hey brother, do you still believe in one another?

[infamousdelsin]

". . . Wow," Reggie says.

He's sitting on Delsin's couch, in Delsin's apartment, and Delsin's just broken the news that Reggie's dead. He'd been standing at the door when Delsin had brought Spark back from his morning walk, and the dog couldn't stop barking at him so Delsin had tucked him into the bathroom to get some quiet and privacy. He's exhausted and his head hurts, and he's got Reggie.

"Yeah," he says softly. "I tried so hard to save you."

"I . . . I know," Reggie assures. He grips Delsin's shoulder. "I remember, Del. You did your best, okay? I know you did." He leans back, arms out to the side. "But, hey. Here I am, right?" He smiles, chin lifting in that achingly familiar way.

"Here you are," he agrees. His eyes are soft and maybe still a little surprised. "God, it— it blows my mind, Reg. You're right here." He reaches and touches his shoulder, and for a second, Delsin almost believes his hand will pass right through him. But it doesn't. It lands firmly on Reggie's shoulder and stays there, and he clutches tightly before yanking him into a hug.

"That's right, Brother," Reggie whispers. "I'm right here. And I'm never gonna leave you again."

It's exactly what Delsin needs to hear, and he grips tighter with a soft, broken sound. He ignores the weird, worried knot in his belly. This is Reggie. Reggie is real, and here, and safe.

---

Later, Delsin is feeling tired. He's always cold, now, which seems to make the fatigue even worse. He hasn't been cold in so long, not since he'd gotten his smoke powers. But now he is, and it's . . . weird. He takes a deep breath: he's ready to tell Reggie he's going to go lay down and rest for awhile. Reggie pops out of his seat like there's a tack under him.

"Hey, Brother, why don't we go for a walk?" he suggests. "You look like you could use some fresh air."

Delsin looks up, and he's about to protest, say that he just wants to take a nap, or something. Then Reggie's hands are under his arms and hauling him up.

"Yeah, come on!" he assures. "It'll be great! You can show me around, introduce me to your friends; I can help you find a job to keep this respectable apartment."

"Creepy apartment," Delsin corrects with a little mumble. Well, it is! It's just kind of here for him, with no precursor, right? Did I just use 'precursor' right? he asks himself.

"Ah, it's not so bad," Reggie says, looking around. "Come on, let's go!"

"Hang on, lemme get Spark." Delsin doesn't like to leave him alone anymore, not since he's been forgetting to lock him in the bathroom. Reggie sighs heavily, but he lets Delsin hook the dog up. Delsin gives him a look, but brushes it off to typical brother annoyance at the barky beast.

Delsin's feet hit the sidewalk heavily, and he has to continually tug at Spark's leash to quiet his barking at Reggie. He leans into Reggie occasionally as they walk, just listening to his voice. It's nice. The cadence is familiar. He has no idea what Reggie is talking about, but that part doesn't matter. It's just for the sake of hearing his brother again.

They're just outside the park when Delsin has another dizzy spell. He clutches to Reggie with a gasp. No, no, no. He can do this. He can breathe through this. Reggie's arms are around him, holding him up carefully. Delsin's sure he'll come out of it. Only he doesn't. This time, the world spins black.

The last thing he hears as his body slumps to the sidewalk is Spark barking.

[ Timed to August 10th, 2014, around two PM. Find Delsin sprawled just outside the park, or have Spark find your character and drag you to him! Either way, he'll be unconscious when you find him and you'll have to shake him awake. Open for forever! ]

Comments

[breakthroughs]

Even though Shikamaru's never spent more than a few hours' time with a dog, he's had enough experience with Kakashi's mutts all over the village that he knows what a bark of distress sounds like. Having been patrolling around the train station, Shikamaru quickly darts between the buildings, keeping to the shadowed walls before breezing into the park.

A few passerby glance over warily, but Shikamaru's the first one to step forward and crouch by Delsin's side.

"Is he... dead?" a young girl asks, pointing with a light sniffle.

Shikamaru holds up a hand to quiet her, leaning forward and listening for a breath, even as Spark continues to bark. There's a faint brush against his cheek.

"Delsin," he says curtly, pulling back slightly. "Delsin, can you hear me?"

[infamousdelsin]

Delsin groans, but he doesn't wake at first. Spark darts in to nudge his cheek and jaw with his muzzle. Smoke rises up where the dog touches him, and Spark whines again, then looks up at Shikamaru imploringly.

Then Delsin sucks in a breath and shudders it out. His face scrunches as he wakes. "Reg? Wh'happened?"

[breakthroughs]

Shikamaru exhales thoughtfully when Spark gives him a look, communicating back with his eyes. He has suspicions about what drove Delsin to this state — but it'll take Delsin himself to confirm whether or not those suspicions hold true.

His lips pull into a thin line when Delsin calls out for his brother.

"Sorry, it's Shikamaru," he says, reaching out for Delsin's wrist to feel for his pulse. "Haven't seen your brother around. But I also came around when you were already passed out on the ground."

[infamousdelsin]

Delsin frowns. "Passed out," he echoes. Right. Of course. He'd gotten dizzy and then everything had gone black. He looks around for Reggie, and part of him isn't surprised to see him gone: but most of him is disappointed. He sighs and grabs Shikamaru's shoulder with his free hand to pull himself up until he's sitting.

[breakthroughs]

The way that Delsin looks around makes Shikamaru raise a brow, immediately suspicious about what might be responsible for Delsin's fainting spell. He easily wraps a hand around Delsin's upper arm to help him up, then crouches to keep an eye on the guy.

"Let me guess. Looking for your brother?"

Delsin isn't the only person who's been spotting folks around the city, judging by some requests that have come by the police department, all of them searching for missing people who never seem to turn up.

What type of entity might have that skill in Darrow, Shikamaru isn't sure, but he wants nothing more than to track it down.

[infamousdelsin]

He nods. "He was just here. He must've gone to get help, or something." He frowns, though, at the look on Shikamaru's face. "What? You act like you know something. Have you seen him?"

[breakthroughs]

"I hate to say it, Delsin, but you're not the only person who's been seeing what might be visions of people they know around the city. If your brother knew what was best for you, he should have stayed by your side and called an ambulance, not take off running with you on the ground," Shikamaru points out. There are times when he's softer with his words, but the way things are going now, he can't see what sugarcoating would help. "There have been a lot of calls at the department recently, asking our help in tracking people down. The one thing they all have in common is that people turn for help when they're too exhausted to do it themselves. They're tired. Not just emotionally. I've heard it described as something bone deep."

[infamousdelsin]

Delsin shakes his head. "No, this is different. It's fine, I'm sure he's around here somewhere." But the things Shikamaru is saying strike a nerve, and Delsin looks away with a frown. "It's not the same," he insists.

[breakthroughs]

Shikamaru can tell when he's being dismissed, but it's his loyalty to Delsin that has him hanging on stubbornly. Even if now isn't the right time to persuade Delsin that there's something off about the situation, he wants to stay by Delsin's side.

"At least let me help you out in looking for him, then," he sighs, rubbing the back of his neck. "I still think you should sit down and regain your strength, too. Have you had lunch?"

[infamousdelsin]

"Lunch? No, not yet. I was just gonna get my dog a new halter and then head home." He looks around. The idea of trying to find Reggie, with the help of a ninja no less, is . . . exciting, and nerve-wracking. He wants to, but he's afraid of what he'll find — he's afraid he won't find him at all, that it was a hallucination, or something.

[breakthroughs]

"Let's stop by one of the food trucks, then get the halter," suggests Shikamaru. He's still sensing a bit of reticence on Delsin's part, so taking things one step at a time seems to be best. There's no getting around the fact that both of them could use lunch. And Delsin still needs to finish his chores.

Maybe along the way, they can figure the rest out.

"I hope you like spicy food. I'm kind of in the mood. Though... I guess the benefit of the food trucks is that everyone can get what they want."