Needless to say, the past few days, he was frantic. It was a hard thing to make him admit, but Tatsuhiko Corvou Dracul Ryusaki was frantic; possibly even beyond so. For the past few days, he had been more or less skeptical upon gradually noticing his surroundings- or rather, the lacking thereof in some instances and situations. Ever since their last encounter, Corvou had admittedly slumped into a mental trench; a fatigue; a seeming grave, by how it felt. After he had managed to cool down from his own outburst, though still pained deeply in the way he was forced to watch her fade and bolt away quite literally in the blink of an eye, he had chosen to stay on the rooftop that day, staring blankly and wistfully in the direction that he assumed he had taken off in. The only course aversion that he had made before the lunch period was over that day was to grab his bag and belongings, initially intending to brush matters off once more as best as he could and to continue his original plans of drowning himself - and, by then, possibly even his stress and sorrows - within the always accountable and dependable fallback known as music, all while preparing and practicing the dance routines he was intent on going over. Of course, given what had happened, it was safe to say that all he could do was think about what the two of them had said, rather than thinking about some dance that paled in comparison as far as the 'number one priority' went and meant to him at that time.

He had decided to keep his distance for the most part after realizing and remembering that she, too, was likely in just as much pain as he was. His first plan was to just keep an eye on her from a distance in between breaks and passing periods among other, subtle times that he could have glanced at her from afar to ensure that she was at least managing, even if she busted a few noses and chests in in the process and suffered from a slightly more damaged arm due to it. The skepticism at the time was unstable and did drive him to hold a fair amount of concern due to the fact that she seemed to have vanished into thin air a small while after that decision, and he even went so far as to try and push it from his mind at the time, mentally and personally deeming that it was for the best to leave her as she was to cool off. She needed time to deflate. She needed time to think on her own. She was safe.

...And yet, he found himself here.

No more than a half hour prior, a few messages had somehow found their ways to him. It was odd, really; a thing that he truthfully would have called off as a prank at first before sweeping it beneath the bed with all of his other problems and conflicts of pain and ignorance alike. Upon seeing and hearing the first and slightest mention of a particular howler, though?

He found himself running after a short drive towards a seemingly foreign location.

Rapid footsteps tapped swiftly through the area as he sprinted through the outermost portion of the location that was mentioned, a trail of a pulsing, ethereal hue of mist trailing behind him and outlining his own figure before fading into a void. His breaths were as rapid as his steps, exhibiting the sheer amount of desperation other things of the sort that had overwhelmed his mind. Test my patience... Test. My fucking. patience.

He caught sight of a door after entering the area itself, and as he saw it beginning to open, he had simply sped the action by lifting one of his feet when he was within enough of a distance to do so, kicking it fiercely open by making a literal dent in it because of its build and structure, and as it had broken, he merely made do with stepping through it. Silver voids glared fiercely through the room at its inhabitants, locking solidly upon Ishini for a few seconds before slowly and malevolently beginning to scan over the other armed men with their eyes on him.

His eyes flashed a clear, solid shade of jade as the aura trailing and enveloping him pulsed and gradually began to shift into the same color over time.
He was wholeheartedly pissed.

---

Ishini Mazuka ::: 753 Words ::: start digging the graves man

It was the first time that anyone had seen his abilities like this.
Even himself. Although locked within too much of a frenzied state to have realized it right then and there, later on, he would have gradually and slowly realized that the only other time that his power had rivaled the amount that it was at that time was when he had lost his entire world the first time, and completely, fully realized it at the young age of thirteen.
It would likely be the only time until a long while afterwards, too.
Hopefully, at least.

He would say that it was a symbolic experience as the scarf that he wore - tucked rather loosely beneath the collar of his clothing by then - had been one of the triggers of his past outburst, alongside the precious, jewel-clad ring secured upon his finger as it glowed and shone brightly within his jaded light. It enveloped him, and, within a temporary surge of intense spiritual energy, abruptly turned a darker hue of green before suddenly bursting outwards and filling the well entirety of the room with its color for a few moments. The sheer force of it managed to shy a good amount of the bullets away from him, though some of them still managed to break through and graze his skin here and there, while a few had lodged within his flesh and bones.

Regardless, though, he was well beyond the point of feeling at that particular moment.
All he could see was jade.
All he could feel was pure, unbridled rage.
And unfortunately for the rest of the others in the room, it was his turn.

For a split second, the energy surging around him grew unstable as it constantly compressed and released in multiple pulses, vigorously and constantly fading between the brightest jade to the darkest hue that it had just assumed. From within the aura, Corvou himself would have, of course, stood- though not without a faint smirk of frightening menace as his manipulation powers overwhelmed him. A snicker stifling within the core of his throat, he hunched forward and gave the fingers of the eastern extremity a quick twitch before he immediately lunged forward when the clips had been emptied, shoving a loosely closed fist into the chest of one of the gunners before slamming the very same hand upwards and into his jaw with a fearsome amount of force. The strength of it all was likely more than enough to break both a few of his ribs and his jaw alike, but to add insult to injury, he wasted no time in grabbing him by the collar of his shirt after the punches had been thrown, whipping around and nonchalantly chucking him into one of his companions right behind him as he and the others were lost between a frantic search for another clip and seemingly frightened awe by then.

Following those two, he made a rather swift, concise, and overall fear-inducing sweep of the room - picking the men off one by one - at an alarmingly hastened and smooth manner as the situation progressed on, and his emotional state only served to decrease, which, in turn, heightened his senses ever more. At two specific points in particular, two men had been aggressively and viciously flung at a wall and straight through it, leaving them to wallow upon the ground in pain as the menace inside continued his business.

It took only a fair amount of time before the people that remained were none other than Ishini, her captive, and the jaded menace himself.

Once he had vaguely noticed that and processed it through his admittedly clouded and hazed mind, Ryusaki turned his head in a gradual and overall discomforting manner, absentmindedly cracking his knuckles by his flanks as he turned to face him. The smile that he wore broadened a bit, and eyes consumed by that same jade narrowed, locking upon him as he tilted his head. The pause had begun to calm him down amidst his bloodlust, though by the way that his aura continued to flare around him, it was safe to say that he was still far from recovering into his normal state.

As he gave the other man a somewhat amused and even gleeful glare, his voice maintained a rather sing-songy tune.

"Haha... Is it your turn, now?" he asked curiously, rolling his neck a little bit. "Please tell me that it's your turn~."

---

Ishini Mazuka ::: 742 Words

Seeing the look of pure horror and terror upon the Negator's face drove the smirk secured upon the menace's face to forge itself into a broader, brighter grin of sickening, challenging, and fearful amusement all the same and all the while. Twitching his fingers absentmindedly by his flanks, he began to hunch forward as if a predatory beast, keeping an achingly savage eye upon him as he began creeping forward; aura flares continuously bursting out from behind him as he began his small, inching venture towards him. At the last second, he brought himself low to the floor in a sort of hunter's crouch while the other man across from him began shifting his attention warily between him and his companion, and was just about to lunge forward like the beast that he almost practically was at the time. In the nick of time, however, 'Jack' had decided to place his focus upon Corvou himself, extinguishing all of the chi influenced rage that he housed all at once, and, likewise, extinguishing the spiritual energy that surged around his figure as a result, as well. Upon feeling the power fade from his being all at once, his eyes gave a faint flash before reverting back to their silver glows, temporarily holding a continuous and equally intense and enraged glare within them for the first few moments following his power oriented disarming. However, he quickly seemed to grasp the situation around him now that the source of his borderline berserker's nature had been forcibly turned off. Although still incredibly tensed and affected by both the events that had happened mere seconds prior, as well as earlier when he had initially received the messages, he stood - or rather crouched, by then - in the bestial hunting stance that he had seemingly and absentmindedly assumed, peering up at Jack with a minor degree of confusion, as well as a gradually faltering sense of livid feelings altogether. His gaze quickly shifted over towards Ishini as she was freed all at once due to the Negator's power focus being shifted from her to him, and he watched as the electricity burst through the room all at once as the remaining guard was bound in his place. A calming, silver-eyed gaze would prove to be temporarily entranced and possibly even mesmerized by the sight of the very same hue of jade that he himself had exhibited a few minutes beforehand- but that was a fact that he wouldn't quite know at the time, and would only fully realize and remember if the tale of that day had ever been regaled and discussed in remembrance.

The phone call began, and his gaze trailed towards it. Upon hearing the man on the line, his internal being instinctively tensed within a degree of disgust and malice, knowing that he was more than likely the cause of what had occurred today. Regardless of these spontaneous, newfound feelings of his at the time, however, he simply kept silent and glanced over at Ishi again, as well as the jaded sparks that occasionally flickered from her form and, unbeknownst to him, inducing a sense of calmness and serenity within him at the subtle, yet radiant glow of the sparks. Every so often, his hand and fingers still twitched as an extended after effect of his power's influence, but the more he took care to allow his focus to linger upon her, the more his subconscious faltered within a growing calmness, and for what was admittedly the first time in a little bit over a month, he felt at peace.

The distance within his demeanor returned another time, though not in the same manner that he had decided to visit in on the day they had met on the rooftop. Stressed it may have admittedly been, as the thoughts and revelations began to carve themselves within his intellect, though the stress now was mixed with relief and even happiness among other things, rather than how the specified stress he felt back then was of borderline bitterness and sorrow. He watched dormantly and almost patiently as she spoke her way through the line, and even watched with a simple nonchalance as she gave her threats and, ultimately in the end, planted a cap in each of the men before she began to walk his way towards the exit. In any other mindset - in other words, his normal one - he would have given her a smirk and returned the remark with something equally as snarky and teasing.

This time around, he merely blinked before nodding soundlessly, following behind her for a few moments.

Before long, vague rays of sunlight shone upon them both as they exited into the world beyond once more. Corvou had followed Ishini in silence up until then, bringing his attention upon the skies above for a brief period of time as he skimmed the clouds. Blue. Just like that other day. His mind wandered back to his outburst again, and in an unseen reaction to it, he felt a sudden, piercing feeling within his chest. It was faint, though if he had to describe it, it felt as if a javelin had pierced straight through him.

Pain aside, however - or possibly even amplified by then - he gave another blink as he distantly tilted his head back to gaze upon normal levels, staring straight in front of him for a few moments before looking over at Ishini from the corner of his eye. All at once, internal pulse of pain and shock alike triggered once more within his chest, and he clenched both his hands and his teeth gently and on instinct as he took a deep breath. From rage to distance came the final, swift stages as he took a couple of quick steps from behind her trail, taking a hold of her shoulders - albeit gently and with an utmost care for sake of her wounds - and turning her around. His hands and arms wrapped securely around her as he gave a soft, uncharacteristically shaky breath. His head tilted downwards and he pressed his face softly into her hair.

To add to the uncharacteristic actions, if she listened enough, she may have heard another faint and shaky breath; a sign of tears, however vague or apparent they may have been. Whether she heard it or not, however, would have only served to add nothing or a small bout of evidence to his temporary vulnerability at that moment, as the tears were more or less already hinted at towards through the way his embrace was soft yet possessive at the same time as he held her.

His voice was, again, uncharacteristically soft-spoken and almost broken by then as he buried his face deeper into her hair.

"...I'm-... I'm so glad you're okay..." he murmured quietly. "I-I don't care how you're gonna react... I-I don't care if you punch me through a wall next. I-I'm just-..."

He took a pause to take a breath, not caring about how shaky or emotionally influenced it was by then.

"...I-I'm so glad you're safe. I-I'm glad that you're alive..."

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Ishini Mazuka ::: 1181 Words ::: get those small feels and even bigger text wall

"How could I have known that you were a dot on a fucking radar...?" he responded with his own question almost at once, his tone a bit louder, though faintly and barely so. His embrace tightened a little bit more as another, choked breath stifled within his throat due to his own pride, and he took a few moments before finally and reluctantly looking down at her. While his current demeanor was far from being overwhelmed by bawling, his stress and concern all the same was clear and apparent through silver voids clouded by a faint tinge of red bloodshot. "I-I know you have your share of trouble, b-but this...? Ishi, how was I supposed to guess about this, of all things...?"

He shifted his arms slightly, though ot was then that the majority of his powers seemed to be taking a heavier toll on him as he finally seemed to remember and notice the bullet wounds that scathed his being. He couldn't help but wince a bit while his arm moved, and he glanced down at his shoulder for a split second, a momentarily annoyed frown playing at his lips as he noticed the blood soaked bullet hole residing within his shirt, as well as the flesh beneath. He stared at it for a small while befote taking a deep breath, shaking his head as his hands instinctively up and upon her shoulders, giving them each a gingerly grasp.

"I don't care what your motives are. I don't care if you hate me, if you're trying to protect me, or even if you wanna push me away for the sake of pushing me away." His eyes narrowed within the very stress that continued to linger within his mind as they reflected a small degree of concern amd desperation alike. "But if you think that I'd be better off alone and oblivious to the dangerous shit you've gotten yourself into, you're dead fucking wrong."

His hands loosened before eventually and reluctantly sliding off of her shoulders, falling to his flanks in an almost defeated manner as he still stared at her.

"...You've made it clear right now that you'd die for me, and I want you know that I'd die for you, too. It works both ways. If I died, you'd be torn, and if you died, I'd be torn, but to the point where it would be overwhelming. ...For fuck's sake... I've already lost my family and my entire world once. I don't wanna stand by and watch or suddenly hear it happen again when I could've done something."

Ishini Mazuka

"And I wanna keep you safe," he said back within a rather matter of factly manner, his tone soft and stressed, yet understanding all the same regardless. From beneath the shade of his own hair - which was down once more, casting a faint shadow over silver voids of his while still allowing their brief and vague glow of silent pain within them able to be viewed - he gave his full, undivided attention to her as those same, aforementioned orbs of silver remained upon her being. While her head was tilted downwards to hide her expression from view, that very position, coupled with the quietness of her voice, only confirmed him of the only possible reason as to why she had taken care to glance away. His hands instinctively clenched a tad more before relaxing as swiftly as they had done so, and he couldn't help but let his guard down enough to allow another pulse within his chest as he went on, saying, "I don't think you understand, Ishi... I'd die for you. Gladly die. Willingly die. If it meant that you'd live another day, or even that your stress and problems could be split to let you calm down, I'd sacrifice part or even the entirety of my well being for you in a damn heartbeat. ...You know that."

With a certain degree of hesitance, he lifted the eastern extremity, hovering it in the air before her for a few moments before finally gathering his thoughts and decisions, going on to gently place it against her down turned head and cheek in a precisely gingerly fashion. Once within the palm of his hand, he didn't take any movements or attempts to try and tilt her head up to meet his gaze. Instead, he merely moved his thumb, stroking it softly against her cheek within a soft caress, and possibly even feeling the very beginnings of her tears themselves to make up for legitimately seeing them.

He remained this way for a few moments before closing his eyes and shaking his head, clenching his teeth once more. "...I told you. If you run away from me, then I'll feel hurt. I'll feel betrayed, and I'll feel bitter...but in the end, I'll be waiting for you come back to me because of a specific, three-word reason that you know damn well by now."

With those words, he stepped forward again, pulling her into another embrace while finally giving her chin a soft nudge upwards as if encouraging her to look at him.

"So please...don't run away from me again." Soft was his voice yet again, alongside subtly pained, yet borderline hopeful as he managed to give her a faint grin from amidst his own tears. "I don't want to feel hurt or bitter towards you of all people again, so please... Don't run away."

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Ishini Mazuka ::: 475 Words

Truth be told, it did pain him a slight bit to have been met with little more than a nod and silence in response to his request; his plead. Underlying would be a sense of hope, though it was safe to assume that it was reverted and taken back as he watched Ishini begin to walk once more. For a split second, a dualed, silver shine would have trailed after her before he gave a soft, inaudible sigh, giving the ground beneath him a swift glance before merely following after her.

Afterwards, he fell into a minor, thoughtful trance once more; silent all the while, but only up until he fully realized the area around him. He was quick to realize it in all honesty, which internally pained him even more all the same as he gazed up at the iconic restaurant label outside, as well as the cracks upon the walls within through the window; a memento of the days past, per say. His eyes narrowed faintly and he grit his teeth upon reestablishing the memories, though he gathered whatever mental fortification he could to continue following after her.

When he entered, he truthfully felt a little bit distant. Possibly bittersweet and somewhat regretful- though those would be things completely incomprehensible to the common and dwindling eye. Only when Clara walked around was when he snapped from his mind, placing his gaze momentarily upon her and with his unknowingly stoic expression up until then. Blinking, he stared at her silently, comprehending her words and allowing them to sink in.

After a few moments, a sudden, perfectly fake smile spread across his lips as he shrugged, betraying the lingering sting within his eyes, alongside the bags beneath them. If he was questioned about it, he'd just brush it off as sleep deprivation.  It was a legitimate excuse anyways, and he was more or less known for it because of a few rants here and there about insomnia.

Although, he had a lot of sleep issues lately- most of which not being related to the condition that time around, though to other matters that could have been more or less easily assumed by then.

"It's...a thing of the past," he responded casually, folding his arms. He spared a glance at the wall once more before chuckling, bringing his gaze back to the waitress. "Not that big of a deal in the long run I guess, though. ...If you could get us some other company and a couple of menus, though...that would be great, too~."

Internally, he took a pause, twitching his finger from within the crook of the arm it was tucked beneath.

Fuck... That last part probably sounded a bit bad...

Despite that, all throughout his words, he continued to wear a grin; the truth beneath it only known to him and a certain other.
It was as if earlier hadn't even happened for the rest.

Corvou sighed inwardly and barely at the end of his remark.

Maybe for the best... Maybe...

Ishini Mazuka

Needless to say, the silence enveloping the air within their section of the cafe - or at least around Ryusaki himself, for the most part - would have made a gradual and barely noticeable shift from casual to faintly tense the more time went on. Although he merely coped with what he had said and the small traces of a reaction that he had managed to catch on his companion's part - as it would have been an odd thing not to notice by then, given the amount of time they had spent together in the past, as well as the amount of detail he took care to give towards her each and every action, too - with little more than an absentminded glance down at the counter beneath him, he began beating himself up and over a tad, and this could have been more or less readable through the small glint of regret that flashed within those shining eyes of his. Clara had departed to fetch Cert, though because of the soundless nature that progressed on between the two that had remained, he subtly yet admittedly somewhat awkwardly fished a hand into his pocket, taking hold of his phone and sliding it out. He quickly unlocked the screen and began peering through a few things that he had saved, all while slipping the remaining extremity beneath the shade of his sleeves to fiddle around with a few of the bullets and begin to extract them. the occasional wince was made in response to his fingers grazing sensitive flesh, though he kept himself under control from the most part as he picked a couple of bullets out and simply made do with leaving them within his sleeves for the moment.

Soon afterwards, the sound of footsteps caught his ears, and he glanced up to the sight of their older-known acquaintance walking over towards him. All at once, he caught wind of the look within her gaze, though merely dismissed it to keep up his facade. He watched her as she shifted her attention between Ishini and himself, waiting patiently for her to say something. When she did, he gave her a small, polite smile. He shrugged again.

"Eeeeh...dunno, to be honest," he started off casually, raising an eyebrow. "As far as drinks go, probably a cappuccino for sure, but for the actual food-"

His gaze snapped down on instinct and he cut himself off as he heard his phone's ringtone trigger. His eyes glanced over the number, and, although they hadn't recognized the number, he stared at it quizzically before blinking and slowly picking it up, giving Certus an apologetic look. "Aha... Sorry. Make it a surprise," he said, picking his phone up and hovering his thumb over the pickup symbol on the screen. He winked with amusement. "I wanna see if you still remember my tastes."

Nodding after that, he looked back at his phone, letting it ring for a few more curious and questioning tones before picking up.

"Hello?"

"Konnichiwa, Tatsuhiko-kun~!"

The voice was oddly loud; enough to the point where Corvou winced and actually drew his phone back a little bit, and possibly even one that allowed the others with him to hear as well. He gave a confused look before slowly pressing the device to his ear again.

"Uh... I'm...sorry?" he went on. "...Do I know you? And...how do you know that name?"

The voice on the other side of the line gave a soft laugh, though this time around, her voice was toned down enough so that he was the only one to possibly be able to hear it. "Eeeeh...? How do I know-... Aaaah, wow, it's really been a while, then, huh?"

"...Ex-... Excuse me...?

A sigh sounded. "Pfft... I should've called you sooner. It's been years... I didn't know you'd forget about me that much~."

The same expression that had overridden the man's face lingered for a little bit more as he attempted to comprehend the statements posed to her. ...Forgot about her...? Who have I even known that-...

A sudden click processed within the back of his mind, and his eyes widened in shock and disbelief. To accompany it, a sudden, broad smile to match the feeling surfaced, as well.

"Eeeeeh...? Kiyomi?! Anata wa Kiyomi desu ka?"

He was met with another laugh in affirmation. "Hai-hai~! Matta atta ne, Tatsu-kun."

It was Corvou's turn to laugh in mild disbelief as he brushed the same hand that had been picking through bullets through his hair, and he found himself slowly sliding from his tool temporarily. Shooting Certus another apologetic look, he bowed slightly out of instinct. "S-Sorry. I gotta take this one," he spoke quickly, shuffling back towards the entrance mid-sentence. "Again, just make it a surprise. I'll be back in a sec."

With those words, he turned around and walked out of the front door, speaking in foreign tongues all the while.

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