[closed] When Lassie Goes Missing

[takenwithhim]

Who: Rin Matsuoka sharkmaid and Sousuke Yamazaki takenwithhim
What: The God of Love has heard his first prayer request. The Dog of Water has his first job.
Where: Various locations in the Near Shore
When: May 1st, throughout the day
Warnings: None to be had, save for awkward and amusing moments.


This would be day five of his new life as a shinki. Sousuke knew at some point he’d stop counting the days. They would blur into the “normal” and what he had previously been completely hostile towards would defuse into something acceptable. Odd that on his first day here he’d been completely against subjugating himself to the role of some god’s personal shinki. To willingly give someone the ability to control and change him, much less to admit to himself he needed to rely on someone else for his own success, failure, well-being even, made him feel irritated inside and scoff at the notion. While he still had that streak of rebellion and his desire for personal freedom, Sousuke couldn’t bring himself to say his partnership with the God of Love, Eros, had been a detriment.

Rin wasn’t the kind of person who wanted to control him or make use of him like a weapon or a tool. He was always fast to remind Sousuke that he was a human (even if he was, albeit, both shinki and dead), and never once tried to force him into something he didn’t want to do. Of course, it’d only been four complete days. Though Rin had already professed a desire for the two of them to be truthful and open to each other, Sousuke still wasn’t sure just how “open” he wanted to be with Rin. Embarrassingly enough, though, it was a little hard to be worried about how “open” to be with someone when that said someone had barged in on him stark naked in the shower. (Rin had a good reason at least, but Sousuke wasn’t about to let him live it down. Yet.)

Routine days they’d been. Sousuke stubbornly refused to sleep in a separate room from Rin (be that meaning he spent the nights on floors, couches, cots, or whatever else, just not in the same bed, thank you), so they ended up waking together. Morning practices, washing and talking, breakfast, and then, joy of joys, getting lost in the castle again. Rin said he knew where they were going and always had an excuse, but Sousuke professed his god didn’t have everything mapped out yet. Getting lost became “exploring” and off they went again, Rin flying ahead and Sousuke following behind. Some arguments here and there…

Beyond that, Sousuke was starting to become a little more adjusted to the idea of turning into a canine. A little more adjusted to the fact he could make some kind of strange barrier with his hand (which is definitely didn’t use to get back at Rin a few times for teasing him, of course not). A little more adjusted to the idea that Rin was a god, and not just a god, but his god.

Now, as he stood by the fountain, gazing at the water swirling within the basin, Sousuke wondered just what sort of things gods were supposed to be doing anyways. They had four nice, peaceful days here… but even he could tell the two of them were getting a little antsy. The idea and urge of getting out and doing something wouldn’t leave Sousuke alone.

Che, where was Rin now?

Comments

[takenwithhim]

When was he not proud and stubborn? Of course he had to pick now; he was injured and weak and embarrassed! It was hard enough not being frustrated at himself too badly. Reminding himself what they’d come from and gotten through together helped at least. But it still didn’t cover up the fact they were right here and now broken and bloody with no real idea how to fix that issue. Rest and recuperation could definitely happen, but Sousuke had no idea how to set, much less fix, a broken leg. Or sew up bloody gashes in someone’s shoulder. And he highly doubted Rin knew how to either. Big difference than simply bandaging cuts with a kiss-n-make-it-better.

He was glad to be alive. For all the pain and frustration, the failure of sorts over their heads, the future, they were alive. They’d triumphed over something together, learned a little more about themselves, and ultimately made it out with their lives from a place that probably would’ve taken them. The promises and ideas during the trip could come later or not at all. At least Rin was still here with him… and strange as it was, Sousuke was relieved. Because it went beyond simple humanity and Rin-was-his-god feelings.

Ugh, was that seriously the way he was going to respond to Sousuke’s attempt at caring? The shinki’s ears flattened and he glared at the grass and sakura beside him rather than try to lift up and shoot the look at Rin. ‘Baka, don’t keep doing it then!’ He appreciated Rin’s efforts getting them back here, shut his mouth when he wanted to protest it. But now wasn’t the time to go shooting himself in the foot for their sake. They both had to make it through this next part if they were going to keep going together, right? Sousuke wasn’t the only one injured, tired, and suffering from blood loss and frustration.

With a quiet huff, Sousuke finally lifted his head and rolled a little, trying to get his forelegs beneath him. He could at least stand up and try to hold his broken leg off the ground. Hobbling along was going to hurt like hell, but he wasn’t going to—Oh. He heard Rin stumbling over to him before he realized the other boy was leaning over him with those concerned eyes amid a pain-streaked face. ‘Oy. Stop it.’ Hands were nudging at him and it only took a second for Sousuke to realize what Rin was trying to do.

‘Rin—I said—!’ And tensed up as his body moved and his leg barely nudged the ground. The shinki slammed his mouth shut, almost biting his tongue in the rush to keep that high-pitched yelp inside. ‘OW! Okay stop it! Baka, don’t move me!’ Snarling at him wasn’t nice, but they weren’t in the best of moods now anyways. ‘Go… go find water and cloth or something to make a split. I’ll limp to the pool afterwards.’

Or begrudgingly allow himself to be carried… but not with his leg left to flop around freely like this.

[sharkmaid]

The extent of his medical knowledge came down to treating sprains, cramps, and other basic, sport-related injuries, so clearly they were both at a disadvantage here with something this intense. Still, he had to do something to buy them some time until they could seek out real help, so what limited resources they had would have to do. A little optimistic, but at least it wasn't unrealistic, right?

So he moved. Against anything and everything Sousuke wanted, against his insistent yapping in his head or glares in his general direction, he was going to get both of them into the castle and down those stairs to the pool one way or another. Ignoring Sousuke's protests then, Rin stayed as he was, knelt beside him in the grass and the petals, the right side of his torso already numb from a combination of blood loss and cold water pressed to his skin. All right, if he just put his hand here and his other one there--

Dammit, stop telling me what to do. Stop moving, stop arguing, just--

And with that snarl he unintentionally tightened his grip into his shinki's fur. "NO, YOU STOP IT!" he snapped back without a second thought, their combined pain and frustration eventually culminating into one sudden outburst. "SIT STILL and let me do this!" I'm not useless, I'm not weak, I can handle myself and I can handle you too. ... I won't let you do this to yourself again! Fingers twitching, knees wobbling, Rin pulled Sousuke to him, but with his shoulder as busted as it was, he severely underestimated their combined weight and couldn't lift himself higher than a couple centimeters off the ground. Cursing, he tried again. A second time. A third.

... Until finally he all but collapsed back onto his knees with a pained and defeated sigh, Sousuke still pulled to his chest and lap for what measly support he could offer.

[takenwithhim]

Well his medical training came down to the ‘don’t remember but use common sense, idiot!’ type. Which in this case meant to not move at all. Something neither he nor Rin were listening to. A broken leg and a lacerated shoulder. That meant a split and stitches, right? That meant not walking on that leg or listing with that arm. That meant a cast and bandages, right? But they couldn’t keep lying here in the grass and hoping something would happen to make it better.

Which, unfortunately, meant moving. Sousuke seized up again as a hand pressed under his shoulder and his body skimmed the grass once more. Shit, if he were a human right now, he’d have a little more control of what he should and shouldn’t move, but as a canine, that wasn’t completely in his head. He’d never been really hurt as a dog before. With Rin ignoring his protests and yelps, matters went from bad to probably a lot worse. Because that also meant Rin wasn’t paying attention to his own injury! Trying to pick up an entire German Shepherd with a shoulder laceration was stupid! Stop trying to do everything!

‘OW!’ Sousuke yelped again, teeth baring when a fist tightened into his fur. That was a whole different kind of pain! And now Rin was yelling at him?! ‘STAY STILL?! YOU’RE DRAGGING ME!’ He knew they were hurt. He knew they were frustrated. And he knew his god was anything but weak or useless or unreliable. Still didn’t mean he had to do something dumb! He felt Rin’s fingers twitch, felt his knees shake, and felt himself land bodily against his god as Rin pulled him.

Now he was so close now, he definitely felt the buckle of Rin’s shoulder and it wasn’t long (long enough for three more tugs) before they both ended up collapsed on the ground. Sousuke wanted to snarl at him, wanted to lash out and yell because Rin was hurting them both now! … Sitting here in a weirdly-miserable curled up mess on Rin’s lap and propped against his chest, they were a sorry picture. He really wanted nothing to do with this right now.

Sousuke let out a little breath of a laugh. Both of them… both of them were acting stupid right now. ‘We’re a great team, aren’t we. Trying to make sure we don’t hurt ourselves until we fight.’ Of course it as a little sarcastic, but it was… honest. They were both pulling opposite directions and neither was helping the other even though they were both hurt. Sousuke sighed and sank down a little, relaxing as best he could. ‘Maybe we should work together.’

Duh.

[sharkmaid]

Dammit, the longer they argued about this, the longer they had to wait until they could finally get themselves patched up and, most importantly, less cranky! So while he knew he had to be careful, truthfully right now Rin was too upset to be thinking clearly, which explained why he snapped when he did. Hn. Probably doing more damage than anything else... Some really dumb and extremely avoidable damage, now that he thought about it.

But as they both sat there in their miserable little pile of aching limbs, he caught onto that laugh and perked up, wondering if Sousuke was at the point of being hysterical with his pain already. Seriously? This wasn't a laughing matter, idiot! Just give him a minute more and he'd finally get them up off this stupid patch of grass... Or, you know, he could sit here and listen to him make honest comments like that.

He didn't say anything at first, only stayed glaring at the ground in all his frustrated rage, but once that finally began to die down, Rin let out a resigned sigh and loosened his grip in Sousuke's fur. Should've been mad about that. This stupid sarcasm wasn't going to get them anywhere... or so he thought. "You can't walk," he said, his voice still tense but considerably quieter than before. He'd just seem stupid if he was the only one yelling, after all. "And I can't just leave you here while I get something to patch you up." Bandages, gauze, splints. They had to be somewhere in the castle, but as to where he had no idea. Who knew? Maybe he'd end up stuck wandering for hours.

"... I'll call someone then." And while they waited they could 'work together' to not get on each other's nerves. How did that sound?

[takenwithhim]

What he expected from such a comment was pretty obvious. He wasn’t reprimanding Rin so much as himself. They both needed to work together right now, frustrating as it was. Rin always told him they were a team, but Sousuke acknowledged he was too self-reliant to really accept it beyond the “have to” that came up every now and then. He liked being around Rin, of course, but having to rely on him for anything was… frustrating. Sousuke never liked it when someone or something told him “you can’t.”

The silence stretched longer than was comfortable, but all he could do right now was lie here and wait. If he rolled over and tried to walk, they’d probably get into another fight and just mess up his leg and Rin’s shoulder even further. Sousuke felt the glare over his shoulder but without a human body at the moment, he couldn’t reach up and smack him for it. And like hell was he going to lean up and lick him… because he knew what a dog licking someone meant. He at least got some relief when Rin eased up on his fur.

‘I can’t walk well,’ he pointed out with a small frown. Saying he was lame right now wasn’t completely the truth. Three legs worked and if he could manage to avoid moving his broken one, they could at least move forward. Leaving him there didn’t feel right, so he had to agree with Rin. Even if Sousuke was nigh-100% sure nothing bad would happen to him here on Rin’s castle grounds. Besides, protesting that would also trigger another yelling match. Wait—Call someone?!

‘Who are you going to call?’ The shinki’s voice dropped into a wary mutter. It was hard enough relying on Rin’s help; having to accept someone else was going to come along and see him in this pathetic state was… How about no.

[sharkmaid]

Right. Walk well. Of course that was something he would say. Still, Rin simply rolled his eyes because even he knew that was the truth. Likely, Sousuke would be able to roll over and hobble along slowly into the castle by himself, maybe after stopping for a second or two to center himself before trying again... But in a situation as dire as this, Rin didn't want to take his chances with aggravating his shinki's injuries (hm, talk about déjà vu), so like it or not, that was out of the question. He never doubted Sousuke's abilities or his strength. He just wouldn't be able to forgive himself if those things happened to fail.

So after a bit of searching through his pocket, he pulled out his device and started looking through his contacts. "Makoto." He knew he could panic about little things, but out of all the people he knew, he trusted his friend to at least answer his call.

"I'll tell him to bring supplies. And if he knows anyone with healing abilities, maybe he'll be able to contact them too." I know you're proud... but please trust me.

[takenwithhim]

Sousuke saw the eye roll and glared at his god, ears flattening again in frustration and annoyance. He wanted to growl at him too, but held it back. Rin was trying to help them both, even if it bothered… them both. They could hobble and drag and whatever else to the pool, but ultimately, it’d only end up aggravating their wounds and making things worse if the pool didn’t heal them. Realizing he couldn’t talk Rin out of the idea, Sousuke quietly dropped his head to the side with a soft huff. And he was still sitting in this stupid position, half hoisted up onto Rin’s lap with his legs sticking out in front of him. Felt more than a little foolish right now.

As Rin began wandering his device, Sousuke managed to wiggle, gently, enough to roll to the side and end up flopped over Rin’s legs. Much better… in a way. Makoto? ‘He’s going to freak out.’ The shinki’s voice was wry. He didn’t know the other god too well, but considering his interactions with Makoto already, that was Sousuke’s bet. Still… he knew how much Makoto cared for people, so with a sigh, he accepted the silent plea from Rin.

‘Fine. Let’s get it over with.’ It’d kill his pride to have someone else see him like this. And for what? Trying to find a little girl's dog. The story's even embarrassing.

[sharkmaid]

Don't give him that attitude, mister. The last thing they needed right now (aside from more angry ayakashi) was an argument and if Sousuke growled then Rin would growl back and it would just be one big mess. Looking up from the grass to the branches above, Rin sighed as the sun's rays spilled through the blossoms and touched his cheeks to warm his skin. Something about this place... It was hard to stay upset here. Maybe he was tired, maybe the blood loss was finally getting to him, but either way, Rin felt oddly at peace for once and took the opportunity to stay still and silent for a while. If not for the shifting on his lap he would have stayed that way, but as Sousuke readjusted himself he looked back down and pursed his lips at the sight. Was he comfortable that way? Hn. No sense in arguing it.

Instinctively his hand went for Sousuke's head again while the other finally found Makoto's number and lifted the device up to his ear. "He will. But I trust him." After an initial freak out, he'd be able to gather his wits together to help them. He believed that much. In the meantime... back to stroking between the ears and back over his neck.

"... Just rest. You did well today."

[takenwithhim]

They’re already one big mess, but he held back his comment and any further protests. At least he was agreeing to Rin’s directions, right? Sousuke knew full well that his god would return fire if he lashed out at him; neither of them were wimps that cowed to someone else. It made them work, surprisingly, but right now, neither need the extra issues. As the petals drifted down from above and the sunlight glimmered through the sakura branches, Sousuke let himself fall silent, let his mind drift. Regardless of the outcome, they’d succeeded. Answered the girl’s prayer, got her dog back, and survived through the trial. He knew this was an experience in spades; most prayer requests would go a lot easier. Maybe the next one they did would actually turn out fun, now that they knew what they needed to work on and how well they could potentially work together.

Front legs resting over Rin’s thighs, Sousuke rested his head between them, eyes half-lidded as he watched pink petals drift about on the air in front of them. Kept his back leg from moving much and that was what was important right now. Though he was still concerned about the injury… He didn’t want to bleed out if he could help it.

Hand on his head. Sousuke sighed, sinking in a mixture of relaxation and surrender. They’d be okay, they’d make it through this, they’d be together tomorrow and probably get right back into the normal between them. His ears flattened a little instinctively as Rin’s hand rested between them. It felt good… He closed his eyes and settled in to wait. The compliment earned a light huff of amusement, and proud agreement.

‘You did well too.’