A New World

… Why? Why couldn’t Hibiki listen to him, just this once? He’d always known the man to be as stubborn as a mule, but…God, more than anything else, Kazuya just wanted to get away from this place. Coming here—the only thing that coming here had accomplished was reviving the memories he had shoved so adamantly to the back of his mind these past two years.

He blinked slowly as Hibiki spoke, uncomprehending. Hold onto him? What was he planning on doi—

Kazuya made a small sound of surprise as he was suddenly lifted from the ground, and instinctively grabbed at Hibiki’s shoulders. What…was this? Maybe it had simply been that long since he’d engaged in any form of contact with another human, but it felt strange to him to be held this close. Him, a feared demon king…being held so delicately by a human, of all things…

Ridiculous.

Still, he said nothing as Hibiki carried him down the hall, and only held onto him as tightly as he could. He felt unsteady, being carried like this—so he was almost glad when he was finally set down on the bed.

"…" He remained silent when Hibiki spoke up again, eyes trained on the man’s back as he turned to leave. Had his shoulders always been so broad…? Two years wasn’t a long time at all, and yet…

And yet…time was already leaving him behind.

#hi hi! it has been a while. how's it going?#@naoyas student

As promised, Hibiki returned to Kazuya's side with a glass of water quickly. Hibiki had almost expected to find an empty bed upon returning to his room, so finding Kazuya still laying inside his bed was a relieve.

How horrible Kazuya was looking. It pained Hibiki to see him like that, but at the same time he couldn't repress the happiness which came by being able to hold him again.

"Here. You should drink this," Hibiki said as he offered Kazuya the glass of water. "Is there anything you need? What can I do for you? If I can help you one way or another, all you need to do is ask. I'm by your side."

Saying things like that made Hibiki realize all the more that Kazuya was actually there. After all those years, they were finally together again. Hibiki didn't know how long it would last and if them meeting again was something good or bad, but deep down he just felt so happy. This was all he could have asked as a birthday present.

#@belfire #I'M UPSET

◊

Upon seeing Atsuro waiting for him in his bed, Hibiki tilted his head to one side. This wasn’t actually the warm welcome he had expected after having been absent for so long, but he supposed this was Atsuro’s own way of telling him he had been missed.

There was one little thing bugging Hibiki, however.

"…How did you get inside?"

askboxmemes

Drop a ◊ in my inbox and I'll tell you my reaction if you were in my bed,waiting for me.

#ask meme #working on drafts slowly but surely!#if anyone would like a starter just say so~

"Shit! I haven't showed my face around here in forever. Are people still going to remember me even? Shouldn't have been playing so many videogames..."

#yes hello i am alive

There was a hand in his hair…fingers threading through the tousled locks… Hibiki’s? They had to be Hibiki’s. Hibiki was the only one here, after all.

Don’t touch me like that. Don’t. Don’t—

Kazuya flinched when the man’s fingers moved to push his bangs from his eyes, turning his head sharply—and ignoring the nausea that came with doing so. He didn’t want this. He had to get out of here. He had to… He had to…

"Get away…"

He had to get away. He had to, but…how? Kazuya couldn’t even keep himself standing. He couldn’t summon a demon to whisk him away (too conspicuous and much too extreme), couldn’t open a portal, couldn’t even speak coherently, so—so how was he supposed to get away?

"Leave me…alone…"

Hibiki's smile faltered some as Kazuya told him to leave him alone. There, inside his arms, Kazuya looked horrible. It wasn't anything like Hibiki had liked to imagine their meeting, but it couldn't be helped. He looked away and searched with his eyes for the bedroom door at the very end of the hallway instead.

"...You need to rest. You're not going anywhere when in a state like this. Hold onto me."

Hibiki had hoped he didn't have to go as far as to actually carry Kazuya, but his shape was far more worse than he had thought. Hibiki made sure his grip on Kazuya was tight enough before he rose from the ground. It was surprisingly easy to carry Kazuya to the bedroom. Had the other always been this light?

The bed creaked softly as Hibiki put Kazuya down. Hibiki knew he was doing the right thing, but felt bad for not accepting Kazuya's wishes nevertheless.

"I'll get you some water..." he said, having turned his back on Kazuya. "Don't worry, I'll be right back."

#haven't shown my face around here for a while oops #how has everyone been? ;7;#open rp kindaaa

"That... was one Takoyaki too much."

He hit the ground with a solid thud, but no noise escaped him. Kazuya merely lie there, eyes squeezed firmly shut, breathing slightly choppy as he tried desperately to fight down the panic rising in his throat.

He didn’t want to be here. He didn’t want to be here. He didn’t want to be here he didn’t want to be here stay away stay away Hibiki stay away stay far far far away—

Kazuya all but stopped breathing when Hibiki gathered him into his arms.

He could hear Hibiki speaking, but was too weak, too unfocused to really register the exact words. When was the last time he’d been this tired…? Hopping from world to world was never easy, but he couldn’t remember ever feeling so drained after other jumps. Maybe his journeys were finally taking their toll on his body… Or maybe…

"…"

Should he say something? He was probably worrying Hibiki with his silence…along with the fact that he’d collapsed in his hallway. Yeah… He should probably say something. Open his eyes, maybe.

"… Hibiki."

Kazuya's voice sounded pleasantly familair to Hibiki's ears even after all those years. His voice sounded weaker than it ever had done, but it was the same voice never the less. A little smile appeared on Hibiki's face as he blinked the upcoming tears in the corners of his eyes away.

"... Kazuya."

Gently, Hibiki moved his hand through Kazuya's hair to he could have a better look at his eyes. Kazuya's eyes were a little dull, but seemed to recognize Hibiki nevertheless.

"You shouldn't be laying on the floor. That's not really comfortable, you know?" Hibiki said, his voice soft yet cheerful. "Can you walk? You can lean on me if you want. Or I could carry you like a princess. I don't know which one you prefer."

toliveistoprotect-blog

#Just imagine all the Takoyaki you could buy; Takoyaki as far as the eye can see

Kazuya kept his eyes firmly shut, Hibiki’s footsteps echoing in the silence. He was there… Kazuya could sense him there, but he didn’t want to look at him. He wanted to cling to the childish belief that if he couldn’t see Hibiki, then Hibiki couldn’t see him. He wanted to be able to melt into the floor or wall and disappear.

But that just wasn’t possible, even for a fully-recognized King of Bel.

He could feel his breathing hitch when Hibiki’s whispered words reached his ears…and he could feel all the sorrow and pain and exhaustion that had built up come crashing down on him. His legs felt wobbly… His chest felt tight… His head hurt…

He fell.

Hibiki wasn't in time to catch Kazuya in his fall. He had expected Kazuya to disappear or to come rushing at him, but not to fall to the floor. Hurried, Hibiki made his way over to Kazuya and knelt down besides him. After a small moment of hesitation, Hibiki reached out for him and took him into his arms.

"H-Hey!" Hibiki's voice trembled slightly. It sounded odd. Was this how he had always acted around Kazuya? Was it okay for Hibiki to hold him like this? He couldn't tell. "Look at me, Kazuya. Open your eyes."

After all those years, Hibiki was touching Kazuya again, but he was far too worried about the overlord to find any joy in doing so. Not knowing which actions to take, Hibiki stared at the person inside his arms and waited for something to happen.

Two years.

He’d have thought that two years would be ample time to forget someone completely…especially given the little time he had to think on anything other than the war against Him. Although time had passed and progress had been made in eliminating God’s influence over the many worlds in existence, many of His angels still lived on—as did He (a shell of His former self, with little to no sentient thought driving Him, but alive nevertheless).

The fragments of His being continued to wander the worlds, seeking to rebuild themselves, and Kazuya continued to track and destroy them. The King had thought of nothing else, had been so close to detaching himself from that person—

And then He had decided to revisit that world.

Kazuya had been hesitant to follow. He knew very well, after all, that the second he set foot in that place, the memories would come flooding back, and the urge to see that person would be stronger than ever. But even so… Even so, he had a mission to fulfill. He understood that, and accepted it.

What he didn’t understand was why he had ended up in Hibiki’s all-too-familiar apartment upon entering his world.

Why? Why? Had his subconscious so longed to see him again that he’d confused locations? He didn’t know. He did know, however, that he had to leave—preferably without being seen. Kazuya wasn’t sure if Hibiki was home or not, but—

"Hello…?"

No. No no no non onnononono.

Kazuya squeezed his eyes shut. He was too weak to even think of summoning a portal… World-hopping was never easy, after all. It took almost everything he had in him to do it, and a few days at least to recover.

So what did he do? What could he do…?

There was no reply, but something inside Hibiki urged him to keep moving. He had to see for himself if the hallway was empty. The moment he stepping out of the living room and his eyes fell onto the figure in the hallway, he realized why he was feeling so uneasy.

"..." Hibiki's eyes widened slowly, not a word passing his lips. They both stood there, frozen. Hibiki didn't know what to say, or think. He didn't dare look away, afraid the other would be gone the moment he would be out of his vision. When Hibiki realized this couldn't be a dream, a gentle smile appeared on his face. After all those years, Kazuya was...

"Welcome home..."

#@belfire #i am alive *gasp*

Hibiki let out a sigh of relief when he plopped down on the couch. The smile on his face grew bigger as he watched the mess on the coffee table. Torn wrapping paper, empty glasses and used plates did the mess consist of. He would have to clean that up later, but for now he just wanted to enjoy the silence and let the thought that he was 20 now sink in.

He smiled to himself, thinking of how his life had become significantly less interesting in just two years. His smile faded immediately, however, when he heard a noise come from the hallway. Everyone should have left already, so Hibiki rose from the couch and approached the hallway cautiously.

"Hello...?"

[[Hi guys! I think I'm taking a little break from this account for a while. Maybe you will still catch me on here now and then, but yeah... See you around~]]

#ooc post #my hibiki muse is an ass he will come back to me when he feels like it

Chu Chu

dead-face-admin-blog

"So you say, but…"

"These human gestures are beyond my understanding."

Humans were just so hard to figure out. He thought hard about his many observations of humans, and the only thing that came close were gestures of what he thought to be affection—yet still, none of them were quite the same as nose touching. What if what Hibiki had attempted was something completely different? …Though, Alcor would have been quite enthralled if Hibiki had been, in fact, attempting a show of affection.

"Hm… Turn my head, you say? Very well… I will try again, if you would allow me to."

He floated closer again, tilting his head as he was told. Alcor didn’t feel their noses make contact this time. Instead, their lips touched.

Alcor only lingered for seconds before he pulled away again. He realized, too late, what he had done, though the exact connotations of such an action escaped him as per usual. “…Oh. Hm… Did I overstep my boundaries this time…?”

He had just replicated a “kiss”, hadn’t he? It was true that he felt a certain amount of affection for Hibiki, but…he wasn’t sure if Hibiki felt the same way.

#@deadfaceadmin #hibiki keeps playing around with him ajsfafh

Perhaps Hibiki should have felt bad about tricking Alcor into kissing him, but all he felt was bliss when their lips touched. Even after their lips had parted again, guilt didn't struck him. He just felt so... happy.

"...There's nothing to worry about. I actually enjoyed that... I enjoyed that a lot," Hibiki said, smiling. This probably was confusing Alcor all the more, Hibiki realized. "I'm sorry, I'm just rambling now. Don't mind me."

Hibiki didn't know if he wanted to drop the subject. He had gotten his answers, but Alcor still seemed highly confused by the whole situation. Hibiki gently went with his forefinger over his lips. What a special first kiss that had been.

"Have you noticed something odd about me? Don't you think I'm acting a little strange? You can tell me. You can tell me whatever. I won't get mad at you or anything. I could never be mad at you."

immortalprogrammer

(Open RP)

immortalprogrammer

“Hm..? Oh, yes, I suppose that is a matter of import to others.”

Naoya considered, briefly recalling the incongruous amounts of money he sometimes received for his services. This boy did not seem to have access to the types of resources a larger cooperation had, and thus should not be expected to produce a proportional amount.

“If you wish to pay monetarily, you may present a down payment and pay the rest at a later date. However, it may be more convenient to simply say you owe me a favor. If you decide this is your preference, please leave your name, number, and address with me so I may call upon you in the future.”

Naoya scowled at the boy’s implications as he lowered himself into a seiza.

“I would not condone such a primordial favor. Worry not. If you decide that is your method of payment, I shall not ask you to do that which is tasteless or beyond your power.”

#@immortalprogrammer #those two are actually being kinda cute right now *wheezes*

Hibiki was speechless for a moment. What Naoya had told him just now made Hibiki look at him from a different perspective. Naoya just kept surprising him. Hibiki hadn't expected to find such kindness and understanding in Naoya. It was anything but an unpleasant surprise.

"...Really? That wouldn't be a problem?" Hibiki managed to get over his lips after a while. He hoped Naoya wouldn't take the long silence he had caused the wrong way. "In that case, could I say I owe you one? I will give you all the information you need."

Today was Hibiki's lucky day. He would need to thank the man which had given him Naoya's address would they meet again. He would need to thank Naoya too, but that much was obvious. His joy was showing through his smile.

"I'm actually curious about how you're going to fix my laptop now. Mind if I stay and watch you work?"

Chu Chu

dead-face-admin-blog

"Was it not…? And yet, you told me to close my eyes… You say some strange things, Shining One."

He blinked in confusion when Hibiki tapped his nose before smiling. “I see… Yes, I suppose it would be hard to understand from simple observation. Hm…”

Now then… What exactly had Hibiki done?

"Then…may I?"

His feet lifted off the ground slightly as he floated closer to Hibiki until once again, their faces were inches apart. When he was close enough, he leaned forward slightly and—

—touched his nose to Hibiki’s.

"…Hm."

He pulled away, looking thoughtful. “I still do not seem to have an answer…”