These Empty Streets (Jenesis/Closed)

Adrian snapped back to reality when he heard a scream pierce the silence. Stopping in his tracks, his eyes widened upon hearing it, and he began to look around, trying to figure out where it was coming from.

It's not too far away...

He was hesitant, having lost a friend right in front of his eyes just recently, but he tried to force the thought out as he ran towards the source of the screaming. He would pass by a couple buildings before turning into an alleyway, running down it and making sure to avoid any obstacles in his way. He would stop when he saw what he assumed was the cause of the commotion. Four men harassing two young girls. It made him sick to his stomach.

Before he could run at the group, he saw something fly out of the corner of his eye, a brick smacking one of the guys in the head. Turning towards the direction it came from, he saw a girl standing there, yelling for the other two girls to run. He wasn't sure if this girl was brave or a fool, but the two usually went hand in hand.

Observing what was around him, Valo quickly grabbed a trash can lid off of the ground and frisbee'd it towards the men, aiming to hit one of the guys in the face with it. The least he could do was back this chick up.

Valo's brow rose as he watched the girl, swinging around a taser like out of a comedy. It would've been pretty adorable, if not for the fact that she was in danger right now. He began to move forward to help her, but he stopped in his tracks when he realized she had missed the two men coming at her completely, but since Valo was skidding to a stop, she was now set on course to collide with--

"W-wait!"

ZAP!

The taser would hit him, and unless she moved, the two would collide into one another and end up on the floor in a comical heap. If she fell with him, he'd still do his best to cushion her fall by catching her in his arms.

Luckily, the taser wouldn't do too much. It stung quite a bit, and it made his hair stand up some and left a tingly feeling in his body, and he felt kind of funny overall... but he was alright and more well put together than most people. That is, he would be okay as long as she didn't keep swinging the taser around now that they were on the ground.

"Man, that smarts..." He groaned, looking up at the woman before looking at the two men. He quickly pulled out his sword and pointed it at them from the ground, lightning surrounded the blade visibly.

"Stay back! This is your only warning." He said, hoping to scare them off. If not, well... he'd have to cut a bitch.

Yes, he had a sword. Luckily for her, he was apt enough with the weapon to not accidentally cut her in half (though if she flailed into it, that was a different story).

He kept his eyes trained on the men, his sword not lowering for a moment. It would be easy for him to end them, and yet, he was stopping himself. On an ordinary day, he might've done it without a second thought, but right now?

"... No. As long as they don't try to hurt you."

The girl looked like she was one of the unfortunate people to be trapped within the walls who were truly innocent, and he didn't want to spill blood right in front of her. It wasn't something she had to see, so these men would be let off lucky, if they were wise enough.

As far as he knew, not many people were willing to charge at a sword that had electricity surrounding it. If these guys did it, they'd be the first. It was his own little taser, and hopefully, it'd help end things on a smoother note.

Sword taser.

She actually said it out loud.

And thinking about it, he kind of regretted not naming it that.

"It's homemade."

He would say in response to that, although that was only half true. He would've cracked a smile at her comment if it weren't for the serious and tense atmosphere, but he was soon relieved as the men turned and walked away, their less fortunate comrades in tow. He was glad that it didn't come to actual bloodshed.

Sighing in relief, Valo would sheathe his sword, the lightning surrounding it dissipating as if it were never there. From there, he leaned back, keeping himself propped up on his hands as he tilted his head back.

"You're welcome. I'm just glad it didn't turn ugly."

Uglier, anyway. He would turn to look at the girl, seeing her face and pausing in place for a few seconds. She looked familiar to him as well... a girl he had seen only once before, quite a while back, and then never seen or heard from her again. He was convinced the school had eaten her up, but she was still alive and in one piece.

He wasn't sure if she could remember him from that brief meeting, and it didn't help that he looked a bit different with the darker hair and darker demeanor overall, so he saw it fit to introduce himself again anyway.

"The name's Adrian... and don't worry about the taser, I've been through worse. I'm just glad you're alright."

It was nice, being able to actually help someone for the first time in a while. Seeing someone who was brighter than everyone else around the district brought his spirits up a bit, it made him feel like this place wasn't entirely dreary.

"So you do remember me."

Valo grinned slightly at her sudden outburst (also amused at her still calling him Adrian despite remembering the name he gave her in their prior meeting). She was quite unusual, at least for someone who was inside of the walls, and she seemed rather peppy for someone who had could've been hurt if no one else was around to help her. But as fate would have it, she was destined to live at least another day. He hoped her positivity could survive the district.

"Well, Jenesis," her name was unique to him too, although he didn't know it was spelled with a J, "You're alive, and that's all that matters today."

It sort of felt like deja vu, although at least the first time they met was in much better circumstances comparatively. It had been such a long time ago, and it was awfully brief, so in a way, it felt like they were meeting for the first time all over again.

"Walk you home?"

If he was going to be honest, he was already considering offering her that exact thing, but she beat him to the punch. Just because the men ran off earlier didn't mean they weren't waiting to try and get the jump on her later or something, and if he just up and left on her, not knowing whether she was safe or not would nag at the back of his mind. People were dying around him left and right, and he wanted to be able to help someone out when they needed it.

Wordlessly, he stood up to his feet, dusting himself off from their earlier collision. He looked at Jenesis, giving her a friendly smile as he held his hand out for her to take, to help her off of the floor.

"Well, I don't have anywhere else to be, so let's make sure you get home safely."

Had it really been that long since he last saw her? May felt like an eternity ago, when in reality it hadn't even been a year. While she was trying to figure out where she lived, he was lost in thought, wondering about how so much could change in such a short time. He felt like he had seen enough battle for a lifetime, felt like it aged him far beyond his years, that it changed him into something he wasn't. What he wouldn't give to be the person he was back in May, to be able to have the hindsight to get out of the city before it went to hell.

But everything happens for a reason. Maybe he was supposed to be here.

He wasn't sure how to answer her question. He had witnessed fights where things got so extreme, you couldn't exactly explain them to anyone without it sounding unbelievable. He had fought people who could teleport through mirrors, or turn their bodies into that of snakes. He had seen creatures straight out of a horror movie, and had literally even died and been reanimated temporarily into one of those same creatures before being brought back to life, his own dad making the decision to do that to him. All in the months since they had last seen each other.

How do you explain any of that?

"I don't live too much further out than you do... at least where I'm currently staying." He'd respond to her first question, the old Yuy Corp building that he had taken over wasn't too far from the CITCO sign that she had pointed out. It was a lot closer than his actual house, and it sounded like taking her home would be on the way.

He wasn't sure if he wanted to go home yet though.

"As for how I've been... if I could sum it up, I've been surviving."

A vague, yet broad statement.

"A lot has been happening, and I'm just trying to make it to better days. Wall sure doesn't help, but I'm sure it won't be up forever." He tried to sound optimistic, but he wasn't sure how much hope he had left at this point.

"What about you? I hope you're doing well for yourself."