1626/A Pretty Happy Place

A Pretty Happy Place
Date of Scene:	17 June 2016
Location:	Fujisaki Estate
Synopsis:	After several days of exhausting work Kukai finally spends some time admitting to Nagihiko what's happened with Sachiko and Lacrima.
Cast of Characters:	Nadeshiko Fujisaki, Kukai Souma

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Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
Something's been...bothering Kukai. Subtle clues to others, it's all been enough for Nagihiko to tilt his head more than once in confusion.

So, instead of waiting inside for Kukai to come over, Nagihiko's leaning against the gate outside his family home.

And he's trying to make himself not be nervous, because it's bee awhile since their not!Date, but again, something's bothering Kukai.

Nagihiko sighs and thunks his head back against the wall, lost in thought and being, well, a spacey teenager.

Kukai Souma has posed:
Kukai has not been doing well lately. Recent events involving little girls and energy vampires have made him feel much more depressed than usual. He didn't want to tell Nagihiko - or anybody, really - but when Nagihiko called and asked him to come over since he hadn't been talking to him or anyone else for a while, he didn't really have a good reason to say no.

So here he was, walking along the streets towards Nagi's family home, heading to see the purple-haired boy, even if he didn't know what to say to him. Being angry and sad at the same time wasn't a good way to be.

Daichi is riding in Kukai's pocket, looking up at him, trying to figure out what he could do to help. Looking down the street, he makes a little noise and flits up and out towards Nagi and Temari, hugging them both tightly and looking worried. "Hey..."

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
Nagihiko is brought out of his Spacey Teenager trance by the hard hug of a worried Daichi.

Concerned, Nagihiko cuddles him close as Temari smooths his hair.

He tilts and ducks his head, trying to catch Kukai's eye.

After a moment, he gives a soft sigh and grabs Kukai by the hand. "Come on."

He doesn't lead Kukai toward the door. He leads him toward a tall tree that he often uses to climb onto the roof.

Kukai Souma has posed:
Daichi hugs two of them, then cuddles in with Temari and looks at Kukai, who seems to not want to look up at Nagihiko. Finally his hand was grabbed and he was pulled along, making a little noise. "Hey, what... where..." He looks up at the tree for a moment. "What are we doing?"

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
He looks up at the tree. Some pink blossoms are still scattered among the limbs, though most of them blanket the roof and ground. "Climbing a tree."

He starts up and looks back down when he's perched on the lowest branch. "You do know how to climb a tree, yes?"

That is probably a purposeful goad, trying to get the competitive gleam to come out even a little.

Kukai Souma has posed:
Kukai looks up at Nagihiko, and then arches an eyebrow. "I can climb a tree, yeah. You just watch." He hops up and begins climbing the tree, following Nagihiko up into it, feeling the competitive urge rising.

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
Nagihiko grins down at Kukai, and he does indeed watch between steps.

Once on the roof, he stands with hands on his hips. "Not bad. One day, you may even reach the top before me. Maybe."

He doesn't go anywhere, but instead sits down on the tiles. The last person he brought here was Amu, back when things were confusing. Okay, more confusing.

"Welcome to my happy place."

Kukai Souma has posed:
Kukai grumbles up at Nagihiko, following him - he's a very good climber, at least, and fairly agile. "Depends on whether you get more leads on me or not."

He sounds sour and grumpy, and when Nagihiko sits down he sits as well near him, pulling his legs in underneath him. ".... This is your happy place? OK..." He looks around. "What makes it happy?" He sighs and leans back on the tiles. "And why'd you bring me up here?"

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
His jaw tenses as he rolls onto his side. "You may be in a shit mood, but I've only brought one other person here before."

Yeah, maybe now isn't the time to get defensive.

He sighs and flops back onto the roof, his back sending up a puff of fallen blossoms. "Sorry. I brought you here because you need a happy place." He turns so he can look at Kukai, purple hair blending with pink blossom. "It's happy because...it's quiet. The only sound you hear is the breeze through the trees."

He clears his throat and shifts a bit, turning his attention back to the branches overhead. "I spent a lot of time here when...a few months ago."

Kukai Souma has posed:
Kukai hmphs and then sighs, leaning back and looking at Nagihiko. ".... Yeah, I'm in a shitty mood." He doesn't say it aggressively or defensively, just... saying it. "I guess. I mean." He rubs his head. "I dunno what sort of mood I'm in."

He looks up at the sky, then looks over at Nagihiko. "...Maybe a plane or something overhead, and the wind, and maybe birds..." He hmms. "It's nice."

His hands work for a second on his shirt, then he sighs. "Back when you and Tadase and Amu were arguing, and we were all up north, and basically everything went to hell? Yeah. I couldn't do it. Stuck up here with just my thoughts? I'd be miserable."

He frowns. "... Not like I'm not miserable right this second anyway. Something happened the other day that... I'm not sure how I feel about it."

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
He had also come up here during the bout of misunderstanding, where a text message sent him on a short crisis of identity.

He's not exactly sure what he can say. Sometimes words come across as empty even when they aren't intended to be.

So instead of talking, he rolls onto his side, an arm under his head as large eyes focus on Kukai.

Kukai Souma has posed:
After a few minutes Kukai shifts, reaching for Nagihiko, trying to pull him into his arms, not wanting to say anything just yet, just to have someone warm and caring cuddled into him.

It takes a few minutes of this before he can finally start talking. "...So there's this little girl, Sachiko... She's like 7, 8 maybe. Have I told you about her at all?"

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
Of course, Nagihiko allows himself to be pulled against Kukai. He settles against the older boy.

He hums in thought. "Yes. You've been looking for you. Have you found her, then? Or got a clue where she is?"

Kukai Souma has posed:
Kukai wraps both arms around Nagi and strokes his back, playing with the ends of that long purple hair. "...Yeah. A couple days ago I found her. See, back a few days before I got blown up, there was some things going on with her that were.. weird."

Kukai sighs. "She'd found a necklace that was a noose, someone was promising to show her how to bring her sister back from the dead, Runealy reported someone like her showing up at her house at some point just before they were attacked by somebody - just strange things. Then I got blown up."

He sighs. "I was worried about her a lot when I woke up, but it took a week or two for me to catch up with her, which is funny, because she's been in the same place pretty much all the time. She finally went out the other day and visited a park. I was keeping an eye on her, seeing if anything weird happened."

He leans back. "Aaand... somebody attacked her. Lacrima. Energy vampire girl I've been dealing with from time to time. She seems like she's finally given in to her evil. She and Sachiko had talked before Lacrima went full retard, and she seemed to have some sort of addiction to the little girl's energy. So this time she used her like a weapon against me, knowing I was trying to keep an eye on her, and just.. drained her and drained her and drained her... I managed to get her away from Lacrima, but she was unconscious. Blue. Wasn't breathing for a minute, but even when she started again she wouldn't wake up. Her adoptive father has her in the coma ward at one of the local hospitals now."

He rubs his face. "I don't know. Part of me says 'It's ok, she'll be taken care of, and not get into trouble, and maybe dream about her sister.' Part of me says 'This wasn't your fault, it's Lacrima, and the next time you see her, you kill her.' Another part says 'you shouldn't be getting so close to people like that, they'll only get hurt, and eventually all of these evil people are going to team up and end you and everyone you love.' So... I've not been in the best moods."

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
His eyebrows draw sharply together as the story unfolds. The more and more he hears, the more and more he knows he's gonna hate the outcome.

"Maybe they will, one day. But that doesn't mean we let that day be now."

He leans up just enough so he can look Kukai in the eyes. "The other parts of you are right. But I know that won't make you feel less crappy."

Kukai Souma has posed:
Kukai sighs and then looks at Nagihiko, then smiles softly. "Yeah. I'll try to let that day not be ever. And if it does come up, I'll try to not let anybody get hurt. Or just me, if I can help it."

He looks into those big, soft eyes, then reaches up, caressing Nagihiko's hair. "... I know. I mean, I guess. It still feels like I did something awful." He snuggles into Nagi gently.

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
His eyebrows raise but he tries to keep a touch of good humor in his expression. "Oh, just you will get hurt, all right, if I find out you're doing that." A poke to the side!

Still, he leans against Kukai's hand, and then presses their foreheads together. "You didn't. You kept looking for her when not many were."

Kukai Souma has posed:
Kukai sighs, then suddenly clutches Nagihiko tightly to himself, eyes closing as he leans against him. "I feel really tired. This whole couple past days have been exhausting. I just feel awful. This.." He looks up at the trees and things, then smiles. "This is a pretty happy place."

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
His hands soothe over Kukai's jaw, neck, shoulders, trying to comfort him. He tries to grin a little at that last. "I told you."

And then he's just looking in Kukai's eyes, wondering if he could find things out. "When was the last time you got a full night's rest?"

Kukai Souma has posed:
Kukai's shoulders feel stiff and tight, like he's been hunching over when nobody's looking. He blushes at the feel of those hands playing over his skin. It is a little embarrassing how much he's been stressed lately, and how much it relaxes him for Nagi to rub him. "Maybe... a few days ago? It's been... kinda exhausting."

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
Nagihiko sighs, working his fingers now along stubborn knots. "I have some left over soup, you can have some of that. Then I can tuck you in all cozy like. Sit on you if you try to get up."

Kukai Souma has posed:
Kukai thinks about this for a long minute. "The soup sounds awesome, yes, please. Thank you. And in your room, I hope?" He blushes at the idea of Nagihiko sitting on his chest when he tries to wiggle. "As long as Aunty doesn't come in. And you promise to massage my back some more when I get laid down."

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
Nagihiko blushes, as well, but he grins as he nods. "My room it is. And don't worry, we should be safe." He fusses a moment with Kukai's bangs, using a rare opportunity where they're not surrounded by classmates or other people to just...touch.

"Mmm. We have some of the smelly stuff that helps with aching muscles, too."

Kukai Souma has posed:
Kukai nuzzles in, then sits up, or tries to. "Mmm." He brushes some of the fallen petals off his clothes, then nuzzles into Nagihiko's hands. "Let's go, then." He smiles faintly. "It... feels good when you're close."

Nadeshiko Fujisaki has posed:
His cheeks warm a bit. "Same with you."

He stands and stretches before shaking most of the blossoms out of his hair. He doesn't dislodge the rest, because trailing some of the outdoors to the indoors is part of the appeal.

He starts to climb down the tree. "And if you want, you can be the little spoon."

Kukai Souma has posed:
Kukai follows Nagihiko into the house, looking over those blossoms and such stuck in the long purple hair. The last thing one would hear before they enter the house is a mildly outraged squawk from Kukai at that final comment.