The World's Always Changing [Junko/Steiner] [Closed]

Europe was a beautiful place, a place that Steiner Franz had wanted to visit for many years, and had on occasion fantasized about being around during the time of knights and kings when he was a child. To think that things would have fallen this far for the young man, a man who had heroic ambitions, seemed like a slight. Everything that Steiner Franz had wanted was crashing and burning around him, he was losing it all to a disease with no name, and more so than that he was losing the will to keep on living. Every day the symptoms grew worse. The pain of merely existing could only be edged for so long with the medication given to him by the doctors who had already written him off a while ago. Standing in a beautiful park, one that reminded him of the one he used to play in when he was a kid, the realization of his frail mortality kicked in.

Two weeks. He stared teary eyed up at the night sky, hiding his face from the non-existent people around him with the white hoodie he was wearing at that moment. The hoodie hid the riddle of black veins now crossing over his pale complexion, making him look like some kind of monster. It wasn't fair, life had always kicked him while he was down, and trodden all over him like he was some kind of mat. Now was no different and he knew that as his life inched closer to an expiration date like milk in the back of a fridge, he knew that soon he wouldn't even be able to enjoy the simple things. They said he would lose the ability to see colors, he would begin to lose feeling in his limbs, and eventually he might even just veg out. He wiped his eyes with the sleeve of his hoodie and coughed into the sleeve of that jacket, leaving behind a pink stain from blood that was coming up from his throat and lungs. He had given up on hiding these things.

He had come to Europe to enjoy himself, to take part in some kind of festival nearby, and he had tried to do that. But for the three days of the festival, Steiner hadn't left the confines of his dwelling. He had stayed cooped up inside, looking at the ceiling of his hotel room while wondering what exactly he had accomplished during his life. To be honest, it wasn't much that he had done, and though he had saved people's lives he felt like that he could have saved more. He could have done more. He chuckled at the thought, the chuckle sounded more like a groan, but Stein would take it after all he couldn't really find a reason to be excited about anything anymore. After spending two and a half days of being locked inside of his room, Steiner had decided to see one last thing in vibrant color: a fireworks display.

For such a small town, they had produced a rather lavish display of vibrant lights, and explosions that probably could have been seen for miles away. It had made him happy, if for only a moment, and that is what his life was now anyway. A string of moments that he hoped would be good before he finally paid his last debts and expired into nothingness. If he had stopped, maybe he could have had more time, and maybe he could have lived a bit longer to find someone who could cure his ailment, but he couldn't stop. He was hardwired to be a hero, every moment of every day he spent every ounce of his energy to fight for the little guy, and now he was being rewarded with a bitter pill to swallow. He didn't regret being the good guy at the end of the day, but he did wish that he had some answer to the questions that burned deep down inside of him. Hell, just knowing what was killing him would be enough, but it seemed that he wasn't destined to know such things.

A bitter pill to swallow indeed. Steiner found himself walking in the park, passing by a jungle gym, a swing set, and a slide, things he had never enjoyed as a kid. Another thing that had been robbed from him, he was bitter about that, and he regretted that he would never be able to tell the bastard that was his father that he hated him for what he did to him. For what he had taken from him. In a way, he wondered that if he had grown up normal, and that he had lived a simple life, if he would be walking through this very same park at this very same moment. Would he have even become a hero? For a moment Steiner paused and shook his head. Thinking about things like that didn't matter now. He had lived his life the way that he was intended to and fate had never really smiled on him as much as some other people he knew, but he had made it work. He had became a hero, regardless of his shortcomings or lack of powers, and he had fought some bad people who had been looking to harm some innocent people. In that respect, he supposed he had left a minor mark on the world. The vast majority of people wouldn't remember Steiner Franz, but those that had met him...those people he had saved....they would remember him.

At least that is what he hoped. He entered into a coughing fit, his lungs feeling like they were on fire, and the familiar feeling of the pain in his joints returned as if on queue. Steiner instinctively reached into his pocket procuring a bottle of heavy pain killers, popped the top, and downed a few pills. The pain wouldn't go away for a while, so he decided that he would take a break, and rest somewhere in the fields nearby. Wincing with every step, Steiner made his way to what he thought had been an empty meadow, however he soon learned that he was not alone. A girl, who appeared to be too small for her clothing lay staring at the stars, and Steiner stopped his march forward. The meds were kicking in, but he was wondering about the girl's situation. Why was someone this young out in the middle of the fields so close to midnight. His curiosity was getting the best of him and before he knew it he began to speak, his voice at first came out raspy, and he painfully cleared his throat to commence some form of interaction with the young human appearing lady:

"Are you alone out here? Isn't it a bit late for someone so young to be out by their self?"