Literally a ramble of thought, there was no planning put into this. Hence an odd, sudden shift in perspective/ideal. The ending was terribly rushed, but I couldn't think of a proper ending. I will, I'm sure, at some other point, and come back and fix it.
x-
There's a lot that couldn't be said, when you really thought about it, regarding him as a whole. A lot that couldn't be explained by simple words, or simple examples.
Like that undying devotion towards a race that held no sympathy towards him. Or that inability to hold a grudge towards anything beyond physical labor. Nothing would be given a look of disdain or hatred from those soft, dark eyes. No one would be dealt an intentional, driven blow from his calloused hands. He had that lack of negativity that left people bewildered, that people became utterly obsessed with, that people craved to experience, that left them desiring to get close and delve into the radiated warmth with open arms.
Asakura Yoh was, indeed, an enigma to the worlds he roamed.
He had walked calmly through the depths of Hell, and spared all who had attempted, and failed, to cross blades with him. He had strolled through the crowded streets of the Earth and gave nothing but friendly smiles and laughs to the crowded masses that struggled to move past one another. The world of Limbo was left to gape as his ability to quell even the most darkened spirits haunting its perimeters. What exactly was this boy, Yoh? Perhaps… an angel?
Oh, surely not.
The boy was nothing more than the "poster-boy for slack". Being unencumbered by such human emotions like anger or regret would give him the sense of peace that people craved for. People were attracted to him by the lack of what they saw in him; the emotions that plagued themselves day in and out. He was nothing short of a half-drained husk, too dim to recognize full danger when it met him nose to nose. Nothing. And most certainly not an angel.
…that's what Asakura Hao used to think, and was halfheartedly struggling to keep such an opinion in place.
In the front of his mind, the thousand year old shaman, the very reason the slack boy existed, wanted very much to view the boy as nothing short of a battery. An extra power source to add to his own when the time was right, when his younger brother was at the peak of perfection, when his ceiling was just in reach and his power to its highest potential. Emotions, as far as Hao was concerned when he thought of Yoh in short terms, were nothing more than a pleasant diversion for the boy. He would achieve his ultimate goal in life when he let his soul return to its rightful owner, and relinquished the power he had fought for to the shaman of fire. Thinking of the boy as anything more was an idea to be ridiculed. It was laughable. A flight of fancy.
…perhaps, though, Hao would have to remodel this method of thought. After all, he was the one now sitting in the steaming waters, feeling as relaxed as he could be, gazing up at a sky-full of unpolluted stars with his long hair falling onto the rocky rim of the hot spring… with his otouto right beside him. It had been nothing short of chance, as far as the younger was aware, but if he only knew how Hao had crept through the woods after him, silent and careful with his eyes trained on his back as per the norm…
With a soft, calmed sigh that blew some of the soft steam floating about him into a graceful curve before his face, Hao gave a light, sideways glance to the younger twin, taking in those features that were so familiar to him. There was that lounging posture that mimicked his, the scarred arms resting on the rim and face upturned towards the sky. Those soft eyes traced through the constellations he surely didn't know, their depths glistening with the untold beauty resting miles away from them. Those long bangs seemed like smooth, ebony slabs hanging beside his face, held aloft only by the ponytail he sported to keep his shoulder-length hair from the hot water they rested in. And, to top it off, there was that soft, warm expression that seemed ever-present on his tan face.
They were mirrors of one another. While there was a relative, peaceful coexistence between them in this moment of time, there was a definite shift in the air around the twins. One would remain calm, sly, calculating to an irritating degree. A low-lying intelligence that made the water itself feel heavy and solid under one's hand, and made one tense as their skin fidgeted on top of muscle. The other was lightweight, making the water feel very much like smoke- felt, and yet not felt at all. A blatant innocence, or ignorance, to the world around him; ever optimistic, constantly upbeat, a relaxed feeling that eased turmoil within the heart.
Maybe it was this feeling that Hao found himself so terribly drawn to. The feeling that drew him close to Yoh. …and yet… There was the OTHER matter…
"I love the stars." Hao blinked from his reverie as Yoh spoke absently, giving a long smile as he sunk a bit deeper into the warm waters, those soft eyes still skyward. "You don't see stars like this in Izumo, I'll tell you that… We're lucky this island exists…" On some fleeting thought, the older twin sent a glance skyward, catching the stars he knew by heart, and had known for a thousand years. The world below them may have changed, but they didn't change, not where they could see them. "We are." Looking back into the warm waters, a familiar smirk of sorts came onto Hao's slender face as he reclined against the rocky rim, his head supported by his hand. "We'd have more islands like this- more lands in general- if humans didn't destroy them, though."
Yoh let out a disappointed groan and hoisted himself back into a sitting position, fixing Hao with a frown. "You know, you didn't have to bring that up and ruin everything. We were having a perfectly good conversation." In return, Hao spoke calmly, "We weren't talking at all until you said something." "Yeah, and you didn't have to bring the human destruction speech into it."
Hao couldn't help but give a light laugh at such a remark, and looked over to see Yoh with a scowl on his face (He didn't mean it, though-the fire shaman knew that much). "Don't I always, otouto? You should know me better by now." "..mm." He gave a quiet sigh as his dark gaze fell to the distorted image of the older on the surface of the water. "But… we could have just enjoyed what we had without you hopping up on your soapbox." This made Hao laugh further, his free hand shifting and flicking lightly on the surface of the steamed bath, effectively ruining his reflection and splattering a drop on Yoh's nose. "You're too cute, otouto." He was, really, and Hao found he couldn't help but smile as Yoh rubbed at his face, the sudden water tickling the skin, sending a little glance of agitation his way. The glance alone made him smile wider, skimming the surface of the water, giving the younger a light splash.
"What are you doing." It was more of a statement than a question. That look of befuddlement wasn't exactly making Yoh seem serious, though. "What? I can be a bit childish from time to time, can't I?" He couldn't help but tease, swishing another wave at the younger, oddly satisfied to see that pout slowly become a wide smile. "You? The mighty Onmyoji Asakura Hao? Acting childish?" Yoh's hand raised and slapped across the water, sending return fire at the older twin with a challenging grin. "I didn't think you had it in you!"
One wave set another in motion, and soon, both were shifting through the hot waters, splashing at one another. Hao shoved some of his wet hair from his face after one onslaught with a sputter, and gave a short laugh before resuming the offense. It was nice to act like a fool, act like a child… act like BROTHERS from time to time. And that laugh Yoh let out every time a splash hit it's mark? It was something beautiful. But then again, Yoh was beautiful. Not just his laughter. From demeanor to appearance, Yoh was special. There was very little about him that one could dislike. Hao almost stopped his splashing when he realized what a contradiction he had become in such a short amount of time. But, being Hao, he simply continued, pelting the weakening younger with the warm waves and grinning as Yoh began to sputter and clamber about in his spot.
Maybe… that thought was just a BIT narcissistic. Thinking of the mirror image as beautiful. Who thought of their little brother- their younger twin, no less- the way Hao tended to?
It shifted from time to time, from considering Yoh to be a bumbling battery… to finding that the idea of having the younger in his arms was rather appealing. He certainly wouldn't mind coming up close to him. Take his hands. Maybe go so far as to lean in. Meet mouths. Push him onto the nearest flat surface. Press as close as possible. Give him a grin, have it matched with an eager smile. Go from there.
He was a little surprised, when these thoughts began to rise as a common afterthought in the back of his mind, to find that they… simply didn't bother him the way he was sure they were meant to. Messing around with your twin. Yes, that is a terrible sin, isn't it? Incest. A horrid crime against all things sacred. Eternal damnation. …wasn't he damned already? Hell was a cakewalk for him. Maybe that's why those unholy thoughts didn't frighten him. Or maybe it was the fact that they obviously didn't bother Yoh either.
Grinning as he dodged a weak spray of hot water-wasn't this a bad idea, splashing around in a hot spring? Oh well, it was too late to bother with it now. HE would be fine- he recalled one of the nights prior to this. Several nights, when they first began the matches of the Shaman Fight. It was the night Yoh had gone to visit the X-Laws. Of course, Hao was aware. He knew what the foolish girl had offered his brother, and how they viewed him. "Goodnight, Iron Maiden. See you at the Shaman Fight." How polite. When Yoh left the shipyard, Hao followed, quiet, looking for some manner to amuse himself for the time being.
He had paid some form of attention to the thoughts Yoh had as he went to bed that night. It was his brotherly duty, after all, to make sure his little otouto was doing well, wasn't it? He sat on the roof, hiding his furyoku lest that harpy of a fiancée come out and badger him, and peered into the rampart thoughts that filled that empty skull in the room below. There were thoughts of tomorrow's match. The worry for the condition of his little friend-the one that had the vendetta against the fire shaman. But… it was when Yoh finally rested in bed and stopped moving about the room that caught Hao's attention.
There was the thought of the Lyserg kid, which lead him to think of his reasoning for revenge, which lead him to think of Hao. Yoh's thoughts travelled from his plan, to his attitude, to how he could possibly stop him. Hao grinned. There was simply no way.
But… what if….
Hao's grin fell to a blank expression, one of disbelief as Yoh's mind conjured up an image from nowhere. A second's pause from both to comprehend just what they had 'seen'. A flustered sputter sounded from the room below, but Hao wasn't around to hear it. The rooftop was empty as Yoh came out to sit on the balcony, pondering his thoughts with a dark red face. The fire shaman had left, retreating to his group with the faintest of smiles of amusement on his face.
One would think that Hao would be the one to think of such a thing first. Lip-locked with someone, in such a position that suggested dominance over the other, pinning their arms to a wall, desire clouding eyes behind closed lids. Apparently, according to Yoh's train of thought, not.
Most certainly not.
But… Hao grinned, seeing that Yoh was tiring, leaning back into his original spot at the rim of the tub with several frantic signals of 'T' with his hands, wheezing out "Time out"s as he struggled to catch his breath. He did look a bit red from the water fight. Hao obliged, stopping his hands and coming to a rest in the disturbed pool, taking the time he allowed for Yoh's recovery to look him over. Hair soaked and clinging to his face as he gave soft pants, one hand running through the wet bangs before his eyes and the other gripping to the ledge as he cooled.
Only one way to find out if there any truth to Yoh's manner of thought.
The moment Yoh showed signs of recovery and had raised his head to smile to the older, Hao had drawn close, grabbing both hands of the younger and intertwining their fingers.
He could see the confusion replacing cheer in the black eyes, only to be replaced by shock as he pressed against him with a teasing smirk. If Yoh's skin hadn't been red before, it certainly was now. Hao had managed to straddle him on the ledge of the hot spring, and held his hands captive in his own, face mere inches away.
"H-Hao what the hell are you doing." "Well, I thought it would be obvious." Hao's smirk became smooth as he nuzzled his cheek against the other's, feeling the heat that radiated from it with a sense of satisfaction. "I'm getting closer to my otouto~" Yoh squirmed in the slightest underneath him, but made no attempt to shove him off. "Y-Yes, I can see that. W-What I mean… is… what the hell are you doing."
Hao could feel Yoh's mind reeling. Hear the thoughts that he was too flustered to mask, banging against the walls of his skull like moths at a lantern. Was it a trap? Was it really as simple as getting close? Brotherly affection? …Or, of course, that forbidden taboo that he had thought off, that night on the balcony? "Please, Yoh. If it was a trap, I would have snared you long beforehand." Hiding in the younger's neck, Hao couldn't help but chuckle as he felt the younger tense underneath him. "You should relax, my precious otouto."
"H-Hard to relax with you… doing this." The last few words left Yoh a bit rushed, and Hao could hear hesitation in his voice. "Is it?" Pulling away from his neck, the fire shaman grinned and leaned in, eyes shut in a serene manner as he spoke in a scant whisper, lips brushing against Yoh's with every word, "Your thoughts would say otherwise… unless that's only if you're on top?" Hao peeked open an eye and admired his handiwork. Yoh was sufficiently red now, tensed in what he could only assume was anxiety, but his eyes were half-lidded and dazed, and his hands were gradually adjusting to the curves Hao's hold had created to hold back.
"So… what are you going to do, Yoh..?"
Without giving him a chance to compose himself to respond, Hao had pressed his lips against the younger's, taking in the faint taste of an after-dinner orange that lingered there. Of course, he would taste like citrus. A sharp tang that one wouldn't expect from someone so gentle. …much like his demeanor, it was a bit addicting.
In a passing thought, Hao wondered when Yoh had begun to move against him, pressing as close as he could, and when had his hands had become tangled in his hair? When had his own wrapped around the younger and held him close, traversing his scars and the curves of his hips? When had they becoming entangled, body and broken soul, and when had Yoh's thoughts suddenly become wholly his own?
...but of course, it was only a passing thought.