Work Text:
Before, when Ritsu and Shigeo would walk to school together, it was an uneventful affair. They’d walk - talk, sometimes- and that was about it. But, one day, and from that day onwards, it was...different. Shigeo became much more invested in the stray and outdoor cats that live between their house and the school.
He would make sure his backpack had cat safe foods - he said that he read that bananas and apples without their skins were good cat treats, somewhere (he would have milk but it isn’t as good for cats as he thought, plus he’d worry if it wasn’t kept cold) - and he stopped to feed and maybe pet each one they’d happen across. Ritsu thought that it might’ve been a one-off thing, and then it turned into a two-off, into a three-off, into a near daily occurrence. He started to make sure that they’d leave their house earlier to account for the stops, so they wouldn’t be late to class, or be cutting it too close.
Ritsu finds himself wondering why and how this particular habit came to be, as he stands, waiting for his brother to start walking again. Shigeo is, currently, crouched down just outside an alley, breaking off small chunks of a banana and offering it to a grey tabby halfway down the way. It was scared, at first, when the two had passed by, startling it and making it bolt, but it’s now approaching Shigeo, tail no longer fluffed and ears perked forward.
There’s always been something about Shigeo that animals just seem to trust. Perhaps it’s his calm nature? Or how he never moves sharply, or too fast?
Maybe it’s just an esper thing? Ritsu’s hadn’t really tried to interact with wildlife leading up to getting his powers (or since then), so he’s not sure if that’s an experiment he can see out. He guesses he could see if animals like him now...
Well, whatever it is about him, Shigeo never really has troubles with the cats, offering the food to them and, more often than not, having them eat out of his hand. The tabby is in front of him now, taking a banana chunk straight from his palm, and he brings his other hand up - slowly, like always - and strokes it down the length of its back. It arches into the touch, and even from where Ritsu is, he can hear its rumbling purr.
Shigeo stays like that until all the banana bits have been eaten, before breaking off a few more and leaving them out for the cat as he backs up, straightens up, and approaches Ritsu. They walk towards school once more, in silence, as Ritsu tries to think of something, anything, which could explain this habit.
He can’t and it frustrates him, and he decides to drop it for now so he doesn't end up obsessing over this little mystery. He ends up spacing out in class regardless of that decision, and that frustrates him even more.
This particular day is sunny, which is nice, since it’s been cloudy and threatening rain for the past six days. Plus it’s a Friday, to boot. It’s a day both brothers get to walk together, and they set out for school at their new regular time.
The silence between them on the walk is companionable, just two brothers enjoying each other’s presence. Ritsu’s surprised they hadn’t come across any cats yet; he’s also surprised that it’s such a habit now that he actually had that thought.
There’s a yowl from up ahead, and Ritsu hears Shigeo inhale sharply. He is gone in an instant, having used his telekinesis on himself to get to the source of the noise quicker, and Ritsu isn’t far behind. He is a bit slower with it, not quite used to it, but he gets there faster than any non-esper could have, and that’s something.
Shigeo is standing just inside of an alley, one that has an assortment of cats on any particular day, and he’s completely rigid. Ritsu comes up behind him, placing a hand on his shoulder as he looks down the cluttered backstreet.
A grey tabby is standing off against a white and orange cat, claws and teeth everywhere. There’s a lot of movement, hissing, and only a minute later, with a final swipe, the tabby knocks down the other and bolts behind a dumpster, after swiping what appeared to be a morsel of food from nearby.
Ritsu’s hand is now suspended in mid air with nothing below it, Shigeo having once again moved himself forward to be on his knees next to the downed cat.
It’s only there for a second or two, before it jumps up, hisses, and runs. There’s blood matted in its fur, Ritsu notes as it runs, and when he walks up to his brother, he sees a small stain where it had been laying, some drops off in the direction it fled.
His hand goes back to Shigeo’s shoulder as he crouches next to him, about to mutter a small reassurance about how the cat’s still alive, or how it’s sad to see cats fight, or something, but his mind jerks to a halt when some of the trash around them shakes, and slowly rises.
With the words caught in his throat, he quickly shifts himself to be in front of Shigeo instead of beside him, lifting his face for him to break the apparent staring contest he’s having with the small bloodstain.
Shigeo’s eyes are unfocused, it turns out, and Ritsu’s not sure if his brother is breathing very shallowly or not at all. His hair is lifting from around his head, in little wispy locks, as the rubbish rises higher and higher, soon to be joined by the dumpsters (and the grey tabby).
Ritsu’s not used to seeing his brother like this, and he isn’t quite sure what to do, so he tries his best to keep everything that’s suspended in mid air as it is, and he pulls his brother into a hug, whispering small reassurances and little nothings. He rubs his brothers back, and - with a clear of his throat - he switches to talking (with a surprisingly even voice) about the first thing that comes to mind - student council, and different problems that have come up that may or may not have been solved yet. Just...something, he thinks, to get Shigeo’s mind off of the cats.
He’s not entirely sure if anything he’s doing is working, or if he’s somehow making it worse, or what, but sometime later, he feels and hears his brother take in a deep (yet shaky) breath, and finally move - he turns his face to bury it between Ritsu’s shoulder and neck.
When he feels something cold and wet on the skin against his neck, he has to fight back tears, because he’s never seen his brother cry, and he’s scared and worried and confused.
Shigeo loops his arms around Ritsu, and lightly pats his back - as if in thanks. Ritsu feels that hand ball up into a fist a moment later, as his brother gains more awareness of the situation; their powers seem to grate against one another as Shigeo’s go from lifting things up to setting things down (accounting for Ritsu’s own powers still pulling down so as to keep things from landing too harshly).
They hear the soft footfalls of the tabby running away from whatever just happened, sitting in silence for a bit longer. When Shigeo finally shifts to stand, Ritsu does too, and his legs erupt into a numb feeling. He checks his phone and realizes it’s been more than 15 minutes since the last time he checked (about a minute before they got here, a block from their house). He doesn’t feel like that much time has passed at all, and he’s baffled by the fact.
Shigeo takes a step forward, and Ritsu spurs himself into step beside him. The silence is less companionable now, feeling thicker and darker, swirling, and Ritsu wonders if his brother will be alright in school today. He hopes he will be, but he doesn’t know how to bring it up, or how to even ask about what just happened.
He decides that they can discuss it at home, after school, so as not to stress out his brother anymore right now. Better to talk about things in a more controlled environment.
They don’t. Talk about it, that is.
It happens again, a week and a half later, when they come across a cat with a limp and a tail bent at a strange angle that hisses at them both and hides, and Ritsu tells himself this will be the time they talk about this.
It isn’t.