#suzuki-gun fanfiction | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

serenlyss · 5 years

Text

Don’t Thank Me Yet Chapter 10

Rating: M (blood, guns, murder, torture, child neglect) Relationships: ritshou, ritsu&shigeo, ritsu&his parents Summary: “Alright then. I’m Shou,” he says, introducing himself more properly this time. “I’m an esper, like you, the first in existence to be forcibly awoken by Claw’s crazy torture machines. They kidnap kids with potential latent psychic powers and break them, over and over, until either their powers emerge or they die. It doesn’t matter either way to them.” His expression hardens as he speaks, clear distaste and outright malice evident in his tone. “I could really use your help here, you know. A partner of sorts, someone to watch my back. What do you say?“ Ritsu hesitates. He isn’t a fighter by any means, and the psychic powers now churning beneath his skin are still very new and frightening. It’s all very overwhelming, but Ritsu can’t help but feel a sort of sickening hope at Shou’s promise for revenge. It did have a sort of dark draw to it. In which Claw is a lot worse than they seem and Shigeo isn’t able to find his brother after he’s kidnapped. Crossposted to AO3: Chapter 10

Chapter 9

Oh god it's finally here, the last chapter. Thank you all so much for reading this and supporting me, it's been a wild, fun ride. I hope you enjoy this ending and that it's satisfying, it's been a long time since I've actually finished a project this long and intensive before so I'm a little nervous but I like how it turned out! Be sure to let me know your thoughts if you like it, and check out my other projects if you're interested!

---

Ritsu goes home.

He’s nervous, really nervous, so nervous that his palms are sweating and his shoulders are quivering beneath the sleeves of his hoodie. It’s summer, and his house isn’t cold, but the hoodie covers his arms and hides the scars he’s still too embarrassed to let be seen by just anyone. He’d been convinced to leave his gloves behind, at least, but now that he knows his parents’ arrival is close he stuffs both hands into his hoodie pocket to hide them. “I don’t know if I can do this,” he stammers, feeling the anticipatory anxiety course through him like a drug.

Shigeo lays a hand on Ritsu’s back, between his shoulder blades, a firm and comforting presence. “It’s going to be fine,” he promises with a smile, reaching up to flick Ritsu’s too-long bangs out of his eyes. He’s long overdue for a haircut, his hair grown unruly without someone else around to tame it for him, all he can think about is how sloppy he’s about to look in front of his parents during their first interaction in more than four months. He’s clean, sure, but he hasn’t been taking care of himself as well as he should have, and as silly as it is he can’t shake the thought that it matters, more than the fact that he’s finally coming home does.

Still, he nods in response to his brother’s words and steels his nerve, and does his best not to pick at the scars on his hands as an outlet for some of his anxious energy.

When his parents walk through the door, rightfully confused that their house is, in fact, not a pile of ashes on the grass, and appears completely untouched, Ritsu is waiting. He’s tempted to turn invisible, just to give himself more time to think, time to rehearse what he’s going to say, but Shigeo squeezes his hand and smiles at him reassuringly, and it’s enough for him to hold his ground and stutter out an awkward, nervous greeting to them.

The moment his parents lay eyes on him, they both freeze, and Ritsu has to suppress the urge to shrink into himself under the weight of their wide-eyed stares. Shigeo’s hand in his is a constant, comforting presence for the few seconds they stand silently, just looking at each other, before his mother finally breaks the trance and rushes forward to envelop him in the biggest, tightest hug he's ever had. And he melts into it, tears in his eyes, because he’s missed this so much, missed them, and the feeling of finally having them back is just a little bit overwhelming.

He doesn’t remember most of what he says, his words a jumble of stuttered apologies and reassurances that he’s here, he’s home, he’s alright, that he isn’t going to go anywhere anytime soon. His mother frets over how thin and ragged he looks, the scars on his face and hands, the still-fresh injuries from his fight again Claw, and he answers with short words and vague responses that he knows he’ll have to flesh out later but there will be time for that, so much time, because he’s home now, and he has no intention of leaving them behind again.

---

Being home is weird, but going back to school is weirder. People stare at him like he’s come back from the dead, and the stares make him itch and squirm in his seat when he’s trying his best to ignore them. The sleeves of his old uniform blazer cover most of the scars he doesn’t want his classmates to see, but he’s long left behind his gloves. The scars on his palms itch and throb when people stare at them, and he takes to hiding his hands in his pockets when he’s not using them for something else.

He rejoins the student council, but it’s… awkward, to say the least. No one knows how to approach him anymore, and it’s hard to pretend that nothing’s happened when his scars give everything away. Still, he does his best to pretend like he doesn’t notice and slips back into old, familiar routines as best as he can. He talks as though he’s never been gone at all, and waves off any questions or concerns his old acquaintances might have for him. He bites his tongue to keep from saying things he knows won’t be taken well and tamps down the rebelliousness that Shou’s constant presence had fed, at least while he’s at school, and only allows himself to relax and breathe once he’s back home, in his room, with the door closed and the window open to let fresh air in.

Shigeo does what he can. It makes the transition so much smoother, to have his brother there to help him, but they don’t see each other much outside of the house. Still, Shigeo offers his support where he’s needed, whether it’s reminding Ritsu to eat or giving him someone to talk to when things get a little too overwhelming. On nights where Ritsu’s nightmares keep him from sleeping safely, Shigeo makes space for him in his room, and they crowd under the same blanket, sharing the same futon, the way they used to when they were toddlers. Ritsu tucks his head against Shigeo’s shoulder and his brother holds him close and it doesn’t stop the nightmares from coming back, but it makes him feel safe enough that just for the night, he can sleep enough to get through the next day. They never talk when this happens, but it’s different from all the times they didn’t talk before, when things would bother them. There are no words that need to be said about it, it isn’t a problem that can be fixed with words. It helps, though, it really does.

Ritsu’s mother keeps a close eye on him now that he’s home. Ritsu can tell that she’s trying not to hover, but it’s hard for her. He understands, but that doesn’t stop him from feeling stifled, sometimes. Ritsu’s kidnapping hasn’t only affected him, it’s affected the whole family, who will never interact with each other the same way they did before.

They skirt the issue. It’s what they’ve always done, and it will likely be what they always do. They try to pretend like nothing ever happened, and it feels wrong, so wrong. After three days, Ritsu gets tired of it. He stops hiding his scars from them, and he stops pretending like his four months away hadn’t meant anything, hadn’t changed him. He doesn’t talk about Claw, it’s still too sore a subject to tackle for more than a few minutes at a time, but he does talk about Shou, and tells stories about the quieter moments, the domestic ones, the times where he’d almost felt like a normal kid again. Slowly, he starts to reconcile the person he used to be with the person he is now, and finds that neither version of himself is better or worse than the other. They’re both him, in different points in time, versions of him that had progressed and regressed in different ways. Though his experiences, he’s come out a slightly different but still recognizable person. It’s an ongoing process, one he’ll no doubt continue to build on until the day he dies, but it’s a start nonetheless, and it brings him a certain inexplicable comfort to know that despite everything, he’s still himself.

He misses Shou. A lot. He’d always known he would, but it doesn’t really hit him until a few days into his return. It’s easy to put out of his mind during the day, usually, but at night, when he lays in his bed and stares at his ceiling, so familiar to him yet still not fully his anymore, he thinks about how he’d really like for Shou to be here with him. He doesn’t feel like he needs to tiptoe around Shou, to try to spare his feelings the way he has to do with his parents. He misses that freedom, the type of relaxation and comfort he can only achieve in a place that’s far away from here. The closest thing he has to that is Shigeo, but as much as he loves his brother, he’s no Shou.

Ritsu texts Shou occasionally: life updates, random thoughts, maybe a photo, when he remembers to take one. He does his best to keep his thoughts brief and mundane, to not let himself get overwhelmed and spill his guts all over Shou’s messaging app, but it’s hard when he has thoughts in his head that he wants to express but that feel too intimate to drop unceremoniously over the phone. There will be time to talk, he reminds himself, and tells Shou about the stray cat he saw on his way home instead of how he wishes his classmates would stop treating him like he’s diseased.

Shou never responds to them, but Ritsu has a feeling that he at least reads them. Each time he hits send on the next message, Ritsu holds out a little bit of hope that maybe Shou will slip up this time and give him something, anything, to remind him that he’s still there, still watching, still waiting for the day he can come back. He’s disappointed every time when he never does.

---

Things never go back to how they’d been before, but there’s some truth to it when they say that old habits die hard. After a few weeks it starts to feel like maybe that entire day is just the remnants of a fever dream, something that becomes increasingly cloudy and unclear with every passing day. Ritsu fills Shou’s phone with messages that go unanswered and hangs out with Shigeo and Reigen whenever he has extra time, distracting himself with whatever random jobs Reigen has for him to do. Having something to focus on keeps him from thinking too much, because Ritsu knows that when he thinks too much, things start to get a little out of hand. Shou’s scolded him for it on several occasions.

Serizawa starts working at Spirits&Such not long after that day, and it’s… uncomfortable, to say the least. Ritsu does his best to let bygones be bygones, but even with a crisp suit and a new, clean haircut, he has trouble segregating this new, “reformed” Serizawa from the one who had attacked him and Shou at the top of the cultural tower. Despite this, Serizawa did save his life, once, and so he still tries, as futile as his attempts feel. He catches Reigen smiling at him, sometimes, and guesses that his attempts are at least recognized, if not totally effective. He doesn’t think about it too hard.

The only time he gives himself to think is at night, before he goes to bed. Sometimes they’re good thoughts, healthy thoughts, and sometimes… not so much. Tonight is a good night, he decides, curled up under his comforter up to his chin and with the window cracked open ever-so-slightly to let fresh air in. He feels productive, like he’s finally getting somewhere after three weeks of pushing against the current just to feel like he’s normal again. He’d even managed a polite conversation with Serizawa, despite his personal reservations. He thinks that maybe someday he’ll even be able to consider Serizawa a friend, as weird as the thought seems in the moment.

There will always be bad nights, he knows. They’ll never truly go away, but they get better, just a little. The bad nights become fewer and farther between the more time passes, and he’s thankful for the break as he lets himself succumb to sleep that night.

---

Ritsu’s always been a light sleeper, so he isn’t really surprised when he finds himself awake, buried underneath his comforter up to his chin as he stares bleary-eyed at his bedroom wall. Sometimes a particularly loud passing car or a gust of wind will wake him up, but when that happens he’s always quick to fall back asleep. He attempts to do so now, his eyes quickly falling shut again as he turns his nose into his pillow, but then he hears the sound of his window sliding closed and quiet footsteps on his bedroom floor and suddenly he’s wide awake, seized by a sudden panic in his half-asleep state.

His thoughts are racing a mile a minute, his sleep-foggy mind filled with a dozen nightmares of what this scenario might be, and the explanation he lands on is that it must be a member of Claw, come to finish the job, to take him away, to lock him back up in one of their labs or, worse, to silence him altogether.

For a few long, arduous seconds, Ritsu is frozen, wide eyes still glued to his bedroom wall. The footsteps move across his room and halt in front of his bookshelf, and finally, Ritsu moves. He sits up in bed and twists around as fast as he can, one hand snapping out in the direction of the footsteps. He lifts whoever has decided to break into his bedroom off of their feet with his telekinesis; even if it is someone from Claw, they shouldn’t be able to break his hold.

The trespasser squawks in a rather undignified fashion, and Ritsu’s brain short-circuits, because it’s an undoubtedly familiar noise, but his half-asleep brain takes a moment longer than necessary to process it. “Ritsu, oh my god! Chill, it’s just me!” the figure yelps, arms and legs flailing in midair.

Ritsu blinks once. Takes in the shock of red hair and the freckled face and the wide blue eyes staring back at him. Blinks again. Feels the breeze from his open window ruffle his hair and sees it disturbing the shades. Blinks a third time. “Shou?” he says, completely dumbfounded. Across the room, he wills his lamp to turn on, bathing the room in harsh yellow light. He releases his hold on Shou, dropping him six inches back onto his bedroom floor with a rather loud thud. His brain is static, and he can’t tell if he’s breathing enough because his throat is burning, his heart is racing, and Shou is here, in the middle of the night, climbing through his window like it’s no big deal and perusing the books on his shelf.

Shou takes a moment to right himself, looking understandably sheepish about being caught. “Uh, surprise?” he says lamely, shuffling on his feet and holding out his arms as though to announce his presence. “Sorry, I know it’s the middle of the night and all, but I finally got clearance to leave now that we’ve caught just about every-”

Ritsu hardly hears the words that come out of his mouth, filled with a sudden overwhelming urge, and he doesn’t have the strength or the will to fight it. He tosses his blankets off of his legs with one motion and scrambles out of bed, nearly falling onto his face in the process, and launches himself in Shou’s direction. The words in Shou’s mouth die abruptly as the wind is knocked out of him, and he stumbles backward, but Ritsu catches him around his waist and hugs him so tightly that he’s forced to keep his footing.

“Oh god,” Shou wheezes, a laugh bubbling up in his chest, and after a moment he settles his arms around Ritsu’s shoulders and hugs him back. “I gotta say, this is not at all how I expected this to go,” he manages around breathy chuckles. “You’re kinda giving me mixed signals here. I thought you were gonna off me on the spot.”

“You asshole,” Ritsu mutters, pulling back just far enough to punch Shou in his shoulder. “You scared the shit out of me, showing up in the middle of the night after a month of radio silence.”

Shou winces, reaching up to rub the spot that will almost surely be bruised later, and offers Ritsu a grin. “Sorry, sorry, I was gonna wait, but, uh, patience has never been my strong suit. I would’ve tried a different approach if I’d known you’d spook like that,” he laughs, and the sound is like coming home for the first time in weeks.

Ritsu tugs Shou in for another tight hug, and this time Shou’s prepared for it. He hugs back in a way that Ritsu can tell is just a little bit uncomfortable for him, like he’s unsure where he should put his hands, and he makes a mental note to hug Shou more from now on. “I missed you,” he admits, feeling just a little out of breath and giddy from his scare and the rush of emotion he’d felt at finally being able to see his partner again.

Shou makes a noise, halfway between a startled gasp and a laugh. “Yeah, I missed you too,” he chuckles, the words coming out jumbled and stuttery as Shou attempts to reciprocate a feeling he likely doesn’t let himself think about too often. “It’s really good to see you, Ritsu.”

“You too,” Ritsu mumbles, face half-buried in Shou’s shoulder, and reluctantly pulls back after a few seconds after it starts to feel like maybe he’s overstayed his welcome. Shou doesn’t seem to mind, though, just flashing him an amused, crooked smile.

“So this is your house, hm?” Shou comments, glancing around with dramaticized appreciation. “Nice place.”

Ritsu rolls his eyes, drifting over to the foot of his bed and perching himself on the corner of it, leaving room for Shou to join him should he choose to do so. “You said you got clearance to come back. Does that mean…?” He trailed off uncertainly, almost afraid to bring the topic up in case he’s somehow mistaken.

Shou nods his head and follows Ritsu’s lead, sitting down on the bed beside Ritsu close enough that their shoulders touch. It’s not a wide bed, so it’s not like they have space to spread out anyway, but it’s nice to see Shou still comfortable in proximity with him after so many weeks. “Yeah, we finally tracked down Shimazaki a few days ago, and the rest was just paperwork and nonsense, I wasn’t even a part of that. They still made me wait, though, the bastards,” he complains, and Ritsu can’t help the silly grin that tries to break out onto his face. It’s past midnight and he has school tomorrow, but there’s no way he’s going back to sleep now.

“Well, you’re back now,” Ritsu says firmly, leaning forward on the bed and tilting his head up to look into Shou’s face. “That’s the important part.”

Shou flushes pink at this, pleased, and nods. “Yeah.”

Ritsu smiles, something that comes easier and easier with each passing day. “So, what are you gonna do now?” he asks, curious, and wonders if Shou has thought about it much since they’d parted ways.

He’s expecting a casual answer, maybe, something flippant and simple--his ideas are usually simple, after all--but what he isn’t expecting is to see Shou’s face fall, a persistent frown coming to his face where he’d usually wear a grin. “I don’t know,” he admits, uncharacteristically quiet. He reaches up with one hand to rub his opposite arm, fingers trailing over old scars. Ritsu watches the hand as it rubs up and down, an odd form of self-comfort that Shou is exhibiting. “I’ve been thinking about it for a while, but nothing I come up with really… feels right. I could go try to find my mom, but I wouldn’t even know how to begin to explain myself to her.” He sighs, reaching up with one hand to run his fingers through his bright red hair.

Ritsu hums, considers this for a moment, and watches as Shou throws himself back on the bed, his legs still hanging off the edge. He lets his arms flop down above his head, letting out a little noise of frustration. “I still have the house, I guess, but I can’t just keep hiding out there forever,” he continues, glaring up at the ceiling as though it’s at fault for all his tumultuous thoughts. “I’ve never really been a ‘normal kid,’ even before everything went down with Claw and I ran away. I guess I don’t really know what I’m supposed to do.”

He falls quiet after this, staring stubbornly up at the ceiling, and after a moment Ritsu lets himself fall back onto his mattress beside Shou, shoulders bumping once more. “Screw expectations, you’re not supposed to do anything,” he says after a moment, letting slip a little of the rebellious spirit Shou had nurtured in him those long four months together. “It’s not about what the ‘right thing’ is anymore, it’s about what you want to do now that you have the freedom to do it. So, Shou, what do you want to do?” He tilts his head to the side, meets Shou’s bright blue gaze only inches away from him on the bed, and raises a brow at him questioningly.

Shou ponders on this for a moment, his gaze flicking down and to the side before he looks back to Ritsu again. “I want to give school a try,” he says carefully, after a moment of quiet contemplation, “and I want to thank Reigen and Serizawa properly, for helping us out.”

Ritsu blinks in surprise at this. “Serizawa too?” he echoes, and does his best to disguise his caution at the mention of the former Claw terrorist. “He’s been working with Reigen, but I thought… what about the government?”

Shou blows a strand of hair out of his face, shrugging. “I didn’t turn him in,” he admits. “He really… he’s making an effort, I think. To change.”

“I thought you hated him,” Ritsu says. “What made you change your mind?”

Shou just shrugs again with a noncommittal hum, but his ears go a little pink as he tries to hide his embarrassment. “I dunno, he just… I think he realized that what was going on was wrong. Yeah, he knew what was happening, but he didn’t see any other way out of it. I guess he was just misguided,” he explains, his words slow and deliberately chosen.

“Like how you were misguided?” Ritsu guesses.

Shou laughs, quiet and brief, and lets his arms lay open at his sides. “Yeah, like that,” he agrees. “I guess I just felt like maybe he deserves a second chance. Somewhere far away from my old man.”

Ritsu glances away, up at the ceiling like Shou. “He did save our lives,” he concedes with a light chuckle. “If you’re sure, then I trust your judgement.”

Shou hums in affirmation, his legs swaying back and forth from where they hang half off the bed. The silence that falls between them in comforting, and Ritsu finds himself lulled by the gentle noises of the wind outside his cracked-open window and the sound of Shou’s easy, even breathing beside him. He blinks a few times, not sleepy, but content, in a way he hasn’t really felt since coming home.

“Hey, Ritsu?” Shou murmurs, his voice breaking the trance. “Thanks for waiting for me.” His voice is quiet and betrays his vulnerability for a moment, and Ritsu turns and finds himself face to face with Shou’s grateful face. “It probably sounds silly, but part of what kept me going was knowing that I had people waiting for me to come back safe. I’ve never really had that before, so thanks.”

It’s not so rare for Shou to express his gratitude like this, and he’s done it many times in the past, but something about this moment feels potent to Ritsu in a way the others hadn’t. There are other words hidden behind the ones that Shou speaks, words that Ritsu senses but can’t parse. Maybe they’re words that Shou isn’t quite ready to speak yet, or maybe he’s just waiting for another moment, a better time, so Ritsu doesn’t push for answers. “Of course,” he says instead, and reaches between them for Shou’s hand, slotting their fingers together and squeezing gently. “I know you didn’t have a lot of people to lean on growing up, but, well, I plan on sticking around for a while, so you better get used to having me around,” he teases, and it’s light-hearted and freeing to speak like this, in such a carefree way. He hasn’t been able to do this in a long time.

Shou laughs and squeezes his hand back, his free hand lifting from his other side to cover his mouth in an almost shy manner, hiding his smile. “Yeah, alright, you win. Still, it’s gonna be weird. I’ve never done this before. School, a social life, stuff like that. To be honest, I feel like it might be impossible for me,” he admits.

Ritsu hums; he knows the feeling, but he’d also been a part of that world before, had lived in it, and the routines he’d slipped back into had been familiar. For Shou, it would be all new. “I’ll teach you, then,” he says, even though he can’t really seem to imagine Shou in a classroom setting, listening obediently to teachers and turning in his homework on time. He offers Shou a smile, rare and sweet in his half-asleep state, and adds, “You and me against the world, right? Just like always.”

Shou snorts, turning his gaze skyward and lifting their joined hands up to hover between them. “Yeah, just like always,” he echoes, like a promise, and pulls Ritsu’s hand toward his face. He presses his lips against the scars on the back of his hand briefly, impulsively, and the motion sends a thrill up Ritsu’s spine and warms his neck and face. He sucks in a breath, surprised but not uncomfortable.

Ritsu has seen the direction they’ve been tentatively drifting in, has heard the unsaid words clear as day as though they’d been spoken aloud. There’s an unspoken sentiment in the air, one that he’s certain his friends have picked up on if the knowing looks and questions are to be believed. “Shou, do you like me?” he asks, as though it’s the easiest question in the world to ask, as though he doesn’t already know the answer.

He half expects Shou to brush off the question, to pass it off as more innocent than it really is, but instead Shou just stares at him, his mouth open in a quiet ‘o’ and his eyebrows raised so high they threaten to disappear into his hairline. Then he covers his face with one hand, his other still tightly gripping Ritsu’s, and makes a strangled sound somewhere between a laugh and a cough. “I didn’t think you’d just come right out and ask,” he manages, and his voice cracks, betraying his surprise. “I like you so much, Ritsu.”

Ritsu swallows, attempting to suppress the thundering of his heart in his chest as he stares up at the ceiling. “I like you, too,” he says, quietly, like he’s telling a secret, and the warmth of this quiet, private moment falls over him like a blanket, comfortable and safe.

“I’ve never liked anyone before,” Shou says, voice wavering a little in his uncertainty.

Ritsu hums. “Me neither,” he admits, because it’s true. “I don’t know what people who like each other do.”

For a moment, they lay in silence, their legs hanging off the edge of the bed, and then Shou turns onto his side, tucking his feet behind him. “Who says we have to be like everyone else? We should just do what we want to do,” he says.

And Ritsu can’t help but laugh, because Shou’s solutions are always simple, and they’re usually pretty good, too. Maybe, he thinks, he should try to have a little more faith in them. “You know what, you’re right,” he agrees with a grin. “We’ll just do things our way, the way we always have.” And the way we always will, he adds to himself, a promise to himself to make sure Shou sticks around.

They talk long into the night, telling stories of their month apart, their voices carefully quiet to avoid waking up the rest of the house. Ritsu fits his head against Shou’s shoulder, listens to him ramble on about whatever’s on his mind, and the peace of the moment quiets his mind and stills his heart. He doesn’t remember falling asleep, and he can’t bring himself to mind. That night, for the first time in days, he passes the night in a dreamless sleep, comforted by the presence of his best friend at his side.

#mob psycho 100 #mp100 #ritshou #kageyama ritsu #suzuki shou #serendipitousfics #blood #guns #murder #ptsd #child neglect #torture #mp100 fanfic #fanfiction

10 notes · View notes

nahmooste · 5 years

Text

gentle reminder that requests are open for anything njpw related 🤗

just submit an ask and i will write a response between 500-1000 words :)))

#njpw fanfiction #kazuchika okada #tetsuya naito #njpw #los ingobernables de japon #lij #literally anyone #suzuki gun #chaos #wrestling fanfiction #fanfic #current writing

7 notes · View notes

jay-fabe7712 · 7 years

Text

the invisible woman

Summary: location - weirdly dark club + supernatural element - demonic gathering + situation - making a deal with someone you shouldn’t have + quote - “i wonder if you taste as good as your fear smells.”

A/N: So, this is my contribution to the eleventh day of the 31 Little Wrestling Fics challenge! (Barely on time, mind you.) I have mixed feelings about how it turned out, but I’m super happy I got a chance to participate.

Also, I’d like to give a special shoutout to @fan-fiction-galore. Even though I’ve known her for about a month, the little interactions we’ve had has been a joy and I wish her all the best on her new journey!

When I looked into the eyes of Minoru Suzuki for the first time, fear was the furthest thing from my mind.

I would describe the feeling more along the lines of awe or wonder.

His eyes were wide at first, darting around to find his next victim. The next body to brutalize in an exorcism of his own frustrations. His smile spread slow as molasses and the glistening of his incisor through parted lips was barely visible before his gaze settled on me.

But all I could focus on were his eyes. Not the dark brown of the iris or the murderous intent they held, but how they were looking directly at me. Not past me. Not over my head. Not in my general direction. His gaze was locked tight with mine and I had his full attention. And it might sound a little preposterous, but no one had ever looked at me like that. And shit, if they ever had it was so long ago that it didn’t matter.

Because if there was one thing I was good at, it was being invisible. Which is why being a production assistant for New Japan Pro Wrestling was the perfect job for me. In fact, I liked the anonymity of it. Fading into the background and watching all the action unfold.

At least, I thought I did.

You see, people always looked past me. They forgot I was there. They forgot I existed. So even if Suzuki wanted to murder me in cold blood in front of a live audience, I couldn’t help but marvel at the fact that someone had seen through the invisibility cloak that seemed to shroud all of my daily interactions.

Then, I blinked and he was right in front of me. So close I could feel his heavy breaths jostling my eyelashes with each exhale. I could feel the heat radiating off of his body. I could see individual beads of sweat wind their way down his temple.

But again, I was distracted by his eyes. I could see them clouding with thought at the short, squatty being that was staring back at him. Wide-eyed and ripe for the killing.

The moment was broken when he let out a noise somewhere between a scoff and a grunt before turning abruptly on his heel and heading toward the back.

My eyes followed him until he was out of my line of vision; he never looked back. His stablemates, Desperado and Taichi, kept shooting glances my way as they trailed after him. Deperado’s mask gave away very little but his eyes were piercing and his arms were crossed tightly across his chest. Taichi smoothed his hair back and grinned so wide I almost looked away.

“Naomi.”

I felt a nudge to my shoulder and it was as if someone had just drenched me in cold water. I hadn’t even realized that I had spaced out until that moment. Suddenly, the din of the crowd warred against my eardrums, the bright lights illuminating the ring hurt my eyes and I clutched at my cardigan to stop my trembling even though it wasn’t cold at all.

"Are you okay?" My co-worker Ryou asked me.

"Yeah," I said, glancing up at him. But his eyes weren’t on me. Of course they weren’t. He was staring after Taichi and Desperado and I watched his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed hard.

"Man, those guys," He shook his head. "Minoru especially. Always terrorizing the staff."

Believe it or not, it wasn’t until that moment that I realized I should be afraid. The most brutal wrestler on NJPW’s roster had quite literally breathed down my neck and I had barely batted an eye.

Fear started to unfurl in my stomach like a spider stretching its legs. I hope I hadn’t made myself even more of a target.

"Look who it is!"

I recognized Taka Michinoku’s game-show-host voice anywhere. "It’s the rope wrangler who stood toe-to-toe with the boss."

He shook his head with a lopsided smile. "Can’t fucking believe it."

He elbowed Kanemaru by his side who simply quirked a brow and studied me.

“I’d watch my back if I were you,” Taka continued. “The boss seemed pretty pissed last week.”

“Might even come to getcha.” Kanemaru was close enough for me to smell the alcohol on his breath and I took several steps back.

The two men traded glances and chuckled, obviously thinking I was scared. And frankly, I wished I was. I wished I had the common sense enough to be trembling in fear at the thought of Minoru Suzuki having some kind of vendetta against me. But what I felt was hopeful. Hoping that I could be under that laser-focused gaze of his again. Hoping to be seen.

In fact, the searching looks Taka and Kanemaru were giving me already transported me back to that day ringside. To no longer being invisible.

But before I could entertain the thought any further, I clutched the clipboard in my hand tight to my chest and muttered, “I’ve got work to do.” Then, I proceeded to scurry as far away from these men as I could possibly get.

Unfortunately, that did little to change what was already set in motion.

“And working ringside we’ve got-”

“I’ll do it!” I blurted, garnering several sideways glances from my co-workers.

“Who…” Our supervisor Ken looked around, skimming over my face several times before finally resting his gaze on my general area. “Naomi?”

Huh. Surprised he even remembered my name.

“Yeah.”

He cleared his throat. “I was going to say that Atsuko will be working ringside with-”

“Why don’t you let me do it?” I cut in again. More stares. “Atsuko doesn’t mind if I take her place, do you Atsu?”

The brown-haired woman sputtered a moment. “Uh, no. Sure, I don’t mind.”

“That settles it then, huh?”

By this time, everyone’s eyes were on me but they turned collectively to see Ken’s reaction.

I thought I saw a vein pop out in his forehead, but he responded with a stiff nod and said, “I guess it does.”

Once he was done with announcements, everyone dispersed to begin preparing for tonight’s show.

“Naomi!” Ken called to me as soon as most everyone else was gone. “Let me talk to you for a minute.”

“Sure.” I responded, even though he didn’t exactly ask me a question.

“What the hell was that?”

“What the hell was what?” I fired back.

Yep, that was definitely the vein in his forehead popping out. “You questioning my authority.”

“I was making a suggestion.” I responded, feeling my own anger spike. “A pretty logical one, I think.”

“How so?”

“Atsuko is too slow to assist with the camera cords. Someone always ends up tripping and she’s gonna block the camera at least five times during the-”

“Regardless, that’s my decision to make.”

“-show.” I finished my previous sentence in lieu of an actual response.

“Whatever you were doing, it better not happen again. Understood?”

“Mm-hm.” I could feel the anger radiating off him and if looks could kill, I would probably be dead.

But I didn’t care. In fact, the heady mixture had me feeling a strange sense of satisfaction. I didn’t know who this guy thought he was anyway.

Working in the behind-the-scenes production of NJPW actually had a pretty quick turnaround. Some people came in just to rub elbows with their favorite wrestlers and got a reality check real quick. Some people came in just to get a paycheck but ended up realizing how hard the work actually was. And some people just quit. I had been here for two years while Ken had only been here six months and already he was in a managerial position while I was in the exact same spot.

It was about time I got some respect. --- That night I couldn’t take my eyes off of them.

Every single bit of the vile chaos that ensued in their match, I couldn’t take my eyes off of it.

Kanemaru spraying his opponents faces with alcohol until the entirety of ringside stank of whiskey. Taichi driving the handle of the bell hammer into eye sockets and twisting it with glee. Minoru leaning casually into submissions as his victims screamed bloody murder at the pain of their wrenching muscles.

I had always garnered a strange sense of comfort from being around the carnage of pro wrestling. The dull thud of bodies hitting the canvas was so calming that I would sometimes queue up NJPW World on nights I had trouble sleeping.

But this was different.

I had never actually taken pleasure in people getting hurt. In fact, I’d always considered it my least favorite part of my job. Besides Ken, of course.

But now, as I watched the men of Suzuki-gun gather around the broken bodies and raise their pointer fingers up high, I was hit with a more unsettling realization.

I not only liked the violence. I wanted to be a part of it. --- There were a lot of moments in my life worthy of a great deal of shame, but this was probably one of the higher items on the list.

I followed them.

I overheard them talking about some club or the other they planned on visiting that night and…I decided I would show up. I would say this was strange behavior for me but quite frankly, strange behavior had become the norm for me lately.

The man at the door didn’t stop at me. In fact, he barely even looked at me.

I wasn’t a frequenter of the club scene, but I was pretty sure the man at the door didn’t fit the bill of what I would consider a “bouncer”.

He was average height with a shaved head, decked out in a navy blue sweater and similarly colored dress pants. Honestly, the most intimidating thing about him was the fact he was wearing sunglasses at about ten minutes until midnight. I paused at the door, clutching my wallet in my hand. When he didn’t react to my presence, I rifled through my wallet to find my ID and held it out to him.

“Are you just going to stand there or are you going to go in?” He didn’t move from his stationary position; he didn’t crane his head or lift up his glasses to examine my card, he barely even moved his lips when he spoke.

“Wha- Don’t you need to see my ID?”

“Guess you’re just going to stand there, then.”

I stared at him, speechless for a few seconds but he remained unresponsive. He was kinda starting to creep me out. Especially those damn glasses.

No matter how hard I stared, I couldn’t make out his eyes behind them. Just two sheens of depthless black. The longer I stared at them, the more confused I felt. I blinked and shook my head, breaking his unsettling gaze, which grew even more unsettling when I realized even though the building in front of me vibrated with music and voices, no one else was out front. There was no line, no smokers, no drunkards, no one.

Not wanting to dwell on the feeling, I brushed past the man and splayed my hand onto the door but he did nothing to stop me.

“Ow!” I exclaimed as I bumped hard into something (or someone) as soon as I stepped inside.

Unfortunately I couldn’t find the obstruction – I couldn’t really find anything the damn place was so dark. I stood still for a few moments waiting for my vision to adjust to the light. I was able to make out shapes and eventually objects. No wonder I had bumped into something, I had walked right into a wall. The front door led right into a hallway that extended to the left and right but the only thing in front of me was wall. I looked down either side of the hallway. I decided to go left.

During my entire trek, I didn’t run into a single person. Which was weird because the deeper I went into the place, the stronger the pulsing music and indiscernible voices grew.

I was considering going back the way I came when I heard the familiar sound of a deep, crisp voice.

Taka Michinoku.

“…is such a fucking prick now. I liked him better when he was Mr. Goody Two Shoes.”

Up ahead, thin cracks of dim light formed the shape of a door.

“Yeah, you can’t even really have fun with him anymore.” Taichi. “He’s either spitting on you or staring at you with those dead eyes.”

I pressed closer.

“Well, he knew what he wanted and he didn’t care what he had to do to get it.” That sounded like Suzuki.

“Come on, it’s a waste! All that just for the fans to give a shit about him.” Taichi scoffed. “Ridiculous.”

“You’re just saying that because they don’t give a shit about you.” Taka quipped. Laughter filled the room.

“Some people will do anything just for anyone to give a shit.” Minoru responded. That brought on silence.

Then, I thought I could hear their voices starting up again but lower this time. I pressed so hard to the door it felt like I was melding with the wood.

Suddenly, the door yanked open and I nearly fell into the room, to which Kanemaru responded by graciously moving out of the way to let me do just that.

“Look at that.” Taka chuckled. “Standing at attention. Just like you said, boss.”

“Mm-hm.” Minoru hummed, remaining seated for a moment longer before rising to take a few slow steps toward me.

“A- Are you going to kill me?”

“You guessed it.” Taichi smirked.

“I wonder if you taste as good as your fear smells.” Iizuka added.

My stomach dropped but the men in the room laughed collectively.

“Shut up.” Minoru growled out, but humor tugged at edges of his tone. Nonetheless, the men grew silent.

“We’re not in the business of killing-”

Taka cleared his throat.

“-at the moment.” Minoru finished. “We’re in the business of making deals.”

“Deals?”

“Don’t act dumb,” His eyes darkened. “It doesn’t suit you.”

I averted my gaze.

“I know you were listening long enough and hard enough today, and yesterday, and last week,” My eyes widened as he accurately listed off the days I had been snooping about them. “To piece together the basics of what’s going on here.”

“What are you?”

He scoffed and nodded his head. “Thought so. Unfortunately that one is above your paygrade. Next question.”

“How does this deal thing work?”

“That depends. What do you want?”

“What do you mean?”

If I didn’t know any better, I would say the smirk he gave me was almost pitying.

“People like you always want something,” He shook his head and laughed. “As soon as I saw you, I knew you did. Only a person with nothing to lose would look evil in the eyes with curiosity. After all,” He gestured to the dimly lit room. “You even came chasing after it.”

I blinked at the playful way he just called himself evil.

“But I’m still not quite sure what you want. So what is it?”

A pause. “I want to be one of you.” The words surprised even me.

In the corner of my eye I saw Desperado scoot forward in his seat, looking ready to jump up any second. The rest of the men in the room remained still.

Then, Suzuki threw his head back and laughed.

“I-I know you’re not human. I’m not sure what you are but…I want in.”

Minoru took a step forward. “Oh really?”

“Yeah really.”

He scratched his chin and shrugged. “Okay.”

“Okay?” I studied him. “It’s that easy?”

“I didn’t say that.” He shook his head. “I need you to bring me someone first.”

“Bring you something?”

He smirked and it made my stomach feel sour.

“Someone.”

“So do you want to go?” I smiled, hoping it made my offer seem more genuine.

“Let me get this straight,” Ken began, eyeing me in a way that made my neck grow hot with anger. “You.”

He pointed at me.

“Want to go out,”

Another unnecessarily dramatic pause.

“To a club,”

I nodded, wishing he would get to the point already.

“With me.”

“Yeaahh.” I said slowly. “You in?”

“You know this is unexpected and actually,” His eyes narrowed. “Borderline unprofessional.”

I fiddled with my fingers, wondering if I had just majorly fucked up. I mean, it was clear the guy already didn’t like me. Did I really think I could just ask him out and we’d become best-

“I like it!”

“Huh?”

“I said I like it. Guess you finally realized all that strong, silent shit isn’t going to get you anywhere around here.” He hooked an arm around my shoulders and I tried to hide the shiver that accompanied the contact. “You know, I was worried about I’d have to fire you eventually after you mouthed off in front of everybody last week.”

It took everything in me not to elbow him in the gut so he’d get his lanky arm off of my shoulder.

“But it looks like I won’t have to.” He grinned. “How about nine o’clock?”

“Actually-”

But he was on his way before I could get another word out.

“Damn idiot.” I mumbled turning around…and bumping right into someone else in the process.

"Oh! Um, sorry." I said, righting myself quickly.

Desperado hadn't stumbled at all and his only response was staring back at me with stark white irises.

After a few seconds, I asked, a little irritation in my voice, "Can I help you?"

He glanced over my shoulder at Ken who was still making his way down the hall.

"Is it him?"

"Is what him?"

Desperado crossed his arms over his chest and cocked his head in the Ken's direction.

"You know what I mean. Is it him?"

I averted my eyes. "Maybe." My stomach dropped. "What? Do you think - Is he not the right choice?"

Desperado's eyes narrowed. "No, he's actually perfect. The guys hate him and the boss has talked about ripping off his arm off on several occasions. Actually, they hate almost all of the staff here except…" He blinked at me and shook his head. "Is that really all you're concerned about right now?"

"What? Does he want more?"

Desperado regarded me for a few seconds, black-painted fingernails idly twirling the cross around his neck. "I thought maybe you..." He clenched the rosary in a fist. "I guess not."

He turned as if he was about to walk away and I stopped him.

"Wait, you thought what?"

"Doesn't matter. I was wrong." He kept walking.

I groaned. "Aren't you going to answer my question?"

"Yeah." He threw me a haphazard glance. "The boss always wants more."

“What was up with that guy at the door?”

“I don’t know.” I muttered, sick of Ken’s never-ending flow of chatter.

“I mean, what kind of douchebag wears sunglasses at night?”

“He’s always been that way.” I said, trying to the resist the urge to comment on the irony of him calling someone else a douchebag.

“Why is it so dark in here?” He complained. “I know we didn’t have to pay but they could at least have some lights in-”

“Do you ever stop talking?”

Ken and I both jumped at the voice and whirled around to find Taichi leaning against the wall we had just walked past.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

“Nope. Don’t think he does.” And now Kanemaru was standing a few feet in front of us.

“Naomi? What the hell is this?”

Taichi ran a hand through his hair before pushing himself of the wall and towards us. “I think it’s about time we shut you up.”

“Oh, I see.” Ken said, glancing between the two men. “You brought me here to have your creepy friends rough me up because of that shit at work.”

The two men grabbed on to each one of Ken’s shoulders and steered him back down the hallway. “You’re going to regret this!”

“Will you shut up?” Taichi shook him hard and he grew quiet.

I barely had the chance to entertain the thought of what they might do to him when a dark chuckle made me jump again. My reaction just made Suzuki laugh more.

“Geez. Do you guys make any noise when you walk or what?”

“I see you brought your boss.”

“So that’s it?”

Suzuki’s brow raised.

“That’s how the deal works?”

He laughed once more, but this time my stomach got that sour feeling again.

“Eh. That’s only half of it.”

“What?” I said, getting a bit pissed. “What more do you need?”

A heavy hand rested on my shoulder and I knew without looking that it was Iizuka.

“You.” --- The screeches from the audience announced Suzuki-gun's presence before the announcer ever could.

Desperado and Kanemaru were already halfway down the ramp, unconcerned with the melee taking place behind them.

Iizuka was terrorizing spectators as usual, but it was a little more alarming because it seemed as if no one was restraining him. That was until the man's head was jerked back just as he was an inch away from biting off a chunk of an older woman's nose.

A short woman with chin-length black hair bleached blonde at the ends wound his leash around her hand and yanked him again until he was out of the crowd and headed down the ramp.

Ryou looked on with the rest of the audience in wonder at this seemingly new addition to the terrifying stable.

As the four stablemates made their way into the ring, Ryou could've sworn there was something familiar about the woman touting the leash with an air of stony haughtiness.

And when her eyes scanned over ringside, stopping on him with a wicked smirk before disregarding him just as quickly, he felt almost sure he knew her from somewhere.

But no, he was sure that if a woman that striking and intimidating had ever been in his presence, he would remember.

He tried not to gawk at the woman while she was ringside, observing the action with a strangely serene expression. He had to much to do to spend too much time on it anyway. After all, being promoted to the position of supervisor had its perks, but it was a hefty job to handle.

No wonder Ken left.

#31 little wrestling fics #njpw #suzuki-gun #Suzuki gun #njpw fanfiction #minoru suzuki #taichi #taka michinoku #yoshinobu kanemaru #iizuka #njpw fanfic #wrestling fanfiction #wrestling fanfic

30 notes · View notes

f00t-fic · 4 years

Text

No Regrets

Fandom: NJPW

Rating: Explicit

Pairing: BUSHI/Yoshinobu Kanemaru

Chapters: 1/2

Words: 1687

Kanemaru drunkenly gets Bushi to agree to sex over their Best of the Super Jrs match and somehow it doesn't get weird until feet get involved.

Yes, I'm serious.

#njpw fanfic #njpw smut #njpw #pro wrestling fic #slash fanfiction #m/m slash #feet #los ingobernables de japon #suzuki gun #crackship

0 notes

buniyaad · 6 years

Text

me with my shin/kota fanfiction and tanahashi porn clutched to my chest, waiting for my suzuki-gun tracksuit to get delivered to my house, my stone pitbull hijab pinned neatly around my head: Wrestle Kingdom 9 is still the best Dome Show of the post-Dark Era New Japan, and if you think otherwise, you’re a fool.

#wrestle kingdom 9 #shinsuke nakamura #kota ibushi #hiroshi tanahashi #njpw #i would give my left nut to go back in time and actually attend this show #but i was a broke ass college student at the time #real talk #wrestling

0 notes

mysticstudentwitchposts-blog · 7 years

Photo

Agent Hawaii as a Captain in USS Diamond.

Name: Crystal Suzuki Age: 37 (right now) Alias: Cris Smith, Agent Hawaii Nationality: Hawaiian, Japanese, and American Appearance: Look above Personality: Cheerful, grumpy, stubborn, bubbly. Fatal Flaw: Bridges... and uhh ya Bridges Why were they recruited: Representing the Gemstone Armada and helping maintaining the MOI weapons. Specialization: Guns and Hacking Armour: EVA Armour Enhancements: Glitch AI: Diamond/Zeta Preferred Weapons and Fighting Techniques:Sniper and Material Arts Backstory: W.I.P Fanfiction:

https://www.wattpad.com/292464426-what-is-going-on-with-this-ship-rvb-fanfic-info Theme Songs:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TksJCV8j-ow&index=69&t=6s&list=PLqEIIHhBxEl73wvBcxuQ0jhpQCveN85H0 Quotes:

“THIS IS WHY THE CAPTAIN NEVER FUCKING LOVED YOU”

“Ugh, I just want to know why Project Freelancer choose OUR ships?!”

0 notes

serenlyss · 5 years

Text

Don’t Thank Me Yet Chapter 6

Rating: M (blood, gore, torture, violence, guns, ptsd, trauma) Relationships: ritshou, ritsu&shigeo Summary: “Alright then. I’m Shou,” he says, introducing himself more properly this time. “I’m an esper, like you, the first in existence to be forcibly awoken by Claw’s crazy torture machines. They kidnap kids with potential latent psychic powers and break them, over and over, until either their powers emerge or they die. It doesn’t matter either way to them.” His expression hardens as he speaks, clear distaste and outright malice evident in his tone. “I could really use your help here, you know. A partner of sorts, someone to watch my back. What do you say?“ Ritsu hesitates. He isn’t a fighter by any means, and the psychic powers now churning beneath his skin are still very new and frightening. It’s all very overwhelming, but Ritsu can’t help but feel a sort of sickening hope at Shou’s promise for revenge. It did have a sort of dark draw to it. In which Claw is a lot worse than they seem and Shigeo isn’t able to find his brother after he’s kidnapped. Crossposted to AO3: Chapter 6

Chapter 5 // Chapter 7

This one's another in-between chapter leading into next week's penultimate chapter. I hope you all enjoy it, it's a bit longer than I anticipated but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out overall! Thanks to @shutupeleven, @wiz-witch and @soapipia for beta reading for me!

---

Shou wakes to the sound of someone knocking on his bedroom door. He sits up blearily in his bed, rubbing his eyes as he clumsily untangles himself from his blanket and pads over to his bedroom door barefoot. He has no idea what time it is, but it feels early, sunlight peeking in through the blinds on his window and forming shapes on the carpet beneath his feet.

He cracks open the door, expecting Ootsuki or Higashio or maybe even Ritsu, but instead finds himself face-to-face with Shigeo. He blinks a few times, mind still struggling to catch up to his eyes in his sleep-induced stupor. “Ah, it’s you,” he blurts in his surprise. “Er, what’s up?”

Shigeo shuffles on his feet restlessly, and he casts a glance down the hall over his shoulder. He can’t seem to stop moving his hands, crossing and uncrossing his fingers and fiddling with the drawstrings on a hoodie Shou recognizes as being one of Ritsu’s. There’s a bit of sweat on his brow and his expression lacks the careful calm it had held all of last night. “Um, sorry to bother you, I… it’s Ritsu. He’s acting weird, I don’t know what to do,” he admits after a second of quiet, meek and vulnerable as he peers up at Shou.

Shou raises a brow, feeling a bit more awake at the mention of something being wrong with Ritsu. “Weird how?” he urges, opening the door a little further.

Shigeo bites his lip and casts another glance down the hall. Shou follows it, his gaze landing on the door to Ritsu’s bedroom. Was he still sleeping, or had he just woken up? Shigeo explains, “He’s usually such a quiet sleeper, but he’s been… mumbling to himself, I guess? I can’t tell what he’s saying. He’s moving a lot, too, tossing and turning. Is it… should I wake him up?”

Oh, Shou thinks, pushing past Shigeo as he heads for Ritsu’s room. “I think I know what’s going on,” he sighs, slipping through the cracked-open door. Shigeo follows close on his heels, though he hesitates once they’re inside.

Ritsu lays curled up on his side in a fetal position, knees tucked up nearly to his chest beneath the blanket on the floor. His pillow has been discarded, having slid a few feet away at some point during the night, and his hands are fisted tightly in the blanket’s edge. Shou crouches down at his side, catches the little whimpers and half-words that fall from his lips incoherently. His eyes are screwed firmly shut and his forehead is slick from sweat, his bangs sticking to it in a way that makes Shou want to reach out and push them away.

He decides to humor his urge this time, reaching out and tentatively threading his fingers into Ritsu’s bangs. He pushes them up and away from his face, feels the way Ritsu’s whole body twitches under his touch. “Hey, sleeping beauty, time to wake up,” he murmurs. Ritsu’s a light sleeper, and it won’t take more than a little encouragement to bring him back to reality.

This time, it works even faster and easier than Shou’s expecting. Ritsu’s eyes snap open as Shou is removing his hand from his head, sucking in a shaky breath that ends up sounding like more of a gasp than anything else. He lurches up from his spot on the floor and one hand shoots to his chest, clutching the space over his heart like he’s just had the scare of his life. The blanket bunches up around his hips as his head jerks from side to side and his eyes dart around the room in a panic, as though he can’t remember where he is.

“Calm down a bit, you’re fine,” Shou advises, laying a hand on Ritsu’s back between his shoulder blades.

Ritsu turns on him with a jolt, one hand clenching into a fist, and for a moment Shou’s worried that Ritsu might hit him, but then recognition floods his expression and he’s left staring, dumbfounded. He blinks once, twice, then lowers his fist. “Shou? What’s going on?” he asks, voice low and thick from sleep.

“You were having a nightmare,” Shou replies. It’s not the first time this has happened, and he doubts it’ll be the last. “What was it this time?”

Ritsu glances down, worrying his lower lip between his teeth. “The usual,” he replies quietly. “Just bad memories, nothing serious--oh, Shige.” He cuts himself off as he finally notices his brother hovering in the doorway.

Shigeo musters up a small smile, but it’s clear from his restless posture that he’s still very concerned. “Are you okay? I didn’t know what to do when I saw you tossing and turning like that, so I went and got Suzuki.”

Shou does his best not to flinch at being called by his surname, pressing his lips lightly together and keeping his back pointedly turned to Shigeo.

Ritsu meets his gaze knowingly, frowning ever-so-slightly. “I’m fine,” he reassures his brother, and as he speaks one of his hands moves to rest gently on Shou’s knee, a quiet comfort. “It was just a bad dream, nothing I can’t handle.” He pushes himself to his feet, moving to fold up the blanket that lays bunched up on the carpeted floor.

Shou takes a deep breath and follows suit, snatching up Ritsu’s pillow and tossing it onto the bed. “I would suggest going back to sleep, but it’s a little late for that now, isn’t it?” he says, managing a small grin as they all file out of Ritsu’s room and into the kitchen. “Maybe we should just make breakfast.” He glances in Shigeo’s direction briefly and finds the older boy staring right back, his face a mask of apprehension and uncertainty. Shou tries to ignore the way it makes his shoulders twitch, and definitely does not wonder if that look was meant for him to see.

Ritsu pulls a half-empty carton of eggs out of the fridge and sets it out beside a new loaf of bread, declaring that he’s going to make them all eggs and toast. Shou’s fine with that; it means he doesn’t have to cook for himself. He takes a seat at the kitchen table and Shigeo follows his lead, slipping into a seat across from him. Shou wonders for a few seconds if he should try to make small talk with Ritsu’s brother, seeing as he’s become the stranger in the situation, but he can’t think of anything to talk about, and Shigeo seems content enough to sit and wait patiently, so Shou doesn’t speak. His leg bounces restlessly under the table, and his fingers tap on the tabletop occasionally as he rests his chin on his opposite hand and props his elbow up on the wood.

Higashio, Ootsuki, and Fukuda emerge from across the house while Ritsu’s whisking eggs, and things get a bit noisier after that as they crowd around the table and Shou ends up backed into the corner between the table and the living room wall. He half-listens as Shigeo makes his introductions with some prompting from Ritsu, and worms his way out of the corner when he starts to feel cramped.

Restless, he moves into the kitchen and slots himself in beside Ritsu at the counter, wordless taking over toast duty as Ritsu scoots over to make room for him. “Your brother seems like he’s getting along,” he comments, dropping two slices of bread into the toaster and pushing down on the lever without bothing to adjust the settings. He casts a glance back at the kitchen table, where Shigeo seems to be making polite, if tense, conversation with the three other men now crowded around him at the table.

“As well as he can,” Ritsu answers with a little smile, pulling a spatula out of a drawer at his side as he pokes at the whisked eggs in a warm pan. “He’s… he has a lot of questions, still.”

Shou nods his head--who wouldn’t have questions after being practically kidnapped out of their own burning house?--and crosses his arms atop the cold granite counter as he waits for the toast to pop up. “Yeah, I bet. D’you wanna give him the speech, or should I?” He casts Ritsu a sideways glance, but hastily looks away when Ritsu moves to meet his gaze, feeling uncharacteristically nervous. Shou’s the leader here, technically, but something about Shigeo makes him feel just the slightest bit uneasy, and he can’t quite place why. Maybe it’s how strong he knows Shigeo’s psychic powers to be. Maybe it’s the fact that he’s Ritsu’s brother. Maybe he’s concerned that Shigeo might do something to jeopardize the mission they have in place. Whatever it is, it’s the source of his restlessness and it’s making him feel uncharacteristically self-conscious about the impression he’s making.

“No, you should be the one to tell him,” Ritsu replies. “He’ll want to hear it from you, at least the stuff I didn’t tell him last night. I didn’t say much about you, or where you came from, and I didn’t tell him about your dad. It’s not really my place.” He reaches over Shou’s head and pulls a plate from the shelf that’s just barely too high for Shou to reach without standing on his toes, and starts to scrape the cooked eggs onto it.

Shou does his best to ignore the way their close proximity makes his heart skip a beat, deftly snatching the toast from the toaster when it pops out for him. “Yeah, okay,” he concedes. He purses his lips, opens his mouth to ask a question and then stumbles over his words, unsure. His own advice flashes across his memory: If you have something to ask, you should just ask it. “How should I--I mean, I don’t--” he bites his lip, resisting the urge to grunt in frustration at his own failure to speak his mind. He’s never had much trouble with words before. “What’s the best way for me to, like, approach this?” he finally manages, clutching his butter knife too tightly in his hand. “With you, I kinda just dumped it on you all at once, and you took it all in stride, but your brother’s different. He didn’t get into this willingly.”

“Neither did I,” Ritsu points out, lifting a brow in Shou’s direction, “and neither did you. None of us chose this. Sure, we could have sat back and let Claw do whatever they wanted, but that wouldn’t have kept them from coming after us, it would have just delayed the inevitable. In a way, we took the only real option we had.”

Shou swallows thickly, feeling his throat tighten. He knows that Ritsu’s trying to reassure him, to give him some sort of confidence boost he can take with him into the no-doubt very personal conversation he’s about to have with Shigeo, but instead it just makes the weight in his stomach feel debilitatingly heavy. “I never wanted you to feel like you were stuck with me. You did have a choice. You still do,” he says, attempting to put some sort of firmness and confidence into his words, but he knows Ritsu. He knows him better than he knows anyone else, knows his morals and his nature. He’s fairly certain he can predict what Ritsu might do in any given situation, and there isn’t a scenario in his mind where Ritsu chooses himself over protecting the people important to him. When he takes that fact into account, he has no doubt whatsoever that Ritsu had made what he had considered the only viable choice at the time: to go along with Shou’s schemes under the assurance that his family would be spared from the fighting. When he thinks of it like this, it really feels more like an ultimatum than a choice.

“Shou,” Ritsu says firmly, and Shou feels him reach over and lay a hand on his back, between his shoulder blades. Shou startles a little at the touch, unable to keep himself from jerking, and when he meets Ritsu’s eyes he finds them filled with confusion and concern. “I’m not stuck with you,” he says, a finality to his words that practically dares Shou to argue. “You’re my best friend, revenge missions and crazy esper cults be damned. We could walk away from this right now and there’s still no way I’d let you wander off too far. You know me better than that.”

Speechless, Shou has to tear his gaze away from Ritsu before he can make a fool of himself. He raises a hand to his face to cover his wobbly smile, trying his best not to let on just how pleased Ritsu’s reassurances make him feel. “I don’t think my old man would appreciate his precious organization being compared to a cult,” he says, but the thought brings a satisfied smirk to his face nonetheless.

“Good, it’s not a compliment,” Ritsu snorts, bumping Shou’s arm with his elbow as he moves to lay breakfast out on the kitchen table. Shou’s left staring after him in a daze as he smoothly addresses the table and they begin to divy up the food he’s thrown together.

Shou’s so busy watching Ritsu, in fact, that he almost doesn’t notice the way Shigeo’s eyes rest on him. He meets Shou’s gaze from across the kitchen, dark eyes locked onto pale blue, and then he offers him a small, thoughtful smile. Shou glances away quickly, pretending not to notice the persistent pink flush that crawls up his neck and warms the tips of his ears. He hovers behind Shigeo and Ritsu at the table as they eat, until Higashio declares that it’s time for their daily patrol to go out.

“Be safe, and keep your eyes open. Claw might be looking for us after last night,” Shou instructs seriously, pointing his fork in their direction as they head for the door.

Higashio raises a hand over his head without looking, a quiet wave. “Yeah, yeah, we always are,” he replies flippantly, and closes the door behind him.

Shou scoffs, not bothering to hide his grimace. “Geez, those guys. They’re too quick to forget who the leader is here,” he grumbles.

Ritsu clears his throat into his hand, a half-hearted attempt to hide the smile that tugs at the corners of his mouth. “Why don’t we get some fresh air, too?” he suggests, leaning back in his seat beside his brother. “We could go out for a walk. It should be fine as long as we keep out of downtown, right?” He glances up at Shou, hopeful.

Shou hums, considering for a moment. “Well, you and I are likely fine, Ritsu, but your brother’s sure to be on some kind of missing persons list at this point, don’t you think?” he points out, and doesn’t miss the way Shigeo flinches under his observations. “There’s no way no one knew he was home by himself. He’s, what, fourteen?”

“Yes,” Shigeo replies in his quiet, monotone voice. “My neighbor knew. Mom gave me her phone number in case of emergencies. She’s probably the one who called the fire department.”

“The police are going to be looking for him, no doubt, so until we figure out exactly what the plan is, we’ll have to keep him out of the public eye,” Shou continues, setting down his plate and crossing his arms. He casts Shigeo a glance, letting the barest bit of sympathy cross his impassive expression. “Until then, you’re stuck here.”

Shigeo purses his lips and turns his gaze downward to stare at his hands, clenched together atop the table. “It’s not going to be so easy,” he says after a moment. “My parents are going to be frantic trying to get in touch with me, once they hear about the house, but there are other people who will notice I’m gone, too. Hanazawa knows about Claw, he’ll be quick to suspect them when he finds out I’m missing, and then there’s Master Reigen. He might not have noticed yet, but he will when I don’t show up for work today. I won’t… I can’t lie to all of them.” He swallows thickly, expression stubborn.

“That’s easy enough, just don’t answer them,” Shou states casually, as though the answer is the most obvious thing in the world. “That’s what Ritsu did.”

Ritsu doesn’t seem to think the same, though, and he jerks around and fixes Shou with a surprisingly fiery glare. “What do you mean, not answer them?” he demands. “You can’t put them through that, Shou, not a second time! It was hard enough when it was just me, I won’t make my parents think they’ve lost two children!”

Shou leans back, away from Ritsu’s outraged words. “Slow down, Ritsu, it’s not like it’s going to be forever--”

“I agree with Ritsu,” Shigeo interrupts, calmer but with the same resolute stubbornness as his brother. “When Ritsu disappeared, it hit everyone really hard. Mom cried for days after the police told her they couldn’t find him, and I know Dad did, too, even if I never saw it myself. There were lots of rumors at school, that he’d been kidnapped or murdered, that he’d run away, things like that, and it really shook everyone up. Even Master…” he trails off, tightening his grip on his clenched hands.

Shou casts a glance at Ritsu as his brother speaks, sees the horror and guilt that intermingle on his face.

Ritsu rests his elbows on the table and lets his face fall into his hands. “Reigen looked for me too?” he infers, voice quiet. “That stupid old man… who asked him?”

Shigeo reaches over to lay a hand quietly on Ritsu’s shoulder, then turns to look up at Shou once more. “My point is, there are people that I can’t just ignore once they find out I’m missing. Even if I do ignore them, they’ll come looking for me. Hanazawa knows to suspect Claw above anyone else, and he’ll go to Reigen for help if he needs to. I’ll need to speak to them, at the very least.”

“We may be able to convince Mom and Dad of some lie until this blows over, but Reigen won’t be so easy,” Ritsu sighs, begrudgingly agreeing with his brother’s observations. “As shady as he is, he’s got the luck of God on his side, and he’s dumb enough to get wrapped up in this without anyone asking for it. Shige is right, we’ll have to tell him something.”

Shou wants to argue, to say that leaving them out of the loop entirely is the safest option, but something tells him that it won’t be taken quite as well the second time around. He sighs, shoulders slumping in defeat. “Fine, you win, but if we’re going to make this work, we’re gonna need one hell of a cover story,” he concedes, sitting down in a chair across from Shigeo and Ritsu and leaning forward against the table. “So, what’s it gonna be?”

---

“I’m going to run to the corner store down the street and pick up a few things,” Ritsu announces, standing up from where he’s sitting cross-legged on the living room floor. After discussing their cover story, the three of them had moved into the living room to kill some time, but it was quickly becoming apparent that Ritsu’s a bit more restless than the rest of them are.

Shou glances up from his phone in surprise at this announcement. “Oh, okay. D’you want us to come with?” he asks, but Ritsu just shakes his head.

“I won’t be long,” he assures, slipping his gloved hands through the sleeves of his jacket and tugging on his shoes. “Be back soon,” he adds quickly, and before either Shou or Shigeo have a chance to answer, he slips out the house’s front door and pulls it shut behind him.

Shigeo watches him go, tense in his seat, looking as though he wants to follow but unsure of whether he should. “Will he be alright on his own? Should we go after him?” he asks Shou, clearly concerned to be letting Ritsu out of his sight.

Shou can’t find it in himself to fault Shigeo for being protective. He may not have a sibling himself, but he can imagine, somewhat, how it might feel to be separated from someone you care about for so long. He gives his head a shake. “Nah, Ritsu will be fine. He’s strong, he can take care of himself,” he assures, leaning back against the back of the couch.

Shigeo hums noncommittally, clearly still fighting the urge to follow after his brother after all, but eventually he tears his gaze away from the door. “Suzuki,” he says after a moment, but Shou’s quick to cut him off.

“Don’t call me that,” he says, a bit more harshly than he intends. At Shigeo’s surprised look, he quickly amends, “I don’t like my surname, so you should just call me Shou. It’s shorter, anyway.” His demand comes out mumbled, and he hastily glances away from Shigeo’s face. “Anyway, you probably have a lot of questions for me, right? Now’s the time, if you want to ask them.” He does his best to keep his posture relaxed and his expression free from the nervousness he feels churning in his stomach.

“Ah, that would be alright?” Shigeo confirms, and offers Shou a little nod. “I do have a few questions, still. Ritsu told me a lot last night, but, um, he didn’t say much about you, aside from how you found him and how you’ve been working together.” He shifts in his seat, folding his hands in his lap stiffly. “If you don’t mind telling me, then, why are you fighting, Suzu-Shou?”

Shou sighs softly; this is the question he’d been expecting most of all the ones Shigeo could possibly ask. “I guess you could say I’m intimately involved,” he replies, glancing sideways to meet Shigeo’s gaze and gauge his reactions. “Ritsu probably didn’t tell you this, but my father is the leader of Claw. He raised me on promises that he would control the world with his psychic powers, and then leave it to me when he got bored or kicked the bucket, whichever came first.” He sniffs disdainfully. “I was just a stupid kid, I believed everything he told me. I trusted him… but he betrayed me.”

If the revelation causes Shigeo some kind of shock, Shou thinks he must be very good at hiding it, the quirk of his eyebrows the only real indicator that he hadn’t known already. He breaks eye contact with Shou, gaze turning downward to stare at Shou’s arms.

At first, Shou’s confused by the gesture, until Shigeo says, “You were awakened by them too, weren’t you?” It’s then that Shou recalls the scars that litter his skin, exposed by his T-shirt to anyone who cares to look his way. Knife wounds and burn marks, side-by-side and overlapping one another, cover the lengths of his arms and disappear up and underneath the cloth of his shirt, just a remnant of what he’d endured during his time in Claw’s awakening labs. Shigeo adds, “Ritsu told me about what happened to him, during the time he was held prisoner. Not specifics, but… enough to give me an idea of what it was like. How-how many of you were there?”

Shou can’t help but laugh, impressed. “Anyone ever tell you that you’re way smarter than you let on?” he asks, an attempt to lighten the mood just a bit, but Shigeo has gone completely serious, brow furrowed just a touch and lips turned down in a persistent frown. Shou sighs. “Just me,” he relents, a bit more somberly. “I was the first success. My father saw the potential in me to be as powerful as he is, maybe even stronger, and he wanted to bring that power out. It might have been considered an act of kindness, trying to help me reach my full potential, if he wasn’t so damn psychotic about it.” He spits the words with unhidden remorse, scowling. “He was convinced that horrible pain and fear would lead to the emergence of psychic powers in people who had them, but that only ever worked on me and Ritsu, as far as I know.”

Shigeo bites his lip, looking oddly ruffled as Shou mentions his father’s methods. “I spoke to someone recently who told me that negative emotions are what become fuel for psychic powers,” he says, carefully, as though he’s picking each word with intention. “Fear, anger, sadness, regret, betrayal… he was convinced that a miserable life would give him the power he needed to get revenge on people who had wronged him, so much so that he would make others miserable just to achieve that end.” He stares down at his open palms, gaze hardening, and clenches both of his hands into tight fists. “I’m not a fighter, Shou, I’m sure Ritsu’s already told you. I don’t want to use my powers to hurt others. I don’t want my abilities to become the cause of someone else’s suffering anymore. I was born with incredible natural power, but what good is it if I can’t use it to help people? Unless you can change someone’s mind, they’ll be forever stuck in that dark place.” He leans back in his seat and turns to meet Shou’s gaze once more. “I think… I think the power to change someone’s heart must be much stronger than telekinesis or telepathy,” he says, with a firmness that speaks of the faith he has in his words.

Shou raises a brow at Shigeo. “What, you planning to philosophize my old man into submission? Good luck with that, he’s insane. He doesn’t listen to words, he only cares about himself and his own power. I doubt he’d even acknowledge anyone who can’t keep up with his strength, that’s why I’m going to beat the crap out of him until he comes back to his senses or dies trying,” he says, pounding one fist into his open palm to cement his mission.

“What does Ritsu think about all that?” Shigeo asks, eyes flicking to Shou’s clenched fist for a moment before he looks up again.

Shou leans forward, elbows on his knees. “He and I have already agreed that we’re gonna take him down together,” he replies honestly, even though he’s fairly certain Shigeo isn’t going to like that answer. “It’s not just about my old man, after all. It’s about all the people who died to Claw’s attempts to make another one of me. It’s about Ritsu, who had nothing to do with my shitty family in the first place, and who’s gonna have to carry around those terrible memories for the rest of his life, now. And, it’s about me, too.” He pauses, gaze falling down to his hands as he closes and opens them again. Briefly, he lets his aura be seen, lets the orange light of it wrap around his palms and crawl up his arms. “I inherited these powers from my dad, but I’ll never become like him. If I can use these powers that he passed down to me to destroy his dumb organization at its head, then I’ll know that they were never his to begin with, that they’ve always belonged to me.” He lets out a breath, reigning his aura back in again so that it settles beneath his skin, hidden.

Shigeo nods once, humming thoughtfully. “I can’t say that I agree with you, not all the way, but I think it’s very brave of you to do what you’re doing. You’re much braver than I could ever be,” he says with a small smile. “Ritsu, too. He’s changed a lot since I last saw him.” His voice softens at this, a mournful edge to it that makes Shou falter just a bit. Shigeo continues, “He’s still my little brother, of course, he’s still the smart and reliable boy that I remember from four months ago, but he’s been hurt now, in a way that can't be healed. Both of you have, and it means you understand each other in a way that I can’t.” He lets out a soft sigh, shoulders falling forward as if in defeat. “I don’t know how to help him anymore.”

“I don’t think those things are mutually exclusive,” Shou points out. “You don’t have to empathize with him to help him, and I don’t think he’s changed as much as you think he has. Then again, I didn’t meet him until after the whole ‘torture’ debacle--”

Shigeo flinches at the mention of Ritsu’s torture, and Shou quickly cuts himself off before he says something else upsetting. “In any case, you’ll figure it out. Sure, some stuff has changed, but you’re brothers. You care about him, and he cares about you, so you’ll learn,” he amends with a shrug of his shoulders. “Give it some more time.”

Shigeo hums in affirmation, nodding his agreement, but is distracted by the noise of his phone’s ringtone going off in his pocket. Blinking, he pulls it out and flips it open, eyes widening as he reads the name in the cheap little screen. “It’s my mom,” he says, looking up to meet Shou’s gaze across the couch.

“Answer it,” Shou urges. “Just don’t forget the story we decided on.”

Shigeo gives another little nod and answers the call with the press of a button, holding the phone up to his ear. “Mom?” he greets, and though Shou can’t make the exact words, he can hear a woman’s frantic voice on the other side of the call. “Yes, I’m okay, I wasn’t at the house when it caught fire,” he continues, the lie slipping from his mouth with surprising smoothness. “I’m at Hanazawa’s place. We were studying together when the fire started, so he let me stay overnight.” There’s a long pause after he says this, and Shou strains to hear when Shigeo’s parents might be telling him. He sees Shigeo nod despite the fact that this is a phone call, then he quickly replies, “Okay, I’ll wait for you, then. I’m sure Hanazawa won’t mind if I stay over one more night, until you two can make it back to Japan… don’t apologize, it isn’t your fault. I’m sure the fire department will be able to figure out what caused the fire, but since no one was home, it was probably just a freak accident.” A smile tugs at the corners of Shigeo’s mouth, he notices, small but present all the same. “Yes, I promise I’ll be careful. I know you’re worried, but I’m really fine… Okay. I love you too, bye.”

Shigeo lets the phone fall away from his ear, hanging up the call before letting a sigh escape his mouth. “I don’t like lying to my parents. I really hope this is over soon, my parents won’t be away for much longer. They’re going to go to the airport this afternoon and try to get a flight home as soon as possible, but it’s an international flight, and a long one at that. They won't be able to make it back to Japan for at least a day, maybe longer. I hope you and Ritsu can figure something out by then,” he explains, tucking the phone back into the pocket of his pants. “I’m already hiding the fact that I found Ritsu from them… I don’t want them to be left out for too long.”

Shou nods his agreement. “If all goes well, it won’t be much longer before Claw is old news,” he says, frowning. “It’s a little concerning how fast they were able to figure out Ritsu’s note and send a team after you, though. If they were able to get to you that quickly, it means Claw is in the city somewhere.” He clenches his teeth at this, annoyed. “Damn, and I thought Ritsu and I had already taken out all the Claw bases nearby. Something’s not right about this…”

“I’m sure you’ll figure things out,” Shigeo says with a surprising amount of confidence. “You and Ritsu are both so smart, and you see things so much more clearly than I do. I’m sure everything will work out just fine.” A smile comes to his face at this, and he folds his hands politely in his lap. “That reminds me, I wanted to thank you for looking after Ritsu when I couldn’t. I was a little worried about him being around you, at first, but after getting to talk with you and hearing about you more from Ritsu last night, I’ve changed my mind a bit. I’m glad he had someone to rely on, and that he wasn’t by himself. It makes me feel better knowing he had someone else there to help him.”

Shou blinks, surprised. He’d expected suspicion from Ritsu’s older brother, but he hadn’t ever expected to be thanked. He swallows down his shock, glancing away and raising a hand to cover his mouth in a way he hopes hides it. “No problem, I guess, but it’s not like I did much to take care of him. He takes care of himself just fine,” he replies, shrugging his shoulders in response to Shigeo’s thankfulness.

Shigeo hums, his smile lingering as he looks at Shou and Shou refuses to look back. “You don’t give yourself enough credit,” he says definitively.

Shou opens his mouth to ask what Shigeo means by this, but he’s interrupted by the house’s front door swinging open. Ritsu appears from around the corner, a plastic bag in each hand. Shou moves to greet him, but the words die in his throat when he notices the frown on his face and the persistent lines that form between his furrowed brows. “What’s up, Ritsu? You look worried,” he asks, sitting up and turning around so he can face Ritsu properly, arms propped up on the couch’s back.

“I don’t know,” Ritsu replies, setting down the bags on the counter. “I can’t help but feel like something’s wrong. I could feel it on my way back from the store, and I could see that other people could feel it too. Like something bad is about to happen.” He gives his head a shake, pursing his lips tightly together.

In his pocket, Shou’s phone rings loudly, cutting off whatever train of thought he might have had toward Ritsu’s odd report. Pulling it out, he glances down at the screen with a frown. He meets Ritsu’s questioning gaze as he friend drifts over to stand behind the couch, and says, “It’s Fukuda. Something must’ve happened.” He quickly answers the call, holding the phone up to his ear. “What’s going on?” he asks.

“Leader? Are you watching the news?” Fukuda’s voice comes tinny and distorted over the speaker.

Shou’s frown deepens, a sense of dread falling over him. “No, what’s on the news?” he demands, turning to glance at the little television set up in the corner of the house’s living room.

He reaches for the television’s remote as Fukuda replies, “They’re playing it on every station. It’s happening, leader.”

Shou flips the television on and changes the channel to a local news station as Ritsu drifts over, leaning on the back of the couch between him and Shigeo. Instead of a news broadcast, however, the television is completely taken up by a man with short-cropped, dark red hair and eyes that are blue and cold and dead to anything other than his own ambition. It’s a face that Shou recognizes instantly: his father, the leader of Claw.

“...far superior to modern weaponry. Let me warn you that it is not advisable to oppose us.” Touichirou’s voice comes clearly over the speakers, his face as motionless and inexpressive as Shou remembers.

“You can’t be serious!” Ritsu gasps from behind his head, shock and nervousness causing his voice to quiver ever-so-slightly. Shou is too stunned to say anything at all, a weight forming in his stomach and a tightness in his chest that grows with every passing second. There’s a ringing in his head that quickly drowns out everything else, Touichirou’s words of war barely registering in his brain as he stares, wide-eyed, at the little television screen. The hand holding his phone against his ear shakes--from anger or fear, he can’t tell--and while he hears Fukuda calling out to him, he can’t find the voice to reply.

“A new world is about to begin,” he hears his father say, and the smug smile Touichirou lets slip causes an anger to flare up in Shou the likes of which he hasn’t felt since running away from home three years ago. “Look forward to it.” His final words leave a chill in the air as the television abruptly goes black and the room is thrown into silence again.

A thick silence hangs in the air, and for a few seconds, no one knows what to say. Then, Shou stands up so fast he nearly moves the couch with him, fisting his hands into his hair with a yell of frustration. “That absolute bastard!” he seethes, stomping one foot on the ground to release some of his pent-up rage. He has to stop himself from accidentally cracking the floor with the force of it, feeling his aura bubbling dangerously close to the surface. “I’m going to punch him in his smug, stupid face! Fukuda!” He snatches up the phone and moves it roughly to his ear, ignoring the noises of surprise that come from Ritsu and Shigeo behind him. “Call Ootsuki and Higashio and tell them to get their asses over here as fast as possible! Find out where that idiot is hiding and meet us there, we’re going in!” He barely waits for Fukuda’s stuttered reply before he shoves the phone back into his pocket.

“Shou,” Shigeo warns, reaching out as though to touch Shou but recoiling before he can make contact. He bites his lip, fingers curling into his palm. “Please, let’s think about this calmly--”

“Shige, it’s fine,” Ritsu interrupts, voice quiet and calm but surprisingly cold as he reaches out and nudges Shigeo’s hand back down to his side. When Shou looks up at him, he sees that his face is contorted in a rare, intense, unbridled rage, so potent that it makes his teeth grind and his hands clench into tight fists. “It’s a little earlier than we thought, but this is what we’ve been waiting for, right?” He meets Shou’s gaze with his resolute stare. “This is our chance, we can’t let the opportunity slip by now!”

Shigeo looks crestfallen at this. Shou can practically feel Shigeo’s desperation to stop them, to beg them not to run headlong into a fight. The thought of being made to back down curdles his blood in a way he can’t describe, and he whips around to face Shigeo with a cold, unwavering glare. “We’re going after my old man and I am going to beat the ever-loving shit out of him until he begs me to spare his life and I don’t care about your opinion! Nothing you say is going to keep me from walking out that door right now, so unless you’re planning on backing us up, I recommend that you just sit here and wait,” he seethes through clenched teeth, an irrational stab of irritation getting the better of him as he jabs a finger in Shigeo’s direction.

Ritsu flinches visibly, eyes widening in surprise at the sudden outburst of harsh words. “Hey, no need to be harsh,” he retorts, but Shigeo just lays a hand on his brother’s shoulder.

“It’s okay, Ritsu,” he murmurs, mustering up a small, reassuring smile, but Shou can see the way he forces it. He continues, “I know I can’t make you give up your fight, but I’m not going to sit here and do nothing, either.” He meets Shou’s gaze, a surprising amount of determination in his gaze as he says, “I’m coming with you. If you’re going to fight, then I’ll back you up. Even if I can’t fight, I can at least offer some protection. Maybe I’ll even be able to change someone’s mind.”

Shou falters, his hands falling back to his side. “Huh, I guess I misjudged you,” he says, genuinely surprised that the seemingly gentle, pacifistic Shigeo would want anything at all to do with a fight like this. Ritsu had mentioned his reluctance to fight many times before, but as he looks to Ritsu now he sees that his partner is similarly thrown off, eyes wide as he stares at Shigeo in surprise. Guess Ritsu isn’t the only one who changed over the months, he muses to himself briefly before spinning on his heel and heading for the door. “Okay then, if that’s settled, we’d better get moving. If I had to place my bets, I’d say my old man is probably holed up somewhere in the downtown area, somewhere with a tall building he can keep watch from. Fukuda will let me know the exact location, but it’s still a long way to downtown,” he instructs, pushing open the front door. He turns to face Ritsu and Shigeo one last time before they leave the house, face set in fierce determination.

“It’s now or never, guys. Let’s give my idiot of a father the wake-up call of his lifetime!”

#mob psycho 100 #mp100 #ritshou #kageyama ritsu #suzuki shou #kageyama shigeo #murder #blood #guns #violence #ptsd #trauma #fanfiction #mp100 fanfic #serendipitousfics

5 notes · View notes

serenlyss · 5 years

Text

Don’t Thank Me Yet Chapter 7

Rating: M (canon typical violence, swearing, blood, murderous intent) Relationships: ritshou, ritsu&shigeo Summary: “Alright then. I’m Shou,” he says, introducing himself more properly this time. “I’m an esper, like you, the first in existence to be forcibly awoken by Claw’s crazy torture machines. They kidnap kids with potential latent psychic powers and break them, over and over, until either their powers emerge or they die. It doesn’t matter either way to them.” His expression hardens as he speaks, clear distaste and outright malice evident in his tone. “I could really use your help here, you know. A partner of sorts, someone to watch my back. What do you say?“ Ritsu hesitates. He isn’t a fighter by any means, and the psychic powers now churning beneath his skin are still very new and frightening. It’s all very overwhelming, but Ritsu can’t help but feel a sort of sickening hope at Shou’s promise for revenge. It did have a sort of dark draw to it. In which Claw is a lot worse than they seem and Shigeo isn’t able to find his brother after he’s kidnapped. Crossposted to AO3: Chapter 7

Chapter 6 // Chapter 8

So uuhhh originally this chapter and the next one was all going to be the same chapter, but 8k words in I realized it was going to end up a lot longer than I anticipated, so surprise! I'm adding another chapter in to fit all the plot points I want to hit! This means that there are going to be two Ritsu pov chapters in a row, even though I've been switching off every other chapter up until now. This chapter is also a bit late (and not beta read, so please forgive any mistakes I may have missed in proofreading) because I fell behind on drafting during finals week and got caught up in other projects. I'm still planning on having the last two chapters up over the next two Wednesdays, though, so be looking out for them! I'm really excited to share this finale with you all!

---

They have to park the car several blocks away from the cultural tower where Touichirou and his goons have set up their base of operations, because everything within a mile radius of the tower has been completely destroyed. Leveled buildings form a ring around the pristine cultural tower, the asphalt of the streets cracked and jutting outward in places. Any buildings that had remained standing have already been ransacked, their windows smashed or their doors forced open. There isn’t a soul to be seen, at least not on this street, their inhabitants having fled long before they arrive.

“This is terrible,” Shigeo murmurs mournfully at Ritsu’s side, dark eyes taking in the destruction with a grieved expression. “I can’t believe so many people would be okay with this kind of destruction.”

Ritsu purses his lips into a tight line, raising one hand to rub his arm. He can feel goosebumps raising along his skin under the sleeves of his sweatshirt, the tension in the air thicker than the silence that pervades it. Despite the emptiness of the streets, he can’t help but feel like someone might jump out at any moment and attack. “Where is everyone?” he murmurs, eyes shifting constantly as he takes in his surroundings.

“Most of Claw’s espers are probably closer to the center of the circle,” Shou replies, scowling up at the cultural tower that stands above the wreckage. “We should keep on our guard, they could come out and attack us anytime. Not to mention, the Ultimate 5 are probably creeping around, too.”

They pick their way down the street quickly and cautiously. Shigeo shifts rubble aside with his telekinesis as easily as he breathes, clearing the way for them as they make their way toward the center of town. In the distance, gunshots ring out, shattering the quiet in the air. “The police are making their move,” Higashio says grimly. “They won’t be able to do much.”

“Then we need to hurry,” Shou says, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jacket and picking up the pace.

Ritsu quickens his own pace to keep up, swallowing back the nervousness that creeps up his throat and makes his teeth chatter. The closer they get to the tower, the more Ritsu can feel; the psychic energy is overwhelmingly present, threading through every nook and cranny of the center of the city. It feels like an enormous blanket, stifling and heavy, weighing down on his shoulders and making his feet drag. His baser instincts are screaming at him to turn around and go back the way he came, but he forces himself ever onward. He glances sideways at Shigeo, but his brother seems unperturbed by the mass of auras they’re heading straight for. It’s almost infuriating, the way Shigeo can so calmly face this kind of emergency.

Shou seems unnerved, at least, though his expression is more thoughtful and concerned than skittish like Ritsu’s sure his is. Like Ritsu, he’s on constant lookout, his gaze darting between rooftops and down empty alleyways as he walks. “Something’s not right,” he mutters after several minutes of brisk walking. “We keep getting closer to the tower, but it’s like no one’s noticed us. I thought we’d have been intercepted by at least one of the Ultimate 5 by now.” He clicks his tongue, clearly agitated. “What are those clowns up to?”

“Maybe they’re busy doing something else?” Shigeo suggests, his aura enveloping a slab of broken concrete that used to be the ceiling of a parking garage and setting it aside with ease. “There’s only five of them, so they must have a lot of work to do.”

Shou grunts quietly in acknowledgement. “Still, no resistance at all? If it’s just us and the police, there shouldn’t be anything big enough to catch their attention—”

Shou’s voice is cut off abruptly by the noise of an explosion that sends tremors through the ground. Ritsu halts immediately to keep his footing, gaze snapping to the source of the noise, and sees one of the few still-standing buildings a few streets over crumble and collapse.

“Someone’s fighting,” Ootsuki says, “Someone we don’t know.”

“Who is it, and who are they fighting?” Ritsu demands, biting his lip. Needless to say, at least one of them must have the common interest of stopping Claw, and they could use all the allies they could get.

Beside Ritsu, Shou’s gone stock-still, his whole body tensed. “It’s Shimazaki,” he growls, hands clenching into tight fists. “I’d recognize that presence anywhere. I can’t tell who he’s fighting, though.”

Shigeo turns his attention in the direction of the fight as Ritsu fights to stretch his senses far enough to see what everyone else sees. He casts his brother a glance and sees the shocked expression that comes to his face, catching the hitched breath he takes in response to whatever he senses. “Hanazawa?” he murmurs in disbelief. “What’s he doing here?”

Ritsu jerks in surprise, staring at the collapsed building in the distance. “Teru’s here?” he echoes. But if Teru is here, then… “You don’t think—”

“Master Reigen might be with him,” Shigeo finishes Ritsu’s sentence, frowning. “He must have seen the broadcast on TV and come to do what he can. I wouldn’t be surprised if he brought Master or his esper friends from the Awakening Lab with him.”

Now that Teru’s presence has been confirmed, Ritsu can see the way Shigeo’s brow furrows and how he worries his lip between his teeth. “Will he be alright on his own?” he asks his brother, concern of his own creeping up on him. Teru is no pushover, that much is certain, but he’s nowhere near Shou’s level, let alone Shigeo’s. Ritsu doesn’t want to think about what might happen if Teru’s found himself in the middle of a fight against one of the Ultimate 5, who Shou had described as being around his own level in terms of power.

Shigeo doesn’t answer, but his hesitance is answer enough. Ritsu’s heart sink. Isn’t there something we can do?

“You should go help him out,” Shou says. Ritsu starts in surprise, turning to ask Shou what he possibly thought he could do in this situation, and finds that Shou isn’t looking at him at all. He’s looking at Shigeo almost casually, but the look in his eyes is calculating. “You said it yourself, right? That you wanted to offer backup. Your friend is probably going to need it more than us,” he points out, gesturing to the group of them.

Shigeo blinks in surprise, twisting his hands together restlessly. “But I… you all might need my power,” he insists. “I promised to protect everyone.”

Ritsu sees the way Shigeo’s gaze flicks back and forth between them and the plume of dust that’s slowly settling over the space where Hanazawa is fighting. He takes a breath and reaches out, taking Shigeo’s hand in his and giving it a brief squeeze. “We’ll be alright,” he assures, mustering up a reassuring smile. “We’ll wait for you at the base of the tower, okay? Promise. So don’t worry about us. Go help Hanazawa.”

Shigeo’s face falls, his confliction over who to help clear on his face as he meets Ritsu’s gaze. Then he swallows thickly and pulls Ritsu in by their joined hands, giving him a quick hug. “I’ll be fast,” he promises, letting the embrace linger for a few seconds before he pulls away. “Be safe, please. I’ll see you soon.”

Ritsu nods. “I will, see you soon,” he echoes, letting his touch linger for a moment longer before his arms fall to his sides once more. Shou comes to stand beside him as Shigeo turns to break off from the group and head in the direction of the earlier explosion, looking up at Ritsu’s face with thoughtful, calculating eyes.

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Ritsu,” he warns quietly.

Ritsu huffs out a breath in response, slipping his hands into the pocket of his hoodie. His shoulders lift just a tad, fending off any attempt Shou might make to reach out to him. “Anyone ever tell you that your perceptiveness can be really annoying?” he retorts, stubbornly refusing to meet Shou’s gaze. He turns and starts to walk purposefully toward the tower, shoulders tense. He knows that he can’t guarantee that he’ll stay safe, and that any promise he makes before this battle is over will ultimately only be empty words, but he feels like it’s necessary this time. “We’re going to be fine, Shou. From the very beginning, it was always going to be us. We can handle ourselves, so if Teru needs help, Shige should help him,” he continues, kicking at a pebble of concrete that had tumbled from the wreckage of a nearby building.

Shou just shrugs the argument off in reply, lips pressed together in a tight frown, and quickens his pace to catch up with Ritsu. Higashio, Fukuda, and Ootsuki keep close on their heels as they continue ever onward. Ritsu’s gaze occasionally flicks up to the cultural tower, looming over them higher and higher the closer he gets, and tries not to let show how much more anxious he gets with every step closer. What would Shou’s father be like, he wonders? Shou had described him as cold, ruthless, the kind of man who doesn’t hesitate to make sacrifices in the name of what he considers the “greater good”. He’s not the kind of man Ritsu wants to associate with, if the destruction of the city is anything to go by.

Ritsu pauses as they clamber over a pile of rubble too big and heavy to move with telekinesis, eyes dropping to the road beyond and laying eyes on a lone man. He seems innocuous enough, though his neatly-parted purple hair definitely catches his eye with its uncommon hue. As the man turns and meets his gaze, the concrete of the road around him rumbles and cracks, giving way under a multitude of writhing vines and deadly-looking plants that curl their way out of the cracks and surround the man protectively. Ritsu feels a shiver run down his spine as the sensation of the man’s aura hits him full-force; he’s powerful, that much is immediately clear. “Shou, we might have a problem,” he says.

Shou clambers up beside him, face already set in grim determination. “So that old bastard sent Minegishi out to watch the perimeter? How efficient,” he scoffs, scowling in clear distaste.

Ritsu clicks his tongue, watching as the man called Minegishi starts to walk toward them, taking an almost leisurely pace. He has a book held open in one hand, which he closes deftly and holds loosely in one hand as he peers up at them.

“So it is you after all, Shou,” the man drawls, sounding almost bored, as though he’s scolding a child for misbehaving. “This rebellious phase of yours has gone on for long enough, don’t you think? Give this up already and come home.” With each step the man takes, flowers and venus flytraps bloom beneath his feet, radiating the same psychic force that the man himself does.

“Rebellious phase?” Shou echoes. He lets out a bitter laugh, shifting his weight casually to one side. Hie hands stay firmly in the pockets of his jacket, as though he can’t be bothered to even prepare for an attack. Ritsu, on the other hand, is tense, fingers twitching in anticipation of the first move of the fight. “You make me sound like a toddler throwing a tantrum. He’s really got you brainwashed, doesn’t he?” Shou continues, putting on an air of brazen confidence.

Minegishi’s eyes narrow slightly, and Ritsu sees the plants around him coil just a bit tighter around their source as though protective. “What a rude boy you’ve become. You shouldn’t talk about your father that way,” he chides. “I suppose I’ll just have to take care of you myself, the President simply doesn’t have the time to deal with your immaturity right now.”

Ritsu bites his tongue to stifle the instinctive retort he wants to spit, aware that goading this man into a fight with him would likely end badly all around. While he’s debating the options he has in this situation, Higashio steps up beside him, looking defiantly stoic despite the situation. “Leader, you go on ahead,” he says, “we can handle this one. Save your energy for the bigger fight.” Ootsuki and Fukuda come up to stand behind him, the latter brandishing a paper fan that Ritsu knows to be more deadly than it appears.

Shou glances their way in surprise, holding Higashio’s gaze for a second before he gives a resolute nod. “Got it, thanks,” he murmurs quickly, and reaches out to tug on Ritsu’s arm. “C’mon, let’s go.”

Ritsu lets himself be pulled, keeping Minegishi in his periphery, but the other man doesn’t seem concerned with him now that he’s been faced with a sure fight. “He doesn’t even see us as a threat,” he mutters disdainfully.

Shou drops his arm as they hurry past the fight and duck into an alley beside the cultural tower. When Ritsu looks up, he can see it looming over them, pristine and untouched amongst the mile-wide circle of crushed buildings that surrounds it. “They’ll be sorry they underestimated us,” Shou replies coldly, pausing just for a moment to look up at the tower himself. The entrance to it looms in front of them, unguarded. “Minegishi’s out of the way and Shimazaki’s going up against your brother. My old man’ll be sure to keep Serizawa and Hatori close by. If we’re lucky, we won’t run into Shibata at all.” He counts off the members of the Ultimate 5 on one hand. “Hatori will be easy, it’s Serizawa we need to worry about. He’s an idiot with no mind of his own, but he’s powerful.”

“Let’s hurry, then, it’ll be best if we catch them off-guard,” Ritsu suggests, moving to approach the front door.

Shou follows, but he looks uneasy. “What about waiting for your brother?” he points out. There’s been no noise from the side of the city where they’d sensed Teru and Shimazaki’s fight earlier, but Shigeo is still nowhere to be seen.

Ritsu sets his jaw firmly and squares his shoulders. “He’s not going to get the chance to fight your dad,” he replies. “If we wait too long, we’ll lose our element of surprise, so let’s just get it over with.”

“Your brother won’t be happy when he shows up and we’re not waiting for him,” Shou points out, but he makes no move to stop Ritsu as they approach the tower’s front doors and crack them open.

Ritsu casts him a glance, defiant and practically radiating misplaced determination, and takes the first step across the tower’s threshold. “I said it earlier, didn’t I? From the beginning, it was always going to be the two of us. My brother may have gotten involved, but he doesn’t need to be a part of this fight.” He takes a few steps into the building, footsteps echoing in the empty space, and Shou follows close behind. “Shou… we’re strong enough to beat your father, right?” he asks, the barest hint of his uncertainty leaking into his voice and becoming audible.

Shou comes up beside him, and they stand facing the stairwell that will lead them to the top of the tower, and, inevitably, to their final confrontation, the last war they’ll ever need to wage. “Of course we are,” he says easily, clapping Ritsu on the shoulder. “This is what we’ve been training for, it’s gonna be a piece of cake.”

Ritsu gives a firm nod. “Okay,” he murmurs, and takes a deep breath to steel his nerves. “We can do this. Let’s go.”

Shou nods in agreement, and they both break out into a run, clambering up the stairs in a rush to complete the task that they’d been working on together for more than four months now.

Ritsu feels the blood in his ears as his heart beats in time with his frantic steps, he and Shou competing for space on the narrow stairwell as they scale flights of stairs on their way to the top of the tower. Shou eventually gains ground on him, leading the way up by a few stairs, but all Ritsu can focus on is the adrenaline in his blood and the sound of his shoes pounding on each step as he runs, sometimes skipping whole stairs as he goes.

Ritsu nearly runs right into Shou when he suddenly stops, and when Ritsu cranes his neck to peer over his shoulder, he sees why; a rather plain-looking, short-haired man is perched on the landing between flights of stairs, his glasses reflecting the fluorescent lights above his head. He smirks as he lays eyes on the two of them, shifting his weight casually to one hip. "I was wondering when you'd show up, Shou," he greets, voice practically dripping condescension. "You've done well to make it this far, but I can't let you-"

Before Ritsu even has a chance to move, Shou surges forward and slams his fist into the man's nose, the force of it so strong it send the man sprawling back into the wall behind his head. His glasses shatter on impact, their lenses exploding into a dozen shards that cut into the skin of Shou's knuckles before clattering harmlessly to the ground. Shou opens and closes his fist, letting out a shaky breath. "Better to get it over with before he has a chance to use his powers," he sighs over his shoulder to Ritsu, who's staring at him in surprise and just a little awe. "Hatori's weak, but his psychic powers are nothing to scoff at. It would have been dangerous to let him do too much.”

Ritsu nods, glancing down at Hatori's unconscious form, slumped against the far wall from where his head had collided with the concrete behind him. "Is your hand okay?" he asks, eyes drifting to the blood that seeps incessantly from the glass cuts on his knuckles.

"It's fine, a few scratches are nothing," he replies flippantly, already moving to scale the next flight of stairs. Ritsu's quick to follow, his thoughts racing as he pushes himself to keep up with Shou's rapid pace. His thoughts race and talk over each other, questions about what Shou's father might be like overlapping worries about how his brother and Hanazawa are doing, if Reigen really did go with them, if they're on their way now. If all goes well, they won't even have time to get involved before he and Shou have finished what they've come to do.

Eventually, the enclosed stairwell they're climbing opens up, and the concrete walls surrounding them are replaced with floor-to-ceiling windows that look out over the cityscape. From here, Ritsu has a clear view of the destroyed downtown area, not a citizen to be seen amongst the wreckage. He scans it quickly, searching for signs of his brother, of Hanazawa, of Reigen, but he sees no one as he and Shou hastily continue ever upward.

"We haven't run into Serizawa yet," Shou murmurs, eyebrows drawn together sharply. "I bet my old man's keeping him close for protection." He approaches a pair of double doors, pausing outside of them. "This is the top of the tower. Are you ready, Ritsu?"

Ritsu clenches his hands into fists, feeling the anticipation in his bones building and feeding his desire to fight. "I'm ready," he replies, meeting Shou's gaze with fierce determination. He grasps the handle of one of the doors, and Shou grabs the other.

Ritsu watches as Shou takes a deep breath, readying himself, and then he gives a firm nod. Simultaneously, they turn the handles on the doors and push them open soundlessly, their well-oiled hinges not even creaking as they swing silently outward.

Beyond the door lays the tower's lookout, an unbroken ring that runs nearly all the way around the top of the tower and provides an uninterrupted view of the surrounding city. A rail protrudes from the windows and creates a buffer between visitors and the window, preventing them from dirtying the glass, and in front of the floor-to-ceiling window stands a single man.

Suzuki Touichirou stares calmly out the window, his face a picture of practiced calm, his hands clasped loosely behind his back. He looks almost casual, his fitted suit and clean appearance giving the impression of perhaps an important guest come to see the sights, but there is no interest in his eyes, no awe at the sprawling city landscape beyond the chaos he's brought down in his immediate vicinity. His pale blue eyes, the same as Shou's, are cold as ice in the north pole, and they stare unblinkingly at a point on the ground that Ritsu can't pinpoint. He's smaller than Ritsu had imagined him—he's not much taller than Reigen is, in fact—but he comes across as far more imposing that Reigen ever has. Just looking at him gives Ritsu the impression that he isn't someone to be taken lightly, and Ritsu hasn't even seen what kind of power he's capable of yet. Even though they're not entering the room with the aim to surprise him, Ritsu still finds himself treading lightly, almost afraid of what will happen when Touichirou finally notices his presence.

Shou, to his credit, doesn't seem to feel the same apprehension as Ritsu does. He strides forward, undeterred, and his footsteps echo loudly in the empty room. "So you went through with it after all, even after all our hard work?" he calls, startling Ritsu with how near-casual he sounds addressing his father. "I thought for sure that taking down so many Claw bases would at least slow you down, so how'd you do it?"

Touichirou turns to fix his icy blue gaze on them, and Ritsu's heart stutters in his chest as a sudden flash of fear blinds him for a split-second. "Shou," he says, voice as smooth and confident as it had been over the television earlier that day. "I was wondering when you'd come, but I was expecting a bit more than a question like that."

Shou scowls, and Ritsu doesn't miss the way his hand tightens into a fist at his side. "You and your stupid Ultimate 5 aren't enough to take over the world. You're delusional if you think you could ever actually pull it off!" he retorts, pointing an accusatory finger at his father. Ritsu hangs back a pace behind him, biting his lip.

Touichirou looks unimpressed, even as he turns to fully face his son and lets his arms fall from behind his back to hang at his sides. Ritsu's eyes snap to them, but he makes no move to attack. "Don't be foolish," Touichirou says, his voice dripping with the condescension of a father who has never once listened to what his son thinks. "Destroying a handful of my buildings in and around Seasoning City is not enough to make me give up my ambitions. You could destroy as many bases as you like, but as long as I and the Ultimate 5 remain standing, Claw will not be defeated." He stares Shou down unblinkingly, the frost in his gaze enough to glue Ritsu to the ground where he stands.

"You're insane," Shou spits, and Ritsu can see now that his hand is quivering. With rage or fear, it's hard to tell, but Ritsu suspects it to be a mix of both. Shou takes a firm step forward, body tensing in preparation for a fight. "Then I guess I just have to knock you out, right here!" he declares, and before anyone can say another word, he rushes headlong in his father's direction, fist raised.

Ritsu jolts, his frozen feet finally moving from where they've been glued to the ground, and he rushes in alongside Shou. He keeps his guard up, ready to deflect and counter whatever Touichirou might throw his way, but he instead finds himself running headlong into an invisible wall that crackles on impact, jolts of energy shooting like electricity up his arms. It burns like fire, and he finds himself tossed effortlessly to the ground with the force of it. He scrambles to his feet, the feeling disappearing as quickly as it comes, and he sees Shou at his side, still standing but similarly baffled. "What the hell?" he manages as he fights to get air back into his lungs after the impact had knocked it out. "What kind of stupidly strong barrier is that?"

"It activates on its own?" Shou gawks, clenching his teeth tightly together. "In that case, let's—"

"You should never have left home," Touichirou chides, raising a hand from where it had laid dormant at his side. Ritsu flinches and braces himself as Touichirou snaps his fingers, and immediately the space around himself and Shou erupts into a ball of white-hot fire. His barrier clings close to his skin and protects him from being singed, but the heat of it is still palpable in the air around him, warping the metal rail that lines the windows.

Shou dispels the flames with a wave of his hand, his aura a powerful wind that douses them before they can do any damage. "Don't toy with me!" he growls. Ritsu can practically sense the anger and frustration coming off of him in waves; he's losing his cool in the face of his father's unwavering condescension.

"Shou—" Ritsu starts, but his words die in his throat as the temperature around him suddenly drops dramatically, the air in his lungs freezing before he can form words with it. He sucks in a surprised breath, and it leaves his mouth in a cloud of fog. "What's going on?" he manages around chattering teeth, wrapping his arms around himself as though to dull the chill.

Shou clicks his tongue, gaze flicking to Ritsu momentarily with a hint of concern before it returns to his father. "You've picked up some new tricks since you threw me away," he snarks, bitter and hostile.

Touichirou lowers his hand, and the air around them returns to normal. "No, nothing new. I just thought you might appreciate a demonstration of what true psychic power is like," he replies, and if Ritsu hadn't been entirely sure that Touichirou means every word he says, he might have found the statement sarcastic. Rather, Touichirou speaks as though he's stating pure, undeniable facts, and the thought only makes him appear more sinister.

Touichirou hasn't moved a pace from where he's been standing by the railing, overlooking the city, but he takes a step closer to Ritsu and Shou now, and then another. "Shou, my son," he says, his words devoid of any form of affection or fatherly love, "you don't seem to understand the lengths I've gone through to see this plan fulfilled. You act as though I haven't thought things through, as though I haven't replayed exactly this scenario in my head a dozen times already. I've been working on this plan for twenty years, since before you were ever a thought in my mind. I've been to every corner of the world, seen every culture, and not a single person I've ever met has come close to matching the power I have." He lifts a hand, reaching out as though to touch Shou, to lay a hand on his shoulder.

"Ritsu!" Shou yells, taking a step back, and before Touichirou's hand can make contact with him, he vanishes.

Ritsu steels his nerves and quickly summons his own barrier of invisibility around himself, the motion coming easily to him now after many afternoons spent practising and perfecting Shou's technique. By the time Touichirou's hand has found the space Shou used to inhabit, there's nothing but empty air left over.

Touichirou straightens up, and his hand falls to his side again. "You've learned to teleport, have you?" he says to the empty air, the barest hint of surprise in his voice, but it's drowned out by his own amusement, as though this is all just a game to him. "No, not teleportation. You've figured out how to tamper with the refraction of light. That’s a useful trick you’ve learned."

He figured it out so fast, Ritsu curses, tucking himself into a corner that will be safe from Shou's attack and stretching out a hand. He clenches it into a fist, and Touichirou's body goes rigid as Ritsu's aura envelopes him and holds on tightly.

Touichirou appears unfazed at being trapped; he hardly even struggles, just attempts to flex his fingers as though to test the durability of the shield Ritsu's put around him. "It seems your friend is more powerful that I'd initially thought. I'm surprised you managed to find such a strong ally, but what do you plan to do now, I wonder?" he asks.

"I'm going to end this," Shou says, low and determined, as he materializes behind Touichirou. His hand shines brightly in the dimness of the room, lit only by the setting sun outside, a ball of energy surrounding it that shifts and sparks like a miniature sun held right in his palm. "You aren't the only one who's been planning for this day! Take a moment to appreciate this, the energy I've been storing up since I first awakened this powers you passed on to me: This is my last resort, three years' worth of energy! Have a taste!" He thrusts his hand forward, and the miniature sun quivers and explodes outward, a violent rush of pure energy released with the intent to kill.

Ritsu has to shield his eyes from the intense light that Shou's stored-up energy radiates, momentarily blinded. The force of such a massive amount of energy colliding with its target shakes the tower to its foundation, and Ritsu hears the grating sound of every window on the floor shattering at once as it explodes with brilliant force. He conjures a barrier around himself as broken glass and concrete chips from the walls fly at him, bouncing harmlessly off of the shimmering blue-and-purple wall. He drops his arm from his eyes, blinking away the colorful spots burned into his retinas by the flash, and he untucks himself from the corner where he'd stashed himself away. "Did it work?" he calls, squinting in an attempt to see through the thick cloud of dust that had yet to settle.

Behind him, a hand lays itself on his shoulder, and Ritsu starts with a gasp. He spins on his heel and finds himself face-to-face with Touichirou, who looks completely unscathed. The man peers down at him with a calm, curious gaze, his inexpressive face setting Ritsu's nerves to frazzled ends. "Ah, now that I get a good look at you, I know your face," Touichirou muses, his grip firm on Ritsu's shoulder. "You're Kageyama Ritsu, from the 7th division headquarters."

Ritsu hears Shou's frantic yell, screaming at him to get away, but he's frozen in place again, only this time he can definitely see the psychic aura clinging to his skin and holding him firmly in place. It's dark red, and it's leeching off of Shou's father as though he can hardly contain it.

Touichirou continues, "I was wondering when you'd come around again. I should have known that my son would rope you into his immature revenge schemes. You, the only successful case Claw has ever seen."

Ritsu grits his teeth, feeling a rush of anger welling up in him. "Don't talk to me like I'm some kind of lab rat," he manages to spit around a jaw that refuses to move, arms quivering as he attempts to jerk them out of Touichirou's staunch control.

"Let him go!" Shou demands, rushing forward to attack his father, but before he can get close, he's intercepted by a translucent umbrella, which whips into him faster than he can react to and slams right into his chest. The impact of it send Shou sprawling onto his back, and he coughs as the air is forced out of his lungs. He doubles over onto his side, hacking out a few choked sounds as he digs his fingers into the ground. "Serizawa, you bastard!" he curses around pained breaths.

The man—Serizawa, as Shou had called him—stands with the handle of an umbrella clutched in his hands. Ritsu can barely see him, unable to turn his head enough to see if Shou is still alright, but he does catch the way Serizawa winces and recoils in response to his own actions. "Oh dear, I didn't think you'd hit it that hard," he stutters, seemingly dismayed at the possibility that he might have caused Shou harm. Ritsu feels the sudden, unmistakable urge to punch him; Shou had been right about him being an idiot, after all.

"Tell me, how is it that you were able to awaken with such great power when no one else could?" Touichirou asks, entirely dead to the way Serizawa knocks Shou down. He doesn't even spare him a glance, his attention focused entirely on Ritsu. "I've been studying psychic powers and the means to awaken them for more than twenty years, and yet you and Shou were the only true successes among thousands."

Shou pushes himself to his hands and knees, wiping a trail of blood away from his mouth from one hand. "What about all those soldiers you bragged about on TV?" he demands, pushing himself shakily to his feet despite the way Serizawa attempts to get him to stay down and rest.

"I don't know what made me different," Ritsu insists, struggling to move his arms against Touichirou's aura keeping him in place. He knows he'll never tell this man that the source of his power is likely the same as his brother's, that Shigeo's psychic abilities far outmatch his own. He won't dare to make a target out of his own family just to satisfy Touichirou's sick curiosity.

Touichirou stares Ritsu in the eye for a long, quiet moment, and Ritsu feels his heart leap into his throat. He can hear the blood roaring in his ears, limbs screaming at him to move, to fight, to do anything but stand, frozen, but no matter how much he tries, he can't even bend a finger to free himself.

Then, as easily as it had enveloped him, Touichirou's aura retreats back into his body and the hand weighing down his shoulder lifts. Ritsu nearly topples over as his autonomy is returned to him all at once, and he stumbles to regain his footing again. As soon as he can, he jumps backward, past Serizawa, and reaches down to grab Shou by the arm and help him to his feet.

Shou obliges, a little unsteady from Serizawa's surprise attack, but otherwise unharmed. "That was everything I had," he laments with a grimace. "Three years of energy, and it didn't even scratch him. What kind of monster is he?"

"Shou, this is bad," Ritsu replies shakily. His hands haven't stopped quivering since he'd been released with Touichirou's hold, and he can still feel the weight of his aura holding him down, preventing him from making any movement at all.

"You say you'd been saving that energy up for three years?" Touichirou speaks over their muffled whispers, moving to stand in front of Serizawa. "I must say, I'm impressed with you, Shou. You truly are my son. Should I tell you something I've never told anyone else?" He pauses to look down at Shou and Ritsu, huddled against the wall across from the shattered glass windows, and says, "You inherited that ability from me. I, too, can store and release my power at will. I can give it to others, if I so desire, and I can take it from them, too. So, you see, my twenty years of travelling served several purposes."

Ritsu feels his blood run cold, and his grip on Shou's arm falters as the shaking in his arms worsens. "You're kidding," he breathes.

"It's impossible," Shou argues, but Ritsu can see the way his eyes go wide and his lip trembles in disbelief. "Your body would be destroyed! It was all I could do just to keep three years' worth under my control!"

Touichirou smirks, and the sight of it is like a punch in the stomach. "Shall I give you a taste of my twenty years?" he asks, his voice dripping with barely-contained mirth. The power that leaks out from under his skin is so dense Ritsu can't see through it, and it seeps from every orifice of his face, shifting and crackling in the air until the static of it causes the hairs on Ritsu's arms and the back of his neck to stick straight up.

Shou pulls Ritsu against his side with one arm and extends his free hand, throwing up the densest barrier he can muster as Touichirou's power expands and explodes toward them in a rush of blood-red fire.

Shou's barrier withstands for half a second before it's incinerated and the pure, undiluted force of Touichirou's twenty years of stored-up power hits Ritsu square in the chest. It burns, worse than any fire ever has, and tears at his clothes, ripping the fabric of his yellow hoodie and bringing tears to his eyes almost instantly. For a frightening second, the whole world is red, red, red, and in the moment he’s lifted off his feet and thrown backward, everything is dark.

He’s gone before he hits the ground.

#mob psycho 100 #mp100 #ritshou #kageyama ritsu #suzuki shou #serendipitousfics #mp100 fanfic #fanfiction #blood #violence #guns #murder #attempted murder #ptsd

4 notes · View notes

serenlyss · 5 years

Text

Don’t Thank Me Yet Chapter 4

Rating: M (blood, guns, murder, torture, ptsd, dissociation) Pairings: ritshou Summary: “Alright then. I’m Shou,” he says, introducing himself more properly this time. “I’m an esper, like you, the first in existence to be forcibly awoken by Claw’s crazy torture machines. They kidnap kids with potential latent psychic powers and break them, over and over, until either their powers emerge or they die. It doesn’t matter either way to them.” His expression hardens as he speaks, clear distaste and outright malice evident in his tone. “I could really use your help here, you know. A partner of sorts, someone to watch my back. What do you say?" Ritsu hesitates. He isn’t a fighter by any means, and the psychic powers now churning beneath his skin are still very new and frightening. It’s all very overwhelming, but Ritsu can’t help but feel a sort of sickening hope at Shou’s promise for revenge. It did have a sort of dark draw to it. In which Claw is a lot worse than they seem and Shigeo isn't able to find his brother after he's kidnapped. Crossposted to AO3: Chapter 4

Chapter 3 // Chapter 5

We've reached the halfway point! This chapter is a bit slower, more set up for the other four chapters. I hope you guys like it!

---

It takes Shou until halfway back home to feel like his breathing has stabilized. His throat still aches terribly, and he’s certain he must look like he’s been through hell twice over, but he can’t bring himself to be too worried about his appearance just yet. He’s still fighting to process the last few hours of his life, head in his hands as Higashio drives them silently back to the house. He lifts his head as they pull into the driveway, sitting up and trying not to wince at the soreness already settling into his tired body.

He casts a glance Ritsu’s way, heart plummeting when he sees the way he stares unflinchingly out the window. He doesn’t even blink, he’s so still, and if it isn’t for the small but constant rise and fall of his chest as he breathes, he might come across lifeless. Swallowing back his apprehension, he reaches out and gives Ritsu’s shoulder a little shake. It seems to draw Ritsu out of himself, just a bit, as he turns and fixes Shou with his foggy gray gaze.

“You with me, dude?” Shou asks, trying to keep his tone light and casual, but his shoulders hunch forward in a distinctly fatigued way, and his movements lack their usual unbridled energy. He can see the dark circles under Ritsu’s eyes that form as a result of their sleepless night and everything it’s entailed, and he’s willing to bet money that he’s got them, too.

Ritsu nods once, and one by one he moves each of his limbs so that he can crack open the car door and step outside. His movements are mechanical and heavy, as though each miniscule movement is an effort in itself. He pauses as he steps out of the car, staring up at the house for a few long, disoriented seconds. “We’re home,” he says finally, words falling from his mouth without forethought.

Shou offers him a small smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes and pats him on the shoulder. “Yeah,” he agrees, giving him a gentle push toward the door. Ritsu complies, walking a pace ahead of Shou as the five of them make their way inside. Ritsu falls quiet again, arms limp at his sides.

Shou pushes open the door to the house. The hinges squeak quietly, but the sound is deafening in the silence of the empty room. He winces at the noise, but says nothing, bending down to instinctively shed his shoes and jacket.

Ritsu moves immediately to go sit on the couch. Shou watches him, noting the angry red burns on his upper arm and his face. He’s certain that Ritsu’s hiding bruises as bad as his, and he swallows, feeling his throat protest at the movement. It still aches from the feeling of the Scar’s fingers digging into it, cutting off his airway, strangling him…

He gives his head a shake, and turns to face the rest of the party. Fukuda is eyeing Ritsu with intense worry, wringing his hands in front of him as his gaze flicks between him and Shou. Ootsuki and Higashio look concerned as well, though to a lesser degree, as they hang their coats and slip off their shoes.

Shou lets out a breath and says, “You all get some rest. I’ll… take care of things out here,” he says, risking a glance at Ritsu as he does. The dark-haired boy has gone stock-still again, hunched over himself with his hands clasped tightly together. Fukuda looks like he wants to protest, but Shou holds up a hand. “It’s fine, we can handle ourselves,” he says again, more firmly, an order rather than a reassurance. He casts the larger man a warning glare, daring him to argue.

After a cautious moment, he nods, and all three of them disperse to separate rooms of the house. Ootsuki lays a hand on Shou’s back as he leaves, a quiet comfort, and he’s thankful for it, as brief as it is. Once he and Ritsu are alone in the main room, he moves to approach his partner. “Hey,” he greets, voice soft and careful. He glances at the blistering burn on Ritsu’s arm, biting his lip. “Does it hurt bad?”

Ritsu shrugs noncommittally, still staring at his hands. His hair is all over the place, sticking straight up in places and covered in dust from the fight, and his face is mottled black and blue where he’d been hit by the Scar’s burning punch. There’s dry blood on his chin and neck, and on the cheek where his skin’s been seared. It looks like it must hurt a lot.

Shou bites his lip, then reaches out and gently separates Ritsu’s hands from each other. They go limp almost immediately in his grip, and he removes the gloves from them with hesitant fingers, uncharacteristically afraid of how Ritsu might react. The problem is, Ritsu doesn’t really react at all, just lets himself be moved around at Shou’s behest and doesn’t say a word. Shou stares down at Ritsu’s exposed palms for a moment, at the thin white lines that cross his palms and fingers, then folds them both into his lap, eyes moving to his ripped up, bloody shirt. “Let’s get that shirt off you, yeah? We need to clean up your burn before it gets infected,” he says.

Ritsu nods, pulling on the hem of the long-sleeved shirt and exposing the white tank top underneath. Halfway up, though, he lets out a pained noise and winces, his injured arm obviously giving him trouble. Shou moves to help him, tugging at his sleeves and doing his best not to chafe his burn, until they finally manage to get the destroyed black shirt off. Shou lets it fall to the ground beside the couch in a heap; it’s not salvageable at this point, and will have to be thrown out later.

“I liked that shirt,” Ritsu says, finally, blessedly. He hasn’t spoken since they got in the car back at Claw’s base.

Shou can’t help the relieved chuckle that bubbles up in his throat. “That’s a shame. I liked it, too,” he says, and finally feels like it’s safe enough that he can go to the shelf and bring down that familiar cardboard box. It’s only been a few hours since they’d last touched it, he realizes; the sun is rising, but neither of them have slept since the previous night. The first aid supplies inside rattle as he walks back over to Ritsu and sets to work on his burns. “What are you thinking about?” he asks, though he’s certain he already knows.

Ritsu’s eyes cast downward and to the side, shame coming to his expression immediately, and keeps his lips tightly sealed.

Shou takes his arm and starts to work cleaning away the blood that’s leaked from his burn, doing his best not to agitate the wound too badly. “Ritsu,” he says firmly, and Ritsu lifts his head to meet his gaze. He continues, “I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me. Please, tell me what’s wrong.”

Ritsu opens his mouth, lip quivering, then closers it again. He drops his gaze to his hands once more, unable to speak and look at Shou at the same time. “I killed that man. I didn’t know what to do, so I just… shot him. It was so easy,” he finally confesses, regret creeping into his voice.

“He tried to kill us first,” Shou replies, a weak comfort. He doubts Ritsu takes much reassurance from it at all.

“He was going to kill me,” Ritsu corrects bitterly, “and take you back to your father.”

Shou winces as though he’s been tangibly hit, and his hand stills for a moment as he prods at the burn on Ritsu’s arm. Ritsu’s words are laced with deadly venom, filled with hatred despite the fact that he’s never met Claw’s leader before. “Yeah, he was,” Shou relents after a moment, and presses a sanitary wipe against Ritsu’s burn.

Ritsu hisses and jerks away from Shou’s touch, but he persists, holding Ritsu in place. “Tough it out for a moment, this won’t last long,” he chides.

“I didn’t know what else to do,” Ritsu murmurs, still in pain but trying to cover it with words. “I couldn’t just sit there doing nothing. I-I couldn’t let him keep hurting you. He was strangling you-”

“It’s okay, we’re okay,” Shou sooths, reaching out to cover Ritsu’s unoccupied hand with his. “He can’t hurt us anymore.”

Ritsu takes a shuddering breath. “I’ve never killed anyone before, not intentionally. I can’t… I don’t know what to do now,” he admits.

Shou glances down, chewing on his lower lip. He’s no stranger to killing people, and Ritsu knows this. He’s killed enough on his missions that he’s become desensitized to it, and that’s not even taking into account all the people that surely died when the Claw bases came down around them, destroyed. People who turned a blind eye to torturing kids, to murdering them. People like the ones who had hurt Ritsu only a few months ago, and continued to hurt others every single day their bases continue to stand.

People who probably had families, and home lives, and friends, as much as Shou wants to believe that they’re all soulless, detached beings. “You just have to keep moving,” Shou replies, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. “You’re still you, don’t forget that. You can do whatever you want to.”

Ritsu swallows, head lowering, and Shou sees his stiff shoulders drop, just a fraction. He can barely keep his eyes open. Shou offers him what he hopes is a reassuring smile. He cleans the rest of Ritsu’s wounds in silence, then orders him to get some rest. “I can take care of my own injuries for a change,” he insists when Ritsu tries to protest, and he gives up fairly quickly after that, disappearing into his bedroom with freshly bandaged burns and about a dozen new bruises.

Shou’s lucky to be the better one off after a fight like that. Aside from the bruises that now litter his body, there isn’t much for him to do. He carefully cleans a few small cuts and covers them with tan band-aids, then goes to the bathroom to assess the damages.

As soon as he sees his reflection in the mirror, his stomach flips nauseatingly. His arms, exposed by his shirt, are covered in bruises, some of them green and blue and some dark purple or red. He’s developing a pretty nasty-looking black eye, and he’s covered in concrete dust from his hair to his dirty socks. He tilts his chin back and reaches a hand up to brush against the dark bruises ringing his neck, scowling. They’re hand-shaped, dark prints that bring back that fresh feeling of fear, that terror that he’d nearly been shipped back to his father before he’s ready. They’re sore to the touch, so he stops agitating them, just stares at them in the mirror. “How unattractive,” he mumbles to himself, but the sickness persists. He tears his gaze away, swallowing, and leaves the bathroom.

---

Ritsu’s been gone all afternoon.

Normally Shou wouldn’t worry about something like this. Ritsu is a very capable guy, and Shou has no doubt he can defend himself from minor threats if needed, but he’s been acting weird the last few days. Avoiding eye contact, making excuses for staying in his room instead of hanging around the main part of the house like he usually does, and now this.

It’s not like Shou is going to tell him not to leave the house. He’d been careful to establish right off the bat that Ritsu isn’t being kept against his will, and that he’s free to leave anytime. Even if Shou really, really doesn’t want him to leave. Even so, he rarely leaves for long, and he’s always sure to tell Shou where he’s going. He hasn’t even left a note this time.

Shou can’t help but be concerned, even though he knows that Ritsu is most likely fine. It’s been a few days since they’d returned from their… not-so-great mission, and his burns are healing nicely, turning to fresh scars that intersect with older, more faded ones. They haven’t spoken about what happened in the basement prison since Ritsu had gone to sleep the morning after, and Shou’s loathe to bring it up. He really hopes Ritsu isn’t letting it get to him, but he can’t deny the way his friend dances around his attempts to parse the subject and insists everything is fine when it clearly isn’t.

He shakes his head and pushes himself off the couch, desperate to do something productive before he loses his mind in what-ifs and maybes. He drifts to the kitchen sink and runs the tap warm so he can tackle the breakfast dishes still sitting in the sink. He scrubs at them with an old sponge, frowning as he tries to deduce exactly where Ritsu could have gone. His suspicious activity of the last few days has been off-putting, to say the least, and Shou can’t help but worry that he might get himself into trouble.

He’s halfway through the pile of dirty dishes when the door of the house cracks open and Ritsu returns. Shou casts him a brief glance, notes the way he avoids returning his gaze as he slips off his shoes and sets them by the door.

“Hey. You were gone for a while, I was starting to wonder when you were gonna get back,” Shou says casually. It’s not his duty to pry into what Ritsu wants to do in his private time, he tells himself, no matter how much he really wants to be nosy right now. Still, he can’t help but feel just a little left out, thrown off by Ritsu’s odd behavior.

Ritsu moves to the table and pulls out a chair, slipping into it quietly. “Ah, I was just running a few errands. I made sure to keep out of sight, though. It’ll be bad if Claw finds out where we are,” he responds smoothly.

Shou quirks an eyebrow at him, amused. “Errands?” he echoes, but doesn’t press further. “Look at you, being all responsible ‘n shit.”

Ritsu stifles a snort of laughter, attempting to disguise it as a cough. “I’m always responsible,” he insists, leaning his elbows on the table.

Shou glances in his direction, catching the faint, uncertain smile on his face, and doesn’t miss the way Ritsu markedly avoids meeting his gaze. He looks away again. “Something bothering you?” he asks, turning back to the dishes in the sink.

Ritsu doesn’t answer right away. Shou hears him tapping restlessly on the tabletop with his fingers, the sound muffled by the dark gloves that he constantly wears now. For a few seconds, an anticipatory silence hangs in the air, and then Ritsu says, “I left my brother a message.”

Shou freezes, squeezing the green-and-yellow sponge a bit tighter in his hand. He’s halfway through scrubbing a white ceramic plate, but the stutter in his heartbeat at the revelation makes his muscles stall for a split second. He’s quick to recover from his surprise, though, hand moving to clear the last of the leftover food from the plate’s surface. “Ritsu-”

“I didn’t try to talk to him,” Ritsu interrupts before Shou can say another word. “I made sure to be discreet, too, and I didn’t mention you or anyone else in my message. I just wanted him to know that I’m still alive.”

Shou sets aside the clean plate and turned off the tap, drying his hands on a towel at his side. Then he turns and moves to join Ritsu at the table, frowning. “That’s really dangerous, Ritsu,” he says. “Claw might still have eyes on your house. I know it’s been a long time since you were kidnapped, but if there’s a chance of accidentally getting your family involved…” he trails off, fighting back the instinctive flare of anger that tries to worm its way out of him. He quickly stomps it down: now isn’t the time to get angry, and he knows from experience how trying to settle disagreements with hostility tends to end.

“If anything happens, I’ll handle it,” Ritsu says firmly, with a confidence that Shou isn’t really anticipating. It’s simultaneously surprising and infuriating, because both of them know he most certainly can’t keep that promise on his own.

Ritsu knows how to be confident, that much is undeniable, but it’s painfully easy for anyone to see that Ritsu’s brother is his weak point. Get your hands on Shigeo, and Ritsu will bend to whatever you want. It’s part of how he’d been kidnapped in the first place, after all. His affection for Shigeo and desire to protect his family is a bargaining chip for Claw that they don’t even understand, the kind with enough weight to throw the whole operation into the gutter if they figure out about it. Shou really, really doesn’t want to have to see the look on Ritsu’s face if his plan ends up backfiring on him.

Still, he wants to trust Ritsu, wants to believe that nothing bad is going to happen. “Well, it’s already done, I guess. I trust you, Ritsu, and I know you’re only doing what you think is best,” he says, attempting to set aside his doubts for now, but it’s hard to stop himself from listing off all the things that could go wrong.

Ritsu frowns, clasping his hands together on top of the table. “You think it was a bad idea,” he states, like a fact. His eyes bore into Shou’s head and read him like an open book.

Shou bites his lip and glances away. “I’ve always thought it was a bad idea,” he sighs, attempting to deflect, “but it doesn’t really matter what I think. I don’t control you.”

“It does matter,” Ritsu insists. “Aren’t you mad?” He furrows his brow at Shou like he’s expecting a fight, confusion and apprehension in his gaze.

Shou ruffles his hair with one hand, restless. “I’m not mad, just… concerned, I guess? Kinda disappointed, too. I thought that you would have at least told me when you were planning to reach out to your brother. We’re partners, after all…”

Ritsu looks increasingly more agitated as Shou speaks, clearly surprised in a not-so-pleasant way. “Get mad at me,” he demands, and the emotion with which he speaks throws Shou off his guard. “You should be mad, Shou! I went behind your back, I lied to you, I put us all in danger! Get mad at me!”

Shou raises his hands placatingly, leaning away from Ritsu with wide eyes. “Whoa, dude, calm down,” he says, uncertain, “you’re not making any sense.”

Ritsu stands up abruptly, his chair screeching loudly across the kitchen’s wood floor. He slaps both hands on the table’s surface, shaking it. “I don’t understand!” he yells, confused and frustrated. “You’re the leader here, right? Tell me I messed up! Tell me that what I did was stupid and reckless and that I should have waited for a better time! You can’t just-just…” He trails off, effectively speechless.

Shou stands up as well, mind racing as he tries to wrap his head around why Ritsu is so annoyed. He can feel his own overwhelming apprehension and shock feeding his irritation, despite the fact that he really thinks it would be better to handle this calmly. “You want me to, what, scold you? Like a little kid?” he asks, incredulous and somewhat offended. “What, do you think I’m your babysitter or something? It’s not my job to keep tabs on you! You don’t need me to explain what you’ve done wrong, you already know!” He scoffs, taking a step back, away from Ritsu. “Do you really want me to spell it out for you, Ritsu? Fine. What you did was incredibly reckless and dumb and badly thought out and for all we know, you’ve given Claw a straight shot to your brother and this place! Claw could be going after your family right now because you accidentally tipped them off that Shigeo exists and you know who’s going to get the worst of it? You are!” He finally stops to take a breath, panting and red-faced from the sudden outpouring of harsh words he tended to keep just to himself, and finds himself pointing an accusatory finger in Ritsu’s direction.

Ritsu has gone stock-still, staring back at Shou with an expression that’s a mixture of surprised, scolded and vaguely impressed. His hands fall limply to his sides and the tension drains from his shoulders visibly, slouching down into a gentle arc instead of a straight, tense line. Then he raises his hand to his mouth and starts to laugh, attempting to stifle the noise with his palm. His shoulders shake with mirth and he bends over himself, long bangs shielding his face. “Yeah, that’s more like what I thought was going to happen,” he manages after a moment, a bitter grin on his face.

Shou groans softly and sinks back into his seat, letting his head fall into his hands as he threads his fingers into his hair. He hears Ritsu follow suit, the chair legs scraping against the wooden floor in a much more careful way than when he’d stood up before. Shou takes a breath to calm himself before he looks up again, catching Ritsu’s gaze. Despite everything Shou’s just said to him, he looks far more relaxed than before. He even looks kind of amused, to Shou’s chagrin.

“I didn’t think you’d actually rip into me that fast,” Ritsu says with a rare, smug smirk.

Shou lets out another tired sigh. “I was never going to get angry at you,” he says, “I’m not that kind of person. You’re not my subordinate, Ritsu, you’re my partner, and I trust you, more than I’ve ever trusted anyone. I still think it was a terrible idea to clue your brother into this even a little bit, but you’re not stupid. I know you were careful about it.” He sits up straighter in his seat, throwing one arm over the back of the metal kitchen chair. “Besides, there’s nothing we can do about it now, it’s already been done. We’ll just have to be prepared for the aftermath.”

“Right,” Ritsu quietly agrees, and his expression softens to something akin to relief and, Shou notices with a skip of the heartbeat, affection. “I’m sorry I went behind your back. Thank you… for taking me seriously.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” Shou replies immediately, taking a phrase from Ritsu’s repertoire that leaves them both grinning.

---

Ritsu stops avoiding him after that, and they fall easily back into their old routine. It’s late in the morning when Ritsu returns to the house, so they eat an early lunch and then Shou drags Ritsu into the yard to spar and practice new techniques.

“C’mon, Ritsu, it’s easy!” Shou calls. His bright orange aura surrounds him like a flame, carrying his weight as he hovers a few feet off the ground. He flips upside-down, as if to illustrate how effortless flying is for him, and he crosses his legs almost casually above his head.

Ritsu’s fidgety, and his furrowed brow and the scowl on his face are a dead giveaway to the frustration he’s feeling. For all of Ritsu’s talent and how quickly he’s able to pick up new techniques, Shou’s found that he’s quite the perfectionist. It doesn’t make a difference when he can pick up the new trick quickly, but in times like these, when he struggles to wrap his brain around how to make Shou’s methods work for himself, he’s quick to get angry and discouraged.

“Ugh, this is pointless!” Ritsu snaps, and for a moment his aura flares. He’s quick to reign it back in again, though, flushing pink in embarrassment. He crosses his arms with a pout, but it only makes Shou grin wider.

“Chill, Ritsu, it’s fine if you don’t get it right away,” Shou says, tone half-teasing as he rights himself in the air. He lets himself drop the few feet back to solid ground, feeling his loose T-shirt settle around his shoulders once more. “Not everything’s gonna come right away, though I’m not sure why this is the thing that’s hard for you. I was able to pick it up really fast.”

Ritsu flashes him a scowl. “No need to rub it in,” he mutters, kicking at the grass with the toe of one shoe.

They’ve been at it for hours, and Ritsu’s really starting to look worn out. By now the sun has reached its peak and started to descend, marking the early evening hours as long shadows stretch along the lawn and the sky begins to tint pink and orange. It’ll be a few more hours still before the sun sets entirely, but it’s just about time they called it a night and headed in. Still, that won’t stop Shou from giving it one last try.

“Come on, one more round before dinner,” he urges. “I have an idea that might just work.” He flashes Ritsu a sly grin.

Ritsu gives him a look, the kind that tells him that he senses Shou’s devious intent, but he just sighs, shoulders slumping. “Fine, one more time,” he relents.

Shou’s grin broadens, and before Ritsu can back out, he crosses the space between them, grabs one of Ritsu’s hands in each of his, and jumps.

He catches Ritsu’s shocked yelp as he wraps himself in his aura and tugs Ritsu off his feet entirely, letting him hang by his hands from his grasp. Ritsu’s legs flail beneath him, searching for ground that is no longer there, his eyes blown wide and mouth hanging open in speechless dread.

Shou laughs, reveling in his friend’s surprise as he rises to the top of a leafy maple tree and sits Ritsu down on a thick, sturdy branch. “Consider this a trial by fire! You should be able to carry yourself enough to at least get down safe, right?” he says with a devilish grin, hovering a few feet away from where he’d deposited him.

As soon as Ritsu’s hands are free, he clings to the tree’s trunk, fingers digging into the bark as he chances a glance down at the ground beneath his hanging feet. He stiffens up, pressing his side into the trunk as much as he can. To Shou, it almost looks like he’s trying to phase inside of it, his body entirely frozen. “Shou, get me down from here right now!” he demands, but there’s a distinct quiver to his voice.

Shou blinks, grin faltering. “What’s the matter, still don’t think you can do it?” he asks, drifting a little closer and tilting his head. Ritsu hugs the tree trunk like he’s afraid of falling, even though the branch he’s sitting on can easily handle his weight and he’s only two stories off the ground. “Wait a minute, are you afraid of heights?”

Ritsu stares resolutely down at the ground, teeth clenched, but he does manage to flash Shou a fierce glare in response to his comments. “Just get me down, Shou, please,” he repeats.

It’s the ‘please’ that throws Shou off more than anything else. Ritsu’s always been one to do everything he can on his own before he dares to ask for help, so the fact that he’s asking for it now when he could just as easily climb down himself is startling, to say the least. Even if, somehow, he did fall, he could easily catch himself with his powers. He’s fully capable of it, Shou knows, he just needs a little push, but apparently the push he’d come up with hadn’t been the right one after all.

He lets out a soft sigh. “Yeah, alright,” he relents, knocked off-guard by Ritsu’s pleas for help, and when he drifts closer and offers his hand Ritsu’s quick to take it. Shou lifts him off the branch with his telekinesis - it isn’t hard, considering how light Ritsu is compared to other objects he’s lifted - and notes the way Ritsu moves his legs as though trying to find purchase on a surface that isn’t there anymore. His free hand reaches out to grab onto something for stability.

Shou can’t help but chuckle at his friend’s flailings, but takes mercy on him this time, nudging him closer with his powers. Ritsu latches onto him immediately, free arm looping around his neck and dragging Shou down a few inches before he can steady himself. Shou snorts out another laugh, catching Ritsu around his waist for support as he gently lowers them back onto the grass below.

Ritsu lets out a baited breath as his feet find solid earth again, though he clings to Shou a few seconds longer than he maybe needs to before he untangles himself from his friend’s grasp. “Thank you,” he sighs, dusting off his pants.

“Never would have guessed you were afraid of heights,” Shou says, a slightly teasing edge to his voice, but he knows better than to make fun of Ritsu’s fears. He starts to head back toward the house; the sun is going down now, and he’s tired after so many hours of training. He’s certain Ritsu must be, too. “You should’ve told me that’s why you can’t fly.”

Ritsu bites his lip and glances away. “Shut up, it’s embarrassing,” he sighs.

“It’s not embarrassing,” Shou assures. “If you’re afraid of heights then you’re afraid of heights. We’re all afraid of something.” He slides open the back door and shuffles inside, and Ritsu follows behind him, closing it shut. “You hungry?” Shou asks to change the subject, moving into the kitchen and rooting around in search of something good to eat.

Ritsu seems glad to be talking about something else, and joins Shou in scavenging for a meal. They manage to scrape together a dinner of rice and leftover takeout from the night before, and then settle back down at the table to eat. By the time they’ve finished their dinner, it’s dark outside. The house is quiet aside from Ritsu and Shou’s quiet conversation, but that quiet is quickly broken when Shou’s phone starts to ring loudly in his pocket.

Shou blinks, surprised, and pulls out his phone, looking down at the screen for a moment. “Huh, it’s Ootsuki. He’s only supposed to use this number for emergencies,” he says, frowning. He answers the call, putting it on speakerphone so Ritsu can hear. “Yo, it’s me. What’s going on? You used the emergency line.”

“Yeah, well, I’m pretty sure this constitutes an emergency,” Ootsuki’s voice comes across the speaker, clipped and clearly a little panicked.

“What’s going on?” Ritsu asks, concerned.

The line is quiet for a few seconds, which only serves to make Shou’s apprehension multiply. Then, somberly, Ootsuki says, “The Kageyama house is on fire.”

#mob psycho 100 #mp100 #ritshou #kageyama ritsu #suzuki shou #fanfiction #mp100 fanfic #blood #guns #murder #torture #ptsd #dissociation #serendipitousfics

5 notes · View notes

serenlyss · 5 years

Text

Don’t Thank Me Yet Chapter 2

Rating: M (guns, casual murder, torture, violence, ptsd, dissociation, blood, injury) Pairing: ritshou Summary: “Alright then. I’m Shou,” he says, introducing himself more properly this time. “I’m an esper, like you, the first in existence to be forcibly awoken by Claw’s crazy torture machines. They kidnap kids with potential latent psychic powers and break them, over and over, until either their powers emerge or they die. It doesn’t matter either way to them.” His expression hardens as he speaks, clear distaste and outright malice evident in his tone. “I could really use your help here, you know. A partner of sorts, someone to watch my back. What do you say?" Ritsu hesitates. He isn’t a fighter by any means, and the psychic powers now churning beneath his skin are still very new and frightening. It’s all very overwhelming, but Ritsu can’t help but feel a sort of sickening hope at Shou’s promise for revenge. It did have a sort of dark draw to it. In which Claw is a lot worse than they seem and Shigeo isn't able to find his brother after he's kidnapped. Crossposted to AO3: Chapter 2

Chapter 1 // Chapter 3

Here's chapter 2! My idea for the time being is to update every Wednesday if I can, but I'm also doing summer term which means not a lot of writing time left over so those updates may get a bit sparser near the end! At the moment I have almost 5 chapters out of 8 at drafted, so hopefully that will help me have some extra time to make sure everything ends up polished!

Thanks to my beta readers @shutupeleven and @soapipia for helping me edit this chapter! Your help is much appreciated my friends!

Shou pushes the door of the empty house open with his powers, letting it swing open noisily in front of him. He tightens his grip on the arm around his shoulder, feeling the weight of his partner heavy against his side. His other arm is wrapped around Ritsu’s waist, offering as much physical support as he can. “You still with me, dude?” he asks, making his way over to an old couch in the area of the house that’s been designated the med bay.

He can practically feel Ritsu rolling his eyes at his dramatics as Shou helps him sit down on the couch, wincing as his sore body protests every movement. “I’m not gonna die, Shou, I’m just a little banged up,” Ritsu replies, leaning his head back against the top of the couch with a sigh. “You know I’m more durable than that.”

Shou flashes his friend an amused grin, extending a hand toward a shelf at the back of the room. His red-orange aura appears around his hand and stretches out with an invisible thread to encircle a beat-up cardboard box on the middle shelf, levitating it to his side.

Ritsu carefully shucks off his jacket, which is at this point destroyed beyond repair and covered in his own blood, and discards it to the side of the couch. Shou gives him a quick once-over, taking stock of his injuries. Most of them are clean cuts, inflicted by the window he’d crashed through during their unfortunate brawl. “Guess I’m still not so good at putting up barriers under pressure, huh? Even after all the training you put me through, my reflexes are still slow,” Ritsu sighs.

“It comes with years of practice and muscle memory. You’ve only had a few months to develop your powers, give it some more time,” Shou replies, reaching out a hand to turn over Ritsu’s arm and address the cuts there. Ritsu flinches as his fingers press into a particularly bad cut, earning an apologetic glance from his friend. He continues, “Things got a bit out of hand, anyway. There wasn’t supposed to be a fight, but I guess we weren’t so lucky today.” He reaches deftly for a cloth and dabs an antiseptic solution onto it, pressing it against Ritsu’s cuts. “If everything had gone as planned, we would’ve just killed ‘em all and disappeared, but one of their guys was able to see through my invisibility. Can’t tell you how, but it’s something to keep in mind for the future, I guess.”

Ritsu hisses out a pained breath as the cloth comes into contact with his open wounds, clenching his hand into a fist. Shou continues as though he hadn’t moved at all, and he might have been afraid of coming across apathetic if he isn’t aware of how well Ritsu knows him. “God, that stings. I keep thinking I’ll be used to it next time, but that never happens,” Ritsu grunts, gripping the arm of the chair tightly beside him.

Shou huffs out a short laugh. “Yeah, it never really gets any better, even after years of fighting,” he agrees, gently wiping away the blood that had seeped from Ritsu’s cuts and stained his skin bright red. “Look on the bright side, though: Once these are all healed up in a few days, you’ll have some more badass battle scars to show off!” He flashes Ritsu another lopsided grin, trying to lighten the mood.

“Ah, yeah, I guess espers do heal pretty fast, don’t we?” Ritsu murmurs in response as Shou wraps his arm in clean white bandages, though he doesn’t sound nearly as excited about the scars as Shou does. He already has plenty, after all. He opens and closes his hand experimentally. “My brother’s gonna have a fit when he sees them.”

“It’s one of the perks,” says Shou, moving up to Ritsu’s face now. “You went out shoulder-first, though, so luckily the damage was contained to mostly one arm.” He dabs away a trail of blood that had run down his neck and soaked into the collar of his black shirt, leaving a dark stain behind. “How’re your powers treating you? Feel any better about using them?”

Ritsu hums, closing his eyes for a moment as Shou wipes the cloth over a cut on his forehead. He doesn’t answer right away, and Shou doesn't press him to hurry up. “It still takes me way longer than you to do anything,” he says at last, letting his eyes blink open as Shou moves to push Ritsu’s shaggy hair out of his face with one hand, “but I think I’m getting better at controlling them. I’m still nowhere near as strong as that first night, though. It’s taken a lot of work to get to where I am now.”

Shou nods, pleased. Any progress is good progress, in his eyes. “Well, of course you’re not as good as I am, I’ve had these powers for years,” he replies, tone coming off cocky. “Even though Claw forced them on us, they’re still a part of us, and always have been. Not to mention, they’re good reminders to keep us focused on what we’re fighting against.”

“I could never forget, anyway,” Ritsu says back, voice quiet and grim.

Shou smiles at him, sympathetic, and lets his hand linger on Ritsu’s cheek a moment after he’s removed the cloth from his face. Then he pulls a bandaid out of the box and unwraps it, covering a small but persistently bleeding cut on Ritsu’s forehead. “Yeah, me neither. Still, I am grateful to them for bringing me such a strong and dependable ally. I’ve got Ootsuki and the rest, but they don’t know Claw as intimately as we do. Plus, you’re way smarter than they are.”

Ritsu cracks a small smile at this, and Shou takes it as a victory. Ritsu isn’t nearly as comfortable expressing his thoughts and memories as Shou is, so he sometimes finds himself guessing what words will work as a form of comfort in what situation. “Don’t thank me yet, we haven’t finished what we started,” Ritsu reminds him.

Shou pats his knee to show he’s heard, dropping the stained cloth into a trash can beside the couch. “We’ve come a long way these last few months. Especially you. You’ve changed a lot since the night I found you,” he comments, voice edging on fond.

Ritsu hums, glancing down at his bandaged hand with eyes that stare at something far away from where they are now. It’s not unusual for Ritsu to space out like this, but Shou can’t find himself getting used to the way his gaze fogs over and he falls deathly still and quiet, his soft breathing the only thing rooting him to the living world. He can only imagine what kinds of memories he sinks into when he falls into these moods, if he thinks of anything at all. Ritsu’s unwilling to parse the details of his kidnapping and captivity, subsequent torture, or anything else he experienced in Claw’s awakening lab, and Shou doesn’t want to pry too far, as curious as he is to compare his own experiences against another survivor.

He gives Ritsu a few minutes, moving to address the glass cuts on the bottom of his one bare foot. He’d lost his shoe when the Claw esper had thrown him through the window, and the broken glass had been quick to bite into the soft flesh of his sole. Shou suspects his shoe is probably still back in the base, no one left alive inside to take it for themself. Perhaps Ritsu would be able to retrieve it later, when they inevitably went back to blow the place up entirely. It wouldn’t do to leave it vacant and let Claw send more of their scientists to start work back up again, after all. Shou gently covers his injuries in the same white bandages that now litter Ritsu’s body. The dark-haired boy doesn’t flinch, or acknowledge his existence at all. It’s more than an little worrying when Ritsu falls into trances like this. Once he’s finished bandaging Ritsu’s foot, he decides to break the spell. “Ritsu,” he says, soft and careful.

Ritsu blinks when he hears his name called, knocked out of his reverie by Shou’s curious voice. He’s frozen for a moment, and his eyes dart back and forth as he reorients himself in the present moment. “Sorry, I spaced for a bit there,” he murmurs, reaching up with one hand to push his bangs away from his face. He stares down at his lap, dark lashes hiding his half-lidded eyes. “Did you finish?”

Shou raises an eyebrow at him, faintly amused, and hopes it covers the concern he feels underneath. “Yeah, you’re all good. It’s your turn to do me now,” he says, gesturing to his own bedraggled appearance. He’s not nearly as bad off as Ritsu is, but his hands are cut up and there’s a gash on the back of one of his calves. “What were you thinking about?”

Ritsu lets out a breath, pushing himself to his feet and swapping places with Shou. He doesn’t meet Shou’s gaze, eager to do something with his hands. “Just… stuff,” he replies, and it’s a terrible way to cover up the fact that he’d spiraled into a realm of unpleasant memories.

“Mmhmm, sure,” Shou replies, not convinced in the slightest. He hesitates, wanting to confirm his own suspicions but still conscious of the fact that Ritsu has boundaries that Shou doesn’t, and his traumatic memories are one of the things he doesn’t really talk about. He bites his lip, debating back and forth for a moment before he finally decides to just rip the metaphorical bandaid off. “You were thinking about the night I found you, right?” he asks.

Ritsu freezes for a split-second, not long enough to be noticeable unless you’re really paying attention, like Shou is. Busted. Ritsu chuckles dryly, but there’s no humor in it, and he doesn’t smile, just copies Shou’s earlier actions of wetting a clean cloth with the disinfectant liquid so he can return the favor. Shou rolls up the leg of his pants, granting access to the cut underneath, and doesn't say anything else. He knows that if Ritsu doesn’t want to talk about it, he won’t.

“It happens sometimes. My memories of that night are… foggy,” Ritsu says after a moment, his words carefully chosen. “I remember being locked in this weird pod, and I remember you picking me up in the forest, but in between that it’s just kinda… hazy.” He presses the cloth against Shou’s leg, and Shou squirms, grimacing at the sharp sting that shoots up his calf. Ritsu grasps his ankle with one hand, holding him steady. “Don’t move,” he chastises.

Shou grunts, trying to take his mind off the stinging by focusing on Ritsu’s words. “I’m not surprised. You were exhausted to the point where you could barely stay standing. You’d lost a lot of blood, too, from whatever torture they put you through.” He shakes his head, clenching his teeth at the memory. “I still can’t believe they got those machines to work on someone with your kind of power. Before you, I was the only one.” He huffs out a bitter laugh, glancing away. “The great son of the leader of Claw, the first successful attempt at forcibly awakening a person’s latent psychic power. Can’t say if it was worth the cost, though.”

Ritsu frowns at this, Shou notices, as he tightly bandages his injured calf to keep it from bleeding any further. Shou’s not shy about talking about his own experiences in Claw’s awakening labs, and he bears plenty of scars from his time there, whether it's the singed skin on his back and arms or the thin lines that litter his torso and legs. Memories that will never disappear, etched for eternity into his flesh. He shows his scars proudly. They’re evidence of his ability to survive, to overcome. He takes great pride in recounting the stories of how they got there, stories he embellishes with all the flourish and drama he can muster.

Ritsu isn’t like that, though. He hides his insecurities behind carefully-crafted layers, like the psychic barrier he uses to protect himself from corporeal harm. Going through one would only reveal another, and then another, too many for any one person to break through by force. He covers his scars with gloves and long-sleeved jackets, even in the searing summer heat, even though Shou has seen them all and knows most of the stories behind them.

Ritsu swallows, clearly uncomfortable. He never had enjoyed when Shou brought up his father. “I remember being on the ground when my powers came to me,” he says, and Shou tries to hide his surprise. He’s avoided speaking about anything regarding the awakening lab in the past, unsure if he was ready to face what happened. Perhaps it was just an easier topic than trying to parse Shou’s family trauma. “They’d been torturing me nonstop for two days, trying to get me to break, to force my psychic powers to awaken and protect me. It worked.” He pauses, swallowing thickly. “Shou… back when you found me, the night I broke out of that place, you killed two scientists.”

Shou’s breathing stutters in his chest. He remembers it well, the way he’d shot them to death to keep them away from Ritsu. “Yeah, I did,” he replies, uncertain why Ritsu would bring it up now, a month later.

“You’ve killed a lot of people,” Ritsu continues, eyes still diligently focused on the task at hand.

Shou tenses up. Where is he going with this? “Yeah, I have.”

Ritsu just nods, falling quiet for a moment, as though this isn’t a revelation to him. Shou supposes it probably isn’t. Ritsu isn’t stupid, after all, and he’s see the way Shou handles a gun. Not to mention all the Claw bases they’d demolished in their short partnership.

“I think,” Ritsu begins, wiping away the blood that clings to Shou’s calf and ankle, “that I also killed a lot of people, when I lost control of my power.” He speaks slowly, choosing his words with care. “I don’t remember the details, but I know that some of the people in that lab tried to stop me. It was like I wasn’t even in control of my own body, but I still remember doing it, faintly.” Then, quietly, he adds, “I didn’t want to kill them.”

Shou hums as he listens to Ritsu speak. “You were only protecting yourself,” he says with a frown. “Besides, they deserved what was coming to them. It’s their own fault for getting involved with Claw to begin with.”

“How can you say that so easily?” Ritsu asks, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth. “Sure, they were members of Claw, and the stuff they did was terrible. I’m not saying it wasn’t, but they… they were still people, in the end.”

Shou’s frown deepens. “So what?” he snaps, harsher and angrier than he intends. His shoulders lift subconsciously, and he feels suddenly defensive. “They hurt us, Ritsu, really badly. That kind of damage can’t be healed by time or therapy or counseling. It’ll never go away, not ever.” He crosses his arms, drawing into himself when he would normally sit with open posture. “They broke us in a way that can’t be fixed, so I think it’s justified if we break them back. Compared to what they did to us, killing them is mercy.” He scoffs, looking away. “Anyway, it’s not like it matters anymore. They’re already dead, so there’s nothing left to talk about.”

Ritsu doesn’t answer, lips turning down in a disapproving frown. Shou notices belatedly that his hands are shaking. The sight of it sends a little shock of regret down his spine: he hadn’t meant to get defensive. In the four months they’ve stayed together, they haven’t butted heads very often, and the times they did were usually over things so small and trivial that they really didn’t matter in the end.

“Like I said, you were protecting yourself,” Shou mumbles, attempting to backpedal. “That must have been why you were so tired when you finally made it up the hill. Once everything was said and done you could hardly keep yourself standing. Adrenaline, probably.” He feels silly, like he’s rambling, but he’s desperate to change the subject now. “I basically had to carry you to the car, and you fell right asleep as soon as I told you to. Higashio hit a pothole halfway back, but you didn’t even react. You did end up leaning on my shoulder, though, somehow,” Shou says as Ritsu’s finishing up cleaning a cut on the side of his neck. “You slept the whole way back. I was pretty impressed. I had to levitate you all the way to the bed, ‘cause you wouldn’t wake up.”

Ritsu flushes pink as Shou speaks, setting aside the rag and grabbing a long band-aid from the box. His hands stop shaking.

Shou’s surprised to see Ritsu blush, and he can’t help the grin that comes to his face as the sour mood seems to lift a little. “Oh? Are you embarrassed? What’s wrong, Ritsu, you lean on me all the time now!” he teases, grateful for the chance to talk about something less heavy. Teasing is easy, even if the implications of their earlier conversation still hang thick in the air.

“Oh, shut up,” Ritsu retorts, but Shou’s teasing only makes his blush darken. It brings Shou a giddy kind of satisfaction to see Ritsu loosen up a little like this. Ritsu continues, “I don’t remember ever getting in the car. Guess my mind was too overloaded.”

“Trauma can do that to a person,” Shou agrees casually, leaning back on the couch as Ritsu finishes his work. “There’s a ton of stuff I blocked out of my memory growing up.”

Ritsu sighs, sitting up and taking a seat on the couch next to Shou. “That’s not a good thing,” he points out, fixing his dark gray gaze on Shou with a frown. “How do you even know that if you don’t remember what you’ve forgotten?”

“Well, it’s like you said. I remember what happened before and after, but my memory just kinda leaps forward in time. There’s an empty space that I know is there because it doesn’t make sense otherwise, but no matter how hard I try I can’t seem to figure out the missing pieces,” Shou explains with a wave of his hand. “They’re not important memories, though. I can live without them.”

Ritsu just stares at him with that same look, wordlessly telling him that his experience isn’t normal or desirable, as though he doesn’t already know.

Shou gulps, glancing away. Ritsu always has been pretty good at seeing right through him. “You know what they say, ignorance is bliss,” he says, though his words are lacking his usual confidence all of a sudden. Clearing his throat, he shifts in his seat, restless. “Er, was there anything else you wanted me to tell you? I don’t mind, you can ask me whatever you like.”

Ritsu shakes his head. “Ah, that’s okay, thanks. I remember everything that happened afterward,” he replies, but it’s clear to Shou that there’s something there, sitting on the tip of his tongue, barely held back by Ritsu’s unwillingness to step out of his comfort zone.

It’s been four months since they’d first partnered up, and Shou has grown somewhat accustomed to the little habits Ritsu uses to subtly express his emotions, like the way he avoids eye contact when he’s feeling vulnerable, or how he’ll fidget when he’s nervous or contemplative. Right now, he’s doing the former, eyes looking anywhere but at Shou as he piles the first aid equipment back into the box in preparation to store it again.

Shou stands and snaps the box up with his hands before Ritsu can, folding it shut and crossing the few steps over to the shelf at the other end of the room. “If you have something else to ask, you should just ask it,” he says. He doesn’t look back at Ritsu, if only because he knows his friend is less likely to ask if he feels like he’s being stared at.

Ritsu chuckles softly at this, leaning back in his seat. “I’m never going to be able to sneak one past you, am I?” he says.

Shou just shrugs, sliding the box into its place on the middle shelf. “I guess you could say I’ve gotten pretty good at reading you,” he replies, though it’s only somewhat true. Much of Ritsu’s mannerisms and habits are still a mystery to him, especially the ones that stem from his experiences with Claw. “So, what’s on your mind? You know you can talk to me, right?”

“I know,” Ritsu says without hesitation, and it puts some of Shou’s doubts to rest. He takes an audible breath, then asks, “When am I going to be able to see my brother? It’s been four months. He probably thinks I’m still missing, if he doesn’t think I’m dead. I want him to know that I’m safe.”

Shou pauses, his hands hovering on the box’s cut-out handles. For a long, silent moment, he just stands there, hands held in front of him. Then, he turns and walks over to where Ritsu is sitting, crouching in front of him and offering him a rehearsed smile. It’s meant to be reassuring, but Shou’s never been very good at that. “You’ll be able to see him soon, I promise,” he says.

Ritsu must pick up on his false persona, because his eyes narrow, and his lips turn down in a frown. Shou knows immediately that he’s fucked up. Ritsu’s glare is dark and biting, sending a shiver down his spine. Shou forgets sometimes how terrifying Ritsu can be, until that anger is turned on him instead of an enemy.

Ritsu stands up hastily, hands bunching into fists at his sides. “Don’t make me a promise you don’t intend to keep,” he snaps, tone harsh and angry.

Shou flinches, already regretful.

Ritsu pushes his way past him and disappears around a corner, and Shou hears the door of his room close behind him with finality.

Shou lets out a soft groan, leaning his forehead on the couch cushion in defeat. He hadn’t meant it like that. He really does have plans to let Ritsu talk to Shigeo, just… not yet. It’s still dangerous, there’s still a chance that Claw could realize their mistake in mixing them up and go after Shigeo instead, and he really doesn’t want Ritsu’s interference to be the reason Shigeo ends up in the same situation the two of them are in now. He knows that being away from his brother is the thing that Ritsu finds the most undesirable about their arrangement, but he just can’t think of a way for the two of them to meet without jeopardizing one or both of them in the process. Ritsu is too important to their mission, too important to him, to risk him falling into Claw’s grip again.

You’re so selfish, he berates himself, clenching his hands into fists. Ritsu isn’t your pawn, you can’t control him.

Shou has never been one to stifle or repress his own feelings and emotions, and because of this, he can’t deny that he cares for Ritsu in a very personal way. It extends beyond the bounds of their self-determined mission, morphing into a feeling that’s a bit deeper and more potent than he’s willing to delve into with the way things are. He frowns. These are dangerous feelings, distracting and unappreciated. If he lets them run wild without putting a cap on them, he’ll end up doing something he regrets. He can’t afford to let such things interfere with the goal he’s worked toward for more than three years now, so he recognizes them, acknowledges them, buries them. There’s no place for such wants here.

I should apologize, he thinks, pushing himself to his feet slowly. He owes Ritsu an explanation, needs to repair what he’s broken with his careless words. He hopes that Ritsu’s cooled off enough to let him.

He walks to the door in silence, footsteps light, treading on his toes before his heels so his steps don’t echo. It’s a habit he’s picked up from years of sneaking around enemy bases and sabotaging them from the inside. He pauses just outside, listening, but there’s no noise on the other side of the door. He reaches out tentatively, gives the door a little knock with the back of his hand. If Ritsu doesn’t want him there, he won’t answer, and Shou will leave as though he’d never knocked at all.

Luckily for him, Ritsu isn’t so angry that he’s forcing Shou away. “What do you want?” comes his muffled voice, his words ice-cold. It’s an invitation. A harsh one, sure, but it’s better than being outright ignored.

“Can I come in?” Shou asks.

“You can do what you want,” Ritsu replies dismissively. His words are biting, lined with sharp thorns, but Shou can read the quiet consent within them.

Shou lets out a breath he hasn’t realized he’s been holding, cracking the door open and stepping inside. Ritsu’s laying on the dingy bed on his side, facing the wall, and he refuses to look up as Shou enters. Shou can see the angry pout on his lip from across the room, and he might have found it cute if he hadn’t been its target.

He hesitates in the doorway, then moves to the far wall and grabs the folding chair set up in the corner, dragging it over by the bed. He leaves a respectable distance between them as he sits down, clasping his hands in front of him. “I’m sorry,” he says, never one to beat around the bush. “You will see your brother again, I just don’t know if it’s safe yet.”

“You never do,” Ritsu sighs in reply, and it’ll be a lie if Shou says it doesn’t sting. Ritsu shifts onto his back, looking up at the ceiling. His shaggy black bangs flop to the side, showing his forehead. “I know you’re just trying to protect me, but I’m getting restless. My brother’s out there, somewhere, wondering where I am, and I can’t even get a message to him to let him know that I’m even alive. I’m frustrated, and frankly, I’m running out of patience. We’ve been at this for months, and that’s just in the time I’ve been here. You’ve been fighting for over three years, but it feels like nothing’s changed.”

Ritsu’s expressing his feelings, a rare occurrence, but Shou can’t bring himself to appreciate the effort. His heart drops, a ball of worry and anxiety forming deep in his stomach. “Things have changed, though. The number of Claw bases is going down all the time. My father is on his last nerve, I can feel it-”

“How much longer is this going to take, Shou?” Ritsu demands, sitting up and meeting Shou’s gaze for the first time. “Another month? Six months? A year? I don’t… I don’t know if I can go that long without contacting Shigeo, at least.” He crosses his legs on the bed, gaze turning to stare down at his lap, angry, persistent.

Shou’s mouth goes dry, and he feels a rare stab of guilt in his chest. “I don’t know,” he admits, voice soft, and he lets it reflect his feelings of vulnerability and insecurity, if only for a moment. “I feel like it won’t be much longer, but I can’t tell you for sure. I don’t know how much more it’ll take.” He rests his elbows on his knees and lets his face fall into his hands. He swallows, his words heavy on his tongue. “If you’re having second thoughts, it’s okay. I’m not gonna make you stick around, after all. You can go back home whenever you want. I just don’t want you to get hurt,” he admits after a moment of contemplation.

As soon as the words are out of his mouth, he feels a wave of dread come over him. He doesn’t want Ritsu to leave. He wants him to stay his partner, wants them to trust each other. He wants Ritsu to be there when he finally shoves it in his dad’s face that he was wrong all along about world domination, but he can’t make him go along with it if he doesn’t want to.

Ritsu turns to him with wide eyes, momentarily shocked into silence, then his expression softens some and he says, “I’m not gonna leave, Shou.”

Shou looks up, catching Ritsu’s gray-eyed gaze for a moment before his friend looks away again. Ritsu fiddles with the edge of his sleeve, agitated. “I just… really miss my brother. I don’t want him to worry about me the way I worry about him.” He runs his fingers over the scars on one hand, marks and lines that Shou knows intimately, because he’d tended them when they were fresh. Ritsu runs his fingers over them, and says, “You’re my best friend, Shou, my partner, and I’m not going to abandon you. My brother is going to need me, but you need me, too. I’ll just have to come up with a safe way to contact him without alerting Claw, that’s all.”

Shou can’t help but let out a laugh, breathy and relieved, and the tension he’s been feeling melts away a little. “Yeah, alright. If anyone can figure it out, you can,” he says. It comes across a bit fonder than he intends, but there’s nothing he can do about it once it’s left his mouth. “Thanks for sticking by me, Ritsu. I know I’m not a very good friend, and I kinda suck at relationships in general, but it really means a lot that you have my back,” he adds, genuinely happy that Ritsu won’t be going away after all.

Shou catches the beginning of a blush on Ritsu’s cheeks as he glances away, hiding his face from Shou in a familiar way. “Don’t thank me yet,” he reminds him with a little smile. Shou knows he’s been forgiven.

Ritsu opens his mouth to say something else, but before he can, there’s a knock on the door. “Come in,” he says instead, turning toward the door.

Higashio opens the door, stepping into the threshold. “We’ve located a Claw base about thirty miles outside Seasoning City,” he says, all business. “We’ve confirmed its location after following an unmarked vehicle there. We’re ready to strike at any time, leader.”

Shou and Ritsu exchange a knowing look. There’s really no debating it. Shou turns back to Higashio and grins, feeling a familiar anticipation building up in him. He stands up, and Ritsu follows at his side.

“Let’s not waste time, then.”

#mob psycho 100 #mp100 #ritshou #kageyama ritsu #suzuki shou #fanfiction #mp100 fanfic #guns #torture #dissociation #blood #casual murder #serendipitousfics

3 notes · View notes

serenlyss · 5 years

Text

Don’t Thank Me Yet Chapter 5

Rating: M (violence, blood, guns, murder, torture, PTSD, trauma) Pairings: ritshou Summary: “Alright then. I’m Shou,” he says, introducing himself more properly this time. “I’m an esper, like you, the first in existence to be forcibly awoken by Claw’s crazy torture machines. They kidnap kids with potential latent psychic powers and break them, over and over, until either their powers emerge or they die. It doesn’t matter either way to them.” His expression hardens as he speaks, clear distaste and outright malice evident in his tone. “I could really use your help here, you know. A partner of sorts, someone to watch my back. What do you say?“ Ritsu hesitates. He isn’t a fighter by any means, and the psychic powers now churning beneath his skin are still very new and frightening. It’s all very overwhelming, but Ritsu can’t help but feel a sort of sickening hope at Shou’s promise for revenge. It did have a sort of dark draw to it. In which Claw is a lot worse than they seem and Shigeo isn’t able to find his brother after he’s kidnapped. Crossposted to AO3: Chapter 5

Chapter 4 // Chapter 6

We've finally made it to my favorite chapter. I'm really excited for you all yo read this at last, I put a lot of work into making sure it had the biggest and best impact it can. I really hope you all enjoy this chapter and the rest of what I have in store. If you all want to ask me questions or anything you can send me an ask or a message here or leave a comment on my ao3! I love hearing from you guys!

---

Ritsu’s mind goes blank.

The words sink in slowly, painfully, pressing down on his shoulders and squeezing his heart and lungs until he can’t tell if he’s breathing anymore. His fingers dig into the wood of the table until his knuckles turn white, arms quivering. He feels like he might vomit.

“What do you mean it’s on fire?” Shou yells, a bit quicker to process the news than Ritsu is. “They can’t have gotten there already, it hasn’t even been a day!” He stands up in a hurry, face contorted in a rage Ritsu’s rarely seen. He clenches his teeth tightly together, his whole body shaking in unbridled anger.

“It’s as I said. I was doing my rounds and noticed the smoke on my way back.” Ootsuki’s voice comes over the speaker with practiced calm, though there’s a sense of urgency in it as well. “I didn’t see anyone go in or come out, and the crowd around the house is way too thick to see if any of the Kageyamas made it outside. I only got a quick look, but one of the first-floor windows had been shattered. There was no glass on the outside.”

Shou slams a fist on the table, startling Ritsu. His glare is near-murderous as he hangs up the call and shoves his phone into his pocket. “Damn it! Someone must have broken in. How did they get a team out so fast?” he curses. He’s already rushing around the room, scooping up his backpack and tugging on his shoes. As he’s zipping up his jacket, he turns and fixes Ritsu with his intense gaze. “Let’s go, we’re taking the car.”

Ritsu’s tongue feels thick in his mouth, and he barely manages to choke out, “What?”, before Shou is hauling him up by his elbow and shoving him toward the door, snagging the car keys from a hook on the wall.

“Hurry up, you heard what Ootsuki said! We’ve gotta run if we’re gonna save your family!” Shou snaps, throwing open the house’s front door so fast that the doorknob leaves a dent in the wall.

Shou’s words break the spell Ritsu’s under, and he hurriedly steps into his shoes, not even bothering to tie them as he chases Shou out the front door. “Do you even know how to drive?” Ritsu sputters without thinking.

“Of course not, but that’s not really important right now, is it?” Shou replies over his shoulder haughtily, but that doesn’t stop him from sliding into the front seat of the car and shoving the keys into the ignition.

Ritsu barely has time to get himself into the passenger’s seat and close the door before Shou’s pulling the car jerkily away from the curb. He hits the gas far too hard, sending the car lurching forward at a nauseating velocity. Ritsu’s hand snaps up to cling to the handle affixed to the car’s ceiling, feeling his heart plummet into his stomach. “This is a terrible idea!” he cries.

Shou takes a sharp turn, barely hitting the brake at all as he does. “Got a better one? Please do tell!” he snaps back in irritation, swerving back and forth to avoid parked cars and other would-be deterrents as he heads for Ritsu’s house. “You can’t fly, unless you’ve been practicing behind my back, and I sure as hell can’t carry four people once we finally get everyone out. Five, if you count Ootsuki!”

Ritsu has no better ideas, so he falls quiet. It’s only once they’re on the wide-open main road that he finally feels like he can loosen his iron grip on the handle, but now his hands shake against his will and his chest tightens in a familiar way as the situation truly sinks in. With it comes world-crushing dread and guilt, filling him up in a second and overflowing in the form of tears that streak down his face. “This is all my fault,” he groans, burying his face in his hands.

Shou sighs softly. “Come on, dude, it’s too early to break down. At least wait until we get to the house and figure out what happened to your family,” he chastises, gaze fixed firmly on the road in front of them. His hands are hot-glued to the wheel as he does his best not to hit anyone else.

“What if they’re gone?” Ritsu asks, ashamed at the way his voice cracks. “What if they’re hurt? Shou, what if they’re dead?”

He glances up at Shou, searching for something, anything. He feels stressed and lost and so, so scared, like he’s a kid again, running to his mother after a bad day and crying into her arms. He searches for that warmth now, that familiar comfort that feels so out of reach, and instead finds himself cold.

“We won’t know until we get there,” Shou murmurs, and the realism of it just knocks Ritsu deeper into his worries. He wants Shou to tell him that everything’s going to be fine, that it’ll all work out in the end, even though he knows that neither of them have any way of knowing how things will turn out.

Ritsu spends the rest of the drive struggling to pull himself together, reaching for his rampant emotions with outstretched hands and shoving them back into his skin where they belong. He dries his tears on the sleeve of his jacket as Shou zig-zags down the familiar streets of his hometown and wonders if this is how Shigeo always feels, the weight of too many complicated emotions strangling his heart. He can see the plume of smoke rising before they even turn onto his street, staining the blue sky a dark, murky gray.

When he finally lays eyes on his childhood home, Ritsu momentarily forgets how to breathe. The left side of the house is engulfed in flames already, the blaze creeping its way slowly along the roof and the wall where Ritsu can see his old bedroom’s balcony. The living room window has been completely shattered, as Ootsuki had relayed over the phone, and flames pour out of it like water from a tap, angrily singeing the tulips in his mother’s flowerbed. He scrambles out of the passenger-side door as Shou pulls to the car to a halt across the street, ears filled with the crackle of fire and the anxious murmurs of the crowd gathered outside the front gate. Distantly, he hears the sirens of fire trucks being deployed.

Shou moves before Ritsu has a chance to, shoving his way into the crowd and vaulting the gate without even pausing to open it. Ritsu’s quick to scramble after him, ignoring the shocked cries and warnings thrown his way by the crowd of bystanders. He doesn’t even look to see if anyone he recognizes is here; it doesn’t matter, because an aura is radiating from the house like a beacon, even brighter than the fires that threaten to bring the house down around it, and even though Ritsu’s never sensed it before, he knows it can only belong to one person.

Ritsu doesn’t give himself the time to process that his brother is still here, still alive, as he lifts one foot and kicks the door in without a second thought. The burned door gives way too easily under his weight, the lock protesting in a loud screech of metal on metal before falling apart entirely. He sprints down the hall and forces open the door that leads into the combined family room and kitchen, and hears Shou right on his heels, already breathing hard from the smoke that’s filled the entryway.

Ritsu recoils, raising his arms to shield his face as a rush of hot air nearly blows him off his feet. He feels his unbuttoned jacket being ripped back by the psychic wind that whips through the whole room, stronger than any summer storm. He takes a step over the threshold, then another, eyes darting around as he takes in the scene before him.

The entire room is on fire, hungry tongues of it lapping at the carpet and gnawing on the wooden beams that hide behind the drywall. The ceiling is entirely obscured by the thick cloud of smoke that hovers there, like an ominous, poisonous fog. Shattered glass covers the floor from the blown-in window, and the television lays in pieces at the far end of the room. The dining room table has been cracked down its middle, splinters of it covering the kitchen floor as the fire reaches greedily for them. There are dents in the walls and in the kitchen cabinets, and the ceiling fan hangs at a diagonal angle, as if barely holding onto its place.

There, in the middle of the blaze and shattered glass, stands Shigeo, surrounded in a bright blue aura that drips from him like water. Despite the house’s state of disrepair, he looks almost calm, his feet firmly planted on the ruined carpet and one hand held out in front of him. The wind in the room whips off of him in frighteningly strong gusts, lifting the hem of his shirt and causing his hair to stand straight up. His brow is furrowed in fierce determination, fiery red eyes fixed on a pair of nasty-looking espers. Ritsu’s quick to pick them out as Scars, the angry red marks on their faces a dead giveaway that it had indeed been Claw who had attacked this place. One of them is down on one knee and looks rather battered, as though he’s already put up as much of a fight as he could, and the other doesn’t look much better, blood dripping from a wound on his head. Their parents are nowhere to be seen.

“Shige!” Ritsu cries, fighting to be heard above the noise of the tiny storm Shigeo has managed to conjure within the house’s walls. He doesn’t even care about the Scars at this point, doesn’t care if he’s giving away the element of surprise or whatever other advantage he may have. He just wants his brother.

Three pairs of eyes turn to look at him immediately, but Ritsu can only stare as Shigeo’s head snaps around and he finally, finally meets Ritsu’s gaze. His eyes go wide, and he stumbles back a step as though he’s been pushed. The storm around him ceases instantly, shards of glass and splinters of wood clattering harmlessly to the ground around him. His mouth falls open, lips forming Ritsu’s name, and then suddenly he’s gone.

One of the Scars moves with a speed Ritsu isn’t accounting for, and his fist sinks into Shigeo’s cheek with an audible crack that sends him careening back into the fireplace. The brick structure collapses on top of him, throwing up a thick cloud of dust and ash leftover from cold winter nights that were never swept away.

Before Ritsu can even understand what’s come over him, he sees red. He hears himself scream, aura bursting from under his skin as he grabs the Scar tightly with his telekinesis and pins him up against the far wall by his throat. His blood roars in his ears, the noise of it drowning out everything else. He clenches his hand into a tight fist and takes a sick sense of pride in the way the Scar fights to breathe and reaches for hands that aren’t there. His mind goes blank, his aura overflowing and filling the room in a way he’s only felt once before, on the night he’d first awakened his powers.

At his side, Shou reaches for the other Scar and lifts him up with his aura without hesitation. He grits his teeth and pushes, hard, and the Scar flies into the house’s wall and then breaks through it, hitting the ground somewhere outside with a crash.

Ritsu clenches his teeth and tightens his grip even further until the Scar can’t even gasp anymore, his face turned purple and red. He feels a maniacal grin pull at the corners of his mouth, a sick satisfaction filling him as the Scar stops struggling and his arms fall limp at his sides.

A hand grabs him by the shoulder and whirls him around. “Ritsu! Drop him, he’ll die!” Shou yells, knocking away his outstretched hand with a loud, backhanded slap. Ritsu loses his grip, and the Scar falls to the ground in a heap, unconscious. Shou grabs his face with both hands, staring up at him with wide eyes filled with worry and desperation and fear. “Let’s get out of here,” he pleads. His hands tremble slightly against Ritsu’s skin, too warm in the overheated room, and his breathing comes quick and raspy from smoke inhalation. The air is thin and filling with more smoke by the second, turning their surroundings hazy and monochromatic.

“You’re not a killer,” he whispers.

Ritsu gasps, feeling the murderous intent drain from him in a flash. He blinks, as though waking up, his whole body going stiff and motionless as he fights to wrap his mind around what had just happened. He swallows, holding Shou’s gaze for a moment before he whips around toward the fireplace, tearing his face out of Shou’s grasp. “Shige!” he calls, stumbling to the pile of bricks and falling to his knees next to it. He pushes them away with his hands, desperate to unbury his brother before the Scars come back to their senses.

Shigeo groans and sits up in the wreckage, rubbing the back of his head, and meets Ritsu’s gaze once more. His eyes no longer glow that intense, angry red, back to their usual dark shade of gray, and his hair lays against his forehead once more. For a moment, he just stares, shaking hands reaching out as if to touch but retreating before they can, and his lower lip wobbles as he searches for words to speak with. “Ritsu?” he whispers like a prayer, quiet and vulnerable.

Ritsu’s never been happier to hear someone say his name. He throws himself into his brother’s arms, squeezing him tightly, and Shigeo doesn’t hesitate to hold him back. He forgets that Shigeo is still half-buried in bricks and ash, forgets that the house is still very much on fire around them. He’s too relieved and overwhelmed to care about anything other than the fact that Shigeo is here, Shigeo is alive, Shigeo is real and solid and just as gentle as he remembers. He buries his face into his brother’s neck, not even bothering to hold back the tears that come this time. Shigeo has seen him cry too many times for him to start feeling ashamed of it now.

Shigeo doesn’t say a word as Ritsu clings to him, just settles his hands against his back and pulls him closer, but Ritsu can tell he’s crying too from the way he shakes in his arms.

Ritsu only pulls away when he hears the sound of voices nearby, drawing him out of the relieved trance he’d fallen into. When he extracts himself from Shigeo’s grip and looks over, he sees that it’s Ootsuki, speaking with Shou, and the reality of the situation comes flooding back to him. He glances at the Scar he’d choked, sees that he’s still unconscious on the ground, and then he stands, pulling Shigeo with him by the hand. “We should go,” he says, casting a glance at Shou and wiping at his eyes with his free hand. “Shige, where are Mom and Dad?”

Shigeo lets himself be pulled, bricks clattering to the ground around him as he finally frees his legs from them. He’s covered head to toe in soot and dust, and he coughs into his hand, wincing. Ritsu can feel the smoke burning his lungs, too. “They’re not here. It’s their anniversary this weekend, so they went away on a trip and left me at home, just for a little while,” he manages, voice hoarse. “They won’t be home for a few more days.”

Ritsu can’t help but be surprised that his strict parents were willing to leave Shigeo home alone for such a long period of time. “They didn’t take you with them?”

Shigeo shakes his head. “I told them not to. It took quite a bit of convincing, but I wanted them to have a nice vacation without having to worry about me… I guess that ended up being a bad idea, huh?” he glances regretfully around the ruined house as he and Ritsu head for the door.

“Enough chatter, let’s get out of here,” Shou says sternly, giving Ritsu’s shoulder a little shove as he crowds them out of the burning building. He tosses the car keys to Ootsuki, who catches them deftly. “You drive, I’m underage.”

Ritsu bites back the urge to point out that it’d been Shou who had driven them here in the first place, letting him hustle them out the back door.

Shou breaks away from them as they reach the door, casting Ritsu a glance and nodding at him, then reaches up and takes Ootsuki by his forearm. Immediately, the two of them blink out of sight, surrounded by Shou’s light-reflecting barrier.

Oh, Ritsu thinks, I guess we can’t let ourselves be caught by the police, they’ll ask too many questions. He follows Shou’s lead, flashing Shigeo a small smile as he throws up a field of invisibility of his own.

“You have psychic powers!” Shigeo gasps in shock, and the awe in his voice is enough to make Ritsu laugh out loud. He’d really, really missed his brother.

He holds a finger to his lips with a sly smile. “Quiet, we’ve gotta be sneaky now,” he whispers, grabbing Shigeo by the hand and tugging him around the house and toward where the car is parked. He feels like a giddy little kid playing hide and seek, crouched under the kitchen table while his mother pretends not to know where he is. Just for a bit, it’s like the mission doesn’t have life-or-death consequences. He slips into the back seat of the car with Shigeo while Shou takes up the shotgun seat, and the car rumbles to life.

Fire trucks are parked in front of the house now, and Ritsu can hear police sirens close behind, but by the time anyone’s noticed that the car has started, they’re leaving the curb and speeding back to their headquarters.

For a few minutes, all four of them sit in silence, and the giddiness and excitement Ritsu felt at finally reuniting with his brother fades, replaced with the apprehension and anticipation that comes with knowing that he has a lot to explain. He can practically hear Shigeo’s thoughts racing despite the impassive expression he wears, and Ritsu doesn’t feel much better, his own mind scrambling to figure out exactly how he’s going to explain his four months of absence to his brother.

Ritsu swallows, and decides to break the silence first. “Ah, I should probably introduce you, right?” he says, his voice coming out painfully awkward. “Shige, these are my friends, Shou and Ootsuki. I’ve… been staying with them for a few months now.”

Shou flashes Shigeo a grin, turning around in the front seat and propping his elbow up on the back of it. “Nice to meet’cha, Ritsu’s brother. Sorry to keep you in the dark for so long,” he says, his words painfully casual in contrast to the tense atmosphere.

Shigeo manages a smile. “Oh, um, it’s nice to meet you too. You can just call me Shigeo,” he murmurs in response. His gaze flickers to Ritsu momentarily, questioning.

“I promise, I’ll explain everything, I just… give me a little bit of time to get my thoughts together,” Ritsu says, hearing Shigeo’s unspoken question as though he’d said it aloud. It’s a small, but very real, reassurance that they can still understand each other despite their time apart.

Shigeo offers him a closed smile and nods. “It’s okay, take your time,” he says, and Ritsu knows he’s going to be eternally grateful for his brother’s understanding nature.

“Thank you,” he says, turning to look down at his knees. Shigeo’s leg and shoulder press softly against him, unconsciously gravitating towards him despite the fact that there’s plenty of room for them both to stretch out in the car’s back seat. Ritsu takes comfort from it, relishes in the fact that they can finally be together again after so many months of being unable to see each other. He imagines Shigeo must have had an even harder time than him, having no idea where Ritsu had disappeared to or where he’d been. He wonders how often Shigeo had thought about him, how many times he’d considered the possibility that he might have been dead the whole time.

“I’m really glad you’re okay.” Shigeo breaks the silence this time, drawing Ritsu out of his thoughts. He turns to him and offers him a small, kind smile, but there’s sadness behind it, too. “Hanazawa and I tried to find you after you disappeared, but it was really hard just to find the place they took you to. By the time we managed to track it down, it’d been abandoned and demolished. We kept trying for a while afterward, but eventually… we had to give up.” He speaks softly, defeat in his gaze as he stares down at his hands. “I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you. I was born with incredibly strong psychic powers, but when it came down to it, I couldn’t even protect one person.” Ritsu sees the way his expression hardens regretfully and his hands clench into fists. “I’m sorry,” he says again.

Why is he apologizing? Ritsu wonders, finding himself speechless in the face of Shigeo’s regret. He almost feels like laughing; of course Shigeo would blame himself for what went down. “It’s not your fault, it’s… it’s no one’s fault,” he says, even if he feels like he should be shouldering at least some of the blame for not going home when he could have. “It was a tough situation. We all did what we thought was right.”

Shigeo reaches over and pats Ritsu on his knee in reply. They don’t speak again until Ootsuki pulls into the driveway of the old house Ritsu’s called his home for the past four months.

Shigeo’s head had fallen to Ritsu’s shoulder somewhere along the drive home, and as Ootsuki shuts off the car, Ritsu reaches over and gives him a little shake. “Wake up, we’re here,” he whispers. The sun has long since gone down, a few stars visible through the bright, iridescent street lights. “Are you tired?”

Shigeo lifts his head with a sleepy hum. “I’m fine,” he assures, but he has to hide a yawn behind his hand. “I can stay up a bit longer. We have a lot to talk about, after all.”

Ritsu swallows; he knows that Shigeo doesn’t mean it in a threatening way by any means, but he can’t help but feel chastised anyway. “Yeah,” he agrees quietly, pushing open the car door and sliding out of the seat. Shigeo follows behind him, stretching his arms over his head as they walk up to the front door and step inside.

Ootsuki’s quick to excuse himself, saying something to Shou about how Fukuda and Higashio had returned while they were out, which leaves the three younger boys to themselves in the house’s main room.

“Are you guys hurt at all?” Shou asks, gaze flicking to Ritsu with thinly-veiled concern. He hangs his jacket on the coat rack, exposing his arms.

Ritsu shakes his head. “I’m fine, just dusty,” he replies, and turns to look at Shigeo. His brother has his eyes fixed on the many scars that litter Shou’s arms, snaking up and under the sleeve of his T-shirt.

“I think I’m okay, for the most part,” Shigeo says after a moment, tearing his gaze away from Shou and giving himself a quick once-over. There’s a scrape on his cheek from when he’d been thrown into the fireplace, Ritsu notes, but aside from that he looks unharmed.

A smile tugs at Ritsu’s lips; it’s likely the only hit the Scars had gotten on him during the entire fight.

Shou nods, shuffling on his feet with an uncharacteristic awkwardness. “Well, uh, if you two don’t need anything-”

“Could we have a minute to talk?” Ritsu asks. “I know that this changes, uh, everything, I guess, but it’s late and I just…” He pauses, taking a breath before he rambles too much. “I need to talk to my brother for a while, alone.”

Shou nods, offering Ritsu a rare, understanding smile. “Yeah, of course. I’ll be in my room, just holler if you need anything,” he says, and disappears down the hall.

Shigeo turns to face Ritsu as Shou leaves. “Do you need more time?” he asks.

Ritsu smiles; it never ceases to amaze him how considerate Shigeo can be. “No, that’s alright, I think I’m ready,” he replies, then pauses, a thought coming to his mind. “Actually, there’s something I want to grab from my room before we start. Uh, I’ll be right back.” He turns and heads to his own room, catching Shigeo’s murmured “Alright,” as he does.

He slips inside and heads to the little shelf in the corner of the mostly-bare room, crouching down to the very bottom shelf and picking up a bag. It’s plain-looking, with a zipper on top, the kind that had probably, at one point, been marketed as a bag for keeping makeup in. In Ritsu’s possession, though, it holds something with a bit of a deeper meaning to it.

Bag in hand, Ritsu makes his way back to the main room. Shigeo has taken a seat on one of the two couches in the house’s common area, and he looks up as Ritsu returns. “What’s that?” he asks, eyes drifting down to the makeup bag in curiosity.

Ritsu sits down on the floor instead of the couch and waves for Shigeo to join him. He unzips the bag and upends it on the floor, revealing a handful of colorful bottles of fingernail polish. “I’ve been collecting these over the last couple of months,” he explains. “Sometimes I paint my own nails, but I haven’t done it much since I… went away.” He decides to sugarcoat for the time being, knowing he’ll be explaining the whole situation soon anyway. “We used to do this all the time whenever we had to have serious talks.”

Shigeo looks surprised at first, leaning over to pick up one of the bottles and turn it over in his hands as he sits down cross-legged with Ritsu. “I’d forgotten,” he admits, a smile coming to his face. “It’s been a long time since we’ve had a talk like that.” He scoops the pile to the side and sifts through them for a minute before picking out a pastel green bottle and setting it aside for himself. Then he picks out another, a midnight blue. Ritsu resists the urge to laugh at the fact that Shigeo had intentionally gone for his favorite color. It’s nice to know that he still remembers.

“I’ll do yours first,” Shigeo offers, and reaches out expectantly for Ritsu’s hand. Ritsu moves to give it to him, then freezes when he realizes he’s still wearing his gloves. He draws his hand back, hesitating for a moment, and Shigeo frowns, head tilting ever-so-slightly as if to ask what’s wrong.

Ritsu bites his lip. He can’t hide his hands from Shigeo forever, he knows, even if he really wants to. He undoes the adjustable velcro straps keeping the gloves in place and slides them off, then holds his hand out to Shigeo once more, palm skyward.

Shigeo takes it in his own, gaze flicking down to stare at it, and Ritsu hears the way his breathing hitches in his throat when he lays eyes on the myriad of scars that cover his palm and fingers. Many of them have faded somewhat after four months of healing, but none of them have disappeared, and Ritsu doubts they ever will. They’re bright white and obvious in the dimly lit room, laid atop one another with no obvious pattern. Some of them are long, spanning the length of his palm, while others are shorter, like he’d been stabbed rather than slashed. “What happened?” Shigeo asks softly, cradling his palm with one hand and reaching out with the other to gingerly trace the lines with his fingertips.

Ritsu tells him. He doesn’t get into the details, still unwilling to reveal the full extent of his kidnapping and torture with anyone, but he doesn’t leave things out for Shigeo’s sake, either. He describes the dark cell he’d slept in for only a single night, how the cold had crept through his skin and settled into his bones until he ached. He tells Shigeo about how he hadn’t been able to sleep for that night because the wounds on his hands and arms had hurt too badly to let him. He talks about the threats to his life, the other kids he’d seen leave and never return, the ever-present anxiety and fear that the next test would be the one that would kill him. He describes the way his powers had exploded in his moment of greatest need, how he’d been so drunk on it that he hadn’t even realized what had happened until he’d lost the strength to move properly anymore.

He talks about Shou, appearing out of nowhere and giving him somewhere safe to fall back to, recounts how he’d tended to his days-old wounds with a touch that was confident but gentle and spoke of the number of times he’d done the same to himself. He tells Shigeo about the meals they’d eat together, and about the nights when he and Shou would fall asleep on the floor of Ritsu’s bedroom, nights where they’d stay up talking about nothing and everything at the same time, both of them too comfortable and content to bother going to their own beds. He describes the long nights spent staking out Claw bases, huddled together in the bushes, always on edge but just a little less scared than they would be separate, and as he does his shoulders lose some of their tense squareness and the crease in his brow smooths over.

He talks and talks and lets his thoughts fall from his mouth without much consideration, and part way through Shigeo finishes the first coat of polish and just holds Ritsu’s hand lightly in his. His hand is soft and smooth where Ritsu’s is rough and calloused, a reminder of the very different paths they’d taken.

Shigeo listens in silence as he finally says the things that he’s so far shared only with Shou, and all the while his brother stares down at the scars on his palms and runs his fingers over them. They don’t hurt, not anymore, and they haven’t for a long time, but he can’t help but feel the need to pull away. Ritsu isn’t used to the way it feels for someone to touch his scars like this. No one’s touched his bare hands since he’d left the Claw base, and that isn’t a sensation he’s willing to relive.

Then, quietly, Shigeo turns his hand back over and reaches for the nail polish once more. His lips are tightly pursed, and Ritsu doesn’t miss the way the hand holding his shakes and tightens its grip ever-so-slightly. His anger is not so intense that Ritsu worries he might explode, but it’s still there, simmering dangerously beneath the surface. “It sounds like you’ve had a really hard time,” he says, his voice carefully calm and expressionless. If Ritsu hadn’t known his brother as well as he does, he probably wouldn’t have noticed the little angry tells at all.

Ritsu just shrugs as Shigeo moves to apply the second coat of paint to his thumb, some of his apprehension melting away now that Shigeo isn’t focused on his scars anymore. “Yeah,” he agrees quietly, “but it hasn’t been all bad. There’s good things, here and there, like meeting Shou.”

“You care about him a lot,” Shigeo says. It’s not a question, but a statement that he says like he’s listing a fact.

“He’s my partner, my best friend,” Ritsu replies immediately, nearly startling himself with how quickly and earnestly he says it. “I mean, is it really so surprising? We’ve been working together for these last four months, basically around the clock. He knows me better than pretty much anyone, and he understands what I’ve gone through more than anyone else ever could…” he trails off, glancing down in embarrassment at his rambling.

Shigeo just chuckles softly. “I understand,” he assures, fixing Ritsu with a knowing look.

Ritsu rolls his eyes, feeling a blush creep up his neck, but it’s hard to fight the smile that tugs at the corners of his mouth. “I missed you a lot,” he admits after a brief moment of quiet, voice dropping in volume as though he’s telling his brother a secret. “Mom and Dad, too. I wanted to go home as soon as possible, but with Claw still looking for me, I couldn’t risk it. I didn’t want you to end up involved, too. Guess that didn’t work out so well, huh?” His voice takes on a bitter edge as he speaks, shoulders slumping.

Shigeo drops Ritsu’s hand, nail polish now long dried, and presses the pastel green bottle into his palm in replacement. “It’s not your fault, Ritsu, you did what you thought was best,” he assures, and Ritsu can hear the emphasis he puts behind his words, how much Shigeo really wants him to believe what he’s hearing.

“I got your note,” Shigeo continues, reaching into his pocket and drawing out a folded piece of paper. “It was so vague, it took me a few minutes to realize it was even from you in the first place.” He smiles fondly down at it, then holds it out for Ritsu to take.

Ritsu does, turning it over in his hand a few times before he opens it up. He clearly remembers writing this note just that morning, hours before his house had been attacked. It’s scrawled on a piece of lined notebook paper in black pen, everything Shigeo needed to know packed into a few words.

“See you soon,” the note reads, in Ritsu’s careful, neat handwriting. Beside the meager message, he’d doodled a few seemingly random pictures: the model airplane Shigeo had levitated when they were kids, the spoon Ritsu had kept on his person all through middle school, and the student council armband he’d lost in the fight the day he’d been kidnapped. It had been his way of signing the note without using his name, just in case someone other than Shigeo had managed to get their hands on it.

Ritsu chuckles softly, folding the note back up and passing it back to Shigeo, but there’s a bitter edge to it. “It was just meant to let you know that I was alive, and that I’d be coming home eventually, but all it really did was tip off Claw that you were there. They must have finally realized that they’d mixed us up, and that’s when they decided to attack our house,” he says, then moves to unscrew the cap of the little green bottle of nail polish. He takes Shigeo’s hand in his and gets to work. “I’m sorry it took me so long to reach out, and that I got you involved in our fight. I know this… isn’t the ideal way for us to reunite.”

Shigeo just smiles that soft and calming smile and says, “It’s okay, Ritsu, I forgive you. It might not be the best outcome, but we’ll figure it out. I’m just glad that we’re together again.”

A weight lifts off of Ritsu’s shoulders, his brother’s words comforting in a way they wouldn’t have been coming from anyone else. “Yeah, me too,” he replies earnestly, feeling his chest warm contentedly.

That night, they fall asleep on the floor of Ritsu’s room with painted nails and clearer consciences, huddled under the same blanket the way they used to do when they were only half as tall and half as old as they are now, and for a single night, everything is calm.

#mob psycho 100 #mp100 #ritshou #kageyama ritsu #suzuki shou #This made my day tbh #fanfiction #fanfic #mp100 fanfic #violence #Blood #guns #murder #torture #ptsd #trauma #hurt/comfort #eventual happy ending #serendipitousfics

2 notes · View notes

serenlyss · 5 years

Text

Don’t Thank Me Yet Chapter 9

Rating: M (canon typical violence, referenced neglect/abuse, murder, guns, trauma/ptsd, blood) Relationships: ritshou, ritsu&shigeo, shou&reigen Summary: “Alright then. I’m Shou,” he says, introducing himself more properly this time. “I’m an esper, like you, the first in existence to be forcibly awoken by Claw’s crazy torture machines. They kidnap kids with potential latent psychic powers and break them, over and over, until either their powers emerge or they die. It doesn’t matter either way to them.” His expression hardens as he speaks, clear distaste and outright malice evident in his tone. “I could really use your help here, you know. A partner of sorts, someone to watch my back. What do you say?“ Ritsu hesitates. He isn’t a fighter by any means, and the psychic powers now churning beneath his skin are still very new and frightening. It’s all very overwhelming, but Ritsu can’t help but feel a sort of sickening hope at Shou’s promise for revenge. It did have a sort of dark draw to it. In which Claw is a lot worse than they seem and Shigeo isn’t able to find his brother after he’s kidnapped. Crossposted to AO3: Chapter 9

Chapter 8 // Chapter 10

Listen... I knew I said this would be the last chapter, but I lied. Halfway through writing the ending, I decided to split this resolution/epilogue chapters into two different chapters, once from Shou's pov, and one from Ritsu's. As such the TRUE last chapter will be next Wednesday, provided nothing comes up that prevents me from finishing it! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

---

Shou falls asleep on the drive home.

It’s been, to put it lightly, a long day. He’s covered head to toe in bruises and cuts and he’s a little concerned that he might have a minor concussion from being thrown around so much, though his headache does subside just a bit as the night wears on. He doesn’t even mean to fall asleep, but his head ends up wilting against the window of the taxi they take back to the house and he’s out so quickly that he doesn’t remember the driver pulling away from the curb.

Searching for his father had been a quick, quiet affair. Once they’d dug him out from underneath the huge, inexplicable broccoli in the center of downtown, they’d immediately handed him over to the government to have him contained. To Shou’s surprise and suspicion, he hadn’t resisted his arrest at all, perfectly content to let the government’s espers ship him off to whatever lab they planned on trapping him in. Part of Shou feels vindicated that his father will finally get a taste of what had happened to him growing up, but another, smaller part of him grieves. The moment he feels it start to surface, he stomps it to death, unwilling to let even the slightest bit of pity or regret bring him down.

They’d hardly exchanged words as Shou had handed his father over, except to tell Touichirou that he’d never see the light of day again after everything he’d done. In the end, in fact, Shou had found he’d only had one question for his father before they’d loaded him into the back of the police car. “Was it worth it?” he’d asked, but Touichirou had refused to answer, and so he’d watched quietly as an agent named Joseph loaded his father into the back of a police cruiser and took him away without another word.

Fukuda shakes him awake as they’re pulling into the driveway of the house, and he’s roused slowly from his dreamless sleep. He blinks a few times, reaching up to scrub the sleep from his eyes with the heel of his hand. “Are we back already?” he asks around a yawn.

“Yeah, it looks like the others made it back okay,” Fukuda replies, waving a hand to the familiar car parked on the curb across from the front door.

Shou lets out a breath and nods. “That’s good,” he murmurs, reaching over to push open the car door with one hand and clamber out of the back seat. “I think I just need a night. That should be long enough, and then we can go tie up all our loose threads.” He stretches his arms over his head briefly and winces as his various cuts and scrapes rub against his clothes and sting in protest to his movements.

Fukuda gives him a small, grim nod, and then moves to pay the taxi driver so the four of them can head back into the house. If everything had gone well, Ritsu would be waiting alongside Shigeo and his other two friends. Shou hasn’t bothered to learn their names just yet, but he will. Eventually. Once all of this is finally over for good.

What will I do once I’ve finished everything I need to? Shou wonders to himself as he cracks open the house’s door. He hasn’t thought that far ahead.

Muted voices reach his ears as he shuffles inside behind Fukuda and sheds his shoes and shredded jacket. As he rounds the corner, he sees Ritsu and Shigeo on the ground in the living room with the group’s two newcomers, their box of first aid supplies scattered around the room haphazardly. Shigeo’s proclaimed master is kneeling on the ground in front of a weary-looking Shigeo, cleaning away the blood from his arm. Ritsu has bandages wrapped around his head and hands, which have been stripped of his dark gloves to get at the injuries underneath, and he’s talking quietly with the blond boy from earlier. Hanazawa, if his earlier conversations are to be remembered correctly, but he can’t remember the boy’s first name.

Ritsu turns to look at Shou as he rounds the corner, dark eyes meeting Shou’s own blue ones from across the room. “How’d it go?” he asks immediately, standing up from his spot beside Hanazawa and nearly clambering over his brother in his rush to meet them.

Shou casts a glance at his six spectators, three of whom already know and three of whom are gloriously in the dark, still, and decides he’d really rather not have this conversation in front of them. “Did you fill them in?” he asks, choosing to answer Ritsu’s question with one of his own.

Ritsu frowns, concern tinting the edges of his expression, and he nods. “More or less. They know about your father, in any case,” he replies quietly.

Shou casts another glance into the living room. Shigeo pointedly averts his gaze, looking down at his bandaged arm, but his master and Hanazawa are watching him expectantly. He takes a breath before he lets himself become overwhelmed, then gives a firm nod. “I’ll fill in the blanks later,” he decides, reaching up with a hand to push his hair away from his face. He looks down at the ground for a moment, then adds, “First, I need to get cleaned up, and… the two of us need to talk.”

Ritsu casts a glance over his shoulder at his friends, bites his lip, and then nods in acceptance. “Sure, of course. You go ahead, wait for me in your room. I’ll get the stuff,” he assures, and even manages a smile for Shou’s sake, the corners of his mouth twitching despite his obviously worn-out state of mind.

“Thank you,” Shou murmurs, and puts all the meaning he can muster into it in his half-asleep state. He turns and heads down the hall, ducking into his bedroom and pushing his door closed behind him as quietly as he can.

For a moment, he just leans against his door, fighting the headache that blooms behind his forehead where he’d been struck and trying to calm his racing heart a little. Calm down, think things through, he reminds himself in an attempt to stave off the anxiety attack he’s found himself in the middle of. His palms itch, and he resists the urge to pick at them with his nails as he walks over to his bed and sinks onto the edge of it.

He’s known for a long time that this conversation with Ritsu is one that they’ll need to have, that the subject of what comes next has likely been on both of their minds for a while now, but it doesn’t stop his stomach from twisting at the thought of actually talking it out. His hands feel clammy, clasped in his lap, his fingers sticking to his palms as he folds them into fists and opens them again. What comes next? He can’t think of a single thing he wants to do, his brain too fuzzy to find the answer.

Ritsu cracks open his bedroom door after a few minutes, slipping quietly inside. Tucked under his arm is a variety of first aid supplies he’d snagged from the mess on the floor, and it’s then that Shou remembers once more the sorry state he’s in. “Hey,” Ritsu says, pulling up the lone chair in the room so he can sit across from him.

“Hey,” Shou replies, mustering up a faint smile in response to Ritsu’s clipped greeting. “Looks like everything went well on your end.”

Ritsu nods, already reaching for one of Shou’s hands. They’ve gone through this routine so many times in the last few months that it’s become almost therapeutic for Shou to let Ritsu patch him up after a fight, and his head clears some at the familiar contact. “Yeah, it wasn’t too bad. Teru was able to find Shigeo pretty easily, and Reigen wasn’t a total pain to be around.”

Shou nods, mentally filing those names away for later. How long does it take for a normal, well-adjusted person to learn someone’s name, he wonders? Then again, very little about this situation makes any of them seem like normal people. “I’m glad,” he replies simply. “Things didn’t really go the way we planned, but I guess everything worked out in the end.”

Ritsu nods his head, dabbing away a trail of blood that runs down Shou’s arm from a cut on his bicep. “So then, your father…?” he starts, glancing up at Shou questioningly.

“Gone,” Shou confirms. “We handed him over to the government. I don’t know what your brother did to him, but he didn’t even struggle. They’re not gonna let him out of there until he dies.”

Ritsu nods once more, pressing his lips together. “I’d wondered if you might try to kill him yourself,” he admits, “but I’m glad you didn’t.”

Shou sniffs, reaching up an arm to wipe at his nose. His throat feels tight. “I wanted to,” he mumbles, glancing away, “but when it came down to it, I couldn’t bring myself to follow through.” He’d had the opportunity right in front of him. His father, nearly too weak to stand, half-buried in broccoli roots where no one would be there to interrupt him. It would have been easy, the easiest murder Shou’s ever committed, but the traitorous part of him that remembers the father who had wanted him had held him back in that crucial moment.

“Shou,” Ritsu speaks, his bandaged fingers reaching up to brush against Shou’s jawline, to turn his gaze upward from where he stares incessantly down at his hands. “You did the right thing,” he says firmly when Shou meets his gaze, his thumb trailing over the skin of Shou’s cheek in a way that is decidedly tender.

The motion makes Shou’s heart stutter in his chest, his breathing hitching noticeably, and he hastily reaches his hand up to smear away the tears that pool in his eyes before they can fall. “Yeah,” he agrees shakily, leaning his head into Ritsu’s touch and letting his eyes fall shut for a few long seconds.

Eventually, Ritsu removes his hand and goes back to cleaning up Shou’s wounds. The ones on his head are the messiest, blood from his gashes dripping down his face and drying in his hair. He’ll have to shower later in order to get all of it out, but for now he settles for mostly clean and makes a mental note to shower once everything’s calmed down a bit more. Ritsu is as quick and gentle as he always is, and he fills Shou in on what he’d missed while he works. It turns out to not be much, in the end; they’d gone straight back to the house after digging up Shigeo and had spent their time waiting for Shou to return cleaning themselves up and swapping out their ruined clothes for ones borrowed from Ritsu’s closet—all except for Reigen, who’s far too large to fit into any of Ritsu’s own clothes. Instead, he’d swiped something from Higashio to loan to Reigen until he could get some of his own things from his apartment later on.

Once Shou’s wounds are cleaned and covered to the best of Ritsu’s abilities, and Shou has changed out of his ruined clothes and into something clean and comfortable, Ritsu asks, “So, what happens now?”

Shou pulls on the clean shirt, wincing as his sore arms ache in response to the movement. “Well, the hard part is over, so now all that’s left is damage control,” Shou replies. He pauses, hesitant. This is the part of the plan he hasn’t told Ritsu yet, the ‘after’ that he’s pretty sure Ritsu isn’t going to like very much. He sits back down on the bed and meets Ritsu’s gaze across from him. They’re sitting close enough together that their knees brush, Ritsu’s socked foot taking up the space between Shou’s bare ones. “Now that my old man is behind bars, things won’t be so intense anymore, but there’s still stuff I have to do to make sure Claw doesn’t just band back together under a new leader, someone like Shimazaki,” he explains, shifting slightly under Ritsu’s stare.

“Stuff you have to do?” Ritsu echoes, cautious, and the way he stiffens in his seat tells Shou that he’s caught on somewhat to his plan already.

Shou bites his lip and glances away. “Ritsu, I have to go away for a while,” he says, finally. “Like, off the radar, even more than I am right now. I’m going to cooperate with the government to track down the rest of Claw’s upper echelon, but since I’m the son of the leader of Claw…” he trails off, letting out a frustrated breath. This is harder to talk about than he’d anticipated. “They might try to get me to lead them instead,” he says at last, the words heavy and bitter on his tongue. “So, I’m going to hide out for a while, play double agent, wrangle up the stragglers, and then I can finally put this whole mess behind me.”

Ritsu’s mouth falls open, but no words come out. He’s speechless, expression shifting from bafflement to confusion and then to anger, the betrayed form of anger that Shou’s been on the receiving end of before. “Then I’ll go with you,” he insists, a hint of desperation creeping into his voice as he speaks. “We started this mess, so let me help you finish it.”

Shou shakes his head. “I’m the one who started this whole thing, remember?” he points out. “I’ve been at this a hell of a lot longer than you have, but that’s not why you can’t come with me.” He lets out a soft sigh, reaching out to take Ritsu’s hands in his and letting them rest atop their legs between them. “Originally, I was going to bring you with me, until we were both free to go, but you can’t stay hidden forever. Your parents will be coming back to Japan soon, and something tells me your brother isn’t going to be so eager to let you go again. It’s time for you to go home.” He looks down at their joined hands, and gives them a reassuring squeeze. “It won’t be for long. A few weeks, maybe a month at most, and then I’ll be able to… do whatever it is normal thirteen-year-olds do.” He glances up and meets Ritsu’s gaze once more, fervent and pleading. “Will you wait for me?”

Ritsu hesitates, his face screwing up in the way that Shou recognizes to mean he’s thinking it over. Shou lets him; it’s kind of a big ask after everything they’ve gone through together, but Shou really can’t come up with a good enough reason to pull Ritsu away from his family any longer. After a minute of deliberation, Ritsu lets out a breath and shifts his grip on Shou’s hands so he can lace their fingers together. “Okay,” he relents, voice soft and defeated. “It’s… going to be weird, going back to a kinda normal life. Don’t leave me on my own for too long, alright?”

“You make it sound like I’m leaving you to fend for yourself,” Shou chuckles. “Ritsu, you’re going to be fine. You have friends and family all around you, you don’t need me to pick you back up anymore.”

Ritsu snorts, contemptuous. “Maybe not, but I still like having you around,” he insists. After a moment, he untangles one of his hands from Shou’s and reaches up to pull him forward by the back of his neck, leaning forward until he can press their foreheads together. “Just be quick, okay?”

Shou’s brain turns to static and god, he doesn’t want to think right now about how easy it is for Ritsu to dissolve him into a stuttering mess. “Quick as I can,” he promises, swallowing back a nervous laugh and fighting a stupidly large smile. There’s a million more things he wants to say to Ritsu in this moment, but he files them away for later. There will be plenty of time to spill his guts once Claw is really, truly, completely out of the picture. For now, he tucks those revelations close to his heart, where he can use them as an incentive to finish things up as fast as possible.

“Good,” Ritsu says, pulling away just far enough to give him a tiny smile. Shou can tell he’s not exactly pleased with this arrangement, but he seems to have at least accepted it. “Now go shower, you smell like death.”

Shou snorts out a laugh and pushes himself up from his spot on the bed, nodding his head. “Yeah, yeah, whatever you say,” he replies, snagging his towel from the hook hanging on the inside of his door and heading for the bathroom. The shower is empty, thankfully, so he swiftly ducks inside and locks the door behind him before anyone can tell him to wait.

The hot water steams up the bathroom walls quickly, and Shou welcomes it, the heat of it soothing his sore muscles as he steps under the spray and lets it wash away the blood that Ritsu had missed or been unable to reach. It stings his wounds, particularly the one on his head, but he grits his teeth and bears it long enough to get cleaned up. Scrubbing the sweat and dirt of the day from his body gives him something to do with his hands, and he washes his hair twice before he’s certain he’s gotten all the concrete dust and blood out of it.

As he showers, his thoughts wander back to the question on his mind, the one that’s quickly proving itself to be the question of the hour: What would he do once he’s finally rid himself of Claw for good?

Maybe I’ll reach out, try to find out where Mom ended up, he thinks to himself. He hasn’t heard from his mother since she left him behind all those years ago; at one time, she’d worked to change her husband’s mind, to remind him that power isn’t the end all and be all of the world, but she’d given up after Shou’s sixth birthday when he’d still refused to see how his ambition was hurting his family. As much as Shou thinks about her decision, he can’t find it in himself to blame her. She’d done what she could and, ultimately, had made the decision to save herself rather than sitting around waiting for Touichirou to come around again. She’d tried to take Shou with her, of course, but he’d refused, still too young and naive and blindly trusting to see what his father had become. Maybe it’s time to reconnect.

Still, the thought makes his stomach knot up in nervousness, because it’s been seven years since he’s seen her and he isn’t sure what he would even say to her if he saw her now. Even if she is his mother, he can’t imagine telling her about everything he’s gone through. They’re too estranged for that.

Then, there’s other things to consider, too, like where he’s going to live after this, if he’s going to try school again for a change, or if he’ll just continue to hide out and sneak around until he figures everything out. He’d anticipated having more time to plan, but, well, he’s starting to see that things rarely go as planned.

Shou turns off the water and dresses in a clean pair of clothes, feeling substantially better now that he’s dirt-free and doesn’t smell like blood anymore. He’s drying his hair with a hand towel as he steps out of the bathroom and heads into the kitchen, following the sound of voices. He’s expecting to find everyone out here, catching up on everything that had happened and figuring out what to do next, but instead he finds the room mostly empty except for Reigen and Teru, who are sitting on the couch and pouring over something on Reigen’s phone.

“Ah, hey,” Teru greets, glancing up to see who’s approached them. “If you’re looking for Ritsu, he’s in his room with his brother.”

Shou pauses, hovering awkwardly on the line between the kitchen and the living room and meeting Teru’s gaze across the room. “Oh, yeah, that makes sense,” he replies, unsure of how to approach them. This goes especially for Reigen, who had actively put his life on the line trying to protect him at the top of the cultural tower despite not even knowing Shou’s name. “Uh, I wasn’t looking for anyone in particular, I just heard you talking,” he adds, and immediately wishes he’d said something else, because that makes it sound like he’d been actively eavesdropping on them.

If they notice, neither of them speak up about it, but Reigen does offer him a little smile, friendly, almost inviting. “We were just looking at the news to see what they’re saying,” he explains, waving Shou over. “Come join us, you probably want to know, right?”

Reigen is right, he does want to know, so he drapes his towel around his neck and sits in the armchair across from Reigen and Teru. “What’s the news saying?” he asks, running his fingers absent-mindedly through his uncombed, damp hair. He can’t decide if he should be polite or aloof around Ritsu’s old friends, but polite’s never been his style, so he settles for something resembling calm half-interest, slinging one arm over the back of his chair and crossing his ankles casually in front of him.

“Not much,” Reigen admits. “They’ve grounded all the helicopters until they figure out what was interfering with the electronic signals around the tower, so there isn’t a whole lot of video out yet. Plus, no one really wants to be the first to walk up to that giant tree in the middle of the city.” He shakes his head, turning to pass his phone to Shou.

Shou takes it, skimming the opened article. It’s mostly speculation, statements from police officers about what might have gone down, even though no one had been close enough to really know. The article does mention Touichirou briefly, but he skips that part, too. He’s had enough of his father for one night. “Hmph, they’ll never figure out what actually happened,” he sighs, handing the phone back over to Reigen.

“You sound like you know exactly what happened,” Teru retorts, raising a brow at him inquisitively.

Shou leans back in his seat, blowing a stray strand of bright red hair out of his forehead. “Not entirely, but I can infer the gist of what happened, I think,” he replies. “I mean, you must have sensed it too, right? That broccoli tree was positively radiating Shigeo’s aura. My old man’s aura was there, too, at least a little, but it was mostly Shigeo. He did something to all my dad’s extra energy, diverted it someplace it could be used up without exploding. I guess the broccoli was his solution.”

“Of course I sensed it,” Reigen says without missing a beat, but it’s fairly easy to tell just based on what he’s seen from the older man already that he doesn’t have a sliver of psychic power to sense anything with. “Still, a broccoli? I mean, I gave Mob some broccoli seeds after one of our recent jobs, but that was a long time ago… that can’t be right, can it?” He exchanges a glance with Teru, who just shrugs in response.

“In theory, I think it would work,” Teru says carefully, “but the amount of power you’d have to have to grow a broccoli that big is…” he trails off, shaking his head.

Shou scoffs, crossing his arms. “About twenty years’ worth,” he finishes knowingly. “Yeah, I’ve got a pretty good idea.”

Teru flashes him a look that might be interpreted as worry, though Shou doesn’t really know him well enough to say for sure. Then he stands up with an exaggerated sigh and stretches his arms over his head. “Well, we don’t have to figure everything out tonight. I know I could use a break, I’m exhausted. Is it alright if I use your shower?”

Shou, who at this point has grown to somewhat expect visitors ending up here on a whim after the last few days, just waves a hand in assent. “Sure, just watch out, I have no idea how much hot water’s left in the tank,” he replies.

“Will do,” Teru replies good-naturedly, and disappears around the corner in search of the bathroom, leaving Shou alone with Reigen.

He hasn’t done more than exchange a few words with Shigeo’s proclaimed master, and it’s obvious to him that any relationship he has with all the psychic upheaval going on around him is purely accidental rather than intentional. Still, Reigen does seem to care about the teenagers he works with, and that’s more than Shou can say for many of the adults he’s grown up around. Even Ritsu seems to have some sort of abject trust in Reigen, even as he continues to badmouth him. It’s enough to make Shou at least a little less cautious when Reigen suddenly asks, unprompted, “Can I ask you a few questions?”

Shou folds his arms, defensive, and cautiously answers, “Sure, hit me.” He’s curious about what kinds of questions Reigen might ask, and simultaneously concerned that he might try to dig a little too deep.

“How old are you?” Reigen asks, and wow, that questions hadn’t been anywhere on the list of possibilities Shou had been expecting. It throws him off, brain rushing to determine what exactly Reigen could possibly hope to gain by asking such a question.

“Thirteen,” he replies hesitantly, “why?”

Reigen lets out a breath and clasps his hands in his lap, brow furrowed and a deep frown on his face. Shou squints; is he concerned? “Okay, yeah, that sounds about right,” Reigen mutters, reaching up with one hand to run his fingers through his hair. “Thirteen. God, that’s really young. Uh, and you’re the leader here, right? How long… how long have you had this arrangement going on?” He gestures around himself with his hands, at the house, the empty rooms where the rest of the group usually slept.

Shou narrows his eyes, leaning forward in his seat. He can see where this conversation might be going, now. “A little over three years,” he replies. “I was ten years old when I left home.” He watches Reigen closely, sharp blue eyes taking in every microexpression and movement Reigen makes as he tries to decipher what exactly Reigen might be getting at. “That doesn’t really matter, though, does it? It’s in the past.”

Reigen blinks at him, as if in surprise, then lets out a breathy, humorless chuckle. “Yeah, of course, of course,” he manages, and Shou can practically hear his mind running at a hundred miles an hour. He takes a few seconds to compose himself, sitting up a little straighter on the couch, and Shou watches every minute movement with interest. “Okay, well, this is a lot to take in, as you can probably imagine,” he continues. “Mob and his brother filled me in on the details, but I guess I’m still having a hard time imagining it.”

“Because we’re just kids?” Shou says defensively. It's a knee-jerk reaction to what is most likely a well-meaning comment, but Shou's had enough of people underestimating and condescending to him.

"No—I mean, yes, that's part of it, but not the way you're saying it—I’m sure you can handle yourself fine, better than most kids your age, but…” he trails off with a frustrated sigh, taking a moment to compose his thoughts. Shou lets him, if only because he’s interested to see what kind of rationalization Reigen will give to go with his statement. Finally, he says, “You have psychic powers, and that’s great. It’s a part of who you are, and it’s an excellent method of defending yourself against people like Claw, but you really shouldn’t have to defend yourself in the first place! You guys are capable, sure, but you’re still kids. No matter who you are, adults shouldn’t be targeting you.” The way Reigen speaks is animated, Shou notices, watching as he throws his arms this way and that. It’s as though he’s being swarmed by mosquitoes and is doing his best to keep them at bay.

Shou just shrugs, and glances away. “It’s a nice thought, I guess,” he relents, “but it’s a little late to lecture them, I think.”

Reigen sighs, and his hands settle back into his lap. “Yeah, I can see that,” he replies, and Shou doesn’t miss the way his eyes linger on the scars that climb Shou’s arms. He’s used to people staring at him, but it doesn’t make the discomfort of it go away.

They sit in silence for another moment before Reigen speaks up again, hesitantly. “You know, I’ve been kind of… watching over Mob, you could say, for a while now,” he begins, drawing Shou’s attention again. “Recently, Teruki’s been hanging around my office a bit too, when he finds the time, but the kid’s too stubborn to let me interfere in his life any more than that.” He pauses, shaking his head. “But that’s not what I wanted to say. I don’t know what you’re planning to do once you finish up whatever you’re doing here, but, um…” He reaches one hand into the inside pocket of his suit jacket and pulls out a business card, holding it out to Shou. “If you ever need help, or need to get in contact with the boys, or anything, really, just give me a call.”

Shou eyes the card uncertainly, and doesn’t make a move to take it. He does his best not to show it, but he’s baffled by Reigen’s sudden desire to help, at no apparent gain to himself. “Why?” he asks, scrutinizing Reigen’s expression with piercing blue eyes. “What do you get out of offering me help?”

Reigen flashes him a grin, one that is distinctively sly. “Well, I do run a business, you know. Spirits & Such, home of the 20th century’s greatest psychic prodigy,” he brags, slipping easily into an air of showmanship and grandeur. “I’m always looking for ways to expand my business, you know, and having a few extra hands on deck can never hurt. More than that, though, I’d hate to see a good kid like you end up somewhere you don’t want to be.” His expression softens at this, taking on a more serious, even kind appearance. “I know a thing or two about handling things on my own, and I’ve been in your shoes before, minus all the psychic powers and near-death experiences and all that. I didn’t have a lot of trustworthy adults to turn to growing up, and it seems like you don’t really, either. I’m no replacement for real parents or anything like that but… just consider me your last resort, at least?”

He’s compromising, Shou recognizes, between what he wants to offer and what he thinks Shou might accept, but he can’t help but feel like it’s working. It’s terrifying, the thought that an adult he barely knows is willing to do this much for him after nothing but a few minutes of interaction and whatever stories Ritsu’s given him, but Shou finds he can’t feel any sort of manipulative intent in Reigen’s offer. Slowly, hesitantly, he plucks the business card from Reigen’s still-outstretched hand and glances down at it. It’s tacky as hell, not at all the professionally-made card he’d expect from someone running a semi-profitable business, but he supposes it doesn’t matter in the end. “I’ll keep it in mind,” he says after a moment, grudgingly. It’s been a long time since someone has reached out to him in good faith, someone with no ties whatsoever to his father, to Claw, to his old life. The card feels heavy in his hand.

Reigen stands up once the card has changed hands, checking his watch briefly. “Well, I’m going to check up on Ritsu and Mob and probably try to find a supermarket. It’s late and none of us have eaten yet, I’m sure you boys must be starving,” he announces, and heads away down the hall without another word.

Shou is hungry, he’s been hungry for a while, but food is kind of the last thing on his mind right now. He turns the business card over in his hands; Reigen’s office phone number is printed on the front, but on the back, in scratchy, rushed handwriting, is another number with the words “cell phone” written in pen beneath it. Something about it makes Shou’s throat feel a little tighter, and he hastily tucks the card into his back pocket before he can let himself think about it too hard.

As promised, Reigen walks down to the nearest convenience store and returns after twenty or so minutes with a handful of pre-made boxed meals he’d paid for out of pocket. Now that they’re all cleaned up and wearing fresh clothes, the atmosphere around the kitchen table is lighter, more rambunctious. Shigeo finishes his food before Shou can even get halfway through his, and he’s quick to pick up the conversation for the rest of them while they fight to catch up. Shou interjects occasionally and tries not to let his discomfort show; it’s been too long since he’s been around so many people his age, and he has to remind himself that he’s only going to be around for another night before he goes off the grid again. Still, he can’t help but look forward to the day he’ll be able to come back, and he lets himself hope, just a little, that Ritsu won’t be the only one waiting for him.

---

Shou leaves the next afternoon. It’s a brief and relatively painless affair, as Shou explains to everyone in few words where he’s going and how long he’ll be gone. The hard part is over now that he’s told Ritsu what’s going on, but that doesn’t stop him from reconsidering all his life decisions when Ritsu hugs him good-bye just as he’s about to leave.

“Let me know as soon as you’re done,” Ritsu insists, and Shou can’t help but agree, because of course Ritsu would be the first to know.

He pulls out a lone key from his pocket and presses it into Ritsu’s palm. “Just lock up when you head home, alright? Take the time you need, but don’t stick around too long, either, you have stuff to do,” he tells him, letting his hand linger in Ritsu’s for maybe a little longer than is typically expected of such an exchange. He doesn’t seem to mind, though.

Ritsu nods, slipping the key into the pocket of his jeans. “Yeah, of course. I’ll, uh, try not to take too long,” he replies, some of his nervousness about finally going home showing through in this moment. Shou doesn’t comment on it, just gives him what he hopes is a reassuring smile.

“Thank you, for sticking by me for so long,” he says quietly, keeping his voice low so the others can’t hear him. They’re waiting on the porch of the house while Ritsu and Shou say their good-byes, but they’re still close enough that they might hear if he speaks too loudly.

Ritsu just grins at him. “Don’t thank me yet,” he reminds him. “You can thank me for real once you get back.”

And Shou can’t help but laugh, because he can’t think of more fitting parting words than those. “Alright, alright, I get it,” he chuckles, slipping into the back seat of the car. “See you soon,” he adds, before he pulls the door shut behind him.

“See you soon,” Ritsu echoes, and offers him a little wave as Higashio pulls the car away from the curb and Ritsu’s waiting form disappears around the corner.

Ootsuki turns around to regard Shou around the back of his seat. “You sure you’re ready for this? Government work can get pretty shady sometimes, it could be dangerous to get involved.”

Shou snorts, crossing his arms. “We’re already involved, and it’s not as though our work up until now hasn’t been shady. We can handle it,” he says with confidence. “Let’s just make it quick, the less time it takes the better.”

Ootsuki just nods and turns back toward the front of the car, and Shou gazes out the window, to the houses that pass by in a blur. He leans his head against the window and thinks, After all, I have something to come back to now.

#mob psycho 100 #mp100 #ritshou #kageyama ritsu #suzuki shou #serendipitousfics #mp100 fanfic #fanfiction #violence #blood #guns #child abuse #child neglect #attempted murder

1 note · View note

serenlyss · 5 years

Text

Don’t Thank Me Yet Chapter 3

Rating: M (guns, murder, ptsd, canon typical violence, mentions of torture) Pairing: ritshou Summary: “Alright then. I’m Shou,” he says, introducing himself more properly this time. “I’m an esper, like you, the first in existence to be forcibly awoken by Claw’s crazy torture machines. They kidnap kids with potential latent psychic powers and break them, over and over, until either their powers emerge or they die. It doesn’t matter either way to them.” His expression hardens as he speaks, clear distaste and outright malice evident in his tone. “I could really use your help here, you know. A partner of sorts, someone to watch my back. What do you say?“ Ritsu hesitates. He isn’t a fighter by any means, and the psychic powers now churning beneath his skin are still very new and frightening. It’s all very overwhelming, but Ritsu can’t help but feel a sort of sickening hope at Shou’s promise for revenge. It did have a sort of dark draw to it. In which Claw is a lot worse than they seem and Shigeo isn’t able to find his brother after he’s kidnapped. Crossposted to AO3: Chapter 3

Chapter 2 // Chapter 4

Here's chapter three! This one's a longer one and I spent a lot of time editing it to make sure it landed well, so I hope you all like it! Thanks to @wiz-witch for beta reading this chapter!

“The base is one of the old types. We know the floor plan well,” Ootsuki debriefs. “Higashio found it after tailing an unmarked black vehicle to the outskirts of Seasoning City. You can probably guess why it sounded so suspicious.” He turns to look over his shoulder from the passenger seat of Higashio’s car, expression grim.

Ritsu swallows thickly. The description is eerily reminiscent of the car he’d been shoved into after being beaten to near-death by the Claw esper who had kidnapped him, the kind with tinted windows and sound-proof doors. “There might be other esper kids there,” he says, expression hardening in fierce determination.

In the four months he and Shou had been working together, they’d destroyed quite a few Claw bases, but only a few had actually housed kidnapped espers, and none of them had shown signs of being significantly powerful psychics. None of them had been extended the offer to join Shou’s resistance, either, their powers too new or too weak to be of much use.

“You had exceptionally strong psychic powers as soon as you were awakened,” Shou had told him, not long after they’d first met. “It’s why I offered you the job in the first place, and it’s why Claw is so intent on finding you. Most espers are weak when they first awaken. If they were all as powerful as you were, you wouldn’t have been able to make as easy of an escape as you did.”

“Do you think there might actually be kids in this one?” Ritsu asks, glancing to his side.

Shou sits beside him, hunched over with his elbows on his knees. His brow furrows in thought, and he frowns. “If there’s a chance, we have to take it,” he says firmly. He’s dropped his usual snarky cheerfulness for an air of calm resolution, a look he always gets when he’s focused on a mission. He sits up. “We’ll go with our usual formation: Ritsu and I will head for the basement and pick up any prisoners we find while the rest of you take the top floor. Take out the Scars on sight, but play it safe; Today’s not the day to take risks.”

Ritsu can’t help but agree. It isn’t often that they get back-to-back intel, and taking out two Claw bases in two days is certain to leave them worn out and more than a little battered. He’s already beat up enough from the last mission, the glass cuts on his arms and foot still fresh, so he won’t be able to fight at full throttle if a brawl breaks out. “We should be as fast as possible,” he adds, glancing at Shou. “Better safe than sorry, right?”

On Shou’s other side, Fukuda gives a brisk nod. “Yes, there’s no use in staying longer than we need to. Usually we would take the time to find hints of the enemy’s plans, but it may be too dangerous to do that this time around,” he agrees.

Shou sighs, obviously a bit disappointed, but he doesn’t argue. “Alright, we’ll be quick, then. In and out, and we blow the place sky-high as soon as we regroup.”

Murmurs of assent fill the vehicle, and then the group falls silent as Higashio drives them all down a forest road. Ritsu looks out the window; it’s already long past sunset, the sky black and dotted with white stars overhead. He feels a familiar fluttering in his stomach, a nervousness that makes his heart rate pick up and his breathing come a little quicker. He gets it anytime they go off on a mission, subconsciously preparing himself for being back inside a replica of the lab that had tortured him only a few months ago, and even though he’s never stepped foot inside this particular building, he remembers the layout of it vividly.

He feels a hand rest lightly on his shoulder, drawing his attention away from the blurry trees outside. Shou isn’t looking at Ritsu, gaze fixed on the floor of the car as he waits for Higashio to announce their arrival, but the comfort is still there. Ritsu lets out a breath and forces himself to relax a bit, focusing on the weight on his shoulder.

It takes a few more minutes of driving before Higashio suddenly takes the car off-road, carefully weaving through a sparser part of the woods in search of a place to stash the car. Ritsu grips the handrail over his head and Shou reaches out to grab the back of the passenger’s seat. Ritsu can see the anticipation burning in his gaze as he leans forward, eyes searching for that gray concrete building through the gaps between the trees.

“We’re here,” Higashio says, putting the car into park. Ritsu immediately pushes open the car door and climbs out. A light, cool breeze stirs his hair, and he absent-mindedly adjusts the black gloves on his hands. It’s a cold night for it being summer.

Shou steps out beside him, squinting into the trees. “We’re too far away to get a good look. Let’s get a bit closer and scope the place out before we go inside,” he instructs, fiddling with the hems of the pockets of his jacket restlessly. He worries the seams between his fingers and thumb, tugging at loose threads in an attempt to relieve some of his restlessness. He strides forward without even bothering to see if the others are following, single-mindedly focused on his goal. Ritsu can practically feel the apprehension radiating from him. It’s not like Shou to get worked up over a mission; he must be feeling extra concerned over this one.

Ritsu shakes his head and falls into step a pace behind him, and the rest of the group follows close behind. He speeds up a little so he can walk beside Shou instead of behind him, peering down at his resolute expression. “Hey,” he says, “we’re gonna be fine. We’ve done this a dozen times already.”

Shou casts him a glance, eyebrows raising slightly in a faint show of surprise. Then a small grin breaks out on his face, and he turns his gaze forward again, squaring his shoulders. “Yeah, I know,” he replies, letting his hands drop from his pockets to hang open at his sides instead. His posture is more relaxed now, more like what Ritsu’s used to seeing from him.

They walk a bit longer before Shou pauses. The concrete walls of the lab can be seen now, illuminated by the bright white lights that circle the outside of it. Ritsu pauses beside him, casting him a glance while he waits for Shou to execute their plan.

Wordlessly, Shou lifts a hand and gestures for Higashio, Ootsuki, and Fukuda to separate from them and make their way to the other side of the building. “Larger groups are easier to spot. Go around to the back way, Ritsu and I will go from the side,” he says, keeping his voice low and quiet in case anyone’s hiding nearby.

Higashio gives a brief nod and leads the way into the trees, Ootsuki and Fukuda close behind. Ritsu figures he won’t see them again until they leave the building.

Shou crouches down in the tall grass surrounding the outer edge of the lab’s property, and Ritsu follows his lead. “The fastest and easiest way in is to use invisibility,” he decides, turning to look at Ritsu.

“I’ve only been able to do that in practice,” Ritsu points out, biting his lower lip hesitantly. “I’m sure it would work fine for you, but-”

“If you can do it in practice, you can do it here,” Shou says firmly, with clear confidence in Ritsu’s ability.

Ritsu sighs. “You said today wasn’t the day to take risks.”

Shou grins at this, a familiar sight at this point. His stiffness from earlier has all but disappeared, his apparent nervousness replaced with an easy assuredness. “Yeah, but this will make things ten times easier, I counted,” he says matter-of-factly. “Besides, we’re already beat up enough as is. The less people we have to fight to get inside, the better.”

Well, he does have a point, Ritsu thinks to himself begrudgingly, and pushes himself to his feet. “Alright, then. We should hurry, before Higashio and the others start fighting,” he says, letting his aura leak out and swirl around him.

“Wait,” Shou says sharply, tugging Ritsu back down by the sleeve of his black shirt. He reaches down and unclasps something from around his leg before offering it to him. It takes Ritsu a moment to realize that it’s a gun: a pistol, silver and carefully cleaned, free of rust and grime. Well-used. “Take this,” he murmurs, gripping the pistol by its barrel as he points the grip at him.

Ritsu’s throat goes dry and his body goes stock-still. His hands feel clammy all of a sudden. “That’s a weapon. For killing people,” he says, voice wavering.

“It’s a weapon for protecting yourself,” Shou retorts, not lowering his hand. He holds Ritsu’s gaze steadily, fierce blue eyes boring into him in the darkness. “I know you don’t like the idea of using one, but I just…” he trails off, gaze flicking downward somberly. He looks uncharacteristically worried, when he would normally approach these missions with an upbeat optimism and cockiness. “Just keep it on you, okay? If everything goes well, you won’t even have to touch it.”

Ritsu hesitates, eyes locked on the gun’s reflective surface. It feels wrong, so wrong, but he reaches out and accepts it anyway. He’s only shot a gun a few times, all under Shou’s teaching, but he’s never brought one into a fight before. It feels cold and ominously heavy in his hands. Shou passes him the holster as well, which Ritsu reluctantly accepts and secures around his upper thigh. He slides the pistol into it, the weight noticeable on his hip, and carefully secures the strap over the top of it to keep it from falling out accidentally. “Alright, just in case,” he says softly. When he straightens up this time, Shou follows close behind.

“Thanks,” he murmurs simply, staring resolutely down at the Claw base instead of meeting Ritsu’s gaze. “You can just consider it a last resort. We’ve never done back to back missions like this before, so I guess I’m just… I have a feeling.”

Ritsu doesn’t want to think about what a feeling like that might mean, so he doesn’t ask any further questions.

Shou takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly, and Ritsu sees his bright red-orange aura begin to encircle him. “Showtime,” he whispers, and in a flash both he and his aura disappear. In his place, a tiny wisp of his aura blinks into existence, something for Ritsu to focus on so they don’t get separated.

Ritsu has to squint to make out the little place-marker. It’s so small that it would be unnoticeable to anyone who isn’t specifically searching for it, a little orange flicker that hovers in the space where Shou’s heart would be. “Give me a minute,” he says to it, furrowing his brow and closing his eyes as he attempts to replicate the disappearing act. It’s difficult to continuously bend the light around him while also keeping his aura tightly contained, and if he isn’t careful he’ll tip off all the espers in the area that he’s arrived, so he makes sure to take his time and do thing right. He focuses on the mental image of what he’ll need to do, reaching out with imaginary hands to bend something he can’t actually touch with fingers that feel nothing and cannot be felt by anything else.

When Ritsu opens his eyes again, he can see the distortion around him, falling over him like a second skin a few inches shy of touching him. It shimmers in different colors as light rays attempt to touch him and reflect off the sort of barrier he’s constantly maintaining now. He takes a breath and focuses on keeping his aura close and contained; it won’t do to get inside just to have his own lack of control be the thing that gets them caught before they’re ready.

“Okay, let’s go,” Ritsu murmurs to the little flame at his side. He feels a hand lightly slip into his own, Shou’s hand, and the flicker goes out immediately.

“Stay close.” Shou’s voice sounds from beside him, giving off an air of disembodiment despite the fact that Ritsu knows he’s still very much present. He feels him tug on his hand, descending the hillside toward the building with feather-light footsteps. Their joined hands feel like they’re submerged, and their auras swirl around them, shifting, touching, but never mixing, like oil and water. Ritsu keeps a firm grip as they pick their way down the hill.

A handful of weak espers guard the front door of the building, and Shou keeps a wide berth to avoid alerting them. Instead, he heads for the side of the building, to a single door illuminated by a lone white searchlight. A guard stands outside it, leaning against the wall with a bored expression on his face. Ritsu can tell immediately that he has no powers to his name. Probably security, he thinks.

Shou taps a finger against the inside of his wrist twice, a signal for him to hang back and wait, and then the hand leaves his.

He feels strangely abandoned, his heart dropping in response to Shou’s sudden disappearance. It’s uncomfortable not being able to see or sense him, but Shou isn’t gone for long. His eyes trace the ground where Shou’s footsteps bend the grass until he stands just behind the security guard.

The man crumples to the ground a moment after, knocked down by a swift blow to the head. Once he’s down, Shou drops his invisibility and reaches into the man’s pocket, rifling around until he finds what he’s looking for: a key card that will let them enter the building. He waves a hand for Ritsu to follow him, holding the card up against the electronic lock.

Ritsu drops his own light-bending barrier, letting out a breath. He reaches up and wipes away a few beads of sweat from his forehead that had formed during their descent down the hill, then falls in behind Shou as he cracks open the door and steps inside.

The gray concrete walls that fence them in are immediately familiar to Ritsu, and he swallows back the brief panic that comes over him as the door falls shut behind them. The hall is empty aside from the two of them, branching off in three directions.

“We’re headed for the basement,” Shou murmurs to him, turning left and striding down the hall. Ritsu keeps close to him, eyes searching for any signs of life. He glances nervously over his shoulder, but there’s no one in sight, the halls empty and quiet. He rubs his arms as if to suppress the goosebumps that raise beneath his long-sleeved shirt, and hopes they won’t have to stay for long.

Ritsu knows that Shou’s been in enough of these bases that he’s memorized the layout, each one a perfect copy of the last. His directions are quick and confident, leading them on the quickest path to where potential allies might be hiding. Getting any kidnapped kids out is always their top priority, and Ritsu knows the basement cells well. He’d spent a majority of his two days locked in them, sleeping on the cold floor and trying to make himself scarce. The image of the long, dark hall, lined with barred doors, is forever seared into his brain.

Shou leads him to the basement door, which swings open easily to reveal a stone staircase leading down into the dimly-lit depths. A puff of cold, stale air spills out from it, sending a shiver up Ritsu’s spine as it tickles his legs. “You ready?” Shou asks, casting a sideways glance at Ritsu. There’s an unspoken question hidden in his light blue eyes that comes across in his hesitation and the way he defaults to Ritsu to lead the way down.

Ritsu takes a calming breath and nods firmly. “Let’s go,” he says, putting as much confidence as he can muster into his words, and takes the first step into the stairwell.

With no windows to the outside or even a vent to let in fresh air, the basement truly does feel like a prison. The air is thick and suffocating, bringing with it a sense of dread that clings to Ritsu’s skin and makes his hands feel clammy even beneath his dark gloves. He clenches and unclenches his fists restlessly, focusing on keeping his footsteps light and quiet like Shou always does. It smells like dirt and dust and, faintly, blood, the slightly metallic edge of it making Ritsu’s stomach turn. He stubbornly ignores the occasional brown stain on the concrete beneath his feet.

Shou sticks close to Ritsu’s side, casting occasional glances his way, and Ritsu pretends not to notice. He always seems to pick up the habit when they’re within the Claw bases, and Ritsu can’t help but feel defensive about it. After all, Shou had also spent a considerable amount of time in the confines of the Claw bases, had the same bad memories Ritsu did. In a way, Shou is even worse off, knowing that it had been his own father that had supplemented his nightmares, and yet he continues to put Ritsu’s feelings in front of his own, in little ways. Ritsu tries not to let it get to him, bites his tongue to keep from calling Shou out on it.

“I’ll check the cells up front, you take the back,” Ritsu suggests, casting Shou a sideways glance. “It’ll be faster if we split up.”

Shou hesitates, obviously not fond of the idea of splitting their already-small party, but he nods anyway. “Yeah, alright. The quicker we get through this, the quicker we can get out again,” he murmurs, making his way toward the back of the hall. His steps echo softly in the empty space.

Ritsu can tell there’s no one down here. If there is, they’re being incredibly quiet and have no aura to speak of, and his thoughts are only confirmed as he walks by empty cell after empty cell. He’s somehow relieved and disappointed at the same time. On one hand, it means that Claw hasn’t kidnapped anyone recently, at least not in this area. On the other hand, it means that anyone who might have ended up here is already gone. Ritsu swallows down a lump in his throat at the realization and crosses his arms, trying to ignore the way his stomach churns. He lets out a sigh, turning his back to the basement door as he heads in Shou’s direction. “Nothing,” he calls, his voice carrying in the quiet.

“Nothing here, either,” Shou confirms, moving to meet Ritsu in the middle of the hall. “Let’s go wait for the others at the top of the hill. Once we’re all out we can blow this place up and get the hell-”

Shou’s instructions are cut off by the boom of the basement door swinging roughly open. Ritsu whirls on his heels, shocked, and barely manages to raise a barrier around himself and Shou before a torrent of fire collides with it. The blue and purple surface of it nearly cracks under the force of the attack, and Shou curses under his breath, arms raised to instinctively shield his face.

“What the fuck? How did they find us?” he yells over the noise of the flames outside the barrier.

Ritsu can already feel sweat beading on his forehead as the temperature inside the blue-and-purple dome rises steadily. “How am I supposed to know?” he snaps back, hands raised in front of him as he fights to keep the barrier up. “Do something!”

Shou spits another string of curses under his breath, squinting through the flames. He thrusts out a hand after a moment, and Ritsu hears a dull thud followed by an angry shout. The flames dissipate around him, and when Ritsu drops his barrier he sees the form of a man pressed up against the back door. Shou has a tight grip on him, his bright orange aura keeping the man firmly in place. Ritsu immediately notices the angry red line that crosses his eye: a Scar.

“It’s just pyrokinesis! Don’t panic,” Shou says confidently, but Ritsu has his doubts after feeling the strength of the attack aimed at them.

Shou’s hold doesn’t last for long. The Scar breaks through with force and rushes forward at a speed neither of them are expecting. In a second he’s inches away from Ritsu, one menacing hand raised to strike and coated in white-hot fire. Ritsu barely manages to stumble back enough that he isn’t impaled by the attack, but he feels a burst of burning pain in his upper arm that tears straight through his long-sleeved shirt and sears his skin.

“Ritsu!” he hears Shou cry, ducking a second strike that threatens to singe the hair off the top of his head. He can’t see where Shou is, too busy trying to keep himself in one piece. He raises a barrier as the Scar throws a punch in his direction, but his fist goes clean through it, shattering it like glass. Ritsu feels the burning fist sink into the side of his face, sending him sprawling to the floor. His mind goes fuzzy for a moment, pain ripping through his arm and cheek. Get up, he tells himself vehemently, pushing himself to his hands and knees. By the time he’s regained his footing, Shou’s had time to intervene.

He has the Scar on the defensive, somehow, managing to keep up with the larger man’s bursts of fire and impressive strength despite his smaller size and weaker stature. He sees Shou reach out a hand and throw the adult esper across the room, into an open jail cell, and then Shou is running to him, eyes wide. He grabs Ritsu by his uninjured arm and pulls. “Let’s get out of here, there’s no reason to waste our time,” he says urgently.

“Y-Yeah,” Ritsu agrees, still somewhat dazed. As Shou tugs him down the hall, though, the Scar breaks free of the rubble he’d fallen into and exits the cell. At his side, Shou freezes, still clutching his arm.

Ritsu makes a split-second decision as he sees the Scar prepare another attack, and crowds Shou into a nearby empty cell. Behind his back, a pillar of fire fills the hall. Ritsu throws up a barrier for good measure, but the fire stays on its path, the flames never passing the now heat-warped barred wall. “That was too close,” he breathes, hand shaking.

“We need to get out of here,” Shou pants, looking equally as worn out as Ritsu feels. There’s a dark bruise forming around his left eye already, and he’s gripping his right arm tightly. “We can’t afford to wait around until the other Scars come join the fun, we’re beat up enough as is.” He eyes the fresh burns on Ritsu’s skin. “You okay?”

“I’m fine,” Ritsu replies immediately, stubbornly ignoring the way his burns sting in protest to his words, “except I probably just cornered us.”

Shou flashes him a devious grin, the kind that lets Ritsu know he has a plan, and he promptly goes invisible. “Shou!” Ritsu hisses, feeling a panic well up in him against his will. He can hear the Scar approaching, his footsteps loud in the empty hall, but Shou is already gone.

The Scar appears in the doorway like an ominous shadow, hulking over Ritsu’s slight form. He blocks the exit with his broad body, but doesn’t attack. “It was a mistake for you to try and infiltrate this place,” he growls, deep voice gravelly and cruel. It sends a shiver down Ritsu’s spine as he presses himself against the back wall, trying to put as much space between them as possible. “I’ll give you one chance, boy. Come quietly and I won’t burn you to ashes.”

Despite the fear coursing through him, Ritsu manages a defiant grin. “How kind of you to offer, but I’m afraid I’m going to have to pass. I’m really not keen on being kidnapped a second time,” he snarks, because if he’s going to go down, he’s going to go down with his pride intact.

The Scar has the nerve to look disappointed, which only adds fuel to Ritsu’s burning annoyance at this situation. “What a shame,” he laments, “you could have been quite powerful.” Then he raises a hand as he has so many times already.

Ritsu squeezes his eyes shut and braces himself. Any day now, Shou! he prays vehemently, but there’s no sign of his partner yet. He summons another barrier despite the fact that he knows it’s too weak to do anything but save him a few seconds of time, but the fire doesn’t come. Instead, the Scar lets out a surprised, somewhat pained shout.

Ritsu peeks open one eye, and sees that Shou has thrown himself on the Scar’s back, one arm wrapped tightly around his neck in a chokehold. As the Scar reaches up to grab him, Shou leaps back, flashing Ritsu a look that says, “Do it now!”

On instinct, Ritsu thrusts out a hand and throws the man backward with a surge of telekinetic force. The Scar crashes into the back wall and disappears behind it, throwing up a thick cloud of dust and debris.

Ritsu goes to stand by Shou outside the cell, grimacing. “What took you so long?” he accuses. “I could’ve died, you know!”

Shou just laughs, unhindered by Ritsu’s accusatory words. “Aw, come on, Ritsu, you know me better than that,” he replies, elbowing Ritsu gently in the arm. “I’ll never let that happen.” He casts a glance at the dusty air where the adult esper disappeared moments before. “As much fun as it is saving your life, though, we’d better get out of here. I bet reinforcements are already on their way.”

Ritsu nods his agreement, and the two of them hurry for the basement door. Ritsu reaches it first, raising a hand to turn the handle and let themselves out. His fingers barely brush the dingy metal before he feels the Scar’s huge hand grab him by the throat. He lets out a strangled gasp as he’s lifted off his feet effortlessly and thrown like a baseball across the room, thoughts turning to static as he fights to reorient himself. His back collides with hard concrete, the breath knocked out of his lungs as the wall behind him cracks. He falls onto his hands and knees, fighting to breathe, and faintly realizes that if he wasn’t psychic, he’d be dead on the spot.

The thing is, though, he doesn’t feel psychic anymore. He pushes himself up onto his knees, reaches out to attack, but nothing happens. He can’t feel his aura thrumming under his skin, can’t feel the way it presses at the back of his mind like a constant reminder of how powerful he is. His breathing stutters, cold dread settling over him like fog. The hand held in front of him shakes. “My powers… I can’t use them!” he stammers, disbelief and fear clouding his judgement.

Shou’s fallen back to put some space between them and the esper, who stands with a self-satisfied smirk on his face. Shou casts him a shocked glance. “What do you mean you can’t use them?” he demands. He turns around in time to put a barrier around them both, a giant fireball colliding with it and sizzling against Shou’s bright aura.

“As soon as he touched me, my aura disappeared,” he explains as quickly as he can, because they’re in the middle of a life-or-death battle and dammit, this isn’t the time to panic! He stumbles to his feet, but he can feel his legs quivering. Even without the fear settling into his bones, he’s exhausted from having to defend himself and emotionally drained from being confined within the thick concrete walls that remind him way too much of things he doesn’t want to think about right now. He clutches his head, willing his heart to stop thudding so hard.

“Ritsu, keep it together!” Shou cries, chancing a wide-eyed glance over his shoulder, and in his distraction the Scar rushes forward again and shatters Shou’s barrier with a clenched fist. Shou yelps, a sound that quickly turns into a choked gasp as the adult esper lifts him off the ground by his throat in one smooth motion and pins him up against the wall.

“You’re the boss’s brat,” the esper realizes, tightening his grip. Shou’s aura retreats back into his body and then blinks out entirely, like it’s been sucked up by a vacuum. Ritsu can see that much, but when he calls on his own power, buried somewhere inside of him, nothing responds. “You’ve been a real pain in the ass to us lately. Well, your father will know what to do with you. Go to sleep now,” the Scar continues, an annoyed scowl on his face.

Shou glares back at the man defiantly, but Ritsu can see the fear that forms behind his anger at the mention of being sent back to his father. He opens his mouth, but no sound comes out. His face is turning red. He grabs the arm holding him in place tightly, his knuckles white as he attempts to pry the man’s grip off of him, but without his aura to supplement his strength there’s only so much he can do. His gaze flicks to Ritsu, searching, pleading.

I have to do something, his frantic thoughts scream at him, even as his hands shake uncontrollably and he hears the blood rushing in his ears. If I don’t move, it’s over. They’ll take him, they’ll kill me. What can I do without my powers?

With a shaky gasp he recalls the weight on his hip, the metal pressed against his thigh through the fabric of his pants, and he knows what he has to do. He reaches down with fumbling fingers and undoes the strap holding the weapon in place, his fingers curling around the handle of it. He pulls it out and flicks the safety off, pointing it at the esper before he loses his nerve. Shou’s eyes go wide in noiseless shock, but the Scar is too focused on him to notice until he hears the click of a bullet being loaded into the barrel. By then it’s too late to react; Ritsu grits his teeth and pulls the trigger.

The noise of the gunshot is deafening and echoes grimmly in the empty hall, the recoil sending jolts up Ritsu’s arm. He doesn’t wait to see if the shot even connects, quickly firing off a second, third, then fourth round. The Scar’s grip falters and both he and Shou fall to the ground.

Shou catches himself on his hands and knees and sucks in a deep, desperate, gasping breath. Then he immediately starts to cough, the force of it shaking his whole body as he fights to get oxygen back into his lungs.

Pain shoots up Ritsu’s burned arm and he chokes on a pained cry. His hand spasms and he loses his grip on the gun, which clatters to the floor and lays still. He drops to his knees beside it, his shaking legs no longer able to support his weight. It’s over, Shou’s free, they’re both alive.

He feels sick.

Across the hall from him, Shou finally manages to get his feet under him. He stumbles to Ritsu’s side, clearly still shaken, and says, urgent and worried, “We have to go.” He grasps Ritsu’s arm with quivering hands, face pale, and his wide-eyed gaze flicks back and forth between the basement door and the esper laying in the rubble as he scoops up the gun and shoves it back into the holster at Ritsu’s thigh.

Ritsu stares at his hand as Shou hauls him to his feet. His aura unfurls around him, as though flowing out of a faucet that’s been turned off for a while. When Shou tugs his arm toward the basement door, he pulls back. “Wait,” he says, then raises his injured arm, the one Shou isn’t clinging too, and blows a hole in the far wall. He doesn’t bother with subtlety, because they’re way past staying hidden. Beyond the hole, he can see trees.

Shou doesn’t hesitate, and neither does Ritsu. They both make a break for the hole, clambering over the concrete rubble, and neither of them look back at the unmoving shape on the prison floor.

They don’t stop running until they’re deep in the forest, so deep that they can’t even make out the glaring searchlights of the Claw base anymore. Ritsu gives way first, stumbling on the uneven ground and falling onto his hands and knees. Pain flares in his burned arm as he does, and he feels the dirt and rocks dig into his scarred palms through the fabric of his gloves. His breathing comes in labored gasps, and he feels tears run down his face and wet the ground beneath him, brought to the surface by his pain and desperation and the overwhelming anxiety welling up in him.

Shou stumbles to a halt and quickly turns back for him, dropping to his knees and gripping Ritsu’s shoulders with both hands. “Ritsu?” he asks, voice shaky and hoarse.

“I killed him,” Ritsu whispers, voice coming in short, breathy sobs. “I didn’t even hesitate.” He lifts his head and looks at Shou’s face, sees the blossoming bruises that appear at his throat in his periphery.

Shou swallows visibly, his breathing hitching as his expression breaks from his previous desperate fear to an intense surprise and deep worry, as though he’s only just realized what’s happened, what Ritsu’s had to do. He pulls Ritsu in by his shoulders and squeezes him tightly. “You saved me,” he manages in reply, voice cracking.

Ritsu clings to him, digs his fingers into the back of Shou’s shirt and buries his face in his shoulder. He’s exhausted and overwhelmed, and he can’t bring himself to stop the sudden overflow of emotion despite the fact that they aren’t safe yet. Shou holds on just as hard, one hand pulling him in by the back of his shoulder while the other lays flat against the small of his back.

Only when Ritsu finally starts to calm down does Shou move, gently pushing Ritsu away. “Hey, we have to get moving, alright? We just need to find the car, and then we can rest,” he urges, standing up and tugging Ritsu along with him.

Ritsu nods, not trusting himself to say anything, and lets Shou help him to his feet. Shou lays an arm around his shoulders, half-guiding him as they both begin to walk again. His thoughts race, and he folds his arms around himself in an attempt at self-comfort as he focuses on not tripping over tree roots and tall grass. Shou’s hand is tight on his shoulder, gripping him as though something might pull them apart at any moment. He hardly notices when they finally stumble upon the car minutes later.

Higashio rolls down the driver’s seat window as they approach, looking simultaneously startled and relieved. “There you are! We’ve been waiting for ages, what happened? Did you-” he cuts himself off when he sees just how badly beaten and tired they are.

Shou squeezes Ritsu’s shoulder. “Change of plans, we don’t have time to blow this one up. Let’s get back to the hideout as fast as we can, Claw’s gonna be looking out for us.”

Ritsu half listens as Shou crowds him into the back of the car, immediately pressing himself into the back corner as though to make himself as small as possible. He scrubs at his eyes and cheeks with the palm of one hand, wiping away the leftovers of his tears. He doesn’t cry or shake anymore, just leans against the car door until his arm throbs and doesn’t say a word. Shou doesn’t speak either, sitting close enough to Ritsu that their legs press together, and Fukuda climbs in beside them and closes the door behind him. Higashio wastes no time in starting up the car and beginning the long drive back, just as eager to leave as the rest of them are. In the passenger seat, Ootsuki casts occasional glances back at them. Ritsu can’t see his eyes, his black bangs falling over them, but the frown on his face gives away his clear concern. He doesn’t say anything, though, nor does anyone else. Shou rests his elbows on his thighs and lets his face fall into his hands, taking deep breaths that still sound hoarse and labored.

Ritsu tears his gaze away from the purpling bruises on the side of Shou’s neck and presses himself into the corner, staring out the window and feeling a familiar daze fall over him. He knows that he’s probably dissociating, his mind going quiet as his eyes stare through the trees without really taking anything in, but he’s too tired to care. He knows that he should be feeling scared, or ashamed, or regretful, or angry, or something, but instead he just feels numb. He faintly wonders if this is how his brother feels when he’s trying not to let his emotions control him. Eventually he even forgets to think, vision blurring out as he fixes his eyes on a point in the distance and doesn’t move again until the car pulls into the house’s driveway.

#mob psycho 100 #mp100 #ritshou #kageyama ritsu #suzuki shou #mp100 fanfic #fanfiction #blood #murder #ptsd #guns #torture #serendipitousfics

1 note · View note