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"Naegi."
The contradictory sound of stillness rang around in Makoto's ears like a living thing before he snapped out of his trance. He hadn't really been sleeping. He doubted he would be able to for days on end, after everything he'd seen and been through, yet again. Besides, he could subconsciously reason. With the woman he loved breathing so steadily as she rested in bed beneath the dimmed lighting of a hospital room now, how could he bear to take his eyes from her at all?
As Makoto regained his awareness in the uncomfortable chair he'd been spacing out in, slowly but inevitably, the noise of the room came fading back in.
There was a cacophony of various staccato beeping sounds coming from monitors in their room and the next. The sounds of more bustling hospital activity were only somewhat muted by the heavy shut door to the private room Kyoko had been assigned to. And above it all, there was Kyoko's voice as it carried his name to him.
They had both sustained injuries during the Final Game - minor concussions, cuts and bruises, trauma of both the physical and mental variety. But Kyoko had by far scraped by with the most severe of all their injuries, barely escaping the worst case scenario. A harrowing near-death experience, one that Makoto had been all but sure he'd lost her to...and if it hadn't been for the Antagonist drug Seiko Kimura had created, he really almost might have...
"Hey, Naegi."
Makoto shook himself from the darkness that had threatened to drag him under yet again, focusing on the strength in Kyoko's voice as it grounded him. He could keep despair at bay now, he was sure. She was with him. She was *safe*.
"Yeah, Kiri?" He rasped, clearing his throat in an attempt to rid his voice from exhaustion.
Somehow Makoto thought he sounded much worse for wear than she did, despite Kyoko being the one in the hospital bed.
"What's wrong? Do you need something? Maybe a drink?"
Even in his groggy state he was already standing, prepared to grab her some water, or fetch some tea from the cafeteria if she required it. But Kyoko merely shook her head, and much to Makoto's alarm, began to pull herself up in bed.
"H-hey, easy there," Makoto clambered to her side, touching her waist as she swung her feet over the side of the bed to stand.
"Bathroom break? I can help you get there if you need." Makoto took her hand gently, the warmth in her gloved touch rushing through him like a live current.
*Alive. Alive. Kyoko was alive.*
But Kyoko shook her head, a soft flush coloring her paler than normal features. Standing out even more starkly still were the shadows of purple bruising that almost entirely discolored one side of her face. The poison...it had not taken her, but it had left destruction in its path.
"I'm fine, Makoto. Truly. I just..." she trailed off, motioning vaguely to the hallway.
Makoto nodded encouragingly, waiting for her to tell him rather than pressing the issue. He knew better than to do that when Kyoko set her mind to something.
Kyoko took a breath before settling on her words.
"...I just need to take a walk. Do something to feel productive. I'm restless and can't stand being bedridden for too long." She wouldn't meet his eyes as she spoke, but Makoto couldn't miss the faraway look in her gaze even if he tried.
"The last time I was in a hospital bed for this long..." she looked down at the hand that wasn't in his, clenching it into a tight fist.
"Well. Let's just say it wasn't the most pleasant part of my fleeting childhood."
Makoto couldn't help the wry laugh that jumped from him at her choice of phrasing. Luckily for him, Kyoko always seemed to appreciate his more positive spin on the hardships that befell them. So she arched an eyebrow in question, even as the side of her mouth that wasn't hidden still somewhat paralyzed turned up in a little lopsided smile. Makoto quickly sobered up even so.
"Ah, sorry. It's not funny. But if it makes you feel any better, there's a major difference between now and then. You're not alone this time, Kiri."
He squeezed her hand reassuringly.
"I'm here to help however I can, okay? Seriously, whatever you need." It was no lie. Makoto would sooner dive headfirst into the unknown willingly before ever letting her go again.
Kyoko squeezed his fingers back as if she knew.
"Mmm. Thank you, Makoto. I think what I need right now though, more than anything..."
Makoto waited with baited breath, not sure what to expect.
"...yeah?"
"...is to solve something."
Solve something??
"Uh, like. Like a case?" Makoto asked, scratching the side of his cheek absent-mindedly. Kyoko nodded, a few wisps of her bangs falling into her good eye.
"Correct. Grandfather never allowed my mind to remain idle for too long," she began to explain, and suddenly things were clicking for Makoto.
"Rest was for the sick or seriously wounded, but even then as long as you were conscious, that was no excuse for a Kirigiri detective to be down for the count."
It took everything in Makoto not to let his disdain for Kyoko's grandfather cloud his expression now, knowing how deeply Fuhito's unconventional values had affected Kyoko far past childhood. Though Kyoko rarely shared much about her past, he'd still heard the worst of the stories - how Fuhito had refused to allow a five year old Kyoko to visit her ailing mother on her deathbed one last time. How at sixteen she was refused a break even after whatever had happened to burn Kyoko's hands took place and her partner had died.
"I guess some habits are too old to die out or kick." Kyoko smiled a little. Makoto offered her a weaker one in return.
"I guess so. But Kiri, can't you reason that you just solved a major case before winding up here? One that saved all of our lives, including yours? I think that warrants some rest for you, doesn't it?"
But his rationale was in vain - Kyoko was fully out of bed now, grabbing her mobile IV line and slipping into the hospital shoes the nurses had provided, making a path towards the door.
"I'm afraid not. Those were yesterday's mysteries, and this one is today's."
Makoto stared in confusion as Kyoko nudged him along to open their room door and join her. Stepping into the darkened hallway outside was a refreshing change of scenery from the same blank walls they'd grown accustomed to for the last fourty eight hours. Though besides some minor additions to the environment, they were still doomed to look at more blank walls. And medical equipment.
"Today's case, huh? And what exactly *is* today's case?" Makoto wondered aloud, trying to force down nervous butterflies that whispered negative thoughts. His anxiety only increased when Kyoko refused to look directly at him, instead pressing her finger to her lips as a few nurses crossed the floor some paces away. He tried to suppress the urge to chuckle. It wasn't like they were prisoners on an escape route. But then, maybe that immersion was what Kyoko needed, so he'd try to play along.
Kyoko averted her eyes as she quietly led them around a corner...setting a course towards the employee lounge. Much to Makoto's quiet alarm.
"I'd rather not say right off the bat."
"Why not?"
"Because you'll laugh at me."
Makoto shot her a questioning glance, feeling only slightly betrayed.
"Kyoko seriously, when have I ever laughed at you??"
Kyoko sniffed, tossing her hair as she looked away.
"Earlier, when I mentioned my childhood."
Makoto groaned inwardly. He knew that little slip would come back to bite him in the behind.
"Yeah, but! I wasn't actually *laughing*. I was just, ya know. Laughing."
"What exactly is the difference, Makoto."
"I...er, nevermind."
Trying to explain was a lost cause, he knew.
"I am your partner though, and how exactly am I supposed to help you crack this case if I don't know what we're investigating."
"Well...I suppose that's reasonable." Kyoko conceded, supporting her weight against the wall. "Alright, I'll tell you."
"You're familiar with my nurse, Akari? The one with the little cat pin on her uniform?"
Makoto blinked, not even slightly sure where Kyoko could be going with this train of thought.
"Uh. Yeah?"
"I couldn't help but overhear her conversation with a few of the other nurses yesterday evening. Apparently someone has been taking her food from the fridge in the employee lounge without leaving a trace. And I think I suspect who it is, and I can probably prove it, too."
It took everything in Makoto to reign in his emotions and not go back on his promise to remain stoic. With the most neutral expression he could manage, he took a deep breath before questioning further.
"Is...is it one of the other nurses?"
Kyoko stared back at Makoto, not saying anything at first as she read his reaction for signs he was making fun of her. Then -
"Of course it's one of the other nurses. Hana, to be exact. She's jealous because Akari went out with her ex who she's still hoping to get back together with, and the whole point of these little snack heists was to make Akari think she has no friends on this floor anymore. Makoto, for pity's sake, will you please just let me have this??"
Though Kyoko sounded exasperated, it was clear to see that she was, in fact, breaking her own verbal contract. Makoto watched with a warm feeling blooming in his chest as for the first time since checking into the hospital, his girl was smiling, her violet eyes dancing in that way he loved and would never give up for the world.
"I don't need to let you have it Kiri - you already got it. So lead the way, Detective. Let's catch this thieving criminal in the act."