[As expected, time really waits for no one, least of all Akira Fudo. Even in another world, he does not age (or ages too slowly to notice in only the span of nearly a century). It's a blessing for the fallen angel who made it happen, but a curse perhaps for Akira.
He watches those around him change, get wrinkles, get sick and get well, get gray hair, lose hair. They age gracefully, and he's glad they have each other because he becomes left behind, stuck in time. And it isn't only one. It's several. He stays and watches them wink out like candles, one by one not too long after each other, leaving behind families in which he doesn't exactly fit.
So he goes back finally. It really doesn't matter what is left, what he may find, only this is the only option he has left. Being in hell is where he had plans to stay before anyway, and he wonders if Gideon would be mad knowing this is where his orbit swung him once more.
Not too much has changed. He wanders around, trying to dodge the urge to look for someone he had treated so badly a long time ago. It'd be more than fair if Ryo had left. To go home, to go with someone else, to not come back. And he feels undeserved of any of his own sorrow at the idea after what he'd done.
So... he just wanders around in the places he remembers. The dorms, the docks, the islands, and then the city, looking for a place which might fit him a little better than the last.]
ryo hadn't exactly stayed in hell the entire time, at least. he did go to teyvat and stayed there for a little while, but it was never meant to be a permanent move and it hadn't been. he leaves once jd passed away naturally, and from there he makes an attempt to return to his world because after spending time in a world of gods, it's a little difficult to not get curious again about your own.
and, just like he and akira said it probably would all those years ago, everything goes wrong again, even when ryo goes out of his way to try to not make the same obvious mistakes as before. so before he gets wiped out by god, he flees back to hell and remains there quietly. he's reunited with his twice dead cat again, and it's... he can't say it's a good life, because it's not, but it's something more doable than he thought it would be when akira originally left.
he only really ventures into the city when he needs something, and that's why he's there now. ryo steps out of a shop, bag in hand. he's in his human form, although his hair is closer to how it looks when he's in his true one-- keeping a bowlcut after a while is apparently more work than he wants to deal with. he starts to move and then freezes when someone a little too familiar walks by. ]
Akira?
[ it's said softly enough that he doesn't really expect akira to hear but ]
[Ryo is valid and extremely cute this way. Unfortunately for Akira.
It’s less the startled whisper of his name (imagine if he kept walking without hearing) and more the sheer, undeniable feeling of someone else’s familiar presence he’d never escape that gets him to pull suddenly up short.
He’s afraid if he turns around, it won’t be who he thinks, or maybe who he does think it is will vanish in front of him.
Slowly, he turns halfway back to Ryo, eyes widening. His hair is a bit shaggier, but not as much as it likely will be from here on—a must for keeping up human appearances before. And with a more honed control over his demon side, he is able to wander with his wings tucked behind him in a human form.
He could be gone for a few years, for twenty, for eighty, for a whole several lifetimes, and he’d never forget that ethereal face.]
ryo has spent a very long time thinking of what he would do if he ever saw akira again. there are some days when he's so angry about what happened that he considers just leaving him. and other days when he wonders if he might die of shock, or cry, or maybe come up with some deep speech, like he tends to.
for now, though, he spends about ten seconds just staring in disbelief. he takes one step towards him. then stops. he drops his bag suddenly and runs to him to almost tackle him for a hug. ]
[Honestly, Akira expects all of the things Ryo has thought would happen. He expects hatred and resentment, he expects to be shunned, and all of those would be fair (ignoring the implications that Ryo’s love had not be great for him as it was).
He does not expect Ryo to step toward him, to run for him. For the briefest of seconds, a ripple of uncertainty goes through him. Will Ryo attack him? Kill him? Slap him?
There isn’t anything to do but open his arms, to let Ryo in. He throws them around Ryo’s shoulders and squeezes Ryo into himself. The leathery wings fold around afterward.]
[ he will likely be angry later as he processes this. but for right now, the only thing that is really hitting ryo is the fact that akira is back and here and that he's touching him.
he buries his face into his neck and stays there for a long moment. it's only the sound of other citizens of hell shuffling around them that makes ryo look up, almost like he forgot where they were. ]
I didn't think I'd ever see you again.
[ they're at a point where akira has spent more of his life without ryo than with him, so he more or less gave up on the hope that akira would come back to hell. ]
[It’s strange. Regardless of how much he can love another person, there is something… filled again in him rejoining to Ryo. Something invisible snapping perfectly together again, as if a piece had weirdly always been missing.
The wings loosen, but remain fanned around them, hiding them. He allows Ryo to shift, and he takes a moment to really look at Ryo, searching gently. He shakes his head a little.
The fingers of one hand play with the ends of Ryo’s longer hair.]
[ although ryo notes it really is a pure coincidence that they ran into each other here. he wonders if akira has been here for a while or if he only returned recently. he should probably ask that, at some point, but right now he just holds onto him a little tighter. ]
Ryo assigns him having been here for a long time, avoidant.
He wonders where else he could possibly go where the people he knew would even still be alive. Some of them maybe wouldn’t even come back here. He nods this time.]
but he moves to pull away at that, but keeps a hand on akira's arm like he's hesitant to completely let go. in case akira disappears the second they lose contact with each other. ]
Come with me.
[ ryo would prefer if there wasn't an audience for this; the citizens of hell are bored and nosy and ryo is aware of how he and akira can get. ]
[ oh.... he looks down at their hands and squeezes it after a moment. ryo will then tug them along slightly so he can pick up his dropped bag and he tucks that onto his other forearm. ]
Mm, I'll tell you where to go. It'll be faster than taking the ferry.
[ the only reason ryo doesn't really run around in his true form is that the majority of things here are regular human sized... it's more convenient to stay like this. ]
It's my place. There's someone you should see, anyway.
[He moves with Ryo, letting go only so he can help Ryo with the bag. Look, he would have done this anyway probably, but he has lived a long time with decent people, so… He helps Ryo get the dropped bag of things.]
Okay.
[???
He wonders if it’s JD, and he also chastises himself for thinking JD would somehow be gone in regards to being here when this is everlasting hell. Not on Ryo’s part. There are only a few things he could trust Ryo with before he left, but when he understood it was tied to his happiness, to him too, he knew Ryo could be trusted.
He draws Ryo to himself and scoops Ryo up in his arms without struggle. The wings fan out, perhaps rudely ushering everyone else out of the way with their span. The muscles under his skin crawl and push back, and the wings grow a little larger. He beats them downward, sending them up into the air, leaving the ground behind.]
Edited (typo assigning love in front of ryo’s salad…) 2023-04-11 15:43 (UTC)
[ he will just direct akira on where to go as they travel. the destination is at least not too far-- far enough that the chances of getting people showing up unexpectedly isn't too high, but still close enough that it isn't too tiring of a journey.
he spends other parts of the trip just staring intensely at akira's face, occasionally reaching up to run his finger over his cheek. examining him. ]
[Without going so fast it’s uncomfortable, he follows Ryo’s directions to the hide away Ryo made for himself.
At first, he is oblivious to Ryo’s staring, but he does end up looking when Ryo brushes his face, surprised and curious—a bit concerned too. For a moment, he thinks something might be wrong.
But no, Ryo is simply being soft and gay.]
Yeah. I practiced when I could, when it wouldn’t hurt anyone.
His eyes shift forward again, but he doesn’t try pulling his head away. They really just met again after so many years not even fifteen minutes ago, but… it’s surprisingly easy to slide right back into how things were when not thinking about it too hard, when there are no other reservations.
So Ryo can touch.]
I learned to control my emotions better. But I guess I would… if I got upset enough.
[ he doesn't ask what might upset akira enough, because that is very obviously territory that would lead to a potential fight and ryo will make an attempt to not leap into one immediately. but still, that's good to know. he'll backtrack back to this topic later once the shock wears off.
their destination is a much smaller island that doesn't have too much on it. there's a dock, and a little forested area. but ryo directs akira towards a house that's on the edge of he forest. when they're on the ground, ryo will tug akira to the entrance. ]
This is where I live.
[ when he opens the door, the interior isn't too surprising for ryo. it's not as fancy or rich as his apartment back in their original world, but it's still quite spacious and tidy. there's not that much decoration, with only random items here or there that seem like they might actually be personal.
more importantly, though, is that when the door opens, a cat wanders over to them. this is the first obvious hint that ryo did not actually stay in hell the entire time because jd is noticeably bigger than the last time akira saw him... the kitty aged. ]
[Hmmmm. Akira looks curiously over the island from above as he brings them in. Strangely, it seems fitting for Ryo. Away, quaint, simple, clean.
He drops his waist and legs and glides down near the house and the forest, landing with more grace than he probably would have had many years ago. He sets Ryo down by him and folds the wings away against his back like before. His hair is a mess now from the wind, but it’s fine.]
It’s quiet.
[It’s not said like a bad thing at all. He follows Ryo to the house, inside of it.
“I got better at controlling my emotions.” Immediately, he starts crying when the cat comes into view. LISTEN!!! He is still an emotional person, and he was trying to handle seeing Ryo again, but now he is being hit twice and it is too much.]
JD…?
[THE CAT IS SO BIG. He hurries half of the way to it, bending so he can scoop the cat up in his arms.]
[ HELP jumpscared by tears. ryo just moves to place his bag on a table and then turns to watch this reunion. you can tell ryo has had some kind of development because he is not mad that akira reacts more emotionally to seeing the cat than him. ]
He hugs the cat up to his face and burrows in the fur while petting. And just cries. Not loudly, thankfully.
He’s had a lot of the tears the last handful of years actually. Kaoru wasn’t the last person to go. The twins didn’t die together, as life does to most people.
And then he had to wait for everyone else remaining. Haruhi, Kyoya, Mori. It was just him and an old, wise Honey, waiting. Then Honey went too. He lingered a while, saw to things, got most of it out of his system.]
…I just didn’t know if I’d ever see either of you again. So… I’m glad.
well, he'll leave akira to that then. ryo will wander further into the house, turning a corner, and akira will probably hear what sounds like a fridge opening and then shutting. he returns a moment later and sets a water bottle onto the table. for when akira dehydrates himself from crying. ]
Mm. He's been a pain in the ass. You spoiled him too much and he never grew out of it.
For a moment, he looks surprised, and then he looks amused and soft. He glances at the cat, then nuzzles it again with his face. He is truly pampering JD for being a pain.]
He should be spoiled… He’s so big.
[Hehe.
He carefully puts the cat down so he can rub at his eyes with the back of one arm.]
at the admittance, ryo fidgets slightly, not quite sure how to react. he had hoped that akira missed him but the longer they spent apart the less likely that became for him. why would you miss someone you chose to leave and then hadn't seen in decades?
but, at the same time, there's a knot in his stomach made out of nerves and something a little like hope because of it. akira missed him. it's okay. ]
He wipes at his face one last time, then just… stands there looking at Ryo. Actually looking now, studying. Held in the strange and awkward space of understanding they won’t ever not be together somehow probably, but it’s the beginning after a hurt and a parting.
And he isn’t sure how sturdy the bridge is yet. He’s not sure if he acts like nothing is wrong, or tries to engage with what before always turned into an argument.]
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r e t u r n
He watches those around him change, get wrinkles, get sick and get well, get gray hair, lose hair. They age gracefully, and he's glad they have each other because he becomes left behind, stuck in time. And it isn't only one. It's several. He stays and watches them wink out like candles, one by one not too long after each other, leaving behind families in which he doesn't exactly fit.
So he goes back finally. It really doesn't matter what is left, what he may find, only this is the only option he has left. Being in hell is where he had plans to stay before anyway, and he wonders if Gideon would be mad knowing this is where his orbit swung him once more.
Not too much has changed. He wanders around, trying to dodge the urge to look for someone he had treated so badly a long time ago. It'd be more than fair if Ryo had left. To go home, to go with someone else, to not come back. And he feels undeserved of any of his own sorrow at the idea after what he'd done.
So... he just wanders around in the places he remembers. The dorms, the docks, the islands, and then the city, looking for a place which might fit him a little better than the last.]
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ryo hadn't exactly stayed in hell the entire time, at least. he did go to teyvat and stayed there for a little while, but it was never meant to be a permanent move and it hadn't been. he leaves once jd passed away naturally, and from there he makes an attempt to return to his world because after spending time in a world of gods, it's a little difficult to not get curious again about your own.
and, just like he and akira said it probably would all those years ago, everything goes wrong again, even when ryo goes out of his way to try to not make the same obvious mistakes as before. so before he gets wiped out by god, he flees back to hell and remains there quietly. he's reunited with his twice dead cat again, and it's... he can't say it's a good life, because it's not, but it's something more doable than he thought it would be when akira originally left.
he only really ventures into the city when he needs something, and that's why he's there now. ryo steps out of a shop, bag in hand. he's in his human form, although his hair is closer to how it looks when he's in his true one-- keeping a bowlcut after a while is apparently more work than he wants to deal with. he starts to move and then freezes when someone a little too familiar walks by. ]
Akira?
[ it's said softly enough that he doesn't really expect akira to hear but ]
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It’s less the startled whisper of his name (imagine if he kept walking without hearing) and more the sheer, undeniable feeling of someone else’s familiar presence he’d never escape that gets him to pull suddenly up short.
He’s afraid if he turns around, it won’t be who he thinks, or maybe who he does think it is will vanish in front of him.
Slowly, he turns halfway back to Ryo, eyes widening. His hair is a bit shaggier, but not as much as it likely will be from here on—a must for keeping up human appearances before. And with a more honed control over his demon side, he is able to wander with his wings tucked behind him in a human form.
He could be gone for a few years, for twenty, for eighty, for a whole several lifetimes, and he’d never forget that ethereal face.]
Ryo…
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ryo has spent a very long time thinking of what he would do if he ever saw akira again. there are some days when he's so angry about what happened that he considers just leaving him. and other days when he wonders if he might die of shock, or cry, or maybe come up with some deep speech, like he tends to.
for now, though, he spends about ten seconds just staring in disbelief. he takes one step towards him. then stops. he drops his bag suddenly and runs to him to almost tackle him for a hug. ]
Akira!
[ sometimes being gay wins out ]
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He does not expect Ryo to step toward him, to run for him. For the briefest of seconds, a ripple of uncertainty goes through him. Will Ryo attack him? Kill him? Slap him?
There isn’t anything to do but open his arms, to let Ryo in. He throws them around Ryo’s shoulders and squeezes Ryo into himself. The leathery wings fold around afterward.]
Ryo… I’m back.
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he buries his face into his neck and stays there for a long moment. it's only the sound of other citizens of hell shuffling around them that makes ryo look up, almost like he forgot where they were. ]
I didn't think I'd ever see you again.
[ they're at a point where akira has spent more of his life without ryo than with him, so he more or less gave up on the hope that akira would come back to hell. ]
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[It’s strange. Regardless of how much he can love another person, there is something… filled again in him rejoining to Ryo. Something invisible snapping perfectly together again, as if a piece had weirdly always been missing.
The wings loosen, but remain fanned around them, hiding them. He allows Ryo to shift, and he takes a moment to really look at Ryo, searching gently. He shakes his head a little.
The fingers of one hand play with the ends of Ryo’s longer hair.]
I didn’t think you would be here…
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[ although ryo notes it really is a pure coincidence that they ran into each other here. he wonders if akira has been here for a while or if he only returned recently. he should probably ask that, at some point, but right now he just holds onto him a little tighter. ]
Are you staying?
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Ryo assigns him having been here for a long time, avoidant.
He wonders where else he could possibly go where the people he knew would even still be alive. Some of them maybe wouldn’t even come back here. He nods this time.]
Yeah. I’m staying.
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but he moves to pull away at that, but keeps a hand on akira's arm like he's hesitant to completely let go. in case akira disappears the second they lose contact with each other. ]
Come with me.
[ ryo would prefer if there wasn't an audience for this; the citizens of hell are bored and nosy and ryo is aware of how he and akira can get. ]
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Okay, he’s coming.]
Do you want me to fly us?
[He’s just not sure how far Ryo is trying to go.]
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Mm, I'll tell you where to go. It'll be faster than taking the ferry.
[ the only reason ryo doesn't really run around in his true form is that the majority of things here are regular human sized... it's more convenient to stay like this. ]
It's my place. There's someone you should see, anyway.
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Okay.
[???
He wonders if it’s JD, and he also chastises himself for thinking JD would somehow be gone in regards to being here when this is everlasting hell. Not on Ryo’s part. There are only a few things he could trust Ryo with before he left, but when he understood it was tied to his happiness, to him too, he knew Ryo could be trusted.
He draws Ryo to himself and scoops Ryo up in his arms without struggle. The wings fan out, perhaps rudely ushering everyone else out of the way with their span. The muscles under his skin crawl and push back, and the wings grow a little larger. He beats them downward, sending them up into the air, leaving the ground behind.]
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he spends other parts of the trip just staring intensely at akira's face, occasionally reaching up to run his finger over his cheek. examining him. ]
You've got more control over your transformation?
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At first, he is oblivious to Ryo’s staring, but he does end up looking when Ryo brushes his face, surprised and curious—a bit concerned too. For a moment, he thinks something might be wrong.
But no, Ryo is simply being soft and gay.]
Yeah. I practiced when I could, when it wouldn’t hurt anyone.
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Do you still turn into Devilman without meaning to?
[ also unfortunately, this is all information that is very fascinating and relevant to things ryo would like to know. ]
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His eyes shift forward again, but he doesn’t try pulling his head away. They really just met again after so many years not even fifteen minutes ago, but… it’s surprisingly easy to slide right back into how things were when not thinking about it too hard, when there are no other reservations.
So Ryo can touch.]
I learned to control my emotions better. But I guess I would… if I got upset enough.
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[ he doesn't ask what might upset akira enough, because that is very obviously territory that would lead to a potential fight and ryo will make an attempt to not leap into one immediately. but still, that's good to know. he'll backtrack back to this topic later once the shock wears off.
their destination is a much smaller island that doesn't have too much on it. there's a dock, and a little forested area. but ryo directs akira towards a house that's on the edge of he forest. when they're on the ground, ryo will tug akira to the entrance. ]
This is where I live.
[ when he opens the door, the interior isn't too surprising for ryo. it's not as fancy or rich as his apartment back in their original world, but it's still quite spacious and tidy. there's not that much decoration, with only random items here or there that seem like they might actually be personal.
more importantly, though, is that when the door opens, a cat wanders over to them. this is the first obvious hint that ryo did not actually stay in hell the entire time because jd is noticeably bigger than the last time akira saw him... the kitty aged. ]
And this is your cat.
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He drops his waist and legs and glides down near the house and the forest, landing with more grace than he probably would have had many years ago. He sets Ryo down by him and folds the wings away against his back like before. His hair is a mess now from the wind, but it’s fine.]
It’s quiet.
[It’s not said like a bad thing at all. He follows Ryo to the house, inside of it.
“I got better at controlling my emotions.” Immediately, he starts crying when the cat comes into view. LISTEN!!! He is still an emotional person, and he was trying to handle seeing Ryo again, but now he is being hit twice and it is too much.]
JD…?
[THE CAT IS SO BIG. He hurries half of the way to it, bending so he can scoop the cat up in his arms.]
You’re so big now… Ryo, you really did keep him…
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Of course I did. I said I would.
[ jd meows.... ]
You're already crying.
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He hugs the cat up to his face and burrows in the fur while petting. And just cries. Not loudly, thankfully.
He’s had a lot of the tears the last handful of years actually. Kaoru wasn’t the last person to go. The twins didn’t die together, as life does to most people.
And then he had to wait for everyone else remaining. Haruhi, Kyoya, Mori. It was just him and an old, wise Honey, waiting. Then Honey went too. He lingered a while, saw to things, got most of it out of his system.]
…I just didn’t know if I’d ever see either of you again. So… I’m glad.
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well, he'll leave akira to that then. ryo will wander further into the house, turning a corner, and akira will probably hear what sounds like a fridge opening and then shutting. he returns a moment later and sets a water bottle onto the table. for when akira dehydrates himself from crying. ]
Mm. He's been a pain in the ass. You spoiled him too much and he never grew out of it.
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For a moment, he looks surprised, and then he looks amused and soft. He glances at the cat, then nuzzles it again with his face. He is truly pampering JD for being a pain.]
He should be spoiled… He’s so big.
[Hehe.
He carefully puts the cat down so he can rub at his eyes with the back of one arm.]
…I missed you both.
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at the admittance, ryo fidgets slightly, not quite sure how to react. he had hoped that akira missed him but the longer they spent apart the less likely that became for him. why would you miss someone you chose to leave and then hadn't seen in decades?
but, at the same time, there's a knot in his stomach made out of nerves and something a little like hope because of it. akira missed him. it's okay. ]
... I missed you, too.
[ constantly and angrily and longingly ]
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He wipes at his face one last time, then just… stands there looking at Ryo. Actually looking now, studying. Held in the strange and awkward space of understanding they won’t ever not be together somehow probably, but it’s the beginning after a hurt and a parting.
And he isn’t sure how sturdy the bridge is yet. He’s not sure if he acts like nothing is wrong, or tries to engage with what before always turned into an argument.]
How have you been…?
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