Disclaimer: Durarara! I don't own thee!
Izaya followed Hibiki silently through the thicket, the shine of the half-moon and the star-littered spring sky the only light that guided their way. He had never taken this particular route before, and he traced his former enemy's movements blindly.
His limbs ached from the exertion as they began to move downhill, and it was all he could to do keep his breathing even as to not give away his current state to the other demon. His body had already begun to feel heavy from the short trip, threatening to send him tumbling down the slope. As much as he wanted to rest, now was not the time given how dire Hibiki had painted the entire situation.
Just what had happened prior that made him like this?
The moment that question ghosted across his thoughts, an excruciating pain shot through his head, and he stumbled over one of the roots, nearly losing his balance. Hibiki paused, but Izaya grinned it off, refusing to let himself slow their progress. The pain slowly subsided as they continued, and he kept himself from massaging his forehead as he navigated through the bushes.
The empty branches of the ancient sakura tree stretched far over the two of them, shielding them momentarily from their inevitable departure. It was hidden there, nestled between its huge roots.
The man smiled, ocean eyes reaching deep into his.
"I promise..."
'Huh?' Izaya unconsciously clutched his chest. That man had looked a lot like Shizu-chan.
That couldn't be right he told himself. Shizuo was a monster that called itself a human, his greatest enemy in the world. Shizuo was violent, brass, unrefined...
Shizuo had kissed him.
Izaya grimaced, nearly catching his foot in another root. His "greatest enemy" had saved him from drowning alone in that old rotten well. The other had carried his bullet-riddened body to Shinra when he had for some reason propelled himself in front of Akane.
Shizuo had kissed him.
He remembered the sensation on his lips, so alien yet familiar.
What had he said that made the strongest man in Ikebukuro retreat like that? After so many years of relentless chasing, what could have driven the monster off? Izaya racked his brain for an answer, and that man in his memory came back to him.
The hand around his was warm. "My name is Tsugaru."
"Tsugaru?" Izaya whispered just as he felt the soft caress of the barrier wash over him. The ache in his chest deepened, and he let out an involuntarily groan, sinking to his knees. They had finally made it to the bottom of the incline.
Just who had he forgotten?
"Izaya-sama?" Hibiki whispered, and Izaya looked up to find concern in the other's eyes.
He wanted to laugh at the irony of it all. His step-uncle had almost killed him just the day before for being too close to the humans, and now Hibiki was helping him in his escape to the human world.
"We have to keep moving," Hibiki mouthed, offering him a hand.
Izaya nodded silently and took it, stumbling to his feet as he suddenly fell ungracefully past the barrier. They continued through the forest, being careful to avoid the usual paths as they made their way towards Kyoto.
The pain was unbearable, a powerful wave that constantly made to force him into the ground, threatening to smolder the remaining flames of his life in its wake. Izaya tried to take a deep breath to calm it, but the emotion that swirled inside of him kept a tight rope around his neck. The crisp night air seemed to dig into his skin, and he pulled his jacket tighter around himself.
He already knew the truth.
The man he had forgotten had long been gone from this world.
The silence began to become painfully apparent, and the lack of conversation, of a distraction from this thoughts, made him feel much worse. Why had he left Kyoto? What was the point in regaining his memories? He was already in this much pain, and he had not remembered even a fraction of the one he had forgotten.
To be honest, it scared him. As much as he wished to find out the truth, he was terrified of the inevitable end result. He wanted to run back to the compound, to just toss everything aside and accept it as is. He knew it was the spell talking, but as soon as he allowed that thought to come into existence the rest followed like a plague.
He thought of Shizuo, the monster he had met back in Ikebukuro, of Shinra, his one human "friend," of the head he had unwittingly left in his apartment upon his departure. Izaya gritted his teeth, his heart dropping at the thought of the Orihara twins. They would have grown up as normal human children, devoid of his twisted influence. Kyouko would have had no reason to hate him, and life would have continued as usual.
He looked at Hibiki, his resolve starting to strengthen. Maybe him not knowing was all for the best. Hibiki would have never had to do something so stupid as to push him into that well, and Sakuraya... He paused, suddenly finding a thorn in his reasoning.
If he had not left, then Sakuraya would have never been born.
A uninvited rustle interrupted his thoughts, and a familiar face greeted them with stern eyes.
"Brother?" Hibiki immediately feigned surprise. "What brings you outside of the compound?"
Takashi took a step towards them, the shadow of the trees engulfing him. "You know well what Sakurako's wishes were," the demon replied, his voice a low growl.
Hibiki nodded, pretending to agree. "Of course. I was just hoping to bring Sakuraya back on my own so we could speed up the process."
"Then why is Izaya-sama with you?" Takashi asked, his blood red eyes moving to the demon prince. "He should be resting right now. You must know about the side effects of the spe..." he held his tongue, realizing the slip-up too late. However, the lack of surprise in Izaya's eyes told him everything he need to know. "You know about it already then."
"I do," Izaya replied.
Those eyes, the most dangerous Izaya had ever seen them, returned their gaze to their owner's brother. "Hibiki..."
"What right do you have to tell me what memories I should have?" Izaya cut in before the other demon could finish, feeling the rage build up in him.
Takashi regarded him for a moment, seemingly unfazed by the question. "It was Sakurako's decision, and I will stand by it," he finally explained slowly, crossing his arms.
"You were the one who told me you did not make decisions for others," Hibiki muttered, recalling their conversation about the next heir just days prior. He had changed much since that day, and it surprised him that while he might have taken a step forward, his brother had definitely taken quite a few back.
"Sakurako's wishes are my own, dear brother. It is for the best of our clan."
Hibiki took back that thought. His brother had always been quite a few steps behind.
"Now that everything is settled, we are going back to the compound," Takashi announced as he took another step towards Izaya, but Hibiki moved between them.
"Move aside, Brother. Izaya-sama is too weak to walk back on his own."
"If you take him back, then what would become of Sakuraya? Would you let Sakurako-sama wipe your son's memories too?" Hibiki asked.
"That is for her to decide," the other demon replied fluidly, removing his hands from his sleeves.
Hibiki smiled. "Then I am afraid I cannot allow that."
Without warning, Takashi struck, the punch sending his own brother into the trees. Hibiki jumped up from where he landed just as quickly, not letting his broken jaw fully heal before he sprang at the other.
"What are you doing? Stop it!" Izaya yelled at the two of them, completely flabbergasted that two demons would actually be fighting like this. Hibiki's attack made contact with his brother's shoulder, sending a spray of blood across the grass. Takashi was unfazed, instead countering with a well-aimed punch into Hibiki's stomach.
Izaya took a step back. It was his fault. Everything was because of him. Demons were not meant to quarrel like this, like the humans that lived beyond these trees. If he had been at full strength...
"Run!" Hibiki gasped before Takashi hurled him headfirst into a nearby rock. The impact echoed throughout the forest, leaving him momentarily stunned among the shattered stone.
"Hibiki!" A rough hand grabbed Izaya's arm before he could even take a step foward.
"You need to listen to your step-father." The grip tightened, and Izaya let out an involuntary scream as he heard a sickening crack.
"Izaya-sama!" Hibiki struggled to his feet, but his wounds were not healing fast enough for him to move.
The pain nearly brought him to his knees, but Takashi would not release his grip. Izaya found himself staring into cold red eyes, and a shiver ran down his spine. He knew what was coming, having seen that expression enough times during his time in the human world. He had witnessed them on many occasions when the war had still been raging around him, and again whenever he encountered one of the more dangerous ones in Ikebukuro.
They were the eyes of a killer, void of any reason, with only raw instinct driving them.
He saw a clawed hand coming at him in slow motion now, aimed right for his throat. He struggled to break free, but his body would not listen to him. Figures it would fail him when he needed it the most, just like back at the well, just like when that man had raised the gun at him in Hakodate.
He stared at the growing red flower upon his lovers' back, a testament to his failure.
He stopped struggling, the force of the memory a stinging slap on his face.
Just as he accepted his fate, a familiar roar shattered it, breaking through the trees.
"Izaya!"
It all happened very suddenly. The hand released him as its owner flew through the air and slammed through the nearest tree, shattered bark and splinters propelling through the air. Izaya crumpled to the floor, clutching his broken arm. A familiar silhouette stepped in front of him protectively.
Takashi slowly stood up, brushing the dust off his kimono before turning his attention to a piece of wood impaled through his lower back.
"Tch." Shizuo growled as the other grabbed the piece and pulled it cleanly out, his thick blood splattering on the ground as the would closed.
The demon turned his attention back to them, but before he could move, a pair of arms rooted him to the ground.
"Let me go, Brother."
Hibiki paid him no mind and instead turned his attention to Shizuo. "Take Izaya-sama and go!" he yelled, not believing that he was actually asking a human for help.
Shizuo didn't need any more instruction as he turned around and nimbly picked up Izaya in his arms before disappearing into the trees.
The two remaining demons stared at the now quiet clearing for a long while, all tension seeming to melt away with Shizuo and Izaya's departure.
"I thought you hated humans," Takashi finally muttered, not bothering to struggle. "Or was that all for Sakuraya? You always did have a strange obsession with my son."
Hibiki chuckled, finding his jaw finally comfortably intact as he spoke. "I thought you were the rational one, but in the end you are no different from me. You do realize Sakurako-sama would have never hurt her own son, right?"
"Her happiness is all that matters," the other muttered under his breath. "She would have been better off forgetting him and everything left of him."
"Sometimes what you think is best may not be in their best interest." Hibiki let go of his brother. He looked over at the trees where the human and their prince had disappeared. "I almost made an irreversible decision, thinking it was best for Sakuraya. If not for the humans, it would have been all over."
Takashi turned around to face his brother, all flames extinguished when he realized his intentions had been exposed. "You saw through me."
Hibiki laughed bitterly. "Of course! You are my brother after all."
Takashi hesitated, studying the other closely as he weighed his options. "Will you report to Sakurako that I tried to kill her son?"
Hibiki crossed his arms pointedly. "Well, you did not."
"That is only because you stopped me."
"That human stopped you," Hibiki corrected him. He sighed. "He thwarted my plans too, I must say."
.
Shizuo finally slowed to a stop when he didn't hear footsteps behind him. They were much closer to civilization now, and he could almost make out the lights from the sleeping Kyoto on the horizon. Izaya was breathing heavily in his arms, clutching his own arm gingerly through the familiar fur-trimmed jacket. Shizuo grimaced. He had heard the crack earlier. Weren't demons supposed to heal quicker than this?
"Izaya?" he called the other softly, gingerly letting the other down. "Does it hurt?" he asked after a moment when he saw no change in the informant's pained expression.
"I don't know why it's taking so long to heal." Izaya could feel the bone mending slowly, the pain taking much too long to subside. He allowed himself to sit on the ground to ease the sudden pressure on his legs when Shizuo let him down. "Shit," he muttered, clutching the injured arm to his chest.
Shizuo sat down next to him, careful to keep his distance as he waited for Izaya to calm his nerves. He could feel his own heart beating far too quickly. He had so much resolve leaving the hotel, but he found that he could only stay silent now that the adrenaline had subsided.
Izaya let out a long sigh when the pain finally dulled to a throb and lay on the ground, exhausted. He gazed up at the endless sea of stars, seeming to enjoy the momentary rest deep in thought.
Shizuo watched the informant quietly, tracing the soft light of the sky reflecting off the demon's blood red eyes.
"Shizu-chan?" Izaya said after a long while.
"Yes?"
Izaya hesitated, not knowing how to put his thoughts into words. Shizuo was sitting right next to him now, calm as the sea. It was strange picture indeed. He could see the one in his memories smiling just as serenely. He closed his eyes tight, refusing to believe his own memories. Shizu-chan wasn't meant to be a calm creature. The two must be different people. That was the only explanation.
"Is everything alright?" Shizuo's voice brought him back to reality.
"Why do you ask that?" Izaya couldn't fathom how the other could detect any abnormality in one such as himself.
The bodyguard scratched his head. "Well, something just seems," he hesitated, searching for the right word, "missing."
Izaya blinked at him for a moment before looking away. "Sorry," he muttered. He really didn't want to bring up Tsugaru, especially now that he knew the reason for Shizuo's quick departure.
And, the last thing he wanted right now was to be alone with all the emotions that seemed to have made their way back to him.
"I just..." Izaya placed a hand on his heart, his claws tracing the black fabric that separated his skin from the outside world.
"Something happened, right?" Shizuo pressed on persistently, not knowing what to make of the entire situation. He supposed it was his fault for running away earlier, but he remembered Shinra's advice, and he was not about to let his past failures stop him now.
Izaya saw worry in those deep brown eyes. He caved in, the corners of his mouth quivering as he searched for the right words. "They did something to my memories. I've forgotten Tsu..." the name came out in a choke, and he paused at the sudden wave of emotion that washed over him. "Tsugaru," he finished after a moment. He took a deep breath, trying to drown out the anguish that seemed to flow around him relentlessly.
"My mother somehow made be forget about him, and the original plan was for me to go out here and find something that would remind me, but..." He closed his eyes, willing for all the endless pain that seemed to have engulfed him to go away. It didn't work.
"I am a little apprehensive," he admitted.
Shizuo stared at Izaya for a long while, soaking in the details. He knew he could take this as his chance, now that Tsugaru was out of the picture. Yet, he felt like it wasn't right for Izaya to forget.
No, he didn't want Izaya to forget.
"I could tell you about him," he offered meekly.
Izaya's eyes widened before his expression softened into a smile. "I'd like that."
Shizuo didn't know where to start. He told Izaya about the first time the two had met, under a huge sakura tree in the outskirts of Kyoto. He told him how the the samurai had to leave because of the war, and how Izaya had followed, until they had ended up in the cold land of Hakodate. He told the demon of that fateful day, and how they had made it back together to Tokyo afterwards. He nearly wavered when he recollected that day under the blooming sakura grove, the day Tsugaru had finally passed on.
He could not read Izaya's expression through the entire story, and when he reached the end, he found himself continuing, recalling how the two had finally met again after such a long time.
"I wish I could go back to that day," he muttered, scratching his head awkwardly.
"Why did you fall in love with me?" Izaya finally asked. "We've been fighting ever since the first day we've met."
Shizuo frowned. "Does it matter?"
"Then you don't deny it."
"I don't play around, flea."
Izaya smiled. "How should I know? You've always been a protozoan."
"Why you..."
"You're definitely not Tsugaru," Izaya continued, nodding to himself. "He doesn't sound anything like a protozoan."
Shizuo sighed, deciding not to press the issue.
Izaya stood up slowly, his legs feeling much better after the rest. "Thank you, Shizu-chan."
"Where are you going?"
"I need to fulfill a promise." He took the map out of his pocket, hesitating when he looked at Shizuo. "Will you accompany me?" He paused. "I don't want to be alone when I remember," he added in a near whisper.
"That's the plan," Shizuo replied. "Can't have someone else killing you, you know?"
Izaya nodded, laughing.
Thanks for reading!
