Author's Note: Well hello friends :) Welcome to chapter 10, complete with plot overload, a pinch of foreshadowing and a 1-2 punch of UST. I don't even know what happened. Also, thoroughly in love with the song that inspires (and titles) this chapter, so please check out this lovely Acceptance song if you've got the time. It describes a certain scene to a T, in my opinion! Brownie points if you can guess which one. :D Enjoy~
Despite Soul's exhaustion, a restless sleep claimed him. His fingers curled into his blankets, gripping the cotton with a hint of desperation as he tried to absorb the shock of a sudden, inexplicable pain that wracked his body.
Even though he wasn't awake, it hurt. The pain took root and spread outward from the center of his chest. It was a heavy ache, not enough to seriously weaken him, but debilitating nonetheless. Dull and elongated, the sensation permeated his body in waves, a stark contrast to the swift bursts of energy that so often accompanied resonance. The pressing need to open his eyes, to identify the cause of this, overwhelmed him, but the sensation was strong enough that he had to struggle to make it happen.
Finally, he wrenched his eyes open. Within seconds, his eyes narrowed. He was getting fucking sick of the out-of-body adventures.
He found himself utterly alone, standing on a circular patch of sand that stretched only a few feet in diameter at most. All he could see was a massive black sea that was both foreboding and… somehow tempting, pitted against a backdrop of blue sky. He couldn't explain why, but the whole scene felt vaguely familiar.
It struck him as bizarre that this strange, lonely circle hadn't fallen prey to the rest of the abyss. Soul squinted at the waves as they curled against the sand, wondering what was preventing them from closing in. The waves snaked around some sort of invisible obstruction, probing endlessly in search of a weak spot. Upon closer inspection, he realized that there had been a line drawn carefully in the sand. A soft indentation ran along the ground, forming a barrier. It was clear that whoever had done this had done it well; the craftsmanship was delicate – it was sand, after all – but its creator had fashioned a seemingly perfect circle that kept the waves at bay.
Taking care not to step too close to the edge, Soul's eyes scanned the perimeter of the circle as he mused over who could have been responsible for this. His first inclination was Kid. Spending a painstakingly long time drawing perfect circles definitely sounded like Kid's idea of a perfect day. Soul was already making a mental note to tell him to immediately invest in a hobby, for god's sake, when he froze.
Barely visible, a pair of fingertips was clinging desperately to the line in the sand. They were small and delicate, and shook slightly from the effort of holding on. Soul's eyes widened and he kneeled, trying to peer deep into the mire to find the body of their owner. Through the swirls of black, his eyes searched frantically until his breath caught. An unmistakable burst of pink became visible through the muck.
He leaned closer. Yeah, it was Crona, without a doubt. The only difference was that this Crona looked younger, almost childlike. Tiny limbs hung limply as the sea pushed them around, wisps of hair tangling with each other as Crona stared at Soul with sad eyes.
Soul stared back, transfixed and helpless. He had to get him out. As if on command, Crona's other hand shot up through the blackness, extending itself to Soul above the waves. Soul relaxed. That was easy, he thought, and instinctively started to reach for Crona's hand.
He stopped. It was too easy.
Crona blinked at him through the waves, and Soul swallowed hard. The sea of madness began to churn, taunting him. He knew what would happen if he crossed that line. He pulled his hand back and tried to ignore the pain he saw in Crona's expression as he rose to his feet again, shifting uneasily from one foot to the other.
What's the problem?! his subconscious screamed at him. Crona needs you. Just do it! He cursed himself for being afraid; what would Maka say if she knew he was standing here like a goddamn statue while Crona was in trouble?
His hopes sank further as more hands began to rise from the depths. Black blood glided slowly down disembodied arms like slick, black honey as each hand silently implored him for rescue. Head pounding, he counted them. Eight. Eight hands, including Crona's, fingers splayed out in panic as their owners were held prisoner beneath the surface.
Soul's heart hammered painfully, but he knew he didn't have a choice. He reached his hand back out to Crona, eyes conveying a silent apology for making his friend wait so long. Nerves tingling, he watched with a sense of finality as his hand gripped Crona's tightly.
He gasped as a surge of sickeningly warm blackness spiraled up his arm, and it was both sharp pain and pure bliss as it tugged him forward. The familiar trickle of blood seeping slowly into his consciousness became a flood, crashing through his defenses as it burst into the tiny circle of sand, enveloping his entire body in liquid darkness.
He was drowning, lost in it. He felt his mouth stretch into a leering, insane smile of its own accord and he watched as Crona's face mirrored his, exploding into a twisted grin as their hands remained clasped together under the waves.
With the last traces of his self-control, he slammed his eyes shut just as he felt the distant cackle of the little ogre echo through his bones.
"Soul. Wake up."
Soul's eyes flew open and he found himself staring into two golden eyes that absolutely exuded impatience. Still tense from the aftereffects of his dream, Soul regarded Kid silently. Kid glared at him, and suddenly Soul found himself with a face full of pillow. As terrifying as the dream had been, waking up to an irritated reaper in his face really wasn't that much better.
"Get up," Kid said again as he crossed to Black*Star's side of the tent. Black*Star grumbled and rolled over, mumbling something about gods and beauty sleep.
"We've wasted enough time," Kid said, tugging the covers off of Black*Star and holding them out of his reach as the ninja lunged to snatch them back. "Get outside, we're leaving in ten."
Soul stood up groggily and started to make his bed, since he knew that would pacify Kid, while Kid fully assumed his role as Black*Star's personal alarm clock. Soul went back over the dream in his mind, cataloguing it for later. A tiny island, a perfect circle. Crona in trouble. But why had there been eight hands? He committed the feeling of drowning in the madness to memory and then tried to push it out of his mind.
He was jerked from his thoughts when Black*Star started yelling for Tsubaki to come in and transform so he could make Kid properly pay for interrupting his slumber. Soul took Kid's silence as his cue to get the fuck out of the tent. He couldn't help grinning slightly when he heard the rustle and thud of Black*Star being forcibly tipped onto the ground off of his mattress behind him.
The ninja's stream of expletives got progressively quieter as Soul made his way toward Maka, who was rolling her eyes at Black*Star's antics on the other side of the clearing.
"Morning," she said, tightening a pigtail and smiling at him. He was so damn glad to be out of that dream that he grinned back at her and spontaneously pulled her into a hug, relishing the feel of her cheek against his chest. He felt her smile against him and his uneasiness disappeared completely.
"How fast do you think we can search three caves?" he asked.
"Probably in a few hours or so, why?" she replied, words muffled. "Wanna do it faster than Black*Star?"
He smirked down at her; that was a pretty cool idea, he had to admit… but he had wanted to tell her about the dream.
"Nah. I just need to talk to you about something afterwards."
It felt so good that he could share it with her. Recently he'd spent so much time trying to keep things from her out of necessity. It was refreshing to be able to confide something in her again.
"Sounds good," she said, pulling out of his embrace. "In the meantime, though… let's hunt," she murmured with a slightly devious smile. He raised an amused eyebrow at her as her eyes glinted conspiratorially. There was nothing he loved more than Maka on a mission.
As they made their way out of the woods and began trudging through the tiny paths that crisscrossed the rice fields, the feeling in Soul's chest resurfaced to nag at him. It wasn't like the pain from the dream, but it was still more intense than the spent, stretched feeling he'd felt the night before. He sighed, exasperated. He was too strung out.
He wondered if Maka was feeling the same way, but he wouldn't ask. The last thing he wanted, on top of everything else, was for her to think he was weak. So he kept his mouth shut and watched her closely – not like that was much of a change from his normal habits. The occasional deep breath and hand pressed to her chest told him everything he needed to know.
They searched their three allotted caves, trying their best not to get their hopes up and failing miserably every time. Kid's suspicions had been right; every search turned up no results. By the end of the morning, they were depressed, annoyed and thirsty.
"Let's go find some shade," Soul said, pointing at a small patch of forest in the distance. "We'll head back after."
As they drew closer to the woods, the sound of rushing water met his ears, and suddenly there was nothing more enticing than the idea of cold water on his face. The shade of the trees rested on their grateful shoulders as they wound through the forest until they both stopped, slightly bewildered at the scene before them. Maka gasped softly.
The forest had opened up slightly to reveal a small natural pool. The water within it was blue and clear and almost as breathtaking as the girl standing next to him, he had to admit. But the water in the basin paled in comparison to the true marvel: a swiftly flowing waterfall, with clear rivulets of water flowing smoothly over the rock face that loomed before them. It was immense; no wonder they'd been able to hear it from so far away. The streams cascaded down in every direction, marking the entire rock face with strips and lines of chaotic white.
Maka walked silently to the side of the pool and splashed her face with water, sighing.
"That feels so nice, I could just dive in," she said behind her hands.
A smirk crossed Soul's face, the urge almost too powerful to resist. Shit. He really shouldn't. But even as he told himself not to, he was moving up behind her. If she was going to make it that simple, he could only oblige.
"Have a nice swim, then," he said, and nudged her into the water. She shrieked and started to topple in. He laughed, crossing his arms triumphantly, when he felt something latch onto his leg. Before he could even look down, he felt hit feet leave the ground and he plunged towards the water, sprawling inelegantly in midair.
Damn her reflexes.
He crashed into the pond and resurfaced immediately, shaking his hair out and spluttering. They stood there fully clothed and utterly drenched. Maka was surveying him smugly, a victorious smile tugging at the corners of her lips. She was far too self-satisfied, and he needed to fix that. He stilled and grinned at her evilly.
"I wouldn't look so proud if I were you," he said, inching closer to her, eyes gleaming. Her eyes widened slightly in response, but her smile only grew bolder at the challenge.
"Oh, I don't know about that," she answered, tilting her chin up to look him square in the eyes. "Watch your ankles next time. Pulling you in was a piece of cake."
"Yeah, well… they're not quite as fat as yours," he offered lightly, fighting a smile because he knew that would wind her up. In a second, her eyes grew hooded, dark and dangerous. He edged closer still. Their faces were inches apart, and he fought to keep his heart under control as they sized each other up. Despite the playfulness, she was watching him like an enemy, and his guard came up two seconds too late.
"Your soul is mine," she said sweetly, and then sent him rocketing toward the bottom of the pond. He nearly choked on water at her choice of words. If she only knew how true that was.
He swam under the water and grabbed her leg, pulling her towards him with a yank. Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled her close in order to throw her, but she latched her arms around his neck to steady herself. He tried to tug her arms away to no avail. They glared at each other. Stalemate.
It took him a couple more seconds to become aware of the way he was holding her: one hand wrapped around her back and fixed tightly onto her hip, the other a little higher on the back of her thigh than was probably allowed. A strange warmth spread from the center of his chest to the rest of his limbs and then vanished. He tried to look anywhere but at his hands as he vehemently ordered his cheeks not to turn pink. Chancing a glance at Maka, he realized with mingled relief and disappointment that something had distracted her.
"Soul… is that a cave?" she said slowly, nodding her head at the waterfall. He snorted. What, had she gone delusional?
"I'm pretty sure that's a waterfall," he explained slowly, like he was talking to a child. "Maybe I should start chopping you for a change."
She was too damn fast for him. He rubbed his head angrily, his head smarting. Apparently her chops were equally lethal in the water. Regardless, he'd had the presence of mind to keep his other hand resting on her hip. He wasn't ready to let go yet.
"No, really, look," she said, pointing.
Behind the falls, hidden partially by hanging plants and water droplets, was a black tunnel. He could see it now. They glanced at each other with raised eyebrows, silently agreeing to investigate.
The only way up was to climb the falls; the rock face wasn't too steep, and Soul dutifully led the way because Maka had squawked about him looking up her skirt if she went first. He threw on an injured grimace, insisting that he'd never do such a thing.
They slid silently into the cave and waited for their eyes to adjust, listening intently for any noise. All was silent as they made their way down the passageway. Soul was on edge, hair prickling on the back of his neck. They inched forward further, their blindness beginning to dissipate, when suddenly he heard a loud crack and footsteps, followed by voices.
They stared at each other in horror, and he reacted so fast that he didn't even have time to process. He yanked her into a crevice at the corner of the cave, intent on their immediate escape. He'd been proud of himself. Survival had been the only thought on his mind, for once.
And then suddenly he'd realized what he'd done: in the miniscule space, their bodies were pressed together. Much too close together.
His hands weren't even touching her, pressed instead against the wall on either side of her arms, but it didn't matter. Skintight clothes, made tighter by their stint in the pond, left little to the imagination as Soul found himself pinned to a rock face for the second time – or the first real time, he supposed.
He tried to fight the shudder that threatened to pass through him as he felt her every curve press flush against him, every jibe he'd ever made about her chest coming back to torture him as he swallowed thickly. Their eyes met, tentative and dazed, and he held his breath as his eyes flew traitorously down to her lips.
It was the shock, surely, that caused it, but as he stared down at her, trying to fight every impulse his body was begging of him, he felt it.
A horrifyingly familiar blue flame began to build in his chest. Past the point of his control, his soul stretched, basking in the flame and growing in heat and intensity. His eyes flew back up to Maka's in panic as he felt his wavelength emerge slowly from the confines his chest and greedily stretch toward hers. She stared frantically back at him, eyes flickering between his wavelength and his face, utterly bewildered as her soul initiated the same response. They gasped in tandem when somehow, impossibly, deliciously, their souls connected.
Soul? What's happening, he heard her say in his mind.
I-I don't know, he choked out before he slammed his eyes shut and broke the connection, his soul snapping back into his body.
His ears were ringing as they stared at each other, searching wordlessly for an explanation in the other's eyes as the warmth continued to surge under his skin. Their eyes both widened when they heard the voices inching closer. He'd momentarily forgotten that they were supposed to be hiding.
"No, I already told you," a gravelly voice he didn't recognize was saying, "He wants all of them, even the other Shibusen brat. Otherwise we would've killed the other one by now, with his obnoxious weapon griping about being fed every hour of the night…"
The voices stopped mere feet from where they were standing, but the bastards hadn't brought any light. He couldn't make out their faces.
"How much longer do we have to wait for the last one?" said another voice impatiently.
"Relax. It's only a matter of time. The keychain was planted three days ago. They'll be on their way, and then that little pigtailed meister of his will bring him right to us," the first man cackled.
Soul felt Maka draw in a slow, silent breath against his chest. He shut his eyes. Shit.
"Do we have everything cleared out?" the first voice asked.
"Everything but the dregs," replied the second gleefully, and a loud creak echoed throughout the cave as he pushed against something metal.
"Excellent," said the first. "Let's go. Don't want to keep him waiting, not since…" The voice trailed off into silence.
Slowly the footsteps disappeared down the hallway. The sound of a sloshy substance that accompanied their footfalls sent waves of sound back down the tunnel long after the men were gone. Soul and Maka leaned against each other a minute longer, not daring to move. Finally Maka took a deep breath and slid along the wall and out of the crevice. Almost imperceptibly, Soul felt a trace of his wavelength glide after her, still seeking hers. Reflexively, he clamped down on it, his mind reverting back to what had just happened.
Had they just resonated? Unintentionally? He certainly hadn't initiated it. It had almost felt like their wavelengths had done it on their own. He shook his head. That wasn't possible, was it?
Maka walked further into the cave, disappearing momentarily from sight while Soul followed further behind, lost in his thoughts.
"What's this…?" Maka said softly as her boot made contact with metal.
In the dim light, he watched her bend down and run her fingers along something dark and concave; a massive saucer of sorts, by the looks of it. When she stood, her shoulders were hunched and tense.
"Soul…" She turned around and held up her hand to him.
Her fingers were black.
Just wanted to say: Yes, that scene in the sand *is* supposed to resemble something from the SE universe. Stay tuned for more on that. :3 And also... thank you so much for the reviews, follows and favorites from last chapter, and to everyone that's been following this silly tale of mine over the past couple of months. I can't believe this is chapter 10! It feels like a big landmark, for some reason. To everyone that's helped me and encouraged me to keep going: you guys are the bees' knees. Check for Chapter 11 in the next 1-2 weeks, as usual :D