over Akira's head was inexplicably cute. And he had no heart to correct him and point it out. That would be too mean.]

Is that so? Sounds interesting. Maybe I should take a look into it. [What if he gets stuck in an elevator? It could be great if he knew a thing or two! Of course, that's farfetched but Yu enjoys doing things like these.

...and the blush is back again. But he laughs happily-]

Isn't it obvious? I don't get to save people with huge cuts across their chest every day. [It kind of leaves a huge impact.]

[Akira would remind Yu that any time he walks into a place, he should eyeball a way of the situation, and elevators are no exception, but that would make him seem paranoid. In reality, it's a lesson that's been baked in ever since he got that gash to begin with. He really ought to listen to himself more... but in reality, he's just listening to the thought of Yu climbing up to his bed and reading a book on the technical construction of elevators, and that is way too much to handle right now.]

Usually nurses are a little more humble.

[Akira finds himself smirking again, which he knows is a habit that makes him come out seeming like he's arrogant or overconfident, but he can't help himself. He tries to flatten the line of hips out, and failing to do so, he distracts himself with another bite of dinner.]

But you're doing a great job.

[Yu almost chokes on his drink. For a moment, he imagined himself dressed like one of the nurses from Yosuke's magazine. That was mildly terrifying... and if dared, probably something he'd do.

He decided to not tell Akira about it.]

Nurses have every right to brag about saving people. In fact, everyone who saves people has right to brag about it. [He gives Akira pointed look after saying that. And a smile, of course.]

And thank you. I'm doing my best.

[...he's enjoying this dinner time with Akira too much. Is he actually developing a crush here or is it just the atmosphere?]

[It's a question of justice, right? He's had this conversation with the team before. Is it right to pass judgment on one person for the things they've done to many? By saving people from abuse, sure, anyone can say that's noble, but the details are so sketchy. So real. There's a chance that the target whose heart they steal can die if done incorrectly. This isn't society's hand fixing the problem- this is theirs. Morality goes out the window when you think about it that way.

It doesn't escape him that Yu is looking at him, encouraging him for the things that he's doing.]

Can I ask you something? Do you think what I'm doing is moral?

[It's a heavy question to answer, and he knows it. But there's this part of Akira that wants to understand Yu and the way he thinks. He puts down his fork, and watches him closely. It's one thing to rely on him to bandage him up, and this is where the territory gets a little more blurred- Akira would slowly become more reliant on Yu for other things.

Like his opinion of Akira.]

[Yu didn't expect that kind of question. Overall, Yu didn't expect Akira asking for an opinion from him. They talked about shadows and they both know that dealing with them is something that it has to be done.

He lowers his fork and leans on the table, giving the question a serious thought. Thinking about what happened to him, what got him in the position he's in and in what shape the world is around them. Somehow, the guilty people keep getting off hook and innocent ones biting the bullet for them. That would make any normal person blood boil. It shouldn't be just written off to teens being insolent and rebellious.

If the adults acted properly and guided the younger generation, this probably wouldn't have happened.]

It is. [He gives Akira a serious look.] The only reason it doesn't seem like that is because of people that you "target". They are guilty. And they don't want to be found out. And that's why they want to make you look bad and feel guilty for what you do. If they weren't committing crimes, they wouldn't have to worry, right?[He opens his arms-] I have nothing to hide from you. Innocent people have nothing to hide and be afraid of.

You're like a secret police, [Yu smiles,] you're exposing the guys that are bad. Hmmm, something like, 'The Heart Police'. [Yu nods. More of a police than thief.] You did more job in apprehending criminals than actual, trained police.

Edited 2017-05-04 18:52 (UTC)

[For a few seconds, Akira just sits there, taking it all in. That same determination was the one that him and his friends felt, the need to protect people who couldn't protect themselves. It was ultimately what led them to taking Kamoshida's heart to begin with. The needs of a few far outweigh the balancing act of one single, solitary fulcrum on which it all balances.

But it wasn't just elevators that hung on weighting mechanism of a see-saw. It seems like all hearts do, and Akira is no different. Knowing what he does now, knowing that Yu will shelter his secrets, that he sees things the way that he does, he feels it tilting from the side of indifferent cautiousness to a level of trust.

And when Yu teases him lightly about his role in all of this, he feels his own heart start to catch on fire. The sort that will eventually burn everything to the ground just to make itself be heard. Akira had this urge inside him to learn everything he could about the silver haired youth. To sneak to his window every night, just to keep an eye out on him. To see how those gears inside his head turned.

He pushes his glasses up a little bit on his face. He swears to himself that he will steal this boy's heart in the end.]

The heart police. We'll have to see about that.

[And with that, he takes another bite of his dinner. Plate empty, he leans his elbows to the counter, posture bent forward a little to be closer to the other guy on the opposite side of the countertop.]

I have a few more things to steal, after all.

Edited (oops grammar) 2017-05-04 20:17 (UTC)

[When he sees Akira relax a little after his answer, Yu can't help but feel happy that he helped him out. Carrying such a burden shouldn't be only his and he should always be reminded that he's not alone. Even when it feels like it. Especially at night when everyone's away. Yu had Nanako and Dojima to talk to, but he couldn't tell them everything that was weighing on his mind. It's even worse for his new friend. He suspects Akira has someone to talk about this so openly because of a criminal record. Which is completely unfair. What he did was admirable and required some major guts.

Yu would've done the same if he was in Akira's place.

The statement takes Yu off guard a bit. More things to steal? Like what?]

Hmm? What else do you plan to steal?

[...!!]

Oh! I don't own expensive silverware. We do have titanium butcher knife though. Can that help you in battle? [He doesn't have to steal it! Just ask! Yu would give to him without second of thought!]

[Wow. Well. Okay. Note to self, Akira- he won't get the flirting (that's okay, because he's pretty bad at receiving it himself. Must be the Fool's Curse). He looks around for his school bag and realized that he came as a thief and didn't bring it with him. He'll have to do without it for now.

Grabbing his mask, he puts it back on his face, over his glasses.]

Put it in the bag, Narukami-san.

[If only he had his model gun, this would be a perfect hold up.]

[Yu has to bite the inner of his cheek to keep himself from smiling. He stands up slowly with raised hands and walks over to the kitchen and pulls out the said knife from the drawer. It is still in its sheaths. And then picks out one of the bags.

He walks over to Akira slowly and gets face to face with him, mere inches away from his face, and places the bag in his hands.]

Let it cut all lies in your way.

[Akira seriously has to make a mental note to himself that Yu is definitely the type of guy who takes things at literal meaning. And really, honestly, there shouldn't be any emotional attachment or feelings associated to the idea of a guy practically handing you a knife and telling you to go to town on all the evils in the world, but here Akira is, just barely away from that face, those determined, calm eyes, and it's sending a shiver down his spine. Even though Yu is the one handing him a knife, he's the one who brought a gun to a blade match, and Akira doesn't have any chance in the world at fighting back at it.

His eyes drift slowly down to his nose, down to the crux of skin above his upper lip, to the width of the lower one. Does Yu even know what type of effect this is having on him? His fingers curl around the bag. In a way, feelings are exactly like a knife: they teeter ever close on the edge, waiting to stab right through skin. There's a soft smile, then, when he's trying to get composure back, and he stops focusing on how close they are like this.

Yu's just weird, he assumes. The type that you can't always tell if he's being absolutely serious or not, and he's learning quick that he's weak to the whole of it. Maybe he doesn't understand his body language, or maybe he does, and that odd balance between knowing, or thinking he might know, and not know, makes him all the more susceptible to it.

Clearing his throat, he wonders what type of thief he would be if his was the heart to be stolen.]

I'll destroy all of them.

[No one has ever told Yu he's weird- except Yosuke, but he's weird himself so it doesn't count. But if they ever do, Yu would agree with them. His outlook on things isn't always like the other people perceive things. Maybe that's why he always gets entangled in stuff like this. With shadows, personas, catching criminals.

He smiles back and nods-]

I have no doubts.

[...are his lashes long or what?

Yu only then notices how close he's to Akira. And then slowly steps back, trying not to be too obvious about it. He just invaded Akira's personal space and the guy was probably too shy to say anything about it.]

[Relatively speaking, Akira outside of his costume was too shy to do anything daring or gutsy by default. He was more of the sidelines... make a witty one-liner type of guy and let everyone else do the talking so that he could think and chime in when he needed to. He's also the type of guy that Yu being so close to him makes him feel butterflies in his stomach, so there's that. All these cool things he gets to do, and deep down... still a nerd.]

I'll be stronger since you believe in me.

[And with that, he figures he's already overstayed his welcome, and Morgana is going to start to worry with him being out for so long. His shoulders slump though- he wishes he could stay longer and do what teens who are friends are supposed to do- hang out, watch tv, talk about the dumbest shit ever, but the fact that Madorame's heart still needs capturing, coupled with the looming presence of his curfew cutting him short on time, makes it harder to be able to do any of the normal stuff that he'd rather be doing.]

Watch the news in three days.

[Akira offers a smile, heading over to his jacket to pick it up, and folds it neatly. He hates that it won't smell like Yu's detergent in a few days, but it's something that he can live with, so he folds it up and adds it to the bag with the knife.]

[Yu can feel his stomach flip in happiness. He personally can't go with him wherever he goes to fight shadows, but knowing he helped even a little, it makes him extremely happy. He gives him a firm nod-]

I will for sure. [He's looking forward to seeing another criminal bite the dust. He doesn't know who is in question, but if Akira has set his eyes on him, then there's a reason for it.

As he started packing up his stuff, a lightbulb went off thin Yu's head-]

Oh! That reminds me. [He goes back into the kitchen and finds the small container. He fills it with the remains of ravioli and gives it to Akira with a grin.]

For Morgana.

[He takes the care package for his feline friend in hand, carefully juggling all three things (coat, knife, leftovers- what a weird combination). He doesn't really know what to say about this. It's incredibly nice... and anyone that loves animals and cares about them is clearly someone with a good heart. He does his best for Morgana, tries to make him feel like he's part of his own little weird family, but he's sure that if he comes home with this food, that he'll be happier than a cat in a field of mice.]

T-thanks. He'll appreciate it. I'll let you know what he says.

[Still, Yu probably has no idea that he can talk (and man, can he talk), which makes Akira seem all the more eccentric and cat-lady like, but the way he states it comes off as factual and without hesitation. So he's either really crazy into cats or the little dude actually understands people. Yu can decide either way.]

Catch you around, troublemaker.

[Akira doesn't waste too much time on the goodbye- and really, he should leave through the front door, but he's already established an infiltration route through the window, so he finds himself climbing back out of it anyway. It felt more mysterious like this anyway. Akira felt way cooler in front of Yu when he could appear and disappear at will just by going through his room like that.]

Take care and be careful!

[Three days, huh? Yu was sad to see him leave since it left him alone in this big apartment. But man's gotta do what man's gotta do, as Kanji would say. He sees him out of the window, making sure that there are no snooping neighbors and with short wave, closes up and pulls on the curtains. And as he collected the dishes from their dinner, he felt light on his feet. When was the last time he felt happy like this? Excited too. He should probably update Yosuke on the situation. He didn't want his friend to worry about him.

And those three days passed by faster than he thought they would. He saw Akira during school hours and had short chats with him but nothing serious or about what the man did in his spare time. It was Saturday afternoon when Yu, after getting to Shibuya from school, stopped to look at the local news in one of the windows. There was a huge commotion and yelling, and he was pretty sure someone screamed 'They HAVE to be real!'

Making his way through the throng of people, he stopped right in front of the TV to hear the news. Ichiryusai Madarame- openly confessed the plagiarized work, abuse of his students, fraud, and stealing. Yu was standing there, eyes glued in shock. He did it... Yu doesn't know how and when, but Akira did something to this man.
When one guy in the crowd shoved him, Yu finally remembered that he had to breathe. After pulling himself out, he got out his phone. He should send him something, right?

Yu can't remember last time he was shaking this hard. He ducked into the alleyway and typed out the message-]

K.Akira: That was a true masterpiece. Amazing work.

[They'd pulled it off. They really did it. The original Sayuri was in Yusuke's hands, and Madarame had confessed every one of his sins, straight from his mouth. This was the highest Akira's ever felt in his life, addicted to the rush of watching a man's demise be brought to light by his own doings. His phone was buzzing with all sorts of texts- Mishima warning him that the Phan-Site poll was reaching astronomically new heights. Ryuji congratulating the team. Yusuke thanking them for helping him get out of the hard place he was in.

Did Narukami-kun text you yet?

Mn. Not yet.

What's he waiting for? You told him to watch the TV today, right?

I thought you didn't like him.

He brought me food, Joker!

Akira rolls his eyes. Truth of the matter was though, he really was waiting for Yu's text first and foremost. Which is... a pretty horrible thing considering all his teammates were celebrating and lighting up his SMS page. He's wondering if he's ignored it all, if he was only nice to him during the time he was in his house, or something else- any myriad reasons that would point him to believing that Yu had lost interest already.

And then it comes. Morgana hovers over his shoulder, and Akira is apt to push him away a little to make sure that he's the one to read it first. Yeah. Akira's got it bad for this guy. It isn't until he's smirking, light in his eyes, that Morgana teases him again about the entire ordeal, pointing out that he didn't look like this around the others.

▷ Glad to impress.
▷ I haven't got a clue what you're talking about.
▶ Come over and we can celebrate?
▷ .....

Maybe if my guts were high enough....

▶ Glad to impress.
▷ I haven't got a clue what you're talking about.
▷ Come over and we can celebrate?
▷ ..... ]

Glad to impress.

[Right now, Akira feels like he could take on the world. Anything. Finals. A grand jury. Going naked in the bathhouse. Eating the entire big bang burger challenge. It's a rare, but pure feeling, and he doesn't want to let it go.]

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