Disclaimer: I do not own Kamen Rider OOO, and I am making no money off of this. This is solely for my own and other's entertainment.

AN: My muse handed me this little project last night. It'll be at least 2-3 chapters (not 100% sure yet as, even though I know what I want to happen, I don't know exactly how long it'll take).

Warnings: Spoilers through 48. Lost of angst (at least for poor Eiji, you'd think I'd get tired of torturing the poor man). Shonen-ai (Ankh/Eiji) though not active at the moment.

Returning and Reacquiring: The Beginning

Eiji sighed as he watched the blonde male in front of him become reacquainted with the room they had shared for over a year. After searching and traveling for nearly two years, hardly stopping to rest for fear he'd miss something, he had managed to stumble across his solution. He'd managed to find the book, one of the few copies of the book that the alchemists had used to create the Core Medals in the first place. He'd gotten lucky enough that the elderly gentleman who now owned it was someone he'd helped during his travels before, and the guy had remembered Eiji and was willing to make photocopies of all the pages as thanks. He had even managed to find someone to translate it, though the person had believed it was simply for some kind of research paper. It had taken him longer to find the ingredients and ship them into Japan where he knew Hina-chan and Shingo-san would keep them safe. All in all, it was closing in on three years before he had everything set.

He had managed it though, and the brunette had returned to Japan to complete the ritual needed to fix the Taka medal and create a Kujaku and a Condor along with some cell medals so the blonde might be able to form his own body. It had been hard work, but it had been worth it. Unfortunately, things hadn't quite gone as planned.

Flashback

Eiji couldn't help but grin as he watched the red light fade, leaving a tall, blonde, male form behind. He simply took in the sight of his lover standing there, alive, for one long moment before he said quietly, "Ankh."

What the brunette didn't expect was for the blonde to scan the room before turning to him with a distant, wary look in his eyes. Then the other male simply demanded, "Who are you?"

And Eiji felt his world shatter again.

End Flashback

Eiji had called in Hina-chan and Shingo-san after that, and, after some prying, they managed to figure out that Ankh's last memory was form the last moments before he was sealed over 800 years ago. The three of them told Ankh about the year he'd lived after – most of it at least, Eiji kept their full relationship a secret for now – and, though the blonde had been skeptical at first, it had been impossible to ignore certain facts – such as Ankh's resemblance to Shingo, Eiji's possession of the OOO driver, and Eiji's knowledge about Ankh's past, about what it was like to become a Greeed, and about the workings in the blonde's own mind. In the end, Ankh had remained wary but had listened and acknowledged that if things had played out like they'd explained – though he remained most skeptical about the end as the blonde believed he'd never do something like that – then the memory loss, whether temporary or permanent, was entirely possible.

Which brought him to where he was now. Hina-chan had suggested letting Ankh wander around the café while it was closed to see if the familiar settings would trigger any memories, and Eiji had accompanied him, watching the blonde wander around and rediscover the place they had both considered home.

There was a moment of complete silence, and Eiji suddenly realized Ankh was now staring at him as he watched the blonde. Eiji smiled, trying to offset the tension a bit, and then Ankh demanded, "What are you smiling at?"

The brunette's smile faltered for a moment before he caught it and fixed it to his face so firmly it almost hurt before he answered, "Nothing."

Ankh scoffed before saying, "You really are an idiot."

Eiji barely managed to excuse himself and get himself into one of the small, private storage rooms no one ever really used anymore before he broke down. Those familiar words delivered in that condescending tone – one he hadn't heard since the very beginning, back before they had known each other so well – was the final nail in the coffin. He'd finally, finally, brought Ankh back only to lose him in an entirely different way. Eiji couldn't be entirely sure he hadn't been better off searching and hoping, and he hated himself and the world just a little bit because of it.

Ankh's POV

As he walked around the room, Ankh couldn't deny that the place – and the people – felt familiar. It was frustrating mostly because he definitely didn't remember meeting them or anyone like them. That frustrating feeling of familiarity was strongest with the brunette currently in the room with him.

Glancing back at the brunette, Ankh saw that the other male was still staring vacantly at him, obviously lost in thought much like he had been for the last hour. Tired of being watched, Ankh stared hard at the brunette – Eiji his mind supplied – until he has him start, obviously having just realized he'd been caught staring.

The obviously fake smile the brunette shot him hurt for reasons he couldn't understand, and, in an effort to stop both the smile and the hurt, Ankh snapped, "What are you smiling at?"

Ankh watched the smile slip for a split second before it was back, more fake and more painful than before. "Nothing," Eiji replied, and Ankh could feel the strain in the other's voice.

Fine, if the brunette wanted to keep faking then Ankh would let him. It was none of his business, no matter what his instincts kept screaming at him. Scoffing to hide his slight indecision, Ankh simply said, "You really are an idiot."

Ankh almost took back the words as he watched something flash through the brunette's eyes. Instead, he turned his back on the other male and listened as he excused himself and left quickly. Telling himself he didn't care – couldn't care – the blonde continued to explore the small house, firmly suppressing the small voice telling him to go after the brunette and ignoring the small pain that had suddenly bloomed in his chest.