Title: Nightmares
Author/pseudonym: NemKess
Fandom: WK
Pairing: one-sided Omi/Ran
Rating: PG13
E-mail address for feedback:: nemsmuses@msn.com
Disclaimers: belong to me? I could only wish. Nope, not mine. No copyright infringement is intended and no money is made. This is purely to silence the voices in my head. ^_^
Notes: Chronologically speaking, this would fall between 'Tears in
the Rain' and 'Unexpected Savior'. (that's about six years after 'A Name'
and about 8 or 9 before 'Blood-Stained Angel'). I'm posting this one and
not the others because it's the only one not littered in spoilers for B-SA.
Summary: Set after the episode with Omi's eldest brother.
Warnings: Shonen ai.
Hands clawed at him as he cried. Why were they doing this? Why didn't his father come and save him? What had he ever done that was so bad it deserved this punishment?
His questions garnered no answers, only sneering laughter from his tormentors.
When it was over, every part of his body hurt, but none so much as his heart.
Why?
Why wasn't he good enough to be loved?
When the torture started again, different faces this time, something inside snapped and he was tearing at them with his bare hands.
He stood there in the dark, covered in blood, and oh so alone.
"No!" Tsukiyono Omi bolted upright in bed, sweat pouring off his brow as he frantically searched the darkness around him. The familiar surroundings slowly brought him back to himself.
He was in his room at the Koneko.
His companions were nearby.
There was no blood.... And he wasn't completely alone.
With a shaking hand, he pushed his hair out of his face and crawled out of bed. He'd had that particular nightmare enough to know that there was no way he'd get back to sleep any time soon. But a cup of tea in the bright light of the kitchen might calm him down a little more.
Slipping quietly down the hall to the kitchen, Omi sighed to himself. The dream was already slipping away, leaving only the uneasy feeling that came with having huge chunks of his past out of his reach. He knew enough to know that it was probably better that he never remembered.
The recent discovery of who his father was had been a blow though.
Persia had never made any secret of the fact that Takatori Reiji was their number one target and even if he'd known nothing else about the man, the knowledge of what he'd done to Ran's family would have made Omi agree.
To think he was related....
Omi shuddered as he went through the motions of making tea.
If he'd ever had a chance with the redhead, they'd been completely blown out of the water.
A few minutes later, he sat at the table fiddling with the handle of his cup watching the steam. "Life sucks."
"And you're just learning this now?" The voice managed to completely surprise him, something that was hard to do. He had been an assassin most of his life, after all.
"Aya!" He couldn't help but cringe a little at the name. He remembered Aya-chan and he couldn't see how Ran could bear having the reminder every time someone called him. "Did I wake you? Gomen nasai."
The older assassin shrugged and moved to pour his own cup of tea. "I was awake."
With a frown, Omi turned to check the clock. It was almost 3 a.m. On nights when they didn't have missions, Ran was almost religious about going to bed by ten and not getting up until 5. Youji teased him about being an old man, but the redhead usually just ignored him.
"Are you all right?" he asked, unable to mask the concern in his voice. Even if the other man did get annoyed with him for it.
Things had been so strained between them since he'd discovered he was one of the hated Takatori's. Though Ran had said he no longer grouped Omi in with the enemy, you could still see the instinctive dislike for all things Takatori in his interactions with his younger teammate. The blonde wanted to beat his head against the table at the mere thought. He'd spent so much time and effort in drawing the object of his affections closer to himself, to get Ran to open up and relax with him.
To have it all destroyed by something he had no control over and by a man who'd already destroyed his life once... Sometimes he really thought fate hated him.
"Hai." The response was curt, but not as venomous as it would have been only earlier that day.
Head bowed slightly, Omi peered through the veil of blonde hair to stare at Ran curiously. Though it might still have discouraged another, the young assassin had been watching this boy for years. He liked to think he knew Fujimiya Ran better than anyone else on the planet, living or dead.
This was not the hostility that had been aimed in his direction since the day he'd stepped between Ken and Hirofuma. This was more in tune with the old Ran, easily annoyed with everyone and just looking to exist. While he missed their previous closeness, this was much easier to handle than the venom.
Silence reigned for a moment as they alternately sipped their tea and stared into their cups. Omi was considering excusing himself to go downstairs and play on the internet for a few hours- that always made him feel better- when Ran broke the silence. "Another nightmare?"
This time Omi stared straight at his companion as he blinked in surprise. He hadn't realized anyone knew about his night terrors, never mind that Ran did. His shock made him confirm something he'd have usually deflected. "Yeah.."
Ran nodded and stirred the liquid in his tea cup idly. "You need to talk about it?"
The offer was genuine. Omi could see that immediately. It was, no doubt, an olive branch of sorts. Ran's way of showing that he was still there and he still cared in spite of all the recent crap that had sprung up.
He considered it for a long moment.
It would be such a relief to get it off his chest. To tell Ran about his amnesia, about the little bits of memory that return to haunt his dreams. The need to share his fears about what happened to him after his father refused to pay his ransom is nearly overwhelming.
But his companion had his own demons and really didn't need to be burdened with the things that came back to Omi in his sleep.
So he smiled instead. Not the overly genki smile designed to make people forget he even had a problem, but a smile as soft and genuine as Ran's offer. It accepted the olive branch even as he refused to spill his nightmares. "Thank you, Aya-kun. But it's okay now. I don't even remember what it was about."
He stood up and set his cup in the sink. When he turned back around, Ran was regarding him thoughfully. "Omi... I.. "
The youngest Weiss assassin nodded. "I know."
Something passed between them, an understanding perhaps, and then Omi was moving past Ran to leave the room. "You should try to get some more sleep. You have school in the morning."
"Hai! See you later, Aya-kun."
Back in his room, Omi fell asleep even as his head hit the pillow.
And, for once, his sleep was remarkably trouble free.
