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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[16hitmagnum]

[from here]

Good. They stopped.

"Oy!" she called. "You! The one who's tiny and skinny with the hair like a cockroach!"

She took a moment to catch her breath. "Those two people you were looking for, they were your friends, right? I don't think friends are supposed to leave you without telling you. But sometimes people have weird reasons for doing things. Maybe they're in trouble. Maybe they're not. But because you're friends, then I'm sure... I'm sure they won't just leave you alone like this. They'll come back or you'll find them, but I'm sure you'll meet again."

Kagura looked around for a bit. Was she doing something wrong? She was at least a bit aware of how rude the things she sometimes said were. Hopefully this wasn't one of those times.

"That's why," she continued. "You mustn't cry. I don't think they'd like it if they saw you cry. And you have to have the energy to greet them when they come back. With a punch!" She punched the air.

"And a kick!" Then she kicked.

"And a German Suplex!" There was no way she could have done this without hurting anybody so she just stood there. "How dare they make you cry like this!"

"Ah." Kagura stopped to think for once a while. What would Gintoki do? It was his role to make rousing speeches. Not hers. What should she say next? What could she do next?

"I ran out of words," Kagura admitted bluntly. "Uh..."

"Bye!" And she ran away, not waiting for a response.

[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.

Ururu could do little more than stare in silence as the older girl went through her demonstration, which ended with her suddenly running away. Ururu watched in silence as the girl vanished into the dark, completely unaware that during the little pep talk, her tears had stopped. What she did know was that person really was a lot like Jinta-kun, and in its own way, that made her feel better.

She stood there silently for a minute, then suddenly remembered that she wasn't alone. "Oh! Ken-kun. I'm sorry." Ururu still wasn't all that well, but somehow the older girl had been what she needed, at least for just then. Now she turned to her friend, looking shyly at the ground as she spoke to him. "I'm okay now. We should go, okay?"

[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.

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[16hitmagnum]

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