This is an extended version of the 'chapter' I posted on the Kink meme, because… well, it looked too short ^_^ I couldn't figure out how to end it, though, and I feel like I wrote too much and not enough at the same time :S Hopefully the next one will be much better ^_^;

As you'll see from this chapter, Gilbert is a very different person in this fic, but he's supposed to be :) Don't worry, as the story progresses, the silly title will make more sense ^_^ (Or it should, at least!). Thank you sooo much to everyone who reviewed! Smeepalicious, Pholo, Elyona-chan, FiOeX, kunf'you'z-ed, TotalAlias, YakuKikyo, Avrilla de Senetaz, willa1313, Wyaline and Suimomo, thank you all so much for taking the time to review! ^_^ And Iove that people noticed the Holy Knight and Pandora Hearts connections; such loyal fans! :)

Alright, on with the chapter!

O-O-O

Chapter 1

O-O-O

Oz and Gilbert's friendship had not been a mutual agreement.

In fact, Gilbert had wanted absolutely nothing to do with young blonde from the very first time he had seen him. He wanted friends – What child doesn't? – but he was also far too afraid to trust anyone. Having been abandoned as a child by his mother, and after witnessing his own little brother succumb to pneumonia at a young age, Gilbert feared the pain of relationships with other people more than anything else.

Betrayal… Deception… Loss… Loneliness…

Oz was a happy child, loud and active and involved with everything around him, smart and interesting and good at pretty much any game a child could think of… He was the complete opposite of Gilbert, the quiet, almost cripplingly shy child who barely spoke a word unless it was absolutely necessary.

They were far too different… And yet it was those very differences that he found so fascinating about Oz, the very things that reminded Gilbert of everything he was lacking in himself. He was not confident, or smart, or friendly, or talented… It hurt to be reminded of these things. It was painful just to know of him, so Gilbert wanted nothing to do with him.

Unfortunately, Oz appeared to want everything to do with him.

He barged into Gilbert's life, unwelcome, and forced the poor child to be his friend by always picking him first for teams, or trading seats so that they were next to each other in class, or by leaping to his feet and announcing Gilbert as his partner the moment a class trip or project was mentioned. He annoyed the boy by flicking pieces of paper at him during class, confusing and, admittedly, amusing him when the dark-haired boy would actually look down at the pages and realize that the blonde had drawn smiley faces on most, with the words "Smile!" written underneath some of them. He even took to calling him 'Gil' without ever asking permission to do so, and completely ignored every attempt the boy made to get away from him, often following him all the way to the bus stop and talking to him until he got on, before turning around and heading back the way he came.

Over time, and almost against his will, Gilbert had begun to open up to the boy, so desperate for the human connection that he feared so much, so blinded by this savior in the dark that reached out and took a hold of him when he had been allowing himself to drown in the shadows of melancholy. One day he told Oz everything; about his brother, his mother, the orphanage and how much he hated it, how much he hated school, how much he had wanted to hate Oz… And the boy had supported him. He accepted everything he was and promised that he would protect him from then on, that he would always be there for him, even if no one else was, and that he would never let anything bad happen to Gilbert ever again. It was his duty as Gil's best friend, after all. He had laughed at the younger boy's shocked expression, reaching down grabbing hold of the boys hand in order to pull him to his feet, grinning all the while. After this, the near-silent boy had less trouble taking part in conversations. He let himself enjoy the games they played, and fret over the potential trouble they would get into for said games. And he allowed himself to laugh and smile for what felt like the first time in an eternity…

To this day, he still did not understand why Oz had chosen him above everyone else in their class to be his friend, but he was very glad he did…

Those five years they spent together before the accident had been the happiest of his entire life, the friendship Oz almost forced upon him leaving such an impression that, for ten long, difficult years, Gilbert would remain by his side.

Because three years after his precious friend had promised to protect him, Gilbert had sworn to do the very same. He had promised to stay by Oz's side, that if the cruel forces that taunted them both with illusions of happiness were to tear apart the world they knew, he would remain constant. He would not be changed, because he had already seen darkness, as had Oz.

In a world full of lies and deception and betrayal, they would always be loyal to each other.

O-O-O

Gilbert really wished that in all the years he had sat by the side of his comatose friend, that he had taken the time to look up the condition itself in more detail.

Contrary to his understanding, just because Oz had opened his eyes did not mean he would be awake or even functional any time soon. He had felt physically sick, the smile on his face vanishing and the happy tears in his eyes appearing to halt in shock, when he had returned to the room to find Oz completely motionless, save for the gentle rise and fall of his chest, no longer trying to wake himself. The doctor had brushed passed him and begun to check Oz and the machines around him, muttering quietly and asking the dark-haired man questions, but Gilbert saw and heard none of that. He walked silently across the room as if he were in a daze, his eyes studying Oz's face closely, searching for any movement, any sign that he might be waking.

He found nothing.

Reaching down, he gently took his friend's hand in his own, fingertips running across the back of Oz's hand in the process. "Oz?" he whispered, feeling his throat tighten when his friend, as ever, made no response. "O-z?" his voice cracked, eyes welling up. "C-come on… You…"

"Mr. Nightray…" the doctor's voice finally reached him, but just barely.

"He was awake!" he exclaimed, never taking his eyes off his friend. He felt his legs weaken beneath him and he collapsed to his knees, his whole body shaking and tears once again falling unchecked from his eyes. "H-He looked at me. I saw him! I-!" He froze. "Oh God… I-I didn't-?"

"Mr. Nightray please calm down," the doctor said, his voice firm as he lay a hand on Gilbert's shoulder. "We will monitor him very closely just to be sure, but if he really did wake up then it is not unusual for him to be asleep now. When somebody wakes up from a comatose state, it is normally for only a few minutes at a time. If Mr. Vessalius is indeed recovering, then it could be another entire day before we see a reaction from him again, if not more."

"Then…" Gilbert raised an arm and dried his eyes on the back of his sleeve, "Then… he's getting better? When will he wake up again?"

"We cannot be sure of that," the doctor said stifly, "we can only keep an eye on him and see how things progress."

"Can I stay with him?" Gilbert asked, tear-reddened eyes finally turning away from Oz to gaze hopefully at the doctor. "Until he wakes up?"

The doctor frowned, "Mr. Nightray…"

"I'll stay out of the way. I can sleep in the chair; I've done it plenty of times."

"You understand that it could take hours, or days, or even-"

"Please, doctor?" Gilbert pushed himself to his feet, but he never released Oz's hand or moved away, "I don't want him to be alone when he wakes up..."

Under normal circumstances, the doctor would have been a lot more strict and insisted that Oz's family were the only ones who could decide who stayed with the blonde while he was being monitored. However, Gilbert was quite well known by many members of the hospital staff, and this particular doctor was also one of the few aware of the 'incident' that had occurred only months after the accident. As such, he could only sigh and shake his head before answering, "I'll call his family and let them know the situation. You can stay as long as they say you can."

"Thank you," Gilbert sighed with relief, allowing himself to drop back into the chair he had been sitting in earlier, lowering his head and pressing his forehead against Oz's hand, "Thank you…"

He was certain that the doctor wanted to say something to him, but the man appeared to think better of it, because the next thing Gilbert heard was the door closing quietly, and when he raised his gaze, he realized that he and Oz were, once again, alone.

He knew what that man was thinking…

"But I know what I saw…" Gilbert thought, squeezing Oz's hand lightly, "I know what I felt…"

Oz was coming back to him… Of that he had no doubt.

And he would not leave his friend's side until he did.

O-O-O

"S-So my brother could really be getting better? Really?"

The doctor felt somewhat guilty for it, but he could not help but smile at the childish excitment in the young woman's voice; she sounded very like Gilbert in ways, the slight quiver in her tone suggesting that she was also crying. Still, he could not afford to get her hopes up. "We cannot be sure as of yet. Like I said, Mr. Nightray is the only one who has claimed to see him awake, so-"

"Y-Yes, I know…" Ada interrupted, though her voice was suddenly much quieter, "You think he could have imagined it…"

Did she sound offended? "We can't rule that out, I'm afraid."

"I trust Gilbert…"

"I'm sure you do, Miss Ada," the doctor said, his tone sympathetic, "but we both know that he-"

"Wh-When can I come to see Oz?"

"Ah…" the doctor sighed; clearly, she did not want to listen to this. Maybe she thought that Gilbert had fully recovered, but as far as he was concerned the very fact that the man had barely missed a visit in ten years (adding up to well over three thousand visits) was enough evidence to prove the man was still unwell. "You can come whenever you like, Miss Ada, but I would advise against visiting tonight as it's unlikely that there will be any changes before tomorrow."

"Alright then… Thank you very much, doctor."

"You're very welcome."

If he knew anything about that girl, or her Uncle, they were going to be here in the next half an hour. He also knew that they would have no qualms letting Gilbert be the one by Oz's side when he woke, because they were the ones who had spoken to Ms. Hendrick personally and forced her to let Gilbert continue to see Oz in the first place.

Really… For all their sakes, he prayed that Gilbert wasn't imagining things again. He also hoped that they realized that, if Oz was recovering, then the next few months were going to be very painful indeed. It would be days before Oz could stay awake, and he could have trouble speaking. Then would come the physiotherapy, and this was all assuming that Oz's mind had not been affected by the crash and the ten years of sleep.

Well, there was no point in worrying about that until Oz really did wake up, he supposed.

For now, he could only hope that Gilbert was right, and that Oz was strong enough to pull through.

O-O-O

"I'm not going anywhere…" Gilbert whispered softly, rubbing his thumb over Oz's fingers as he did so, smiling warmly at the sleeping figure before him. "So don't be afraid to come back… I'll be right here, waiting for you, just like always…"

So close… He knew he should not get his hopes up. It always went wrong when he did… But he had seen them, those emerald eyes he had missed so much. Dull, unfocused, but still Oz's eyes… It had been so long…

It felt like he had been given a taste of what he had been lacking all this time, and now he was reminded of how painfully he missed it all; the sound of his voice, the music in his laughter, the warm feeling of his touch and the beauty in his eyes…

Silently, he leaned down and gently pressed his lips against the back of the blonde's hand. A single tear feel and landed upon fragile skin warmed by his simple gesture of affection… Of longing…

Of love…

He smiled sadly and shook his head, pulling his chair closer so that he could lean his arms on the bed, holding Oz's hand in his own. He briefly glanced over the monitors, the machines keeping his precious friend alive, but then his gaze was focused entirely on the face of the boy before him.

And then he waited.

O-O-O

Ada Vassalius did indeed arrive in just over thirty minutes, armed with a ready-meal for Gilbert, as well as a duffle bag of clean clothes for him ("I knew you would be soaked!" she had half joked, half scolded upon seeing him). The pair had embraced, both shaken and uncertain, but perhaps less cautious in their happiness than they should have been in their given situation. They sat together and spoke excitedly about the young man that had brought them together, laughing about the past. That was how Gilbert and Ada usually spent their time together: remembering. Ada spoke about school and her plans for the future, yes, but she knew that Gilbert himself was always set firmly in his younger years, going through the motions of a working adult only because it was necessary, so she was quite willing to spend the time with him reminiscing. She loved Gilbert like a brother, after all, and loved Oz so dearly that she was more than happy to indulge in pleasant memories of her always cool, always amazing older brother, especially when it was the only thing that seemed to make her friend happy.

Ada stayed the night, falling asleep in one of the chairs with her head on Gilbert's shoulder, the elder man covering her with a blanket and wrapping a protective arm around her shoulders so that she didn't fall. He did not sleep, terrified that, if he did, he would miss that moment when Oz would wake, that moment when he could really see his friend again.

But Oz did not wake up that night, nor did he stir by noon the next day. Ada made a quick trip home when her uncle arrived at two o' clock, the man having been out of town when he heard that his nephew may have been waking. After the initial greeting and general banter, Oscar and Gilbert had fallen into a comfortable silence, the kind that only existed amongst family and close friends or partners. The doctor had insisted they return home and rest, saying that he would contact them if anything happened, but the trio had been quite stubborn.

By six o' clock, the only movement that Oz had done had been performed by the nurses.

"He's probably just doing this to make us worry," Gilbert said quietly from where he sat, his arms folded on Oz's bed and his chin resting on his forearms, eyes still locked on Oz's face. He had hardly averted his gaze in almost twenty-four hours.

"He always was a kidder," Oscar observed with a loud, hearty laugh, while Ada simply smiled and nodded.

"Come on Oz…" Gilbert reached a hand out and gently touched the side of the boy's face, "this is low, even for you."

"I don't know," Ada said, "Remember that time he and I hid from you in that old warehouse, and didn't come out until you started crying?"

Gilbert's eyes momentarily moved to the young woman and his face flushed. "Did you have to bring that up?" he muttered, embarrassed, but the blonde-haired girl only giggled. "Alright, that was pretty bad," he admitted with a sigh, turning his attention back to Oz, pinching a lock on the boy's hair before curling it gently around his index finger. "You're such a trouble maker…"

Oscar frowned slightly, but folded his arms and turned his attention towards the window instead, ignoring Gilbert's actions.

"If you don't wake up, I won't read you anymore Holy Knight Chapters," Gilbert said after a few minutes of silence, still twirling the boy's hair idly. The way he was acting and speaking was as if he had forgotten that Ada and Oscar were even in the room, his attention and actions focused solely on his friend.

Ada was finding it harder and harder to keep her expression positive, fear and doubt trying to transform her radiant smile into an uncertain frown. "Could it… have happened again?" she wondered. The doctor had tried to warn her, but she had thought that Gilbert was better…

"And if that happens, you'll never know how it ends…"

"It's only been one day," Oscar, who had been following the same thought process as Ada, tried to reassure himself. "The doctor said there might be no signs for a long time. Don't start jumping to conclusions just yet."

"So you have to…" Gilbert's voice faded, his sentence left hanging, before he suddenly straightened up, causing the other two people in the room to jump slightly in surprise. "O-Oz?"

Both Oscar and Ada were completely frozen for a moment before they both leapt from their chairs and bound over to Oz's side. Part of them feared what they would see; that Oz would be fast asleep, but that Gilbert…

Hazy green eyes blinked blearily at the ceiling, a confused sound escaping the young blonde before he coughed lightly, eyes forced closed by the apparent pain caused by such a minor act. Gilbert was on his feet and once again clutching the boy's hand in an instant, while Oscar stood at the opposite side of the bed and called his nephew gently, Ada darting towards the door to find a doctor.

"Oz?" Oscar breathed, overcome with shock, "Can you hear me?" This couldn't be real… Surely he had fallen asleep, and this was all a dream. He was almost ready to accept that thought, but the moment he nephew blinked and turned his head slightly in his direction, a spark of awareness alighting in his tired, confused eyes, he knew that the powerful feelings he felt could not have been formed in a dream world.

Beneath the mask, Gilbert saw Oz open his mouth to try and speak, but only a tiny, almost inaudible noise escaped him. His eyes grew slightly wide in surprise, the muscles in his face and shoulders that appeared to have awakened tensing with nerves, and again he tried to speak, but his vocal cords refused to create the sounds he wished to emit. It tore Gilbert's heart to see his friend struggle, fearful eyes begging his uncle for answers while more of his body began to awaken and panic, but… Any sound, even those tiny, strained ones that caused the blonde more stress than comfort, were like music to Gilbert's ears. It was cruel, but the fact the Oz could feel fear at all meant that he was truly here, that he was aware of his surroundings and himself, and that made the dark-haired man so happy he wanted to cry. Oscar hushed his nephew, telling him everything was alright, but Oz continued to look around him in a panic, his breathing pattern becoming shallower, the monitor by his bed alerting his family and friend to his quickening heartbeat.

"Calm down, Oz, it's okay…" Gilbert said, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder and applying just enough pressure to somewhat still the boy's movements, "You're safe. You don't need to be scared."

Look… Please, let Oz just look at him. Let him see him…

Oz, appearing surprised by the sound of Gilbert's voice, turned to regard the tall, dark figure of his best friend, still gasping softly and with fear still written in his eyes. But Gilbert could only smile warmly down at him, so full of relief and joy that he felt as though he could burst with the strength of it all. He was back… Oz was… Oz was really here, looking at him. He had spent so many years just sitting next to the boy, speaking to him, reading to him, taking care of him, all the while never knowing if Oz was even aware that he was near. Now… now…

He wanted to say something to express what he felt… But there were simply no words to describe it. His world had suddenly become a brighter place, his future now devoid of the same silent days he had spent by the boy's side praying for him to wake, the sleepless nights he worried he would not be able to cope much longer. It was all transformed by the single glance of a friend… A dear, precious friend… "Welcome back…" he whispered, using his free hand to wipe tears from his eyes.

Oz blinked, the fear in his eyes slightly dulled, replaced instead by a look of curiosity that was so very familiar that Gilbert almost wanted to laugh to relieve some of the force with which his heart appeared to push against his chest, like a caged bird trying to escape it's prison.

But when Oz turned his head back towards his uncle, clutching the elder man's hand tightly and trying, once again, to speak, Gilbert felt as if a cold, iron hand had suddenly clamped down on his happiness. It was not so much the act itself that had hurt… it was the look in Oz's eyes, the fleeting look that raced across his irises before he turned away.

There was no warmth… No joy… No familiarity…

He… didn't recognize Gilbert…

Gilbert felt his stomach twist violently. No… No, it couldn't be… Oz wasn't… He couldn't possibly have-!

But… Oz was only looking at Oscar… He was holding his uncle's hand tightly, while the one Gilbert held remained unclenched yet strained, as if he were struggling to avoid holding on (He was trying so hard not to hold on). When the doctors arrived, it was Gilbert who had to move out of the way, because it was Oscar's near-attempt to move that had earned a startled whimper from the bedbound Vessalius.

He had to let go. He had to step away. From the one and only thing in his entire life that he had allowed himself to truly care about.

"Gil…" Ada was by his side, sounding almost and lost and uncertain as he felt. She reached out and took his hand, squeezing it lightly in an attempt to comfort both herself and her friend. As he watched the doctors speak to Oz, explaining to him that he'd been in an accident, but that he was safe now, the dark-haired man held Ada's hand so tightly he was certain he was hurting her, but the only pain he could acknowledge was the cold, piecing fear that struck his heart like a knife, chilling his entire body in an instant.

The overwhelming happiness he had felt mere moments ago already felt like a distant memory. He had been brimming with joy, but now he was shaking with fear. A fear that Oz did not remember those days. That he did not remember Gilbert, or the friendship they shared, and that the lives they had lived together had been wiped from the boy's mind in the accident.

"Gil?" Ada whispered again, looking up at him with worried eyes.

"He…" the Nightray breathed, watching his friend try to speak, struggling to remain in place when the boy started to cough, "didn't recognize me…"

To his surprise, Ada appeared relieved by this revelation. "That's alright, though," she said, tightening her hold on Gilbert's hand when he tried to pull away in response to her words, "because it's been over ten years since he has seen you, or me, or anyone… You've grown up since then, Gil. That's why he doesn't recognize you."

Gilbert blinked, and he stopped trying to pull his hand away from the woman by his side. Maybe… She was right? Of course, it had been many years since Oz had last set eyes on him. That's why... "That must be it," he concluded, "he just doesn't know how long it's been…"

"I'm sure it is," Ada said with a gentle smile, trying her best to hide the fact that the news was quite upsetting for her. She had grown up without her big brother, but, somehow, the fact that Oz hadn't been aware of the fact seemed almost too cruel to comprehend.

But to Gilbert, it was a huge relief. At least Oz would know him… At least they could work this through together and-

"G… Gil…"

The sound of his own name, whispered in the raw, hoarse voice of his best friend, caused Gilbert to start as if an alarm had been set off next to his ear. He automatically moved to step forward (Oz was calling him!), but he was held back by Ada, and he did not struggle when he noticed his friend was still looking at his uncle, completely ignoring the doctors that spoke to him and seeming, if it were possible, even more distressed than he had a few second earlier.

"G… Gi…" Oz forced out, wincing slightly and allowing his head to sink into the pillow, apparently dizzy. "C... Ca..."

Car?

The fact Oz remembered that much both excited and horrified Gilbert.

"He's fine, Oz. Gilbert is perfectly fine," Oscar hushed, gently petting the boy's hair and staring at him with such a pure look of love and relief that it was little wonder they had often been mistaken for father and son. "You just worry about getting better, alright?"

Even in his current state, Gilbert could almost feel the young Vessalius' burning determination, his will to push onward and stay awake so that he could get all the answers and understand what was going on. Unfortunately, his body held none of the strength required to do so. After only a few short minutes, the blonde had fallen asleep once again.

Ada was the first to utter a sound, unable to contain her quiet sob. Gilbert had turned and hugged her tightly, burying his face in her hair as he, too, began to cry. Oscar laughed and teased the pair, but only because he knew neither of them would dare to raise their heads and see the tears in his own eyes. The doctor and nurse that had arrived with the young Vessalius girl had excused themselves once they had finished checking on Oz, giving the three of them a moment alone.

"T-Thank you, Gil," Ada said, squeezing the man as tight as she could, "if it wasn't for you, we may never have..."

"Yes," Oscar said, raising a hand up to ruffle the man's dark hair affectionately, "thank you, Gilbert. For taking care of him, and for never giving up on him."

Gilbert, in response, could only shake his head and hold Ada closer, unable to stop himself from wishing more than anything else that it was the girls brother in his arms in that very moment. All this happiness, momentarily tamed when his friend had not recognized him, had completely overwhelmed him when Oz had uttered his name.

After ten years, Gilbert was the first person he thought about when he woke up.

In the back of his mind, he knew that this was not the end. He knew that things were going to be difficult, and that there could be problems. Maybe Oz would be unable to walk. Perhaps his speech would never recover. If he remembered the accident, then maybe he would be damaged in a way that was not physical, but mental. That was another battle entirely…

And yet as Gilbert watched Ada lean down and kiss her brother's forehead while Oscar flashed him a grin that the Nightray was certain he had not seen since before the accident, all those worries seemed to fade away, if only for a moment.

For a moment, all that he felt was a sense of happiness so strong it drained him of any energy that could have been spent on worrying. When the doctor called the three of them out into the corridor in order to explain the situation to them properly, he told the two Vessalius that he would join them in a moment, moving to Oz's side once again. The blonde had not reacted to any of this. Once he fell back to sleep, he hardly moved at all. But there was something different about him now… Because Gilbert knew. He knew, rather than hoped, that Oz was going to wake up again. He was going to see those eyes, and hear his voice, and feel his warmth, all outside the boundaries of his dreams.

When he held Oz's hand this time, he felt a little awkward. Over the years, part of Gilbert's mind had accept the idea that Oz was probably unaware of his actions, and so he had stopped feeling quite as self conscious about the way he acted around his friend, the tender touches and the words he spoke. Now, however, there was an immediate possibility that Oz could hear and feel him, and that made him all the more aware of his actions and how his friend could feel about them.

He wanted to hold him close, but he didn't. He wanted to lean down and place a kiss on the boy's forehead, as his sister had, but he didn't. He wanted… He wanted… He wanted… And yet he did not take. Oz would be embarrassed if he did, or if he ever found out that Gilbert had done any of these things before. He had never treated Oz in this fashion when they were young, after all (even if he had wanted to).

That would change.

Now that he finally had him back, he was never going to let him go.

He couldn't bear the thought of losing him again…

"Gilbert? Could you come here for a minute?"

"Right…" the man nodded as a signal to Oscar, showing the man that he had heard him despite the fact he had not yet moved from Oz's side. Truthfully, he did not want to go, but he knew that the sooner he went and listened to what the doctors had to say, the sooner he could return. "Welcome back, Oz…" he whispered again, placing his friend's hand down on the soft white sheets of the boy's bed. With no small amount of reluctance, he took several steps backwards before finally turning towards the door.

Part of him was still afraid that this was all fantasy (If he stepped out of this room, would he wake up?). But, in his heart, he knew it was not.

Not this time.

As the door clicked shut behind the twenty-four-year-old man, a peaceful silence feel within the hospital room. Once again, the steady bleeping and bellowing of the machines around the sleeping blonde were the only sounds to break the silence.

In that silence, Oz released the quietest of whines, and his hand twitched a little, sliding ever so slightly across the sheets. Reaching out, as if searching for something it had lost.

Something warm…

Something true…

Or… Maybe… Someone…

"Gil…"

O-O-O

To Be Continued

O-O-O