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If I stand outside the apartment and shout your name, would you be able to hear it?

[ aka they're coming home today ]

I would be able to hear it, Minato.

Listen for me in about two hours.

I'll be cooling on the windowsill, then.

[ Windowsill... Okay.

"Okay" is what he replies with before pocketing his phone, because why ask when he can see for himself. Two hours later- he probably looks terrible, smells like dirt and trees, bangs an inch longer than they were a month ago but at least some of it stays put when he tucks his hair behind his ear now.

But okay. Eyes scanning the windows as he gets to the front of the building, trying to find her so he won't actually have to shout. ]

[And there she is, head peeking out of the apartment window, resting her head on a pillow that's on her arms because her arms aren't particularly comfortable to rest on. When he sees her, she's probably yawning.]

[ There she is! When Minato is that tired, the last thing he wants is somebody shouting in his face, but he cups his hands on either side of his mouth so they can amplify what his voice doesn't project ]

Angela! [ That's all he promised to shout and then the volume tempers off, although he doesn't lower his hands ] I'm home. Also, I lost my keys.

[Angela greets Minato with a slight smile, lifting her head and waving at him.]

M––

...I'll be right down! [She calls out before sauntering down to the outside of the building to greet him. She looks every bit as tired as she did back in the velvet room. She reaches to hug him, stops short, and instead gingerly presses her hands against his chest. It feels good to be with him again. Though he certainly looks...something of a disaster.]

Welcome home...

[ Everybody coming home probably looks like a disaster. The only thing Minato has going for him is being allowed to rest even while his group is travelling, thanks to the horse-driven carts they have, so he looks better in that aspect. More alive.

It's different when they're standing; hands on his chest feels a little like he's being pushed away unless he leans into Angela's touch, so instead, he lifts her arms and lets them fall over his shoulder (maybe a mistake, because they're heavy... but this sort of weight makes him feel grounded) ]

Were you okay holding the fort here?

[She likes when he puts her arms over his shoulders––the way he welcomes her foreign body without a second thought. She transitions them into a hug, pressing her cheek to his chest now in lieu of her hands.]

No. I missed you.

[ Answering that is hard, so he stalls by returning the hug, clasping his fingers behind the small of her back and locking them there.

Should he be happy about the "I missed you"? Upset? He feels a little of both, but the unease is still there no matter which way he leans. ]

Mm... I don't plan to go anywhere anymore. Would you have wanted to come? Even if it was boring and dangerous and there was a lot of sitting around on the dirt.

It would have been nice to...make some use of these. [She traces her fingers along his shoulder blades.]

Help keep you safe with them...Maybe I could feel like this was happening me for a reason?

[A light, airy sigh.]

Let's go upstairs, okay?

Hmm. I did have to push back a bunch of tree branches in the forest. Would've been nice to have you there, so I wouldn't worry about scratching up my arms.

[ Which is a good thing for mechanical arms; he doesn't know anything about machine gun fingers or that "Aigis" was a weapon or anything. The very few memories he had of fighting in Tartarus with SEES in general, Aigis in the background... those are gone now. It's just him and Angela on the rooftop talking about home.

Let's go home.

He lets his hands fall from either side of her, and holds his hand out to her. ]

[This time, she takes his hand without hesitation, leading the pair up to the apartment.]

I can probably tear your door open, if you need me to. [And she smiles––a little––the very first time she's taken an earnest crack at her own situation. It doesn't feel bad.]

[ Both things are good to see, but he's particularly glad to see that smile— not the huge bright ones she used to always give him, but a small one just for herself. That's good.

--He should probably interject and save his door before she tries. ]

Actually, I was thinking of asking you to break the window latch for me.

[ Or that she'd regained her lockpicking skills, but that's not a memory Minato has yet. ]

...Oh.

That's a better idea! [She clenches the fist that isn't holding his, creating a quiet "crunch" sound.]

Take me to it and I'll snap it open. I've gotten rather good at...opening things. Breaking stuff.

[Crushing cans of La Croix is becoming a bit of a pastime.]

What have you been breaking...

[ He walks until he gets to the window right next to the front door, and makes a point of bringing Angela's hand up to rest on the ledge before letting go. Window latch. He said "latch." Don't break the actual window, or the draft will come in. ]

Hearts. [Somehow...she finds it hard to resist actually punching through the window–-but she does. With relative ease, she breaks the latch and moves aside for Minato to do his thing, giving him a glance.]

Just kidding.

[ Hearts... But also hearts in multiple... ]

I hope that was people professing their undying love for you, but you had to kindly decline.

[ And not like. Breaking heart stones, which is what Minato's mind immediately went to.

He slides the window over to the side and goes ahead and climbs in before stepping aside so Angela can do the same. ...There's the front door right next to him that he could unlock and invite her inside that way, but. The window's right here and open. ]

Sure.

[She smiles, wiggling into his apartment through the window. It makes her smile. Like they're young teenagers all of a sudden, sneaking around. Angela then rubs the back of her neck, peering around the room.]

...Welcome home.

[ He only takes a cursory glance around the room— it looks the same as always, untouched for all these weeks and just a little stuffy without the heater on that usually circulates the air. Leaving the window open will help with that, so he turns back to Angela before he speaks again. ]

I'm home.

[ More than just the city, it's his apartment, his own personal space. Home. ]

...You looked tired too. Do you want anything? Otherwise if I sit down, I don't know if I can get back up again.

Oh?

Did you invite me in here to take another nap with you, Minato?

I wanted to see you again, but I can't if I'm asleep. [ ...The denial is weak. ] Do you want to take another nap with me?

[The corner of her lips and her eyebrows twitch ever slightly as her fingers curl at her sides. A short, teasing laugh comes from her mouth.]

In your bed?

[ On one hand, the laugh is nice to hear. On the other hand, it's at his expense and Minato makes as if he wants to laugh but doesn't know how much to read into implications. ]

If you're okay with a small, twin-sized bed. It's wider than the couch at least.

3/2; text

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