heavenlydecree: (so cold when you do it to me like that)
呉島 貴虎 | kureshima takatora ([personal profile] heavenlydecree) wrote2014-09-19 10:58 pm

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[If there was one thing Takatora was sure he should have learned by now, it would be how to keep his life in perfect running order. He had been the head of Yggdrasill's Research and Development branch from the moment he'd left high school and even before that, his father had kept him on a tight and strict schedule, never a second unaccounted for or left out of place. Unfortunately, with all of Takatora's scheduling and trying to squeeze an extra hour into every day, he still felt as though he never had time for anything, let alone everything. Even his weekends left little time for himself, though Takatora was also painfully aware of his obsession with triple-checking everything under his command and bringing such weight onto himself. He couldn't allow for errors.

His morning routine started a bit later on the weekends, if only because Takatora knew he had to catch up on sleep at some point to make up for running himself ragged. Getting sick was something he couldn't risk. The usual morning routine went by quickly: dragging himself out of bed (he'd never become a morning person, as much as he wanted to), showering, getting dressed, checking for any news or alerts while he had been sleeping. Thankfully, nothing important had happened during the night. Takatora always lived with the fear of something awful happening while he was asleep that he would be unprepared for, but every morning brought the same temporary relief. For now.

Takatora headed out of his room after an hour or so, still checking his phone as he made his way down the hall and towards the stairs. Ryouma already wanted to talk to him about something, which was mildly surprising as Ryouma rarely (never) got out of bed so early, which meant he'd been up all night again. Stepping past one of the maids, Takatora spoke a return greeting to her as he continued on, paying more attention to typing out messages than his surroundings.]
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-20 04:16 am (UTC)(link)
[He stiffened slightly, nearly stepping back but not wanting to seem too distant. It was another dance, a dangerous game. Something he had to keep control of. The illusion of looking effortless, while planning every step... that was dance, in both life and on the stage.]

Fine. Perhaps a little bit tired, but I was up late studying. I wanted to make sure I had everything memorized so I could go over it today, and I lost track of the time.

[If he was touched, the game was over, at least for now. Every muscle had to be controlled. Every breath had to appear normal.]
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-20 04:37 am (UTC)(link)
[He swallowed a little, trying to remember his brother's schedule. Could he get away with pretending to sleep and then sneaking out? Probably not. It seemed like the kind of day where Takatora would ask a maid if he'd left. Damn it. They needed him today. Kouta wouldn't be able to pick up the slack - he'd been out of the team for a while and he still wasn't in sync with the others.]

[There were no options. He tried to keep his expression neutral, but with the way his body was aching he didn't have much time before he couldn't keep it up. He took a deep breath, preparing to debate his brother - he needed to go study, or he would get an unsatisfactory grade on the test - but something in the air caught in his throat and he felt a cough coming on.]

[He took a step back and covered his mouth with his sleeve as he coughed, a dry sound with a little bending over from the pain.]


No, it's fine. I should... go study...

[Damn it. This story was falling apart at the seams. If he had to skip today... he had to be there, they needed him! They couldn't do it without him!]
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-20 04:48 am (UTC)(link)
... All right, nii-san.

[That was it, then. No escaping it today. His shoulders slumped slightly under his brother's touch, and he nodded. Bed. But maybe he could still escape later. He'd have to text someone to let them know. Hopefully Kouta wouldn't screw something up while he was gone.]

[He turned a bit, heading back towards his room with Takatora. Once again he had the feeling of being in his older brother's shadow, quite literally right now. His posture dipped a bit as he tried not to push his joints too much. He felt like a toy he'd seen in a store window - a tin robot, whose every joint moved stiffly and awkwardly. Why anyone would want something like that was unknown to him.]
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-20 05:11 am (UTC)(link)
[He could feel his body resisting with every step, but he pushed through. He didn't have to know. He couldn't know. And he definitely couldn't know about his affiliation with Gaim. How could he understand? They'd both lived a life apart from others, but he'd been the only one of them to try and live a life other than that. He hid things, yes, but it was better that way. They'd pester him about things otherwise, or they'd feel uncomfortable.]

[... There wasn't really anything in his room. All of his Gaim things were hidden away. Instead he painted the picture of a studious teenager - books everywhere, school notes carefully lined up in folders, and notebooks that held nothing of interaction with other people, only chemical formulas and algebraic equations. He leaned on his door slightly.]


We'll see, won't we -

[He moved to turn the doorknob when he coughed again, barely catching himself against the wall as his body shook. He let out a quiet hiss of pain at the awkward angle and the sudden pressure on his wrist, but bit his tongue to cut it off.]
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-22 02:37 am (UTC)(link)
[He slumped slightly, forcing himself to relax his muscles in his older brother's grip. He wouldn't be able to do anything like this. He couldn't force himself to transform like this either - he'd already taken damage from some Inves and he would only take more if he wasn't healthy while he was fighting.]

[His bed had been made neatly, of course, and he'd swept the floor himself in order to make sure that there was no trace of dirt or anything that could give himself away.]


Only a few days. It's just a cold, I think. Please don't worry about it, nii-san. You have important work to do, right? I know there are a lot of things you have on your schedule, and I'd hate to make you fall behind.

[He reached up and covered his brother's hand on his chest with his own, fingers curling in the fabric of his sleeve like he had done when they were younger.]
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-22 02:59 am (UTC)(link)
[He made a mental note of his brother's reaction, but there was nothing to be done about it now. He could use it later, if he had to. He let his bag slide off of his shoulder and onto the floor gently before turning to sit on his bed. He peeked up at Takatora through his bangs, smiling a little sheepishly.]

I'll be fine, really. But thank you, nii-san.

[He really should have changed before getting on the bed, but he couldn't do that with his brother in the room for multiple reasons. Still, as he tried to shift to get under the covers, some of his bruises stung sharply. He froze for a moment, before gently moving his arm again.]

Please let me know if there's anything I can help with while I'm at home today. I don't want to make you sick, but I do want to be useful.
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-22 03:20 am (UTC)(link)
[Damn. The weight of the bag wouldn't seem right - but he had to hope that Takatora was distracted. He slipped under the covers and adjusted his position so he was more or less comfortable. He'd change later, maybe, but there was no way he was going to make it out today.]

... Yes, I know. You need to take care of yourself, too. The company needs to know that even its leadership can be strong, and you can't be strong if you don't rest.
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-22 03:32 am (UTC)(link)
It's just the two of us here, aside from the staff. We need to look out for each other, right?

[As much as the statement made him want to gag, it was true. They couldn't really rely on anyone else, and he didn't trust any of his brother's staff. He couldn't. He didn't know what they knew about the Armored Riders, and he didn't trust them aside from that. Almost all of them seemed extremely suspicious.]

I'll be all right. Go to work. I'll leave you a message after I rest.
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-22 04:14 am (UTC)(link)
[He nodded a little stiffly, and turned over. He needed to rest, or at least pretend to do so. Further conversation with Takatora was pointless right now. He'd done what he needed to do, both to maintain relations and to open up further opportunities to find out more information.]

I will.

[Later in the day, he did feel somewhat better, though not enough to sneak out to the stage. He waved off one of the maids, explaining where he was going, and soon enough he arrived at Takatora's office and knocked on the door. He'd hidden away his dance uniform and put in another textbook to his bag. He did actually have to study - there was a test next week, after all.]
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-22 04:30 am (UTC)(link)
[Micchy opened the door, a slight smile on his face, which dropped the instant he saw Ryouma. He felt his body tense, but he forced a smile again, inclining his head slightly towards the scientist.]

Sengoku-san.

[Carefully, he looked over at Takatora, and closed the door behind him.]

Nii-san. I thought maybe I would keep you company and study here. And one of the maids said you didn't bring lunch, so I brought it for you in my bag. I wrapped it an extra time to make sure it didn't get any sort of germs on it.
neverunderstood: (i will make you come to me)

[personal profile] neverunderstood 2014-09-22 04:45 am (UTC)(link)
Mitsuzane-kun~

[In the times the two had seen each other over the years Ryouma had been friends with Takatora, they rarely managed to be in the same room together for very long or to exchange words other than basic pleasantries. Ryouma smiled at Mitsuzane when he came in the room, draping himself over the back of the chair. He could tell Mitsuzane's smile was faked, clearly the boy had not taken the time to sharpen his skills as much as Ryouma had in that department.]

Your nii-san told me you weren't feeling well. Are you sure you should be out of bed?

[From behind him, Takatora gave Ryouma a look (which the professor couldn't see, obviously), before he turned his attention to Mitsuzane and motioned for the other to sit down at the small lounge area to the left of his desk. While he wanted to scold Mitsuzane, he didn't want to do so in front of Ryouma. Family matters were not to be shared, no matter how close Ryouma liked to think he was to them.]

Thank you, Mitsuzane.
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-22 04:53 am (UTC)(link)
[He sat down where he was directed, doing his best not to look at Ryouma. He drew the box out of his bag and placed it carefully on the edge of the desk.]

I thought that I could at least spend a little time with you, even if you're busy. And nii-san is the smartest person I know, so if there's something too difficult perhaps you could help me.

[None of it should have been too hard, but he could pretend on the rougher parts.]

Besides, all of the kinds of things you do I'll need to learn how to do at some point, right? And it's getting to near when we have to start studying for entrance exams, too. Learning business practices is important if I'm to get into a good university.
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[personal profile] grapeeater 2014-09-22 05:19 am (UTC)(link)
[He nodded, and pulled his science textbook out of his bag next, taking note of how his words had affected his brother. Perhaps this day wouldn't be a waste after all. He flicked through the book until he arrived at the appropriate chapter, glancing up at Ryouma before turning his attention to the book.]

[He fell silent, absorbed in his textbook. Really, most of this was stuff he knew, but biology was tricky. He always wanted to dispute things his teacher told him, but doing so would be useless. Memorizing the information, even if it was incorrect, took priority. He could always reteach himself the correct information later. Textbooks on science were always outdated by the time they were printed, after all.]
neverunderstood: (there's a lot of guys who can't go on)

[personal profile] neverunderstood 2014-09-22 05:44 am (UTC)(link)
[The room fell silent once the brothers had busied themselves with their work. It was all too obvious to Ryouma how similar the pair could be. At times like these with their heads down and their attention buried in their work, they nearly looked like the same person. Mitsuzane certainly resembled how his brother had looked at that age.

Carefully, Ryouma had slid one hand onto the back of Mitsuzane's chair and leaned over, practically with his head on the other's shoulder as he glanced at the book and attempted to see what the other was working on. Obviously, personal space had never been a concern of his.]

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