[He doesn't like how the scenery just changes but it at least offers something to do, and gives him an excuse to spend time with someone he cherishes the most. Not that he needs an excuse, but it does bother him a little that she doesn't live with him, that she's on her own somewhere that is, in his opinion, dangerous.
So with a short message, he tells her to meet up with him at the beach, that he has a surprise for her and that he's hoping that they can just spend some time together to be them.
When Kazuya spots her, he's quick to wave her down excitedly, a clear pep in his step now that he can see that Yuzu is fine, and is doing well, and that she hasn't been hurt by anyone or anything for the moment. He holds out a nondescript brown paper bag for her as he approaches, giving a small, sheepish laugh.]
Hey! It's been a minute, huh? I... Um, I didn't know if you had a swim-suit, and I know it's not like this is a beach in Okinawa, but I thought... I don't know, maybe we could goof off a bit?
[His own swim trunks are on under his clothes, and there is a changing station nearby, if she does accept gift.]
I tried to find something you'd like. I hope you do, but I'm not nearly as fashion forward as you are.
[Of course Yuzu was going to come! It's been far too long since she had the time to enjoy the beach - especially when an entire lockdown has spoiled her images of summer back at home - and he would always be down to hang out with Kaz. Especially now that she's sure her wish has been granted, and that this is another snapshot of normalcy that has been sorely missed.
What she does not expect, however, is the gift that now lies in the middle of her hands. Kaz is right, she didn't have a swimsuit at all, thinking that a simple shirt and shorts would do. But now they really could enjoy the beach to themselves, and she could look nice and cute in front of her childhood friend and -
waitwaitwait, hold on a sec!!!!! Kazuya is giving her a swimsuit!!!]
Give...Give me a moment!
[Indeed she charges straight to the changing station, trying her best to hide her beet red face.]
[Well! He hadn't expected her to so quickly storm off to get changed! Is she excited? Does she like it? He hopes she does! She didn't even say anything about how it looked or the colours he picked.
Maybe she's just being nice?
Nah, there's no way Yuzu wouldn't say something if she thought what he picked was ugly. She has to be excited. And while Atsuro isn't here to join them, and Kazuya sorely misses him, he's still glad that Yuzu is here, in a strange way, because he's missed her, and he wants to be a little selfish for a change.
So he'll wait until she's out, however long that might take, and grab the beach towels out from the other bag he'd brought and scope the beach for a good spot for the two of them. They're not really anything fancy, just something to dry them off after messing around in the water.
Seems like they're the only ones around this section, which is really, really nice!]
[That's because she hasn't even looked at it yet! Oops!
She probably would have taken a peek first if anybody else gave this to her - Atsuro, for example. (Atsuro, especially) Give it an internal rating from 1 to 10 on how pretty it looks, or if it something that suits her, and then maybe just maybe tell them how grateful she is for the gift.
Right now though she's trying to calm herself down. Stop herself from squealing too much. And then finally, take a peek at that swimsuit. Ohmygosh, it looks super cute! It's more pastel than her usual pinks, but it complements her well. The strawberries are a nice touch!
It takes a little too long for her to come out of the changing rooms, and when she spots Kazuya she's twiddling her thumbs in front of her.]
[He can feel his heart beat a little quicker when she comes out of the changing room, and there might be the slightest, gentlest coating of red on his face. But that could also easily be from the sun too, right? Right!
Anyway, he he nods, excitedly.]
You look really good in it! I'm glad it fits, and I'm glad you seem to like it too. I was really worried that maybe I might have misremembered something.
[Ah.. He should probably strip his clothes down too, right? But first he offers the gym bag to her to tuck her own clothes into safely as he pulls his shirt off over his head, fighting a little bit with it at first. It's a little silly, and leaves his hair a little tussled, but it's fine.]
[Yeah, definitely just the sun! There's no other explanation on why they're matching shades of red right now! Still, Kaz says she looks good, and so she indulgences herself with a little twirl.]
Nope, it fits really well! Thanks a lot, Kaz.
[In to the gym bag do the rest of her clothes go, while she fishes for some kind of blanket they can use to cover the sand with. Yuzu can't help herself though, and risks taking a peek at Kaz as he dresses down. Wow, he's really all grown up all this time, even though some things never change.
Still, something catches her eye, and it leaves a melancholic pit in her stomach.]
[The twirl is cute, and it makes his heart flutter something fierce. Ah... He really, really does love her, doesn't he? It's a nice feeling. Nicer to know that she feels the same way, even if this version of her doesn't know that he feels just like she does.
That's alright. He's still planning their date, and eventually it'll be perfect, and everything will work out and be fine.]
Ah... Yeah. I got pretty beat up, but it's fine, because you look really good.
[Not that Yuzu doesn't have her own scars, but it's definitely easy to see that Kazuya took the brunt of whatever he could, and it's not like the Bel demons really gunned for anyone other than him in a hope to get his piece of the crown.]
These just mean that I was able to protect you and Atsuro both, and I'm happy with that.
[Her own scars peek in places here and there, places like her arms and legs, but they're nothing compared to the long gashes that Kazuya has. It's because they insisted to be on the front lines for as often as they could, Yuzu casting her spells at the back for support. It's a way of showing how much they care for her, she knows, but the guilt can't help but gnaw at her soul anyway.]
Still, I wish my healing spells could have done more for them, you know? Especially at the start when all I knew was Dia.
[Slender fingers reach out, hesitant and wavering.]
It was because of your Dia that I survived a lot of things I probably shouldn't have. I'm grateful to you. You saved my life countless times over.
[And the smile he gives, the softness in his eyes, he means what he says. That without Yuzu, he wouldn't have lived. Atsuro probably wouldn't have lived. It was because of her, because of her even being afraid that they took things more cautiously. That they lived to see another day.
It might not have happened like that if it'd just been two bone-headed boys running around Tokyo on their own. She gave them someone to protect.]
So yeah. If you wanna touch them, I don't mind.
[But... It makes his heart do nervous little flips all the same.]
[That's how it works, does it? They all survived because they were with each other. Without Kazuya, without Atsuro, without Yuzu...any missing piece, and things could have been any different. Things would have ended up for the worse. And there's a pang of guilt there, because once upon a time Yuzu was that missing piece. Yuzu left them, and they did well without her, so maybe she wasn't that necessary after all?
Not that she can air out her own fears and concerns, though. Not when Kazuya doesn't know anything. And let him not know it, let him live in ignorant bliss.
For now, a finger runs down the long gash by his side, a rough patch of skin hardened by the crisis and the times.]
I remember this one. It was that Ogre that gave you this scar.
[He supposes that it makes sense that she'd remember that, considering how early it'd happened. How shocked they'd all been when their COMP's had come to life in the worst way possible. And while he shivers a little bit at the contact, he doesn't otherwise move, instead searching her eyes.]
You saved my life then too. I would have been a goner, without your magic. Especially since it wasn't much later that the blackout started. The hospital's wouldn't have been able to take care of me, even if they'd gotten to me in time.
[He remembers, the searing, sharp pain. the way he'd had to have his hand clenched to his side to keep his insides in... Thankfully he'd managed. It would have been horrific if Yuzu had had to see that much.]
I'm not sure what would have happened, and it doesn't make sense to talk about any what ifs, but I'm just glad I was there to heal you.
[She remembers it clearly because she can never forget the panic and the fear that filled her in that disastrous day. They didn't know anything back then, just some teenagers thrust into a war they do not understand, and all Yuzu could think about is that she didn't want anybody to die.]
You've done so much for us, Kaz... You didn't just help us survive, you made sure that you could protect me and Atsuro from the worst of it. I don't know how I could ever make it up to you.
You don't have anything to make up to me, Yuzu. You just being there... That was enough for me. That was enough for both Atsuro and I both to get through everything. Maybe that's a little selfish, but... We needed you.
[And there's a small pause, Kazuya glancing down at her hand before gently taking it into his, thumb brushing the back of it tenderly, gently.]
And we still do. You're important to both of us. Don't ever think you have to make up for anything.
[And... She's here now. And that's what mattered. That she'd come back. Even back home, that she'd come back because she'd realized that he hadn't changed, despite what he'd become. He gets why she went away, and knows why it'd hurt so much, but it means more to him that she'd come back.]
[But she didn't come back. Not after everything Kazuya has done. She's only come back because she thought she fixed everything. That's enough...right?]
Sorry, I didn't mean to bring the moon down like that. [She tries to shake it off and to smile, returning the soft motions of his hands with her own. She would hug him now if she could, but that might be too much under this sweltering heat.
Speaking of...]
Look at us, talking about scars and shortcomings when we should be enjoying the beach! It'll be a shame if we don't go out for a swim when you went through the trouble of getting me this outfit.
[It also requires strength to be able to smile, and that is exactly what she does, tucking her hair behind her ear as she stands up to run towards the shore.]
[She takes off suddenly like a bolt, and Kazuya stumbles behind her from the sudden emotional whiplash of the situation. It's fine, because there's nothing he wants more than to see her smile, and so when she does, it instantly brightens his mood as he follows her, dropping their stuff on the towel he's left to follow her into the water.
It's definitely nothing like Okinawa, the beach has glimmering crystal mixed in with the sand, smoothed by the tides and waves.
But... He can't help but splash her the moment they do get into the water, laughing softly as he does.
The water is cool, in comparison to his heated skin. It's nice, and even Yuzu is probably thankful for the cool water.]
[And she is grinning from ear to ear, because the last thing she wants is to bring the mood down and Kazuya alongside her. And it does help that the beach is pretty nice! Look at how everything sparkles, from the sand to the sea, how this is such a radiant sight different from anything they could have ever seen in Japan, let alone Okinawa.
So let her be a teenager at this moment, no worries or concerns about lockdowns and apocalypses, and the beach is the perfect place to bury such things and to just....let things be.
Yuzu giggles as the water hits back her skin, and of course she delightfully lands back large splash of her own. She's here for a mission, and that mission is to drench Kazuya from head to toe.]
[The first splash hits, but Kazuya blocks most of it with his arms as he laughs, too excited over the sheer normalcy of this entire thing. Just playing at the beach with someone he cares. It's almost, for a few moments, like he's elsewhere. Like they're back home in Japan, like nothing terrible ever befell them, and like they're both just the teenagers they were meant to be.
So Kazuya retreats to slightly deeper water, using his height advantage to create a bigger wave to soak her with, all while still being so careful about his strength, about the way he could easily cause her to go under if he didn't measure himself crazy.]
[She's by no means angry though - in fact, she's still laughing louder than ever, bells chiming against the wind. A deluge of water drenches her badly, orange hair sticking close to her face, but that is only fuel for her to get her revenge.
Her own waves are not as large as Kazuya's, but what she doesn't have in quality she makes it up in quantity. Rapid flutters on the water makes the droplets fall down onto Kazuya like rain, trying to get him as wet as she is.]
[And the sound is nice. Cheerful, as it should be. So much so that he momentarily gets lost in it, and Yuzu gets exactly what she wants. The spray of the waves soaks him thoroughly, and his own hair mats down against his head as he laughs too.
Looks like retreating to deeper water wasn't the play after all!
But getting wet is definitely the point of all of this, and he fires back his own wave, as he tries to close the distance after it connects so he can ever so lightly shove at her, like he means to push her down into the water.
He'd never, ever, actually give it his all. Even when he finally got taller than her, he's always been mindful of overdoing it, of using his size against her in such a way that might make her overwhelmed. Instead, it's something he'd rather protect her with.]
[They continue like this for a while, just being playful with one another. It doesn't take a while before she wades closer to Kazuya, making sure he's deep in the splash zone she's making for him. Admittedly, the water feels great to her skin, cooling her down compared to the sweltering heat of the summer.
Kaz might wanna protect her, but she wants to be able to stand up on her own, too. She wants to show that she can protect Kaz too, even though she's weaker and frailer and not as sturdy. She's done hiding behind everyone else, watching everyone take blows for her.
So she's giving it all her might. Pelter Kazuya with all of the water she can muster until he looks like a proper sopping wet dog.]
[It doesn't take long before that's the case. His hair is matted down his face, the extra length in the back flopping around haphazardly as he shakes his head to try and free himself of the saltwater every now and again, but it's clear that Yuzu has him on the back foot. Quite literally, as it were! She sprays him and pelts him with more and more splashes, and eventually he's laughing so hard that he can barely see, left awkwardly trying to retaliate against her sheer ferocity in which she soaks him.
It's all in good fun.
And Kazuya feels lighter than he has in what feels like an eternity.
This is what he fought so hard for.
To be normal.
To goof off with his friends.
To just be with the people he cherishes the most, because that's all he's ever wanted. It's all he thinks he could ever want.
They never should have had to worry about the lockdown.
They never should have had to worry about demons.
They only should have ever had to worry about fashion trends and where they were going for summer vacation and who was going to be buying lunch for the others.
So Kazuya laughs, free and light hearted for the first time in forever as he sputters and does his best to retaliate with his splashing until he trips, and sinks down briefly under the water for a second before he reappears, sputtering and laughing harder.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
SMASHES WINE BOTTLE ON THIS POST
So with a short message, he tells her to meet up with him at the beach, that he has a surprise for her and that he's hoping that they can just spend some time together to be them.
When Kazuya spots her, he's quick to wave her down excitedly, a clear pep in his step now that he can see that Yuzu is fine, and is doing well, and that she hasn't been hurt by anyone or anything for the moment. He holds out a nondescript brown paper bag for her as he approaches, giving a small, sheepish laugh.]
Hey! It's been a minute, huh? I... Um, I didn't know if you had a swim-suit, and I know it's not like this is a beach in Okinawa, but I thought... I don't know, maybe we could goof off a bit?
[His own swim trunks are on under his clothes, and there is a changing station nearby, if she does accept gift.]
I tried to find something you'd like. I hope you do, but I'm not nearly as fashion forward as you are.
YEAHHHHHHHHHHH
What she does not expect, however, is the gift that now lies in the middle of her hands. Kaz is right, she didn't have a swimsuit at all, thinking that a simple shirt and shorts would do. But now they really could enjoy the beach to themselves, and she could look nice and cute in front of her childhood friend and -
waitwaitwait, hold on a sec!!!!! Kazuya is giving her a swimsuit!!!]
Give...Give me a moment!
[Indeed she charges straight to the changing station, trying her best to hide her beet red face.]
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Maybe she's just being nice?
Nah, there's no way Yuzu wouldn't say something if she thought what he picked was ugly. She has to be excited. And while Atsuro isn't here to join them, and Kazuya sorely misses him, he's still glad that Yuzu is here, in a strange way, because he's missed her, and he wants to be a little selfish for a change.
So he'll wait until she's out, however long that might take, and grab the beach towels out from the other bag he'd brought and scope the beach for a good spot for the two of them. They're not really anything fancy, just something to dry them off after messing around in the water.
Seems like they're the only ones around this section, which is really, really nice!]
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She probably would have taken a peek first if anybody else gave this to her - Atsuro, for example. (Atsuro, especially) Give it an internal rating from 1 to 10 on how pretty it looks, or if it something that suits her, and then maybe just maybe tell them how grateful she is for the gift.
Right now though she's trying to calm herself down. Stop herself from squealing too much. And then finally, take a peek at that swimsuit. Ohmygosh, it looks super cute! It's more pastel than her usual pinks, but it complements her well. The strawberries are a nice touch!
It takes a little too long for her to come out of the changing rooms, and when she spots Kazuya she's twiddling her thumbs in front of her.]
So, um. It looks great, right?
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Anyway, he he nods, excitedly.]
You look really good in it! I'm glad it fits, and I'm glad you seem to like it too. I was really worried that maybe I might have misremembered something.
[Ah.. He should probably strip his clothes down too, right? But first he offers the gym bag to her to tuck her own clothes into safely as he pulls his shirt off over his head, fighting a little bit with it at first. It's a little silly, and leaves his hair a little tussled, but it's fine.]
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Nope, it fits really well! Thanks a lot, Kaz.
[In to the gym bag do the rest of her clothes go, while she fishes for some kind of blanket they can use to cover the sand with. Yuzu can't help herself though, and risks taking a peek at Kaz as he dresses down. Wow, he's really all grown up all this time, even though some things never change.
Still, something catches her eye, and it leaves a melancholic pit in her stomach.]
Those scars....are those from back home?
no subject
That's alright. He's still planning their date, and eventually it'll be perfect, and everything will work out and be fine.]
Ah... Yeah. I got pretty beat up, but it's fine, because you look really good.
[Not that Yuzu doesn't have her own scars, but it's definitely easy to see that Kazuya took the brunt of whatever he could, and it's not like the Bel demons really gunned for anyone other than him in a hope to get his piece of the crown.]
These just mean that I was able to protect you and Atsuro both, and I'm happy with that.
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Still, I wish my healing spells could have done more for them, you know? Especially at the start when all I knew was Dia.
[Slender fingers reach out, hesitant and wavering.]
Do you mind if I touch them?
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[And the smile he gives, the softness in his eyes, he means what he says. That without Yuzu, he wouldn't have lived. Atsuro probably wouldn't have lived. It was because of her, because of her even being afraid that they took things more cautiously. That they lived to see another day.
It might not have happened like that if it'd just been two bone-headed boys running around Tokyo on their own. She gave them someone to protect.]
So yeah. If you wanna touch them, I don't mind.
[But... It makes his heart do nervous little flips all the same.]
no subject
Not that she can air out her own fears and concerns, though. Not when Kazuya doesn't know anything. And let him not know it, let him live in ignorant bliss.
For now, a finger runs down the long gash by his side, a rough patch of skin hardened by the crisis and the times.]
I remember this one. It was that Ogre that gave you this scar.
no subject
[He supposes that it makes sense that she'd remember that, considering how early it'd happened. How shocked they'd all been when their COMP's had come to life in the worst way possible. And while he shivers a little bit at the contact, he doesn't otherwise move, instead searching her eyes.]
You saved my life then too. I would have been a goner, without your magic. Especially since it wasn't much later that the blackout started. The hospital's wouldn't have been able to take care of me, even if they'd gotten to me in time.
[He remembers, the searing, sharp pain. the way he'd had to have his hand clenched to his side to keep his insides in... Thankfully he'd managed. It would have been horrific if Yuzu had had to see that much.]
no subject
[She remembers it clearly because she can never forget the panic and the fear that filled her in that disastrous day. They didn't know anything back then, just some teenagers thrust into a war they do not understand, and all Yuzu could think about is that she didn't want anybody to die.]
You've done so much for us, Kaz... You didn't just help us survive, you made sure that you could protect me and Atsuro from the worst of it. I don't know how I could ever make it up to you.
no subject
[And there's a small pause, Kazuya glancing down at her hand before gently taking it into his, thumb brushing the back of it tenderly, gently.]
And we still do. You're important to both of us. Don't ever think you have to make up for anything.
[And... She's here now. And that's what mattered. That she'd come back. Even back home, that she'd come back because she'd realized that he hadn't changed, despite what he'd become. He gets why she went away, and knows why it'd hurt so much, but it means more to him that she'd come back.]
no subject
Sorry, I didn't mean to bring the moon down like that. [She tries to shake it off and to smile, returning the soft motions of his hands with her own. She would hug him now if she could, but that might be too much under this sweltering heat.
Speaking of...]
Look at us, talking about scars and shortcomings when we should be enjoying the beach! It'll be a shame if we don't go out for a swim when you went through the trouble of getting me this outfit.
[It also requires strength to be able to smile, and that is exactly what she does, tucking her hair behind her ear as she stands up to run towards the shore.]
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[She takes off suddenly like a bolt, and Kazuya stumbles behind her from the sudden emotional whiplash of the situation. It's fine, because there's nothing he wants more than to see her smile, and so when she does, it instantly brightens his mood as he follows her, dropping their stuff on the towel he's left to follow her into the water.
It's definitely nothing like Okinawa, the beach has glimmering crystal mixed in with the sand, smoothed by the tides and waves.
But... He can't help but splash her the moment they do get into the water, laughing softly as he does.
The water is cool, in comparison to his heated skin. It's nice, and even Yuzu is probably thankful for the cool water.]
Hey, you can't just get away that easy, you know!
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[And she is grinning from ear to ear, because the last thing she wants is to bring the mood down and Kazuya alongside her. And it does help that the beach is pretty nice! Look at how everything sparkles, from the sand to the sea, how this is such a radiant sight different from anything they could have ever seen in Japan, let alone Okinawa.
So let her be a teenager at this moment, no worries or concerns about lockdowns and apocalypses, and the beach is the perfect place to bury such things and to just....let things be.
Yuzu giggles as the water hits back her skin, and of course she delightfully lands back large splash of her own. She's here for a mission, and that mission is to drench Kazuya from head to toe.]
no subject
So Kazuya retreats to slightly deeper water, using his height advantage to create a bigger wave to soak her with, all while still being so careful about his strength, about the way he could easily cause her to go under if he didn't measure himself crazy.]
I'm gonna get you!
no subject
[She's by no means angry though - in fact, she's still laughing louder than ever, bells chiming against the wind. A deluge of water drenches her badly, orange hair sticking close to her face, but that is only fuel for her to get her revenge.
Her own waves are not as large as Kazuya's, but what she doesn't have in quality she makes it up in quantity. Rapid flutters on the water makes the droplets fall down onto Kazuya like rain, trying to get him as wet as she is.]
no subject
Looks like retreating to deeper water wasn't the play after all!
But getting wet is definitely the point of all of this, and he fires back his own wave, as he tries to close the distance after it connects so he can ever so lightly shove at her, like he means to push her down into the water.
He'd never, ever, actually give it his all. Even when he finally got taller than her, he's always been mindful of overdoing it, of using his size against her in such a way that might make her overwhelmed. Instead, it's something he'd rather protect her with.]
no subject
Kaz might wanna protect her, but she wants to be able to stand up on her own, too. She wants to show that she can protect Kaz too, even though she's weaker and frailer and not as sturdy. She's done hiding behind everyone else, watching everyone take blows for her.
So she's giving it all her might. Pelter Kazuya with all of the water she can muster until he looks like a proper sopping wet dog.]
no subject
It's all in good fun.
And Kazuya feels lighter than he has in what feels like an eternity.
This is what he fought so hard for.
To be normal.
To goof off with his friends.
To just be with the people he cherishes the most, because that's all he's ever wanted. It's all he thinks he could ever want.
They never should have had to worry about the lockdown.
They never should have had to worry about demons.
They only should have ever had to worry about fashion trends and where they were going for summer vacation and who was going to be buying lunch for the others.
So Kazuya laughs, free and light hearted for the first time in forever as he sputters and does his best to retaliate with his splashing until he trips, and sinks down briefly under the water for a second before he reappears, sputtering and laughing harder.]
I give, I give! You win!