Torn Wings

Chapter One

Ever since the beginning, Saku never understood. He never understood the stares when they thought he wasn't looking, the whispers when they thought they couldn't be heard… but after a few years, he just stopped caring. He had his brother, and that in itself was more than enough to keep him happy.

Ronin and Saku were twins, born into the Tsuchihara family of Minakami village. Ronin was born first, Saku second. By the village's tradition, that made Saku the older of the two. One could hardly tell, from the way he acted in comparison to his brother. Ronin was the mature one, the one who knew to keep himself and his emotions in check, whereas Saku, being more outgoing and expressive, had a more difficult time holding back. Ronin had a tendency to desire silence, whereas Saku preferred to be more outgoing and vocal--even though his only listener was his brother.

Two sides of the same coin.

Two halves of the same soul.

…People had said that last part so many times that it almost scared Saku. He had yet to figure out why.

"It's not like you to be so quiet."

Saku was pulled out of his thoughts by his brother's soft voice, and the sudden warmth of another body sitting behind him on the large rock. Saku blinked, finding himself staring down at his feet, hearing the water of the stream moving fast against the rocks.

"What's on your mind? The fact that mother's going to be mad at you for cutting your hair?" He could hear the slight smirk in his brother's voice.

"It's not like I had a choice!" he exclaimed defensively, his hand moving to his hair by reflex. Long ebon strands that had once reached the middle of his back had been cut short not even an hour ago, barely long enough to brush against his chin. "It got so tangled up in that tree branch that I had no other way to get free."

His brother laughed. "I know. I was there." He felt his brother's back against his own. "At least we were able to even it out. Maybe she won't be as mad that way."

"Yeah, maybe." Saku was highly doubtful of that. Their mother was all but obsessed with their hair and wanting it to be perfect, just like her own. But like he said, he hadn't had a choice. He would have to face her wrath sooner or later.

Another moment of silence passed between them, and the lighthearted mood quickly faded. "So… what were you really thinking about?" Ronin's voice sounded much more serious now. He could practically see the sullen expression in his own mind. He knew his brother inside and out. After all, they were the same.

"…You should already know," Saku responded softly, turning his head slightly in an attempt to look at his brother. The attempt was unsuccessful, since his brother was directly behind him, but he kept his head turned anyway. "You don't need to humor me by asking."

"…" He was aware of his brother's concerned silence. "…So you noticed too, huh? The way they look at us… the way they talk about us…"

"How could I not notice? They don't do a good job of hiding it." Saku frowned, almost pouting. "I just wish I could actually hear what they were saying sometimes… you know? Just so I could know why they do it."

"…It's almost like they're scared of us sometimes…" Ronin said softly, and Saku could feel the curve of his brother's spine as he lowered his head, "…Sometimes… I could almost swear that I see sadness in their eyes… or pity, even."

"Pity?" Saku echoed, "Why would they pity us?"

"Well… I didn't mean…" He trailed off for a brief instant before shaking his head. "Never mind. I'm probably just being paranoid."

Saku frowned as he listened to his brother's silence. He was doing it again… hiding his thoughts and his feelings. It was really frustrating at times. It was times like this that made Saku wish that he really could read his brother's mind. Ronin was good at guessing what was on his mind because he was good at reading peoples' emotions and expressions in general. Being able to understand what was going through Saku's mind was more than likely second nature by now.

Nonetheless, Saku knew better than to pry. If Ronin wanted to talk about it, he would. All he could do for the time being was wait, and talk about something else.

Saku slid off the rock and knelt down beside the stream, staring at the water. "…It seems so much smaller now…"

He could hear Ronin turning to look at him. He heard his brother make a noise, one of obvious discomfort, and Saku glanced over at him. Ronin was staring at the water uneasily. Saku knew why. All too well. All because of a stupid game, because of a simple mistake that could have been avoided.

It had been the only time Saku recalled being able to play with the children of the village. They had only been five years old at the time. He and Ronin had been playing onigokko with some of the other children in the village in this very spot. One of the other kids had been the 'oni', and had decided to go after Ronin because he ran the slowest. However, he had hit Ronin a little hard, and the extra force sent him flying forward, and he fell into the stream. The other children ran away in a panic, while Saku attempted to fish his brother out. They were just lucky that one of the villagers happened to pass by to help Ronin out of the water. Ronin was bedridden for almost a week afterwards.

Despite his near-death experience, Ronin took responsibility for falling in, saying he had tripped. However, they were never allowed to play with the other children ever again, and since that day, Ronin had been terrified of water, of the possibility of drowning. He had said once that it was the cold feeling that washed over him, along with the burning pain in his throat and chest as he struggled to breathe. Saku didn't want his brother to go through that again, and swore to himself from that day on to protect his brother, and to never leave his side again.

Saku quickly stood up, sitting on the rock again. His presence seemed to calm Ronin a bit, as he could feel Ronin relax slightly as they sat back to back again. He could feel Ronin's hand seek out his own, and he grasped his brother's hand in return to help reassure him. He gave his brother a moment to calm himself, and finally Ronin responded. "…It does seem so much smaller now… it's probably from all the earthquakes we've had over the years… causing landslides, and shifting the flow of the water…"

"Yeah…" Saku muttered in response, not really paying attention. He was feeling more than a little guilty about bringing back bad memories. What kind of brother would do that to a sibling, to his own twin no less? A bad one, that's what.

"…It's alright," Ronin said softly, a small smile audible in his voice. Saku could feel Ronin squeeze his hand slightly. "You don't need to feel bad… You didn't mean it. Besides, I need to learn to get over it."

Saku was silent for a long time before forcing himself to smile weakly. "You know, you could've at least humored me a little right there."

That was one of the few times he heard his brother laugh so freely. That was his guilty pleasure, being the only one who could hear his brother laugh like that. He felt like it was one of their little secrets, that Ronin actually felt emotions from time to time. As Ronin's laughter subsided, he could still hear the smile in his voice as he spoke again. "I'll never understand you, even until we're old men, will I?"

"Of course not," Saku said with a grin, tipping his head back slightly to glance at Ronin, "That would ruin the fun of it all."

"So I see." He could hear Ronin still laughing softly to himself.

"So here you two are."

They were mildly startled by the sudden sound of another person's voice, the warmth of their own little world shattering upon the realization that someone else had intruded upon their conversation. Saku could all but imagine the sudden change in his brother's expression, going from the gentle smile he'd worn not even a moment ago, to the emotionless expression that made even the adults of the village uneasy. Saku turned his head to identify the speaker, and found one of the village priests standing some distance away, observing them. Saku was pretty certain that the man had only just shown up. Ronin wouldn't have let his guard down so easily if someone else had been there for any length of time.

"Is something wrong?" Ronin asked, his voice as distant and emotionless as ever.

"We were concerned as to where you had disappeared to," the priest responded, in a surprisingly polite tone of voice. Saku wasn't sure what to think of the village priests. All he would see from them would be a silent bow. He could never see their faces from behind the veils they wore every single day. If he ever wanted to know what was going through someone's mind (besides his brother, anyway), it would be the priests.

"We've been here for a while," Ronin said calmly in response, "We don't go any farther than this."

"It's almost like you expected us to have run away," Saku said almost bitterly, more than a little upset that someone had interrupted their time together.

"We thought nothing of the sort," the priest responded calmly, but Saku could see the subtle change in the grip on his staff. He was conflicted about something. "It is getting late. Let us return to the village. I will escort you home."

"Yes, sir." Ronin and Saku spoke in unison, rising up from their seated position. Saku watched as Ronin lightly brushed the dirt from his kimono before the two approached the priest. The priest turned away from them in silence, and began to lead them through the path in the forest, back towards the village. The silence hung heavily in the air as the three walked, and Saku risked a quick glance in his brother's direction. At almost the same time, Ronin had looked at him, and the slightest ghost of a smile crossed his face before he turned his attention to the path back home. Saku couldn't help but smile to himself. This was why he enjoyed having his brother around. It was the small things like this, the secrets that only they could share.

As long as they had each other, they didn't need anyone else.

Author's Notes: Been forever since I uploaded a story. Been even longer since I actually wrote one with all my heart and soul. Here is a new story to be read, and hopefully enjoyed, by Zero/Fatal Frame/Project Zero fans, and non-fans alike. The story is already complete, so it will be fully uploaded, and not left on the back burner for three years.

I'm pretty sure this has been done before. I don't really care. It was an idea I've been playing with since I made these characters (for a different fandom), and I've finally decided to put it into the works.

To the non-fans (or just people who are not familiar with the series): Do not fret, everything will be explained in due time.

To the fans: Congratulations. You might know what to expect. You might even know what's going to happen well before it even happens. Good for you. But please, keep it to yourself. I don't want the end to be spoiled for those who are unfamiliar with the setting. Be they in reviews or by messages sent between members. I beg of you, please do not spoil my story for other readers.

And now I give you some story-related notes, to help clarify cultural aspects that may not be known to some readers:

-Ronin and Saku are both 14 in this story. This is mentioned in a later chapter, but I feel it should be noted here just in case, anyway.

-Onigokko - literally "Demon Tag" or "Ogre Tag", known in the western world as "Tag". The key difference is that instead of being "it", the player who is "it" is referred to as the "oni", which translates to "ogre" or "demon"