„The only thing I can do is to watch over them from afar" – Renji, Chapter 70.
When they first met the city of Tokyo was submerged in a wonderful dawn; in colors far more beautiful than their pitiful existence could ever be. Something god would only show the humans as a parted gift from heaven itself.
Renji eyed the ghoul in front him suspiciously. A tall man with light hair, a red mask and a white coat; definitely one of the higher-ups from Aogiri – Tatara, a ghoul from China. They stood in the middle of a narrow road in the 20th ward, where their lives emerged with the shadows. Renji's gaze wandered from cold red eyes to the boy in the other's arms. His sharp ghoul ears could hear the fast beating heart, the hectic breaths and the quiet whimpers escaping that small mouth.
Ayato was in a bad shape, his eyes closed, nearly unconscious. An omega suffering through his first heat. Of course, Renji had thought about the day when his niece and nephew would come of age, but never in his dreams had he thought about Ayato or Touka being an omega. The scent was faint, but sickly sweet.
"Yomo Renji, guardian of the 20th ward. Ayato's uncle", the other ghoul stated as if he was looking at a paper, talking to himself.
Renji was taken aback for a moment, realizing his behavior too late to be able to compose himself in time – Ayatos' uncle. He had known Aogiri for having one of the best informants, but to go as far as to collect information regarding the degree of the blood relationship between families was much more than he had ever imagined.
"What do you want here", Renjo asked sharply.
Tatara looked down at the boy in his arms – appearing to be deep in his thoughts before turning his gaze to Renji once more.
"I'm taking him", the other ghoul stated bluntly.
Renji could feel his jaw muscles tightening, clenching his fists. How dare he! Ayato was his to protect; his nephew. Their blood was running through his veins, knotting the bond between the child and himself. He could feel his anger rising, similar to the day he had confronted Arima.
"Don't you- ", Renji started.
"I'm taking him as my mate", the Chinese ghoul interrupted him.
Somehow that sentence took him at ease a little bit. A mate. An alpha who wanted to protect an omega as a mate was a rare thing. Surely, under normal circumstances, Ayato could have been killed by Aogiri's alpha for only presenting as a lowlife – Aogiri needed Ayato. He was fast and strong, climbing up the ranks with each passing year, but at the same time making one enemy after the other. An alpha was able to protect him, when he was out of reach for Renji.
"I'm able to give him what he wants. You on the other hand- ", Tatara interrupted himself, falling into silence. The last ray of sunlight fought against the upcoming night, lightening the main street behind the other alpha.
No more words were exchanged. The Aogiri ghoul turned his back on Renji – the young omega now sleeping peacefully in his arms. He silently had given Tatara the permission to bond with his nephew.
Renji stayed at the narrow street even after the other ghoul had left his field of vision, thinking about the future that Ayato would now await.
If you could see him right now, neesan, would you be able to save him from this world?
Three years later they were sitting at one of the highest building the 20th ward offered, exchanging information in the middle of the night. Tatara would never warm up to him, but the sympathy was on both sides. They simply couldn't stand each other. They had but one thing in common – protecting Ayato. The occasional meetings were filled with more silence than exchanging words – updates on Ayato's actions.
Renji had no idea if Tatara knew that every word the other ghoul spoke was weighted heavily against him and to be analyzed down to the smallest details.
"Hinami Fueguchi was kidnapped by the CCG. He wants to save her."
Renji sighed, looking at the couple on the ground, who's lively chat could be heard even at their current place.
"They took her to the Cochlea", Tatara continued.
"What?", he snapped at the other ghoul, almost a little too loud for Tatara's liking. With each passing day Renji could feel himself growing more and more irritated, not only because of the current situation with Uta, but with the overall hunts which were performed on the side streets of Tokyo. Nowadays the city was becoming more and more dangerous; with each passing minute the chance to survive got slimmer and slimmer.
"He will save her", the other ghoul rephrased the sentence.
"You have to stop him!", Renji snapped, voice rising.
"I tried."
Renji suddenly stood up, closing the distance between them and grabbing Tatara by the scruff of the neck. Although the other ghoul was taller than him, he didn't feel intimidated in the slightest. Their eyes met, like thunder striking on a clear blue sky.
"Stop him! He doesn't know what he is doing!"
Tatara sighed, standing completely still, unfaced by the sudden outburst.
"I tried. He is stubborn."
Renji pulled him closer, clenching his teeth.
"It's your duty to protect him. You are his alpha!"
Cold fingers clasped around his arms, trying to break Renji's hold on the white coat.
Renji broke the eye contact first, losing his grip on the white clothing. There was no use in getting angry at that man. He needed to do something – saving the boy from his stupid ideas. He turned around, letting the wind blow through his hair before making the attempt to leave the roof top.
"I will pack him up", Renji said over his shoulder to the other ghoul.
Tatara didn't say a word. The meeting was over. He needed to get back to their hide out; reminding Ayato of his place in Aogiri. Hopefully that would keep his omega at bay.
Later that night the first thing Tatara smelt after entering Ayato's room was blood. But that kind of metallic smell that changed to a rotten one when to be exposed to the air for too long. Ayato was nowhere to be seen; the bed was empty, clothing was lying around – messy as always. A faint light source came from the closed bathroom door.
Tatara closed the door and went to open the bathroom door. The fact that it wasn't locked was far stranger than the heavy scent of rotten blood grew thicker and thicker as he came closer to the other room.
Inside the bathroom he was met with a nightmarish scene. Ayato lying in his own pool of blood on the floor, crouching down and whimpering softly. He had removed his clothes, exposing the warm white skin to the cold air. His eyes were closed, his teeth clenched.
Tatara closed the distance between them, kneeling beside the omega. He reached for the other's arms to look at the possible hidden wound. Ayato flinched away immediately.
"Don't", he forced the words out of his mouth.
"What happened?"
"Nothing."
Tatara raised his eyebrows, looking at the now shivering mess before him. Surely this didn't look like nothing… His eyes scanned the omega from head to toe, studying the fine line of blood running down the other's legs.
"Leave. I don't need you", Ayato panted.
Tatara ignored the comment and reached for one of Ayato's knees. The skin contact led the younger one to grab one of his legs, looking with bloodshot eyes to his alpha.
"Don't", the omega said again – this time in almost a begging voice.
Tatara stopped but didn't let go. He saw the tears which the other one tried to hide – tears of anger, tears of deep sadness.
"I-I lost it", Ayato said.
Slowly Tatara pressed the omega's legs apart. Wrinkling his nose at the scent. Dark, almost black, colored blood was tripping out continuously. But he couldn't find a trace of an stillborn child.
"You didn't", he stated, still studying the boy's abdomen. Surely there was a lot of blood, but so far nothing else could be seen.
Tatara lend forward, pushing his hands under the younger one's body, lifting him up.
"It hurts! Fuck! Put me down!", Ayato yelled.
The boy needed to be cleaned, not staining that beautiful soft body with his own blood. All that shouting, and yelling didn't face Tatara a bit. With time he had learned to ignore most of the things that Ayato had told him not to do.
He put the struggling omega inside the bathtub, turning the tap on. Thankfully the boy was already naked. Unclothing the omega had always been a process followed by scratching, yelling and flinching away. Even after three years of being his mate, Ayato still didn't trust him.
He took his mask and shoes off before unzipping his bloodstained coat. Ayato shot him a killing glance while shielding his body with his arms from the alpha's sight. The tube filled itself with hot water, mixing itself together with the red fluid.
Tatara moved the boy forward, making some space for himself. They hadn't taken a bath like that in almost a year. It was simply too intimate; letting Ayato lying half asleep on his chest, listening to the soft whimpers escaping the throat of the other one. Their beating hearts close together.
He did care about the wellbeing of the younger one, but this thing they had was nothing like love. It was simply a bond, formed by their reckless deed three years ago. Sometimes Tatara caught the boy looking at him with an almost loving gaze, but before he is even able to comment on Ayato's behavior the boy always turns his back on him.
Aogiri had no place for something called love. Nobody was really able to tell them when their clocks would strike. It was easier dying without having someone to care about you.
Ayato shifted slightly. Adjusting himself between long legs, lying on his side.
"Are you still going to save her?", Tatara asked while turning off the tap.
"Yes", the omega whispered.
"This mission will be the death of you."
Ayato turn his head to face the alpha. Blue eyes meeting red ones.
"So, you do care."
Tatara raised an eyebrow. Of course, he cared. What a ridiculous statement.
"You are carrying my child."
"Tsk. It will die anyway", Ayato countered.
"You don't know that."
Ayato clenched his fists, grinding his teeth. Tatara put a hand on the other's abdomen, feeling the already forming bump.
"I need to save her."
"Because you took her in?"
"No."
Because she is important to me, hang unsaid in the air. He could see Ayato's eyelids growing heavier and heavier. He was not able to change the youngster's decision. The only thing he could do was to lend him a hand.
But was this really worth it. This relationship they had…
Renji sat next to Ayato, pulling out the last knife, letting the youngster's body heal by itself. They were currently inside the newly opened café, tending to their wounds. Touka left a few minutes ago, leaving her brother with him. The mission was a success, but they lost a good amount of people trying to break inside the Cochlea.
A soft knock on the door cut his stream of thoughts, forcing his eyes to look at the intruder.
"He is alright", Renji said more to himself than Tatara.
The other ghoul entered the room, walking straight towards the couch, bending down. Renji eyed the other ghoul's behavior suspiciously.
"What are you doing?"
Tatara lifted the shirt, pressing the palm of his hand slightly against the swollen abdomen.
"It's still there", the alpha whispered. Renji could see the other's eyes softening, looking relieved at the boy's body.
He took a moment to process what Tatara was implying, when he finally did his eyes widened, his feelings a mixture of anger and happiness.
Tatara's gaze shifted from Ayato to him.
"He is pregnant."