Title: In the Waiting Room
Author: Amm (SoulSeeker)
Fandom: Spiral: Suiri no Kizuna
Disclaimer: Don't own Spiral, so nyah, you can't sue. Would love it if I did, but for now, I'm just happy to be playing with the characters.
Words: 892
Rating: For Everyone/PG
Summary: (Ficlet) It was said that whatever didn't kill you made you stronger… (HiyonoAyumu, sort of)

Narumi Ayumu had made his decision about the Blade Children. It wasn't one that Hiyono necessarily agreed with, but he had made it clear that, well, frankly, he didn't really care. He was not one of them, nor was he really interested in helping them; not to mention, it had been obvious to him that the Blade Children were not exactly interested in his help either.

After all, the Blade Children were used to Hunter attacks. Rio, Kousuke, Eyes, Ryoko… the attacks were almost expected, and they all knew how to deal. But anyway you looked at them, they were still human. They still had plenty of room for error, and when the Hunter attacks got fewer and farther in between, that's when that room for error sized itself up.

It was part of the Hunters' new strategy. Attack less, in a bigger way, so that they don't know what's coming beforehand, and they don't know what hit them, afterwards. It was that moment of off-guard surprise that had successfully landed all three of them—Kousuke, Rio and Ryoko—in the hospital, and the only reason Eyes was spared the same fate was because he was out of the country.

Ayumu didn't particularly want to see them or help them out while they were there, like Hiyono suggested; they'd gotten themselves into that mess, and they were responsible for getting themselves out—not to mention very capable of it—but somehow, Hiyono made it difficult to say no.

Thus, they found themselves in the hospital waiting room, talking with one of the doctors who had operated on them. He had seemed eager to help them…so it seemed not everyone in the whole world was out to get them after all. Just the Hunters.

"I'm afraid you can't go in to see them at the moment, however," one of the doctors informed them after discussing the damage done. "We're going to need a little more time alone with them just to see how they're recovering. But you should be able to see them in about an hour." The man, looking handsomely dignified, took a peek at his watch. "It's getting somewhat late though. You may want to just come back tomorrow."

But of course, Hiyono did not comply. "It's okay! We can wait one measly hour. Can't we, Ayumu?" She nudged him threateningly, and Ayumu simply sighed as he rolled his eyes.

"Sure. Whatever," he muttered nonchalantly; and Hiyono smiled in approval.

The doctor looked approvingly at the two of them, impressed with their vigilance, and nodded. "Well, I'll let you know when you can see them then," he told them. "Please, make yourselves comfortable."

They nodded their thanks, and he took his leave back into the ICU room where the three Blade Children resided.

The two teens sat down, and seats they provided reminded Hiyono that it was definitely past her alleged bedtime. She became tired, resting her head on the backing of the seat near Ayumu's shoulder, but when he saw that Look on her face—that Look that told him that she was drowning in thoughts—he became curious.

"What's that look about?" he prodded.

"What look?" Hiyono tried her best to feign innocence, but at that point in their twisted game of Life, Ayumu knew her way too well to be fooled by it. In fact, she didn't even really know why she even bothered.

"Don't play stupid," he demanded. "I know you're thinking of something, and as long as we've got an hour here of nothing to do, you might as well share it."

She sighed. It was at times like this that she hated being a complete open book, especially to him. But she supposed she couldn't help it. Besides, if she had to choose between that and being misunderstood, then being predictable most definitely won.

"Well," she began, "I was just thinking. About a saying…" She paused for a moment, to see if he would interrupt. But he didn't. "You know. That old saying that goes, 'what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.'"

Ayumu's expression remained unchanged, but she could tell he was listening. He always did. "What about it?" he asked, motioning for her to continue.

At that Hiyono smiled, as if to say 'well, I'm glad you asked.' She met her eyes with his and painted a smirk on her face as she responded quite ambiguously: "If we apply it to the Blade Children…what do you think it'll mean?"

A smile crossed Ayumu's lips in return. It didn't take him long to see where she was going with this. "Well, that's easy," he purred confidently. He purposely paused for a few moments, creating an air of suspense as he made Hiyono ponder at his words; his thoughts. "It means they aren't just strong. They're downright invincible."

Hiyono nodded with a smile, knowing all along that he'd get her meaning. "Exactly."

It was the first compliment she'd ever heard him give to the Blade Children in a long time, and she was happy for it. It was a sign of hope—at least for her, it was—that perhaps one day they could befriend the Blade Children. That they could lead normal lives one day…

And that whatever conditions the Blade Children were battling in there right now…they could survive, defy fate…and come out alive.

A/N: Just a random idea that came into my head. I've been writing for Rio and Kousuke and haven't had a chance to write much Hiyono/Ayumu, so I jumped at the chance. It turned out a tad longer than I thought (the whole point of it was the part at the end x.x), but hope the little idea sounded as good to you guys as it did to me in my head.

Thanks for reading!