overstrain | INBOX

[ What does he use all that money for??? Maybe he's responsible and saves his money like we're supposed to be doing, I don't know. ]

I don't plan on staying here any longer than I have to. I'm fortunate enough not to have to worry about shelter, so my expenses only go towards food and the bare necessities to keep alive. Any extra money, I'd like to use to keep other people alive. We're supposed to be doing this together, right?

[ It's not like she's going to foot his entire medical bill? She can just chip in what she's able to. ]

[ Maybe he'll actually collect loot now and sell them off to item makers in the town. No problem...

Terry stares at Kido in silence for several seconds before blurting out with a not quite correct translation--

So he basically just shouts "suki!!!" at Kido lmao ]

[ Uh

lmfao

Kido startles and lets the cat drop to the floor and leaves to call a nurse into the room because Terry is being very concerning all of the sudden ]

[ ... ... ...

????????

Terry just sits on the bed, all confused. He's not sure what he said wrong... the nurse comes in, looks at Terry, looks at Kido, and looks back at Terry.

"What did you say that was so strange?" ]

Uh... (suki)...?

[ The nurse looks at Kido's direction with a flat stare.

"It's only polite to reject him to his face, you know" she says, and promptly leaves.

????? ]

[ No, don't leave!!!! Nurse-san, please, Kido needs you to check Terry's head...

Aaaaaa

She can't say it to his face, so she'll just... go back to the corner and play with the cats... Yeah, this sounds like a good plan, and maybe she can mumble under her breath and hope Terry doesn't hear. ]

You can tell me again when you're not high off morphine...

[ The cats welcome Kido and some of the kittens paw at her hand and even flops on their sides for her to rub their belly.

Terry unfortunately caught that, but he doesn't understand what she means by that. Languages sure are complex... ]

Thanks for helping me as usual. I feel like I'm always in your debt somehow.

[ Belly rubs are a trap and she's not going to fall for that. But she will sit down on the ground, leaning her back against the wall and crossing her legs so that the kittens have a lap to crawl onto and sit on. Cute. She can almost forget about Terry being there if she just sits and plays with the cats. ]

You can pay me back by getting better. So we can go to the festival together next week or something... That's all I want.

[ As if on cue, the kittens go to climb all over Kido's lap. They're even playfully fighting each other for their spot, batting each other on the head and tumbling here and there. ]

We'll have a lot of fun.

[ He can see Kido and the cats from where he's sitting on the bed and... that's really cute. freaking kawaii as hell. Terry won't comment on it, and just watch on with a fond look on his face. ]

[ Aaaaa she loves cats. Reasons why Kido will visit Terry in the hospital: to get to see his cats. Seeing him is just a bonus. ]

Yeah, it'll be fun. I haven't told them you're here, but I bet Suzume and Hayato would be excited to see you again too. [ I made up their names just today bc Leon asked, but presumably Terry got the names of the two kids Kido's babysitting the last time he was over ] I'll take on piggyback duty for the time being, though.

Ah, really? That's good to hear... Are you sure though? They don't... pull your hair or anything, right?

[ Felt like he had a bald spot on that night...... ]

No? They're good kids.

[ She has protective gear, aka she wears her hood all the time, no danger to her hair. ]

They pulled on my hair when I was there... It felt like they ripped some of my hair out. This is unfair treatment...

[ apple pie onii-chan is sad ]

[ haha... Kido must have missed that, or ignored it. ]

They're kids. If they're roughhousing, just tell them to stop. Otherwise you'll just get bullied all your life.

[ She sure did ignore Terry's suffering... ]

By kids too... man, this sucks. Working at a daycare sounds like hell now.

[ He's basically imagining himself to be that cat with a million frogs surrounding it, except they're kids. ]

Just gotta stick with freelance work.

[ lmfao that's how it is. Can't even be mean to the kids or they'll cry, so the only option is to be bullied. ]

Freelance work is... what, designing houses and painting houses, stuff like that?

Um... basically providing services without having a boss! You're your own boss... or something like that? I helped people find things back home with my powers. It was fun too... and I got paid a lot.

[ finding 8 lost cats though.... no thanks ]

[ The services is what she had questions about, not the definition of freelancing, but helping people find things makes sense, sort of. Like those "private eye" businesses you read about in storybooks. ]

That sounds like something more suited to you. Something like that would be a big help to the people here too, probably, and you wouldn't have to run around town or push yourself too much doing something like that.

Going with people to help them find things at the location costed extra!

[ So the option of still running around town is still... unfortunately there. ]

I'm not sure if I can do something like that here though, since it's... pretty much a magical thing, isn't it? I'll probably be marked as a fraud or something.

Yeah, so?

[ Who cares if you're a fraud... ]

You'll be helping people, and you're putting in real work. It's not really fraud unless you're the one stealing things in the first place.

I... guess so.

[ Hm. Terry is giving it a serious consideration. Sounds like it's time to open up a stall or something in the market street once he's out of the hospital. ]

I'll give it a try then! Thanks, Kido!

[ Some kittens paw at Kido's stomach while standing on their hind legs, which makes Terry realize... ]

Oh, right. Cat food is in the bottom drawer. Can you feed them for me?

[ Honestly, it sounds like something that would go much smoother if Terry had his phone, but Kido's not giving his phone back at the moment so he'll just have to find some shady alleyway to lure people into. If that plan doesn't work, she can always brainstorm with him some other way that doesn't require Kido giving up the phone, so all is well and Kido nods at the request, moving the kittens off her lap before standing so they don't go tumbling onto the ground when she stands.

Gotta wash her hands before she handles food, so she heads to the bathroom to do that, pushing her sleeves up so they don't get wet when she lathers up with soap and rinses them off. Her omamori has been fashioned into some sort of bracelet, strapped onto her left wrist; it's a bit more convenient than having to reach into her pocket every time and worrying about dropping it somewhere by accident.

But anyways, cat food, cat food... Is it wet or dry cat food? Does each cat have their own separate bowl or is it a free-for-all battle to the death to see who gets to eat? ]

[ In the drawer are two food bowls, presumably one for the mom cat and the rest for the kittens. There are also several cans of wet cat food, mostly for their moisture content because Terry thinks cat hydration is super important to avoid other complications down the line. ]

I should buy some more cans soon...

[ Kido looks at the two bowls, stares at the ceiling for a moment, and then, because Terry is very vague on instructions, fills one up with water and the other with cat food, picking up the mother cat first and telling her to let the kittens eat their fill and then Kido will feed her after. ]

I can pick up some more food and drop them off, so you don't have to worry about being able to get to the store. The cats aren't let outside at all, are they? A single hospital room is pretty small.

It's more like they're refusing to leave without me.

[ Though he doesn't understand why, since they seem to hate him right now...? The confusion really shows on his face. ]

They follow me wherever I go. When I was at work, they'd wait outside the back of the cafe until I was done.

[ Kido breaths a laugh into the cat's fur, because they're more like guard dogs than guard cats, aren't they. You don't have to necessarily get along with the person you want to protect, after all, and it's that reason too that Kido can death glare at and punch people but still want to see them safe. ]

Maybe you're just the sort of person who can't be left alone. It'll be good for the cats to stretch their legs somewhere with more space, though, so you'd better get better for their sake as well.

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