(Author's Notes): Well, I finally summoned up the courage to do it. A while back on the Second Heartbeat forums, someone mentioned a fiction challenge, namely to write about a Lucy-Kouta pairing, their life together after the events of the EL anime ending (Assuming she survives it) and what happens to them afterwards. This is by far my most thought about fic yet, so the description is much heavier than my other ones. Well, enough of me and my random mutterings, on with the fic!
It was early morning. The sun had just begun to rise, its warm rays slowly wiping away the shadows of night, like a great hand erasing chalk marks off a piece of slate. The dawn chorus had just begun, with birds of all shapes and sizes competing to see which one could sing the loudest. People began to wake as well, slowly bringing Kamakura to life. Shops began to open, traffic on the roads slowly began increasing, and the density of people walking along the streets thickened slowly. It was a normal day just like any other, with people going about their daily lives just like they normally would.
The first rays of the morning sun reached a small house on the outskirts of the city. The warm sunlight easily penetrated the thin material of the bedroom curtains, casting strange, shimmering patterns on the walls and furniture. The windows were open, and the sounds of people on the streets outside wafted in gently, snatches of conversation that existed for a second, then disappeared forever into the warm, lazy air. This laziness was reflected by the room's inhabitants. There were two figures in the bed. One was a man. He had short, blackish hair, just on the untidy side of normal. His face was neither handsome nor unpleasant. In fact, he looked just like any other person you might meet on the street, glance at for a second or two, then forget about two seconds later.
The other was a woman. She had long, cherry pink hair that descended below her shoulders. Right now it had collected in little pools around her face, the sunlight glinting on the shimmering strands. Her face was attractive, but also striking at the same time. She shifted her position slightly, sleepily hooking one arm around the man next to her, drawing herself slowly closer to him. One eye slowly opened, revealing a reddish pink iris. Lucy had woken.
She slowly pushed herself up into a sitting position, catching sight of herself in the nearby mirror as she did so. Her hair fell down beneath her shoulders, obscuring half her face. She quickly brushed it back; that style belonged to someone else, someone she had left behind long ago. She looked away. The room they were in didn't have much in the way of furniture. Just a wardrobe, the bed, the mirror, some shelves holding numerous books and a couple of boxes scattered around. Lucy sighed. It had been some time since they had moved out of Kaede House and gone to live on the outskirts of Kamakura.
She looked back down at the figure next to her. Kouta was sleeping soundly. It didn't surprise her; he had been up half the night, doing whatever it was he did for his job. It had been seven years. Seven long, distant years since she had returned to him, shivering and covered in her own blood. She didn't remember most of her battle with the enemy soldiers, only that she had won, and lost a horn in the process. It didn't matter, though. They had grown back.
She lifted a hand, touching the small, rounded bumps that had caused her so much pain, and allowed her to cause so much pain. They were like a curse, constantly reminding her of her dark, murderous past. Her other half had not surfaced since that night. Perhaps it was because it was no longer needed. In all honesty, she hadn't expected Kouta to stay with her for very long. But he did. "He just feels sorry for you, that's all. One day, his pity will run out." She kept telling herself, but he stayed with her, eventually moving out of Kaede House with her.
A thin, translucent object emerged from Lucy's back. Twisting around her, it slowly made its way towards Kouta's head. Lucy, lost in her memories, hardly noticed. Inevitably, her memories, the things she treasured most, would also bring her the most pain. It was a truly viscous cycle, but she didn't want it to stop. Yuka had moved out at the same time they had. She seemed to realise that there was something Lucy and Kouta had that she would never be able to understand. Mayu and Nana had gone with her, leaving the future of Kaede House uncertain. It was probably better for them to all move on with their lives anyway, especially Mayu and Nana, who had everything to live for now.
Nana. More painful memories surfaced, memories Lucy could not hold back. She remembered how she had mocked her, taunted her for her indecisiveness, then savagely tore her apart. The most sickening part was that she had enjoyed it. Like a savage beast, she thought. A beast which kills because it can. Lucy hoped she had found happiness. She was also glad that Yuka had gone. Lucy had never liked her. She was irritating and possessive, and Lucy had narrowly avoided causing her serious damage on more than one occasion, usually by sheer virtue of her own willpower in holding herself back.
Lucy suddenly noticed that one of her vectors was out. It had settled on Kouta's upturned cheek and lay there, unmoving. It was strange; she had never really cared about the consequences of her killing sprees before. It was only when faced with the victim of one of her worst that she began to feel the crushing sensation of guilt and despair. The only thing she could do was try and make him happy. Despite everything she had done to him, Kouta had stood by her. I truly don't deserve him.
He had been kind to her when others had done nothing but hurt her. He had played with her when everyone else turned their backs on her. Slowly, Lucy withdrew her vector. She shifted her position slightly, dangling her legs over the edge of the bed. Of course, he had his faults. He had done some pretty naïve things in the past, though they paled in comparison to the mistakes she had made.
Lucy pushed herself up and walked over to the wardrobe. She slowly changed out of her white night robe and began to get dressed. As she did so, she listened to the sounds coming through the open window, the sounds of the world outside. Lucy rarely ventured outside the house these days, although she occasionally went out into the garden. Sometimes Kouta would take her out for a day, and she was grateful for his presence.
Just as she was finishing getting dressed, a high pitched wailing noise started up, like a baby crying. Lucy sighed deeply. How annoying. She had already been through this once before; why did it have to be like this again? It was troublesome enough the first time, being woken up at all hours of the day and night. Still, it had interrupted her reveries, which, frequent as they were, all lead to a temporary depression in her. The room she was in had two doors, and now Lucy crossed to one of them. The wailing continued.
"Okay, okay…I'm coming…" She muttered, before opening the door and stepping through. The room she was now in was a small annex that had once been a part of the bedroom, but at some point a wall had been constructed there. This room contained numerous items of furniture, but only one thing in it was of interest to Lucy right now; the source of the noise. She sighed again. It was time to feed the second child.
(Author's Notes): Well, how was it? I've never tried something like this before, so constructive criticism would be much appreciated. You may notice some OOCness as the story continues, especially with Lucy. This is intentional. She is trying to change herself for the person she loves. Well, I hope to have the next chapter up soon, so keep on the lookout for it!