Burnt to a Crisp

Although his heart sank, the fear that gripped him wasn’t the same as before. This was just heat stroke, not an actual inferno bearing down upon her. She would live through this, no sweat. (Or lots of sweat, whatever it took to keep her cool.)

A quiet sigh was audible, just before Akane turned so that she could bury her face in his shirt. She used to do that when she was younger, but as of late it seemed as though she fell back into old patters. 

Of course he didn’t mind the question, though to say he fully believed Akane’s little girl act would be off the mark. He would play along with it as long as he needed, since it stroked his ego nice, but he’d be keeping an eye on her.

So essentially what he was trying to tell her was that these armed soldiers weren't her enemies unless she was involved in illegal business. At that realization, a sigh of relief slipped from her lips easily -- she wasn't as close to dying again as she had expected. "That's quite relieving. I don't know what would have happened if I ended up being the main target of these men. It's scary."

Aoi came running back, a flask in hand. After tucking his knees beneath her head, he brought the mouth of the canteen to her lips and pressed his still-wet palm against her forehead. It was the least he could do.

She knew it was morbid and utterly horrible to admit it, but she couldn't keep herself from saying it. It described her situation accurately, and it even covered her inner turmoil. "It feels like I'm on fire," she whispered, grateful for both the bit of water and her brother's presence. But when it came down to it, what could he do? It was like pounding against a locked door.

"For what reason? We got revenge on Hongou. He should be on our side for that," Aoi snapped, surprisingly heated over Akane’s assumption. Not that he was mad at her for thinking it, but rather because the possibility could dbe there. The Nonary Game had been a traumatizing event for all of them. Who were they, two unwanted kids, to drag another pair of iblings back down with them? He pursed his lips. Tasted salt.

"I'm not so sure," she replied, her eyes staring at him as though she was attempting to read him like the page of a book. It wasn't unbeknownst to her that Aoi and Light had a lot of things in common, and it made her wonder if her brother willingly decided to downplay the danger the blind could impose on them, for the sake of a friendship, for the sake of mutual understanding between two big brothers that went through the same.

Panic spread across his features like a wildfire. While his sister sweltered due to the heat, his cheeks burned with rage. How dare they put him and Akane on this island.

Akane fell into his arms powerlessly, each and every small effort to hold on to him in vain. She couldn't explain what was happening -- the last time she had had such a fever was directly connected to that incident, but she was already saved. Where did this come from? This couldn't possibly be only the heat. And on top of that, Akane didn't know whether her mind was just attempting to travel the fields to no avail, or if she was on the verge of losing consciousness. The latter, however, sounded rather dangerous.

"Pleasure’s all mine, Akane." He nodded his head in a lazy bow.

She was used to being in strange situations. At some point you just stop questioning life and start going with the flow, and she was far beyond that point.

She recognized her brother's voice, but not the way he looked. Her field of vision was blurry, and she found it hard enough to even lift her head. This scene was so oddly familiar, yet she didn't only have a sense of déjà vu, she knew this had already happened at some point.

"Really, though. Maybe we should check out the bank. See if they really did transfer all our cash…" Wouldn’t that be sweet? And a little too convenient. What was the point of hauling them here and then giving them access to their funds?

"Why would they do such a thing? It would be too easy." Then again, Akane was the last person to deny a possibility. "But indeed, we should check. Just in case." 

"Someone heartless. Or someone being paid enough."

"We could have payed them more at home."

"Hey. Don’t get shot while you’re snooping around."

"I can’t believe how many rifles they’ve got marching around. That’s just insane."

Of course the happiness would be short-lived. It was hard to focus on the bright side when the bright side was roasting them alive.

It was always like this, wasn't it? The Kurashikis just weren't made for happiness without a time limit. And when there wasn't a deadly virus to fight or a little girl's life to save, then they had to make sure not to end up roasted by the sun. Oh, the inexpicable beauty of life! "I agree. We don't know whether this is dangerous or not, but we should stay on the safe side. Not to mention that matters don't look good with all these armed people around."