Disclaimer: I am not Yun Kouga. Yes, I am once again going to attempt to inject my own theories about the Loveless world...in particular, the real meaning of the name "loveless".
A/N: I know I took some time...I apologize! *kowtows in front of reader* Please enjoy a serving of "Mnemosyne" before you hunt me down with rusty forks.
~Mnemosyne Ten~
After the conversation with the Seventh Fairy, the younger Ritsuka deleted all the records showing that he'd ever played in Wisdom Resurrection. If Seimei were to find out that he talked to the Seven Moons, he might be prompted to attack them.
But the younger Ritsuka was sure that Seimei would never harm him, Ritsuka.
Then he'd lain in bed, determined to wait for Seimei to come back. He would demand for Aniki to tell him if the older Ritsuka was here and where he was. Then he'd talk to the older Ritsuka, he decided. If Seimei didn't know if the other Ritsuka was here, the younger Ritsuka would find him first. He'd warn the other Ritsuka to go, to go and not come back. He'd ask him how Kio was –he'd totally forgotten to ask the Seventh Fairy. Then…
The next thing he knew, it was morning. With a thrill of horror, he realized that he'd fallen asleep on Seimei's bed, that he hadn't even done one of the things on his mental list.
Had the other Ritsuka arrived?
Where was the other Ritsuka?
The younger Ritsuka jumped out of bed, his heart thumping wildly in his chest. A quick glance at the clock told him that it was shortly after seven in the morning.
What was he going to do? Seimei was not in the room.
Perhaps, he should explore the house to see if the other Ritsuka was here…
Panic was blurring his judgment, and he almost missed the note propped up on the keyboard of Seimei's computer. It had his name on it. "Ritsuka," he read.
Ritsuka,
I'll be working on a few things before I go to breakfast, but I'll be in the house. If you want to see me, ask for the Archives. Anyone should be able to tell you where it is. Go to breakfast first. It's just off the hall. Take two left turns and a right to get to the hall. I love you, Ritsuka.
Aniki
The younger Ritsuka folded the note again. It said nothing at all about the other Ritsuka being here.
Sensing that there was nothing else he could do, he left Seimei's room. He took the correct amount of turns to get to the hall.
/
He could hear a lot of noise coming from the largest room off the hallway. More noise than if only Merciless and Chouma were here, and anyway, most of the voices he heard were male ones. Shyly, he shuffled into the room.
The room went silent when he entered. There was a lot of people here—he counted ten. A guy who looked a bit older than Seimei, an old woman, a couple of boys who looked around Ritsuka's age, the Merciless pair, Chouma, another young boy, younger even than Ritsuka, another young woman with glasses, and Nisei.
They were all staring. The younger Ritsuka stared back.
"So you're Seimei's little bro, huh?" said the guy who looked older than Seimei.
"You're quite famous, you know," said the young woman with glasses.
"Let him eat first, Yuina," Chouma said firmly. "Come here, Ritsuka. You can sit between Akira and me."
The younger Ritsuka climbed into the chair that Chouma offered him. Ten pairs of eyes followed his every move.
"So, I think you know Akira, Anita, Nisei and Chouma," said one of the boys who looked Ritsuka's age. He had brown hair and sparkling brown eyes. "I'll introduce the rest. I'm Makoto, and this is Charlie." He pointed to the boy beside him. "That's Kichirou," Makoto continued, pointing to the guy older than Seimei. "Chiyako-sensei-she owns this house, and she's a teacher at the University. The squirt is Toshiaki, but we call him Toshi. Last is Yuina."
"O…Ohayou." The younger Ritsuka stammered, overwhelmed. About half of them didn't have their ears anymore. He felt strange and awkward. "Ano, are you all Aniki's friends?"
Kichirou laughed. He had long blonde hair and gray eyes. "No, I don't think Seimei considers any of us his friend. We're merely working towards the same goal."
"The goal…the Fighter Unit," Acknowledged the younger Ritsuka.
"Are you hungry?" the old woman asked him with a smile. She put a fried egg on Ritsuka's plate and a couple of slices of bread. Then a banana. Then a glass of chocolate milk.
"Thank you…uhm, Chiyako-sensei."
"Don't worry about it. You're too thin, you need to eat."
"She thinks we're all fattening pigs," Charlie stage-whispered to the younger Ritsuka. Makoto and Charlie cracked up when Chiyako-sensei glared at them.
"Hush now, darlings, he'll think we're all insane," Yuina scolded them.
"News flash, Yuina: we are all insane," Akira informed Yuina, rolling her eyes.
"You're all alone in that boat, Akira-chan."
"Ah, shut up."
There was a fresh bout of laughter, except for Nisei, who didn't laugh. Everyone resumed eating, apparently over the surprise of the younger Ritsuka's appearance.
"Oh, Ritsuka dear, can you bring food to Seimei?" Chiyako sensei added, piling still more food onto a plate. "He never eats with us, but I think he'll take food from you. He's been in the archives since this morning."
The younger Ritsuka swallowed a bit of bread, "Where is it?"
"The attic," Toshi replied. "Just pick any staircase and go straight up."
"I'll help you carry the tray," Sighed Chouma. Chiyako-sensei was putting a cup of rice, a couple of small fried fish, eggs, a pot of coffee, two containers of what the younger Ritsuka guessed was cream and sugar, and several more slices of bread onto a tray.
"I don't think Aniki can eat that much," Commented the younger Ritsuka.
"Oh, he'll eat it all if it came from you," Anita assured him. "He's been telling us about you for a long time now."
"Yeah, you're like a celebrity," smirked Nisei.
"Shut up, Akane, you're ruining the mood," Yuina declared.
As she promised, Chouma did help him with the tray, so that all the younger Ritsuka had to do was to carry the coffee pot.
He was thinking hard as Chouma led him up two flights of stairs. Finally he asked, "Do they know?"
"Know what?"
"About the…that there's two of me."
"No. Only Nisei, Merciless and I know about the two Ritsukas."
"they seem…nice. The others, I mean."
"Not all of them are," Chouma said. "There's a pair called "Bloodless", Hideki and Yurio. They're dangerous. There are a few more pairs outside Chiyako-sensei's house, too."
"Are they all fighters?"
"A couple of them. Kichirou and Charlie make up the pair 'Eternal'. Akira and Anita, of course. Toshi is Chiyako-sensei's grandson. His parents were a Fighter Unit who died in a spell battle. Aside from being a Fighter, Charlie's also a hacking genius. Makoto's family owns one of the largest pharmaceuticals in the world. Akira's a doctor in genetics, and Chiyako-sensei is her professor. Anita's going to college next year, to study the relationships between a Fighter Unit. Let's see, have I left anyone else out?"
"Nisei," he supplied. They were almost at the attic.
Her face darkened, "Nisei is Seimei's Fighter. That's all we know."
The younger Ritsuka paused, "Chouma, I need your help with something."
"I brought you breakfast, Aniki!"
Seimei looked up from the computer with a smile. The younger Ritsuka didn't knock, of course. He never did.
"Have you eaten?" Seimei asked affectionately, patting his lap as an offering to the younger Ritsuka. With a delighted yelp, the younger Ritsuka sat in his lap and began to spin the swiveling chair around.
"Everything's a toy to you, isn't it?" Seimei said with a laugh. He took the coffee-pot from his brother and set it on the table.
Kaidou Chouma was also in the doorway, carrying a tray of food. She set it down on a table and walked off without another word.
Seimei watched as his younger brother stopped spinning and followed Chouma's retreat with his eyes. "You like her, don't you?" He asked finally.
"I like her," The younger Ritsuka said with a shrug, "but I love you."
This time Seimei embraced him from behind and bent over him, as if he meant to protect him from everything that was evil in this world. "I love you, too. How would you like to celebrate your birthday?"
"My…birthday?" The younger Ritsuka was stumped.
"By your time, isn't tomorrow your birthday, Ritsuka? I know you left there a week before your tenth birthday. We should celebrate it, don't you think?"
Tears welled in the younger Ritsuka's eyes. "You…you remembered," He whispered. "You did…"
"Why are you crying?" Tenderly, Seimei wiped the tears from his eyes.
Chibi blushed. "Because I'm happy!" He admitted.
Seimei laughed, "I know you love celebrating your birthdays. It's okay to have it even if it is almost the end of September."
"Then I'll have two birthdays, right? I'll have another one in December." Then Chibi frowned. "Does that mean I'll be ten then eleven in the same year?"
"I guess so."
The younger Ritsuka wriggled out of his grasp. He looked directly into Seimei's eyes and said quite casually, "Can we play a game of Twenty? If I win…you should leave the other me alone. Completely. And you should leave Soubi-san out of it, too."
His mood shifted instantly. Seimei stiffened. The younger Ritsuka knew. He knew everything. How he knew, Seimei couldn't begin to guess. Seimei didn't even know how much he knew.
He could find out.
"Are you prepared to bet on that?" he whispered. "Because if I win, you will allow me to kill Soubi."
The younger Ritsuka shot away from him with a gasp, as he suddenly discovered Seimei ablaze, "NO! NO! NO! I won't let you kill anyone!"
"But I already have. One more shouldn't make any difference."
The younger Ritsuka was weeping. Seimei understood that perfectly. Someone as pure and as innocent as his baby brother could not stand to hear about violence, let alone risk it being done.
"Are you willing?" Seimei repeated.
How he loved his baby brother. He knew it from the first time that he saw Ritsuka that here, at last, was something that belonged to him and him alone. Always, and forever.
If he had to hurt Ritsuka in the process of being his Fighter—the strongest, then so be it.
The younger Ritsuka hiccuped, and wiped his tears away with the back of his hand. He seemed tired, and older than his nine years. A life was depending on him. "I am."
When he was seven, Chibi discovered the first thing that he could do better than Aniki: something scary, yes, but wonderful too.
It was the discovery that he could retreat within himself—like resting inside his head, but his body limp and his eyes blank—and keep his feelings away.
He'd been bullied a few times in the first grade, but Seimei beat those boys up so badly that BOTH Aoyagi brothers were called to the Principal's office. Seimei had hugged him afterwards and said that it was not Ritsuka's fault, that if anything the bullies deserved more than two weeks in the hospital. However, the younger Ritsuka vowed never to let it happen again.
He wasn't much of a fighter, so one day, when he was in second grade, he simply decided to ignore the bullies, and act as if…as if he didn't feel anything. It made him feel strange afterward—like a deflated balloon, but everyone who had actually seen it became scared of him. Osamu later told him that it was because it was Ritsuka looked so empty and not his usual self.
"It's like you're disappearing into yourself, Ritsuka," Were his friend's exact words. "Like you didn't recognize anything and anyone, and you didn't know who we were, and you could do anything at all. But you didn't seem to recognize good from evil anymore."
Good and evil, that was what Osamu said.
Like he was being Loveless.
Sometimes, he was scared of this ability, because there might be a time when he couldn't come back to his normal self. If he tried to do it for very long, he might stay in that "Loveless" state forever. And then, because he had no emotions, nobody would love him too.
Still, right now it was what he needed. If he used it, he would win.
And so, trying to ignore the confines of Seimei's embrace, he drew several deep breaths. With each breath, he retreated deeper inside himself. There was a dim corner of his mind that screamed at him not to do it, not even for his future self and Soubi, because it would be so wrong to show Seimei that he could do this.
But he was too far gone now to care.
He heard himself speak: but it was funny to his ears, as if it was coming from a long distance. "Will I go first?"
"Yes," Seimei replied.
"I hate being here," Chibi intoned. His violet eyes were bottomless and frigid.
Seimei didn't sense Ritsuka's change, "I'm developing a drug that will change the structure of DNA from a Sacrifice to a Fighter."
"I called Mom last night and told her we would be coming home soon."
"I've hurt Soubi over and over again and do not regret it."
"My ankle still hurts."
"I think I should punish Nisei some more after what he's done to you."
"I want a cell phone."
"Kaidou Chouma has been my spy for years, even before she left the Seven Moons."
If Chibi had been himself, even Seimei's first statement would have gotten a reaction out of him. Playing Twenty with Aniki wasn't just a game; it always had something at stake. The younger Ritsuka's face never changed. "I want the future Ritsuka and Soubi to be happy."
"I'll destroy the Seven Moons for what they did to you, Ritsuka. No—we'll destroy them together."
"I still don't know what happened two years ago…why am I here."
"I chose to pretend to die by fire because I thought that it would make you remember who you were."
"I think that the stars were put in the sky to remind us of the souls of the people who died."
"I went traveling all over the world the past two years, studying briefly at the different Fighter schools."
"I already punished Nisei."
"The other Ritsuka is here in this house."
Quietly, the younger Ritsuka whispered, "I know."
Instantly, Seimei whipped his little brother around to take a good look at him. The younger Ritsuka let it happen.
There was no way that the younger Ritsuka wouldn't react to the other Ritsuka. When Seimei saw the younger Ritsuka's eyes, blank and not registering anything, he began to panic.
It was like that hellish week after Divided attacked Ritsuka—the countless hours by Ritsuka's bedside, waiting for him to wake up, not knowing how his brother would be when he finally did.
"RItsuka! Ritsuka!"
Was Chibi breathing? Yes, he was, but it was slow, measured, even, as if he were asleep. He didn't even respond to Seimei's calls.
"Ritsuka, the game's over. Come back to me," Seimei pleaded. He shook Ritsuka gently.
At that, the younger Ritsuka seemed to stir. The blankness in his eyes disappeared, to focus blearily on Seimei. The younger Ritsuka, upon seeing Seimei so scared, hugged his brother.
"Oh, Ritsuka. What happened? You…"
"I'm sorry," the younger Ritsuka said, buried in Seimei's shirt. "I'm sorry."
Seimei didn't say anything. He rocked the precious burden in his arms. Both of them were trembling.
A few moments passed.
"You better get some breakfast," The younger Ritsuka pointed out at last.
Seimei didn't want any breakfast. The panic was dissolving, to be replaced by excitement. The truth was beginning to dawn on him: that for the duration of the game, he'd seen Loveless.
The real Loveless.
For Seimei it was like seeing light after living so long in darkness—with Ritsuka's ability, they could defeat anyone they wished.
Of course! It made sense. Sans Amour-one without love. Loveless did not mean that no one loved him. It meant that Loveless could not love anyone back, could not love anything back.
That disregard made him powerful, because there was nothing that could stop him—Loveless recognized no one. Nothing was valuable to Loveless, and so they could destroy the world and not care.
This was Loveless!
This was power.
This was the ability to grant others the freedom to choose!
"Aniki?" The younger Ritsuka was looking at him oddly.
"I'm not hungry," Seimei told him. "I'll just have some coffee-then, can you tell me what happened?"
The younger Ritsuka was cautious, "All right."
Seimei let the younger Ritsuka mess around with the computer, playing solitaire. He sipped his coffee, smiling. The drug to change DNA was nearly finished. In fact, the bulk of the plans for that drug were in this computer, the Archives. It was top secret. It was also the reason why they'd visited the Seven Moons a month ago-so that they could pick up their technology and their research.
The drug…
The drug…
Seimei dropped his cup. It smashed to pieces at his feet, but he hardly heard the crash.
The world was spinning, growing gray at the edges.
The drugs…
He'd been drugged.
"Ritsuka," He gasped, dropping to his knees.
He expected Ritsuka to rush to him, to panic as he had done. Instead, Seimei watched as Ritsuka only stared at him from the chair, a terrible sadness on his face.
"I'm sorry, Aniki," he heard the younger Ritsuka say. His tone did not indicate in any way that he was apologetic. "I have to win."
Seimei managed a word before he fell captive to unconsciousness, "Loveless…"
"Yes," Chibi agreed, coldly. "I am."
Chouma waited at the bottom of the stairs. She started to smile, "You sure took—"
Then she saw the expression on the younger Ritsuka's face.
"What happened?"
"Nothing's happened," Chibi replied. "It's done. I drugged his coffee and now he's asleep."
When Chibi first proposed this plan, Chouma had told him that he was crazy. No one had ever drugged Seimei and gotten away with it.
To which Chibi replied, "But that was because I wasn't the one doing it."
To think that drugging Seimei was only the first part of Chibi's plans.
"What now?"
"You found the Zero?"
"Yes. They're in your room."
It was crazy, so crazy that it was only Chibi who could pull it off. "The others have gone," She continued. "The others are in their own classes. Aside from you and me, only Seimei, the other you, Zero, and Nisei are here."
"That's good." Chibi smiled shyly. "I didn't want anyone else involved. Just stay out of his way when he wakes up, okay? He's going to think you had something to do with drugging him."
THAT sounded more like the Chibi she knew. She nodded.
"Now we have to talk to Nisei," continued the younger Ritsuka. He smiled again, a different kind of smile. Mischievous and scared all at once. A strange combination.
It was appropriate considering what he was about to do.
"And, Chouma?" he added when she walked away to watch over the other Ritsuka.
"Yes?"
"Protect the other Ritsuka, will you?"
Once he was away from Chouma, the younger Ritsuka staggered to the nearest wall and leaned against it. He slid down to the floor, his breath coming in searing gasps.
He'd drugged Seimei…his own brother.
And…
He noticed that it was harder to come back this time. It was more difficult to be himself again, like he was wading through hardening cement. He'd been terrified.
It was Aniki who brought him back. Then Ritsuka drugged him as a reward?
He put his face in his hands. He was screwing everything up.
"Chibi," Someone said.
The younger Ritsuka looked up to see Natsuo bending down to his eye level. Youji was behind Natsuo, and the Zero looked worried.
"What's happening to you?"
"Natsuo," Ritsuka said, his mouth trembling. "Oh, Natsuo!"
He threw himself into Natsuo with the force of a small hurricane, hugging the red-haired Sentouki. Shocked, Natsuo tumbled backward.
"Hey!"
Youji was there in an instant, trying to wedge Chibi off Natsuo, but Chibi was clinging on so tightly that Natsuo shook his head. Youji sighed and helped them up.
"Chibi, you're choking Natsuo," Youji said. It was then that they noticed that Chibi was shaking. "Chibi?"
"I'm sorry," They heard the younger Ritsuka mumble. "I'll be okay, just…wait. I drugged Aniki and…"
"You drugged Seimei?" Natsuo repeated in amazement. The Zero pair exchanged looks.
The younger Ritsuka nodded. "I'm scared," He whimpered. "I'm so scared."
The Zero pair softened. Even though they did not feel pain, they knew what fear was like.
Youji sighed. "Stupid," He conceded, patting the younger Ritsuka's head. "Weren't you the one that brought us here?"
They'd watched Chiyako-sensei's house since last night and made the right calls to the Seven Moons. They saw how the other Ritsuka was carried off by Seimei and knew where he was. They knew that Soubi was coming. Then, to their surprise, Chouma managed to find them and relay the message that the younger Ritsuka had a plan.
A plan to stop Seimei's research.
Still disbelieving, they came. How can anyone stop Seimei?
But here was Chibi, saying that he'd successfully drugged Seimei. It was unbelievable, and a feat that they weren't sure the current Ritsuka could do.
After a few more minutes, the younger Ritsuka stopped shaking. "I'm fine now," He said, looking embarrassed at hugging Natsuo. "I have to tell you about the next part of the plan…"
Nisei was alone.
He was supposed to be in class, but Seimei ordered him to stay in the house and prevent the two Ritsukas from meeting. As far as Nisei knew, the younger Ritsuka was with Seimei and the older one was still asleep.
He knew that Seimei regarded him as little more than a useful tool. For this reason he secretly resented Ritsuka—but it was only that: a secret. If Seimei knew that Nisei longed to murder Ritsuka so that Nisei could have Seimei all to himself, it would be his last day on earth.
And last night, that squirt…
The past Ritsuka was annoying, plain and simple. The older Ritsuka was intelligent and calculating. He couldn't see how they were related—or, indeed, how the older Ritsuka emerged from the younger one after the memory loss. Nisei might've doubted the authenticity of the younger Ritsuka weren't for Seimei.
Also, the way that the younger Ritsuka laughed when the plane smacked him from behind…
It hinted at something sinister. It might have just been a prank—
What was that?
He saw a flash of green. Nisei quickly got out of his room to rush to the stairs. There, at the bottom of the landing, were two boys that he had never seen before.
Both boys still had their ears. One had long green hair, while the other had curly red hair. They waved at him, smiling.
"You—!"
"Ah, you must be Beloved's Fighter," The green-haired boy said. "I'm Youji and this is Natsuo."
"We're Zero," Added Natsuo cheerfully.
Zero. Sagan Nagisa's pets.
The Seven Moons were here…
"Systems Engage," Nisei said at once. Never mind how they knew—he needed to get rid of these two first. "I declare a spell battle."
"You hear that, Natsuo? This guy wants to battle us," Youji chuckled.
"We decline," said a new voice directly behind Nisei.
Automatically, Nisei turned—just in time to see a very familiar plane come zooming up to his face. Nisei took a step back—
Too far.
The next thing that he knew, he was on his back. He had a vague recollection of falling down the stairs, rattling his bones with every step. He felt like he'd been flung into the washing machine. He groaned.
He'd been tricked by the younger Ritsuka again!
"Is he dead?" Someone shouted, sounding worried.
"Nope; it'll take more than that to kill him," Someone else replied.
He lifted himself up on his elbows with a herculean effort. His eyes were halfway shut, but he felt the shadow of someone as it jumped clear over him.
"Run!"
"You bastard," Nisei gasped, falling to all fours. He could hear the sound of footsteps as three children—The Zero and the younger Ritsuka—ran away from him.
By the time Nisei was back on his feet, they had vanished. Nisei's temper was also at boiling point. He threw open the doors to the garden when he heard no footsteps from inside the house.
In the garden, Nisei cast out his senses as a Fighter to find where they were. He got a Fighter-Unit signal and a Sacrifice-signal almost at once: The Zero pair, he assumed, were the ones in the bushes. The lone Sacrifice, the younger Ritsuka, was crouching behind a tree.
Nisei paused to catch his breath. It hurt, which probably meant that his ribs were bruised.
Those kids…
They would pay.
Dearly.
He remembered that the younger Ritsuka was afraid of fire. With a crafty smile, Nisei spoke the most potent fire-spell he knew: one that would burn until the focus of his anger was gone.
"Flame, burn the world with your unforgiving power."
At his words, a spark grew. It fed off the dry leaves of mid-autumn. Fire blazed.
Soubi sat quite calmly in the front seat of the taxi. His watch told him that it was eight in the morning.
He'd left Kio behind. He didn't need any of his Fighter senses to know that this battle would be a different one. He'd even turned his phone off so that Kio would stop trying to call him.
"Hey, Mister, you're bleeding," Noted the overly chatty taxi driver.
Soubi glared at him coldly, and the driver gulped. "Am just saying, is all," The driver mumbled.
"Just concentrate on doing your job," Soubi hissed. Once he was sure that the driver's concentration was once again on the road, he lifted a hand up and touched his bandages.
So. It wasn't wet again-wet with fresh blood, that is—but it was glowing an angry red, giving the impression of bleeding when not seen clearly. It was also throbbing. The pain would have driven a normal Fighter out of his mind.
To Soubi, it was another thing he endured for his Ritsuka. Ritsuka—that was who he thought of now, the thoughts of the young Sacrifice like a fairy boat to carry him throughout the waves of pain.
A Fighter's Punishment could only be done by his Sacrifice. As long as the Fighter accepted the bond, the Sacrifice could punish his Fighter by their name. Additionally, a Fighters' Punishment was partly equivalent to his pain threshold. The stronger a Fighter was, the greater the level of pain when inflicting Punishment.
It was because it was expected that as a Fighter grew stronger, there would be less need for Punishment. Why, after all, punish a Fighter who was strong? Why punish him, except for the times when it disobeyed you?
Soubi's hands fell away from his bandages. Did the pain mean that he still accepted Seimei's ownership?
Did it mean that Ritsuka could not be, and would never be, his Master?
For Soubi could see it clearly now—it was really up to him. It was Soubi himself who would decide who to follow. And yet understanding his dilemma was not the same as making the decision—as it was, all he could do was to sneak in so he could spirit both Ritsukas away from Seimei, then slink away like the coward he was.
"Who could love a disgusting thing like you?"
Seimei had said those words so long ago. It was still true. Maybe this would be the bravest thing he'd ever do, after all.
With a start, Soubi realized that the taxi had stopped. They weren't even at Beika yet-though it was clearly seen at a distance. There was a line of traffic ahead, seemingly going on forever. "What is it?"
The driver pointed nervously. "There's fire trucks…headed for the University."
"Fire trucks?" Soubi repeated dumbly.
" I think something's on fire…Hey! Wait! Mister!"
For Soubi had thrown the door open and was running towards the University, dodging cars and curious passer-bys, who were gawking at the red engines.
Soubi might not be much good in sensing where Ritsuka was, but it could not be coincidence—a fire in Beika? It had to be related to the Aoyagi brothers.
There was only one thought on his mind:
The younger Ritsuka was afraid of fire.
It was the biggest fire that the younger Ritsuka had ever seen.
He was unable to scream, which was good, in a way. Screaming would have told Nisei where he was, and what if he found out that they'd provoked him into starting the fire?
On the other hand, he also couldn't run. He was frozen in place, knees locked, watching helplessly as the fire grew nearer.
The fear in him grew stronger.
I must not open my mouth, the younger Ritsuka thought desperately. If I open my mouth, I would just scream and scream and scream.
The fire was so beautiful…
So deadly.
He was hidden behind a tree, and his eyes were locked on Nisei. The Zero boys, he hoped, were meeting up with Soubi.
Unless Soubi's phone was off…
MOVE! A voice shouted at him from his head. Move, you idiot, before you get burned alive! The voice sounded like his older self.
But he couldn't move. The fire was spreading quickly—the flames jumped from bush to bush, from branch to roof. In a few minutes the whole garden was set afire.
He stood there, still frozen, as Nisei realized how much damaged his spell had done. Then, as the younger Ritsuka prayed, Nisei ran back to the house.
"Seimei!" Shouted the Beloved Sentouki.
The younger Ritsuka was right. In a fire, a Fighter would save his Sacrifice first.
But what about him?
He looked up. The branch directly overhead was burning to a crisp. Chibi watched, mesmerized, as the branch broke off to descend on top of him.
He shut his eyes tight against the bad dream.
"Ritsuka!"
Someone had knocked him over. He and his savior rolled in the grass, coming to a halt just before a carpet of fire.
"Ritsuka! Ritsuka, are you all right?"
"Chouma?" He murmured.
Kaidou Chouma knelt over him, looking so much like her brother that the younger Ritsuka could only stare. "Why didn't you move?"
"I was scared to…"
"It was going to kill you!"
The younger Ritsuka wanted to cry, but he was so petrified of the fire that the tears wouldn't come. "The other Ritsuka…" He began. Then, he repeated, "The other Ritsuka-where is he?"
"We got separated—"
"Separated! How?"
"We got to the hallway okay, but he insisted on looking for you. He…he disappeared in the smoke."
He went looking for me…
The younger Ritsuka was galvanized into action. He darted into the house—it wasn't burning badly, but everything was clouded with smoke. Chiyako-sensei's house was not equipped with fire alarms.
Chouma made a grab for him but missed. She got up to follow him, but as instantly blinded by the smoke. She retreated, grabbing at her cell phone as she went.
"Fire Department? There's a fire in Beika University! The teacher's complex…Chiyako-sensei's!"
The older Ritsuka was lost.
He couldn't see anything but the black smoke, much less the exit. At this rate the only way that he could see the younger Ritsuka would be if he danced the funky chicken in front of him.
"Ritsuka! Ritsuka!" He called.
He was not leaving the house until he found the younger Ritsuka. Who knew what was happening now?
Tears rose from his eyes, caused by the thickening smoke. He coughed, then dropped to his knees. That seemed better. There was more fresh air down here at least.
And Seimei…where was Seimei?
He wondered briefly who started this fire. Chouma didn't have a chance to explain. She only told him that the younger Ritsuka wanted to talk to him before they used the fire as a distraction for him to escape.
Why was the younger Ritsuka so determined to be the hero?
He needed to know…
The younger Ritsuka had to know that he wasn't alone in all of this.
The older Ritsuka suddenly bumped into something. He crawled backwards, rubbing his head.
A toilet. He bumped his head on the rim of a toilet. He had crawled to the bathroom without even realizing it. How idiotic!
Suddenly, a hand descended on his shoulder, and he cried out. Instinctively, he swept his hand outwards.
"OW!"
"Ritsuka?" He said in confusion.
The older Ritsuka heard someone shuffling closer towards him. "Yes, it's me," The younger Ritsuka confirmed. "What are you doing here?"
The older Ritsuka glanced at him, searching for any burns. There was nothing, except for the fact that the younger Ritsuka braved the thing that he feared the most to come after him.
He tried to hide his relief and admiration by snapping at the younger Ritsuka. "What am I doing here? Isn't it supposed to be, 'What are YOU doing here?'"
The younger Ritsuka's face was grimy with soot, and the older Ritsuka guessed that they looked identical. "Seimei sent for me. He didn't come after you after I've arrived here. You shouldn't have come."
"I came to rescue you."
"I didn't need rescuing!" The younger Ritsuka insisted hotly.
"Did you start this?"
The door to their side suddenly caught fire, and the younger Ritsuka shrieked, putting his arms over his face.
Hesitantly, the older Ritsuka reached out to pat him on the head. His own self. "I'm sorry," He muttered.
Of course it was stupid to suggest that the younger Ritsuka started this fire. Chibi was scared of fire.
The older Ritsuka took his younger self's hand. "We'll get out now, all right?" He said soothingly. "I'll need you to lead me out, though."
His younger self squeezed his hand in return, "That's what I'm here for."
They couldn't get too far. The fire seemed to double in size with every breath, until they were practically slithering on the floor, gasping for fresh air.
It was hot, hot, hot! Even the sweat on their faces were drying up.
The younger Ritsuka went first, his tail wound around the older Ritsuka's wrist. They couldn't speak, for fear of inhaling more of the smoke.
Suddenly the younger Ritsuka stopped. "Seimei…" He said softly, staring up the stairs. He recognized it after all his time here. It was the stairs to the attic.
He turned to the older Ritsuka, "Just go straight ahead, you'll see a door."
"But where are you going?" Protested the older Ritsuka as the younger Ritsuka began to crawl up the stairs. "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to check on Aniki," The younger Ritsuka replied.
"On Seimei? You mean you left him upstairs?"
"Don't worry, I think Nisei already got to him first, but I'd like to make sure."
"Not alone, you won't," retorted the older Ritsuka.
"You need to get out!"
"What do you think will happen if you die here?" Shot back the older Ritsuka. "We are the same!"
The younger Ritsuka looked surprised."That's the first time you admitted it. Oh, all right. Do what you want," He grumbled. He turned his face away before the older Ritsuka could not see the smile that lit up his face, but the older Ritsuka saw it anyway.
The older Ritsuka felt sad that something as simple as that could make the younger Ritsuka happy. Right then and there, he vowed not to ostracize the younger Ritsuka from his life—they were really the same. If they got out of this mess, he'd make the younger Ritsuka feel like he was a part of his life.
Not if, the older Ritsuka corrected himself.
When they get out.
And they climbed up the stairs together.
Soubi burst into the burning house. He'd met up with the Zero boys a minute ago, and they'd quickly given him a brief explanation of what was happening.
He couldn't believe what they had told him-that the younger Ritsuka drugged Seimei and provoked Nisei to start this fire so that the older Ritsuka could escape.
And also…the younger Ritsuka had another goal.
To erase all of Seimei's research.
"Wind, clear my path," he ordered. Immediately, a wind tunnel opened up in front of him. He sped down one hallway and then another, looking for both Ritsukas at once.
The younger Ritsuka was quickly proving to be more than what he first seemed. Temperamental, cunning, sly. He was more than an emotional brat. He was—though it hurt Soubi to admit it—similar to Seimei in many ways.
And the current Ritsuka? He was Soubi's life. His soul. His hope.
"Ritsuka!"
The fire grew, fed by the wind-spell that he made. If it kept on going, they would be trapped in here. The fire-trucks were coming, but still, the firemen would be too late.
No matter. He didn't plan to stay long.
He climbed up a set of stairs, then turned to inspect each of the rooms. He only had a few seconds to spare, just enough to open the door, call for Ritsuka, then get out when he saw that no one was there. All of the rooms were burning.
Where were they?
If only the bond was complete…
Call for me, Ritsuka, he begged in his head.
No answer. Of course.
At last, he arrived at the last room in the house. The attic. By this time, the wind-spell was weakening, smothered by the greedy fire. Everything was lit up orange.
"Ritsuka!"
There! His Ritsuka was laying face-down on the floor. He snatched him up quickly, and left.
Soubi peered at Ritsuka's face closely. Was he breathing? Had he perhaps inhaled too much smoke already?
Please, please, please. Please be breathing. Please be all right.
The blond Sentouki ran, before the stairs could burn away. This teacher's house was made of wood, like most traditional Japanese houses. The wind tunnel was collapsing.
Suddenly Soubi's feet were no longer pounding on wood, but on earth.
Out! They were out. Soubi stopped in surprise. Then he laid Ritsuka down on the grass.
CPR. Ritsuka needed CPR!
Without hesitation, Soubi lifted Ritsuka head to clear the pathway and listened to his chest. The heartbeat was weak.
"Ritsuka, no," Soubi pleaded. Then, he threw himself into the task of saving his Ritsuka, the panic making him more frenzied each time his Sacrifice did not wake up.
Lips, on his own. Soft and familiar. However, his usual joy at feeling Ritsuka's lips had gone, to be replaced by desperation. He breathed for Ritsuka, keeping the tears at bay.
Please, Ritsuka, live!
Finally, as Soubi breathed for Ritsuka the fifth or sixth time, he coughed. Soubi pulled back, startled, as he saw his Sacrifice open his eyes. That lovely violet…
"Ritsuka!"
He crushed Ritsuka in his embrace, shaking with relief. It was a long moment before he could let go, but he finally did. He held Ritsuka an arm's length away from him, inspecting him for injuries. Ritsuka's face was dirty, but he didn't seem burnt, or even singed.
"Are you all right?" He asked.
Ritsuka was here…he was here, in his arms…
Ritsuka reached out to touch his cheek. "Don't cry," He whispered hoarsely. Then, he fingered the angry scars at his neck. "You're bleeding, Soubi-san."
"All that matters is that you're unharmed," He told his Sacrifice.
Ritsuka smiled. "Thank you, Soubi-san."
Then Soubi froze. "''Soubi-san?'" he repeated, stunned.
The older Ritsuka never called him 'Soubi-san'.
"Soubi…san?" The younger Ritsuka asked him. "What's the matter?"
He'd gotten the wrong Ritsuka.
Kyaaa...that's it for the 10th. I hope the amount of action in here makes up for the wait.
Dear readers, before I make my regular running commentary to my reviewers, I have to point out something I observed about the Loveless yaoi i've read so far...most of them place emphasis on the ears while the "act" is being done, but the tail is not mentioned...I wonder why? * laughs * not to mention that it's quite, you know, near the most active place, right? Somebody please torture me with a slinky if I am displaying more than my usual insanity... *laughs again*
To my reviewers: Thank you so much!
Promocat: I think, for this chapter, Seimei was the one who got screwed up. Haha. For once, right? I am still nervous at the younger Ritsuka's act of drugging Seimei...*face palms* since most likely Seimei will murder anyone who dares to drug him. Oh, and the others didn't get straightened out, now did they...? I think they got into more trouble...Kya.
CheyWolfe: My beta! Thank you for beta-reading and editing this chapter. I really ought to print out your review and laminate it. I didn't expect the review-I was really happy! Thank you. It means a lot...and the way you reviewed was very specific. you pointed out exactly what you liked. I've been scared that I've portrayed them out of character, but you've reassured me time and time again. Oh, and about the Wisdom Resurrection. Well, the younger Ritsuka didn't have a cell phone...no one gave him the ultimate gadget. Hm, minus points for Soubi!
VeelaSophia: Have you brought the rest of the manga yet? *sigh* you're lucky! Where I am from, there's no loveless manga being sold anywhere, so I had to rely on mangafox. Tch. And no, you are not the only one who thinks that Seimei is cool...You might notice that I rarely put in Seimei's point of view in Mnemosyne, because I am terrified of diminishing his cool-ness! He's evil, and a difficult character...I still really love playing around with him! (Oh, and I hoped you breathed for this chapter...this was far more intense than any of the chapters I put up so far, methinks.)
JumpingJelloDinosaurs-Rawr: *covers Mnemosyne files wildly* H-How did you know what would happen? AAAAAAAAAAhhhhhhhhh! Am I getting too predictable? *sulks in corner* Ah well! I'm still happy that I'm keeping you engrossed. The references to toast in this chapter are credited to you. Haha. I hope I haven't disappointed you! And I apologize for the long wait...was it worth it?
RomanJuliet: *holds up spoon* let's poke out your infected eye, ne? so you can enjoy Mnemosyne to the fullest...oh? it's already okay? Just kidding. Younger Ritsuka's Loveless capabilities are revealed in this chapter! I'm trying to put up my own theories about the name "Loveless"...Hope you enjoyed!
We are nearing the end. The next chapter will be the last one, then there's an epilogue after that. I just realized that "Mnemosyne" is actually as long as the anime (both are 12 episodes, ne?) though I never meant for it to be that way...
Thank you for the Favorites, the Alerts, and everyone who reads. Check out my profile for a pic of Ritsuka at age 17, as drawn by Yun Kouga-sama.
PLEASE REVIEW! I am uncertain about what to include in the last chapter...