[ OPEN? CLOSED? ] as you die, you will understand.

[passio]

WHO: dextera + others! i’m open to anyone but please tell me by PM or at pavaal if they haven’t had at least like, one conversation.

WHAT: dextera forces himself to face all the people he bailed on after dying.

WHERE: the town!

WHEN: forward dated to late june, and probably the 1st and 2nd of july.

WARNINGS: death death death

[ for the first time, dextera wakes up from death to a sky that isn’t red. it’s all as grey as the world around him, and slowly, the memories return to him—the bogeyman, his brother, the feeling of his very soul being taken from his body. then, there’s a long expanse of nothing. now, his consciousness has returned.

he keeps out of the way at first in this sketchy body, staying private, staying safe with a friend he’s sure won’t tell—there are things he’s not ready to talk about, and faces he’s not ready to see. after a few days have passed, though, and his features reform, color returns, and his voice continues to stay just out of reach, he can finally be seen around town again.

he saw the post. he knows guren announced his death. he’s just hoping that no one will ask about it, if they see him. ]

...

[ as ever, he's silent. ]


( i'll be posting closed prompts in the comments for people who want them, otherwise... go HOG WILD. )

Comments

[passio]

[ it’s a brutal way to go, being shot. dextera hasn’t yet experienced it, since none of the meta-beings in the tower use guns as such, but he’s been torn apart, been impaled, been burned and exploded and frozen—and yet, being shot by someone here in this town seems just as painful as any of those. who would have done it?

dextera nods, frowning in sympathy, and then… he reaches out, asking for akira’s hand. ]

[theshowsover]

[Akira hesitates for a moment, not sure what Dextera wants. He trusts the other man not to do anything to hurt him, but right now touch feels harder than it should.

He only hesitates a moment, though, before giving in, reaching out and putting his hand in Dextera's, watching his face.]

[passio]

[ it’s nothing at all, really. dextera has just learned the value of touch at a moment like this, when he’s been deprived of it nearly his whole life. just knowing someone else is there can be enough to ease his heart at the worst of times. ]

…

[ he exhales softly, covering akira’s hand, so that it’s now held between both of dextera’s own. just… held there, while dextera silently urges akira to take a moment of peace for himself as well. ]

[theshowsover]

[Ah...

It's... nice. It is nice, to be alive, to know there are people here waiting for him, people here willing to just... let him be, like this.

Akira inhales, and then exhales slowly, and then he smiles, just a little.]

Thanks.

[passio]

[ dextera doesn’t push him back, but he loosens, somewhat, the grip he had on akira’s hand. he knows that sometimes, all that’s necessary is just a little bit of comfort, a silence that isn’t lonely.

he nods, returning akira’s smile. ]

I’ll always listen.

[theshowsover]

[He smiles a little bigger at that.]

Thanks for that too.

[There's a pause, while he lets his hand rest in Dextera's for a moment longer, before finally pulling back.]

If you want to talk to me, I'm listening, too.

[It's the one thing he's really good at: listening.]

[passio]

I will.

[ dextera wants that. he’d like to become better friends with akira—though he’s not sure what they can talk about, akira has always been kind to him, and this makes him only more certain that akira is someone worth protecting. he, too, is a precious friend that dextera has made in this town. ]

Please, take care of yourself.

[theshowsover]

I will. You do the same.

[At least he knows Guren will care for Dextera; he was beating himself up over it harshly over the last few days. But they'll be okay, now.]

You have people who care about you, too.