Chapter Text
To put it bluntly, this was Jouno’s personal hell.
He hardly understood how he’d managed to acquire a child, much less why she was clinging to him so tightly when he’d given her every reason to distrust him. The past few minutes had been a blur, and everything was moving fast enough to give any sane person vertigo.
He hadn’t really interacted with children aside from Teruko, and even then, while he’d done his best, it was just- difficult. She was a child, yes, but she held a higher rank than himself, and that was to be regarded with respect, no matter the circumstance.
Turning his attention back to Aya didn’t do much to calm his nerves. Her heart was pounding so loudly Jouno felt he might just keel over and throw up there.
Distress was not a pleasant emotion on anyone, but Jouno hated most of all when children experienced it. The sound of already fast breath, sped up to an alarming rate, was like nails on a chalkboard, a maelstrom of noise and emotion that toyed with not only his physical weaknesses, but Jouno’s moral compass as well.
He couldn’t very well leave her here now, could he?
Jouno sucked in a quiet breath, pulling her up into his arms. He wanted to recoil as the barrage of sound only grew worse, but that was hardly an option.
Where was that stupid vampire monarch when you needed him?
Snapping out of it, Jouno began to move swiftly away from the commotion. There was no regard in his mind to stop even for a second for anything or anyone outside the two of them, even if whatever was going on sent shivers down Aya’s back.
He had to get her somewhere safe, out of the crossfire. He had to. If nothing else, his job now was to keep Aya Koda far, far out of harm’s way.
Jouno had already been injured before he joined this fight, but any prior agony caused by his blistering burns had already faded into a dull roar. Maybe being a government pet had its perks.
Aya shook in his arms, and Jouno tensed, immediately set on high alert.
“Stop that. We’re almost there anyway,” he snapped coldly, the stress of the situation getting to him.
When Aya wouldn’t stop squirming, Jouno just ducked into an alleyway, setting her down on the street and trying to assess the damage. Aya wasn’t much help, just whimpering out nonsense.
Frustration mounting, Jouno bit his tongue. Yelling at the kid wouldn’t get him anywhere he wanted to be.
“Aya. I really need you to focus.” Jouno tried to keep the harshness out of his voice, though it still sounded sharp to his keen ears.
“What…,” came the quiet reply. There was a shaky intake of breath from Aya before she continued to speak, “do you mean?”
Good. With Aya’s attention on Jouno, he could better understand how to help her.
“Can you tell me what hurts?”
There’s a pause, Jouno can hear the rustle of fabric and pinches the bridge of his nose.
“Kid, I can’t see what you’re pointing at.”
“Oh… right,” Aya huffs. It barely takes a second before her next response.
“My legs. They got pinned under the debris, and-“
Aya’s voice rises in panic as she speaks, and Jouno mentally slaps himself for asking.
“Okay, that’s enough. We can fix this.”
Jouno takes a second to set his head straight, wracking his brain for training he’s surely had for similar situations. It sets him onto autopilot, unclipping his cloak and sliding it off his back.
He kneels down, ignoring the way his knees snap in protest.
“Okay, here’s the plan. You’ve got an important role, so listen up.”
This seems to pacify Aya slightly, her attention shifted to him and off the pain of her injury.
“I need you to keep an eye out for danger, right? Be my eyes.”
There’s an affirmative noise from Aya, who seems to be completely focused on her new role. Realistically, Jouno’s not the prime target of anything going on right now, but it keeps the girl distracted.
Jouno chews on the inside of his cheek for a second before he drapes his cloak over Aya’s leg. He braces himself and begins to apply as much pressure as he can all across her leg.
Aya’s whole body goes rigid and she hisses out in pain. Jouno doesn’t try to shush her, just wincing along with her.
It isn’t long before Jouno realizes how futile these efforts are, the burns and blisters on his hands stinging violently as he presses his cloak to Aya’s mangled leg. It’s already soaked in thick blood, and the smell alone is nauseating.
Jouno’s throat closes up as it dawns on him just how little time he has to fix this. This girl is only ten, and her blood is on his hands. He’s desperately trying to keep her from becoming a Hunting Dog like him, that’s not something he’s going to let befall anymore children.
No, Jouno won’t let Aya sign away her life. He’s got to do something. Anything really.
Or he would’ve.
If only, at that moment, he hadn’t heard the scream.
It was earsplitting, and worst of all, familiar. Jouno froze in place, all thoughts of Aya abandoned.
“Tecchou-!?” Jouno’s on his feet in record time, his voice hoarse with fear as he cries out.
When there’s no answer, Jouno bolts. He’s running with everything he has, he can’t remember the last time his partner’s sounded like that, and he never wanted to hear it again.
“Tecchou? Tecchou, answer me, goddamnit!”
Swiveling around, Jouno doesn’t know where he is, or where the voice had come from. He’s panting, covered in sweat and blood and shaking.
“…please.”