Only a week has passed.
Everything's fine, everything's okay. That's how they play it.
If it wasn't for the collapsed roofs and coffins being tended by those nearly needing a coffin themselves, he could almost believe in their illusion.
He stands hidden in a far doorway, watching the death rituals. Crying, crying, crying. It really does get to him, you know? The pathetic displays of emotion, ruining his breathing air with pure angstygen.
The dead are gone, their lives have been completed. A very river of tears will do no good.
Kanda moves to leave, get out of the place. As he turns, he notices the two of them, standing side by side. The boy's bandaged up, leaning on her for support. Her smile is sad, but comforting to everyone who looks to her face. He should be there with them, but he gives not a backward glance and moves through the (still) cracked and empty halls. A specter like all the rest.
The outside air is fresh and clean and warm. His black turtle neck is beginning to feel constrictive as he rolls up the sleeves to his pale elbows.
It's probably somewhere near midnight as the moon hangs its lemon pie smile up with the crumbs of lemon stars left over from the desert of the day.
The wind makes a friendly fuss of his black tresses, puffing his long bangs around his shoulders.
It's dangerous for someone like him to be out. An exorcist with no innocence. He shrugs any reservations away. He doesn't have reservations. Not anymore.
The city is deserted for the most part, sometimes a passing ghost face makes an appearance in a high window, and a ways off, classical music echoes away into the night; a party is being held somewhere.
The street he's walking on comes to an end and is met by a small river with a well built, old footbridge straddling its banks.
The bridge is welcoming, and he runs his hand over the smooth guard rail, worn from many years of use. He stands and rests his forearms against the wood, gazing into the water below.
Where did this river go? To the sea of course. All rivers flow to the sea. Where they mix and mingle with all sorts of other rivers, and lakes, and rains, from anywhere that could ever exist. They say that the earth's had the same water since the beginning of time. It just recycles itself over and over. So the same water that ran below his feet ran below the feet of a caveman, a dinosaur, an ugly little lizard-fish. It just went on forever, and would keep going on till people had vanished, and past that still.
Kanda closed his eyes, leaning into the rail, enjoying the solitude, the feeling of removing himself from where he was and looking at it from above. It wasn't so big, his world. It seemed insignificant, replaceable…
I'm not worthless.
Those words?
"Enjoying yourself, exorcist?"
Those words! His eyes flashed open, taken by surprise. Had he let his guard down that much? He snapped his head to the side, to confront the one who had caught him so cleverly.
"It's been awhile, hasn't it?" the voice like dark chocolate, and he knew who it was.
Tyki Mikk stood not three feet away from him, finely dressed, with his hair tied and hanging down his back. Kanda wondered why it was that way, or better yet-
"You're dead." Kanda stated, flat and cold.
"Apparently not." Tyki returned with a cheeky smile.
"You should be."
"So should you." The Noah says this with an edge to his voice, eyes glinting in the flickering street lights.
"It's strange, isn't it?" in a sudden change of motion, Tyki moves to stand beside the exorcist, elbow on the railing, head resting on his hand.
Kanda remains silent, slowly turning his eyes back to the view before him.
"We're enemies, but we all enjoy the same things in life." Tyki's eyes moved reminiscently to the sky. The wind caressed their skin, and the music finally faded into the night.
"Aren't you going to kill me?"
"No." the answer had Kanda's eyes open a bit wider, his hands tightening on the railing.
"You're simply too worthless as you are now." Tyki glanced at him from the corner of his eye, gauging his reaction.
Kanda's face darkened, and he looked away, to the ground. They're enemies aren't they? Fierce enemies, but Kanda doesn't care anymore. He doesn't care that he's showing his weakness, that his innocence is broken; doesn't care about all the things Tyki Mikk's done to the people he's supposed to care about. His heart is just so full of anger and hate, and he's been holding it in for so long.
The fist seems to come out of nowhere, because it does, hitting Tyki straight in the mouth, knocking him off balance. The attack is too violent, too surprising, so that he finds himself thrown on his back on the bridge with Kanda's hands entangled in his collar, choking him slowly.
"Bastard." The insult comes through clenched teeth, growled from the boy pinning him.
Tyki can taste blood, and his lip twitches, anger coursing in his veins, the urge to kill. His hands dart up, catching the long black hair and pulling it away. Kanda hisses in pain and they struggle, rolling off the bridge into the shallow water below.
Kanda can't breath, water rushing into his lungs. The stream's barely two feet deep, but that's more than enough for Tyki to drown someone in.
Just when he thinks he won't make it another second, he's pulled to the surface, Tyki's drenched gloved hands grasping his shirt.
"And here I was even being friendly." He speaks with a red smile, and Kanda wonders why he's taking his time.
"Tell me, love, what's your pleasure tonight?" the question demands a response, emphasized by another quick drowning and resurrection.
Kanda's hands clutch at Tyki's sopping sleeves as he coughs water, feeling dark and cold.
"You."
The word is gasping and garbled, and Tyki wonders if he's hearing right.
"Me?" he's amused now, and halts his administrations for the moment.
"Kill me."
The Noah bursts out laughing, "Tell me why." He answers softly, watching intently.
"You have all the reasons you need already." Kanda's been on his knees, and his head shifts to one side, battered, but his eyes are calm and clear. And desiring, urging Tyki on.
A thrilling fire runs through Tyki's veins; when was the last time someone looked at him like that? So eager, so needy.
He drops the exorcist into the water, where he goes down for a moment, surprised. He pulls himself together, glaring upwards at the Noah between strands of long plastered black hair.
Tyki chuckles as he pulls his own wild curls back, to bad he's lost his tie. He leans towards the moon, hands on either side of his head, eyes closed, water dripping down his dark skin.
"I won't." he whispers, opening his eyes now and staring downwards, "I won't."
He bends down, brushing the pooling black hair out of the exorcist's face, trailing a tear's road down his cheek with a gloved thumb. "I, won't." and now it's spoken mockingly.
Kanda's view is encompassed by Tyki's smirking face, and he closes his eyes, as if denying him.
"You're so faithless." That gloved hand is trailing down his neck now.
"So cold…" over his shoulder.
"Pointless."
"Pitiful."
"Broken." Three fingers pressed against his heart, beating as dully and his mind is working.
Not worthless.
Not worthless.
Not worthless.
But I can't prove it.
"Oh, my dear," comes the silky call in his ear, "My dear, my dear."
"My little paper doll, fell in the water and got torn."
Kanda's eyes tighten themselves up just a bit more.
"Let me fix you."
Kanda's heart seems to stop.
No. No. No.
"Let me put you back together."
No. No. No!
His eyes open, and Tyki's own polished gaze greets him.
Tyki stands straight, and offers Kanda his hand.
No. No…
Kanda reaches out, and grabs hold of it tightly.
Tyki can't help but give a face cutting grin, and at this, Kanda feels something stitched back together inside. With sharp black wires and razor blades.
He felt better already.