Leap of Faith - 951 words
Jan. 11th, 2022 01:17 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
It was pouring out... Mono hated that; the rain was making his paper bag soggy and putting him in a foul mood, considering they should both be feeling quite elated after having escaped the hospital.
Regardless, there was no time for celebration or time for moping. Both he and Six had come to the agreement that they needed to get through the Pale City and to find somewhere new, somewhere better... It was proving to be difficult, though, as he still felt the pull every time he passed a television. Sometimes he got lost in it, but Six always pulled him back out...
Then they couldn’t quite agree on where to go next. There were flyers scattered around the trash random boxes that depicted a place that... They thought it was called the Maw. Mono had heard of it before, sometime long ago... Maybe from another kid at the orphanage or perhaps somewhere else. Regardless, Six seemed to think it sounded better than the Pale City if they could find it.
Mono just wanted to find somewhere that they didn’t have to keep fighting to survive or to find food. So... It was a work in progress, pros and cons.
They both agreed they should stay together, though. It had taken Six a while to warm up to that, Mono having to prove himself more than once that he didn’t intend to abandon her to some cruel fate... But they had proven to be stronger together.
Now, here they were again. On a rooftop trying to figure out how to get across... Even if Six was better at jumping long distances than he was... This seemed a bit of a stretch. So they stared, and Mono looked around quickly.
They needed something... Ah-ha!
“Oi!” He whisper-called to her, waving at the clothesline attached to a crank that still had a hanger stuck to it. “We could use this?” He asked. “I just need you to boost me up!” He added, standing under the ledge to the next level that had the crank attached to it.
Six was... skeptical for a moment, her eyes darting to the hanger and then to Mono. Well, he’d never failed her yet, and he seemed to be a pretty smart kid. You had to be smart to live this long, after all. So she hurried over and cupped her hands for him to put his foot in, then heaved him up with a grunt so he could catch a hold of the ledge.
It didn’t take long after that, Mono hurrying to crank the line back far enough for Six to catch a hold of the hanger, then to slowly send her across with a few strong turns of the wheel... Her feet settled on the metal fire escape, and she turned to stare again.
Now what...?
He looked at the clothesline, then at the crank as he realized he perhaps hadn’t thought this through enough. How was he supposed to get across...?
Well... There was always the old reliable. Jump and hope you made it... He just needed a good running start, right? “Hey! Pssst!” He called across to get his friend’s attention, gesturing to the gap insistently.
Six stared, her eyes widening for a moment as she realized what he was about to do... Well, she wasn’t going to argue. It was either do it or get left behind and... the girl decided she probably still needed him. So, grabbing a hold of the edge of the fire-escape ladder, she stretched her arm out and braced herself. “Hey!” Six called back, waiting at ready.
And with that, Mono took off at a run. Dashing across the rooftop and throwing himself across the gap, aiming for Six’s outstretched hand. There’s a feeling of fear, a rush of adrenaline, and an underlying giddy sensation. It was exciting, and as his hand wrapped around her wrist and hers around his, it all jolted to a halt as he hung for a moment. “P-pull me up!” He hissed, before reaching up with his other hand to grab the ledge and start crawling up.
Huffing, she tugged and helped him the last bit of the way and they sat there for a moment. Both breathless and processing what they’d just pulled off as they stared back across the gap. “That was crazy.” Six commented bluntly, finally looking at Mono.
“Maybe... But I knew you’d catch me and pull me up. You always do.” He responded lightly before tilting his head. “And you always will, right?” He asked, a weird sensation prickling at the back of his mind as he asked. Something... Weird... He didn’t like it.
“Yeah, of course. I need you to reach door handles.” She responded with another huff, as if he’d asked something stupid. She reached over to shove his shoulder lightly to get them to stand up.
Mono let out a little, soundless chuckle at that. Yeah, it was silly to think she might leave him behind. They were a team. They’d proved that enough by now...
“Let’s go.” Six added, fingers wiggling to gesture him to get up again.
Mono pushed himself to his feet and started for the ladder. It would only take them up so far... Then, he mused, they’d have to try the drain pipe. “Yeah, let’s get out of here.”
Regardless, there was no time for celebration or time for moping. Both he and Six had come to the agreement that they needed to get through the Pale City and to find somewhere new, somewhere better... It was proving to be difficult, though, as he still felt the pull every time he passed a television. Sometimes he got lost in it, but Six always pulled him back out...
Then they couldn’t quite agree on where to go next. There were flyers scattered around the trash random boxes that depicted a place that... They thought it was called the Maw. Mono had heard of it before, sometime long ago... Maybe from another kid at the orphanage or perhaps somewhere else. Regardless, Six seemed to think it sounded better than the Pale City if they could find it.
Mono just wanted to find somewhere that they didn’t have to keep fighting to survive or to find food. So... It was a work in progress, pros and cons.
They both agreed they should stay together, though. It had taken Six a while to warm up to that, Mono having to prove himself more than once that he didn’t intend to abandon her to some cruel fate... But they had proven to be stronger together.
Now, here they were again. On a rooftop trying to figure out how to get across... Even if Six was better at jumping long distances than he was... This seemed a bit of a stretch. So they stared, and Mono looked around quickly.
They needed something... Ah-ha!
“Oi!” He whisper-called to her, waving at the clothesline attached to a crank that still had a hanger stuck to it. “We could use this?” He asked. “I just need you to boost me up!” He added, standing under the ledge to the next level that had the crank attached to it.
Six was... skeptical for a moment, her eyes darting to the hanger and then to Mono. Well, he’d never failed her yet, and he seemed to be a pretty smart kid. You had to be smart to live this long, after all. So she hurried over and cupped her hands for him to put his foot in, then heaved him up with a grunt so he could catch a hold of the ledge.
It didn’t take long after that, Mono hurrying to crank the line back far enough for Six to catch a hold of the hanger, then to slowly send her across with a few strong turns of the wheel... Her feet settled on the metal fire escape, and she turned to stare again.
Now what...?
He looked at the clothesline, then at the crank as he realized he perhaps hadn’t thought this through enough. How was he supposed to get across...?
Well... There was always the old reliable. Jump and hope you made it... He just needed a good running start, right? “Hey! Pssst!” He called across to get his friend’s attention, gesturing to the gap insistently.
Six stared, her eyes widening for a moment as she realized what he was about to do... Well, she wasn’t going to argue. It was either do it or get left behind and... the girl decided she probably still needed him. So, grabbing a hold of the edge of the fire-escape ladder, she stretched her arm out and braced herself. “Hey!” Six called back, waiting at ready.
And with that, Mono took off at a run. Dashing across the rooftop and throwing himself across the gap, aiming for Six’s outstretched hand. There’s a feeling of fear, a rush of adrenaline, and an underlying giddy sensation. It was exciting, and as his hand wrapped around her wrist and hers around his, it all jolted to a halt as he hung for a moment. “P-pull me up!” He hissed, before reaching up with his other hand to grab the ledge and start crawling up.
Huffing, she tugged and helped him the last bit of the way and they sat there for a moment. Both breathless and processing what they’d just pulled off as they stared back across the gap. “That was crazy.” Six commented bluntly, finally looking at Mono.
“Maybe... But I knew you’d catch me and pull me up. You always do.” He responded lightly before tilting his head. “And you always will, right?” He asked, a weird sensation prickling at the back of his mind as he asked. Something... Weird... He didn’t like it.
“Yeah, of course. I need you to reach door handles.” She responded with another huff, as if he’d asked something stupid. She reached over to shove his shoulder lightly to get them to stand up.
Mono let out a little, soundless chuckle at that. Yeah, it was silly to think she might leave him behind. They were a team. They’d proved that enough by now...
“Let’s go.” Six added, fingers wiggling to gesture him to get up again.
Mono pushed himself to his feet and started for the ladder. It would only take them up so far... Then, he mused, they’d have to try the drain pipe. “Yeah, let’s get out of here.”