Chapter Text
After the world had fallen apart, Ritsu hadn’t expected Shou to stay in it.
He didn’t know why he’d thought otherwise, really. Shou just seemed like one of those enigmas of people who showed up in your life, changed it fundamentally, then disappeared with the next breeze. It had happened with them before; staring each other down across a hallway, watching bubbles of gravity pop like soap, like they were air, like they were nothing. And blue eyes, levelled at him, studying him, and no one else, like he was something, the meaning clear as he faded out of existence again; I’ll be seeing you again.
And Shou did show up again, with two days spent at the end of everything, in camaraderie, becoming the only allies the other had.
He was content to let an enigma like that pass by. After all, why would anything extraordinary happen to Kageyama Ritsu? Happen twice? Happen three, four, five, happen enough to start to wonder if he was sticking around, if they had been through hell and come out something average: friends.
But he’d checked up on Ritsu days after the end with a tired smile and a shrugged half-sentence about his Pops. He’d been there to hand the house keys back to Ritsu and a drowsy Shigeo. And as things returned to normalcy he’d appeared from nothing one day with a wave, launching into an anecdote like it was the most natural thing in the world. The next time he’d shown up again, Ritsu had begrudgingly given him his number.
And still here he was, weeks after the end, occupying a chair in a Salt Middle School classroom-turned-maid-cafe, sipping lazily on a drink as Ritsu tried to ignore him, ignore his current situation, and ignore the fact that despite how welcome his presence had been at other times, the last person he wanted to be here right now was Shou.
And of course, ignore the fact that Shou was in no way reciprocating Ritsu’s avoidance, eyes amused and tracking the loss of Ritsu’s last shreds of dignity as he forced a smile for group after group of giggling customers.
When Ritsu’s path next took him past Shou’s table, Shou leaned sideways off his chair to tap him on the arm. Ritsu sighed and turned to face him.
“What do you want. I already brought you your drink.”
“I’m just curious about your career pathway.” Shou said. Satisfied that he had Ritsu’s attention, he lazily swirled the straw around in his glass. “Hospitality, ey? I always thought you’d go corporate. You get paid breaks?”
“I don’t get paid at all, unbelievable as that is.”
“Not even minimum wage? The job market sure is as rough as they say.”
Ritsu raised an eyebrow, unsure if Shou was mocking him or not. “If you’re not ordering something then I have to get back to it, unfortunately.”
“Yes, of course.” Shou raised his menu and frowned at it with false consideration. “Well, help me work this out while I decide. If you only get unpaid breaks for your unpaid work, then can you theoretically take an extended unpaid break since you’re not losing out on money anyway?”
“What?”
“Basically, do you need rescuing?” He asked, peeking over the top of the menu.
Ritsu rolled his eyes – grimaced, really. He gestured first to his maid outfit, then to the general surroundings. “Do I look like I want to be here?”
Shou smirked, putting the menu down then downing the last dregs of his drink. “Just like a true damsel in distress.”
“I’m not a damsel.” Ritsu scowled, and Shou faltered.
“I know,” he said, sincere. “And I know you don’t need me to rescue you.” His lips quirked up for a second, and, eyes not leaving Ritsu, a glass spilled over on a different table, and the guest let out a surprised yelp, heads all across the room turning to look.
But then a hand clasped around his wrist and Ritsu couldn’t help but follow as Shou walked, casually, in a way that demanded no notice, towards the door. And, remarkably, they were out. No one called out, or tried to drag him back. They kept walking, slipping past other chattering teenagers and other classrooms with their own chaotic displays.
Ritsu blinked. Well. He’d been joking more than anything about leaving, but if Shou took it seriously, he wasn’t exactly going to complain. “That… was surprisingly easy.”
“It ain’t the first time I’ve snuck out of a place.” Shou dropped Ritsu’s wrist, then gestured at the other rooms. “Want to check any of the others out? Your brother’s will be here somewhere, right?”
“I mean, I could go see Nii-san’s, but… I’d rather just get out of here for now.”
“Roger that.” Shou said, giving a mock salute.
They continued weaving their way down the hallway, squeezing past parents and younger siblings and students in costumes and someone in an apron muttering about how he knew they should’ve stocked up on more flour. They had made it all the way down to the first level when Ritsu stopped abruptly as they walked past the door to the boy’s change room.
Shou slowed with him. “Don’t worry, they won’t miss you.” He said. “There’s other waiters.”
“I know, I-“ Ritsu’s hands twisted uselessly in the fabric of his maid skirt as if to demonstrate something. “I’m not stepping a single foot outside without getting changed.”
“Okay, I’ll wait outside the school.” Shou paused. “By the way, I wasn’t entirely teasing you earlier. It does look good on you.”
He continued heading down the hall, and after a moment, Ritsu entered the change rooms. Once back in his usual school uniform - he could’ve packed a change of casual clothes, to be honest - he breathed a sigh of relief. His hair was in slight disarray from the frilly head piece, and he tried to ruffle it back into place, peering into the mirror, before he gave up.
Shou was waiting for him outside, leaning against the wall by the school gates. He gave Ritsu a little wave as he approached, falling easily in step with him.
“Better?” He questioned.
Ritsu shrugged, pausing a moment, then asked, “Why were you here, anyway. I didn’t tell you to come.”
“Well, I was meant to check out the school while it’s open to the public, and to get a feel for it while the fair was on. But I just made a beeline for your class.”
“Oh. Sorry. I made you leave.”
“Nahhh dude, come on. You’re more interesting than some-“ Shou waved a hand. “Culture… thing.”
“Still, if you had to be there for a reason…” Ritsu prompted.
“Oh. Yeah, it was my social worker that said I should come. I have one of those now. Says I’m having to live with my mum now, go back to school when the new term starts in January.” Shou wrinkled his nose. “I don’t know if I’ll like school. I haven’t been in years.”
It was the simple, Shou-brand honesty that always seemed to come out around Ritsu.
Ritsu tried to picture it. Shou, in a school uniform, going to classes, studying, joining clubs, laughing with friends at lunch. It all felt so absurd, a mismatch of contexts, two separate things crashing together.
“Well, not every day here is like this.” Was all Ritsu could say.
Shou kicked a rock with his foot. “I wonder if the other kids would like me. They aren’t all like you.”
No, Ritsu admitted to himself. But that might be a good thing.
“Dude, your hair’s all messed up.” Shou noted abruptly, then reached forward to muss his hair. He laughed at Ritsu’s appalled look. “I don’t think I fixed it.”
“Knowing you, you made it worse.” Ritsu grumbled, reaching back up to his hair self-consciously.
“Aw well, that’s enough brooding. Come on. We have to do something fun before I move house.”
Ritsu blinked. “Move? You-”
“Shush. Can you follow me?”
“Follow? Where? I don’t-”
Shou took off into the sky suddenly, flying with the help of his telekinesis. Ritsu glanced around them, and finally noticed his surroundings. Shou had been leading them away from the main roads, down a side street where no one would notice or take issue with any random displays of supernatural powers.
He hesitated a moment, then followed suit; gripping his bag closer to him and flying up to where Shou hovered in wait. Shou grinned at him, drifting over to the side and picking up speed as Ritsu trailed after him.
Residential buildings disappeared beneath them, flattening to two dimensions as they gained distance. The giant broccoli loomed in the distance, dominating the horizon, specks of people and little pop-up stands hovering around its base. It took a while for Ritsu to notice they were flying towards the business district, where skyscrapers climbed tall and wind buffeted them from every direction. Shou set his feet down on a rooftop, seemingly at random, and Ritsu joined him.
This particular rooftop was flat and unremarkable, nothing more than cracked tiles and a metal safety rail that ringed most of the edge. It was shorter than the surrounding buildings, allowing a view into the floor to ceiling windows of its neighbours. A box-like entranceway jutted out from the roof, the locked door presumably an entrance to a stairway down to the rest of the building. It sat a short distance away from the edge, creating an area at its back where one could sit leaning back against the wall and circumvent the restriction of the safety rails. This was, of course, where Shou went to immediately sit, legs dangling off the edge above the lip created by a window on the floor below.
Ritsu breathed out a long sigh, then sat next to him. He tucked his bag safely at his side. “Any particular reason for this destination?” He asked.
Shou, of course, seemed perfectly comfortable with the precarity of their choice of seat, swinging his legs idly. “I dunno, it’s far away from people, and I think you wanted that a decent amount.”
“Maybe.”
“Do you like heights?”
“Eh.” Ritsu chanced a peek over the ledge. “I’ve never specifically disagreed with them.”
“You get more used to them.” Shou said, shrugging. He sat there for a little bit as Ritsu slowly untensed his shoulders, acclimatising to his seat, before he pulled out a small sketchbook and pen from somewhere in his pocket.
Ritsu stared at him as he spun the pen between his fingers.
“What? Pencils are lame.” Shou said.
“No, I just didn’t know you drew.”
“Oh. Yeah, I dabble.”
“And you just carry a notebook with you?”
“It was my plan for if I got bored at the culture fair, but we ended up leaving early.”
“You get bored that easily?”
Shou shrugged, flicking rapidly through the pages, too fast to see most of them, although occasionally Ritsu caught a glimpse. They seemed to be mostly of animals - hamsters, dragons or dogs, the occasional manga character, and he thought he glimpsed spiderman. Shou reached a new page and started sketching, scratching things out in light pen marks before going back over and darkening them.
Ritsu stared out ahead of them, breathing out slowly as he watched people work at their desks in the office building opposite, flitting past windows as they walked down the halls, some half-shuttering their blinds to block out the low glare of the afternoon sun.
“Earlier, you said… you were moving?” Ritsu said, breaking the silence.
Shou glanced up at him, then returned to his drawing. “Oh, yeah. Two days from now.”
“Are you staying in Seasoning City?”
“Nah. I mean, I was never really living here to begin with. You saw the temporary place I was staying at.”
Ritsu nodded. “Where are you going then?”
“I’m moving in with my mum, over in Legume City.”
Ritsu frowned. “That’s not even in the same prefecture.”
“Eh, what can you do. She’s got a pretty solid yoga class tying her there.”
“You’re not serious.”
“No, I am, she’s got a good deal going with mate’s rates so her classes are way cheaper than a gym, and she says it keeps her fit and well-balanced-”
“Suzuki!” Ritsu snapped.
“Yes, alright. She’s got a house there.” He grumbled, finally looking up from his sketchbook. “With… her new partner.”
Ritsu’s eyes widened. “How are you- I mean, how is that-”
“It’s fine. Pops is in prison anyway. And I’ve met the new guy before, last time I visited Japan in between travelling.”
“Okay.” Ritsu said slowly. “Well, if you want someone to talk to, then… I’m here.” God, he sounded stupid. He wasn’t very good at this whole being-normal-friends thing.
“Thanks!” Shou said, then smiled. It seemed genuine. “I have my case worker for that too, apparently, or so she says, but I think you’re less boring.”
“Than a case worker? High praise.”
Shou laughed a little at that, then glanced down at the forgotten sketchbook in his lap. He turned the page he’d been working on towards Ritsu to let him see.
“It’s a bear. Like the one in the drinks you were serving.” Shou said, smile crooked like he was expecting a reaction from Ritsu, of annoyance perhaps, at the reminder of his chores from earlier.
It looked more like an action figure than the cutesy bear cookies they’d put on the drinks. More like a sumo bear. Ritsu merely quirked an eyebrow.
There was something… odd about it though. It seemed to shimmer slightly, a yellow-orange glow adhered onto the page that was separate from the black pen ink. Shou’s aura? Had it lingered on the page as he drew? Maybe it was a creative thing.
“Here, you can have it, in fact.” Shou said, tearing the page out from the sketchbook and proffering it to him properly.
Ritsu startled, wondering if the offer was because he had been staring. He took the drawing, kind of touched, though he fought to hide it. “Wow, not gonna let me see the rest of the book before you hand it over? What if there’s a better one?”
“Oh well, beggars can’t be choosers.”
Slowly, Shou packed up his things, tucking the pen away before disappearing the book as well mysteriously into his pockets. They sat in silence for a moment, before Shou spoke again. “It was… my birthday two weeks ago.”
Ritsu turned to look at him. “You never said.”
“Eh, I wasn’t sure if we were at the stage where you would care or not really. That’s not on you, I don’t make many friends. But I think you maybe do care?”
“I do.”
“Kinda morbid that you caring about me leaving is what made that clear. Like, ‘hey, I guess you’re my friend, I’m leaving by the way.’”
Ritsu couldn’t help a small laugh bubbling up. He felt a measure of relief, really, to know he wasn’t the only one who overthought these things. “I’ll get you something.”
“You don’t have to.” Shou waved a hand.
“I want to.”
“Sure, then.”
Ritsu nodded, turning his gaze back to the skyline, observing as the sun dipped lower towards the horizon, half obscured by another building. As he watched, his brain ticked over, and a note of horror struck him.
“Ugh, I didn’t even-” Ritsu rubbed his hand against his brow. “I was probably expected to go back to help pack up.” Why did he let himself get so easily swayed by Shou?
“Eh, no biggie, I’m sure they managed fine without you. You’re a first year anyway, don’t take it so seriously.”
“Still, I should probably go home. It’s getting late.”
“Want me to walk you back?”
“Walk?” Ritsu quirked an eyebrow, then gestured around them. “That’s quite a distance.”
“Fly back, then.”
Ritsu shrugged. “If you like. You don’t have a curfew?”
“Not one I care to follow!” Shou insisted.
“Sure, then.”
They clambered to their feet, Ritsu tucking the drawing into his bag before securing it in his arms as well as he could. He put his faith in Shou’s aerial navigation skills and took to the skies after him. The golden hour sun lit Shou’s hair up like a beacon as he followed, until they both set down outside his house.
Ritsu walked forward to stop at his gate, and for a moment his brain entertained the idea of inviting him in. The day of the culture fair had been an event he’d been dreading for weeks, but Shou had made it bearable. More than that- enjoyable, even. Though he supposed that was unrelated to the culture fair itself.
Shou paused with him at the gate. “Oh- your brother's home.” He commented.
Ritsu frowned, puzzled. Was… that an issue? “Uh, yeah. He probably stayed a bit late to help clear up his haunted house, but… even then it wouldn’t take as long as we’ve been out.”
Shou waved his hands placatingly. “No, no, that’s fine, I just mean there’s the barrier.”
“The… barrier?” Ritsu questioned.
“Yeah. It surrounds the house.”
Ritsu frowned, trying to puzzle out what he meant. “Oh. I barely see that. It just feels like Nii-san’s aura to me, but I guess it keeps out evil spirits? I remember Dimple said something along those lines before.”
Shou gave him a funny look. “Maybe it used to, but I’ve seen barriers like it before. Repels anything with an aura. It keeps out espers too- more like a normal defensive barrier than a spirit one.”
Ritsu tilted his head. “But I can-“
“No, see-” Shou opened the gate, walking down the path to the front door, and Ritsu curiously followed. Shou placed a hand to the barrier. It wrapped the house closely, like a layer of bubble wrap, a couple of inches away from the house itself. Shou’s hand stopped against it.
“I can’t pass it.” Shou explained. “Well, I could probably brute force it somewhat; I know he’s powerful, but I doubt he’s pushed enough energy into it to repel a genuine attempt, though I’d still rather not try. But you-” he grabbed Ritsu’s arm and pushed his hand effortlessly through where Shou’s had been stopped. “It’s actually a pretty complicated barrier. He can control which auras he lets pass and all others are stopped. But- well, with your brother, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was subconscious.”
“Huh.” Ritsu struggled to process this information. Shou seemed to realise he was still holding Ritsu’s arm and dropped it.
“It didn’t used to be like this, though. Back after we first met at the old Seventh Division base I did some reconnaissance- yeah, I know, but you knew this already, how’d you think I just turned up at your house? - and it wasn’t this strong back then.”
“So something recent has caused him to change it?” Ritsu turned to look at the house, clenching his jaw slightly. Nii-san… why don't you just talk to me?
“Well, I guess I haven’t really seen the house since then- of course, except when I burnt it, but he wasn’t home then. I guess I, uh.” Shou stopped abruptly.
Ritsu looked over at him again. “What?”
Shou’s expression turned sheepish. “It’s just, I’d feel bad if it was because of me. Y’know. If I burnt down his house so now he’s paranoid about letting anyone near it. I know he didn’t seem to mind when I talked to him at the tower but that was… brief. And after I got Higashio to fix it all I figured, water under the bridge, but.”
Ritsu stared at him as Shou seemed to struggle to find words.
“Sometimes certain things that happen… tend to stick with you anyway. Even if you really don’t want ‘em to.” Shou shrugged breezily, as if trying to cast off the weight of his words. “Let him know I’m sorry though, yeah? If what I did was one of those things.”
“I’ll try talk to him.” Ritsu offered. “But you could always tell him yourself.”
“Heh.” Shou tapped lightly on the barrier’s edge. “I’ll take this as notice enough.”
Ritsu thought for a moment but couldn’t devise anything to reassure him with. Either way, he heard footsteps in the hall on the other side of the door, and sure enough, a moment later it opened.
Ritsu’s dad peeked his head out. “Oh, Ritsu, you’re back- I thought I heard talking. Did you misplace your key?”
“No, and I was talking, to…” Ritsu looked around. Shou was gone.
“Oh! Is it that funny spirit guy you and Shige talk to sometimes? What was his name?”
“Dimple.” Ritsu said faintly.
“Sure, son. Well, mum said dinner will be ready in ten.”
His dad smiled, leaving the door open as he retreated back down the hall.
Shou rematerialised out of thin air with a crooked grin on his face.
“He’s just my dad, Suzuki. You don’t have to hide like you walking me home is some clandestine occurrence.”
“Sure, uh. I just didn’t want to invite a discourse about the finer merits of arson, considering, y’know.”
Ritsu shook his head. “They still don’t know it was anything more than a spa holiday.”
Shou nodded. “Ah. Good. Well, I best be off anyway. Places to go, people to see.”
“Right…”
“See ya round!” Shou gave a short wave, then sauntered back down the path.
Ritsu watched him go for a moment. He wanted to say something, to call out, to ask again about his move or assure he’d be back to visit. He didn’t. He just sighed and entered the house, letting him go.