doggone

[repeatedprayer]

[In the time following his departure from Tabito and Manabu's company, the alias "Grey" has wound up sticking.

Not that everyone calls him that, he's used a few other aliases since then, but it's what he's wound up thinking of himself as. If Grey had taken the time to think about it a bit more he might have picked something with a little less connection to Rezo's name, but it's still leagues better than thinking of himself as "Rez- wait, no, just a copy." And maybe that's why he's felt significantly calmer since he left Sairaag.

By his own standards, Grey has been laudably well-behaved; sure, he's been mostly doing under-the-table psychic work, often on behalf of criminals, but! He's been trying to keep a low profile so it's usually things like clairvoyant spying rather than anything violent, and he's been making a point of not doing anything that directly impacts the galaxy railways.

It would be extremely awkward if Manabu Yuuki had to try and arrest him, after all.

He's found himself frequently thinking about Manabu, much to his annoyance. He has no serious expectations of ever seeing Manabu again, so it's simply a waste of mental bandwidth to find himself wondering what Manabu is doing right now or where he is, or to reminisince over their incredibly brief acquaintanceship. Grey can only suppose that because Manabu was the first reasonably normal person he got to know after leaving Sairaag that Manabu is going to stick out in his mind for a while.

And it's probably because of the real estate that Manabu is hogging in Grey's mind that he's been very aware of every mention of the SDF that crosses his path. He hasn't exactly been tracking the SDF's activities deliberately, but he does pay attention to the news and the SDF frequently winds up in there, even if Manabu's name in particular isn't normally dropped.

Until the day it does.

SDF Officer Taken Hostage By Pirates]

* * *

[It's taken several weeks of investigating, but Grey has been able to track down The Huntress's client, a Dr. Parish and associates. It must be a small galaxy, because Dr. Parish is someone Grey knows. Sort of.

Rather, Dr. Parish was a colleague of Rezo's who collaborated with the man on chimera research (and other unsavory things) in the past. Not only that, the man was an ardent admirer of Rezo's superior psychic prowess, and desperate to improve his own meager abilities.

He'd had quite a shock when Grey approached him in town, but after the initial surprise it had been sickeningly easy to convince Dr. Parish that he was the real Rezo. Grey can only surmise that the man wants to believe too badly to let himself be properly suspicious. It had only taken a day for Grey to be invited to tour Parish's laboratory.

The lab's located on the grounds of a former Marquess's estate, a ways out of town and secluded by trees, a high wall, and a long drive. Grey's done a little recon before, but actually being here is different, especially since he has to navigate by cane at the moment. Grey is doing his best to politely nod and smile as Parish guides him from room to room, explaining their work and occasionally handing him things to examine himself.

But evidently Parish realizes that "Rezo" isn't entirely interested, because he stops partway through an explanation of some stem cell experiments he and a few others have been working on to say "Of course, the really interesting specimens are kept in the basement floor."

Grey already knows this. He hopes his expression seems the right sort of eager.]

Interesting?

["Something along the lines of what we did in the past. Would you like to see them?"]

Nothing would please me more.

[Grey can practically hear Parish's delighted grin. To soothe the surge of irritation, Grey reminds himself that he's going to kill this man before the end of the day and allows Parish to guide him out into the hall and to the basement entrance at the back of the building.]

Comments

[siriusly]

Ha-?! [wait, is he serious or messing with him!!] Y-you haven't even tried it yet!

[repeatedprayer]

[Grey's expression eases into an amused smile at Manabu's startled reaction.]

Oh, very well. Pass it over and let's get it over with.

[siriusly]

Jeez... [as if he were asking him to drink kerosene or something! Manabu hands it over with a pout, already turning and shuffling away to get himself a small bowl of the remaining broth. lunch is still sitting pretty heavily in his stomach, so he figures just a little is better than risking throwing it all back up in short order.]

[repeatedprayer]

[There's a quiet fsst from Grey opening the can. He holds it up and takes a cautious sniff.

Smells like tea. But odd.

He takes a sip.]

...

[Wrinkles his nose. Takes another sip.]

...Hm.

[Third sip, then he ponders for a few moments. Ultimately:]

It's peculiar.

[siriusly]

Eh? [the call from across the flat is incredulous and a bit belated, as he'd been in the middle of slurping the broth out of a bowl. he wipes his mouth with the back of his hand.]

In a good way or a bad way? It's not Tabito tea, by the way...

[repeatedprayer]

Hm.

[Grey takes another sip.]

It's bad but I don't hate it. Perhaps your Tabito tea will be better.

[siriusly]

[his expression scrunches a bit.]

So what's that mean about the bet?

[repeatedprayer]

[Grey thinks it should be his victory, really- he certainly can't say he likes canned tea- but he decides to take pity on Manabu.]

Good question. Shall we wait until I can try proper Tabito tea to settle it?

[siriusly]

[an ear twitches.] It's your bet, so you sort it out...!

[he rummages into the fridge and grabs the other can, cracking it open, giving it a sniff before swigging, and makes a face.]

...This is really weak.

[repeatedprayer]

Very well. Since I didn't like it, we'll say that I win.

[See, Manabu, he gave you a chance to not take an L for once but you turned him down. Nobody to blame but yourself.

Grey returns most of his attentions to the ramen, which he enjoys much more, although he does take note of Manabu's remark.]

It seems you don't like it terribly much either.

[Clearly this makes it a double win for Grey.]

[siriusly]

[mrrhh. were Manabu in a better state, he'd fight this. but as it stands, he just grumbles into the remains of the broth before slurping it down.]

Fine, you win...

[repeatedprayer]

Heh.

[Well if it's any consolation to Manabu, Grey looks very happy at the moment. He loves winning! And he loves teasing Manabu.

He loves Manabu.

Who could have ever imagined it? Someone like Grey... And yet, it makes perfect sense.

Grey continues to eat the rest of his meal in relative quiet, sneaking thoughtful looks at Manabu every now and then.]

[siriusly]

[Manabu smiles wanly when Grey gets back to it, relieved to have a bit of contentment back after all those tears. he gets why his mom does this cooking for people thing...

...besides getting paid, that is.

eventually:] Hey, can you handle the cleanup here? I wanna...er, clean...up...myself. [he juts his thumb toward the bathroom. he needs to wind down properly before his energy entirely gives out on him, he's certain it's not long from now.]

[repeatedprayer]

[Grey sets his bowl down and smiles softly. It's probably a very alarming look on him.]

Of course.

[Sure, he'll do the dishes for you. He would die for you! It's a strange feeling, one that's giving him a new depth of understanding to a lot of the literature he's read.]

[siriusly]

[with a little sound of thanks, Manabu pushes himself away from the counter and, after grabbing whatever clothes were left folded in yesterday's laundry, retreats into the bathroom to try and wash up. there's a lot to process, isn't there: the short walk yielding such fatigue, Grey's pain...

big feelings...

Manabu tries to keep his focus on paying attention to the way his body reacts to the warm water, but he can envision Grey sitting in that shower with him. holding him, being held...it's alright to keep wanting that, right? his feelings never really led him astray, even if he needed guidance in the past to learn what the consequences were (granted, he's never seen all the hardship he's faced as being a problem so much as just part of the process).

the warm water just makes him more tired, and a full stomach starts to feel a bit queasy. it's frustrating - this much fatigue over a little walk? sure, he hadn't been walking in...months...but still!

he's clearly not good at convalescence.]

Uh, G-Grey? [it's a while, but he's finally been able to pull fresh clothes on for the evening; he hangs onto the doorframe to keep upright.] Sorry, can...you help me out of here? I think I'm going to keel over if I do.

[repeatedprayer]

[Grey has a lot to process himself, and dishes don't prove much of a distraction. He can hear the water of the shower running through the door next to the kitchen, and it makes him think about the man in that shower. The one who swore he'd never throw away his feelings for Grey. Does he have any idea how much Grey needed to hear that?

Can Grey give Manabu what he needs in return?

Grey's done with the dishes in short order and winds up back on the bed, leaning against the wall and headboard with his eyes closed. He's probably not as fatigued as Manabu, but having a long crying jag is still quite draining and when he hears Manabu speak it gives him a jolt.]

Ah-

[Grey was fortunately at least somewhat braced for this to happen, so he's at the door in a jiff and setting gentle hands on Manabu.]

There we are. Let's get to the bed.

[siriusly]

[Manabu leans in heavily on Grey's support, letting himself be guided without as much grumbling or excuse-mumbling as he'd done days prior. instead, he just crawls into bed, relieved to be off his feet.]

It'll be easier tomorrow...won't it?

[repeatedprayer]

[This really is remarkably cooperative for Manabu, and it's an alarming indictment of how tired Manabu is. Grey lets Manabu crawl into bed ahead of him, stepping away from the bed to switch the light off before joining Manabu.

And, ah. That's an unfortunate question.]

Well... [Yeah, he's not going to lie about this.] You'll probably still be sore tomorrow.

[siriusly]

[Manabu keeps relatively still while Grey's situating, himself curled up on his side.]

I don't mind pain. [mostly.] That's fine. But I don't want to be so tired anymore.

[repeatedprayer]

[Grey scoots in close to Manabu, careful not to accidentally lie on his tail.]

You'll get better. [And this he can say with certainty. It might not be fast enough for Manabu's liking, but Grey believes it.]

[siriusly]

[said tail flicks a bit before lifting and flopping on his own leg; Manabu shrinks back against Grey to feel both the warmth and presence he brings.]

Four kilometers, then...

[repeatedprayer]

We can certainly try, can't we?

[So saying, he'll just put an arm over Manabu and hug the other man to himself a little.]

[siriusly]

Well, what else can I do? [he's not a super-cool psychic who can...mind-travel around places without walking! the tail thumps a bit with the beat of his stubbornness and the huff that comes from it; he grabs at the arm and presses it to himself as he tucks his head down more comfortably, squeezing his eyes shut.]

I'll...get better. [eventually. sooner, he hopes.]

[repeatedprayer]

[There's a beat of surprise at the grab- stubborn and huffy as Manabu may be, the gesture makes Grey's heart do a little leap of happiness.]

Yes. And I won't ease up on you until you do.

[So have no fear Manabu, Grey promises to bully you every step of the way into recovery!

Grey lowers his voice to a murmur:]

Now then, shall I tell you about A Midsummer Night's Dream?

[siriusly]

[Manabu doesn't fight sleep for very long, even for Grey's voice; it becomes a comforting texture mixed with the warmth and closeness and presence he can cling onto. something about fairies and muddled memories? seems familiar. like that kid who took memories for coins...

being exhausted and in pain means he's a bit of a fidgety sleeper, so staying cuddly like that winds up being brief as he fidgets and twists around and unconsciously struggles to relax. it means some bumped knees or inadvertent jolts or twitches that doubtless don't really help Grey at all until it ceases with Manabu half-sprawled atop him. "a bit" fidgety, indeed.

if it's any consolation at all, it's how Manabu would sleep regularly, and that's some degree of trust...or just the exhaustion. maybe the better consolation is being able to wake and see the soft, drowsy admiration on Manabu's face or the tickle of his fingers tracing at his neck and clavicle, or the way the tail can be heard lightly thumping when there's eye contact.]