I hear the angels talking talking talking now I'm a dead man walking walking walking

[yellowcopycat]

Who: Ryouta Kise and you! Also Xanxus.
What: Ryouta can't keep his head in the sand anymore
When: After "Ankh" posts to his twitter account
Where: Virgo HQ, Vista City Park, the beach (Xanxus only)
Warnings: Heaving emotional turmoil, a breakdown, and in the Xanxus locked thread; Xanxus and all the issues to go with him.

Ryouta hates his home.

He hates it so much. He wants to move. He just doesn’t know how.

Aoba’s gone, Kaworu’s gone, Tsuna’s gone, Nia’s gone. It’s just him, Momo, and Ankh.

Except Ankh isn’t Ankh. He knows it isn’t. He’s too happy, doesn’t twitch as much. Just everything is off. And ever since he learned to copy things by just watching the amount of visual information he’s processing has increased so he knows Ankh has been replaced. He can’t prove it, but he knows.

So he spends all of his free time outside of the suite. In they gym, in the cafe, anywhere but his suite, where he only goes back to sleep at night. He wonders what will happen. Last time it was down to the three of them Nia and Tsuna came, but… He just doesn’t know what’s going to happen to Surviving Friday.

Which means the second album he’s been working on is going to be trashed. And he hates that. He’s been planing on releasing an EP, like Genos and Roy have, he can salvage some of his Generation of Miracles concepts for his EP. He’s has “Dead Man Walking” recorded (Xanxus had helped a lot with that). “Irresistible” has Ankh singing, but he can replace that with his own voice. He has demos of other songs made along. It’s just a matter of piecing it together now.

If he can make his brain work that is.

He’s so scared. Flowers over Bones is gone, which means Luce is gone. And Luce was his go to person for comfort, and the Doctor was pretty cool too. And Ivan. And Sora’s gone. That hurts a lot too. Sora was his best friend. Rarity’s gone too. He didn’t have much interaction with her, but he had wanted to get to know her better.

Why is everyone disappearing? He knew something was weird, with all the weird memories and stuff, but he ignored it, hoping everything would turn out okay.

Obviously, that didn’t happen. He had his head in the sand for too long and now he doesn’t know anything. He’s scared, hurt, and confused that it takes all his well to not cry in the middle of the hall.



Prombts Below

Comments

[invisiballman]

"Yes."

It sounds very crazy. Kuroko doesn't hesitate to agree with that. He watches Kise pace around, waiting to see how he deals with this revelation. There may be a very tiny bit of relief in his eyes when Kise finally calls him by his name. At least he's not denying the truth. He nods, and his tone is faintly apologetic.

"Yes, I am."

He's about to add to that, but then he hesitates. This is a lot for anyone to process, and he can only guess at what must be going through Kise's mind. How much does he remember? How much is still out of his reach? And now that this was out in the open, where did they go from here? Kuroko honestly has no idea.

"I am sorry I couldn't tell you sooner, Kise-kun. Are you... alright?"

[yellowcopycat]

Kise's mind is still a mess, but things are piecing together, and he's remembering things.

"Oh, god," he repeated. "Oh, god, you know."

Because of all the things he can be focusing on he's focusing on that. Teenage logic at it's finest.

"And we kissed!" He pauses. Okay, that part, he's kinda okay with. But is Kuroko?

And then there's the whole Xanxus thing. And Aomine, and just... everything. He might need to be reminded there's more important things at stake here.

[invisiballman]

"Know?

At first he doesn't quite realize what Kise is getting at. But then understanding dawns. And with it the faintest bit of pink colors his cheeks.

"Ah. That."

That particular can of worms is one he knew they'd have to discuss eventually. But not yet. Even if he was ready, they don't have the time.

"I was hoping we could discuss that after I rescue you."

[yellowcopycat]

"Yes that!"

He looked away, his own cheeks turning pink as well. "It's... probably going to be a short talk, huh? I mean..." He made a vague hand gesture. "I, we, what happened at Teikou, and that one guy... What's his name? Tiger?"

He remembers the face, the loud personality.

"Kagamicchi, that's his name."

[invisiballman]

So Kise wasn't going to be deterred so easily. Kuroko sighs and looks away. He should just let Kise vent, and then bring the focus back to escaping the evil clutches of alien masterminds. That's the important thing right now.

But somehow, he can't.

"I suppose it can be as short as you want it to. But personally.... I actually had quite a bit to say."

There is the slightest hint in his voice of something like... frustration? Honestly Kuroko doesn't even know what he's feeling right now. Or why it bothers him that Kise immediately brought up Kagami.

wow, teenagers

[yellowcopycat]

Kise let out a sigh, noting the frustration in Kuroko's voice.

"I... guess it would be longer," he admitted. "There's... a lot I need to say too."

He sits down again. "Where should we start?"

Priorities.

[invisiballman]

Well... fine. They're doing this now. Kuroko briefly considers trying to steer things back to the obviously more important things they have to worry about. That would be sensible.

But he's finding that he really doesn't want to be sensible right now. So after a moment of silence, he finally brings his gaze back up to Kise. When the words do come, they're fast, as if he's afraid that he'll lose his nerve if he stops.

"I suppose I should start. I don't know how much of middle school you remember, but.... back then I had... feelings for Aomine-kun. But... by the time I understood what those feelings were it was already... too late."

It still hurts to think about that day on the river bank. That rejected fist bump. Even though it was years ago. Even though he's long since made up with Aomine. It's not fair how much memories can sting.

"Things in middle school... ended badly. Not just with Aomine-kun, but... in general."

That feels like a huge understatement. He won't go into the details now though.

"For a long time after that, I'll admit I wasn't terribly interested in... relationships."

But is it any wonder considering how his first crush ended?

What are those? can you eat them?

[yellowcopycat]

"I remember some," Kise admitted. "I'm... Well, not proud of them." He's not sure if having distance from them due to brainwashing is good or bad. "I'm... The... When I got here, I was different. I was friendlier I guess? I acted like I did with you and Aomine and the others with everyone. They made me think I was desperate for friends when before..."

He paused. "I don't remember if I ever told you or the others, but my oldest sister is also a model, and she got me involved in the fashion industry too. But she got a stalker while I was still in elementary. And it got really bad at one point." The memory is flowing at this point. He can't really explain it. "Really, really bad. And because of it, we just drew in closer. Kinda had to cut out the rest of the world for a bit. And that's when I learned I had to be careful who I let in. It's why I'm distant with people unless I see that they prove themselves to me. You saw that. That one girl claiming to be my girlfriend and then 'dumping' me for what's his name? Yamazaki? Ryuzaki?" He put his fingers to his hair and wiggled them. "I remember he had cornrows at one point. So I learned very early on that there are people who are just leeches, who would want to ride my coattails, use me as a status symbol because I was a model or because I was pretty, or because of my sister. That's why I clung to you, Aominecchi, and the others because I trusted you."

He looked down and played with the bottom hem of his shorts, smiling a little. "You weren't the only one in love with Aominecchi. I was too." He looked up to the sky. "It was love at first sight for me. Right out of a shoujo manga. He was amazing. I stayed in love with him for awhile, even after he changed. Up to our match against each other in Interhigh, I had to give up on the idea of him and me ever happening because it was holding me back."

He took a breath and looked ahead. This was the hard part. "But there was you too." He continued to fidget with his shorts. "I've only told two other people this. It's always been true; I just didn't want to name it before, and this place is a lot more progressive than back home, so it was easier to come to terms with." He's rambling, he knows. "I'm polyamorous. You know, I can be in love with more one person at once?" He doesn't look at Kuroko, keeps looking at the basketball court. "And um, Aominecchi was love at first sight, but I fell for you gradually. Because, well, you know I didn't respect you right away, but then I came to, and... well, you were really important to me. Are really important to me. You're the first memory I got back."

Kise stands, unable to keep still. "That's why I went to Seirin; that's why I was the only one to seek you out after you disappeared on us. Because I wanted to keep playing with you and thought you deserved better." And then shame floods his face. "And you did, and you found it with Seirin."

I bet they're delicious

[invisiballman]

Kuroko stays quiet, listening to Kise's story. He can understand how something like that would make anyone wary. Once bitten, twice shy. He does offer Haizaki's name when Kise is trying to remember it, but let's face it. Nobody wants to talk about that jerk. Certainly not now.

When Aomine comes up again, Kuroko echoes that smile softly.

"Aomine-kun was amazing. Still is, I think. But... too much has happened for me to see him the same way I did back then."

Aomine's insults and rejections had been a little too cruel for the later apology to erase. Kuroko knows a lot of that stemmed from Aomine's own depression, but that doesn't mean it hurt any less. He shoves those memories aside again when he realizes the conversation has come back to him.

Somehow Kise being polyamorous isn't as surprising as he would have expected. Somehow, that makes a lot of sense for Kise. No, despite all logic, the thing that comes as somehow surprising is Kise's confession of love. Even though it had already been implied by this entire conversation, a fair number of popular songs, and quite a few of his actions back home, it still feels like a revelation to Kuroko. The feeling flutters in his chest and he can feel the heat rising again in his cheeks. But then Kise stands, and Kuroko can hear the shame in his voice.

"That's true. Seirin has done more for me than I thought possible. Kagami-kun especially."

He can't deny that. Kuroko stands as well before he continues.

"But Kise-kun, I still wanted to play with you, too. And, actually.... in this case I think you probably deserve better than me."

Murasakibaracchi eats them for breakfast

[yellowcopycat]

Haizaki is the biggest jerk, which is saying something because all the Miracles have had their moments.

"Aominecchi will... Well," Kise remembered some of the other player's depression and casual cruelty that came from his depression. But Kise's always been a little bit of a masochist and didn't mind as much as most people would. He gives a helpless shrug, unable to find words that don't sound like he's defending Aomine's immaturity.

Instead, he turns to look at Kise, eyes wide in surprise.

"What do you mean by that?"

Because it was Kuroko that got hurt by the rest of them.