talk about a reunion...

[usedkunai]

[He barely made it through the end of the first day of classes. The realization had dawned on him sometimes through one of Mr. Yamada's creepy lectures, and he's been shaking with frustration since then. Even though both Chie and Yukiko were eying him cautiously through class, Yosuke left no time for it to be questioned

Comments

[tiercelet]

["Merlin" pauses in the middle of shuffling a pile of papers, clearly not expecting company after classes ended the first day. After the summer break, students tended to flood out of the school with relief, wanting to quickly reach their homes for some respite.]

Yosuke. [Blinking, he takes in the now third year's appearance, frown making his eyebrows crease in concern. All things considered, Merlin had known Yosuke would take Souji's absence badly, even if they weren't together here like they had been in Johto. The two of them had always been close.]

You look like hell. [He tells his friend with a bluntness his other students would never really be exposed to; he reserves it only for the Investigation Team.] You should get some rest--what are you even still doing here when you don't even have my class today?

[usedkunai]

D-dude, it's not-- ugh... [It doesn't take much for his expression to morph into something more exasperated, looking to the door and realizing he should make sure he's completely closed. The last thing he needed was people gossiping even more about him. A few hours and everyone is already talking.]

[Once he does that, though, his weight shifts -- less from the awkward teenager he was known to be -- standing straighter and more poised while looking down at him from where he stood.]

I'm gonna say two words, I need you to tell me if they mean a damn thing to you, okay? [No, he's not even acknowledging any of the other stuff. Not yet, at least.]

[tiercelet]

[Now that Merlin notices. It's not easy to pinpoint the change, but something is different, and Merlin's expression grows pensive as he considers Yosuke.]

All right. [The words are spoken slowly, cautiously. Even if he doesn't know what Yosuke is trying to get at, Merlin can tell this is important--far more important than maybe he'd suspected at first.

He glances at the door, too, and for a second his fingers twitch on the table before he catches himself. True, Yosuke had known about his magic back then, but he didn't now. None of the others did. The only hints of his discomfort are a slight pursing of his lips....and the index finger of his left hand rubbing absently over his thumb--as if it remembered something that had once been there but no longer is.] Go on.

[usedkunai]

[He hesitates, watching the motion, and countering with his own; he makes an attempt to adjust glasses that are not on his face. Right. He has to keep reminding himself that he doesn't wear glasses yet. A small sigh, and he closes his eyes.]

[It's hard to spit the words out. But he knows he has to be right about this; there's no way this can be anyone but the Merlin he once knew -- there were far too many coincidences. If anything, it's one person who has to remember -- and right now, he needs a confidant.]

[Drawing in a breath, his expression falls a bit. The confrontation of his own memories is a bit much for him to bear. Though his tone's serious and firm, there is a slight breakage in it.]

...Breeding Centre. [He immediately winces a bit as the words come out of his mouth.]

[tiercelet]

[So that's it, then. Something in his chest loosens even as he stands behind his desk, equal parts astonished and relieved. He chews at his lip, regaining his composure, then lets a soft, shaky sigh escape him. It's followed by a flash of gold in his eyes and something settling over them, muffling all senses for a brief second before it seems to dissipate into nothing.]

You remember? [It's then that Merlin's demeanor changes, too, just a bit of weariness clinging to his frame. It doesn't dampen the obvious hope working its way into his tone.] It's already been a few weeks since we defeated Izanami--I remember you'd all said that was when you'd been taken to Johto--I started thinking none of you would.

[usedkunai]

[His eyes close, and without much thought, he sits at the desk closet to Merlin's. There's no leaning back, relaxing - no, he's hunched forward, threading his fingers through his hair and quite obviously somewhere between relieved and distressed.]

I remembered it about a week later. I... woke up, thinking I was still there until I opened my eyes. [He lets out one of his famous self-deprecating laughs.] Guess I should've expected it to end eventually. It's easy to get comfortable after that long.

[He finally leans back in the seat rubbing the ring finger on his right hand a bit idly.] I know you said you'd find a way to us, but dude.

[tiercelet]

Don't congratulate me just yet. [His tones take on an acerbic, self-mocking sting, his expression clouding over. For a moment, the lines of his face are uncharacteristically harsh, and the warm companion Yosuke might have known in Johto is replaced by a stranger worn thin by his troubles.] This wasn't my doing.

[Realising he's lashing out without good reason, Merlin lets the tension drain out of him, and when he next speaks, his voice is much gentler.]

Why didn't you just...look for me as soon as you remembered? You have my number. [The "like old times" rests on his tongue, but is never voiced. It doesn't need to be.]

[usedkunai]

Uh-- [He pauses for a second, his head tilting to the side, almost questioning. He's curious, but he also knows better than to pry; not here. He takes in another breath, almost as if he has to keep telling himself how to breathe.]

I kinda got used to that whole "you don't talk about things people probably forgot" thing, I guess. [Though mostly, it's been because he's been so caught in thought that he didn't think to.] I mean... shit. This whole thing...

[He looks down at his hand, biting on his lip. It's funny how a crappy situation can draw out old insecurities, isn't it?] This whole thing is so... fucking messed up, man.

[He wants to be mad, but it's obvious he's a little too broken for that.]

[tiercelet]

Tell me about it. [The initial flash of giddiness at someone remembering everything fades, leaving only exhaustion in its wake. For once, he'd have someone to talk to this about, but it doesn't feel like much of a consolation at current, with both of them so drawn from the experience.] I guess all of us were wrong. The badges, the league...they did nothing to get us home. It just...happened.

[Before he can help himself, he lifts his hand, palm up, gaze drawn to it. Appearance wise, he hasn't changed much since Yosuke last saw him--he can't have.]

[usedkunai]

No kidding... with no damn idea of who will remember and when.

[And with that, Yosuke falls to a state of complete silence. He's not thinking straight; he can't with his head so cluttered. He has a million questions for Merlin, the hows and whys, the what ifs and wat dos. But he can't spit any of them out.]

[No, his expression is only further crumbling. Speaking this out loud is making it too damn real, and it means that he's legitimately in a state of never know if and when Souji will remember... well, everything. Burying his face in his hands at the desk, he's fighting to hold back tears, almost determined to not let them fall. He learned that in Johto, right? Better control of his emotions? If he did, he's forgotten it in this younger body.]

I... would've been fine. Not leaving. Jiraiya, Kana... shit... Those bastards...

[tiercelet]

I know...I was the same.

[The emotions on Yosuke's face are familiar. Hadn't he gone through the same thing when he woke up in Camelot, staring without comprehension at the cramped space of his room in Gaius' quarters? Though it's been years upon years since that lifetime, Merlin still remembers the cold shock of recognition seeping into him. Realising he'd lost what felt like everything had been a sharp slap to the face then. And though he'd made the promise, he hadn't been sure if he'd ever see any of them again. Souji, Yosuke, Rise, Arturia.

The name makes Merlin suck in a breath as something else occurs to him.]

Souji? [It's silly, he knows, but he can't help darting a look down at Yosuke's ring finger first.] Are you...going to call him?

[usedkunai]

[He doesn't catch where Merlin is looking -- at that's probably for the better, given his current state. The empty feeling on his finger is a million times worse than the bizarre sensation of not wearing glasses all the time. When he's more calm, he wants to talk properly about this -- what happened when Merlin left, how he managed to get to Inaba -- Yosuke knows there's hundreds of years that are supposed to separate them. But right now, his focus, what little of it he has, is elsewhere.]

[Yosuke doesn't move his hands, but still shakes his head. He's not doing well at all, choking out a quiet sob. It hurts, it hurts everywhere to be in this situation, and while he's been suppressing it as best he can around the others, he can't hold it in anymore.]

I talked to him a couple of times, but... [He rubs away the fallen tears, drawing in a deep breath and sniffling.] I -- I don't think he has any idea.

[tiercelet]

[Merlin isn't without his own losses, of course. He, of all people, knows what it's like to wake up somewhere, remembering everything...only to find that everyone else has forgotten. He, too, found love in Johto...only to lose it upon waking.

He can't imagine what it's like for Yosuke, though, knowing Souji's here, just out of reach, and has forgotten every significant step they'd taken together.

In the blink of an eye, Merlin pushes aside his own feelings and embraces Yosuke, giving the other boy--no, a man now--the comfort he needs. Now isn't the time to be selfish.]

I'm sorry.

[usedkunai]

[The motion takes him completely by surprise, and in classic Yosuke fashion, he immediately sputters a bit.]

Du-dude...! We-we're at school and you're a teacher. If anyone walks through that door, we are so, so screwed!

[Despite this, though, he's grateful. Merlin's been around for him through a lot of ups and downs -- and his fair share of crappy situations across the board. After this long, he's grown accustomed to Merlin's hugs, and in some way, it makes him feel a little better about things. He doesn't really reciprocate the embrace, but that's normal, isn't it?]

A-anyways... it's not something you have to apologize for.

[tiercelet]

Oh, you don't need to worry about that. They're not going to see anything even if anyone walks in right now. [The smile he gives Yosuke then is one of quiet confidence--a smile of someone assured in their own power.

Then, he pulls back, eyes wide, trademark playfulness coming back in full-force.] But Yosuke, we weren't doing anything. [An exaggeratedly fake gasp of surprise.] Unless--!

[usedkunai]

DUDE.

Don't even joke about that. That's just --- that's just wrong. ["For we are bros. And I keep a kunai strapped to my leg."]

[In any case, he's wiping his eyes a bit, letting out a small chuckle. Merlin's always been good at making a situation somehow seem less bleak that way.]