Story: Mind the Gaps (French version available : "Intervalles")
Date: posted the 30th of january 2023
Beta: None
Fandom: The World End With You
Disclaimer: No, I don't own TWEWY and I'm not making any profit from this story.
Summary: Just after the Long Game, Joshua saved and resurrected the rest of the Hashiko gang but was condemned by the Angels for his actions: He is confined to Shibuya and half of his powers have been sealed. Neku dies again but without his powers, Joshua cannot resurrect him. He takes him to safety anyway, which leads to M.H being banished by the Angels. Joshua is left alone to manage Shibuya, well not quite since he's got Shinjuku's scum on his hands. Months pass, Joshua is struggling to manage the UG without Sanae and Kitaniji and Shiki and the other reach out with an offer of friendship. But Shinjuku's Reaper are a lot of troubles until...
Trigger of this chapitre: None I can think of
You know, I remember this chapter was a pain to write but now I'm reading it again, I quite like it :D
Enjoy your reading!
104.
Once again.
Joshua was always there when he felt uncomfortable, when a big problem was hanging over his head or, on the contrary, had just exploded. And Joshua was having a lot of problems lately. Much more than when he had decided not to be concerned about the world, that's for sure. Joshua thought dreamily back to that year before the Long Game, the calm, detached, peaceful feelings... and very, very lonely. Now it was as if his emotions had entered a rollercoaster car that wouldn't stop. He was experiencing simple happinesses, surprising discoveries and complicated choices or deadly headaches all in the same day. If Joshua had a heart (ah!) it would have probably given out by now because of all the yo-yoing.
So yes, 104. Because as he'd feared, his Temporary Producer hadn't grasped the concept of sitting still in a corner. With the leader of the Shinjuku Reapers under his control, he'd whistled a mutiny in his ears and now here they were. Six and a half months since the Long Game, barely five since the Shinjuku Reapers arrived, and his own Shibuya Reapers were dropping like flies again.
And Joshua was doing nothing.
"Really nothing?" Hazuki Mikagi asked him, his eyebrows furrowed as if Joshua's attitude didn't match what he expected from him. Yet Joshua was a master at being a distant pseudo-god. Or at least pretending to be, if his Tuners were to be believed.
"What is there to do?" Joshua muttered, one elbow on his knees and his chin in his hand. Below them, in the dark streets of the night, two Reapers were running. One was injured, one of his new Reapers, Mikan. She hadn't even finished initiation, hadn't even played her first game as a Reaper. It was her mentor who was supporting her, a senior Wall-Reaper, Takumi, and he was half carrying her through the maze of streets seemingly trying to get to Porc City. Not a bad choice, the strange atmosphere of the place didn't make fighting any easier and being the main home of the Reapers, he would surely have allies there.
But the Reapers from Shinjuku would be there too.
Joshua tightened his grip on the asphalt without even realizing it. He kind of hoped they would make it to Porc City. 777 and the Reviewer were there, they could protect them. That would be nice... Except for Mikan and one other man, the other nine Reapers he'd managed to hire on emergency in the last few months were all already wiped out. Shibuya was finally starting to get better, they had resumed a steady pace of games, they were finally getting to a number of Reapers sufficient that they weren't all constantly mobilized. They had even started to climb the rankings again, much to Mother's delight!
Joshua felt as if it had all been for nothing.
And he still wasn't doing anything.
In a classic UG, the Producer was much more detached from things. He let the Composer and his Conductor run the city. However, he had a veto right, and in this case it was a 50/50 game with the Composer. If neither could convince the other or an agreement could not be reached then either the more powerful one took control or, if the problem was really serious like, say, a possible Reversal, the Tuners were called in. It hadn't gone that far when Joshua had decided to reset Shibuya. Sure, he and Sanae weren't okay, but neither of them had any desire to call the Tuners. Sanae, because they would have agreed with Joshua and Joshua... because they would have agreed with him.
He had absolutely no desire to consider that he had fallen so low (or risen so high, ha!) that he would agree with his Tuners.
And denial was a fabulous thing.
So they had done without. And Joshua would have done the same this time but... well, the Tuners were already there. Kubo had specifically chosen the day Mother had come to resurrect the players to tell the Composer his plan.
There were too many Reapers, he said. With the remaining Reapers from Shibuya and the ones added from Shinjuku, there was no need to hire more. In fact, there were already too many. Obviously, Joshua argued, well aware of Mother standing beside him. Not that this meant she was on his side, of course. Joshua had made his point, that for a Shibuya Game, they were, if anything, still slightly understaffed, that less and the Reapers would be forced to run the Game constantly without respite.
"And why is that a problem?" Kubo asked. Not even bothering to assert the right to rest, Joshua put forth his well-honed arguments about the refinement of the soul, the amount of trouble needed to boost the imagination, the outgoing projects that fueled Shibuya... he took great pains to emphasize their previous Rank, the city consistently in the top three for decades with this system, well aware of what Kubo was trying to do. He wanted to reinstate the Shinjuku system into the Shibuya Game and if he had Mother's support, it was possible.
The problem was that Father liked Joshua's way of doing things more than Mother. Oh, Mother didn't mind as long as he got the results he wanted, but that was just it... with Shinjuku's brutal but effective short-term technique, the results would be more quickly present on Joshua's even if his were more stable over time. And even then, Mother would have continued to tilt in his favour if Kubo hadn't pulled out one last card: the Conductor.
Joshua had never cursed himself so much for having transitioned Kitaniji into an Angel. Mother wouldn't have even considered the point if he still had his old conductor. She had liked the man, which was not surprising when he had so many Angelic qualities. It was she who had forced Kitaniji on him in the first place, no doubt hoping that once he came into contact with him, he too would finally think of rising up. Aware of these expectations, it had been difficult to bear the man at first, but his sudden efficiency had quickly convinced Joshua. But now, Joshua had granted his wish for a world made of one voice and he was gone.
"The current Conductor is far too inexperienced, she's only been a Reaper for two years and many outrank her. Of course, you have to give new people a chance, but in the current state of crisis... we have a much better element on hand, an experienced Conductor with a proven track record, why do without him?" Kubo replied and Joshua saw Mother nod slowly out of the corner of his eye.
It was over.
Joshua could have told him off if they had been alone. But with a Tuner on his side? Joshua's fists tightened, the only sign of his inner anger.
"I see." She said simply before turning to Joshua, her pale eyes boring into his. "What do you think, Joshua?"
Joshua hated this. They always did, whether it was Father or Mother, they always asked him that same question. As if he really had a choice. As if his opinion carried any weight with them. As if they weren't just trying to get him to answer what they wanted to hear.
He had tried, before. To convince them to change their view, to show them that they too were wrong, sometimes. But not this time. He remained tight-lipped, well aware that the only place he could perhaps cut corners, even negotiate, would be when Mother declared her terms.
Mother smiled at his silence. Just an amused pucker of the lips. "Yes, that's a good idea. Let the Reapers decide." She said before tilting her head slightly towards Kubo, her gaze never leaving Joshua though. Despite the situation, he felt a hint of sadistic pleasure when Kubo took offense at the Tuner's lack of consideration. "'Executor, go tell the Reapers that the position of Conductor is back in play. The strongest gets the prize."
It was a clear order to withdraw, but Kubo hesitated for a second before turning on his heels, clearly wishing to stay and observe Joshua and the Tuner's next interaction. With a bow, he eventually left anyway and they were not soon alone in the judgment room as Mother approached him.
"Let's make a deal, Joshua." She smiled softly and the Composer readied himself, his brain firing on all cylinders, ready to argue. "If you don't act this time, if you let your Reapers fend for themselves without a single intervention from you... then I'll give you some of your powers back."
Joshua froze dead in his tracks.
His eyes, yet without any conscious action, jumped to Mother's breast pocket where Joshua could still faintly feel the echo of the seal that shackled him. What Father had given him back had been a tiny drop, barely enough to reassure him. He had no doubt that what Mother would give him this time would be little better, but...
Joshua needed it.
Absolutely, desperately needed it.
Because, okay, maybe Joshua was a little more upset that he was being prevented from running Shibuya the way he wanted rather than strictly for the well-being of his Reapers. But he still didn't want them erased.
And what would happen if he helped his Reapers this time? Then they would simply be nuked in the next mutiny. Or lost in an attack on another district. Or even just used in the dubious experiments of the Higher Plan. Because Joshua was weak, because he didn't have his powers, because his Tuners paid little attention to what he loved. And even if, after these strange few months, Joshua could tentatively hope that his Tuners would at least ensure Joshua's own survival, there was no chance for the Reapers... and the RG people.
So... a short-term rescue? A long-term solution?
The choice was easy, really.
Think about letting a review on your way out and see you the 10th for the continuation!
