fishingforcompliments | [not again] catchall for yin yu

[with yin yu cooperating, it's a simple enough matter to get him into the cabin and get to work seeing to the cuts. sure enough, they're shallow - he was being careful, as he said - so all that really needs to be done is to clean them out.

she knows from experience, though -]

This may sting a little.

[- shallow cuts do sting while disinfected. her cooking mishaps have taught her that.

but it doesn't take long at all for her to finish up.]

...there. Thank you.

[for letting her fuss, just a little.]</small.

[ that's completely fine.

yin yu doesn't even flinch: he has had much worse. still, he stays still as she disinfects the three little cuts, long fingers resting gently against her hand while she works. lady flayn's touch is gentle, as ever, and he watches her unguarded for a moment while she's working, eyes soft, expression more gentle than he really knows. while he's been a recipient of lady flayn's kindness now more times than he really deserves, it never fails to impress him, to make him feel fond.

he dips his head politely when she finishes, staying seated for the moment, a little smile tugging the corner of his mouth when she thanks him. of all the things... ] I should be the one thanking you.

[oop, there's my hecked up html. that's what i get for being awake early.

anyway, flayn shakes her head as she turns away to return the supplies she's been using to their proper places.]

You probably did not need the help - but I appreciate that you allowed me to, all the same.

[it's a small thing, in the grand scheme of it all, but even though they did manage to catch a culprit this time, there's still so much they don't know about what happened thursday night that flayn really can't help but feel vaguely useless. in putting up with this, yin yu has allowed her to accomplish something.]

[ he didn't, really but... well. it feels selfish to want it, but isn't it nice, for a moment, to have someone else to rely on? even if it's just for such a tiny thing, a couple of little cuts.

he looks down at his hands for a moment. there's one other one that's already closed up on his other hand, just a sliver of a reminder that something happened. yin yu stays quiet for a little while longer as she's putting things away. ]

...Lady Flayn. [ he says, eventually, quietly. ] Tomorrow, if I end up being chosen for the duty of the duel... can I ask you a small favor? If I don't, it will be irrelevant.

[flayn freezes where she's putting the disinfectant away. what if yin yu is chosen tomorrow? is, unfortunately, something she's thought of and something she's feared. she knows he's highly capable, and nie huaisang doesn't seem like he would be able to overpower him, but -

he didn't seem like the type to kill two people, either.]

You can ask anything of me. [her voice is soft. he can ask whatever he wants of her, even if she doesn't like it - she does, after all, owe him her life.] ...what is it?

[ he isn't worried about winning a fight. over the past few weeks, yin yu has logically tried to assess each match up for himself, just in case. in ogata's, the randomized choice of weapon was the only real worry - if it had been him, and the weapon had been a firearm, he would have lost instantly. if it had been guy... that was complicated for an entirely different reason.

logically, if it is nie huaisang, with any weapon, he should be fine. yin yu is completely capable with most kinds of weapons, and the playing field would be even. he knows now from experiencing memories that nie huaisang is not a fighter.

(somewhere in his core, he knows, though, that it could easily mean the end of his life in the next week, if it was to happen.)

but that doesn't matter, not now. it's not really about him, and it never is. if yin yu needs to be the blade of the executioner, then he will do so, with swiftness and a righteousness, and succeed. but. ]

...Will you try to be near Lady Lili? [ maybe the request is a bit surprising. maybe its not: lili has been through much this week, considering. either way, he requests it with a seriousness anyway, looking at his hands. ]

Near Lili..?

[normally, she wouldn't be opposed to that in any way. but there's a small amount of hesitation in her question - the reason for which yin yu might be able to guess, given what he knows of her power and what happened to her, ookurikara, and ash after they spontaneously started hating each other.

but she wants to help, in any way that she can, and if yin yu is asking, it certainly isn't simply on a whim. she may have something she needs to apologize to lili for on monday, but on sunday, she can be there for her.]

...of course.

[ yin yu nods, curling his fingers back together into his fists and flexing them for a moment, just for something to do. he knows he's asking something of flayn that must be difficult, at least a little. he knows she must be worried, and perhaps guilty, too.

he looks a little unsure, just for a moment. yin yu doesn't think it will happen. it's a low possibility, but nevertheless, he just.

he wants to be sure. it's important to look out for the people closest to him, because... he has few that he is close to, indeed. ] ...thank you. [ he says, the word a little heavy, brows furrowed together. for the moment, he has no further explanation besides ] It's just a precaution.

[ (but if flayn asked, yin yu would tell her.) ]

[...she wants to know why. that much is written all over her face, so it's likely a good thing she's turned away from him, so he can't see it.

he probably would explain, if she asked - flayn isn't completely unaware that he tends to tell her more than he probably should. that had been how she'd learned his power and his team, after all; he'd offered it to her freely.

but he hasn't offered an explanation to this freely, and she isn't sure if she should push it.]

I see. [...she does wonder.] I will do what I can for her, I promise.

[ he won't be the one to bring it up--at least not now. maybe when the execution tomorrow ends, and they're faced with another week, a few days of peace (questionably) before everything goes to hell all over again. there are mysteries to be solved, in the meantime, too.

standing properly, he presses his hands together as he has many times before, and gives flayn a much more serious bow, the motion deeper than usual. ] ...you will have my deepest gratitude.

[ as always.

straightening properly again, yin yu mentally sets that aside. it's nothing to worry flayn about, especially not now--especially if it's a very very small chance, for so many reasons, but. this is something he can't really manage on his own, if it does happen. or, well - he can, but he wants to cover his bases.

it doesn't matter. he gives a small shake of his head to clear it, for now. ]

[if she's being honest - she'll worry anyway.

...but she won't ask. yin yu is choosing to rely on her, and that's no small thing. she has his reasons, and she trusts in him, so she'll trust in whatever those reasons are.

and it's a good thing, that he's concerned with looking out for someone else. lili has been such a support to many other people here - she deserves to have someone support her, in turn, and flayn is glad that she has yin yu thinking of her.]

...is there anything in particular I should be looking out for, as I am near her?

[ yin yu's quiet, for a moment, mouth turning downwards. ]

...Don't let her hide it, if she's injured. [ he knows how lili is.

that may make it more obvious what's going on than anything else. ]

...

[ah.]

I will, but... you had best take care not to be injured, yourself.

[ that response is confirmation enough. flayn is one of only two people that knows his power, after all. he shifts, looking away from her.

the delivery of the facts is quiet and calm. ] Lady Lili suspected that the distraction at the trial was caused by myself - that I had tied her, Ash and Ookurikara together, in some combination. She knew that it would be a way to derail the trial, because she has a loud presence, and she was certainly right in that regard. Therefore, she thought that I had participated in the killings this week, and was using my power to throw attention off of myself and stop the proceedings.

She approached me almost immediately after, and asked if I would bond myself to her to prove that I hadn't used it.

[ he gives a little shrug of his shoulders. ] So, I did. I did not kill anyone, of course, and today marks the first time that I have used my power at all.

...but, you would never...

[some part of flayn had wondered if, perhaps, he had tied the three of them together for some unrelated reason prior to the trial - she can't claim to know everything that he gets up to, or every plan that lili has. she would have believed it if it had been something they'd come up with together, only for it to backfire when someone had targeted a single one of them - likely lili herself - and the effect had spread to all three.

but she had never, even for a moment, wondered if yin yu was involved in the killings. it hurts a little, to think that lili might have suspected him.]

[ (cries in getaway)

i mean! flayn's belief in him is pretty touching, but. he gives her a small, self-deprecating smile. it doesn't reach his eyes. ] ...Lady Flayn, you saw what happened in the heavens. You are not the only one who did, this week.

[ you should know better, he thinks, looking away again, the rise of guilt in his stomach so familiar he's able to push it down only by habit. i know the kind of person that i am.

yin yu has had a very bad week. ] It was entirely plausible, and I am glad to know that if something were to happen, I would be subject to the same suspicion as anyone else.

...

[it's completely implausible, she wants to say. if yin yu had been under suspicion during the trial, flayn likely would have leapt to his defense immediately.

(which, ultimately, might not have helped matters at all. beau leaping to nie huaisang's defense had not, in the end.)

she presses her lips together into a thin line, though. she doesn't want to argue with him, and if saying something she believes is true (and she does believe it, no matter what she saw in his memory) put that look on his face, then maybe she just needs to stop talking.]

...well, I am glad that you seem to have been cleared of it.

It would have been a terrible reason to be sent off as an innocent man, I think.

[ ha ha... ha. that's a little dark, but it's true. their track record isn't exactly great. it's not that he doesn't think he deserves such a thing for other reasons, and it certainly wouldn't be the end of the world for their overall mission, but, nevertheless. ] Luckily, it was easy to dispel such a worry, and I am glad that she waited until after.

[ because it's not like he really would've been able to explain it in front of everyone else, either. ] ...Lady Lili was quite upset, so I wanted to assuage the fear as quickly as possible, too. If I had the choice, I wouldn't have done it.

[ he's made it clear to flayn, that he's not interested in using his power when it's not necessary. but... here they are. ]

[sent off as an innocent man.

just the thought of it - of yin yu, facing down an executioner, weighing whether or not to fight for his life and risk killing someone who might also be innocent, or to go off to death after having received a majority vote - fills her with a fear so intense that she nearly stops breathing.

she doesn't want that. not ever.

she swallows hard. gods, but he doesn't need to deal with her fears on top of everything else.]

...I am glad you were able to.

[ that doesn't go unnoticed; yin yu feels the guilt from making flayn worry. (and now we know it's unnecessary! britt i rly wanted it.) he looks down at her, brow creasing with worry, a fluttering of guilt and anxiety rising in his stomach. the last thing he wants is for her to be upset. ]

...Lady Flayn, it's all finished. And if something were to happen tomorrow, I would be able to handle it well. [ he says, softly, by way of trying for comfort. at least in terms of that. it's over, he's not in danger. yin yu was able to nip it in the bud, and capably, would have the ability to do so whenever. ...though, if it were to happen, he would fight back--but ultimately, a retroactive punishment for a crime once committed is all a person like him would deserve.

yin yu's not sure what to do, how to comfort her. he's bad at this, and there's the urge to reach out - to do something. to hug her, to hold her hand, to do anything to get that look off of flayn's face. lili's emotions keep sneaking through too, a rising tide of surprise, and then suddenly, an uncomfortable flood of love that he has no idea how to deal with. he can put the lid on most things, but it makes dealing with this current situation--makes looking at the girl beside him-- even more difficult.

(it's maybe not so unfamiliar a feeling. not now. not recently.

hm.)

his hand lifts in the air, but ultimately hovers a bit, unsure. ]

I know you would be.

[but knowing how capable he is - knowing that he likely could overpower nie huaisang in an instant, if he needed to - makes her no less worried. this place has thrown trouble after trouble at all of them, and she'll really only trust that the people she cares about will be safe once this is over.]

But, I...

[she worries.

she doesn't know how to stop worrying, when all she wants is to see him safely away from this nightmare of a camp.]

[ alright. the feeling of lili's incessant emotions knocking on the door of his self control is starting to get overwhelming. combining that with flayn being upset, and worried, for his sake, of all things --

yin yu is inevitably still a coward, and inevitably still a cat that needs to be coaxed into almost anything. he still keeps himself too guarded, tends to run at the best of moments. but over the past few weeks, he's been coaxed little by little out of his shell by this person, learned to try to reach out just a little more.

and if he's the reason she's so worried, it's just-

yin yu shifts, a little, his hand still hovering, before he quietly turns his shoulder to the side, letting her into his space. his arm's behind her, and... after a moment's hesitation, it falls gently on her shoulders.]

[she'll feel a little guilty, later, if she realizes that he's spurred into action by what lili is feeling. like she's taking advantage of it, somehow, if she's partly responsible for her feeling it - although flayn is reasonably certain she had those sorts of feelings for ookurikara already.

but if they're more intense than they would have otherwise been, more noticeable, and yin yu is only holding her because of it—

for now, she doesn't seem to realize it. she looks up, shocked, as he puts her arm around her shoulders, but after a moment the tension bleeds out of her, and she leans into him.

...it's a little easier, like this - not to banish her fear of what might happen to him tomorrow, but to keep it at bay.]

[ he almost immediately tenses when flayn looks up at him, ready to flinch back immediately and apologize, profusely, then run the opposite direction and never talk to her again (no) (maybe) but when flayn relaxes, he slowly does, too. it's not as much: yin yu is a stupid boy and therefore, stupid.

however, when she leans in, he does exhale, and gives a tiny squeeze. his ears are scarlet red, cheeks pink, but he doesn't run away. later on, he too will realize that these emotions are partially because of lili, which means that lili will be experiencing what he is right now, which means in a few hours he's going to want to grab the earth master's shovel and dig a hole straight back to ancient fantasy china, but for now, he's just embarrassed and also overwhelmed. ]

...I am sorry for worrying you. [ he says, eventually, looking down at the counter in front of them. at least his voice doesn't crack. ]

...I suppose it is only fair.

[it feels... nice, to have his arm around her. warm. her cheeks flush faintly, but with his gaze on the counter, maybe he won't notice. she hopes he doesn't notice, because by now she knows that if he feels like he's making her uncomfortable, he'll attempt to leave in an instant, and she doesn't want that.

(she'll think about why that might be later.)]

I have worried you quite frequently since we arrived, I believe.

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