Prompt: wrath
I'd like to say that I started shipping them when she shot him or when he talked to her from his hospital bed, but I didn't. I started shipping them from their first scene together.
Ozone and rain.
The Enforcers emerged from the paddy wagon, while Akane hurriedly donned her new jacket. He was the last to step under the temporary shelter, his posture taut and already facing the closest alley. She glimpsed unruly dark hair, a fur-lined collar, and broad shoulders. A stoic side profile, or maybe, 'brooding' was the better word. He didn't meet anyone else's eyes, completely focused on obtaining the Dominator. But his eyes weren't eager, the blue glow surging briefly, and he spoke of the case in blunt terms of hunting prey.
Her gaze tracked him, as he walked to the perimeter with clear intent. Kougami Shinya. Her first impression wasn't of a leashed hound, but a wolf that only accepted to be tamed for the time being.
In the coming weeks, she'd realize how true it was. With every new piece of information she learned, it explained his demeanor. Simmering rage, just barely concealed under a veneer of self-discipline. Everything he did was in pursuit of his target. His quest for revenge was anger distilled, at Makishima, the system that allowed him to slip away, and towards Kougami himself.
And despite the warnings, she was unable to stay away.
Dust and cigarette smoke.
Adrenaline still buzzed beneath her skin; she redirected the frantic need to move, pulling on the shirt loaned to her. She stole glances at the owner. After four years, Kougami was tanned and more muscular. He'd always been the type to appear thinner with clothes on, but now, that strength was uncontained.
He drove on, turning a corner. "The group is based in one of the abandoned ruins. We have food, water, medicine. Cigarettes are practically currency. We turn the lights off at night, for safety."
"Have you gotten into many fights?" A faint white line ran down his jawline. She didn't remember it.
"Plenty. More than I can recall. I can share them with you later." The car hit a bump. "Sorry."
"No, it's alright." She looked behind. The dirt path was free of drones, the lush trees framing either side. Towards the horizon, a gray haze remained. Another distant boom resounded, and her heart sank.
"Almost there." He reassured, voice steady.
In this brutal place vastly different from home, Kougami didn't flinch. He seemed perfectly accustomed. She should've been frustrated, appalled, saddened. Even so, all she felt was overwhelming relief that he was alive.
Ironwork and warm lights.
She was surprised at how spacious an Enforcer's quarters were, and compared to her prison, it was a definite upgrade. Her belongings had been moved in quickly, especially with the help she received. "Thank you, again. This isn't bad, I'll get to experience how you lived."
However, Kougami hadn't budged from the couch, hands interlocked in that familiar pose of deep thought. "I still don't like that you're an Enforcer. Statutory or not, it's the same."
Akane stood over him, gently caressing his tense shoulders. "I'll continue investigating, just in a different way. The foxes are out there."
"Yes, and I won't stop until every one is arrested. You suffered in that underground cell, and they need to pay." His tone was foreboding, a dark promise.
After all these years, his default coping mechanism hadn't changed. She sighed, and buried her lips against the top of his head, amidst the new gray visible. "Will you stay for dinner?"
"Of course." He brought her in for a kiss, with a searing intensity only he could deliver. His wrath was a reckless beast, but it was fighting for her sake this time, and for once, she couldn't protest.