AD 2204, 6/6, 6th Hierarchical City of Yabiko – NOL Branch
Carl tries to keep his expression carefully neutral as he sits under the unreadable gaze of one Makoto Nanaya, Captain of NOL Intelligence, and his former schoolmate. At one point in time, he would have even called her a friend. But that time is long past, he muses as she sits in her open-backed chair, her bushy squirrel tail swishing about lazily.
Her hazel eyes hold none of their usual warmth as she regards him with a thoughtful hum. "Heard you had a rough couple of days, Carl. How are ya holding up?"
He blinks, not expecting her to ask such a casual question. He hums. "One could say that, yes."
She raises a brown brow when he doesn't elaborate. Her ears twitch, and he wonders for what must be the first time in years if they can hear his heartbeat. Her plush lips quirk up into a friendly grin, but it doesn't quite reach her eyes. "Ya know, I was looking all over for you after what you did back then, but you never stayed in one place long enough to pin down. What changed, Carly?"
His eye widens as she utters that nickname. She'd given it to him as an anchor of sorts when Ada's letters had stopped and had only used it when they were alone. To hear it again, in such a cool tone, sends a nostalgic pang of guilt piercing through his heart.
He clears his throat to regain his composure. "I didn't exactly have a choice. Mutsuki… He got the better of me, and now I'm here. You weren't the only one looking."
His voice is quiet, the result of basking in the guilt he's currently feeling. What better time to make use of Bang's advice, than when talking to someone he's so clearly hurt?
She hums again, leaning forward, her biceps bulging slightly as she crosses her arms, her tail wagging gaining more energy. "I know. Sector Seven, right? Unfortunately, we didn't have the same goal this time around." Her eyes narrow. "What am I supposed to do with you, Carly?"
He blinks again, confusion plain to see as his bandaged fingers twitch from their interwoven place in his lap. He shakes his head slightly and looks at her with as much firmness as he can muster. "I don't know. Does Mutsuki know you're here?"
She quirks a brow, annoyance fleetingly breaking her mask of indifference "Duh. Who do you think let me in on where you were, Carly?"
That nickname again, he frowns sadly. It seems that guilt stings just as badly as he remembered, even after all this time. He sighs. "Then what do you intend to do? I can't fight right now if that's what you're after."
She chuckles. "Carly, if I wanted to beat the daylights outta ya, you never would've heard me comin'." She shrugs, the powerful muscles in her arms rolling fluidly. "Nah, I just wanna know what the hell you were thinking when you decided to attack Noel."
He winces and slumps slightly at the mention of that name. He still can't stand remembering that day. He tries to think of ways to explain, to not have to relive one of the worst days of his life. Unfortunately, she isn't in the mood to entertain his lengthy silence today.
"Hey. I can see the gears turning in there, mister. Just tell me the truth. What was going on in that pretty little head of yours when you decided to act just like him?" She leans back her head, regarding him with an unreadable expression.
He subtly flinches. To hear one of his closest friends compare him to that bastard… It truly does hurt. He opens and closes his mouth a few times, before quietly sighing. "I thought it would save Ada."
She nods her head, but narrows her eyes, her tail swinging with even more energy. "Why didn't you just ask her for help? You seem to be able to now, so what gives? We were your friends, Carl."
He winces again, feeling his guilt intensify. He takes a breath to regain his composure before answering. "I didn't know what to do, back then. I just… The Embryo, what Relius said, looking into the Boundary… I lost… I lost sight of who I was, and who I was trying to be. I… I'm sorry."
She hums, her lips pushing down into a critical frown that finally reaches her eyes, which spark with some unknown emotion. "So, what? Was Noel just gonna be collateral damage? Is that it? Anything to save your sister, even if you gotta hurt your friends?"
He feels his eye sting as the guilt reaches its zenith. He shudders, quietly answering. "Yes."
The word rings out with a sense of finality, and she tenses, her eyes hard and judging. The oppressive silence returns as the two lock eyes for what seems like an eternity. Unsurprisingly, he looks away first, to stare down at his boots and gather his thoughts.
"…Would you do it again?" Her hushed voice cuts him off. She's looking at him with guarded eyes, but only a fool could miss the vulnerability in her gaze.
He thinks for a moment, before murmuring. "…No, I wouldn't."
Her eyes soften, her tail slows, and she loosens her arms. She sits still for a moment, lost in thought. He awaits her judgement, returning his gaze to his boots.
She sighs. "…Alright. I forgive you."
His head snaps up, his eye wide with disbelief, a faint warmth undercutting the cold currents of guilt.
"But!" She holds up a finger, wagging it in time with her tail. Her eyes are narrow and full of determination. "You can't run from us anymore. Promise me, Carl."
His eye sparks with a determination of his own. If she's truly offering him a second chance… "Yes. I promise Miss Makoto, I won't run away. No matter what happens."
She beams, her smile finally reaching her eyes. It's quite radiant. "Good. And Carly…" She reaches out to squeeze his hand, carefully leveraging her strength. "It's so good to see you again. The real you, that is."
Tears bead at the corner of her eyes, and the sting in his eye returns twofold to match them. He squeezes back reassuringly. "It's good to see you too, Makoto."
Her smile broadens, and she yanks him from his seat and into a hug. He returns the embrace as best he can, letting his tears flow as he allows the emotions of the moment to wash over him.
After a few minutes, the two part, and she gives him a wry smirk. "Now, tell me Kagura didn't actually trick you into a drinking contest."
He groans, pouting. She laughs, rich and full as she pinches his blushing cheek. "D'aw! Look at how red you got! He must've really laid it on thick."
Carl grows even hotter under the collar as he remembers just how easily Mutsuki had him falling for what was in hindsight, a rather blatant act.
She coos, tugging at his cheek even more. "Oh, man! You got even redder! He got you real good, didn't he Carly?"
She lets go of his cheek to grin at him mischievously, her tail wagging faster than ever, and her ears twitching excitedly. He huffs as he rubs the abused flesh, pouting even deeper. "I may have been… overconfident in my own abilities. Can we please talk about something else?"
She hums playfully, then smirks. "Sure. How about Luna and Sena?" She flirtatiously waggles her brows.
He huffs, pouting as deeply as his youthful features aloud. "You know a gentleman never tells."
She hums, her eyes softening. "Good on ya, Carly. Glad to see Kagura hasn't corrupted you before I can." She winks a cheeky grin firmly on her lips.
He rolls his eye in exasperation. He'd almost forgotten how brazen she could be. Still, a smile creeps onto his lips. "If anyone 'corrupted' me, it was them. I doubt anyone could top their performance in that regard."
She raises a brow with a cocky tilt of her head. "Oh yeah? Well, you never know until you try. Now c'mon, gimme some details."
Her tail wags excitedly as he sighs, looking to the window with an ever-deepening flush. It's good to be able to joke around like they used to. Well… mostly joke around anyways. He has no doubt that Makoto's thirst for juicy information hasn't faded with time. Still, it is as he said before, a true gentleman never tells. He smirks and says as much. Her grumbling only makes him snicker boyishly.
She huffs and leans back again to smile at him. "Fine, be that way." Her eyes grow serious. "You know, the others might not be as easy on you as me. Ya gotta plan?"
He sighs sadly. "I do not. To be honest, I never expected any of you would wish to talk to me."
She hums. "You're dead wrong there. We all want to know what's gotten into you. We're your friends, of course, we want to talk to you." Her face hardens. "Especially about Noel."
He winces again at the mention of Noel's name. "I don't suppose you have a plan then?"
"Sure do. I sent Kagura to let them know you're here." She raises a brow as his eye widens.
"What? Are you sure that's a good idea? What if—" A hug cuts short his excuses.
"Carl, you need to loosen up a bit. I mean, a lot... Just relaaaaax." She rubs his back soothingly.
He shivers at the contact but does his best to listen to her advice. After a few moments of deep breathing, he regains his composure, his body losing some tension.
She lets go and looks at him reassuringly. "Don't worry about a thing. I'll take really good care of you. I promise."
He sighs, his expression vulnerable. "Why are you being so kind to me? How can you forgive me so easily?"
She hums. "That's easy. It's because we're friends. And by the way, Noel forgave you a long time ago."
He stiffens, his eye full of disbelief. "W-What?"
She nods. "Yup. Noel gets that you're just trying to help your sister. Why do you think you got to stay a Vigilante?"
He feels another tear sting his eye. "She… She defended me?"
She grins. "Yeah, that's just how Noel is. Now, c'mon. We gotta lot of catching up to do, Carly."
She easily scoops him up into her muscular arms, and he squirms for a moment, face beet red with embarrassment. "H-Hey! I can walk, you know."
She chuckles. "I know, but it's been forever since I got to hold you, and you're too tall for a piggyback ride. But don't worry, you can still pet my tail."
She wags her tail for emphasis, and he groans in further embarrassment. The two make their way to his rooms to retrieve his monocle, and it is there that Makoto meets Ada properly for the first time.
While Carl is making sure his monocle is ready for wear, Makoto leans towards the doll to whisper. "Thanks for looking out for him, if there's anything I can do to help, just let me know."
Ada remains silent, but Makoto's ears twitch happily at what she perceives as an air of gratitude emanating from the doll's cracked silver face.
She glances at Carl and smiles warmly. This reunion has gone better than she'd dared to hope. "Maybe everything will be alright after all."