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[head_bancho]

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[head_bancho]

[He played it cool that whole time. It was his job to be tough and keep everyone in line but seeing the lot of them lined up like zombies had him dealing with bundled nerves, hoping it could be fixed. Tension gripped him when Rin pulled out her stone to cast her spell or undo the spell that been going on. He couldn't tell which it was but he had been holding onto a bundle of tension in his stomach that came undone as he started seeing them all hit the ground as the hypnosis had been the only thing keeping them upright. He was seeing blinking eyes as they all sat up. Fatigue and clarity.

It was one thing to hear she was to be respected and another to see it. Between the threat of the ruby and the cleansing property of the moonstone, he was relieved. Voices came up as his rebellious pals started looking between each other, adjusting to the sudden clarity. He touched his cheek, grimacing at the feeling of moisture at his fingertips. It wasn't blood, either.]

The hells going on? Is the fight over already?

Boss, are you crying?

Shut the hell up, Godai. You idiots got hit with gas cannisters and I had to beat their asses myself.

[Murmuring between the lot of them. Some fake boasts that they managed to land a punch before getting knocked out as they began to notice Rin.]

[erbe]

[Ah. Tears from a man... It's actually quite endearing, and Rin would love to stick around to tease him about it. However when glances start being thrown her way she puts the moonstone away and silently makes for the exit.]

[head_bancho]

[The tender reunion between thugs and delinquents ended with a whole lot of punching when they kept insisting he was crying in earnest.

Roughly a week passed and Riki kept to himself, not willingly, but because he'd been grounded for 'nearly getting his dumb ass killed'. His mother's face had been like stone throughout it but his father, giant and gentle, nearly wept himself into a puddle. He started building up energy and frustration until the moment he was allowed out of the house for something other than his teams. Even that took a lot of convincing.

They were out of season for baseball, so he was left with the batting cages. The place was pretty empty. Not many people came by in the winter and it was a bit closer to the evening. It left the place mostly empty, save for one person in her cage, swinging away.

He sat down on the bench just outside of Rin's cage, watching her pop them out with swing-to-miss rate that would have put half his team to shame. He watched, not speaking up until the last ball came and went right back, clear over the machine.]

You like it here?

[erbe]

[She was happy to have made it out without getting introduced to the whole crew. Slipping away without having to explain a single thing was preferable, and honestly the whole day was a win for her. She had known the presence of other magi on her territory, but had difficulty tracking them down until following Riki's gang. They were useful to her, and for that she was silently thankful — though she didn't feel like she owed them. They got their payment in getting their asses saved. The true upside was not actually having to use any of her precious gems to chase off the intruders.

Well, she's also glad Riki hasn't tried reaching out to her. After "claiming" him in front of a group like that? Embarrassing! Really, she almost never wants to see him again. Even if it means she may have to stalk him like she stalks her sister—

Her frustration is let out through the bat, and at her final swing she puts plenty of power into. Tohsaka wipes the sweat on her forehead with the back of her hand before taking a deep breath, and—

Screaming as she leaps forward and away from the unexpected visitor and his voice.]

D— don't sneak up on me like that!

[head_bancho]

[Blinking rapidly, Riki looked from side to side to make sure no one else was there. The whole time, he expected that she'd finish and do that cool thing where she said his name without looking away from what she was doing as if she knew he was there the whole time. Instead, she flew apart instantly and he nearly choked.

He cleared his throat, trying to recover from his own sort of shock over it and kept his eyes off her for a moment until he recovered. Nevermind that she looked cute while she was in the zone and deep in thought but he couldn't say she didn't look cute when she was flustered as well.]

Sorry. Sorry. Thought you'd have seen me coming.

[He rested his hands on his bat, trying not to make eye contact as he didn't want to see if she was mad.]

[erbe]

[Tohsaka clutches the baseball bat like a dear lifeline. She could only be cool when someone else's well being was on the line. If it's every day or for her own gain? The universe likes to pick on her. Ironic how she wants to be a magus who cares about no one, but seems to shine brightest when she steps in for the benefit of others.]

How?! I was busy focusing on balls coming toward me at high speed!

[head_bancho]

[Riki realized it was even more important that he didn't interrupt her until the end for that precise reason. Rolling the handle of his bat between his palms, he finally looked at Rin and tried to play it cool too.]

Fine, that's my bad.

[He was thinking about apologizing for getting in the way of her investigation but he wasn't even sure if it was hers or if she was there deliberately back then. Instead, he just went with the thing he could say without any misinterpretation.]

I was thinking about texting you to say 'Thanks' but I was hoping I'd see you at some point to say it in person, instead.

[erbe]

[His thanks spurs something in her. Like a cat catching sight of a mouse. Wanting to pounce on it and take it as an opening to further use him to her advantage.

Yet despite that urge Tohsaka shrugs it off.]

The night ended in a mutually beneficial manner. I suppose you understand now why I wanted to hear about the superstitious gossip?

[head_bancho]

That's how it is?

[It brought a smile to his face. He shook his head in some disbelief.]

I don't really get it. The kind of gossip I get into isn't half as cool as the stuff you did the other day.

[erbe]

Cool? All I did was chase out a few trespassers. You're just lucky they weren't smart enough to curry favor by getting me to grant them permission to search my territory.

[Tohsaka sets the bat up against the chainlink cage before stepping out to speak with Riki face-to-face.]

[head_bancho]

[He really did owe her, so he didn't push the topic. It was one thing to intimidate and another to command respect. The guy in front had been furious and rude all by himself and the rest had known better than to test her by the end. Stone-faced and as softly as he usually spoke, Riki met Rin's eyes easily. Days after coming close to being cut into pieces and he was absolutely fine.]

Chase. Sure. Anyway, not that you need to give me a whole rundown but. [He didn't speak german, so the guy running things went without being understood until Rin arrived. He knew full well what would have happened on instinct alone.]

What's up with the claim you mentioned?

[erbe]

C-claim? If I hadn't said you belonged to me they would have kept us all night trying to bargain for you. They wanted to take you away and experiment on you like a lab rat! And I — I didn't save you because I disagreed with them! Okay? I did it because Fuyuki is my territory and they need to come to me for permission to be on my land!

["Didn't save you because I like you, b-baka" or something along those lines.]

[head_bancho]

I'm not ungrateful when somebody helps me.

[The seamless transition from calm and collected to losing it over one word was a little too natural. Riki furrowed his brows, leaned in and left a kiss on Rin's cheek before he stepped into the cage.]

I figured they were going to kill me but experiments? That's a new one.

[erbe]

[Like a comedic record scratch moment, Rin freezes up the second his lips touch her cheek.

Riki is warm. His lips softer than she had expected. He doesn't linger, and he's kind enough to just continue on afterward. Yet Tohsaka can't take advantage of that grace because it's a Blue Screen of Death event.]

[head_bancho]

[Coming close to just continuing the conversation, Riki glanced over his shoulder to catch Rin in a moment of shock. He leaned against the fence with his shoulder, eyes on her just to check and make sure she was alright before giving in and trying to help her reboot.

He just assumed she was annoyed with his ignorance, sounding a little guilty as he tried to apologize, looking a little downcast over it.]

Hey, Tohsaka. You stuck your neck out for me, so I'm sorry if it screwed your work up. Didn't mean to. Promise.

[erbe]

[Kiss — he kissed her!!! Sure, she kissed him first back on their little Christmas date, but... was that really an open invitation for him to do it back!?]

Shut up. They were hunting you. All you did was exist. They would have found you one way or another. What you did made it easier for me to kick them out, actually.

[head_bancho]

[It wasn't that he lacked self-preservation instincts. It was that he always put others ahead of himself. The suggestion that he was being hunted didn't bother him so much but he couldn't help but think about how it might have gone bad if they all attacked. That would have been all his fault.]

Guess that's pretty lucky. Good. If you're clearing out psychos like that? Glad I helped.

[He was preoccupied with his little blame game so he didn't think about kissing her as anything weird. Taking a moment, Riki fished a bottle of water from his jacket to push through the fence for Rin.]

By the way, you're lookin' red. Want some?

[erbe]

[Riki is almost met with refusal, but he gives her the perfect opening to pretend her red face is from the recent workout. She nods and accepts.]

Samejima, what do you know about your own abilities?

[head_bancho]

[He didn't like the sting of that question. Riki shoved coins in the machine, waiting for it to start with his back turned. Not wanting to see what look she had on her face when he answered.]

Cause I'm tough? Or, the shadows? Cause, my parents asked around. All kinds of experts. Nearly went broke just getting a bunch of opinions and a bunch of 'em thought I was 'mixed blood'. Or an oni.

[The machine went and he kept swinging. Hit after hit. In the middle of it, he had to look at her to figure out what was on Rin's mind. How weird was he to someone who probably saw weirder things than him? Each ball after kept hitting the pad.]

The last lady? Said I'm totally human. Just born in the wrong era.

[erbe]

[Tohsaka views him with interest, curiosity, and... something else. A secret third thing that even she herself refuses to acknowledge. While he speaks she'll finish off his his water and proceed to search her pockets for coins to grab something from the vending machine to replace it.]

She might have been the most correct.

[Perhaps he's descended from a mage family that became irrelevant by gradual loss of power, and it suddenly manifested in him generations later? It's not impossible. The Matous were on their way out before her father 'gifted' her sister to them.]

Any interest in learning magic?

[head_bancho]

[What did it change? Cards on the table laid out and face-up, he was left realizing Rin had only flipped one more card on her side. His were all out in the open. It was fine. If he was an open deck and she kept hers closed then at least they were talking. It was a little better than before.

He thought about what she said in silence. Was he even weird by Rin's standards? Lining himself up, he swung and hit the last ball with a sharp crack and leaned against the fence while the machine wound down. That look on her face was familiar. Thinking and judging. Probably making a decision and then...]

No. [Not since chasing people they thought were magic landed them in debt they barely crawled out from under. He made an excuse. He was looking somewhere else, far off and out of the park.]

Don't think I'm smart enough for that.

[erbe]

Mm... do you have to keep to a curfew?

[While he had finished up hitting earlier she was able to grab some water. Carefully she slips it between the chain links of the batting cage to him — wiggling it in hopes of catching his attention.]

[head_bancho]

Wouldn't be here if I did.

[Not since he recovered. Hearing crinkling plastic, Riki reached out to take the bottle. He would have paid her back right away, too.]

Look. I got friends who ask me stuff indirectly, too.

[Getting ready to turn on the machine again, Riki shot Rin a smile. There was no point to beating around the bush when he could shred his way through it.]

So, just ask. I'll probably say 'yeah'.

[erbe]

No asking. If you don't have a curfew you'll be visiting my house tonight.

[Hah! Two can play that game. And this way she gets to come across as demanding instead of flustered.]

[head_bancho]

[He didn't break eye contact with her, blink or flinch.


Rin may not have factored in his already blossomed interest in her.]

We heading there now? Yeah, let's do it.