Description: Following the brutal attack on the hospital, Yuno and D! have retreated to the comparative safety of a small backstreet shop in Chinatown. There to rest, recuperate, and lick their wounds. The temptation to lapse into depression at his own helplessness is great, though... until! A surprise visit from a friend helps to smooth over some of the emotional damage. Of course... how long it'll take D! to recover from his terrible injuries remains the real concern...
War is never a fun experience. Even when one isn't directly in the firing line, the effects can be felt in the expressions on peoples faces, the stress and the worry that at any moment, they might be next to bear the brunt of some nefarious groups wrath.
Chinatown is no different. Though blessedly it hasn't yet fallen under much in the way of direct assault, the people are nervous and scared, and the atmosphere is tense. Yuno hates it. Both times he had tried to do something good, a superior force had beaten him down, or just massively overwhelmed him. The boy has found it hard to swallow his spirit and force himself not to go out and do much more, but there wasn't very much that he could do, the whole world seemed lined up to destroy the people who were trying to defend the innocent and the helpless, and against that kind of force, there is no way that Yuno had the strength to even begin to resist. A fact that Igniz had hammered home with a display of power that had taken the young chinese boys breath away.
Retreating as he had done, it's been a few days since that terrible fight, and he's managed to find some care for his ally. Holed up in a small chinese medicine shop, D! has received a lot of care and attention for his wounds, and has been looked after carefully by the boy, and the elderly couple who run the store. Much of the time, though, Yuno has been lost in thought. He couldn't believe how horrible everything was turning out, and how powerless he was to do anything about it. If only he had been stronger, he might have been able to save so many lives... the thought that he had failed so very badly kept him up at night, and he doesn't look very well. He's determined, however, to do his part at least as well as he can, which is why at the moment he's bustling about in the front of the shop, sweeping up with a large broom. They thought his friend would probably be back on his feet very soon, even if he wasn't going to be fighting fit for a little while longer... maybe Yuno would be able to find out the brave mans name.
A boy like Yuno--he shouldn't been involved in this. It's tough enough for seasoned warriors and fighters--but for someone so new to the world... Mizuki is no hardened veteran, at least not in her estimation--though she's been through enough to qualify... of course she heard about the attack on the hospital. She'd been there not a day earlier--her body healing from grievous wounds... much faster than any one person should have a right to expect. Most would just be dead--she's going to have some scarring, but otherwise she'll recover. A miracle, in some ways.
It's a good thing she -wasn't- at the hospital--she would've had to face Igniz as well--but she's in Chinatown, which, while still hard-hit by the war and the lockdown, still has pockets of resistance--in the form of defiant shopkeepers still peddling their wares.
The miko--wearing street clothes, not her usual fighting outfit, clad in a simple t-shirt and jeans, with sneakers--is walking towards the medicine shop, one she frequents--or used to frequent... like so many things she's neglected the couple of late, but she intends to rectify that.
Then she sees the figure sweeping up and she blinks, her brow furrowing. "Yuno-kun? What--what are you doing here...?"
Heavy D! meanwhile is...well, he's out right now. While he looked much better than the smouldering mess he was in after Igniz introduced him to the Brutal God Project, he's still very much in a wreck, bandaged up and in a rather still rest on a table out in the back. He wasn't quite comotose, but his moments of waking were few and far between whlie he tried to rest off the rest of the damage.
And his jacket...his poor jacket, long since thrown out in the trash after being torn to shreds...
Yuno looks up in surprise when he hears Mizuki's voice call his name. The boy blinks slowly, and looks up. "Ah, Mizuki!" He replies, quickly. The heavy bags under his eyes testament to the long hours he had spent very much -not- resting. It was hard, trying to sleep when he was still so conflicted. Meditation and contemplation had completely failed to help him come to terms with what he'd had to do, though he knew, realistically, it was the only course of action he could have taken...
Her question throws him back there for a moment, and he flinches, shaking his head quickly. He looks very different from the last time they'd met, when he was all smiles and exuberance, he's obviously taken what happened very hard. "There was, ah, trouble, at the hospital..." He starts, "I tried to stop it, but, I couldn't even touch him... and he almost killed my friend, I, I had to run, and, well, it's safe here... more safe than anywhere else... but he's not doing well, I think he'll get better in time, but, I... don't have anywhere else to go."
He lifts the broom up, and forces himself to smile, though it does look very brittle and fake. "I'm helping out Mr. and Mrs. Chin! They are very nice people, I just wish I could do more to help them..."
The response may not be what Yuno expects; Mizuki's eyes widen, when she hears that Yuno /was there/... and guilt floods her. She had no idea... her mouth works for a moment, as she takes in Yuno's condition. The bags under the eyes, the brittle smile... she shakes her head.... and just steps forward once, enveloping Yuno in a warm, strong hug. "... I'm sorry," she says, quietly--she only keeps the hug for a moment, before releasing Yuno.
"I'm glad to see you're alright--but you mentioned a friend? I take it Mr. and Mrs. Chin are helping him?" Almost killed... "Maybe you'd better let me see him, Yuno-kun. I might be able to help... No, I -will- be able to help, and between Mrs. Chin and myself we'll have him right. Okay? And you..." She frowns.
"You need to rest... and we need to find a good place to stay. I think I know of somewhere but we need to take care of your friend first..."
Yuno is slightly taken aback by the hug, though he isn't complaining, it isn't something he's at all used to, and for a moment it leaves him completely stunned. When she releases him, the boy does look a little less stressed, and nods quickly. "Yes, he's just out the back." He says, putting down the broom, he leads the way, out through a beaded curtain, to where D! lays out on the table in his unfortunate bandaged state.
About resting himself... he doesn't reply, the boy didn't really know what to say. He knew that he should, he knew that he wasn't helping anything, but, it still felt like he was stuck on a loop, and he should still be doing a lot more than he was. The fact that he couldn't, really, was remarkably little comfort in that regard. "Do you think you can help him, Mizuki?" He asks, swallowing hard, "He's... he's a good man, and a strong man! He hit that ... the person, he hit him so hard that he actually flinched. I saw it, we... we couldn't -stop- him, but, maybe, if we tried a second time..."
The redhead nods firmly. She's not quite fully healed herself, but she's close--and her abilities will help here, that's for sure. "I know I can, Yuno-kun. Lead the way..." she suggests, with a smile. Unarguably, there is something she can do here and now to help out.
"Don't beat yourself up wondering what you -could- have done, Yuno-kun. Regrets will not do you any good. You did everything you could, I'm sure, and that is the best anyone can ask of you--or anyone else. You put yourself in mortal danger--don't ever forget that. This war... the fights we choose to fight, they aren't tournament matches or sparring sessions. They may not end so cleanly..."
Mizuki is waiting for Yuno to lead her inside--of course, once inside, her eyes widen. "Heavy D!... I've heard of him... yes, I'm sure I can help him. Yuno-kun, please find me a stool or a chair or something..."
When the two make their way to the back room, D! finally stirs, a low grunt as he starts to move around slightly, at least as much as all the bandages around him will let him. Still, he seems to be for the most part still out...though the two might notice one particular thing about his now fitful rest:
His fists...his now clenched (if not terribly tightly) fists.
Yuno hesitates for a moment, considering what she says, the boy sighs, and nods. "I know, Mizuki... it is just... hard. I know that these fights are, ah, real, not like the usual ones, and, well, I... I've seen that before, but, not so many people, and not such strong people. It was... bad." That said, he gives a little start when she says she needs a chair. "O-Of course."
The boy rummages, moving a small box of herbs off a stool, the back room is cluttered to say the least, but, there is at least enough room to work, and he sets the stool down next to the table that D! has been laid down on. Taking in the state of the injured warrior, he notices the clenched fists, and gives a genuine smile at that, pointing excitedly.
"He wasn't doing that earlier, Mizuki! Do you think that means he is getting better?" And of course... now Yuno knew the mans name! Heavy D! that was good... now he knew who to thank.
"I think he is getting better, yes, Yuno-kun. Let's help him get better a little faster, now..." Taking the chair, she seats herself, then spreads her hands out, putting them over D!'s body, maybe six inches over. For a moment, she's quiet, her lips moving as if she were praying--and then her hands start glowing, blue-green, the energy growing thick around her hands. Her voice rises, just a few decibels, and then she's pushing downwards--as if pushing against an invisible surface. The collected energy builds, then spills downwards, into D!'s body. If he's aware of it at all, it'll be as a damp warmth suffusing his body--Mizuki holds it there for a moment, and then it seems to disappear, the girl slumping a little.
"... okay... he won't be better immediately... but I've supercharged his body a little... he should heal faster... at least for a while." Phew. That's a lot of work--of course she can heal more directly, but that isn't always the best method. "Yuno-kun, could I get some water?" she asks, sitting back in the chair as she speaks.
"I know. It is hard. This situation is very hard... it's hard on everyone. But we'll get through it... we all will." Well, maybe not the dead. But she'll be busy at the shrine, once this is all done... someone's got to do it...
Heavy D!'s fist clenches a little more before relaxing, his brow furrowing before it returns to the neutral, resting expression he had on before. When the energy Mizuki builds up isp ushed down, his body seems to stir a little more, though it's hard to tell just how aware of it the boxer truly is. A small groan can be heard from the taller boxer, however, fist clenching and relaxing again.
"Nnhghhh....damn...." comes the final waking groan, D!'s eyes slowly cracking open as he tries to move...and hisses at the pain that hits his body.
Yuno watches with obvious fascination as Mizuki tends to D!. The effect is pretty peculiar, after all, though he seemed to remember her doing something similar in their fight, now that it is more obvious what she's actually doing, it's obviously caught his imagination. He'd never seen anything like that before, and it brings a wide smile to his features, especially when D! begins to stir. "That's amazing, Mizuki!" He chirps, already looking a lot happier, "He's really going to be okay!"
With a bright smile and a spring back in his step, the boy hurries off, and a moment later returns with a glass of water, retrieved from the kitchen, which he hands over to the older fighter. "Thank you so much Mizuki, I, ah, I owe Mr. D! a lot, I was worried that he might not make it... the things that monster did were... well, ahah, it, it doesn't really matter... you are right, they won't... they -can't- ... we'll be alright, in the end. Especially now that you are here!"
"Oh, he's tougher than that... but you're welcome. I'm sure he'd be fine in time... I'm not entirely sure I'm doing him a favor. After all, now he'll be able to re-enter the fight earlier..." Mizuki stands up, backing up just a touch, then pitching her voice carefully. "Are you alright..." ... pause. "... Mr. D!? Or... well, that sounds stupid... obviously you aren't... but I'm sure you'll be better soon," she says, giving herself a little 'duh' smackw ith her palm. Obviously he's not okay.
"Yuno-kun, I--I don't deserve that kind of praise from you. If we're going to survive, it's going to take all of us, everyone. No one person is capable of doing all this on their own..." If there is anything Mizuki is /not/, it is a miracle-maker.
Heavy D! groans, not daring to sit up right now as he simply tests jus how much it hurts to move any certain body part. Winces go over his face as he tests, flexing fingers, arms, legs, and toes. "Nnn...where am I?" he asks groggily, eyes scanning over the back room as he tries to grasp along his surroundings...and spots Yuno, the grateful, panicky boy getting a questioning look from the older boxer. "You're the one that brought bme back here?...nn...what happened to the hospital?"
Yuno shakes his head fiercely to Mizuki, "You can help heal people... and you are a really good fighter as well!" He straightens up a bit, "You could beat me... and, well, right now, that means you are... more useful than me, a lot more useful, so, so I'll help, but I'm still going to say you are a great person!"
And then D! speaks, and the boys protests die in his throat. For a moment, he looks very uncomfortable, and then he sags a little. "Yes, I, ah, I brought you here, Mr. D!." He says, moving to stand closer to the boxers side, so that he could look at him a little bit easier. "I... after he hurt you, I ran... I don't think I would have been able to slow him down, and, I..." He grits his teeth, swallowing before he answers, "I'm sorry, everyone is dead, and, there wasn't anything we could do ... maybe, maybe when you get better, we could try again... I just, he was so strong..."
Mizuki's turn for a brittle smile; she reaches out, rufflig Yuno's head. "I--we do what we can, that's all, Yuno-kun. Thank you. It's good to know you have such faith in me." But now she has to -live up to it-... that might be tougher than she wants to think about. "--and don't underestimate yourself. YOu want your opponents underestimating you, not yourself." That said, she turns once again to D.
"You should--don't move so much yet. You're healing but it will be a while yet before you're really okay to move... trust me on that." Then he asks about the hospital and Mizuki closes her eyes. She knows, of course... just one more thing to make these people pay for.
"From what it sounds like, you two faced overwhelming odds, you shouldn't feel bad about what happened. At least he wasn't unopposed. But you -both- need to rest..." Mizuki frowns. "Mr. Chin's shop will probably be safe for a little while... and there is nearby food and supplies... but we can't stay here forever."
Heavy D! looks aside as Yuno tells him about what happened after he got blasted aside at the hospital. Eyebrows furrow, then eyes squeeze shut. Fists clench tightly, even as the act makes pain shoot over his arm, as evidenced by the grimace over his face. Even Mizuki's attempts to reassure him doesn't do much, considering the weight that his defeat brought down on the fate of so many. He falls silent, almost looking like he'd want to punch something, if he were physically capable.
Yuno hesitates for a moment, he looks at D!, and then back at Mizuki, and he's obviously conflicted. "I... know I should rest, Mizuki." He mumbles. Scratching behind the back of his head for a moment, he sighs, and straightens up a bit. "But... I don't want to leave Chinatown, really. I know the people here, and I feel like I should be here to help protect them. I don't know what I'll do if that monster comes back, but, but maybe I can do -something-. I can't just keep hiding forever, can I?"
It's a genuine question, not something that he is just saying as a statement. He doesn't know if he can just stand aside. His code has always been very lax on that point, because whilst you should defend people, you can't defend anyone if you are dead, and sometimes it is better to stand aside than protect the path... but there was just so -much- of it here, it seemed insane to even consider hiding forever.
Mizuki sighs a little; she can see D!'s depression. And she can't say it's unwarranted. Losing the hospital... facing overwhelming odds or not--that's going to be tough. Yuno gets a searching look. "It's a fine sentiment, Yuno-kun. And one I share. But at the same time we should be careful not to endanger them needlessly... even though the hospital was successfully assaulted, who is to say that you and D haven't marked yourselves in the eyes of the invaders?"
She smiles. "I'm not talking about hiding, Yuno-kun. Far from it. But instead of striking in small groups... if we can gather up enough people, make a concerted strike... we can fight -back-, fight effectively... let these people know that, Geese Howard or no, Southtown isn't going to bow down to anyone..."
Heavy D! continues to silently bemoan his weakness and the fate of the hosital, seemingly taking himself outside of the conversation as he keeps his head aside, and his fist clenched. When Mizuki talks about being 'marked', though, he finally speaks up. "I'm probably already marked. I helped bear back a group that tried to attack the Taiyo front gates."
For a long moment, Yuno is silent. Considering this, it was a whole new angle he hadn't really thought of, but, Mizuki was right. Whoever that man had been, he was obviously one of the people in charge. The idea that he /wasn't/ was just too terrifying to contemplate. So with that in mind, it made sense that he'd remember Yuno's face. And the boy had promised to stay out of his way, so if he tried to fight back, then an example would probably be made...
Now it is Yuno's turn to ball his hand up into a fist, his knuckles white. "You... make a good point, Mizuki." He murmurs, "But, where should we go? Mr. D! isn't in any kind of shape to go anywhere at the moment, and... well, you said you knew somewhere we should go. Maybe you should go there and help out however much you can, and me and Mr. D! will follow when we're... feeling better."
A raised eyebrow. "If you are marked, and you're here, then I'm not leaving here until you two are ready. It's pointless to say 'let's join together' if I just leave afterwards. And you're both not in the best fighting shape... I'm not either. But probably, between the three of us, we can survive... until we can get together with others." She turns, though, after that.
"You two should stay here, though--I'm just going to go get some food... hope you don't mind eating Chinese," she says, with a faint grin. "And Yuno-kun."
She turns to pinion him with a mild glare. "Get some rest. That's an order," she says, as she then walks towards the door. Really, that's all she's going to go--get food, drinks, and then come back. They can hole up here for long enough for the three of them to come out rested and ready... and she has to make some phone calls, too.
Heavy D! sighs, turning back over and laying on his back, unclenching his fist. For now, his rage is a little impotent, as he has no ability even dare try and do anything else at the moment but rest and heal up. The frustration and despair is transparent on his face though as she stares into the ceiling...
Log created on 11:51:43 03/27/2009 by Yuno, and last modified on 19:59:14 04/18/2009.