Disclaimer: I don't own X/1999, I didn't come up with any of their brilliant characters, they're the geniuses not me
The character of Alex, Jacob, Venus, Charlie, David, Anthony, Dvora and Dimitri are all mine. The Noters are half reality. The rest belong to all the book/movie/TV/anime/manga they came from. If you can spot where they're from then good for you!
Author's Thanks: To Cocoke5 from (I'm so happy I made you enjoy the fic so much, hope you'll enjoy the rest of the chapters as well!), To my most beloved Kakyou-chan2 (Oh, come on, it can't be that perfect, there's got to be something you don't like or would like to see different. I hope you know the hobbits are all your fault, I wrote them in for you . . I love your reviews, thank you SO much!), To Ruth who commented on my LJ (I'm still amused by your definition of ANW. Hope you'll keep enjoying this epic )
Also many thanks to Cait-hime-sama-dono, my beta, for working so hard on making A New World a better fic.
Youz Guyz out there: A NEW WORLD IS GOING TO CHANGE A FEW STUFF IN IT'S CHAPTERS DUE TO IT'S BETA-ING SO, WHEN I SAY, CHECK OUT THE CHAPTERS AND SEE THE CHANGES! YAYS!
Author's request: Since the fic's going to go through some massive renovations, I think you aught to inform me of what you want. If there's something that irks you/you want to see happening/you don't want to see happening/would like to see more of inform me via reviews or email and I'll work on it for the new and improved version.
Last announcement, really: Next week's independence day here, which means that A New World is going to celebrate its 2nd birthday! Yay! Happy birthday to ANW! Here's another chapter of Everything and the Kitchen Sink!
And this time, in Everything and the Kitchen Sink; a cliffhanger.
Also, jump wings to anyone who figures the orphanage scene out.
Chapter 38 – Welcome Back
"Dry land! Laaaaaaaaaaaaand up aheeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaad!"
The roars woke Kamui up one clear, wave-shaken morning. He pulled his head slowly off the pillow and blinked around his room.
The air last night was chilly and ocean spray kept making Kamui's cabin's floor slippery so him and Will shut the window, fighting against years of sea salt induced rust which clung to the hinges.
The new day's weather was hot and now, with the only way for fresh air to get into the small wooden room blocked, the room was growing even hotter.
Kamui rubbed at his eyes, sitting up on the bed, and noticed he was sweating. What a wonderful thing to wake up to; covered in sweat he can't wash off because there's only precious drinking water and the ocean to wash yourself with. He's going to stink even more now. Oh, great.
"Land up ahead, captain, dry land up ahead!"
Thoughts of nasty body odor and how much he grew tired of this constantly bobbing, swaying ship, vanished from Kamui's mind completely; There was land up ahead. The only land that could be up ahead, something Alex made sure to inform everyone of, was the shore closest to the City.
The City. And Fuma. Up ahead, captain.
Kamui leaped off the bed, landing on the spot in the floor where the ocean spray left a thin layer of salt. He sensed the jab of salt crystals and, in an instant, pulled back (he always had sensitive skin on his feet and palms), which tilted his body's height to the other foot just when it was still landing on the floor.
Kamui saw his arms stretched forward, reaching first to the wall before him, then to the ceiling, then to the bed behind him. His ankle hurt, his leg was folded under him. His knee now exploded with pain.
"Aw, fuck."
"Kamui?" Will's voice was always slightly cracked when he woke up, "Are you alright? I heard a bang."
Kamui tried getting up, but his hurt leg refused to do anything but shoot pain through his body. Instead of moving it, Kamui swung himself forward and stretched himself on the floor, dragging his body with his arms.
Will was by his side in a minute, grabbing his arms and pulling him up, supporting him as his master tried to stand up.
"Vhat happened? Are you in pain?"
Kamui inspected his leg and cursed again.
He used to be so agile, so light on his feet. Other than not being able to leap from the ground to the top of a tree and stay at its edge, perfectly balanced, perhaps this was the strongest proof Kamui ever experienced of his powers leaving his body.
He would have never landed so ungracefully if he still had his Kamui powers; he'd never damage himself so badly nor tried to leap that way from one spot to another. Now the only thing left of that ancient role he had to play in some dusty, far off dimension was his name; Kamui.
"I think I sprained my ankle, goddamnit, and probably did some damage to my knee. Shit."
Will mouthed for a moment, "M-maybe ve should go to Seishiro, he ist a doctor?"
Kamui glared at the werewolf, then looked away angrily, "No, the only person we can go to is Alex. God-fucking-damnit!"
"Land up ahead! Land up ahead."
Kamui jerked his head upwards, staring at the wooden ceiling as if he can see the pirate who was roaring the message, standing on the mast. The youth's face brightened, a smile beaming across it, "That's right; I was going to run up to the bridge and see what they're shouting about."
"Land ahead? You mean the shore?"
Kamui grabbed the cub by the shoulders, "Yes, the shore!" he gave Will a shake, "The shore we're nearing is none other then the one closest to the City."
Will blinked, frowning gently, "…Ze City…"
"We're coming back home!"
"…Ah…But your leg, it's wounded…"
Kamui waved it off and limped towards the door, still in his boxers.
"Uh…Kamui…"
"Come with me, Will, come see the shore!"
"Kamui…clothes…" It was too late; Kamui was already out of the room.
He clung to the staircase's railing forcefully, using all his strength to drag himself up with his hurt leg. The fresh air of the new day hit his face softly, blowing his untamed hair away from his face.
Kamui closed his eyes and savored the fresh breeze; he wanted to enjoy and remember every moment in this magnificent new day, the day they truly began nearing the City.
Kamui wasn't the only one who ran to the bridge as soon as they heard the pirate's call; Subaru and Seishiro were also there, their nighttime robes flapping in the wind.
Subaru, his hand fastening his robe closed on his chest, turned to Kamui with a dreamy smile, "Good morning, Kamui." He felt the boy either didn't really hear his words or didn't need to hear anymore than when he already heard.
Kamui limped his way to the bridge railing, leaning himself as far forward as he could, fingers gripping at the rough wood.
At first he couldn't see anything in the misty far off, above the slightly bumpy sea; there was a thin layer of mist covering whatever it was before them. For a moment, Kamui's heart sank and a dark thought tugged at his hopeful mind; What if the pirate made a mistake and thought something to be land when it wasn't? What if whatever that is before them is land, but not the land Kamui wants to see?
Ah, but look! The wind blew the mist away, like curtains drawn from the stage, and a shore became clearly visible before them.
A flat shore, darkish yellow in color and spotted by small dots of grey rocks. The Dark Side's shore was not as brilliant and glittering with pure, clean sand as in the Light Side. Like everything else in the Dark Side, the shore too was far more grim, ugly and despairing than that of the Light Side's.
The clouds covering the sun grew thicker, not only blocking some of its warmth, but now also obscuring some of its light.
Suddenly the men on the bridge, who were riding through the Light Side for these past three months, felt the full force of the difference between the Light and the Dark.
"My god…" Subaru exhaled, "This place really is built to depress you…"
"As if it was programmed to be that way." The dark onmyouji completed his lover's words.
Inside Kamui's heart, however, the grey cloud of realizing what it meant to be in the Dark Side again blew away quickly. Before his eyes, not the view of the dark yellow and grey shore played, but Fuma's face.
Fuma's face smiling at him. Fuma's dark red eyes flaring with warmth of joy and love. Fuma's thin lips stretching with a huge, beaming smile. Fuma will be so happy to see him again.
They'll run towards each other like mad and crush into each other, throwing their arms around each other.
Oh, the last time Kamui saw him Fuma couldn't do that; his arms were still broken. But that was half a year ago, surely Fuma healed by now.
So, before that, when was the last time Fuma's arms were around him?
In Seishiro's execution. The execution that started all of this.
He won't think about that now. Before that, think before that event.
That morning, ages ago, just before they got out of bed and Kakyou burst into the room looking like he saw a ghost or something.
They were sleeping, Kamui had his head on Fuma's shoulder and half his chest on Fuma's and his right arm was spread across that tight, muscular chest of Fuma's and Fuma's arms were around him, even though sometimes it'd wake Fuma up in the middle of the night because his arms went numb.
That's the last time Fuma's arms were around Kamui, the last time they slept together, the last time they made love, the last time they felt each other's skin, almost the last time they kissed, almost the last time they spoke to each other.
Kamui's head swooned as he realized how long ago that was, and how long ago it felt like. Was it only six months? It felt like six years.
Six years he's been in Okinawa; from Saya's death to his mother's death.
How long ago that felt?
What was he almost a year ago? What was he almost seven years ago? A different person, a different creature even.
Something warm was streaming down his cheeks. His ears picked up the sound of someone's soft whimpering. He was crying, he was whimpering.
A soft arms wrapped around his shoulder and Kamui didn't need to smell faint cigarette smoke to know it was Subaru who was hugging him.
"Oh god, Subaru...Subaru, I'm going to see him again soon…"
The onmyouji's arms grew tighter around him, his palms rubbing his back between his pointy shoulder blades.
"I-I can't comprehend it….I-I can't….I'm going to see him again, Subaru, I'm going to see Fuma again!"
Subaru was gently swaying them sideways, placing his cheek on the top of Kamui's head, "Yes, Kamui, and you know what? You've earned it."
Kamui drew away from his friend. His heart was already pounding madly in his narrow chest, but now it felt like it was trying to pound itself a way out of there.
He hung huge tearful eyes in Subaru's tearful jade eyes, "Really? Y-you think I-I've been good enough now to earn it…."
Subaru nodded and pulled Kamui into another strong embrace.
When David and Alex walked up to the bridge, Kamui and Subaru were still there, talking happily.
David waked up to the railing and inhaled slowly, closing his eyes to best enjoy the fresh morning air.
Alex stopped in his stride halfway through the bridge and stared forward to the land before him, blinking and frowning. He looked disheveled and confused; his awakening was a rude one.
At once his eyes caught the sight of Kamui in his scantly clad form and his beaming smiles and looked away instinctively. When his drowsy mind awoke enough to realize the reason for Kamui's brilliant smile he snapped his gaze back to the boy. It only mad him more confused.
So many things to think about these days. These crazy, crazy days.
He turned his eyes to Seishiro who was hanging a powerful stare at him and looked away from the dark onmyouji.
"Better go put something on, Kamui, you'll catch a cold like this." Subaru whispered in the youth's ear after reading the expressions changing on Alex's face like colors in a rainbow.
Kamui stared down at his boxers and sniggered, "Guess I should."
He took one step forward, with his bad leg, and came crushing into the bridge.
Alex appeared by his side like he was shot there, grabbing Kamui and steadying him to sit down upright.
"What happened? Your leg looks funny."
"I leaped off bed and landed on the floor the wrong way. My knee hurts and my ankle's screwed." Kamui did his best to avoid eye contact with Death. He didn't want to see the intense green orbs scan his exposed body. He didn't want to see those eyes at all, unless they were dark crimson shaded.
Alex placed his palm softly on Kamui's leg and the boy felt numbness spread through his kneecap. Next Death numbed Kamui's ankle, then pulled out his sword and carefully carved two horizontal lines in Kamui's skin; one above each damaged part of the boy's leg.
Alex bit down into his wrist and, pulling the new wounds' edges apart with his thumb, poured the healing blood into them.
Kamui arched his back a little, throwing his head back as if trying to detach himself from the sensation the Dark Trick played in his body as much as he can.
He was healed completely soon, and the blood stopped flowing into him.
He opened his eyes and scanned Alex's face for a moment, accidentally making short eye contact with the man, and quickly leaped to his feet.
"Thank you." He threw across his shoulder before running down back to his room.
Alex stayed behind, still crouching with his sword unsheathed, staring after the boy. "…You're welcome, Kamui…"
Subaru frowned at the sound of his Death's voice. There was something strange about him this morning; he seemed to be shrouded in a dark cloud, ever since he laid eyes on the approaching shore.
Was it the understanding that soon there will be very few places to run to in order to avoid the City? Was it the inner resolution Subaru saw in Alex; to return to the City and finish this voyage, and its consequences? Or was something else going through Death's mind that's making him so distraught?
Maybe it's something else? Maybe it's the ships' way of stirring old ghosts from everyone's pasts that's haunting Alex?
A week had passed since the last memory wave that washed over them all, maybe another wave crushed on Death. If so, then what did he dream of, was it troubling?
Subaru's heart tightened, his eyes tingling with upcoming tears. He wished to take Alex aside and hug him; comfort him and ease away from him whatever tension that's making him so troubled.
"So, we're going back, huh?" Seishiro fumbled with a cigarette between his long, strong fingers. He was intentionally digging his eyes into the twirling white cylinder, quite intent on avoiding eye contact with Death.
Alex shook his head gently, as if to remove the hood of clouding thoughts from his head, and climbed to his feet.
"Yes. We're returning to the City. When exactly, I don't know."
Seishiro shot his eyes to Death, "You mean we're not going directly to the City?"
Alex turned his head towards the terrain before them. A slightly blurry, grayish land bobbing gently with each wave hitting the ship's nose.
"The distance between this shore and the City, with the cliffs to climb, the old City's ruins and the fire monsters' river to cross, can be covered in a variety of times. It can take a few hours in hasty ride and it can take a week; if we take our time and make sure to work on our meals and lodging conditions real good it can even be three weeks."
Seishiro awaited Alex to give him his final answer. Subaru drew nearer to him, darting his eyes from one man to the other nervously.
When the Sakurazukamori noted Death was probably sunk in his thoughts his patience ran completely short. "So, how long are we going to take to get to the City?"
Alex kept his eyes fixed on the approaching bobbing landscape.
"Alex!"
The jerk running through Death's body started in his shoulders, like an involuntary shudder caused by cold, and shook the hard white figure gently all the way down to his feet.
His eyes, when he snapped them to Seishiro, were blurry and alarmed. He was caught with his guards down in front of his men, for the first time.
It was such a surprise for Seishiro to see Death like that, that for a moment he was unsure of whether he should bother Alex with his petty nagging. Something was obviously disturbing Alex and Seishiro kicked himself mentally for not being aware enough of his own feelings to know what emotions might be troubling someone else.
Alex blinked rapidly, rubbing his thumb across his forehead for a moment, hand on his waist. He looked completely human; completely devoid of the commanding, powerful aura his Men and Creatures usually read off of him, standing like that making such human gestures.
He leveled his gaze to Seishiro's and nodded briefly, still looking disturbed. "I-I think we'll stretch it over three days, but not more. More would be…awkward…and…unfair.
"We all want to go back to the City, Seishiro, even I miss people and a place to be in…I…I'm sorry, Seishiro, but just trust me when I say this won't repeat itself. Unless you'll commit a crime now, you'll never have to set foot in the court."
He hung his eyes at Seishiro and they looked begging, vulnerable, "Trust me."
Seishiro mouthed a moment, feeling a flush creeping up his neckline. There was something about Death's other side – the soft, human, susceptible side – that disarmed Seishiro with the sheer surprise of witnessing the man in it.
"I-it's okay…three days is okay. You don't have to stretch it that long, too. I trust you…"
He was edging closer to Subaru again, as if to hide behind the man.
Alex nodded, frowning softly, and looked down to the floor as if to find something he lost there. He stared down at the floor like that for a moment before snapping his head up again and this time his eyes were clear; the clouds completely gone.
"Well, guess I have to start packing, don't I? We all need to. I have Lestate's precious's velvet to rearrange back into the box they came in," he sighed theatrically, "so much to do, so little time. There's also…."
"Alex, may I have a word with you?" The pirate captain's deep voice cut into Alex words and thoughts.
Death's face became a rainbow of emotions again, his eyes glazing over once more. He stared off at the heavy man, as if trying to focus his vision on him.
"Y-yes?"
The pirate scanned Seishiro and Subaru for a moment, suspicion tracing lines in his forehead, "It's finished. Thought you'd like to take a look before we land and you leave."
The look on Alex's face turned from confused and fazed to sharp and cold. "Yes." His voice came out deep and sharp, "I'm coming."
He walked off the bridge with the pirate, leaving the onmyoujis behind clueless and curious.
"What….do you think that was about?" Subaru mumbled, turning to his lover.
Seishiro stared at the spot where the captain and Alex stood a moment ago, musing, "I don't know. Though I have a vague idea of what it might be…." He frowned, then a smile tugged at his lips.
"What? What is it? You're hiding something from me, I can tell. What do you think they've got there done for Alex?"
Seishiro tried erasing the smile but his emotions were still too out of his control to pull such a thing off. If he tells Subaru he might ruin something he very much wanted to happen.
"Seishiro-san, answer me!"
"I think the ship's captain made a map of the shores they've visited so far for Alex."
Subaru glared at his lover untrustingly.
Seishiro pulled his biggest effort to place the mask which once came so naturally to him when the roots of the Sakura were wrapped around his ankles, and turned clear innocent eyes to Subaru, "You know how Alex always complains about his poor map making skills. I think he just doesn't want anyone else to know he had to ask someone to help him with something."
It took Subaru a while of staring deep into the Sakurazukamori's eyes before feeling completely confident that his lover was speaking the truth.
As they walked down to their room to pack a doubt still tugged at the back of his mind and Subaru had to wonder, worriedly, what Seishiro and Alex were plotting.
The small workshop was warm, the fabric covering its walls trapping the day's heat inside. The heat coming from the small melting pot did not help make the room temperature any more bearable.
The pirates bent over their delicate artwork were sweating, reaching for small mucky fabric tissues to wipe their brows every few minutes. On each table a large clay jug sat with a cluster of matching clay glasses at its round bottom, which the men took from time to time and filled with cool water. And still the work carried on relentlessly.
The ship captain lead Alex to the front table and gingerly picked up a narrow black leather-bound box, opening it gently for Alex to observe its contents.
Jade rims turned turquoise for a fragment of a second and glowed, the pupil shrinking into pinheads.
The moment passes.
White fingers reach for the box and press it closed. The digits curled around the smooth cover and collected the box into the strong palm.
"Thank you, it's perfect."
The pirate nodded, respectfully awaiting the deal's end.
Alex concentrated his powers and created five gold bars in the fist of his other palm.
The sailor's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as he ogled at the glinting yellow metal, "Gold? That was not our deal, this is too much."
Alex shook his head softly, placing four of the bars in the pirate's large palm and waving the fifth at the side of his face so the bigger man's eyes would lock on his resolute ones.
"This is to make sure you won't stay in this shore after you drop us off. Go from here to the other ports you missed out on by shipping us here and come back later. I don't want anyone from the City to spot us. Is the gold enough to cover that?"
The pirate frowned at Alex for a moment, the wrinkles in his sun-beaten forehead matching those he etched into his face earlier when looking at Subaru and Seishiro.
"Yes, it's enough gold." He turned to gesture Alex to leave the workshop, walking towards the door for Death to mimic him and carry it on until he's out of his workshop.
Alex did. The black box tightly encircled by palm and fingers.
The large man thought he said his last words to Alex, when a thought he had to express pressed itself out through his lips, "Why do I get the feeling you will use this as a weapon?"
Death walked on, leaving the question hanging in the air, unanswered.
Outside the workshop the corridor had no windows to let in the sunlight and so its lighting was dim.
Looking sideways, trying to trace his buzzing thoughts with his eyes, Alex cast two bright turquoise circles of light beams on the wooden walls.
Alex stopped, closed his eyes, tilted his head backwards and took a deep breath. He needed a cigarette and he needed to smoke it somewhere other than the bridge and its ominous view of the upcoming shore.
"What's that in your hand?"
"Shouldn't you be catching some shut eye after last night? If you'll keep passing your days sleepless you'll run out on energy."
"I'd rather run out of energy and become human than closing my eyes and seeing the crematoriums."
"Ah. Oh well."
"I said, what's that in your hand."
"…."
"You bought something from the pirates' workshop, didn't you?"
"….."
"….He….the brat….I mean, he…."
"I know. I've noticed you're letting your hair grow."
"Yeah. Grows kind of fast too. I can't remember if that's how it used to be before it got shaven off."
"That's unimportant. I need you behind me in this."
"Yeah. You know I'm behind you in everything, brother."
"Thank you."
"What about the others?"
"What others? Seishiro knows, somehow. I don't think I need to ask him if he cares or not. Lestate might grumble a bit but eventually, I'm sure he'll like to see…."
"….?"
"…."
"….and the rest?"
"What rest? Victoria doesn't care about him so, no matter how much she hates me she won't be bothered by trying to do anything about it."
"And if she'll try to I'll talk her out of it."
"You don't have to. I won't dare tell you what to do with your girlfriend."
"Then leave it for me to decide what to do with her. I decide to tell her to either back off or take my side."
"Be nice, she deserves nothing of your rough side."
"The first thing she knew of me was my rough side…See, that's the beauty of….Shit, listen to me, rambling on like some lovesick kid…"
"You are one."
"I'm not a kid, I'm…"
"You're what, Sixty, seventy years old tops? I'm nearly a hundred times older."
"……"
"I'm sorry, didn't mean to insult you."
"You didn't insult me. You scared me."
"I'm sorry."
"Not like that. I mean…your eyes glow, that's all…"
"I know. I can't seem to get a hold on that."
"Well, maybe if you won't think about it so much…"
"Subaru."
"Eh?"
"Subaru's the only person we have to worry about."
"What about the mutt? No, never mind, stupid question."
"What will I do with Subaru?"
"Beats me, I hardly know the guy."
"….I'm sorry…."
"What about…hey…y-your eyes they're bleeding."
"Please leave."
"O-okay…you sure you're alright though?"
"I'm sorry….I'm so sorry…."
"It's okay, just…uh….get better okay? Just don't think about it so much, okay?"
"...Yes…."
Sorata frowned, staring at the frying eggs so hard it seemed he was trying to prepare them with his eyes.
The flat round mass of bright orange and yellow swirls that was scrambled eggs shifted in its pan slightly as the monk jerked his wrist involuntarily. He was forming the plan of how he'll pull his next move, imagining how it aught to look and how he aught to move, his wrist jerking was inevitable.
Back in his temple there was a monk who was a specialist in martial arts and had always told Sorata that this jerking of his limbs is his shortcoming in battle; any experienced enemy could learn from them what Sorata's next move will be.
Wait, did he just think 'back in my temple' instead of 'back in….' 'back in….'
"Babe?"
"Hmm?" Arashi rubbed at her eyes gently, trying to reduce her signs of sleepy gracelessness from Yuuto who just walked into the kitchen.
"My shrine, what was its name?"
Arashi blinked at her husband's back and frowned a little. Her palms drew instinctive circles on her round belly, "I'm from Ise shrine, Yuzuriha's from Mitsumine shrine, you're from Koyasan….you forgot?"
Sorata made his move and it was perfect. The flat egg mix flew up into the air and descended, flipping perfectly, right back to the pan into the exact same position and location where it lay a moment ago.
"Yessssss! Soon you'll have your special breakfast scrambled eggs and chocolate crepe, just like you love it."
Arashi edged forward on her chair, an involuntary move on her behalf.
The miko was no longer in the stage of pregnancy when women find scrambled eggs with chocolate spread a delicacy, is she?
Yuuto wondered.
"Arashi-san, how far into the pregnancy are you?"
The monk and miko hung their eyes on Love; Arashi shifting hers politely almost immediately, Sorata lingering his beaming eyes on and on.
"Charlie-sensei says the baby's due any time now."
This startled Yuuto much. Where was his head all those days? Was he still stuck in his worries over Arashi's pregnancy from the famine's days? Must be so.
"Well…that's…amazing!"
"Isn't it just?" Sorata's voice was a little too loud with joy.
"It seems too good to be true, too good to be so soon, eh?" Love could see the light he was emitting reflecting off Sorata's orbs and on the semi-silver cutlery on the table by Arashi's plate.
He noted the empty jar of pickled water chestnuts which stood ajar by Arashi's plate. Yuuto clearly remembered that jar half filled last night when he took a few as a midnight snack. Arashi and Sorata were the first to wake up this morning and; no one else could have eaten from that jar.
Perhaps he is not the only one still stuck with famine time worries. Arashi's face was rounder than before and her rump had grown to a shape as round as her belly.
Oh well, if it makes her happy, let her eat. Her husband is not the sort to give up on love or lovemaking because of a few extra kilograms.
The living room's screen door swung open and a rapid, livid footstep sounded, heading towards the kitchen.
When Fuma entered his step was light and springy, his right arm swinging to his moves while his left one grabbed the wall at the kitchen's entry to swing himself into the room. His dark scarlet eyes scanned the kitchen inhabitants before emitting a chirpy, "Good morning everybody!"
"Good morning, Monou-kun!" Sorata returned the chirpy tone with an extra tinge of happiness.
"Good morning, Fuma-kun. How's the weather outside?" Yuuto beamed at the young man whose completely changed personality he atoned for.
Without sensing Kamui's love returning into his range, existing and as strong as ever, Fuma would have still been the zombie he spent the last six months being.
"Good morning, Monou-san." Even Arashi's voice sounded soft and warm in an extra happy way.
No one was left unaware of the change in Fuma's mood and personality. No one was left unhappy about it. From Lion who'd drop in more often, as if to make sure his eyes do not deceive him whenever Fuma breaks out in a wide smile, to Fuma's house members; all were delighted and extremely relieved to finally see that dark cloud lift off Fuma's life.
Fuma tended to his wounds, volunteered to do more house work (and actually paid attention enough to learn how to do it properly), helped out with small furnishing projects Karen and Yuuto tried to pull without complaining about all the effort gone to waste when the new designed proved uncomfortable and useless, smiled more, talked more, moved around more. He played basketball with Sorata and Vash and kicked both their asses in the game, jumping up and down and yelling his own victory hoots whenever he scored.
It was like they had a completely new tenant in the house, the ghost of a man they once lived with completely vanished.
Fuma no longer worked in the cemetery, since the death toll dropped to zero, and even if he did it wouldn't swing his mood one bit towards darkness; no matter how many bodies he'd bury or how horrific their condition would be, no matter how much Jacob would bitch and snarl at him.
These days Fuma worked the harvest season away in various fields. The corn fields needed harvesting, as well as the sunflower ones, the cotton fields and vineyards were always in need of more working hands.
Fuma came back to dinner with dirty hands, skin carved with brand new scratches and blisters, but he smelled of sunshine and freshly turned earth and smiled so widely no one could bare to ask him why he's not wearing gloves, weary even of the mentioning of wounds might murk the young man's mood.
Fuma had grown to be a real man now; fully level headed and responsible, He no longer shut himself in his shy silence, fearful of the Dragon's lingering impression on his co-inhabitants. He was in too far a good mood to care about things like that; his Kamui's on his way here and when he's home again a better lover and mate will wait for him, new and improved.
An image of Kamui played before Fuma's eyes as he dashed out of the house towards the corn field he was to work in that day, as the sun's light surprised his still sleepy eyes and his chest exploded with warmth.
Karen, walking into the yard of the City orphanage where she spent her days off volunteering, spotted Fuma nearly skip-hopping his way to the field next door to the orphanage.
Mrs. Mammy (real name unknown, since the moment she wretched herself out of grief for the large estate the Lost Dimension tore her out of, and decided to devote her life to the orphanage) walked towards the fire mistress, beaming her usual warm smile.
"Why, hello Ms. Watling! You sure seem chipper on this morning. Mr.s Butler been sweet on you last night?"
"Yes, they have, they always are. It's not that, though…" Karen was too busy following Fuma with her eyes to pay much attention to Mammy's teasing.
She let the usual screams of playing children and the chatter of Mammy's deep and thick-with-sweetness voice become a background noise.
"Aunty Kareeeeeeeen!" A child collided with her leg, wrapping his small arms around it and burying his face in her side, weeping.
"What is it, Webster dear?" Karen tried sounding like she was paying the child attention, while her eyebrows climbed higher and higher up her forehead as she noted Fuma delivering friendly pats on the backs of today's coworkers, cracking jokes with them as much as he could with his poor English and theirs.
"Gavroche kicked me in the shin." The blue eyed boy whimpered, rubbing his slightly grubby face into Karen's dark red dress.
The fire mistress ruffled the boy's soft hair gently.
Fuma was just bowing politely before the field manager, immediately breaking out of the formal air and grabbing for his work tools.
"Gavroche! Gavroche! You get yo' li'le scrawny ass here right now!" Mammy billowed somewhere behind Karen and the boy clutching her leg cringed, sobbing miserably.
"Whoa!"
"Are you hitting Webster again? Why!"
"'E truied t'kiss mei!"
"…."
Fuma rid himself of his shirt and took his time to examine his torso.
Karen knew Fuma must have been quite nicely built before they arrived here, something about him being in the basketball team of his high school back in their home world, but was he trying to become even more toned now?
"You apologize to Webster and you do it now, boy."
"NO!"
"'Ah said, you apologize to Webster, boy, NOW!"
Karen heard a small foot stomp the ground in anger just when she realized what Fuma was doing.
Today wasn't really hot. In fact, lately the wind carried a strange cold tinge to it, tainted by the faint odor of snow. Surely, in this weather, no matter how hard he worked Fuma won't be hot enough to need the removal of his shirt.
But the sun beat down relatively strong today, through the thin layer of clouds as usual, but beat stronger it did.
Fuma was trying to catch a tan to match his well shaped torso. She realized this and immediately realized who he was doing this for. She almost burst into a fit of "Ohohohoho!" as realization hit her.
Instead she turned her head away from the strapping young man just in time to see little shark-ish faced Gavroche close the distance between the weeping Webster and himself and landed a quick kiss on the other boy's cheek before running off quickly.
Young Webster stared blankly after the slightly shorter boy, his large blue eyes ogling, before emitting an excited giggle and running after the other child.
"Well…." Mammy exhaled, large plump fists stuck deep into the healthy layer of fat at her hips, "Did you see that? Did you see that!"
Karen was just as taken aback as Mammy, only from less prejudice-based reasons, "I did…"
"Tssk. Kids these days. It 'aint fittin'." The large black lady shook her head, "And if it 'aint fittin', it 'aint fittin'!"
Karen found she was smiling as broadly as she could, her heart filling with warmth, her head with the vision of a suntanned burly young man spreading his arms in welcome for a shorter, thinner, paler yet strikingly beautiful youth she once knew as her Kamui.
"Yes, kids these days…"
The night was thick and charged.
The air blowing around the campsite Death's riders set up for the night, under the cliffs beyond which is the desolated field where the City before this one once existed the only thing separating Justice from one another, was icy cold.
"My god…soon it'll snow, I'm sure of it." Subaru shivered, tightening his heavy coat around him. He hadn't used this coat since their climb up the mountains separating the Dark Side from the Light one.
"Hmn."
"Seishiro-san, is something the matter? You seem tense."
Seishiro, who didn't notice his thoughts let him drift out of paying attention to his lover, snapped his eyes to Subaru, reining the mask back on his face.
"Tense? No…well…maybe…I guess I'm still a little nervous about this whole going back to the City stuff."
Subaru was too cold and too distracted by something he knew he has to remember yet forgot to notice his lover was lying to his face. Instead he wrapped his arm around Seishiro's waist and rubbed the dark onmyouji's back to try and keep him warm.
Warm against the cold, the cold that brings with it the smell of surely coming snow. Snow…
"Oh, damn! Snow! That's what I was trying to remember; snow makes Alex edgy, I must go check if he's not too jumpy."
And before the Sakurazukamori could try to come up with an excuse to keep the Sumeragi away from Alex's tent, his lover had already crossed half the distance to Death's tent.
"Ah, well. If I'd try to tell you any more lies you'd suspect me."
When Subaru stormed into Alex' tent he found Death looming over his desk, holding an open box in his hands, staring down at it strangely. His shoulders had that tense angle to them yet his head was bowed over the box limply, a combination Subaru found most strange.
He couldn't make out what was in the box, save for a delicate silvery glint.
"Alex?"
Death jerked himself straight and snapped the box shut, hiding it behind his back and glaring at Subaru before his eyes softened.
His eyes were soft turquoise.
"Is everything alright?"
"Perfectly alright. Is it cold outside?"
"Yes, very cold…I-it might snow tonight….just thought I might warn you…I'm sorry if I sound pitiful."
Death's features softened, but only a bit. He was scanning Subaru's face in a way that unnerved the light onmyouji slightly.
"Thank you. You don't sound pitiful at all; I thank you for your concern. I thank you for every time you were there for me to comfort me when I was down, both you and Seishiro. I…I'm sure I don't deserve such kindness…" Alex looked away, pain in his large green eyes.
Subaru walked to a pace away from Alex, "Of course you deserve it, you…you saved us, twice already. We are the ones who owe you for being there when we were facing danger."
Alex shook his head, his stark white brow furrowing, "No…I'm such a bad person…a-and….I can't think of any other way to be….oh Subaru…I'm sorry…"
Subaru reached out to embrace Death and found the bigger man was stiff and tense in his arms. He tried to rub the tension out of the powerful, hard muscles and instead found the thin bulge of the man's scars under his fingers.
"You're not a bad person, Alex; you're a very good person."
"Am I? Am I really? I-I can be such a monster…no, I am a monster…"
Subaru drew himself away from Death so he could grab the man's face to look into orbs a shade darker than his. "I don't want to hear any more of that talk from you, ever! You're not a monster for us; you're not a monster at all. Your behavior, when it's eccentric….you can change it, you can prevent it, you can learn to control it."
Alex' eyes widened, crimson tears gathering at the rims of the already bloodshot eyes. His breath hitched, coming out in short retching gasps, "Y-you think I can stop it? Before I do something stupid?"
Subaru brought his forehead to Death's, smiling softly, "Yes. I believe in you."
Death reached for Subaru's wrists, grabbing them faintly at first, then more firmly. He detached the onmyouji from him, looking into his eyes and smiling firmly.
"Thank you, Subaru, I needed to hear that right now…so much…"
Subaru watched as Death turned around to stare around his tent absentmindedly, "I'll be going now; you need to get your rest."
Death snapped his eyes to the Sumeragi, "Yes, we all need our rest. Please, go to your tent, go to bed."
The turquoise flash in Subaru's orbs rendered him completely compliant.
As soon as the onmyouji exited the tent Death followed him, turning to walk to Kamui's tent.
Outside, standing in the freezing air, Seishiro and David stood, tensely watching Alex enter Kamui's domain. They exchanged glances before retreating each to their own affairs.
There was something different about the air with which Alex stepped into his tent that night, Kamui noticed.
His eyes did not dart all over the tent in search of something to look at intensely, like a piece of discarded clothing or a personal item. Alex didn't even try to locate Will.
He stepped in with a small bow to avoid the curtains obscuring his eyesight then he simply straightened his back, eyes strong but not too intense, as he looked directly at Kamui.
Alex found Kamui sitting on the bed sorting out his clothes.
Landing on solid ground did not bring with it the happiness and calm Kamui thought it would. In fact, it only brought dark, gloomy, troubling ideas into his frantic young mind.
He noticed Alex avoiding eye contact with him, no matter what, and saw this as an ominous sign.
Nothing guaranteed him when they're going back to the City. This Kamui realized when, after only a short ride to the cliffs' feet, the riders stopped and began pitching their tents. It was not even noon yet, and still they stopped until the next day.
Are they trying to stall their arrival at the City as much as they can? Are they planning to, Kamui preferred not to think of it but found it was inevitable, stay here of all places and wait for him to redeem Seishiro?
Noting the rest of the riders, Subaru included, had the same habit of avoiding eye contact and conversation with him; Kamui's worries took to the worse possible case scenario.
They will be staying here till kingdom comes. They chose this spot of all places because it was so close to the City, so close to Fuma.
They paid off the pirates to leave this shore immediately and not try to reach the City, which might alarm the Noters and Fuma of Kamui's arrival.
They chose to stay at the foot of the cliffs where the Noters in the watchtowers can't see them so they won't be spotted.
They are going to stay here, so close yet so far, and torment him with the short distance between him and Fuma.
Kamui preferred not to think about it, preferred not to comprehend it, or his mind would once more cave in and only Subaru would be able to pull him out of his unconscious denial of reality.
No, this time he won't come out, not even for Subaru. He won't come out unless he hears Fuma's voice calling him.
Then he'll make them see that even cruelty and punishment have their limits, that there's only so much they can try to push him against True Justice.
Kamui's hands shook badly as he tried to find things to do to occupy his mind that nothing he tried doing went well. His palms were so sweaty that his fingers left thin parallel lines on the fabrics of the clothes he was trying to unfold and fold again.
Will sat at the head of the bed, his legs folded to his chest, staring miserably at Kamui. There was very little he could say to his master and very little he could think of saying in the first place.
As Death walked into the tent, the werewolf could smell something was strange. Or maybe the smell of snow awoke something deeply buried in his unconsciousness, the smell of winter in the continent he heard much about but never saw. Snow never fell in Brazil, and yet it alerted something in him.
"Kamui, I need to speak to you. Do you mind stepping outside with me for a moment?" Death's voice was cool, relaxed and only slightly assertive.
Kamui chose not to look up from the clothes he so preciously chose to take due to how they might fit him nicely for Fuma's eyes to bask on.
"….Alright…" he whispered when he realized there wasn't anything much he could do other than to obey Death.
He had to pull all the strength in his body and heart to get off the bed and walk towards Alex, his head still bowed, his fingers still involuntarily fidgeting.
"Oh, and take your coat with you; it's cold outside and I'd like to take a short walk…I have something to tell you that is very important."
Kamui's shoulders shook as he fought back a powerful fit of sobbing, "Yes…" he reached for his coat faintly, only to have it brought to his hands by Death.
"Let's go."
Kamui followed, wondering if this is how a prisoner on death row felt as he walked towards the execution site.
The only criminal he ever sent to execution was Seishiro.
Only then did Kamui catch a glimpse of what he had brought about the Sakurazukamori.
Oh god….and how Subaru might have felt! His poor Subaru, so nerve wrecked, so worried he looked crazy.
Was it worth it? His pride, was it worth it? The pride wounded by the man who brought so much pain over one of Kamui's dearest friends, back in a world so far away from them now that it seemed irrelevant?
Was it worth it? The six months' loneliness, night by freezing night with only a body of some half-accused doppelganger from a different world so much different and blood drenched than his for company in his bed?
Was it worth it? Watching Fuma with his broken arms in bandages, running for his life from a monster far too strong for him to ever think of overcoming?
Was it worth it? All the stress and pain and loneliness these six months caused Fuma?
When Kamui raised his eyes from the ground and the view of his shuffling feet walking on the dim grey and white land underneath him, they already arrived where their conversation was to take place.
They were facing the shore, the water glittering in the moonbeams at the distance, staring out at the ocean on which they rode to this wretched place and the wretched decisions it had to bring upon them all.
Death stood with his back to Kamui, one leg on a rock, palms resting at his sides. His black hair billowed in the chilly wind. His cape danced on the cold breeze, often flapping so the blue and white stripes on it's inside flashed before Kamui like a finger pointing at him with guilt.
Oh, Shiro Kamui, you sure know whose head to fuck with.
"Kamui, I've made a very important decision about this….trip."
Kamui inhaled as much cold air as he could, hoping it will wrap his aching heart with frost to fend off the throbbing pain Death's following words will bring upon him.
Death did not go on for a while; instead he tensed his shoulders, folding his arms on his chest.
This was not something he will enjoy saying, Kamui knew. After all, Alex never liked bringing him bad news.
Because Alex loves him, and Kamui hurt him so much in return.
Oh, Shiro Kamui, no matter how many undertakers you'll redeem and how much punches you take from people you condemned to death, for your biggest crime you still have to pay.
'Bring it on, I know I deserve it.'
"Tomorrow we're scaling these cliffs and heading directly towards the City as fast as we can. Hopefully we'll be there by noon."
Kamui opened his mouth to say something but found he had no breath in him to say it. He inhaled but there was no strength in him left to do anything but to stand there and try to comprehend.
At the City by tomorrow noon…
That is…
"But we have to agree on something, Kamui; you will never try to lay your hand on a Man or Creature of Death. If you see something offensive you turn to me and solve it with me. I will not have my men do anything wrong and I know them best to fit them with a proper punishment.
"I know you're Justice, I know you're more Justice now than when we left the City half a year ago, and I trust your power of judgment. But my men are mine and I'd like to keep them from harm of the outside world. If anyone is to hurt them I'd rather have it me, and bare the consequences of it."
For a brief moment Death turned to look Kamui across his shoulder, to make sure the boy was listening.
His eyes glowed turquoise in the moonlight.
"I need you to promise me, no, to vow to me that this is how things will be from now on. Let's end this, Kamui, I'm too weary of brawling with you…I want peace."
Kamui let his tears roll down his cheeks unnoticed. He nodded before finally speaking, "Yes, I want peace as well…I want forgiveness… I'll stop this here. I'm sorry Alex."
Death no longer looked at him, instead he moved even more nervously, changing standing positions a few times before stopping completely, head bowed lowly.
"Kamui…You're going back to Fuma, to be happy with the man you love. I understand that, I agree to it. I…I agreed to it back then as well…I know you know this was not about you and me…."
The wind blew through the thick silence between them and suddenly Kamui realized the meaning of this event.
"Kamui, I can't stop loving you, though I won't burden you with myself anymore. I'll withdraw from your life completely; I'll bother you no longer…."
Death's voice cracked with emotions and tears.
Then he turned to face Kamui suddenly, his cape billowing and wrapping around him theatrically for a moment. The eyes lying on Kamui were no longer glowing; they were painful green.
Kamui's shoulders shook and not because of the cold.
"Just…one thing….I want you to know that I'm always here for you, whenever you're sad or in trouble. Especially if you're in trouble. I want you to remember that I'll always come to save you, and…I'll ask for nothing in return, not even thanks…"
Kamui nodded, finally gaining enough control over himself to wipe the tears from his face. "I'm sorry." He whimpered softly into the wind which caught his voice and scattered it away from Death's ears.
"So…just in case you might forget…or be overcome by bad thoughts and that lack of confidence I know still eats you sometimes…whenever bad thoughts or a nightmare come to haunt you …
"I'd like you to take this…and maybe…maybe you can use it to remember that out there there's something that loves you more than anything in its world….Something that would give you everything possible….that would do anything for you, Kamui…
"….Because I love you, Kamui….I love you so much."
The black box was extended towards Kamui in a strong hand, completely still.
The white of the arm shone painfully bright in the moonlight, clashing with the blue of ink turning black in the dark. Numbers carved into the skin eons ago.
The smooth leather of the box caught the moonlight in a soft line the box' length.
Kamui reached for the object and gently picked it from Death's grip.
He opened the box and stared down at a beautiful necklace; a work of art.
It was made of a thin band of leather, into which three gems were set encircled by a thin line of silver fashioned into a delicate vine connecting each gem to the other.
Even in the night's dark the gems shone the most brilliant shade of violet; the shade Kamui studied himself enough to know was the exact same as his eyes.
He gasped with awe but immediately remembered his position and picked the jewel gently out of the soft velvet bed it lay on. He inspected it, his heart missing a beat with the sheer beauty of this piece of art.
"May I put this on you, Kamui?"
Justice shook himself out of his shock of awe and nodded, turning his back to Alex and lifting the hairs which fell on the back of his neck to expose the long thin column of sensual flesh on which the gift was to be placed.
Alex stepped towards the boy, taking the jewel from him and gently placing it around Kamui's neck while making sure he will not pull it too tight.
With his back to Death, Kamui could not see the eyes flash from green to beaming turquoise as Death melted the clasps made of steel together into one locked round lump.
It was done.
"You can go now Kamui, please don't feel obliged to thank me or speak to me anymore. Just remember my words; it'll be enough for me."
Kamui wanted to turn and look at Alex one more time, but soft fingers at his shoulders indicated him the man wished to avoid eye contact with him.
"Go to bed now, Kamui, a long day awaits us tomorrow."
'The day I finally meet Fuma'.
Kamui was on his way moments later.
Will was fast asleep on their bed when Kamui stormed into the tent, belly almost aching with the amount of good news he had to share with the cub.
Kamui frowned; this was odd. Will doesn't usually go to sleep so early, not before he made sure Kamui was tucked into bed as well.
Ah, but such things do not matter and frankly Kamui couldn't bring himself to think of anything but tomorrow's noon.
He'll be with Fuma again. There will be peace between Death and Justice. The world would be alright again, a notion so far from him it seemed almost unreal.
The boy, fidgeting around in his tent with excitement too great to allow him sleep is exactly what Death foretold Seishiro about.
Pulling his fingers into the right position, the Sakurazukamori, one of the strongest Men of Death, one of Death's most loyal servants and allies, cast the same sleep spell he rendered Will unconscious with.
Lestate poked his head out of his tent and watched snowflakes slowly descend from the heavens.
He saw, through the thin veil of white flakes, the Sakurazukamori walk away from Kamui's tent towards Death's.
He wished not to think tonight and so, he withdrew back into his warm domain, to sit on his coffin and stare at things.
The night air grew colder and colder, the snow creating a deadly beautiful layer on the ground.
White as Death's skin.
Snug in his bed, cocooned in the blankets he managed to pull around himself before giving into the immense fatigue which suddenly crushed on him, Kamui slept soundly.
The mauve gems began glowing gently.
"The prince, the priest and the demon," The witch said, leering over her pool of dimensional lens, "it will soon happen again. And then,
"A vampire master, and a master-less vampire.
"Two of the light, two from the dark.
"And twins of fire.
"Fire to destroy.
"What will they do then, when the fire licks at the City?" The witch reached for her glass of liquor.
(tbc)