“….Rigel?” Kohaku said more clearly, rubbing her eyes with her black hands. “Where… where are you?” Her ears folded back as a loud, uncomfortable growling engulfed her stomach. Ewww…. She turned around to see him burned and scarred. She yelped, backing away. “Don’t tell me I did that to you!!”
“I- I landed on the-“ Another whimper of pain, “On the coals,” He got out, tears dripping down his face at the pain. The pain that wouldn’t stop, the pain that threatened to break him with every passing moment. Please make it stop, just make it stop-
(Pain pain pain pain pain :/ sighs)
Kohaku sighed. “Well, you’re still alive, right? I mean…” Gosh, how did that even happnen? What did he do???
Daichi helped her to her feet, and offered— once again— to heal Rigel. “You truthfully don’t deserve to suffer.”
(Sorry :/ trying to emphasize it cause Daichi took so long to notice how much pain Rigel is in…)
“M-Make it stop,” Rigel bit out, his body shaking with the memories that the severe burns brought. The memories of that single match in a dark room, the pile of tinder and wood next to Rigel, of Peter’s sadistic smile as he lit a fire on Rigel.
(Oof…)
Daichi poured out his essence, cloaking Rigel in an earthly green light.
Kohaku watched with a furrowed brow, afraid. Did I really burn him that badly…? I-I don’t know what’s going on!!! “Daichi….? What happened while I was…. asleep?” She was truly unsure.
Rigel’s sobs quieted as the burn faded into nothing. He wasn’t in the dark room anymore, he wasn’t on fire. “You- You were over heating and I tripped and landed on the coals when I was going to get water,” Rigel lied -for Kohaku’s conscious’ sake- as he slowly sat up, still shaking though.
“All that matters now is that no one’s on fire anymore and everyone’s alright,” Naoki generalized. “Now, if you’d like, Junichi is finishing cooking the fish in the dining hall. I can assume you’re all very hungry…”
Rigel stayed silent as he recollected every broken piece of himself, staring at the floor with unfocused eyes. Not there, I’m not there anymore, I’m safe, I’m safe from Peter- “D-Do you have any metal?” He asked quietly, just needing that stability of defense.
Naoki was caught a bit off-guard, not expecting such a question. “Um… I’m sure we have some that you can use— come.” He beckoned everyone to follow, and they ended up in the dining room.
Everyone sat down, but Naoki led Rigel into the kitchen. “I’m sure I can find some stuff somewhere…. what exactly are you looking for?”
“Just-“ Rigel’s powers felt the metal utensils, already grabbing onto the metal and pulling it out of the drawer and into his hand. It was two forks, two spoons, and one knife which he molded together to make a longer dagger that floated next to his waist. It was like an anchor, a protection. Something that assured him that he was no longer in that dark room.
Naoki jumped at its sudden movement. “I see… well, I guess loosing a couple utensils couldn’t hurt.” This young human…. has powers I’ve never seen in my life! “I suppose you wouldn’t mind joining us for a small meal, would you? I bet you’re starving otherwise.”
“I guess that would be nice,” Rigel nodded, “Thank you.” He felt whole again with the metal at his side, his powers being able to work freely. A safety that could keep his mind steady.
Naoki nodded, ushering him back into the dining room. Most of them were already finished, the plates in front of them licked clean.
However, Kohaku and Junichi were taking their time, and another plate of untouched salmon was there waiting for Rigel.
Rigel sat down without a word, taking a small bite that melted in his mouth. He ate a bit more, and before he knew it he was practically inhaling the meat of the fish. He hadn’t known how hungry he was, and it had been so long since he’d eaten last.
Kohaku glanced up. “I figured you were hungry after I dropped your soup a few days ago…” She couldn’t believe how much he was eating and that fast. …I really should be more careful about my body heat. I’m sure if Youichi wasn’t there, he’d be burnt to a mere human crisp!
Despite her thoughts, she continued to eat.
“Uh, yeah,” Rigel agreed, his mouth full of food. He quickly swallowed it, his face gaining a red tint to it from embarrassment. I probably look like a hog, eating all this food…
“I couldn’t agree more…” Kohaku continued to eat, licking the plate as necessary to pick up all the salmon shreads left over. She didn’t care— foolish-looking or not, she wanted to make sure she got the most out of the food as she could get.
Rigel’s mouth quirked upwards, a little, and then he found himself using his fingers to pick up the last little bits of his salmon and popping it into his mouth. And then he found himself smiling a genuine smile, something that was so rare to him lately.
Kohaku glanced up. She’d never, ever seen Rigel smile before, and it seemed so real to her, she couldn’t help but smile too. “I’m glad you’re enjoying your food,” She joked.
“I’ve got good company,” Rigel replied with a small laugh. He picked his plate clean and stretched, feeling a lot more safe with the metal ready at his side.
“Aren’t we all in good company here?” Naoki overheard what Rigel said. “With human and Doku Ningen living in…. somewhat harmony… I’ll have you know something like this hasn’t happened in ages, as Mamoru probably knows…”
To b truthful, I was surprised Rigel didn’t break out into a fury, killing left and right when I first got him out of the city… Mamoru thought, yet agreed with him. “Remember, as long as you don’t betray us, we have your back.”
“Why would I betray you? If anything, I’d want to get rid of my powers.” Even if they were an anchor for him, if it got Peter off his trail to not have powers… Rigel forced himself not to get his hopes up.
“Well, this kind of interaction was never allowed for ages,” Mamoru’s eyes narrowed.
Kohaku was in a slightly awkward position regarding the issue. “But Rigel’s proven many times that he’d never do such a thing…. we’d never hurt him, because he never threatened us,” She turned to him. “…Right?”
“Of course, you all are my friends, why would I threaten you? I trust you.” The words ‘friends’ and ‘trust’ felt foreign on his tongue, enough to surprise him that it was that easy to say about them. But it was true, he did trust them a lot, especially after they protected him from Peter.
Kohaku smiled. “Well, we trust you too.” At least we can trust that he won’t harm us or spread rumor… since he’s getting away from something just as much as we are…
Naoki brought out some more cooked salmon, setting it in front of everyone on clean plates. “As long as you’re under this roof, you’re part of our family,” He set the last one in Rigel’s place. “And lucky for us, Mamoru, Youichi and Junichi caught us plenty to eat….”
“I— Thank you,” Rigel smiled again, his cheeks gained a small red tint. He wasn’t used to being this cared for. He started gobbling up the delicious fish again, savoring the flavor.
Naoki welcomed him. “Feel free to eat as much as you want….”
Kohaku glanced up from her salmon and noticed he was a bit red. To be truthful, why can’t we all live in a world where humans and Doku Ningen can live in harmony?… Those days were much better than they are now… She continued to eat, teasing shreds of salmon out of her teeth with her tongue.
(Idk what to do now…)
(Oh lol finish the salmon up and… well, have something happen.)
Rigel picked his plate clean, happily full. He didn’t usually have breakfasts like this, typically it was stale cereal. And he typically didn’t have anyone to eat with.
