bloodied arrogance || crowley eusford

7

the concrete tastes really bad.  your head is spinning, and all you can see is the hard black of pavement below your eyes as it warps. you groan, flipping onto your back to rest a hand against your aching forehead.

"y/n, are you alright?" yoichi's voice sounds above you, concerned. you nod slowly as your vision slowly begins returning to normal, you get to your feet.

"i'm fine. i was just knocked on my fuckin ass, that's all." you grit out, glaring at guren who shrugs his shoulders, a self satisfied grin on his face.

"more like knocked on your head." the silver haired man laughs, what was his name? shinya. you turn to stare at him instead, to which he pays no mind.

"you did alright, brat. certainly better than your squad leader." guren praises, while also dissing your friend. you set your jaw, crossing your arms defiantly.

"shut your mouth, guren. shinoa's been doing her best from the start." you defend, spinning in your heel, fully intent on walking away. the lieutenant colonel drops a big hand onto the top of your head, stopping you in your tracks.

"you've got attitude, but you did well today. don't get angry at me because i'm pointing out someone else's weakness." guren's tone is lighthearted, but it makes you angry all the same. you don't want to be told that you're great if it means that your family is not.

"i appreciate the compliment, but i don't want to hear it." you inform him, stepping out from under his strong hand. you turn to him, offering a salute before you walk away, intent on ignoring him and finding your teammates.
this time guren does not attempt to stop you, and instead allows you to walk away.

you meet up with your teammates, who are all talking amongst themselves, and don't turn to greet you until you're in front of them.

"hey, what was that about?" yuu asks you, nodding guren's direction as you stop in front of him, a tired look on your face.

"nothing important, he just wanted to tell me that i 'did well today' i guess." you spare the details, opting not to mention what he'd said about shinoa. you know she feels bad enough about not being able to have been a been leader to you all.

she expresses that with deep regret a moment later, apologizing for her incompetence. you frown at her, pulling her into a side hug. she looks so guilty and it breaks your heart. you don't want to see shinoa look like that. she's so lively all the time, and that's the way you like her.

———————

the six hour ride goes by smoothly, and you arrive in nagoya, both shinoa and naromi's squads on the hunt for some dumb vampire with a daily park visit. how boring this fang must be.

"shinoa, i'm gonna bet this vampire bastard looks as stupid, and boring as he sounds." you whine, leaning against the wall as you wait for the exact moment to strike.

shinoa giggles, nodding along in agreement to your assumption. "i'm gonna bet that he looks super old. old people like parks, right?"

it's your turn to laugh, and you turn to yuu to tell him about your bet. "hey, hey." you tap him on the shoulder. yuu turns to you an eyebrow raised. his expression read, yeah i heard. it's not funny. you frown, opting for aborting your mission on making yuu laugh, deciding its not worth his teasing about your humor.

"naromi, how much longer?" you ask, turning to question the leader of the other squad joining you on this mission.

the man in question regards you with an annoyed look, checking the time on his pocket watch. "less than five minutes. i hope you can wait that long."