The Fall and Rise of Creed Diskence
An Alternate Universe Redemption Fic based on Yabuki
Kentaro's Black Cat series
Black Cat and pretty near all the characters in
this story belong to Yabuki Kentaro
Author's Forward:
I will be posting author's notes at my Live Journal ), so as not to take up space here. Answers to any questions or comments and various trivia involved in creating this massive piece of fanfic will be posted there.
As another note, seems to be eating extra lines and a lot of non alphabetic characters. Thus I'm using a set of 3 dashes (---) to represent changes in character voice and two sets to represent changes in scenes not marked by a date. Hopefully that will help because this fic changes voice a lot.
Oh, and if you'd review here, even if you discuss the fic on my LJ with me, it'd be really great. Thanks!
SCENES FROM A GARDEN
August 5, 2003
"CREED! DON'T!" Train raced at the slender figure standing so terribly close to the cliff-side and caught him around the waist, dragging him back from the edge. The next thing he knew they were tumbling down a hole, landing at the bottom with a painful thump. "What the." Amid dust and dirt, he found himself staring down at huge dark eyes wide with surprise.
"Hello, sailor," Creed's voice held a world of puzzlement, as well as – strangely – a kind of seductive purr that startled Train into jerking backwards. "Why don't you come down and see me sometime?"
Train disentangled himself from his companion as much as was possible considering there wasn't much room to do so. "What?!"
Joyful expression crumpling to fear, Creed looked back at Train and seemed to be struggling to find something to say. "Watch that first step?"
Stay calm, Train. He's acting weird but he warned you he was going to. Train took a deep breath. "Were you going to jump?" Creed had been standing so very close to the edge that it had seemed the only explanation.
"I don't have the wings of an angel," Creed answered in protest, eyes quieting as Train seemed less ready to explode. Then, with obvious and terrible effort, he added, "Did you think I was going to?"
"Yeah. Hold still, would you?" Train began working himself free of those tangled legs and arms, noting that Creed had put on a bit of weight in the last few months. He wasn't at all hefty, but there was real muscle there. "Been working out?"
"No sand in my face now," Creed agreed, sliding himself sideways and waiting until Train had jumped out of the hole to follow suit, shaking his head rapidly to scatter dirt from his hair and face.
Train puzzled that one out quickly as he dodged the shower. "Not a 90 pound weakling anymore. Okay, I get it." He was beginning to understand what it was that had worried Creed about returning to his old thought processes – since what was apparently going on in that mind wasn't something that could be considered thought. No. That's not right. He's thinking, he's just using media references to communicate those thoughts. This could become difficult, but from the peaceful expression on Creed's face, he thought it really was better than the way Creed had been.
---
Creed searched his beloved's face as Train eyed him, searching for anger, irritation, anything that might show that Train was no longer willing to put up with his vagaries. Relief flooded him when he found nothing but puzzled amusement. Doctor Jones was right. He doesn't mind. "Hast thou slain the jabberwock?"
"Eh?" Train frowned and Creed stiffened, suddenly afraid and wondering what he should say or do. "Oh, wait a minute. Mission accomplished, you mean? Yep. Sven's pissed at me for blowing up a few too many things, but we got our man. Sorry it took so long, though, since I had to miss some visits."
With a nod, Creed brushed more dirt off himself, thought processes moving on, or rather backwards. "It was a dark and stormy night," he told Train, pointing down the cliff-side. "Tree fell down and went boom."
More blinking resulted. "Y'know," Train said as he stepped to Creed's side, glanced down at the big old tree that had been uprooted the night before by the storm. It lay shattered by the rocks some fifty feet below, the waves crashing over the broken wood and carrying leaves and bits of bark away in the swirl of browns and greens that had had his attention when Train had arrived. "I sort of wish you had a little marquee up here." He tapped Creed on the forehead. "One that tells people what subject you've jumped to."
Creed gave him a little smile and shrugged. There wasn't really any way to do that, so commenting seemed pointless. "Got milk?"
"Not yet. Let's go back to the cafeteria and you can tell me what you've been up to in the last few weeks."
---
Walking up the pathway with Creed, Train watched his companion. He hadn't been to see Creed in three weeks and the change was all the more marked because of it. He's been changing ever since he came here, really. But I never really saw how different he is from the Creed I knew as my partner. How different from the Creed who led the Hoshi. That Creed had been harder featured, as if there was some incredible force of will behind the face that held the man to his ill-fated courses. He'd sneered, put on superior, confident, expressions that Train was beginning to think might have all been part of an elaborate mask.
Train had already realized that beneath that mask was something confused and bewildered by the world. Here, though, the man seemed contented, drifting in a unfocused daze that might well have been Creed's natural state. The faint, sweet, little smile on his face had a child-like sense of wonder to it that revealed far more than Train thought the old Creed would have wanted known. Even his gait had changed, loosened up, as if some deep tension had eased.
"I see what you mean about stormy," Train said finally as they passed through an area of forest with broken branches piled to the side of the path. "Doctor Jones tells me you've been helping out."
"God's in his heaven," Creed answered in an agreeable tone. "All's right with the world."
"Is it? I hope so. You look a lot happier than you used to," Train paused. "So what were you doing back there? Aside from scaring me out of several years growth?"
Creed smiled. "Digging a hole to China."
"To China"
"Getting to the root of the matter?" Creed tried again, paused and added, "To clear them out for the new tree?" His frown told Train that the effort to speak clearly wasn't at all easy for him.
Train was puzzled. "But I didn't see a shovel."
With a little shrug, Creed held his right hand in front of himself and made a flicking gesture that was quickly followed by a tree branch falling in front of them. "Just running away with me. My imagination, that is." A faint odd feeling brushed through Train, a soft vibration that trembled through the air.
Train nearly choked and quickly forced back his first reaction as Creed looked scared again. "Imagine Blade. But I thought you needed the hilt for that?"
A little nervous smile crossed Creed's worried features. "It's all in my head," he pointed out and Train gazed at him, not at all sure how to take the situation. Creed's left hand's abilities were dangerous enough. For him to still be able to access the Imagine Blade, with all the power that involved, was worrisome. Seeing unhappiness and fear in his companion's dark eyes, he sighed. "Just keep it under control. And don't let anyone know about it."
"Okay." Creed opened his hand and dropped it to his side, the faint buzz disappearing as he dissipated the Tao born mind blade. "I just couldn't dig deeper without it."
Train walked on, shaking his head as he remembered the hole. Six feet down at least and two-thirds as wide. "Dang, Creed. I don't think you have to get all the roots out. I'm pretty sure a new tree would be lost in a hole that size."
"Oh?" Creed considered that for a long moment, expression relieved. "I suppose," he agreed finally. "And it might fall out the other side."
"To China?" Train asked, laughing.
With a serious look, Creed shook his head. "A tree's reach should not outstrip its grasp. Or what's a cliff-side for?"
"It went through the cliff-side?" At Creed's nod, Train shook his head. "No, I definitely think you shouldn't dig anymore. Talk about over-enthusiasm." He laughed after a moment, thinking about the hole and what it said about Creed's personality. "I shouldn't be surprised, though. You've always been so thorough."
"A job worth doing is worth doing well, isn't it?" Creed asked, eyes curious as they looked at Train.
"Don't let perfect get in the way of good," Train shot back. Two could play the quote game, after all. "But if you're having fun and not hurting anything – including yourself – I don't see that it's a problem." He opened the door for his companion and followed Creed into the cafeteria. "Now then, will you join me in a jug of milk?"
"I don't know," Creed answered. "I don't think we'd fit." At Train's wince of pain a little smile curved the man's lips. "Chocolate, please."
"Sit down and I'll get it." Train watched his friend take a seat near the window and gaze out at the gardens beyond. It's working, he thought. He's not normal, no, but he's happy, and that's what matters. Realizing that he really was thinking of Creed as a friend, he considered the thought for a long moment and knew that it was true. Creed was a messed up basket-case but the man did have some good points that made him someone Train was beginning to be glad to know. I'd never have seen this side of him if we were still with Chronos, or if we'd stayed enemies. Never have found out what's underneath the armor his training built for him. I'm meeting the real Creed now and I think I like him. Picking up their milks, he carried them back to the table so he could continue getting to know the man.