[semi-open] If you're trying hard to breathe in the dark

[likethelight]

Who: Allen & others, possibly Argonaut appearances
What: Event-log and other April-related prompts. Plotting prompt stuff!
When: Throughout April
Where: Various

Content Warnings: SAD THINGS, harm and death to NPC children, mutilation, nightmare fuel mindfuckery, high corruption and beasthood.




⛧ 1. if your screams don't make a sound (wonderkind/AKUMA) ★

[ You were probably just minded your own business doing something totally normal — and then you got caught in up in Allen Walker's vortex of bad luck. Sorry. It's just a thing that happens. He doesn't even have his unlucky rabbit's foot on him! He learned better really quickly...!!

Regardless of whether you might have been haggling with a bakery over the price of day-olds, sipping tea in some little shop, or maybe this is your house that he's... about to put a hole through. So sorry — but all of a sudden part of the nearby brickwork explodes as a slender figure is bodily slammed entirely through it.

Yeah. It's that kind of day.

It does not look comfortable. And it does not look like something anyone could have gotten away with without some broken ribs, but as the dust settles the boy that was indeed used as a wrecking ball of sorts starts coughing and trying to sit up. This is just -- ugghhh...

Coming to his senses quickly though, dressed in a black and red jacket underneath what seems to be a impossibly volumous feathered white cloak that seems to be made of moonlight itself he -- blinks. And then whirls around, realizing you're there.

His left eye has bled black throughout the sclera, and the iris has shifted to glowing red rings that shift in and out like a camera lens focusing. There's a dark, corrupted sort of smoke that seems to be pooling around it as well. His expression is wide with alarm, actual fear for a moment at seeing you there, before he stumbles back up to his feet. To square his shoulders, face the hole he just was thrown through—

And rip back, shouting at you over his shoulder as he spreads a single arm out in warning. ]

RUN!

[ Because, over the edge of the rubble... there's a faint sort of here-but-not dark glow. And the world seems to desaturate, fading from color into the black and white. It doesn't feel right. It doesn't feel like you're even looking through your own eyes.

And then you hear a faint sobbing. Distant, but far too close as well. Like it's there in your own skull. Faintly.

And a figure floats into view, cresting the stone. At first, it looks like... an extremely mummified corpse. Bone dry, curled up in a fetal position. It isn't even the thing crawling up and through the hole, but that seems deem and distant right now. It's attached to it.

Because the sobbing stops as soon as you look at it, and the specter stiffens suddenly. Socketless pits for eyes turning right towards you as it realizes you see it —

—and its jaw falls open as it screams. ]



⛧ 2. if your heart just cries too loud all the time (butterflies/beasthood) ★


[ He knew this worked like a game of Russian roulette, he really did. And he doesn't even want to have to destroy any of the butterflies that have flocked to the Trench. It's fine when they stay up and away from people, but when they choose to land near populated areas...

It's not even for misjudging his own ability to purge corruption from his own body! It has limits, he knows that... too much can still be too much if it's all at once. But he has to keep trying. Better him than someone else. Or at least, thinking about that...

...it's easy to forget the actual consequences.

Maybe you were there when he destroyed the butterfly, a boy who suddenly transformed into into a white harbinger wreathed in what looks like condensed moonlight taking the shape of a huge feathered cloak and wielding a great broadsword as long and broad as he is. Maybe you just see the consequences of that — or hear the sudden howling gale.

A whirling gale of feathers, light, and tattered wings made from moonlight themselves that rips upwards from a doubled over figure. A white and gold gigantic masquerade mask floats above as well, twisting to and fro from the feathered cloak like it's unsure how to hold its shape, like it's too angry to remember its shape and cares not for what it was, but is trying to contort itself into something new. But the winged sort of cloak looks almost angelic, glowing white-gold and ethereal. It's beautiful, and somewhat terrible as well. Especially as the figure, with his hands clutching his head like it wants to split in two, would not seem to have a normal left hand but a great white and gold monstrous sort of claw instead. But it too can't seem to hold its form, splitting into glowing feathers along his arm that twist in the air.

It's like a howling monster clinging to the figure even as it also tries to rip away.

And if you're caught staring, an edge of that tattered, feathery wing-cloak rips out towards you and slashes into—and through the brickwork by your head. And that's when you might realize that even though it looks like a cloak and feathers, it cuts as sharply as any sword. ]

Stay— [ It's a boy beneath all that. A teenager, pale and ethereal himself as the feathers around him, with a dark red scar cutting through the left side of his face. And he pants and rasps it out, gritting his teeth audibly and fixing a surprisingly sharp and hard dark eye on you. A window of raw clarity in a maelstrom.

Anguished clarity, his face twisted in tragedy.

But that eye is blood red and black, and the scar surrounding it twists itself restlessly across his face like an angry, living thing. Black smoke bleeds from that left side of his face, mixing in with the white. ]

—back...

More closed prompts below! I'm trying to do more closed/planned things since I have a lot going on this month and a bunch that are sequential, but please feel free to hit me up on my plotting prompt and I'm happy to plan something and do a private prompt for us! He will be generally collecting the hope orbs, mostly for Viktor, getting fucked up with his restored memories/tether and hiding from people later in the month, and trying to purify and reverse the corruption/beasthood of any turned, especially as a result of the butterflies. So, especially if you want to get your character in on realizing even full beasthood can be reversed by exorcists and other sorts of purification abilities and you want them to be able to see the human souls still in them... 👉👈 hit me up.

Comments

[swellter]

[ His heart skips a beat at the sound of his voice. Alive. HE'S ALIVE!

Quickly, pulling back, he gives him room to move. Not overwhelming him. He keeps his worry to himself, but it's in those mismatched eyes glittering still with unshed tears, remembering the sound of gunfire rocking through the air. It's the first time he's ever heard it in real life, not on TV. ]

I don't know. Kizu is on alert. [ Standing behind them, ready to shield them from an attack, while searching for the enemy. ] I haven't seen it since the ice came down.

[ He touches his cheek where those dark stars cover his skin. ] Where those the bullets you warned me about?

[likethelight]

[ It's still alive is what his instincts tell him. The chances that his sword would have stayed aligned on its own in such a way to destroy it with one blow, no matter how much force Shouto had put behind it, were very slim. But he can't see it right now; his eye is only restless and on alert.

Todoroki might try to keep his worry to himself, but Allen's gotten to know him well enough by now to notice his demeanor is slightly off. Nervous-seeming, almost. And he stills slightly when he touches his cheek, not so much because of that but in looking more closely at him now that he can focus. Eyes flickering between both of Shouto's, left and then right, then back again.

Ah. Was he...? ]

...Mn. [ He blinks again for a moment, still caught by that. ] They are.

It's alright though... [ Hesitating for a moment at first, he brings his remaining hand up and covers the other's lightly with it. His Innocence-gloved fingers curling slightly around Shouto's in a faint but reassuring way. The stars are fading quickly too, his skin returning to normal. ] Because the Innocence is part of my body, I can reverse the effects. Like with corruption.

It won't kill me like it would a human.

[swellter]

[ Having grown up alone, kept apart from his siblings, he's very protective of those few people in his life who matter to him. Inadvertently, he 'clings' to them. Sets them apart on a raised pedestal. It's why Touya means so much to him despite his reputation and the number of times he's tried to kill him. He'll never turn his back on his brother, the same way he can't turn his back on his father. Mother. It's similar to what he feels for his friends, if less intense. It's not always healthy, easily exploitable, but it's the only way he knows how to care.

Reassured by his words, his adrenaline starts to fade, no longer anxious. He nods at the explanation, calming under that gloved hand. ]

What about the Akuma? Do you sense it?

[ Kizu for all her attempts can't track the creature, even from the start. It's not from Trench and he's no Priest. He's powerless in this situation, relying on Allen to know if they're out of danger or in the eye of the storm. ]

CW: gore!

[likethelight]

[ Truth be told, he's also calmed by it. Or, reassured might be the better way to put it. Human contact has always been fleeting for him -- gentle contact from someone who genuinely cares even less so, even if that's entirely how Allen operates and gives much more freely himself. It helps breathe deep and center himself again, prepare for what he knows isn't over yet; it never is with a level four, they're too tenacious. So he lets his eyes close for a moment at that, leaning in ever so slightly and giving Shouto's hand a light, grateful squeeze where it's pressed against his cheek. "Do you sense it?"

He opens his eyes again, letting both their hands drop as he starts to get back up to his feet. His attention squarely and expectantly to where the epicenter of Shouto's glacier had dropped. ]

Yes. [ His expression schools, becoming focused again and sobered. Coldly, uneasily calm. It's buried deep, but it's still there.

Sure enough, there's a rumbling from deep underneath. Like a small earthquake of pop-pop-pops, until a small circle of snow and ice explodes upward back where the akuma had been and explosive machinegun fire can be heard. It shot its way out of the encasing ice? Yes. With pure rage.

As it flies up however, the first thing Shouto would see is... not the akuma. No, before it even appears, there's a dark, purplish sort of thing that comes out first. Raising up like a specter in the air, it seems to be a... decayed, oozing mass that's only vaguely humanoid. One wrapped in ethereal, dark black chains that extend back and tie it to the level four. Faces peel off from where biceps should be and slough off like rotten mud, bony fingers rake across what should be a face in what seems to be an existential anguish. Peeling back rotted skin and organs that fall away and reveal bone only to amass back. A decayed human in a perpetual state of rotting and recovering, its own flesh unable to even stay attached anymore.

The soul.

And it's sobbing. Deep, wracking moans that lack definition from not having a proper mouth and a jaw that hands askance, and they aren't heard aloud so much as heard directly in your skull--

Shouto's included. But it seems to go quiet for a moment as soon as he's looked at it, and stares back with deep oozing sockets where its eyes should be.

"...see me?" It's raspy. Burbling. Surprised.

"...Don't... you... still... love me?" It's hopeful. So very tentatively hopeful. It's so pitiable, but won't you still love it? Won't anyone? Even if it's so hideous. It killed, it killed what it loved. Oh, it killed you... it can never forgive itself. But you forgive it, right? That's why you can see it, isn't it? That's why... Isn't that why...

"Can't... you-- ...me?" But it doesn't seem to like that anymore. It doesn't seem to like the both of them looking at it at all, and it drops its hands down and screams at the second boy now staring at it. Existential rot and pus spat into the air.

"DON'T LOOK AT ME!" ]

[swellter]

[ Few things matter to him like human connection. Family. Friends. All those moments he missed with his siblings. The years away from his mother. Friends he was too damaged to make when he was younger. Now that he's forged his own path forward he no longer feels guilty for wanting such things. A shared bowl of noodles with his brother. A birthday celebration with his friends. Holding onto someone you care for. An offer of reassurance before facing what's to come.

They're in the eye of the storm and peace is quickly fading.

He stands with Allen, Kizu at his side. The snow leopard keeps close to him. I hear it. Shouto lets his fingers run through her fur, finding comfort the small connection. So do I... It's coming.

The ground beneath them shakes and the snowbanks erupt with gunfire, spewing white powder in every direction. A rotting corpse emerges from the rubble, wrapped in chains that lead back to the Akuma.

His fingers tighten on Kizu, her presence grounding him. Spared the knowledge of what he's seeing, Shouto looks on with only an inkling of what's happening. Ignorance keeps him from fully realizing the true horror of what stands before him.

It speaks and Kizu moves closer to him, her great bulk pressed against his leg, offering warmth and comfort in the cold. The sight is far more disturbing than the Akuma, stoking pity.

It's a distraction. Kizu warns and Shouto nods, aware. The raspy sound grows louder, grimmer. The shouts mean little to him without understanding its origins, having witnessed a more horrible sight in the alley, he remains unmoved. ]

[likethelight]

[ At first, Allen's the one who actually falters ever so slightly. Just because its cries, how its attention seemed to shift... was it talking to Todoroki as well? It seemed like that, but he has no time to really dwell on the oddity.

The akuma pulls itself out and it's listing heavily. Its belly torn open with a black, oil-like blood oozing from it. A large diagonal cut from where the sword was hammered into it but ultimately cut a deep slash instead of the bisecting pierce they'd meant it to. But the akuma is listing drunkenly from it, and despite its resilience to everything save its own dark matter and Innocence it looks dented and pummeled from Shouto's ice. One leg hangs away from its body, nearly severed entirely.

It screams at them though, in twain with the soul, and fires. Machinegun fire starts to spray wildly in their direction, peppering the ground by their feet, and Allen takes off running, his tattered and bullet-riddled cloak trailing behind him. In a strafing pattern, circling around closer to it as it focuses most of its rage on him. Exorcist. ]

I'll draw its fire! [ His body can neutralize the virus, it's fine. The corrupting additional effect... he'll deal with that later. ]

We just need to try and stop it from being able to move! [ Leverage, he needs to be able to get the leverage needed to rip through it fully.

But first... he needs his sword back. ]

[swellter]

[ Gunfire has them both racing in opposite directions. Shouto uses his ice to garner speed and Kizu runs alongside him to cover him with her great bulk from any stray bullets. Omens are immune to death, a fact that's been pounded into the pair after a year in Trench. She grows in size equal to his height and runs alongside him serving as a shield. ]

I'll focus on the damaged leg!

[ Already circling the monster from afar, Shouto shoots out his ice in a tight line of sharp ice aiming for that injured leg. ]

[likethelight]

[ It keeps one arm on each of them then, even if its aim is wild both from its deteriorating state and its rage. Attention first on one of them, and then the other, it's too frantic to avoid the ice. Becoming briefly stuck in it, it yanks repeatedly on its leg. Harder and harder -- until it spins its body around and rips it off entirely.

And it doesn't look particularly fazed by that. The soul gives a warbled sort of wail, but seems too wholly consumed in its own despair to really continue to react. But, cat. It hates that cat too. It hates the boy and his ice and that cat a lot too, so it focuses on Kizu and Shouto, bringing both barrels around to bear on them.

Shit. Allen curses silently to himself, but takes advantage of that to circle around and come in tightly from behind. Skirting around the edge of the hole it had tunneled its way from, and snapping out one of the ribbons from his cloak to bind tight to the akuma's neck, pulling taught as he uses it to propel himself forward with a leap. Right hand -- his only hand he still has -- stretched out to the side as there's a cracking sound from deep within the ice. ]

Don't forget -- [ The ice behind him cracks and splits open wide, as his sword shoots out from it like thrown spear. Spinning around once it hits the air, and snapping with its hilt into his open hand like a glove finding its fit. ]

-- that I'm the one you want to kill! [ And he brings it down hard straight onto its head, white-gold and blackish-purple energy sparking as it drags across the hard shell of its skull and begins to dig in. Traction--

Before it spins its body around like a puppet and kicks him straight up into the air. Hard. Enough to knock the breath entirely from him and high as he's light enough, especially with his cloak. ]

[swellter]

[ A long-range fighter with a cool head - no pun intended - Shouto knows exactly how to make himself a nuisance. Constant attacks barreling down on his opponents from afar often push their buttons; it annoys them. At first, they attack with precision, but the distance that separates them gives him the advantage. Later, their attacks become wilder, and that's when he barrels down on them until they snap, attacking indiscriminately; easy pickings for an attack from behind.

Focus on me.

He's bait.

Avoids the whole barrage of bullets by zig-zagging in all three dimensions. He may not have Allen's acrobatics skills, but he's got a trained gymnast's muscle mass and flexibility. Quirk and body work together to help him make those tight twists and turns and when a stray bullet catches him off guard, Kizu is there to shield him.

Omens are impossible to kill, and the duo uses that to their advantage. A reflection of her counterpart, Kizu is dauntless, intercepting the bullet with her body without losing a step.

At the same time, Allen goes in for the attack and gets slapped into the air.

Time to make yourself a nuisance.

His movements halt to a sudden stop and he shoots out attack, after attack, after attack. If there was something Endeavor taught him, it was endurance.

Ignore the Priest! ]

[likethelight]

[ He's definitely making himself a nuisance. Even against a non-exorcist, the akuma is on the defensive. Focusing its fire on the incoming waves of ice in order to shoot through them before it reaches it. "Pest! Pest, pest, pest, pest!!!" It keeps shrieking and firing, spiraling out of control.

Allen, meanwhile, twists to find his center of gravity in the air. Twin ribbons shooting out and anchoring to the brickwork of buildings on either side, they snap taut in order to pull him higher up. Like a circus aerialist winding himself higher in some kind of midair dance. Coming to that apex point of zero gravity high above as he spins around. ]

Todoroki! [ Shouted while upside-down briefly. An idea. ]

Try to freeze it in place!

[swellter]

[ Understanding, dawns and a smirk pulls at his mouth; no need to look up and confirm.

Shouto slams his hands on the ground and pours everything he's got into generating ice at a massive scale. Even if it blows up the first wave, another is there to take its place. Instead of a singular mountain this time, the attack comes in the form of a never-ending avalanche. ]

[likethelight]

[ That does it.

It continues to break the ice barreling towards it at first with desperate shots, but is quickly overwhelmed and screams angrily as it's momentarily buried. It could still break its way out if it charges up one of its blasts of dark matter... Allen, however, isn't going to let it.

Fully righting himself in that moment before gravity kicks back in, he sets his boots against his sword's guard. Perching there in a oddly graceful way, his mouth sets with a grim sort of determination as he notes the ice now covering the akuma as well -- that he's still connected to by his first tether. Perfect.

Just have to get more velocity to break through then.

Multiple other ribbons shoot out, like featherlike swords that bury into the ice on the ground and anywhere else they can manage. Anchoring him to earth -- and rocketing him downward as he rides his sword down, blade first. Straight down that tether that's still connected to its neck beneath that avalanche of ice. Shattering through it in a shower of ice fragments and pulverized snow as his cloak plumes outward from the impact like a huge set of wings --

-- and slicing through to the entombed akuma underneath. Splitting it in two fully from stem to stern before it even has time to comprehend what's happening.

He mentally has to thank Lenalee for the idea. And Shouto too. ]

[swellter]

[ Once encased within the ice, Shouto switches tactics. Instead of a frozen tsunami barreling down from above he spreads the crystallized ocean around the Akuma as a layer of frost spreads across his skin.

Almost... there.

In the death zone, his lungs struggle to extract oxygen from the frigid air. Still, he pushes on. Walls start to rise all around the area giving Allen room to maneuver and a place to anchor his ribbons.

Black spots dot his vision and he feels his body start to shut down. Stubbornly, he holds on to the end, letting go only when he sees Allen rocketing down on the broad sword, ripping through the Akuma. Only then, does he let go of his quirk.

Limbs gone numb, he slumps to the ground. Eyes halfway open, he keeps watching the Priest from far. Short, quick breaths force his chest muscles to contract, keeping him conscious. ]

1/2

[likethelight]

[ As Allen breathes out shakily himself at realizing yes, it finally seems truly over... he looks up then. At the rotted and twisted soul that still hovers above. Its chains shatter as the body of the akuma is destroyed though, its corruptive dark matter purified, and a gentle cleansing light washes through it. The putrid flesh washes away like mud, and reveals instead a pale, ghostly form. A woman. Dressed in an elaborately embroidered Victorian dress and bustle, she smiles then down at both of them and presses her hands to her chest.

"Thank you..."

As she begins to drift away and into nothingness, Allen's expression is -- quiet. Not a smile, but something hard to read and very gentle in his expression as he lifts his chin up and watches her. Wistful, almost. Like seeing someone he's so desperately wanted to meet for a long time, and feels so very bittersweet about. ]

Good night... [ Aah... it is over then.

But he looks around then, taking in the winter landscape around them as... Todoroki. Where's Todoro— ]

[ ! ]

2/2

[likethelight]

Todoroki! [ He's scrambling, almost tripping over his own sword for a moment as he rushes across the powdered ice as soon as he's spotted him. Barely stopping to reach for its hilt in order to return it to his shoulder and reform his left arm in another small burst of light, he runs over to the fallen other boy. ]

! [ His body, it's covered in frost... He'd seen it a few times before and wondered about that, if it meant he was overdoing it with his abilities, but never to this extent.

He drops down to his knees and reaches out to touch his shoulder with his right hand. Breathing, not unconscious if only seeming barely, but... ]

Are you alright? [ He sounds slightly panicked. Anxious. Timcanpy has reappeared from where he had been buried in the back of his cowl, hiding in the down of the hood there, and peers forward anxiously as well. ]

[swellter]

[ Semi-conscious, he catches a glimpse of a ghostly figure hovering near the priest. Her mouth moves, but he can't hear what she's saying above the loud thrum of his heart beating out a slow rhythm. Seconds tick by, and the figure disappears from one moment to the next.

It's... over...

His thoughts are sluggish. Even Kizu is quiet, curled over his heart; focused on the beating organ, ready to pounce if it dares to stop. His breathing keeps his muscles moving, providing warmth to his otherwise frozen chest. It's cold but growing warmer, his body acclimating to the warmer temperature of the artic freeze all around them.

He watches Allen stumble through the snow, too exhausted to lift his head, but he follows him with his eyes, lashes half-frozen; he can't even blink in response. The only sound comes from the short, shallow breaths keeping him conscious long enough to clear his fuzzy mind so he can activate his left side. ]

[likethelight]

[ Getting no response does absolutely nothing to reassure him. It's literally the opposite.

Mouth drawn down in conflicted worry, he bows his head for a moment over the other boy. ]

Pushing yourself so much... [ it's soft, no chide in it ] That's so reckless. [ No chide whatsoever, more quietly fond than anything, as he'd have done the same thing himself.

Even if he can't fully understand his powers and what he might need right now, other than rest, staying in the cold can't possibly do him any favors right now. So after a moment of drawing his lips into a thin, worried line his expression softens, eyes hooding thoughtfully. And he bends down, letting his invocation go and his cloak fade as reaches to take one of Shouto's arms and move it around his own neck, dipping his shoulder underneath him.

Timcanpy, dislodged, hovers in the air above them in watchful, silent concern. ]

Even if you'd probably say you're okay like this and I don't need to... [ He shifts, moving the semi-conscious boy's onto his back and centering his weight before he starts to get up to his feet, looping his arms underneath his legs. Carrying him on his back. ]

...the least I can do is this.

[ You're the one who's always offering to carry him, so this time let him be the one to carry you. And, if nothing else, he's warm and maybe that could help. Hey, he's even still feverish from the corruptive blast before. That should actually help, right? And he doesn't mind the cold.

The cold and snow always remind him of Mana anyway. The time when he was 'adopted', even if also the time when Mana died, and it's always held a special place in his heart. The reason why so much of his own Crown Clown reflects it. So this is fine. ]

[swellter]

[ When intense cold sinks its teeth into flesh, a slow and painful death is unavoidable. Brutally cold, his body shuts down forcing him into a catatonic state. No longer generating ice, his temperature stops dropping giving his natural resistance time to regulate his temperature. Built for extreme temperatures, Shouto is in no danger of losing his life, but he makes an all too easy target which is why he tries not to push himself to this limit in battle.

Having seen the aftermath of its birth, they had no choice but to stop it before it reached another populated area. Knowing that Allen could stop it, his choice was simple - support him till he couldn't. He's glad he lasted to the end. Once he realized they'd defeated it, he could let go, allowing his body's natural recourse to take over.

Chest rising from shallow breaths, he has no response to Allen's friendly chide, nor does he protest being maneuvered onto his back like a puppet on strings. The fact that Kizu isn't out snarling at him means he's okay with it. For now, Shouto probably feels like a plank of ice on his back, yet he doesn't shiver. His natural resistance to the cold starts to stabilize his temperature, stealing it away from Allen's warm back.

Ten minutes into their trudge through the snow, Allen will feel his temperature start to rise fairly quickly. Quirk activated, Shouto warms them both even if he still can't move, exhausted from his overexertion. This, at least, he can offer him until he gets warm enough to get his limbs moving again. ]

presuming something! lmk if that works

[likethelight]

[ He doesn't mind that he feels like solid ice on his back. It's the very least he can endure after everything that Shouto put into it. He's the first person who wasn't an exorcist to ever stand up against a level 4, you know? The first to win, and the last time Allen had fought one it had been with Kanda, whose power was also on par with that of a general's. You fought hard, harder than any other non-exorcist has in a fight like this, so he doesn't mind. Although... at first he is a little unsure about where to... go... but decides that Viktor's lab would be best, and lets Timcanpy start to guide them there.

He was expecting them both to feel warmer soon, both from getting away from the frozen tundra they'd left in their wake and from just balancing out, but he's a little surprised when he begins to feel actually comfortable and no longer painfully chilled. ]

? [ Was that because of him? Was he awake? Waking up? ] Todoroki?

[ A pause, trying to crane his head to see, but he doesn't hear a response. It makes him wonder, his eyes were open before, but... He's been so still, and his breathing so even if shallow, that it really feels like he's unconscious. It would make sense, too; passing out from something like that and needing to rest.

He's quiet for another minute, shifting the boy on his back a little to rest a bit more comfortably while he continues to put one foot in front of the other. ]

Ne, Kizu... [ It's quiet, thoughtful. He knows you can hear him. It's okay if you don't respond, and he isn't expecting it at all, but... ]

I'm sorry about before. [ Softly said, keeping his eyes ahead and chin up. ] I think... I can understand how you feel, though. You're like Tim. You just want to protect him, right? [ She'd snarled at him in the catacombs before, too. When he'd moved to try and offer a comforting hand when the void had finally released Shouto, and he wonders if that was because in that fragile-seeming state she'd wanted to protect him from Allen even then.

He smiles faintly, though his eyes are hooded in a heavy sort of contemplation, wondering again about something. "She's me." ]

Especially when people who have been hurt by others... I think it's easy to want to avoid getting further hurt like that. It's natural, even when all you really want might be to be around those people, too. Or anyone. [ Any scrap that could be considered kindness. ]

It becomes natural just to avoid pain then, even if it can be so very lonely.

[ It's simply spoken; absolutely from the heart... and like it's absolutely personal, too. ]

It'll be okay though. I'm glad you worry about him because he needs it. But he's going to be alright, too. With making his own decisions. [ Because he's a strong person. ] And I'm going to keep making my own as well.

[ It's firm. Determined, if very gently so. This isn't him conceding anything. ]

That's how people get stronger. How they get better. Even if they get hurt along the way... our wounds will heal. Even if there's a scar, they heal. [ He breathes out, finding something steady deep inside himself. Centering himself on making that promise. ]

So please don't be afraid when I'll help worry for him too. [ I'll protect him too like he protected me.

Okay? ]

[swellter]

[ With his left side activated, his body begins to warm. Heat rises to a comfortable temperature; a bubble of warmth of his own creation. It last long enough to thaw him out and once he's no longer battling the cold, his body shuts down from exhaustion. Kizu is with him, in his thoughts, before the world whites out and he falls asleep. His quirk deactivates and that bubble of warmth slowly dissipates. Muscles relaxing, his steady breaths - no longer shallow - are the only indication he's okay. Kizu remains curled up inside him, soothed by the steady beat of his heart. It's strong. Like him.

It's some time before Allen breaks the silence. Kizu ignores him at first until he mentions her by name. Skeptical, she remains quiet, mind sharp. There's a reason why her Sleeper hasn't been able to reign her in and it has everything to do with her stubbornness. Right now, she reflects that part of him more than Shouto does, weighed down by indecision when it comes to Deku and now Dabi. Until he can face them without making excuses for them, he won't ever be able to control her.

In her freedom, she makes sure to protect him even from himself. Deku hasn't been a problem, the two friends slowly working their way to the truth that still separates them. Secrets her Sleeper knows that Midoriya still thinks he can keep from him. It hurts him to know he's not trusted, but Shouto is willing to wait for Deku to let him in, trust him. It's the reason why he can't fully divulge his brother's presence to him. Trust begets trust.

Dabi is another matter entirely. Shouto trusts him. She doesn't. He's been the source of many of their arguments. The first time her Sleeper displayed his sheer stubbornness too by vetoing her concerns. In turn, she's turned to stalking the eldest brother, hunting him down the same way he hunts others. A taste of his own medicine. A feat Shouto does not approve of but is unable to stop.

Allen is a different story. A friend who invites danger, matching her Sleepers heroic nature. She still hasn't made up her mind about him. Until recently, she hadn't bothered to remember his name. Now, she knows it. He may be a problem but she can't find fault in his omen. So, due to her respect for the other omen, she deems to give him an answer by means of a telepathic link. Soft and fragile, the link connects but her words, the feeling behind them, is anything but. Confidant, she speaks:

How many times do you think a heart can break before it fractures? ]

[likethelight]

[ The answer, when it comes, is startling. Even Timcanpy isn't so much a voice in his head, a dialogue, but more like some instinctive and intuitive visceral understanding. Soulbonded. It's how they've always been, even when he was a golem in his world before with him. But hearing that quiet but strong sort of voice now, no, that's... it's her. It's definitely her. And he bites his lip for a moment at what she asks though, realizing how terribly loaded that question both is and the importance of an answer where... there is no real answer.

It makes his chest squeeze, but he does know his answer all too well. ]

Too many times... [ He murmurs it so gently, so sadly. ] Past when it feels like even your tears have finally dried up and you can't cry anymore. Past what anyone should have to bear. [ It's soft with regret. ]

But I think... as long as someone still has things that are important to them, they'll still be alright. As long as they still have something to live for and people they care about, they can overcome just about anything. [ Even their own heart being crushed. ]

Humans are resilient like that. No one's heart is entirely beyond saving, and I think the strongest ones are actually the gentlest ones. The ones that feel everything so painfully. [ He breathes out then, letting his eyes close for a moment and relaxing slightly at noticing that Todoroki seems to have warmed fully up by now and is indeed asleep. ]

Even if it takes a really long time...

[ Does he sound like he's talking from experience? Probably. Is his heart fractured? ... he doesn't think so. But it was broken apart over and over and over again so many times that it's beaten and misshapen and as full of scars as it is anything. Broke entirely with his mind for months when he turned Mana into an akuma and had to destroy the only person that had ever been kind to him... catatonic as a child and unable to eat, sleep, move from bed -- do anything other than scream from the pain of his curse mark or clutch his knees in a disassociated terror and wet the bed. And he was never the same after, his master had only coaxed him out of it finally, a season later, by pointing out he should remember the good of Mana.

So he did. And took that persona on entirely as his own in order to keep him alive that way. And he knew he buried his own self entirely to do so, he actually did... and it's why Cross pissed him off when he called him out on still wearing that "mask". But the point was... his heart was shattered. But his love for Mana let him glue it back together, even if badly and in a pretty unhealthy way. His love for the akuma and wanting to save them let him soothe it by finding meaning again. Finally making friends and finding a home, albeit briefly -- it felt like something in him was finally healing and that mask finally started slipping.

And then he lost the only other man to ever care for and raise him. And then he was cast out of his home as an enemy, he was responsible for the deaths of friends because he couldn't understand or control the monsters inside of him, ruined their lives and broke their own hearts in the process -- and then he lost Tim. He lost everything. He was even losing himself and everything he'd ever stood for. His tears finally dried up and something in him just... went snap.

It snapped, and he still doesn't know where it left him other than somewhere fatalistic.

But now he's here, and... feels warm. Because even after all of that, it's possible to still feel warmed by other. To feel happy; to smile. Even when it's sometimes just over the smallest things. To want to pursue onward and continue to live for the things you love and protect them: to still love, period. It's something. It's about always trying to heal, even if just a little at a time.

So yes. He believes in the strength of the human heart above all else.

He has to. ]

[swellter]

[ Deep within her Sleeper, Kizu takes in the world. Every encounter, even if she makes no comment, she absorbs. Allen has given away more than her Sleeper has picked up on and given that he intruded in on that invisible line separating Sleepers from another's omen by addressing her directly, she feels no qualm being just as intrusive. She's not nice. Nor does she dance around a subject. A reflection of her Sleeper, she asks what he would, if he were more aware of the people around him.

Are you alright? ]

[likethelight]

[ Blinking, he automatically tries to crane his head to look back at her -- well, Todoroki -- though obviously it's for naught. Was... he alright?

Timcanpy, having been dipping to the side to watch the entire exchange with a quiet expression, twists around fully at that. Not looking at Allen, but directly to where Kizu remains curled up within Shouto. So very thoughtfully and with an expression that's impassively gentle, though he lacks most things one would consider facial features. ]

I -- [ Wasn't expecting that. It's also an answer he absolutely evades or just outright white-lies through with people, too. But... she's an omen.

He blinks again, almost comically. And maybe, for a moment... realizes he's actually never thought about that. Not since he came here. ]

...I will be. [ He blinks a third time, coming to that realization, but sounds quietly certain about it. ] Why?

[swellter]

[ Todoroki remains in dreamless sleep, unaware of the conversation within earshot. Kizu won't tell him. She hardly ever points out what he's missed unless he's in danger. She does not coddle him, but protecting him is another matter. Not so much his physical form, but the one thing she's powerless to stop.

How many times do you think a heart can break before it fractures? ... Too many times.

But what happens in between?

Rei spent a decade in a mental ward. Touya burnt himself up and became a villain willing to harm his family. Fuyumi and Natusou were forgotten, discarded, the spare children who no one looked after except themselves. And Shouto... he hated, raged, and locked away half of himself in defiance. All while hearing praises of the man who ripped apart their family, stitch by stitch.

She feels more than sees Timcanpy's presence and raises her head to meet his, a calm presence like the sea at night without a storm in sight. Strong, powerful, and forgiving this night of a certain Sleeper.

She accepts the answer at face value and refrains from commenting on the vagueness of it for Timcanpy's sake. However, the question, she does not shy away from. She is blunt, like her Sleeper.

You're broken. ]

[likethelight]

[ ...ouch.

She gets a much different reaction from Timcanpy at that. His head (whole body) dipping down as his mouth ripples open, a rumbling of teeth in silent warning. Despite seeming so jovial and pleasant, so silly and harmless, just a little clown -- he's quite intelligent and knows precisely how fragile Allen is. It's why he exists. Why he always existed; to be his guidepost when he felt lost. To be his rock so he doesn't despair -- and that's the kind of statement that will hammer itself into Allen's head for a long time and fester.

Stubbornness is not his hallmark trait, although Allen can certainly be that. But what Timcanpy is is loyal, almost to a fault. And protective enough to die for Allen again if this body could be destroyed. Just as Allen is likewise loyal to those he cares for and protective to a fault.

And would -- will -- destroy his own body for.

And Allen... for a moment he startles like she actually struck him. It's harder to get a read on an omen, on someone you can't really see or read the expressions of in order to understand where they're coming from, but that sort of blunt answer...

He presses his lips together, harder than he needs to. ]

That's narrow-minded. [ It's likewise blunt. Gentle, but blunt. ]