Chapter Text
There are times when Senku looks over his shoulder, and it’s like he’s remembered something terrible. Like he forgot something.
His huge rambles and science words when he explains something new was usual, impossible to understand, but normal. But so are the times when he pauses, hesitates, or looks like he’s waiting for something.
He would continue, resume whatever thought pattern he was on like nothing had stopped him. But she noticed.
Even when he’s alone. He’ll be working on writing something elaborately complicated, or pouring this into that, or looking over designs for something with a big name Kohaku could never pronounce. Then he’ll look over his shoulder, like he was waiting for something to happen and wondering what was taking so long. But nothing was ever there.
Senku wasn’t an emotionally expressive guy on the outside. But it’s moments like these….
When he looks the saddest.
“SENKUUUUU!!!” Taiju’s voice unmistakable in the wide forests encompassing the coastline everyone has set up camp. It feels like his voice could haunt the huge stone structures Tsukasa’s ‘empire of might’ was built on with his echoes. “IT’S (Y/N)!!!”
(Y/N) must be an ultra-rare stone or something for Senku to react so fast. It was like sorcery, but surely Senku would explain it away with science. Adrenaline, he would say later, like it was nothing important. Like it didn't explain the turmoil in his chest.
Gen, Kohaku, and Chrome were all looking over Senku’s shoulder (whilst trying not to get too close otherwise they’d incur the great scientist’s wrath), looking over the ship blueprint design when Taiju began shouting. It was the fastest anyone had seen him run.
Not wanting to take bets that this “(Y/N)” thing wasn’t actually just a code word to mean danger, Kohaku immediately followed with her katana in hand.
The statue reconstruction spot wasn’t where she expected to end up.
Taiju and Yuzuriha are smiling, grinning even, which is the first sign that no one is hurt or in immediate danger. Second, was that they were standing around one of the stone statues, where Senku collapses in front of.
You must be a god. For Senku to be looking up at you like that.
Taiju is still yelling, enthusiastic that he found you, saying how lucky they all must be. Yuzuriha is chirping with how long it’ll take before they could wake you up, reminiscing on old memories and giggling teary eyed over it.
Senku didn’t seem to hear any of it. He ripped open his shirt, startling everyone, especially when he removed a small ceramic bottle from an inside pocket close to his chest. He uncaps it and pours it over your crown, following the liquid with his eyes as it cascades down your stone hair.
Taiju’s yelling about indecency. Yuzuriha is waving her hands around. Kohaku is wondering where that revival fluid came from. Wasn’t there only enough for the captain they needed to revive?
It’s just as beautiful as the first time she saw it. When Mirai-chan was de-petrified, a golden glow, and that cracking sound that broke into a bang.
You were standing there, on your own two feet for the first time in 3,700 years, only collapse in Senku’s reaching arms. And Kohaku has never seen Senku hold someone like that before.
It was a cacophony of busy hands and running around after that, getting you clothed after finally tearing you away from Senku’s stubborn grip, giving you the rundown of what’s happened so far to the world, and the plan moving forward for the future of humanity and civilization. You were constantly being surrounded by your friends, and by new people being nosy nobodies, wondering what was so special about you.
You must be special. What with how closely Senku is standing to you. It’s impossible to see you two separate the day after you’re woken up, always right behind the scientist, over his shoulder, passing tools or drawing up diagrams.
So, it was a surprise to see you without him, spinning thread beside Yuzuriha with a smile, giggling over something together.
“What are you doing over here, (Y/N)? Shouldn’t you be doing science stuff with Senku?” Suika hops over, carrying more fibre to be turned into thread.
“Ah, well,” you can’t help grimacing at the memory of standing to the side as Senku and Kaseki excitedly cackle about the new invention they’re making for the hot air balloon, completely wrapped up in their own world. “I’m not all that much help to them at the moment. I don’t understand half of it anyway.”
“What?! But we thought you were some sort of genius scientist! You look like you understand everything Senku does.” The little girl starts wrapping the completed thread lines into a ball.
“I feel like that’s impossible, but thank you for believing in me Suika.” The smile the girl receives is nice, showing how kind you are.
You got questioned a lot about your background to their village chief these past few days, whenever you weren’t with the boy himself. “I have a weird brain.” Is what you’d say after they would ask how you knew so much, even when Senku would struggle over something.
“Weird how?” Suika tilts her melon helmeted head, fingers working awkwardly with the fibres as she spins loose threads, being corrected by a gentle guiding hand from Yuzuriha. You shuffle away an inch when she leans over to help the little girl, turning your body away, even with Yuzuriha leaning considerably away from you.
You still face your own hands that spin and spin with the wooden spool, treating it kind of like a game with how you bounce it, Suika trying to copy. With a smile, you shrug.
“I remember a lot of things exactly as they are. Textbooks, maps, images. I have a photographic memory.” When the little girl only tilts her head even further, Yuzuriha explains, using examples from your past interactions, both girls looking over at you even when you hop up and give a lending hand to Kaseki and Senku, who wave you over.
“It basically means they remember things really really well, uh, kinda.”
Your back is small when you hunch in yourself, into Senku’s side and away from anyone else, the arm he lays over your back and sinks to your waist protecting you from bodies that pass by behind you, drawing something onto paper as Senku scratches the back of his head.
“They could memorise any paper, could always remember where they left anything, and were really good at replicating something exactly how they saw it ages ago.”
Kaseki pumps his fists in the air, flexing his muscles and running to grab his tools, leaving you and Senku with the papers. You scratch your own head, looking much like Senku did before, as he pinches the bridge of his nose.
“Smells, sounds, seeing someone from five years ago they only saw once!” It’s much like telling a child a fictional tale, with the grand gestures and Suika’s ‘ooh’ing and ‘ahh’ing. Yuzuriha uses a hushed, spooky tone when talking about your abilities, adding to your ‘mysteriousness’, but not knowing that she’s gathered some audience.
“Oooh! That must be really helpful! I don’t have a very good memory myself.” Suika pouts, looking over again as you laugh, pointing at where Senku stares back unimpressed, a charcoal moustache over his lip.
“But they get overwhelmed really easily, cause sometimes they see, smell, feel all sorts of things at once.” The drawback gains the kid’s attention again, frowning in thought and confusion. But you look so happy all the time?
Yuzuriha still stares over at you, sadly smiling even at your cheerful demeanour, noticing you tilting away from a friendly wave as villagers pass by, side stepping a wider circle away as Magma joins your conversation, dropping off heavy looking material.
“They remember everything, even the bad things.”