Don't Be Afraid
By Harmony283
Summary: (AU/X-over w/other Tales games), Genis has always been afraid, but he's always played the strong front, never letting anyone know of his weakness. He always tries to help others--especially his friend Mithos. But what if his friend needs more than just friendship? What will Genis do then?
Pairing(s): Genis/Mithos mainly, Raine/OC, Moses/Jay, Colette/Presea, Presea/Seles, and any other requested pairings.
Disclaimer: I don't own ToS, or any of the other Tales series games, Namco does. I do own the plot, and whatever OC's decide to pop in here and there...
Authors Note: Well here's my first attempt at AU/X-over with the ToS cast. And yes it takes place in Sylvarant but it's more modern than it was then. This is also my first uploaded shojo-ai, as you can see from the pairings. Also, Genis and Mithos' roles are somewhat reversed in this, and there's a reason for it, so please don't bug me about it. And since I have nothing more to say here...on with the fanfic!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A gentle breeze swept over the newly rebuilt city of Palmacosta. After that freak accident almost two years ago, the city had been struggling to repair itself to its former glory. And, now two years later, even though there were still bits and pieces strewn around, as reminders of what had been lost, the city had regained its composure.
It's strong face.
One of the last things to be rebuilt was the old Palmacosta Academy. Though now it was placed farther away from the sea borderline. It was now the center of the greatly enlarged city.
Its blue shingled roof, and white marble front steps only added to the seeming importance of the building--now placed at the center of the city.
Suddenly a soft melody floated in through one of the many windows on the base floor of the Academy. And, if one were to look through this said building--you would see a blond boy of around fourteen years of age, wearing the traditional school uniform. It consisted of the colors green and black. His eyes were closed, holding a pair of rather old looking panpipes up to his lips.
This said boy was in the company of one other, a younger boy who was clothed in a similar uniform, though it was white instead of green. This young boy had silver hair and the most unusual mix of purple, grey, and blue in his eyes.
While the blond boy played his flute-like instrument, sitting on a stool, the younger boy sat on the nearby piano bench, smiling sweetly as the melody floated through the room.
All to soon the blond boy stopped, bringing the panpipes down from his lips and turning to face the younger boy, his cheeks lightly flushed as if embarrassed.
"Ah, um…did you…like that?"
The younger boy smiled, "Of course I did, Mithos! Our performance'll steal the show!"
"B-but are you sure Seles is still…um…y'know, into performing with us? I mean, she's your friend, Genis, so I feel rude asking her…"
Genis' eyes softened, "Don't worry Mithos! She's actually a really easy going girl once you get to know her!"
Mithos looked away, the gentle breeze from the window sweeping over his face, ruffling his blond hair.
And Genis just watched him, yet again wondering how he got to look the way he did. Even though he was a boy, his looks rivaled with any womans. If one didn't know him, they would immediately take him for a girl.
Mithos, of course, noticed his staring and turned back to face him, a curious expression on his face, "What?"
"Oh--uh…um…wh-why are you so…afraid of S-Seles then…?"
"Because," Mithos placed the panpipe on the windowsill, tucking strands of loose hair behind his ear, biting his lip in nervousness.
"Because?" Genis prodded, leaning length ways on the piano bench, almost touching the boys leg.
"Because she's popular and…and no one wants to work with a…a…me…"
"And why not? You're an awesome person Mithos!"
Mithos just shook his head, looking down sadly, "No I'm not…"
Genis immediately shot up from his piano bench, "Don't you dare say that! Don't degrade yourself--haven't we talked about this?"
Mithos just stared up at him, his bright turquoise eyes mirroring perfectly the sadness that they held inside.
This hurt Genis more than any blow could. No matter…no matter how hard he tried, he could never get Mithos to see what he saw…though people--especially his psychology teacher, and the councilors--said he was giving the boy just what he needed--it still didn't seem to be enough.
Nothing ever seemed to be enough.
"Mithos…"
Thankfully the blond wasn't too deep in his own self-pity to let the sadness in his friends voice go unnoticed.
"Genis? What's wrong."
Genis opened his mouth, wanting to say exactly what was on his mind, but quickly shut it. At times like this bringing up something you dislike about a person might not be the best idea.
"Genis?"
He turned to look out the window, "I--well, why don't we go get Seles together then?"
Mithos seemed shocked at this, "B-But--!"
"Don't worry!" Genis pushed away the feelings he had of guilt at not helping Mithos enough with a smile, grabbing onto the shy boys hand, "Everything will be okay!"
Mithos looked down at the ground, mumbling something just under his breath--something Genis couldn't quite hear, before smiling brokenly, "S-Sure…I g-guess so."
The younger boy then proceeded to drag the slightly older, taller boy out of the sunbathed room off to find a certain pink haired sapphire eyed friend of his.
-------------
15 minutes later
"You've got to be kidding me Seles!" A fourteen-year-old girl with brown, slightly curly, hair and cocoa colored eyes whispered sounding quite alarmed at the news that was just shared. Her uniform, green and black with a full-length skirt, swished lazily from side to side as the soft wind meandered by.
"But I'm not kidding, Coral. I don't see why you have to always sound so…so shocked when I tell you these things." Seles, a girl around the same age as the brunette, with short cropped magenta hair and azure eyes--wearing the same green and black uniform--stated rolling her eyes as she fiddled with her skirt once more, making sure the folds hadn't gone crooked from the light playfulness of the wind.
"But Se-les! He--you know Mithos is, y'know--" she was pleasantly cut off when she someone rather rudely tapped on her shoulder.
She whipped around only to see Genis standing there with a sour disapproving look on his face, "Mithos is what?" he asked, his tone perfectly matching his expression, all the while Mithos hid behind him--but it didn't really work due to the height difference--with a sad look on his face.
Corals' face pinched up, "And why should I tell you what I was going to say? You…you little sixth grader!" she then looked back at Mithos, eyes narrowing, "And I honest to goodness don't see how you two could be 'just friends' when everyone knows that Mithos G-A-Y, Gay!"
Mithos flinched at the comment, looking away in disgust, either for himself, or for Coral one couldn't tell.
"Coral!"
"Hmph, I don't need to be seen around with you people." She made a point to stare straight at Mithos whilst she said this, and also made an attempt to give him a hateful glare as she walked by him.
A few minutes later, silence hung in the air, Seles just blankly staring after Coral--though her visage had long disappeared from view.
Genis just kept a firm grip on Mithos' hand, like had been doing, watching to see what the older boys' reaction would be.
Well, whatever the outcome, he knew the first thing on the blondes mind was to 'get away'. He just hoped that this time it wouldn't be as…violent as it had been last time.
He watched as the wind blew Mithos' bangs in his eyes, watching as a single tear slid down his cheek--pure as crystal--before opening his mouth to speak.
"Mithos?"
With a shaky breath Mithos pulled away, "I'm fine…"
But he didn't sound fine.
"Mithos!" Genis tried to regain his grip on the other boy, only to fail miserably, watching as Mithos turned and ran across the courtyard and into a doorway leading to the guys' dorm rooms.
"M-Mithos…"
"Oh god…" Seles breathed.
"I--I'm sorry Seles. I have to go." Genis smiled apologetically before rushing after Mithos, gaining even more attention from the passerby's.
Seles just shook her head, "That really didn't go as planned."
And then a hand fell on her shoulder, making her jump.
"Care to tell me what's going on, Miss Seles?"
"Oh--Oh! Mr. Bryant!"
"Yes can you please tell us? I saw it from my office window and--"
"Miss April--ah, y-yes I suppose I should since Genis…and this was…"
"Corals fault again?"
Seles merely nodded her head.
Mr. Bryant shot April a knowing look, "We should talk about this in my office, and someone needs to call Miss Coral down to the office immediately."
-------------------------
10 minutes later…
"M-Mithos…please let me in!"
There was no answer. So Genis continued to wait, hoping that the blonde boy would open up the door on his own will. Yes he had a key--it was his room as well--so it wasn't really a problem getting into the room.
It was just that it might not be the best solution. April--the schools main councilor--had always said that invading a persons' privacy, especially a person who was upset or angry, wouldn't be the correct way to go about getting in. The person had to actually let you in.
Genis sighed softly, "Mithos…"
Then, almost too faint for the boy to hear, there was the sound of muffled crying. That really wasn't a good thing, but it gave Genis some hope to actually be let in.
"Mithos, please open up."
There was a loud choking sob as Mithos obviously tried to say something. Though it only came out mixed up and slightly off from any normal form of speech.
"Hey Genis!"
The silver haired boy jumped at the sound of another voice in the hallway, and quickly turned to face it.
"Lloyd…?" he whispered, but then quickly shook his head.
Lloyd--a seventeen-year-old boy with brown hair and matching eyes, wearing the traditional highschool uniform of red and white--just looked confused.
A slightly older man, around his mid twenties with long flowing red hair and sapphire eyes, walked up behind him and--seeming to understand the young boys meaning--dragged Lloyd away.
And almost right after that, footsteps could be heard coming towards the dorm room door. Genis back up slightly as the door opened, revealing a rather teary-eyed Mithos.
"Oh…" Genis breathed, thankful to see that Mithos seemed otherwise unharmed. He then moved forward, Mithos moving quickly out of the way so he could come in.
Once in the room Mithos quickly locked the door again, exhaling a shaky breath.
Genis turned around immediately to face the blond, a concerned look overtaking his features, "Mithos…are you…?"
"She…she…didn't have to say it…"
"You mean Coral?"
Mithos nodded his head; moving forward a few steps before collapsing on the floor--head bowed.
"Mithos! No…don't--wha…? Is that--" Genis quickly bent down to his friend, grabbing his wrist to inspect it. To which the blond jerked away.
But Genis was sure he had seen it…he was sure of it. He was sure he saw that cut, it was small but it was there, on his wrist.
"Mithos did you…did you cut yourself?" He whispered. Urgency--as well as fear--mixing in with his overall worry for his friend.
Mithos didn't answer; he just drew his legs up under him, pressing his back against the nearest wall, and bowed his head. Soon after he did this, soft muffled sobs could be heard coming from the boys' mouth.
"M-Mithos…? Mithos please…" Genis moved to sit next to the older boy, reaching out to rest his hand on the said boys forearm.
Mithos just shrugged it off, his whimpers getting louder. To which Genis sighed, he really didn't want to…he didn't want to do this, he always knew forcing a person like Mithos to do something was never a good thing, but--
He moved so that he was now sitting on his knees in front of the older blond, placing his hands on both of the boys' arms.
"Mithos."
The boy heard the controlling--and slightly scary--tone of voice Genis used, and looked up hesitantly. His eyes still had remnants of tears in them, and dried ones could be seen on his cheeks. Genis just moved closer--reaching a hesitant hand out to cup one of the blondes' cheeks.
When Mithos didn't respond, Genis trailed his thumb over to the edge of his eye, wiping away the tear that resided there, smiling reassuringly to Mithos, "Are you…are you going to talk to me now?"
Mithos tilted his head to the side--an unusual look present in his eyes, "I…yes…I will. But…"
"But what?"
"Why do you…want to talk to me? Is it because Miss April wanted you to?"
"I haven't seen April since she came over to my house last weekend for dinner." The silver-haired boy stated, "Besides I want to talk to you because we're friends…right?"
"Yes…friends…" Mithos seemed even sadder by this.
"What's wrong? Don't you like being friends with someone?"
The blond boy looked down, as if ashamed of himself, "I--I…you…" he trailed off, glancing up at the younger boy before quickly looking away again--his face turning a light shade of pink as he did so.
This just further confused Genis, "What's wrong Mithos? What did I do?"
"You make me…hurt…"
"What? Ah--I'm so--"
"--not in a bad way!" Mithos quickly cut him off, his eyes now turning to look at him, a small, hesitant, smile spreading across his lips. This, in a way, was one of the most surprising--and near surreal--things that had ever happened to the young boy.
"Mithos? Not hurt…in a bad way? What do you mean?"
Mithos shyly looked away, but then back at him. He then unfolded his legs and stood on his knees so that he was not only closer to the other boy--but taller as well.
"Wha--?"
"I…you make my heart hurt…and I think I…ah…well…" he shook his head, giving up entirely on words. Instead he cupped Genis' face in a similar way that had been done to him, and tilted the said boys face upwards.
Their lips were mere centimeters apart, and Genis seemed frozen--not really sure how to react. All he knew was that he couldn't move.
Soft pressure was suddenly felt on the younger of the two boys' lips. But he still couldn't move.
And each second held in this intimate--and slightly awkward--embrace seemed to last hours. It wasn't until a loud knock on the door--followed by urgent voices--that the two boys seemed to realize the state they were in, and Mithos pulled away.
He got up hurriedly and ran into the bathroom, not even looking his 'friend' in the face.
All the while Genis just stood there, slightly shocked at the encounter. It took him a moment, but he managed to get ahold of his emotions long enough to get up and walk over to the door. He opened it to reveal April and Dr. Bryant
"Ah…hey, c-come in…"
"Genis how is Mithos?" April asked once in the room.
Genis shook his head, pointing to the bathroom door, causing the green haired womans face to pale, "What…?" she then turned to face the door, knocking on it lightly, "Mithos? Mithos are you in there? Please come out."
They heard the water faucet squeak, and soon the sound of water could be heard.
"Mithos?" Genis tried, touching the doorknob gently. In response the water turned off.
"I don't…want to talk…to anyone but…Genis." His words were broken, and he seemed to be on the verge of tears again. Genis just looked back at everyone in the room, an apologetic look on his face.
One that April seemed to understand, "Don't worry, Genis…I understand. I'll just talk to you later."
Genis nodded his head and watched as the two adults walked out of the room.
Soon after Genis placed another soft knock on the oak door, hoping to get Mithos to open it this time. The fact that there was still water running made him think that either Mithos was hiding something from him, or he was planning on taking a shower--even though he wouldn't have anything clean to wear if he did.
Though regardless of which one it was, Mithos opened the door, causing Genis to smile in relief, "Good, now let's get that cut bandaged up just in ca--Mithos?" The said blonde had backed up so that he was right in the middle of the tiled bathroom--with his head bowed, cheeks flushed in embarrassment.
Genis sighed at this, moving forward quickly and grabbing Mithos' hand, "Come on, Mithos, there's nothing to be embarrassed about." He coaxed, tugging him gently. Of course, Mithos reacted to this and, once they were out in the actual dorm room, he asked:
"How can you…how can you say I shouldn't be embarrassed?" it was soft and low, but he had said it--and now his emotions reflected that.
"Because you shouldn't be. I'm here for you, Mithos, you know that." Genis said, turning and picking up the first aid kit--which now had a permanent resting spot on the small side table next to the door.
He then turned back around, trying his best to ignore the look Mithos was giving him, before walking over to his bed. He turned and motioned Mithos to come over and, reluctantly, he did.
"Now let me see your wrist."
Mithos showed it to him, without much hesitation this time. This made Genis almost sigh out loud in relief. Sometimes Mithos could be…difficult. But other times he could be, well, willing. Genis opened the first aid kit, pulling out a small bottle of disinfectant as well as some bandages.
"Here, this might sting a little but it'll help keep your…the…cut from getting infected." Mithos just nodded his head, not really reacting much to Genis' words.
But when Genis tipped the liquid onto a small cotton ball and then rubbed it on the wound, he winced and gasped tugging his arm away and scooting farther back on the bed. Genis just sighed at this, shaking his head.
"I told you it was going to sting. Now let me see you wrist again."
Mithos shook his head.
"…I need to bandage it…"
Mithos stopped shaking his head, but he still didn't move.
Genis sighed softly, shaking his head from side to side, "Mithos…just hold out your arm…it'll be over fast. I mean, all I'm doing is wrapping up your wrist…or…or do you want people to see that you—!"
A hand covering his mouth abruptly cut him off.
"Mphos?"
Mithos shook his head, "No I don't want anyone to know but…"
"Ben et me bahdage iht."
Mithos shook his head once more, "They'll ask why. You know that sort of thing…um…draws attention. A-and with the school talent show coming up…I-I…"
"Ben what ahre you gohna do?"
"I-I'll wear long sleeves…I usually do anyway so no one'll notice…"
ihf you say so…but can you let me go?"
Mithos blinked, then smiled, or at least attempted to, and pulled his hand away.
"S-sorry…"
"It's fine." Genis said, attempting to smile as well. He then glanced down at his companions wrist, "But…I still…" he seemed at a loss for words, "I--it's just…how could you…why did you…ah…"
"Why did I what? Cut myself? Because I…I really don't want to talk about it…" Mithos turned away, not wanting to see the sad face Genis made after hearing those words spoken from his own mouth.
"But…"
"I…please just don't ask…" he tugged at the sleeves of his school uniform, hiding the cut somewhat as he moved to get off the bed. But Genis didn't want him to leave, or at least he didn't want him to have the last word.
"Is it…because of your sister? Of what happened to her?"
Mithos froze, eyes widening in fear, "Wh-what…? Where did you…? How do you…?" he turned back around to face Genis, who was looking down at the bedcovers. He didn't answer immediately so Mithos asked again, "How do you, or rather what do you, know about my sisters death?"
"I--I'm so sorry!" Genis clenched his fists, gripping at the comforter, feeling ashamed at this knowledge, "I…overheard…when you first went to see April. I-I was filing some stuff for her and I just, um, I didn't know where something went…so I wanted to ask her." He looked back up at Mithos, who was now on the edge of the bed, "I'm so sorry, I know eavesdropping is bad, and…and I'm sorry for not telling you sooner. I just…I just--"
Suddenly Genis was pulled from his position on the edge of the bed, and into Mithos' arms. A few seconds later he felt the fabric covering his shoulder become wet with tears…tears he hadn't know Mithos was shedding until that very moment.
"Mithos…?"
Almost as soon as he spoke he was shoved away, falling back on the bed, Mithos looming over him with reddened eyes, and yet, despite this saddened look, he seemed serious, "Does anyone else…did you tell anyone? Even Raine? Did you tell Raine?"
Genis shook his head, slightly dazed from being pushed back so quickly, "No…I didn't." He tried to sit up, but Mithos only pushed him down again.
"You…really didn't?"
"I really didn't…I wouldn't do that. You're my friend, Mithos, I wouldn't betray you like that." The smaller boy said--his voice soft and ironically soothing to the distraught blond despite the scared tone hidden in them.
"Y-Yeah…you're right…we're frie--" A sudden revelation seemed to hit the older of the two, causing him to leap off of Genis, and back up. Genis, now having the freedom to sit up decided to do so, sat up, blinking confusedly at his friend's actions.
"Mithos? What's wrong?"
"I…I…I…um…"
"What's wrong…?"
Mithos' hands went up to his lips, a flush tinting his cheeks. That's when Genis got it, "You…you're still embarrassed about that kiss…?"
Mithos flushed even more but didn't say anything. He just looked down.
"Don't worry about it. I, um, you, uh…it's okay…just, um," he took a deep steadying breath before continuing, "I won't ask why. You can, um, tell me…when you want to…so, um, like I said, don't worry about it."
Mithos nodded his head in response, though he didn't seem to like the request. Not that he was in any way, shape, or form ready to argue. He, by no means, seemed to want to explain his reasons for the sudden bout of affection--a.k.a the kiss.
He took a shaky breath, turning away and walking towards the doorway, "Um, I think I'll go apologize to April now."
Genis quickly got up off the bed, "Okay! Do you want me to come with you or do you want to go by yourself?"
"B-by myself but, um," he glanced back at the silver haired boy, "If you could…um…I might be hungry when I get back…"
Genis smiled brightly, "You might be hungry? Well okay then! What would you like to eat? Anything's okay with me, I can always ask Raine for money, so that's not a problem."
Mithos nodded his head, "O-okay then, um, why don't we…go out to eat? Um, I mean…there's a restaurant that, um, that April's older sister works at right?"
"Ah--so you're in the mood for that Chinese buffet place? That's fine with me! I'll be waiting when you get back."
"O-okay then…I'll try not to be late." With that said Mithos quickly slipped out the door, but not fast enough so that Genis could miss the blush that fluttered across his cheeks once more.
After a few seconds Genis 'got it' again.
"W-wait a s-second…did he just…? Did I just…?" he let out a long sigh, "Seles better not hear about this…she'll think it's a date…"
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And that's the end of Part One! As I said in the beginning pairing suggestions are welcome, I don't care who the characters are (even if they're already paired with someone else already)…I really don't so feel free to contribute. Any crossover pairings with other Tales games is allowed as well. Now then, R&R! I love reviews, and of course CC is welcome--but NO flames.