agito defender

[ Ω ]—— His face not only lights up at the positive feedback on his creation, but also the question that follows perks every passionate side of him. Without holding back he slides the other chair aside and sits down, leaning forward as close to Hikawa as possible, eyes brimming with joyful light. Give him any topic regarding food and he’ll become bright like a Christmas tree.

      “Of course I did! When I worked in that pastry shop for a short time, I experimented a lot and tried stuffing as many kinds of vegetables as I could!” He pauses, lights dimming a little. “Though my first experiments weren’t so successful, but pulling onions and garlics out of the mix made them taste a little better. Ah! I can’t explain myself that well with words so I should bake one for you and give a demonstration!”

He paused with the fork in his mouth, tilting his head at Shouichi’s answer. For a split second he was nervous that garlic lurked somewhere in this cake. No, it couldn’t be.

Mouth then empty, Makoto said, “Onions and garlic? Just using them in savory baked goods is enough.” Maybe he was wrong on that. Maybe, somewhere on Earth, onions were used as a dessert. He didn’t want to think about it.

[ Ω ]—— The rush of optimism coming from Hikawa is a refresher Shouichi definitely needed, and he smiles gratefully, although a different kind of refreshing would also be very appreciated. Something like… a polar breeze. Open the refrigerators and let the wind in. It doesn’t matter if he’s going to have a stroke from that. He needs the cold, harsh winter wiping away all the gross sweat soaking his everything.

      Glancing at Hikawa’s current attire, however, gives him a faint rush of thoughts. Maybe staying like this a little longer is not a bad idea. Shouichi debates taking his shirt off in vague hopes Hikawa will look his way. The heat is definitely getting to his head.

      “I trust you better about this. You’ve got the brains! Just leave the brawls to me!” He jabs a thumb at his own chest, smirking cheekily. “I’ll protect you for sure. And when this is over, I’m gonna cook you the best dinner I can think of!”

The mention of food brought it to the front of his mind, nudging him with the knowledge he needed it at some point. His stomach was already ready to complain. He could stand it, but he wished Shouichi hadn’t brought it up so soon.

“We need shelter, and we need food, now.” Makoto looked a little dejected. “What do you think there is to eat in this forest?”

Feeling like they were being watched gave him the idea that there might be hostile animals around, but his survival skills weren’t up to par to make use of that kind of thing. 

@makotohikawa

[ Ω ]—— On another day, in another world, he would likely prance in happiness at the idea of spending time inside so much green that extends to infinity, a tunnel with no exit where all he can see is grass, trees and small animals he can pet, other than a fertile terrain he can grow some vegetables on. The idea of perfect paradise is close to where he’s standing right now, much closer than anyone would think. On the other hand, given what led him and Hikawa there against their will, there’s very little to enjoy at this moment.

      It’s unbearably hot. Bangs sticking to his forehead, Shouichi wishes he could take a long, long shower. If only they could retrieve a map, he’d rush to the nearest river or lake and dip in with all his clothes still on him. But there’s no map, nothing to help the two of them gather their bearings, and Shouichi slowly slips into desperation, although only a single thought keeps him from wanting to slam his head against a tree until he falls unconscious.

      He’d experienced worse than this. At least he can still walk, talk, breathe on his own, and do something about his current predicament. Some dire situations had him cry, but this won’t be one of them. If he comes to hate the color green because of this, he really is no worth keeping the Agito powers! Thus he marches on, with Hikawa at his side. The presence of his ally, friend and lover is the other thing that keeps him grounded.

      “There’s no end to… this,” he huffs in annoyance, hearing both their footsteps as they step on the grass. “And I suppose we’re not alone.” What he also hears are noises that don’t come from either of them, a mysterious source constantly on their tail. He’d like to think it’s just some curious squirrel watching them. However, considering the world they are in, such possibility shouldn’t be taken for granted.

The stressful environment would wear on anyone, and Makoto was no exception. At least there were methods to feel a little less oppressed by the humidity, and the result was him carrying his suit jacket and tie over his shoulder, the top two buttons of his shirt undone. If only he’d been more prepared somehow rather than dressed up for work. His closet wasn’t really equipped for this anyway.

He dropped his free hand on Shouichi’s shoulder. The exhaustion he felt was visibly worse. Makoto couldn’t fix it, but he could try to comfort him somehow. “We aren’t alone even without whatever else is in this forest,” he said encouragingly, then slipping into something wearier. “...But I wish neither of us was here.”

Keeping a lookout hadn’t offered anything yet, but it hadn’t crushed his hope. “They said we have seven days. There must be somewhere we can rest on the way.” Otherwise the heat would kill them much faster than that time limit. It was more awful to think of Shouichi suffering through it than himself.

He offered another shoulder pat before he pulled back his hand. “I’ll find something.”

@makotohikawa

[ ♬ ]—— Ibuki quite missed this feeling. The sense of danger cooling the blood in her veins, forming drops of sweat over her forehead, pumping her heart faster and noisily. It’s been so long since she was genuinely afraid for her life. How scary, being glad that now she’s being reminded of how she can feel other emotions besides unbound happiness. Still, she’d like to be warned beforehand if she’s going to be plucked off her house and teleported in a place where plants stick everywhere, bugs irritate her skin, and trees go as far up as to seemingly touch the sky.

      Oh, and she’d also like not to die alone by the hands (or lack thereof) of the little monster in front of her.

      It’s a small, blue, cute but also angry monster that has cornered her against one of the large trees after a chase that lasted a good dozen minutes. The heat is draining Ibuki’s energies quicker than normal, along with her optimism, and by the time she’s now resting against the rough tree branch, she’s no longer feeling her own legs. Dragging herself down until she sits on dirt, Ibuki never peels her scared gaze off the monster. If she’s going to die from a probable headbutt to the gut and consequent impalement from those horn-like things on the monster’s head, at least she’d like to witness the moment without further jumpscares.

      “This sucks…” She mutters under laboured breath, refusing to cry before death is going to claim her.

Despite his drive to protect others being perfectly intact, his ability to handle threats was greatly reduced. At least he had his height and fitness, he supposed; there wasn’t a point to sitting down and pitying himself, even if that meant he had several injuries at this point. An awful swelling under his knee hid behind his clothes, but the cut on his face refused to disappear.

If he could have heard her voice, he would’ve found her sooner. It was only once he’d walked near enough to hear the high-pitched squeaking of the creature that his attention snapped to the dangerous confrontation. Makoto ran toward them immediately, able to tell the blue animal was preparing for something. Whatever it was, he didn’t want Ibuki to face it.

[ Ω ]—— A light blush sprinkles his cheeks at the question. Shouichi stands, fiddling with his apron while watching Hikawa pick a slice of cake. “The one at the ball was delicious, so I had to make this one super delicious to top it!” He bounces on the balls of his feet, excited due to being confident in his skills.

      “Tomato could’ve been great, but I really wanted to do something that reminded us of our first outing together! The ball happened a few days after we became an item, so…”

An entire cake just for them felt a bit selfish, but there was also a pride in being the one it was meant to be shared with. Makoto definitely had the appetite to finish it before it went to waste. “Thank you,” he said, setting down the plate and returning to his seat. “I’ll be happy to continue testing what you come up with.” A change from his avoidance when they’d first met, but that had nothing to do with his confidence in the cook even then.

Without hesitation, he picked up a fork and and took a bite. His expression had been content before, but it lit up a little more now. “It is delicious. I think you could put any other chef to shame with enough effort.” For someone with moderate difficulty in any kind of cooking, someone like Shouichi always nearby was nothing less than a miracle.

[ Ω ]—— “Well, I do admire other people, especially if they can cook the dishes I like without even half the effort I take to cook them!” Shouichi stuffs his free hand in his pocket, marching with Hikawa towards the next area and vacantly looking at the animals exposed. “But I don’t think you try too hard. You’re just doing your best with things you’re not accustomed to doing! So many people would have given up after failing the tofu test a lot, but you persisted! That’s greatly brave of you! I teased you, but I was also honestly impressed!”

      “What do you think is the animal that endures challenges most? Because that’d be surely you!” He smiles at his friend, then pulls the hand off his pocket to bring it to his chin. “But I’m not sure what kind of animal I’d be like…”

Makoto’s expression darkened again, lost in the implications of that, whether Shouichi intended them or not. “I’ve had meals my entire life. I’m not really unaccustomed to trying to make or eat things...”

He’d move on. He didn’t want to hear much else like that. “Living in this city, in a zoo especially, means they all endure more than usual. The treatment by some of the citizens must be dangerous.” Powers presented plenty of unusual hazards.

“I’d say... a lizard suits you. A bearded dragon.” Makoto was resolute in his observation. “The spikes on creatures like that resemble Agito’s crest, don’t they?” He held his hand up to his chin thoughtfully. “I don’t know enough about them to say if they’re very clean...”

This was one such time, though Sunny seemed completely oblivious to the fingers poking out of the garbage bag he was carrying to the above-ground dumpster. He didn’t notice the detective, either. 

With a cautious and attentive approach, he approached the district on foot. He didn’t get far --- shortly after he stepped off the elevator, he spotted what looked like a walking pillar of magnificent hair carrying a trash bag. It wasn’t difficult to see the person within the hair, but at first it was all that commanded attention.

“Excuse me,” he said as he walked closer. “I’m Makoto Hikawa, detective with the police force. Do you have the time to answer a few questions?”