week 1, saturday night

[cherrypuncher]

[HAHA WOW WAS THAT FUCKED UP OR WHAT

RATHER: DOES THIS CONTINUE TO BE FUCKED UP OR W H A T

regardless—Yuna has already decided what she wants to do; she's grateful for Natalie's decision to stay in jail and keep Tiara company, but Yuna can't stay holed in up her room.

(A part of her wants to struggle with the locks, wants to find the key, find a way out; another part knows whatever is here is stronger than her.)

So she's bounding down the stairs and to the hotel lobby. A few blankets and pillows are bundled up in her arms, and her eyes are still wet, but she doesn't look quite so fragile as she did earlier on her way through the building.]

Comments

[insincerely]

[THAT WAS PRETTY FUCKED UP

Shinnosuke will never admit it to anyone, because it sounds a little too much like caring, and he most definitely couldn't care less about some ridiculous idealist, but... he was looking for Yuna. After that kind of trial, it's fairly easy to predict how she might be feeling—in contrast to Shinnosuke, who doesn't look particularly affected.

(Though he's not smiling smugly, so that might be something??)

And hey, he found her. She's a little hard to miss, admittedly.

After glancing around to make sure that no one else is around, Shinnosuke approaches (albeit careful not to actually stand in her way, lest she run him over; he wouldn't put it past her).]

You're looking pretty unhappy, huh?

[No shit, Sherlock.]

[cherrypuncher]

[For all Yuna's zeal, she isn't reckless with other people, so she comes easily to a stop with Shinnosuke's approach. If she were anyone else, she might laugh at what he says to her—of course she's unhappy, she might think; what a stupid thing to say, what would you expect? One of her friends is dead, another is locked in jail and certain to die; it's neither of their faults, there was nothing she could do about it, she has never had to see death before this weekend. Unhappy.

But Yuna isn't anyone else. She's Yuna Yuki. Instead, she's just as pleased as she can muster up being to see him.]

Yeah, I guess I must be. [She tries to smile, but it's thin and weak.] I don't think I can help it right now.

[insincerely]

[... He really wishes Yuna would just hate him. A lot of people would be pissed off at him for such an obvious, blasé remark; it doesn't surprise him that Yuna brushes it off, at the same time it does.

He knows how to handle hate or annoyance. This sort of attitude, however... ah.]

Well, most probably wouldn't be able to after something like that. [He seems detached, but, well, he's seen a lot of death in his life.] Don't tell me that was enough to kill your sense of hope already, though.

[There isn't an ounce of concern his voice (because he is not worried, and he's just asking for completely pragmatic reasons, definitely), though he at least manages to refrain from smiling.]

[cherrypuncher]

[Yuna shakes her head lightly.]

Hero Club tenet. Try not to give up. [No matter what happens, no matter how miserable or scared or hurt she is, she will keep her tenets. She promised herself and her friends that well before she came here; she won't break it for this.] If I do, I can't help everyone like I said I was going to.

[He reminded her of that. She's held onto that, too, with everyone else's insistence that she stay strong.]

[insincerely]

... Heh. That's good.

[After stepping towards Yuna, he reaches over to flick her forehead.]

Seems like you're not quite so naive, after all. [If this won't break her, then she might last for a while yet.] Do try and keep it up. Seeing someone like you around is probably helping a few people here, and the last thing we need is for everyone to snap from the stress.

[cherrypuncher]

Hey!

[And just like that, only for an instant, Yuna is the same Yuna she was a week ago, shoving armfuls of flowers at people, reacting with disproportionate amounts of panic to silly things on wanted posters; she makes a face when he flicks her forehead, teetering like she's been pushed.

When she finds her balance, she smiles, and it's not the same, but it isn't quite so shaky.]

Thank you, Shinnosuke-kun.

[insincerely]

[...]

Huuuuh? What the hell? This isn't something to thank me for, idiot. I wasn't saying it for your sake.

[It was just for his own—just his. Having a proactive idealist like Yuna around keeps everyone's spirits up, and as long as that's the case, then they'll continue working hard. In turn, hopefully, they'll all be done with the game that much sooner.

It benefits him, of course.

That's all.]

[cherrypuncher]

Oh. [She doesn't sound like she believes him...] Even if that's true, it still helped me a lot. You reminded me to stay strong, so I'm still going to say thank you.

[Even after everything, Yuna can't stop being Yuna.]

[insincerely]

... You really are going to get taken advantage of someday.

[cherrypuncher]

Are you worried that's gonna happen?

[She asks it with as much sincerity as she ever says anything else. Excuse her for accusing him of worrying about anything ever but he brings it up so often!!!]

[insincerely]

[No, Yuna. Stop interpreting this the wrong way!! ... Or maybe it's the right way, even Shinnosuke doesn't really know.]

I'm not worried. I'm just stating a fact; I've seen this kind of thing happen too many times to count.

[cherrypuncher]

[Yuna's eyebrows raise and knit together like she's realized something, but when her smile comes back, it's soft and sincere.]

I promise I'll be careful so you don't have to see it happen again.

[And then, before he's allowed to be Rude about it:] Did you need anything else, Shinnosuke-kun? Sorry, I just don't want to leave Miss Tiara and Natalie alone for too long...

[insincerely]

[... This isn't about me, you idiot. He doesn't care anymore. He's too used to it to care. Why should it matter to him if Yuna dies? That's just how the world works, isn't it...?

He makes a shooing motion with his hand.]

Yes, yes, move along. You'll be wanting to spend as much time as you can with them before they die, right?

[As one of them will inevitably do tomorrow.

It's cruel of him to say, but he needs to erase whatever progress Yuna's been making in her head.]