I&#39;ve seen your faces

I don't know. The last thing I remember clearly is...a tea party. I wanted to see what I could learn there.

Don't laugh at me for it. You've done enough mocking me for the next month

[He nods at Ken and squirms to try and get free. There's no reason for him to attack Ken right now.

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Calm down, you'll be untied once I get all the knots undone. And seriously? A tea party? [Ken is very much trying not to sigh. He remembered his conversation with Hughes, the one about Rue. This was bad.]

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[Schuldig doesn't even try to stifle his grin. It was almost worth working with Ken to have Ken say what he wanted to.] I suppose Crawford would be pleased to see you doing reconnaissance.

And considering what you did to me, I think some verbal brutality was hardly out of line. Especially since it served a practical purpose.

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What else am I supposed to do here?

[Once he's free, he rubs his wrists and eyes Schuldig's bandaged arm sheepishly.]

It wasn't me that hurt you. It was whatever had control of me.

[He wipes his face off with his shirt. Realizing that he'd cried makes him feel pathetic.]

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Don't use your shirt, you know Miakis spends a lot of time figuring out the laundry. [Ken of course grabbed a cloth and handed it to Nagi.

Man this was so surreal.]

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I can't really complain to it, though, can I?

[Ugh, and there Ken goes being domestic again. Schuldig rolls his eyes.] When Siberian is done fussing over you, Nagi, you could make me some coffee. It's the least you owe me. [This is, in a weird way, Schuldig's way of smoothing over the awkwardness - by acting as though nothing had happened at all.]

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Complain to whoever made it happen in the first place.

[He grumbles at Ken and pulls away. Miakis worrying about laundry isn't something he cares about.]

And how am I supposed to know how to make coffee when the drip pots we're used to don't exist for another 25 years?

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[Right. Crisis over. Why in fuck was he still here.]

I'm gonna head home. Nagi you can come when you're ready. Schuldig, don't warp him too much.

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Coming from the man who set the bar for that? I think he's safe with me.

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I'll be back eventually.

[For now, though, Nagi's going to be relatively comfortable around Schuldig.]

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Fuck off Schuldig. I don't need that from you right now. [Have a brief flash of memory of his claws going through sisters stomach, how pleasing and utterly disturbing it felt.]

Yeah yeah, just don't get droned. [with that he slams the door behind himself]

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[Schuldig smirks as Ken leaves before glancing at Nagi.] You know, I may go out of my way to make people's lives difficult and painful, but you've got a hell of a natural talent for it.

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I don't intend to make your life difficult.

And thanks for the help.

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I know; you just seem to pull it off with perfect, accidental grace. Like an idiot savant.

You are Schwarz.

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And you didn't even have to kill me to get me back to normal this time.

I know. I always will be.

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Don't think I didn't entertain the idea. Especially after all this. But that would've been like admitting I couldn't beat whatever games they'd played with your head. I don't know who did it to you, but it wasn't this town, and there's nothing else that can fuck up a mind better than I can.

So long as you don't ever try to maim me again. You practically undid whatever bonus points you won for getting me to the hospital with all this.

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We'll find out and I'll let you deal with them since I'm still powerless.

I don't want to maim you again. I don't know why it happened the first time.

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Not to mention that I suffered more indirectly from their little stunt than you did.

You declared me 'useless', as I recall. I'd be willing to write it off if it didn't sound a lot like the natural extension of your 'you haven't done anything for me to thank you for' remarks...

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I know that.

I don't think you're useless. And I thanked you this time, didn't I?

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It'd be hard to miss.

Damn straight. Of course, when it comes to getting injured as a direct result of dealing with you and going out of my way to look after you, this isn't the first time, so I don't know why I only got the one.

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If you're talking about what Siberian did to you, I hardly see how that's worth my thanks. I already said I didn't mind you killing me when I got droned the first time.

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Saying you don't mind and thanking me aren't the same. Between bringing you back from droning and what I was able to accomplish on your behalf with your corpse, I don't think there's any part of that you shouldn't thank me for.

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