#ambivalent-auguries

    The night was hot. Unbearably warm. Especially in a city like this. In a box apartment with a small window AC unit, Augustus spent most of his nights spread out on his mattress, shirtless, with a cool water bottle pressed to his forehead. He thought of his mother back home in Japan. It’d been a year since he finally got the nerve to leave and train. He left with a suitcase and a dream. 

  Isn’t that how most stories go? 

   Well, Augustus’ story won’t be any more exciting than the next guy. His advantage -- the sword he wielded -- was his talent. But even in a city swarming with talent, he was a shimmer in the distance. Seen, but not nearly at his full potential. He had years to go, thousands of hours of training, and one fell swoop before being entirely shattered. 

   This is the story of how the Great Wave shatters. 

    He wasn’t one for romance. He’d dabbled in dates, a few blind ones, and watched the ooey-gooey romcoms his roommates put on. He’d mingled in hook-up culture and was unfortunately... still alive in that realm of the social circle. 

   Which lead him here. He’d finally caved and opened the God forsaken app in his phone only to land on a man who had a handful of years above him. However, it seemed like it didn’t phase him or anyone else he had vaguely mentioned it to. Augustus dressed up -- not anything fancy, but a decent short-sleeved button down and a nice pair of jeans. He kept the first few buttons open, a line of a silver necklace trailing down from the curve of his collarbone and into the dip of his chest. 

   And dear God, he was nervous. Not like ... about to go on stage during opening night, nervous, but more along the lines of uncertainty. He hovered at the entrance of the location they agreed on, ensuring himself that it wasn’t too late to turn back. He could blame it on a head cold or a late night practice. Anything. 

   His feet led him to a spot at the bar, mind an absolute blur, a determined expression written across his face. “I half expected this to be a shitty dive bar based on name alone,” Augustus spoke up, eyes fixed on the selection of illuminated bottles mounted on a fine dark wood rather than the man he posted himself next to. He didn’t dare steal a glance. Not yet. He slipped into the seat, hand carding through the ash blond hair that crowned his head. It fell like satin, voluminous layers slipping through pale fingers as pink lips pursed and then relaxed into a small, polite smile. 

@ambivalent-auguries​ asked:  ☔ / Reese for Theo but feel free to change selection!

Symbol Starters //  Send ☔ for our muses to share an umbrella on a rainy day

   After all of the changes in his life, the one place that never changed and stayed as his constant was the stage. The night was cool and crisp, the music hot and loud. Yuki was in his element, radiating a sense of confidence that brought in the attention of many in the small bar he was posted up in. To close out the set, Yuki sat on a stool center stage with his fingers plucking restlessly at his guitar. Melodies escaped dampened lips, a smile tempting at his expression as his eyes flashed to the rest of the crowd. It was a small gathering, nothing like the venues he normally frequented, but his new band mates had insisted on building relationships with all of the venues in the area to heighten their popularity. 

   It’d never been about the popularity for him, it was about playing. He wanted to play his music and have whoever was around to listen to it in return. 

   That’s when his eyes landed on a certain individual in the crowd. One who looked at him unlike anyone else in the small clusters of people that roamed the area. Something about this man’s gaze was... intense. Yuki looked back down to his guitar as he fingered out the last few measures of the song. He leaned into the microphone and grinned against it, “Thank you everyone, have a good night!” 

   He slung his guitar around on his shoulders and headed towards the back stage area to meet back up with his friends. Admittedly, that was hard to do too -- make friends. Yuki had struggled getting close to anyone since the incident and now that he was in a new place, the idea of starting over was terrifying. But he did it through small efforts like this. Feeling his pockets for his cigarettes, he nodded towards the back door of the venue and told the others to go on without him as they were making plans to grab food on the way home.

   The first hit of smoke always tasted the most bitter, the burn pleasant on his throat as he took a drag and blew the spirals into the air. He rounded the corner and once again laid eyes on the same intense-gaze individual. Between those pouty lips, a cigarette sat. Yuki felt a smile rise to his lips as he came over and entered the other’s space. “Here, let me help,” he murmured, leaning forward. His hand cupped near their mouths to stop the flow of air as he brought their cigarettes together, lighting the other’s as he took another drag. He pulled back with a victorious grin, smoke piping from the corner of his mouth. 

    With two cocktails in his system and fingers itching for a smoke, Ugetsu didn’t frequent bars like this often. This was his attempt at getting to know some of the better hole-in-the wall bars a few blocks from the University. He’d listened to some of the local talent, though nothing really drew his attention to the small stage set-up. He found more interest in the glass pinched between his fingers and the guy posted up on one side of the bar. 

   By the time Ugetsu had gotten a few sips in, he decided to satisfy the urge to approach, especially as the thought of Yu crept into the back of his mind. He’d overstepped his boundaries and while apologetic having trying to use Yu to get over Akihiko, he decided it was best not to focus that sort of energy so close to home. It wasn’t fair to Yu and Ugetsu nearly kicked himself again when the thought resounded in the barrier of his mind. So instead, he made his way over to the stranger in question as a smile danced across his lips. 

   It’d been two weeks that Haru decided to follow an underground drug cartel. At first, Daisuke hadn’t thought much of it. After arresting a few goons within the first week, they hit a dead end. Daisuke had been convinced the job was over and done with, but Haru would heatedly argue that it was simply too easy. With that, Daisuke let those words resonate in his mind as he went about his normal routine. 

   Concern began to rise as the drug resurfaced. Haru had lost plenty of sleep -- two nights in a row with cat naps sprinkled in between. By this point, Daisuke stepped in again. 

   “You need the rest.”      “We’re so close -- just let me!”     “No, now rest. Please consider bathing too, I’ll draw one for you if it’s too much effort.”     “Hah? No! I’m fine. It’s fine. I’m coming.”

    Around 2100, Daisuke watched Haru enter a seedy bar in the outskirts of Shibuya. He waited outside for some time, tucked away in a car pulled off to the side. 40 minutes or so passed before Haru called through the listening device for Daisuke. 

    “Something’s not right here...” Haru’s voice came out through the device, tone wary and the background oddly silent. 

   Upon entering the bar, there was a plethora of sounds -- chatter and music intermixed. A scraping of glass as it shifts across the bar. Haru isn’t anywhere to be found. Daisuke finds himself standing at the end of the bar in a poor attempt to blend in as he activates HEUSC. “HEUSC, please tell me a bit about the recent crime history at this location,” he murmurs, eyes lifting to meet the bartender’s. 

   He orders himself a gin and tonic and cradles it in his hand as HEUSC relays everything it can. 

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