mylittlejamjar | 5th Confession: I left without them.

[Teddie would surely be there before her, what with his not decaying body and no need to limp. He's been sitting there for awhile, hoping he's at the right river or that she didn't change her mind last second. He had so many things he wanted to say to her, and so much time to think about it. It honestly felt like he was ready to explode.

Next to him is a small bag, nothing too fancy, but it's there.

Much like she said before, Teddie's nose is far too sensitive and he finds it scrunching at the scent of something...not right. Remembering what she told him, he can only guess this was what she was talking about. This of course helps him change his mood; sure, it stinks, but it also means Kyouko is near by.]

Kyo-chan! Over here!!

[He throws an arm in the air and waves her over.]

[ She looks bad.

Her left back hoof is gone entirely, hence the limp. There's bone sticking out of the stump, and the odd insect still nursing it. If Teddie looks for long enough, he'll see the flesh actually stitching itself back together. But slowly.

Her right ear is missing, and both of her wings are almost entirely out of feathers, revealing the lighter-red flesh beneath them. One of her eyes is goopier than it should be, and she keeps pushing it back into its socket. Chunks of flesh have been eaten away all around her body.

It's still better than she was an hour ago. When she didn't have enough nerve endings healed to lift herself off the floor.

She lifts one of her hooves weakly and stumbles forward. ] Wait. I'll get ta the water. Then we can talk. [ Her speech is slurred, too, her jaw weaker than it should be. ]

[Oh... Now seeing her condition, Teddie never thought seeing something could hurt him so badly. His ears fold back as he bites his bottom lip, trying to keep himself from yelping or crying or doing anything to scare her off. This...this was scary, he's never seen the insides of...well, anything before. Not like this. And of course the first person he has to see like this is the girl he cares so much about...

But, he's also been trying his best to deal with scary things, he's learned you should be nice to them when dealing with that dragon girl and the mirror. This was still Kyouko and that's all that matters to him. He had to be strong for her. He can do this.]

I-I...sure! I love a good bath every now and then, too.

[He even puts on a smile.]

I...got you some stuff, to make you feel better.

[ She can see the brave face he's putting on over his terrified interior. It's not even hard. But he's doing it. And... and yeah, that's the kind of behavior she's come to expect from Teddie by now.

It makes her almost proud. And, of course, she's glad to see him safe after all that. ]

Th-thanks. Stay there, lemme... get some o' this off...

[ She makes her way over to the river and dips herself in. Some of the insects disperse. The eye threatens to lose its purchase again but Kyouko wallops herself in the face and it snaps back in, staying there but still a little jiggly. The river turns dark red, and then it gets a little clearer. Some of the funk, the dirt and grime, gets lost in the water, at least.

Probably the fish don't appreciate it much. ]

There...

[There's a mighty loud gulp as he watches her slap her eye back in, the insects certainly don't help. A shiver runs down his spine and he decides now is the best time to distract himself by digging into his bag.]

Let's see here, I got you some...lotion for your skin. [He pulls out a small bottle and gives it a good sniff. Unlike her, it smells amazing. Therefore, if she puts it on, she too can smell amazing.] Oh, and some soup... [Always need to give someone soup when they're sick. He pulls out the small container and places it down next to the lotion.] Aaaand, this is a candle... [Much like the lotion, the candle's scent is pleasant and not anything like rot. Unlike the lotion, it's not for wearing.] A-and some of our favorite jerky.

...

[He's trying very hard, but he can only hold his tears in for so long. His eyes water, even with that smile, but there's no fear in his voice.]

...I really missed you.

[ This is the part Kyouko was dreading. Her stomach drops. Not literally, thank goodness. Her chest cavity has healed enough to stop internal organs from leaving their preferred casing, at least anymore. ]

Look, I... [ Her ear folds back. ] I didn' know. I mean, I shoulda told ya I was goin', but I thought it'd be for a few hours, an' tha's what it felt like.

[ She doesn't approach the care package he brought yet. She just stands in the river, feeling a little stupid but at least cleaner, not sure whether to look at him or avert her eyes entirely. She settles for talking in the direction of his feet. ] But, ya know... tha' doesn' matter, the point is I left for a week and... sorry.

[ The second apology in half an hour, but she felt compelled to, anyway. ] ... An', for what it's worth, ya know... missed you too. It was a rough... few hours. But if you were there, I woulda worried, an'... an' I know ya could handle it. ... But I still woulda worried.

[She's been apologizing so much, and Teddie's not sure why. She didn't hurt him, not that he could tell. It was all these other things that made his stomach ache.]

K-Kyo-chan, I don't care about any of that... I'm not the boss of you, you don't have to tell me everything. ...Besides, I could wait forever.

[Slumping down into a sit, he grabs the candle and begins playing with it in his paws. It was just another good distraction, one that wouldn't be called out as much as, say, rolling. He just needed something to help him think, because right now his thoughts were more of a mess than they were before.]

But I thought about you a lot, nonstop, and I guess I did sorta get scared that you weren't coming back. That's why I promised myself I'd tell you something important the moment I saw you again.

And...you're here...but I didn't expect you to be so sick... I could wait, if you want, but I'd rather get it out now because who knows what will happen anymore.

[ Oh God. Feelings. She doesn't do feelings. Not on any sort of regular basis.

Hell, it's a miracle she does friends now.

But she holds her peace. She's regaining the feeling in her hooves (three of them) and it's bucking cold. So she steps out, onto the bank, and settles down -- still far enough away from him that he doesn't faint from the stench. ]

No, s'fine. Ya've waited a week, or however long. Might as well, right? [ Her heart's beating a little harder -- irregularly, but still. It does mean that blood begins trickling down the bank and into the river, though. ]

[Sadly, Teddie's literally made of feelings, so it goes without saying that he has a lot of them. Right now he's feeling pretty ill prepared because this was not how he'd imagine this would go.

And yet, even with the blood and rot, there was no denying he still felt all those things for her. He could care less what she looks like, and he'd really hope she'd do the same if anything ever happened to him. He could do this, he was a MAN.

...His heart racing a million miles a minute didn't help him any, though. Despite how easily it was for him to flirt with girls, somehow actual feelings drove him up the wall. A promise is a promise, though, even if it's with himself. It's now or never.]

...I really like you, Kyo-chan. Maybe even love you. In a way that's kinda new for me. ...And I think you really like me, too. That's why I think we should do something with it.

...Unless I'm wrong, which is okay, too. I'll still be your friend and punch wolves with you just like before, and I'll never bring this stuff up again. I just thought you should know. In case you go away again.

[ The other shoe crashes to the floor and shatters. Kyouko knows she has to do something with the moment but it just stretches on, Teddie and her both staring at each other like the world's stupidest shoot-out, without any guns, with a bear and a half-decayed pony on the bank of a river.

She takes a deep breath. As deep as she can without piercing her lung on a jagged rib. ] Ya realize I'm kinda a half-rotting corpse at this point, Teds. Thought ya were gonna score with the ladies, not some friend who can't even keep her own body in check.

[ Him opening up to her is sweet. She can't deny that. She almost feels bad deflecting the issue. But it's a lot to take in. ]

[...Well, she certainly didn't tell him to go away forever, so he's pretty sure this is going okay. For now...

Still, he's caught off guard by her answer. She didn't agree or disagree, she just...changed the subject slightly. Teddie wasn't even aware that was a thing that could happen.]

What the heck does that have to do with anything?! Don't you see what I'm trying to tell you here?! This is an unbearably huge love I'm trying to confess, it's a big deal!

[ Girls are good at that, Teddie. ]

I know, I know, jus'... heh. Yer serious?

[ It seems like the stars are a little brighter. Or maybe that's just her eye healing.

She wants to give him a hug, actually. That seems ill-advised right now. ]

Look... [ She speaks a little softer. ] It's not a secret that ya mean the most ta me of any dumb person here. Pony, bear. Whatever.

But when the Pale Pony came ta the games and we all realized there wasn' a way ta get back, you know who I was scared for, right? Wasn' me. Told ya, I already died once, so this is just extra. Ya've got a while ta go yet.

[ And their ages aren't even that far apart, and doesn't that make the whole thing a little more poignant. ]

An' when I went ta Stalliongrad ta beat up that guy, an' then jus' now with Jappleack an' th'others... I know it sounds bad ta ya, but I don' care abou' me. Ask the big dumb lizard who came through in my first month, I didn't give two bucks. But...

[ She paws at the ground. ] Ya know. I worry about ya. I guess. An' yer a dork an' all but s'like, I know you'll be okay anyway...

[ Feelings are hard. She feels like she's already said a lot and yet nothing at all. ]

I guess... I guess th'only thing that really matters is that I care about you more than any other dumb person I have recently. [ She doesn't take her eyes off the ground. ]

[Her eyes not being on him gives him the perfect opportunity to slip off his shirt and place it in his bag momentarily. What he does next, he's not even sure if it's a smart idea, but he slides up against her and sits down, leaning on her decaying body. He does his best to be gentle and pick the spot with the least open wounds, and this is honestly one of the worst smells he's ever had to deal with, but he wants to be there for her. You don't just tell someone how you feel about them and then go "Yeah, I'm not about to touch you."

In fact, he doesn't really say anything.]

[ Despite his confession, her wanting to be close to her at all while she's in this state is just about the last thing she expected. But she extends a creaky wing and drapes it over him - luckily, the less-decaying one. ]

See? How many bears do I know who'd do that? Yer somethin' else, Teds.

[ She lays her head on her hooves. Then leans into him a bit. ] Yeah. If we're goin' there, I guess I love you too.

[ Which... isn't a conversation she'd been expecting to have. But she's not about to add modifiers to a sentence like that, not even inconsequential ones. Because she means every word of it. ]

[Teddie's eyes light up like they're practically dancing and his heart would have flown out of his chest if that was a thing that could happen. That was it, she said it.]

Really?! I mean, no, you wouldn't lie to me...

[He's so glad Chie talked him into doing this, who knows how long he would've waited? Best of all, he's pretty sure this is the first time anyone's ever told him they love him. It's...well, like he said before, a big deal.

With that excitement out of the way, he manages to calm himself down and smile the biggest smile he can muster. This must be what maturity feels like.]

I'll do my best, you can count on me! I'll even visit every day until you're better and bring all the soup you can eat! ...Or is it drink? GAH! Y-You know what I mean!

Shh. Stop.

[ Kyouko places a hoof... well, not on his mouth, cause that'd probably be gross, but right in front of it anyway. Still, she's smiling. Oh, is she smiling. ]

Yer gonna... nah, I can't tell ya what to do. [ She grins. ] But ya gotta understand somethin', okay? I'm not sayin' that so that we start some kinda pact where you do stuff for me or vice versa, like this is some kinda transaction or whatever where we each haveta work twice as hard so we get somethin' outta the deal.

I'm sayin' it as a fact. I love you. I love you. Not who ya could be. [ She pokes him in the chest. ]

[That's...a lot of love, definitely not an amount he's used to. The moment she pokes him in the chest, he can't even contain himself anymore. He's bawling, everything he was holding in is finally flooding out. It wasn't a sad cry by any means, he almost acts as if he were overjoyed.]

Kyo-chaaaaaaan!!

[He doesn't even think twice, although maybe he probably should have, before throwing his arms around her. Ohhhh, it's gross, and it's sticky, and he at least remembers not to put too much pressure down on her, but how could he not hug her after something like that?]

I love you, too! Let's go punch stuff the moment you get be-eee-ttterrr!! WAAAHHH!!!

[ Kyouko hugs him back, tightly. She didn't realize until now how much she needed this. ] Punchin', huggin', whatever. Let's see if we can't get our old job back from Bon Bon, too. [ She actually clings to him, not quite willing to let go. Now that she's vocalized the love, she doesn't know why she didn't notice it or really even address it before, but it's there, and the fact is that she does and has cared deeply about him for a good while now. ]

First, though, we could probably both use a bath. Yer fur's matting.

I know, I really stink.

[He manages to smile through his tears, even laugh a little. His poor fur, it'll take hours to return it back to its pristine condition. But it's fine, the wash will just remind him why he did this in the first place and how overjoyed it made him...]

I meant what I said, though, every single word of it. I'm still gonna come over and help you out until you're all better again.

An' I'd want ya with me, bear. Whenever ya can manage it, 'n' feel like comin' over. Jus' so long as I'm not a burden.

[ She's still concerned about that, for some reason. ]

We should go back ta my place, there's a bath there... [ But she doesn't feel like letting go of him, just yet. ]

[He's perfectly okay if she wants to hang onto him a little while more, and he's especially okay with going to her place to bathe.

There's only one thing that concerns him...]

Are you gonna be okay going all that way? [Especially with a lack of leg.] I can give you a lift and we'll be there lickity split.

[ She begrudgingly admits that she is not especially good at being mobile right now. ] I'll be okay, just not the quickest. ... Wouldn' mind a lift.

[Good enough for him!]

Just call me the Teddie Taxi Service!

[Kamui is summoned instantly, who then uses his giant metal claws to scoop the both of them up in its arms like a shovel. This is exactly what a taxi isn't.]

You're gonna love this, hang onto your eyeball!

[Defying all logic, Kamui takes to the sky, because there's nothing more normal than a giant smiling bear that can fly. No one can say that this night was boring.]

[ ... It's probably about time Kyouko asks about him. She clings to Teddie, peering over the bear's arms to see the view below. ]

Pretty useful. How'd ya find this guy again?

[Oh right, maybe actually explaining your power is a good idea. Teddie's been too used to people just knowing what a Persona is.]

I didn't! A Persona's just kinda like a part of yourself. If you really think about it, he's just another me.

[There's no need to explain how he had to fight a manifestation of his inner demons to obtain it. No, that would kill the mood.]

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