The door creaked on its hinges as it opened and slammed into the wall behind. Framed by the doorway was a silhouette belonging to the count himself. He appeared to be alone.
One foot clicked onto the floor of the room, and he cast a glance at each of them.
"How cute," he remarked, seeing them huddled together, "will you cry when I separate you?"
His gaze rested on Inaho, who had actually fallen asleep about half an hour before. Slaine thought of waking him, but waited to see what would happen first. Especially since he had picked up a subtle change in Inaho's breathing and suspected he was only pretending, maybe hoping for an opening.
The count leaned back on the opposite wall, out of their reach, and crossed his arms over his chest.
"However shall I choose which of you to dispose of first?" His hand slipped under his red jacket and drew out a gun. "I think, perhaps, the beloved one. He looks peaceful… maybe I should wake him up a bit."
He lazily aimed for Inaho's foot, but something seemed to catch his eye and he lowered his hand again. Pale gray eyes shifted to Yuki.
"What a fierce look," he stepped forward and crouched in front of her, "females should try to be cuter."
Slaine tensed as he watched the count lift the hem of her tank top with the barrel of his gun. Her hand sprung up on reflex to slap the man's face, and for an instant Slaine felt his heart jump into his throat. What was she thinking?!
The man dodged just barely, one nail lightly scratching his cheek.
"Ah ahh…" he warned, taking hold of her hair at the scalp and pulling her forward by it. The gun was now pressed to her stomach. "It would be a shame if I had to put a hole in you. But," his face was centimeters from hers, "that was pretty interesting. I thought you'd be extra baggage, but honestly, you're not bad. Tell me, would you like to disappear along with them? I'm rather inclined to keep you."
She wrenched herself from his grasp, pulling her knee hard up into his chest at the same time. He fell forward coughing as she moved away as far as her chain would allow.
"So, you'd rather be killed?" he smiled playfully at her, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, "But you know, when someone desperately wants to die and can't… that kind of despair is really adorable!"
Slaine felt his jaw tighten. It was all he could do not to pounce on the creep, but he didn't dare interfere with that pistol so close to Yuki's vitals. One false move and she could be dead. He glanced down at Inaho. A maroon eye was fixed on the situation unfolding right beside him, the same reluctant restraint holding him back.
It was a losing battle. The more she resisted him, the more forceful he became. Slaine wished she would stop, and then maybe he would lose interest in her. That would allow him and Inaho to take action. But she was probably aware of that. He had a feeling she was doing it on purpose. After all, if he was occupied with her, he couldn't hurt them.
Slaine bit his lip. He had no need for this kind of protection. He didn't want it at her expense. She needed to stop… he had to make her stop… didn't Inaho tell her she was absolutely not to do this? Not that she was exactly seducing him. He couldn't tell whether the count was just sadistic or if this was somehow arousing to him. Either way, it was a disgusting lust for dominance. He was just toying with her like a cat and mouse, laughing as she struggled under his grasp. She was strong, but he was stronger. Eventually he had her pinned to the wall by her throat. She clawed towards his face but he was just out of reach.
"You're trying so very hard, maybe I should reward you. I'm a generous man, after all. So... if you want this bullet so badly, I'll give it to you."
He slid the gun downward and discharged it into her thigh. Her scream was cut off as he choked the air out of her, laughing at her distress.
Slaine did not waste a single second. As soon as her core was no longer in the line of fire, he had the chain connecting his cuffs around the man's throat. The count dropped the gun in his surprise and clutched at the chain, trying to pull it away so he could breathe. Meanwhile, Inaho snatched up the weapon and shoved it into his gasping mouth.
All three froze expectantly.
Why wasn't he pulling the trigger?
The chain tightened as Slaine pulled back on it. If Inaho wouldn't do it, he would. He would not let anyone take these two away from him. The slightest pain inflicted on either of them was utterly unforgivable. Even if he couldn't protect them forever, right now this one thing was within his power. Inaho's hands were clean outside the line of duty, but his were dripping with the blood of countless people he had dragged through the horrors of war – one more would not make much of a difference. He had already thrown away his life, now he would use what was left of it to save theirs.
With all of his anger fueling him, he ended it in one swift motion.
There was a moment when the room went completely silent, and then the clink of chains as he loosened them, sending the count toppling to the floor. Slaine stared vacantly down at the form crumpled beneath him. Heaving breaths settled into a normal rhythm, and he turned his gaze upward.
Yuki was crying but had stopped screaming. And Inaho… he could not make out what that expression was. Shock? Disappointment? He was looking straight at him as though frozen, but there was no discernible emotion in that gaze. Everyone was a bit stunned, but now was not the time for hesitation. Slaine rummaged through the count's pockets until he found a ring of keys. Trying each one, eventually he was able to release Yuki's ankle.
He moved to free Inaho, who still seemed rather disoriented. It was really unlike him to shut down like this. But... this kind of detachment from reality - it reminded Slaine of himself when waking from one of his flashback nightmares. As he turned the key in the cuffs on his wrists, he noticed Inaho's hands were shaking. Slaine wanted to ask if he was alright, but Yuki's condition was more important. There was a growing pool of blood under her leg.
Without a word he unceremoniously pulled the tank top off of her and quickly tied it around her upper thigh as tightly as possible. Then he added pressure to the wound with his hands.
"You're going to be ok," he assured her, though he felt like he was saying it more to himself.
She nodded shakily, her eyes still wide with pain. He could tell she was trying not to writhe too much under his aid, but her hands were reaching out desperately, clutching the air as though trying to grab onto something.
She was reaching for Inaho.
Eventually her brother seemed to drift back to reality. He quietly leaned down and wrapped his arms around her. She gripped him tightly, her fingers leaving marks on his skin, and buried her face in his shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Yuki-nee… I was right there and he… I'm sorry... I'm sorry…"
Was he… crying?
In the past Slaine had sometimes wondered what that looked like, or if it was even possible, but now that it was actually happening it was the last thing he wanted to see. He turned away and focused on the task at hand. The bleeding had decreased significantly, though he didn't dare let up on the steady pressure he was applying to the wound.
Now that there was some control to the situation, he thought about their next move. There were feet scampering about in the corridor as the craft fell towards the earth, its Aldnoah drive shut down by the death of the count. This was the chaos they had intended to use to their advantage in the original plan, but they were now immobilized by Yuki's condition. Someone had to stay with her. But someone had to turn the power on again or they would all die. Since at least a minute had passed and nothing was happening, he suspected the only other person aboard with the ability to activate it was Inaho.
Slaine tapped his shoulder. "Can you take over here? I'll go and see-"
"You can't," Inaho interjected, disengaging himself from Yuki's arms, "I have to." He hauled himself to his feet, stumbling with the unsteadiness of the ship in its descent.
Slaine really didn't want him to go off on his own, but there was nothing he could do about it. He watched him leave with anxious eyes.
"He'll be ok…" said a gentle whisper nearby. Yuki was looking up at him with a faint smile, though she was clearly worried, too.
Slaine nodded. "Of course."
Minutes passed like hours as they both watched the door expectantly.
"Thank you, Slaine-kun," said Yuki as they waited, "thank you…for rescuing me."
He smiled at her. "It's the other way around..."
She had rescued him countless times. He was grateful now for every meal she had pestered him to eat, the yard work she had encouraged him to do, and all the other countless little things that had returned some of his former strength to him. Because of her, he could now be her support. This person… he hadn't really thought about it before, but she was the closest thing to a mother he had ever had. He leaned down and placed a reverent kiss on her forehead.
She laughed quietly, "What was that for?"
"Nothing…" Slaine looked back at the door.
There was a jolt as the craft stabilized, and both let out a breath of relief. A little while later, Inaho stumbled through the door.
a/n: (lol all that fretting over portraying Inaho's ingenuity and I didn't even use his brain...) Normally this is the part where I delete chapters 9 & 10 and rewrite with some shoujo-ish beach scenes instead, where the most exciting thing that happens is they take a hot bath together and someone almost drowns [in the ocean not the tub, though that could be interesting], but, you know, I've sort of already published 9 & 10 so... anyways, I'm so tired of writing about blood and pain (my respect for Ishida Sui has increased dramatically), no moooore. I need hot springs and pajama chats and holidays and fluff. ;u; Really I'm just glad to get this awful chapter away from me, I've rewritten it a dozen times and I still hate it... *crawls under a rock*
