A/N- The song lyrics in this story are not mine and I don't make any money from them- blah, blah, blah. The song is "Yours to Hold" by Skillet and I don't own Blood+ either
Claudia arrived and Marva showered away the dust, dirt, and ash. She used a nail brush from near the sink to scrub the filth from under her nails. She dried and went to change into her cut off shorts and a green t-shirt. She pulled her long honey-brown and silver hair into a ponytail as she slid on her black crocs and went to find Claudia.
She almost ran into Claudia as she left the bathroom, "You done with your transfusion?"
Claudia showed her mother the band aid on her arm. "Two pints. I don't want them putting some strange blood into Hagi."
"The woman, Elizabeth, told me that her dad used to work for Diva's chevaliers. The first chevalier was Amshel and he ran experiments on two of the others- James and Karl. The doctor, Stein, did not like this, so he tried to stop working for Amshel to join the Red Shield," Marva explained in a whisper.
Claudia whispered back, "Yes, she told me, too. Dr. Stein refused to take Amshel in while they were here in New York, but Amshel forced him to take care of James while he was away for a while. James disappeared one night and didn't come back. He said that Diva was staying with a chevalier named Nathan and that she refused to see James and demanded that he be removed from the house."
"Diva, what a sick mind," Marva said. She then turned to the hallway and commanded, "Hurry and shower before they come looking."
Claudia awoke to the sound of a gurney being wheeled down the hall. She rushed to dress in the dark of the room. The sun wasn't even up yet. She opened the door of the room she was in to see the two attendants wheeling Hagi to the room next to Marva's, one carrying the IV stand. She hurried to her brother's side. "How is he?" she asked.
"Dr. Stein will be in to explain in a minute. He needs to wash up, first." The maneuvered the gurney next to a hospital bed that had been set up. There were monitors and stands and wires around the bed. The men moved him gently to the bed. Hagi's eyelids fluttered as he expressed a painful grunt. His hair was tangled and filthy around his still dirty face. He had dried blood on his chin. She moved a dirty lock of hair from Hagi's face. "He would hate to see himself like this," she muttered then looked up at one of the brown haired men and asked, "Can I clean him off? His hair needs to be washed and combed as well."
"I will get Bethy to help you with a sponge bath for him, but you'll have to wait to do the hair." He poked his head out of the room and told something to the person outside. The men set up a heart monitor and put the IV in place. The older one made some adjustments to the drip and they left the room.
Dr. Stein came in, clean and scrubbed up. Claudia wished she could say the same for her brother. She knew how he was about his appearance, he didn't have to be perfectly spotless, but he did like to look better than this. "Hello, Claudia," he smiled. His deep voice soothing her, "I'm surprised you're up, it's 5 in the morning."
"I am concerned for my brother," she said without turning her eyes from her brother."
"You're siblings, you don't look alike?" he observed.
"Blood or no blood, he's my brother," she glared into the doctor's eyes.
He chuckled and answered, "I'm not here to fight you or argue with you. It's just that what I've learned from working with chevaliers over the years is that their only reason to do anything is for their queen. It's hard to believe that one could form a bond with a human family."
"Hagi is not like that," Claudia retorted, her fists clenched. "He is a selfless and caring person. I don't care that he's not human."
Dr. Stein raised an eyebrow. "In that case, I can't wait until this 'Hagi' wakes up. I'd like to meet a chevalier like him." He then cleared his throat as he continued, "Your brother's surgery went as well as can be expected. He had many crystals embedded internally. I had to remove them from all the organs in his chest. I was able to get most of them out, but there are very small ones running all trough his chest and back. I'm not sure how they will affect him long term, but he should be fine for now. The ones in his heart were the most difficult. We almost lost him twice. He will need to take it easy for the next month. It is important that you contact the Red Shield, I am not sure about many of his injuries. The doctors of the Red Shield know more about chiropterans than I do."
"We don't know anyone in the Red Shield or how to contact them," Claudia answered.
The doctor scratched his head as Bethy came in with a basin of warm water and a set of sponges and towels, "Well, hopefully he knows how to get in touch with them. Ah, Bethy, ready to clean this man up?"
"Yes, Dad," she answered. "What about his hair? Jay said no, but he from the looks of him, he really needs it."
Dr. Stein considered a moment and then answered, "First, wash him up, then see what you can do with his hair." He then stepped forward to Claudia and said, "Oh, I almost forgot," he handed her a wrapped up towel with something inside, "we found these in the pockets of his tuxedo. Unfortunately, the tux didn't make it, but, thankfully your brother did. Claudia opened the towel to find four shiny daggers with a red jewel near the hilt of each. She folded it reverently and muttered, "He taught me with these daggers." A tear slipped down her face. She silently begged as she clutched the towel to her chest, "Please, let my brother live."
The doctor left the two women to their cleaning. Claudia set the daggers on a couch on the far side of the room. Bethy looked at him, "He's dirty, but you can tell he's very handsome."
"He's my brother," Claudia stated and added as she stroked his cheek. "He's in with someone. His heart belongs only to her," she glared at Bethy, "so trying anything with him won't work."
Bethy gave a wry smile, "Come on, he's not really blood related to you. Don't tell me you never thought…"
Claudia took the basin to the stand and began to dunk a sponge, "No I have never thought about him as anything else." She wondered, "How are we gonna wash him without getting the bed soaked?"
Bethy gave that same crooked smile as she pulled out a plastic sheet. "Very gently roll him on his side and I will push it under him, then roll him on his other side and I'll pull it across." Claudia looked at her in shock. "Don't worry, he's a chevalier on his fifth bag of blood. By now he's almost healed. The anesthesia hasn't worn off yet. Chevaliers need something much stronger than humans to knock them out, though."
Hagi groaned as they put the plastic sheet under his body, but he didn't cry out. Claudia was nervous about the fact that he was completely nude, but she understood why. She just didn't want Bethy to get any ideas. She scrubbed the dirt from his skin, revealing the creamy complexion. After a good 15 minutes, he was clean, dry, and covered. The plastic cloth had been removed as well. They turned the bed to get better access to the head of the bed. Bethy cleaned out the basin and added fresh warm water to it. Claudia hurried to get her rose scented shampoo and returned to Bethy removing the IV.
"Doesn't he need more blood?" Claudia asked.
"My dad says we need to take it slow. We don't want his body to be overwhelmed. We will give him another pint when he wakes up. Now, you will lift him from the waist and hips and push him upward until his head is above the top of the bed. This way we can wash his entire head and get the back of his neck as well. I'll lift his shoulders. On three, one… two… three…"
They lifted him and Claudia watched as he groaned and they got his head positioned where they wanted and set him down gently. He gasped as he was laid down. His eyes opened and stared blankly, but soon they shut again and his head fell back into Bethy's hands. She nodded and Claudia poured water over Hagi's head and ran her fingers through the jet black tresses. The water came out the color of mud as the women took turns holding his head and washing his hair until the water ran down clear.
Hagi dreamed:
He was wondering through New York, searching for Saya. He heard her calling out to him and felt her tears on his skin. "I am alive," he called to her. He then felt a warm rain begin to fall all around him. "Saya!" he called. His hair and clothes were soaked. He wanted to run to her, but he was held in place by an unseen force. He felt the rain stop and the sun come out. A wind blew, combing through his hair, it felt good, but he wanted to find Saya. He heard Nathan calling out, "The true queen has allowed this union. You both have lost so much because of this war, you deserve to live in happiness, but you will never have children."
Suddenly, a clap of thunder sounded as the scenery changed to a peaceful, lush green forest that gave way to a clear lake which reflected a brilliant blue sky. Hagi saw a boy that looked remarkably like himself as a young boy at the Zoo. The boy was smiling so much that his eyes were squinted shut. He opened his eyes and looked directly at Hagi, but his eyes- his eyes were a brilliant shade of purple. The boy smiled again and ran off to the lake with a long jet black braid trailing behind him.
By sunrise, the women had washed and dried their patient from head to toe. He looked much more like himself. His breathing was much deeper and the only thing that moved was his chest with each breath. Claudia was combing the dark waves of his hair until they were shining like obsidian. She felt a sense of pride rise inside her when women looked at him the way they did. It wouldn't be much of a stretch to call him beautiful. He looked like the peaceful statues of angels that adorned churches. She looked around for the navy colored ribbon that he used for his hair. It was nowhere to be found. She knew that the ribbon was important to him. It was old, but well cared for. If it was important to her brother than Claudia was going to find it. "Where's his ribbon?"
"What?" Bethy asked.
"His hair ribbon. It's navy blue and old. He was wearing it when we got here last night."
"I'll check the basement."
Bethy came back shortly with the dirty bloody ribbon in her hand, "Luckily my brothers haven't cleaned up yet. Dad's gonna be pissed though, he likes it to be cleaned right away."
Claudia took a drop of shampoo and scrubbed the ribbon in her hands and rinsed it under running water. She inspected it carefully to be sure it was clean before she laid it on the window sill to dry. "It's important to him," Claudia explained as she pulled a chair up to the side of the bed and sat down. She laid her head on the bed near his chest and grasped his chiropteran hand. "I'm here, Big Brother," she said as she closed her eyes in sleep.
Saya had been back in Okinawa for more than a week. She had returned to school and went back to the daily routine. It would bring her out of her depression, but at night, in her room, the memories rushed back with a roar. She'd feel the emptiness all over again. She reached over to the cello case and thought if she played a bit, it would ease her pain. She pulled out the bow and waxed it before she pulled out the cello. A folded piece of paper dropped out as she removed the cello, but she didn't see it.
She drew the bow across the strings in the familiar, lonely melody she taught him more than a century ago. It didn't sound like him, he sounded better- he was better. She wanted him to hold her, him to wipe away her tears, him to tell her that he loved her… she wanted to tell him that she loved him, too. She stopped abruptly, put the cello and bow back in the case and shut it. She looked down at the floor letting the tears fall as she observed to folded paper. As she retrieved and opened it, she wiped her eyes and pushed her hair out of her eyes. It was in English, she couldn't read English, but she could speak it well enough to get by. It was definitely Hagi's handwriting, she remembered Joel scolding her for not writing as legibly as her companion. What does it say? Why is it in English? How do I read it?
"Kai!" she shouted with realization. "Kai can read and speak English fluently." She raced down the stairs so fast that it left a wind in her wake. She found Kai in the living room, trying to give Kanade a bottle of formula as Habiki cried for a changing from the bassinet. Saya picked up the fussy blue-eyed Habiki and placed the paper on the sofa. She took Habiki their dad's old room, which had been turned into a nursery. She changed the wriggling baby and returned to the living room holding the cooing infant. She sat on the sofa and picked up the paper.
Kai had finally managed to get Kanade to take to the formula. Julia had felt that if the infants would take formula, they would more easily transition to human food like human children. They would still need transfusion, but they would also be eating like Saya. It was a good thing Omoro was becoming so successful, Kai didn't know how he would support 3 eating machines. "Why'd you stop playing earlier?" Kai asked.
As Kai patted Kanade against his shoulder, waiting for a good burp, Saya shrugged and handed him the paper. "I didn't sound good, besides, I found that. I know Hagi wrote it, but I can't read it, Kai. Please, read it to me?"
Kai scrutinized the words on the paper, there were a lot of lines scratched out and rewritten on top, Kai figured it was Hagi's first attempt at the song. He wasn't sure if it would be good as it was the first try. "It looks like song lyrics Saya. Did Hagi write music?"
Saya shrugged, "I don't really know. You know, we've known each other over 120 years, but I know very little about him. He's so mysterious."
"It looks like it wasn't his final copy. It may not be very good." Kai heard the burp he was looking for and felt the infant fall limp on his shoulder. He laid the infant in the bassinet as Saya went for Habiki's bottle. She returned and settled herself on the sofa and replied, "I don't care, Kai. It's something he wrote."
Kai nodded in understanding and began to read:
I see you standing here
But you're so far away
Starving for your attention
You don't even know my name
You're going though so much
But I know that I could be the one to hold you
Every single day I find it hard to say
I could be yours alone
You will see someday
That all along the way
I was yours to hold, I was yours to hold
I see you walking by
Your hair always hiding your face
I wonder why you've been hurting
I wish I had some way to say
You're going through so much
Don't you know that I could be the one to hold you
Every single day I find it hard to say
I could be yours alone
You will see someday
That all along the way
I was yours to hold, I was yours to hold
I'm stretching but you're just out of reach
You should know
I'm ready when you're ready for me
And I'm waiting for the right time
For the day I catch your eye
To let you know
That I'm yours to hold
Saya was staring off into space. Her expression was hard to read, but Kai knew that she was just waiting to go to her room and cry. She didn't move or change her expression as she said in an airy voice, "Read it again."
Kai wasn't sure what to do. She looked like her mind was gone, and he was terrified that this was hurting her more than she was thinking. "Saya, he's gonna be okay, you don't have to…"
"Again, Kai," she restated as a tear streaked down her face.
Kai read through it again as Habiki drained the bottle. Lulu arrived just in time to take over. Kai had to open Omoro and begin his evening. "Saya, will you be alright?" he asked. Lulu took Habiki from a dazed Saya.
"I'll take care of her, Kai," Lulu reassured as she burped Habiki. Kai had named the girls shortly after they got back home. He knew Saya wouldn't be up to it. Lulu watched the girls while Omoro was open, and Kaori watched them at night since she had graduated last year and wasn't attending college yet. Kai paid her every week to help her with living expenses. She would chat with Saya when she (Saya) was having a sleepless night.
Lulu felt Habiki fall asleep and laid her in the blue bassinet, next to her sister's pink one. She smiled at the sleeping infants and turned her attention to Saya. She knelt down in front of her to look in her eyes, "Saya, what's the matter?"
Saya grabbed the paper gently, her gaze stayed fixed as if in a trance, "He wrote a song for me Lulu. All this time, he felt this way, watching me. He never tried to say it, he didn't want it to get in the way of my wish- my wish to eliminate Diva. Why didn't I notice it? I've known him so long so I should have seen it."
"He doesn't show his emotions, Saya and he barely even talks. How could you know?"
Saya looked down, "But I should have. I should have noticed how I felt, too." She let another tear roll down her face as she got up. "I'm going to lay down Lulu."
Hagi opened his eyes to an already risen sun peeking through the thin curtains. The room was large and there were many medical items around him. He felt a warm hand on his chiropteran claw and looked down at the dark brown ringlets that smelled of fresh lemon grass, honey, and a hint of coconut from the hair dress she used to smooth her curls. Claudia, he thought. She always smells like some exotic island far away. He moved his claw to feel the texture of his skin and run it through his hair. I'm clean? How? He then noticed the feeling of the sheet that covered him against his skin. He was not comfortable with the discovery that he was indeed unclothed completely. He looked around the room, searching for clothes, but finding none. He sighed as he dropped his head back against the pillow. His hair was loose and surrounding his head like a halo.
He was very grateful for being clean, but he was wary of these surroundings. He didn't know this place and what's worse, his daggers were missing with his clothes. There was nothing he could do about it, however. He was badly injured. He moved the cloth down his chest to reveal white bandages covering the wound. Someone has removed the crystals. I do not feel them tearing at me anymore. It is still painful, but a healing pain. He heard the heart monitor emitting a rhythmic beeping, but he wasn't sure what it was or how it did what it did, but it was annoying him. He stroked Claudia's hair.
Claudia felt someone stroke her hair and opened her light brown eyes to see two blue-gray eyes staring back at her. She smiled the most grateful smile Hagi had ever seen.
"Hagi, I'm so glad you're okay!" Marva said as she entered the room. She joined Claudia in a careful family hug. Tears of joy fell from the women's faces. Hagi smiled at their joy. A rare sight indeed.
After a moment they broke free and Hagi got to ask the question he'd been wanting answered since he woke up, "Where are my clothes?"
