Nightshift 40: F-A Block Hallway

[jokers_wildcard]

[from here]

Harley clicked on her flashlight and checked back and forth as she usually did. All clear. Alright-e-o! She moved as quickly as she could down the hallway. No monsters and no other people yet. She knew that changed pretty quickly around here so best to get a move on.

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Comments

[bewarethecute]

[ From here]

If Ururu had been thinking, she might have realized that she could be hurting Ken without tightly she held his hand. She might have thought about finding Fai-san or Keman, and telling them what she now knew. She might have thought a lot of things, but just then, all she could think about was the fact that two more people were gone, and not just any two. Orihime and Shiki had worked hard to make Lost and Found more than just people who argued. They wanted to find their friends, and they wanted to be a team.

So what would happen now that they were gone?

Ururu didn't stop until she was at the end of the hall. Then she finally let go of Ken's hand, only to cover her own face. "They're gone!" The tears came out with the words, and Ururu shook as she stood there crying. "Orihime-san and Shiki-san are gone too, and now everyone's going to fight more, and how can we find anyone if all we do is fight each other?! Why are they gone?!"

This wasn't right. This wasn't how things were supposed to be.

[rectifies]

Effort and concentration kept Ken from wincing openly at being dragged down the hall. Those fingers locked securely around his own might have belonged more to man than little girl, given their strength. If the situation was different, he might have questioned how this was possible. Instead, his mind went blank from confusion.

Shiki was gone, and Ururu was crying. Ken didn't know how he was supposed to process and handle both. Even if he had secretly expected the former, the boy couldn't bring himself to rationalize the situation.

"Ururu-san, I..." His gaze dropped to the floor, his mind at a loss on how to respond.

[16hitmagnum]

[from here]Good. They stopped

[bewarethecute]

Ken had tried, but it didn't do much to make Ururu stop crying just then. The little girl couldn't help looking up when a voice shouted at her though, and called her hair something that she hadn't heard in a very long time. In a way, it was good that the person shouting was a girl. Otherwise, Ururu might have thought it was Jinta-kun, and she'd have been even sadder when it wasn't

[rectifies]

That was, by far, the oddest pep talk Ken had ever witnessed in his short life. Not many people encouraged violence as part of the solution (aside from Akihiko). Furthermore, people normally cheered others up in a less forceful manner, or so he assumed. The child couldn't be sure, honestly, considering his own limited social graces.

Regardless, the words seemed to have done its job, far better than what he could have done. Ururu was no longer crying; she actually seemed okay now. He doubted she felt completely fine about the circumstances, but at least the girl wasn't broken. No one needed to be in that state.

And yet Ken couldn't help but feel a degree of worry. Going right into business could be unwise. "Are you sure?" he asked, tentatively. "We can still take some time to look for them, or..." Talk about it, perhaps, but if Ururu was anything like Ken, talking only made the situation worse in the end.

[bewarethecute]

"I'm sure." It was easy to be sure, because Ururu still didn't know where to look for anyone. She didn't want to say that though, because if she did, she might start crying again. Right now, Ururu didn't want to cry. She wanted to help however she could, and that meant helping Ken learn about sex so he could help his friend.

"I didn't hurt you, did I?" Just realizing how she'd grabbed Ken's hand, Ururu turned to the boy with a look of concern, and maybe some guilt. "I didn't mean to pull you like that."

[rectifies]

Ken mulled over her answer for a minute before offering a slow nod. He was still concerned, but the decision was ultimately hers to make. Also, they had made an agreement; going back on that for any reason probably wouldn't help things. "There's a room in the second floor with medical books," he explained. "I think we can find our answers there."

Of course, there was still the matter of interpreting said answers, but... Eh. They would just have to see what came up.

"And, um, you didn't hurt me, Ururu-san." His hand felt a little sore, but that was hardly worth concern. "I'm more surprised, actually. You're stronger than most people I know," he admitted.

[bewarethecute]

For Ururu, it was really important to be as helpful as she could just then. She could easily keep crying, but Ururu didn't want to. She wanted to try and help as much as she could, even though she was really sad. That was the sort of thing Orihime and Shiki would've wanted her to do too. Or at least, that was what Ururu thought.

"Oh, okay." Ururu was glad that Ken knew where they were going, because she didn't. She did know the way to the second floor though, so at least she could start heading there. Ururu was careful to make sure Ken was with her the whole time, however. The last thing she wanted was to get separated from another friend.

[ To here]

[16hitmagnum]

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