"I meant it as—pointing at somewhere where the way you and I think about the situation seems clearly very different in ways that maybe change the way we act? Change the way I act at least."

"I do not really understand how you decide how to act, you run incredibly hot and cold."

"Tell me about it," he grumbles.

"I would if I knew what was going on there but I kind of don't apart from how it's most likely the horrors!"

God fucking damnit, Haru. That makes him crack a smile which he has to look away and hide.

"Well, I don't really know either. Mostly I guess I've been trying to figure out how I should act and—whether I should pretend to be mass-market considerate right back or not and stuff."

"It suffices for medicinal purposes but if you are trying to - are you trying to figure out if we can be, like, friends?"

Now it's his eyes he's covering. "Oh isn't that painfully pathetic of me, what am I, a teenager? Yes, afuckingparently, I am." Idiot. Dumbass. Jackass. Absolute moron. God. Of course you can't be fucking friends with your jailer and you made yourself a complete fool in trying and not even realising that's what you were trying.

aaaaah "...nonteenagers have friends all the time, it is an all-ages phenomenon. The age-unrelated problem there is that I have, like, competing obligations, but if you are okay with having a friend who can't allow you free access to terrorize the populace then perhaps you could start with eye contact a little bit as a treat please and thank you I spent a couple hours as a Ghostbuster."

Wha—oh. Shit. He uncovers his eyes and looks. "Sorry. That was not—about you, I was just embarrassed." Which is what he'll say instead of processing any other word Haru just said, thanks muchly.

"I get that and I can be sane about it when I'm sane, but as long as I'm expressing preferences more freely."

"...yes. Thank you. For doing that. And sorry for all the—emotional labour" what is he, a Tumblrite with neo-pronouns from the early 2020s? "I'm dumping on you all the time. It's the horrors, you see."

"There are so many horrors. It's like the thing where if something's irradiated it can then irradiate other stuff. I think. I didn't go to college."

Okay maybe he didn't think this plan through very much. Maybe he didn't think it through at all.

"Well, I didn't either, so, esper buddies," he says, in a complete deadpan, keeping his face perfectly still, while making jazz hands.

Haru giggles. "Some espers go to college! After awakening, even, I've seen it done."

"Ones with—dungeoneering powers?" He almost said "good" powers but that'd have been rude.

"Probably? Not everybody likes life-threatening heroic combat roles!"

"I suppose. I never even considered not doing dungeons, but that was in part to escape the horrors—or, well, you know, those which were already there back then."

"Makes sense. I had any, like, 'but I was going to be an epidemiologist', but only because I had responsibly formulated ambitions which didn't involve awakening since I couldn't awaken on purpose. Given that I've got dungeoneering powers, well, the world I wanna live in features espers stepping up when we've got those."

"Mmhm. As you said, there's lots of work to do."

"So much." Sigh. "Do you want your bracelet off after or before losing consciousness, I did not get a sense of that."

"Ah. I don't... know. Not being a danger to you anymore I'm not sure there's even much of a point in knocking me out about it anymore. Unless, uh, you'd be uncomfortable if I were right there and obviously depressed—"

"- well, if it makes you untalkative I'd want to call somebody?"

"Not having experimented with it, I don't know. It might make me an asshole but—it was all pointed inwards, earlier today."

"I can be poised to get someone on the phone in case, I guess."

"Yeah. That could work."