AN: The fascinating characters of Kamen Rider Gaim do not belong to me, but to their creator. Enjoy~ xD
Death of Me
'He'll be the death of you.'
It wasn't a remark that Jounouchi Hideyasu was a stranger to. Oh, it wasn't one that was said to him; mostly, it was said to Hase Ryouji, the leader of Team Raid Wild. Hase-chan's team – who were extremely loyal to their leader; a bond forged, quite literally, in blood, fights and fire – were wary of him and his intentions towards their leader, and their worry was a one well-founded; after all, Hideyasu made it no secret that he was only upholding the alliance for as long as it was beneficial to him, Hase-chan's safety and well-being be damned.
Hideyasu's own team were less worried over his decision; after all, even if Ryouji had no care for Hideyasu's safety and well-being, Hideyasu himself was more than capable of looking out for himself, and always placed his team, himself and his own safety before everything else.
'You're an idiot.'
Again, that wasn't a remark that Hideyasu was a stranger to; this one often followed on the heels of the first. Though, Hideyasu scoffed, the most recent one to say this was Sonomura, the leader of Team Red Hot, and he was hardly the one to call Hase-chan out on his partnership with Hideyasu considering it was Sonomura who had accepted Hideyasu's offer to form an alliance with Team Baron.
Then again, it was an open secret – not spoken about, but simply known – that Hideyasu only risked burning a bridge if said person had turned against him first or if he felt that the relationship would be disadvantageous to him and his team in the long run. Therefore, he was on amicable terms with most of the teams, who often trusted his word and advice when he approached them for a chat, a trade or an offer, like the one to ally with Team Baron.
They just didn't trust him enough to fight back-to-back with them the way Hase-chan apparently did. After all, Hideyasu looked out for himself first; everything else came second. So, they trusted him, but they were still wary of him and kept him at arm's length. Not that Hideyasu held it against them.
It was simply the smart thing to do.
Though Ryouji had once defended his decision hotly – only to his team; he couldn't care less what Sonomura and the others thought – that sure Hideyasu often ran and hid when things got sticky on the battlefield, but he also always came back; Hideyasu had never left Ryouji even when he had the chance to escape from the battle unscathed. When Hideyasu found out about Hase-chan's apparent high regard of him, he had echoed everyone else's sentiment: Hase-chan was an idiot.
And, that idiocy would be the death of him one day.
Remarks that had been told to Hase-chan; remarks that had rolled off Hideyasu pretty much like water off a duck's back. After all, what did they know? None of the people who had said it were privy to the details of the partnership between Hase-chan and him. Now, however, Hideyasu wondered if he should have paid more attention to them.
The impact of the attack had pierced through his suit, and the ominous sound of cracking broke through the ringing in his ears. He couldn't breathe, and with every desperate gulp of air, something in his chest rattled.
Then, came the pain; blinding pain.
Curling his arms defensively around himself and resisting the urge to scream, Hideyasu could taste the bitter metallic tang as he coughed; blood coating his tongue and staining his lips. His eyes were wide – stunned – and he barely registered the look on Hase-chan's face before his knees gave out on him, and he simply crumbled.
'JOUNOUCHI!'
Faintly, Hideyasu felt the hands that made a desperate grab for him as Hase-chan bodily cushioned his fall; which Hideyasu knew because the ground was hard and uncomfortable, and it would've hurt, and it still did, but not as much as he had braced himself for. Hideyasu felt as if every nerve in his body was on fire as frantic fingers danced across his body, trying to assess the damage. The arm supporting him pulled him close, pressing his head against Hase-chan's chest, the erratic fluttering of Hase-chan's heartbeat not quite drowning out the words that fell from the other's lips.
'What the heck do you think you were doing? What happened to running away like you usually do? I could've dodged that. Why didn't you run?!'
Like you could've dodged that. You didn't even know it was coming, Hideyasu wanted to retort, Besides, I was running away.
I just ran in the wrong direction.
It hadn't even been a conscious thing. One moment, Hideyasu had frozen, unable to even summon the voice to yell out a warning to Hase-chan, who was in the way of an incoming blast. The next thing he knew, his suit was dissolving around him, the acrid smell of burning cloth and flesh filling his senses, along with pain, so much pain.
He didn't want to admit it – not even to himself – but all he had been thinking about was that he needed to do something or Hase-chan would be done for.
Awareness dimming, Hideyasu felt himself being lifted into the air, an arm holding him close to Hase-chan's chest while another curled supportively under his knees – he would have words with Hase-chan over this; the Raid Wild leader was getting way too free with his hands – and as unconsciousness crept over him, Hideyasu could just barely make out the words that Hase-chan was whispering harshly – jerkily, brokenly – under his breath.
'You're an idiot, Jounouchi; a stupid, stupid idiot.'
Everyone had always been wary of Hideyasu; with his reputation, he was the last person anyone would trust to watch their back.
Because Hideyasu was a survivor; he always put himself first.
But, Hase-chan had always been the exception, hadn't he?
And, you, Hase-chan, you'll be the death of me.
Then, Hideyasu knew nothing more.