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Who: Shirou Fubuki and Yuuto Kidou
When: Backdated to 7/9
Where: Their home in Green Valley
What: They have a lot to talk about...

Not all of the aches the Awakened felt could be healed by the powers of their demons. Some were hurts that ran too deep and had attached themselves to their hearts, were pains that only time could remedy.

Fubuki's was one such hurt, and it had grown in the absence of the being able to wear Atsuya's scarf, and in the company of a new brother he wasn't quite sure how to behave around. He still had all of Kouyuki's memories. For all intents and purposes, Kidou really was his brother. But he couldn't help wondering, did accepting him as family mean that he was betraying his real one? Was he betraying Atsuya? He didn't want to forget or let go. Through him...it was as though they had survived that incident. If he just continued to remember, to hold on, it was like they weren't really gone. Sometimes, at least.

But he owed Kidou much. In the wake of what transpired the other day at the school, he knows now just how hard the other boy had been working to protect not only him, but everyone else. If it weren't for all of his hard work, things could have turned out very differently. What's more...he knew that it must be very strange for Kidou, too. Of all the things he could have planned for or anticipated, this couldn't have been one of them.

And of all the things...well, maybe this isn't the worst that could have happened. Kidou...no, Michi was always a wonderful brother to Kouyuki. And even when he'd stopped being Michi, that hadn't changed. Whatever their reality is, these things are indisputable and they are things that Fubuki knows he must thank Kidou for.

Though, perhaps thanking him is just an excuse? After all that's happened, he can't shake the feeling of concern for his...little brother. The way they'd been wrenched apart, the danger they'd found themselves in when they'd finally found their way back to each other, he can't help wondering—is Kidou really okay? Because he knows himself. And he knows he isn't. Despite how he smiles and carries on as if nothing happened, he can feel it at his very core. He's been shaken.

It was a rude awakening indeed.

He knocks softly on Kidou's door, but it's not the playmaker's name he calls out. "Michi?" In case anyone is listening. They still have a part to play, after all. "Can I come in?"

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'Michi' looks up from his desk, setting down a notebook carefully in front of him. He'd be lying if he said he didn't expect this. One of them was bound to approach the other, though one of them had much less to try to prepare for an inevitable briefing.

This is going to be delicate, at best. Kidou liked Fubuki - what happened to him cut him deeply, personally. He's failed this boy before to a possibly unforgivable extent, and he knows it. Now that Fubuki's here, he won't ever let him down again - he swears that! But worse, this time, it's far more personal than ever. Where do they go from here? As much as Kidou desperately wants to, is it really alright to keep the roles they've been given? Or, for the second time, is he going to have to put distance between him and a sibling? It feels like he might be intruding somewhere he's not supposed to...

He doesn't know. Michi knows Kouyuki inside and out, but Kidou never really got to know Fubuki well enough to make that kind of prediction. All he knows for certain is this must be painful for him, and it'll be up to Kidou to make sure he doesn't make anything worse. If it turns out that it's better for Fubuki if Kidou sets aside his feelings... he'll have to live with that. Even if the thought ties his stomach into knots.

He takes a deep breath, slowly lets it out. He's centered. It's fine. "Yeah." With some note of satisfaction, he notes that his voice sounds calm as ever. Good. It should.

If nothing else there's an easy task to focus on here. Fubuki needs to know what he's been thrown into the middle of. That's a starting place.

On the other side of the door, Fubuki mirror's Kidou's gesture by taking a deep breath and slowly exhaling a moment later. He can do this. And even if he begins to doubt himself, it's too late to back out now. Only able to forge ahead, he opens the door to the other boy's bedroom and lets himself inside.

Not much has changed. Things still look as they did before the other day, during the week leading up to the battle at the school when he'd spent so many hours here thinking Michi was the one who needed protecting. He'd been naive.

He stalls a moment longer, taking the time to close the door behind him, and by then he's thought of a reasonable ice breaker. Turning to regard the other boy with an easy smile, he asks him, "You were exhausted the first time too, weren't you?"

He hadn't known what was going on at the time, but he remembers the way Michi had seemed to change around the time of that fire, and how he hadn't seemed to possess the same energy as usual. Awakening, it seems, takes a lot out of a person. And Kidou had gone through it...not alone, not exactly. But he was the type to take a great deal on by himself just the same. Fubuki remembers that. Kidou's sense of responsibility and duty were second to none. He probably did all he could to keep from giving Genda or Sakuma a reason to worry.

Kidou nods once. Exhausted was one way to put it, though it didn't include the sheer amount of pain that awakening shoved at him. He could handle that now, well enough as he ever did. But back then...

"It's a lot to take in at once."

He thinks back to how it was for him, finding out that he'd had parents in one life, but didn't in another. That this life seemed to exist to taunt him. Fubuki didn't have a brother in one life, but... here...

Kidou cuts to the point. He isn't expecting an honest answer, but he'll at least try.

"Are you alright?"

It was true, Fubuki didn't have Atsuya anymore. Not back home, and not here, either. But he'd had his scarf there, a memento to keep with him and bring him comfort when he'd needed it most and felt he'd reached the end of his own capabilities. And here, while he doesn't necessarily have Michi anymore, not really, he does still have those sunglasses...

In fact, they're hanging from the collar of his shirt, where they can almost always be found nowadays. That is, if he's not wearing them atop his head, instead. In any case, they're never far from his person. And they are as much a comfort to him as that scarf has ever been. He touches them uncertainly now, the way he's always reached for the long ends of that scarf, and in doing so seems to find an answer for Kidou.

"Mm, I'm fine." He's not. He's confused, tired, and worst of all, he's afraid. But what kind of a friend or even a brother would he be if he placed those worries on Kidou's shoulders? "What about you, though? We didn't have time to talk about it before, but what happened after we got separated?"

There's no possible way that he's fine. Of that, Kidou's certain. But pressing the issue doesn't seem to be a good plan...

Automatically, his eyes stray to where Kouyuki usually kept his sunglasses, only realizing he half expected they might not be there after he's relieved - and more than a little touched - to see that they are. With a small smile, he allows the topic change. Maybe he really can afford to not press that at all right now.

"I was thrown out somewhere else."

Maybe if this was back then, when the battle raged chaotically in the darkness all around him, and it was all he could do to sort out what thoughts others heard and what didn't, Fubuki might have gleaned a little more of the story. That he'd fallen for a while before hitting the ground, and right into a few rats. That if it hadn't been for the timely intervention of allies ... this might be a very different story now.

Something Kidou tries to not dwell on, and something he'll refuse to allow Fubuki to think about. Some things can afford to lose detail.

"I contacted you as soon as I could afford the distraction. ...Sorry to worry you."

And that's it. The whole story, according to Kidou. Not too exciting, was it?

As soon as he could afford the distraction? So then, there had been trouble. But of course there had been. The whole objective of their enemy had been to drive everyone apart, weaken them and pick them off one-by-one.

He's so sorry, Kidou. That he wasn't more prepared, that he wasn't strong enough to stop that from happening. But the apology doesn't come, much as he feels it to his core. Instead, Fubuki nods in understanding and says, "It's alright. We both had our hands full."

It's as close an admission as he'll get on his part. He hadn't had an easy time of things after being separated from Kidou, either. The help of friends had made all the difference, had even introduced a little fun into some of the chaos, though he's hesitant to linger too long on that thought. He doesn't want Kidou to know about that, about how he had taken over for a short while. Though, with the way everyone's thoughts were connected, it's possible he already knows.

Guilt floods Fubuki's mind, but he's careful to keep it from bleeding into his expression.

"I shouldn't have worried so much. Of course Raimon's playmaker would be alright."

It wasn't Fubuki's fault at all, in Kidou's mind. Fubuki did nothing wrong - he did what he needed to, was exactly where he needed to be, fought bravely and relentlessly with all of the strength Kidou could ever have asked him for. It was Kidou who dodged the wrong way. Maybe it really couldn't have been avoided, but Kidou doubts that, deep down. It was Kidou's fault any of that happened. He should have been watching more than just the enemy before them.

It won't happen again.

"What about you? I couldn't see much after that."

After all, this was Fubuki's first fight - and what a first fight that was. It was nothing like the free for all in the orchard, where he could see everything easily and the sky was open, instead of a dark, yawning abyss that may or may not hold additional horrors lying in wait. Compared to this fight, that first one barely counted.

And still... people folded in the time before that fight and after. That just made this one seem even more threatening than it had at the time.

"I ran into Gabe." He pauses a moment and then amends, "I mean Guts."

The name still sounds strange to him, but it suits the person who replaced Gabe Brent, a ruthless fighting machine who hadn't slowed no matter how many rats came at them. In truth, despite the anger he felt towards the man, Fubuki knows he was lucky to have found someone so capable to fight alongside. And...they had fought well together, too. If a little more recklessly than they might have if they were each paired with someone possessing a cooler temperament.

"Between the two of us, those rats were a piece of cake."

No they weren't. They'd been vastly outnumbered in a very short amount of time and backed into a corner before long, too. Guts had taken damage, and so had Fubuki. But they survived, and that's the important thing. Or so Fubuki tells himself, all the while sparing Kidou the less heroic details.

He's not sure if he believes that. When Kidou first went through this, he'd been paralyzed by it, fighting himself as well as the shadow people in the courtyard. It took a while to get him up to speed, and even then.. it hadn't been easy to stay that way. But Kidou just smiles, accepting the sentence at face value.

"As expected of the pride of Hakuren."

He almost hesitated before that sentence - saying 'Fubuki' out loud feels strange now - almost like it's disrespectful, or at the least, too distant for a private conversation. Brother, he can't really use either - he doesn't have the right, technically speaking. Not now. Bear killer... he'll avoid that, too - given Kouyuki's reluctance towards the title, and given the odd duality, it might be for the best. That leaves just one title he could use in place of a name.

As much as it hurts to leave the topic of where they go from here hanging between them, Kidou's not sure how to even begin with what they probably should be talking about. Personal discussions weren't things he was ever that good at. He'll save it, for now. Just for a bit. Until he figures out how to ask what he wants to ask. (Or until someone else solves that for him.)

"Still, we should both prepare for what lies ahead. This battle was harder than the previous one, and the next will likely follow that trend. But before I get into that, I'm sure you must have questions."

"Mm, I do have a couple questions." To start with, at least. Perhaps, as they continued to talk, he would have more, but for now the most important things to Fubuki are simple.

Stepping away from the door to minimize the chances of their being overheard from the hallway, he goes to stand near Kidou's window and peers outside. From here, so much of their street can be seen. The view is suitable for someone like Kidou who takes notice of so much. And yet, somehow, he hadn't found Fubuki despite living under the same roof as him. Why is that?

"Why do you think we didn't recognize each other?"

There is no accusation in his tone. This is something Fubuki realizes is beyond their control. But it's nevertheless something he's been pondering over.

That was a good first question. One Kidou has been wondering about himself. To have seen Kouyuki every day for so long, knowing that Fubuki was out there, and knowing exactly what they both looked like without connecting the resemblance as too uncanny to be coincidental. It was unsettling at best, but given what he'd read, and that warning Luci had texted him, it made a little sense.

"I suspect it has something to do with the same powers that gave us this other life. Beyond that, it may even be a mechanism in place to protect us. Luci's mentioned that saying too much to those who haven't seen Awakening is dangerous."

Something about heads exploding... how literal was that?

"Before today, I couldn't have told you much. No matter how much I wanted to. This and that are likely connected somehow."

"That's troublesome," he says almost as if it's not really a problem at all. But it is. And it's especially curious to Fubuki, as someone who's sense of self-worth hinges on who he is. Or...who's most needed at the time. "It makes sense, though."

After all, there'd been things looking for them this time. What might have happened if they had been easier to find? Although...that begs another question, one Fubuki hasn't thought of before now, and one he thinks he should ask Kidou before he addresses the one he'd originally intended to be his second.

Glancing back over his shoulder he asks, "If it's to protect us, though...we should still be able to recognize each other. Unless there's the possibility of people like us switching sides?"

Another good question, though one Kidou can easily piece together an answer to. He's not certain it's right, but he's pretty sure he's on the right track. He folds his arms with a light frown, continuing.

"It's too risky. Had I known who you were once I remembered anything, would I have possibly given you a hint? Those who haven't Awakened suffer greatly if they remember things. I remember that any memory I had came with a headache. The clearer it was, the more severe the backlash. That's why I'm willing to believe Luci's warning that it could come at too severe a price."

Which meant that they really weren't capable of recognizing each other, if he wanted to also keep his br- Fubuki safe. None of this really sat well with him, but he had to accept it when it logically aligned that neatly.

"Oh, yeah. Those headaches were annoying."

To put it lightly. Very lightly, in some instances. Fubuki doesn't really want to imagine what it would have been like to remember things before they were ready to. Somehow, he gets the impression that whatever pain would result, it would be far worse than anything he'd felt while awakening.

How something could hurt more than tearing out your own heart he isn't sure, but...he's certain Kidou's right, and his answer comes as a bit of a relief to Fubuki. Sort of. He can't help noticing that Kidou neither confirms or denies that people could potentially switch sides, which makes him feel a little guilty asking his next question. Given the timing, it might present Kidou with an unfortunate reminder.

Still, after remembering just how hard he fought for Kidou's sake, and that of his two dearest friends, he has to know...

"What about Genda and Sakuma? How are they doing?"

That's where Kidou pauses before answering. His expression almost doesn't change, though one eyebrow twitches slightly, easily missed if Fubuki isn't watching for it. His stance doesn't shift. He just sits there and looks thoughtful.

Sakuma's the easier one - he's fairly sure he's alright. They've all three been working on a project together, and Sakuma's been consistently fine. Before that fight, Kidou would have said that they're all doing alright, but after?

Genda's thoughts betrayed him there. That he still saw himself as a pawn, someone who could feasibly be thrown away if it suited Kidou. And he acted on it! He was really willing to sacrifice himself! It's left Kidou wondering, more than a little, just how well he really knows them even now. What can he do? How does he fix this?

Fubuki's still waiting on an answer to that, and it doesn't escape Kidou's notice that it's just before the question about if people would switch sides.

"As well as can be expected." Which is a completely meaningless statement, given who he's referring to. "We've kept busy compiling notes on everything we can."

Fubuki regrets that 'as well as can be expected' means very little to him. He'd gotten to know both Genda and Sakuma better here than he ever had back home. He knows nothing of their capacity to weather hardships, only that the three of them were certain to agree vehemently on one thing: protecting Kidou at all costs.

If he's to use that as a means to measure their well-being, then...truly, it's a complicated matter. Because of course it is. If it weren't, Kidou could have provided a more straightforward answer.

"Keeping busy is a good start," Fubuki finally responds. He'd been doing something similar himself, albeit not for as long, and utilizing a different strength of his: his physical capabilities. He needs to be at his absolute best the next time something like this happens.

He can accept nothing short of perfection...

Shaking his head, he adds with a small smile, "At least we're all together again. I'm glad."

As long as that doesn't change, what reason does he have to believe that they won't be alright? Kidou had been able to save Genda and Sakuma before. Whatever was happening now behind the scenes, Fubuki is certain Kidou can ensure their well-being again. And he'll do everything in his power to help. This time...he won't be so useless. He'll keep his promise to prevent them from destroying their bodies.

"In any case, with the three of you working together, I can imagine you've compiled a lot of notes. We're really fortunate to have you with us."

That pause says more than any immediate reply does. Fubuki's pulling at that answer - what does he get from it? How well did he come to know Christopher, or Yoshio? Of course, they're different than Genda or Sakuma, but it would be a start. Kidou wants to hazard 'not well', but he can't know that for certain. And he's not asking, just as Fubuki isn't asking for any followup to that.

"Mm. There's a lot of questions I still have, but so far it's been informative. Luci's promised me an explanation after that battle, but that depends on if we can trust he'll keep his word or not." He pauses for a moment, before adding, "Of course, you're welcome to review what we have if you'd like, though you might prefer a condensed version."

A hand held out to include Fubuki into that circle. They should stick together, and Kidou has a lot to make up for, hiding so many things from Kouyuki as he had. It's rare that he's in a position where it's a plan at all to let on everything he knows, but in this case, it seems the best move.

That invitation comes as a relief, although Fubuki does his best to hide it. He'd wanted to offer his assistance, but...

Would it be welcome? That was the question that had plagued his mind the most. He was, after all, an outsider among them, in a manner of speaking. Kidou, Sakuma, and Genda were all once students at Teikoku and unrivaled players on their soccer team. And Fubuki...he wasn't even originally from Raimon, much less with them for very long. They owe him nothing and he has no right to ask to be a part of anything. To be included despite that, however...

Well, perhaps he can't hide his relief so well, after all. It shows in in the form of a very happy and agreeable smile which is promptly accompanied by a nod of his head.

"A condensed version might be easier to digest," he laughs, but whether or not Kidou expects it, Fubuki will commit to reading everything available. He didn't get to be the captain of Hakuren by cutting corners, and he wouldn't be able to protect his friends by doing so, either. "What do we really know about Luci so far?"

"A condensed version it is, then," Kidou answers with an amused smirk. A lot of the data on people could be safely omitted, couldn't it? Might be better. For ... everything.

"Luci is the person who knows the most about what's going on, or what our enemy is. Either he's the sole survivor from an earlier group than mine, or he's already lost at least one entire army.

"His capabilities include being able to know what you're thinking over the network. He seems to be able to tell where people are. He's warned us before about causing damage to people, and has proven willing to do what he can to protect us, or keep us from dying." He's fairly certain they've covered that before, but in the interest of thoroughness, he doesn't omit it.

"What I haven't mentioned is that he's allowed us to see what could happen if we weren't there. I and some others saw a possible outcome of the fight we faced. And all of my group saw a vision before the first fight. I'm certain that it's his power that allowed both of these things."

The extent of Luci's powers comes as no surprise to Fubuki. He recalls the moment he'd been outed on the app as someone considered to be a minor. Whether or not that was intentional on Luci's part or a miscalculation, Fubuki still isn't sure. But he thinks that Luci isn't the sort of person — or being — to do things he doesn't mean to do.

Still, he hadn't expected Luci to have the power of prediction. If that was the case, why hadn't he been able to warn them about that thing that had infiltrated the app? Were his powers limited in some way? And if they were...why? And what was limiting them?

Questions keep building up to the point where Fubuki's certain that if he asked them all of Kidou now even he would feel overwhelmed, so he settles simply for asking the most obvious, and perhaps most pressing of them all...

"What vision?"

This wasn't going to be an easy thing to answer. Kidou closes his eyes behind his sunglasses. How could he describe it? Especially while trying to not allude to the house that they'd investigated not too long ago, when Kidou was reluctant to go anywhere near it for so many reasons. He's certain Fubuki will make the connection anyway, but he'll try to downplay it for now. Just the facts. Nothing else.

As horrible as it was, it's still an easier vision to describe than the possible outcome of the second fight. It wasn't anyone he knew that he watched die, the first time.

"There was no clue what 'Awakening' could be last time. All we had was a growing suspicion that the lives we lived might not be real. The time came without incident. And with it, monsters did. Although I don't think anyone had left their room, somehow, we all saw them come. We saw them kill."

He speaks mechanically, as if this is any other briefing he's ever given. But despite his best efforts to keep any emotion out of this report, he still is forced to pause after that line.

"After them came something else - a fire truck. It wasn't carrying normal firemen. These ones arranged things to appear as though events happened differently. Then, they set fire to the rest. Although we could do nothing, they saw us watching somehow. They tried to attack us through the vision itself. It's still possible they could have, if we had stayed."

And he still doesn't know if everyone was unharmed from that or not. He likely never will. Nor does he know if they're the 'enemy' that Luci spoke of... but he suspects they're part of it.

As Kidou continues, Fubuki's expression grows more somber. Being witness to the deaths of presumably innocent people — or any people at all — would no doubt take its toll on a person. Although it wasn't within his power at the time, he wishes he had known and could have been there to support Kidou through what he'd witnessed. Through something no one should have had to see, let alone experience...

Sympathy aside, however, this revelation is a startling truth. Someone is actively working to cover up murders in Eddan. With fire. Perhaps even...that fire?

While he tries not to look like the thought has occurred to him, Fubuki fails. There is very obvious surprise and concern on his face, and also in the way he fully turns away from the window to face his...brother. He'd dragged Kidou to one of those places? No wonder he'd been so tense.

"Have...have there been any sightings of them again since then?"

Kidou's heart sinks a little when Fubuki turns to look at him, and he meets the boy's stare with an openly sad one of his own. It was so hard to not think about everyone who fell to those horrors, and why was there the cover-up? Was it to keep people from panicking, or was it just to keep them blind to the truth?

They'd seen those monsters were immune to any normal weapon and been told to go out there and do something anyway. Even more insane, they all had. Michi had been so sure that if he went out there, he would never return. In a way, he wasn't wrong, though he didn't face a similar fate to those people.

It still haunts him at night, hearing gunfire and screams cut short. What became of that man was seared into his mind's eye forever.

"If there are deaths, I'm sure they've been there." His voice grows softer as he continues, "I don't know if anyone else has seen them." Or, if they have, he can't say that anyone's seen them and lived.

It's definitely superstitious, but he's getting worried about saying anything more, even somewhere as safe as his room should be. Nowhere in Eddan had proved really safe, after all - even this house could be a target any night. How did they know where the monsters were going to strike? Are they like Luci, with powers that let them see things...? They saw Kidou through his dream...

"Do we try and stop them?"

Even Fubuki realizes the cover up could be for the public's protection. Or it could be that something more nefarious is going on behind the scenes. If they'd been able to see the people having the vision and had attacked them, didn't that mean that they were probably an enemy?

He's hesitant to consider it, but the thought occurs to him anyways. What if these shadows and monsters are all part of some larger experiment? What if the Awakened are, too? And those firemen were just a cleanup and control crew?

He shudders at the thought despite himself, choosing to attempt to mask the reaction with sitting down on the floor and slumping against the wall beneath the window. None of this is fun. Not at all.

"Who's even in charge? Is Luci the only one we've got to lead us?"

"I'm not sure. There's others, but they aren't as prominent as Luci. I'm sure you'll meet them. But it's true that the only real direction we've been given is from this app and Luci." He figures he might as well head off that and similar questions that he really can't answer well. Answer that first and cut off easy space for those questions.

"As for those firemen..."

Kidou holds his gaze on Fubuki for a moment before slowly looking ahead of him, staring at the baseboard of the other side of his room instead. He does not find weighing these things easy- who is the real threat? What's really happening? What relation ties the firemen and monsters together, if they're not willing to leave the monsters alive? Without knowing any of the answers he doesn't feel confident giving a definite answer to this.

He'll try, anyway. He has to analyze this situation; his older brother doesn't know enough yet. He's counting on Kidou to provide something.

"If we did stop them right now, what would change? If people stop dying, their purpose might be over, too. Until we're told otherwise, our priority right now should be putting a stop to the monster attacks."

It's not do nothing, but in some ways it feels like it. Because it's simply not being able to do enough.

They haven't got much of a choice, though. Fubuki sees that. Kidou may know more than him, may be more experienced, but there's still much that's beyond the scope of even his understanding, answers he hasn't been able to puzzle out on his own or glean from Luci. Working with what they have and what they can do...it'll have to suffice. For now.

"Okay." Fubuki nods. For the time being, the firemen won't be their priority. But if they should happen upon a chance to investigate...it sounds like Kidou wouldn't be opposed. Because the monster attacks are still linked to the appearances of the firemen. And that satisfies Fubuki a little. Makes it feel less like they're out of options and grasping at straws.

Which brings to mind one other concern. Drawing his knees to his chest, he wraps his arms around them and stares across the room.

"This new power..." He needs to perfect how to call upon and control Marchosias. "When can we practice using it? And where?"

If Fubuki didn't like the 'what can we do' attitude before, he's certainly going to love the only answer to that question that Kidou has. It's also what elicits the first sign of real emotion that Kidou's allowed - or accidentally shown anyway. His teeth grit, setting his frown in a harsher line, brows furrowing just a bit more.

"No one has yet."

His words are carefully selected. There's no outright statement of inability made, though the frustration behind it says everything that Kidou chooses not to. If anyone would want to practice this power, it would be him. Like before, he adds to that before there's any chance of protest.

"Even gathering together is a problem. With or without that power, we can't practice teamwork without drawing attention."

Which helped contribute to the mass chaos of Fight 2.

Kidou is right. Fubuki doesn't like that answer. He doesn't like it at all, and it shows in the way that his brows furrow and his face hardens. He's never been very good at not being able to work to overcome a challenge. In fact, the idea that they might be stalled for an indefinite amount of time frightens him. With good reason. He recalls as clearly as Kidou what happened during that fight...and how so much of the trouble they'd encountered could have been prevented if they'd only been better prepared.

They need a place to train. They need it to be theirs and theirs alone, and they need it to be a legitimate place for them to meet so as to avoid attracting suspicion. But they also need to make sure it's easily accessible to everyone...even at night time.

Is there such a place?

"If we don't figure something out soon, we're not going to stand a chance the next time the shadows attack." He pushes himself to his feet, already feeling the bite of restlessness and being unable to do anything about it. "What if they come here next time? What if we're not able to stop them?" His fists clench. If he's not ready by then, if he's not perfect and someone in their family should wind up hurt because of that, he won't be able to forgive himself.

He knows it. His brother is exactly right - they're already in very real danger. Next time, they likely won't be so lucky. His mind flashes back to that conversation he had with Luci, getting confirmation on a hunch he wishes he hadn't had. This isn't the first group at all. It's very possible that they'll meet something they can't face, and ...

"It they come here next time, we may be able to rely on Luci to warn us." That's not a certainty whatsoever. It should be.

Kidou watches the other boy carefully, focusing on his reactions. They match the way he feels on this exactly, which comes as little surprise. They both are too aware of the dangers of going into anything unprepared. Was this why the groups before them - however many there have been- fell? Likely.

"But, I agree with you. This is a problem that must be fixed as soon as possible." How, though?

He hates this feeling of helplessness. But if the adults can't, or won't, do much, and almost everyone involved is older than him... there's really not much he can do, is there? Either of them.

Hearing Kidou agree helped to assuage a little of Fubuki's irritation with their current circumstance, but only a little. The problem still remained, and until they established even a temporary method and location to practice, or were able to investigate the happenings around Eddan and uncover some useful tidbit of information, he was likely to remain on edge.

He wondered, would he feel this tightly wound if they could at least play soccer? In some ways, it felt like only a few days had passed since he last kicked a ball. And in others, it felt as though he'd gone his whole life without really knowing the lay of the pitch and how it felt to dizzyingly whip past opponents towards a goal, and to score before they could even think to stop him.

His school clubs were fun and he loved them a lot, but...they weren't soccer, the sport that had helped him overcome so much, and that was the only way he could ever hope to achieve being perfect.

"We should talk to Luci," he said after a moment, finally glancing at the other boy. If Luci really was anything like a coach ought to have been for them... "Maybe he can suggest a safe place for us to familiarize ourselves with our new abilities? Or we can just train the way we know how."

Which wasn't really training at all in Fubuki's mind, because he preferred to do things that were both productive and fun, but the sentiment remained the same.

Let's play soccer. Let's be like the wind.

If he could just run a little faster, reach a new speed, things would be so much clearer...

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