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[ He's no Tango, but Ritsuki will make a decent petting substitute... for now. And here we see Disney Princess Nagano in action with his trademark "I know how to get just about any woodland animal to accept me and then some" technique. ]

Reminds me of a certain someone, [ he murmurs fondly. A twinge of sadness rings clear in his voice, creating some dissonance. ]

I left my son behind when I passed. He's a big ol' Siberian cat. Tango. Fat, orange, spoiled, and the cutest thing to have ever lived on my Earth.

I wish I could still pet him. I hope someone's taking care of him. I...

[ He's still petting, careful and gentle, but droplets begin to stain the sleeve of his robes.

Kaito doesn't dare break away, nor does he look up at Hibiki. In a hushed, broken voice, he speaks. ]

I still have him. Sort of.

He's one of my Tethers.

[ Hibiki looks up at him when he speaks, catching the subtle dissonance in his voice. The emotion is practically palpable as Kaito talks about his son, like a true doting father.

It's painful hearing him struggle like that. That cat really is his world, isn't he?

Maybe it's presumptuous to assume she understands, because while she adores Ritsuki, they haven't been together for very long. That doesn't stop her from shifting the rabbit a bit so she can place a hand on Kaito's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. If he's one of his tethers... ]

...I'd love to meet him, if that's okay.

[ He was still committed to becoming soulmates, right? ]

[ O̵h̸,̶ ̸d̴o̴n̸'̶t̷ ̷d̸o̴ ̴t̶h̷i̸s̶ ̸t̸o̴ ̷m̴e̶.̷ ̴D̶o̸n̷'̷t̶ ̶d̶o̶ ̸t̴h̸i̵s̴ ̴t̷o̵ ̵U̸S̶—̶

Without hesitating, Kaito tilts his head to rest his cheek on her splayed hand. A current jolts through his senses, but it's not as strong as he's used to it being. Even if it was, he wouldn't have cared.

A fond gaze gets directed to the bnuuy since he's still struggling to meet Hibiki's eyes, but he nods. ]

You will, one day. Or sooner, if you don't want to show off your Tethers first.

I don't make promises, but consider it a promise.

[ Her heart aches a little as he rests his head against her hand and avoids her gaze. And here Hibiki thought she was the more emotional of the two, although seeing him choked up like this gets to her as well.

If she had any doubt in her mind about partnering with him, it was long gone.

Closing her eyes, she sighs deeply before reluctantly pulling her hand away. Hibiki bends down and places Ritsuki in the grass, leveling a finger at him. ]

We'll be right back, okay?

[ The rabbit scrunches his nose at her, genuinely confused why the petting stopped and why Hibiki isn't holding him.

Hibiki doesn't reach out to guide him this choice, offering him a choice; ]

You can come with me and grab one of them, or you can stay here of you want. It's obviously not the real thing, but the tree here is still pretty comforting to sit under.

[ Oh, honey. Wait until he starts realizing his feelings for you.

Kaito dries his eyes with a quick dab to his sleeve before giving Ritsuki a few final pets. Soon, he's on his feet to join Hibiki. ]

I like napping under trees, but I think I'll follow you in, if you'll have me.

[ No one will survive once they realize it.

Her smile taking an amused hue as he questions whether he can come in. She gets that it's probably a formality, but Kaito please. ]

I brought you here, didn't I? I wouldn't have done that if I didn't want you here. Come on.

[ She refrains from grabbing his hand this time, since he seems to be in a better state of mind, weepiness notwithstanding. Ushering him back inside, he'll notice that the accessible space is much smaller than it looks, with barriers much like in the bath room closing off most of the guest rooms.

Instead of taking him to one of the rooms, she leads him toward a storage room. The shelves are there only for show, existing beyond the boundary. Tucked away in a corner however is a serving cart, piled high with miscellaneous items that exists within the space.

Moving a few things, Hibiki grabs a small notebook, clutching it carefully to her chest. ]

I'll ask you to be careful with this, it's precious to me. It's... it's the reason I came back to Tokyo.

[ Kaito's back to taking stock of his surroundings. He's curious about the restricted areas. Are they simply sealed off by Hibiki's choice, or is it like a boundary, where nothing actually exists behind the doors?

When they enter the storage room, Kaito hangs back by the door and waits. Soon enough, Hibiki walks his way with a notebook held in her arms like it's fragile enough to shatter on contact.

'The reason you came back...' ]

Of course.

[ Kaito gingerly accepts the notebook, steeling himself for what's to come as his hand hovers over the surface. Scarred digits tremble in equal parts anticipation and fear of the unknown.

He presses down, and electricity rockets through his synapses. ]

[ Myriad emotions bombard him from every direction.

Darkness. Trepidation. Anxiety. Excitement. Wonder. Warmth. He feels a mother's smile draw at the corners of his lips. Her daughter's radiant grin. That same daughter's concern.

Weakly, Kaito looks up to see two Hibikis staring directly at him. One is a memory. Well, they're technically both memories, considering the fact that they're dead.

And in the same instant that all those feelings assail him, they're gone. There's a faint prickling sensation in the back of his neck, but it too vanishes.

All that remains is the silence of his mind... and the thrum of Hibiki's emotions. Yet the sensation is nothing like what he knows. In his experience, the auras of living beings blanket over him, their emotions washing into his psyche.

Yet now, he feels what she does—concurrently. Rather than absorb what she feels after the fact, he's experiencing it at the same time.

Golds widen. His hand lifts from the notebook, shaky yet steady. It settles on her cheek, and that's when he knows for sure.

Their psyches are linked. Their souls are linked.

'Holy shit.'

O̴h̴,̸ ̵g̵o̸d̸f̶u̵c̴k̷i̸n̶g̴d̶a̵m̶m̴i̸t̶.̶

Both voices convey clearly, directly into the blonde's mind. ]

[ Outside of needing to touch someone's tether, Hibiki knows nothing about this whole process. Truth be told, she's been avoiding it altogether, which has been relatively easy to do. While the older denizens of the Netherworld have been quick to push the process on them, their words have gone in one ear and out the other. This isn't for her, she concluded. She can and has always gotten by just fine on her own.

Needless to say, she isn't prepared for this process at all.

The moment Kaito touches the notebook, she feels a faint prickling all over; like her leg has fallen asleep and manages to push that sensation through her whole body. The blonde shudders a bit as the hair on the back of her neck briefly stands on end as she feels an undercurrent of emotion flow through her.

Stormy blues search golds only to widen in surprise as he touches her cheek, his voice resonating in her head. Wait, she can hear him?! Holy shit is right!

'K... Kaito? ...You can hear me, right?'

There's a smarmy sigh from her shadow, the side-eye coming out loud and clear;

W̵e̷l̸c̵o̵m̸e̴ ̴t̸o̵ ̷t̶h̵e̵ ̶s̷h̵i̴t̸ ̶s̶h̴o̸w̷,̴ ̸I̵ ̶g̵u̴e̵s̸s̷.̸

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Hibiki's shadow. ]

[ Oh. Oh, that's weird. Kaito's always prided himself in keeping other psychics out of his head. Now Hibiki's just... there. Chilling. And so is a voice that he immediately categorizes as her Shadow.

His palm rubs against her face, and he nods.

'Loud and clear.'

T̵o̶o̶ ̶l̷o̷u̴d̴.̷ ̶T̷o̴o̷ ̵c̵l̸e̶a̸r̴.̴ ̴S̸a̷v̵e̶ ̸m̵e̶ ̵f̴r̵o̶m̵ ̶t̷h̸i̴s̵ ̸s̸l̶i̴c̸e̸ ̶o̶f̴ ̴l̸i̴f̴e̸ ̷b̸u̵l̴l̵s̸h̶i̶t̴.̵

His Shadow's voice sounds completely identical to his own, save for that warbly quality and the second pitch thrown in. Very Persona 4-slash-5-esque. ]

[ Oh, this is going to take some getting used to. Not that Hibiki isn't accustomed to hearing something other than her own voice (or her shadow's) in her head, but having another person just taking up space is...

'This is so weird! Really cool, but really weird!'

And yet she seems to be more amused than anything, as she subtly leans her hand into his touch and laughs a bit. Does she speak? Does she broadcast? It's bizarre that she has the option to choose.

I̴ ̴d̸o̶n̵'̵t̸ ̶g̶e̷t̸ ̶h̶o̷w̸ ̵y̷o̵u̷'̸r̷e̷ ̶n̵o̸t̸ ̴m̸o̵r̴e̶ ̴u̶p̶s̸e̷t̸ ̵a̶b̵o̶u̸t̶ ̵t̴h̶i̷s̷ ̵h̷u̴g̶e̸ ̵i̷n̵v̶a̵s̴i̷o̷n̵ ̵o̶f̷ ̷p̸r̸i̶v̸a̴c̵y̵.̸

Oh, stop it. She's having fun here. ]

I didn't realize you two were just going to be in there talking. Your shadow's kinda snarky.

[ Are you holding out on her, Kaito? Is this guy secretly a sass master? ]

Edited 2022-11-07 16:37 (UTC)

[ Kaito rolls his eyes, even though his lips betray a smile. Eventually, his hand is pulled away so he can poke her nose. ]

It's just pretending to be personable.

[ Y̴o̴u̵ ̸l̸i̷t̸t̵l̵e̸ ̵s̷h̸i̷t̶,̶ ̵I̴'̷m̸ ̸t̴h̶e̵ ̴l̴i̴f̷e̴ ̶o̷f̶ ̸y̶o̷u̴r̷ ̶s̵a̴d̴ ̷h̷a̷t̷ ̵p̴a̴r̵t̶y̶.̶

Aaaand just like that, as it continues to complain, its voice dies out. Kaito sighs. ]

This is weird. I'm used to feeling peoples' emotions, but it may take you a bit to get accustomed to an extra set of feelings that aren't your own triggering at any random moment. And remind me to teach you how to close off your thoughts. As much fun as you're having now, I don't think you want to be broadcasting yourself to me at all times of the day.

[ A̸r̴e̶n̶'̴t̷ ̴w̸e̴ ̶a̶l̷l̸ ̵j̸u̷s̴t̵ ̶p̸r̴e̶t̴e̸n̸d̸i̶n̴g̴?̵ ̷H̵o̴w̷ ̷i̶s̸ ̴t̷h̴a̵t̷ ̷a̴n̵y̵ ̶d̶i̶f̴f̶e̵r̵e̴n̵t̴ ̷f̷r̷o̷m̷ ̴e̵v̷e̴r̷y̸d̶a̴y̴?̸

Hibiki does her best to ignore the comment from the peanut gallery, but she can't disguise the faint twinge of discomfort that follows it. Yeah, now that he mentions it, it would probably be good to learn how to stop broadcasting what goes on in her head. ]

...Is this what you go through normally? No wonder you're over it already. Yeah, I'll definitely want you to teach me how to turn this off. There's a lot going on up there I'd rather you not hear about.

[ O̷h̷,̶ ̷g̶o̶o̶d̸ ̷p̸o̵i̷n̴t̸.̸ ̷I̶ ̴w̶o̴n̷d̸e̸r̴ ̷i̶f̵ ̵h̵e̷ ̷c̶a̶n̶ ̶h̶e̴a̴r̴ t̷h̷a̸t̴ l̴o̴u̶d̷ ̵a̵n̷d̶ ̵c̴l̵e̷a̷r̸.̸

And suddenly the idea of him having direct access to her mind becomes a lot less appealing, and while she continues to smile, it's a bit strained. If he can hear that song swirling around in her head... ]

I'll wanna get on that sooner rather than later. After you've recovered, obviously.

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