-๑-๑ ஜ ๑- Chapter 25: Quote -๑ ஜ ๑-๑-
"This is a fucking joke right?"
It had to be an error.
The flea was out of order. Literally.
Both his legs were broken, he was in hospital- "You can barely walk!" And yet Izaya seemed to not even give a fuck about how ridiculous this order was. The opposite, his expression seemed relaxed, as if it were nothing out of the ordinary.
His words only confirmed that line of thoughts.
"Which is why this mission is the least dangerous to take at the moment."
Shizuo couldn't believe it.
All this bullshit-
"Least dangerous the hell-"
He had seen the content.
Retrieve information from the broken wall Maria- that was the main goal of it. Izaya was the lieutenant in charge.
"There are only very few titans. And being this close to our base I can assure you we won't get trapped at least."
"Yeah, just eaten." Shizuo just didn't understand what was going on inside these people's heads. What did he want Izaya to do? Kill titan´s with his crutches?
No matter how bad the guy seemed to want him gone, this order had to be faulty. Something like this shouldn't be able to pass.
But it seemed Izaya had already thought that far as well.
"Akabayashi transferred me to the dorms. That's only done once the patient is stabilized. So officially I'm well enough to leave the hospital. He is using the fact I'm leaving a place where it's easy to kill me, against me."
Feeling his fists tighten Shizuo directed his gaze towards the damned door. He felt an incredible urge to just barge out there to find that bastard.
How? Just how could they do this?
With the titans all around and the threat of them being there constantly one should think they would work together.
For safety.
To protect everyone.
But this?
"He wants me to give orders from the top of the wall. I expected something like this. Though I gotta admit I didn't expect him to act this fast."
Letting his eyes skim the paper in his hands he analyzed the situation, possible outcomes and searched for any loopholes in the issue.
Considering Mikado had been here a mere second ago, Shiki must have anticipated Akabayashi's next move- Well, not like he expected any less from his superior, but that still meant he had to act fast. Rushed actions usually contained a certain affinity for mistakes.
Shizuo meanwhile was simply fed up. Angry- frustrated to a certain degree.
"How can you stay so calm about this?" He wouldn't be. He was strong. In a physical sense, maybe also in a psychological sense at least on a simple level. But this?
Having people out to kill you every single day, having to handle superiors that just waited for a wrong move on his part? He would go crazy.
Whether the flea was just stupid enough to underestimate the risk or just wanted to assure him that everything was going to be okay was only one of the matters circling his mind.
"It is my job to do so, Shizu-chan."
Right.
His job.
Looking up, the blond gazed at the man. Inside the hospital bed one would think Izaya would look weak. But he didn't. Not even in the slightest. That glint to his eyes was very much alive and he didn't seem like he was just trying to assure the blond.
The opposite. He was in control. Despite the circumstances Shizuo could tell he somewhat had a grasp on the situation.
It reminded him again of what exactly Izaya was within these corrupted walls.
His superior. His lieutenant. He didn't get that position by chance or out of good will-
He was strong.
Stronger than Shizuo.
Maybe not physically, but mentally.
And so it got the blond only so much more when the flea's expression softened.
"But honestly speaking this is pretty bad. Yeah." Just for a moment he was not the captain.
Just Izaya.
Admitting something that came dangerously close to defeat.
"He plans to get everyone involved in this mission killed and then put the blame on me for giving wrong orders," the flea elaborated further, only causing the blond´s worries to spike.
Dangerous.
This situation was dangerous.
Very much so.
Not only because of the titans they had to face.
"Can you decline the mission?' Shizuo asked, his mouth having gone dry like paper at the prospect of what next week would bring.
It was a stupid question, he knew that the moment it left his mouth. And yet he just couldn't help but ask simply because he knew no other solution.
"Do you know what disregarding your superior's orders means? In my case, to be precise?"
"... your siblings." For one thing. He was being blackmailed, just like Shizuo was. Joining the survey corps hadn't been a wish of either of them but rather an order they had to execute to keep their closest relatives safe.
"Not only that," Izaya sighed, pushing himself into a more straight position. "They could frame me for suspicion, for plotting with the titans. They could throw me into prison for interrogations that will never happen or get dragged on forever. And then I might just happen to die down there."
It was harsh- the flea was counting those facts like they were nothing.
Maybe it was exactly that to the flea.
Nothing.
Normality.
Having been chased and tried to be killed by not only titans but even his superiors and the people of the city, he had gotten used to it.
It was the bitterness of the truth.
"I have no choice but to take on this mission. And we will ace it."
Izaya seemed confident.
How he could be so was unexplainable for the blond.
He was always standing alone, shouldering every burden without a sign of complaint- years over years people hated him for being a death reaper.
And yet he didn't give up.
It made the raven seem strong beyond belief.
And yet at the same time fragile.
Easily broken if the wrong events occured at the wrong time.
Like the titan back then.
When Izaya tried to save him, that was a moment like that, and it almost cost the flea his life.
Just remembering the gruesome scene caused the blond's urge to help the flea to triple.
"What can I do?" He wanted to support his captain. Somehow help him in this dire situation, however it might be possible. That was for Izaya to tell.
With a sigh his leutnant´s attention drew back towards the paper resting in his hands.
He skimmed the contents once more, but his hopes in finding anything useful were really low. Casting the papers aside the raven let himself slump back into the cushions, before redirecting his gaze towards the blond.
"Just make sure you don´t die, okay?"
The blond swallowed.
His hands, still folded in his lap, tightened into each other as his frown deepened.
So there was no way.
No way to get the flea out of this situation, no way to help him during this suicide mission that was camouflaged as a simple expedition.
And the raven knew it.
Of course Izaya knew. How could he not. When even Shizu-chan understood. Glancing at his still immobile legs a shudder of dread trailed down his spine.
He couldn't even walk.
If a titan appeared- an abnormal, nothing out of the ordinary, just one that was maybe a bit faster, or could jump- it would be the end.
Everyone would be able to flee except him.
Sure, if nothing of that sort happened it would be fine- he could give orders from atop the wall, hoping for the best.
But honestly- he couldn't shake off the feeling that this mission relied on more than sheer luck. This was Shiki they were talking about and relying on luck was something he didn't quite remember his superior fancying.
He had to inform Shinra, maybe he could-
"Izaya." Snapped out of his thoughts, the raven´s glance redirected itself towards the blond.
He expected the man to continue, but he seemed to pause there for just a second, as if he were searching for the right words to say.
"I'm ... on your side. No matter what happens. Just wanted you to know that."
…
Funny.
If anyone else had said these words the raven would have had a more than just hard time believing or taking them seriously- but with the blond… it was different.
The way he looked at him- it was just…
Very different.
"I know- that's what makes it so much harder to put you out there," the raven sighed, letting those damned papers slip onto the small side desk next to him. "But not anyone would stick to the truth in front of the court, not to mention save their captains' life in a battle, and if I´m not even capable of watching over one soldier then what kind of captain would I be?"
Yes, truly.
What kind of captain would he be?
And Izaya wasn't the only one contemplating on that topic.
Darkness, interrupted by nothing but a small candle lit a cell in the basement of the survey corps dorm dominated the room. Considering not many people were staying there most of the time it was the ideal spot to find some peace and quiet.
And even better to talk about what no one was supposed to hear.
A door creaked.
A familiar shadow entered the scene- a cloak was covering his face, just in case that someone spotted him outside.
"You can take that off, no one is here."
Startled by the voice the shadow turned. There was someone inside the room after all. In the corner, blade at hand as if having anticipated some kind of sneak attack from his visitor.
Hands were raised in defense and the man slipped off his cloak.
The blade was lowered and his stance relaxed.
"Shiki-san, what do I owe this honour to?" Eyes darting to the door, as if to double check whether he had been followed, Izaya's superior pulled it shut before taking a seat next to the candle.
"If you want something done, do it yourself. I believe it's quite the apt quote," he informed, picking up one of the matches scattered on the desk.
"Didn't take you for a man who recited quotes." The match was lifted, held towards the flame- yet not close enough to burn. The fire was itching to consume the tip.
"Is everything set?"
The words hallowed. They were brief. Not containing any information, and yet it seemed the man knew exactly what he was talking about- and the tension in the air grew.
"Of course."
Grew tenfold.
Just like the grin on Shiki´s expression as he did the flame the favour and dropped the match to meet its destruction.
"Good. I want to get rid of that pest once and for all."
To be continued~
Yo ho ho ho
I really made Shiki one hell of a bastards in this one lmfao xD
Things are gonna get very dangerous in here~
But I'm not gonna spoil too much haha xD instead I will just hurry up with some more udpates~!
See you again on December the 31th ;3