Author's Note: Yo! It's me, Arc, with the first decent fic I've ever written! Sure, I've had ideas. Sure, I've started things. But this is the one, the only fic I've worked on with actual effort. I've revised, printed, asked people for feedback. I've edited! It's my baby. ^^;; I didn't just start from a random idea. This plot was developed! (gasp?) It might seem a little confusing at first, but that's the point. You should be able to figure something out by chapter two, which will be posted directly after this one. No wait time. Lucky you.
Sorry if it seems a bit OOC at first. My 'beta readers'—feel special, I'm mentioning you!—didn't really think so, but I'm paranoid about my writing… It will get better, I promise!
{Insert Witty Disclaimer Here}
♪…Just to live one day out there… ♪
The words were in a different language. English, most likely. Sung. Not in a beautiful voice, but enough to add emotion to the song.
He couldn't see the face, but he knew someone was crying. Though apart from the figure, the other's emotions were as clear as his own. A feeling of silliness, followed by the thought that crying was for babies. But all the same, how he wanted it… //Wanted what?// More sobs were choked back, shaking the body. The body that was simultaneously his and the other's, the body that refused to stop.
Omi bolted upright in his bed. The sheets clung to his body, damp with sweat, some of which was racing down the young boy's forehead.
Damn reoccurring dream. Vaguely, he remembered similar ones from his youth. Memories from that time were fuzzy, so the dreams had been even less clear. It was like trying to look at his reflection in a pool of mud. The dreams unnerved him for some reason. He didn't know why they did, only that there was something familiar. What disturbed him the most was that in the past three days; he had not yet caught a glimpse of the face.
His breathing returned to normal. The blue eyes closed as he sighed. Perhaps he was thinking too much. A new mission was scheduled for tomorrow night—tonight, judging from a quick glance at his clock. The red digital numbers glared at him, crimson light that dared him to go back to sleep. Yes. Maybe it was just stress that forced repeated images through his brain. Stress…
Another sigh escaped the young assassin's mouth as he sank back against the bed, head resting softly on the slightly wet pillow. //That dream is driving me crazy… I should just forget about it until after the mission…//
Morning. Great. A huge yawn stretched across Omi's entire face, threatening to swallow him up. He rubbed his eyes sleepily. That dream had kept him awake longer than he thought.
No. He had decided not to think about it, and he wasn't.
Was he?
It haunted him, gnawing at his mind like a dog with its favorite bone. He knew it was just a dream, but he had to find out who that boy was, why he was crying, and what purpose that eerily familiar song had in all of this. If he didn't it was sure to drive him crazy. Why, why, why?!
Omi went about his usual routine as if in a trance, not really stopping to think about anything he was doing. It finally hit him that he needed to pay more attention when he nearly washed his body with shampoo.
"Are you OK?" asked Ken later as they opened up the flower shop.
"Hm? Me? I'm fine, really!" Omi protested, his cheerful façade slipping into place.
It was obvious that, while his words said one thing, his eyes were singing to a whole different tune. None of the others thought too much of it, however. Each had their own demons to contend with and Omi's just happened to be rearing their ugly heads that particular day. He was perfectly capable of dealing with them; they knew not to interfere too much in each other's personal business.
Conversation was nonexistent for some time, increasing as the day continued. Customers came in, customers came out; it was routine as usual. For some time, Omi managed to drown out his thoughts in the common hum of everyday life. Yet at every corner, something else would make him think about that dream. Maybe he should sit the mission out… //No, then I'd just have time to sit here and think about it even more.//
"…hmph!"
Omi blinked a few times, finally noticing a customer at the register a moment too late. Sapphires followed the girl's back as she walked out and then wandered down to the counter where her ex-purchase was laying.
"Hey. I'll take over for a bit if you want." Yoji told the younger boy.
It was just his way of showing concern, and Omi was grateful for it. "Thanks, Yoji-kun."
Yoji winked. "Now you owe me one."
Omi didn't have to try as hard to force a smile at the joke. Typical Yoji…
Balinese immediately became more serious. He lowered his voice so just the two of them could hear. "You'll be OK by tonight, right? Don't need you zoning out like that if we run into any trouble."
Omi nodded.
"Good."
It was time. Like the maintaining of the store, the missions had become routine. Normal. Each member of Weib had their own way of dealing with it, and soon they were ready to leave. Knowing they relied heavily on him to formulate the plan of action, Omi sincerely hoped that he hadn't been too distracted by that bizarre dream. Any flaws in the plan…
On the way to their destination, Omi's mouth opened and closed a few times, silence dominating the urge to start some kind of conversation. Lately, silence only made his situation worse. He could hear his heart beating in his ears and tried to push the sound away, to no avail. Aya noticed the boy's discomfort and decided finally to interfere and save him the suffering.
"We're almost there, right?" Abyssinian asked, his voice as cold and sharp as the katana he carried with him.
"U—uh, yeah." Ken affirmed, shocked at the sudden breaking of the quiet.
Omi forced the dream from his mind, trying to clear it of anything but the goal. Act first, think later. He still had trouble doing this, but it was life.
End Note: So… What did you think of it? Hopefully you're interested enough to review and/or go on to chapter two? ::crosses fingers:: Chapter two is Omi's POV, and the later chapters will probably switch off between him and the mystery character who will be playing a very important role in the rest of the story. Who will the mystery character be? That will be my little secret…but it's not an original character, so don't worry. ^__~