IC Contact; DESTINY STRINGS | CLOSED

[bondsofsuffering]

Yo! Aah, this is unfortunate... Well, this and that came up, so it seems I can't answer the phone right now! I'm definitely not trying to ignore you, so please leave a message for me instead, ＯＫ?

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[melodyoflogic]

[And the door opens....! To Ayumu in flannel pajamas and slippers.

It's 13 o'clock, of course he's gotten ready for bed.] Hey. Thanks for coming over so quickly.

[bondsofsuffering]

It's probably not good to leave these things for too long.

[He pulls the gun out of his pocket and hands it over, along with some extra ammunition.]

Already going to bed?

[melodyoflogic]

[He accepts the gun and ammunition with a nod, setting both on the small table in the tiny apartment. Really, once they moved out he'd be glad for the room....]

I was. [He might not go to sleep right away anymore, though.] But I was going to have some tea first. Want to join me?

[A nod towards the kettle on the stove.]

[bondsofsuffering]

If you're offering... Sure!

[Maybe it will help calm his nerves. He could certainly use it, after seeing his brother - no, after seeing the man he was cloned from - like that.]

[melodyoflogic]

[He nods again, stepping back to let Hizumi come in and closing the door behind him. As if he'd already guessed Hizumi's response, there are two mugs on the table.

Not that it would be hard to guess he might need some time to relax. Ayumu did, too. The eeriness of seeing his brother whenever he summoned his persona was bad enough, especially after he'd learned the truth, but with Hizumi....

Seeing Yaiba around was a whole other story. He steps over to one of the small cupboards in the tiny kitchen, reaching up to find the teabags.] Any preference?

[bondsofsuffering]

[Hizumi goes ahead and flops into one of the chairs uninvited. He's smiling as usual, but it's not all that bright.

It's not as if he thinks it will fool Ayumu for a moment. But it's nice to at least pretend.]

Hmm... Anything you'd recommend for sleep?

[melodyoflogic]

Chamomile? [And he's pulling down a box as he suggests it, carrying it over to the table as he snags the kettle and a hotpad on the way.]

[bondsofsuffering]

Chamomile... That sounds good. Sure!

[melodyoflogic]

[He adds a teabag to each cup, pouring the still steaming water in afterwards, filling both before settling the kettle on the hotpad and taking a seat.]

It helps my sister sleep sometimes.

[bondsofsuffering]

...Your brother's leaving really was hard on her, huh?

[melodyoflogic]

.....Yeah. [He wouldn't go into details of how bad, but it was.] She was a mess at first. All he left us with was a phone call.

[bondsofsuffering]

Doing things at his own convenience, as usual.

[Typical Kiyotaka, really. Doing whatever it took to further his own goals.]

...Although... He definitely didn't just forget about her in all that time, either.

[melodyoflogic]

Of course he didn't. [He picks up the tea bag, checking the color of the tea before letting it settle once more.]

He might have left of his own accord, but he loves her.

[bondsofsuffering]

[Of course Ayumu would know.]

He seriously couldn't stop looking at her picture all that time.

[It was... kind of depressing, really.]

...But despite that, I don't think he ever meant to return to her, either. [Not if he'd truly planned to return everything to zero.]

[melodyoflogic]

That idiot. [The words are practically sighed. But Ayumu knew he was right. His brother's plan was more than clear, now.

That stupid, stupid idiot.]

[bondsofsuffering]

He's a pretty cruel God when you get right down to it. To both himself, and others.

[melodyoflogic]

Agreed. He can be a real pain sometimes. [And yet......

Somehow, knowing the truth of everything and after spending time with Hizumi.... he had a feeling he understood his brother a little better now.]

[bondsofsuffering]

...It's hard to blame him, isn't it?

[melodyoflogic]

Knowing everything I know now? Yes. [He'd never hated his brother, to begin with. All he'd always wanted was the kind of life, the kind of happiness his brother seemed to have.

But he wasn't so sure about how happy that really was, anymore.]

[bondsofsuffering]

...I really hate that guy, you know. But even I can't blame him, either.

[Having been away for a year, it's only become clearer just how much he'd been played by Kiyotaka. But having experienced that intense loneliness himself... having sought death just as he did...

He understands. As much as he doesn't want to, he gets it.]

[melodyoflogic]

I'm not surprised. He's done a lot. [A lot to have earned that hatred. He's not going to defend his brother..... his actions weren't those that could be defended. But he couldn't hate him, either.

Deeming his tea ready, he scoops out the teabag with a spoon, setting it on a plate before taking the mug in hand.]

[bondsofsuffering]

That's one way of putting it.

[Hizumi stares at his own mug for a while longer before he finally takes out the teabag, although even then he doesn't immediately drink.]

[melodyoflogic]

[Ayumu lets the silence linger a while, before deciding to venture a statement.] I think I understand why a bit more now, though.

[bondsofsuffering]

On which part?

[He finally brings the mug to his lips to take a sip.]

[melodyoflogic]

My brother has always been my ideal. [Hizumi would know, of course. He knew more about Ayumu than Ayumu ever had to say.] Someone who could obtain anything he wanted.... stronger, smarter... higher than anyone else. Who wouldn't envy that?

....I always thought he had everything. All the happiness he could have wanted. But now....