It's like Forgetting
Inspired by Episode 24
Bon cannot help but be slightly taken aback when all he hears from Okumura is that they have to help Yukio—their teacher, his brother.
They're all hiding in the darkened classroom like frightened rodents; through the window one can see the top of the highest building in the True Cross campus, and can see the shocking blue light. He knows that Satan is up there right now, planning on doing god knows what, but they're all here because there's nothing they can do. And that makes him angry. So, so angry.
Through the pain in his chest he can hear Okumura explaining to Kiragakure-sensei what he was able to garner from Satan; he notices that there's a hurried quality to his voice, and a tense tremble. When he moves his eyes to look at the boy, the first thing he notices is the shiny quality of his eyes. It shocks him a little, to think that Okumura could be close to tears, but then guilt overcomes him.
You'd be close to tears too if your twin brother was possessed by Satan, he thinks.
He starts to feel sadness, and maybe even a little pity, amongst all of the anger that's inside of him, because he knows (and knows that Rin knows) that the chances of Yukio making it out of this are slim. It makes him wonder just how close Rin is to his brother because, if he's honest, he's never seen much interaction between the two that surpassed a teacher-student relationship.
But going from how adamant the boy is about saving his brother, and from the physical clues Bon can see, he'd have to guess that they're a lot closer than he's ever been privy to.
Shura has seen more than the others ever have. She's seen Yukio grow into who he is now from the time he was a small child. She's seen his determination, his strength, his mind, and even his love. She's seen him when he wasn't the perfect exorcist, student, and brother. She can't help but think that the only people who know the kid better are Shiro and Rin.
She likes to keep an aloof type of demeanour, a coldness that keeps her separate from others; but she feels close to these twins in a way that she hasn't felt since she was Shiro's student. When she's on that roof, battling something she knows she can't beat, she thinks of what Rin is about to lose, and something inside of her hurts. Maybe it's her heart, but who knows.
When she's laying there on the ground, body aching and burning all at once, she thinks to herself, I don't want to see this. She doesn't want to see Yukio fall. She doesn't want to see Rin fall. She doesn't want to see what would happen afterwards in either situation.
Then she hears Rin calling, screaming, pleading, with his brother, and her body goes numb. She'd never heard Rin sound as scared as he did then, begging and yelling for Yukio. She hears Moriyama drop to the ground heavily nearby, and she drags herself to her as quickly as she can. She tries not to look, not to listen to the fight that's going on. She doesn't want to see. But then she can't help but hear a voice, one she thought she'd never hear again, and her eyes can't help but move to the boy she thought was gone for good. She can see his hand outstretched and a pained grimace on his face, and the most scared voice she'd ever heard come out of those lips.
They were so close to each other, hands almost touching, and she couldn't help but feel the lightness of hope. Their fingers intertwined so naturally, and the smallest of gasps escaped her.
Then he fell.
Her ears buzz from the sound of the bullet leaving the barrel. She can't stop looking at him, just laying there on the ground. Even when Yukio falls to his knees and screams, she can't stop watching the other and the blood slowly extending past his body. She cannot remember a time when she's felt so helpless.
Her hands clutch at Moriyama, who's laying silently in her arms; she sends a quiet prayer to wherever they go, thanking whoever that hears them, that the girl isn't awake to see two of her best friends like this. She knows she has to get up and get moving, to save herself and whoever else she can, but she's still struck silent, like a statue of stone. She watches as that tool of a kid raises a gun to his temple—a flair of her old temper comes through at that moment—and then his brother raises himself from the ground.
She's never seen Rin like this; never seen him with tears in his eyes (tears that aren't from anger or frustration). She can't think of the last time she saw Yukio cry either, to think of it. They're just looking at each other, crying, and in a way, they're both asking to not be left alone. Rin's still got an arm wrapped around himself, staunching a still-healing wound, but he nonetheless grips his other arm tightly around Yukio (and she's happy when he doesn't pull away, even leans into the hug a little).
A/N: I feel a little like Shura isn't quite right...I really do feel like she's not as cold and aloof as she may come across, and that she feels a lot more for people than she lets out, but I still feel like maybe I overdid it.
Also, the title for this chapter comes from Regina Spektor's song "Eet", which I highly recommend listening to; lately I've been listening to it and it reminds me a tad bit of Yukio. And in a general sense, I'd say to listen to her whole album "Far". She's an amazing artist, truly.
