Nightshift 40: East Wing, Hall A (2nd Floor)

[oftemptation]

[from here]Endrance rounded the corner slowly, looking ahead to see if anything was there. He was reminded all too easily of what had happened here the night before - the false Mia attacking, trying to talk her out of it...everything

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[mayomanoflove]

[From here.]

Hijikata thought he'd been mistaken for a moment when he turned the corner and saw not a solitary figure but several different scatterings of people throughout this last hall: men and women, some entering rooms and others speaking in hushed, steady voices. Too smart and not stupid enough to discount his instincts so easily, however, Hijikata kept still and silent as he sorted through the shadows, filtering out the voices to concentrate only on that tell-tale silence all hunters learned to hear.

Their prey, as well.

.........there. There was one man standing alone, right in front of one of the farthest doors. Expression unreadable, Hijikata began to walk slowly towards the man, advancing silently and blending himself into the background of other footsteps and noises, confirming and seeing and thanking and resolving with each step that--

--unarmed. Good.

SLAM.

Without warning, a hand wrapped itself around Takasugi's, bruising the terrorist's palm against the doorknob as a body slammed itself into Takasugi's. Pinning the man into door, Hijikata milked the surprise for all it was worth and twisted the man's arm behind his back, ready to break it at the slightest resistance. For a moment after, he forgot words and focused on fixing Takasugi Shinsuke into the most uncomfortable position possible, knowing that the less the man was able to move, the better.

"...I took your hint about being subtle," Hijikata whispered harshly into the man's ear.

"Guess you really meant it."

[onefellbeast]

Pain lanced through his arm before he could even register what was going on. His assailant -and judging by the voice, it appeared the Vice Commander had found him, after all- had lucked out on grabbing the arm attached to the shoulder that had been stabbed through the day before. Takasugi had to grit his teeth to keep from making any noise, inwardly displeased he had let his guard down enough to allow someone to sneak up behind him, having too quickly dismissed the surrounding foot steps as those of other wanderers. Now he had to deal with an unwanted enemy at his back when he was only inches from the supplies he required.

His breath was released through his nose, a single one to get passed the pained groan that lodged itself in his throat, before he could turn his head to the side and fix a grin on Hijikata. It was a careless grin, one that spoke of fearlessness and nonchalance, ignoring the threat at his back because he had good reason to believe that the Vice Commander was just as unarmed as he was. His only disadvantage was the various wounds that already peppered his body, making it difficult to get a upper-hand in the situation.

"I suppose we had to run into each other eventually," he murmured just as easily, "but what do you intend to do now that you've caught me? Kill me?"

[mayomanoflove]

There were bandages where Hijikata'd had grabbed Takasugi, all the evidence Hijikata needed to confirm the yorozuya girl's assertion that she'd fought by Takasugi's side last night. He supposed that he needed to investigate that further--the yorozuya had never been cleared completely of suspicions regarding his "intimate past" with various terrorist factions, after all--but here in the Institute Hijikata frankly had better things to do. For all his words, Hijikata had no real grudge against the yorozuya.

Too bad the same didn't apply for the man he had here.

Kill him?

"If you beg for it," Hijikata said with an equally fierce smirk, twisting the injured arm back even more.

"And by the time I'm done, you will."

[onefellbeast]

Blood seeped through his patient's uniform as his wounds reopened from the movement, soaking the fabric red. Takasugi paid it no mind, even as the pain lanced through his shoulder blades and made his vision blur at the edges. He was definitely in a tight spot, but surrender and defeat weren't ever options that appealed much to him. Neither was reasoning with the Shinsengumi. If he hoped to escape from the Vice Commander's grip, he would have to do more than just endure it.

He'd have to bite back.

"Always the tenacious one, are we?" he teased with a grin, "I've always admired that about you, Vice Commander, but I'm afraid not all of us learned to sit and roll over on command as you have."

There was a sickening pop as he twisted his body free, putting enough distance between them by slamming his elbow hard into Hijikata's stomach. He was almost certain his shoulder had been dislocated, but the other arm remained strong and mobile. It would be enough.

[mayomanoflove]

Hijikata made no reply to the "sit and roll over" comment, nor did he need to. A low grunt was forced out of his throat when Takasugi's elbow jabbed straight into his stomach, causing him to let the man go by reflex and back off a few steps. It was almost satisfying, in a way, that the man got free: he could see Takasugi's face clearly now, and scanned quickly the man's injuries before smirking.

It took only a moment for him to cross that distance again; he barely gave the terrorist enough time to breathe before slamming his heel into the man's abdomen, hoping to get him cornered once more.

[onefellbeast]

Pain exploded from his midsection, leaving Takasugi clutching at his stomach as his knees hit the floor too quickly. He could barely breathe past the pain and nausea that suddenly welled up from his gut, but his body refused to give out completely. His own will to live and fight was etched into every nerve ending, keeping him moving though he was about to reach his capacity.

Trying to recover, he searched for an opening and had enough strength to aim for the Vice Commander's wind pipe, his good arm suddenly jerking out to crush Hijikata against the wall by his neck and using the force of his whole body to keep him pinned down as he squeezed. The smile returned to his face, hiding how uncertain he was that he'd be able to retain the upper-hand in this situation. He was clearly at the disadvantage, with blood rolling down the front of his uniform and not a single weapon in hand.

The smile persisted even as he moved his mouth closer to Hijikata's ear to taunt him. "How does it feel to be so domesticated? I look at you and see potential that was sold off to the Amanto for such a cheap price. You prostrate yourself at their feet for the sake of a meaningless title when I see the things you truly want."