DEF: Ah, my first Fragileshipping, have to admit it was hard to write this one, people are a bit OOC in this but hey, can't get it perfect on my first try, can I? This is an AU where Ryou is a British painter, I reverted to the Egyptian names for Yami and Yugi so they're now Atem and Heba as well as the sons of the Egyptian Ambassador.
Wren: We actually asked our friend Meerah about Muslim funerals, her Grandpa died over the vacation so she knows how it goes. Also, none here at Darke Eco Freak Inc. own any names, places, countries or songs found in this fic.
~Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder where you are. Are you up above the world so high, my darling diamond in the sky?~
Where had his diamond gone? Why had his diamond been stolen from him? Stolen by a crazed terrorist, why, why, why did his diamond have to be so precious to everyone? Not because he was kind or gentle or attentive to all his needs but because his father was someone very important.
He glared down at those pale fingers of his, those fingers that his diamond had kissed so lovingly every day, had brought to his cheek and just held them there. Once he had loved those fingers as well, the way they could hold a paintbrush and just glide across the paper, creating spiraling lights, dancing shadows, creating something new and wondrous and beautiful all at once.
Now he hated those fingers, the way the spaces between them seemed so Gods damned empty! Empty without his diamond to fill the spaces. He glared at the tea in the cup he'd been nursing, the funeral had been three in the afternoon, it was currently minutes to five, according the digital clock on the mantel. They'd fought about that, whether or not they should get a digital clock or a traditional wall clock. The teasing way they'd shot down each other's ideas, what would he do now that was gone?
He flung the cup away, wincing slightly at the sound of the porcelain shattering on the kitchen tiles. That's right, he was sitting on the kitchen counter, if his diamond was still here, he would come in, pin him on the counter and kiss him senseless but that was gone now. That wasn't going to happen though, no it wasn't because his diamond had been the son of the Egyptian Ambassador which had been more than enough reason for radicals to take him hostage and put several bullets in his brain.
He smiled sadly at the broken cup, he remembered the day they'd gotten that cup, they'd been at a street fair and his diamond had bet him he couldn't knock down ten pins in one go. Needless to say, he'd done just that and won himself a blue and red glazed coffee cup.
His diamond's younger brother had been overwhelmed by grief, the brother's had been close despite the two year age gap between them. Their bond probably had something to do with their travelling with their father so much, not that their father neglected them, it was just hard for him to take care two small boys by himself as well as speak on the behalf of his country.
The faintest streaks of light peeked through his shutters, that would make it two days since he'd slept, two days since it had happened. His diamond had been kidnapped two days ago, one day ago they had found his body in the warehouse where the radicals had left it for the rats, thank the Gods there hadn't been any rats when they found it.
The funeral had been the same day, any relatives wanting to be there had to drop everything and fly in, his father nearly hadn't made it but managed to slip in just as the Imam was finishing up with the funeral rites. He had lost so much in just two short days, he had lost his best friend, his closest companion, the only one who could make him feel as though he was worth something in this damn world.
He nearly yelped out loud when the sound of the doorbell echoed around the apartment, it was nearly five in the morning who would be calling on him so early? He half wanted to remain in his spot on the counter, let whoever it was think he was asleep or not home or perhaps just didn't want any company at the moment.
"Ryou? I know you're there." The voice was so familiar it hurt, hurt so much but he knew it wasn't his diamond, couldn't be his diamond no matter how much and how hard he wished it.
He leant back on his palms, enjoying the sunshine on his face and the sound of waves lapping at his feet, Yugi was right, the change of scenery had done him good. A year and counting since he'd lost his diamond, a year since the ache in his chest had appeared, a year since he'd stopped painting.
"Ryou? Oh there you are, Rebecca and I were just heading out to the store, would you like anything?" He shook his head in the negative, but a soft smile was there as Heba ducked back into the house. Heba had been a Godsend, someone who knew what he was going through and wouldn't try to make things better, wouldn't give him the whole 'they're in a better place now' speech. It had been months before either one of them could talk about it, talk about the night he was taken, and even longer before either could admit that it was no one's fault really.
Ryou had blamed himself at first, saying he should have been there when his diamond was abducted, should have insisted he spend the night at home rather than try to catch an early flight out. Heba blamed the fact he had waited so long in inviting his brother to see his new house, six months they had moved in and he had taken those six months to pluck up the courage to invite his older brother over.
Heba's wife, Rebecca, was rather diplomatic about the whole thing, she didn't interrupt in when they were talking, didn't complain when they both went off into silence for hours on end. She had a caring heart, he saw why Heba loved her, they were well matched for each other. Well matched, not perfect because perfection didn't exist, they fought sure, they had opposing views on things, they were their own people, not entirely dependent on the other like some couples were.
Once he had loved to paint, the way his fingers grasped the paintbrush and then did whatever they wished, oh sure he controlled them but at the same time he didn't. He never really knew what the end product would be just bits and pieces, almost as though his subconscious knew exactly what he was doing but his conscious had blocked it out. His diamond had teased him about it, saying that in a past life he must have been a master painter or something of the sort and now his instincts were simply taking over.
He still hated those fingers, still lay awake at night waiting for someone who would never come home, still torturing himself with memories of sweet nothings exchanged what seemed like lifetimes ago. No matter how many times he went over each whispered conversation, every gasped promise, he could never get it quite right. He had learnt the hard way that it took two to whisper quietly, two to love and two to make one truly live.
He hadn't slept properly since that day, he couldn't seem to forget the way strong arms would wrap around him and make him feel so safe. Too many times he'd woken up with that name on his tongue but never past his lips, his diamond, he couldn't even bear to say the name.
Three years, six months, ten days since his diamond had been stolen and now here lay the thieves. So many years of hatred and pain had painted them as fantastical fairy tale monsters, untouchable by mortal hands, to have them here now was surreal.
They had targeted Rebecca this time, Yugi hadn't hesitating in shooting them both, they hadn't known Rebecca was pregnant. The two men were not that much older than himself, one was an albino with a track record from as far back as his eight birthday, the other was a born and bred Egyptian with a history of horrific murders. How the two had met was anyone's guess but anyone could tell they were kindred souls.
"Ryou. Are you alright?" He blinked slowly, the ache that had dropped into his chest three years, six months, ten days ago had eased, hadn't gone but eased. He stared at his hands, his fingers, his, not those, they were his once more, his because he didn't hate them, hate the way they appeared so empty without his diamond's between them.
"I-I think so, Yugi I think I'll be alright from now on," he whispered, staring hard at the men in the separate interrogation rooms. One as pale as himself, red eyes burning with hatred, pure white hair falling in spikes across his shoulders, the other wearing a macabre grin wide enough to split his face, spodumene gems cloudy with insanity and that crazy blond hair standing up in every possible direction.
He turned slightly, taking in his friend, his diamond's younger brother, Heba. They looked so much alike, they sounded alike, hell, they even dressed alike but they were different. That amethyst gaze he'd gotten used to over the years was now lighter, no longer hooded violet but sun kissed lavender.
"I know I'll be alright," he murmured, the time for grief was over, it was time for him to live once more, live for himself and his diamond.
Three years, six months, eleven days since he'd picked up a paintbrush, three years, six months, eleven days since he'd slept properly. His newest painting was a portrait of his diamond, of Atem Sennen. He hung it on the wall across from his bed. Every morning he held his fingers to its cheek, every night he pressed a kiss to its forehead.
~Twinkle, twinkle little star, how miss you. Wish you weren't so far away from me, in Heaven high. Still my diamond in the sky~
DEF: Ahem, as not many know. I'm actually part of the young writer's club at my school and submitted this piece to be read to the entire school, it was accepted and shall be read by moi next week Wednesday. However, I changed Ryou to Wren so people wouldn't beat me with sticks over the homosexual content found therein.
Wren: Yes, yes, I feel so loved, to be the main character in a story to be read to an audience of eight hundred plus, all of whom know who DEF is. Also, this fic was inspired by Vanilla Twilight by Owlcity. Usually it goes along with Puzzle, Tender or Bronze but we like to shake things up. Read it? Obviously. So review it!