[ That will always be the catch with Maruki: Such an overabundance of kindness that it hurts in the end, one way or another.
He stays settled next to Armin, a pillar for his grief to rail against, unmoving but far from unmoved. He's been there... or somewhere similar enough. The hand at Armin's shoulder moves to rub up and down his back, slow and steady, as those sobs tear through his body with a violence.
It doesn't matter how long it takes. Maruki won't move, won't say a word to try to put a stop to it. He ought to be allowed to feel this, wretched as it is.
One thought does float through the back of his mind: It wasn't long ago that such a display would have him mentally scrambling to root out the cause of the suffering. Things really have changed. For the better? He's still not sure. ]
gently puts a mcrib in his mouth
He stays settled next to Armin, a pillar for his grief to rail against, unmoving but far from unmoved. He's been there... or somewhere similar enough. The hand at Armin's shoulder moves to rub up and down his back, slow and steady, as those sobs tear through his body with a violence.
It doesn't matter how long it takes. Maruki won't move, won't say a word to try to put a stop to it. He ought to be allowed to feel this, wretched as it is.
One thought does float through the back of his mind: It wasn't long ago that such a display would have him mentally scrambling to root out the cause of the suffering. Things really have changed. For the better? He's still not sure. ]