dumbshow | answer your god damn phone

[Rubbing his back is sweet, but it isn't going to make him want to get up any more. In fact, it has the exact opposite effect; just let him stay here and pretend it's not today. He sighs, still very much face-down into the pillow, and then says something also into the pillow that's probably "Morning."

But grumpily. Getting up this early is a chore to begin with, and doing it today so that Kurapika can go off without him makes it even worse.

At some point he rolls over to lie on his back and pointedly not get up, still with his eyes closed. The look on his face betrays the fact that he's woken up, but he's refusing. All his clothes are across the hall, anyway.

So Kurapika can get as naked as he wants, and Leorio might just miss it.]

Gimme another minute.

[He stares at Leorio for a good few seconds before deciding that now's as good a time as any. Telling him to leave would be... Well, he doesn't want to. He sets his clothing on the desk nearby and undresses to change with his back to him.]

...If you want to sleep in a little longer, I don't think it would be a problem right now. Melody would understand.

[Like he actually would, anyway... He'll fuse to this mattress before he leaves for such a silly reason.

Is he sleeping in or sulking, though? The big question. He doesn't answer immediately, thinking...]

Nah, just a minute's fine. [Hm.] When are you heading out?

[As he slips his arms through the sleeves of his shirt and starts buttoning it up, he thinks back to the missed calls. When? Well, he should have left last night, really. He'd made some excuses selfishly, and now it was eating at the back of his mind. Hopefully things were under control.]

As soon as possible. [He says that pretty grimly, realizing it afterwards. He glances over his shoulder without saying more than that, frowning a little. Well... hopefully he wouldn't worry too much. He'll leave out whatever details he needs to, right now, to assure that as best as he can.]

Figures. [So he's definitely sulking... He tells himself he'll have to get over it before too long, though, or Melody will know and she'll give him looks. More than she'll definitely know anyway, but whatever.

It's going to be a long day for a whole slew of reasons. He finally sits up, scrubbing a hand over his face to knock the last bit of sleep out of him.]

So... [So. Now when he finally could use his inability to keep his thoughts to himself, it suddenly fails him.]

[He's still tucking in his shirt when he turns to face Leorio. At first, his expression is a little too harsh. Businesslike and ready to go out and do things-- but when he sets his eyes on Leorio, it slowly breaks from that.]

So?

[He prods, almost teasing as he rolls up the cuffs on his sleeves, walking over.] What are you thinking?

[He's got something to say, so he may as well ask directly. Just like that, he sits on the edge of the bed beside him again.]

[So.

It's not that Leorio has too many thoughts and nowhere to begin, this time. Rather, he's drawing a blank; thoughts start and peter off before he can form them into coherent statements instead of just feelings.

They show through plenty when he looks at Kurapika, though, worry undercut with too much affection to sift through in a couple minutes. He settles for sliding an arm around Kurapika's shoulders and leaning in to press his face against his hair for a moment. Hmm.]

You better come back safe, Kurapika.

[The emotion behind that look surprises him, somehow. Despite knowing Leorio and expecting him to be emotional and attached, he finds himself wondering now if he didn't really understand the weight. He feels it now, wrapped around him and pressed close like that face in his hair.

Again, sadness weighs down on him. His arms stay limp in his lap as he stares down at his hands.

When he stops to think about all of this, when he realizes that none of this misery would be troubling others, when he remembers that the Spider is what did all of this-- rage begins to seep in. It's why he has to go now, and it's why he'll continue to do so. To make them pay for all of this.]

I'm sorry, Leorio. [Emotion makes its way into his tone there, too, and his eyes close for a moment as he stabilizes his feelings. Have to keep his eyes unchanging, for now.]

I wish things didn't have to be this way. [Even if it's just a little at a time, he feels like he can vent with Leorio.] I'm sorry they are.

[A pause, and he finally raises a hand to touch lightly at the back of Leorio's head.]

I'll come back alive.

[Leorio stays where he is; he'll squeeze the last seconds out of the time before Kurapika really has to leave like this. It's good but bittersweet to hear him vent— a wall has come down somewhere, or at least opened enough for him to listen through, and Kurapika is more here with him now than when he first arrived.

It makes him believe they can do this, even if "this" is little more than surviving to see it through to the end. He'll do whatever it takes.

Kurapika's last statement gets a small noise out of him, between a scoff and a grumble. No, listen, those aren't the terms he offered!!]

And safe, idiot. Don't come back coughing up blood again, or else-!!

[Or else, like. He'll fret. But also yell a lot.]

Or else?

[Sadly, they have to part now. Kurapika knows if he sits here and soaks in this strange, soft feeling, he'll grow softer himself-- and that's not good before what he intends to do. ('Not good', he thinks, earnestly.) On top of that, Leorio is worrying, and he needs a way to put him at ease...

So he falls back onto the usual. Bickering, instigating, poking fun where he can in small, calm ways. His hand smooths away from Leorio's face as he stands, not bothering to face him as he finishes up with his routine. The tie, and then moving over to his shoes.]

Or else what? If you're going to threaten someone, you should have the means to back it up.

[Or- eh? Leorio blinks, crossing his arms over his chest as Kurapika gets up. He has to justify himself now? Is that it??

Imagine the day he realizes Kurapika giving him shit calms him down from genuine worry. He'll never tell.]

I'll hang you up somewhere high and leave you there! [sHORTY]

[He knows this method works so well, and yet Leorio always ends up saying something that genuinely ticks him off. ...But well, it's the same both ways, isn't it? Clicking his tongue at that (he is a completely average height, excuse you mr. giant), he stands up from putting on his shoes and looks at his right hand. Slowly, his chains appear.]

You're assuming you'd be able to catch me in the first place. [Burn. Yeah. He tosses a glance back, indifference shining through more than any annoyance-- but that's the annoying part, isn't it.]

Don't get into trouble while I'm gone.

[He sure did just turn this around. But!! Before this arguing gets too far, it's best to leave it on a note that Leorio can fume over for a while after he's gone.] I'll see you later, Leorio.

[Being average height doesn't eliminate the fact that Leorio could feasibly hang him up on something!! Like maybe a bedpost.

He's already started building up to a good petty tantrum here, but Kurapika actually leaving will set him back to a petty sulk instead. That's fine- he'll be distracted. Distractions will help, probably, which is why he'll also definitely complain to Melody. Might as well just get that out of the way, since she'll know.

Ah, but arguing before Kurapika leaves will leave a bad taste in his mouth, so while he returns with an annoyed,] Remember what I said!!

[It's kind of a faux-grumpiness. After a few seconds' pause he scoffs and flops back down on the bed, like maybe he will stay here for a while and sleep orrr glare at the furniture. So to the ceiling,] See you later!

[The silence from Kurapika and his team ends after a little over five hours.

Five hours of no contact, no knowing what Kurapika was up to, and no good information from the ones left behind. Melody seems to know the location of their target, at least, but aside from that, there was just waiting. Five hours and some-odd minutes of waiting, ended finally by Leorio's phone ringing with Kurapika's name.

At least when he answers it's his voice, as well, albeit tired and out of breath.]

Listen carefully. [It's the first thing he says in a careful whisper. He doesn't really have the choice of trying to make this sound any better than it is, or he'll risk blowing things for himself before help can arrive. And so--]

I need backup. Send--

[Well that sure is a loud noise. Hard to say what it is exactly, over a cell phone like this. Maybe someone got thrown over, or maybe literal walls are crumbling down. Whatever it is cuts off Kurapika, and there's a very distant voice preaching something about eyes.

Of course, just as Kurapika scrambles to snatch the phone back up, it dies. Should have charged it last night, probably. Woops.]

[When Leorio had said he didn't want Kurapika to call if it only meant bad news, he meant it. He's on edge for the whole five hours, though the level rises and falls. Melody does her best, but distracting him when he's like this is a fool's errand.

So when the phone rings he's picking it up in an instant, with barely any time to formulate a question before Kurapika speaks. Leorio's nerves last only until the line goes dead—for just barely a few seconds he's frozen, with Melody trying to get his attention back to the moment.

The rest as he'll recall it later is a blur. He shouts at however many people he can find in the halls and nearby rooms about needing backup, ask Melody where, don't get in his way— At one point he's upstairs trying to put his fist through Nostrade's door, but the other bodyguards hold him back and tell him in no uncertain terms what they'll do to leave him useless in a puddle on the floor if he doesn't back down. He shouts at them about backup, too, until someone delivers him back to Melody and assures him they'll handle it.

Whether or not he got an official nod to go along with the backup effort is a part he remembers quite clearly: he sure as hell didn't, but he definitely did muscle his way into the backseat of a car heading out and technically no one tried to throw him out. He tries calling Kurapika back a few times to no avail while the backup team discusses how to proceed; a few times, they glance back at Leorio as if trying to determine how much of a liability he'll be.

He ignores them. They might not know exactly what they're up against, but he has— uh, he has a knife, and he's definitely thought this through and oh, shit, no he hasn't. The closer they get to their destination the more the stupidity of what he's just done - thrown himself into a mafia hit car armed with a switchblade - hits him. Hits him like a brick to the face. The other men tell him to keep his mouth shut and do what they say and he nods more than a little grimly. They're almost there. All he cares about doing is finding Kurapika and getting them both the hell out of there - that's it.

Adrenaline mixed with terror have settled firmly in his bones by the time they arrive, but he does as he's told and follows the others inside, heart pounding. Well, he thinks as he tries to look a little more capable, this is probably only the second most dangerous thing he's ever done.

He did take a run at Hisoka that one time, after all.]

[It's a very elaborate mansion that they've entered. Clearly some big shot in another mafia family's organization. It's quiet all along the huge driveway, but when they arrive at the front, it's clear something has gone down. One of Nostrade's cars is angled sloppily, the front end crushed against one of the main pillars of the entranceway.

Well, so much for stealth. It seemed this had passed that point long ago.

The car pulls up and parks sloppily alongside the other, and as the 'backup' piles out, a figure bursts out from the front door. There doesn't seem to be any chaos following him, but the stillness only makes it eerie. Linssen stops when he reaches Melody and the others, barely sparing Leorio a glance as he explains. (Sorry, bud.)]

They were expecting us. [It's apparent at this close distance now that he's somehow sporting burned splotches over his clothing and skin alike, along with some slice marks-- so there had been fighting.] There's no time to explain everything. Kurapika made an exchange with Don Paolo for my life. I couldn't follow, so I don't know where in the mansion they headed, but I did learn that those crimson eyes he was speaking about wanting to collect weren't one of the pairs already circling around.

[Leorio is on the lookout for signs of anything that will point him to Kurapika, so he notices the smashed car as soon as it's in view.

Who the hell drives into a pillar? Seriously.

Whatever— he stands there waiting and getting more annoyed by the second that they're not doing anything, can't they have this conversation while walking, and Melody keeps giving him concerned looks but he's not having it. This is stupid, they're just standing around, what kind of name is Don Paolo and what is Kurapika doing??

Soon enough he loses his pitiful patience reserves and skips right over the "You left him in there?" to burst out with,] Can you explain the rest of this inside?!

[At that, all eyes are on Leorio. Yes, why was this large man coming with them... Did he even have any battle capabilities aside from punching shitty fathers?? Linssen was not sure, but he was also not about to question him with that look on his face. One of Kurapika's friends... He barely understood Kurapika, let alone his circle of friends.]

Let's go. [So, fine, basically. He's hurt here too, you know?? Nah, but really, he does respect Kurapika, so finding him is the priority here. He's just not a blubbering mess over it, he thinks with a pointed look in Leorio's direction.

Once inside, things are disheveled here and there, and there's an unconscious member of the Nostrade family near the door, two dead newer members in a couple of the other immediate rooms, and some of this Don Paolo group members similarly strewn over pieces of furniture or the staircase.

Well, a mansion battlefield of sorts. That's promising, right.]

They went that way [he points towards a rather long hallway] but I wasn't allowed to follow if I wanted to live. I didn't catch which way they turned. Kurapika told me to stay here.

[Ah, another pointed look at Leorio. But the hallway is an idea, at least. One branch of many, even if it separated off into other little sections.]

If we split up, we might be able to find him faster, but we should be careful not to ruin his side of the agreement at a bad ti--

[Melody may have been able to hear the leading up to this (a distant conversation, calm at first but slowly rising in tension), but by the time it hits its peak, everyone can hear the crashing sound of a fight starting and the mansion trembling along with it, as well as a faint echo of Kurapika's yell.]

Is that all this is to you?!

[So downstairs, then, from the feel and sound of it.

They hadn't even made it down the stairs all the way. It was one of those long, unnecessarily winding ones. Initially, when he'd heard of this report, Linssen had told him that there was a man who'd spoken about finding a pair of crimson eyes that he was after. Kurapika had revealed enough lately to his comrades for them to understand that he'd be interested in such a thing. They hadn't known that it had been him he'd noticed for his eyes. (How? Kurapika wasn't sure yet, but he was intent on finding that out, as well.)

He'd showed up and gone over the situation with the team outside of the mansion, as they'd been doing well with stealth beforehand. It turned out that was all a ploy to draw him out, and this time, when they drove back to the mansion, they were met with combat. Linssen had been injured enough that Kurapika voiced a suggestion. They could leave together and have a one on one battle if he spared his comrade. He was right in thinking this man was the type to go along with it. Prideful.

And it had been going well until his questions halfway down the stairs got him answers he didn't like. "Why do you want them?" was met with a sneering, laughing response about it being the same as any treasure. About him wanting what he didn't have. Beating other collectors to the punch.

Naturally, Kurapika wasn't able to hold back at that. Not after his long week. Even if he couldn't use chain jail, on this man, he could use his chains, and so he'd whipped one out and swung at him, taking a good chunk of the wall out with him.

Would you guess that small spaces did not work well for whip-type weapons??? Wow.]

[Wow, okay, he can lift a few tons?? So there??? He'll go pick up that wrecked car and throw it. Later.

Moving is good. Leorio couldn't care less about most of the details besides where Kurapika could be and how stupid the things he's doing are - sounds pretty stupid, so far - and he's about to cut in again to tell Linssen to get to the point already when the whole place rumbles a little.

Oh.]

Bad time?! Say it, say it's a bad time!!

[He's looking down the hall now, trying to guess which way will get them to the stairs quickest. After that noise and the faraway sound of Kurapika's voice, Leorio considers this "agreement" ruined already, so now it doesn't matter what he does or if these mafia goons keep giving him that look, right?! Right??

Right, he's going to do whatever he wants, and what he wants right now is to find some goddamn stairs. For a second he considers using his nen to tap on the wall, but this mansion could be three times as big underground, it would take too long to find an exact location- they have Melody, she can do it, one of these directions has to go to the right place—

Ah, he's already making a break for it, sorry.]

[There are a few shouts and puzzled faces as Leorio leaves them in the dust, but Melody seems ready to calm them and explain something more logical. If they all rush in, it would be even worse. Leorio may be able to help Kurapika, and in the meantime, they can monitor things from above and keep control of the situation.

Leorio can likely find his ways from the shaking, anyway. Down the stairway, Kurapika is struggling to get into the open. One more jump back and off the curved wall leads him to some sort of over the top basement, and that gives him plenty of space to wind his arm up and whip with his chain.

This opponent's speed is memorable, though. He winds past the hit and ends up just inches from Kurapika, striking a punch towards his chest. It's blocked, at the very least, and while Kurapika does go flying backwards into a wall, he learns what he was aiming for. This guy's strength isn't anywhere near Uvogin's. Probably not any of the spiders. Good. Easier to deal with when he didn't have the advantage of all of his abilities.]

[It's fortunate (well) that the building keeps shaking, because it at least covers the sound of Leorio's running footsteps for anyone who isn't Melody. He swears a few times, too, which is also great to mercifully muffle - he might be running head first and blind into whatever fight Kurapika is in, but he'd like maybe half of an element of surprise.

He makes it to the bottom of the staircase in time to nearly trip over himself from the latest shake, and of course he looks up in time to see Kurapika fly into a wall.

Of course.

To his credit, he doesn't blow the whole thing then and there. If there's a sound just then that sounds like someone trying very hard not to yell, that isn't him- just like how if there's a suspicious movement of debris that isn't anywhere near Kurapika, that isn't him either.

And he definitely isn't the shape visible for a fraction of a second before he throws himself behind- something- a pillar? okay, weird- and flattens himself against it.

He's not here, he's seriously not here at all.]

[Leorio?

He'd been picking himself up from the collision with the wall rather casually when he spotted that "unseen" figure for just long enough. He'd forgotten in his rage that he'd called for backup. He'd forgotten he'd called Leorio for backup.

The thought is just long enough to be a distraction. His focus falters, and his opponent picks up on it. His speed brings him closer again, and Kurapika has to move even more quickly to bring his arm up for a block. He manages, and this time, he doesn't fly back. He skids a good distance, feet gripping the floor and shifting to a stop eventually. He lashes out with his chain again, but this time, he has to mind Leorio's position.

Damn it Leorio.

He'd honestly been hoping that Don Paolo had somehow missed Leorio's entrance or was choosing to ignore it, but on the contrary, he ducks and dodges from the chain, facing Leorio's Pillar of Choice more directly as he does.

The comment he utters is something like "I said no spectators." You know, right before sending a big fat fireball at the pillar. If it doesn't take care of Leorio, it'll take care of some of his mansion's support?? Great. Fantastic. Maybe nauticalnodes will be used when he has more to do besides be overly destructive for no reason.]

[He's not here!! Really, he tries to be as not-here as possible, as much good as that's doing right now. Which is none, apparently, as he has just enough time to flatten himself to the floor instead with his arms over his head before his hiding pillar is smashed open. By fire. Fire?! Really?

Really??

Well, now that everyone knows he's here, he- rolls, somehow gets back onto his feet without catching fire, and just picks a direction to sprint in. It's not into the middle of this fight, at least - maybe he'll make a circuit of the room. He's thinking about it, okay!]

Kurapikaaa!! [And he does have time to start yelling, yes.] Kick his ass already!!

[He's helping.]

let's do action nodes, I said, it'll be fun, I thought

oh an npc is necessary, yes, that's true, but why didn't I think of how i'D HAVE TO WRITE A FIGHT SCENE WITH MYSELF

OR HOW FUCKING DRAMATIC IT WOULD BE BECAUSE KURAPIKA IS A DRAMA QUEEN OF THE NTH DEGREE

laura help me I spent so long trying to work this out, thinking of what's easy to reply to and what's not, what I could do and what I couldn't, I actually can't plot and so there are no strings being tied here, what the fuck am I doing

I have listened to kurapika's theme song 50+ times now, there is no light here

"who would want to tag cheering lines between a fight scene" AND SO SINCE THAT'S TRUE I TRIED MY BEST TO MAKE THIS SOMETHING YOU CAN TAG TO....... I FEEL LIKE, IT'S STILL NOT THERE, BUT I TRIED

I wanted you to know I tried so hard I got so far but in the end it didnt even matter and I can't stop listening to this fucking character song that is so, angry, jesus

ah but yes this is just me dramatically crying about how hard this was and how dramatic it turned out (don't laugh just look at kurapika, laugh at him, ok), and also a warning, for that same thing

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this icon is creepy and yet, so is he

wow quite true

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"leorio accidentally becomes substitute mafia" the epic, the saga

lEORIO PLEASE... NOT THE KNIFE... put that down right now also this is all, 1/1 no pikachu yet

when will leorio stop yelling at the mafia

never probably 1/2 also bc narrating is hard

narrates more tho ah

makes stupid choices all day every day

that sure is leorio

so is this, this was supposed to be dramatic and not stupid? leorio

no it always needs to be stupid, esp with leorio...

don't encourage me....

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