#cc closed

“Captain,” came the purr from within the darkened cabin. “My Captain, such a busy Tall One.”

Nightshade laughed to himself, sitting up on Pitch’s desk and only half-dressed, the hat the pirate had ended up letting him have set up back on the rack. Did he think he could get away with being such an absentee?

Regardless of how brave a face his Tsarina may pull on, Nightlight can still feel the undercurrent of sadness pulling at her heart, deep and insistent at the sight of him, and oh! It makes the boy waver and hold to her tighter, throwing away any idea of “proper contact” to kiss her back and try to tame the locks that had fallen from her usually immaculate bun. Each peck left a glowing spot on her skin, which would glimmer for a moment before disappearing.

But her request makes Nightlight hesitate, grown-out curls moving aside and chin tipping up to show her his Lead collar, his earrings. Pitch’s influence on the adornments (if they could really be called that) is undeniable, taking in to account the way the collar seems to seep into his skin and the lobes of his ears are discolored and puffy looking.

‘Must ask permission to leave the Galleon from my Captain, my Tsarina.’

By the time the two of them had retreated into the building, the storm had given them plenty more lashings; horrendously drenched and freezing from the pelting rain that had soaked through their clothing, directly into their skin. Tasuku still led the way, nudging his hapless follower with the hold upon his hands; the only scrap of warmth between the two of them.

Aichi had said nothing, still catatonic since reaching his limit and limping after his second rescuer of the night. The thud of the doors behind him closed and, once again, hand taken, leading the both of them down the corridor, dripping heavily from the rain they'd brought in with them, but all the while, Tasuku had done what it took to keep them safe and well, uttering words of sorts along the way; many of which fell on deaf ears, but the effort, if Aichi would wake up enough to recall it, would have been gratefully received and his appreciation made clear.

        Through the hallway, the sodden pair made their way and, at some point, however many minutes, they'd returned to the room, ushered inside and sneaking in so not to draw any unwanted attention from any straying night-dweller who might have happened upon them, when they'd have to explain themselves if probed.

"Do you think you’re some sort of saint? A god..? Do you think you can try and perform miracles..." "You're so disgusting. And I can see why Tasuku-kun has feelings for you… You’re so… pitiable. Vulnerable.”

So it was Aichi's turn for nightmares to haunt him, jolting awake in bed, his head rolled to make sure he hadn't disturbed Tasuku. The younger had been troubled himself; for an undisclosed duration, if the nights before had been anything to go by.

He felt sick; he needed air. Rather than disturb the other, hes lipped out soundlessly, perched on the edge of the bed, massaging heavy lids with his palms. The howling from outside seized his attention in that instant; a storm raging outside, splattering the building with the heavy downpour and relentless gales.

             Even still, he picked himself up, staggering to the doorway, and without his coat, slipping through without hesitation or looking back. Outside 2D, when he should have been in the room over. A glance to the door of his assigned room. But he turned away.

Unfocused and dazed, his body swayed with each limp forward, paying no heed to the darkness of the dimly-lit corridors, with a large majority of the population presumably asleep.

His goal was only the door: throwing them open for the weather to roar inwards after doing so, and wandered outwards. Into the storm. Drenched within seconds, but ignorant nonetheless; nothing registered, only to pace forward, the soles of his boots sinking into the marsh created around the building.

Only moving forward; because he had the intent of coming out for air. The winds ready to bowl him over, sending his soaked hair swinging wildly, the fabric of the white shirt sticking to his skin under its newfound weight, the bitter cold; none of it was relevant.

Stiff legs hauled themselves forward, leaving a trail behind; there had multiple others on his mind, some of which had been even more ill-prepared for the enforced endeavour than him. Not to mention those he had to get back to; his partner and close friend, for two.

And though he'd wanted to keep an optimistic mind so as to not cause his other side anymore grief, that was becoming steadily more than he was capable of managing in a dazed state, growing numb and exhausted from the conditions.

        It might have been luck that the movement of another figure in the vicinity caught his eye, raising his head from the high collar of his attire, exhaling shakily (which distracted him with its unsurprising visibility).

A simple mission; he'd promised to be careful.

                   Scavenging for food couldn't be that difficult, even for an ordinary human. Miraculously, he'd regained some strength through resting with Rin, recuperating from the ordeal thus far. He might have looked a mess (and that was putting it nicely) but he felt marginally better.

Trudging through the snow was a delicate, cautious process; he couldn't afford to miss any of those secret packages that the Groundskeeper had disclosed were scattered throughout the forest. Nor could he afford another run-in with those experiments. Once was bad enough, twice would be his head on a platter.

With his slowly returning strength, his strides were longer, as opposed to the hobbling that had essentially been his limit beforehand, hands clutching his coat and folding it over his chest whilst on the lookout.

                                    But what appeared only made his skin crawl and his stomach fall out.

                 --Another experiment stomping about behind a veil of trees nearby; grunting and snorting in search of prey.

Aichi's blood ran cold, body rigid in terror and failing to respond to the demanding screams to flee. And worse, it spotted him!

Shoving through the trees, it showed no understanding of mercy and, finally, Aichi's legs sprang to life, carrying him in the opposite direction with a terrified scream. The thrusts of his right arm agitated his damaged wrist, but he had to bite down for now; what mattered more was getting out of this alive.

And given his lack of physical capabilities, let alone the weighted burden hanging inside of him; the outlook was bleak. And what's more, he was going to leave his partner behind in this hellish experience.

With as horrifying as these circumstances were, Masaomi couldn't blame someone to feel sick, anxious, terrified, disgusted, confused, or any combination of those feelings. Whatever what was happening now was horrifying and inhumane, clearly, and every person had a right to fear for their safety. Most were good at masking that terror, though, at least somewhat. No one looked as if they were about to pass out, at least. ... Well, except one person in particular. She's small. Like, really small -- probably a good inch under being five foot. She's petite as well, a small build with delicate, girly features. Whoever she was, she seemed to be shaking, all barely-5-feet of her. She looked rather queasy, perhaps even physically ill, and Masaomi was truly scared she was going to pass out on the spot right there. Glancing around, making sure her partner wasn't around to assume he was going to attack her and clobber him as a result, he begins his way towards the younger(?) girl. He offers a sheepish smile, somewhat unsure of how to really... calm this poor soul down. It's a good start to approach carefully, though, with his hands upturned to show he was unarmed. "Hey-! You... alright there, miss?"

Dawn had barely broken when Aichi stirred from slumber, rolling onto his side to spectate the view offered through the window. The room empty still, puzzling in itself but perhaps safer that way. He clambered out of the bed; ever since swearing that promise, Tasuku had been there to wake him every morning; not an easy task, but he'd figured out ways.

And with his thoughts in order early today, he wanted to do something in return; relieve him of his duty.

            But how? Without waking him--

An idea came to mind, and retrieving his coat folded on a seat nearby, Aichi crept out of 2-E, cautious not to make any noise and disturb those around. Tasuku was an early-riser, but even this would be too soon. So he ventured to the kitchen, retrieving a glass of juice and retraced his steps, making his way back to the room.

But not inside; his target was the next door down.

Jiggling the handle gently, he moved in, navigating his way through the dimmed accommodation and finding Tasuku's room. Setting the glass down and checking the time once more, it would normally be soon that he would be the one with a shadow looming over him.

              A hand gently descended on the tiny shoulder, small nudges to ease him back to the land of the living. His voice but a whisper so as not to disturb anyone else and lure him easily.