(a note: this takes place around the end of volume 13, after Yuuto's battle with Karen, just for reference)
The cross-shaped kekkai grew steadily smaller before vanishing entirely before Karen's intertwined hands. She inhaled deeply as the air filled anew with the screams of the people caught up in the battle between the dragons. A train had been derailed, and she worried for its passengers, although her opponent had assured her that this small derailment wouldn't effect the rest of the Yamamote Line.
She knelt at Seiichiro's side, supporting him against a railing. Several feet away, her former opponent reached down to pull his fellow angel to his feet. Slinging one of Nataku's arms across his shoulders and wrapping an arm around the clone's waist to keep him somewhat upright despite his semi-conscious state, the water master glanced over his shoulder with a smile for her.
"Next time you intend to destroy something," she called after him, her eyes narrowing slightly, "remember to ask for me as your opponent."
The water master nodded, then turned his attention to the angel hanging from his arm. Behind him, he could hear Karen speaking to the man she had called 'Aoki,' followed by the ripping of fabric he could only assume was a portion of what remained of her dress.
"Did you really think that... no one will weep for you when you die? I would... cry for you..." Seiichiro's words were lost amidst the panic of people fleeing the area and rubble clearing. Yuuto glanced at his flame-scorched companion. Nataku's head hung limply and the young man's feet dragged somewhat behind them.
"You certainly caused quite a bit of damage," Yuuto mused, adjusting his hold on the angel. Snowy-white hair fell away from Nataku's face as the clone's head lolled to one side. Yuuto frowned, stopping suddenly to note Nataku's closed eyes and generally limp manner. Burn marks had scored his face and left singed holes in his clothing. The water master continued slowly along the street, people fleeing in both directions around the pair, like flowing water.
"You're pretty heavy, you know that?" Yuuto chuckled. Such humor worked best when there was someone to share it with. His mind calculated the situation as he plodded along. He had taken a train that ran parallel to the Yamamote Line to get to the location of the kekkai. However, said train line would undoubtedly be either inundated with passengers or shut down completely. A taxi would be impossible to find until the uproar died down, which was unlikely to happen anytime soon with the amount of damage Nataku had caused before Karen's arrival. With all manner of public transportation out of the question, there was only the option of walking. Nataku's head lolled against his chest with every step.
"Looks like I'm out of choices, then." He wondered idly why the people passing them hadn't offered help, but the notion was fleeting at best. Bracing his arm around Nataku, he shot into the air with a gravity-defying leap to land on the nearest rooftop. "I may wind up jostling you a bit," he admitted to his unconscious companion as he ran across the rooftop and jumped to the next, "but this is the easiest way to get to the nearest safehaven." He glanced across the remaining rooftops, searching for the unique equipment located on the roof he sought.
No one seemed to notice the odd acrobatic show as he leapt from one rooftop to another, careful to land steadily and readjust his grip on Nataku each time.
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Rain fell in sheets outside the window, obscuring the view of Tokyo. Several flashing beacons were visible through the downpour, but even they could have been the work of the imagination. Water droplets beat a steady rhythm against the window pane, where the young man stood, his hand to the glass as if wanting to reach beyond it. A cough sounded from the next room, and the young man turned.
"You've woken up, I see." The young man entered the room and seated himself on a simple wooden chair beside the bed. "You were comatose for most of the afternoon." The figure in the bed coughed again.
"You're...Yuuto."
"I see your head wasn't all that effected by the beating that woman gave you." The water master grinned. "Yes, that's me. Glad you remembered." He ran a hand through his styled blonde hair. "We'll head back to the Government Office Building to meet up with the others tomorrow, assuming you're up for it. But you seem to be healing nicely."
"Where..?"
"My apartment." He chuckled. "It was closer to the location of the derailment than our usual base of operations." Something whistled in the next room, and Yuuto stood. "Excuse me." He left the bedroom door open, filling the apartment with the sounds of chinking cups and the clatter of a tray as he bustled about the kitchen, taking the noisy teakettle off the flame. When he returned, his guest was sitting up in bed, touching the gauzy rectangles on his cheek and forehead. Yuuto placed the tray on the bedside table and offered one of the cups to Nataku, who shook his head in puzzlement. Shrugging, the water master took the cup himself and returned to his seat. He took a sip before inclining his head to continue the conversation.
"I'm.. confused. The last I remember was that woman telling me I was like a lost child to her. And then..." Nataku shook his head slowly. "Nothing."
"I'm not surprised - You were pretty badly scorched." Yuuto leaned forward slightly, as if telling a secret. "I managed to convince her that it would be in all of our best interests if she took down the kekkai. After that, I managed to bring you here. Before the storm began, that is. It's been raining for the last few hours." He reached over, replacing his cup on the tray. Nataku stared at the bandage wrapped around one arm lying outside the bedcovers.
"Thank you."
"Hmmmm..?"
"Thank you. For all of this." He waved the bandaged arm to encompass the bandaging Yuuto had done.
"It's fine," the water master replied with a grin, "not exactly the best job, I'd say. I don't know much about nursing and the like." He shrugged. "It should hold anyway. Is there anything else you'd like? It's late, and we should get some rest." He stood, and Nataku shook his head, his face still clouded, a manifestation of his thoughts.
"Have you been waiting until I woke up?" asked the childlike voice quietly as Yuuto reached the door. One hand closed on the doorknob, and the mumbled reply drifted back through the room as Yuuto closed the door behind him.
"...I had work to finish." Nataku stared at the bandage around one hand, turning it towards and away from him in bewilderment. Laughter filled the room of his mind, a child's laughter accompanied by faces that seemed juxtaposed with those he knew now. He closed his eyes, leaning back against the pillow. He remembered the father of a young girl who had risked everything to give her a second chance. The kind, sad face. His mother's tender smile - even the grandfather he had never felt any kindness towards in this life. And the laughter - always ending as he reached a tiny hand towards the window where his mother stood weeping. His father touched the glass as if touching that tiny hand, mouthing the name he had once known as his own...
Golden eyes shot open, staring at the ceiling. Someone was breathing heavily, quick gasping breaths as of one startled beyond wit's end. He realized it was himself and slowly propped himself up on one elbow. The apartment was quiet, although the pattering of the rain was still able to penetrate the door. He reached out a hand as if to be certain it was his own and saw the flash of that tiny fragment of memory overlaid on the present. He tugged the bedsheets aside, swinging his feet to touch the floor. He stood, too quickly, for injuries along one leg made him wince.
He nearly fell against the bedside table. The tray resting there clattered across the table as his hand accidentally shoved it in his attempt to remain upright. Gingerly, he made his way to the door and opened it. A streak of lightning illuminated the next room, where his benefactor lay beneath the covers of a pallet on the floor. Yuuto shifted slightly, and Nataku proceeded, his footsteps quiet. The laughter seemed to follow him, mocking him. He had never laughed like that, to be sure. I'm.. still here.. tou-san... He shook his head to rid it of the last moments of a child he had never known.
"Yuuto-san..?" His voice was quiet, questioning, afraid. The voice of a fearful child in the night. He took another step towards the sleeping form, thunder sounding somewhere in the distance. "...Yuuto?"
"nn..?" The covers moved and the familiar face turned toward the clone, blonde hair half-astray. The eyes opened groggily. "eh- Nataku? Is it morning? I just got to sleep a moment ago.." Another streak of lightning revealed the fear in the golden eyes, and Yuuto slowly returned to waking. "Something bothering you?" He yawned; it was still raining.
Nataku stared at the floor. The memories of the lost little girl seemed meaningless now. Harmless. Hardly worth the trouble he had taken to seek out his benefactor. He shook his head. "No, nothing. Sorry to wake you." He turned and headed back to the bedroom, nearly tripping before finding the bed again and climbing in. He turned to one wall, wincing again at the pain shooting up his arm this time. The light clicked on, and he shut his eyes against the sudden brightness. Opening them slowly, he spotted Yuuto's form standing in the doorway.
"Forgot to clear away the tea," he said with a chuckle, moving to the bedside. He seated himself on the edge of the bed and placed the cups on the center of the tray, then bent to move the tray to the floor, out of harm's way. He turned, finding Nataku's eyes on him, and scratched his head. "Listen." He stopped. "...I'll stick around in here for the night, and we can get moving tomorrow. That fine with you?" Nataku nodded, golden eyes grateful. Yuuto smiled, settling back against the pillows. The pounding of rain against the window lulled him to sleep, and Nataku found himself staring again at the bandage wrapped around his hand. His eyes closed as his head dropped against Yuuto's chest and the childlike laughter rang in his ears as he drifted from waking.
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The morning found Yuuto waking first, surprised at the shock of white hair and its accompanying head resting against him. A half-bandaged hand lay across his chest, and he hurridly wracked his brain, recalling the previous night. Had they.... His recollection reassured him, although the clone seemed affectionate enough like that. Yuuto sighed. It would be best to wait for Nataku to wake up before attempting to move. He wondered what time of day it was, and whether he had missed his morning tea. The absence of the feeling of water surrounding him told him that the rain had stopped, and sometime early in the morning as well. He had forgotten to turn off the light.
"Kanoe would be jealous," he mused comically, patting the white hair, "I usually leave her before morning." He chuckled to himself, and Nataku stirred with the movement of his chest. "Rise and shine, hmm?" Nataku practically scrambled to the other edge of the bed, surprised beyond words that he had a bedmate, although that surprise lessened as the events from the previous day flowed through his thoughts.
"Morning." Yuuto stretched, swinging his legs to the floor. He retrieved the tray and carried it to the door, flicking the light switch as he moved past it. Nataku followed him moments later and stood in the kitchen doorway as Yuuto placed the teakettle on the flame and bustled about looking in the cabinets above the stove.
"We'll head over to the Government Office Building shortly. I need to get into a change of clothes, and then we can let the others know that we're alive and well." He brushed past Nataku, closing the bedroom door behind him. The clone remained leaning against the kitchen doorframe.
"Thank... you."