Spirits In My Head // kagehina AU

Soulless

The captain had a certain way of doing things. Even so, he had so many plans laid out for one specific situation that you never knew which one he was going to enact. The most basic ones that he repeated the most were the ones that we could all remember, such as his version of how to get rid of a zombie hoard. It was rather simple and very likely to succeed if done correctly and efficiently.

First, the weak link must be picked out. Whether that be a soldier or a civilian did not matter to him as long as it would help the common good. The captain has been known for using a child in a very dire situation. He refuses to speak of it.

Second, the person chosen must be made incapable of running away. Sometimes he would wound the bait, or tie them up. His most used method though was the breaking of their leg.

Lastly, the hoard must be lured to the bait. Most of the time, the person's screams alone catch the monsters' attention, but other times some blood has to be shed in order for that to happen. Cutting the back of their knee seemed to do the job, and render them incapable of walking if the leg had not been broken already.

Captain's methods were not something that would come to me some suddenly, but as Asahi inspected Yamaguchi's leg for the fracture's origin, he points a detail out that the bandages had covered before.

"There seems to be a cut through the ligaments in your knee," Asahi sets Yama's leg down slowly. "I can set your leg right, but I doubt you will be able to walk for a while. That is... if your leg heals properly."

"And if it doesn't?" Yamaguchi wonders, his voice held back.

The medic sighs, "I suggest you stay in one zone then."

Eyes cast down to their hands, away from everyone else, Yamaguchi sits in tense silence. I do not blame him; losing the ability to walk is a hard possibility to swallow. Nevertheless, it does not look like Tsukishima plans on leaving anytime soon, if at all, so it does not put much pressure on Yamaguchi's lack of mobility. The tall blonde carefully buries his fingers in Yama's hair, ruffling it slowly in an attempt to console the brunette.

Asahi stands, "If you do not need me any longer, I should get going."

"Nonsense!" Noya stands as well, almost scaring Ace as he did so. "You just arrived."

The giant of a man scratches the back of his head with a hint of embarrassment. "I know, but I really need to pick up some supplies while I still have the time."

"Tell you what," Daichi suggests, standing up to join the other two. "I can accompany you. After all, we still need to catch up."

Asahi sighs, but he does not argue. "Alright, if that's what you want."

"I'm tagging along as well, then!" Noya exclaims and follows the two friends as they exit the building.

Shouyo and I are left alone with Tsukishima and Yamaguchi, who still sit in a bubble of tense silence that twists my stomach. I decide it would be best for us to leave them be in order for them to come to terms with the situation, or at least for Yamaguchi to. The freckled brunette sits unmoving in the same position as before, without so much as twitching.

I take my leave with the orange puff at my heels, following me out into the frigid air. Ace stays inside, laying down on the spot he was sitting at. Closing the door after Shouyo, we begin to make our way to the zone's market road in hopes of trading some of the items we had collected for furs or food.

I approach one of the vendors when a voice calls out to me from the crowd.

"Kageyama..."

It is rather soft, but still audible in the busy chattering of the market atmosphere. When I turn my head to follow the sound, a familiar face stands out from the crowd. My hands grow numb, palms sweating, as I stare into a pair dark, emotionless eyes.

"Oy, Tobio, you okay?" Souyo takes hold of my wrist, breaking me away from the trance. "You seem a little pale. Did you see a ghost or something?"

His hair is parted at the middle, like it always is, and his dark brown eyes still stare at me, as if waiting for me to respond with his own name. "Maybe..." I mumble in reply.

"Ghosts aren't real," Shouyo furrows his eyebrows. "You know that, right?"

There are two things I know for certain. Zombies are real, but sometimes people can be just as soulless.

"Yeah..."