"Matt! Hey Matt! You hafta keep alive, dude! And keep breathing! Ok?" Alfred choked out, voice cracking as he practically begged his brother to keep awake. He stared at the dull, lifeless eyes of Matthew. Because of how gaunt his face had become and how his skin had ultimately paled to a ghastly white, he was almost unrecognizable. And from the dark rings underneath his once vibrant eyes coupled with his slow, weakened breathing, one could hardly tell he was alive at all. It was hard to grasp that his illness had escalated so quickly. In a time matter of only three days too! And now here Alfred was, looming over his unresponsive brother. He was sure that the younger twin was taking his last breathes and he couldn't stand it knowing there was nothing he could do to help.
Back when there was nothing wrong in the world with Matthew, they'd often joked around about this sort of thing, and thought up scenarios like this-like the spreading of the epidemic, and how Alfred would be the hero! Matthew would be his loyal sidekick and they'd be able to save the world from infection. But now something so terrible as that was now their reality, only rather than the heroic, happy end they'd thought up for themselves, it was far from where they wound up. Alfred knew this terrible disease had been spreading throughout their hometown. Matthew had too. But neither took it seriously. It couldn't possibly happen to them, right?
Not even when he first found Matthew unconscious outside their small, poor home, did Alfred stop and think it would come to this. There was such denial that this tragedy could befall them amongst the twins. In fact, it'd only been in the past few hours that he realized what the outcome of Matthew's sickness would be. He was distraught beyond belief. More than he ever thought he would be. More than he had been when the two mourned the loss of their mom and dad. Matthew was not only his twin brother and his best friend, but he was the only person he had in the entire world. And now… He was going to be gone. Just like that.
Alfred and Matthew had been orphaned a few years ago. They had stayed in foster care until they were both eighteen and of legal age to take care of themselves. And after they went off, they were completely alone, depending on no one but each other for anything. Never did they try to even get close to anyone else. These twins were inseparable and they were all the other needed.
Alfred swallowed hard, gripping Matthew's frail hand firmly in his own, shaking it in an attempt to get him to stop dying as if he'd become well again. When it became evident that he would not, Alfred choked back a sob and buried his face in the light, worn sheets covering most of Matthew's torso, about up to his chest. Alfred threw his free arm atop Matt, grabbing the sheets over his brother's body in one of his fists, still grasping Matthew's hand in the other. "Don't you dare die on me! You can't! You have to help me be the hero! We're gonna save the day!" There was a slight hesitation, "Remember?" He looked up at the dim lavender eyes. Oh, how empty they seemed. It was impossible to tell if Matthew could even hear him. Had he heard anything he said at all? If he did, he showed no attempt at response.
Shakily, Alfred lifted the hand that had wrinkled the sheets he clasped, to Matthew's neck. He'd heard somewhere to check for a pulse this way and he'd been consistently checking every hour or so. Since about noon that day, Alfred had scarcely been able to find Matthew's pulse as it had weakened so drastically. It was still there then, but… why couldn't he feel it now? Could it really be that Matthew had already died and he hadn't been able to pinpoint the exact moment when?
Alfred released a quivering breath and stared in horror. He didn't know what to do! They hadn't even been able to get a doctor. So many others were suffering that it had been impossible to even make an appointment in the next several weeks, especially for twins that didn't exactly contribute much to society. There were more important people in positions of power that needed care first and foremost. The town's hospital was booked and there wasn't enough educated staff. On top of that, those working against the epidemic, despite the numbers of people who contracted the disease, had little knowledge of what the cause was or how to treat it.
The blond, blue-eyed twin doubted he was even going to be able to have a proper funeral, burial, or anything. What was he going to do? Alfred could feel his whole body shaking. The boy was in utter shock. Matthew had gone and died on him and now he had no one! No one to talk to or confide in! No one he could trust! And the one person he had and could talk to in a situation like this was gone now... and forever more.
"Don't worry, Matt, I'll be back soon. I'll make sure you have a great burial!" Alfred announced loudly to his deceased twin as he straightened himself. He was trying desperately to not loose his emotions completely. If he did that, Matthew wouldn't be buried like he should be. He had to do it himself and that would be his motivation. In spite of this attempt to keep himself, however, tears still fell from his eyes and streaked down his face. He knelt once more by Matthew's bedside and retrieved the off-white, well-loved stuffed bear, Kumajirou, Matthew still carried with him. He lifted Matthew's cold, limp arm and tucked Kuma in with him.
It was darkening outside as Alfred turned from the deathbed of Matthew and stormed out the room. As soon as he hit the door leading to their small, rickety porch he took off running. He knew their neighbor had a sturdy shovel stowed in their tool shed. And Alfred would return it as soon as he was finished. The owner wouldn't even notice. Plus, even if his neighbor did realize he was missing his shovel, he doubted he'd realize it was him. They never really had much contact, as his neighbor didn't particularly care for rambunctious Alfred or his quiet twin whose name he always seemed to forget.
Alfred lowered himself under the wire fence and snuck to the tool shed in the covers of the shadows. The door was locked with a rusty bolt which he pulled on as quietly as possible. As soon as he'd wiggled it out of it's lock enough, he pulled the rotting wooden door in jerks. Dirt was being scraped up at the bottom from where the wood was probably swollen from humidity. When Alfred slipped in through the crack in the doorway he made the splintering wooden frame caught on his shirt and broke off as he brushed past. He was breathing hard, barely able to keep his focus in finding the shovel in the darkness of the shed. Finally his trembling hands found the shaft of the shovel and he tried in vain to get a firm grip on it.
Now dragging it behind him, he trudged to the edge of the woods, dragging his feet along. Regardless of sun having set and nighttime falling, with what Alfred had just experienced he did not care, nor was he exactly thinking straight. He just needed to find a place where Matthew could rest in peace, somewhere he'd be comfortable.
And finally he came to a nice spot. The dirt where he stood on barefoot was powdery on top, perfectly soft so he could begin shoveling. The place he chose wasn't one that held any meaning to either of them, but it was close to their home. The remaining twin would be able to visit it every single day. Finally unable to remain even somewhat composed he buried the shovel into the ground with as much force as he could muster. He pounded it further into the dirt with his foot, stepping on it to get a nice clump of soil and pry it out of the ground. He unearthed it, and tossed the bit of earth over his shoulder. He repeated this until he heard an unfriendly voice speaking. He slowed only for a moment though before he continued, working even harder than he had before, convincing himself it was nothing. He nearly tricked himself into believing it too before a hand landed on his shoulder with a firm, steady grip. The opposite of how his whole person was. He let the shovel fall and create a cloud of loose dirt as the stranger's hand spun him around to look him in the eye.
Well... this was intense, dramatic, and depressing to write. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I swear it'll be less gloomy in future chapters. This AU is based off the anime, Shiki, however the plot details, and events, as well as the characters are not relevant so this isn't what I consider a cross-over. Only the mere overall idea of Shiki is present and the similarities end there.
For pairings, I haven't really decided on them. There are bound to be a lot of them hinted at, but I'm just going to let those take their course.
