( closed ) what sends them to this backwood

[hitokiller]

WHO: Okada Izou and "friends".
WHAT: Catch-all for TDM/event prompts.
WHERE: Various sites around Kyoto.
WHEN: Most of May.
WARNINGS: Animal gore, BDSM talk???. Will update as necessary.

Comments

[hitokiller]

( it's more than he expects to hear, and izou feels a tell-tale thump against his chest, one loud enough to have him raise his voice again even as it threatens to crack: )

Never talk about this again... ? Don't make it sound like I'm gonna disappear from your sight for good this very second. From the very beginnin', I said... I promised I wouldn't let anyone touch a hair on yer head, and even if I...

( a hand on the hilt of his sheathed steel tightens, the last words takechi-sensei spoke to him on that cobble-stone street of a singularity that didn't deserve to exist coming to mind.

"i want you to use your sword as it was meant to be." )

—even if I have to kill a guy to do it, I'll keep that promise, and I won't go nowhere.

( and then more pitifully, almost fidgeting in place in front of her, izou tries to swallow a sudden nervousness.

march's heated confessions from just minutes earlier had come rushing back to him at the speed a wave crashes against a coast. but he can't run from this, just like he couldn't run the last time she confronted him, and so...

he raises his attention from the floor to her, giving her the hesitant gaze of a dog that's been scolded—a much weaker izou, tripping on himself and this vulnerability he's kept hidden from most. )

... I'll wait for you. Just ... tell me you won't go avoiding me or nothin', no matter what way you feel about it. I don't know if I could take losin' you too. Not after how... how much I enjoy just bein' around you.

[bowtography]

...

[ With absolutely no hesitation, March reaches out, hooking her finger around the one not currently clutching at the hilt of his blade. A single up-and-down motion. And, very firmly-- ]

I promise I'm not going to avoid you. You're still the same guy I like spending time with, you know? The one I've always felt safe with even though-- [ and there's a stern edge here ] I can take care of myself.

[ She doesn't need him to kill a guy! ]

That includes being able to handle whatever painful things you think might hurt my feelings. I can carry a lot more than most people think I can.

[ And do it with a smile, no less.

Another firm shake of their pinkies before she lets go. The expression on his face is heartbreaking, enough to make her want to wrap her arms around him and hug him as tightly as she can...

But the emotions are still running rampant right now, and it's probably not a good idea. Even she knows that. ]

Don't worry. Believe me, I'm not the type to run away.

[ If he can trust her. If he can't, she'll prove that much herself. ]

[hitokiller]

( izou watches the soft shake of their little promise, struck by how the motion works to relax him a little. he's never done something like this before, this childish little gesture... and if he weren't already embarrassed by this situation he caused, then it might've gotten a laugh out of him. for now, it's almost charming.

and while all he ever did in life and in this second one so far is show off his faults, march's declaration that she can take care of things in the face of his offer seizes him right in the heart. that's right. this whole time, she's been headstrong, meeting every obstacle he's thrown at her. of course she can take care of herself.

but even so... his chest swells with the desire for this to last, willing himself not to flinch away from her determined gaze. )

Y-Yeah. Then... like I said, take yer time. I'm obviously not gonna... rush you or anything. And I'll...

( he'll berate himself for his weakness later. he'll deal with each wave of frustration later.

right now, all he cares about is how he's all flustered skin and thumping heartbeat over her little pledge with him.

like he still has a chance. )

Whatever you wanna know about me from now on, I'll do my best to answer ya in kind. I owe you that much, after all this.

[bowtography]

[ It's fine, the panic and alarm will also set in later, even though she's bought herself some time to process it. And she'll be thankful to herself that she did, because if her thoughts are a bit of a mess now, they're sure not going to be any less tangled hours from now.

She's coming from this encounter a lot more frazzled and overwhelmed than she'd expected to be, but the original problem was resolved. He's willing to be more open with her, and he hadn't been before because he hadn't wanted to hurt her. It's not a light offer he's pushing forward to her, and she knows it and appreciates it, dipping her head a little with a smile. ]

Got it. Then I'll look forward to getting to know you even better. Kinda wish I could do the same, but... my options are sort of limited.

[ No backstory, stuck in the now. But she'd answer anything he wanted to know, too. ]

[hitokiller]

( the guilt doesn't hang as heavy as it did the first few times she casually mentioned her lack of things to look back on, but it still gives him pause in the cool of the passageway. touching no longer, and yet still close enough for him to watch her out the corner of his eye, to search her face for even the slightest hint of further upset.

but what he finds is a smile on march's face, and izou, remembering just moments ago the weight of that tightened fist against his chest and what it felt like to kiss those lips of hers cooled by the cold of the rain, tries to manage one for her in return.

he can't seem to do it, though. not right now. not while he's still trying to parse everything that just happened, and what might happen, and whatever the hell he's supposed to do now. wait, like he said, but...

what's a dead man like himself pushing these feelings on her for?

if izou were alone, he might be holding his head in frustration right about now. but the undeniable fondness he feels in her presence is still there, growing stronger by the second, and—

as the shoji screen finally breaks proper, he raises his arm with an irritated click of the tongue to shield himself from an incoming torrent of rain. )

I'm gonna give this place one more look-over, make sure there ain't anything hiding further back. Better to take cover in here until the storm passes completely anyhow.

[bowtography]

[ March yelps a little as the rain comes sweeping in, going from Mildly Damp to Definitely Soaked in a matter of seconds. Which is not the most pleasant feeling and she backs away from the immediate opening. ]

Yeah, good idea. I'll...

[ ... Go with him? She'd promised not to avoid him, and she doesn't intend to, even though it's not exactly going to be the easiest thing to continue As Normal. But maybe right now, they do need to take a bit of time to cool their heads.

At least she needs to get to the point that she can look directly at Izou without turning red, drawn back into the last few minutes far too easily, and who even knows how much is flying through his mind right now. ]

... Go see if I can find a good place in here for us to wait out the storm. Most of it's been cleared out, so I should be fine.