Day 260 (Backdated) - Homeward Bound

[windgod]

Who: Ippo and Ibuki
Open: Open
When: Day 260
Where: The Bastion In General
What: Ippo's home and not feeling too hot.
Format: Action
Warnings: Sad feels and happy feels and Ibuki probably

[The entire way home, Ippo had been for the most part, silent beyond a few words in response to things said to him. His heart was still beating in his ears and his chest felt like someone had trapped it in a vice.

How loud had he been yelling? How hard had he been pounding on that creature? Everything had gone by in such a blur, he didn't even notice until someone was pulling him off of the dead body so they could drag Colin out. He'd been fine of course, as Colin was wont to be most of the time, but he couldn't shake that raw terror he'd felt watching his friend get swallowed whole. A fear had gripped him so absolutely that even in the face of saving the engineer, he couldn't shake it even now.

His feelings weighed around his neck like chains and even as he came in off the Skyway, he landed hard on one knee, much opposed to his usual, more solid landings.

Even as lost in his thoughts and emotions as he was, he couldn't not notice the small tuft of brightly colored hair poking out from beneath a blanket near the entrance. Had...Ibuki really slept here waiting for him to get back? It was a shock enough to pull him from his thoughts and into the present as he walked over to the blanket and knelt down, putting a hand on Ibuki's shoulder.]

Ibuki...? You shouldn't sleep here, you might catch something.

[His voice sounded distant, even to him, as if he were listening to someone else speak, but the meaning was there all the same. He might have not been here for that plague, but he'd heard about it, and had his own fair share of sickness as well. The last thing he wanted was for Ibuki to come down with something because she was waiting outside for him to get back.]

Comments

[scary_music]

[Of course, laughs can't last forever]

Mmm... Ippo-chan.

Who would have thought, the very first person Ibuki met at the Bastion would also be the person she shares her doki dokis with?

[And she lets out a small, happy and nostalgic laugh at that]

[windgod]

It's strange, isn't it?

[He never saw it coming himself until it had happened, if that said anything.]

That was one heck of a first day though, huh?

[scary_music]

All sorts of things happening!

... mm... even back then, Ippo-chan really was good to Ibuki. Maybe Ibuki should've seen it coming! Ibuki's never had such amazing chemistry with anybody before Ippo-chan, and she doesn't even know science!

[windgod]

I'm not much for science either really...but either way, even if I did get thrown out of the hospital by my neck...I'm really glad I got to spend that day with you. And all these other days too!

[scary_music]

[Ibuki squeals happily]

Ehehe...

Ibuki is so glad. Because Ibuki feels that way, too.

Especially because, especially because... Ibuki... loves you, Ippo-chan.

[windgod]

I love you too Ibuki, very very much.

[Perhaps all the much. All the hugs too, all of them!]

[scary_music]

Ippo-chan...

[She doesn't have much to say beyond that but, this is clearly a kiss moment, so Ibuki pulls Ippo in for one!]

[windgod]

[And he kissed back, very much feeling the love.]

[scary_music]

[But all good kisses must come to an end]

Kyaaa~

Ibuki feels so warm and fuzzy~!

[windgod]

That's good, I want you to feel like that every day.

[Just seeing her smile, hearing her laugh...there was something almost inherently magical about them. It was like negative thoughts and Ibuki couldn't physically exist in the same space...not that he minded that one bit.]

[scary_music]

With Ippo-chan here, Ibuki will definitely feel that way!

And she'll make sure Ippo-chan does, too!

[windgod]

I appreciate that a lot, I really do.

[scary_music]

Ehehe... Ibuki knows you do! Because, because we're sitting like this, and we already have special rings! Like we're already married!

Kyaaa!

[windgod]

Haha...yeah, it kind of is. I hope we get to that point one day.

[Did he just say that out loud? He might have been so mired in good feelings that he didn't even realize it...didn't make it any less true a sentiment though.]

[scary_music]

Uwoah...!

I-Ippo-chan, saying something like that so cool and calm...!

Kyaaaaaaaaaa!!

[windgod]

O-oh, I did didn't I?

[He laughed and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, he hadn't even realized it until Ibuki pointed it out.]

[scary_music]

You did! You totally did! Iyan! Ippo-chan, the ship is going full speed ahead!!

[windgod]

The...ship?

[Was that...a joke? His...family did own a boat rental service, was that what she was talking about?]

[scary_music]

U... uwah!

Ibuki forgot! The generation gap! Kyaa!

Um, um... how to say it, how to explain...?!

...! Ah! You can think of it as the last part of relationship! Yeah!

[windgod]

O-oh! I...see!

[Cause pantheon above only knew he didn't understand it, but if Ibuki wanted to call it a ship, then she could call it a ship all she wanted.]

[scary_music]

[Ibuki laughed a little]

Ibuki will have to catch you up on all of the slangs and memes, Ippo-chan!

Maybe Colin-sama-chan's database has stuff on that...

[windgod]

I wouldn't know...a lot of what he has is beyond me, I'm lucky he made my gauntlets so simple.

[It didn't get much more simple than "Hit thing, fire laser".]

[scary_music]

Mm, mm. [nodnod]

... say, say, Ippo-chan... now that all the bad feels have been vanquished, Ibuki style... do you, um... feel like telling Ibuki what happened? Ippo-chan? The bad thing that made the bad feels happen?

[windgod]

[Well, that was one way to snap him back to reality, but at least he was in a better frame of mind to talk about it now. He still looked pretty uncomfortable though...not that it was surprising considering what had triggered his feelings, but he didn't feel like he could hide anything from Ibuki in good faith. It was probably for the best anyways, rather than to bottle it up.]

Well...when we were at the place where the core was...some fort with prisons and such, we were attacked by a really big lizard...thing. We did good against it but...there was a point where it actually swallowed Colin whole. I...I-I lost it, completely. We got him out really quick but...just seeing him go in...it scared me really bad to the point I was just pounding on this thing until someone pulled me off of it.

[His hands were shaking a little, just from remembering it and the memories came back crisp and clear like a movie playing on a screen.]

[scary_music]

A-ah...

[Ibuki took Ippo's hands, squeezing them gently. Though, she was realizing she was feeling rather shaky, too, suddenly, because-]

But but... Colin-sama-chan... he... made it, right? Like, like...

...

He... made it, right?

[Because... Ippo hadn't actually said whether the engineer had made it back. She'd been too busy with Ippo to take notice of who was among the returning group...]