"Welcome back, everyone."
Hinata called out across the courtyard, and the aura of calm following the storm of battle briefly washed over the entire group.
As always, Wakaba was the one to respond. "We've come back safely, Hinata." She was already heading in her direction. It was like she always knew where Hinata would be when they returned, even from the beginning.
Another Vertex attack had befallen them, and it had been repelled like all the others before it. The sun was high overhead, accompanied by only a few scattered clouds, the attack having come in the middle of their normal lunch break.
"Tama really worked up an even bigger appetite fighting them off! There's still time for lunch!" Tamako didn't waste any time in trying to get right back to their interrupted meal, the declaration coming as she grabbed Anzu's hand and marched off toward the cafeteria. "Let's go, Anzu!"
Chikage watched the pair go off, hand-in-hand. Hinata and Wakaba were on their way out, too, leaving only her and Yuuna remaining where they had been placed after the Jukai reverted.
"You were amazing today, Gun-chan!" Yuuna hopped into view, cheerful as always. Unlike always, her hair now stuck out at odd angles in places and her skin shined in the sunlight. She still had her gauntlets on her hands, making for an odd combination with her school uniform, one that Chikage had come to appreciate whenever she got to see it.
The battle had been a tough one. What felt like thousands upon thousands of Stardust and nothing else had come for them this time. They were in the thick of it almost immediately and couldn't even take turns to rest like the team usually tried to do. All they could do was push through to the end. And yet through it all, Yuuna had taken her fists to the enemy one after another without hesitation or signs of tiring.
"… Thank you, Takashima-san." She smiled. "You were amazing, too."
Chikage rested the end of her scythe against the ground and started folding it back into its more compact form. Yuuna had less to do, needing only to untie her gauntlets and take them off, which she began with her right.
"Do you want to go back and have lunch in your room? Do we have time?" Yuuna pointed back toward the dorms. They had been planning on eating together in Chikage's room that day, before the Vertex arrived.
"Yes. Everything should already be prepared."
Yuuna plucked her right gauntlet off her hand and gave them both a shake, then untied the left. "Great! Let's—" She stopped short.
Chikage looked up from her scythe. It was only for a moment, but she caught a look of something flashing across Yuuna's expression. It was gone before she could even form a thought. Pain? She was back to smiling as usual, but her bare hand remained motionless on her left gauntlet, as if ready to pull it off but never doing so.
A moment. Two. The silence worried her. She should say something.
"Ah, Gun-chan, I'm really sweaty, aren't I?" Yuuna spoke before Chikage could utter a sound. An embarrassed giggle followed, and Yuuna put her hands behind her back. "Can you wait for me in your room? I'm going to wipe myself off first, okay?"
Chikage nodded, and with that, Yuuna turned to hurry off toward the dorms, one hand still inside its gauntlet.
Yuuna grimaced. Each swipe of the disinfectant across her knuckles came with an unpleasant burning.
From the very start of the battle, she'd known something wasn't quite right. A strap not properly tightened, perhaps. But the battle became too hectic too quickly, she didn't have time to figure out what the problem was. It didn't stop her from fighting, so she ignored it. She needed to protect her friends, after all.
"Ow…"
Every time she opened or closed her hand, now that it was free of the gauntlet, it felt like something was gripping her fingers and squeezing. A sharp pain that subsided almost instantly into a dull ache, only to return just as harshly the moment she moved it again.
She flexed her hand one more time. Harsh, but not unbearable. The swelling wasn't bad, so it probably wasn't fractured, at least.
She sighed. She only started feeling the pain when she first went to take off the gauntlet earlier, so it was a relief that it wasn't as bad as it first seemed. She would just need to rest her hand for a while. Being limited in how well she could use her hand, however, would make some things harder. Like eating with a friend. But even more troublesome would be the large, dark bruises still forming on her fingers.
Yuuna reached into the first aid box she kept in her room for just these occasions and pulled out a roll of cloth bandage. Wrapping her hand would cover the visible marks and help prevent her from moving her fingers and aggravating the injuries while they healed. She had done this many times while training when she was younger.
But it would be very obvious.
Yuuna put the bandage aside and took out some gauze and athletic tape. A single strip would do. She cut off a thin piece of gauze for each finger and started taping them across her knuckles. She could handle limiting the use of her hand on her own, she just needed to pass her injuries off as some minor skin irritation from the long battle.
Somehow.
She couldn't let her worry.
Just as she finished up, a light tapping against her door broke the silence.
Yuuna jumped. The first aid box bounced off her bed and clattered to the floor. Its contents were thoroughly spilled everywhere when she heard a voice from the hallway.
"Takashima-san?"
"Aa-aah!" She hopped off her bed and knelt down next to the overturned box. "Just a second!" She reached out to quickly scoop everything up and—
The pain shot through her hand again, and she recoiled with a wince and a squeak.
"Are you okay, Takashima-san?" The door clicked and slowly swung open enough for the person on the other side to poke her head in. "Do you… want some help cleaning up?"
Yuuna glanced up to see Chikage's eyes already focused on hers. Very intently, yet calmly, focused. "I'm okay, I just dropped this." She smiled and gestured that her surprise guest could come in.
Chikage slipped into the room and shut the door quietly behind her. Like a child would when trying not to draw attention. Why? To add to Yuuna's confusion, Chikage knelt down very gingerly to help with the scattered supplies, even for her more subdued demeanor. But she didn't say anything, instead focusing entirely on putting everything back into the box. With Chikage's help, it only took a minute, and Yuuna picked up the box and put it back onto her bed.
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Chikage asked the expected question. Her voice came with quiet anticipation.
"Are you hurt?"
She was prepared for this much. "Just some scratches, see?" Yuuna held her arm up for a few seconds so that Chikage could see the bits of gauze before quickly sitting down on the edge of her bed and setting her hands into her lap. Uninjured hand over top the other, of course.
"You really surprised me, Gun-chan! I thought we were going to eat in your room."
"No, you're right. But I thought…" Chikage trailed off. Her lips twitched. After a moment, she sat on the bed next to Yuuna and placed her hand on Yuuna's lap.
"What's wrong?" Yuuna could feel a slight tremor in Chikage's touch. Either something else was wrong, or…
"Takashima-san… Is your hand okay?" Chikage's gaze dropped to their hands. Right next to each other, yet not touching.
Yuuna looked away. Her good hand moved to her other arm and rubbed it in circles with her thumb. "Yeah. Mostly."
Chikage took the chance and slipped her hand underneath Yuuna's. Without saying a word, she gently lifted it up, took it in both her hands, and held it before her. Examining the gauze facade Yuuna had put on. She touched one, as if she could see through it in doing so. And then, gently, she pulled away each piece in turn, exposing the discolored skin underneath.
Yuuna watched Chikage run her fingertips along the tops of her now-bare fingers. Every scrape and bruise hurt when she touched them. Not just from the wounds themselves. From guilt as well.
She wanted to pull away. Excuses came to mind, ways to redirect Chikage's attention. But she said nothing. She did nothing. With her hand in full view of the girl she wanted to hide her injuries from, Yuuna couldn't bring herself to hide when she knew she was caught.
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"What happened?" A voice so soft, Yuuna almost didn't hear it.
"I think my gauntlet was loose. I didn't have enough time to re-adjust." Yuuna let out an embarrassed, half-hearted laugh. "It's no big deal, really. It looks worse than it is."
"… You could have told us you needed time to fix it." Chikage's gaze turned downward, hiding her eyes from Yuuna. "Even if no one else, you could have told me."
"But there was no time—"
"I would have protected you." Chikage looked back up and locked eyes with Yuuna. "No matter what."
Silence. Chikage's eyes shimmered with concern and sadness. That hurt more than anything else. The one person Yuuna had wanted to avoid worrying was now in front of her, more worried than ever, because she messed up, because she didn't say anything. Because she tried to hide.
Yuuna averted her eyes for a moment, down to the hands holding hers with so much conviction. Scratches and hints of bruises filled her vision, so plain to see up close.
A pang of concern. She hadn't noticed before now. Even Chikage wasn't unscathed. And despite that, Chikage held her hands in full view of her, caressing her own battered fingers. Chikage would surely know she would worry, but she still didn't hide those wounds from her. Their wounds, and their worries for each other from those, were yet another bond connecting them. Always there, just like Chikage. Yet she hadn't accepted her concern in her heart.
With a deep breath, Yuuna looked back up to face the girl she had tried to hide from.
"I'm sorry, Gun-chan…"
Chikage gazed into her eyes once more. She stroked the top of Yuuna's hand, where she wouldn't be hurting her. Slow, pressing in and releasing over and over. Like she was looking for something within Yuuna's relaxed hand. A hidden tension to release.
"Takashima-san…" Chikage spoke again, lifting Yuuna's hand up to her face. "Every single one is important."
Lightly, she put her lips to the largest of the black and blue spots on her knuckles.
"Every single one…"
Yuuna shivered at the touch. The tender warmth of Chikage's lips against her sore fingers. Her breath as it caressed the many scrapes she bore.
A tiny kiss upon the first of Yuuna's fingers. Chikage's lips brushed against it again. Another tiny kiss. The tip of her nose touched the tops of her knuckles each time she pressed her lips so softly onto her. And then, she pulled Yuuna's hand over just so slightly. Her second finger, too, felt Chikage's lips upon its sensitive skin.
Each sensation felt so extraordinarily strong. It was all Yuuna could focus on. She sat motionless, watching, entranced by the sight. One by one, her injured fingers were blessed by Chikage's loving touch.
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Finally, Chikage pulled away slightly. She still held her eyes on Yuuna's hand. Taking in every detail.
"They are part of the hands… that I want to hold…"
Chikage leaned forward and closed her eyes. Her cheek brushed against Yuuna's fingertips as she brought herself closer. She found the spot she sought, and laying her hand atop Yuuna's, she nuzzled her cheek into Yuuna's palm.
The gentle grip of Chikage's hand on one side. The softness of her cheek on the other. Yuuna felt her hand's aching fade into the background, soothed by Chikage's warmth enveloping that small part of her.
Chikage's eyes fluttered open and found Yuuna's waiting for her.
"I don't want pain to be what you feel when I hold them… when you hold me…"
Yuuna's chest tightened. "Gun-chan…"
The moments passed quietly, deep within each other's eyes, until finally, Chikage slowly, reluctantly, pulled away. She took Yuuna's hand into both of hers once more and held it out to Yuuna like she was offering a treasure to its owner.
Chikage smiled. "Take care of them… Please…"
Yuuna answered with her own smile. A true, honest smile. "Yeah. I will." Yuuna laid her other hand onto Chikage's. "And when they're hurt… I'll be counting on your care, too."
Chikage's expression softened, and her cheeks took on a dash of pink. A nod and a light squeeze, and without a word, she took the cloth bandage and began wrapping Yuuna's outstretched hand, delicately weaving the protective fabric around and around.
It was such a small assurance, and yet Yuuna could feel herself relax. If Chikage supported her, she knew she wouldn't have to hide. They could protect this little piece of her happiness, together.
Author's Notes:
Takashima Yuuna and Koori Chikage. These two characters have so much going on within them both, and when they're together, their individual strengths and flaws make for such a wonderful dynamic. So much to explore under the surface! I really wanted to convey in this story the delicate dance they're constantly engaged in with each other, and the little steps they each take in their journey to grow closer together and accept the trust and bond they share. They do not have an easy relationship, but taking it one step at a time, I know they could find their mutual love.
The three wonderful works of art you see in this story were created by Koyomi. I can't begin to thank her enough for the love and hard work she put into creating them. She has been an inspiration for me ever since I first saw her art, and this story would not be what it is without her. Please, if you like her art or this story, go check out her twitter and pixiv for more of her amazing work!
Koyomi's Twitter: (twitter.)(com/)(Koyomania)
Koyomi's Pixiv: (pixiv.)(net/)(en/)(users/)(2578179)