Hello my bunnies. Time to continue the 'tail'. Also anyone want to make this fic an opener?
The smell of warm spice and fish was a strange thing to wake up to but Rin was far more surprised that he was waking up at all. He'd thought he'd jumped yesterday and yet…
His red eyes fluttered opened and he sat up putting a hand across a bandaged stomach as he looked around the room he was in. Where was he? He squinted as he tried to recall if he recognized anything in the room. His dorm looked nothing like this with its bunk beds and Ai being a thorn in his side. The room was small, clean and fairly well organized. He shifted a little pulling a pillow out from under his bak only to realize it was a stuffed shark. When had he bought this? He hadn't…He wasn't in a hospital and he wasn't in his house. So where in the hell was he?
Matsuoka jumped when the door opened and a tray held by two steady hands entered. His sharp eyes widened seeing who was holding the said tray. Haruka in an apron and swim shorts was the most unexpected thing today.
"H-h-h-Haru?!" The exclamation was a lot louder then it needed to be but it didn't seem to effect the dolphin as he placed the tray with breakfast on the side of the bed. It was just a plate of well-cooked mackerel and a cup of orange juice but breakfast was still breakfast. Rin had his back pressed against the wall, as he stared at the other trying to figure out what was going on but he blinked rapidly as a fork full of fish was waved in front of his face."H-H.." as he opened his mouth to try and get answers from the other the fork was shoved in and he flushed deeply his words sputtering out of control. The fork was placed back down on the tray and Haru sat on the edge of the bed ringing his hands together silently. They stayed this way for quite some time before Rin leaned forward to stare at the other closely desperately wanting an explanation for what was going on. Then as if right on cue Haru sighed softly and turned to look at him.
"I don't know where to start." He'd gone over this almost all night in his head and he still hadn't come up with a plan.
Now that he'd actually spoken Rin wasn't wholly sure what to ask him first. His eyes flickered down to his bandaged body and his face pulled into a grey line. Haru extended a hand to the bandages and his fingers lingered over them just barely touching. Rin shot back up to the other's face as he flushed again."I can't remember how I got hurt."
"I didn't catch you fast enough." Cryptic.
"C-catch me?" Rin stammered as fingers began to trail their way from the bandages up his chest. Haruka was acting sort of strange.
Air rushed from Haru's nostrils as his hand stopped over Rin's chest. "You fell." He looked up hoping he didn't have to run through the entire thing, he wanted Rin to remember, if anything he wanted to save himself from having to remind the other of the entire ordeal. The red head's forehead crinkled and his mouth twitched as his gaze turned from him to the hand on his chest.
"There was…a chain." Rin muttered as bits and pieces of last night began to click together. "It caught me…and pulled me up." The hand shifted to his shoulder and squeezed softly. It was so more comforting then he was expecting. "That chain…" His eyes focused directly onto Nanase's face as they widened. "It was you…you saved me…b-but how?"
Haru looked away from the shark a moment as he removed his hand from the other and it dropped to his lap."Watch." He bit his lip as he lifted his hand in the air in the direction of a figure sitting on the desk on the other side of the room. Before Rin could ask what Haruka was doing there was a bright blue flash and a chain snapped around the figurine tearing it in half. The pieces crumpled onto the desk and rolled onto the floor. Rin was left speechless as his eyes fixated on the source of the chain's appearance. The entirety of Haru's left hand had taken on the consistency and appearance of a chain, like some crude metal hook of a pirate. Rin's hand extended shakily toward the warped appendage gliding his fingers across the metal. It was warm, the feeling was so unexpected his hand sprung back and he stared at Haru quietly who only looked away from his with a grimace.
Rin bit his lip and extended his hand again gliding his fingers across the links warmth leaping from the metal to dance across his fingers with blue sparks. It was oddly pretty. The metal had not one single blemish and it sparkled just as bright as a well shone piece of silver. How was this happening? His fingers stopped where the chain seem to meet flesh and he couldn't help but linger there. He was surprised when the metal suddenly warped and the hand returned in a shower of blue as if it had never disappeared. His other hand came up to squeeze and feel Haru's fingers quietly.
"How..?" How would you even begin to ask about something like this in the first place?
"I'm not even sure myself." The voice seemed sad. Haru still wasn't looking at him and he suspected the other probably wasn't going to unless he said something.
"Haru, I'm not scared." Rin stammered a little, he wasn't scared, he was just, stunned. Blue eyes rested on his in confusion, but there was relief behind all that.
"How can you not be?"
"You saved me with this…whatever it is." Rin mumbled quietly as he brought his hands away from the other to allow them to pick up the tray the other had brought him.
"It's me." Haru inhaled sharply." This is just me. I've always been like this." He rubbed his hands together." And that's not all I can do." The tray was set back down and Nanase winced. When his eyes turned to see Rin's expression he was quite taken back by the intensity of curiosity blazing in the red eyes, why wasn't he scared?
"What else is there?"
Should he really show him? He didn't know, but maybe it was best. He extended his hand to the other."Give me your hand." There was a moment of hesitation before Rin did as he was asked and was quickly pulled off the bed to stand."You trust me right?" Rin nodded very slowly, Haru had saved him, why wouldn't he trust him? The hand wrapped around his squeezed tightly as a huge flash of blue light engulfed the room and Rin's other arm flew up to shield his eyes. When it seemd a though the light had died away he lowered his arm only to find himself alone, or it seemed like he was alone, on closer inspection he realized that the hand that Haru had been squeezing felt much heavier then before and now that he was able to focus on it he realize that he was holding a long silver rod that slopped at the top into a curved blade. He almost dropped it in shock but held onto it looking at it bewildered. "Rin." He jumped upon hearing his name and his eyes cast up toward the blade end as the voice felt as though it come from there. He didn't quite get it but then it occurred to him that he wasn't seeing his reflection but Haru's. His mouth gaped as the other stared at him and then looked off to the side like he normally did when he was in one of his moods.
"Haru..y-your."
"The scythe is me, and I'm the scythe." Haru sounded as though he was right next to him like he'd been a minute ago. Rin squeezed the rod a little with nervous confusion only to be distracted by the warmth of it, and the familiar touch. It still felt like he was holding Haru's hand."See?" Haru could feel every emotion and thought Rin was feeling right now. It felt good to be held but he knew this was a lot for the redhead to take in at once.
"So..what are you then?" Rin asked quietly as he brought his gaze back up to the reflection.
"Yours." The answer was so straightforward and unexpected that Rin let go of the scythe, it began to topple and Rin realized his mistake scrambling to catch it, but it was to late, the moment he'd let go the process had started and in a shower of blue sparks the shark fell on top of Haru with a large thud. "ow." He groaned lightly as Haru sat up with him his arms lightly wrapping around the other. "If I'm not in contact with you I return to being like this." He explained gently as Rin seemed perfectly fine with keeping his head buried in his chest.
"What do you mean yours?" Rin's ears had turned a color to rival his hair as he bit his lip.
"I was born to protect you, be used by you." The words Haru was using sounded so strange, so embarrassing. Rin could only shake his head back and forth and bury his face deeper into the broad chest of the male."I know it sounds strange, but I don't know what else to say…."
"I feel strange…being so close to you." Rin mumbled quietly. He felt safe, calm, and even though he'd never normally done this, it seemed okay now.
"You're beginning to feel the connection." Haru began to pet the top of Rin's head."Your soul is bumping up against my own." He tried to recall something to help the other understand."Remember our race as kids? After that, our souls were torn apart…which is why.."
"I've…wanted to…"
"Yea."
"Have you?"
"A few times." Haru admitted as he leaned up against his dresser with the other. "But I have to stay strong for the both of us. I should have told you sooner."
"It's okay. I was stupid back then." Matsuoka mumbled as he shifted a little to press his back into Haru's chest and just stare at the wall opposite of them. "I would have called you crazy, or even a freak…" He bit his lip his sharp teeth drawing blood."Do the others know?" Had Haru been keeping this sort of secret even from Makoto.
"…Rei and Makoto are like me." Haru whispered quietly.
"What?" Rin blinked rapidly moving to look up at Haru from his position on his lap.
"Rei and Makoto are like how I am." He paused."Rei is a spiritual gun and Makoto is a spiritual sword." He closed his eyes shaking his head."Rei belongs to Nagisa..so he knows too."
"I'm the only one who didn't know then?"
"We were trying to protect you, I was trying to, Rei told me I needed to finally tell you, but I kept finding ways to get around it." Rin didn't say anything but he did bring his hand up to rest on Haru's quietly. Nothing needed to be said, they were beginning to feel it now. He remembered what this felt like when he'd been a kid, he'd mistaken it for a school boy crush, but now, but now it made so much more sense.
"I want to know more."
"I'll make sure you know everything."
