This was not Teru's idea of a good time.

"Why can't we just do recon on the guys that follow us? Why did we have to come all the way out here?" asked Teru as he followed Ritsu through the woods. The sun was high in the sky, the air had a cold bite to it, and Teru's heart was racing. This was the last place in the world he wanted to be. The snap of twigs under his feet, the crunch of old leaves, the smell of dirt…it hadn't changed one bit.

But he had.

He was thirteen now, he reminded himself for what had to have been the hundredth time. He wasn't nine, he was thirteen, and he could fight. He had his full powers, he was strong enough to lift a person with his telekinesis and he knew how to put up a barrier. He wasn't that scared little kid who got snatched up at the park like some overdone movie cliché. He was walking through the woods of his own accord this time, and he wasn't crying. He wasn't that crying nine year old running for his life covered in dirt and sweat and…other things that he would not think about. He was perfectly clean, perfectly safe, and perfectly fine.

If anything happened he could fight…or just give them Ritsu, since this had all been his idea.

"Keep your voice down." Said Ritsu. He didn't know why Teru was complaining and he didn't care. He had to check on the Seventh Division. He had to see how much progress they'd made, how many more of those Scar guys were around, and if he could sense…he was here for very important reasons. Reasons that he didn't need to go over with Teru in fine detail. He had legs, he had powers, he had bus money, he could go home at any time.

Ritsu may have been the leader here but he wasn't a dictator or whatever, Teru was free to leave and start his own anti-Claw rebellion…thing at any time.

"I will when you answer my question." Said Teru

"I'll answer it when we're in our prison cell since you seem so hellbent on getting us captured." Said Ritsu

"If anyone is going to get us captured it's you. This is stupid and you know it! We're too close, we need to turn back and-" said Teru

"If you want to go home then you're free to turn around and leave. I'm not keeping you prisoner." Said Ritsu. He didn't stop, he didn't even turn around. There wasn't any point to it. Teru could do whatever he wanted to do. What, did he think that Ritsu was going to drag him through the woods kicking screaming? It was nice having help but he could do this on his own. If….Sho was around then he would have been better off on his own. The last thing he needed was Teru there to ruin it…

Not that he expected to see Sho.

No, the esper subreddit was pretty good about keeping track of Claw's President. He was in China now, apparently just buying and selling stuff, probably for evil purposes. He was either selling things to get the money so he could take over the world faster or he was buying things to have places to house soldiers so he could do more recruiting and then take over the world faster…or maybe it was just something to have to do with the real estate market. Mom said that the market was good right now, that was why Dad was the one in charge of dinner now. He didn't know how he could have asked her about the market in China without her getting suspicious.

The last thing he needed was to make anyone suspicious.

Teru was still behind him, that was good. If Teru went home without him then that would have looked very suspicious. They were supposed to have a sleepover tonight and only one person showing up…well that wasn't much of a sleepover at all. Reigen would have been suspicious, he knew more than Mom and Dad did, and he was already suspicious at how fast he and Teru had 'made up' after what had happened. He knew that he should have fought with Teru more, made it look like he'd made him work for it. This had to be a believable relationship otherwise people were going to get suspicious and if they got suspicious then there went the actual relationship that he was in.

Also there was the whole fate of the world thing…maybe that was the thing he should have been more concerned about.

The world was in danger and he was the only one doing anything about it. People on the internet only complained. Nobody was actually putting together any kind of resistance force. They just complained about esper bosses, how the underworld was becoming the overworld, how Claw was amping up recruitment, how there were so few natural espers in the world…just a lot of grumbling. Pointlessness. A whole lot of pointlessness. Well Ritsu was doing something. Ritsu and Teru and…well they'd get more allies soon. They just didn't have anyone to recruit. The only adult espers around were either part of Claw or the yakuza, and Ritsu didn't think that brining the yakuza into this was a good idea right now, and there just weren't any kids espers. None. Aside from Hirai Madoka but she was just a kid and she didn't even have her full powers yet. It was rare, what Ritsu could do, even in the same family….if Shigeko had been around then maybe she could have helped him. Maybe she'd been the same…or maybe she'd been a normal person, since natural espers were rare and most espers were guys, and she wouldn't have been able to help anyway…

It would have been nice to know….

May. It was almost May and that meant everyone in his house, himself included, got really sad. Extra prayers, more offerings to the dead and the Gods, and just…all the stuff that they had to do to get through May. He couldn't afford to be sad like this, especially about someone he couldn't even remember. He had to stick to the mission. He had to take down Claw. He had to save the world.

And he had to figure out away to get Teru to shut up already.

"…just saying, maybe a drone or something would be better for this kind of re-CON!" said Teru. Ritsu dropped to his knees and pulled Teru down into the dirt with him. Teru could feel his knees getting wet…it had rained a few days ago and the ground was nothing but dirt and dead leaves. He'd have to wash these pants…pretreat them when he got home and then wash them….put them in the hamper. Right. Because Reigen didn't have a washer….so his clothes would just rot and…and what if he didn't have anything clean to wear. He'd have to walk around…he'd have to run…but it was so hard to run in wet pants-

He was thirteen now. Not nine. Thirteen.

"Shut up!" said Ritsu. He put his hand over Teru's mouth. Teru tried to shove him away with his powers but Ritsu just put up a barrier. He glared at Teru and then pointed through the bushes in front of them. There was the sound of footsteps, twigs breaking, and talking.

"What are you-" asked Teru as he got free.

"Human voices." Said Ritsu. He could feel….they had very dim auras, the Awakened. That was why they were the lowest level in all of Claw. They were mostly used as servants, cannon fodder, and test subjects. The Seventh Division was crawling with them, this was where they were made. Artificial espers…no match for a natural…

At least not usually…but teamwork was always a thing.

"Where?" whispered Teru as he pulled his aura in as close as he possibly could. Ritsu pointed forwards and then put his finger to his lips. Teru nodded. There were dead leaves all around him. They were cold but they were good camouflage….but they felt so gross…but even though he couldn't be felt he could be seen. If he was seen then he could be captured and if he got captured then…then there wouldn't be anyone around to save him this time. No Shigeko…

She had never been on his side.

There was some heartache when he thought about her…more than some, actually. She had been the first girl he had ever kissed for real, the first girl he had ever been in love with, the first girl he had ever done it with, and the first girl to ever try and honey trap him. It had been like in a spy movie. She had slept with him to get her on his side…she had tried to trick him. She had played with his heart and…well fuck her then. He was never making that mistake again. He was never falling in love again and never trusting anyone like that again. He didn't need her to love him or to save him. He could save himself.

Though, really, he preferred not getting captured at all.

"….find the ball…."

"…went this way…."

"….said that ten minutes ago…."

"….watch is just drawn on…."

"Fuck." Muttered Teru. They were close…they walked right past. Two of them in those awful red and black uniforms. One of them was carrying a plastic whiffle bat. Probably more for playing with than hitting people…but Teru was prepared to fight anyway. He tensed up. He was ready. If it came down to it then-

-then Ritsu was going to grab him by the arm and dig his nails in.

"Stop." Hissed Ritsu. He knew that look. Teru was ready for a fight…moron. He was such a moron sometimes. Where there were two then there would be others, especially if they were playing baseball…whiffle ball. That was worse. A whiffle ball was a lot lighter than a baseball and it had holes in it to be more aerodynamic. He didn't know the exact numbers, he had never brought a measuring tape with him to gym class, but at a conservative estimate a whiffle ball could go twice as far as a baseball when the wind was like this…but then there were the trees to consider…which meant that a lot of the Awakened would have been out looking. Not the Scars, no, they had real work to do and they never went through the Awakening process. The pain of it reset your brain to when you were a kid, people's brains did that to protect them. So there were a bunch of little kids with psychic powers out looking for a ball…

At least they were kind of dumb.

He waited until they were far enough away that their voices stopped carrying. Then, and only then, did he let go of Teru. He put up another barrier and let Teru hit it a couple of times. Just two. It would have been stupid to let him tire himself out when there were so many enemies in the area. They had to be on their toes and ready to fight.

The enemy. Not each other.

"That's enough of that." Said Ritsu

"Fuck you, I could have taken them!" said Teru

"Yeah, I know that, I was right here. You could have taken them but what about when the others showed up? You would have given away our position and then we would have been swarmed and captured." Said Ritsu

"Are you blind? There were only two of them!" said Teru

"When was the last time you saw two people and only two people playing baseball?" asked Ritsu

"….that was a whiffle ball bat…" muttered Teru as he crossed his arms.

"The rules of the game are the same, now come on. We're close." Said Ritsu as he got up to his feet. He didn't have to wait for Teru, he knew he was coming, and if not then that was ok too. He could leave whenever he wanted to. Ritsu didn't care…that much. He had bigger things to care about, like the fate of the world. If the Seventh Division was completely rebuilt then that would mean that it was up and running again…and then that would mean more Claw members in the city…and they knew about Teru. There were millions of people in Seasoning City but, statistically, they were going to get found out….they were going to need a new plan…or at least they might have…

He wasn't sure yet.

The walk to the building had been a short one. He had been careful, more careful than Teru, not to make a sound. He had been right to be cautious. Outside of the Seventh Division building there were Awakened just…playing outside? They had soccer goal and a badminton net and…bowling balls…for some reason….it looked kind of like Sports' Day at school but if someone had left the first graders in charge of planning. There were so many and they were everyone…..and the hole in the roof was practically fixed….

But where was Sho?

"Ok, you saw it, can we go now?" whispered Teru. There were so many of them…he had never seen so many of them all in one place. They weren't all Japanese, either, but they had been brought to Japan….Ritsu had been saying something about Claw doing more heavy recruiting. Was this it? Was…he wasn't ready. He was stronger and he could fight not but not THIS many people….and this was all just ONE division? This was…he took a step back…

Ritsu grabbed him.

"Stay." Said Ritsu. He just needed another moment…the moment passed as soon as he remembered that he couldn't use his powers here anymore. There were too many people outside and…and there was no way in hell that he would have been able to use his aura to see if he could sense Sho. Sho might have been there, he might have been in China with the President, or he might have been on the other side of the world. Ritsu didn't know and he knew that there was no way to find out from here.

So he looked one last time. He took one more moment.

He took a moment too long.

"….what was that…."

"Run!" said Teru. He didn't wait for Ritsu to say anything, he just grabbed him and started running. He didn't stop. He didn't know if he was being followed. He wasn't going to stop and look. He ran. He wasn't going to get caught, he wasn't going to get captured again, he wasn't going to be saved again…he wasn't going to have to be saved again!

He was going to run.

"Stop running!" said Ritsu as he pulled his arm out of Teru's grasp. Really. What an idiot. They hadn't been pursued…and even if they had been then hiding would have been better than running. Running was loud, running was dangerous, and running USED UP ENERGY! Teru could be such an idiot sometimes. Teru didn't care if he went home or not but he did care whether or not the only other person in the whole world on his side got captured or not!

They weren't even being followed!

"Run! Why aren't you running? You stupid-"said Teru

"I'm not the stupid one here. Running was the stupidest thing that you could have done. We should have hidden, it's better for conserving energy and it's safer, too. Do you have any idea how easy it is to fall and twist your ankle in these woods?" asked Ritsu

"You know that I do." Said Teru

"Then you know that hiding would have been better. There. Now that we agree we can-" said Ritsu

"So start running now!" said Teru

"Why? Were not being followed. Now come on, we can go home and-" said Ritsu

"I can go home, you mean." Said Teru before he turned his back to Ritsu and started walking. Not in the direction of home…but Ritsu had been in the direction of home and…and anyway he knew how to get to the main road from here so it was fine. He didn't know if he could even stand to be around Ritsu right now. Ritsu had almost gotten them captured. He had been reckless….he was always being reckless! Teru could be reckless too but at least he owned up to it! Well Ritsu could be as reckless as he wanted to be with his own life.

He could leave Teru out of it.

"Wait! You're going the wrong way!" said Ritsu as he followed Teru through the woods. What was wrong with him? He knew the way home and if he didn't then he should have just asked Ritsu. Why did he always have to be such an idiot!? Ritsu didn't have to follow him. He knew that he could have turned around and gone home, he was free to do whatever he wanted, and the only thing down this way was the fort in the woods so Teru would be safe….

But there were risks here that Ritsu didn't want to take…like losing the only person who would ever be on his side.

"I know! I'm trying to get away from you, now stop following me!" said Teru. He didn't know what Ritsu needed him for now but he was NOT up for it. Ritsu was just going to come up with another clever way to play fast and loose with their lives. Teru was done being reckless. He was done…he was done with a lot of things…and he could always be done with more…

But he didn't know if he wanted to be done with Ritsu…even if Ritsu could be annoying as hell sometimes.

"Just stop, you're going to get lost and then what?" asked Ritsu

"Then you stop following me. What? Don't you know the way home? You seem to know everything else." Said Teru

"I know the way home. I know these woods better than you do, now come on. Let's go home and-" said Ritsu

"If you know the way home then go there and stop following me!" said Teru

"Will you just stop already? This doesn't make any sense." Said Ritsu

"I'm trying to get away from you, what part of that doesn't make sense?" asked Teru

"All of it! What is the matter with you!?" asked Ritsu

"The matter with me? You're the one who nearly got us captured…again!" said Teru

"Me? You're the one constantly making noise and trying to fight people. I knew exactly what to do, I would have been fine, but you just-" said Ritsu

"If you know what to do then…then go and get yourself captured or whatever!" said Teru as he finally turned to face Ritsu. Ritsu just crossed his arms and gave him the look. That look he gave you when he thought that you were being ridiculous. That way he turned his head to the side and raised one eyebrow. It would have been cute if it had been on anyone but him.

"We were never in that much danger and you know it. Do you really think that I'd let something happen to you?" asked Ritsu

"Honestly, yes." said Teru

"Well I wouldn't, now come on, and stop acting like this. You know that you've done WAY worse stuff than I have, anyway, and put us both into way more danger." Said Ritsu

"Will you stop bringing that up!? Ok, yeah, I fucked up….but so did you! You and Sho-" said Teru. Fine, if Ritsu wanted to go there then they'd go there.

"That's different. I love him and he loves me. You just wanted to do it with a girl so badly that you didn't think and almost got captured." Said Ritsu. He narrowed his eyes. So did Teru. Ritsu didn't know why he kept on trying to compare that girl trying to trick him with what Ritsu and Sho had together. Teru could be so confusing sometimes.

"You know what, Kageyama? Fuck you." Said Teru. He turned around and walked. No particular reason, no particular direction, he just started walking. He didn't get far, though, before he heard Ritsu following him. Fine. Ritsu could follow him, it didn't mean that he was going to stand there and take any more of his shit.

"Teru…wait. Come on." Said Ritsu. He got close enough to grab his arm. Teru pulled his arm free and tried to keep walking. Ritsu was going to let him. This wasn't good. He needed Teru. Teru could be sort of annoying sometimes, and he could be really weird about some stuff like clothes and hair, and he could be really overbearing, and he could be a real moron…but Ritsu needed him. He needed another esper to help him take Claw down. He needed another set of eyes for recon. He needed…he also kind of needed someone to have sleepovers with and play videogames and sparring with….the sparring was most important, he decided. He didn't….he couldn't put the other stuff first…

But he could put Teru first…this time, at least.

"What?" asked Teru. He stopped. Ritsu was strong, as strong as he was, and he didn't want to fight with him. He just….he needed some space…but Ritsu never gave up. If Ritsu decided that there wasn't going to be any space between them then there wasn't going to be any space between them. He snatched his hand away from Ritsu's and took a step back…but just one.

"I'm sorry, ok? Can you forgive me now so we can go home already?" asked Ritsu. Teru gave him that look. That 'I'm pissed at you' and 'someone's going to get their ass kicked' look. That look that Ritsu was getting tired of….but he was going to be nice. He didn't exactly have other espers lining up to help him…and he didn't exactly have other people lining up to be his friend, either.

"I'll forgive you if you promise not to be…like this, anymore. We were too close and you know it. Just admit that you were wrong and we can go home." Said Teru. All Ritsu had to do was say that he was sorry, that was all. But of course Ritsu wasn't going to. Ritsu had never once apologized for anything, genuinely apologized in his life…and he was completely allergic to admitting when he was wrong, too!

"…I had it under control." Said Ritsu

"God!" said Teru. He threw his hands in the air and turned around. Ritsu grabbed at him with his powers but this time Teru was focused enough that he could shrug him off.

"You know that I did!" said Ritsu

"Which is why we almost got caught, right?" asked Teru as he started to walk away. Ritsu caught up with him.

"We almost got caught because you're too loud! And I was ready to leave anyway. He wasn't even…." Said Ritsu. It was Teru who stopped him that time. Teru put his hand on Ritsu's chest and stopped walking. Ritsu stopped…and Teru kept his hand there, right above Ritsu's heart. He felt shaky…a little….but that was just because they had been walking this far for this long without water. Teru was pulling his hand away anyway….

No, just back, not away.

"This was about Sho!?" said Teru before he shoved Ritsu as hard as he could on his chest. He didn't care if he knocked Ritsu down, maybe that would knock some sense into him!

"What the hell!?" asked Ritsu as he picked himself up. Teru had a barrier up…but Ritsu could break through it…or at least he could have if he had been able to FOCUS!

"Yeah, what the hell? Sho? Again with him? And you bring up…you brought her up to me when you were the one who dragged us both out here just to look for your boyfriend? Seriously!? He's not here! Do you know why? Because he knows better than to come here and put you in danger! Actual mortal danger! Are you…you're an idiot!" said Teru

"Fuck you! At least….and least he loves me! At least I love him and he loves me and you…you just….you don't get it!" said Ritsu. Teru tried to shove him again. Ritsu shoved him first…he should have used his powers. Teru was physically stronger…he was older. But not smarter, but not wiser, but not…he didn't know what…he just didn't get it!

"Get off!" said Teru as he tried to get Ritsu to let go! He was such a little kid sometimes! What was his problem!? Teru hadn't said anything that wasn't true. Since Ritsu was so much smarter than him he should have been happy to have been correct. Then he could go on and on telling Teru just how much smarter he was and how much more in control of everything and-and-and-

"Shut up!" shouted Ritsu as he wrestled Teru to the ground. He kicked. Ritsu held on. He thrashed. Ritsu held on. He cursed. Ritsu held on. He wasn't going to let Teru go. He wasn't just…he wasn't just….Teru wasn't going to stop it…and he wasn't going to…..he didn't get to bring Sho up like that!

"You shut up! Don't you get it! He isn't here! He's smart enough not to come back after-" said Teru

"Don't you think I know that!" shouted Ritsu. That time he did let go. Teru kicked him once in the stomach and rolled away. Fine…whatever. How could he just….Ritsu wasn't dumb. He knew…he knew that Sho was smarter than to come back here again. He knew that he would never see the only guy who had ever liked him back…the only person who knew him….the person who saved him….he knew that he was never going to see Sho again….

But Teru didn't have to go and say it!

"Ritsu…damn it. Fine, I'm sorry….I guess." Said Teru. He really hated it when Ritsu got like this. God. He was such a little kid…well he was a little kid. He was still eleven. He was just a kid and…yeah…Teru knew how he felt. It had been too much for him to deal with back when he had been twelve…he'd been an asshole….well Ritsu had been an asshole first…

But at least Teru was man enough to admit it.

"Fine…whatever…." Said Ritsu. He stood up. He was fine. He was perfectly fine. He was…he knew that Sho was gone and…and he had work to do, a lot of work…so he had to get home so he could do it. He was deep into the woods, right by the fort, and that was really far from the road. They had a bus to catch and a relationship to pretend to be in….

"Stop it. What? You want to go back and do more recon or something?" asked Teru. He wanted to lay down in the woods and just pass out. Ritsu was such a baby sometimes. Teru knew that he was right….but he was also old enough that he knew when to pretend to lose. Sometimes winning just wasn't worth it. Ritsu could win this battle. Teru was still going to win the war.

"No…and we're not even close to the Seventh Division building and….and we're closer to the fort, anyway…" said Ritsu. He didn't want….he just…he needed to calm the hell down and he needed to think. He had work to do and he had to figure…he…he had…to….

"Want to recon that?" sighed Teru. Really? He was going to be like this? Fine…whatever. He would stand, at a good distance and ready to run or fight, wherever Ritsu wanted him to stand. Anything to fix whatever the hell kind of mood Ritsu was in now.

"Nobody's ever there…so it wouldn't be recon." said Ritsu. He didn't want…he just needed….he didn't know if he could go home right now. Going to the fort in the woods…well there wasn't any recon to do but maybe he would find something out there but junk. Some kind of….like a piece of the puzzle, like a way to get into Claw's President's head or…or something.

"We'll explore then. Just…come on, and stop being a baby." Said Teru. Ritsu shoved him and told him that he wasn't a baby…but he followed. Teru knew of the fort in the woods but he hadn't been there before…well then this was a productive use of is time or whatever. This really wasn't a place Teru wanted to be, he really would have rather been at home….or anywhere else….

This may not have been Teru's idea of a good time….but whatever. Not getting captured was the best time of all or whatever so….whatever.