Disclaimer: I still haven't managed to steal the loveless fighter unit, because they belong to Yun Kouga-san.
A/N: I hope you enjoy. *bows*as promised, more of ritsuka and soubis' point of view. some spoilers up ahead for those who haven't read the manga, i give you fair warning.
~Mnemosyne~
-Canvas and Camera-
None of it belonged to him.
Not Mom. Not Soubi. He didn't even own this life. The bed he slept in, the school he attended in, the friends he had-all of it, all of it, in a twisted way, belonged to this child.
Ritsuka watched the butterfly drift upwards. That was exactly how he felt, he thought. Like he was drifting away. He lost track of the conversation between his Sentouki and his younger self as he remembered what he said in one of his therapy sessions with Katsuko-sensei.
"If the old Ritsuka came back, what would you do?"
"I'll tell him it's all right for him to come back now."
It was laughable, surely! But he couldn't find it within himself to be able to say those words to this child. It was…unfair. It was only lately that he realized that he was himself, that he liked the life he was living. Seimei's plans were dark clouds in the horizon, but he had thought he could face it as long as he had the others by his side.
But now…
Was he merely a snapshot in the real Ritsuka's life? Would he vanish now that he was here?
He didn't want to. Truly, he didn't. He didn't want to vanish, or to forget. He didn't want to leave Yuiko, Yayoi-san, Shinonome-sensei, or Katsuko-sensei.
Especially not...
His fingers clenched around Soubi's, not to reassure himself of his Fighter's presence, but to reassure himself that he, the current Ritsuka, was still there. Soubi responded with equal emotion, almost crushing his hand in his grip.
The younger Ritsuka was speaking. "Where's Aniki?"
It was a question that he'd repeated a few times already. And he still didn't know how to answer him. "Seimei…"
"Seimei's busy," Soubi supplied smoothly. "He's gone on a trip, and may not be back for a while."
"But why didn't he tell me?" the younger Ritsuka was petulant. "Seimei always does."
"He had to be called suddenly. He sent me to tell you instead."
"Oh." Young Ritsuka's ears twitched as he accepted that explanation easily. "Will he be back in time for my birthday? How do you know Seimei?"
"Seimei didn't tell me when he was coming back. I'm his…servant, of a sorts."
It was so believable, Soubi's lies. Ritsuka took a deep breath as he intuited that Soubi could lie just as easily to him as he did to the other Ritsuka.
"You're Seimei's servant? But Aniki's really bossy." The younger Ritsuka's voice was mildly concerned. "And you said that I'm going to stay with you tonight?"
To know that Soubi could lie to the younger Ritsuka was different than knowing that Soubi was a liar. Hadn't he ordered him to always tell him the truth?
"It's only temporary." Soubi replied.
Soubi and the current Ritsuka had argued heatedly about where the younger Ritsuka was going to be staying. Soubi believed that the younger Ritsuka was an attack, an illusion, a word-spell, by another fighter pair. Or maybe he was even sent by Seimei, a follower of his who was brainwashed into thinking that he was Aoyagi Ritsuka. The child may or may not have been innocent. Whatever the case, Soubi didn't want Ritsuka alone with him. Soubi wanted to leave the younger Ritsuka at Ritsuka's house while his Ritsuka, the real Ritsuka, stayed at Soubi's house.
Ritsuka, however, didn't want to leave the younger Ritsuka to be left with Misaki. If the younger Ritsuka was truly an attack or a fake, he didn't want to put his mother at risk. What might happen?
In the end, Soubi had reluctantly agreed that the best solution would be to have the younger Ritsuka stay with him. The Zero pair was still there, and the chances of the younger Ritsuka overpowering Soubi and the Zero boys combined was small.
But even if the younger Ritsuka was a fake, it still shook him. He was so…so much like the Ritsuka he'd heard described. The current Ritsuka had seen his school records. He knew that before he lost his memory, he was supposed to have been an energetic, popular child.
Exactly like this one was.
And he knew, deep down in his heart, that this was no fake.
He just couldn't explain how he knew. With an effort, he pulled himself into the present.
"Well, can I tell Mom? She'll freak if I'm not home before six. I'll tell her in person."
"We'll tell her."
"But what am I supposed to wear?" the younger Ritsuka wailed. "Come on, let me go home! You're not kidnappers, are you? Well, prove it!"
"Ritsuka…"
"It's all right," the current Ritsuka said. "We can…probably manage it, if we're careful."
Soubi's face darkened. "We'll go through the balcony."
/ | \
\ | /
Soubi looked at his Ritsuka and felt his own heart break a little. Obviously, the current Ritsuka was confused and scared. He felt the same, but reacted differently. As a Fighter he must protect his Sacrifice at all costs. In his mind, he had decided that this younger Ritsuka was a threat.
However, his heart…couldn't imagine raising a hand to harm this boy. If he was an attack or an impostor, he had been trained well.
He knew no other Ritsuka other than the one he had been protecting and loving for the past six months. He thought that he didn't need to know any other. He knew that his Ritsuka was worried about his lost memories, but if he had to think about it, he might've said that there were no memories that could be erased so easily. Maybe, he would've said, someday, the memories of the old Ritsuka would merge with the current one.
It was what he hoped, for this Sacrifice called Loveless. He may never be truly his Fighter, but he could hope for his well-being.
The young Ritsuka ran away from them a few steps, then looked back to see if they were following. They weren't, both man and boy were frozen in place.
"We haven't got all day," the younger Ritsuka said patiently.
Soubi moved first. He gave his Ritsuka a reassuring squeeze on his hand, then walked after the other Ritsuka. His Ritsuka followed him.
The walk wasn't that far, but Soubi realized quickly that the younger Ritsuka couldn't be quiet for very long. The younger Ritsuka peered at the current Ritsuka curiously, then said, "Hey, you said your name was Ritsuka too, didn't you?"
"Yes," his Ritsuka mumbled.
"Do you live at my house too? And we have the same Mom? Is Seimei your brother too?" the younger Ritsuka spoke rapidly.
His Ritsuka only nodded.
"Hmm." The younger Ritsuka turned around and walked backward, keeping his eyes on the current Ritsuka. "And we look so much alike. I wonder why."
A troubled look came over into the younger Ritsuka's face then, as if he had only realized that there was something wrong. He turned back forward, keeping his face averted. He was completely silent until they arrived at the Aoyagi home.
They both knew enough by now that this was somehow wrong for the younger Ritsuka.
What was this feeling stirring up in Soubi? For some reason he wanted to hold that child, tell him it was okay. But that would mean letting go of the current Ritsuka, who he'd sworn to love and obey. He despised himself for even thinking about it.
The younger Ritsuka reached the door first, but he didn't turn the knob.
"What's the matter?" the current Ritsuka asked.
The younger Ritsuka stared at the ground. "Agatsuma-san said that we'll go through the balcony."
"Come with me," Soubi said. He kissed the current Ritsuka on the top of his head, then held a hand out to the younger one. The younger Ritsuka and the current Ritsuka hesitated, but both moved like a coordinated dance- the younger one to Soubi and the current one to the door.
I don't want you, Soubi thought. Who are you?
"We'll see you later, Ritsuka," Soubi said. They would pretend that they would tell Misaki of her "son"'s whereabouts. When it was all clear, present-day Ritsuka would come up to his room, where Soubi and past Ritsuka would be waiting. Then they would let the younger Ritsuka get anything he thought he would need for a sleepover.
The present Ritsuka nodded, and entered the house. In turn, Soubi led the younger Ritsuka to the side of the house, where he used to climb up Ritsuka's balcony.
/ | \
\ | /
The decorative brickwork running down the sides of the house, nearest to Ritsuka's room, provided handholds and footholds for an exceptionally agile person. Soubi never had problems before, but he thought hard about how he could get the younger Ritsuka up there without breaking his neck.
"You'll have to climb on my back," Soubi said finally.
The younger Ritsuka nodded. Soubi knelt, and the younger Ritsuka clambered up it, encasing Soubi in a death grip.
"You don't have to hold me so tightly," Soubi said, trying to speak without choking. "I'm not going to let you fall."
"I'm not scared of that," the younger Ritsuka whispered, but said no more. He buried his head into Soubi's back.
Soubi stiffened. He searched for differences between the young Ritsuka and his Ritsuka, but apart from the personality and the way they spoke, he could find none. The younger Ritsuka's hands were as gentle as ever. What was he scared of, then?
No.
It was Soubi who was supposed to be more scared, wasn't it? And he was. Soubi was scared-because this was something he did not know how to fight. He'd been paralyzed with guilt and horror once he realized that Seimei was back and could STILL order him around, and he'd been scared all along that the real Loveless Sentouki would turn up and take his Ritsuka away, leaving him with nothing. But how could he fight this? How could he protect Ritsuka from it?
There was a soft shifting of weight on his back. To Soubi it sounded like the past Ritsuka sighed softly, once, then was still.
But…
Soubi stood and climbed up the bricks. If there was the slightest, slimmest chance that the boy on his back was the real past Ritsuka, not an illusion, not a decoy, not a brainwashed follower of Seimei's, nor an attack, he had to protect this child.
Or else, in this child's future, he would not meet Soubi.
And Soubi could not risk a world without Ritsuka.
\ | /
/ | \
They landed gently outside the balcony's glass doors. The present-day Ritsuka wasn't there yet. The past-day Ritsuka dropped from his back and stepped away from him.
"Ne, Agatsuma-san…" the younger Ritsuka began.
Soubi looked at him.
"I…never mind." The younger Ritsuka sighed. He sat down on the balcony and braced his back against the wall. "We wait?"
"Yes."
Soubi absentmindedly pulled out a cigarette and lit it. The younger Ritsuka was hugging his knees, head buried, but after Soubi had taken a few puffs he straightened, startled.
"Hey!"
"What is it?"
The younger Ritsuka was staring at him as if he'd gone mad. "You can't smoke in here!"
"Why?" was Soubi's calm answer.
"Gah!" the younger Ritsuka spluttered. He reached up and snatched the cigarette out of Soubi's lips, then threw it out as far as he could. It reached the pavement across the street.
The Sentouki watched it, then turned to the younger Ritsuka. The younger Ritsuka was still glaring at him, and he looked exactly like his Ritsuka that it took his breath away.
And that split second when the younger Ritsuka's hand was so close to his lips-
"Mom will know someone was here! Are you crazy? And anyway, cigarettes are bad for you." The younger Ritsuka snorted. "You should know that."
Still taken aback, Soubi didn't say a word.
"What are you arguing about?" his Ritsuka said, opening the glass door. Soubi had been so preoccupied with the younger Ritsuka that he hadn't seen him come into his room at last.
"Agatsuma-san was smoking in the balcony!" accused the younger Ritsuka.
"Soubi, I told you not to do that," the present-day Ritsuka said.
"I'm sorry, Ritsuka."
"How come you apologize to him and not to me?" the younger Ritsuka complained.
Soubi was saved from the sticky dilemma of having to answer, thankfully, because the younger Ritsuka had opened what he thought was "his" closet.
"All the clothes here are too big for me."
"Try the bottom drawer," the present day Ritsuka said quietly.
The younger Ritsuka reached down and opened a drawer smelling of mothballs. That drawer contained all of Ritsuka's old clothes, clothes that would be perfect for the child. The younger Ritsuka pulled out a bag from another cabinet and began to pack.
"Did your mother hurt you, Ritsuka?" Soubi asked his Sacrifice as the younger Ritsuka chose his clothes.
"No," Ritsuka said. He seemed depressed. "She hugged me and said that I was back. She thought I was the real Ritsuka."
Although Soubi was relieved that Ritsuka wasn't harmed, he could see too much irony in Misaki's statement. Here in the room was the Ritsuka that Misaki wanted, but it wasn't the present-day Ritsuka. That was the reason why Ritsuka was depressed, even though he was also happy.
"What did Mom say?" the younger Ritsuka asked. "About me staying over?"
"She said it was okay," the present-day Ritsuka said.
"Did she look for me? Or did she think that you were me?"
"She…wait. How did you know that?"
The younger Ritsuka shrugged. "Well, she was acting weird this morning, so I thought she wouldn't recognize me."
"What do you mean, this morning? Mom saw you already?" Present-day Ritsuka's voice became a squeak of alarm.
"She fed me breakfast," he heard the younger Ritsuka say.
But Soubi had just realized something important. Even before Ritsuka's amnesia, Misaki had been mentally unstable.
Not for the first time, Soubi wondered what had caused her descent to madness.
"I left my toothbrush in the bathroom," the younger Ritsuka said suddenly. "I'll go and get it."
/ | \
\ | /
The younger Ritsuka almost never walked, he ran or bounced. Now he ran to the bathroom and rummaged the shelves for his toothbrush.
He couldn't find it.
Strange. His toothbrush wasn't one of the things that he habitually lost, for how could he lose it anyway? So all right, there was that one time when he went to Shinichi-kun's house and he left it there, but he got it back the very next day.
He put the toothbrush cup back on the shelf. There were only two toothbrushes there.
He was beginning to get scared. Where were the other's toothbrushes? There were always four toothbrushes in that cup…
He walked out of the bathroom and saw the big calendar hanging by the stairwell. He began to shake. The current year was two years further than what he had known yesterday.
"No," he whispered.
He ran back to Seimei's room. It was as he had remembered it that morning-neat, but dusty. The bed was made, as if no one had slept in it in a long time. The calendar that Seimei used to have on his desk was gone. When he opened Seimei's closet, it was empty.
What was happening?
There was a single sheet of paper on Seimei's desk. The younger Ritsuka picked it up.
The world turned upside down.
It was Seimei's death certificate.
/ | \
\ | /
Both Ritsuka and Soubi jumped when they heard an anguished scream from the room next to where they were.
They exploded into action, running out of Ritsuka's room as fast as they could. They heard a thump, then the scream stopped.
"Ritsuka? Ritsuka?" Misaki called worriedly. They heard her running up the stairs.
"I'm all right, Mom," Ritsuka called back, stopping her in her tracks. "I just dropped my bag on my foot."
There was a hesitant pause. "Well…all right then. Dinner will be ready soon."
Present-day Ritsuka hurried to Seimei's room only to find Soubi holding the unconscious younger Ritsuka. "What happened?"
"I'm not sure," Soubi whispered, "But I think he saw this."
Soubi handed him a thin sheet of paper. Present-day Ritsuka took it. It was Seimei's death certificate.
"But, how…I mean, that wasn't there before…" Ritsuka trailed off. He looked down at "himself". There were the beginnings of tears starting at the corners of "his" eyes.
All of a sudden Ritsuka felt overwhelming pity. The younger Ritsuka didn't know about Seimei's faked death. He must have thought that the legal document, stamped with cold hospital seals, was the truth. It wasn't the way that he would've chosen for his younger self to find out, and anyway the words were all lies.
He put a hand into the younger Ritsuka's and was surprised when the other child caught his hand in a firm grip. After a while, it loosened, but didn't let go. Reluctantly, he slipped his hand out.
"Ritsuka. I'll take him to my house now." Soubi said, picking the younger Ritsuka up carefully.
"But…"
"I'll be back, I promise. If we stay here longer, your mother might see us."
"Call me as soon as he wakes up," Ritsuka said. "That's an order."
Despite himself, Soubi smiled. "Yes, Master."
/ | \
\ | /
Soubi carried the boy all the way to his house. It was small, merely a cottage, really, but it was better than an apartment where there might be people who would see the burden in his arms.
The younger Ritsuka was shaking in his unconsciousness. Soubi thought at first that it was from the cold, but even when he had wrapped the boy in his coat, he continued to tremble.
Ah, Soubi thought. It wasn't from the cold then. It was from fear, and grief. Soubi himself remembered it well from the time that he thought Seimei had died.
Soubi had wished, more than once, that he had been with Ritsuka immediately after the news of Seimei's "murder", if only to help him cope with it. There was some part in Soubi that believed that he wouldn't have had to live like a zombie (Kio's words, not his) if he had met Ritsuka sooner.
Now he had gotten his wish, in a left handed way. He opened the hut's door with one hand and came inside.
"Hey! What happened to Loveless?"
He winced. He had forgotten that Nagisa had sent the Zero boys to live with him again. Natsuo and Youji crowded against him, babbling nonstop.
"Did you get into a fight?"
"Were they sent by Seimei?"
"Hey, why are you carrying a big bag, Soubi?"
"Did Loveless run away with you?"
"Who attacked you, Soubi?"
"Is Loveless going to stay here?"
"Quiet!" Soubi finally snapped. "Can't you see he's sleeping?"
"Geez, no need to be touchy," Youji said boredly.
"Yeah, we just wanted to know what happened," Natsuo added. He took a closer look at "Ritsuka" and said, "He seems smaller."
The younger Ritsuka's cat ears twitched at the noise. Soubi gently laid him down on his spare bed.
"Hey, that's OUR bed!" Natsuo protested.
"I never asked you to be here," Soubi said. "I can use the bed however I like."
Youji snorted. "Well, I'm sure that we can share the bed with him. He won't mind, and we'd done it before."
Soubi gave them a sweet smile. "Ritsuka has told me not to kick you out of the house, but there's nothing stopping me from making your stay very uncomfortable. Don't tempt me."
"We'd better stop, Youji," Natsuo advised.
/ | \
\ | /
The younger Ritsuka dreamed that he was walking alone in the dark, with only a candle in his hand to light his way. He was looking for Seimei, but he couldn't find him.
"Aniki? Seimei-nii?"
Out of the darkness, a familiar voice responded. "I'm right here, Ritsuka."
The younger Ritsuka's tail swished back and forth as he turned. That voice sounded so close. He stretched out his hand so that his pitiful candle could try to penetrate more of the overwhelming darkness.
"I can't see you!" Young Ritsuka's voice was tight with anxiety.
A cold breeze. "Blow out your candle, Ritsuka," Seimei purred. "Blow out your candle and you'll see me."
"But that doesn't make sense! Aniki-"
A sudden wind snuffed out his candle, and he was engulfed in the suffocating blackness. Almost at once he screamed, because there were arms around him.
"Found you." Whispered a voice directly into his ear.
"Seimei!"
/ | \
Youji and Natsuo had been peering with fascination at the younger Ritsuka's face when his eyes shot open. "Seimei!" he screamed.
The Zero boys fell backward in surprise. The younger Ritsuka sat up, looking disoriented. He glanced at the room, rubbing his eyes. "Where am I?" he muttered.
"Soubi's house, of course," Youji said, recovering first. "Don't you recognize it?"
The younger Ritsuka frowned. "Do I know you?"
Natsuo's mouth fell open. "Don't you know who we are?"
"No."
"Soubi! Soubi, something's wrong with Loveless!" Natsuo got up and went into the kitchen, where the smell of food was coming from. Youji and Ritsuka were left, in a staring contest.
"Who are you?" Ritsuka asked at last.
"I'm Youji, and the one who left is Natsuo. We're Zero. Say, did you get into a fight?"
Youji's casual words brought back memories of why he passed out. "Seimei-"
Soubi came into the room, trailed by a worried Natsuo. "How are you feeling?" Soubi asked the younger Ritsuka.
"Is Seimei dead?" the younger Ritsuka asked.
"Hey, hey, what's this? Didn't you just see him a month ago? Of course he's not dead," Natsuo said, surprised. Now that the younger Ritsuka was awake, they could see subtle differences, like how wide his orchid-violet eyes were, and how small he was. His hair was shorter.
"He's not…the Ritsuka that you knew," Soubi said, struggling with the words. "He's…"
"I'm the past Ritsuka, aren't I?" the younger Ritsuka said, with pure terror in his voice. "I'm Ritsuka from two years ago. But why am I here? How did I come here? Where's Aniki, if he's not dead? Why does he have a death certificate? Why is Mom that way?" He swallowed his tears. He shouldn't cry, that was for babies. "Is this a dream? I want to go home. How will I get home?"
Now even Youji was looking stunned. "Can someone please explain what's going on here?"
/ | \
\ | /
The explanation didn't last long, since neither Soubi nor the younger Ritsuka knew how the situation came to be. But when it came to the part where the younger Ritsuka wanted to have his questions answered, Soubi left the task to the Zero boys and locked himself in his room.
"Psh. That Soubi, leaving the dirty work to us," Youji said in irritation.
"Ne, but even the past Loveless is cute," Natsuo commented. "We wouldn't mind spending some time with you."
"What's this "Loveless" you keep talking about?" the younger Ritsuka asked with a sniffle. It was the closest he could come to holding back his tears.
Youji and Natsuo exchanged a quick look. "I think we need to start with the Fighter system," Youji decided. "Mind you, we don't know everything either, and we especially don't know much about Seimei."
Youji and Natsuo explained the Fighter System to past-day Ritsuka, and the younger Ritsuka listened carefully. Youji and Natsuo both said that no person could have two fighters, nor two Sacrifices, so their situation was most unusual.
And then they also explained about Seimei, how he was believed to be dead for two years, but had come back.
"How did he…" Ritsuka gulped. "Pretend to die?"
"Well, the body was tied up in your chair in elementary school and was burned," Youji said. "He was only identified by his dental records."
The younger Ritsuka frowned. "Seimei doesn't have any dental records."
"What do you mean?"
"Aniki never went to hospitals or dentists because he hated to be touched by anyone other than me," the younger Ritsuka explained. "He was always healthy, and the few times he was sick or injured, I was always the one to take care of him."
"That's true, he never had any medical records until about a year before he faked his death," Natsuo said thoughtfully. "I heard Nagisa-sensei say so."
Seimei wasn't clear on what his exact plans were, but he was prepared to destroy the Seven Moons to get it.
"What's the Seven Moons?"
And so they explained about the Seven Moons Academy. The explanations lasted throughout the dinner, and by the time they finished, all their plates were cleared.
At the end of it, the younger Ritsuka sat silently.
He wasn't interested in claiming Soubi as his fighter the same way the current Ritsuka did. He didn't even understand that part very well. But if it was a spell that landed him here, he was sure that he could ask for help from the current Ritsuka and Soubi. After all, they seemed to want him to go back as well.
Also, he wanted to see his Aniki. He couldn't believe in what they were saying, that his Aniki was bad. He thought that he only spoke with Seimei, everything would be clear.
"Where's Agatsuma-san?" the younger Ritsuka asked suddenly.
"Oh, I think he's painting in his room," Natsuo said. "Why, are you interested in claiming him after all?"
"No! I just…wondered."
Youji's face split into a wide grin. "Hey, Natsuo, since there are two Ritsuka's here, I think we should call this one by a different name."
"Hmm, you're right, Youji. So do you have any ideas?"
"Don't talk about me as if I'm not right here…" the younger Ritsuka growled.
"I know!" Youji exclaimed, ignoring the younger Ritsuka. "Let's call him Chibi! Chibi-Ritsuka!"
"That's a great name! Chibi! We'll call you by that now," Natsuo decided.
"Don't call me weird things!" He took a swipe at Youji, which missed.
"Wow, Chibi is even more short-tempered than Loveless," Youji laughed, backing away.
"And don't call me Loveless, either!"
They had reached the sitting room. The younger Ritsuka grabbed a pillow and threw it at Youji's face. It hit the spot dead on, but two seconds later he was bopped by another pillow, this time coming from Natsuo.
"Hey!"
/ | \
\ | /
Soubi wet his paintbrush and dipped it in paint. He transferred the brush to canvas and moved his arm in steady strokes.
He had already called Ritsuka. "He knows now" was the topic of their conversation. Soubi was going to come over, but now, he needed to get his thoughts into some sort of order. He simply couldn't face his sacrifice like this…So he turned to painting.
Kio had always said that he painted his best art when he was depressed. That wasn't true, at least the depressed part. He didn't paint better when he was depressed.
He painted best when he was in pain.
Seimei's death, his sudden return…these two things had made him paint so beautifully that people's hearts were touched. Soubi didn't think he was that selfless, painting so that he could transform his pain into something worthwhile. His paintings portrayed his feelings deeply, and he wanted the world to share it, take away a little of the pain-
His door burst open. Soubi glanced up sharply, ready to throw the Zero boys out the door if they disturbed him, but it wasn't the Zero boys.
It was the younger Ritsuka who darted inside, giggling. He sped to the bed, snatched up Soubi's pillows, and said very quickly, "I'm out of ammunition for the pillow fight!"
"You're what?" Soubi said slowly.
"I'm just going to borrow these," said the younger Ritsuka, as if that explained anything. He peeked at Soubi's canvas. "Nice painting." Then he was out again, shutting the door behind him. A moment later he could hear the Zero boys and the younger Ritsuka clowning around his sitting room.
Soubi stared at the closed door, then sighed. It was going to be a long night.
/ | \
\ | /
Kaidou Kio heard the shouts of laughter even through the thick wooden door. He sighed. That meant that those kids were back again, but-was that Ritsuka's voice he heard? Odd. It seemed that Ritsuka was actually laughing, when Kio had never heard him laugh before. Granted, his time with the younger Aoyagi was limited, so he just shrugged it off.
He opened the door. "Sou-chan, I brought din-"
A pillow whapped him in the face. There were more shouts of laughter.
"You got him, Youji!"
"You boys…" Kio ranted, picking up the pillow. "What do you think you're doing?"
"He got mad! He got mad!" the boy who he thought was Ritsuka taunted Youji and Natsuo from where he was hiding behind the couch. "You lost!"
"Ritsuka, what are you doing here? Is Sou-chan injured again?"
"He's painting," the boy answered. "Who are you?"
"Is this supposed to be a prank? I'm Kio, of course," he deadpanned. Even as he said it, he paused. "Hey…"
The door to Soubi's room opened. "Sou-chan!" Kio said in relief as his friend appeared. "What's Ritsuka's doing here? You pervert!"
"I'm not a pervert, Kio," said Soubi automatically. "And I think that I'd rather you didn't visit now."
"Why?" All his thoughts of teasing Soubi vanished as he tearfully clutched the front of Soubi's shirt. "Sou-chan! And here I brought dinner for us to share!"
Soubi looked at him. "I'm sorry, Kio," he said before he turned and locked himself up inside his room again.
"Sou-chan!" Kio called after him. "You can't lock yourself in your room and paint every time you have a problem, you know!"
There was no response. Kio sighed, knowing that there was nothing he could do about it for now. Most likely it had something to do with Aoyagi…either one of the brothers.
"Now," Kio said, looking back and forth at the three kids, "Which one of you wants to tell me what happened?"
A/N: This will be short-introducing new characters takes much out of me.
forgive the past ritsuka for being slow to realize what happened. it's just his way. this chapter explores more of the reasons why the past ritsuka is here-like if he's an attack or an illusion or a decoy by seimei.
thanks to all those who added this to their alerts list. Squee's to promocat, YellOwbutterfly, and Roman Juliet- you guys know why. Squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
and you, reader, who have read up to here, simply must clicky the review button. i'd love to hear what YOU think. as you can see, i follow most scenery from the manga.
what characters do you want to see more of?
how can i improve?
thanks, and i hope you enjoyed it. let me know?
