A/N: Not much to say other than I hope you enjoy the chapter. Oh and a special shout-out to anonymous reviewer Kiara for her funny and consistent feedback!
Disclaimer: I do not own Kekkaishi or anything related to it.
"speech"
'thoughts'
I know it's not your fault, but I'm a locked door
And inside I'm a mess by someone before
And I wish that I, I could find a key
To unlock all the things that you want us to be
Let me open up and start again,
But there's a safe around my heart
I don't know how to let you in,
And that's what keeps us apart
'Need You' by Travie McCoy
Chapter 4: Falling?
"…Grandpa told me that the enemy is from another world. Seems like we were right; we'll probably have to fight more of those guys in human skin in the future" Yoshimori commented as he made more kekkais appear in the air.
"Yes" agreed Tokine as she also was busy making and dispelling kekkais when they were no longer necessary. "That's why we got to make sure we are in tiptop shape for when that time comes"
"I wonder why they want Karasumori so much in the first place" Yoshimori pondered. "I get that it makes them stronger, but there's gotta be some other reason, right?" he asked facing Tokine.
The girl sighed but didn't take her eyes away from the sky. "Who knows? Nobody understands all the secrets of Karasumori. That's why this place is so scary"
"You really think so?" asked Yoshimori making another kekkai without really paying attention to where it landed. "I never really thought of this place as scary; just as something that gets in the way of a lot of other things I rather be doing"
As the Sumimura mumbled the last part out, Tokine glanced at him with the corner of her eye. Consequently she lost her concentration on her precious task. A fact the one affected by it struggled to point out.
"Hey, you guys- shit- Guys!" Gen called as an unstable kekkai almost bumped his head. "You said we were going to train, but aren't you guys just playing around?" he pointed out as another misplaced kekkai almost trapped his right elbow.
After the test Atora had given them a few days ago, the three protectors of Karasumori decided to thoroughly start working on their teamwork in order to strengthen their capabilities. They decided on tackling first the concept of aerial battle and for this purpose the two Kekkaishis were supposed to be working on speed, placement accuracy and elasticity of their kekkai while Gen worked on getting familiar with his teammates abilities.
It was basically a trust exercise for the ayakashi-hybrid as he was supposed to have faith that his teammates would be able to stay in sync with his movements no matter what he did. That way he wouldn't hesitate in taking action; subsequently improving their efficiency when dealing with an airborne enemy.
Well, at least that is what was supposed to happen in theory. But with the way the Kekkaishis were constantly getting distracted with their conversation it was understandably hard for Gen to feel that his life was safe in their hands.
"No no, we are training like I told you" Yoshimori quickly tried to remedy by making more kekkais appear in all the right places. He knew that he was at fault for their mistakes but that didn't stop him from trying to cover it up. He turned to his childhood friend for backup. "Right, Tokine?"
Unfortunately for him, Tokine disregarded his call for help and instead chose to dig him a bigger hole. "If you keep making your kekkais too big, Gen won't be able to pick up speed" she stated unsympathetically. She may have been the eldest but that didn't mean she had to take the fall for her juniors.
"To-To-Tokine!" Yoshimori whined and the girl had to cover her mouth to stop the giggle that wanted to come out because of the boy's shocked expression.
All joking stopped when Hakubi yelled that Gen was freefalling. The Yukimura was the quickest to react and created a trampoline-like kekkai on the ground to cushion the ayakashi-hybrid's fall.
Both Kekkaishis rushed to where Gen landed and inquired on his wellbeing. Yet they skirted to a halt when the night-trooper sat upon the green kekkai and glared at them. The heat in Gen's feral eyes was palpable enough for them to know that they had seriously screwed up. Yoshimori didn't like the accusing stare and was about to retort with something until Tokine covered his mouth with both her hands.
"Now Gen" started Tokine already trying her hand at dissipating the situation before it escalated into another useless altercation between the boys. "I know you probably want to smash Yoshimori's face into the concrete for bringing his stupidity into our training" she said ignoring the fact that the Sumimura was gaping at her. "But you got to remember that he doesn't heal as fast as you do and for better or worst we still need him coherent enough for us to work on our teamwork"
"Tch, whatever" Gen scoffed as he got off the kekkai and landed standing on the ground. He crossed his arms but otherwise showed no signs of wanting to pursue further confrontation. Gen diverted his eyes away once he caught the pleased look on Tokine's face.
The girl in question smiled while storing in her brain the fact that Gen had trouble mouthing off to girls. Whether it was because of a code of chivalry or because he simply didn't have the courage to do so, she didn't know. But it was nice knowing that she wouldn't have to worry about him lashing out at her anytime soon.
Yoshimori on the other hand was a different story. And it was with great reluctance that she released him from her grasp.
"What was that for?" Yoshimori rapidly complained making Tokine roll her eyes.
"That was me preventing you from running your mouth and making things worst" she stated in a belittling tone. Yoshimori unconvincingly denied such statement and commented on her lack of trust in his actions. Tokine quickly countered that it had nothing to do with trust and everything to do with the fact that she knew too well how that demented head of his worked. Yoshimori was about to retort to that but this time it was Madarao who intervened.
"Oh please Yoshimori, don't act like you didn't enjoy being handled like that" the dog yawned making his master blush when he realized that he hadn't accounted the fact that Tokine had been touching him before.
"S-Shut up!" forced out Yoshimori as he turned away from the dog and grumbled to himself. "That's not the point here"
On the meantime Hakubi was busy checking up on Gen. "You sure you're alright?" asked the black demon dog as he hovered next to the ayakashi-hybrid. Gen was caught off guard by the concern but didn't show it. Instead he nodded with feign indifference. "Heh" Hakubi smirked as he focused his gaze on his master. "Lucky for you that Honey has quick reflexes. Wouldn't you agree GenGen?" he said proudly.
Again Gen said nothing and simply shrugged while stuffing his hands in his pockets. He didn't feel like mentioning that even if the Yukimura hadn't broken his fall the impact with the ground wouldn't have caused him significant damage. Plus who was he to stop the girl from receiving praises? It's not like he was expecting to receive some of them himself. That never happens anyways. Well, almost never. He still remembered the night when Yoshimori had acknowledged his efforts.
Speaking of the shorter boy, Yoshimori was already making his way toward them.
"Hey Shishio, I was wondering if I could talk to you about something. You see, both Tokine and I have lived here since forever but we both feel differently about it. While Tokine thinks Karasumori is scary, I just think it's nothing but a stupid burden. But I'm curious about your opinion of it since you've been to many other places than this. I wanna know" Yoshimori asked.
He was still thinking about sealing up the site and he figured it wouldn't hurt to have an outsider's perspective on it. Plus if Gen knew of any places similar to Karasumori then it would probably help Yoshimori figure out what was so damn special about Karasumori.
Gen rubbed the back of his neck before regarding the Sumimura and informing the shorter boy that he had seen far scarier things than a piece of land. The night-trooper couldn't stop his mind from conjuring up the memory of his older sister being bloodily slashed by his own claws. He seen a lot of things but that still remained the scariest, if not most traumatic, thing he had ever experienced.
When Yoshimori inquired on what kind of scary stuff the ayakashi-hybrid had seen, Gen looked away and decided that he'd said enough. "Don't matter" he said while stretching his muscles. "If that's all for tonight's training then I better be going"
And with that he leaped away without so much as a goodbye.
"Typical" both dogs muttered at the same time with a deadpanned look on their faces.
"Grr, you'll see. I'll bring him back! Even if I have to bring him down to do it" declared a smirking Yoshimori as he readied his right hand. Next thing he knew he was nursing a bump on the back of his head. "What gives?" he complained to the one responsible for it.
"You'll do no such thing Yoshimori" answered back Tokine in a deceptively calm voice. She was also kind of pissed that the work they put unto their teamwork wasn't translating into bettering their relationship with each other outside of battle but she didn't think there was anything they could do about it.
"But Tokine" whined the male Kekkaishi. "Doesn't his attitude just tick you off sometimes? All I was doing was asking him a question!" he rambled on and on making the girl sighed.
"Well what did you expect? You know that Gen is a very introverted person" she lamented with a shake of her head before grabbing her staff and turning away. "But he's right, we should go. Goodnight Yoshimori" she stated as she left with Hakubi in tow.
Madarao just watched in amusement as his master kicked the dirt and grumbled to himself all the way home. The dog had to admit, there hadn't been a single boring night ever since Gen joined their merry bunch. It was the first time in all the years Madarao had watched over the Karasumori site that the legitimate heirs had accepted outside help after all.
The dog just hoped that nothing happens to change their little arrangement anytime soon. It would be a shame if their newest member suddenly had to leave for one reason or another.
~0~0~0~
That morning, as it commonly happened, Yoshimori was napping on his desk all throughout his lessons. Except this time he was rudely awaken by his teacher as said adult wanted the student to pay attention to the day's lecture. It was a story about a hero who ran for three days with all his might and persevered through many obstacles to save his friend just moments before his execution. The king of the tale, being so moved by their friendship, pardoned them for their misdoings.
When asked of his thoughts on the matter, Yoshimori answered that he found the story kinda boring. If it had been up to him Yoshimori would had annihilated the king for trying to kill his friend in the first place. That's something Yoshimori wouldn't let slide in a million years.
Yoshimori had made that declaration with such conviction that the teacher was left to wonder why he even bothered to wake his student up.
After that class ended Yoshimori decided that it was a good time as any to head for the rooftop. That way he would be able to nap in peace without anybody else disturbing his sleep. So making a shikigami to take his place in the classroom, the boy climbed the staircase for some much needed shuteye. Yet once he got there he found that it wasn't unoccupied.
"Shishio" Yoshimori called but got no reply. 'Is he sleeping?' he questioned inwardly. He moved closer to Gen in order to get a better view of his face. Yoshimori narrowed his eyes in observation and hmm-ed to himself. 'He's not faking it, is he?'
Well if Gen was really sleeping, there was only one way to find out. And besides, this was the perfect opportunity to get revenge on him for running off on them last night. 'Heh heh' Yoshimori cackled inwardly as he pulled out a black marker from his uniform's front pocket. 'Let's see how you like being the center of the joke for once'
The Sumimura took the lid off and slowly maneuvered the marker closer to Gen's face. Yoshimori was being careful, making sure he didn't make any noise that would alert the tanner male. However as the Kekkaishi was only an inch away from drawing a mustache, Gen abruptly opened his eyes and grabbed Yoshimori's offending hand by the wrist.
They stared at each other in tensed silence. Gen's condensing glare against Yoshimori's guilty look. Finally Gen gritted his teeth and, as calmly as he could, he asked the other boy what he was planning on doing with the black marker.
"April fool?" the Kekkaishi offered to see if the other would buy it. Apparently not.
"Nice try but we aren't anywhere near April"
"Um…" started Yoshimori while scratching his head with his free hand as he tried to muster up another excuse. "Happy Birthday?"
"That's your second strike" Gen informed as he tighten his grip on the Sumimura's wrist.
Yoshimori narrowed his eyes at that and pulled his hand away from Gen's grasp. "Well it's your fault for pretending to be asleep!" Yoshimori retorted before deciding to complement that statement by voicing another thing about Gen's behavior that pissed Yoshimori off. "And while we are on the subject of you ignoring me, would it kill you to at least nod my way every time you pass by me in the halls? We are not strangers you know!"
This time it was Gen who looked a bit guilty as he averted his gaze. "I, I didn't think that you would want people knowing that you were associated with me" he muttered.
"Huh? Why'd you think I wouldn't want something like that?" Yoshimori asked clearly confused by the other's statement.
"You know what, forget it. It's nothing" said Gen brushing it off as he rested his hands behind his head and laid down on the rooftop, closing his eyes in the process. Yoshimori chewed his lower lip in annoyance, perfectly aware that the other teen was trying to avoid answering yet another question. Nevertheless the Kekkaishi took out his pillow and settled himself down with his back against the floor.
After waiting for another couple of minutes to pass, Yoshimori watched the other student with the corner of his eye and took notice of something that was out of the ordinary. He closed his eyes before lazily making a comment on it.
"So Shishio, why are you here anyways? You never came up this early before"
"What, are you keeping tabs on me now?" Gen countered with another question like he usually did, his eyes remaining closed.
"Tsk, like I care anyways" Yoshimori grumbled as he rolled on his side and away from Gen. "At least think ahead a bring a pillow with you next time"
Gen opened one eye to stare at the back of Yoshimori's head before sighing and quietly admitting that he didn't have a spare pillow to bring to school. Yoshimori then replied by saying that it wouldn't be much of an inconvenience for him to bring an extra pillow for the other boy.
The ayakashi-hybrid turned his face completely to stare at the back of the shorter boy's head before moving his gaze toward the sky and wondering how he was supposed to respond to something like that. As if reading his mind Yoshimori mumbled about this being the part when other people usually said something along the lines of a 'thank you'.
Gen shook his head in amusement before deciding to comply with the Kekkaishi by muttering an indifferent "thank you".
Yoshimori's smirk went unnoticed by the other boy. Now that the Sumimura accomplished the nearly impossible task of turning a tensed situation into a comfortable silence, he felt like he just proven Tokine's perceptions of him wrong. 'Oh yeah, who's the reliable one now!' he chanted in his head in self-congratulations.
Now that everything was okay in the world again, Yoshimori felt like he earned his nap. So without further ado that's precisely what he did.
~0~0~0~
Later that day, back at Yoshimori's classroom, a conversation relating to the school's new transfer student was taking place between three girls.
"I feel bad for Aoi. Can't believe it happened to her again" Ayano puffed out after her latest plan to hook her friend up failed. "What hope is there for a girl like me if someone like her can't land the guy she wants?"
"What happened to Aoi?" asked Yurina not wanting to feel left out of whatever occurred involving her friend.
"She tried asking Gen out again and he totally blew her off" Ayano huffed as she rested her elbows on Yurina's desk. "I thought that if we ambushed him in the hallway as he was going to his classroom, and with a large audience of students around, that he would at least feel pressured to say a 'maybe'. But instead he just turned around and walked toward the stairs leading to the roof"
"Not so much as a word out of that stone fortress" added Kyoko, the taller one of Yurina's friends.
"Ah, so our Gen Shishio strikes again!" said Hiromu as he made his way toward the girls, Tomonori tagging along.
Kyoko placed her hands on her hips and raised a defiant eyebrow at them. "You know it's impolite to eavesdrop, right?"
Hiromu pretended not to hear her and instead took out his databook before addressing Ayano. "So Aoi you say; would that make her the third or fourth girl to approach Gen?"
"Try the first, but now I guess she is also the sixth" Ayano informed wistfully, not at all complaining about being the center of attention.
"So he has refused the advances of a total of five girls; that's definitely interesting" appraised Hiromu as he made a note of it in his book. "I wonder if this will increase or decrease his popularity with the ladies"
"What do you have so far on him?" asked Ayano for curiosity's sake.
"Unfortunately not much" said Hiromu with a sigh. "Nobody seems to know enough about him. What I do know is that he keeps to himself and he doesn't talk much. And since he lives on his own I get the feeling that he isn't very close to his family"
"You forgot to say that he's a jerk" supplied Kyoko.
"And dangerous" added as misty-eyed Ayano, to which Kyoko rolled her eyes to. Ayano then blinked and sat up when she remembered something. "Oh, don't forget to mention that he scares Yuri here"
"N-No he doesn't" denied Yurina unsuccessfully as Ayano was quick to rat her out on it.
"Oh come on Yuri, weren't you the one who told us that Gen always wore a face that looks like he is going to stab someone?"
Yurina stammered at that but didn't get a chance to defend herself as Tomonori spoke up for the first time during the exchange. "You know, there's also the fact that Yoshimori apparently has it out on him" he commented as he cleaned his glasses.
"Which brings me to my next point!" began Hiromu, raising a finger to bring the attention back to himself. "Gen has no known friends within the school grounds. Not a single one" he affirmed with a nod of his head. "Pretty mysterious if you ask me"
"That's not true!" exclaimed Yurina with her fists under her chin and her eyes closed. "I happen to know that him and Sumimura-kun get along just fine" she stated before opening her eyes and reeling back when she saw everyone's stares being focused on her.
"And how exactly would you know that?" questioned Kyoko skeptically.
"Ooh don't tell me your six sense is coming back!" said Ayano cheerfully.
"I-I ah" Yunina stuttered. What was she supposed to do now? She couldn't exactly say that she knew they were working together at night fighting ghosts and stuff; her friends would think she was off her rocker. But what other excuse could she make up? She tried thinking hard of one but her mind combusted and her eyes started to swirl.
"We lost her" stated Ayano while Kyoko sighed.
It was at that moment that Yoshimori entered the classroom and headed straight to his seat; laying his head flat on the desk once he got there. Hiromu detached himself from the group and sat in the desk in front of Yoshimori, knocking on the wood to rouse him up.
"What is it?" yawned Yoshimori while lifting his head slightly to face Hiromu.
"Just hoping to confirm something" said Hiromu taking a pen out and positioning it atop of the page he had reserved for the transfer student. "How true is the rumor that you and Gen are getting along?" he asked quickly getting to the point and without revealing his sources.
Yoshimori scrunched up his face in confusion, silently wondering why the other boy wanted to know that. He didn't plan on answering at first but then he remembered the conversation he had at the rooftop a few hours ago. He had just denied Shishio's theory that the Kekkaishi didn't want anyone knowing he was associated with Gen, so now Yoshimori felt obligated to honor that and prove that Gen's doubts were unfounded.
"I guess that has to be true considering we are friends" he stated slowly, trying to gauge his inquisitor's reaction.
Hiromu's eyes widen at that. "Wow, really? That's excellent news!" he said while scribbling another note on his databook. "Now you have to tell me everything you know about him"
"Huh, why would I do that?" questioned the Sumimura.
"Are you kidding me?" retorted Hiromu looking at the other like if he was retarded. "Gen is so popular that the girls in school already started a fan club. His wild look is like an endangered specie and that has people longing to take him into custody for conservation!" he exclaimed before toning it down and giving Yoshimori and expectant look. "Consequently girls want to know everything there is to know about him and they come to me for this information; but I feel like I have already explained that to you"
Yoshimori wasn't sure he needed to hear all that information. In fact he would have preferred not knowing that Gen was that popular with the girls. 'Damn, some guys have all the luck' he grumbled inwardly. But that didn't change the fact that Yoshimori wasn't planning on revealing anything.
"Well sucks for you because I don't really know much about him" he replied firmly.
"What?" questioned Hiromu. "How can you say that? It's not like I'm asking for much this time. I just need something to bait the girls with. Anything will do really" he tried to persuade but Yoshimori remained unconvinced.
Hiromu sighed and decided to take a different route. "Alright Yoshimori, you win. I guess I'll just have to conform with the basic information" he said, inwardly smirking when he saw the Sumimura lowering his guard. "Just tell me, do you know the place where Gen originally comes from or what kind of shows he watches? Is he into any sport in particular and does he have favorite school subject?"
Yoshimori blinked as he was slowly starting to realize that even if he was willing to share that information, which he wasn't, he didn't really know the answers to those questions. Hiromu seemed to be catching on as well and raised a skeptical eyebrow at Yoshimori.
"What? Don't tell me that you don't even know what his favorite color is?" he questioned and was a little shocked when he saw the way Yoshimori grimaced. Hiromu closed his book and tilted his head to the side. "Wait, I'm confused. Didn't you just finish telling me that you were friends? If that's so then how is it that you can't even tell me the little things?"
Hiromu stared at the other student a little while longer before sighing in defeat and moving to his assigned desk. Again he felt like he was back to square one with the data regarding the transfer student. Meanwhile a thousand thoughts per minute were racing inside of Yoshimori's head.
When the Sumimura had said earlier that he didn't know much about Shishio, he wasn't aware of how true that statement was.
'But so what? It's not like Shishio knows much about me either. I mean besides the fact that he figured out that I like Tokine and that I told him that I don't like being the legitimate heir, there ain't anything else that he knows… well okay, he knows of my obsession with coffee-milk. And that I make pastries. And that I like to nap. And he has met my family… Crap, he knows every important thing about me!' he mentally yelped.
'Wait, what do I know about Shishio? There must be something! Well I do know his past but it wasn't him who told me about that. I also know that he doesn't like sweets but again it wasn't him who mentioned it. Since he doesn't really tell me anything how the heck am I supposed to know what he likes! But hey, Tokine said that he was introverted so it's not my fault that I don't know anything, right?'
Yet even though Yoshimori thought that was a valid excuse for his lack of knowledge, he still wasn't feeling completely convinced by it. '…I'm not a bad friend, am I?'
~0~0~0~
Later that day Yoshimori found himself dragging his feet up to Gen's apartment. Upon reaching his door Yoshimori slouched his shoulders, rang the bell and waited for the standard greeting.
"I don't need a newspaper subscription"
"Hmm, you really feel strongly about that don't ya?" commented the Sumimura who then straighten up in surprise when he heard footsteps coming to answer the door. Yoshimori blinked twice when said door opened without further discussion and out came its owner. "Um, hi" Yoshimori said not knowing why he suddenly felt awkward for just standing there.
"It's you" Gen acknowledged as he gave a quick onceover to the shorter boy; noticing that the visitor didn't bring anything with him this time around.
"So" Yoshimori started, feeling apprehensive because of the other's scrutinizing stare but not wanting to let it show. "Do I pass inspection?"
Instead of answering, Gen voiced a question of his own. "Is this going to become a recurring thing with you?" he asked flatly, referring to Yoshimori's constant visits.
"Why, is that a problem?" he countered; but when Gen's only answer was a fixed glare, Yoshimori hunched his shoulders again and began dragging his feet forward. "Look, I'm tired. Let me lay down for a minute" he said while shoving his way below Gen's arm to enter the apartment and moving toward the dining room.
Gen palmed the side of his face with his right hand to quench his rising irritation at the other boy's intrusion before closing the door and following after his 'guest'. The ayakashi-hybrid sweat dropped when he found the Sumimura slumped haphazardly on the floor at the other end of the dinner table.
"What's up with you?" Gen felt obligated to ask. All he received for his troubles were incoherent mumblings. Not knowing what else to do Gen sat on his side of the table and observed the moping heap that was supposed to be Yoshimori before coming to a conclusion. "That girl gave you the cold shoulder again, didn't she?"
"N-No! Wrong!" defended an exasperated Yoshimori suddenly sitting up. He then dropped his head sideways on the table while meekly drawing imaginary circles on it with his left hand. "It's just that… I was just… called… noisy"
The ayakashi-hybrid remained unmoved by the confession.
"…Aren't you already used to it?" he asked not seeing what the problem was. "It's normal for her to say that. That's your way of getting along"
"Huh? Tokine and me are getting along? Really, you really think so?" Yoshimori exclaimed putting both hands on the table before leaning forward. "After all she gets angry quickly, and we always fight, and-"
As Yoshimori kept listing all the things that goes wrong in that relationship, Gen was silently agreeing with the Yukimura. 'He really is noisy' he thought before putting a stop to the other boy's rambling. "Yeah, that's how I see it anyways"
"I see" replied Yoshimori staring into space with a happy smile formed on his lips because of the idea of Tokine and him having a good relationship with each other. "Oh that's right" said Yoshimori as he shifted his gaze toward the tanner male. "Shishio, do you have anyone you like?"
"No" denied Gen getting caught off guard by the question.
"Like Atora or something" continued Yoshimori purposely ignoring the first answer.
"Wha- Why is it Atora?" Gen questioned looking taken aback.
"Because it looked like you two got along pretty well" answered the Sumimura like it should've been the most obvious thing to assume in the world.
"I just can't oppose her! Do you even know how old she is? That's 10 years older than me!"
"What? Age difference is nothing! I'll cheer for you!"
"…You are on your own in wanting to cheer for me" Gen informed indubitably.
"Don't be like that" Yoshimori whined. "There must be someone that you like"
"Didn't we already have this conversation?" Gen snapped before facing away as he felt embarrassed for losing his composure so quickly. He hadn't meant to snap at Yoshimori but all the questions were beginning to annoy the night-trooper. Didn't the other understand his situation already?
Yoshimori closed his mouth and also turned his face away to scowl at the wall. He did remember their conversation around the time Gen had first rejected that girl named Aoi. The ayakashi-hybrid had mentioned something along the lines of nobody being able to like him once they find out who he really was, but that still sounded unlikely to Yoshimori. Especially when he considered how popular Hiromu said that Gen already was with the girls at school.
Minutes passed in tensed silence and it was starting to unnerved Gen. He wanted the other to speak up but it seemed like Yoshimori wasn't willing to start the conversation this time around. Gen figured he needed to apologize for snapping earlier at the other boy but thought it was a little too late for that. So instead he put on a face of indifference and pretended that they hadn't had a fallout just a minute ago.
"So" Gen started but since his voice came out hesitant he coughed into his right hand and trying again. "Did you come here just to mope about the Yukimura?"
"No…" trailed Yoshimori turning his head to face the ayakashi-hybrid; and Gen noted that there wasn't even a trace of animosity left in the Kekkaishi's face. "I came here to talk to you, duh"
"Why?"
"Because" responded Yoshimori scratching the back of his head nervously. "Do I really need a reason to talk to a friend?"
"I, I guess not" answered Gen breaking eye contact. He still wasn't used to being referred to as a 'friend' so he was yet to feel comfortable with the word being tossed at him with such directness. Yoshimori however thought that Gen's action conveyed a different meaning, and soon the Kekkaishi's worries from school began to surface again.
"You don't think I'm a bad friend, do you?" he asked tentatively, making Gen look at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Not particularly" Gen answered cautiously. He could guess that Yoshimori probably hadn't put together the obvious fact that he was Gen's first friend; therefore making all knowledge the night-trooper had on friendship start and end with the Kekkaishi. Gen briefly considered mentioning this fact to the other boy but then again Gen didn't exactly want to sound more pathetic than he felt. So in the end he stayed quiet.
Yoshimori didn't need to hear much more anyways. He seemed fully content with just knowing that he wasn't a bad friend. Yoshimori nodded to himself once more before addressing the other boy again. "So, is there anything you want to talk about? I mean I already bothered you with my problems so it's only fair if I listen to yours"
"I don't have any problems" Gen was hasty to establish, making the Sumimura narrow his eyes suspiciously.
"Really now? Because that sounded like bull to me" he stated. This was his one and only opportunity to learn something, anything, about the night-trooper directly from his mouth and Yoshimori wasn't going to waste it. "Are you sure there's nothing you would like to share with your friend?"
Now it was Gen's turn to narrow his eyes at the shorter boy. The way Yoshimori had stretched the last word alerted Gen on an ulterior motive being involved in this. It peeved Gen that he had no idea what that motive could be. Still, he had to admit that there was something he was still mulling over from a couple of days ago. He guessed he might as well ask about it since Yoshimori seemed all too willing to help.
"Actually, there is something that's been bothering me" Gen admitted making the other boy devote him his complete attention. The ayakashi-hybrid tried to not look away this time no matter how much he wanted to. "Your pet said something to me the other day. I'm not sure what he meant by it but I can't seem to shake it off my head"
"Please, you're probably better off forgetting about it!" Yoshimori groaned looking put-off, if not a little disappointed, that it had to do with his dog. "Believe me; you can never take anything Madarao says seriously. Everything to him is a joke! Trust me when I tell you that that dog has no loyalties whatsoever. Everyone is a target to him and he doesn't discriminate based on species or gender either"
"What do you mean by that?" Gen asked finding Yoshimori's phrasing in the last part to be a little weird.
"Come again? You mean you can't tell? That dog is as straight as a rainbow, gay as a Christmas tree or whatever other comparison you want to make" Yoshimori stated casually as if he was talking about the weather; or in his case, about taking naps during the day.
As Yoshimori went on to mentioning how Madarao had a crush on the Founder 400 years ago and probably on Kouya the mountain dog too, Gen was having a revelation of his own.
'So that's what he meant when he said that we were alike… but wait, does that mean that he knows about me?' Gen thought in alarm. 'How could he even tell in the first place? I wasn't being obvious was I?'
"…and that's Madarao for you" Yoshimori finished while stretching his arms over his head. "Which reminds me, is there anyone you like Shishio?"
The question immediately brought Gen out of his musings. "What, that again?" he reproached as he stood up.
"Well yeah" replied Yoshimori also standing up. "You still haven't answered"
"I think I did" stated Gen staring at the clock to see what time it was. "And it is almost night so you should be heading home to get ready" he said turning to show the other boy to the door. He however was stopped by a hand on his elbow, leaving him with no option but to turn his head to stare at the boy responsible for it.
"No you didn't" said Yoshimori moving to stand in front of Gen. "You just told me why you thought people wouldn't like you, but that has nothing to do with you liking someone" Yoshimori argued tired of the way Gen kept avoiding the questions.
"I don't like anyone in that way. And even if I did that is none of your business"
"Not fair, everybody likes someone! And besides you already know I like Tokine so why can't you trust me enough to tell me who you like? Unless… don't tell me that you also like Tokine?"
"For the last time I don't! We've already been over that and I explained it to you. And it's not because there is something wrong with her. I just can't like her!"
"Is it because she's older?"
"That has nothing to do with it okay! Why can't you just accept that they aren't my type?"
"Wait, 'they'? What do you mean by that?" asked Yoshimori finding something odd about the way the taller boy had said that.
"Just forget it!" growled Gen as he pushed pass the Kekkaishi before he could make another slipup. Gen was losing his composure by the minute and it was better to leave before he did something he'd regret.
Unfortunately Yoshimori wasn't on the same page as him.
"No I won't!" declared the Sumimura as he latched his hand to Gen's shoulder to keep him from escaping. "There's obviously something important that you are not telling me and I'm not leaving until you do!"
"You're being noisy" Gen expressed with anger seeping through his voice.
"And you're being stubborn!" Yoshimori countered. "I mean ain't your big secret that you are an ayakashi-hybrid? If I already know that then why can't you tell me some- Mmp!"
Yoshimori never got to finish that sentence as just as he was speaking Gen spun around, grabbed the shorter boy by the collar of his shirt and pulled Yoshimori upward in order to flatten his mouth against Gen's own.
The brusque exchange didn't last long as a seething Gen quickly pulled the other away so that he could glare at him. "Well? Does that answer your question? Do you understand now why I can't like the Yukimura or any other girl?" he asked angrily.
Yoshimori could only stare with wide eyes as he stood frozen. The ability to breathe was literally stolen from him by the unexpected turn of events. He slowly brought a trembling hand up to his lips and shakily whispered "You kissed me"
It was then that Gen was finally hit with the gravity of what he just did.
'No' Gen took a step backward and released his grip on Yoshimori's collar. "No" he mouthed as he took in the state of shock the other boy was in. The Sumimura was completely unresponsive. "I, I" Gen started but didn't know how to finish. His hands were starting to shake as well.
'What have I done? I ruined everything' he denounced inwardly. 'My first friend, what did I do? He's going to hate after this' Gen's heart gave a painful constriction at that notion and he knew he had to get away. He took two more steps in reverse which resulted with him colliding with the wall behind him, the contact proving to be the trigger to Gen's fight-or-flight instincts that sent him into a mad dash that only ended way after he had fled the apartment.
Meanwhile Yoshimori felt his knees buckle under his own weight and crashed backwards on his ass. Upon impact Yoshimori lungs seemed to remember how to breathe and sucked in a sharp intake of air as he tried unsuccessfully to fight down the incoming panic attack. If anything he was way pass the point of freaking out.
His hands were firmly planted on the floor in fear that he would further lose his balance if he moved them. So many thoughts were running through his head that it was impossible to concentrate on just one. They ranged everywhere from questioning why had Shishio done something like that, to questioning how was he going to be able to face Tokine after losing his first kiss to someone else, and everything in between like wondering if this was his punishment for being too noisy.
'Crap, what am I supposed to do now?'
~0~0~0~
Needless to say that training that night did not go so well; or to be more specific, it did not happened at all.
Tokine had arrived early and was pleasantly surprised to see Gen already there. She thought that they could get a head start on working on their teamwork but then the night-trooper took off the moment they felt Yoshimori arrive.
The Yukimura was left puzzled by it but when she turned to ask Yoshimori about it, the Sumimura shouted a "PLEASE FORGIVE ME!" before running off to another direction.
"Well that was random" stated Hakubi.
"…Is it me or did Yoshimori seemed to be nervous around me?" she wondered aloud.
"Who ever really knows with that kid" answered Hakubi with a frown. "What are you going to do about it Honey?"
Tokine took a moment to think about it before deciding to let it slide for tonight. But if the boys didn't get their act together by this time tomorrow, she was going to make a forceful intervention. She had no doubt in her ability to bully Yoshimori into 'fessing up to her after all.
And with that the three protectors of Karasumori went yet another night working separately.
~0~0~0~
Next morning was a solemn one in the Sumimura Household. Yoshimori's dad tried to act like nothing was wrong but Yoshimori could see the grief in his movements. Yet he knew that it was his Grandpa that was hurting the most at the passing of an old friend so it was him whom the fourteen year old tried to reach.
He found his grandfather sitting alone in the backyard and went to lean against the wall next to him. Yoshimori tilted his head back and stared at the clouds as he offered words of support.
"Just heard the news, I'm very sorry I wasn't there to do something. Shishio was at Karasumori last night. You could've called me. I would've gone with you"
Shigemori gave a simple shake of his head to that. "You really are an idiot, you know that?" he said with no real bite in it.
"Huh? What the heck" Yoshimori muttered.
"What if they had attacked Karasumori and you had been away? You would just leave the other two to fend on their own?"
"Eh, well-"
"Even if you lose your friends, a night that's passed can never be relived. You have a duty to fulfill; never lose sight of what matters the most" Shigemori preached before sighing and lamenting to himself. "The truth is that if I just had stayed by his side then none of this would had happened"
Yoshimori glanced at his grandfather with the corner of his eye before puffing in resignation and staring at the sky again.
'But you got there as fast as you could. I guess in real life things don't go the same way they did to the hero in my teacher's story. And that sucks because that was probably Gramps last living friend'
The teen then excused himself and went to get ready for school.
'I wonder if I'll end up like Grandpa one day. After all I do have a lot of friends… well maybe not that many. I mean they are friends, right?' he deliberated as he reviewed them one by one. 'Tomonori is a friend, although we don't actually talk much now that I think about it. But Hiromu for sure talks to me! And they both know my likes and dislikes… but we don't hang with each other outside of school, or do much in it to be honest. Wait, doesn't that just make us regular classmates? Damn, but it's not like it's my fault! I can't exactly get close enough to them because then they will start asking about my private life and I can't exactly tell them what I do…
Oh, but Yuri knows because she can see ghost too and we are always talking about it so she counts as a friend, right? But then again I know even less about her than I know about Shi- TOKINE!' the boy shouted inwardly to prevent his thoughts from traveling the path where it were currently heading.
'Tokine and I know everything there is to know about each other. Heck, we were even childhood friends so that has to trump everything! Yep, nothing can get between us… well, except for the fact that our clans are feuding. Plus she forbids me from talking to her during school hours. Now that I think about it we only get to talk when we are at Karasumori and even then it's only about stuff relating to work… Crap, don't I have anyone that I can hang out with without worrying about anything else?'
His left hand instantly went to touch his lips as his mind supplied the image of Gen. After yesterday's events Yoshimori was resistant to letting his thoughts go anywhere near the ayakashi-hybrid. But now that he was calm and alone the Sumimura guessed it wouldn't hurt to try and figure out where their relationship stood. Gen was still a friend candidate, regardless of what happened.
'He kissed me' Yoshimori felt the need to reinstate before he could go anywhere. 'But it wasn't like he did it because he liked me that way, right? I mean he only did it because it was the fastest way to tell me what his preferences were without actually having to say anything. Yeah, that's it!' Yoshimori's face lit up at the possibilities that idea entailed.
'Yoshimori you genius you. And they called you an idiot. Ha! Everyone knows that Shishio likes to keep things bottled up so it's obvious that he wouldn't know how to communicate something without acting it out. Besides, I was being noisy so he probably did it to shut me up also. Mmhmm, very sly of Shishio indeed'
The Sumimura nodded his head in affirmation. It felt like a weight was being lifted off his shoulders.
'And now that I know his secrets the same way he knows mine, there's no real reason why we wouldn't be able to hang together. I mean don't we kinda already do? We see each other every day and he doesn't have a no-speaking policy at school like Tokine does. In fact we've had some pretty good conversations at the rooftop already. Plus we get to see each other again every night'
Yoshimori stopped what he was doing when a sudden revelation assaulted him. "Wait, doesn't all that technically make Shishio out to be closest thing I have to a real friend?" he questioned aloud as he stared unfocusedly at his backpack. That revelation came packaged with another far more pressing question. 'Am I willing to lose that?' he asked himself before contemplating something else. 'As a matter of fact I don't even know if he still considerers me his friend to begin with. I did react pretty badly yesterday'
And it was then that Yoshimori's eyes really widen. All this time he had been thinking about how he felt about the whole ordeal that he totally forgot to consider what Gen thought of the situation. Now that Yoshimori thought about it, Gen looked just as scared or even more freaked out than Yoshimori was about what happened in the apartment.
'I mean he fled his own home didn't he?' Yoshimori acknowledged. Furthermore they didn't encounter each other at all last night. When Gen got it in his head that he didn't want to see someone he really put his everything into making it so; which led Yoshimori to another complication. 'He's gonna avoid me at school as well isn't he?'
At the pace they were going it seemed like they would never get the opportunity to make things right again. That is unless the Sumimura could figure out a way to catch the other by surprise in a place where the ayakashi-hybrid wouldn't risk escaping.
~0~0~0~
Gen sat on his desk, face hidden between his folded arms. To the rest of the world it looked like he was sleeping but in reality he was just waiting for the intermission between periods to end. He figured that if he pretended to be asleep then none of his classmates would bother him. And once the teacher entered the room and started the next lesson, Gen would be spared from people approaching him. Then after the class was over he could just leave the school and not come back until his shift at night.
It kinda surprised him how easily it was for him to fall back on his original routine, the one he had when he lacked further life expectations. Last night he was sure that he wouldn't be able to go to school because of the risk of coming in contact with the Sumimura, but this morning Gen woke up finding that he didn't care.
At first Gen didn't believe his psyche would withstand the fact that he basically destroyed whatever hope his new friendship had. He was certain that he would fall into depression. But he didn't.
Funny how life works.
It was like he already knew deep in soul that their friendship wouldn't last. And now that the outcome was proven to be true he didn't feel as affected because unconsciously he was already resigned to it. He just had to accept the fact for what it was and move on.
He still had his mission after all. That's all he really needed to get by. If anything his life would go back to the way it was before he started befriending the Kekkaishi. Plain, linear and without things to distract him from his responsibilities. Then one day, after he completed the mission, he could go back to the Shadow Organization and not think about Karasumori or its protectors ever again.
That was the plan at least. As long as he didn't deviate from it he would be able to cut down on his loses.
'And besides, it's better this way. They were going to end up hating me sooner or later so at least this time it will be for something other than me being a monster. Someone like me couldn't possibly ask for anything better than that'
"Shishio"
'Great' Gen thought. He needed to stop thinking about the Sumimura because he could swear that he started hearing the other's voice in his head.
"Hey Shishio, can you lend me your English textbook?"
'What?' Gen lifted his head and saw the cause of his distress standing right next to him. 'Am I hallucinating?' he thought as he sat up straight. The surprise did not show on his face though.
However the shock was clearly written in the faces of all the students populating the classroom. They distanced themselves and huddled together into small groups as they whispered among themselves. They wanted to know just who did that kid thought he was when he dared approach their untouchable classmate with such familiarity. They all felt their eyes bug out when they saw how their normally silent classmate opened his mouth as if to speak. They could not believe an actual interaction was about to happen!
"English textbook?" Gen answered with an unreadable expression while on the inside he was sweating bullets. He would have been fine if Yoshimori had given him the cold shoulder, but to have the shorter boy standing so casually in front of him looking like he didn't have a care in the world was not something Gen had prepared himself for. 'Is this some kind of trap?'
"Didn't you have English just now?" asked Yoshimori raising his eyebrows.
What was Yoshimori getting at? Gen wasn't sure what the other boy was planning but the ayakashi-hybrid didn't plan on staying to find out. It was then that he noticed the blue kekkai surrounding the entire classroom. Students kept slipping through it so that meant that the kekkai was only designed for him. Gen knew he could easily break through it, but that would mean bringing unnecessary attention to himself.
'He set me up' Gen realized with unease. The night-trooper had thought that if he stayed in his classroom instead of going to the rooftop he would be safe from having this confrontation. He didn't count on Yoshimori approaching him inside the classroom. And now that Gen was surrounded by so many witnesses/eavesdroppers, he had to be careful of what he did or said. "…I don't have it" he answered warily, giving no hint of his internal conflict.
"What do you mean you don't have it?" Yoshimori asked with a hint of confusion. "What are you putting in your bag then?"
Gen couldn't understand it. Why was the other boy acting like yesterday never happened? Why did Yoshimori act like they were still friends? In front of so many people too! Wasn't be bothered by who the tanner male turned out to be? Why wasn't he outright rejecting Gen? Could it be that Yoshimori had already forgiven him?
"…Nothing" replied Gen making Yoshimori's jaw dropped.
"What do you mean 'nothing'?" questioned an exasperated Yoshimori. "Then what are you coming to school for?"
"Then why didn't you bring it yourself?" countered Gen surprising himself with how natural it came for him to enter into another one of those back-and-forth arguments he had grown accustomed to having with the Kekkaishi. It literally felt like nothing had changed between them; and for a minute there Gen started questioning if he had maybe blown things out of proportion.
"Why you ask? Because I had to make space in my backpack to bring another pillow, that's why!" Yoshimori shot back as if it should had been obvious.
"Another pillow" Gen muttered before remembering how the Kekkaishi had mentioned something about bringing an extra pillow for the night-trooper. Gen could not believe that Yoshimori actually went through with that. But before he could say anything else on the matter, Yoshimori continued to rant.
"And I apparently brought it for nothing since you never showed up" Yoshimori grumbled before crossing his arms over his chest and voicing what was on his mind. "So to make it up to me you are now obligated to accept a dinner invitation at my house. Dad's been pestering me to have you come over for a while now so if you want everything to be good between us again then you'll accept because I'm not taking no for an answer. Got it?"
Gen couldn't keep his face expressionless at that and found himself tightening his lips into a thin line and hesitantly nodding his head.
"Alright!" proclaimed Yoshimori with a smile. "Then talk to you later" he said while spinning around and leaving the room as unceremoniously as he came. The chatter within the classroom immediately resumed at full force after that as the students were trying to figure out what they just played witness to. But Gen took no notice of this; tuning it out in favor of far more dire issues.
The ayakashi-hybrid was so prepared to lose a friend that it hadn't affected him much when he eventually thought he did. But regaining a friend was never part of the plan and its effect on him were a whole different story altogether. He couldn't describe half the feelings that were coursing inside him but it scared him that he felt so elated. He had never felt that way before.
Yet that wasn't what was bothering him now.
Gen gripped the edges of his desk hard enough to dent them but that didn't register with him. Something else, something that happened a moment ago was calling for his undivided attention. Something that he was afraid could change everything.
Just then, when Yoshimori had smiled at the tanner male before leaving, Gen's heart had skipped a beat. That was a serious thing indeed.
'Don't, don't tell me... I'm falling for him'
~0~0~0~
A/N: Woo, another chapter in the bag. Anyways, as you can see, something happened in this chapter that CAN'T be undone and Gen is already starting to feel the aftermath of it. But answer me this, "how many of you really think that Yoshimori will be able to stay that unaffected by what happened in the apartment?" Huh, no one? I thought so. Until later!