[ Her eyes widen in alarm, and her hands still for the briefest moment before she continues working. She's a professional, and she's been in this family for a while. That news of a gatling gun makes her take an even closer look at his wounds. It's a miracle he's not dead.
Seeing him sway, she guides him to lie down. ]
I'm glad you're here.
[ Safe and alive even if he's not unhurt. She's trying to piece his story together in her mind. ]
Please tell me they initiated it.
[ She doesn't want to hear that he exacerbated the mess he's in, but she won't be surprised if he did. ]
[ his voice is a little sharper than he'd like, but. he only gives a faint shake of his head as he lies down, closing his eyes at the pain the movement brings. ]
We found a Xian Le car in Middleton. They came after us first.
[ That makes her brain go into overdrive, a little harder to do than usual when she's trying to prioritize getting Ookurikara into a better shape over anything else and it's 4AM. ]
That they would open fire om you in Middleton is reprehensible. Who were you with?
[ He said we a couple times. Should she try to find who he was with, or should she assume they went to Itaru?
Middleton is supposed to be neutral territory. She doesn't like the sound of this one bit. Do they want to start a war? With everything going on in the background, this paints a dark picture. She knows she's interrogating him too much for someone who probably has a concussion, but she wants all of this to stop. She wants any situations that would get others into harm like he has to be prevented.
The one good thing about his lack of attention (perhaps the only good thing) is that when she has to set his arm, it'll go easier in this time and age where x-rays are crude. ]
[ Why would they think he was the police? The most well-known police are two teenage boys, much to her chagrin. Even if they were rank and file Mori people, Ookurikara's still Xie Lian's right-hand man. ]
Ookurikara.
[ By this point, all of his cuts that need to dressed and bandaged have been, and she's thinking about what to tackle next. ]
I don't know if I should wait to talk to you about this until after your concussion is gone, but I'm worried. About you and everyone else in the Xian Le and how things are becoming more dangerous in Middleton.
[ Maybe she's just being paranoid about this, but the people he came across were ready to attack. ]
[ don't be a little bitch, kara, when she is treating you and is concerned!
She responds to his scowl with a smile. ]
It would be lovely to know what they were doing and why, but you do know that the rumors flying around town aren't painting the Xian Le in a favorable light, don't you? You need to be more careful, especially with your position.
[ How is he supposed to guard Xie Lian if he goes and gets injured like this? Among a few other things she could point out. ]
I'm glad you could protect as many as you could, but you also need to protect yourself. Please get ready to sit up. I'm going to give you painkillers and prepare you for an x-ray.
[ he makes a noise akin to a growl, but kara does as instructed. if he didn't care about his own well-being, after all, he wouldn't be here. shinobu knows that. ]
I know.
[ of course he does. it's why he went out into mori territory in the first place. ]
[ He is usually the easiest patient out of all the bodyguards, but right now, she's having second thoughts (even though he's listening to her instructions). She's going to inject him with the good stuff (morphine). ]
Yes. I also just heard that the kidnappers may be people outside of town.
[ Kara will gradually feel less in pain for a a few hours, and it'll all be good.
Concern makes her brows knit. Did he run into some of the kidnappers? Even if Ookurikari won't notice it, her grip on him tightens briefly. ]
Did they escape? If they did, I'm a little relieved. [ Since there isn't confirmation of where they are... ] I don't know if they're the children you mean, but I know Yiling Ridge has two new additions.
[ he breathes a long, relieved sigh as the pain starts to fade, little by little. he didn't know about the kids at yiling ridge, but he files that away with only a faint hope that he's coherent enough to remember it later. ]
We can talk to them, see if they can tell us anything.
[ well. that isn't such an easy question to answer, is it? how would he know what kids think of him, regardless of what kara himself thinks of them? so he settles for a half-shrug, only moving his good arm. ]
[ It's an honest question. Can he turn his frown upside down?
Even if this is a conversation that should probably wait (she hasn't forgotten about his broken arm), it's a question she thinks will go over better now than later. ]
[ There is a little mercy in her for Kara. It's been a few years, but she didn't use to to different from him. She was serious, grumpy, and almost never smiled. ]
No, not now. I meant on command. If you run across kidnappers later and they need to stopped again, you may have to.
[ he'd be a little offended if he weren't quite so out of it - of course he can smile? he just doesn't do it often, unless there are cute animals involved. ]
[ Even if ends up as an awkward and scary smile because he's not used to smiling on command, it'd still be special. ]
Thank you, Ookurikara, for all your hard work. You saved children tonight, and that's worth more than words can say. [ They may be mafia, but there are some lines that shouldn't be crossed. ] Please take it easy until your arm is completely healed.
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Seeing him sway, she guides him to lie down. ]
I'm glad you're here.
[ Safe and alive even if he's not unhurt. She's trying to piece his story together in her mind. ]
Please tell me they initiated it.
[ She doesn't want to hear that he exacerbated the mess he's in, but she won't be surprised if he did. ]
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[ his voice is a little sharper than he'd like, but. he only gives a faint shake of his head as he lies down, closing his eyes at the pain the movement brings. ]
We found a Xian Le car in Middleton. They came after us first.
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[ That makes her brain go into overdrive, a little harder to do than usual when she's trying to prioritize getting Ookurikara into a better shape over anything else and it's 4AM. ]
... You fought back, didn't you.
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[ his eyes close, and stay shut for now. he's too tired to try and and keep track of what Shinobu is doing, but he keeps mumbling, at least. ]
Only when they tried to use it on our people. Couldn't give 'em a chance to.
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[ He said we a couple times. Should she try to find who he was with, or should she assume they went to Itaru?
Middleton is supposed to be neutral territory. She doesn't like the sound of this one bit. Do they want to start a war? With everything going on in the background, this paints a dark picture. She knows she's interrogating him too much for someone who probably has a concussion, but she wants all of this to stop. She wants any situations that would get others into harm like he has to be prevented.
The one good thing about his lack of attention (perhaps the only good thing) is that when she has to set his arm, it'll go easier in this time and age where x-rays are crude. ]
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[ he just shakes his head once. no word on where royce went, what happened to him, or why they were in middleton, though. ]
Wasn't me they wanted - I was with them. They thought I was police. Guess they thought I'd side with them.
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Ookurikara.
[ By this point, all of his cuts that need to dressed and bandaged have been, and she's thinking about what to tackle next. ]
I don't know if I should wait to talk to you about this until after your concussion is gone, but I'm worried. About you and everyone else in the Xian Le and how things are becoming more dangerous in Middleton.
[ Maybe she's just being paranoid about this, but the people he came across were ready to attack. ]
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I stopped them from firing. The kid destroyed it. I would've stopped them earlier if I knew where they were going.
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She responds to his scowl with a smile. ]
It would be lovely to know what they were doing and why, but you do know that the rumors flying around town aren't painting the Xian Le in a favorable light, don't you? You need to be more careful, especially with your position.
[ How is he supposed to guard Xie Lian if he goes and gets injured like this? Among a few other things she could point out. ]
I'm glad you could protect as many as you could, but you also need to protect yourself. Please get ready to sit up. I'm going to give you painkillers and prepare you for an x-ray.
[ She's at his side to help him. ]
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I know.
[ of course he does. it's why he went out into mori territory in the first place. ]
You heard they're blaming us.
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Yes. I also just heard that the kidnappers may be people outside of town.
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He said so, too. [ who "he" is doesn't seem to be important right now. ] Need to find those kids... they might know more.
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Concern makes her brows knit. Did he run into some of the kidnappers? Even if Ookurikari won't notice it, her grip on him tightens briefly. ]
Did they escape? If they did, I'm a little relieved. [ Since there isn't confirmation of where they are... ] I don't know if they're the children you mean, but I know Yiling Ridge has two new additions.
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[ he breathes a long, relieved sigh as the pain starts to fade, little by little. he didn't know about the kids at yiling ridge, but he files that away with only a faint hope that he's coherent enough to remember it later. ]
We can talk to them, see if they can tell us anything.
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[ How does she put this delicately? Will it even stick in his pain-induced haze? ]
Are you good with children, Ookurikara?
[ If he's too intimidating, that won't get him anywhere. ]
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Okay.
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[ It's an honest question. Can he turn his frown upside down?
Even if this is a conversation that should probably wait (she hasn't forgotten about his broken arm), it's a question she thinks will go over better now than later. ]
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...Now?
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No, not now. I meant on command. If you run across kidnappers later and they need to stopped again, you may have to.
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[ he'd be a little offended if he weren't quite so out of it - of course he can smile? he just doesn't do it often, unless there are cute animals involved. ]
Why would I need to smile for kidnappers?
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[ She hasn't seen him around cute animals. She Doesn't Know. ]
If you catch kidnappers with kids, it'll be easier to handle children if you can smile.
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[ oh. yes, of course. that makes sense. ]
...I'll smile, if I find them.
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[ Even if ends up as an awkward and scary smile because he's not used to smiling on command, it'd still be special. ]
Thank you, Ookurikara, for all your hard work. You saved children tonight, and that's worth more than words can say. [ They may be mafia, but there are some lines that shouldn't be crossed. ] Please take it easy until your arm is completely healed.
[ She puts extra emphasis on take it easy. ]