Thorny Path
Re-learning
Disclaimer: I do not own nor profit from any of the ideas, characters, names, etc that I have used from Until Death Do Us Part. Any original aspects of this fiction have spawned from my imagination, thus I'm rather attached to them, so would prefer if others don't nick off with them without referencing.
A/N: Wow, this story's really on a roll. I just can't stop writing it! :o Sorry readers of Entwined, I will update that fic soon as well! .
My special thanks this chapter go to ozzy22 and chibi-vale who managed the amazing feat of squeezing in a review between my super-speedy updates! :D
If I had been writing a short story, I probably could have finished this fic last chapter. It felt like a natural place for an ending. But I've never been one to do things by half! So this will probably turn into an epic length novel just like all my other fics. :P
One thing I really noticed with this chapter was, having never written about a blind character before, how difficult it is to portray the world around you with the reduction of one of those sensory perceptions. I had to really think about what I was writing. I suppose that can be a good thing though. :P
Just so you know, I have no beta for this story, so there may be typos or grammatical and spelling errors, though I do like to think I keep those to a minimum. ;)
But, zomg, you don't want to read a stupidly long author's note, so on with the story! Enjoy!
Mamoru shifted in his seat. His legs were stretched out, and his head was leant back on the top edge of the back of the bench. For all intents and purposes he was sleeping. Well, that's what it would appear like to anyone else at least. Every now and then, the motion of the train carriage would rock him slightly. A very soothing feeling all in all. He wasn't, of course, actually sleeping. He was resting his eyes. It was tiring on them to be constantly fed data that seemed alien to his body, so he took any opportunity he could get to take a little 'nap'.
He almost abandoned his efforts at resting as he felt Haruka's eyes on him yet again. She had been practically staring at him non-stop since they had left the alleyway. It was starting to get a little unsettling.
He couldn't really blame her, he supposed. It had been six years since they had last seen each other. For all his nonchalant behaviour back at the burning building, he had been quite dumbfounded at the first sight of this grown up Haruka. He still couldn't see specific details, even with the improvements in the technology of his sunglasses, but her form was very... very womanly. He suddenly scoffed at himself, mentally. It wasn't as if he hadn't seen a woman before. What was the big deal?
He decided to focus on more practical things. For now they were on a train heading towards the suburbs of the city. Haruka had questioned the wisdom of choosing this mode of transport. The stations all had multiple security cameras, so it would be very easy for anyone who was looking for them to find them via the footage. He had told her not to worry about it, dismissing the subject entirely. If he had been worried about being spotted, he would never have revealed himself to Haruka now. No, he practically relished the idea of E.N. coming to find him. They owed him some serious blood and sweat, and that was a debt he would make sure they paid up on; for what they had put him through, for what they had done to Haruka, and more importantly, for making him almost break his word.
The announcement for the next station buzzed over the train's intercom and he slid up to a less relaxed sitting position.
"We're getting off here," he told Haruka. She nodded at him from her seat beside him.
He smirked a little at the sight of her wearing his jacket. It was oversized and the sleeves came down well past her knuckles. It may look a little odd, but it was better than having everyone and his dog staring at her scraped elbows and dirty top. Her light cotton trousers had been scuffed a bit, but according to Haruka, it wasn't particularly noticeable.
Leaning on his cane, he pushed himself to his feet as the train began slowing down. Haruka followed suit and placed her hand gently on his arm, as if she were going to guide him. They had to keep up appearances after all, and it seemed the young woman remembered exactly how their little charade went.
The train eventually came to a stop and they followed the small amount of people who shuffled up to the doors, alighting onto the platform and making their way into the station building.
"Where to from here?" he heard Haruka's light, airy voice chirp up from beside him.
"That way," he said as he nodded towards one of the three exits. "We walk from here."
Haruka began leading him towards the door without asking any more questions. That was just like her, he mused. Her unshakeable faith in him had always confused him. He really didn't know what she saw in him. He was aloof, sometimes downright rude, his past was a mix of shades of murky greys and black – he had to admit himself that he wasn't the most appealing of people, so why had she chosen him? Such a strange girl... or woman, as would be more exact now.
The pair exited into the evening air. It was getting pretty late now, the sun having set about an hour ago, and Mamoru could feel the chill of the night through his thin shirt. He nudged Haruka to the left and she followed his direction, leading them along a cobbled pavement that sloped gently downwards, towards what looked to be a housing estate.
They walked in silence for some time, with Mamoru glancing to his side every so often to check if Haruka was actually still with him. She could have her weird moments, but he wasn't used to her being so damn... quiet. Then again, people could change, couldn't they? Especially a person who had been subjected to such unusual treatment. He didn't know exactly what Haruka's life had been like while he had been gone, but he could guess. It was unlikely that E.N. would have treated her cruelly, but being deprived of certain things which most of the human population took for granted would certainly take its toll.
He felt her grip on his arm tighten and he peered over at her once again. She was staring at the ground as they walked, apparently lost in thought.
"How did you know?" she asked him, her voice low and a little hesitant.
He frowned at her. "Know what?"
She glanced up at him and, although he couldn't see it, he was sure she had an expression of confusion on her face. "How did you know when to come for me exactly when I needed you the most?"
He looked away, wondering what would be the best answer to that question. It probably wasn't wise to tell her that he had been watching over the apartment building where she had been staying for some time now. He had eventually found her location a little over a month ago, but he had waited with contacting her until the right time. She would no doubt be angry with him if he told her that though. Or maybe not. Women were even less understandable than children. Why do I get the feeling I've jumped from the frying pan into the fire?
"Coincidence," he eventually replied. He could practically feel the doubt emanating in waves off of the woman beside him. Yeah, that wasn't very convincing, was it?
"Left here." A hasty change in subject was in order and, conveniently, they were nearing their destination.
Haruka paused mid-stride, peering at where he had just indicated. "Here?"
A wide driveway adjoined with the road, edging a small garden and making its way towards a modest sized house.
"Yeah, here," he replied simply.
Haruka hesitated for a moment longer before stepping onto the gravel driveway, small stones crunching under her feet, with Mamoru in tow. She headed onto the path that led to the front door.
"Not that way, take the side entrance," Mamoru told her as he walked past her, his arm slipping out of her grip.
He heard her step back onto the gravel as he led the way to the simple PVC door at the side of the house. With a glance to the back of the building, he noted that the single garage door was closed, but hadn't been secured. He reached for the side door handle and pulled on it. As he thought, it wasn't locked. He pushed on the door, opening it, and stepped inside.
"Um..." He glanced over his shoulder as Haruka's voice drifted in from outside. She was hovering at the threshold. "Is this... your house?"
He smirked a little. "You think I'd just stroll into a random stranger's house?"
The slight cough that came as a reply portrayed that she really thought he might.
His expression soured. "Don't worry, kid, this place is mine. For now, at least."
It had been a slip of the tongue, referring to Haruka as a kid, and he sensed her immediate disapproval. It seemed they were both falling back into old habits.
"Come in," he continued, walking further into the small kitchen. The usual appliances were stuffed into anywhere that there was room for them. Not that he used them all that much. He wasn't one for cooking.
He flipped on the light switch, suddenly realising it would be pretty dark and Haruka would have difficulty seeing anything inside.
Haruka entered the house, closing the side door behind her. She glanced around at her surroundings, taking in the modern style of the furnishings and then returning her attention to Mamoru.
Footsteps from the hallway drew his gaze away from Haruka. When he had left the house this morning, it had been empty, but he wasn't completely surprised that they now had an extra guest.
"Welcome back," came Igawa's voice as he stepped into the light of the kitchen.
"Igawa!" Haruka gasped in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"Yes, what are you doing here?" Mamoru echoed, somewhat dryly.
Igawa, his braided head cocked to one side, grunted at him. "After that message you sent me, it's not as if I wouldn't be here to welcome Haruka home."
"Message?" Haruka asked. "You two have... been in touch for some time?"
"I'm going to get changed," Mamoru muttered as he pushed past Igawa. He wasn't about to start explaining everything now. Igawa could do that. Haruka should be happy with what he could tell her, and any gaps in the story... well, he could fill her in when it suited him.
He made his way up the stairs and to one of the bedrooms, ignoring the exasperated sigh from Igawa. He slumped onto the single bed, resting his cane against the wall beside it. Removing his sunglasses and plunging his world into tranquil darkness, he rubbed his fingertips over his eyelids. He felt more tired than usual. Perhaps a short nap would be good.
Haruka stared after Mamoru, a little lost for words. How should she take his sudden avoidance of her question? She hadn't been convinced about his answer earlier when she had asked him about how he had known that she had been in trouble. He seemed to be more evasive than usual.
She quirked an eyebrow at Igawa, who simply responded with a shrug.
It had been about two years since she had last seen the technological whizz. He hadn't changed much. He still had that short, braided hair, multiple piercings and tattoos, glasses, and, perhaps the feature she liked most about him, his open, expressive face. He was wearing a slightly oversized t-shirt and a pair of baggy jeans. Yep, he certainly hadn't changed much.
"I think he meant for you to answer for him," she told the man, with an apologetic smile on her face.
He aimed a surreptitious glare towards the staircase. "Yeah, looks like it."
He turned back to Haruka. "Well, before we get into that... how are you?"
"Oh, I'm fine!" she replied, with another smile.
"Really?"
The smile faded from her face at that question.
"I will be," she assured him. She knew what he was inferring. Apart from the recent attempt on her life, she had practically been a prisoner for the past six years. She had always tried to stay positive though, to not let things get to her, and she was sure that she would be fine, now that she had been reunited with Mamoru.
Igawa's expression softened and he managed a half-smile. "Alright. Shall we go into the lounge? Might as well be comfortable while I do Mamoru's job for him."
Haruka nodded her assent and followed Igawa through the narrow hallway to a door on the left. She paused before walking into the living room, peering up the staircase. She had heard no movement from upstairs for some time. Was Mamoru really changing his clothes?
Mentally shrugging, she entered the living room. It wasn't particularly large, but was roomy enough to fit in two sofas and an armchair. A rather old looking television was propped up on a wooden unit in the corner of the room. It wasn't as if Mamoru could watch TV, so the picture quality didn't matter, as long as the sound was fine. A small coffee table sat in the middle of the room, completing the meagre furnishings.
Igawa sunk into the armchair, so she manoeuvred herself around the coffee table and took a seat on one of the sofas, swivelling so she was facing him.
"So?" she prompted him.
"Hmm... where to start?" he mused, toying with the material of the arm of the chair with one hand. "Guess I should begin from when Mamoru got back in touch with me.
"It was about three years ago. He called me out of the blue. Damned if I know how he got my number. At first I blew him off - I'd be in deep shit if the network found out that I'd been talking to him, but he's one hell of a persistent bastard," he chuckled briefly.
Three years? Then why hadn't he gotten in touch with her before now? Igawa hadn't known her exact location, E.N. made sure of that, but he could still request that they patch a call through to her.
Her thoughts were obviously displayed clearly on her face as Igawa's voice piped up again, "I don't know why it took so long, Haruka. You know how he is. He's not exactly a conversationalist. We couldn't make contact very often, but over the months we managed to get some kind of plan together. He bought this place," He waved his hand at the surroundings. "And whenever he called on me, I would come here to help figure out where you were. We found out the location of the last place you were staying at, but then they moved you shortly after. It was almost as if they knew." Igawa frowned, before shaking his head. "So, it took us a while longer to find your current place."
He leaned forward slightly and lowered his voice. "He's been pretty obsessed over finding you, you know. I was getting kinda worried about the state of his mind." He leaned back again. "Of course, he'd never admit to it."
Haruka felt her cheeks flush slightly. She wasn't sure if Igawa was exaggerating or not. Had Mamoru really been that desperate to find her? Didn't that contradict the fact that he hadn't bothered to communicate with her?
She chewed on her lip briefly before finally speaking. "Why didn't you tell me? You could've called... or... even told me when we last saw each other."
Igawa's eyebrows rose. "Uh... Haruka... your phone calls are all recorded and you're always under surveillance. There was no way to tell you without the network finding out."
This time she did blush fully. Of course! How could she be so dense!
Igawa grinned at her. "What's in the past, is in the past, right? All that matters is what's happening now."
"Yeah... you're right."
He smiled at her before digging into his jeans pocket and fishing out his phone.
"Shit, I've gotta get heading. Can't be out too long, or the network will be wondering where I'm at."
He pushed himself to his feet, shoving his phone back into his pocket. "I'll try and drop by again tomorrow, if I get a chance. Make sure that idiot doesn't go and do anything stupid, eh?"
Haruka nodded at him. "I'll try. Thanks for coming."
She stood and walked with Igawa to the side door in the kitchen. He opened the door and turned to look at her for a moment, his expression turning serious. "You've turned into a beautiful woman, Haruka. Mamoru may be blind, but there's some things a guy doesn't need to see to simply know. Make sure he doesn't take advantage of you."
Haruka blinked at him, totally caught off guard by his words. "O-of course."
He grinned at her before stepping out into the night air and heading for the garage at the back of the house. She watched him open the overhead door, revealing a small family car. She raised an eyebrow. She had presumed he would have come here in his van. It looked so odd for him to be driving another vehicle.
After watching Igawa leave, she closed the door and headed back to the hallway. She placed one hand on the staircase banister as she contemplated whether she should go up and check on Mamoru.
There had been no noise from upstairs and she wondered just what he was up to. Walking softly to avoid making any unnecessary noise, she ascended the stairs slowly. There were no lights on in the house, other than the kitchen and living room, and she couldn't see ahead of her very clearly. As she reached the top of the stairs, she saw a short landing before her. There were five doors leading off of it. They were all closed apart from the door directly in front of her, which looked as if it led into a bedroom.
She spotted a light switch next to the open door and flicked it on, illuminating the landing and bedroom enough for her to pick out details. The only piece of furniture she could see in the room was the bottom of a bed. She took a step inside and saw that Mamoru was sprawled out on the duvet, apparently sleeping.
She stood there, by the door, for many minutes, just watching his sleeping form. He looked so peaceful like this. His usual frown wasn't there – he looked almost like a different person. The absence of his sunglasses added to that image as well.
She padded over to the bed, stopping a few steps short, not really wanting to wake him up. This room had even less furniture in it than the others she had been in. Aside from the bed, there was a single chest of drawers. It seemed practical though. The less objects in the room, the less obstacles for him to navigate around when he wasn't using his glasses. She wondered how much time he had spent in this house, alone except for his own thoughts.
She knelt down next to the bed, perching beside Mamoru's arm which was hanging half off the mattress. He must've been truly tired if he hadn't woken yet.
Now that she was closer, she could see the toll six years had taken on the man before her. He had aged well, but there were one or two more lines on the skin of his face and his hands seemed more heavily calloused than before.
She gently leant her arm next to his and lay her head on top of it, closing her eyes and listening to the steady rhythm of his breathing. His breath hitched every now and then, as if his sleep was a little fitful. She opened her eyes briefly to check whether he was okay, but he appeared to settle down again, so she relaxed once more, feeling tiredness creeping up on her.
The walls were getting closer, closing in on him. He looked around desperately for a way out, but there was none. No door, no window, just inky blackness. No, no, no. It couldn't end like this. It couldn't!
He slammed himself against one wall, trying to slow its momentum. It pushed back with more than equal force, making his feet slip and slide for purchase. He banged his fists against the wall in frustration and suddenly realised that he was holding something in one of them. It was long, thin and cylindrical.
Of course! How could he have forgotten? He grabbed the cane with his other hand and pulled, but it didn't react the way he had expected. It hadn't budged at all. His forehead creased in confusion. This was his cane wasn't it? It felt like it was.
He explored around the handle with his fingertips, searching for the catch which kept the two parts of the cane together. It wasn't there. It was as if this was just a standard cane... not his cane... but...
He felt something push against his back. With horror, he realised it was the opposite wall and it was shoving him towards the one in front of him, less than a foot away. He was going to be crushed and there was nothing he could do about it. He felt the cane slip from his fingers and clatter to the floor.
Then, suddenly, the wall in front of him was gone and he was falling forward, into yet more inky blackness.
After what felt like an eternity, he hit bottom, his full body weight landing on his left leg. It collapsed under him and he cried out in pain. He lay there, on the unseen ground for many minutes, fists and teeth clenched, trying to control the pain that was shooting up his leg and into his abdomen. His brain used to analysing situations under pressure, he realised his leg was broken in multiple places, a mangled mess beneath him.
His head shot around to the side. There was someone there, next to him. He couldn't see them, but he knew they were there. He no longer had his cane, so he used the only weapon at his disposal. He slid his hand from under his body and lunged for the person to the side of him. A satisfied smirk tugged at his lips as his fingers curled around a delicate neck. He flexed his fingers, tightening his grip, squeezing. A scream echoed around him, a piercing, yet familiar sound.
Mamoru awakened with a start, his eyes flying open, familiar darkness greeting him. It took him a moment to get his bearings, the cobwebs of sleep still clouding his senses. He suddenly realised something was very wrong. He could hear struggled breathing, more like choking, and then he realised the cause. His hand was around a slender neck, strangling the life from it.
