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Shido’s shit blowing up left Rin with burns, penetrating her coat. Cognitive leather - not as good as the genuine article. Or maybe she secretly wanted to be burned, as some turds say. Or maybe she's just exhausted. An apology from Shido, after a year of craving it, has been cataclysmic for her emotional state. Anxiety over almost losing Ryuji set off an internal tremor. But she says nothing and gives no hint to her friends, smirking as usual while surreptitiously popping Takemi's painkillers.
But painkillers are not how one treats burns, and when she drops three things in a row during the cleanup of Leblanc, she compulsively pushes back the sleeve of her baggy hoody, exposuring a forearm and hand that look skinned. Only for a second does she check the damage out, but Futaba is quick too, reacting to Morgana’s yowl.
“Rin, what the heck?!” Futaba, also compulsively, makes a grab for Rin's damaged arm, which causes the sufferer to yelp, a sound which summons an adult.
“What have you done to yourself this time, girl?” Sojiro bustles over, primed to make another aggressive, affectionate comment, only to discover that the Joker is not joking, and her arm is actually very badly burnt. “What the hell?! Why didn't you say something, fool? This is awful.”
But Rin only shrugs, too tired to explain even if she wanted to.
By law there's a first aid box in the bathroom, so Sojiro takes hold of the saviour of Japan by her unburnt elbow, and drags her into it. It's a tight squeeze, gangly hips and shoulders smashing together, but by now neither cares in the slightest. “You're impossible, you know that, right? You refuse to look after yourself.” he says, slathering gunk on her skin. It instantly cools the underground fire burning away in her flesh, and moments later the seared, cracked, and blistered flesh surges with blue light and heals entirely, leaving only the thin white scars that were there before all her Metaverse shenanigans. Sojiro blinks at the magic he witnessed, then looks up.
“Please take care of me.” Rin whispers, repeating her first ever words to a man almost as soft hearted as herself.
“Looks like I'll have to, doesn't it?” placing down the roll of gauze he was about to apply, he pulls her into a tight hug, Rin's arms meeting behind his back and locking there.