.
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XIV.
For better or worse
"I can give you the address of where that destroyed machine is too if you need it," Misaki said, chancing another glance around them as she retreated her hand back. "That is if the government hasn't meddled in and swept everything away yet."
"Yeah, thanks."
Accelerator muttered, pocketing the small remote. This is as awkward as it could ever get, but he supposed it couldn't be helped. Any evidence of the Railgun's transformation could be a step closer to the solution regarding their little unfortunate entanglement.
"And just...one question, if I may?"
The Mental Out cleared her throat, and he looked up to see the blonde staring at him. Her mouth was stretched thin, but the golden eyes were careful and wide, serious.
"I can't see it myself because of your AIM field but...is she actually there? Alive in your mind?"
Based on the fact that the palm of his hand was still fucking tingling. "Yeah, she is."
The girl blinked, then looked down, a frown starting to mar her forehead. He tch-ed. "What?"
"Nothing, I - I'll try to look into it too. I'll tell you if I find anything."
Well this sure fuck was easy and helpful, why can't the Railgun or her crazy teleport friend be like this more? He ignored the little squeak of What did you just say?! inside his mind. "Sure."
"I - It's strange honestly."
"What's strange?"
"You have two minds residing inside you, but I don't sense any form of turmoil or antipathy."
Accelerator stared. The realization hit a little later and when it did his mouth immediately formed into a snarl. The girl seemed to have recognized her poor choice of words, because her eyes automatically widened, mouth hanging open to explain but he was already turning away from her.
"The only thing you should be sensing is minding your own damn business."
He called back, crutching away. If the Railgun understood the implication of the girl's words, she showed no signs of it, and he hoped they'd damn better keep it that way, forever.
x
x
x
As with most other things he had hopes for, it died faster than he could do anything about it.
Before he knew it, they were back in his room again.
Accelerator sat on the side of the bed, pale white bangs poking out the black hoodie pulled over his head, elbows rested on either side of his sweatpants-clad legs as he turned the remote in his hands. It looked just like any kind of TV remote that would be available out there, albeit a bit heavy and scratchy in some places. Nothing seemed special about it, and the faraway thought of how this was another dead end started tethering at the back of his mind, he huffed in annoyance.
"We can check out the address tomorrow."
Inside, Mikoto quickly suggested. In here, Accelerator stayed crossed-legs a few feet to her left, and she tried to beat away the thought of how short their distance had turned into with each time he came back here. Damn Misaki and her little stupid mind voodoo sensing crap. Even in a coma the girl could still unsettle her like no other.
He suddenly turned to her then, and Mikoto tried hard not to swallow at the darkness casting over his narrowed eyes.
"How are you acting like this is so easy?"
"I - huh?"
"Why do you act like the fact that we're talking, existing together, me using your power is a normal thing?" he spat, quiet, before his lips curved up at the corner again in mockery. "Fuck, even now you're talking like we're going goddamn shopping tomorrow."
Mikoto blinked, the words settling in before her eyebrows knitted in frustration. Really this guy, not a million cuss words he spewed out could stop the tiniest things from gripping at him. She supposed they were alike that way. Damn Misaki and her loud mouth.
She sighed. "What else would you prefer me to do?"
"Doesn't it hurt to be here?"
"...I guess it does...not physically, of course."
And for a moment she was quiet, as if she needed a few seconds to digest what he said before turning to him. Somewhere from above the light captured her eyes all at once, casting the big round irises in an amber glow as she tilted her head to look him straight in the eyes, although they felt like a million strides towards him.
"But I don't feel alone."
Distinctly, she could feel the back of her hands starting to sweat. Silence draped over them as she tried to keep her gaze steady at the boy a few feet next to her.
For a moment, Accelerator simply stared back at her, his face impassive. Even half swathed by the darkness surrounding them, his features still stood out, boyish and clean-cut. The black hoodie hat slumped over his head, leaving only the long, pale bangs fluttering over his sharp nose, and the way the small light twinkled in his crimson gaze sent more shivers across her spine.
It was the eyes, had to be. He could drown a person in them, and she's the one who couldn't breathe right now.
It felt like an eternity, but finally, Accelerator relaxed his mouth, and leaned back into the wall, red eyes still intensely keeping attention on her innocent features.
"Don't say shit like that," he said flatly. "Need I remind you that it's people like me that get the most negative preconceptions? You'll be regretting this faster than you think."
The short-haired Esper blinked in uninhibited surprise. Mikoto licked her lips and took a deep breath. "Maybe," she paused, slumped back to her side of the wall too. There's nothing but a sea of darkness in front of them, but somehow inside she's never felt so full.
"Maybe not."
Accelerator scoffed immediately in reply, tore his eyes away from the girl and looked down at the hands perched on his knees instead. His body and brain were starting to react to her in the weirdest ways, and he wondered briefly if his sanity had finally given up and begun to seep out of his skin, or the SISTERS' effect had been rubbing off on him for way too long. Or maybe it was just this one. The girl really did feel like the sum total of them most of the times.
Or maybe it was just best that he stopped pondering anything about her altogether.
x
x
x
There's yellow tapes and white markers everywhere, Accelerator stared up at the abandoned building in front of them, one hand in his hoodie pocket, the other on the crutch he's leaning on, feeling his irritation spike. Guess Mental Out was right about the Government tapping their noisy capitalist hands on the scene after all.
"Maybe the machine's still inside. It's got to be too huge to move." The Railgun quipped.
"Maybe," he said, and switched his choker on anyways. Whatever.
It was dark and quiet inside, with no signs of people. He had to be careful minding his steps just in case of any surprised holes caused by the falling rocks and debris from the past destruction. Accelerator would be almost impressed if it weren't for the fact that it was the transforming Level-6-Railgun who did this much damage and not the girl herself.
"Stop."
Accelerator paused at her voice, and pointed his flashlight to the view in front of them, and there it was – appearing at the tiny light. The thing was gigantic, with wires and metal shields surrounding an empty glass case with a controller board. Whatever thing inside the case was gone, but the machine looked seemingly intact, albeit with huge dents and scratches.
"So this was that Kihara freak's invention, huh." He commented, eyes raking over the entire machine in great disdain.
"It's missing something. They probably sealed the whole place to get it." Mikoto sighed in defeat. "It probably doesn't work anymore."
Accelerator stared at the thing in contemplation, the remote heavy in his grip. They have gone way too far to receive just this in return, he huffed, raising his hand. To hell with it, they were already here anyways, what was there to lose.
He pressed the button, and everything shifted in an instance.
A screech cut through the air, before flattening into a buzzing sound as the machine rumbled. But Accelerator wasn't noticing the shocking sound. Inside, Railgun had sunk down on her knees, hands pressing tightly on either side of her head and her breaths coming out in short gasps. Distantly, she heard something clicking, and a tall shadow lingered at the edge of her view but her vision was too distorted for her to make shapes of it.
That was how Accelerator found the girl, uncontrollable shaking and loud heaves of her chest, a terror-wide stare at the void in front of her. Her hands curled into fists against the floor, and he immediately realized with a sense of dread about what was happening, as a black substance started clawing its way up her bare arms.
"Jesus fuck…fuck," he rasped, reaching for her wrist. The skin was burning where he gripped around. "Hey, listen. Snap out of it."
"Wench, hey, talk to me." No response, not even a flicker of recognition in that amber hues of her.
The black matter reached her wrists now, creeping up her smooth skin in crumbles and patches, and he pulled his hands back as if burned. Biting his lips in bleeding anger, Accelerator sat up, reaching out to grab the girl by the shoulders and haul her up until they were face to face. His glare hardened as he examined her features – cheeks smeared with tears, her eyes beaten and bloodshot. Her wild stare was distant and pleading, and his focus fell down to her quivering lips, which were parted open to reveal a line of dents where she had probably chewed at in her blinding pain.
"Fucking great."
He muttered, but not releasing his grip on her. Outside, the machine was blinking a tiny beeping light, seemingly operating. He reached for the remote and pressed hard on the button, although nothing happened.
Another gargled gasp heaved out from the girl Esper in front of him, and Accelerator gathered his nerves and dropped the remote to steel himself. A gush of wind powered in and slammed into the machine hard enough to rattle it, and then another, and another until the metals caved in a piercing screech, before the light dimmed away.
Sighing, his pulse thundered in his skull as he waited to see if his attempt had worked. With his hands still bracing the girl up, her skin burning through the sleeves and into his palms, he instantly felt her breathing pattern even out slowly. He kept his steady grip on her upper arms, and watched as her amber eyes start clambering themselves back to clarity.
It was silence, then she coughed, and he immediately pulled his hands back. She swayed forward a bit, before snapping her eyes wide open at realizing who was in front of her and almost fell back on her butt, if not for him reaching one hand out again to steady her by the shoulder.
"I – "
She sputtered, immediately turning sober at the circumstance and the awkward position they were situated in. Accelerator just levied her a flat stare before moving his gaze to glare at the machine behind them.
"At least we know the stupid thing still works," and his red eyes turned back down at her again. "And you're still able to transform, by some fuck knows how."
"R-right."
Mikoto nodded, avoiding his eyes as she rocked back on her heels to put some distance between them, albeit shakingly. His hand slipped off her shoulder smoothly, leaving just the barest hint of a pleasantly cool feeling through her uniform sweater. He was close, too close. She could feel his elevated breathes flicker at the loose hair matted against her face, and it sent an unnatural sensation trickle down to the pit of her stomach.
"Thank you."
She murmured, not sure if he's even heard it even though they were still pretty close. The guy didn't answer, but when she heard clothes rustling and a hand swept into her view, she accepted it without a word too. Accelerator was right, at least they had a lead now, and they were going somewhere. Mikoto wasn't sure how all these little moments like these have started to feel more significant then, but they were.
This would change things, and she could only hope that it would be for the better.
(TBC)
NOTES: Either Accel cusses too much or I do, oh well it can't be helped. Thanks a lot for waiting guys, although I am very sorry to say that updates will be slower now but it's okay my goal is to finish this before summer ends so *crossing fingers*