(no subject)

[theyregooddogs]

[tired, oh so tired:] Akira, what is your plan?

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[purrtagonist]

[holy hell, Akechi. what have you been saying to Will Graham?]

[somehow? Akira keeps his composure, but he can hear his heart thumping loudly in his ears now. it's a similar feeling to when he and the other thieves found out that Akechi intended to sell them out. to murder Akira in cold blood, and stage it as a suicide. no part of him regrets extending to Akechi a hand in friendship, but. . .]

[a soul as wild and free as Akira just simply cannot be limited in that manner]

A plan for what? For how I intend to go about exploring the school? Or. . .

For when you believe Akechi will inevitably snap?

[theyregooddogs]

For before Akechi snaps and kills someone!

[purrtagonist]

Damn it--

[he surges forward, raking his hands through his hair as he hunches his shoulders. of course.]

[he needs a moment to compose himself. but when that moment passes, he asks]

What has he told you, exactly?

[theyregooddogs]

He wants to ensure your survival. At any cost.

[purrtagonist]

Which would include taking out anyone he thought was a threat to my well being.

[leans back, cursing again as he drums his fingers against the table]

I don't think I've made any enemies. Other than Niles.

[theyregooddogs]

The people here are not the only enemies you have to worry about.

[purrtagonist]

The raccoons, too. I know.

[another curse]

But I can't just-- [he can't just sit around. he can't just do nothing]

[theyregooddogs]

You have to come to your own conclusion about that. But you should know that Akechi is going to be there, preying on your better nature, until one of you gets what you want.

[purrtagonist]

[with frustration]

I am not his prize.

[he should have said that earlier, when the time was right. but better late than never]

He's been through shit, and not a single person in the world was there to catch him when he fell. I'm willing to put aside as much of the past as I can to give him the chance to be normal that he never got before, but. . .

[Akira Kurusu can not be a prize. he cannot be a thing to be collected, a trophy to be isolated and kept from everyone else just because he makes someone happy. he's too free spirited for that]

[theyregooddogs]

He is never going to be normal. He is going to learn how to present well enough to function, or he is going to fail and take everything down with him.

Don't get involved in the nature or nurture debate. Don't be the second chance. —Don't tangle with Akechi, Akira.

[purrtagonist]

So, what? I ignore him, leave him completely alone, and just watch when he turns himself back into the monster he believes he is?

[flexes his hands into fists, before relaxing them again. that was a rhetorical question, so he asks another]

. . . are you-- are you telling me this because you've been me before?

["former prize" and all that]

[theyregooddogs]

There isn't a good ending to any of this. But there can be one where you're more or less intact if you choose it.

Yes, I have. I tried very long and very hard to do what I thought was right until I finally had to step away.

[purrtagonist]

[. . .]

[he drives the conversation away from himself, and towards Will. because he doesn't really know how to respond to that. there's no way he'll allow himself to be dragged down with Akechi-- no way in hell-- but. . .]

Was this the criminal that made you quit the FBI?

[theyregooddogs]

He was involved, yes.

[purrtagonist]

. . . I'm sorry. It sounds like you went through something pretty difficult.

[he means that]

[theyregooddogs]

It was. But I found the clarity to know to walk away . . . Eventually.

[purrtagonist]

[he considers this for a quiet moment, eyes slipping shut, brows furrowed. then he tilts his chin up, and nods]

If I need to walk away, I will.

But not yet.

[he isn't giving up yet]

[theyregooddogs]

If you want—[gestures, hand going in a circular motion] Advice, you can talk to me.

[purrtagonist]

[there's a pause, like he's considering this, like he isn't sure exactly how much he can trust Will (an adult, an FBI agent). but in the end?]

Okay.

[he accepts. because even he knows that he can only handle so much on his own]

. . . thanks. I appreciate it.

[theyregooddogs]

Don't thank me yet. You still have a lot ahead of you.

[purrtagonist]

We all do.

[he sounds a little tired as he acknowledges that]

. . . but still. We keep moving forward.

[theyregooddogs]

Until we can't.

[purrtagonist]

Until we break through our restraints and manage to win this game.

[he likes that ending much better]

[theyregooddogs]

[blinks then slowly shakes his head, a few small laughs]

Sure.

[purrtagonist]

[heh]

I've been called stubborn plenty of times before. The kind of person who, once he puts his mind to something, doesn't back down.

[a breath]

I'm not about to give up on that now.