(I'm sorry if the readmore doesn't work I'm having a hard time with it D:)
“Clover, what did you just put in the cart?” Snake took the box out, turning it over in his hands.
“Uh, it’s oatmeal.” He continued investigating it, and shook the box a bit.
“It doesn’t sound like oatmeal. It’s more like…” He pondered the box for another moment. “...More like cookies. We don’t need cookies, Clover. We’re here to buy necessities today. Only things we’re out of.” Clover pouted and made a face at him knowing he wouldn’t be able to see it.
“Well, we are out of cookies. And you said we’re getting what we don’t have.” She knew there was no point in arguing; he was always one step ahead of her even without his sight to assist him.
“Yes, and I also said necessities. Cookies don’t fall into that category and you know it. You also know that we can’t buy cookies every time we go to the store. Sweets and things should be treated as a luxury, not part of an everyday meal, and we just bought some last week.”
“But they’re gone now.”
“Don’t eat them so fast, then.” He retorted, “Spread them out over time and you’ll get to enjoy them longer.” He chuckled a bit, while Clover gave him an irritated look. “Based on your silence, I can only imagine the look you must be giving me.” Continuing, he sighed. “Well, just this once, alright? But if you eat them all again, you’re going to have to wait properly before we get any more.” Clover smiled as he put the box of cookies back into the cart.
“Yay! These ones are my favorite too!” She happily bounced down the aisle and into the next.
“Clover, come back! You know I need you to guide the cart if you won’t take it yourself.” He heard her footsteps grow louder again until they stopped a short distance in front of him. “You can’t just hop off like that, I’d take down the whole store trying to pilot this cart through the aisles. Not to mention all the people here; I’d hate to run into someone.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know. I wasn’t thinking about it." She looked down apologetically. "Sorry, Snake." He laughed a little.
"Still taking a liking to that nickname I see."
"I think it's fun! Nicknames are always fun. It fits you, you know. Always slithering around and being bossy." Her mouth gave a sly smile.
"Snakes don't do that," he objected, " and neither do I." He paused. "Well, alright. Maybe a little." He said, chuckling. "Though I still fail to see how snakes do that."
"Well, whatever. Let's finish shopping so we can have lunch. It's almost one thirty."
"Yes, let's. I'm hungry as well. What do we need to get next?" Clover pulled the crumpled list out of her pocket, studying it for a moment.
"Uh, let's get milk. That's the closest one right now."
"Alright, then." She walked to the front of the cart, grabbing it from the corner. As Snake felt the cart pull away from him, he began walking in that direction. He hated the dependency for doing such simple tasks, but he knew he wouldn't be able to do it himself; he'd be constantly running people over if he tried. And Clover never played jokes on him. She always led him in the right direction.
“What do you want for lunch, Snake?” They had managed to finish in a somewhat timely manner, only occasionally stopping to debate something. After unpacking all the groceries, it was almost three o’clock.
“Let’s have sandwiches today. Surprise me.”
“Alright,” she giggled, “One rotten tomato sandwich for you then!” He sighed as she bounded into the kitchen and made the sandwiches. They ate while watching some dumb show that happened to be on, and enjoyed the rest of their day together relaxing on the sofa.
"Hey, hey -- where does Santa hide the presents he's made for Mrs. Claus?"
Here we go again. "Where, Jumpy?"
"The CLAUSet!"
It was like this every year. There was just something about the holidays that set Junpei off on a festive one-sided pun-off. Maybe it was the feeling of Christmas cheer, or the touch of cold snow falling on your face, or the omnipresent scent of peppermint and pine in every store around the country -- whatever it was, there was little that could stop Junpei once he really got going. One joke just leads to another, and another, and another, and another... and another... and another...
Akane forced a giggle. "That's a good one!"
"Yeah, I know right?" There was that smug grin he always got after making a particularly good pun (nevermind that every pun was a "particularly good pun"). "Oh, but hey, here's a better one. Ready? What do you call people who're afraid of Santa?"
"What?"
"CLAUStrophobic!"
Was it just her, or was it getting more difficult to laugh on cue?
Maybe it was time to distract him. "Hey Jumpy, I still have a few presents I need to wrap up. Could you help me with them?" She put on her sweetest smile, the one that she knew Junpei wouldn't be able to say no to.
And he fell for it hook, line, and sinker. "Oh, uh, yeah, sure. No problem." A small blush crept over his cheeks. She totally had him wrapped around her finger.
"Great!" She clapped her hands together happily, then proceeded to lead him to the table where she did all of her Christmas wrapping. "You're a big help, Jumpy. I'm so glad you came over for the holidays."
"W-well, I couldn't very well say no after you invited me!" His stuttering and subsequent nervous laughter reminded Akane of a flustered middle schooler trying to talk to his crush. Had her smile really had such an affect on him? "Besides, it gets kinda lonely around my apartment. And cold." Even after a couple years, he still seemed fascinated that Akane and her brother could actually afford heating during winter, something that he and his low wage job weren't able to do. Akane suspected that at least half the reason he always came over for Christmas was because he wouldn't freeze his ass off in the Kurashiki residence.
"As long as you're here, Jumpy, it'll never get cold." That seemed to get Junpei even more flustered, and with a victorious smile Akane picked up the first thing from the pile of unwrapped presents that she came in contact with. It turned out to be the ugliest sweater she'd ever seen. It was something she'd picked up for Aoi just so she could see his reaction to it. He wasn't exactly fond of ugly sweaters, especially ones that could light up at the push of a button.
"Hey, hey Kanny..."
Oh my god, I thought we were done with this. Maybe if I pretend I didn't hear him...
"Languages are cool, aren't they? Why the other day I ran into a couple of Mexican sheep. They were real excited for Christmas. In fact, they wouldn't stop saying..."
Here it comes...
"...fleece navidad."
Just grab the wrapping paper, Akane. Pretend you didn't hear it.
"They were also talking about going to the mall to see Santa Claus. Speaking of Santa, did you know that I always know if he's in the room with me? After all, I can sense his presents."
One down, five to go...
"Y'know, I've always wondered why that fat old man goes down chimneys to deliver presents. But after thinking about it for awhile, I realized that it just soots him."
"Jumpy, weren't you going to help wrap up these presents?"
"I heard that he got a new reindeer on his team this year. It doesn't play nice with the other reindeer, though... I think they named it Rude-olph."
"Jumpy --"
"Did you know that even Santa Claus goes on vacation sometimes? Man, he goes everywhere: Jamaica, Hawaii, China, Italy, you name it. And I heard that he never stays in anything less than a five star ho-ho-hotel."
Ho-ho-holy shit.
[[merry christmas, choco-maize!! hope you have a good one ;v;]]
Gift To: kubotateruaki
Rated:Â Teen
Genre:Â Friendship
Characters:Â Seven & Lotus
Summary: Seven dressing Santa Claus and Lotus as elf, sharing free Christmas gifts to children in an orphanage
The phone rung calling to the grumbling woman climbing down from the attic. It rung loudly in the quiet apartment, the caller trying to get the woman’s attention by waiting longer than nine rings. In annoyance she tossed the tangled lights by plastic bags before jumping off the ladders.
“Hello, Hazuki Ka–“
“Lotus?” A rough voice beamed down the phone. It wasn’t hard to recognise whom it belonged to. She had spent an unfavourable nine hours running for her life with the officer after all.
“What do you want, Seven?” Lotus huffed, replying with the alias he had not used for over a year.
“I was gonna’ ask a favour from ya,” He laughed which improved her attitudes towards very little.
“What favour?” Lotus asked warily. Despite having spending tribulations they had shared over a year ago, something always made her cringe when he asked for favours – especially the last time when he had abused her computer skills to hack into his friends’ computer… “It better be quick. I’m trying to decorate my house before my daughters visit.”
“Oh well, it sort of has something to do with them,” Seven spoke. Lotus was about to hang up not bothering with him any longer. “Wait, before ya go thinking I’m involving them, I only need help at the orphanage. You got kids of your own so I thought you’d be good with them.”
“I’ll help out,” Lotus spoke with no hesitation. “I don’t know why an investigator would need to go to an orphanage though.”
Seven chuckled. “It’s not an official post just work-related. Anyway it’ll be tomorrow.”
“That’s cutting it a bit short isn’t it…? I mean I did just say daughters are coming from college and I want them to have a festive Christmas.” She glared at the plain apartment. The green fern in the corner of the living room looked like an odd taste for indoor gardening. The decorations she had planned to hang the next day littered the area under the stairs.
“If you’re that bothered, I guess I’ll have to help the demon woman afterward,” Seven laughed. “Oh, I have ya work outfit so just get changed when you get here.”
Lotus sighed.
She could see the oaf waiting outside the entrance as she pulled up. Lotus shivered upon opening the car door. The cold stinging her naked cheeks. She walked up to the entrance and greeted the detective with a nod and never forgetting her usual glare. Seven shrugged off the icy greeting not bothering to hold the door when he entered the entrance – but then he had to carry two large sacks with him.
Not knowing the layout of the orphanage, Lotus followed Seven. Soon they were greeted by a woman adorned with lumps of glitter on her face and a paper hat decorated with Christmas decorations. “Hello, you must be the detective.”
“Yup, and a demonic helper,” Seven nodded but dropped one of the sacks thanks to the punch in his arm. “But she’s alright with children and is a mother of two herself.”
The woman looked warily at Lotus before leading them into a side room. “Well, you can get ready in here. I’ll just tell the children and just come in when you’re ready. It’ll be more fun for it to be a surprise for them.”
The two adults nodded to the woman before she left the room.
“We better get changed before we leave them all waiting,” Seven handed a bag to his partner.
Lotus snatched the green cloth from him and, despite wearing revealing attire before in front of the man, pulled the screen as a partition to change into the green – a flattering colour for her.
“What’re you looking at?” Lotus glared at the ogling look she received from the officer.
“Ha, I’ve just never seen so much clothes on ya,” He chuckled rubbing his neck. Her clothes fitted snug to her body that it highlighted her curves and features of her body more than going bare skin. The dress she wore jingled with the slight movements she made from simply breathing. The hat sat on her head completed the look of a true helper of Christmas. Whilst she was clad in green Seven had fitted the familiar Christmas suit. Rather than the rough detective who would stay to the early hours looking into cases, he was fitting the persona of an old man who worried over the many children he would have to deliver presents to.
Lotus rolled her eyes. “It’s time to go anyway, Santa… I mean Mr Claus.”
The two avoided eye contact, their minds on a make-shift ship that they had escaped (barely). Rather than to talk about what they both were casting their minds back to they switched attention to the giddy children in the next room.
“Time to deliver some presents,” Seven cleared his throat and picked two full bags of presents. Lotus held her hand on the door knob and nodded to Seven.
She swung the door open, entered and put on her brightest smiles. “Okay, who’s ready for Mr Santa Claus?” Her heart ached as she saw the many children of different ages, statures, and faces, sat eagerly waiting for the bearded man to arrive. There were so many more children than she thought there would be. Quickly she flicked her eye contact to the women in the back of the room, their faces urging her to keep going.
“Ho ho ho!” Behind her the bearded man clad in red entered the room. Simply by hearing the overused little catchphrase, the children shouted with excitement identifying Seven as the fictional man of Christmas. Their faces bore smiles that reached their eyes and hands were clenched so tightly they were white. Lotus could even see one little boy who’s face had gone red with excitement.
“Now has everyone here been a good girl and boy?” Seven bellowed, dumping the sacks of presents by the chair at the front of the room. Happy cheers earned his reply. “Ah, well that’s good to hear! It’s a good job I’ve got a present for each and every one of you!”
Surprised murmurs ran round the room.
“Okay, children why don’t you all line up to come and speak to Santa?” One of the carers of the orphanage huddled the bubbly children. At that the Santa Claus sat at the tinsel covered chair with the children lining up patiently yet excitedly in front of him. Seven caught Lotus’ eye contact the two sharing a wrinkle claws at the sides of their eyes – though Lotus would deny her skin homed such lines.
The first child was a small boy far bonier than a child of his age should be. He waited eagerly for the man to bellow a welcoming voice. Swiftly he was lifted and brought to sit on Santa Claus’ lap. “Hello there, now what’s your name?”
“Chin!” He grinned, looking from the white beard to the elf stood next to him.
“Now, my elf here says you’ve been a good boy,” Seven gave out his loud laugh but quickly lowered his voice to a whisper. “But that little mess up the other day won’t count.”
Chin blushed at the wonder of Santa Claus knowing his every move.
“Now Chin, I’ve read your list that you sent me and loved the little drawings you did of me and the mrs,” At that Chin’s face shone and hung on every word the bearded man spoke. “So would you really like a make-your-own car kit?”
“Oh yes!” Chin smiled.
“Thank goodness,” Santa Claus gave quick sigh of relief and looked to his elf. “Would you get Chin’s present, please?”
“Of course!” The elf gave a bright smile and dug into one of the sacks finding the box with the tag with Chin’s name. She handed the present after wishing him to have a good Christmas. Chin thanked the two giving Santa Claus a hug first then once off the lap he hugged the tall elf whom had crouched to his height.
One after the other, the children asked for gifts though all too timidly yet eased when they saw the smile of the tall elf and the jolly man. The elf handed the designated gift to each child with an easy grinning.
“Hey, aren’t you pretty tall to be an elf?” A little girl tugged on Lotus’ skirt. She looked just like her own daughters when they were her age: dark black hair tied into a ponytail and curious green eyes.
“Of course I am,” Lotus laughed. “I’m the tallest elf there is. That’s why Santa Claus asked me to help him when he makes visits.”
“Did you bring the sleigh?” She asked eagerly.
“Of course, I even helped the reindeer fly all the way here,” The elf put her hands on her hips and puffed her chest with accomplishment at a task she had not actually performed. It was worth the awed smile spreading on her face. “It’s even parked up on the roof.”
“Will we be able to watch you go?” Another boy joined into the conversation cuddling the wrapped present to his chest.
Lotus gave a hum as though she was in thought before she spoke again. “Hmm, I’d love to but as my job I have promised not to tell. Plus Rudolf is very shy.”
The two children pouted with their brows burrowing down to their eyes. “We thought so…”
“Don’t worry you can have this,” Lotus took her hat off and placed it on top of the girl’s head. “If you see Santa Claus on Christmas Eve just show him this hat. It’ll tell him that you’re a little helper and he’ll show you.”
Lotus winked at the two children whose eyes lit up with awe and excitement that there was the possibility that they would be able to see the one magical thing of Christmas.
With the children all having a gift of their own and many trying to guess what each other had gotten, the Christmas guests decided to take their leave. Waving their goodbyes to the children and Lotus receiving more hugs than her thumping heart could handle. Although she didn’t get the tighter hugs that were given to Seven’s persona.
“Lotus these’re only for hire,” Seven spoke noting the missing hat as he shoved their worn clothes into his now almost empty bag.
“Bah, just tell them that I gave it to the orphanage; they won’t be able to deny such things,” Lotus opened the front door. “You can’t have their Santa spoiling Christmas.”
“Woah, I’m not the bad guy!” Seven jumped defensively.
“Yeah, whatever,” Lotus shrugged. “I need to cook dinner for my own girls now.”
“Ha, you wouldn’t mind an old man joining in would ya?” Seven blurted though his dry throat wanted to take the words back. In return he received the usual glare he always had the joy of seeing. However, the joyous smiles from the young children must have still latched onto Lotus for the glare dissipated into a lax look of simple annoyance.
“If you can finish the decorations as a return of favour.”Â
light field, clover field. (a story of between; pre-VLR, spoilers for 999.)Â
notes: written for zecret santa, for qq-quark! one of their prompts asked about what happens to snake if clover's in the third nonary game. i hope you enjoy, friend! it was lots of fun writing this, and very heart-wrenching. um, besides that, i hope your holidays are bright!!! :')Â
read on ao3
“hey, light?”Â
“mm?”Â
“what if, just hypothetically, one of us dies?”Â
“that doesn’t sound too hypothetical. everyone dies at one point.”Â
his smile never reaches his gaze, but his hand finds her bubblegum pink head, and he ruffles her hair. clover rolls her eyes, always exaggerating the reaction to his sarcastic quips.Â
“jee, thanks for the reminder.” she winks. “hard to remember that i’m not going to be forever young, forever beautiful.”Â
“i don’t think that’s even a thing now, to be honest.” he dodges a velvet pillow with relative ease, smoothly sidesteps everything she throws his way. her laughter echoes in the living room, he feels his way back to a suede sofa chair, a recliner they had imported from the north shores of the states. once seated, he props his legs up on the chipped coffee table clover took from her girlfriend’s house, it is stained with coffee and ink and other suspicious substances. his previous investigation led to his left index finger breaking out in hives.
“god, you’re such an ass.”Â
clover plops down on his lap, curls into him, wraps her arms around his chest. she mumbles something incoherent and indecipherable, and light field lets out a year long sigh, placing his chin on top of her head.Â
“mmm, yeah.”Â
the silence is comfortable, she moves until she is as well, and light plays with her hair, makes sloppy braids with his left hand and clutches the arm rest with his right. stable. he needs to be stable. stability is his calling, that is the basis of his personality--he is her anchor.Â
her question rings in his head, it paints pictures he cannot see.Â
the smell is the same, always. familiar to a point. visceral, volatile, vengeful.Â
it is metallic and raw.Â
what if one of us died?Â
“you think too much.” clover says, flicking his forehead with a manicured nail. he wonders what color she’s sporting today, maybe pink, maybe red. he didn’t like the idea of her wearing red, his forehead creases, and clover laughs lightly. blue, they’re blue, she hums.
“you think too little.” light replies, without missing a single beat. blue is a good color. he likes how it looks against her skin, lightly tanned from the las vegas sun. bright blue on olive finger tips. she sends him snapshots, their nonverbal pingpong is their favorite mode of communication.Â
seeing, without seeing.Â
she sighs against his chest, and murmurs something pretty, thinks something sad. light kisses her hair, and exhales something miserable.Â
“there’s no need to be scared. you’re ready.”Â
that’s all he can say. there’s a knock on the door, and she’s off of him, but her laughter still rings in his head, and she’s gone, gone, gone.Â
the door opens.Â
he hears a hushed exchange of words, he hears an Egyptian queen taking away his little sister. Â
“it’ll be an easy job, you’ve had your training.” alice taps clover’s nose, the act is almost romantic if not for the all black ensemble and the over-analytic gaze, dark eyes take in everything, and spit it out, disappointed.Â
“i know, i know!” this clover is confident, winking and twirling in her black boots, ready to bring a secret society to its knees, armed to the teeth with knives and red lipstick. alice smiles, softly and steadily, before going back to businesslike and curt, that girl runs hot and cold.Â
shut up, clover tucks a strand of purple-pink hair behind her ear. you’re just bitter you aren’t getting any.Â
light purses his lips, and wishes them well on their journey.Â
“good luck.”Â
come back.
clover shoots him one last look before disappearing into the winter air.Â
I.
before she leaves him, she leads him.
tugs at his sleeve, pulling stiff fabric forward, and with the black blazer, he goes. their gait is quick, they slip in between the cracks, push themselves against walls when the las vegas traffic gets too bad, too congested, when humanity sits up on its haunches and roars, the deafening noise of a mass migration from casino to casino, spring valley road to tropicana avenue, it all makes light wish he wasn’t blind. it’s a fleeting thought, but it makes him uncomfortable. he’s used to relying on his sister’s judgement and soft fingertips, he trusts her, implicitly and completely.Â
we’re almost there, how’s the harp doing?Â
that’s pretty funny, coming from the person not carrying it.Â
he clutches the case handle tightly, any miscalculated bump or trip would send the priceless field heirloom into the asphalt and concrete. light didn’t think his father would appreciate his most valued possession in shambles on a glass-littered street where tourists would piss on it before helping pick up the pieces.Â
“oh, we’re here.”Â
clover claps excitedly, and opens a glass door, light follows her into the dark of a seedy club (it smells like absinthe and desperation and disappointment, he can tell why she’s taken him here.) she is flighty, constantly moving, talking to the bartender, talking to the manager, talking to the audience, light finds her energy dizzying and wills himself to the stage, carefully making his way past chairs and wires and other potential death traps. his instrument is already waiting for him, clover works miracles with a wry grin, and she’s at his side again, leading him to a chair, placing his fingertips on ivory strings.Â
this is his first live performance, and clover’s in the audience, in a front row seat. she’s the only one that matters.
he plucks notes, starting slow, says into the microphone, hello, hello everyone.
isn’t it great to be alive?
his audience mumbles, and titters a bit.Â
“yeah, yeah, i guess.” one man says, with cyan eyes and snow white hair. “life’s treating me nicely.”Â
clover tilts her head, towards the offending individual. her smile disappears completely.
light’s melody picks up, turns into something harmonic, something powerful, the audience falls silent. they’re captivated by every single note, every single word his harp whispers, they listen. they are prepared to do anything for him, light realizes, when their eyes go glassy.Â
except for the man.
light runs a hand through his silver hair, and whispers his thanks, thank you everyone for coming tonight. the hours melt into each other, and the soon enough, the spell breaks. they are coming back to life, blinking hard and pressing their hands against their lips, trying to recreate the taste of something ethereal.Â
i don’t like that man.Â
light does not either. clover sends him snippets.
he does not like him at all.
“really, great show.” he approaches light, like a child approaches a flickering flame.Â
“thank you.” light does not let go of the harp. the man chuckles, and raises his brows.
“will you be here next week?”
“that’s up to the landlord.”Â
there is no punchline.Â
“in that case, i’m looking forward to your next act.”Â
the man dips his head and leaves, laughing all the way out. clover is at light’s side, he does not attempt looking into her head, not right now, everything that is coming out is rapid fire, morse code. he’d need a couple of minutes to decipher a fraction of it.Â
her emotions are getting in the way. typical clover.Â
his harp returns to its case, and they make their way back home.Â
“when was the last time you thought without some sort of inherent bias?” light asks, only for clover to give him some half-hearted hmph.Â
“light, do you think about before?”Â
the question is not unexpected. light pinches the bridge of his nose at a stop light. the light turns green and pedestrians are allowed to continue their journey home. he thinks it over, before finally responding at the front of their house, prim and proper and well taken care of, this is the legacy of the field family.Â
“well, being dragged into a sloppy attempt at revenge and almost dying is fairly traumatic, so, yes, i do think about before.”Â
clover rolls her eyes. “that was pretty awful, huh?”Â
“i would consider that an understatement.”Â
light deposits his harp in the second living room, the greeting room, and makes his way into the first living room, where he promptly drops himself on one of the sofas. clover sits on the arm rest, tucks her legs underneath herself, and sighs.
“that guy reminded me of santa.”Â
“his name is aoi.”Â
II.
aoi kurashiki has a reputation in the artist world, has a reputation for coming in and out like a street cat, complimenting pretty boys on their work, and leaving them writhing. it was a kurashiki thing, light thought with a grimace. his visits to light’s cafe were becoming more and more frequent, his presence was suffocating. he was a relic of the past, a relic he so desperately wanted to watch burn.Â
light clears his throat, and returns to his sonorous playing. the audience ignores the discrepancy in his piece, ignores the sharp and the ugly notes that bubble underneath the surface.Â
with him, aoi brings memories light so carefully compartmentalized--memories he buried underneath sarcastic retorts and vague threats.Â
his name wasn’t always light field, the harp sings. his name was snake, once. the audience is entranced by magic and spirit dust, they breathe in the smog and incense and music. his name was snake because he never let go of his prey, because of his eyes, snake-eyes. get it. he’s blind. he was a prince, in another life. prince of absolutely nothing.
he is lazarus, back from the dead.Â
at one point he wonders, light thinks to himself.Â
when did he stop wishing he was alive?
he opens his eyes, for the first time in a long time, the audience reacts accordingly, with gasps and wails, oh, our god, they scream. he is here, he is here.
he thinks it’s pathetic. the harp lulls them.Â
if there is anything he has learned, anything he has internalized, it is that there is no god.Â
light is his own deity.Â
if anything, he’s a demon sent from the depths of hell.Â
III.
one day in december, he closes up shop, hears his followers carry his harp past his bedroom and into its proper place in the second living room, and bids them farewell, light finds himself sitting on the tile floor, looking at nothing in particular.Â
clover thinks it’s funny, she lays down next to him, and points at things he cannot see.
“light.”Â
yes?Â
he doesn’t feel like talking today. his bloodied fingertips pick at the piping on his jacket.Â
“alice and i have a very important mission at the end of the month.”Â
that’s nice.
“please be serious.”
i am. i thought your work was confidential.
“you’re my brother.”
thanks for the reminder. pray tell, what other obvious fact are you going to share toady?
“god.”
he’s a nice guy.
“anyway! it’s really important, and i wanted to tell you that i might be gone for a little bit after christmas, i mean, i tried to get out of it because i didn’t want you spending the holidays alone, but, work is work.” she bites on her lower lip.
“please promise me you won’t do anything stupid.”
the state of nevada forbade me from driving car. there is literally nothing i can do.Â
“i know...”
i’m still kind of upset, i’m very good at driving.Â
“i really have nothing to say about that, i nearly killed us last time i tried using the freeway.”Â
as expected.
“ass.”
i’ve been told that’s my best quality.
IV.
the day before she leaves, she is primping and preening, curling her lashes just so, and brushing her long, long hair until it’s absolutely perfect.
she says it’s tradition, to get dolled up before a big day. then, she’ll have the look absolutely down for when she actually needs to look good. light never understood clover’s logic, but he lets her be, she sits in front of the vanity for hours and he lays down on her princess bed, playing with the canopy tassels.Â
at the end of the night, she is in his arms, telling him to not let her go.Â
i believe in you.Â
he can’t think of anything else. he doesn’t trust himself to say the right thing.Â
V.Â
the house feels so, so empty without clover.
light does not like it, does not like it all.Â
aoi kurashiki does, and he makes himself at home rather quickly.
light walks to the cafe every tuesday, every thursday.Â
the turnout makes him feel like the second coming of jesus christ.
VI.
are you doing well?
haha, alice and i are almost to the test site! kind of jittery.
there’s so much sun here, i kind of forgot christmas is in a couple of days.
stop taking so long to respond, jeez!Â
light.
light...?
SNAKE
the radio silence is the worst.
VII.
clover field is captured, and light is unable to do a single, fucking, thing.Â
there is nothing for him to do, nothing but stare at the void, stare and chat the void up, hello, darkness, my old friend, how have you been. it’s been a while.Â
pathetic.
absolutely pathetic.Â
the nevada sector of the SOIS comes to his door, tells him that his sister has been captured, and that they have not been able to contact her. no shit, i haven’t been able to either. they haven’t seen alice, or any of their affiliates. they will keep him posted with any further development. thank you for your service.
“it’s kind of sad, seeing her leave again.”Â
“god, you’re like a plague.” light scowls at what he assumes is aoi, the cafe is empty today, aside from a hungover barista and the paperboy having a spiked glass of milk before going on his morning rounds. “everything you touch dies.”Â
“i remember you having a more...illustrative vocabulary. has age finally caught up to you?”Â
he can see aoi’s smirk clear as day.
“i am not going to dignify that with a response.”
light takes a sip of his earl gray, he brings the tea cup to his lips, and refuses to let his hand shake.
“what’s it like, snake? being alone in your head?”Â
the harpist clenches his fists. he has no time for this. he has no time for anything that isn’t scouring the ends of the earth for his sister, because she is the only thing he has left.
really, is that the reason?Â
light does not ponder it further, he will not like the answer he will find in the recesses of the empty stadium that is his brain.
“you get so used to hearing their voice, it’s all kinds of shit when they’re gone.”Â
light opens his mouth. closes it.
he’s having tea with a murderer, and the first thing he feels is sympathy.Â
“all kinds of shit. that’s an apt way of describing it.”
VIII.
“the world is ending today, you know.”Â
“april thirteenth.”Â
“do you think she’s alive?”
“clover?”
“yes.”
“maybe.”
“what about her?”
“akane? ha, that bitch’s a riot.”
“she’s your sister.”
“yeah, she is.”
“that’s no way to address kin.”
“she left me.”
“are you angry?”Â
“no.”
silence. aoi grants light a small smile, something bitter and despondent.Â
Title: polyrhythm
Author: kurashikishaming
Summary: The Fields invite Junpei to spend Christmas with them, and turn out to not be as subtle or great at matchmaking as they think they are. (Implied Snake/Junpei crushing.)
A/n: Happy Holidays, nearsightedpandas! I hope you enjoy your fic; it was my first time with the ship and I tried to drop some hints for you! :> Sorry I couldn't manage full-on shippiness.
Read More decided to fight me, so you can read it here at my journal!
This is my gift to yournamewasangie on the ZE secret santa, a rap battle between Sigma and Junpei! I'm glad something useful came from searching "bad pun rap battle" on google, because I'd never be able to come up with lines on my own, orz
Anyway, I hope you like it ♥ Happy holidays to yournamewasangie and all Zero Escape fans! (and if you're interested, here's the picture without text)
yousharknotpass
discoholicmusic
origamiaround
vaporwave
s-u-f-j-a-n-s-t-e-v-e-n-s
pixelskylines