Disclaimer:
The story of Shouko Kakumei Utena belongs to Chiho Satou and Be-Papas. Newsies and its characters belong to Disney. All original characters belong to their respective owners. Lute and Sita do not own or claim to own any of the aforementioned people and/or items (well, that was semi-incoherent, yet professional in an odd sort of way. ^_^)Absolute Destiny: Apocalypse
By Sita and Lute
Chapter One
The tall, dark-haired boy sat, motionless, in his desk near the wall. Carefully, he tipped the brim of his hat backwards and stared out of the enormous window, scrutinizing the cold, sharp, angular buildings that made up the school. He sighed as the chalkboards outside of the room began to whiz through the air towards their mysterious destination. The boy wasn't exactly sure why the chalkboards moved or where they went, but they were interesting to look at; he hadn't known that chalkboards could fly.
"Isaac Tatum!"
He blinked in surprise and turned to face a beaming boy dressed in the same odd, teal uniform that all boys at Ohtori wore, save himself - the uniform of the elite Ohtori Prep School.
The boy's cheerful smile faded a bit.
"You are Isaac Tatum, right? The new student?" The boy at the window smiled a bit and shifted away from the flying chalkboards.
"Yeah, that's me. People usually just call me Skittery." The cheery boy's smile immediately returned as he tossed his backpack to the floor.
"So, how do you like the school so far?"
"Well, if there are more cute guys like you around here, I think I'll love it," Skittery said in a teasing tone. The boy squeaked and laughed good-naturedly as Skittery rose to his feet and grabbed his backpack. "Do you think that we'll get to be friends?" The lively youth rushed forward and playfully wrapped his arms around Skittery's waist.
"Sure!" He grinned radiantly, and Skittery couldn't help but smile back. "I'll show you around school, okay?" Skittery nodded as the shorter teen bounced towards the door.
"What's your name, by the way?" The boy paused with his hand on the doorknob, turned around, and showed off his brightest smile yet.
"Oh, I'm Richie Jones! But everyone calls me Pie Eater!"
With that, the two new friends walked briskly out of the classroom and towards the courtyard of Ohtori Prep.
*~*~*
Without a doubt, Ohtori Prep School contained the strangest mix of buildings ever found within a school. The campus was enormous, stretching for what seemed like miles in every direction. Edifices of all shapes and sizes shot out of the soft, lush grass: impossibly tall, thin skyscrapers with zig-zagging red stairs; short, squat, round buildings with over a hundred ruby-red doors; triangle-shaped structures resembling the Great Pyramids of Giza with only one colossal room and no visible doors at all. Students strolled lazily along the various pathways in between classes, chatting cheerfully with friends or squeezing in a bit of last minute studying.
However, when the speakers strategically placed around the school crackled to life, every student glanced quickly up at them with a knowing smile.
"Hello, everyone!" a cheerful voice cried.
"Hi, hi, hi!" another chimed in.
"Welcome to the show, brought to you by the uber-special Ohtori Broadcast Club team! I'm Mayfly-ko.."
"And I'm Twist-ko! And welcome to..."
"The Ohtori Noon Broadcast!" they crowed in unison.
In another part of the school, two shadowy girls sat at a table. One shadow had chin-length hair and sat leaning back in her chair. The other quickly scrubbed at her glasses and placed them back on her face before flashing the other a thumbs-up. Both shadow girls wore earphones and clutched microphones.
"It's a beautiful day today, so if you're not outside for lunch, you should be!" Mayfly-ko scolded playfully.
"But a picnic would only be inviting a capricious rain!" Twist-ko said sadly.
"What? That's just superstition!"
"Tell that to the rain in my heart!"
The shadows gave the image of Twist-ko opening an umbrella, and Mayfly-ko pouring water over her head with a watering can. "Did you get turned down for the dance again?!" Mayfly-ko asked with annoyance.
Twist-ko pouted. "What about me don't you like?!"
As the girls continued their cheerful show, Pie Eater led Skittery around Ohtori Prep, explaining things and delighting in the company of such a pretty boy.
Skittery followed, only half focused on Pie Eater's eager talk. He paused once to look over a railing, but was soon dragged along by Pie Eater once again.
But Pie was a cheery enough fellow, and Skittery decided he liked him. Cute kid, he thought as Pie skipped down the stairs, singing loftily, very cute.
He paused.
"Pie Eater…"
Pie looked up. "Mm?"
"The college building…" Both boys looked up, startled, when a chorus of squeals lifted to their ears. They exchanged a glance, then ran to the railing to look. Pie cheered with delight.
"It's the fencing club!"
"Fencing?" Skittery asked, watching the scene with curiosity.
Below them, surrounded by a sea of girls dressed in the white blouse and teal mini-skirt that was their uniform, were two masked fencers. One, with a slight bulge in the chest area, wore pale orange. The other, small and slim, wore sky-blue. They lifted their swords and lunged, clashing together in what was almost a sacred dance. Thrust, lunge, step back… the slim fencer in blue stumbled once, giving the fencer in orange a chance to lunge in and make her kill, her practice sword pressed against his chest. The audience burst into applause, and the fencers stepped back.
The blue-suited fencer removed his mask, revealing a pair of bright blue eyes under dark brown curls. He smiled widely. "I'll beat you one of these days, Gip," he promised.
The other fencer removed her mask as well, letting her thick, brown hair fall it's full length to her waist. She smiled as well. "Davey, stick with the piano. You're much better at that."
They left the arena, smiling and laughing as the audience continued to cheer brightly.
Pie Eater pointed at the girl. "That's Pita Miller, or Gip. She's captain of the fencing club, and a member of student council. She's very popular because of her good looks and her fencing skills, but she's a little cold to people." Pie shrugged. "No one really knows why."
Skittery chewed absently on his lip and studied the girl. He noticed a golden locket around her neck and turned to ask Pie Eater what he knew about that, but his hyper friend had decided to continue.
"The boy is David Jacobs, or just Davey. He's kinda young, two years behind us, but he's already taking classes at the university level! He's a piano prodigy, and look at him! Isn't he adorable?! But his twin sister, Sarah, has a major brother-complex, and they say she's the reason he can't get a girlfriend."
Skittery blinked at Pie, then started to laugh. "I'm glad I got the school gossip for my guide," he teased. "Otherwise, I wouldn't know what was going on at all!"
Pie looked insulted for a moment, then cheered up, grabbing Skittery's arm. "Wait until you hear all the other things I have to tell you!" He cried, dragging Skittery down the stairs.
For the rest of the afternoon, Skittery heard stories.
Strange stories. Yes, indeed.
But stories that helped him, nonetheless.
*~*~*
There was a rainstorm that night and no classes for Skittery the following morning, so he walked around the campus on his own for a while. He stumbled upon a makeshift rose garden, blooming and winding around a broken down wall. He twisted the rose signet ring on his third, left finger absently.
"They're so lovely," he commented quietly. "And smell so nice."
He knelt to inspect the only white rosebud in the group, and reached out to touch it with his left hand. Once his fingers brushed against the soft, damp surface of the petals, the flower started to move.
Skittery's eyes widened as he watched in silence. Such a rare opportunity was one to be cherished.
Then, the blossom began to glow.
Skittery gasped and stood up when the something brushed against his face. Then, looking down, he realized it was a rose petal, and nothing to worry about.
A rose petal?
He looked up and his jaw dropped.
"It's… it's raining rose petals!" He gasped quietly, staring up at the sky in shock. Slowly, a smile melted onto his face. So pretty. So lovely.
The sound of clanking and turning metal met his ears, and he turned quickly to see a flight of stairs opening before him, one that hadn't been there before. He should have been surprised, but the way this school moved and coiled around itself, there was no reason to be.
The stairs went very high, were very steep, and had no railing, but Skittery went up anyway. Not because of curiosity and not because of meaningless desire, but rather because he felt he was supposed to. He had to go up those stairs.
My prince, he thought. Will there be some clue to him up there?
No clues, no, but there was something; a colossal sea of flaming red roses. Skittery gawked at them, amazed at their beauty, but more amazed that there was such a large collection of them so high in the sky. Above him was something large and white, but he paid it no notice at first… it seemed like merely another cloud.
He meandered through the blossoms and went to the very corner edge, where he stood and admired the view, his hands on his hips.
"Aren't you scared?"
Skittery turned, and raised his eyebrows. Behind him stood a boy with dark brown hair and deep blue eyes. He was smiling serenely, and holding a milky rose in his right hand.
"What?" Skittery asked, blinking at the tranquil beauty of this new character in the play of his life.
"I would think you would be scared, standing so close to the edge," the boy repeated, moving to Skittery's side.
"Not really," Skittery replied. "The view is magnificent, and worth the risk."
The new boy continued to smile, but said nothing.
"These roses are beautiful," Skittery commented finally, to fill the silence.
The boy's smile grew. "This is my rose garden."
Skittery turned and gaped. "Yours?"
The boy looked back at him. "I'm the Headmaster's younger brother, so I get special treatment," He paused and lifted the white rose to his chest, staring at it with a sweet intensity. "I take care of the roses and watch them grow, but… but, really… it's the roses that watch over me."
He lifted his blue eyes to look at Skittery as a wind picked up and threatened to send them both tumbling over the edge. Skittery looked back. The only sound between them was the wind rustling through the flower petals.
"What are you here for?" The blue-eyed boy asked. "You must have come here for a reason."
Skittery stared at him for a moment more, then lifted his right hand and gazed at the signet ring on his finger.
The wind stopped.
Blue eyes widened immensely.
A single rose petal fluttered past Skittery's cheek and gently came to rest on the ground.
Without so much as a warning, the mysterious boy lunged forward and grabbed Skittery's wrist, frantically groping for the rose-printed ring. Skittery jumped backwards and cried out in surprise.
The ring is all I have left of my prince!
"Stop it! That's mine! It's the mark of the rose!" Skittery cried, repeating instinctively the name that the faceless prince had stated so long ago.
The blue-eyed boy stopped struggling and stared at Skittery, shocked.
"How... how do you know that name?"
"What's going on over here?"
Skittery, having somehow wrapped his arms around the slightly shorter boy during the course of their skirmish, froze, as did the mysterious teen. They both turned to face the newcomer, still in their rather suggestive position.
His blond hair fell to his ears, and he wore a large sword on his belt. The sun reflected off of his glasses as he glared menacingly at Skittery with his hand on the sword.
"What are you doing to the rose bride?" the blond boy demanded.
Skittery's dark eyes widened, and he blinked in surprise.
"The... the rose bride?" he echoed. He let out a small cry of shock as the blue-eyed boy tore out of his arms and ran to stand a few feet away, still protectively clutching the white rose.
"You aren't allowed in here," the blond said quietly and firmly.
Skittery turned to face his possible adversary, light glinting off the signet ring
on his finger.
The blond's eyes narrowed as he noticed the ring, and he smirked devilishly. "Well," he murmured. "You are a duelist as well?" Skittery frowned.
"A duelist?" The boy finally took his hand off of the sword and calmly straightened his glasses.
"I don't believe I recognize you," he said. "However, I guess you are authorized to be here after all."
"Authorized? I... I don't understand." The blond smirked again and rolled his eyes.
"Of course you don't," he replied sarcastically, turning to leave. Skittery gasped in shock as he studied the boy's hand for the first time.
A signet ring identical to his was on his finger.
"The mark of the rose," he murmured, stunned. "Wait!" he yelled. The blond stopped and turned, a single eyebrow raised. Skittery lifted his arm, tore the ring off of his finger, and held it up. His face was hard, his mouth set in a grim line. "Do you know what this ring is? What it means?"
The bespectacled boy smirked and lifted his own hand, which was wrapped around the dark blue handle of his rather intimidating sword.
"This ring is the mark of the rose, which sets the duelists apart from the rest of Ohtori. The duelists participate in various battles in order to win custody of the rose bride."
Skittery blinked.
"What are you doing to the rose bride?"
He looked slowly at the dark-haired boy who had ran to the newcomer's side.
"These... these duelists. They compete to win you?" he asked, aghast.
The blond snorted and nonchalantly stroked the "rose bride's" hair as he spoke.
"I don't understand how you can hold the mark of the rose and not even know basic information such as that." The dark-haired boy's eyes remained blank and expressionless even as the hands caressed his face. With one swift movement, the sword-wielding teen jerked the boy to him, wrapping his arm protectively around his captive's waist. "I was a fool to consider you as a possible dueling peer," the blond muttered as he nuzzled the other boy's neck.
Skittery glared. Before he realized what he was doing, he had lifted the ring and slipped it back onto his finger.
The blond smirked as the gates around the rose garden in the sky slammed shut, trapping the three of them inside.
"Snitch. Prepare the duel," he said. The boy of the roses -- Snitch -- trotted a few feet away from the smirking teen. He fell to his knees among the fragrant flowers and gently plucked one from the soil. He rose again, still expressionless, and tucked the red rose into the lapel of Skittery's adversary. He walked quickly to Skittery and attached the white blossom to the front of his uniform.
"Whoever loses their rose loses the battle," Snitch said gently. "Where is your sword?"
Skittery blinked. "Sword? What sword?"
For the first time since their strange meeting, Snitch showed actual emotion. He cocked his head to the side and smiled a real, true smile, not the blank, empty smile that had been plastered on his face until then.
"You actually don't know anything about the ring, do you?" He immediately grew serious. "Perhaps you should remove it if you don't know how it works."
"A duelist isn't permitted to fight without his sword," the other boy called.
Skittery's eyes narrowed from under the brim of his hat. "I have a sword," he said quietly, walking forward.
Snitch blinked in surprise.
"No, you don't..."
With a determined glare on his face, Skittery stomped hard into the sea of roses. At once, an old, withered broom flew up, handle first, into Skittery's waiting hand, sending a shower of red petals into the air as it went.
"This will serve as my sword. Any objections?"
The blond's smile grew crueler still as bells began to chime.
"None whatsoever," he hissed, starting forward.
Snitch jumped in front of him, eyes wide with fear. "Dutchy, sir," he began, "perhaps it would be-"
Skittery cried out in shock and disbelief as the boy called Dutchy backhanded Snitch, sending him sprawling into the roses.
"The bells have already tolled, Snitch. That signals the beginning of the duel," he said calmly. "Do not forget your place again."
Skittery was mildly surprised at the rush of anger and indignation that rushed through him. He tightly clutched the broom handle as blood roared in his ears.
"Don't hit your boyfriend!" he snarled pointing the broom menacingly.
Dutchy laughed outright. It was a sharp, cold laugh.
"This is not my boyfriend," he spat. "This is the rose bride and nothing more. I am the current dueling champion, so I have possession of him right now." He snickered as he unsheathed his sword. Suddenly, all traces of amusement vanished from Dutchy's face as he blazed forward, sword outstretched and gleaming in the bright sun. "I own him!"
"People cannot be owned!" Skittery howled, rushing forward to meet his opponent with his feeble broom.
He raised the broomstick and brought it down as if to crack Dutchy's head open with it. The blonde swiftly lifted his sword and blocked the oncoming attack. His sword lodged itself in the wood, and, to free it, Dutchy shoved Skittery backwards
"And what do you know?" Dutchy spat. "You're a child! You know nothing of the duels, of World's End, of the Rose Bride!"
Snitch sat on his knees, nursing his face, quietly accepting his guilt. But he kept one curious ear cocked towards the battle behind him.
Skittery cried out as Dutchy lunged, and he dodged at the last moment. "Duels! World's End! Rose Bride! This whole thing is stupid!" Skittery shouted, gripping his broomstick with both hands as he attempted to knock Dutchy's rose from his chest. "Do you really think he's happy to be traded around like a toy?! His happiness means nothing to you, but to him, it's everything! It's all he has!"
Snitch's eyes widened. Slowly, he raised his head.
"You know nothing!" Dutchy screamed, raising his sword high before bringing it down with enough force to slice Skittery's broomstick in two and knock one half from his hand. Skittery cried out in shock.
"You stupid boy!" Dutchy panted. "Do not talk to me of things beyond your knowledge! This is all Snitch has! This is all he knows! He has never cried against it!"
"Maybe if you didn't hit him every time he spoke up, he would!" Skittery shouted back.
Snitch looked over his shoulder at Skittery, something like disbelief and amazement shining in his eyes.
Dutchy growled wildly, lunging forward again. This time, knocked the other half of the broomstick from Skittery's hand. A wide, insane grin covered his face as he lifted his sword.
"How tempted I am to stain that pretty white rose with red!" he cried, bringing the sharp edge of the blade whooshing downwards.
Skittery shut his eyes and grit his teeth, waiting for that final blow, but all he felt was a gentle push, and then he was flying through the air, a hand resting softly in his hair. He opened his eyes and gasped when he saw Snitch resting on his chest, those deep blue eyes boring straight into his own.
"One is not permitted to duel without a sword," Snitch said lightly, then crawled up Skittery's body. When Skittery realized what Snitch was thinking, he blushed and tried to push the strange boy away, but Snitch broke through, placing his soft mouth on Skittery's. Nothing more, just that gentle, sweet, but oh-so-magical kiss.
Skittery shut his eyes and accepted it. There was a feeling like a key fitting into a lock. His hands rested on the cotton shirt of Snitch's uniform, and he felt the flashing change to silk, heard the jingle of metal on metal, smelled the potent scent of roses on Snitch's satiny skin.
They fell softly into the bed of roses, resting for a brief moment, dimly hearing Dutchy's incensed shouting on the other side of the garden.
A jolt shuddered through Snitch, forcing Skittery's eyes open. The blue-eyed boy leaned backwards, his spine curving into a 'C'-shape as the bangles that had magically appeared when their lips joined flew wildly, almost dangerously, in the sudden gust of wind. Skittery watched, awed, as Snitch moaned softly, bringing a bright light jutting out of his chest. Within second, the ornate, golden handle of a sword burst from the area of Snitch's heart.
Skittery stared for a moment more, then crawled forward, dreamily bending over Snitch's face. He shut his eyes, grasped the sword handle, and pulled it free. Above them, the white thing Skittery had at first taken for a cloud brightened and shone in a million kaleidoscopic lights, taking the form of a brilliant castle that all three boys both noticed and did not notice.
Dutchy stumbled towards the other boys, watching in amazement. Both were glowing in an ethereal light, clad in silks and bangles, and both looking the fantastic majesty of a pair of fairy-tale princes.
The bright light ebbed, and Dutchy thought, The Power of Dios!
Then Skittery lunged at him, red rose petals flew, and the bells tolled.
*~*~*
"The bells signal the end of the duel," Snitch recited calmly, now standing. In his red jacket and white trousers, he was divine. "You, newcomer, are the victor."
Skittery, wearing black and white instead of the pink he had come in with, glanced at Dutchy. The blonde was staring away from him, at an empty sky, the naked stem of a rose still hanging from his lapel. Skittery moved his eyes to the sparkling rainbow castle in the sky, then down to the strange and mystic sword in his hand, the one that had magically appeared in Snitch's chest.
Finally, his brown eyes moved to Snitch. He gazed at the blue-eyed boy, who gazed solemnly back. No words were spoken between them for several moments, until Skittery broke the intense gaze and looked at the ground.
"My name is Skittery," he said, almost shyly.
"Snitch stared at him for a moment more, then smiled as well, but this smile held all the emotion of a flower; it was gentle and beautiful in its emptiness.
Snitch moved forward and took Skittery's hand in his. "Well," he said softly. "My name is Snitch." He looked up into Skittery's eyes, and his smile gained more sincerity. "I have been waiting for you, my Skittery. I am the Rose Bride, and from today on, I am your flower."
END
Shout-outs!
Shakes1:
Lute:
LOL, wow! We have fans!Sita
: We're POPULAR! *valley girl giggle* LIKE, TOTALLY! ... I am so, so sorry.Lute
: Please never do that again. Anyway! What are ya, psycho?! This is me we're talking about. Of course there's gonna be Skitts/Snitch. It was that way from the beginning. w00t w00t!Sita:
As if Lute could ever not shove Skitts-Snitch snoggage into a fic. *cackles* Not that I blame her. *much drool-age* But, tanytway, many tankies for the review, Shakes-baby! *huggles*Gothic Author:
Sita:
Anime songs PERIOD rule! *rocks out to "Bird" from Gravitation*Lute
: LOL. I'm partial to Metcha Hajikete GAATSU Tobashite from the Fushigi Yuugi OAV meself, but... thanks for the review, G.A.! MUCH LUVV~Sita:
YESH! LOVE! *throws confetti*Froggie-babay:
Lute:
I SO KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. I LOVE THAT SONG. ALL FOUR OF THEMSita:
*worships Rayearth* *sings* Hikari to kage wo dakishimeta mamaaaaa! Ahem. Yes. ^^;;Lute:
LOL, I think he means the dub versions... 'I hold the light and the darkness of my heart...'? Those onesSita:
Oooooh... aren't they the same song? Same tune, I mean.Lute:
Same tune, yes, different languages though. Did you know the lady that sings that song is the same lady that voices Mipsy on As Told By Ginger? No lie!Sita:
NO WAY! O.o Wowzers... wait, wasn't there a fic or something that we were talking about?Lute:
Fic? What fic?Sita:
Eh, guess I imagined it. ^_^ LOVE FOR THE FROGGIE!Lute
: TOTAL COMPLETE LOVE FOR MY BAND-GEEK-FRESHMAN-BOY-IN-VELVEEEEETASita:
.... yeah.... what she said...Lute:
*evil laughter a la the count in sesame street*Artemis-chan:
Lute:
Off-topic, but I finally read the Redwing Story. YOU STOLE MY SNITCHY. Now my rant is done. On with the SO.Sita:
Yay, OT-ness! But, yesh, ficcage. Utena is crazy confusing. It makes my brain feel all achy. @_@Lute:
Am I the only person here who understands it? *shrugs* Ah well. It's fun anyway. heheheheSita:
Oh, it's fun-ness can't be denied! *grins* YAY, ROSES AND LESBIANS! *dances cheerily*Lute
: LMAO. YAY SYMBOLISM!!... I mean...Sita:
*is attempting to re-watch it* Wait... so... GAH! *passes out*Lute:
You're not allowed to pass out, we're doing shout-outs! *reawakens with half-naked!blink*Sita:
*leaps up* *snatches Half-Naked!Blink* *drools* ... sorry, what were we talking about?To The Rest of the Reviewers, a conversation clip:
Sita:
. I'm being kicked offLute:
Damn! I really wanted to post this!Lute:
Can we just skip the rest of the SOs and post it?Sita:
Yeah, we'll do SOs nect timeSita:
next*Sita:
Or just thoseSita:
Sorry 'bout this .Lute:
Okay then. ^_^ I'll leave those up and apologize to everyone else, then post itLute:
It's okay, I understand, I'm about to be kicked off tooSita:
Explain the stupidity of the parentals. *huggles* I luffle you!We the authors apologize for not having SOs for the rest of you. Next time, we promise to have them. Damn us being underage, damn damn damn! ^_^
