Oh my god! This took me so long! The next one won't take me so long, I hope, but it might. I have events for band occupying me almost every weekend and an up-and-coming trip-tour for it. With practices and school and exams and essays it makes it so hard to update, and it sounds like a horrid excuse, I know, but it is.

o.0 This actually connects to the first chapter a little. And there's symbolism. Yay, symbolism!

Disclaimer: Everything in this story belongs to the respective owner. Konomi Takeshi owns copyright to the original characters; I'm only borrowing them for a while. Adversely, this story's universe and any original characters are mine, unless otherwise mentioned.


Chapter Eight Memories

-Fuji-

The past


"Everything beautiful has its moment and then passes away" – Cernuda y Bidon


Fuji watched the beautiful colors of the day, dulled and blurred, as, in the foreground, a beautiful butterfly landed on the arch of his finger. It's blue-green wings, dotted with black fluttered before his eyes, so delicate and patterned. Today was a breezy day, though the wind was weighted down and sluggish with thick, layered humidity. Within the air a slight chill had begun to creep through. Autumn was coming, after all. He was surprised that even at this time of year, there were still a few butterflies around here. This one was especially pretty. Usually, though, the beautiful and delicate ones were the first ones to die off with the coming of the cold. This one, a single survivor, was lucky.

With his pencil he sketched the lovely form of the insect in such a manner that one could have imagined that it was brazened by sun and honeysuckle rather than gray skies and the damp scent that lingered in the atmosphere. Fuji was in an awkward position when he drew; his one arm was extended and the other was bent uncomfortably. His head leaned on a strange angle so that he could keep an eye on both the butterfly and his sketchbook. All the butterfly did was sit there, with its wings moving back and forth slowly. It crawled up the back of his free hand where it had landed only a moment ago.

There was no sure way to tell when Fuji had acquired an almost morbid obsession with butterflies, beautiful creatures that had before now slipped past his gaze easily. The creature looked out of place, a stark contrast to the stormy brew of sky forming above and blocking out all sunlight. His nose took in the scent of the warm, damp atmosphere with contempt.

Somehow, it was very pleasant seeing such beauty among all that was unwanted and dark. Perhaps, though, he should have felt sorry for the butterfly. If it poured enough, the butterfly's wings would be ruined and it would die. His lips, pressed in a strange, uncharacteristic look paused above the butterfly, contemplating it. He should have felt regret that such a beautiful thing would soon be sacrificed to the full, unforgiving wrath of the sky. That was life, though. Beautiful things could not last forever. At a time, everything had to die, didn't it? That was a tragic fact. Maybe that was why he sought to immortalize the beauty of the creature on paper. His pencil paid no tribute to its beauty.

"What's the look for, Fuji?"

The beautiful took off in the opposite direction at the sudden voice, and Fuji hadn't even finished his drawing. Sitting up, Fuji sighed in exasperation. "Atobe, you scared it away," he stated. His tone, calm as it was, didn't suit the situation at all. There wasn't exactly disappointment. He shouldn't have been, after all. He did not mourn the loss of the beautiful. His tone reflected empty absentmindedness that was as breezy as the wind that picked up loose strands of hair that kept his hair messy, and in his face constantly. The tiny girl who had been sitting in his lap spoke up when he said that.

"Shuusuke was drawing the butterfly," she told him with a slight pout, averting her eyes. "He wasn't done! It was so pretty, too." Atobe shrugged slightly in apathy. Her disdain to the fact that he had frightened away such a tiny creature was beyond his capacity of concern. The lines were transforming to the beautiful outline, but it still didn't capture the form correctly. The lines were haphazard, and even sketchier than usual. They were reflecting Fuji's thoughts, messed up and blended into a confusing mix. Fuji nodded in agreement to the little girl's statement.

Atobe still didn't seem to care. In his mind, it probably wouldn't have mattered if the butterfly were crushed, though he may have commented on the shame of it. The butterfly, though was only a mere being compared to the 'Great Atobe'. Fuji rested his chin on his palm a yawned, the shivers of fatigue passing through him. Anna was tugging at him worriedly, making small exclamations. "Shuusuke needs a nap!" She rested her head on his chest, then, pressing her nose into his shirt, she muttered unintelligible, scrambled words while he looked absentmindedly off in the other direction, not seeming to notice that she was speaking. "Shuusuke."

He picked up the little girl and set her on the ground, giving her a smile, even though it was rather worn from fatigue. So, it was true. For the past few nights he hadn't been sleeping, but rather adopting Tezuka's nocturnal habits. On weekends it usually worked just fine, because he was able to sleep in, but during the school week it was horrible.

Fuji picked up the small girl as the wind blew, forbidding him to lift his head and pray for it not to rain. His smile, unconvincing, was worn from true fatigue. So, maybe it was true. His sleeping habits had slowly, ever so slowly begun to degrade ever since he had met Tezuka. For the past three or for weeks he seemed to be taking upon himself Tezuka's nocturnal habits. On weekends, the habits faded into mornings where he could sleep in for a good amount of time, and would later startle a worried mother by stumbling out of bed by late evening and helping her by cooking dinner.

"Shuusuke, I want you to tell me if you're ill or if you haven't been able to sleep. Is there something wrong? Do I need to bring up the issue with your mother?"

The words had become jaded deeply inside his heart like a horrible, unwanted inscription. He didn't want his mother to worry, no he didn't. She would begin to question him if she found out that he was falling asleep in school. In fact, she would disapprove wholeheartedly about it and probably bring up the matter to his father, who was far stricter when it came to his education.

His teacher had talked to him about that last week, exasperated after he had fallen asleep in his calculus question for the fifth time in three weeks. The teacher hurried him out, his face growing purple from annoyance, and then had a long and impatient conversation with Fuji that prodded at his heart numerous times. Fuji only smiled and lied through his teeth; lying, for Fuji, was easy enough to do, though he had to hold back laughter. With the serious expression on his face, his teacher had looked almost exactly like Tezuka. This was about the range of Tezuka's emotions; he was either emotionless, or a rock. Tezuka never seemed to get angry; he only shook his head at things he was upset by.

"Shuusuke!" Anna seemed so stricken by her worry that she was tugging on his arm mindlessly, whining like many children did. Her eyes, large and dull were unblinking. "Are you okay? Are you sick?" Fuji blinked slightly as fatigue crept past his eyelids, bidding them to close for only a minute, if only a moment. Even when his head was weighted down by the heavy feeling of exhaustion he was able to feel the cool brush as Atobe's eyes turned on him, seeming to be genuinely curious as to the cause of Fuji's lethargy. Fuji wasn't usually this tired, even alongside his recent change in sleeping habits. Anna's words were reaching his brain slowly, and his mind was sluggish. It took him another minute to think and actually respond.

"Go play in the sandbox. I'll be over there in a minute." Anna nodded slightly, though hesitant. Slowly, she skipped off in the direction of which he had asked her to go, but her movements were slow and deliberate. Here eyes were stricken into an odd expression. Perhaps, he thought, it was because she was still worried about the events nearly four moths ago, when they had jumped out at her. Even now, she was reluctant to leave Fuji's immediate presence. From a distance, her image melted with the other colors, but clearly distinctive among her features was a quivering lip and frightened eyes. She went to go dig holes in the sandbox. While he watched her, the events crawling along like the boring drawl of a movie, Atobe stared at him, seeming to be more interested in his lethargy than Anna's odd fears.

"You're tired today," he stated with a creepy sort of accuracy, even though it had been obvious from the start. Fuji dodged and parried the attack well, adding in his own strike with his next answer, something that he knew wouldn't satisfy Atobe in the slightest. He knew that it annoyed Atobe when he did such things, but it was all too warm of a pleasure when it spread through his chest, and it was very pleasant to be feeling something other than absolute exhaustion, to the point where his legs grew so heavy that he thought it was too dangerous to try and stand up, for fear of collapsing. The breeze was too cool, he thought to himself. He tried to catch his words and keep them, but Atobe had the advantage of a full night's sleep, whereas Fuji did not.

"I didn't sleep well last night, with all the storms. Surely, you know how badly it has been raining, Atobe." The mix of lies created an acidic tingle on his tongue that taunted him. Weeks ago, there had been a very strong storm. After that, the downpours had become more and more frequent. While this long, unending line of storms blew through, they had created a good deal of ruckus, flooding in the lower parts of the city, and amazing amounts of lost sleep for many citizens. Every few nights, lightning would decorate his worm in a colorful show of lights. On the nights that he didn't see Tezuka, he wondered where the man went in such horrid weather, as he lied in bed trying without success to sleep. These worries were not fleeting, but stuck with him like a pungent sting to his heart.

"Don't try and lie to me, Fuji. You know that I have incredible insight." His voice spoke of incredulous things, but he spoke in a tone that stated he was being just as serious, icily serious. Sometimes, it amused him, and he gave the boy a bemused expression and leaned forward just a little, inclining his head to match the angle of his back to the table. The amusement whittled away in a breeze of fatigue, heavy and dizzying.

"Anna-chan needs me for now. I'm supposed to be watching her, after all." He was very skillful at aversion. Anna was, indeed waiting for him to come over. She stood on her tiptoes and waved her hand in the air like she was in school, trying to get her teacher's attention. Putting his hand to his mouth for a moment, Fuji lowered his gaze; Atobe tilted his head, in expectation that Fuji was going to deal out answers, as if the were always free.

"Don't avoid the subject!" Atobe said sharply. The wind, though, caught Atobe's words as Fuji walked away, and by the time that wind reached his ear the words long since spoken were so garbled that he could barely hear them at all. His eyes paused only slightly over the man, who looked very annoyed that he was being ignored. After all, there weren't many people who dared to ignore him in such a casual manner.

When he reached Anna, she automatically ran to him, and latched onto his leg with a grip rivaling the strength of many girls older and stronger than she. Her whimpers, soft and muffled, cooled the air that carried to brush against his cheek. Partially, his gaze turned to the sky as if he was praying for the rain, though in essence it would have done them an inconvenience considering that he had Anna with him. Today, though, was one of the only days that he actually had an umbrella with him.

Well, Atobe always brought his umbrella with him, because he possessed a strong and uncharacteristic dislike for the forces of nature, and would have been furious to be soaked to by the rain. Fuji, though he generally held apathy for soaking in rainstorms, had infection-prone Anna with him today. At the point of her therapy, her immune system was slowly growing less and less stable. She, unlike Atobe or Fuji, could easily catch an illness from getting so wet. Already, a worried mind could easily point out that she was thinner, paler, and her hair wasn't as thick. Her red hair, which seemed slightly faded didn't pick up in the breeze. Fuji's eyes would lower in concern, but then took a turn. He didn't doubt the young girl's ability to recover. After all, he had when he was younger, and after years he had been lucky enough not to go into relapse. It was slightly worrisome, though, that when he ran his fingers through her hair that her hair sometimes fell out. It was common among cancer patients, yes, but it made Fuji's heartache with memories from his own childhood.

"Don't you want to play in the sandbox?" Anna had always coveted being able to play in the sand, whether it happened to be in the sandbox or at the beach on the weekend. She valued being able to enjoy her time there and create her own worlds, giggling and giving them innocent names. Today, however, she could only press her face harder into his leg and shake her head in a solemn answer. Fuji paused and detached her from her leg, and then bent down to brush some thin, faded hair from her face.

"Why are you so scared?"

Even now, around Fuji, her clear, light eyes became pools of fear while she clung to him as if she whished to seek comfort in his light, breezy, eternal smile. He wasn't the type of person, who was usually good with small children, but she knew him, and he knew her. She expected him to be able to provide some words of comfort. Her usually sating white cheeks grew to a flushed pink when she buried her face in the fabric of his pants. Her speech was impartial, and not very clear at all.

"Mister…" Her struggle with her own words for quite a few moments was almost remarkable. "That guy… he isn't here…" The gentle tone was filled with fear. Fuji picked her up and she laid her head on his chest tiredly. "What if they hurt you again?" He could feel the minute trembles that ran through her body, making his heart flutter worryingly. He tried to imagine what his mother would have said to comfort, but it didn't seem to work.

"Tezuka?" He could feel every one of her moments, because she tried so hard to keep close to him, almost to the point of it being suffocating. She nodded, her large eyes closed. "Anna-chan, I'll be fine. Nobody is going to hurt you." Now, he said 'you' specifically, purposely. Surely, Anna was more scared for herself than she was for him. She was only a little girl, who couldn't manage her own speech. She must have been worried about that dark night, the darkness that crept into his heart, suffocating him. She must have remembered with clear, vivid details who the two men had ambushed them and thrown Fuji against a tree. They had been so rough with her, callous and cruel. She'd only been trying to help him, and she was kicked aside like a rag doll. That probably pained her more than anything, and scared her with dark fear deep down. Fuji hadn't been hurt; Anna had.

"He can't make them go away anymore!" Fuji was curious; he had never heard her voice rise like that. She was nearly shouting, and the wind around them grew to be a roar. Fuji felt dizzy, so, so dizzy; he couldn't breathe anymore. "They're mean and scary! I… I don't want to see them anymore, Fuji." She cradled her own head in her hands, shaking it. Fuji's smile grew gentler.

His guesses would have been accurate, if Fuji were to try and get the idea of where exactly the subject was going; still, though, it took him honestly and completely that she was trying so hard to just go home, because she had trusted Tezuka so much in regards to safety that she considered him to have protected Fuji. How had Tezuka left such a lasting impression on her that she wasn't able to let go of the fact that something bad had happened months ago. His lips tested the tense air, but he decided that it was better if he took measures to make sure that the delicate girl didn't have a panic attack.

"Please!" Her pleas grew more and more consistent, trying desperately to convince him.

"Alright then, Anna-chan. I'll take you home if that's what you want." She seemed overly satisfied, nodded into her chest, and allowed Fuji to set her back on the ground. Fuji went back over to the area where Atobe sulked. Picking up his notebook, the wind whispered in his ears, asking him to have Atobe follow them. He motioned for Atobe to stand, and then picked up his umbrella. Perhaps it was a good idea that he opened the umbrella. The surprise of rain in a few minutes wouldn't have been a shock at all.

"Where are you going?" Atobe straightened his back, only a little.

"Anna-chan wants to go home. Now, if you want to come, I'm leaving now." Fuji walked onwards while Anna clung to his hand without checking to see if Atobe was going to follow behind him or not. Really, he wouldn't have cared, in fact. At Anna's mentioning of Tezuka, a warm feeling had crept through his cheeks, and he decided that it would be best that he took Anna home.

Maybe, if he had time before his curfew, he would go back to that old house to see Tezuka tonight, maybe Tezuka would answer if he went up to the door and just knocked. Nursing his heart while away from Tezuka seemed to be a difficult thing to do; his mind always grew clearer around the man, but even then he wasn't sure why he kept going back, what invisible ties were binding them together tighter and tighter after each meeting. Thunder clapped, and the sound of Atobe's footsteps caught up to his ears. By the time the pelting rain reached the ground, Atobe also had his umbrella out. The rain was a beauty of its own. It hit and rebounded against the pavement, kicking up a soft, eerie mist. It soaked the damp, chilly air with more moisture. Anna's breath formed clouds in the rapidly cooling air.

"Fuji!" Atobe's voice called to him over the roar of the rain, echoing in his ears and causing him to pause and spare a glance backwards. "Fuji, I'm going back home. I'll see you in school." Fuji nodded to him, but that's all he would allow. Standing there, Anna's grip on his hand grew icily cold, chilling him even more than the air. She was being unusually clingy tonight, and it was probably because she wanted, longed, needed to be home. She would nuzzle his hand gently while she shivered. Even now, in long sleeves he had to admit that the temperature was desolate, fleeting through him chillingly. Atobe's home was only a few minutes away, so that explained why he left. There must have been something wrong, though, because usually in such weather Atobe offered Fuji a ride. He had a limo on call, Atobe often called walking 'transportation for commoners.' Fuji found nothing wrong with it; all his life, he had walked a lot of places and took public transportation, but Atobe abhorred the bus, the train, and anything having to do with the public. He found such things dirty.

Anna tugged his hand desperately.

"Shuusuke?" Her voice trembled and wavered, lost and forgotten in the wind. She hugged his arm, clinging to it.

"Don't worry, Anna-chan, we're going home. I promise you that we'll be there in a minute." His footsteps were deafening among the pounding rain, the chilling air that sent warmth creeping through his chest, twisting like a lovely vine and enrapturing his heart. His head moved down to look at Anna, his bangs sweeping his chin. It sometimes hurt, this warmth, but today, it was a pleasant, light feeling that fluttered through his chest, reaching heights like a bird. Anna kept holding onto his hand, pressing her cheek into the back of it. Fuji's eyes, however, slowly traveled to the alleyway.

It had taken him only a moment to realize they were being followed, and with silent reverence he observed this follower that had chosen to lurk in the shadows, with no distinctive features. He wore dark colors and slouched. Sunglasses covered his eyes. Perhaps, why he noticed it was because the man had such odd attire for the day, and the fact that he didn't have an umbrella with him. Fuji stepped up on stairs absentmindedly as he watched the man out of the corner of his eye. Anna's sudden squeal of "Fluffy!" brought him out of it. She stooped down and let go of Fuji's hand to scratch the cat under the chin. For a child, she had, in fact, always been surprisingly gentle with animals. The creature was now in the process of rubbing its chin against his ankle, and Anna was smiling endearingly at it, petting its back.

"Anna-chan, you're probably cold," he said calmly, taking her hand and letting it slide through his. There wasn't much heat it was giving off. "Go inside. I will see you tomorrow." She smiled and gave him a large hug, seeming happier than she had been in a long time.

"Bye, bye!" Fuji opened the door, and she nearly skipped into it. The cat, Fluffy, followed her into the hallway of the apartment complex, and she twisted the knob to one of the first doors on the left, letting herself in. "See you tomorrow, Shuusuke!" She called happily. The voice was like a bell, ringing with recurring redundancy through his head. Sometimes, he could smile at it, and then lean his head against the wall, pressing his fingers onto the surface so that he was balanced. Anna, despite her sweet and shy temperament was difficult to handle. She was full of energy contrary to her illness, and always willing to do something. Yet somehow, she still managed to cling to Fuji at every second that she was with him, out of the fact that she was always so nervous. Fuji wondered exactly why all of that could possibly blend together.

Sometimes, she chattered meaninglessly, but sometimes her words of innocent had so much impact. Anna was truly a little girl in the fact she couldn't even recognize some of the bits of human ideal that resounded within her sentences. She only spoke that way out of innocence, but yet she reflected a life that other humans should have tried to live.

Anna never let her illness down. She attacked everything with all she had, and Fuji respected it. In ways, it was like a very childish version of Tezuka, with more emotion.

It was strange to compare Tezuka to Anna, but he supposed that was the case.

When he had seen Anna into her apartment, he went back reluctantly into the pouring rain; it thundered around him whispering soft stories of the people before, creating a road to the sky and a chorus in the heavens. Fuji watched the lightning for a minute before turning his eyes to the last place that he had seen the strange man who had followed them all the way from the park. Fuji shrugged, carefree and continued to walk. It was getting late, after all, and his mother would be worried soon if he didn't reach home. Considering he was the only one at home at the moment, it would be best not to give her a heart attack. After all, as the eldest son, it was his duty to take care of his mother, especially because of the fact that his father was still on another business trip, this time at a business council in Romania.

Sometimes, though, he couldn't help but knowingly worry her, because of the fact he wanted to stay outside and talk with Tezuka for three more minutes. Cool and calm as those words were, Tezuka voice was like a melody that resounded warmly through his heart.

Tezuka really was an amazing person.

Of fleeting happiness, transient woes, daily worries, and the roar from the rush of the world, Tezuka was a constant, not a variable. He was the rock that would always be there after the storm, something that Fuji could firmly take root to; he couldn't have helped it that over the months, his friendship had begun to grow stronger and stronger with Tezuka. Now the man seemed more or less inclined to stay with him for an hour or so, even if it only meant they were enjoying each other's presence in complete silence. In fact, Tezuka seemed to like it that way.

His heart was plummeting to the bottom of his chest painfully; he heard footsteps, right behind him.

Feet scraping the pavement, he spun suddenly; ready to launch a punch, with dangerous eyes and an even, taunting smile. He didn't have time to. A pair of arms grabbed him roughly. He was flying backwards, his head spinning crazily out of control. Fuji paused, not even aware of who exactly had jumped him so suddenly that the umbrella currently clutched in his grip fell to the ground with clatter, and soaking rain immediately drenched his hair. With his freed hand he aimed a punch in the man's direction, but almost instantaneously a hand collided with his wrist and pushed it down, ever so gently, the fingers resting on his hand for a moment, bidding him to relax his fist. Rainwater, cold and wet, ran chillingly down the sides of his face. His breath came out in clouds.

There were hands resting on his shoulders, hands that seemed unearthly; they radiated the coolness that Fuji only thought to be characteristic of Tezuka. Yet… the man obviously wasn't Tezuka at all. Even though he hadn't caught a glimpse of his attacker yet, he knew this roughness was something Tezuka never could have displayed.

He hit the wall suddenly, and it sent a shot of pain that spiked all the way up his back. Fuji winced slightly, but his eyes, open and angry were focused on the man who had captured him, who, a minute later loosened his grip slightly and moved one hand down to clutch his gently, rubbing his thumb in circles on the back of Fuji's hand. The emotion in Fuji's eyes didn't change at all. He was still angry, undeniably angry. The roar of the rain faded away until it was only a light background chorus.

"Fuji, is it?" The voice, beautiful and sly, was soft enough to be considered a gentle whisper. It sent shivers down his spine like eerie frost and was enough to hold him there for at least a moment. The hand that wasn't holding Fuji's went up to remove the sunglasses. Fuji had never seen such eyes before; they were a vivid, bright blue, even brighter than his own, contrasting well against pale, flawless skin and dark hair. "Hm?" His cool breath tickled Fuji's ear, and the man proceeded to tangle his hands in Fuji's hair, caressing lightly.

"What do you want?" Fuji's question was blunt and skillful, even though he was currently in a compromising position in which he shouldn't have had the audacity to challenge anything. He wouldn't have gone down without a fight, though. That would have just been unlike him. He ignored the purring breath in his ear.

"Nothing, Fuji… I've been watching you for a while now, you know. You're an interesting person." Fuji said nothing, but he didn't seem swayed by the fact that the man was using tricky, artful methods of seduction. Fuji's expression did not change in fascination of the man's beauty. He, in fact, was doing his best not to look at the stormy, captivating depths of the man's eyes, which probably could have been a lethal weapon of their own. The man knew he was captivatingly beautiful, to, and he was trying to wield against Fuji. Fuji resisted, but he couldn't help but get the feeling the man had even a bigger ego than Atobe. He got that sort of aura by the way the man pressed his weight back into the solid wall, breathing softly against cheek.

"Who are you, then?"

The eyes were so absolutely beautiful. They were captivating like Tezuka's, but unlike Tezuka those eyes were some of the most untamable orbs on earth, uncontrolled and wild like deep depths of the jungle. Unrestrained emotions, at the same time controlled, were tempting to delve into.

The wild eyes seemed to be challenging him, and Fuji was managing to stand firm with ease. "You can call me Amery." Fuji swallowed at the sort of tone that he was being given. The man named 'Amery' continued onwards. "I actually have come to warn you about something, though." His fingers touched Fuji's cheek, and roughly, Fuji shoved the arm away.

"I have to warn you about Tezuka,"

"Tezuka?" Fuji asked sharply. "How do you know about Tezuka?" The roar of the rain continued to pound his ears, giving him a headache. The rain pelted his skin like bullets and weighted down his clothes water. Chill crept to the very core of his bone, settling to his inner core.

The man chuckled softly, and it grew into a fluent laugh, reflecting a sort of craze that almost frightened Fuji. It's insanity sent cold throughout his body that could have made Amery's freezing hands seem like the warmest thing on the planet. He again laid the back of his hand against Fuji's cheek, uncurling the fingers ever so gently. The back of his hand again radiated no warmth. It felt like he was touching Fuji's cheek with ice. Unconsciously, he shivered. The laughs ceased, and he grew more serious.

"Tezuka is a traitor," he told Fuji smoothly. "And I have come to warn you that he will betray you as well." The hand that held Fuji's gave his fingers a light squeeze. "He will betray you and leave you in tatters. He will kill you, Fuji." Fuji's heart could have stopped, at the way those words held such sudden finality in them.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because it would be a shame to see such a pretty face fall to Tezuka's deceit. Tezuka will tear you apart. He doesn't care, Fuji. That's his way; he seduces and then kills. Your death will be a painful one, Fuji. Don't allow yourself to be fooled." The man took a step away from Fuji so that the boy could stand straight, but he was pulled into strong arms, unwillingly. There was something wrong with the manner in which the man spoke to him. It all felt like a lie. Seducing didn't seem like something Tezuka would do; the man's entire personality and morals defied the idea.

"Morals have no matter in Tezuka's situation."

He was trying to convince Fuji of something, but everything he said seemed like blatant contradiction.

"You want something of me," Fuji noted calmly, being able to detect ulterior motives. "Don't try and seduce me into it. I'm not a fool." The embrace cold as ice, like the rain around him; the water that slid down the curves and angles on his face, clinging to his eyelashes, lingering on his freezing lips.

"Mm, you are rather smart, Fuji, but I do truly care to see for your well-being. Otherwise I wouldn't have approached you. We can do it, Fuji. You can help me create Tezuka's downfall. Together, we can defeat Tezuka. We can stop him from killing more innocents, and then I will take care of you forever. Forever. We can be together, and I will give you eternal life" Fuji pulled away from Amery suddenly, by punching the man's stomach harshly. Amery coughed, but even then it was filled with a grace that couldn't be considered human.

"I can take care of myself," Fuji answered coolly.

"I don't doubt that," Somehow it sounded like he was only granting Fuji that one thing. "Wouldn't you like being able to not have to worry about your own safety, though, for once? Wouldn't you like to live an ideal life? I can give you anything that you want, Fuji. Together, we'll create a legend."

Fuji's eyes were still sharp and unconvinced. Perhaps that was the frustrating thing about Fuji; he was fiercely independent. He really didn't need protection, and he felt that if he were ever going to be immortalized as a legend, he would do it alone.

He took a step closer to the boy and slid a hairclip into his hair. Fuji blinked. "Take it as a parting gift. Should you ever need my help with Tezuka, I will be there." He chuckled again and ran his fingers across Fuji's cheek once more, laughing fluidly. The scent of blood mingled in the air when the man's face was close to his, and Fuji paused. It was just like Tezuka, wasn't it? The scent of blood was pungent and metallic to his nose, yet oddly sweet. It was stronger than Tezuka's but it wasn't so strong that it was enough to make him swoon from the very scent. How strange… "All you need is to turn to me, and I will solve all your problems. I'll make all your pain vanish."

Fuji couldn't understand.

"Such warmth," he commented. Fuji was only able to blink. Sometimes, these things didn't seem to make sense at all.

"Such tragic beauty… isn't a shame when it fades? It's tragically beautiful."

Fuji's heart skipped a beat, and his eyes slowly widened He must've been standing there with his eyes wide and gaping, so much that it was shocking. "What?" His question turned sharply around the corner, and was more of an exclamation.

"Tragically beautiful… like you…"

"Amery!" Fuji was growing frustrated by the moment, but he was given no answer to his questions.

Tragically beautiful like you…

Like you…

Beautiful, astoundingly, breathtakingly beautiful…

Amery picked up the fallen umbrella, pushed it into Fuji's hands, and turned on his heels. "I'll see you later, Fuji." Fuji watched the man's retreating form in shock, and then touched the hairclip holding some of his wet bangs back, wondering what exactly it meant. Fuji took a step in the other direction and realized that for the entire time, his heart had been pounding out of control


Question for the Reviewers: I've been sketching out everything more for this story, and it's coming to get a clearer image in my head. I do, however, need your input on a rather important aspect: I'd like to say 'smut', but that isn't quite a term for it. Rather… it's just something err… sex-ish. Or a very light lemon…

My question to you is that I need to know if you want me to include this. I've already got a basic outline of that sort of chapter. I know that if I write anything of that nature it'll be a lot more watered down than most people's but I'm still hesitant to include it. Should I?

And I'd also like to be willing to know if somebody would be willing to beta said chapter for me. I want to make sure it's not so horrid it burns people's eyes out.

Please let me know via PM or review. (I'm sorry for the long rant: I know it's troublesome.)