A Reason To Live

::Chapter One::

Something Familiar

Her breath caught in her throat as she looked into the slightly bewildered eyes of a boy that was about twelve years old. They were clear gray eyes, quite unlike Sorata's brown ones. His hair was slightly mussed, just like Sorata's hair had always been in a slight state of disorganization, but this child's hair was a light brown that made him look almost like a foreigner. Arashi smiled inwardly. She was starting to become delusional. She sternly told herself to stop thinking about Sorata so much. He wouldn't want it. He would want he to be getting on with her life. He was my life! Part of herself screamed, the part that she didn't show to the world very often. The part that felt emotions so strongly it hurt. The cold, rational part of herself pushed the screaming voice to the back of her mind and turned her attention to the young boy.

She almost laughed when she realized that he was trying to pick her pocket. Almost instinctively she reached down and grabbed his skinny arm. "And what do you think you're doing?" She asked, a hint of suppressed laughter in her voice.

Gray eyes glared up at her from under thick brows. "I'm not doin' anything wrong!"

Raising an eyebrow slightly she looked questioningly from his hand, which was "innocently" inside her purse, to his indignant face. "Indeed? Where are your parents?"

He glared at her. "Get offa me!"

Still slightly amused she removed his hand from her purse. For some reason this child had chased away all of her dark thoughts. A feeling she couldn't describe had settled upon her. It was a feeling that she had felt often when she was with Sorata, a kind of "lightness" that made her say and do things she wouldn't normally do. That's how this child was making her feel, albeit in a different way. "I'll gladly relinquish my hold on your arm when you tell me where your parents are. I am not letting you go off alone to rob another hapless person."

His glare intensified, and then he snorted derisively. "I don't have any parents. I don't need any either. Just let me go."

Up until then she hadn't realized the poor state of his clothes. They hung off his emaciated frame like draperies. His overlarge tee-shirt was threadbare, his pants stained, and his face covered in dirt. Something about him struck a cord of sympathy within her. She remembered sitting there, long ago, wondering the reason for living. Somehow, she suddenly wanted to save this boy form the loneliness of the streets.

With less emotion than a cold winter morning she grabbed his hand and dragged him out of the middle of the sidewalk. She ignored his squirming and his protests until she cornered him.

"What is your name?" She asked, trying to sound polite.

He glared at her sullenly. "What are you, some child molester? I ain't tellin' you!"

She glared at him. Difficult, and stubborn. A little like Sorata. This boy was the kind of person that would do what he wanted, regardless of anyone else. In that second she felt foolish. This boy was not Sorata. This boy was not even similar to him, except for the stubbornness. Still, something about him resonated to something deep within her. For so long she had felt nothing. She had frozen her emotions with his death. This little boy had dropped them. Slowly she felt the ice returning to her heart. "I am no child molester. Tell me your name, please," she said in a forced whisper.

He glared at her. "I don't need ta tell ya anything!" He muttered with a sullen glare in her direction.

The barrier returned again. "You're right. You do not need to tell me a thing." With that she turned and began to walk down the empty street, still clutching the slick umbrella between her fingers as her heart became even icier than before.


Disclaimer: X/1999 is not mine. Reviews:

KuramaMyBeautifulRoseBoy: Ah, I love X/1999, and Sorata/Arashi ("Sorashi"?) is one of my favorite pairings of all times. I hope to do it justice.

carlos21: Thank you so much for the positive feedback. I wasn't sure how it would turn out, and I'll try to update soon!

Kagemihari: I cried when he died in the anime, and I harbor this secret hope that in the manga CLAMP will decide to let him live, but I doubt it. sobs

Author's note: If spell check had it's way Sorata would be Sonata and Arashi would be Rashid shivers Anyway, once again, I'm trying to make the chapters longer, so it's going to take a while to update. Please review this one in the meantime.