Play Your Way
Outside in the Jiro residence's back garden, Akio continued to work with his 'quirk', although it could hardly be called that he rolled with the lie to better explain his control over smoke. With some fine-tuning, he could create any number of gases with a little understanding of the chemical make-up, it was handy but switching mid-battle was very tricky. And with smoke, the process felt natural, like he had been doing it all his life.
Controlling a ball of black smoke in his palms, Akio gently tossed it into the air with the rest, making that twelve thus far. He was using his own stamina, as Viral put it, relying on a Nightmare's strengths constantly makes for a complacent Host. If they became separated, what was Akio to do then?
Sweat rolled down his cheek, completely entranced by his work that he didn't see Mika standing by the porch. "You should take a break, Akio," Her voice startled him, causing the various smoke balls to explode in his face. It didn't cause a huge scene but the assault on all fronts did leave him wheezing from the fading smog. Mika giggled behind her hand. "Oh, sorry, I didn't realize you were concentrating on all of them."
"Y-yeah, it's fine," He coughed, waving the smoke away. "I don't necessarily need to but if I hold my control over them I can manipulate where they go and how to form, but as you see, it's... a work in progress, *cough-cough*."
Mika handed him a water bottle to help clear his throat, his head nodding in thanks before she propped the door open. "Go and get cleaned up, dinner is in an hour."
"I can help if you want?" He suggested but her jack tapped to his forehead.
"You handled the shopping list for me, so it's my turn to cook," She offered a solid argument.
Akio smiled slightly, "Are you saying that to be nice or because you don't want Kyotoku to give us food poisoning," It was a good thing Akio could create other chemical gases, healing ones included without Viral's magic.
Mika tapped her own lips. "I have absolutely no idea what you mean," With a short wave of her hand, the two parted ways, snickering at the poor misfortune.
Akio checked himself over as he walked, he didn't look all that dirty more-so exhausted from overusing his energy. Viral hummed in agreement. "You're improving, if only a little a day, it's been much more progressive since we were allowed to stay here," He was right, in just over a week the two felt much better mentally.
"Correction, 'I' was allowed to stay here, you're just a tagalong," Akio reminded him.
"What they don't know won't hurt them - huh?" Viral's shadow paused, spotting his Host staring in the direction of Kyoka's room. "What?"
"Just... curious," He wandered over to her door.
*Knock-Knock-Knock*
"You in there, Kyoka?" Akio was unsure, but coming from the faint vibrations through the door it was a tall-tale sign she was but couldn't hear him. "What is that?" He pressed his ear flush to the door, feeling a steady stream of vibrations like a bass
"She's a musician, right? Could be music," The shadow's right eye, the only visible one, slit suspiciously. "Must be soundproofing, the vibrations are too steady to be anything else, how curious."
Without another option, Akio prayed to Eve then shrugged as his hand twisted the nob, the vibrations ceased for a moment, then, cracking the door open, both Host and Nightmare were struck by a blast of sound to reach his eardrums, pure rock music rattling his bones. While the actual song was playing, it was Kyoka adding another electric guitar atop her singing to the instrumental.
She wore just a red 'DEEP DOPE' tank-top and a pair of black shorts, the necklace bobbing with her actions as a smile grew wide with her music, each cord played stitched seamlessly with the instrumental, and her singing voice was astounding, even with her eyes closed to focus solely on the music, she continued with tremendous joy on her face.
The song appeared on her laptop on her desk in English, /Last One Standing - Simple Plan\. Kyoka spun round, taking a deep breath, not realizing she now had an audience, and neither wanted to interrupt and she continued on.
Did you think that I would surrender easily?
Just like that, you were getting rid of me
Is that the way you saw it all go down?
I don't think, I don't think so
There's not a word you can say I haven't heard before
So give it up, give it up unless you want a little more
You think you're pretty tough, so let's throw down
It's alright, I'm alright
Whoa-oh, whoa-oh, I'm always gonna be the last one standing
Whoa-oh, whoa-oh, 'cause I'm never gonna give up trying
And now I'm ready to go, I'm here, I'm waiting for you
And I'm gonna be the last one standing
Her eyes crept open slightly, still fixed to the neck of the guitar while she sang softly, her cords gently brushed, building up-tempo. All while Akio became utterly encapsulated by her voice and talent.
I won't give up, I keep trying
It's not over, I keep fighting
I won't give up, I keep trying
It's not over, I keep fighting
I keep fighting!
Whoa-oh, whoa-oh, I'm always gonna be the last one standing
Whoa-oh, whoa-oh, 'cause I'm never gonna give up trying
And now I'm ready to go, I'm here, I'm waiting for you
And I'm gonna be the last one standing
And I'm gonna be the last one standing
Whoa-oh, whoa-oh, the last one standing
Whoa-oh, whoa-oh, the last one standing
She gave the guitar one last strum before finally breathing, utterly oblivious to her surroundings until she focused on the door, then froze as her posture completely locked at the sight of Akio, himself realizing now that standing with the door closed might not have been a bright idea. Without question, he threw his hands up in surrender, two earjacks poised dangerously close to his throat.
"You didn't hear me when I knocked! A-a-a-and you didn't look like you would hear me even when I entered so..." He was losing this staring contest, the fire in her purple eyes was startling, even for Viral, though her face slowly crept with a red blush.
"Duh-du-duh, we're dead," He slithered behind Akio before Kyoka could spot the strange shadow
"You got ten seconds..." She breathed, fingers taut at her invasion of privacy, and the fact she never liked it when people watched her perform. Ever. "Nine..."
"You wouldn't actually kill me, right?" Akio was uncertain but neither was he certain
"Eight... Seven..." She was walking closer, cracking her knuckles
Viral paled. "You really want to take that bet?"
He was unwilling to try. Within seconds he put his hands together and bowed his head. "I am really, really, really, really sorry!" While he rambled on with his apologies for intruding. "I-I-I know I messed up! L-look I was considering asking you about teaching me to play, but that fine now, I realize my mistake, I will leave, good afternoon, seeya-!"
"Wait! Wait..." His hand slipped off the handle, headbutting the door with a muffled curse, that atleast humored the rocker who carefully composed herself, removing her earjacks from his personal bubble. She put the guitar still slung around her stomach back on the pegs on the left wall, sitting down on the corner of her bed with a slight stutter to her words. "L-look, I'll let it slide since... well, soundproofing, b-but next time wait o-or something, alright?"
Internally, she was screaming at her stupidity for not locking the door. "Of all people, why did he have to walk in and see that!? Burn in hell universe!" Her playing was already a tense subject to bring up around others, but singing? Not even her parents had access to that private file in her life, not any more out of pure embarrassment.
He nodded but was confused, was it not good? "I mean I thought your singing and playing was amazing, your skill's impressive." Again he froze at the earjacks closing in on his eye, seeing the red dust her cheeks with a stern, aloof gaze. "B-but you were!"
"Just... drop it." "I wasn't that good, right? ...but he seemed to like it..." He probably just said that to make her feel better. Shaking her head, she twirled a jack around her finger. "Back to what you said, you wanted me to teach you? Why not my parents, they're the professionals?"
"W-well, yeah... I don't have a good argument for that..." Akio scratched the back of his head. Asking her this after barging in was a little rude but Mika was making dinner, and Kyotoku was still in their personal studio, and Akio had no contractual obligations to fulfill. However, the curious tweak in her face meant he held her attention. "...I wanted to learn, I've always seen people playing and I wanted to try it for myself... plus, living with a musical family so I feel like that's a requirement, and... stuff..."
"Way to string together your argument, muffin top," Kyoka didn't know what to make of him, or of his request. "Teaching isn't the issue, well it is, but rather my skills aren't all that vast,"
"What can you play? I mean, there's a lot of instruments here," Akio observed, sitting down with his legs crossed on the floor.
"Umm... Bass Guitar, guitar, piano, drums, flute, trumpet, keytar-"
"Is there anything you can't play, I should say?" Akio worded differently with a wary smile.
"I guess the saxophone and piccolo-" She lowered her finger in thought. "No, wait, I can play the latter."
"Seriously? Piccolo?" Not that Akio had any reason to judge, he couldn't begin to fathom playing them all.
She shrugged, "I played a bit when I was younger cause a character from a show I like was called that," Then she realized what she said, chest squeezing tightly. "W-well, it's stupid any-"
"Who name's themself 'Piccolo'?" Akio scratched his temple. Kyoka looked at him like he had two heads. "What? I've been homeless for like... ever, I only just recently discovered the magic of awful reality T.V thanks to your Dad."
"A-ah, right, sorry," She scratched her head, again, her slip-up of interests didn't even phase Akio given his lack of any socialization. But, something in his eyes told her he was curious still.
"Is it any good?"
"What?"
"The show, the one with a guy called 'Piccolo'?" He leaned forward eagerly.
"I-I guess, it's uh, well, got a lot of fighting in it, that's kinda the whole deal," Kyoka wasn't used to this, talking about something she liked, yet her lips kept moving.
"Oooh," He fished around in his pocket, procuring a notepad dotted with lists upon lists of messages, jotting down on a new page, he wrote the caption 'TV Shows'. "What's it called?"
"DBZ," She watched him write it down before smiling, it was nice. "Y-you're serious, huh?"
He gave her a confused look, "Why wouldn't I be? If you like it then it must be really good." Did he just always know what to say? Well, whatever the case may be, perhaps letting him in on that interest of hers wouldn't be so bad. "So, if you can teach me, what should I start with?"
Back to their original topic, Kyoka looked around at their options. "I guess guitar, it can be a mixture of soft or acoustic, but also powerful and hard-hittin', like you, considering you fell from the sky with only some scratches, but soft like that curiosity of yours,"
"Tailor the instruments to the personality?" He cocked his head.
She clicked her fingers, "Bingo, air-head."
"Guitar's what I mostly saw during my journey," He emphasized by playing the air.
"So fingerstyle?" Kyoka considered it, then smiled. "Sure, I can teach you, it's usually that or the drums where most beginners start, I'd say piano too, it's a little trickier but once you get a feel for the instrument it should come to you pretty easily."
"Then which should I learn?"
"Both."
"Eh?" He blinked, looking between the two instruments, then deadpanned. "I don't have four hands, you serious?"
"Do I look like I'm cracking jokes, brownie?" Her signature aloof gaze met his eyes.
"Uh, with that look, I'm completely lost." That at least got a laugh out of her.
"Look, we'll just allocate days to which you learn, then go from there," She got up to grab her acoustic guitar, sitting down once more.
Viral raised his brow. "She seems awfully committed given she was ready to stab you and pump Eve knows how many sonic vibrations into your skull?" Not that he wasn't interested just observing is his specialty
With a roll of her eyes, she played an upbeat melody that had a good kick to the rhythm, her hand tapping at regular intervals to the guitar itself. She paused, adjusting the instrument on her lap, then immediately drew herself into a familiar melody to Akio, but nowhere could he place it, so he sat and listened.
Her hands glided like a breeze over the strings, neither hand moved the same way, plus, the way she moved entranced Akio. How her arms bobbed with her motions, the light tapping of her head causing her jacks to sway, how her emotions didn't radiate but fluttered like a gentle tide around her.
With a final strum, she sat the guitar on her lap, giving him a mirthful smirk. "This shouldn't be hard, granted, acoustic is easier than electric and you're brain is about as empty as it gets so I can see how it's a little harder," She motioned for him to sit beside her
"Was that supposed to be an insult or compliment?"
"Take your pick, Air-Head." She smirked, mentally thinking of more nicknames as his eyes flattened. "Just messin', here." Handing him the guitar, he mimicked her handling of the instrument with his hands off the neck. "Right, so from the bottom string it's, E, B, G, D, A, and Lower E."
"Right," He had to jot this down later. Soon, the trio fell into a lapse on concentration, Viral keeping to himself busy observing them without the rocker's notice, seeing her direct and instruct Akio as the embarrassment from earlier vanished to a warm glow around the two, a student and teacher at work without notice.
With the details of the chords and frets explained through trial and error, Kyoka kept Akio from writing anything down, finding that memorizing was the best way to solidify the information, that, and she had her own notes thrown about the floor between them, creating a secluded circle where they sat. Now Akio was trying to play a simple tune that involved moving his hands rather robotically, the sound coming off with gaps and incorrect frets.
He scrunched up his brow, trying to play correctly but it proved to be a little confusing for his hands like they refused to follow the instructions without one finger brushing the wrong chord. "Hmm, this is difficult."
"You're being too slow, not a good trait for a du - I'll stop," Kyoka's body shifted and Akio blinked as she sat behind him to examine his hands from over his shoulder. With both of her hands, she steadily adjusted the position of his fingers. "You're applying force where it's not needed, try to just glide your hands and press down gently."
It was a little strange having her looming over his shoulder, feeling the warmth of her body pressed against his shoulders, even a faint tickle of her breath against his ear made him feel strange, pleasant, but strange. Her jack would tap his forehead when he would mess up, telling him to adjust his fingers as it slowly and meticulously came together. A rather basic combination but his hands were gradually adjusting, moving smoothly to the correct fret and chord.
"That's it! Nice work," Her hand patted his shoulder. Kyoka adjusted her seat, putting her back flush against his. "Though you've still got a long way to go, that was as basic as it gets," Picking up her own favorite guitar again, black with a few stickers of bands and other symbols dotting the body, she flicked her hair with a jack and decided to play a similar tune akin to Akio's practice tune.
Akio pulled the instrument to his side as they fell into serenity, his notes and Kyoka's pairing seamlessly, the occasional tap of her hand to above the soundhole creating a tempo for him to follow. Her room felt warmer, the posters, instruments, and colors all applied with greater detail.
He spent many months in the dark places across the country with only Viral as company as fear kept him on alert, now he had a roof over his head, he felt warm, happy, and even had the time to try and learn what this family loves most. Even out the corner of his eye, Viral was content to listen without a snarky remark or monologue.
Enthralled by their combined melody, Kyoka relaxed against Akio's back, feeling her hands move without her command as she smiled contently out at the setting sun outside. He did suffer from a few hiccups but her own tune helped keep him on track. Right now she was happy to keep playing a little longer, her chest aflutter with bliss. Maybe more of her hobbies were okay to show?
"Kyoka, dinner!" From outside the room, a voice called and the two broke away, realizing two things, one, it had been just over an hour since they started, and two, the voice belonged to Kyotoku who knocked on Kyoka's door.
"Crap, what do we do!?" Kyoka whispered in a panic. "If he sees you here he'll never leave us be all night!"
"Relax, I got this," Akio grinned, patting the wall blanketed by a small shadow. Then, Akio vanished without a trace, leaving Kyoka star-struck before slapping her own forehead. Of course, she forgot he can do that. Which, now that she thought about it, how did his quirk allow him to do that?
"C-coming now, Dad!" Kyoka replied quickly, putting her guitars back where they belonged.
It was odd, addressing her hobbies wasn't something she was overly keen on, she kept her life reserved because there wasn't anyone that just clicked with her interests, so over the years it became less of an excuse and more second nature to lock away her life, everything was private. That was before she earned herself a roommate from the clouds, one that, out of dozens in her life, actually held interests in the things she liked, even if her reserved nature told her to hide it all away, threaten anyone that prodded at her life. Akio... just found a way through.
After that ordeal, Viral felt his mind wander as the sun began to set. He knew the risks that came with staying, Nightmares like Shadow Play were on the prowl, if they knew of their connections to Kyoka and her family that would paint targets on their backs. Yet, the Nightmare couldn't bring himself to say otherwise, that look on Akio's face, the feelings that were beginning to manifest in his soul. He had seen nothing like it from his Host, not for a very long time.
His eye narrowed venomously. "We've run for years, death follows wherever a Nightmare treads," He clenched his fists. "But not this time," He felt his flame flicker at the closing nightfall. "He won't... no, We won't run away anymore."
To Be Continued...
Look at that, I can upload correctly to my weekly schedule! Yeah, enjoy the early chapter of Perfected yesterday. Anywho, Akio is a very curious person, and the idea to pass up asking to learn how to play an instrument would be stupid. That, and I'm enjoying these two in greater detail outside of Perfected, strange being back before Yuki and everything with SIVA. I hope you enjoyed, I appreciate the support as always; seeya in the next chapter, Renegades!
P.S. Love Last One Standing and Take My Hand from Simple Plan, don't judge me.
Next Chapter: Confrontation
Akio's been disappearing every night and Kyoka is starting to grow suspicious of said behavior, how long can the Host and Nightmare continue their deception?
