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Looking on in apprehension and slowly dawning horror, Lucy almost shut her eyes to avoid the devastating sight that was sure to follow. A gust of dry heat and plumes of smoke filled the space. Her face became coated in tiny rivulets of sweat. Just what had been unleashed?
An acrid smell fills the air, making her eyes water and her nose crinkle in distaste. She should have known this was the only possible outcome. When had life ever been anything but cruel to her?
Kyouka turns to her with solemn eyes and a stony expression, the scalding, cavernous maw stretching wide behind her…the source of the smoke.
“I’m sorry Lucy, it seems we have burnt the cookies.”
Lucy recoils like she has been struck, what a blow!
Sitting sedately on their metal tray within the oven, charred black and begging for a merciful death, were a dozen chocolate chip cookies; exposed to heat for far longer than any little confection was ever meant to face.
Lucy slumped over, defeated. All was lost.
Lucy was busy mourning what could have been… the soft, gooey treats they were going to share while watching the kind of trashy rom-coms the two young women had never had an opportunity to watch before, considering they had spent their formative years in organizations that had no business hiring children.
While Lucy was melding into the table in petty despair, Kyouka took the cookies out of the oven and unceremoniously dumped them into the bin. As she raised her arm to place the tray on the counter she winced, her arm wobbling and her grip going lax.
The tray crashed to the ground, the cacophonous clatter jarring Lucy out of her, admittedly, very low-stakes brooding.
“Whaa, Kyouka! Are you okay??” Lucy’s panicked voice filled the small room, “I told you, you shouldn’t be lifting anything at the moment! It doesn’t matter how light! You need to listen to Yosano.”
Kyouka turned to her with her typically expressionless face, which Lucy knew to ignore. Just recently she had seen her side be impaled and she had barely more than winced. That girl could give her a run for her money in the ‘tolerating pain a person your age definitely should not be familiar with’ department.
“I’m fine, it barely hurts,’ Kyouka intoned with her usual gentle, soft voice.
But that wasn’t good enough for Lucy. They didn’t go through hell and back together once they had cleared the rubble and escaped out of Anne’s room to join the fray during the airport incident, for Kyouka to just brush her off like they didn't owe their lives to each other.
Hands planted on her hips and face firmly set in a stern frown, Lucy demanded, “No. You are not fine. You might be able to get away with that act with Atsushi, as soft as he is. But it won’t work on me.”
Kyouka looked a little stunned, she still seemed to be somewhat shocked whenever anyone showed concern for her wellbeing. Lucy could relate, the ADA was a lot more warm and caring than the Guild had ever been, she imagined the Port Mafia was probably even worse than that.
Avoiding Lucy’s eyes, she mumbled, “It’s been bleeding again, but just a little. I didn’t think it was anything to worry about.”
“I’ll be the judge of that. Cookies and movies can wait. You can’t, you’re hurt.”
Kyouka, still looking at her feet like a child about to be scolded, was obviously looking for a way to wriggle out of the situation, “It’s not that easy to just show you. I can’t just lift my shirt a bit, kimonos are annoying to try and move around, there’s a lot of fabric here."
Lucy grew pink in the face in her embarrassment, there were still so many things she didn’t know, or consider, in this new country she now called home. But she recovered quickly.
“Okay fine. We’re only watching a movie after this anyway. Let’s go get changed for sleep, then you can show me,” her words came out unnecessarily harsh in her embarrassment, but Kyouka didn’t say anything. She knew Lucy was looking out for her in her own brash way.
Once changed, Kyouka tried to slip back into the kitchen to start a fresh batch of cookies. But Lucy stopped her in the doorway, a hand coming up abruptly in front of her face. “I don’t think so. Bathroom now! I’m not risking you making a mess and bleeding on my nice dorm.”
Once in the bathroom Lucy pulled out a little first aid kit that she had seldom had to use. Her main visitor was Atsushi, who healed quickly enough from any trouble he had gotten into to ever need it.
“Okay then, show me the damage.” Lucy was looking at Kyouka expectantly, her hands on her hips.
The only indication that Kyouka was hesitant, on her otherwise blank face, was a slight furrowing on her forehead and pursed lips. But she did as instructed, and lifted her sleep shirt slightly to reveal the stitches on the side of her abdomen, just above her hip.
The stitches were neat and precise, exactly as many as needed, no more and no less, thanks to a diligent Yosano. But Kyouka had clearly strained them when moving about the kitchen while they were baking. Droplets of blood were oozing through the neat line of stitches, small beads of blood forming. More concerning to Lucy was the older, dried smears that had clearly been there for at least several hours.
“Kyouka! I swear you’re more reckless than that dumb tiger kitty sometimes! You need to be careful while it heals. I did NOT drag your tiny but heavy body to safety for you to not look after yourself!”
Kyouka looked away, her expression crestfallen, and Lucy immediately felt guilty. She knew her colleagues at the Port Mafia were not kind, and she was probably all too used to being reprimanded for things. Lucy hadn’t meant for it to come out like that, like she was accusing or berating her. She just wasn’t very good with words to show her worry. Had never really needed to be, until joining the ADA.
Taking the advice of her therapist to think through what feelings she was actually trying to get across, instead of just blurting words out, she took a deep breath and tried again.
“Aww, shit, I’m sorry Kyouka. What I’m trying to say is that I worry about you. It was scary when you got stabbed. I wasn’t sure if you would be okay. And…and I want you to take it easy and look after yourself while you heal. You can rely on me and everyone else at the ADA until then.”
Lucy turned and opened up the first aid kit, giving Kyouka time to reply without Lucy staring her down. She was tearing open some alcohol wipes to wipe away the blood and disinfect the wound that was slowly mending itself back together under the stitches when Kyouka replied.
In a whisper quiet voice, Kyouka responded, “I’m sorry too Lucy. I’m still not used to having friends. It’s still so strange to have people I can rely on. I keep thinking I need to be strong all by myself, because if I’m not…if I don’t pull my weight. Well, the mafia didn’t have a place for people like that.”
Lucy leaned forward and dabbed at the wound, removing the fresh, wet blood and the dried flakes while she ignored the tears that had started prickling the edges of her eyes. She knew that feeling so well. The Guild didn’t have any use for those that couldn’t contribute and stand strong on their own, either. But luckily, as she had come to find, the ADA couldn’t be more different.
Swallowing back a little sniffle, Lucy replied, “I know what you mean. It can be hard, right? To trust people with your weaknesses, to trust they won’t abandon you, or use them against you. But, I think we lucked out with the ADA. I think, I think we’ll both be safe here. And at the very least, you’re safe with me. I’ve got your back, or,” here Lucy gave a little laugh as she applied a self adhesive wound dressing to Kyouka’s side, “I guess more literally I’ve got your side.”
Kyouka laughed very rarely, but at that, she did smile wider than Lucy can ever remember seeing. And then Lucy’s arms were full as Kyouka hugged her, lightly because of her sore side. Lucy returned the hug, resting her cheek against the shorter girl's head.
Kyouka stepped back, eye’s lighter and with a little glimmer that hadn’t been there previously, “So round 2 of trying to make cookies that are actually edible?”
Lucy laughed, “we might need a few more rounds before we achieve that. But I’d love to try. With both of us together, I’m sure we can do it.”