Author: Tschubi-chan
e-mail: keiji_izumi@yahoo.com
Title: Always will be
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: drama, romance, semi-AU
Pairing: Do I really need to say this anymore? smile For those who do not know me: RanxKen
Disclaimer: My cute little Kenken and his fellow assassins do not belong to me, but to Koyasu-sama and Project Weiß. "Always will be" was written and sung by "Hammerfall". So...not mine either! But, I can claim Ken's aniki, his guardian and the plot bunny as mine.
Dedication: Originally I wanted to have this story finished for Portia´s b-day last Monday, but no such luck. I'm always too late and too lazy...sigh Still this is dedicated to her and this time only her. Hey, it's a b-day fic!
A/N: Experimented a bit with style! Hope it's not too bad! Rare use of names was intended. Now on to the story, a one-shot for once.
Update 03/03/02: Killed some mistakes and made some very slight changes. Nothing fancy!
Always will be
He didn't know what had driven him here this night. It was freezing cold outside, several degrees below zero. Millions of twinkling stars battled the dazzling neon-lights of the city in a vain attempt. Snow covered the streets and sidewalks creating an eerie atmosphere of tranquillity that belied the severe snow storm that had haunted the northern half of Japan during the past three days. It had slowed down the traffic and public life enormously and he supposed the starlit night was only a short break for the storm to regain strength.
Only few people dared going outside anyway. Those who had necessarily to work and those who wanted to escape reality and forget if only for a few hours. Like him!
He silently observed puffs of clouds escaping his mouth, almost like smoke, but without the biting, yet spicy smell. He didn't smoke. Not anymore, that means. Hadn't had a cigarette in years actually. He had followed his instinct that led him to this bar, actually more of a noble restaurant that was usually occupied by upper class people.
He entered the bar silently. Warm air and laughter greeted him. He wouldn't have thought the place to be so full. He shrugged out of his coat and hung it into the wardrobe. He took long strides towards one of the tables in the far corner passing several drunk businessmen on his way, then sat with his back to the door. It wasn't something he would usually do, but he wasn't on a mission, so why bother. He wasn't here for the first time. He earned enough money with his "profession" to afford such a place, especially since *he* was gone. Kritiker provided them with more money ever since. He guessed that it was their way to apologise to them. Enjoy your life as long as you can, Manx had told them after they lost *him*. You never know when you´ll die. She was right.
He sighed and ordered a South African Shiraz, nothing too expensive, yet still good enough to be one of his favourites and apparently of this restaurant/bar. His thoughts travelled back to his dead team-mate.
He did know why he came here: guilt, longing, the desperate plea either to be able to forget or to be able to turn back the wheels of time, to change fate that had been so cruelly against him, destroying his only left reason to seek and find happiness.
But, he knew that none of it was possible. He would never be able to forget haunted chocolate eyes brimming with unshed tears, never forget the betrayed expression on the face of the person he longed to see always happy. And he had been the reason for that anguish. If only he had had the guts to tell him the truth, instead of fucking everything up. If only he had told him the truth! Maybe things would have turned out differently. But his mouth had acted faster than his heart. Again!
All had started eight months ago just because of a stupid single mission that *he* was supposed to take although still injured from an earlier mission, thus not back to full strength and stealth. Yet...*he* was supposed to take the mission.
Not himself, probably the most experienced in single missions considering that he started their profession without his team-mates, not Youji who was just as experienced as him, not even Omi, the genius in planning and completing missions. No! It had to be him! And typically for him, though injured, he didn't decline the mission, but accepted it.
He sighed again and sipped slowly at the wine. Memories of what happened hit him and cut through his heart like a piercing knife.
/Our sun is set, our day is done
I'm left here wondering
Is this the end, may final words to you
Day turned to night and now you´re gone
I'm left here pondering
Can this be true, are we really through./
~8 months earlier ~
He calmly leaned against the counter having finished the tenth roses arrangement that day. He didn't know why their customers preferred to order roses lately. Valentine´s Day was long gone, same as White Day, yet if it helped to keep the shop alive and cover their real profession, he was more than willing to pierce himself with thorns at every five minutes.
He looked over at his brunette team-mate who was silently struggling through the shop hoping no one would notice that his injuries weren't fully healed yet. To him it was obvious and when he glanced at Youji and Omi, he could see them observing the brunette as well. He shook his head in dismay. Trust the boy to try and cover his pain.
During their last mission he had fallen off the roof of a two storey mansion after being shot with a tranquilliser. Luckily for him he had landed on the rather soft ground of the gardens and not as they had feared on hard pavement. He survived the fall with only two cracked ribs and a minor concussion.
One week had passed since then and he was still not back to full strength. At first they had ordered him to stay in bed and wait until he had recovered, but stubborn as the boy was and not wanting to be a burden to anyone, he didn't listen to their request and was soon helping out in the shop again.
He noticed that he walked rather slow and careful, indicating that any rash movement still caused pain.
Not wanting him to exhaust himself and thus get even more sick than he already was, he considered ordering the boy to bed again. He walked up to him, grabbed his arm and started to drag him towards the backroom.
The brunette was too surprised to react at first, but soon struggled feebly in his grip.
Before the scene could cause another one of their heated arguments, he could hear the front door open. He stopped and turned around, not releasing his companion from his tight grip by doing so.
He frowned when he recognised the customer as none other than Manx. That usually meant one thing. Mission! And he wasn't ready to let the brunette go on another this soon.
Manx greeted his fellow team-mates with a short smile, then focused on him or more precise the still squirming bundle in his arms. He loosened his grip a bit and the boy used the chance to back away a few metres and glare at him half-heartedly.
He shot him a look that dared him to protest against the treatment and the boy shut up even before he could say anything at all.
In the meantime Youji and Omi had taken off their aprons and closed the door. Manx looked at them and shook her head.
"Not all of you! I'm here to discuss something with Ken."
She went through the door into the living room, the brunette proceeding to follow her when he interrupted them. He supposed Kritiker had a single mission for the boy.
"No! He's not ready, yet."
He froze when he noticed the dark look on Manx's face and choked back the words he had wanted to add.
"It's none of your business, Abyssininian. Siberian! Follow me!"
He caught the boy's apologising look as he followed the redheaded woman into the mission room. The door closed behind them and the room was silent again. For the next two hours him and the others simply waited.
After what seemed to be an eternity, the door was reopened and their pale team-mate exited . He noticed that he looked exhausted and was shaking slightly. His heart told him to do something and fast, but he decided to wait for the boy and Manx to inform them about their discussion.
Manx appeared seconds later and looked at him. The boy stared at her for a long while, then slowly nodded.
"Ninmyu Ryoukai. Mission accepted."
He picked up the quiet whisper and stared. Faintly he could hear the gasps of Youji and Omi. Surely he must have heard wrong. The boy couldn't seriously think to pull off a single mission when not fully recovered, yet.
"What mission?"
He was aware that his voice must have sounded like acid and he was probably glaring at them even worse, but frankly he didn't care. He only knew that he wouldn't allow the boy to go on this mission.
He could feel that Manx was about to give a cold retort, even before she cut him short.
"You are not supposed to know about this mission, you are not to be involved in it and you will not keep Siberian from taking the mission. If you do you will answer to Kritiker´s highest ranking members and I promise you that it will not be nice."
He continued to glare at her. Kritiker could go to hell for all he cared if it ensured his team-mate´s safety.
"Doushite?"
"He's the only person with the skills required for this"
He noticed that she glanced briefly at the boy who tensed up at her words. No explanation. No further argument. He watched her passing first his friends, then him. Five seconds later he could hear the front door open and close. She was gone.
He scowled and looked into the somewhat sheepish looking face of the younger boy. His face darkened even further. Shooting a cold glance at Youji and Omi that dared them to interfere with what would happen next, he stalked up to him and grabbed him for the second time that day. He dragged him roughly up the stairs only slowing down a little when the smaller boy emitted a pained whimper. He opened the door to his room, shoved the brunette in, then proceeded to follow.
"Aya...ore wa..."
"Shut up!"
He flinched when he noticed the hurt in the boy's chocolate eyes, but swore not to break his resolve. He wanted to know what Manx ordered him to do and no expressive eyes and pouting face would stop him. He kicked the door close and glared at him.
"Nan dayo? What did she ask of you?"
"I am not allowed to..."
"Screw Manx´s orders for once. What did she want?"
He supposed the others could hear him downstairs. Screaming as he was, he supposed that soon the whole neighbourhood would know, but he still didn't care. He got nearly freaked out himself by is own voice and by looking into the brunette's face, he could see that the other was fairly scared by his behaviour and had backed up against the wall and followed his every movement with wide eyes. At this moment he reminded him of a scared little kitten that tries to hide from a dangerous dog. He calmed down a bit.
"Listen..."
He spoke quieter this time, voice soft as to not frighten the one he addressed even more. Deep down he knew that he never wanted to hurt him that way.
"Listen...", he repeated, "...I do not want you to go on this mission. I do not care what Manx told you. I do not care if it is an important mission. I do not care if you just have to buy her a birthday present which I seriously doubt. You have been hurt last week and I do not want to see you on a mission in a while. If it has to be done I can do it, Youji can do or Omi can do it. I want you to stay here."
Hope flared in his heart when he noticed the brunette's face soften, shoulders slumping a little as if in defeat. Unprepared like that, the words that were spoken next hurt even more.
"Aya! I do not know why you are behaving like a complete idiot not trusting me to complete a simple mission on my own that had been planned into every detail by Kritiker themselves.
With Kritiker directly involved, nothing should go wrong. I told you again and again that I am fine. That I just needed some days of rest which I did have after all. I've been going on single missions since god knows when and this isn't the first time that I took one while still being injured. Besides, I am not doing this because Manx ordered me to. You should know me better than that.
I am not a person who follows every order blindly. I have a fairly good reason myself to take the mission. So if you would just once trust my judgement that I am capable to do this and let me do my job, I would be very happy. Don't you trust me at all?"
The last words had been but a mere whisper. The boy had explained his reasons without raising his voice even once, so unlike his brash behaviour he usually displayed in situations like that. Somehow this hurt him even more. Knowing that he wasn't just acting brash and without reasonable mind. He knew he had lost the case even before the boy had uttered the last words. He didn't know why but his resistance hurt his own pride and his pride had covered the warmth of his heart on more than one occasion.
"Get out!!!", he ground out.
"Aya?"
"Get out before I do something I might regret later."
He tried to look menacing to disguise the hurt he felt.
"Aya? Don't you trust me at all?"
Again that question. He didn't know what to tell him. His heart screamed /Hell! Yes!/, but he wasn't a person to listen to his heart.
"Doushite? Why do you keep asking me that?"
The boy looked at him with open chocolate eyes.
"Suki nan dayo. Because I love you! Your trust means the world to me."
He froze. He didn't know exactly what happened then, but before he was even able to stop himself he responded in a flat, emotionless tone.
"I don't care!"
"Nani?"
"I said I don't care. If you want to take this fucking mission, then leave. Now!"
He was barely able to restrain himself from enveloping the boy into an embrace when silent tears were sliding down the boys face. But, as usual...pride was hard to kill. He didn't move. Although he could easily see the deep hurt that caused his rejection, he didn't move. Later he would curse himself into all eternity for not having told him the truth. For not having told the boy that he loved him as well and that this had been the reason for not wanting him to take Kritiker´s orders. But, back then...he didn't move.
The brunette's face hardened, tears still trickling down his cheeks, yet now masked by anger.
"Fine! If that´s what you want. I will leave!"
Not even five seconds later, Ken Hidaka, ex-J-league player and fellow team-mate had walked out of the room and out of his life.
~ End flashback ~
/You were the wind beneath my wings
Taught me how to fly
With you I lived among the kings
How could this ever die
So I say farewell. I'm yours forever
And I always will be./
He wanted to hit himself for being so cruel. If only he had known that this would be the last words he would ever hear from the boy.
/If that´s what you want. I will leave!/
He sighed and burrowed his face into his arms. He had cursed his selfishness and stupid pride ever since. Youji had done the rest. He had told him quiet frankly on more than one occasion that if he didn't know for sure that it would hurt the brunette even more, he would beat him into a bloody pulp for rejecting the boy's feelings.
Another sigh followed those thoughts. He looked at the table and notice a bit annoyed that he had somehow finished not only one glass of the South African Shiraz, but the rest of the bottle as well. He still felt quiet sober, so he thought it was time to order heavier stuff.
He signalled the waiter to bring him a glass and bottle of whiskey. He usually detested any alcohol other than wine. Today was an exception. He wanted to forget. Not remember! No, he didn't want to forget. He wanted to turn back time and let his heart speak instead of his brainless mouth.
The waiter arrived and he eyed the liquid in disgust. Closing his eyes he emptied the glass at once. He nearly choked at the foul taste that it left in his mouth. Yet, he filled himself a second glass. He was still by far too sober.
/I will leave!/
If only he had known how true those words were, because indeed the brunette didn't come back. He would never come back at all. And that was partly his fault. He wanted to cry when he remembered the day Manx came to inform them that Ken Hidaka aka Siberian of Weiß was dead.
/We were one, we were all, we were the only
Future full of hope, nothing could stand in our way.
But dreams can change, visions fall. I feel so lonely
I would walk through fire for just one day./
~ Two weeks later ~
"We are sad to inform you that agent Ken Hidaka, codename Siberian has been killed while completing the mission he was ordered to take."
He was sure that he had never felt a pain that deep. Manx had arrived after calling earlier from Kritiker headquarters. She wanted to ensure all remaining members of Weiß were present to hear her announcement. If he had known beforehand what news she carried, he would have stayed in bed hoping never to wake up to face this cruel reality.
"What happened?"
His voice was numb. His mind clouded. He hoped that he would soon wake up to this nightmare, but the shocked faces of his two blonde team-mates and the pain of his fingernails that dug into his hands, told him that he was wide awake. He faced indeed reality. No nightmare could be that terrible. Life could be!
"We had two teams involved into this mission. Siberian who had to perform a fairly easy task and a second team that is not to be named by me. As far as Kritiker is concerned this second team doesn't even exist. Both accomplished their parts of the mission without interference by the enemy. Unfortunately Siberian was killed when the explosives set by the second team went off a minute earlier than planned.
Siberian, though knowing another team was involved, wasn't allowed by us to contact them. Same as he wasn't allowed to contact you during the course of the mission. If he had been contacted in time, the accident might have been prevented. Kritiker will of course take the responsibility for this mistake. Please accept my apology."
He looked at the woman and for a moment all he wanted to do was hate her. Hate her to have a good reason to kill her. Yet, his bleeding heart denied him that wish. He knew that it wasn't her fault. She was a mere messenger of Kritiker. No, it wasn't her fault, but he wanted to blame someone.
A little voice in his head suggested to blame himself. And blame himself he did!
~ End Flashback ~
/You were the angel of my life, taught me to be free
Now I'm a stranger in your eyes
The walls are closing in on me./
All he wanted to do back then was die. His reason for happiness was gone. Gone before he had a chance to undo wrongs and tell him that all the time, ever since he had known *him* he had loved him, too. Loved him too bits, but had been to proud to tell. He hadn't wanted to open his heart to this adorable creature of light and happiness
Now he would do all in his might to open his heart if it would bring him back, but Kritiker´s report had been clear. Ken Hidaka was dead. Although they weren't able to retrieve his body out of the remains of the destroyed building he had been in, it was 100% sure that no one would have been able to survive the explosion.
He emptied the second glass of whiskey. Life at the koneko had been fairly boring without the cheerful boy. No more carefree laughter, no more klutz attacks that threatened to make him smile, no more school kids that would ask him to teach them soccer.
It was as if the sun was shining less brightly without him. Without him the rooms were colder, nights darker, smiles more forced...simply everything less happy.
Someone told him once that absence makes the heart grow fonder. He now knew that this person had been correct. He supposed that sometimes one learned several things only then when it was already too late.
He wanted too cry.
/So I say farewell, I'm yours forever
And I always will be
Missing you, in my heart you are the one
And you always will be./
Absently he glanced over at one of the tables and froze in his tracks. The young man, no... more like boy-man, sitting there and drinking a glass of South Australian Merlot looked like *him*.
"Ken...", the words left his mouth even before his brain could register what he was seeing there.
The boy looked up, but not to stare at him. No...he had been talking to quiet for him to hear. He was observing one of those wealthy businessmen sitting at one of the tables near the entrance, full drunk and laughing making jokes on one of the latest idol singers.
While the boy observed the man, he was observing the boy. He noticed that although his looks had changed a bit, it was most definitely *him*. He wore black pants and a tight black turtleneck, different from his usual slightly baggy clothes. A long ebony coat and a light, probably beige or close to white scarf that he didn't seem to have bothered to hang into the wardrobe at the entrance, lay next to him on another chair. He was not used to see him in such noble clothes for he could easily tell that they had to be very expensive, yet he had to admit that he looked fantastic in them.
He noticed that his hair had grown longer, dark brown bangs falling into his eyes even more stubbornly than he remembered. He couldn't say that his hair had grown long, yet it wasn't short either. It framed the brunette's face very nicely.
His eyes took in long sensuous fingers that brought the wine glass to his lips. He couldn't pinpoint it, but the boy looked even more slender than he remembered, less athletic, more graceful, fragile...noble.
Again that word: noble. His definition for the boy used to be cheerful and innocent, even a bit clumsy and naive at times. Someone with a heart bigger than himself that was far too selfless, always worrying about others first.
This person in front of him radiated an atmosphere of calmness, nobility and reserve, though he could still sense an innocence that was tried to be kept hidden. His face, paler than its usual honey coloured tone was withdrawn, eyes still focusing on the businessman near the entrance, measuring, calculating. Yet, he knew that there could be still laughter in those eyes, on that face. Just not for him, he supposed.
He was so different from *him*, but at the same time, he knew that it was him. It had to been him.
"Ken!"
He spoke a little louder this time. Not loud enough to rouse the attention of the whole room, yet not too quiet that the brunette wasn't able to hear him. Chocolate clashed with Violet. The boy's deep eyes focused on him and to his dismay, they showed no recognition. It was as if he didn't exist in the boy's eyes.
Either he had been wrong to assume that the vision before him was his ex-teammate Ken, or he didn't remember him or what would have been just as possible, he didn't want to know him, didn't want to remember him. The simple thought struck something in his heart, a deep pain that was worse than any physical injury could ever be. He knew that he would have deserved it to some point, but that didn't mean, it would hurt less, just because he knew.
The boy tilted his head a little to the side as if asking him what he wanted. There was still no recognition in those eyes, but he was finally able to see something that he had missed on his first observation. Pale white and thin, almost too faint to recognise, he could make out a scar that ran along the boy's left temple till it reached his left ear.
/A head injury?/, he mused. The boy must have hit the ground pretty hard to leave a scar like that. Could it also be a reason for him to loose his memory? It was highly probable. People lost their memories even with lesser injuries, injuries that didn't leave any traces that they had ever occurred. Due to sever shock, for instance.
Yes, it was probable. Good enough of a reason not to remember him. And good enough of a reason for him to hope again. Hope to make things undone, to undo wrongs made months ago.
He was brought out of his reverie by a deep, melodic voice.
"Cain-sama! I knew I would find you here."
/When I turn to the east, I see no dawn.
But after darkness comes the light
And when I turn to the west, the silent night hides all
Where is the light that shines so bright/
While pondering on the brunette, he hadn't noticed that another person had joined the boy. He was tall with a slender frame, that belied the strength, he knew was hidden in there. Long white hair was falling down in silky waves past his shoulders framing a handsome face with bluish-grey eyes that were slanted like a cat´s. He was dressed completely in white except for light blue gloves and a slightly darker scarf.
If he didn't know better, he would say that the newcomer was kind of an opposite to the brunette who was dressed all in black. Light and Darkness, although he supposed that the boy while dressed in dark clothes represented Light and the man looking like a messenger from heaven was Darkness. He radiated an extremely protective aura that dared anyone to come close to his charge.
His mind finally registered that the boy had been addressed as /Cain/. Not Ken, not Hidaka-san, not even Kenken, though he knew no one but his fellow assassins and friends knew about that name. Had he been wrong in his assumption? No...he couldn't have been wrong. He knew that the brunette had to be Ken. The heart did never lie, didn't it?
The boy looked at his companion and smiled. It resembled the rising sun, full of joy and love extinguishing all traces of reserve and seclusion. Chocolate eyes were sparkling, face less pale than before. The man smiled gently and caressed the boy's face with a thumb. It wasn't a lover's caress, he could see that. It was more of a caress an older brother reserved for his younger sibling, a father for his beloved child. No. I wasn't a lover's caress, yet he ached upon witnessing that little affection he had longed to do for as long he could remember. It was his own fault that he hadn't acted on his desire, he silently scolded himself.
"Didn't your brother tell you to stay home and attend the banquet? You know he gets worried if he doesn't know where you are."
The protective aura around the man seemed to grow. Ken or was it Cain...he didn't know anymore... made a face. He pouted a little, then smiled again lighting up the room with its radiance.
"You know I hate those festivities. All those people who act as if they actually care about you. All they care for is their money and the hope that aniki may help them and invest in their firms. And to reach that goal they want to befriend me. That's why I didn't attend the banquet. How did you find me, Noir? I thought you would need more time."
Noir. Darkness. Just as he had thought. The man, obviously Ken/Cain's guardian nodded slightly to agree with the boy's opinion.
"I expected you to go to the place you hated second most, because you would think I wouldn't look for you here. You tend to go to places you do not like if you do not want to be found too easily. Knowing that, it was easy to track you down by looking at all the places you usually try to avoid like a pest."
He blinked at the man's logic. It was weird, but somehow...well logic. The brunette's eyes widened a bit and his smile broke into a full fledged grin.
"You know me so well, Noir. I thought you just used a tracker to locate me."
He sighed sadly. The grin reminded him of old times. Times that were probably lost forever now, because he had been too proud, too unyielding.
The sigh directed the boy's attention once again at him. He looked startled, obviously not being able to read the intention behind it. His companion looked at him as well. Cats-eyes narrowed even further when falling upon his form. He hovered closer to the boy, his stance screaming at him to stay away from the boy. If he didn't know better, he would have thought to see a glimmer of recognition in those pale eyes. Recognition he had longed to see in another person's face.
The white-haired man faced the smaller brunette and stared into his eyes. After long moments of silence, the boy sighed and nodded. He stood up and turned to grab his coat, but his guardian was faster. He placed the coat around the boy's slim shoulders, then handed him the light scarf. Ken/Cain smiled thankfully.
"I suppose, I shouldn't let nii-chan wait, ne?"
The words cut him deep. It meant he would leave. It meant, he wouldn't possibly see him again. He could talk to him, ask that companion of his if he knew anything about a cheerful brunette that once had been called Ken Hidaka, but as always his resolve crumbled right before his eyes and he stayed silent. He watched silently as they walked towards the exit, noticed the halfway glance back at him, yet still didn't act on his heart's deepest desire.
They left the bar. A bar that was usually attended by upper class men, yet that was still visited by one lonely assassin who went out to forget the past only to be reminded in a most painful way.
A lone tear slid down his cheek.
/So I say farewell, I'm your´s forever
And I always will be
Missing you, in my heart you are the one
And you always will be./
Two silent figures were walking down the sidewalk towards a grand white limousine. The smaller one clad in black leaned a bit on his companion. His shoulders were slumped. If you would listen closely, you'd be able to hear a soft, sad sigh,
"Why didn't you speak to him? Tell him you still remember?"
The boy sighed again, a little louder this time.
"Would you have approved if I told him?"
The taller man nodded and stopped. The boy looked at him questioningly. Noir noticed that expressive eyes were brimming with tears."
"Your brother would have approved as well. You know him. Anything to see you happy, Cain-sama ."
"Would I have been happy?", he asked not talking to anyone in particular. "You know. When I was told to leave for the mission, he told me he didn't care. When I left the house the next morning, he wasn't there. In the bar back there...I knew he recognised me, yet he didn't act upon his wish to talk to me. I gave him so many chances, but he never acted on them. Do you really think, I would have been happy if *I* talked to him. If I am not worth enough for him to see past his pride, not worth enough for him to act with his heart and not his brains, then I do not see a chance for happiness. Not with him."
Tears slid down his cheeks now, a small silver river glittering in the cold moonlight. Ken sniffed a bit and proceeded to wipe his face. He buried himself into his companions arms and shivered a little. The white angel looked down on the brunette and smiled sadly.
"Let´s go home, Cain-sama. Your brother is waiting. Happiness is waiting."
Haunted chocolate eyes closed tiredly, hoping to forget, yet knowing it would never be possible. A small snowflake danced towards the ground, followed by another and another. The heavens were crying with him. Icy tears that covered the world in eerie tranquillity.
Manx had told the truth all those months ago. Ken Hidaka was dead, yet Cain, friend of Noir was alive and hoping for a new chance at happiness.
/Nah-nah-na & and you always will be
Nah-nah-na & and you always will be
And you always will be
My little one you are
And you always will be/
~Owari~
A/N: Several reasons for having written this.
Some time ago I made scribbles for the epilogue of "Eternal Return", but later had another idea for the hopefully exiting end of this story. So I decided to keep the few lines I had written down and see if some idea would hit me...the bump on my head indicates that I got hit with an idea grin I have this weird "Ken has an aniki"-fixation, overprotective aniki at that! This fixation, the song and the scribbles formed the story. Don't ask me why, but ever since I started "Eternal Return" and called Ken's former incarnation Cain, I had the impression that Cain and Ken do indeed sound very similar and that Ken before joining Weiß, hell even before entering J-League, could have had another name. Now...the most important reason: Portia´s birthday and me bugging her with this story to continue "Upon a painted Ocean" grinHope you enjoyed this one-shot!
I left some things in the dark, but that was intended. It shall be left a little bit open for your own interpretations hey, it started just as a scribble, so don't be too hard on me, ne?. A sequel is not planned!!! If you actually think this good enough to continue, which I seriously doubt, you can try to convince me otherwise and give suggestions. As it is now, "Always will be" will stay a simple one-shot.
Ja! Tschubi-chan grins happily ´cause she overcame her ATGB writer´s block. Expect it soon!