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[ She didn't want to remember.

But Taiga remembered it all in vivid detail, the sensation of Chara's knife plunging into her body again and again, their eerily vacant stare, her vision slowly fading away as she...

N-no, she had other things to think about. Anything but that. Like the deluge of texts she found on her phone from Ryoko, begging for any sort of response. Daily, almost hourly, they had come in, growing more and more desperate with each passing day.

Aisaka-san... please...

Ryoko will receive a text mid-afternoon. ]

im fine. sorry for worrying you.

[ She'd given up, shortly after the last text was sent.

It was clear that Taiga was dead. She... wanted to believe otherwise, she wanted to hope that she was okay and she'd just lost her phone and didn't want to leave her house, but in her heart of hearts, she started to believe it once the others started coming back. Sollux. Kakyoin. Yozora. There were bloodthirsty magi outside, and radio silence could only mean the worst.

Ryoko's heart felt heavy. She hated thinking about it. Hated thinking that there could've been something she could have done, if she would have tailed Taiga home after all. Maybe she'd be dead, and Taiga would've made it home. After all of this...

She'd started on preparing dinner for everyone staying at Madoka's house. It was a weak distraction, keeping her busy and keeping her from looking any harder than she had. She didn't have to think about the game, the absurd notion that anyone was gaining any joy out of it, or anything. Just focus on those who were there.

When her phone vibrated, it startled her.

When she saw who it was, she dropped her knife onto the ground. ]

Where are you?

[ Please, please don't be outside still... ]

home.

[ It was almost too much effort for Taiga to respond, but she felt like she had no choice. Scrolling back through all the texts Ryoko had sent... there were so many of them. Ryoko must've been worrying herself sick the entire time.

All because she insisted that she would be fine, that no one would take a silly text seriously. All because she couldn't take care of herself and make it home safely. All because she was destined to mess everything up no matter how much luck she had on her side.

Taiga curls up under the covers of her bed, trying her best to keep from crying. ]

[ Home.

It didn't take her too long to make up her mind on what she should do after that. Making sure she had her phone and her gem, she ran out of Madoka's house, out of where it was safe. It didn't matter if she did run into someone. She wasn't going to stop.

She couldn't stop. She had to make sure for herself...

Despite not playing and luck not being for or against her, it's a surprisingly safe trip from Madoka's to Taiga's house. The back of her hand nearly touches the door, but... it'd be hard for her to answer that, wouldn't it?

She scans around, making sure it was safe, and quickly rifles off a text. ]

Please let me in.

[ Not even seconds later, the door swings open.

Taiga stands with her hand on the door, grip tight. She looks every part of a mess, her bangs wet and clinging to the sides of her face due to the off and on crying. The girl is, to no surprise, in long, flowing pajamas, and her free hand reaches up to wipe at the tears on her face. ]

Ryoko...

[ And just like that, Taiga begins bawling. ]

Ryo....ko... I... Ry...

[ After a few failed attempts at words, she decides to simply pull Ryoko inside, shut the door, and continue her sobbing. ]

[ It's her. It's actually Taiga.

She's... she's a mess, as expected. How could she be expected to put on a strong face like this? What could she say? She wanted to yell, maybe not at Taiga, but at... at nothing. Yell about how she shouldn't have been killed, and how she should have done more to protect her, and how it should have been her. Taiga hadn't done anything wrong. She thought the game was ridiculous as Ryoko did.

It should have been her. It'd be divine retribution, after everything she's done in Nyoi-cho, everything she's done wrong. The fact that she's even here was wrong.

She didn't say anything in the end, pulling Taiga into a tight hug, her own tears falling freely behind choked sobs. This shouldn't be happening. But the tears won't stop. ]

[ Of course Taiga was a mess; what else was she? Even when she wasn't gasping out broken sobs, the kind she had grown so used to during her time in Nyoi-cho, she was a mess. Barely managing through Nightmares, picking fights with people she had no business antagonising, constantly trying to do the right thing and making everything worse.

And now Ryoko was crying too, and it was her fault. ]

I'm-- I'm so happy you're okay...!

[ God, will these two have a conversation in the next few months that don't end with them crying over each other? Ryoko can only hope, but she needed to calm down, needed to... needed to be stronger. Taiga was alive, and that was good...! ]

Do--Do you need anything?! Dinner? Ah, lunch, I mean?! Do you need to pick up a little?! Aisaka-san, if there's anything I can do...!

[ Hey, Taiga's natural reaction to anything is to cry... what's your excuse, Ryoko?????

Taiga, of course, doesn't answer any of Ryoko's questions. If she weren't so worn down, she might have teasingly jabbed her friend in the stomach, "Need to pick up? Are you serious?" but this wasn't the time for that. It was hard for her to do anything but wrap her arms around Ryoko, gripping tightly to counteract how heavy the rest of her body felt. ]

Ry...Ryoko...

[ Seriously girl, did you expect Taiga to be coherent? ]

[ Right.

Ryoko stops her babbling... it wasn't something that could easily be fixed with dinner, or providing for her. She wouldn't know it herself, but Taiga had to be shaken, completely. Death alone was scary, but coming back from it, knowing that it happened... it almost made Ryoko want to start crying again.

She really didn't need a mom right now. ]

Hey. Let's find you that blanket, okay? We'll take it easy... if you have any sweets, we could have that.

[ Ryoko flattened Taiga's hair, doing her best to try and be soothing. Back when Ryoko needed it, Taiga was there... and she was more than willing to return the favor any time. ]

[ At first, it's not clear if that even registers to Taiga. She doesn't so much as shift her weight, face buried deep against Ryoko's chest. Taiga wanted to make sure this was real, that Ryoko was really there, that she was okay, that she wouldn't see that godawful kid's face again when she opened her eyes.

Ryoko's voice hung in the air, soft and melodic in contrast to the ever present sniffles coming from Taiga. R-right... she was safe here, and Ryoko wouldn't leave her alone and scared. ]

Y-yeah...

[ Without another word, Taiga drops her arms and shuffles to her usual spot on the tatami, knees drawn to her chest. Don't mind her being particularly unhelpful, but Ryoko will find a sufficiently giant blanket in Taiga's bedroom, which to no surprise is a disaster zone of unmatched socks and clutter. ]

[ It... suddenly dawns on Ryoko that she's never actually seen Taiga's bedroom, as she lets herself in. And she's immediately taken back by how much bigger it is than the rest of the house-- it's completely disproportionate! Even worse, it's completely filled with laundry and... and...

Okay, no. Asakura-san, bad. She has to focus, even if it means... getting around... this place.

It takes a few moments, but Ryoko returns with a really large blanket, and she carefully goes over beside Taiga, kneeling and wrapping the blanket around her. She nods. ]

We don't have to go outside again, alright? We'll stay in here and have another sleepover. We can watch a silly movie, and just... take it easy for now.

[ Don't judge!!! It's home to Taiga, and isn't that the important thing in the end? This isn't even close to the worst it's been, so just imagine the horror for another day.

Taiga pulls the blanket tightly around her, cocooning herself into it. This was always a comfort for her, even on the warmest of summer nights. Her demeanor softens, and though Taiga is still visibly crying, it's far gentler than before. ]

Okay... Y, you won't leave?

[ If Ryoko left, without Taiga, what if that kid found her... Did Ryoko even know who it was? Who to avoid? ]

Of course I won't! We're friends, aren't we? What kind of friend would I be if I let either of us get hurt?

[ How could she call herself Taiga's friend if Taiga died again, or if she left and got herself killed? She already felt bad enough that Taiga died even once. She knows she could've done something to help her. She could've protected her.

You could be strong enough to protect them all.

She didn't need to hurt anyone to do that. She just... needed to be strong enough to keep someone from going out and getting hurt. That's all. ]

Y...yeah. You're right...

[ Friends. The word hangs in Taiga's mind.

They were friends, yet Taiga so blatantly caused unneeded worry for Ryoko. She really was a horrible person, in the end. None of this would have happened if Taiga hadn't acted so foolishly to assume she could be safe on her own.

She buries her face beneath the blanket, trying to hide her hiccuping sobs. ]

Of course I'm right!

[ Ryoko takes a deep breath, and then gives Taiga a big smile, standing in front of her with a ~~false~~ confident look on her face. ]

Anyone that hurts you is gonna get a big talking to from me, and I won't go easy on them, not even for a second! Asakura-san'll never forgive anyone that goes after you, so they'll have to watch out!

[ See, look at her! Look at how much she's sparkling! No, those aren't tears on the side of her eyes, those are sparkles! ]

Edited 2016-08-18 01:38 (UTC)

[ If Taiga weren't, y'know, crying and counting all the ways she was a worthless human being, that would have earned a chuckle from her. Instead, in an almost deadpan voice, she responds dryly. ]

That sounds like a threat...

[ That sounds familiar. Familiar enough to put a full smile on Ryoko's face, and get her to laugh quietly to herself. ]

I can't send anyone to the hospital... but, if I'm good at anything, it's giving them a lot to think about later. That's how I get others to learn.

Mmmm... Yeah.

[ Pardon the complete lack of true response, but Taiga's first thought was Ryoko trying to confront Chara. It was clear that they were playing the game, but what if they were to kill for the sport of it, because Ryoko pissed them off? They would probably do it without a second thought, and leave her to bleed out in the streets just like they did with her, after stabbing again and again and--

Taiga lurches forward, hand clasped over her mouth as her stomach churns violently at the mere thought of it all. ]

[ Ryoko immediately catches her, eyes wide at her expression and she immediately backs down from that smile, her demeanor going right back to worried. ]

Ah... Ah, ah ah ah, no! Aisaka-san, it was a joke, a joke! You know I wouldn't do anything like that! If I did something like that, they'd--

[ NO, OKAY, BAD IDEA. ]

L-Let's just forget about it for now, okay?! There's no reason for us to even think about anything like that happening anymore!

I-it's fine, Ryoko... I'm fine, i-it's not what you said...

[ Except it totally was and she's totally not feeling fine, which is why Taiga just... kinda pathetically leans against Ryoko. ]

S...sorry.

N...No, it's okay. I should be apologizing. I don't want you to worry about me. I'll be fine, I'm not going to go anywhere.

[ That's how you stay safe! Just... stay stationary, stay with your friends. ]

--I promise, I'm not going to do anything. Okay?

Okay... Just, make sure you don't get into any trouble... Please.

[ She doesn't want Ryoko to get hurt.

She doesn't want to be left alone. ]

Ah... well...

More than anything... I feel that if something bad happened to me, you'd try to do something about that, so I should probably try to avoid trouble completely.

[ That's all it took to get someone riled up, wasn't it? ]

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