Description: With D! back up on his feet, tensions run high. What should the intrepid trio do now? Is it too dangerous to start moving against the evil assaulting Southtown? Should they work together, or stand apart? Eventually, some tough decisions are made... but, now that D! is back on his feet, and the individuals are starting to work through their own issues, are they really going to sit back and do nothing?! Who can say! It sure would stop all the broken bones and organ damage, after all...
Sometimes, it's best to focus on the bright side. After all, even though it had taken a long time to nurse D! back to health... the shop had never looked better! Compared to the rather crowded and cramped place it had been, Yuno has devoted a truly vast amount of energy to organizing the place, and making sure that everything is precisely where it should be. The elderly people who run the place have been at least somewhat cushioned from the ravages of the Southtown Wars, and D!... well, after the horrific beating he had suffered, it was difficult not to think that the very fact he was alive, let alone recovered, was a bright side in and of itself.
After Mizuki's last visit, Yuno had taken some time to really think about where he was heading and what was happening. Now, the young chinese monk is definitely looking much healthier. He's repaired his sleep schedule, and even though he still felt guilty, he was starting to move beyond that. There really was nothing he could do to have stopped the killings. All he could do now, was try to make up for it. He was still very nervous about showing his face around the town proper... he had, after all, bought his life and D!'s by promising to flee like a coward and not bother Igniz ever again.
But, just look at this spectacular shop! Not a single herb or scroll out of place. The whole place looks fantastic, and Yuno, wielding a broom in one hand and a feather duster in the other in his own private battle against dirt and grime, looks ... happy!
Speaking of the boxer, he had been....well, he hadn't been terribly busy or active the time he had been stuck in the shop to heal up. That's what happens, really. But he had made some remarkable improvements from the day he had been brought in, to the point that he's actually able to get up and walk around.
So why is he up, about...and trying to pack up what things he has in the back, as if he was about to leave? He may be standing, bu he's still obviously healing up. Why the haste?
The bright side... what is it? Mizuki's left Yuno alone for the most part, other than insisting that he keep healthier habits, and she's been keeping an eye on D!... semi-medically, at least. She can't just sit and heal him--though if she could he'd probably be up again pretty quickly--but she does what she can. She isn't thinking just of him and Yuno, though.
She's been going out, here and there--delivering food for those people who can't manage, especially during these dark days. It's a duty that is uplifting in the end, but supremely depressing when she's actually doing it. She's just returning, actually, from such a trip, sliding the door of the Chin's shop open and slipping inside. "Yuno-kun," she says, looking weary as she says it, then drifting past him to the kitchen, getting a bottle of water.
"I'm going to go check in on our patient..."
Yuno straightens up a little as Mizuki enters the shop. The boy sets down his cleaning equipment, and bustles along after her as she goes to the kitchen. He really hated to see how tired she was, but, it -is- important work she's been doing. And work that he didn't feel it was safe or wise for him to do himself. The trouble is, although he didn't consider himself -weak-, it was painfully obvious that if he got cornered, well, whatever good he might be able to do /here/ would be jeopardized. At least Mizuki was quick and strong enough to just... -run-, if she needed to.
That was how he rationalized it, anyway. The boy is, however, pretty disturbed by what he sees when he opens the door to D!'s room. "... What are you doing, my friend?" He asks, quietly.
Heavy D! looks up as the door opens to the back, just as he's finishing up stuffing things into the bag. Frowning to the bald-headed boy, as well as the miko, he sighs. "I'm taking off. I'm solid enough to walk now, and me being here is probably the not the best place to be. I can find some other place to heal up the rest of the way and..." He sighs a little, pulling the bag up over his bare shoulder.
"If anyone's going to be drawing attention to this place, or putting it in danger, it's me. I'm more well known and did more to that guy than the kid here...so if I'm not here, it's probably gonna be safer here."
Mizuki is in the doorway, too; leaning against the doorjamb, frowning. "You're -not- fully healed. You said it yourself. And if they were going to attack they would have done so by now... there's no reason for them to wait." It has been a few days since--but it's not like Chinatown is huge. The district, such as it is, would be easily searchable.
"We've heard no word of stormtroopers sweeping through. I think you should stay, at least a little longer. At least be fully healed. It doesn't do anyone any good if you're ambushed and can't defend yourself fully." But she can see the determination in the man's eyes; she sighs, to herself, a moment later.
Yuno's features harden considerably at D!'s explanation. The boy shakes his head quickly, "No!" He declares, hotly. "We... are not involved any more, as far as 'those people' are concerned." He moves to block the doorway. Not... that he could actually stop D! if he really wanted to get past him. But he looks just as determined and set, and not for the reasons that Mizuki has already said. Purely because, well, if D! just left, then what did that mean for Yuno? He was still hoping, on some level, that the three of them could work as a team, and that just wasn't going to happen if D! upped and left.
"Besides!" He continues, "If you leave, where are you going to go that's better than here? When you are feeling better... we can all move at once, and be more likely to accomplish something! If you go, we might lose touch, and then how will we be able to stand up to that man again?"
Heavy D! shakes his head, both to Mizuki and Yuno, even when the younger Chinese kid tries to bar the doorway. "Not involved...I'm already involved already, with all the crap that's around. The attacks on the schools, attacks on friends I know around here...the hospital was just the worst of it and....I can't stay here and not do anything..."
He sighs again. As much as healing up would be important, he just can't get around the feeling of uselessness the whole hospital incident instilled in him, and just sitting around healing up isn't doing much for it either. As far as keeping in touch, to possibly pay Igniz back.... "....I can leave a number if you really want me to."
A soft snort, from the miko. "Yeah, because we'll really have time to call if they decide to come down on us, right?" she says, her tone softly scornful. She doesn't want to twist the knife, but she can feel it--D! is going to leave, because he thinks it's 'best'. Safety in numbers... is apparently a concept that he doesn't want to believe in.
"You're -not- doing nothing. You go out there, get kidnapped or worse? Then you'll be doing nothing. I understand how you feel, D. It rankles, not being able to strike back. But you can't just do it on your own... what will you do? Just punch people? That's not going to really help anything in the long run."
For a few long moments, Yuno just sort of... stares at D!. The boy's eyes focused quite intensely on him, and then, he shakes his head. Stepping out of the doorway, he smiles brightly, and genuinely. The young monk seems genuinely happy, positioning himself so that D! could get past, if he wanted to, and instead looking to Mizuki.
"I think I understand, Mizuki-chan." He says, cheerfully. "This is... Mr. D's path, and it is up to him to walk it the way he feels he has to. If he wants to go... then it is the right thing for him, and he should. I'm sure that whatever he chooses to do... will be for the best, in the end." He grins, not quite laughing, though he's obviously holding back from doing so. "/Someone/ needs to punch those people, after all!"
Heavy D! shifts the bag on his shoulder, looking first to the Miko, then to Yuno. "...I have people out there I need to look for...and with everything around like it is, the less people involved that don't need to be, the better. There are monsters out there I don't even wanna run into, but...."
Eyes close, looking to Yuno again. "...it's not just about punching or fighting them. Just....actually standing up and doing something, with what you've got...even if it doesn't end up being enough..."
The boxer gets a long, measuring look from the miko. Honestly, she probably can't deny him this, if it's what he feels he needs to do. But she watches him with those searching blue eyes, for a long moment. "Be careful out there. As you say, there are monsters out there. So just--be on your guard. And you can come back if you need help. Yuno and I will do what we can, of course..."
They already are, in their own way. "Try and look for someone who knows Hotaru Futaba... I was planning on taking Yuno there, if we get a chance, in order to join up with the others." Oh, if only she knew... but there are things afoot and danger lurks around every corner.
Yuno nods solemnly along with Mizuki. The boy knew that there wasn't much that he could say. After all, if he thought he'd even be able to slow down the chaos, he'd want to do the same thing. But he'd been brushed aside like nothing, and was certain that if he just charged in on his own... it'd only happen again. "You don't have to justify yourself to me, Mr. D." He replies, bowing low to the older man. "I just hope that we can fight together again, some day."
That said, he turns his attention back to Mizuki. "I suppose with Mr. D leaving, though, we... should go there, after all. There isn't any reason for us to stay here... and I am still healthy. I do want to help, and... I don't think I can help anyone here, any more."
Heavy D! nods, fist clenched around the strap of his bag. "I'm not going to be stupid...I'm not getting involved with the monsters until I'm ready again...I just...I just need to find my stride and make sure I'm not caught like that ever again..." he insists, a long sigh again, as he looks back to Yuno. "Some day I guess, kid." He then thinks a little. HOtaru Futaba...the aname sounds familiar....but..... "I'll keep my eyes and ears out for her, if you want."
Mizuki nods to Yuno. "We'll head there soon enough, Yuno-kun. You might run into Kentou, even... he's kind of like you." Hopefully they'll get along. "We'll figure out what to do there..." She shakes her head, again, briefly, and rubs her cheeks. She hasn't been sleeping well, it shows in her eyes and her face.
"Just... be careful, okay? That's all we can ask, okay?" Clearly she has misgivings about letting the man go, but it's his choice. She can't order him to sit down, and shut up, and heal. Much as she'd like. Reluctantly she moves out of the way, leaving the path clear for the boxer to go.
Yuno is no longer really worried about D!. He was sure that the larger man knew what he was doing, and that he would be fine to walk his own path. But, the boy instead turns his attention back to Mizuki. The girl has worked herself to the core, the same way poor Yuno had exhausted himself shortly after the hideous defeat. He hesitates for a moment, feeling... just a little bit peculiar about standing up to her, but, he has to do it.
Yuno clears his throat, and frowns, "You... need to go to bed, Mizuki-chan." He says, solemnly. An amusingly ironic statement, given the circumstances of their last meeting.
And then he looks back to D!. "I wish you luck, my friend. Travel well."
Heavy D! looks back to the two younger fighters as he walks past. He winces a little, still bandaged up, but he seems to have no other trouble walking out on his own power at this point. "I will..." he says to Mizuki, nodding and turning back to Yuno. "...luck to you too," he says in return, before turning back, looking out the door...and just walking on. Time to get started...and train. If he hopes to proect anyone...and perhaps find Brian and figure out what the hell is up with his old teammate, he's gonna need all the time he can get.
Log created on 12:26:45 04/18/2009 by Yuno, and last modified on 20:01:19 04/18/2009.