Akane didn’t answer right away. Instead, she curled up again, pulling her legs to her chest, letting her chin rest on her knees. Her eyes flickered, glitching faintly at the edges as she stared through the screen—through Hamuko, through the room, through everything.
A family.
What kind of family lets things get this bad?
She couldn’t remember what they used to be like. Not really. She could fill in the blanks between the memories with all the clichés of a distant father and a neglected kid. But that wasn’t enough. It wasn’t real enough.
How did they talk? How did they fight? Did he ever make her breakfast? Did he ever pick her up from school? Did they have inside jokes? Did she ever tell him she hated him in the heat of the moment? Had he ever yelled at her in frustration? Had she ever cried in front of him?
Had he ever held her when she did?
Her fingers curled against the fabric of her sweater. She hated this. This uncertainty. This not-knowing. If she had all the data, all the pieces, maybe she could reconstruct it, make sense of what they were before everything went to hell. But Wolf—Zenkichi—wouldn’t give her that. Wouldn’t let her know.
Maybe he was ashamed.
Maybe she had done something.
“...If he’s hiding so much from me, then maybe... maybe I did something before,” she said, her voice distant. Not sad. Not even bitter. Just... cold. “When I was human.”
That would explain it, wouldn’t it? Maybe she was the reason everything fell apart. Maybe he wasn’t just keeping things from her because he was an idiot who thought she was too fragile to handle it. Maybe she was something he didn’t want to face. Something awful.
Maybe that’s why she couldn’t remember.
Akane exhaled sharply, forcing herself back into the moment before she could spiral further. She unclenched her hands, setting them on her knees instead, grounding herself.
"...Not that it matters anymore. He’s stopped now. Said he won’t do anything reckless. For now." Her fingers tapped against her knee, rhythmic and calculated. "But he also said he will do it again if Ichinose crosses the line."
She glanced at Hamuko, the fire in her eyes dimmed, but not gone. "A big reason he isn't running right now is because she offered us a deal."
no subject
A family.
What kind of family lets things get this bad?
She couldn’t remember what they used to be like. Not really. She could fill in the blanks between the memories with all the clichés of a distant father and a neglected kid. But that wasn’t enough. It wasn’t real enough.
How did they talk? How did they fight? Did he ever make her breakfast? Did he ever pick her up from school? Did they have inside jokes?
Did she ever tell him she hated him in the heat of the moment? Had he ever yelled at her in frustration? Had she ever cried in front of him?
Had he ever held her when she did?
Her fingers curled against the fabric of her sweater. She hated this. This uncertainty. This not-knowing. If she had all the data, all the pieces, maybe she could reconstruct it, make sense of what they were before everything went to hell. But Wolf—Zenkichi—wouldn’t give her that. Wouldn’t let her know.
Maybe he was ashamed.
Maybe she had done something.
“...If he’s hiding so much from me, then maybe... maybe I did something before,” she said, her voice distant. Not sad. Not even bitter. Just... cold. “When I was human.”
That would explain it, wouldn’t it? Maybe she was the reason everything fell apart. Maybe he wasn’t just keeping things from her because he was an idiot who thought she was too fragile to handle it. Maybe she was something he didn’t want to face. Something awful.
Maybe that’s why she couldn’t remember.
Akane exhaled sharply, forcing herself back into the moment before she could spiral further. She unclenched her hands, setting them on her knees instead, grounding herself.
"...Not that it matters anymore. He’s stopped now. Said he won’t do anything reckless. For now." Her fingers tapped against her knee, rhythmic and calculated. "But he also said he will do it again if Ichinose crosses the line."
She glanced at Hamuko, the fire in her eyes dimmed, but not gone. "A big reason he isn't running right now is because she offered us a deal."