![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Entry tags:
Anything Else (Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward)
Title: Anything Else
Author: Amm (ammchan)
Fandom: Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward: Nine people play a game on the moon. Some can mentally travel through time, but how many of them will actually make it out alive? That depends…
Word Count: 3,740
Taunt: My fandom might just Betray you.
When Dio had left, only a cold silence remained. It made it hard for Tenmyouji to ignore the noisy chains rattling beside him, particularly when those chains were attached to handcuffs—and particularly when he could feel those handcuffs move with every metallic jingle. Each one was a sharp reminder that he, too, should've been struggling, tugging mindlessly at the chains—trying anything he could think of to get free. In fact, he'd done just that in the beginning, because he was determined not to give up. Not to let someone like Dio win. There was red bruising around his bound wrist to prove it, too, but time passed, and unfortunately, he had long since lost that energy.
Tenmyouji even closed his eyes, allowing an image of little Quark to haunt him. He must have been scared and alone, wherever he was, and everything about Tenmyouji's own body was suddenly protesting, screaming that he was entirely too old for this.
Briefly, he wondered how much of the twenty-five minutes he'd so graciously been given were left. He didn't bother to check it, though. A robotic voice would remind them soon enough, after all, and he'd rather spend his time in other ways. Failure to find Quark aside, there was still something important he had to do, and it didn't involve running around like an idiot through colorful doors and solving nonsense puzzles.
He drew a deep breath before opening his eyes again, turning to his unfortunate and unwilling companion. 'Shared destiny' indeed.
“...Clover.”
His voice was a bit hoarse, and maybe even easy to ignore, given the situation—especially for someone as determined as Clover. She didn't even give him a response at first, so it was almost as if she didn't hear him. Tenmyouji was greeted instead with only more metallic rattling and grunting; but he didn't let that stop him from speaking again, more authoritatively this time.
She would listen.
“Clover.”
“What?” she finally replied, with a turn of her head.
She sounded almost annoyed; and had her hands been free, he could almost imagine her with her hand on her hips, giving him the most demanding look she could muster. But surprisingly, he remained calm.
“I don't think it's going to work.”
...Suddenly, with those words, everything came to a halt.
It was silent again, as both of Clover's hands go limp, and he could see a pout appear on her face, as if he'd just told her to go to her room or given her a punishment. The expression was admittedly hard for him to look at, and now he felt like he'd been punched in the gut on top of all the other bitter feelings he currently had. Just what he needed; and his only comfort was knowing that none of this animosity was directed toward him. Even that was meager, insufficient.
He opened his mouth to say something. Anything to break the silence, maybe something about how there isn't a puzzle to be solved here. Something about how a puzzle can't save them this time.
But Clover saved him the trouble.
“I know,” she said meekly. Her voice was an odd mix of anger, sadness, and disappointment. They were feelings Tenmyouji knew all too well. She continued on: “So...what do you wanna do instead?”
...He couldn't bring herself to answer, and instead allowed his eyes to close again, as his head slowly shook. Because it wasn't about what they want to do anymore; it was about what they could do, and by now, Clover had to have realized that there wasn't anything left.
“Rather not scream if that's okay with you,” he spat out finally, in a tired tone. He suspected that he wouldn't be able to such a thing, even if he wanted to. “That's pretty much exactly what he wants.”
Dio.
Tenmyouji's fist clenched involuntarily when he thought about that smug face of his; and Clover's reaction, upon being reminded, wasn't much better. Her lack of words told him all that he needed to know.
“Yeah...”
She agreed, however reluctantly, though her voice trailed off in a way that left him unsatisfied. A part of both of them knew that if they did scream, the chances of someone finding them would be that much higher...but even with that in mind, it seemed pointless to do so. They didn't need Dio's self-congratulatory flaunting to know how thick the doors and walls were in this place, and they knew how unlikely it was that they'd be heard. If someone was going to come into the infirmary, they'd come, even without their screams.
...So it all came down to luck.
Stupid luck, and waiting.
“...Look, there's something I have to tell you,” Tenmyouji suddenly spoke again, after he'd had enough of the silence. Although his tone was a tired one, it was enough that Clover's face seemed to light up with hope.
At least, for a brief moment.
“Yeah?” She prodded him to continue, anyway, despite knowing what the answer would probably be. “Is it gonna help us get free?”
As expected, his answer came very fast.
“No.”
They both donned a defeated look: Clover because of the answer itself, and Tenmyouji because he had to be the one to give it, which was hardly pleasant. He could feel a bit of guilt swelling up inside of him, getting her hopes up like that, but nevertheless, he knew she would want to hear what he had to say anyway. So he waited... he waited gently, until he was prompted, like he knew he would be. Because he knows her.
“Then what is it?”
Tenmyouji swallowed—and the closer he came to saying it, the more he realized this was something he should have mentioned earlier, like he wanted. Like he intended. It would probably be best if he didn't waste time dwelling on it now, however. He took a deep breath; and although it was something that he'd thought about on and off since this twisted Nonary Game started, it was only in that moment that he truly considered how best to phrase this. Words inevitably get caught in his throat, but eventually, he finds a place to begin.
“Clover, it's...me.”
He let that sink in for a moment, but her initial reaction seemed to dictate that she didn't understand. And...why would she? It'd been nearly half a century, after all, even if she didn't realize it.
“Me who?” she asked. The innocence and curiosity in her voice was almost admirable. Enough to make him crack a smile, just barely.
“...It's Junpei.”
The name sounded almost foreign. It felt like he hadn't gone by that name in a long time, and likewise, it'd been quite a while since Clover had heard it. She remembered well how Seven had told her they weren't able to find Junpei, or Akane for that matter, and she'd believed the big oaf; so needless to say, these sudden words came as a shock. Not that you'd know that, seeing her reaction. It certainly took her some time to process it, as she stared intently at him, eyes wide—but once it hit her, she gasps in surprise.
“What?” she stammered, trying very not to resort to incoherent babble. And because this was Clover, she had to be suspicious of him now. It was practically a part of her job description, so she retorted with that same demanding look he'd come to be familiar with before finally accusing him: “Y- You're lying.”
“I'm not,” Tenmyouji replied calmly; because he only saw that coming a mile away.
“You have to be.” She sounded so sure of herself, though once the words have actually left her lips, she found herself wanting to take them back. She doesn't know why. “Junpei... Junpei wasn't all that much older than me. There's no way he'd be—”
“This old?”
Hmpth. If only Tenmyouji could have folded his arms, he would have. But he'd have to settle for just scoffing at her for now. It really would figure that his age would be the first thing she would bring up—but then again, it would be the biggest discrepancy, as far as she knew.
“Well...yeah.”
“Yeah...” Tenmyouji actually agreed with her on this one, although he looked pretty sheepish doing so. “There's an explanation for that.”
Like what? That was the most likely question he'd be answering next, and that was what he expected; but Clover had always been a girl full of surprises.
“Prove it.”
It was enough to render him speechless, because admittedly, he gave more thought to how he would tell her, rather than how he would prove that it was true. Luckily, it couldn't be all that hard. They had been through a lot together, and it was just a matter of remembering. Remembering, something important—something important, like a memory they both shared. It'd been so long ago, but there was definitely a connection between them, and that hadn't changed. Not in fifty years.
He was sure of it.
“Proof, huh...?” he repeated the phrase to buy himself some time. Yes, proof: Clover urged him to continue, knowing that even if he wanted to, there was no getting out of it now. He was the one who opened the door, and it was his responsibility to see it through. So she refused to let up on him—and finally, after some consideration, he smiles cryptically, as if he couldn't believe he'd forgotten it. “Still got that bookmark I gave you?”
Bookmark—
Bookmark, she thought, flabbergasted. What is he talking about? No, h- he couldn't mean—
It was obvious the one word was evoking a lot of memories within her. Her eyes widened again in shock, and all of a sudden, she was stunned with emotions she didn't quite know how to deal with. She could hear her heart pounding in her chest in a way she never wanted it to, as if it was telling her: He's telling the truth. Awkwardness seemed to fill the air upon that realization, and she was overwhelmed, hardly knowing what to say to him now. In a word, she was breathless. Choked. It was almost annoying, but it had definitely worked, and it was a reaction that was actually refreshing for Tenmyouji to see. He hadn't seen this side of her in a long time.
He could remember clear as day how quick she was to hug him. He didn't even know how to react at the time; but of course, he could tell how relieved she'd been about Snake being alive, and he knew that was enough. Most of all, though, he remembered how glad he'd been that he decided to give her that bookmark. The one with the four-leaf clover on it, that suited her so well—the one that gave her something to hold onto, until the very end.
Hope, faith, luck, and love...
It wasn't hard for him to see that she remembered it just as well, over the years. She never let go.
“I— I, um...”
Really? It was the only word that she can come with, over and over in her mind. Really, I missed something like that? Clover tried desperately to grasp for any other words she could say that would be more appropriate than that. But when she draws a blank, Tenmyouji—no, Junpei—happily fills that void, however teasingly.
“Not exactly an answer to my question.”
“Old fart.” Clover doesn't miss a beat. His teasing demeanor was all the opening she needed, and even though she almost felt like crying, she refused. If this was going to be the last thing either of them ever remembered, crying wasn't even an option. She forced a smile instead, no matter how impossible it seemed to be. “I... I never told anyone about that.”
I guess I never will—
Not even Alice...? It immediately occurred to Tenmyouji to ask, since he found that hard to believe. He wanted to know, actually, but the regret and grief he was struck with, remembering her dead body, kept him quiet. He'd never had a chance to tell her about who he was, and now he never would either. What a bad taste in his mouth that would've left, and for a long time to come, too—though luckily, he wouldn't have to worry about that for very much longer.
He gave the handcuffs another tired tug out of obligation, before finally replying, feigning amusement at her little insult.
“So you believe me?”
Giving up quickly, he turned to Clover, who wasn't bothering anymore with escape anymore. She was thinking about how to respond to him instead, and something inside told her these were the best words she could possibly say.
“I... trust you.”
She nodded, looking almost apologetic, as if it was too little, too late—but to Tenmyouji, it was worth hearing. He looked relieved.
“...Thank you.” It was only a murmur, but it was enough. For both him, and for her. “It's really too bad. We would've had a lot to catch up on.”
“We still do,” Clover corrected him. Because it was true, and whatever time they had left didn't change that. Whether it was five minutes or five hundred... there was so much she didn't know about him now, and it wasn't fair. Not to mention all the things he didn't know about her, that she wouldn't get to tell him about. Not fair at all. No...
“I'm sorry.”
Whatever she might have said about that, of course, was squarely tossed out the window with those words. She could only stare at him expectantly, because clearly he wasn't going to stop at just that. There was no way she was going to let him.
“None of this is your—”
“It was my responsibility to look after Quark.” He didn't let her finish, mainly because he wasn't finished—and he wore a solemn expression on his face while he continued. “No one else should've been involved. Least of all you. I... I failed him.”
I failed him when I let him out of my sight. It wasn't the first time, and it likely wouldn't have been the last, but he wouldn't have the chance to make any of those mistakes again. His guilt ran even deeper than that, too, because Quark didn't belong in the Nonary Game to begin with, and he knew that. Neither of them should have come to Rhizome 9; and he couldn't even comfort himself with the fact that Quark was still alive anymore. Even if he was... there was no way he'd be able to make it through the Chromatic doors without them. Their bracelets...
He'd be penalized the same way. Tch—
“Are you saying... it was because we were all looking for Quark that this happened?” Clover's voice broke him out of his thoughts, as well as the handcuffs rattling again. When she put it that way, it sounded a bit ridiculous... which, he imagined, was exactly what he was going for.
“I don't know.”
“Because you're wrong,” she continued, in a huff. I wasn't even looking for Quark— “I... I didn't even help you that much, in the end. I should've...”
I should've helped more.
She could hardly admit that she was so obsessed with getting revenge for Alice that she wasn't even thinking about Quark. All she could think about was her, and about Luna. About getting her to confess, once she'd finally figured it all out. In the end, she never did. Deny, deny, deny, all the way. Clover had killed her because of it, and no amount of chains could make her forget that. It was horrifying, gruesome. Her eyes wandered over to the AED over on the wall, which she was the only reason she'd even come here in the first place. After that, her gaze drops, leaving Tenmyouji still waiting for the rest of her sentence.
It never came.
Instead, there was a familiar ringing that vibrated throughout the facility, followed by an all-too-familiar voice.
“...Chromatic doors have opened. Five minutes until Chromatic doors close.”
He could hardly believe it. Neither of them could, and after hearing that, Tenmyouji didn't even have it in himself to waste his time, asking her about what she was trying to say before. It didn't seem to matter anymore, nothing did, and the crushing hopelessness of the situation only angered him more. His free hand made a fist, and he banged it against the sink.
“Damn it.” He cursed. He cursed everything, and hearing Clover struggle beside him, he couldn't help but do the same, no matter how futile it was. That is... until he noticed the dash of red on her wrist. A deep, dark red. “Hey, you're bleeding—”
“...Seriously?” Clover's deadpan tone conflicted with his, as she stopped to gape at him. “You're worried about that now?”
“What are you—?”
“Shhh.”
She brushed him off, which only made all of this urgency feel mighty anticlimactic. It almost stung, really, that she would be ignoring him in these crucial final moments; but he didn't take his eyes off her. He watched, as she stained her own finger with the blood and began writing something on her thigh. Her left thigh—heh. He'd never had a chance to stare at it for this long before. What a shame that he wouldn't even be able to remember it.
“...Oh.”
d I O
The realization hit him, of course, when he saw the final result. He hadn't even thought about trying to leave a message... they would have to be found eventually, wouldn't they? And there would be questions, since obviously, they hadn't planned on chaining themselves up. It was probably a good thing she managed to write it before the effects of the Soporil kicked in.
“Yeah.” Clover nodded, taking a look at the name. She can't help but sound a little bitter about him for obvious reasons—but at the very least, Tenmyouji finally understood what she was writing. “I don't really know if it'll do any good, though.”
“Seems clear enough to me. And they'll probably believe you,” he replied. His voice is just a bit frantic, given the situation, but he knew that they would at least believe her over Dio. At that moment, he considered biting his tongue on the rest, but found himself unable to resist: “...Your handwriting's awful, though.”
“...Shut up.”
“I'm serious!” he insisted; and though he smiled, he felt his heart sink, as time slipped away from them. Maybe if he could make Clover forget, he could spare her the same feeling.
“It was three letters!”
“...Yeah. I know.”
There's a lingering grin, but unfortunately, Tenmyouji couldn't keep up that smile for nearly long enough. Soon things fell silent again, as they each scrambled for something, anything else to say. Nothing seemed good enough for their final moments, which irritated them both, but... at the same time, neither wanted to just leave it at that, either. It felt almost like race to see who could have the last word—only in this particular situation, there wouldn't be a winner.
They would both lose.
“H- Hey—”
Despite knowing that, they both piped up at the exact same time. A surprise, with no time to determine whether it was a good thing or not. No time to argue.
“No, you... you go ahead.”
“No, no, you first...” Tenmyouji sounded more defeated than Clover would have liked, which is likely why she was insisting now. “I mean... it wasn't really important anyway.”
Not true. He would never believe that, especially not now. Especially not since his words weren't going to be all that deep or meaningful either. He also didn't want to drag this out unnecessarily, though, so he takes a deep breath. He should...get this over with, right?
“I just... wanted to say—”
“Thanks.”
Much to his surprise, when he finally spat out the words, Clover matched him perfectly. Somehow she'd been able to figure out what he was going to say; and since his name isn't Snake, he doubted it had anything to do with her ESP. Still a bit amusing nonetheless, though—it was kind of heartwarming, so his eyes widened as he stared warmly back at her. She didn't even give him a chance to continue. Not before she did.
“For... everything.”
“That's it, huh...?” Tenmyouji asked.
He leaned his head against the wall, suddenly unable to meet her eyes. A part of him had wanted to say the same thing, but he no longer felt like he could. Something else then, maybe? But what?
Again, she ended up speaking before he got another chance.
“Yeah. That's it.” Taking his example perhaps, she did the same thing, using the wall as a pillow. At this point, they were probably trying to convince themselves it was comfortable. “...This isn't goodbye though, okay?”
“Oh, no?” That was almost laughable to hear. He'd been under the impression that was the entire point of this conversation, after all—while their minds were still clear. “What do we call it?”
...There was no answer. If she was completely honest, in fact, Clover actually hadn't thought it through at all. She had spent a little too much time trying to do it after the fact, which didn't amount to much—but Tenmyouji didn't seem to mind that. He waited patiently as he had done for over twenty minutes: until he didn't have to wait anymore, and he could feel the prick of the needle being injected into his skin.
“A- Any—”
It...wasn't subtle. It actually stung, worse than he thought it would—and judging by the way Clover had been interrupted just now, accompanied by her twitch, she'd likely felt the same thing. Soon there would be nothing to worry about at all.
They could sleep.
Anything else, he thought, in a brief moment before his consciousness dissolved into nothing more than haze. That was what she’d been about to say; but instead of dwelling on that, he found himself thinking about Quark again. He thought about Quark, much in the same way Clover was probably thinking about her brother Snake at the moment, and her best friend Alice. The both of them imagined they were anywhere else but there, in the infirmary that had become their prison.
…And then they were free.
Author: Amm (ammchan)
Fandom: Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward: Nine people play a game on the moon. Some can mentally travel through time, but how many of them will actually make it out alive? That depends…
Word Count: 3,740
Taunt: My fandom might just Betray you.
When Dio had left, only a cold silence remained. It made it hard for Tenmyouji to ignore the noisy chains rattling beside him, particularly when those chains were attached to handcuffs—and particularly when he could feel those handcuffs move with every metallic jingle. Each one was a sharp reminder that he, too, should've been struggling, tugging mindlessly at the chains—trying anything he could think of to get free. In fact, he'd done just that in the beginning, because he was determined not to give up. Not to let someone like Dio win. There was red bruising around his bound wrist to prove it, too, but time passed, and unfortunately, he had long since lost that energy.
Tenmyouji even closed his eyes, allowing an image of little Quark to haunt him. He must have been scared and alone, wherever he was, and everything about Tenmyouji's own body was suddenly protesting, screaming that he was entirely too old for this.
Briefly, he wondered how much of the twenty-five minutes he'd so graciously been given were left. He didn't bother to check it, though. A robotic voice would remind them soon enough, after all, and he'd rather spend his time in other ways. Failure to find Quark aside, there was still something important he had to do, and it didn't involve running around like an idiot through colorful doors and solving nonsense puzzles.
He drew a deep breath before opening his eyes again, turning to his unfortunate and unwilling companion. 'Shared destiny' indeed.
“...Clover.”
His voice was a bit hoarse, and maybe even easy to ignore, given the situation—especially for someone as determined as Clover. She didn't even give him a response at first, so it was almost as if she didn't hear him. Tenmyouji was greeted instead with only more metallic rattling and grunting; but he didn't let that stop him from speaking again, more authoritatively this time.
She would listen.
“Clover.”
“What?” she finally replied, with a turn of her head.
She sounded almost annoyed; and had her hands been free, he could almost imagine her with her hand on her hips, giving him the most demanding look she could muster. But surprisingly, he remained calm.
“I don't think it's going to work.”
...Suddenly, with those words, everything came to a halt.
It was silent again, as both of Clover's hands go limp, and he could see a pout appear on her face, as if he'd just told her to go to her room or given her a punishment. The expression was admittedly hard for him to look at, and now he felt like he'd been punched in the gut on top of all the other bitter feelings he currently had. Just what he needed; and his only comfort was knowing that none of this animosity was directed toward him. Even that was meager, insufficient.
He opened his mouth to say something. Anything to break the silence, maybe something about how there isn't a puzzle to be solved here. Something about how a puzzle can't save them this time.
But Clover saved him the trouble.
“I know,” she said meekly. Her voice was an odd mix of anger, sadness, and disappointment. They were feelings Tenmyouji knew all too well. She continued on: “So...what do you wanna do instead?”
...He couldn't bring herself to answer, and instead allowed his eyes to close again, as his head slowly shook. Because it wasn't about what they want to do anymore; it was about what they could do, and by now, Clover had to have realized that there wasn't anything left.
“Rather not scream if that's okay with you,” he spat out finally, in a tired tone. He suspected that he wouldn't be able to such a thing, even if he wanted to. “That's pretty much exactly what he wants.”
Dio.
Tenmyouji's fist clenched involuntarily when he thought about that smug face of his; and Clover's reaction, upon being reminded, wasn't much better. Her lack of words told him all that he needed to know.
“Yeah...”
She agreed, however reluctantly, though her voice trailed off in a way that left him unsatisfied. A part of both of them knew that if they did scream, the chances of someone finding them would be that much higher...but even with that in mind, it seemed pointless to do so. They didn't need Dio's self-congratulatory flaunting to know how thick the doors and walls were in this place, and they knew how unlikely it was that they'd be heard. If someone was going to come into the infirmary, they'd come, even without their screams.
...So it all came down to luck.
Stupid luck, and waiting.
“...Look, there's something I have to tell you,” Tenmyouji suddenly spoke again, after he'd had enough of the silence. Although his tone was a tired one, it was enough that Clover's face seemed to light up with hope.
At least, for a brief moment.
“Yeah?” She prodded him to continue, anyway, despite knowing what the answer would probably be. “Is it gonna help us get free?”
As expected, his answer came very fast.
“No.”
They both donned a defeated look: Clover because of the answer itself, and Tenmyouji because he had to be the one to give it, which was hardly pleasant. He could feel a bit of guilt swelling up inside of him, getting her hopes up like that, but nevertheless, he knew she would want to hear what he had to say anyway. So he waited... he waited gently, until he was prompted, like he knew he would be. Because he knows her.
“Then what is it?”
Tenmyouji swallowed—and the closer he came to saying it, the more he realized this was something he should have mentioned earlier, like he wanted. Like he intended. It would probably be best if he didn't waste time dwelling on it now, however. He took a deep breath; and although it was something that he'd thought about on and off since this twisted Nonary Game started, it was only in that moment that he truly considered how best to phrase this. Words inevitably get caught in his throat, but eventually, he finds a place to begin.
“Clover, it's...me.”
He let that sink in for a moment, but her initial reaction seemed to dictate that she didn't understand. And...why would she? It'd been nearly half a century, after all, even if she didn't realize it.
“Me who?” she asked. The innocence and curiosity in her voice was almost admirable. Enough to make him crack a smile, just barely.
“...It's Junpei.”
The name sounded almost foreign. It felt like he hadn't gone by that name in a long time, and likewise, it'd been quite a while since Clover had heard it. She remembered well how Seven had told her they weren't able to find Junpei, or Akane for that matter, and she'd believed the big oaf; so needless to say, these sudden words came as a shock. Not that you'd know that, seeing her reaction. It certainly took her some time to process it, as she stared intently at him, eyes wide—but once it hit her, she gasps in surprise.
“What?” she stammered, trying very not to resort to incoherent babble. And because this was Clover, she had to be suspicious of him now. It was practically a part of her job description, so she retorted with that same demanding look he'd come to be familiar with before finally accusing him: “Y- You're lying.”
“I'm not,” Tenmyouji replied calmly; because he only saw that coming a mile away.
“You have to be.” She sounded so sure of herself, though once the words have actually left her lips, she found herself wanting to take them back. She doesn't know why. “Junpei... Junpei wasn't all that much older than me. There's no way he'd be—”
“This old?”
Hmpth. If only Tenmyouji could have folded his arms, he would have. But he'd have to settle for just scoffing at her for now. It really would figure that his age would be the first thing she would bring up—but then again, it would be the biggest discrepancy, as far as she knew.
“Well...yeah.”
“Yeah...” Tenmyouji actually agreed with her on this one, although he looked pretty sheepish doing so. “There's an explanation for that.”
Like what? That was the most likely question he'd be answering next, and that was what he expected; but Clover had always been a girl full of surprises.
“Prove it.”
It was enough to render him speechless, because admittedly, he gave more thought to how he would tell her, rather than how he would prove that it was true. Luckily, it couldn't be all that hard. They had been through a lot together, and it was just a matter of remembering. Remembering, something important—something important, like a memory they both shared. It'd been so long ago, but there was definitely a connection between them, and that hadn't changed. Not in fifty years.
He was sure of it.
“Proof, huh...?” he repeated the phrase to buy himself some time. Yes, proof: Clover urged him to continue, knowing that even if he wanted to, there was no getting out of it now. He was the one who opened the door, and it was his responsibility to see it through. So she refused to let up on him—and finally, after some consideration, he smiles cryptically, as if he couldn't believe he'd forgotten it. “Still got that bookmark I gave you?”
Bookmark—
Bookmark, she thought, flabbergasted. What is he talking about? No, h- he couldn't mean—
It was obvious the one word was evoking a lot of memories within her. Her eyes widened again in shock, and all of a sudden, she was stunned with emotions she didn't quite know how to deal with. She could hear her heart pounding in her chest in a way she never wanted it to, as if it was telling her: He's telling the truth. Awkwardness seemed to fill the air upon that realization, and she was overwhelmed, hardly knowing what to say to him now. In a word, she was breathless. Choked. It was almost annoying, but it had definitely worked, and it was a reaction that was actually refreshing for Tenmyouji to see. He hadn't seen this side of her in a long time.
He could remember clear as day how quick she was to hug him. He didn't even know how to react at the time; but of course, he could tell how relieved she'd been about Snake being alive, and he knew that was enough. Most of all, though, he remembered how glad he'd been that he decided to give her that bookmark. The one with the four-leaf clover on it, that suited her so well—the one that gave her something to hold onto, until the very end.
Hope, faith, luck, and love...
It wasn't hard for him to see that she remembered it just as well, over the years. She never let go.
“I— I, um...”
Really? It was the only word that she can come with, over and over in her mind. Really, I missed something like that? Clover tried desperately to grasp for any other words she could say that would be more appropriate than that. But when she draws a blank, Tenmyouji—no, Junpei—happily fills that void, however teasingly.
“Not exactly an answer to my question.”
“Old fart.” Clover doesn't miss a beat. His teasing demeanor was all the opening she needed, and even though she almost felt like crying, she refused. If this was going to be the last thing either of them ever remembered, crying wasn't even an option. She forced a smile instead, no matter how impossible it seemed to be. “I... I never told anyone about that.”
I guess I never will—
Not even Alice...? It immediately occurred to Tenmyouji to ask, since he found that hard to believe. He wanted to know, actually, but the regret and grief he was struck with, remembering her dead body, kept him quiet. He'd never had a chance to tell her about who he was, and now he never would either. What a bad taste in his mouth that would've left, and for a long time to come, too—though luckily, he wouldn't have to worry about that for very much longer.
He gave the handcuffs another tired tug out of obligation, before finally replying, feigning amusement at her little insult.
“So you believe me?”
Giving up quickly, he turned to Clover, who wasn't bothering anymore with escape anymore. She was thinking about how to respond to him instead, and something inside told her these were the best words she could possibly say.
“I... trust you.”
She nodded, looking almost apologetic, as if it was too little, too late—but to Tenmyouji, it was worth hearing. He looked relieved.
“...Thank you.” It was only a murmur, but it was enough. For both him, and for her. “It's really too bad. We would've had a lot to catch up on.”
“We still do,” Clover corrected him. Because it was true, and whatever time they had left didn't change that. Whether it was five minutes or five hundred... there was so much she didn't know about him now, and it wasn't fair. Not to mention all the things he didn't know about her, that she wouldn't get to tell him about. Not fair at all. No...
“I'm sorry.”
Whatever she might have said about that, of course, was squarely tossed out the window with those words. She could only stare at him expectantly, because clearly he wasn't going to stop at just that. There was no way she was going to let him.
“None of this is your—”
“It was my responsibility to look after Quark.” He didn't let her finish, mainly because he wasn't finished—and he wore a solemn expression on his face while he continued. “No one else should've been involved. Least of all you. I... I failed him.”
I failed him when I let him out of my sight. It wasn't the first time, and it likely wouldn't have been the last, but he wouldn't have the chance to make any of those mistakes again. His guilt ran even deeper than that, too, because Quark didn't belong in the Nonary Game to begin with, and he knew that. Neither of them should have come to Rhizome 9; and he couldn't even comfort himself with the fact that Quark was still alive anymore. Even if he was... there was no way he'd be able to make it through the Chromatic doors without them. Their bracelets...
He'd be penalized the same way. Tch—
“Are you saying... it was because we were all looking for Quark that this happened?” Clover's voice broke him out of his thoughts, as well as the handcuffs rattling again. When she put it that way, it sounded a bit ridiculous... which, he imagined, was exactly what he was going for.
“I don't know.”
“Because you're wrong,” she continued, in a huff. I wasn't even looking for Quark— “I... I didn't even help you that much, in the end. I should've...”
I should've helped more.
She could hardly admit that she was so obsessed with getting revenge for Alice that she wasn't even thinking about Quark. All she could think about was her, and about Luna. About getting her to confess, once she'd finally figured it all out. In the end, she never did. Deny, deny, deny, all the way. Clover had killed her because of it, and no amount of chains could make her forget that. It was horrifying, gruesome. Her eyes wandered over to the AED over on the wall, which she was the only reason she'd even come here in the first place. After that, her gaze drops, leaving Tenmyouji still waiting for the rest of her sentence.
It never came.
Instead, there was a familiar ringing that vibrated throughout the facility, followed by an all-too-familiar voice.
“...Chromatic doors have opened. Five minutes until Chromatic doors close.”
He could hardly believe it. Neither of them could, and after hearing that, Tenmyouji didn't even have it in himself to waste his time, asking her about what she was trying to say before. It didn't seem to matter anymore, nothing did, and the crushing hopelessness of the situation only angered him more. His free hand made a fist, and he banged it against the sink.
“Damn it.” He cursed. He cursed everything, and hearing Clover struggle beside him, he couldn't help but do the same, no matter how futile it was. That is... until he noticed the dash of red on her wrist. A deep, dark red. “Hey, you're bleeding—”
“...Seriously?” Clover's deadpan tone conflicted with his, as she stopped to gape at him. “You're worried about that now?”
“What are you—?”
“Shhh.”
She brushed him off, which only made all of this urgency feel mighty anticlimactic. It almost stung, really, that she would be ignoring him in these crucial final moments; but he didn't take his eyes off her. He watched, as she stained her own finger with the blood and began writing something on her thigh. Her left thigh—heh. He'd never had a chance to stare at it for this long before. What a shame that he wouldn't even be able to remember it.
“...Oh.”
d I O
The realization hit him, of course, when he saw the final result. He hadn't even thought about trying to leave a message... they would have to be found eventually, wouldn't they? And there would be questions, since obviously, they hadn't planned on chaining themselves up. It was probably a good thing she managed to write it before the effects of the Soporil kicked in.
“Yeah.” Clover nodded, taking a look at the name. She can't help but sound a little bitter about him for obvious reasons—but at the very least, Tenmyouji finally understood what she was writing. “I don't really know if it'll do any good, though.”
“Seems clear enough to me. And they'll probably believe you,” he replied. His voice is just a bit frantic, given the situation, but he knew that they would at least believe her over Dio. At that moment, he considered biting his tongue on the rest, but found himself unable to resist: “...Your handwriting's awful, though.”
“...Shut up.”
“I'm serious!” he insisted; and though he smiled, he felt his heart sink, as time slipped away from them. Maybe if he could make Clover forget, he could spare her the same feeling.
“It was three letters!”
“...Yeah. I know.”
There's a lingering grin, but unfortunately, Tenmyouji couldn't keep up that smile for nearly long enough. Soon things fell silent again, as they each scrambled for something, anything else to say. Nothing seemed good enough for their final moments, which irritated them both, but... at the same time, neither wanted to just leave it at that, either. It felt almost like race to see who could have the last word—only in this particular situation, there wouldn't be a winner.
They would both lose.
“H- Hey—”
Despite knowing that, they both piped up at the exact same time. A surprise, with no time to determine whether it was a good thing or not. No time to argue.
“No, you... you go ahead.”
“No, no, you first...” Tenmyouji sounded more defeated than Clover would have liked, which is likely why she was insisting now. “I mean... it wasn't really important anyway.”
Not true. He would never believe that, especially not now. Especially not since his words weren't going to be all that deep or meaningful either. He also didn't want to drag this out unnecessarily, though, so he takes a deep breath. He should...get this over with, right?
“I just... wanted to say—”
“Thanks.”
Much to his surprise, when he finally spat out the words, Clover matched him perfectly. Somehow she'd been able to figure out what he was going to say; and since his name isn't Snake, he doubted it had anything to do with her ESP. Still a bit amusing nonetheless, though—it was kind of heartwarming, so his eyes widened as he stared warmly back at her. She didn't even give him a chance to continue. Not before she did.
“For... everything.”
“That's it, huh...?” Tenmyouji asked.
He leaned his head against the wall, suddenly unable to meet her eyes. A part of him had wanted to say the same thing, but he no longer felt like he could. Something else then, maybe? But what?
Again, she ended up speaking before he got another chance.
“Yeah. That's it.” Taking his example perhaps, she did the same thing, using the wall as a pillow. At this point, they were probably trying to convince themselves it was comfortable. “...This isn't goodbye though, okay?”
“Oh, no?” That was almost laughable to hear. He'd been under the impression that was the entire point of this conversation, after all—while their minds were still clear. “What do we call it?”
...There was no answer. If she was completely honest, in fact, Clover actually hadn't thought it through at all. She had spent a little too much time trying to do it after the fact, which didn't amount to much—but Tenmyouji didn't seem to mind that. He waited patiently as he had done for over twenty minutes: until he didn't have to wait anymore, and he could feel the prick of the needle being injected into his skin.
“A- Any—”
It...wasn't subtle. It actually stung, worse than he thought it would—and judging by the way Clover had been interrupted just now, accompanied by her twitch, she'd likely felt the same thing. Soon there would be nothing to worry about at all.
They could sleep.
Anything else, he thought, in a brief moment before his consciousness dissolved into nothing more than haze. That was what she’d been about to say; but instead of dwelling on that, he found himself thinking about Quark again. He thought about Quark, much in the same way Clover was probably thinking about her brother Snake at the moment, and her best friend Alice. The both of them imagined they were anywhere else but there, in the infirmary that had become their prison.
…And then they were free.