semi-open.

[livingimpaired]

WHO: Kei Shigaraki + May Sfondi + OPEN (+ CLOSED THREADS).
WHERE: Kei Shigaraki's apartment.
WHEN: April 6-April 22.
WHAT: Sakura Matou's slow recovery.
WARNINGS: None.

[ In this unfortunate event, one assumes that those that know Sakura had been contacted in some small way to let her condition be known. And since Kei understands how loved that she is; he opens his apartment for visits at any time and hour. Granted, he doesn't always have to be a gracious host -- sometimes, he will just be a host. Or other times, it will simply be May, Sakura's roommate, that is present. ]

Comments

HANDWAVED GIFTS.

[livingimpaired]

[ Any gifts that your characters would like to leave for Sakura as she recovers but don't actually want to thread out handing them over. ]

MAY + OPEN

[livingimpaired]

[ It is not too surprising to find May alone in the apartment when someone comes to visit. She has moved into the space due to many reasons -- primarily being worried about Sakura. As for where Kei is, despite having opened his home to anyone who wanted to visit, he is at the restaurant or his small clinic.

All the same, how lucky to be able to spend time just with May and not the looming shadow of the actual apartment owner? ]

[matchbreaker]

Picking up more hours, huh!

[ It's Elda's observation as she heads into RAMEN where May is apparently helping out. Her red eyes are covered with the sunglasses and she's got a wide-brim hat on to try to deal with the fact that there's a few more hours of sun in the day. The woman's new gig and her concerns about he roomie have led to them delaying or even calling off a meeting or two. She hums a little and takes up a seat in there.

She can't take off the sunglasses but she can at least do the hat. ]

[me_matey]

-It was at least relatively dark once Elda got under the noren and into the restaurant proper. May was in the middle of washing some beer mugs when Elda came in, giving her a bright smile. You'd almost not think there wasn't anything unusual about all this...-

If you'd told me last year I'd have two legit jobs this year, I'd call you crazy. -She laughs, setting aside the mug to grab a menu for Elda.-

[matchbreaker]

Should I get you some cute pure white sundress to celebrate as we finally get into spring?

[ ... That joke might be a bit obtuse but whatever, she's good with it. The fact of the matter is that even the internal lights of Ramen are too much for her eyes, so she adjusts them a little again as she looks down at the menu. Mmmm... ]

KEI + OPEN

[livingimpaired]

[ And unfortunately, a person comes to visit to find that Kei is hanging out in his apartment without the bright buffer known as May. His apartment remains open for anyone that is coming to visit to check on Sakura. There is, unfortunately, no real change to her condition.

But at least, one gets to suffer either meeting or chatting up Kei during their visit. ]

[beneathmoonlight]

[Atsushi has no idea about Sakura’s condition, but he’d heard news of Kei opening up his apartment for visits, so here he is, a container of freshly baked spicy chili cupcakes in hand as he knocks on the door.

What blissful ignorance.]

[livingimpaired]

[ What blissful ignorance, indeed.

Time has started to flow together since he has taken to looking after Sakura. It is no one's fault but his own -- hours have been spent in healing her soul; he finds himself getting more proficient in his ability, but no closer in helping her to awaken. She adamantly refuses, huh? It is when he hears a knock at the door that he is shaken from his thoughts. ]

Sakura, you have a visitor. [ Somehow, he feels in reminding her that she will emerge from her self-imposed coma. The body can only heal as fast as the soul wants, and her soul does not desire recovery. ]

Hello. [ He calls as he opens the door, and mildly surprised to see Atsushi with cupcakes. Kei offers his usual half-smile, though it looks a little tired as he opens the door for the young man to enter. ]

I hope you forgive the state of things. [ His apartment is one room; normally, these spaces can be made to be quite cozy and comfortable. However, with the lack of any warmth in the space, it feels a little more like a coffin. An armchair, a couch, a coffee table and small bookshelf filled with books with faded-printed spines. In the corner is his bed that has Sakura "sleeping" on it. ]

[beneathmoonlight]

[Atsushi himself lives in a one room apartment, so he’s not here to judge. The place does feel a little lacking in decor and warmth, but other than that, it’s neat and tidy, and Atsushi is certain he could make himself at home here if he wished.

He enters, immediately taking notice of how exhausted Kei seems to be.]

Are you all right, Shigaraki-san?

[He sets the cupcakes down on a nearby coffee table before finally taking notice of Sakura. That’s strange...though Sakura did mention Kei being her guardian.

He lowers his voice so as not to wake her.]

...is Sakura-san staying at your place?

[ohrlyeh]

[It's very late. People should be in bed around this time, but here someone is, knocking on Kei's door. Though, it doesn't sound like knocking as much as someone slapping a wet sock full of rocks against the door.]

Kei. It's me. Howard.

[When the door opens, Kei should see Howard, dressed in an abnormally large trenchcoat, sleeves covering his hands completely. A bag hangs loosely from one of his sleeves - he looks extremely weary. His eyes look like they're far more sunken than usual.]

Is she...is she inside?

[livingimpaired]

What.

[ It is the immediate, unintelligible response that comes first. He did get up to stare incredulously at the door after the second "knock." A frown graces his expression as he cannot quite name what would make that sound. ]

Oh. Howard. [ His frown, for a second, deepens. Pausing, he takes a step back to look at himself -- it doesn't feel like self-consciousness that eats at him even as he pulls at the shirt he has on.

It would have been a few sizes too big for him before, but his new body fits comfortably in it. Which is unfortunate since it is a poorly-drawn "Strike Wallaby" that had been iron-printed onto a shirt with the words: "impervious to damage" underneath. Not his choice, but he was really out of choices for clothing.

He didn't think that anyone would be visiting too late, and if it was anyone but Howard, he may have turned them away. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he opened the door to be met with a bizarre sight. ]

Yes. She is. [ He stepped back to allow Howard to enter, looking him over and confused what had made that sound before. No longer worried about his own clothes, but attempting to figure out what is going on with his friend. ] ... are you ... that would be a foolish question... Sakura will be happy to know you have visited, despite your own reservations of coming out of your apartment.

[ohrlyeh]

Okay. Good.

[His brain isn't exactly registering the man in front of him. He steps inside, bag swinging from his sleeve as he looks around, like he half expects for Sakura to just be, well, there.]

I mean, I'm...I'm not going to stay long. I can't. Not like...

[He doesn't finish his sentence, instead turning back to to the other, clearly concerned. Something is off. Howard blinks. What is it? There's something that he feels he should be noticing here, but he has no idea what it could be.]

I brought a gift for her. I mean, when she wakes up... [He peers at Kei - maybe he changed his hair?] How...how long has she been asleep?

MAY + KEI (CLOSED)

[livingimpaired]

[ It has been a troubling series of days where there is some uncertainty if Sakura will wake up any time soon. But somehow, something akin to normalcy settles in the apartment. A routine is figured out between the forced-roommates. It is only so neither one goes mad; one with anxiety and the other with his personal space being invaded so. But even if Kei has complaints, his obligations keep him from voicing them aloud.

Sleep, at least, doesn't elude him too much these days. He sleeps curled up in his armchair -- well, as curled up as he could be with how tall he is. The bed has Sakura's unconscious form resting on it and the couch is temporarily May's.

Or at least, it normally doesn't elude him; he awakes with a start of almost falling out of the chair. Sitting up, he lifts up the arms of his pajamas to find that they have all but busted at the seams. His arms lower as he doesn't have to see the reason as to why. His body abruptly changed and he rests his hand over his face. ]

May. May. [ He calls to her to wake her up. ]

[me_matey]

-May mostly groaned, not even turning around to face his voice. Her own alarm hadn't gone off yet, and getting her to wake up any earlier was like waking the dead... he may need to be more drastic.-

[livingimpaired]

[ Taking a deep breath, he called out to her in a louder voice: ]

May!

[ It does not seem like this would work, but the only thing at his disposal would be the religious-focused books in his small bookshelf. He taps his fingers on the arm of the chair. No, there was some sacrilege related to throwing Bibles at sleeping people. How lucky for a certain sleeping one.

Tying the blanket around his waist, he shook his head in annoyance. You sleep like the dead. He stands in his makeshift skirt and shuffles over to the couch. Reaching out, he grabs onto her shoulder to give her a shake. ]

Wake up.

[me_matey]

-May finally turned, groaning as she did so, rubbing at her eyes as the slowly opened, still squinting in the light. So it was Kei trying to get her up? Why? Was something going on? Had something happened with Sakura? As her mind started to catch up with wakefullness, that's when she got an actual good look at him...

And screamed.-

KEI + BYAKUYA. (CLOSED)

[livingimpaired]

[ It was unfortunate, but his apartment was never meant to host any guests. Yet Kei attempted to make some preparations -- he had tea set out at the coffee table. It is the only bit of warmth in the space.

There are no pictures on the walls; no adornments to speak of. It's a small apartment that lacks even a rug. The space inside feels heavy and occasionally suffocating, but the fault for that may be Kei and not the apartment itself. ]

Welcome. [ So he says as he holds his hand out for Byakuya to take a seat at either the armchair or the couch. He does show a little mercy about the situation by adding: ]

I'm afraid I never thought I would have anyone but friends be present... so there is little here.

[falsepretentious]

[Byakuya enters the room and takes in the decor, though it's a secondary concern on his mind next to Sakura's condition. He didn't expect the restaurant owner to turn out to be involved in all of this, and yet things turned out otherwise.]

Good afternoon. [He chooses the dignity of the armchair and sits facing Kei.]

That's fine. I won't hold any lack of decoration against you. [If anything, he wonders if things will be held against him. He blames himself for what happened to Sakura, and he wouldn't be surprised if others did too.]

[livingimpaired]

[ Taking his seat on the couch, he pauses to look toward the bed in the corner of the room. The girl in question sleeps in her comatose state, oblivious to the conversation that the two of them are going to have; oblivious to quite a bit actually.

His apartment is just one-large room; it makes it easier to keep an eye on Sakura's condition but slightly awkward on everyone for everything else. ]

The chaos of that time... there was no way to ask about what had happened in great detail. [ His expression seems to soften as he understands that with emotions running high that there would be no way to fully understand or convey everything properly. The best way to proceed is to allow emotions to settle and ask again. ]

What happened?

[falsepretentious]

[His gaze does linger towards Sakura in concern. He wonders if there's been any updates on her condition - but he imagines he would have been told already if there were. And in any case, now isn't the time to ask when Kei's asked that question.

It might not be comforting to relive the events of that afternoon, but he knows that he has to. He owes that much. Byakuya is somewhat ashamed, as he considers this to be his own fault, so he doesn't make eye contact as explains.]

I happened to come across Sakura by chance while walking in the park. It seemed that she been practicing her archery skill... except that she was on the ground when I found her. I approached her to check up on her, and - well, I suppose that I was too abrupt and loud in my approach. This startled her, and that's when she... cast some sort of spell on me. I fell over, feeling my entire body become number... until Sakura acted. She made the magical spear disappear from me and took it onto herself instead. I immediately felt back to normal and tried to check up on her condition.

[He pauses for a moment, glancing up towards the man.]

And the rest is history.

KEI + RIN (CLOSED)

[livingimpaired]

How are you, Rin?

[ There are a multitude of things that he could ask her. Indeed, there are probably much more important things that he should ask upon opening up the door to allow Rin to check on her sister. Yet he feels that is the one that is most important to ask.

Of course, he breathes out some half self-depreciating laugh. As important as he finds that question, he feels it is a stupid one to have asked, as well. How does he think that she is? Any normal would would be -- well, sometimes it is best to ask for the sake of asking. ]

SAKURA + KEI

[imaginex]

[Waking up on her back from a cold, dead sleep is not as alien to her as it should feel. There's no panic when her eyes flutter open, unfocused and seeing little besides the white ceiling overhead. It's a room, and she's alive, and those two facts pleasantly line up, unburdened by context.

It isn't until her awareness feathers out, down her arms hanging like lead poles at her sides, that she she starts to feel something. Heaviness at first -- the kind that makes breathing laborious and unpleasant. Then the bemusement comes to test the edges of her complacency. She's lived long enough in May's ship to know that this... can't be one of the rooms, can it?

This is not her ceiling, this is not her bed.

And like a finger snap, the adrenaline floods her, turning every muscle into a band ready to snap her forward. She holds her breath deep in her lungs while her eyes ease away from the ceiling, to the sides, taking stock of who else is in here with her]

[livingimpaired]

You're awake.

[ For once, he is not sitting, or sleeping, in his armchair. No, he sits with a chair pulled close to the bed instead. It is all that he could do after he saw what he saw. His eyes turn away as he is not quite sure how he can -- Kei flinches at his own thoughts. The memories are not his own so he should not act as though he has any ownership to them. ]

Everyone will be relieved to know that you're -- [ He cuts himself off from saying the usual. Yes, this would be the time that he would tell her that everyone would be happy to know that she is all right; that she is going to have a warm reunion with all of her loved ones. But he closes his mouth instead, feeling his shoulders drop. ]

Do you know what is going on, Sakura? [ Kei decides to start with that instead of launching into anything else. Do you know what I saw? He cannot quite bring himself to ask. ]

[imaginex]

[Kei's name echoes in her mind immediately. She knows this man, but the record skips and so she stares blankly at first, uncomprehending when he asks her a question.

What's going on... no, she can't recall it yet. It's too thickly veiled by the fog. And even worse is what's behind her eyelids should she close them: a memory that creeps in the shadows and squirms in the corner. She feels a shiver draw up her arms, and automatically she goes to rub some warmth into them, only to find her body sluggish with lack of use.

She's struggling to sit up when everything -- her spears, Byakuya, what she did - slams into the forefront of her mind, and that's when the panic starts. Suddenly she can't move fast enough, can't get the words out quickly enough]

-- Sh-shigaraki-san--

[Gods, she probably sounds like a drunkard, her tongue feels so thick and uncomfortable in her mouth, but she doesn't let that stop her, pinning Kei with a look of fright]

Byakuya-san is hurt, we have to go get him--

[livingimpaired]

[ He stares at her calmly, dismissing her fearful look with a small shake of his head. If he were a warmer person, he would have probably placed his hands on her shoulders and attempted to soothe her panic. That would be the natural response; that would be what common sense would tell him to do. He holds up his hands instead, like creating an invisible barrier to keep her still. ]

Byakuya is fine. [ Kei pauses. ] You saved him. [ That much is the truth, and he shall leave the rest of the explanation to the young man in question. ] I'm afraid I only know second and third telling so... but from what I understand, you saved him and he's doing fine.

[ Lowering his hands, he rests them over his knee -- one over the other. Opening his mouth, he has more that he wants to say, but he presses his lips together as he decides to allow her to process what it is that he's told her.

A sympathetic smile appears, chasing away the neutral stare that he has been giving her. It isn't intentional; he isn't attempting to pull away, but he feels hatred and anger so close to the surface. Not to Sakura but to someone in her memories -- in his memories. But he cannot simply launch into such topics without allowing her to adjust to, well, being awake. ]