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[leftbehindagain]

[A couple days into Liminal Space, but before it changes, Naoki puts out a message. He sounds... tired, but satisfied.]

I've worked out something that will counteract the radiation exposure most of us just got. There's some in the workshop and some in Kanji's place - there should be enough for everyone who was on Gehenna.

Please, guys, take a bottle. I don't care how invincible you think you are, I don't care how much you might think I hate you, I don't care how bad you think it tastes - I did the best I could, but it's still pretty clearly medicine. Radiation is serious business, and none of us deserve to be stuck with the long-term effects if there's a way around it. If it turns out you absolutely cannot get it down for some reason, let me know and I'll try another version.

Comments

[leftbehindagain]

And if I can keep us all from being stuck with the consequences of something we didn't ask for, I'm damn well going to.

[senpaidol]

You're pretty good at the whole group healer thing, y'know? I hope your version of me appreciated it.

Also uh, while I'm walking and thinking, thanks for the help in space. Citrine really needed an organic with a level head, and Nikias did that well.

[leftbehindagain]

That poor kid knows way too many workaholics who don't actually have the stamina to back that tendency up. How he finds that comforting I really don't understand.

[Do you not, Naoki? Do you really, truly not?]

[senpaidol]

Well, Naoto and I both have kinda had that problem as humans before, and Kanji didn't get quiiiite so much exercise as an alien. It makes sense that that's who we were "playing", I guess.

[leftbehindagain]

...Okay, point.

Hecatites aren't nearly as sturdy as humans, but even with that I've seen Kanji push himself to the point of collapse before. [He really super doesn't know when to stop.]

[senpaidol]

Yeah, that doesn't surprise me either, with him being in charge. Souji-senpai did the same thing sometimes and he's usually a lot more cautious.

[leftbehindagain]

He tried to one-shot Naoto's dungeon. We got through the giant robot and he passed out.

[senpaidol]

Yep, unless I'm remembering wrong, Senpai did the same thing for Nanako-chan. Leader plus someone you really care about in trouble...

[leftbehindagain]

...Yeah, I can see that one happening. [Kanji probably would've pushed pretty hard to get a kid out of trouble, if it'd come to that for their group. Even if they weren't particularly close, the TV world can't do good things to someone that young.]

Souji-san tried running into Naoto's dungeon here by himself. Fortunately, all he managed to do was find out nothing useful and come back to meet the bigger group of us that went in.

[senpaidol]

[Mental sigh.]

That makes much more sense now than it would have yesterday. Still not surprising. He tries to be the calm, reasonable guy, but when he thinks it'll help someone he loves, he can be dumb as a brick.

[leftbehindagain]

They hadn't mentioned? Really, do neither of them talk about things? [That could be the dungeon, or Souji and Naoto's relationship... but it's probably both.] You won't catch me arguing that point, at least.

He tries, though. I mean, he clearly put in some effort to get to know me, and I can only imagine how badly I was doing without something to focus on. Probably dismissed him out of hand because of Hanamura, somewhere in there. I can't not give him some credit for that.

[senpaidol]

They really don't. Souji's just...this weird mix of taking care of everyone else before himself and then never talking about what he's feeling, either. It makes him a wonderful person, but kinda hard to understand sometimes. Naoto-kun's almost the same, just with "find out everything" more than "protect everyone".

[leftbehindagain]

No wonder they get along so well. [He's actually pretty sure there's more to it than that. But if they communicate the same way, that would certainly help matters.]

[senpaidol]

They've got a lot in common, honestly. "Huge dorks who don't talk about their feelings" is just part of it.

[Is she mentally pouting? Yeah she's mentally pouting.]

[leftbehindagain]

They do work well together.

[Look at it this way, Rise, sooner or later you'd get fed up with Souji never discussing things.]

[senpaidol]

[If you think Rise isn't the kind of woman who'd spend her entire adult life trying to pester her loved ones into changing their habits you clearly haven't spent enough time with her.]

Well at least they make the most attractive detective couple in history. Or at least the most attractive one that doesn't involve Jude Law.

[leftbehindagain]

[No, he's seen her go toe to toe with Kanji often enough to know better.]

Wouldn't have thought you'd be interested in him. Unless it's Naoto you were gunning for. [Now that wouldn't surprise him at all.]

[senpaidol]

Uh, what? No way. She's my best friend. I can think a woman's beautiful without being attracted to women, you know.

...not that her boy form is bad-looking either but the point is I've been in love with Senpai since right after my dungeon, okay?

[She could private this, but it's not like it's a secret.]

[leftbehindagain]

You certainly didn't have that reaction to Kanji. And why would the attraction be a problem, in general terms? [Look, he's just saying. He also helped Kanji figure a lot of this out, even if he did end up with a girlfriend in the end.]

[senpaidol]

There's nothing wrong with it, I'm just attracted to guys.

[Or at least to masculine presentation.]

And Kanji's...Kanji. Yours seems more sensible than mine, but he's still...Kanji.

[leftbehindagain]

[You keep telling yourself that, Rise.]

True.

[senpaidol]

Anyway, I'm almost there. If you want to hear details for some strange reason we can talk after I'm de-radiationed.

[leftbehindagain]

Not details as such. I'm just lacking the context for you and Souji-san interacting. Then it might make more sense.

[senpaidol]

Well...

[In-person, a couple minutes later after the chugging of alchemical concoctions:]

...I'm not sure if your Kanji does this too, but did you ever notice how Souji-senpai can act like a completely different guy depending on the situation?

Action, now

[leftbehindagain]

...I think I have seen that some here. Narukami-san wasn't really part of the group at home - Kanji knew him through the basketball team, but that was about it - so I don't know him as well in that sense.