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 Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 11:51 am
Oh. Two would have been fine if it was just him, but it wasn’t. It was him and the kid he’d made a promise to.
And, he’d promised it was going to be okay.
So he was going to make sure that it was okay.
Just because the second one didn’t seem like it was as much of a threat as the first one didn’t mean it couldn’t still have been a problem. Unlike a person, he wasn’t entirely sure where the youma had their weaknesses, so his best guss was just going to be to keep hitting it in the face or try to break enough of its limbs that it couldn’t move.
Claws and talons and tails didn’t scare him. He had thick skin, and if they managed to hit him, he’d take the hit, he’d scar. He’d have thicker skin for next time. But, he needed to get rid of one of the other as quickly as possible so his attention wasn’t divided.
The youma lunged at him so he charged to meet it. If he could use his momentum to push it into the other youma, at least they’d be in one place. He had magic, but it was unreliable and unpredictable and maybe it could have bought the kid some time to run if he’d used it, but maybe it could have just hit him, too.
Fists were more reliable, and even as he tried to push the youma into each other, he continued to hit it as hard and as fast as he could.
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 12:06 pm
Okay, he knew the man in the regal looking clothes told him to stay put, but the other creature was moving towards him. Although it wasn’t as terrifying as the first, it was still dangerous, and Chad squeaked as he shuffled himself backwards and back into the bush to try and get away from it.
He knew he couldn’t just sit there. He wasn’t helpless! And he had to make sure he saw Elliot again! And he wanted to thank the pretty man for being so nice to him.
Chad rubbed his eyes with his hand so he could see better, and then groped around for anything he could use. He found some rocks, which he threw at the creature, and then finally a long stick he could use to keep at least a small distance between them.
The youma Alastor was dealing with snarled and slashed at him, and whipped its tail to cut gashes into trees and the ground. It did not like being pushed and punched and grabbed, and it made sure to snap its long fangs at Alastor’s offending hands and arms. The Senshi had clearly injured it, but not enough yet, and the youma was determined and desperate for energy and starseeds.
Another snarl cut through the night as one more canine entered the park, but as its rider slid off its back, the wolf quickly trampled the smaller youma into dust. Michael knew Devyn would have asked him if he thought he needed help, but sometimes things went bad before anyone could realize it. And he just wanted to make sure.
He was going to apologize for hovering, later! He didn’t want Devyn to think he didn’t trust him, because he did. He just needed some time to convince himself that he was being nosey and overbearing with his worrying.
Michael waited until he was comfortable with the distance from their house before powering up. He was a fast runner, but Princess was faster. He knew using up her magic might leave him with a disadvantage, but getting there too late would have been worse.
“You good with that one?” Sessrumnir asked as he watched the youma slash through another set of bushes with its tail, and then turned to see why Princess was not just interested in whatever was hiding in the bush near the dusted youma, but wagging her tail, despite the other youma in the vicinity.
Ah, it must have been the kid that Devyn mentioned, since he didn’t immediately see anyone else.
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 12:13 pm
Alastor didn’t have to look to know that snarl, and any building tension immediately lessened. He’d have known it was Princess even if he hadn’t felt a Knight appear on his radar.
“There’s my girl,” Alastor said, more fond than anything. How could he be upset when he got to see Princess? It was a weight off his shoulders to have them there, because even if he was sure he could have handled it on his own it was easier to know that the kid wasn’t going to get hurt while he wrangled them. “I’m fine, unless she’s feeling hungry. Princess, be gentle with him, he’s hurt.”
She was a good girl. Gentle and loving and protective, and she knew where she was needed most. He could handle a youma, he was glad she was checking on the kid.
He just needed a minute. He could do this, he knew he wasn’t weak. The youma managed to tear a part of his shirt–nothing big, he might have a scratch on his arm after all of this. He was careful to avoid the teeth, the claws, the tail.
It was just a youma. He didn’t spend all his time getting stronger, resting, eating, taking care of himself to not be able to handle this.
So, with renewed vigor–out of necessity, not just because he had an audience–he continued his assault on the youma. He wove between its assaults and maintained a close distance so he could strike it repeatedly in every weak point he could find. He knew he could take care of it. He knew it. He just wanted Michael to see, too.
He wasn’t showing off. Much.
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 12:31 pm
Chad wasn’t sure what to expect when something came through the branches of the bush, but it wasn’t a giant wolf dog. He yelped and flinched backwards as giant teeth and mouth opened to--
Slobber over him.
He squeaked in surprise, and then laughed because it tickled, and when it didn’t seem as though the giant dog was going to eat him, he reached up to rub under her chin with both hands.
With Alastor’s continued assaults, the youma didn’t stand a chance. It crumpled under the strikes and eventually burst into dust. Which meant Sessrumir could let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. Good. He could already see that Alastor had been injured, but hopefully it wasn’t too bad.
And he mentioned the kid being injured? Sessrumnir frowned, and while he could hear some giggling from the bush, he powered down before there was more to explain. He already assumed Devyn had to reveal that he was Alastor to the kid. Unless he’d been busy hiding like he was now.
When Sessrumnir powered down, Princess faded away as well, returning to the fang as it disappeared with the rest of Sessrumnir’s outfit.
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 12:50 pm
Alastor gave Michael a brief look, something between gratitude and apology, before he powered down too.
He was quick to roll up his sleeves; he knew that his arm had been a little scraped but his long sleeves hid whatever damage he might have taken. It wasn’t much, it hardly hurt; he was more concerned about getting the shirt dirty.
The scratches were superficial; he twisted his arm to get a quick look, held it up to show Michael just to make sure he didn’t have anything to worry about, and kept his sleeves rolled up to his elbows to make sure they stayed in good condition.
“I’m sorry about that,” he said to the bushes. “You can come out now, it’s safe.”
Michael had powered down; he wouldn’t have if he’d sensed anyone else nearby. Devyn briefly fussed over his appearance to make sure his hair was in the right place and his shirt was smoothed out before he returned to the bush. He held his hand out to Chad to help him up. “Are you okay?”
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 1:22 pm
Michael stayed back. He lifted his arms to cross over his chest and glanced around to make sure there weren’t any other spectators that he hadn’t noticed. There weren’t, but at least it gave him an excuse to mind his own business while Devyn talked to the kid.
The kid who likely now knew about Alastor. Great.
They would just have to make sure he knew how important it was that no one else knew. And hopefully Devyn would never see the kid again, so that was that.
He didn’t need Devyn to apologize for anything, although Michael would be sure to apologize for intruding once they got home. And after he had a chance to make sure the little scrape really was superficial. The wolf was gone, and it seemed as though the monsters were gone as well. The nice man who gave him snacks was back, but he’d definitely seen him turn into some magical version of himself.
Not that anyone would believe him if he tried telling them.
Chad sniffled. Now that he was no longer being tickled with a slobbery tongue, he was back to trying to process what was going on and what he’d seen.
“I’m sorry I didn’t say anything about… those things,” he mumbled guiltily as he reached up the hand of his uninjured arm to take hold of the man’s hand once he crawled out from under the branches. He had the snacks tucked under his arm but they were still in their unopened wrappers and kind of squished now.
“I thought I imagined the one I saw… I didn’t see the big one,” he explained as he looked around for the friendly wolf, but only saw the grumpy looking man with his arms crossed nearby. He certainly wasn’t there before.
And since the man with the black hair was magical did that mean…..
Chad stared at Michael with wide eyes, and then up at Devyn again, and put an arm over his stomach as it whined again.
“Oh… Um, thank you for protecting me.” Maybe if he tried asking them about their magic, they would just tell him he was making it up in his head. And Chad really didn’t want to feel worse about himself right then.
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 1:34 pm
Devyn looked from the boy to Michael, and there was something almost pleading in his eyes. Surely Michael could have heard the poor boy’s stomach from over there.
“You don’t have to apologize. You were scared. I’m glad you weren’t in these bushes by yourself when they came out.”
He should have pulled out his first aid kit before he powered down, but it was too late now. Too late to pretend like he hadn't powered up in front of the kid, but. Now that the youma were gone, he could get a good look at him, and he was certain Michael knew what he was going to ask.
The kid was hurt. Probably shaken. Hungry. Needed to understand that he couldn’t go around telling anyone about what he’d seen tonight. Maybe they could bribe him. He wasn’t going to drag Michael into this, he knew how important secret identities were. It hadn’t really settled in how dangerous it could have been if this kid had been involved in the Negaverse, but he really figured that the youma probably wouldn’t have been after him if he were.
“I’m sorry you didn’t get to eat your snacks. They’re still yours. How badly did you get hurt?”
The boy was skittish so Devyn used a softer tone, and he didn’t demand that he show him where he’d been hurt because he knew that was just a recipe for more tears. He relaxed his face, tried to smile a little more reassuringly. He didn’t want to make enemies with the kid who could give him and Michael a lot of trouble, but–honestly, he still just wanted to make sure he was okay. He wouldn't have stopped before if he hadn’t already cared.
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 5:53 pm
Michael’s jaw clenched tighter. He saw the look from Devyn, but he didn’t want to see it. He was still trying to determine how to make sure the kid knew not to talk about what he saw. They could gaslight him. Make him think he was crazy and that he didn’t actually see what he thought he saw.
But that seemed cruel, especially with someone who looked so young and frail.
“Why are you out so late?” he asked instead. Maybe a bit harsher than he’d meant to, but he was stressed about Devyn’s identity. Chad flinched when the other man spoke to him, and shrunk down a bit.
He was only out late because it was the only time he’d been able to escape. The only chance he had to see Elliot and apologize. But then that thing attacked him and he had to hide.
And he didn’t want to go home.
He shuffled a step back from the two of them, looking from one to the other and then ducking his head down as he shrugged.
“I’m okay,” he promised, barely above a whisper as he glanced at his arm. It looked like there was a shallow gash across his shoulder, but it looked like most of the blood had stopped. It was now just uncomfortable and drying to his arm.
“Thank you. You’ve been very kind to me. I promise I won’t say anything,” he added, because he knew they were probably still lingering because of what he saw. His eyes felt hot and he felt useless. Maybe if he turned around and went back into the bush, they would leave.
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 6:01 pm
“Thank you,” Devyn said instead. “It’s really important that you don’t tell anyone what you saw. I won’t be able to help people if everyone knows I’m able to fight like that.”
Gaslighting wasn’t on his mind, and maybe he should have let Michael handle the situation. He was the one that knew everything, anyway–he was the one who lived here and understood.
…But, Devyn couldn’t put his heart into scaring some kid into silence. Percy must have been about this age when they’d met. It only made him want to protect him all the more, and he knew he shouldn’t have let his heart bleed for any scared, teary eyed kid, but he couldn’t help himself.
“I’m trying to keep this place safe, but it gets a little harder when the sun goes down. Sometimes weird things come out at night. You must have had a good reason to be out, where were you headed? Go on, you can have your snacks. Do you need some help opening them? You look a little shaky.”
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 6:24 pm
He didn’t want to scare the kid, but it was also late and there were now a lot of new things to worry about. Sure, the kid was young and maybe he wouldn’t tell anyone, but they had no way of knowing. If he got recruited into the Negaverse, or if he was involved with the Negaverse now, they might end up in a lot of danger.
And yet, Michael clenched his jaw tighter and tried to figure out how he wanted to handle this. He wasn’t sure it was for the best to let the kid come over to his house, but he saw the look Devyn gave him. Would he be heartless to not try and patch this kid up before sending him on his way?
Probably. Chad nodded to show that he understood. It must have been difficult to try and keep people safe. Especially if he wasn’t supposed to let people know he was trying to protect them.
He glanced down at the snacks he was holding when they were mentioned again, his stomach protesting once more for the delay.
“Oh, um… yes please. I’m not really good with wrappers,” he mumbled embarrassedly. How many times had he tried opening something only to fail and give up?
“I was… trying to see my friend,” he admitted quietly, not sure if he should let them know about Elliot. But this man was trying to protect people, and he did protect him, so he could be trusted, right?
“Do you, um… just protect people in parks and other places outside? I mean, you don’t do house calls, right?” he asked, but he realized how ridiculous that sounded that he followed it up with a quiet laugh and then ducked his head down again. “Sorry… thank you for keeping an eye on people. I hope they appreciate it as much as I do.”
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 6:39 pm
Devyn reached for the granola bar first, recalling that was the kid’s first pick. He opened it carefully and passed it back over, even as he worked to open the brownie for him, too. “I’d do a house call if I knew which house to visit. If someone was in trouble, I’d do my best to keep them safe. Mostly I’m outside, but that’s just because that’s where I find the most trouble.”
He was careful in the way that he spoke, and patient.
This kid didn’t seem like the type of person he’d have had to threaten to make sure he complied.
“Where does your friend live, do you need someone to walk you there? I’m worried about that cut you’ve got, it looks like you’ve lost a lot of blood. My name’s Devyn,” he said, and if that was a problem later, he’d just change his identity or something, Soleiyu could probably help. It’s not like he had anyone around here that needed to know who he was. If Michael stayed far enough away, the kid probably couldn’t even make out any of his features. “What’s yours?”
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 7:02 pm
Graciously, Chad took the opened granola bar back from Devyn so he could take a bite. It wouldn’t be enough to fill him up, but it was better than nothing. With the extra brownie, he hoped he should be okay for a little while.
“Um…” he hesitated, not because he didn’t want to share his name with Devyn, especially after he was so nice to him, but because, well, it was his name.
“Chad,” he mumbled and shifted anxiously in place. “It’s not a very good name. Devyn is really nice, though.” It definitely seemed to fit Devyn, at least. Chad took a moment to glance over at the other man, and then back up at Devyn.
“Yeah,” Chad agreed about his arm and the blood loss. “I think I’ll be okay,” he mumbled as he glanced at it. The cut was in a weird place on the outside of his arm, so he would probably have trouble making sure it was cleaned, but maybe Elliot would help him in the morning. He already knew it was much too late that night to try and visit him. He didn’t want to wake him up.
“He lives a couple blocks over, but… I don’t know. I think I should go home. I don’t want to,” he added quietly, more to himself than Devyn, but he put on a smile to look up at him again. “I’ve been hurt worse, so this is fine.” It probably wouldn’t be fine, but what was he supposed to do? Michael let out a frustrated sigh -- which had Chad flinching again and scooting another step back. He wasn’t frustrated at Chad, just the whole situation. And he didn’t like the things the kid was saying, either. Who asked for magical strangers to make house calls, or said that he would be fine from a cut that looked pretty bad. He didn’t even seem to mind the pain.
“We have supplies back at the house. And I was making some food. You should come with us to get your arm cleaned up.” Something didn’t sit right with him. The kid wasn’t mentioning wanting to go home, just how he should.
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 7:22 pm
Devyn had picked up on whatever seemed off to Michael. He was watching Chad carefully, trying to read from his expressions what he wasn’t saying with his words. There was plenty to decipher. He was jumpy and afraid–understandable, given the attack. But he was scrawny and starving. He remembered being young and hungry at that age, but he was burning a lot of energy.
Chad was out late, alone. To see a friend. But now he’d decided it was too late. He should go home. He didn’t want to. He asked if Devyn made house calls.
He smiled when he said he’d been hurt worse.
He’d been hurt worse.
“It’s nice to meet you, Chad.” He kept his voice gentle and calm; he’d seen the way he flinched and stepped back when Michael breathed too heavily, so he wasn’t going to take any chances. “We’re very good at getting patched up after a bad scrape. I get hurt all the time. Let’s make sure you’re really okay. If you lose too much blood you can pass out. And if he’s offering food, it’ll be good. He’s an excellent cook, and he feeds me all the time.”
He didn’t introduce Michael by name because Michael didn’t offer it, and he suspected he was still making a great effort to be careful. “You’ll be safe. No one’s going to make you do anything you don’t want to do.”
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 7:52 pm
Chad’s eyes darted from Devyn to the other man -- wolf? But then returned to Devyn when he confirmed that the offer of food was genuine and that it would be good. He paused from nibbling on the granola bar as his stomach wanted to answer for him.
“If… if it’s not too much trouble,” he mumbled, because once again… what was the worst that could happen? Certainly going with this nice man who had protected him would be better than going home.
“Thank you. I… don’t have anything to repay you with,” he confessed, because once again he was being offered kindness with nothing to give in return. He scrubbed at his eyes again and grimaced at the itchy feel of dried tears and blood on his face. He was probably going to have to go to school wearing that outfit, and everyone was going to see what a mess he was. He was just grateful that he had some clothes saved there, thanks to Elliot’s suggestion. “Don’t worry about it,” Michael said, his voice softer now. Aware that Chad was more jumpy than he’d originally realized. “You’re keeping Devyn’s secret. That’s enough.” It seemed as though that was a decent exchange, because Chad nodded, and Michael turned to lead the way home.
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