[PRP] Don't Hit a Man When He's Down

[lZAYA ORlHARA]

(( Kick him. ;P It's easier. ))

The instant Izaya Orihara was told by the medical staff that he could abandon his wheelchair, he accepted the crutch offered to him in exchange and hightailed it out of the base. He was so sick and tired of being stuck indoors over the past several weeks, knowing full well he couldn't go very far anywhere without someone else supervising and pushing his wheelchair around. This meant that pretty much anywhere off-base was off limits.

Until the day he was told his arm was healed enough. Enough to shed the infernal cast his thoughtful teammates had written all over just to spite him and hold onto crutches instead. With both arms to use and two crutches to support him, he could now move around fairly well on his own until his broken leg had completely healed as well. He wouldn't have to be subject to any more of the other Rockets' marker abuse now that he could escape without anyone else to aid him.

He needed fresh air. Well, as fresh as city air could get, anyway. Orihara wore his ankle-length winter coat for the occasion, trimmed with fur like his trademark parkas. The informer missed his frequent visits to Camphoreon greatly and hadn't entered the city since before the last mission against Galactic. It would be nice...a step forward in things returning back to normal. All he had to do was ignore the fact that he was still somewhat handicapped.

Damn, I hope Shizu-chan doesn't happen to be around today... he thought silently as he took in the sights. The man figured the bartender was off with his new trainer friends, maybe having play battles with their precious pokemon. It would have been so humiliating to have his rival see him this vulnerable. Fatal, even. Izaya paused in his stride, suddenly aware of the very real danger he had just put himself in thanks to his desperation for freedom. Somehow Shizuo always seemed to have some animal instinct that homed in on his rival when the grunt crossed over into the city's borders. Somehow he always knew where to find him, no matter where he was.

"Tch. What are the chances he could find me this one afternoon?" the crimson-eyed man wondered aloud, stopping to rest on a park bench in front of a fountain. "He has other things to do with other people now and places to be. It's the season for holidays. Likely he'll spend it with his new friends and maybe his beloved brother." Though the informer spoke under his clouds of breath with a mocking smile, his tone hinted at bitterness. It wasn't as though he had friends or family to spend it with, which was why he was out here in the cold in the first place.  

[-TRHQ- Shizuo Heiwajima]

(XD)

Apparently the chances that Izaya waved away so easily were better then he thought. Shizuo his self was walking into the park not very far from the informant after all. The faux blond was walking with his hands in his pockets. While yes it was the holidays, he had needed some space to his self for a while and had taken a walk. He had been on his walk for a few hours now and was just now coming to the park though it on autopilot since he was lost in thought.

It had been months now since he had gotten friends to his name other then Shinra and Tom(and sometimes only rarely but not really ever Izaya) and he was still slightly surprised he hadn't managed to scare them off yet. Dith he could see why since it would be hard to make him scared, the girls he tries hard to keep him temper around, more then normal anyway, but still. It still felt like a novelty.

As lost in thought as he was he almost missed Izaya sitting on the bench a head of him. Almost. He stopped with an annoyed frown, anger already trying to claw it's way into his demeanor. Why was the Flea back in his city AGAIN after having warned him AGAIN last Halloween? He started to stomp his way over there, mouth opening to give a good and loud 'IZAAAYAAA-KUUUN!' but instead he stopped once again and his mouth shut with no sound escaping.

Why was the Flea in a cast with crutches?

What could have been bad enough to do that to him when was hardly worse of then some cuts and bruises from Shizuo?

.....And why the HELL did that make him both uncomfortable and vaguely concerned!?  

[lZAYA ORlHARA]

(( <3 ))

"Eh...?" With the strange feeling of being watched, Izaya turned his head as he leaned it against the back of the bench, pin-pointing the familiar face amongst the crowds in seconds. "Hahahaha...!" He giggled weakly to himself, touching the stab wound in his side that had only recently healed itself. "Kuso...looks like I managed to jinx myself."

The idea of getting up and running crossed the informant's mind, but he immediately thought better of it. He had already been spotted, and there was no way he would be able to get away with his current condition. With a heavy sigh, he smiled and closed his eyes, resigning himself to his fate and mercy at the hands of his hated rival. Though he waited to be yelled at, however, it never came.

Orihara almost thought Shizuo had passed him before he opened his eyes and saw the bartender standing over him. His mouth broke into a huge smile. "Shizu-chaaaan! Fancy meeting you here. Going gift-shopping for your new pals?" he asked, continuing on like nothing was wrong. At the back of his mind, though, he warned himself not to push too much of the bodygaurd's buttons, tempting as it was. He was in no position to anger the man.  

[-TRHQ- Shizuo Heiwajima]

( heart )

As Shizuo stood there in a quiet loom, he studied his nemesis over his sunglasses. It was rather clean that the other man had got into some sort of trouble that he couldn't escape unscathed like normal. This caused mixed feelings within Shizuo and he refused to think on them. At least for now.

"What happened to you." He didn't ask so much as slightly demand his question, all the while ignoring Izaya's. He looks from the Flea's face to the cast to the crutches then back. "Finally got some of what was owed to you then."  

[lZAYA ORlHARA]

"Ahhh...? Shizu-chan actually wants to know about my business?" the info broker asked in mock surprise. Of course the man would ask. Even if it was his most hated enemy, curiosity usually won over most other feelings. "Hmm, maybe I should charge for giving away some of my private information." Warning - do not wave a flag in the bull's face when you have a broken leg.

Izaya sighed, still keeping his weary smile as he looked away, not wanting to see Shizuo's face while he spoke of his own injuries. "Maybe," he chuckled. "A young lady took the full brunt of it, though, so I wouldn't exactly call it karma."

He didn't mention that said 'young lady' had protected him while doing so, nor the full circumstances of what had happened. If Asch didn't believe him, then there was no way Shizuo would have. Izaya didn't blame them; after all, he still had trouble believing it himself.

It was funny, though, thinking about karma... Perhaps Aila would have deemed it as such, having taken the life of the younger Aila prior to her own death. Both had died so young...and so needlessly. It made Orihara's grip tighten around his crutches as he glared at the sidewalk under his feet.

"So!" he started up again, beaming brighter than ever when he looked back at Shizuo's face. "Shall we get this over with, or what?" Perhaps Asch had been willing to spare him for Aila's sake, but Shizuo wasn't likely to hold back, even if he wanted to. In the end it didn't matter to Izaya, though, because a good beating was exactly what he felt like he deserved in all honesty.

After all that pretending that Aila and her death didn't matter to him and making up all those lies about how it was her stupidity that was to blame instead of himself... Orihara's guilt was starting to weigh down on him heavier than his restricting casts.  

[-TRHQ- Shizuo Heiwajima]

The twitch that Shizuo had when Izaya started talking about charging him didn't happen. Nope. At least nothing else happened as the Flea continued to talk. Had the b*****d set someone up to save his self? Had it all just been an accident and the Flea was innocent of it all? Shizuo didn't have the answer to that since Izaya looked like he wasn't going to share any more details then that.

At first he was confused what Izaya meant about getting it over with once he stood up but it didn't take long for him to catch on. Shizuo's face went blank and he pulled back arm and fist as if to punch the younger man in the face. Instead he moved to bring his fist down on top of his head in a bop that wouldn't even hurt the information broker. "It's not worth beating up a broken Flea."  

[lZAYA ORlHARA]

Orihara tensed instinctively when Shizuo brought back his arm, shuting his eyes and gritting his teeth to brace himself for the impact of the punch. "...?" But, like the previously expected yelling, it never came. A light bop on the head was all he received in its place, similar to an older sibling teasing a younger one.

Suddenly, the grunt felt annoyed. Was the ex-bartender looking down on him? Did he not even deem him important enough to attack? Was Shizuo pitying him? Just the concept started to burn Izaya up. His face heated up and reddened as blood rushed to his face in resentment. He refused to be pitied, particularly not by a simple-minded monster like Shizuo Heiwajima.

"I'm not broken," he snapped, shoving past the bodyguard as he hobbled into the crowds. "Stop looking at me like that. Nothing's changed." Maybe the neanderthal would get the message for once and leave him alone. Where were his stupid trainer friends when the grunt needed them to distract him?  

[-TRHQ- Shizuo Heiwajima]

Shizuo blinked in surprise behind his sunglasses when Izaya started to go red. He could only vaguely remember times where that had happen before. Distant amusement for the turn about in their normal routine happened when Izaya snapped at him and a smirk appeared on his lips. "Well if you're not broken then why are you acting like it? The Flea I know would just stand there and take it even injured."

He ended up finding his self walking beside the hobbling Izaya, not finding it hard to catch up. It really was true that he couldn't hit him when he was like this, at least not yet. Not angry enough yet. Not even the fact that the damn Flea was in his city was enough to hit him right now. It wasn't pity though seeing as he would do the same for anyone with a cast. That was probably sympathy seeing as he had been in casts a lot when he was younger.  

[lZAYA ORlHARA]

"Take what? The usual punch you didn't throw? The familiar yelling you've yet to bellow?" the informant grumbled. "You're the one who messed up our routine, not me." Though silently, Izaya disagreed. The flea Shizuo knew wouldn't have just stood there and taken it - he would have run. Run, jumped, skipped, leaped - anything to escape the ex-bartender. But those were all things he couldn't do just now and he wasn't about to admit it.

The shorter man felt Shizuo's smirk rather than saw it. His crimson eyes narrowed as he forced his gaze dead ahead, determined not to look at the unwanted accompaniment at his side. Why did Shizuo have to be so...so moral? It wasn't any fun to taunt him when he knew there would be no consequences. He was almost positive Shizuo wouldn't hit him in this state. Izaya wondered if it was even possible for him to get angry with a handicapped person; even his mortal enemy. It was like an injured mouse trying to taunt a sympathetic cat. He would just seem all the more pathetic if he tried.

As if having read Shizuo's mind, Izaya commented on a similar train of thought. "Don't you start pitying me or empathizing or any nonsense like that. I was nothing like you when you hurt yourself as a stupid kid. I'm not self-destructive like you."

He changed direction to head toward a weapon shop. He needed to buy a new blade, after all. A weapon shop was bound to provoke the bodyguard in some manner, as Izaya knew very well the man hated violence. If he didn't comment on them, at the very least Izaya hoped he would stop following him.  

[-TRHQ- Shizuo Heiwajima]

Shizuo didn't bother answering Izaya's first question, just continued to smirk. It was clear that the Flea wasn't up for their usual routine to them both. The smirk faltered a bit and the blonde looked over at Izaya with a mild glare. "Right because pissing me off isn't a self-destructive move." Most of the sympathy was now buried under annoyance, even if it was still there.

He ended up following Izaya when he turned though, telling his self he was going to make sure the Flea was out of his city soon, injuries or not. The aimed shop though got a scowl and the bodyguard pulled out a cigarette and lit it.  

[lZAYA ORlHARA]

At the other man's retort, Izaya flinched. Hadn't seen that one coming; especially not from the usually-dense Shizuo. How did that monster see through him so easily?! Next he was going to piece together why Izaya felt self-destructive at the moment if the grunt wasn't careful.

Glancing over his shoulder, he feigned his usual smile. "It's not self-destructive if it's me. After all, how many times have I pissed you off and gotten away with it? I'm a survivor. That, unfortunately, is something we sadly have in common." No matter what Shizuo's self-destructive tendencies were, it was a miracle, but the man refused to die. It was infuriating.

Upon selecting a knife, he asked the store owner to see it before glancing back and noticing the ex-bartender taking out a cigarette. As the tall blonde lit it, Izaya hobbled over in disgust. "What are you doing? Put that out! You'll stink up the whole area!" His hand left one of his crutches to snatch the cancer stick from the bodyguard. As he did so, however, he wobbled, threatening to fall over with only one crutch to support him.  

[-TRHQ- Shizuo Heiwajima]

Oh that thought about Izaya having self-destructive tendencies had been in Shizuo's head for a while. Though it had mainly because of Shinra making a lame joke about some thugs that tried to attack him and Shizuo had connected the scenario with Izaya. It just took the Flea just standing there waiting for the punch for him to actually believe it.

"Just because you survive doesn't mean anything. And one of these days I'll change that surviving part." Shizuo said with a glare, though His words held the appropriate heat, he wasn't sure he would actually go through with killing the Flea some day. After all that would mean killing. He would still maim him though.

Even though Shizuo had waited outside for Izaya, refusing to go into the violence promoting shop, it was easy to see what the Flea had gone in for and that made the scowl worse. He had started to semi-ignore what the informant was doing to focus on his cigarette but then the red eyed man had to ruin it. It was obvious what Izaya was reaching for and it was obvious what would happen if he continued to lean like that. Shizuo raised the hand holding the cigarette high and used the other to hold Izaya's shoulder as both a way to keep him away and to stabilize him. Though he would only admit to the keeping away part.  

[lZAYA ORlHARA]

"Sure you will," the informant replied, rolling his eyes with a careless gesture. "You had the chance just now and you ignored it. You're hopeless. Oi!"

When Shizuo caught him by the shoulder, the Rocket's eyes widened, imagining how the situation must have looked to a random passerby. There he was, with one crutch, being held at length by a much taller man who was playing keep-away with his cigarette. It must have appeared like a playground bully scene.

Pushing away in repulsion, Izaya brushed away Shizuo's hand. "Don't touch me with those filthy hands," he snarled like a wounded dog. He would have preferred to fall than have had Shizuo have to catch him. The fact made his face grow warmer than ever. He strode back into the store to finish making his purchase before returning outside. At least now he didn't feel completely helpless.

"Just what are you doing hanging around here by yourself in the first place anyway?" the informant asked irritably. "Shouldn't you be with your friends, especially around this time of year? Shopping for gifts, perhaps, or at least guarding Izumi-chan? That's what you get paid for, isn't it?"  

[-TRHQ- Shizuo Heiwajima]

"Just because I refuse to kill you while your broken doesn't mean I wont later when you aren't." Shizuo said with a glare. He didn't even think about what the two must have looked like. Not that he cared about how unimportant people saw him any. Really. He just moved his hand back to his side when Izaya pushed him away. "Less filthy then yours." He shot back heatedly.

As soon as Izaya went back inside to finish up he took a drag of his cig to attempt to calm the urge to strangle to Flea that had sprung up after he drug up memories of the past. He hated violence and didn't want to think about the shop and it's kind keeper in the past.

He had managed slightly by the time the red eyed man came back and he was reminded the Flea was currently banged up enough. The thought 'It's not worth breaking a broken Flea.' took care of the rest. "They're all busy and Izumi decided to work on something at the apartment." He had left Aiden there to watch over her anyway though. He took another drag then looked at Izaya. "And I was shopping." He just hadn't found anything yet.

(Note: No godmoding meant for Izumi =3 Just trying to give a reasonable reason <3)  

[lZAYA ORlHARA]

((Understood~! No problem.))

"I'm NOT broken!" the grunt cried in exasperation. As if the emphasize this, he whipped out his brand new flick blade, being careful this time to lean his elbow on his other crutch so that he didn't lose his balance again. "Just because I have a broken leg doesn't change what I could do to you. Call me that again and we'll see who'll be broken." His hostility was very real and the usual playful teasing was gone from his voice. Someone's fuse was shorter than usual, and for once it wasn't Heiwajima. It seemed the roles were reversed this time and Izaya wasn't the least comfortable about it.

Attempting to recompose himself, the weary man sighed and closed his blade. He didn't want anyone seeing him like this, least of all Shizuo. It was enough he saw him physically weak; he didn't need his rival realizing he was emotionally weak as well. "...That so?" he murmured quietly, watching the people walk across the street beyond. He seemed determined not to look at Shizuo. "What did you buy?"

SNIP!

The lit end of Shizuo's cigarette fell to the floor. Izaya replaced his closed blade back into his pocket.

((If that end part was god-modding too much, just let me know; I'll edit it.))