arcanarumlogs | no pain, no gain

Entry tags:

no pain, no gain

Who: Hibari Kyoya
When: Evening; August 29
Where: Navy District, Unit Four
What: Gokudera needs to discuss something important. That's really all there is to say on the matter.
Warnings: Expected cursing; potential violence. Chaos, really.

A lot of things had happened since he arrived here in this hellhole. Usually, it was pretty peaceful and quiet especially with how the weather was turning out. But then, other times, things got a bit chaotic. He supposed it wasn’t all that surprising seeing how there were people he’d never expected meeting in this place popping up left and right. Speaking of these people though, there were two specific individuals that barged their way into the very forefront of his mind ever since he saw their faces on his compact. He could deal with predecessors roaming around, and he could deal with complete strangers. But when it came to these two, Gokudera couldn’t brush them off easily (if at all). They were enemies, and enemies were meant to be stopped.

He guessed he should be glad that Byakuran and Shouichi were both here instead of back at home, but it honest-to-god didn’t decrease their overall threat. Byakuran looked suspiciously younger too so he had no damn clue what to deduce from that. The very same issue revolved around the Tenth who appeared out of nowhere shortly after him. It was mind boggling how these Rulers worked. They seemed to have a knack for causing trouble, and it only increased his contempt for them.

It wasn’t the right time to think about them though. He needed to straighten something out first with a certain Cloud Guardian before he made any further moves. And, that was exactly why he was currently standing awkwardly outside his bedroom. He normally tried to avoid bothering him knowing how his personality worked (to a certain extent), and he wasn’t one for jumping up and down at the chance to get into random, meaningless fights. So, when it came to paying visits to Kyoya’s quarters, it was limited to extremely important situations (or when he needed to borrow clothes) – and he certainly deemed this occasion to be for a pretty important reason.

Grimacing at the possible challenges to come from this hopefully fruitful meeting, Gokudera rapped his knuckles against the door waiting for an answer. He was certain his housemate was in because he timed it perfectly. And, by god, if Hibari decided to climb out of his window to evade him, he was ready for that too. Or, at least, he hoped he was. He really didn’t feel like chasing someone at the moment, and he doubted it’d actually come down to that. Actually, he suspected the door will either stay shut or it’ll swing open and his face will be inevitably abused once more. What was up with people and his face? Shit.

Well, it didn’t really matter at this point. If Hibari Kyoya didn’t answer him soon, this door was going down.

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The moment he heard the knock against the door, he'd paused in polishing his sword and stared at the wooden barrier with narrowed eyes, listening for any other sounds that might give away exactly who was foolish enough to disturb him; actually, he knew perfectly well who it was, but one could never be too sure.

For one moment, he debated escaping out the window, but then figured that Gokudera Hayato would probably chase him down and demand answers anyway, so with a sigh, he put the polishing kit to one side, sheathed the sword, and made his way to the door. It wouldn't do for him to have to imagine up another door just because the volatile bomber broke this one down.

... But it didn't mean that he couldn't abuse the Storm Guardian's face again. With a silent snicker, he twisted the doorknob and threw the door open, a smirk curling on his lips when the wooden barrier narrowly misses the other's face.

"What a shame."

Did he mention how much he didn’t want this meeting to take place?

If it wasn’t so urgent (and he hadn’t already pushed it off for so long), he would have prioritized any social calls with Hibari at the very bottom of his to-do list. It actually wouldn’t even be on it. That was how low it would have been. But, in this case, that was not an option.

Giving the door an exceptionally exasperated look, he was about to knock again when it suddenly swung forth causing him to take an instinctive step back. And then, lo and behold, his favorite Cloud Guardian appeared before him in all his sadistic glory.

A frown instantly snapped into place at his comment, but, just as quickly, it vanished. He was definitely less prone to exploding into a raging fit now that he was older, and he knew how to control his temper when it was necessary. And, at this precise moment, it was more than necessary.

He liked to think dealing with Kyoya was equivalent to dealing with a ferocious kitten. If you were cautious with him, he wouldn’t bite straight away; if you weren’t, you’d end up with more than just a few scratch marks. It was exactly why he needed to keep his emotions in tune especially since he knew Hibari had a way to prick at his nerves sometimes.

“Yeah, what a real shame…,” he muttered under his breath, regaining his composure. Granting him with a steady look, he decided to skip the formalities and initiate the conversation, “I need to talk to you about Irie Shouichi and Byakuran. Can I come in?” He didn’t want to risk the chance of the Tenth overhearing, wherever he was at the moment. "Or we can move this somewhere else."

Ah, of course. Gokudera wanted to question him about those two. He considers letting the other into his room for a moment, before dismissing it with a shake of his head. They would do this somewhere else.

".. Meet me on the roof."

The roof was secluded enough - there wasn't any wind to carry their conversation to prying ears (as of yet; that might change later), and Gokudera wouldn't be able to move around aggressively without attracting attention. It was only natural for Hibari to think that once he had told the other the truth, then Gokudera would pretty much explode and destroy everything, so, following this logic, of course he didn't want to have this discussion in his room.

Hibari didn't spare the bomber another glance as he stepped back inside his room and closed his door in the other's face, making his way to the window, strapping his sword onto his belt as he went. Once he'd opened the window, he grabbed onto the upper ledge and hoisted himself out, flipping onto the roof with practiced ease.

It was still slightly damp up here, the gutters still gurgling with the storm's aftermath, but at least it was more open than inside the house. And with the faint breeze picking up, it was definitely more refreshing to be out here than inside. Hibari turned his face into the breeze and sighed; yes, this was definitely better.

This was also partly why he always commandeered the rooftops of the highest buildings back in Namimori for his own personal use. He always felt more free up here, closer to the sky, than down on the earth. Plus, it was a hell of a lot easier to observe people from up above. Herbivores hardly ever looked up, after all.

He just always had to make things complicated, didn’t he? Of course, since he hadn’t bothered to communicate with the other Guardians much over the years, it wasn’t exactly shocking that he couldn’t deduce how much Gokudera had changed over time. Yes, he was hot-tempered, but he was less likely to erupt now. Too much shit had happened, and he couldn’t possibly risk making another wrong move because of his personal feelings. He honestly doubted he could waste his energy on anger when he already had stress, guilt, and remorse to work with on a daily basis. And that was why he had arrogance to back him up, to replace the heated emotion coursing through his blood. It’d be plain foolishness to think he could express himself as freely as he once did – not that he didn’t slip up every once in a while.

Eyes widening slightly, he watched Hibari disappear behind the door with an audible slam. He pretty much figured entrance to his room wasn’t going to be happening any time soon. It was a delightful surprise to find things going so smoothly right off the bat though. He had expected more grueling on his part.

Making quick work to exit the building, he easily found himself on the rooftop. But he didn’t feel all too comfortable with the new change of scenery mainly due to his apparel. No matter how much flexibility it provided him (and how much of an improvement it was from that goddamn robe), it remained unequivocally part of the worst choice of wear imaginable. It was amusing to see how at ease Kyoya was with the attire though. Then again, he wasn’t wearing tights.

He stood within a safe enough range from him as he spared a moment to light a cigarette. It was actually pretty alright to be out in the open again after such a lengthy amount of time indoors. Actually, he couldn’t recount stepping outside at all since his arrival (given the memory loss he had when he aged back down). “It’s becomin’ a real pain in the ass not knowing what the fuck’s going on,” he started once the roll of tobacco was secured between his lips, “I’m not gonna waste your time with all the confusing mess smackin’ me around left and right since I found out about them, so I’ll just lay everything I want to know out for you. Who’s on the Tenth’s side, and who’s the threat? I spoke to Irie Shouichi and he claims he’s helping us. Byakuran also offered up the news that his Second-in-Command is our ally.” He’s not even going to start on Byakuran himself yet because that was a complete clusterfuck in and of itself, and that’s all he really had to say on the matter.

He turned, only to grace the other with a withering glare; the main part of his animosity, however, was not directed at the bomber himself, but the cancer stick that the other had hanging from between his lips. A dependence on nicotine, or on drugs of any kind, was another thing that Hibari held in contempt. Though he didn't comment on the cigarette, it was obvious that he disapproved of it; why would anyone want to hasten their death like that?

A faint 'tch' was heard from him, before he turned his face back into the wind, closing his eyes. He could hear the cry of the seagulls from here; the wind was blowing back inland from the sea, carrying with it with faint smell of salt and seaspray. Hibari Kyouya was not one that liked to share his knowledge with anyone, though it may have been necessary; hence, he didn't answer straightaway, instead plucking at his breeches to settle down more comfortably for what may be a while.

"... Irie Shouichi is a double agent, working for Sawada Tsunayoshi."

He waited another moment for the Storm Guardian to take that in, before he spoke again, drawing long tapered fingers along the sword sheath idly.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi is not dead."

Simple.

He needed the cigarette for survival. It was a contradictory statement, but it was pretty much essential for his main choice of weaponry. The nicotine was just a nice extra touch to it. Anyway, by this point, it had already been way too long for him to start breaking off the habit even if he wanted to (or cared to, really). Which he, frankly, didn’t.

And, since he was already used to disapproval (especially from Mr. Cloud Guardian over there), he did nothing but tilt his lips upward into a cocky, yet considerately brief grin sending a purposeful note of indifference to any opinion of his precious cancer sticks. Giving Hibari all the time he needed, Gokudera enjoyed a slow intake of the tobacco as he folded his arms against his chest. Rushing him was unnecessary.

But, at the very first statement he heard from him, his full focus zeroed in on his companion. He harbored little feeling on his face except for the slight enlargement of his light green orbs. If Irie Shouichi really was on their side, then that must mean the information he granted him in their previous discussion was true. It wasn’t long for this thought to be confirmed either by what Kyoya said next.

The Tenth wasn’t dead.

…The Tenth wasn’t dead.

As the impact of this truth enveloped him, he could do nothing but stand frozen in his spot an internal struggle to maintain his cool afflicting him ruthlessly. One part of his mind couldn’t accept it, yet the other knew there was no time to waste on adapting to the shock of the revelation. It was a good thing, right? After all, the Tenth was alive. Why didn’t he tell him though? How did this even come to be? The questions overwhelmed him, and he barely had the wherewithal to suppress the ferocity of the emotions coursing through him at that moment. Questions, confusion, anger, and uncertainty mixed together in one huge discombobulating mess as he staggered backward feeling a strange sensation of light-headedness.

What was going on?

Why… Why didn’t the Tenth trust him enough to share this bit of information? Was Hibari actually telling the truth? Wait, no, of course he was. Right? Or maybe… No. No.

All this time of guilt, remorse, and undulating stress was for naught…? All the planning and sleepless nights were for nothing? Did the others know? Was it only him that was left out? No. No, he was certain the others didn’t know.

Then, what was… what the hell was going on here?!

Amusingly (or not so amusingly for him), all the while he was attempting to cope with the news, a strange occurrence was taking place. It was nothing too noticeable in the beginning, but, with the adulating waves of emotional instability crashing down on him, one could witness the start of a fade in his overall physicality.

Yes, that’s right. Gokudera Hayato was fading. It was a rather unsteady progress too as he began to fade in and out in accordance to the tumultuousness of his mood. He really needed to snap out of it since it was bringing out a side effect that honestly had no place in this current situation. But, then again, it wasn’t like he even realized he was doing it in the first place.

Let us take this moment to watch and appreciate this horrible, yet strangely comical display of what happens when you’re a Titan and you’ve just been traumatized by something that seems insignificant but actually holds a lot of weight.

Good times, good times.

He had expected the long silence, but what he hadn't expected was the fading; it looked like the other's emotions were more tumultuous than he was pretending, judging by the in and out fading that Gokudera was exhibiting. Hibari just sat there for a moment, fascinated, but he actually was considering whether to tell the bomber that he was, well, fading or not. Or maybe he should keep on piling on the revelations and watch as the other's emotions went even more haywire.

... Yes, that sounded good. But then again, he should probably stop the fading first... Ahh, decisions, decisions.

"Control yourself, herbivore. You're fading."

Then like the asshole he was, he turned right back around, waiting for the other to finish having his little meltdown impatiently. He didn't want to spend all day up here with the bomber. Just being in close proximity made Hibari feel.. more herbivorous. And that just wouldn't do.

The pile of jumbled up mess his thoughts were creating for his mind space didn’t make calming down very easy. But, he wasn’t entirely too preoccupied to hear what Hibari said. After all, experience had proven to him that he needed to be on his guard or else there will be dire consequences, and a mental breakdown (if this could be considered one) was no exception.

Now, the first phrase granted to him by the Cloud Guardian was appropriate by all means. It was the second statement that sent a well defined arch to his brow as his attention was temporarily deterred. Fading? What the hell did he mean by that? He would have expected a better insult from him than that, or at least one that was less ambiguous.

“What are you talking about?” Gokudera couldn’t keep a snap from escaping his lips, especially when the person he was addressing his question at happened to have unceremoniously turned his back to him. He still wasn’t aware that he was a vanishing mess (seeing how he was too busy frowning at Kyoya's back), so the misunderstanding was inevitable. “How the hell am I fading?”

"Are you so ignorant of your own body, Gokudera Hayato? Look down."

That little hint was all that Hibari would give the other; because really, he wasn't in the habit of helping anyone other than himself for no good reason. Besides, Gokudera would have to be absolutely moronic if he didn't notice his own body fading away into thin air.

Hibari supposed that it was a side trait of being too emotional, as well as a trait of his denizen (Titan), but still. The bomber could at least learn how to control himself.

“FUCK.”

That was really all he had to say on the matter. Now, that he had actually noticed what was physically happening to his body, his confusion turned to plain and simple shock. Talk about a bad day. And, understandably, since he didn’t know what to do, a feeling of panic instantly began to overwhelm him and, the next thing he knew? He was completely transparent.

“Hibari!” His voice was dismal as he racked his brain on how he could possibly return to a solid form, “I can’t see myself! What the hell. Do something!”

"I have nothing to do with your fading."

And therefore, Hibari did not have to lift a hand to help Gokudera. He's sort of a dick, isn't he? Actually, scratch that, he's an enormous dick. Then again, Gokudera was the only one that was very slightly tolerable around here (in his close proximity, anyway); plus, Hibari hadn't finished explaining to him what exactly was going on with Sawada.

... Even though every time Gokudera spoke, he lowered the IQ of the entire street. Well, in Hibari's opinion, anyway.

"I already told you what to do."

And so he had, hadn't he? Well, Gokudera had better take his advice. Unless he actually wanted to be invisible for some pranking.

And pranking it was going to be, for a rather sinister idea developed in his mind at the indifference of his peer. It was always nice to know that his temper could still overtake him at the most unsuspecting of times – and, since he had the advantage of tampering it down more than he did in his youth, he was proud to say that he was going to have some significant fun with this situation.

Yes, why should he stay so pessimistic? He was transparent! When would he ever get the chance to be like this again? Well, aside from another similar traumatic experience possibly taking place in the future…

Walking over to his companion (or, at least, he supposed he was walking), Gokudera leaned forward enough to breath into the man's ear, “And, what was that again?” He, of course, cautiously took several steps back afterward just in case he could be physically harmed in any way whatsoever. But, hey, it would have been worth it all the same.

What, was he supposed to react to that? Oh, he was, wasn't he. Well, sorry to ruin your expectations, Gokudera; he's merely going to turn his head and stare levelly at that place where he can feel your presence to be.

"I am not repeating myself for you. Figure it out."

That done, he turns around and continues to stare at the horizon, noting that the sun was slowly sinking down towards that far line, colouring the sea with brilliant hues of gold and orange, setting the whole world on fire.

Something that honestly reminded him of Sawada Tsunayoshi's flames, but of course he wouldn't say that.

No reaction, no fun.

What did he expect though? He doubted Hibari could really be that easily ruffled. Of course, he wasn’t trying either. If it was anyone else, he wouldn’t think twice about messing with them. There had been very little opportunity for him to find some entertainment since his life had been so bleak. No one could genuinely blame him for a bit of mischief now and then, not that he even had the time before he came here. It was a surprising notion to want to do it now.

“Be serious,” he inwardly scolded himself, moving over to where the Cloud Guardian was seated. Settling down next to him, he stared out into the distant not capturing its beauty in the same way as his companion. His thoughts grew solemn as he reminded himself why they were up here in the first place.

“What about Byakuran?” Gokudera asked, deciding he’d rather not continue their previous topic of discussion. It was still a sore subject. “Got anything on him?” A pause. “He seems to be the younger version of himself. I don’t know what to believe when it comes to him though.”

He guessed he'll just have to postpone the tomfoolery. For a bit.

... Gokudera was next to him. Oh well, at least Hibari couldn't see the bomber, which made things slightly more bearable. Oh, and now they were discussing Byakuran, right? Right.

"Byakuran is not a threat at the moment." A simple statement that gave Gokudera all that he needed. Hibari wrinkles his nose slightly then speaks again. "He comes from the other timeline." The one that the younger generation came from after they went to the future to fix it and... Yeah.

"Is that all."

Other timeline, huh. He could only presume it meant a different point in time after the younger Tenth had succeeded…? Byakuran had mentioned it to him, and it was the only viable explanation. He might as well roll with it. Otherwise, he was pretty sure he’d have a hard time following up with anything anymore.

He didn’t really have a question after that. And, even if he did, his thoughts had travelled back to his new intangibility. He seriously needed to stop changing his mind about what he was going to do with this awkward situation. Turning his gaze over to Hibari, a small frown came over his nonexistent features as he wondered how this entire invisibility thing worked anyway.

He definitely didn’t feel much different aside from not being able to see himself. Gokudera could feel his clothes and body parts just fine. But could he touch others? Could they touch him back? Huh. In the interest of experimentation, he might as well test it out, right?

Extending his hand, he gave the Cloud Guardian a light poke on the arm. And, when he felt the flesh, he decided to take it one step further by oh so casually resting his arm on his shoulder. “So,” he commented with good humor, “I guess this is what it means to ‘replace’ Lelantos.”

Could he feel the prodding? Most definitely. But he decided to ignore it, at least until Gokudera Hayato decided to overstep his boundaries and oh-so-casually using his shoulder as an armrest.

So really, one couldn't blame Hibari when he tried to grab said offending arm and drop the bomber from the roof. Thing was, his hand went straight through where the arm was supposed to be and dropped onto his own shoulder instead.

"... Tch." He scowled and jerked his hand away, so much more irritated now that he'd discovered that Hayato couldn't be touched while he was in this state.

Intangibility at its finest, indeed. And, well, since Hayato apparently had no more questions worth asking, Hibari decided to abandon the bomber on the roof and abscond to the safety of his own room. In one fluid motion, he stands and shakes off the arm, sparing the area where he senses Hayato to be a withering glare, before strolling leisurely over to the roof over his still-open window and dropping from it, catching the ledge then pulling himself inside a moment later.

Well, that solved the issue of how his intangibility worked. It was pretty risky for him to have overstepped his bounds, and he was fairly certain Hibari would get him back for it. But, for now, he guessed he was safe.

Watching the Cloud Guardian disappear from the building, Gokudera stood up with a leisure arch of his back, stretching out his limbs. Alright! Now that he got his questions answered, he supposed the next step was to consider how he was going to approach his current situation. He didn’t want to think much of it right now since he was actually still significantly jarred by the earlier revelations (despite his attempts at a more positive outlook).

With a shake of his head, he decided it’d be in his best interest if he slept for a bit. He’d figure everything out later. After all, he was sure he’d have plenty of time to do it now that he was stuck in this bizarre world. And, hey, maybe things would get better. It couldn’t possibly get any worse than it already had, right?

But, at the moment, there was a bigger dilemma at hand than what the future may or may not hold…

He seriously needed to find a way to change back to normal.

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no pain, no gain

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late tag is ultra-late. derp.

it's OKAJ, hiba hiba chan <4-1

what no don't call me that b-baka >////>

hiba hiba chan is such a tsun tsun~ how cute. kukuku.

...... /flips table onto

/underneath a table for some reason

/steps on

/feels the love~