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ALTERNATE UNIVERSE
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i. take me along
“Girl! How long are you going to keep sleeping there? Wake up!”
Kohaku opens her eyes slowly. As her awareness wakes, her first and immediate thought is of Ruri and in a flash she straightens and lifts herself up off the ground - only to stumble inelegantly upon finding her arms bound.
The second thing that spikes through her mind is the pain. Unbelievable, inconsolable pain.
A loud voice cuts through her agony, adding a mounting headache to her list of problems.
“The Violator is awake and the Hashira are present,” a tall man with long black hair and curled eyebrows announces, the top of his slayer uniform is open, almost rendering him half-naked, “The trial of Demon Slayer Kohaku shall begin now!”
There is a soft scoff. “What trial? Protecting demons is clearly a violation of conduct,” said a woman leaning against a tree, her demon slayer uniform short, paired with a billowing translucent haori. Kohaku’s guard is raised immediately upon recognizing the slayer who almost killed Ruri, “The demon must be dealt with accordingly.”
“Then allow me to do the honors,” a masked man moves in from the shadows, followed by a pink-haired man woman, “As clearly some of us, despite owing their life to Oyakata-sama, are incapable of properly carrying out Demon Slayer Law.”
“Ah, Hyouga-chan~” another man wearing a purple haori pipes in, someone Kohaku recognizes from the demon attack last night, the man who had tried to protect Ruri from the other demon slayer leaning against the tree, “You wouldn’t be referring to my cute Senku-chan now are you?”
“I am neither cute, nor yours, sorcerer,” Ishigami Senku - the only person Kohaku had met before among the people gathered - spits out, “And I don’t owe the old man anything, you snake.”
“Hyouga raises a good point!” a blonde man booms with a snap of his fingers, “Ishigami Senku has violated demon slayer conduct as well for sparing the demon’s life in the first place and must be restrained! I, Nanami Ryuusui and Dragon Hashira, shall carry out Oyakata-sama’s will!”
“Now, now don’t be so hasty, Ryuusui-chan,” the man in the purple haori cuts in again, “How are we sure that this is Oyakata-sama’s will? Shouldn’t we wait for him, hm~?”
That sparks an argument between the gathered slayers while Senku himself just irritably picks at his ear to the side with a scowl, his arms bound up in the white cloth he uses as a weapon.
“The girl is clearly a demon! She must be beheaded!”
“Why are you so asty-hay, Ryuusui-chan~? Even as Hashira, we aren’t allowed to deal with this on our own like this, aren’t we?”
“You’re clearly biased in this Asagiri Gen. There is only one proper thing to do in this situation.”
“I already told you. If you people had not gotten in my way, I would've already rid of this demon-”
“I don’t care who you are or who your Oyakata-sama is!” Kohaku shouts over their voices, “No one is going to hurt my sister!”
“Hm. What is this situation?” another low voice speaks up. Suddenly, the air becomes tense, heavy with coiled anticipation - no, cold apprehension. Kohaku can clearly see how Senku immediately reached for the nichirin blade at his side and Asagiri Gen - the man in the purple haori - stands straighter, hiding his hands inside his voluminous sleeves.
The new voice belongs to a long haired man, tall and well-built, twin diagonal scars running across his face. Everything in his stance speaks warnings of danger in Kohaku’s subconscious - because in his hand, he carries the box containing Ruri.
“Let her go!” Kohaku shouts in alarm.
“Ah,” the long-haired man focuses on Kohaku, “Hm. So you’re the girl who carries the demon.”
“Tsukasa-chan,” Asagiri Gen calls out, an edge to his voice that raises gooseflesh all over Kohaku’s arms, “Let’s not do anything rash, shall we?”
Tsukasa barely gives him a glance, still walking forward, Ruri’s box in one hand before slamming it down against the ground.
“Ruri!”
“Hm. What’s a demon to you, girl?” Tsukasa drawls, drawing out his sword.
“Stop! You don’t understand! Ruri and I fight together to protect people as demon hunters!”
“How pitiful. Hm. Clearly the demon has used their wiles on you. Allow me to free you, girl.”
Right before Kohaku’s eyes, Shishio Tsukasa drives his sword through Ruri’s box, her blood soaking the corner of it soon thereafter. Despite knowing the fact that it will not have been enough to kill her sister, all Kohaku sees is red.
In a flash, she has launched herself off the ground and almost flying towards Tsukasa, whose eyes widen at the unexpected attack. Kohaku’s eyes glint against the afternoon sun as she raises her bound fists, ready to strike a blow against the monster who dared make her sister bleed, just as Tsukasa himself raises his sword in defense.
“Onii-sama, enough!”
And everything, just… stops.
Kohaku becomes acutely aware of the hand tightly holding the rope binding her wrists, the tip of a sword ghosting against the small of her back, rendering her immobile. She can faintly feel the sharp edge of a spear trained against her wildly beating heart, held by the masked man known as Hyouga. A nodachi is against her neck, held casually by the topless, curly-browed slayer.
Across from her, Tsukasa is almost similarly restrained. His forearms are wrapped in the binding cloth Kohaku had seen Senku use that first night when he spared Ruri’s life. The woman leaning against the tree earlier has a wakizashi against Tsukasa’s neck, with Asagiri Gen, standing behind Tsukasa, baring a dagger on the opposite side. The pink-haired woman beside Hyouga earlier has a thin blade trained against Tsukasa’s chest and a previously unseen demon slayer had another sword crossing hers, its pointed end on Tsukasa’s right chest.
“Look at what you’ve done! You made Mirai-chan worry!” a melodic voice cuts through the tension like a sharp knife, demanding they follow despite the softness. Kohaku sees the two blonde girls who had administered the Demon Slayer exam all those months ago, one of whom is apparently, Shishio Tsukasa’s sister. The other blonde girl wearing round spectacles huffs at them, “All of you stand down! Oyakata-sama will be arriving soon.”
Without hesitation, weapons are hidden away and just like nothing happened, all the Hashira resume their previous stances. Without a second thought, Kohaku moves and grabs Ruri’s box from Tsukasa’s hands, glaring at him once she has sufficiently retreated.
“If you can’t tell good demons from the bad ones, you should quit being a Hashira!” Kohaku tells him harshly.
“All they know is the taste of human flesh. There are no good demons, you delusional girl,” Hyouga glowers at her as Tsukasa only looks away.
“Now, now, it’s not very nice to call our fellow slayers rude names, Hyouga-kun.”
The shift in the atmosphere is palpable, Kohaku can almost taste the cloying sweetness that comes with the voice on the tip of her tongue as she is lulled to relax by the comforting scent of wisteria.
“Byakuya-sama,” all the Hashira greet simultaneously as they move to kneel, with the exception of Senku who merely snorts but kneels in respect all the same.
“Welcome, my cute demon slayers,” Ishigami Byakuya, Commander of the Demon Slayers Corps, greets the gathered men and women in his courtyard, “We have wonderful weather today, don’t you agree?”
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NATURE
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ii. golden in the sky
We know them as the Seasons.
First, is Summer, he who rules the seas and the skies. The Summer Sailor travels the world, claiming it in his grasp. At his side, he is guarded by his faithful retainer, ever capable and ever loyal. His destination, no one knows but where he goes, merriment and memories are made in his wake. People, for a night, forget about their worries and their strife, as they revel in the joy brought by the Summer Sailor and his ship, the Perseus.
He is light, he is warmth, he is life.
And yet, sometimes, where the Summer Sailor goes, the Storm also follows. Quickly, harshly, the rain comes, drowning away the warmth as the Summer Sailor soaks in its maelstrom, looking far into the horizon for the destination only he knows and only he can see.
‘There,’ he will tell his faithful companion, ‘We will find him there.’
Soon, the Summer Sailor will set off again, to mysterious lands, and even more mysterious destinations. Where he goes, Mirthful Merriment, follows, just as equally as the Sullen Storm. And when anyone asks who he is, or what he is chasing, he will merely snap his fingers and say, “Why, the Sun of course!”
For what, indeed, is a Summer Sailor if not for want of fair weather? The Sun, simply, is the Summer Sailor’s greatest desire and gaining it is only Justice.
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When the Summer Sailor leaves, he is followed by Autumn. Where the Summer Sailor travels, the Ardent Autumn discovers. The land is changed into a bright new canvas when he arrives, a whole new world to explore - bright, brilliant, beautiful. He scours the Earth for materials yet to be named, for indeed he is the Bringer of Innovation, the Inviter of Bounty. When he comes, the family gathers to celebrate the fruits of Summer.
He is plenty, he is thanksgiving, and he is home.
In their feasts, they toast the Ardent Autumn. They offer him wine and food to partake in, tell stories to regale him, prepare their rooms for his stay. But always, and always, he will respectfully decline. He is still looking, you see, looking for that which might save his friend, his precious friend, who eagerly awaits his return.
‘Her eyes are nothing like the leaves of my season,’ he will tell those who gather to listen, ‘Instead, they are as life is - vibrant and crisp. Not like the setting of the Sun that is Autumn.’
And the mood turns somber, but not for long. For there is drink to be had, and life well-lived to be celebrated. The Ardent Autumn will wave off their concerns, joining them in their happiness, content to be in their midst, giving them hope and blessing them with his generosity.
If he is gone before they know it, then it is only because he has continued his search, so that he may finally, like the people who celebrate him, be home.
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When the Sun sets, the people know that the Wistful Winter has arrived. She is quiet and unassuming, her youthful appearance belying a maturity found in all of her peers. And unlike all her peers, she is the only one who rides, leading a pure white mare dragging along a cart with a singular box - either a coffin or a burden. But like all of her peers, she possesses the power of her Season. Snow falls where she sleeps and ice trails after her wake. If living beings are not wary of her arrival, they are likely to die.
She is survival, she is sorrow, she is solitude.
For when she meets the people who shiver in the chill of her season, she apologizes. She weeps for their crops, she sings in mourning for the lives lost. Yet where she is soft, she is also steadfast.
‘I have to, you see,’ she will tell the people who ask for her mercy, ‘Only the cold keeps my brother alive until we find the Sun.’
The Wistful Winter will look with melancholy at the box she carries along with her as she travels before murmuring a final apology and walking away, her faithful steed following beside her.
And the people will watch as the girl who cried for their loss, who murmurs regrets from the tragedy of life, marches on and continues to wreak her devastation upon the world, carrying with her the frozen heart of her dying brother in the vain hopes that the Sun will shine on them once more.
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The Spring Sunflower chases after the Wistful Winter with frosting breaths and rapid heartbeats, followed by her familiars - the Golden Dog and the Obsidian Boar. Sometimes she arrives before the chill has fully passed and she will ask around excitedly only to find the Winter long gone. But she doesn’t remain in her feelings of wasted opportunity for too long.
For she is hope, she is chance, and she is resolve.
You see, among the four, she is the only one to have found the Sun. It is no coincidence that she arrives just as the Sun rises.
‘I have it here, a piece of the Sun,’ she will tell anyone who listens, ‘Oh I have to tell her soon! Which way did she go again?’
And as fleeting as she arrived, the Spring Sunflower skips away to find her best friend, her blood sister, the Wistful Winter. But as fleeting as she had stayed, her steps, as light as they were, will chase away the remaining frost her friend had left behind in her wake. Where she comes, the grass grows anew, and flowers bloom again. The streams are unfrozen, the earth flourishes once more.
In this, there is no doubt that the Spring Sunflower brings with her a piece the Sun after all.
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The elders will tell the story of the Sun, when they tell the story of the Seasons.
They say that once upon a time, the world had fallen into darkness. Through it all, the Sun had remained steadfast until one day, his Light shone through and conquered the evil that enveloped the world. And little by little, the Sun saved the world with his warmth, with his kindness, with his creations.
They say the Sun had walked the Earth once, this is why the Seasons seek him, for they know that like them he, too, had been mortal once. Until the day he decided to leave the Earth for the Sky.
For what reason, you ask?
Simple. Love.
You see, the Sun was a God among men and women. He had no interest in romance, he had no interest in legacy. What he spent his nights on instead, was to look at the Moon and ponder upon its existence. When the Moon wanes, the Sun is in pain right beside it. When it waxes, he too feels his heart grow fuller.
He wonders what this affliction has gotten hold of him and the people tell him the truth of it.
‘It is love you feel,’ they explain, ‘It is no affliction but you will continuously seek it all the same.’
Appalled yet intrigued, the Sun had made it his mission to reach the Moon. So one day, he left, never to return. And on Earth, the people will search and wail at the loss of its warmest star. Some learn to live with the distance, others are doomed to wander the Earth, awaiting the warmth that rises in the East, chasing the golden rays as it sets in the West.
Are the legends true? Well, who knows.
But if you meet a man who relentlessly chases after his dreams, a boy who continually seeks to save his friends, a sister who devotes her life to the purpose of family, and a girl who chases after a sorrowful friend to give her hope - then perhaps there might be some truth to it after all.
And maybe, just maybe, the way to grant the wish only the Sun can give, is to reach out to his lover instead.
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“Senku-chan?”
“Yes?”
“Perhaps we can finally allow Mirai-chan some rest. Suika-chan as well.”
“But if they stop, the cycle of Seasons will end, and the people will only know Ryusui’s infernal heat and Chrome’s unending changes.”
“...True. But I didn’t take my lover to be such a cruel man when I welcomed him into my home.”
“Ah.”
“They call out to you constantly, you know. When will you answer their requests?”
“When I’ve had my fill of you, perhaps.”
“Ah, stop! You cannot talk your way out of this one again with your sweet words!”
“Fine. Someone will have to carry Mirai’s burden. And I suppose Suika’s as well if that’s what you really want.”
“My, you say that as if it would be ifficult-day~”
“The Balance of Nature is my responsibility, Gen, of course it’s heavy. If I could bear it without staying away from my home and not involving children, then I would have done so.”
“Ah but, my love, you forget. You have me now after all. Allow me to share your burdens.”
“I cannot ask you to do that. I will not.”
“And if I give you no choice?”
“Must you always make things much more difficult than they should be?”
“Must you always answer me with a question when you’ve lost?”
“...”
“My sweet Senku-chan-”
“You’re impossible.”
“Ah, but you love me!”
“To my deepest lament, yes. Come, we have children to save.”
“Hm~ Perhaps you would like to raise them here in the Heavenly Palace?”
“...Is that really why you’re asking? You want children?”
“Maybe. Would you deny me?”
“You know I could never.”
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PIRATES
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iii. lure you into the dark
The Lionheart Ship’s Log - 7S3D2R3741 Corellian
Justinia System Navi: sigma 18-24-08, alpha 21-96-19, Alpha 02-08-21
Outskirts of Sagara Mining Belt, Justinia System, Tranquil Galaxy
Lt. Ruri Weinberg
Day 7 of Mission C19207NR
Capt. Shishio has maintained our course due sigma-wise from the center of the Justinia system. Day started with quiet course, met only one Imperial Scout Ship (Unit LYH0232 - The Serendipity). In the middle of the day, conditions became turbulent as the ship drew closer to the Sagara Mining Belt with multiple uncontrolled space debris from the abandoned mining post.
Sgt. Magma Mustafar picked a fight with Sgt. Yo Uei during Mess Hall supper but otherwise no other incidents noted. Still no sign of the pirate ship Ryuujin.
Lt. R. Weinberg
Shipscribe - The Lionheart
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The Lionheart Ship’s Log - 9S3D2R3741 Corellian
Justinia System Navi: sigma 37-28-11, alpha 14-87-25, Alpha 04-07-19
Border of the Atlas Galactic Spacesea and the Tranquil Galactic Spacesea
Lt. Ruri Weinberg
Day 9 of Mission C19207NR
Ship encountered an errant smuggler ship associated with the Aluminum Fleet in the early starlight. The schooner put up a fight, especially against the reluctant Capt. Shishio who maintained that we must conserve resources in the event we meet with The Ryuujin. Engr. Chrome Kaseki and Vice-Captain Hyouga Yari had not been happy.
The schooner is sunk and moored. The Serendipity is hailed less than a pulsar later and will pick up the marooned smugglers. Engr. C. Kaseki is now directing us toward the Atlas Galaxy, Victoria System, where he says he knows a shipyard so we can make repairs. Capt. Shishio is not happy but we have little to no choice if we wish to continue to reserve resources.
Voyage had been relatively smooth since the skirmish with the smuggler schooner. Notably, the aft earthboard engine has been noisily clunking along but no other encounters noted. Both Capt. Shishio and Engr. Kaseki expect we will be arriving in the Victoria System by the next starlight.
Still no sign of The Ryuujin. Pirate Capt. Nanami is still at large.
Lt. R. Weinberg
Shipscribe - The Lionheart
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The Lionheart Ship’s Log - 1S4D2R3741 Corellian
Victoria System Navi: sigma 14-29-19, alpha 28-86-16, Alpha 02-08-11
Stonegod Planet, Victoria System, Atlas Galaxy Spacesea
Lt. Ruri Weinberg
Day 11 of Mission C19207NR
Ship is still moored at the Ishigami Shipyard, owned by the legendary engineer Senku Ishigami. To be honest, I didn’t think he was real and yet Chro- Engr. Kaseki is revealed to have been his mentee. His artisan uncle - The famous Kaseki - has apparently worked with the man himself as well.
Damage to the earthboard side is extensive and we are expected to remain here for the next decan. Capt. Shishio had been extremely unhappy. He sent Vice-Captain Ukyo Saionji and Lt. Kohaku Weinberg on a recon mission to find The Ryuujin while he himself had gone off with Pvt. Homura Momiji and Vice-Captain Hyouga Yari on a separate recon mission.
Meanwhile the rest of the crew are hospitably accommodated by this man named Gen Asagiri who apparently lives with Engr. Ishigami. Status updates and Ship’s Log entries have been sent to the Fleet Headquarters in the Beatrix System. Awaiting dispatch.
Lt. R. Weinberg
Shipscribe - The Lionheart
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The Lionheart Ship’s Log - 8S4D2R3741 Corellian
Victoria System Navi: sigma 14-29-19, alpha 28-86-16, Alpha 02-08-11
Stonegod Planet, Victoria System, Atlas Galaxy Spacesea
Lt. Ruri Weinberg
Day 18 of Mission C19207NR
Dispatch has been received from HQ. The Lionheart is to be launched at once towards the Galatea System. The Ryuujin had been spotted in one of its gambling moon hubs and there is a positive sighting of Capt. Nanami’s right hand, Francois, alongside the infamous spy and frequent Nanami collaborator, Suika.
Repairs are still underway for The Lionheart but Engr. C. Kaseki assures us that they will be done soon.
Word has been sent to Vice-Captain Saionji and Capt. Shishio. Both parties are on their way back.
Lt. R. Weinberg
Shipscribe - The Lionheart
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OPEN: SHIP LOGS - THE LIONHEART
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Accessing logs...
Unable to execute query. Error: REI37
Open error message? >YES NO
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AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY - CLEARANCE REQUIRED
SUBMIT CREDENTIALS | ENTER PASSWORD
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AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY - CLEARANCE REQUIRED
SUBMIT CREDENTIALS | ENTER PASSWORD
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AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY - CLEARANCE REQUIRED
SUBMIT CREDENTIALS | ENTER PASSWORD
N O T E: Ship Log firewalls require Clearance Level A. Only two (2) attempts are allowed for password entry.
CONTINUE? YES >NO
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AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY - CLEARANCE REQUIRED
SUBMIT CREDENTIALS | ENTER PASSWORD
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AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY - CLEARANCE REQUIRED
SUBMIT CREDENTIALS | ENTER PASSWORD
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AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY - CLEARANCE REQUIRED
S C A N I D E N T I F I C A T I O N C A R D A N D B I O M E T R I C S
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AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY - CLEARANCE REQUIRED
IDENTIFIED: LIEUTENANT FIRST CLASS RURI WEINBERG
CLEARANCE: LEVEL C
A C C E S S D E N I E D
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AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY - CLEARANCE REQUIRED
IDENTIFIED: LIEUTENANT FIRST CLASS RURI WEINBERG
CLEARANCE: LEVEL C
OVERRIDE - ACCESS TO SHIP’S LOG PERMITTED
AUTHORIZED BY: CAPTAIN TSUKASA SHISHIO
CLEARANCE: LEVEL S
OVERRIDE COMMAND: 1S1D2R3741-C
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AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY
C L E A R E D
WELCOME, LT. RURI WEINBERG
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The Lionheart Ship’s Log - 9S4D2R3741 Corellian
Victoria System Navi: sigma 14-29-19, alpha 28-86-16, Alpha 02-08-11
Stonegod Planet, Victoria System, Atlas Galaxy Spacesea
Lt. Ruri Weinberg
Day 19 of Mission C19207NR
Vice-Captain H. Yari returned without Capt. Shishio. He claims that the Captain had gone on ahead to the Galatea System upon hearing word of sighting of The Ryuujin. I do not believe him, as does Engr. Kaseki and, surprisingly, Engr. Ishigami as well. But the Vice-Captain holds sway amongst the crew and Vice-Captain Saionji has yet to return with Kohaku but I fear that Maj. Yari has begun a mutiny against Captain Shishio.
I am logging the situation here in hopes that the daily logs will continue to reach headquarters as it is programmed to do. I have locked the entries behind a firewall set-up by Capt. Shishio in a previously anticipated untoward event. Gen Asagiri had already offered his services and left the planet to search for Capt. Shishio. I pray that he is successful.
Our only hope is that Vice-Captain Saionji will return soon. Once he arrives, The Lionheart will launch towards Galatea System and capture Capt. Ryuusui Nanami. Some part of me hopes that Vice-Captain Yari was not lying and that we will find our Captain there.
But I’m not optimistic. It would seem indeed that the true pirate had been amongst us all along.
Lt. R. Weinberg
Shipscribe - The Lionheart
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FIRST MEETINGS
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iv. in this place that you found
first. the stars in your milky way
“Mama, I don’t wanna go!”
“Gen, sweetie, we can’t always go to the magic shop. Who knows, maybe you’ll like the museum?”
“But museums only have icky-ick lizards and boring-bo-blocks! It doesn’t have the sparkly cards!” six-year-old Asagiri Gen stomps his foot on the pavement, on the verge of throwing a tantrum after a promised trip to his favorite magic shop is turned into a museum visit instead.
“Well, museums don’t have cards, but they have sparkly things, too.”
Gen looks up to the grinning man who stepped up next to him and his increasingly flustered mother. “Oh no, sir, I’m sorry-”
The man waves off her hurried apologies. “Pfft, it’s fine! I know what it’s like to have an angry kid after all,” he says, inclining his head to the small bundle in his arms that Gen originally thought to be a large vegetable but is actually a sleeping toddler.
“Hey little man,” the man says, kneeling down to his eye level which Gen absolutely hates so he puffs his cheeks and looks away haughtily. “Whoa there,” the man says with a laugh, “Maybe this will cheer you up?”
Gen looks back to see the offering of a brochure filled with glittery dots he eventually realized are stars. He blinks in curiosity and the man’s grin spreads wider.
“This here will show you to the Planetarium, where you can see the stars up real close,” the man explains, shifting the deadweight in his arms to the other side.
Gen gasps, “You mean like-ah magic?!”
“If you call science magic, then yeah I guess it is,” the man grins.
Gen excitedly takes the brochure and shoves it to his mother, “Mama, mamaaaa-ah, we have to go here! We have to!”
“Alright, alright,” his mother agrees with a small huff of relief, “What are we going to say to the kind mister?”
“Thank you so much Mister… uhhh…”
“Ishigami,” the man says, straightening, shifting his child again, “Ishigami Byakuya.”
“Thank you!”
“I’m so sorry for the trouble,” his mom apologizes again but Gen could not care less as he looks at the stars in the glossy paper.
“Nah, it’s no problem. It was the only place where Senku shut up so I thought it would work for you, too.”
“Your… toddler, wanted to go to the planetarium?”
“Senku’s a real special kid. He’s super smart and curious. He’s gonna learn all about space someday, I’m sure.”
“...Right. Thank you again, Ishigami-san.”
“No problem!”
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second. like a cherry blossom scattering
For all that Senku has been travelling around the world since he was a child, and the brazenness that’s always been innate in him, he only has a certain kind of patience when it comes to airports. He can appreciate it, sure, the whole controlled chaos of it - a system will always move towards entropy after all - but the drama? Definitely not his alley.
It could be anywhere from lovers joyously getting reunited in the middle of a crowded terminal and blocking everyone’s paths to people trying to make their way in a foreign airport looking all the part of a harried tourist.
Reunions could wait until you are well out of the way and out of earshot for any secondhand embarrassment - like your girlfriend saying no after proposing in the middle of the arrivals area. People shouldn’t probably be allowed to travel if all they do is whine and be angry at customer service counters for common flying mistakes that’s, more often than not, their own fault.
And there’s people like this frankly embarrassing attempt at trying to hide one’s identity. A celebrity at best, or an international criminal at worst. The man in the huge sunglasses looks young, his hair hidden underneath a purple beret. Something about him looks awfully familiar but then again, celebrities of the entertainment kind are hardly Senku’s forte. The instant disdain Senku feels but doesn’t recognize gives him cause to stop and second think approaching the man directly though.
The could-be-celebrity has been trying to hide behind a paperback for a while now, clearly not absorbing anything written inside if the way he hasn’t turned a single page indicates. Unfortunately for Senku, the could-be-celebrity is holding the final copy of The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman in his hands - the only book that’s been missing in his repertoire and one of the authors of fiction that he actually deigns to read.
Yes, that’s the last one, the exasperated salesgirl in the airport bookstore tells him. No, he hasn’t bought it yet. Yes, he’s been here since about an hour ago. No, I don’t know who he is. No, I can’t help you with getting the book from him, he’s still a customer, sorry.
So Senku has been stuck glowering at this maybe-celebrity from the attached cafe to the airport bookstore for the past half hour or so. His flight should be boarding in the next hour and he really should be getting along but also: he really, really, wants that book.
See, here’s the thing. Four days ago, at approximately 1423H local time, Neil Gaiman tweeted a photo of him in Houston’s Hobby Airport, along with some books he clandestinely signed like he often does. Three days ago, Senku realized that Byakuya’s card is about to expire after nearly a decade of owning it. Senku doesn’t believe in coincidences or fate but the timing could not be better - hitting two birds with one stone? Well that definitely gets him excited.
Which is why he opted to land via the smaller Hobby Airport instead of the bigger international airport nearby. All was well and good - he even got to see Dr. X in person even though they didn’t talk. He just didn’t expect the wrench in his plans in the form of a wannabe-whoever tightly gripping the last available paperback.
Enough. He doesn’t have time for this. Who cares if he has bodyguards? Senku stands up and approaches the man in the bookshelf who tenses as he comes nearer.
Ah. He should’ve realized sooner. The man probably thought he was a fan which is the farthest from truth.
“I don’t know who you are but I would like that book now,” he says in lieu of a greeting as the fake-celeb looks up, chagrined at the realization that this man is taller, “You’ve been holding it for the past forty-three minutes without turning a single page.”
The man blinks at him from behind his sunglasses before his lips spread into a barely innocent grin. Senku scoffs. “Ah orry-say~!” the man says, airy and light, unrepentant tone hiding behind barely noticeable lying, “But I would very much like to buy this book. It’s very teresting-inay, you see, like there’s so many… uhhh, missable details.”
What a joke. “I see. Is that why you’re holding it upside-down?”
The man flushes. Can he even read English? And the way he talks points out something Senku had been suspicious about since seeing him earlier - this man, whoever he is, is Japanese. That hits closer to home than he is comfortable with. Seriously, who was this guy again?
“Alright fine,” the man says finally, grimacing as he lowers the book finally, “What do you want? An autograph? A photo? My manager hasn’t found me yet in this chaos so we might have some time for whatever.”
Senku sighs. “I told you, I don’t know who you are,” he repeats, this time in Japanese.
“Really? And here you are speaking in my language fluently?”
“Because I am Japanese!” Dipshit, he adds in his head. This man is worse than all of Dr. X’s megalomaniac e-mails. All he wants is his book? How difficult can it be to just grab it and go? It doesn’t matter that he doesn’t have Taiju’s inhuman endurance, this man looks like he can barely hold a stick to defend himself.
“Oh.”
“Yeah, oh.”
The man looks at him suspiciously. “...You really don’t recognize me.”
“No and I couldn’t care less. You just happened to pick the one book in the entirety of this bookstore that I want.”
“Oh really? Then what will you do to get it~?”
“What do you want?” Senku asks, irritated. This conversation is going longer than he planned. He’s pushing it if it takes longer, his gate is still on the other side of the building.
“Ah, an ice-cold can of cola would be nice,” the man grins, impish and evil. Senku had just about lost all hope in humanity. But particularly with celebrities - then again, not much hope there in the first place.
“Done deal,” he says instead and the man hands him the book triumphantly, “I’ll talk to the lady over there about your cola. Goodbye.”
He turns around without another word, paying for the book and the asshole’s cola before grabbing his bag and walking towards his gate. He excitedly tears open the paper wrapping only to be reminded once again that for all he was born with the biggest brain, he has the shittiest luck.
The book was unsigned.
What the fuck?
How did he even end up buying a drink for a complete stranger in exchange for an unsigned book?
The PA system announces that the boarding gate for his flight is open and Senku hurries along irritably, cursing the stupid fake-celebrity all the while. It wasn’t until he had his seatbelt on that he finally remembers where he’s seen that smug smirk before - on the cover of that damn book his co-club member had obsessed over weeks ago.
Asagiri Gen, that was his name. God damn. He actually got manipulated by a mentalist, all for a book that wasn’t even autographed. The ridiculousness of the situation finally sinks in and Senku has to laugh, his airplane seatmate looking at him suspiciously.
As the plane takes off, it makes a turn around the Johnson Space Center before climbing higher in the sky. For all that’s happened, this trip to America was truly exciting.
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third. you found me, you recognized me
Asagiri Gen prided himself in his adaptability. You have to be able to be spontaneous after all, such is the work that comes with being a magician. Sometimes the audience was harder to please, sometimes the props malfunctioned enough to warrant improv, sometimes you get unwanted attention that comes with the price of being famous.
This though? This truly takes the cake.
He had been in the middle of releasing doves for his magic trick when the world stopped, and when he woke, like it had barely been a second, he was naked with half-and-half hair gesturing towards a cliff, being ordered to look for a dead man.
Ishigami Senku, that was his name.
Who was this Ishigami Senku really, that even Shishio Tsukasa considers him a worthy enemy?
Gen knew Tsukasa from the… Old World now he supposes. The man was practically a legend, soft-spoken, handsome, kind, and charismatic - yet, ruthless inside the ring with a brutal fighting instinct and unmatched strength. A rising star, for all intents and purposes, with how young and sudden he had burst into the entertainment world.
Then there was this boy, supposedly, that Tsukasa respected and feared in equal measures that Gen now had to hunt down. There’s not much Gen knows about Ishigami Senku, he has never heard the name in his entertainment circles for the years now that he has prowled it.
All he has to go on are the following: the fact that this boy was the first and only one to depetrify on his own, that he was a mere high school student - if the fact that he was childhood friends with outcast couple Taiju and Yuzuriha was any indication, that he was a scientific genius who figured out the formula for the miracle fluid that eventually depetrified Gen, that Tsukasa had already killed him with his own hands.
And yet, Shishio Tsukasa believes that he might have survived what was sure to be a killing blow from the world’s strongest fighter?
(Also, Ishigami Senku apparently looks like a vegetable. The description sparks a not-so distant memory. But that’s impossible isn’t it?)
Who was this Ishigami Senku? The picture Gen builds in his head is this some kind of superhuman highschooler with green spiky hair and the startlingly beautiful crimson eyes that once belonged to his airport not-stalker.
He would be arrogant, Gen was sure. He had to be self-assured at the very least if he was to demand the respect of someone like Shishio Tsukasa. He has enough survival skills to live on his own, if the fact that Taiju revived six months after his friend was the truth. There is crazy determination and skill that belonged to this young man - he had seen the hut he had built. Most of all, Gen believed him to be selflessly kind posturing with some kind of plausible deniability.
Shishio Tsukasa feared Ishigami Senku for one thing - that the boy was capable of reviving the entire seven billion population of the world.
Ha! What a cruel and wonderful joke!
The most puzzling part of it all, Tsukasa, Taiju, and Yuzuriha all individually believe that this Ishigami Senku was wholly capable of it. Gen had taken their faith in this boy in stride, what they believe he could do may be possible but it is highly improbable. He was the adult here, clearly, and despite being a magician, the only one anchored in reality.
It was a few days before he would be sent to the nearby village of survivors of the apocalypse (who knew!) to find out if Ishigami Senku was truly alive that Gen finally began to understand.
Hyouga had just been revived and Tsukasa was touring him around his little settlement, discussing the merits of Tsukasa’s new world doctrine - something frankly Gen does not believe in but is grateful for regardless, if only because it led to Tsukasa reviving him. They were headed to the Cave of Miracles as they call it but Gen had declined, flippantly remarking that he doesn’t like the smell.
He found himself wandering about the woods surrounding the cave. Ishigami Senku revived near here, he knew, Tsukasa told him. He never told Tsukasa that he found the actual spot, marked by stone fragments formed in the shape of a man like an empty tomb. It’s where he finds himself now, trying to create a physical profile for this man he is supposed to be hunting.
Tall and lean, could not have been more than sixteen or seventeen when he revived. The features on his face had long been eroded, the shape of his head in undecipherable fragments. Wherever he was the day time stopped, he had been standing, probably lecturing in class or something, unlike Gen who had been in the middle of a televised magic show.
This would have been easier if only he had clothing or features to go on, he thinks frustratedly. Huffing, he goes around the empty husk trying to find details he might have missed. And that’s when he sees it - sharp, deep etchings on the tree closest to the memorial.
April 1, 5738
Up until this point, Gen never questioned how Tsukasa knew it’s been roughly three thousand and seven hundred years since the Day of Petrification. But it seems that Tsukasa only had secondhand information. Here is the evidence that the one man, who had been naked and alone when he woke, who could not have known what happened, who did not have anyone to explain it to him, had not only figured it out but knew the exact date he had been revived.
Impossible.
Suddenly, Gen understands, wholly and overwhelmingly, just how much of a miracle Ishigami Senku is.
If the date isn’t a lie, if the hut isn’t some mere structure that survived the millenia, if Taiju and Yuzuriha’s resolute faith and admiration isn’t grief, if Tsukasa’s fear of a dead man isn’t unfounded then… then…
The dream of saving the world may not be a dream after all and here is the evidence to prove it. A boy, a genius and a little crazy, steadfastly counted the seconds - because how else could he have gotten the day right? - until he could break free of the petrification through sheer will perhaps. Who knows? If anyone can do it, Ishigami Senku can.
And the first thing he did, the first thing he tried to figure out after making sure he survives, is to find out how to save the entire world.
Who is this Ishigami Senku?
Whoever he is, Gen knew this man had already grasped his soul with the power of science. Now he can’t wait to meet him.
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last. you gave me the best of me
Senku has a very clear memory of the day he met Asagiri Gen in person for the first time. It had been eventful after all and the manipulative bat that he is hasn’t changed since the day he tricked a highschooler into buying a complete stranger a can of cola.
In fact, it had been that memory and the familiarity of his voice that allowed Senku to recognize him immediately despite the weird hair and the scar slashing across the left side of his cheek.
But this is the first time he actually got the chance to analyze the disaster of a celebrity that is the magician and mentalist named Asagiri Gen. He claims himself to be willing to side with the one who could give him the most benefit, that he doesn’t care about humanity and all that, that all he wants is a bottle of cola.
There was no faking the shock in his face following the creation of the magnets though, there was no hiding the raw emotion plain in his eyes as he watched the first light bulb of the Stone World chase away the darkness of the night in three thousand years. And Senku knew, at that moment, he had already won over Asagiri Gen.
The promise of a cola bottle was simply the icing on top of the cake - the sweetener if you will.
But the asshole still managed to do this - betray him.
How did Gen manage to convince the entire village in the mere three days he had been away? He had even gotten Kohaku and, of all people, Magma on his side. Senku was sure Suika would have remained loyal to him but then again, if there is anyone in the world who could bend people to his will, it’s Asagiri Gen.
Damn, and here he thought he finally found another person who could be his equal. What a joke. Three thousand years later, Asagiri Gen still has him in the palm of his hands.
“Could it be that you guys have finally realized that offering my head, and science, to Tsukasa on a plate is the most rational, if underhanded, course of action for the stability of the village?”
He’s shaking, he can’t help it. He doesn’t know what from though, from the betrayal or the fear, he can’t really say.
Gen’s voice turns unbelievably soft, almost genuine. “Well, I don’t know what you could be talking about now.”
“Oho! It’s the fourth of January - Stone Day!” Kaseki cuts in, excitement undeniable in his voice. Senku didn’t even notice there were other people in the room. There is a shuffle and Senku can recognize Suika’s light footsteps coming up to him. Ah, there’s his girl.
“We heard it’s your birthday, Senku!” she says as she grabs his hand and leads him forward slightly. Her hands reach up to the back of his head and, to his surprise, his blindfold is removed.
“From all of us, here’s your birthday present!!”
For a moment all he can see is shadow as his eyes adjust. Then there is a blink of light and by instinct, he closes one of his eyes. There, as clear as day, is Saturn.
He blinks. Once. Twice. Before he finally has the presence of mind to back away and really see this thing for what it is.
“A telescope…? No, an observatory.”
Gen steps up beside him, explaining how he got the village to help him build a gift for their Chief. Everyone is happy and excited to see his reaction after Gen’s explanation but of course he shifts the mood around by telling them it would be the perfect tool to spy on Tsukasa and his army.
“How did you know?” Senku asks as the commotion for a celebration begins to crescendo. He suddenly remembers the day of the New Year where he told Gen the number of days he had been alive. He smirks before Gen can answer. “Ah, I might have incriminated myself.”
Gen only gives him a serene smile over the din of villagers finally starting up the party downstairs. Senku rolls his eyes. “Assuming you already knew what day the petrification happened, if you didn’t know how long it had been since I was depetrified, you still wouldn’t be able to do the math.”
“Oh, don’t you remember? You wrote down the date,” Gen tells him and Senku’s eyes widen in shock, “Next to the Cave of Miracles, right after you woke up, Senku-chan.”
He did, didn’t he? It seems so long ago now that it had already slipped his mind, despite the date being branded into the back of his mind.
Gen looks up to the starry sky as Senku processes all this. Gen had all the information he needed, even if he didn’t mean to find it, calculated Senku’s age and birthday on a whim, figured out it was three days later from New Year’s, thought of an amazing gift, designed an observatory, and managed to convince an entire village who saw him as a traitor and a sorcerer to build it.
And Gen would so often think that Senku makes the impossible possible when he’s out here building observatories.
“If I think about it… from the start, even before we met,” Gen’s voice cuts through softly, almost like a confession, “More than a little I already liked you, Senku-chan, never mind what I would have gained from it.”
Senku finally turns around to look at Gen and somehow, it seems like he’s seeing him again for the first time. This man, this wonderful lunatic of a genius mentalist, is by his side and will remain so even if Senku had nothing left to offer.
He knew, from this point on, Ishigami Senku would never doubt Asagiri Gen ever again.
Their eyes meet and Gen flushes as if realizing what he just said, much to Senku’s amusement as he smirks.
“I’m sure it’s the same for everyone in the village,” Gen quickly recovers, “Besides, you just think it’s gross right?”
Gross? Was that the right word for the little glowing ball of warmth in his chest right now? If the way it’s suffocating him with both exasperation and amusement - was that fondness? Ew. - is any indication then…
“Yeah,” Senku says, voice rough as he tries not to laugh, “Gross, dude.”
“Riiiight~?”
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FOR WANT OF A NAIL
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v. a dream that you can’t quite place
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All it took was a girl getting lost in a new city to spark an unusual friendship.
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Shishio Mirai found herself on a riverbank with tears in her eyes after she got separated from her brother who must be worried sick by now but she doesn’t know where to go. They had just moved here after all, because their parents had passed away.
“Hello,” a kind voice says by her side, making her jump regardless, “Are you okay?”
When Mirai turns, she sees a beautiful girl in a middle school uniform, headphones in her hair. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” the girl says kindly, squatting to her level at an arm’s length distance, “Do you think I can help?”
This is an angel and no one can convince Mirai otherwise. “I think I… I think I’m lost…”
“Ohhh! I thought the mean boys here bullied you!!” a loud voice booms behind her startling her again.
“Taiju-kun!” the older girl scolds the loudmouth, “You’re scaring her!”
“Oops,” he says, slapping a hand over his mouth as his voice drops low to an almost comical whisper, “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t worry about the big oaf over here,” a new voice says and Mirai sees what looks like a walking leek coming closer to them with a toy rocket in his hands, “He doesn’t know how to talk to girls.”
“Senku!!!!”
“Taiju-kun!”
Another slap of a hand over a mouth, followed by a sharp cackling. By now, Mirai is more confused than terrified. The older girl huffs with a pout before turning back to Mirai, “I’m Yuzuriha, these are my friends, Taiju-kun and Senku-kun. What’s your name?”
“Shishio,” Mirai answers, “Shishio Mirai.”
-
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All it took was the love of a group of friends for one girl they all consider a sister to prevent a war.
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“Stop it, Tsukasa, I didn’t revive you to become a murderer.”
“You know, Senku, you know what they did to Mirai!” Tsukasa tells him angrily.
“I do! But we’re not criminals!” Senku fires back just as hotly before he gives a ragged sigh and runs a hand through his face, glad that Taiju wasn’t here to make the situation worse by egging on either Tsukasa or Senku.
“I have a theory alright,” Senku tells Tsukasa tiredly, “I think I may know how to save her.”
“You what? ”
“It’s only a theory... for now. But there is a ten billion percent chance of it being correct,” Senku insists, “I can save Mirai, Tsukasa.”
He gestures around to the still fallen statues in the beach, “Just, don’t let her wake up to find out her brother became a murderer.”
Tsukasa falls silent, grim.
“Whaaattt??!!” Taiju’s voice cuts in all of a sudden. Trust in the big oaf to have impeccable timing, “Murder is no good!!”
Both boys blink at their friend before Senku looks back at Tsukasa with a raised eyebrow.
“Hm. Fine,” Tsukasa tells him and Senku’s shoulders relax a fraction, “I believe you, Senku. But I get to decide who we will be reviving first.”
“Well you’re better with people than I am, so I don’t really care,” Senku dismisses flippantly.
“But… But…” Taiju blubbers as he clutches the bottle of revival fluid he brought with him, “Well, if it’s Mirai-chan then I guess it’s okay...”
“Hm,” Tsukasa hums with a smile, “I suppose we will be needing an artisan’s help if we are going to build the equipment needed to make the revival fluid.”
“Yes!!!”
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“There was a girl!!! And she approached me because I think she thought I was threatening Yuzuriha!!! And she had these bouquet of flowers right but suddenly she threw them away and boom!! She had knives in her hands and I had to back off because you said we shouldn’t get injured and she ran away with Yuzuriha!!!”
Tsukasa blinks at Taiju. “There is another human being. In this Stone World. That’s not the four of us.”
“Yes!! But I don’t know if they were petrified too because she didn’t have scars like we do also she looked like this famous singer, Lily… Lilian Winburger??? But Tsukasa!!! The point is!! We have to save Yuzu!!!”
The bottle of alcohol in Senku’s grip falls and shatters on the ground. “Did you say Lilian Weinberg?”
“Hm. Do you know her, Senku?”
“No, but I know someone who does,” Senku grins with a menace, “Get excited, you cavemen!”
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NIGHTMARES
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vi. forget the hearse cause i never die
Senku wakes up with a start. It’s the same nightmare: him, in the dark, counting numbers upwards of billions, unable to move, unable to see, unable to hear anything.
He’s had the nightmare since getting attacked in Afghanistan and waking up in that dreadful cave and having this genius but ultimately poorly engineered arc reactor keeping him alive. Always, and always, just counting, never ending.
He huffs. It’s 0414H and he’s still on home arrest at Xeno’s insistence. Fine, maybe the older man was right about the PTSD. But he can’t go back to sleep now. He tried it once and the feeling of falling asleep only had him going into a panic attack.
So he gets up, takes a shower, and gets dressed in his work clothes to tinker away in his basement workshop-cum-laboratory. Time to figure out a way to stabilize his mecha-armor but for that, he’ll have to build a better arc reactor.
He didn’t realize how long he’s been working until he hears the startled, horrified yelp by his personal assistant.
Granted he had been almost forearm deep in the cavity of his chest, but Gen should have been used to his oddities by now, really.
“Let’s be honest, this isn’t the worst thing you’ve seen me doing,” Senku points out, withdrawing his hand.
“Right, let’s also pretend that seeing you with a hand down your own injured and shrapnel studded chest isn’t going to give me nightmares,” Gen bites back. He picks up the dimmed crudely made first version of the arc reactor lying on the desk. “This is the thing that’s keeping you alive?”
“At least you’ll be dreaming about my chest. Also, not anymore,” Senku says, gesturing with his head to the sleeker version of the arc reactor right beside the old one, “That’s going to keep me alive from now on.”
“Oh I’m sure your chest is something to write home about, Senku-chan,” his PA retorts with a roll of his eyes as he comes closer, peering into Senku’s handiwork. Just as Senku thinks he got the all clear to work again, his hand is slapped away by Gen’s quicker fingers.
“As disgusting as this is, as long as it’s safe, let me do it.”
Senku almost laughs. Still, Gen is right. “As long as you don’t puke all over me then that’s fine.”
“Please, you’d do anything to have me all over you,” Gen says, rolling his eyes, eyeing the new arc reactor sitting on the desk beside Senku, “You’re trying to replace the arc reactor, right? What do you want me to do?”
“There’s a piece of copper wire that’s stuck and I can’t reach it, you’re gonna have to pull it out for me.”
“Alright,” Gen says, cracking his knuckles, “Wait... If I accidentally kill you in the process, does it mean I inherit Ishigami Industries?”
“You’re a snake, you know that?”
“Ah, but that’s why you keep me around isn’t it, Senku-chan~?”
Well yes, that’s part of the reason why Senku hired Gen and kept him by his side for so long - he may be a snake, but he never hesitates, always self-confident, and can match him head to head.
He first met Gen in a pretty posh bar doing some magic tricks and mentalism hocus-pocus on gullible patrons. He had been fairly attractive to look at (he’s lying, Senku was definitely more than just fairly attracted) but it wasn’t until he saw Gen talk nearly half of the bar into practically giving up their wallets that his interest turned from one-night-stand to must-hire.
Gen had not been pleased but the money? More than convincing. Personal assistant who can keep up with his ideas and doesn’t take his bullshit? Acquired. He might have bitten off more than he can chew in the form of Gen Asagiri but that doesn’t make the once fleeting desire Senku had even simmer or die out. If anything, it’s only burned steadily stronger.
But he’s not gonna risk going into cardiac arrest right now, especially with Gen forearm-deep into his chest, even with an all too adorable concentrated pout that he maybe just wants to kiss off of him.
“Oh my god why is it wet?” Gen complains in horror.
“It’s a cavity. In my body. Of course it’s wet,” Senku retorts with a roll of his eyes, “The copper wire, Gen.”
“I got it,” his PA says tightly, “What do you want me to do with it?”
“Just pull it out, don’t let it touch the walls, gently-”
“I think it’s stuck, wait-”
“No, don’t-!”
And because Gen Asagiri is Gen Asagiri, he absolutely pulls out the wire with the attached magnet without any hesitation, causing the ECG machine right beside them to go haywire.
“Senku-chan! What did you do?!” Gen asks in a panic.
“What did I do?!” Senku bites back in irritation, “You’re the one who fucking pulled the magnet like it’s a fishing contest!”
“Oh my god, oh my god, what’s going on? What do I do?”
“I’m just going into cardiac arrest, listen to me-”
“Just?! You said this was safe!”
“I never said that! Gen, listen to me okay?” Senku starts to wheeze, the ECG machine beeping angrily, “Get the new reactor.”
He does as he’s told. “Okay. Now what?”
“You’re going to have to attach it to the base socket to restart my SA node and keep my heart beating normally. Be careful!”
“Alright, okay, I got this, it’s going to be okay,” Gen huffs, more to himself than Senku before turning to him with wide and honest eyes, “Senku, it’s gonna be okay.”
Senku rolls his eyes, chest too heavy to even formulate a response just as Gen finally reaches into his chest to attach the wire and-
To say that the sudden electric jolt was pleasant is a lie but also nothing had been so reassuring in his entire life.
“Alright, okay,” Gen continues to mutter, his eyes wide, “Then this should go inside…”
“Right, just twist it to lock and... there you go.”
Gen blinks at the brightly lit arc reactor before stepping away, his hands still up and wet from the discharge around the arc reactor socket. He looks at Senku and of course the first thing he asks is, “Are you okay, Senku-chan?”
Senku laughs, genuine and full. “Yeah, I feel great,” he reassures, “Are you okay?”
The question seems to have settled something in Gen because he glares at Senku with a passion, the fierceness of it tempered by a slight smile. “Don’t you ever, ever, ever, ask me to do something like this again.”
Senku looks at Gen, really looks at him. How is it that he found this strong, competent, beautiful human being again? The words come unbidden and unrestrained, like they always tend to be when it comes to Gen. “I don’t have anyone but you.”
That makes Gen stop and look at him for a long moment, the sound of their breathing and the beeping of the ECG tracking his steadily increasing heartbeat the only noise in the otherwise quiet lab. “I-”
Senku shrugs, breaking eye contact first, willing his heart to beat slower even as he pulls the ECG leads off his body. “Alright, we’re good here.”
“...Okay,” Gen says with a tired huff. He picks up the old arc reactor. “What do you want me to do with this?”
“That’s outta juice,” Senku says without looking back, pulling his shirt over his head, “Destroy it, incinerate it, whatever you want.”
Gen heaves a heavy sigh. “Will that be all, Ishigami-san?”
Senku blinks at the name, usually only used in formal settings or when surrounded by other people. He turns in slight alarm only to find Gen looking at the old reactor with a thoughtful, almost nostalgic look.
“That will be all, Asagiri-san,” he replies, dismissing his PA who leaves without another word.
-----
Three days later, Senku has the same nightmare again. The grind restarts. Shower, dress, go down to the lab. To his surprise, there is a nondescript box on his desk. He’s not alarmed, not when the only person who has the access to his topnotch security system is Gen.
He looks at it curiously before tearing open the wrapping and finding his old reactor displayed in a glass case, the words “Proof that Ishigami Senku has a heart” etched around its rim.
“Heh,” he grins. What a sentimental idiot.
He still keeps the memorabilia in the center of his desk regardless. If he tinkers with later on to recharge it, then that’s nobody’s business but his own.
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FANTASY v SCIENCE
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vii. the one i was meant to find
“How did you know it’s today?” Gen asks Senku in a mirror of the scientist’s own question almost a year ago, watching from the open observatory the lights and partying still going on in Ishigami Village.
Senku has to laugh. “Don’t you remember? You already gave me all that I needed to know.”
Gen’s eyes widened, remembering the exact same words he had told Senku not even a week ago.
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They were spending time in the observatory when it happened. It was a baseless discussion to be sure but looking back, Gen now realizes he really, really, shouldn’t let his guard down when it comes to Senku.
He and the scientist have been going back and forth about the stars and the difference in either of their perspectives of them. Namely, the fact that one sees them as flaming hot balls of hydrogen and helium, and the other sees them as guideposts to one’s fate or destiny.
“Of course it isn’t scientific, mentalist,” Senku says with a roll of his eyes, “Fortune telling is just a lot of vague educated guessing, and it’s especially effective when the victim is gullible.”
“Victim?” Gen gasps in fake offense, “How can you call them victims when they’re the ones who willingly ask to be told their fates?”
“Alright, point. But it still doesn’t change the fact that astrology is a baseless scie-well, it’s not science - field of study. Maybe.”
Gen holds up a hand. “Let me deconstruct that statement,” he says, “First, you call it a ‘field of study’ which automatically makes it a scientific approach.”
“Absolutely not, I was only being generous-”
“Ah-ah, don’t terrupt-inay Senku-chan, the adult is talking.”
“Oh my god.”
“Haha, that’s funny, coming from you,” Gen grins, “You called it educated guessing - which is true! Educated guessing is in fact the core of mentalism which is why a lot of mentalism and psychology does play their respective parts in understanding astrology and fortune telling. But you know what else is educated guessing, Senku-chan?”
“I don’t like where this is going.”
“Hypothesizing! And where is hypothesizing very important again? Hmm, let me think," Gen says, putting on a show of tapping his finger against his mouth in a classic thinking pose, "Oh that's right, scientific experimentation.”
“Objection! Hypotheses making is only upon the basis of hard, established facts. Astrology is not.”
“Is it? Then why does it persist to this day with multiple books written on it confirming various theorems and establishing a widely-accepting interpretation system?”
“Because it’s bogus, Gen!”
“Now you’re just being mean.”
Senku lifts his hands up in exasperation. “Alright fine! Do me.”
“I’m sorry, what?”
“Ugh. I said that wrong,” Senku says, slapping a hand over his face, hardly hiding the flush that overtakes his cheeks, “I meant interpret me or whatever.”
“Ah, but Senku-chan what makes you think I haven’t already?”
“I thought you’d need my birth time and birth place?”
“Well. Now that I know your birthday, it isn’t really all that hard to guess,” Gen shrugs, “You were born in Tokyo, right?”
“Yes. And my birth time?”
“Sometime in the early morning, probably four or five o’clock.”
Senku looks at him long and hard. “...It was 04:14 to be exact. How did you know this?”
Gen laughs, smug. “Well, that’s because Senku-chan, you are the most Capricorn person I know but you also have the charisma of a leader. A Leo, if you will,” he says with a wink.
“That doesn’t make sense to me at all. Hence, fake science.”
“Oh please,” Gen dismisses, “I just showed you I can make educated guesses just based on dates and fully reasonable assumptions. Do I have to show you the math?”
“How is there math involved!!”
“Oh Senku-chan, you have no idea,” Gen grins with a menace.
“Well, what about you then?” Senku snaps in irritation, “If you already ‘know’ me with your psychic magic, it’s a little unfair that I don’t know yours doesn’t it?”
“You are such a brat,” Gen tells him with an unimpressed look, “If you must know, I am also a Capricorn Sun, with a Scorpio Moon and a Libra Ascendant.”
“I didn't think it was actually possible to string together so many words that didn't make any sense in a single sentence."
"Aw, is the scientist pouting because there's something doesn't understand for once?"
"Now you’re being unfair.”
“Am I?” Gen laughs as he stretches in his beddings, “I already gave you all that you needed to know to figure me out. Good night, Senku-chan~!”
“This isn’t over, Gen!”
-
-
“Ah,” Gen says serenely, able to accept defeat more gracefully than Senku does, “I suppose you eventually did figure out the math.”
Senku shrugs, “Not that you made it any easier, by the way. I had to recall what I know about star mapping and astronomy.”
“Well now, Senku-chan, I thought you’d appreciate the challenge!”
“Heh, you did, haven’t had that much fun with a problem in a while,” Senku acknowledges as he picks at his ear.
They both look up to the stars in comfortable silence before Senku shuffles closer, kneeling right inside Gen’s personal space.
“What is it?” Gen asks with a raised eyebrow.
Senku didn’t answer, only producing a stack of cards neatly bound in a thin purple ribbon. “Happy birthday, Gen,” he says even as he doesn’t look Gen in the eye.
“Thank you Senku-chan,” Gen says in confusion, “But didn’t you already give me a deck of cards?”
Senku shakes his head, “This is different.”
Gen looks down at the cards in his hands. They’re larger, more rectangular than the original deck of cards he has in his possession. The back is painted in purple, a single slash in the shape of his petrification scar going down the design. It’s also thicker, like it had been stuffed with more cards than the original fifty-five his original deck has and-
“Oh!” Gen realizes with a start. How did it take him so long to find out? With a flourish, he spreads the cards - tarot cards - in front of him so he can see the individual designs they have. From his left to his right, all seventy-eight cards have visibly different designs. The minor arcana stares up at him from his left until the major arcana ends with The World card represented by the Kingdom of Science logo on his rightmost side.
In true Senku fashion, the wands have been replaced with rockets, the ace of cups is represented by a bottle of cola, Kaseki with his hammer is the King in the Swords suit, Chrome is proudly surrounded by his ores as the King of Coins.
“Wow…” Gen says softly picking up the Strength card, depicting Kohaku taming a lioness. “Senku-chan, I don’t know what to say.”
“Do you like it?” Senku asks with some trepidation and Gen looks back at him with wide eyes as the scientist rubs the back of his neck in doubt, crimson eyes looking away from him. “I had to ask Minami and Francois for help, you know? They surprisingly knew a lot about these things but we don’t know the exact look of the cards anymore so there might be some mistakes-”
“Senku,” Gen cuts him off, “It’s perfect. ”
“Oh,” Senku says, a little dumbfounded, “Well. Your skills have always been helpful, you know? So I figured I’d help you do your best. Besides, you know people better than I do. Plus, I couldn’t have done all this without you so I figured this is the best way to show my appreciation but I don’t know what you’d like best-”
A finger to his lips cuts Senku off mid-rambling. He blinks and goes a little cross-eyed as he looks at Gen’s finger on his mouth, surprised at how close they are.
“Thank you,” Gen tells him before finally leaning in and kissing him… on the cheek.
Wait a fucking minute.
Gen leans back, a full-on blush on his face as he examines the cards again and Senku is left staring at him dumbly. After a few moments, he finally finds the initiative to swallow the lump on his throat drily.
“You missed,” Senku points out, the blush on his own face threatening to match Gen’s own.
“What?”
“You missed, Gen,” Senku repeats and as if to drive the point home, lifts a finger to his mouth.
Gen has to bite his lips to hide his own smug smile. “Oh, did I now?” he teases even as he shuffles closer, “Maybe you should teach me how to do it properly, then?”
“You’re a nuisance,” Senku complains with a roll of his eyes but his smile is undeniable, before he finally takes that plunge. Sometimes you really gotta do all the work yourself.