Oh no oh no oh no

"You've got notes to self."

He's about to have a major freak out I'll take him into time stop okay?

"You've got—"

Okay?!

Yutaka flashes his gem back into existence then himself into his magical outfit in a quick practised sequence, the clockwork in his buckler already spinning before the transformation light's even faded—

→

←

—and then he flashes back into civvies, instantaneously translocating to his feet.

Toshiki, too, instantaneously translocates to his feet, looking... slightly puffy, but otherwise a lot more tranquil than he was just now.

"—yo what the fuck just happened?"

"I had a nervous breakdown which Iwasaki graciously paused time for so that I wouldn't embarrass myself."

"You can stop time? That's so cool!"

All better? Do I need to watch out for a minefield here, should I just shut up...?

Nah he's good. It was just the—being rejected and learning that he might only have a week to live and stuff, that was—a lot. And it really was kind of rude of me to spring it on him without prior warning or space to process his emotions.

"D'you need a moment to have a nervous breakdown, too?"

"...who, me? No I'm good. Maybe later."

"Must be nice."

"Shut up, nii-san."

"Alright, okay, cool, so, evil monster destroys Tokyo in a week, what can we do to help?"

Frankly Haru has no idea what they can do to help. They do not have magical powers or the capacity to acquire them. Maybe Yutaka is about to reveal that their family is big into military contractor shit and they can get somebody badged in to where the missiles are Exactly Once, Which Is Enough Times.

"Nii-san it's a magical monster and they have magic."

"So? Godzilla dies to bombs."

"Godzilla isn't real."

"Neither are magical boys and monsters and yet here we are."

"...your dad still chummy with the P.M.?"

"Yeah but he hasn't looked me in the eye in a month."