galehaut.

      It’s petty and irrational, yet he can’t stop these stupid feelings bubbling inside him.

      “So I take it she was just a one-night stand.” The wording leaves a bitter taste in his mouth. “I’m impressed, old man. I never thought for a second you needed that kind of company.” An idea makes room in his head, and somehow his own pettiness pushes him to form the words in spite of himself, accompanying them with a smirk of his own.

A mysterious earthquake one moment, and then the return of a nightmare the next: this span of time really was a gift. Liu had been out with Hibiki surveying the damage and attempting to help others when the change settled in, bringing back an intact city and a hoard of enemies. He was used to this by now, but that didn’t make him any happier to face it.

“Don’t worry,” he told Hibiki as one of the disjointed Pariah approached. Its deathly pale skin was dotted with red, remnants of those it had torn apart before. Hiding hadn’t helped at all, but he’d make sure his temporary partner would stay safe. 

Putting full force behind his kicks and dodging when necessary took out the first Pariah. No more were around at the moment, but Liu was sure another would appear soon. They had to get somewhere else—somewhere like home.

“Let’s get moving while we can.”

      It is sadly not enough to face an enemy whose power is way beyond his management-- a punch would definitely break his hand if he tried fighting a Pariah-- but Liu’s fast reflexes and capabilities make up for Hibiki’s uselessness. Gritting his teeth, he tries to hold back from breathing quickly and let any hint of panic break through his cool character. They can survive this, too.

Liu’s mouth curled up, a small smile easing into a competitive smirk. He reached back for the dock. They didn’t really have a place to start otherwise, so he might as well mark it as the beginning line. His hand flat on the smooth wood, he focused his gaze on the finish line. “All right. We’ll go on 3,” he explained to Hibiki. “One, two…”

Without adding a “three”, he dove forward, arms extending to pull him through the water. It might have been a cheap move if Hibiki had decided to obediently wait for that final number. Liu didn’t trust him enough to wait, and so decided to go at the earliest reasonable opportunity.

      Liu is fast, but Hibiki’s determination is nothing to sneeze at. He makes up for the lack of fitness with his faster brain. Broader strokes may drain his energies fast, but he can at least catch up some amount. The water filling his nostrils and eats bother him terribly, but despite his more disgraceful way to swim his way to the goal, he is trying his best.

The fight ended with the three thugs on the ground. Though the second man to face his mental attack didn’t seem completely knocked out, he was unable to move much. Liu left him and charged for the door. It didn’t budge when pushed, so he stepped back to deliver another rough kick. It swung outward just after his foot met the wood.

A dark night sky waited past the door frame. Liu hurried out, dragging Hibiki along if necessary. His breath crystallized in the cold air, but at least it wasn’t the dusty stale air from inside. “Must’ve been an emergency exit,” he muttered. He hadn’t heard an alarm go off, but he expected a group of thugs to disable it. 

      The cool air doesn’t do good things to his headache, but the pain is momentarily buried under adrenaline and streams of hope that they could actually manage to get out of this hell alive. It’s not over yet, but he can finally see freedom within his grasping range.

He had already stopped in his tracks, but now he moved slightly in front of Hibiki. On reflex, he was trying to guard his “partner”. That thought occurred to him, but he didn’t have time to scowl over it. This was an opportunity, either to get assistance or strike first. “Hey,” he called out to grab their attention. The women were still moving in his and Hibiki’s direction, but paused at the sound of his voice. He was calm but characteristically suspicious. 

“Do you know where the station is? Or the nearest road out. That’s what we’re looking for.” 

The shorter woman appeared to size them up before answering. “No. We’re just as lost as you. But maybe we can look together?” Her smile caught the light, simultaneously disarming and disquieting.

      His perception did not betray him. Two new figures have appeared indeed, and the fact they’re women could put him at an advantage as he could smoothly talk his way out of this dumb situation. Fate is against that plan, however, since he’s sadly aware of how they would definitely not take the words of a jellyfish/human hybrid seriously. His precadiment is even worse than he even possibly thought.

      Besides, they seem to be no help either. At first slightly offended that Liu spoke before him, Hibiki feels the power cradling back into his hands when he senses the other’s stare towards him. He could flip the situation and ditch the women if he felt the slightly bit suspicious of them, but what if they’re actually innocents and he’s going to deny the little help he could give? Morals are complex and bothersome sometimes.

      “I don’t see the problem with it,” He concludes while looking back at Liu, smiling with a depth into his eyes. If the pair tried to attack them, they would defend themselves. If they refused to help, there’s also a good chance they’d get attacked anyway, so he’s going to mark the least of both evils.

Spotting the drinks station, Liu shifted his trajectory to meet it. “Might as well get something to drink. A glass of champagne or something.” He shifted his gaze to Hibiki. “I don’t think they ID here unless you look ten, so your choice whether you try to get something or not.” 

      Getting tipsy is not amongst his priorities, but admittedly he needs something to easen up his nerves. Liu’s presence is calming enough, moreso than other occasions, but his comment stirs the younger man into a challenging mood. He can take liquour better than anyone can predict.

      “At least I don’t look ten at all,” He huffs, listening to the other’s order and actually looking over the list of drinks available. “I’ll have... a Limoncello,” A single finger-waving gesture to the bartender before he settles to wait. Hibiki is not one of those kids who drink only to look bigger and cool, but he had his share of beverages he tried out at least once. If there’s anything to brag about, it’s the fact he’s not that much of a lightweight.

      He swirls the yellow content into his glass, staring down at it and reveling in the aroma it emanates. He his eyes before taking a first sip. If he needs to make this look as natural as possible, they might as well start a normal conversation.

Following that very calm explanation of death, he stood and casually walked closer to where Hibiki, in his body, sat. Liu leaned on the armrest and peered at him. “I’m so much smaller than you like this. It’s annoying.” 

      The lighter shift in topic has him smirk. “What, are you afraid I’m going to suddenly pick you up and carry you to places?” He teases, a bit forced due to the need to feel better about this stupid situation, somehow find something remotely positive among the pile of crap they’re in right now. 

It’s not healthy, he knows it from how shaky his hands feel and how rattled his breathing still is. There isn’t any other choice, though, is there? Hibiki speaking up, voice seeming to be very weak and falter from dryness at this point - exclaiming that he knew Hugh could do it, because he was tough - pushed this point even more home.

He couldn’t let his own troubles show now. Not when there was someone counting on him. Yet, despite this fact pushing his tension more to the back - it also gave him courage, determination. It lessened the shakes, at least - so the driving was a lot more steady. Hugh knew he’d have to thank Hibiki for that, when there was time.

The fact the car was now silent also fueled Hugh’s focus. They were running out of time, as he’d guessed: there wasn’t the time for too much chatter or worry now. Had to get to the park soon - and it seemed there was a shining beacon of hope - a green beacon, in this case, for Hugh spied the trees coming into view as well, and sighed in utter relief.

“Y-yeah…thank the gods for that. I’ll park as close as I can to the fountain - that way all we have to do then is get you in there.” 

He wasn’t going to waste any time with that, and so pushed to get as close to the fountain as was possible and park - stopping the car.

      With labored breaths, he reaches out to the taxi’s door handle and simply drops his hand on it, using his increased body weight to push out and open. While trying to disentangle from the mess of tendrils that make his cursed costume, and finally getting one leg out, he turns briefly to Hugh. “If I fall face first into the ground, which will probably happen, I’m going to need a little help.” He pushes himself forward, struggling with the grand jellyfish head and feeling actual pain shoot through his body as the umbrella-like mass squeezes against the tight exit. This is bad. The transformation is carrying on.

      After long minutes of anguish, he’s out, barely standing on his own two feet. Even the tentacles that felt strong until now give him a hard time keeping his balance. He grips the car’s door for dear life. No, he definitely can’t do this alone. A begging pale face turns once again to his companion.

The song wound down, and the stars rearranged themselves above their heads. A flicker of light passed over Hibiki’s head, and spurred on by it, Liu found his hand softly tousling that turquoise hair. His feet carried him through the quieter notes, keeping the dance going. “I still think your hairstyle is stupid,” he remarked, though his tone was missing the usual insulting edge. “…But it’s softer than mine, and it suits you.” 

      A hand sneaks into his hair, and he nearly startles before realizing his partner is the one who got the idea of suddenly making that move. Dark eyes dart to meet the other man’s gaze with confusion and a bit of flustering wonder, although the heat over his cheeks delays to deliver once the insult reaches his ears. “At least yours looks stupider,” he retorts childishly, not above resuming the back-and-forth banter. Except it seems their brief moment is being interrupted by the very reason why Liu agreed too come along.

Feeling restless, Liu sat up. “Is that how you feel? I can’t really get your true feelings out of what this body’s given me, though I know you… regretted what happened at Kisaragi School.” What happened to Tadashi Yamato was a shock to everyone, and gave FORT the red flag it needed to act.

      “I don’t know,” he mutters, ignoring the previous comment, and trying to keep anxiety at arm’s distance. Being reminded of his past mistakes was the very last thing he needed right now, and all because he made an off-handed reply. He glares at the ground instead of Liu.

“Oh?” He shifted to the side at their look of surprise, reflecting his own. This was certainly unprecedented. 

“I’m so sorry…” Satoru audibly gasped at hearing of their heroism. Of course, Saki should have been able to use her cantus to avoid it, but saying that would only belittle such a noble action. They had been in the same position now, and both chose self sacrifice. In a way, it made Satoru doubt the man’s words from before. They were not of different views at all if this had been his choice as well.

      He watches the inevitable shift in demeanor from Satoru and closes his eyes, smiling with a bit of a demure front. “I accept your thanks. Who would have thought I was having a deep provoking talk with the husband of a woman I helped?” Hibiki has no qualities of a hero, regardless of how he’d like to be one. Pride won’t let him just reject the thankful words, like those who would still speak as if what they’ve done was no big deal. He couldn’t move his whole arm for weeks. That was a big deal. 

      “I ask nothing except for your future aid should something problematic occur.” He actually can’t think of anything, and it’s not like he spills too many expectations out of people, though what he hears next is among things he never thought he’d hear from anyone. An offer of friendship, that he can either accept or pretend to ignore. “Well... I hope someday I can share the sentiment with the same intensity, but I’m glad you consider me a friend.” Leaving alone the ‘greatest’ part, Hibiki offers the other a gentle look.

“I don’t do it frequently, but you might be surprised what we were instructed to learn at FORT,” he explained, voice level enough for Hibiki to hear but not loud enough to carry. “Atsuki was expected to act as a normal teenager at your school. I’ve had missions where we were supposed to infiltrate parties. Some skills you don’t forget.” Even if he was rusty. 

      The moment he realizes he’s actually starting to enjoy himself fast, Hibiki won’t bring himself to stop. He smirks up at Liu, hearing of the bizzarre training FORT allegedly provides to their workers in order to complete missions. Actually he’d learned those details already, but to have them confirmed by one of their best members makes the ordeal sound even funnier. What a good pick he’d make if only he had a chance to join, but he’s not in the mood to get bitter about his powerlessness.

He stopped in an open space and turned back to Hibiki. The smile, crooked as it was, remained. For someone almost perpetually in a bad mood, it seemed out of place. So did his inclination to do this at all. The song filling the room was a slower one. Fortunately, he knew the simple steps it needed. 

      “Being taller has nothing to do with leading, you know.” Hibiki snorts, not at all annoyed but merely throwing remarks for the sake of keeping their conversation at a certain level like their usual banters. He accepts the touch either way, his body leaning against the embrace as if moving on its own. A hand rests gently over Liu’s shoulder, while another gets trapped in a hold, fingers curled with uncertainty before Hibiki accepts the gesture and relaxes.

       This is just going to be one dancing session; there is no point worrying or being flustered by something so small and mundane.

A short distance in the ballroom, they were accosted by a pair of people apparently working with the flower shop. One was overly helpful about attaching a boutonnière to the lapel of Liu’s jacket. He was affronted by the familiarity, but didn’t move to fight the worker off. He wouldn’t really have known how to attach it himself anyway. It was a strange, dark blue flower he couldn’t identify, but he wasn’t an expert on flowers to begin with.

Once the workers had moved on to the next set of people coming inside, Liu grimaced a bit. “I guess trying to fit in around here is better than standing out,” he muttered to Hibiki as an explanation. He touched the boutonnière suspiciously, but left it alone after that.

“What do you plan to do?” Standing around and watching other people for suspicious behavior didn’t sound like much fun to him. And for now—fun didn’t sound so bad. “I wouldn’t go too far from me if you want me to be effective in protecting you. I can’t tap into my power here.” It seemed strangely quiet when he couldn’t feel the intensifying emotions around him. He could only imagine how strange a more specific Σ user would feel.

      Admittedly, a flower looks a little better placed on Liu’s dark suit than his own. Blue and black paint each other nicely, he thinks as he stares at the taller man for a bit longer before he closes his eyes. “I don’t have plans for now,” he says sincerely. Dancing is not out of discussion, but especially now he doesn’t feel up to socializing with other people, finding the old man’s presence more comfortable.

      Then, the offer raises to his ears, and he blinks his eyes open to gaze back at his companion. How in the world does that sound so alluring out of nowhere? He opens his mouth, lacking words for a few mere seconds. It suddenly seems so foolish to just decline.