puppycrush2 | week one

You can see it too?

[ Is there anyone in this damn house that can't see his Stand????? He blinks in open surprise, and when Ryuji hops away from him, he raises his hand placatingly, trying to communicate that he means no harm. ]

It's an ability I have... Had it since I was a kid.

[ And since he's gone through this song and dance a few times now, it's easier to string together a coherent explanation: ]

People aren't supposed to be able to see it. Not unless they have powers like mine.

[ Knowing look..... so Ryuji has powers, too! ]

[ If Ryuji was not a Persona user and thus didn't see abnormal entities popping out of people's heads on the regular, he might not have bought this explanation so easily. He also probably wouldn't have seen his Stand at all if he wasn't a Persona user so.

Anyway, Ryuji immediately understands the explanation and relaxes a bit, just kind of curiously looking at Josuke now. Until that last sentence sinks in and his eyes widen. Oh. Oh!! ]

I don't. Not anymore. [ Well. ] Or — Or, well, I can't use it anymore, but it's still prolly inside me. It's a long story.

[ . . . ]

What's your ability?

[ That matches up to what Akechi said about powers, and Akechi also mentioned in passing to him that the thieves he as chasing had the same powers as him..... whatever's going on between them is seriously messy. He's leaning towards believing Ryuji's side more, but Akechi clearly has things going on in his life that are troubling, too. Eugh. He'll think about this later. He takes it in stride, nodding. ]

"Fixing things."

[ He starts simply, calling his Stand back into himself. ]

Broken items, wounds, food that's been burned... my Crazy Diamond can heal them all.

[ Based on the laid-back certainty in his voice, he is absolutely not kidding, and has in fact done both feats on plenty of occasions. ]

When you said what you did about your leg, I just wanted to see if I could do anything. Didn't expect you to see me, though...

[ If Ryuji knew Akechi had been filling Josuke's head with nonsense, he'd be livid right now. But as he doesn't, he just rolls with it, looking curiously back at Josuke.

Then... there's the opportunity to fix his leg. ]

Huh. I wouldn't need a wish for it then.

[ He laughs, a little hollowly, thinking of his conversation with Sanji. Then he ruffles his hand through his hair, a little stressed. ]

I — I'm conflicted a bit, ya know? Like, I'm going to physical therapy for it now and trying to get it back up to snuff but. If you could just fix it like that, maybe I should do that instead? It'd sure help my mom out, I think, 'cuz PT can be pretty expensive. But is it really so easy?

[ His eyes soften with empathy when he mentions the wish, sticking his hand in his pocket. It's obvious Ryuji's conflicted, he doesn't want scare him or make him think he's gonna use his power against his will. ]

For most things, yeah.

[ Might as well be honest about it. Several other Stand users he knows have Stands that are far more suited to combat than his own; in exchange, he has this extraordinary healing ability. It's a pretty fair trade off, at least he thinks so. ]

Just a few weeks ago, my best friend had half his damn torso blown up, but I was able to save his life. [ He's not trying to trauma dump, but he does want to convince Ryuji of the efficacy of his powers. ] I don't know if it would reverse everything, since you said it already healed...

[ He trails off. The most clean way to fix it would be for Josuke to break it again and heal it correctly, and even though he could do that in a matter of seconds, and make it an entirely painless ordeal for Ryuji, he's self-aware enough that the suggestion is likely too fucked up considering what Ryuji already went through. Softly: ]

You don't have to decide right now, man. I just figured I'd take a look. [ Then, aloofly, like it's the most natural thing in the world: ] I couldn't just leave you like that in pain, if there was something I could do.

[ At the admission over his friend, Ryuji looks surprised. He thought Josuke's life was pretty normal but it must not be if his friend was injured like that. He thinks of all the close calls he's had with the Thieves and he thinks of falling down in Kamoshida's palace because of his leg. He doesn't think that he'll be in life or death situations like this anymore but he does think his life would generally be better with a healed leg.

So, while he doesn't look entirely sold on doing this, he doesn't look against it either. He's considering his options carefully. ]

How would it work? What would ya need to do?

[ Here's the thing — if Ryuji is agreeing to this, he'd want to go all the way. He's fine with breaking it again and then healing it again if it would be a quick fix. He doesn't know that's an option though, doesn't know what this would entail yet, so he's asking. ]

I can definitely fix the wear and tear you've built on it since it was broken just by touching you.

[ Helpfully and confidently! His power is simple like that, and painless. As for the actual problem with the bone... ]

But... I don't know if I'd be able to set the bone right without breaking it again. Since it's already "healed," if that makes sense...

[ He can't restore something that technically isn't broken. It's not a big deal, he's done things like this plenty of times throughout his life — hell, he's healed people who were injured just so he wouldn't feel bad about beating the shit out of them. He's quite self-assured in his ability to break down and build back up the human body efficiently. ]

Now this is gonna sound crazy, but it'd be painless for you. My Stand is faster than most. So long as you're close to me, it can move at 300 kilometers per hour. Your leg would be broken and healed before you even realized it.

[ Ryuji asked, so he might as well tell him the peak solution, but not without a caveat: ]

I understand if that's too freaky, though.

[ Ryuji is an athlete. He's more than aware that some bones need to be rebroken first to heal better. It's not the craziest thing in the world he's heard. The only surreal thing about this is that it would be near instantaneous through Josuke's power. That's something impressive. ]

Nah, yeah, I get it. Even the concept of something that heals isn't weird to me. The... powers that I'm familiar with, some of them have healing skills and it was helpful when we fought. So, I get it.

[ What's really the sticking point for him is that over time, his bad leg has become a part of his identity. And if he fixes it through magical means instead of his own hard work, would that feel as right to do? But then the trade offs are there: he could finish physical therapy early, he could move back in with his mom and things wouldn't be such a financial strain for them for the sake of him going to the specialist. It would mean a lot.

So, he has to think about it. ]

The idea makes sense. I like it even. I just... still gotta think about it a bit first. So, give me some time to noodle it over, yeah?

[ So there are healers among people with "those" powers, too... interesting. Akechi made it out to sound like these thieves were just vandalizing the city like hooligans, but now he's even more confused about what the reality of the situation is.

Anyway, he smiles lopsidedly, running his hand through the side of his hairstyle. ]

No problem. If you change your mind, you know where to find me.

[ Tentatively puts out his other hand for a fist bump...... he wants them to be cool and hopes he didn't freak him out. ]

[ He didn't freak him out at all and Ryuji knows an olive branch when he sees one, even though he doesn't think Josuke needed to offer one at all. So, he reaches out his hand for a fist bump in return. Hell yeah, bros. ]

Thanks, man.

[ . . . ]

And, uh, since you told me a lot about you, if you want to know more about my shit, just ask. I know I was pretty vague about my powers, but they're not as useful as yours.

I guess I am pretty curious...

[ Akechi kind of told him what his can do, but he's sure Ryuji's is different. Still, he keeps the whole Akechigate thing to his chest, wanting to know more before he says anything definitively. ]

What is it like? Do you use it a lot?

[ He considers it, how to describe Captain Kidd to someone who doesn't know anything about Personas. He figures he might as well just stick with the powers itself. ]

My Persona, which is what it's called, is kind of themed after the pirate, Captain Kidd? There's — ah — a lotta reasons for that, but I ain't the biggest history buff so I couldn't really explain why.

[ He briefly thinks of Akechi telling him about Captain Kidd's death when they were in Mementos, trying to bait him as per usual. He sighs. ]

Anyway, it controls lightning and does pretty heavy brute force damage. So, when I'm fightin' I can use it to electrify someone or crush them. It doesn't really have skills outside of that. I only used it in special circumstances, can't really access it anymore.

[ Lightning and punching powers... kewl.... and he's a pirate!

The last asshole he had to deal with that had electricity powers was annoying as shit, but insanely powerful. Ryuji must be pretty tough too, is his main takeaway. He blinks, very clearly invested. ]

So, do you use it to fight other... "Persona" users, then? Sounds painful.

[ If he doesn't have a power like Josuke's that can be used in day to day life, it must only be for fighting other people who have the same power, right? That's the only explanation his head cooks up. ]

[ There's a shake of his head here but then he pauses because he doesn't know how to explain it. ]

Well, we did fight other Persona users once in a while, me and my friends, but mostly we fought... monsters?

[ He grimaces, because he doesn't know how to explain what shadows are without explaining the metaverse without explaining everything else. ]

Uh, just. There's a type of monster attracted to Persona users and that's who we fought, most of the time! It's all specific to my world so it's hard to explain.

[ Okay... that makes sense. He nods, catching on quickly. ]

It's fine man, I get it. [ More importantly... ] So it's for fighting monsters... not normal people or anything like that.

[ That's the most important thing to clear up. Akechi made it sound like the other people with these powers were terrorizing the innocent, or something... assuming Ryuji's even involved. ]

There are other Stand users like me, but some of 'em are real assholes. They'll use their powers to take advantage of normal people, or hurt them... that's why I asked about other Persona users.

[ That — of course — makes him think of Akechi. Of Black Mask, of the assassinations and the mental shutdowns. He grimaces and it's clear on his face that he's thinking of someone in particular when Josuke says that.

He tries to explain, delicately, but Ryuji's not great at being delicate. ]

There's Persona users like that in my world too. There's one guy who is... really well known of using his powers for bad reasons. My friends and I stopped him and I thought we got him to come around on us, to be on our side instead, but now...

[ Now, Akechi's going around pretending they don't even known each other. It hurts, like a slice to his palm or something like that. He thought they were teammates, he thought they knew each other, he thought that maybe showing up here together meant he could help Akechi find his second chance. But all of that seems to be bullshit. ]

I dunno. I guess it doesn't matter.

[ His expression turns a bit more grave, nodding in understanding. It's clear something happened... maybe he turned on them again, or became a threat they couldn't ignore. Josuke feels lucky that he was able to beat most of the bad Stand users in Morioh into line. ]

I hear you. Me and my friends just stopped a guy exactly like that. Only, he was a serial killer who'd been offing women with his powers for fifteen years. [ They were never on the same side; he was a truly heinous person that was better put behind bars or down entirely. He tries to think of what he might feel like if one of the Stand users he's reconciled with turned out to be a traitor, and he doesn't like it. ] It figures that when power like this exists, people abuse it.

[ Which he says with disdain. Josuke folds his arms, looking thoughtful. ]

You did the right thing trying to put a stop to it. It's not easy, especially when you've gotta do it alone.

[ The rest of the world must not know about these powers, either, so he can only assume it's a burden Ryuji and his pals had to shoulder in silence. ]

[ Ryuji looks a bit alarmed at the description of that Stand user. He wonders briefly how it compares to Akechi and, well, he supposes he can't say that Akechi hasn't done some heinous shit as well but it was also Shido's fault, really, wasn't it?

Ryuji doesn't really know how to reconcile Akechi's actions sometimes. It makes his stomach hurt. ]

Yeah... when the wrong kind of people get power like this, it's not good for anyone involved. No matter what their motivations are.

[ He rubs at his face for a moment and sighs. ]

I'm sorry you had to fight a guy like that. I think... I think we might be pretty similar in the shit we've had to deal with 'cuz of our powers. And I know how hard it is. I hope you're not still fightin' when you go home, dude.

[ Josuke smiles lopsidedly, folding his arms close to his body. ]

No need to worry there. We resolved everything — just a few weeks ago, actually.

[ He's grateful that talking about Stand business is basically unbelievable gibberish to anyone in the crowd that might be watching; there is quite literally no way to prove or even look into what he's talking about. Besides, there's always the ol' Kamen Rider trick if they need it. ]

Now I'm just focusing on my recovery. [ He's the only one with lasting injuries, after all, since he healed everyone else up... 😔 ] It's why I feel okay coming here for a breather — I'd be too nervous to leave home with a dickwad like that running around. I'm sure you'd feel the same way.

[ If Ryuji's like him and came for a vacation, then the height of his supernatural troubles must be over now, right? He hopes so. ]

week one | overflow

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