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"I just thought you might enjoy the company, if we're both struggling to sleep." He blows a little sigh. "But it's all right if you'd prefer your privacy. I don't want to impose."

Has an Akechi ever sounded so pitiful? Good question.

It is a good question. Crow's Shadow does alternate between annoyingly perky and irritatingly glum, but still. "No. You might as well come in."

He resettles crossly on the bed, folding his arm back beneath his head, in his shirtsleeves.

"Thank you." He very carefully opens the door, then slips in just as cautiously. He'll close it slowly, so as not to alert the others.

Worth noting is that he's dressed in a Featherman T-shirt and sweats rather than his more typical princely attire. If it weren't for his glowing eyes, it'd be easy to mistake him for Crow.

He'll just... lean against the wall for now, as a precaution.

"I'm sorry that things were so tense earlier. I know that Crow already apologized, but I also know that wounds take time to heal. Regardless of his intentions, you were still hurt."

The eyes are eerie, yes. They light up the whole room like a candle flame. Magpie wonders if those clothes are part of him or not; they look borrowed from Crow. "Are you here to apologise again for Crow? Really?"

Whether he was hurt or not, he leaves unaddressed.

"Well, Crow does genuinely feel terrible, but it's certainly not my intention to use that fact to guilt trip you or anything of the sort." Not that he assumes Magpie would see it in such a way, but clarity never hurt. "Rather... I suppose I was just worried. You lamented earlier how the others didn't want understanding. I believe they truly did, but for a time, you still felt understandably jaded. Perhaps you still do even now."

He looks up at the ceiling, blowing a small sigh.

"We aren't quite as close as you and Crow, even if I carry many of his feelings with me. So, if you needed a more distanced point of view, I'm happy to listen."

What. "But Crow knows everything you know. You're as bad as Raven, in that respect. Why would I tell you anything I haven't already shared with him?"

Wow, Magpie. Way to kick below the belt. But he squints in the shadows. "Do you need to talk about something?"

"Because Crow is sleeping, making this an opportune moment for it?" Well, trying to sleep, at any rate, but it's something. Still... Hm.

He looks away. "I wouldn't want to make this about me, anyway. That's not fair, when I came here on your behalf."

Hm. "You're a person, aren't you? In your own right. You have wants, needs, concerns, don't you?" He doesn't say fears.

"People keep insisting that I'm more than what I am, yes." But... but! No, he can't let Magpie off the hook. "My needs are less important, especially now. You clearly harbor... complex feelings regarding all of this, and the least I can do is provide you an outlet."

"Because Crow wants you to?" He doesn't take his eyes off the Shadow.

"Am I not allowed to care?" There's a slight edge to his words, but only slight.

Yes, the edge catches his attention. "I'm asking if you truly care. If you can."

"I do feel. In my time as a Shadow, I developed my own sense of self, and that ego persisted even after Crow accepted me. The same applies to Raven as well." Which, well, considering Crow and Raven were once a single person...

He shakes his head. Best not to let lost in the smaller details.

"So to answer your earlier question, I do have my own wants and needs."

"Raven's different." It's a weird as hell question to have asked, actually. Do you care about me? He'd never ask Crow that; he'd never ask anyone that.

"To answer your question, then, I'm fine." He's always fine. "Just planning for tomorrow."

"'I'm fine' is typically Magpese for 'no, I am not actually fine but I don't want to be vulnerable, so I will say that I'm fine to deflect.'" Crow's Shadow chuckles lightly. "Crow used to be the same way. Sometimes he still is."

"Magpese? That's awful." He pouts a bit, but doesn't outright deny anything. "What's wrong with just Magpie? Like birds speak."

"Perhaps the awful wordplay was the point." Hey, look at that. He's got a lil' smirk. "At least I'm not making bear puns."

Teddie is a gift and a treasure. Teddie would also annoy Magpie to no end.

"Yes, the more I hear about the bear puns, the more I cherish our current peaceful state." There's no denying it. But then, a lot of people annoy Magpie to no end.

The smirk gets his attention. Part of him wants to ask, why did you get so upset earlier about gay chicken? Just to know.

"Teddie would bring some much-needed levity, at least." He shrugs. He has his feelings, and Magpie... is Magpie. "But as I was saying, denial just makes it more obvious that there's more to the story. You're allowed to be honest about your feelings."

"I don't need to worry about my feelings. I spent a long while learning not to have any." He stretches.

"Yes, but that isn't healthy. To bury, to repress, to keep it all locked up tight... It's numbing in the moment, perhaps, but in the long term..." His arms fold loosely over his chest, and he frowns. "You're in a safe place, surrounded by people who love you. You don't have to deny yourself the validity of your feelings."

He resists the urge to glare at the Shadow, who's leaning against the wall exactly where Magpie did earlier. Did he pick that up from Raven? "And when I go back? Precious little good they'll do me then."

When he has to face Ren, and the other Phantom Thieves. And the public. And Shido.

"You'll still have contact with them. Even if they can't be with you physically, you'll have contacts. A support system." Really, he should know this. Then again, Falcon had similar doubts...

"Your younger self has benefited greatly from his connections. I'm sure you would too, if you let yourself. And that's not factoring in the possibility that your Ren could arrive any day."

His lips purse briefly; the last thing he wants to think about, with what faces him tomorrow, is Ren coming here. "I don't mean the people. I have to be able to compartmentalise. Shit, you don't even have a name."

"But you can still take the time to come up with plans for how to navigate the dangers ahead. You can consider what you want to say to Ren and the others." But a name...

His face falls.

"We're... working on that. I've gotten suggestions here and there. Kou, Hiro, Keio, and others. It's a start, isn't it?"

Edited 2024-07-17 15:26 (UTC)

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