week 6, post trial

[robitussin]

[Their numbers keep falling. Three people have died already this week, with two more on the way tomorrow. With the outburst the townspeople gave them once the results came through... If anyone were feeling downhearted, it's to be expected at this point. Things continuing at their current pace is a frightening thought, after all. Like last week, the offer to spend time together or meet in a central location doesn't come.

Hawks and Dabi wait for the morning in their cells, but the rest of the tourists are free to wander about the town as they please; free to rest, to talk with each other, and to try to gather strength wherever they can. So, where does the evening find you, Cartesio?]

Comments

[robitussin]

...Oh.

[She looks a little surprised by that, but she continues.]

Well, um - thanks. I think that might be the first time anybody has ever told me I'm good with people.

[relieable]

[ehehe...]

Maybe you've finally tapped into a secret power!

[robitussin]

[She laughs, but it isn't at his expense.]

Right. Talking to people, very powerful.

[relieable]

[he opens his mouth to say one thing, then changes his mind]

I dunno. It can be a gift. Maybe you don't appreciate it right now, but you might later.

[robitussin]

...I don't know. It's not like it helped him much, in the end.

[The way she says it is casual, even as her expression grows tighter.]

[relieable]

[hm... Osomatsu didn't necessarily mean Dabi, but he understands where she is coming from. his own expression falters, and he moves to lean against the wall again]

...Some people can't be helped. Even though he did bad stuff, he was... pretty confident, yanno? Like he was unafraid of the consequences. When someone's set in their ways like that, no person is gonna change 'em.

[robitussin]

...I don't know. I feel like there had to have been something.

[She shakes her head.]

Sorry. You don't have to worry about it.

[relieable]

I'm not worried about it, I'm worried about you. That's all. [he shrugs] If you're okay, that's all that matters.

[robitussin]

[After a few moments:]

...Well, you don't have to be worried about me, either.

[relieable]

[ah............

he looks at her for a long while, kind of upset. but he knows that's just Natalie. she's like this, and he understands.

so after a pause, he grins at her, rubbing under his nose]

If you say so. [he's not going to stop worrying, especially after she looked out for him]

Guess you have your good buddy Keith to watch over you. You don't need a third wheel.

[robitussin]

[She blinks, but she can't really hide the way her face goes a little red, even as she looks away.]

I don't know what you're talking about.

[relieable]

Oh, really? [now he's just teasing] You two seem pretty close. Haven't you been doing a lot of stuff together?

[robitussin]

I'm close with other people, too, okay?

[relieable]

[he laughs, though if he pushes her too far, he'll get mad at him, probably]

All right, all right! No need to get defensive about nothing.

[robitussin]

I'm not defensive.

[But she's eager for a change of subject regardless, so:]

...You asked if I was going to be okay. Are you?

[relieable]

[she totally is...]

Huh? Me? [hmmm... he rubs his chin in thought] Well, I've still got you, and Bolin, and Sakura-chan. I should be fine.

[he tries not to think about Franciscus too much, but losing Sting and Millium was quite a bad blow]

[robitussin]

...Is that how you measure how well you're doing? The amount of friends you have who aren't dead?

[Instead of judgmental, she just sounds curious, mostly.]

[relieable]

[oh?]

That'd be pretty cruel, wouldn't it? ...A lot of shit's gone down, but I'm still here, for some reason. Back when people started killing each other, I thought, "Well, damn, I'm gonna be the first to go." But I wasn't. I'm still alive. And I've gotta take that and run with it. I've gotta be grateful.

Am I okay? After this, I dunno if I'll ever be okay. But, right now, in this situation, I've gotta count my blessings. Right?

[robitussin]

[She pauses, but...]

...All of us have been kidnapped into a shithole town where we keep being coerced to murder each other and watch the people we've started to care about get slaughtered. If there was any situation where it'd be understandable to not count our blessings or look for a silver lining, it would be this one.

[relieable]

...

You're right on the money, as always! [a short laugh] I'm probably just the idiot, here, trying to be optimistic again. So you don't have to listen to me.

[robitussin]

...No, you're not an idiot. That's not what I meant.

[She has to take a moment to find the right way to say what she does mean, though.]

Just - I don't want you to feel like you're doing anything wrong if you let this shit get to you. You know?

[relieable]

[while Osomatsu is leaning towards the optimistic side, as usual, he's hiding the fact that he has let a lot of this get to him. Franciscus' execution proved that. he is not certain he'll ever recover]

...I know. It's the same with everyone. I can't remember the last time I saw Sakura-chan smile.

[robitussin]

[A littler gentler, more than she's used to:]

Maybe it's the same with everyone, but I'm asking about you.

[relieable]

[........]

I.

[he pauses for a moment before dropping his shoulders. it's probably a bad idea to talk to Natalie about how he feels. he broke down in front of Sting, and was very open around Franciscus. and now they're both gone. if he tells Natalie how he's actually doing, something might happen to her! which is silly to think, because he's not the cause of that...

he sucks in a breath, clenching his fists at his sides. do it, Osomatsu. smile at her! tell her you're fine!]

I want...! [his eyes squeeze shut, and he turns his head away] I wanna go home already!

[robitussin]

[She can tell (or she assumes, at least) that he's near tears, and her voice continues to soften accordingly. She can't really bring herself to say it's okay or that he's going to be okay... Who knows if that's true.

Instead:]

...You're not the only one, and that means you don't have to deal with this alone.