Story Title: Chains of Crystal
Chapter Title: Bargain
Romance: Fubuki x Otogi
Timeline: Effectively AU season 1 of GX.
Fubuki wasn't supposed to be this unhappy when he was near the ocean. It had always been his natural environment, second only to being watched admiringly by large numbers of people. But he couldn't even bring himself to have a swim right now. Somewhere out there, Otogi needed his help, and he didn't know where or how. He just knew that was what he had to do.
Three days. After the initial searching of the island, the group of friends had went to Sameshima and told him everything, getting him caught up on what had happened. Now every student, teacher, and aide on the island was busy searching as well. They didn't know about Otogi's nature, of course. That didn't need to be told to everyone. But they were all looking anyway.
And to no avail. No one had seen anything. Fubuki was almost on the verge of tearing his hair out. Only the fact he wanted to look his best when they did find Otogi stopped him.
They would find him, too. It didn't make a difference on how long it would take. It would happen.
He didn't know where the others were right now. Probably searching somewhere. But he walked by the beach, his feet leading him without him hardly being aware of it to where he and Manjoume had found that shimmering crystal.
"Where are you?" he muttered under his breath, wanting to look into those deep green eyes again, eyes that spoke so eloquently of a magic that was greater than all the spellcasting in the world. In any world.
Fubuki… His name drifted across the sands, and the showman looked up, trying to figure out where it had come from. He knew he'd heard it. But where from?
"Otogi?" he called, hoping that the other would hear him. He was magical, he could hear Fubuki from anywhere. Couldn't he? He hoped…he ached for it to be so.
Fubuki… Again the word came whispering. Help me.
Fubuki sat up as if someone had stung him. That was all he needed to hear. "Where? Where are you?" Otogi needed him, and he would be there as quickly as he could!
Help me…the clearing…Darkness…
Fubuki didn't care about Darkness. What he cared about was getting Otogi away from them as quickly as possible. When that was done, then he would think about the dark spirit. He knew what Otogi had to mean, the clearing in the woods where they'd seen that unspeakable monstrosity that Yuusuke had performed. He ran as quickly as he could, leaving the beach behind and aiming for the wooded parts of the island.
Somewhere in the very deep back parts of his mind, he wondered if he should have sent a message to the others, or even went and gotten them before he hurried off. He dismissed that quickly. He could work better on his own for this. He'd get in there, get Otogi, and get out before Darkness and Yuusuke even knew he was there. Then everyone could get in there and do whatever was necessary to stop them. Or whatever.
Getting to the clearing didn't take all that long. Or rather, it shouldn't have. But as soon as he passed into the woods, something changed. It had been a clear, bright day, right up until he'd entered. The second he did, shadows and silence fell all around him. He couldn't hear a single bird chirping as they had been only a few short seconds ago. He could scarcely see enough to put one foot in front of another with any kind of security.
It was almost like being back in Yuusuke's room, only worse. There'd only been so many places you could go there. But this darkness stretched out in every direction, and even when he stepped backwards, thinking he'd try to get into the woods from somewhere else, the darkness remained just where it was.
Fubuki… The word drifted by again, and this time he was certain that Otogi sounded as if he were in pain. Help me.
Who needed to see? He knew where he'd went in, and he was pretty sure he knew where the clearing was from there. Fubuki hurried onward, stumbling now and then over rocks or tufts of grass that he couldn't see, but he never let it bother him for more than a few seconds. With every step he took, the fact that Otogi was being hurt, probably tormented by iron and steel, burned brighter and brighter in his mind.
And who knew what kind of horrible things he was being forced to do for Darkness and Yuusuke? Fubuki had probably the best imagination on the entire island, if not one of the best in the entire world, and he could easily think up a dozen disastrous wishes that either of those two could want to force the djinn to grant.
It hurt to think that one of his friends was doing this, too. Yuusuke hadn't been that bad of a person when they'd met. It had amused Fubuki to no end that he, Ryou, and Yuusuke all had birthdays in the same week, one right after the other. From the first moment he'd known that, he'd declared they were all birthday-brothers and therefore it was fate that they were to be best friends forever.
Yeah, well, best friends don't go around stealing other people's friends and trying to claim eternal power and whatever else he wants like that, either. It took a lot for Fubuki to get angry, but what Yuusuke had done was definitly pulling it off.
Between one step and the next, he was there. The clearing appeared around him, and was just as brightly lit as it could be. Not by the sun, however. Fubuki drew to a halt and tried to figure out what was going on. It had been early afternoon when he'd heard the call, but now, at least here, it was nightfall. Only stars lit the sky, and four torches, each set to one of the directions, lit this area.
"Yuusuke? Otogi?" Fubuki turned around, wanting something that resembled an answer. "What's going on? Where are you?"
"Here." At Yuusuke's voice, Fubuki whirled again, and this time he saw his friend standing only a short distance away, where he had not been only moments earlier. "So glad that you could come, Fubuki. This wouldn't be complete without you."
Fubuki clenched his fists, more from frustration than a desire to hurt someone. "Where's Otogi?"
"There." Yuusuke gestured briefly, and the djinn, chained to a tree, came into view. Fubuki's eyes widened to see how pained Otogi looked, more so than before. Otogi didn't even lift his head to look at him, though Fubuki thought he was awake.
"Otogi…I'm here…" He took a step closer, only to see two shadowy figures rise up from the ground. He couldn't get a good look at them, but the fact they were preventing him from getting to Otogi was all he needed to know that they weren't his friends. "Yuusuke! Let him go!"
"Certainly. But there's a condition to it." Yuusuke sounded ever so lightly amused, and Fubuki looked at him fiercely. The expression really didn't fit his usually amiable and cheerful face at all, but for once he didn't care.
"Condition?"
"Watch. That's all. Watch what I do, and when it's over, you can have him back." Yuusuke toyed with a knife between his fingers lightly. "Watch, and don't interfere. It's not that difficult. You watched what happened the other night, after all."
Fubuki shuddered at the memory, but he had no options that he could see at the moment. If watching whatever Yuusuke had planned would make him able to free Otogi, then he'd do it. "Fine. Just don't take all night."
"Oh, I won't. This won't take long at all." He motioned Fubuki to the far side of the clearing, opposite from Otogi. Once the other was there, he began to speak again, in a language that Fubuki didn't recognize at all. The words themselves sounded almost attractive, but the tone was something else altogether, something revolting and twisted.
Fubuki stared at him, not removing his gaze for a second. He thought there were other noises coming through the woods, but as each minute clicked by, they appeared to mean less and less, and watching Yuusuke was all important.
Darkness pooled around the other duelist's feet and slowly began to creep up his legs, transforming his normal clothes into something dark and dramatic. Fubuki swallowed some as he realized something of what was going on at last. Yuusuke wasn't going to be around anymore…he'd be one with the Darkness and the shadows…and there was no way he could think of to stop it.
Maybe it had been too late from the moment Yuusuke had made his decision, and Fubuki had no idea of when that had been. But as he watched, he determined something else: he wouldn't forget Yuusuke as he had been. No matter what. That was the friend he had made years ago.
Then the shadows circling Yuusuke reached to his waist, and he held out his arms. Fubuki watched, hardly believing his own eyes, as Yuusuke cut his arm, and let three drops of blood fall into the darkness itself. As they faded away, a hand of shadows formed, holding within it a dark mask. Fubuki couldn't see it very clearly from where he was, but it sickened him just to see it.
Yuusuke reached for the mask and set it on his face without a breath of hesitation. As he did, a faint aura of shadows wrapped all around him, and when it faded, he wore what appeared to be a long robe and a cape, both of blackest night. He glanced down at it, and sniffed briefly. "Too old-fashioned," he declared, and his voice was not that of Yuusuke. Fubuki hadn't heard it often, but he knew in his heart who it was: Darkness.
With a brief wave of his hand, the robe and cape melted into an outfit more suited to the modern world, but still in black and matching the mask a little better. Darkness turned towards Fubuki, a mocking little smirk on his face.
"And we meet at last, Tenjoin Fubuki."
Fubuki glared at him and started forward, only to stop as Darkness lifted a warning finger. Something about this beast spoke of raw power, and Fubuki found a tiny thread of caution from somewhere. "I want Otogi."
"You're certainly not the only person who does." Darkness smirked briefly. "I know quite well what Yuusuke promised you, but I have a condition of my own before you'll be permitted to go near him, much less even see his crystal."
"What are you talking about?"
Darkness circled him briefly and nodded slightly as if to himself. "This body won't last more than another few seconds. Yuusuke wasn't as strong as he thought he was, nor as intelligent. He wanted to be part of the Darkness forever, and he will get what he wants. But there are always prices, and consequences." He leaned in a bit towards Fubuki. "My condition is this: when this body fades away, take the mask and put it on. It will enable you to see through the shadow spell that Yuusuke used to hide the crystal from everyone but one linked to the darkness. Then you can take it and the djinn and be gone from here."
There had to be something Fubuki was missing, but the thought of being rid of Darkness was attractive. Without Yuusuke, he wouldn't be able to remain in this world, right? What harm could it do?
"Fine. If that's the way you're going to play it." He folded his arms and delivered his best glare, a respectable copy of Ryou's, towards Darkness. The other only laughed a little.
"Have fun with my djinn. I know that I did," Darkness taunted, even as the shadows around him began to boil up, wrapping long tendrils around him. "He's so very eager to please."
Fubuki would have punched Darkness if everything hadn't happened so quickly just then. The shadows enveloped their master, and in between one breath and the next, all that remained at Fubuki's feet was the mask. He stared down at it, then over to where Otogi still knelt by the tree, apparently unaware of everything that was going on. He reached down and picked the mask up, shuddering as he did. It felt slimy and clammy, even though there was nothing on it to make it feel like that.
"We'll be out of here in no time," he said quietly to Otogi, then took a long breath, and put on the mask.